#24 Minnesota Twins Team Card

Beginning in 1956 and going all the way through to 1981, with a one year absence in 1969, Topps included team cards in its flagship sets.

Building the Set
July 18, 2020 from Albany, NY - Card #125

This was a fairly random addition to our set.  eBay seller cuda3 had a small lot of 1965 Topps cards up for bid, and for some reason the description of "MANY OF THESE HAVE REAL SHARP CORNERS" in their listings caught my eye when browsing through the available cards.  I set out intending to add the Jim Bunning (#20) card among 3 or 4 others listed by cuda3 and I ended up losing all auctions except for the listing for this Twins team card.  I won the card with a winning bid of $3.13, and I can confirm now that I have the card in hand it does in fact have real sharp corners.

This card arrived on the same day as the Warren Spahn (#205) card, so it was a good, albeit extremely hot, day.

The Card / Twins Team Set
The Twins went from being a sixth place team, with a sub-.500 record in 1964 to the improbable American League champions in 1965.  For some context here, the franchise had relocated from Washington following the 1960 season, and 1964 was only their fourth year in existence.  In 1961, Topps issued their first team card, informing collectors on the card's front the team was formerly known as the Washington Senators.  The photo used on their 1965 team card first appeared on the Twins team card within the 1962 Topps set, which means the photo is either from 1961 or early 1962.  Topps then used the same photo every year between 1962 and 1965 before finally using an updated team photo for the 1966 Twins team card.

1961 Topps #542

1962 Topps #584

1963 Topps #162

1964 Topps #318

1965 Season
On July 5th, the Twins swept a double header with the Red Sox, assuming sole possession of first place in the American League and they never relinquished that spot.  Manager Sam Mele (#506) guided the team to a 102 win season and they came close to toppling the Dodgers in the 7-game World Series.  Minnesota also hosted the All-Star Game, sending six players - Harmon Killebrew (#400), Zoilo Versalles (#157), Tony Oliva (#340), Jimmie Hall (#580), Earl Battey (#490) and Mudcat Grant (#432).

Versalles was a somewhat controversial choice to win A.L. MVP honors in 1965, leading the team with 126 runs scored and winning a Gold Glove at shortstop despite also leading the league with 39 errors.  Oliva led the team with 98 RBIs and a .321 average, and even though Killebrew was limited due to injuries, he still led the club with 25 home runs.  Grant (21-7, 3.30) and Jim Kaat (#62) (18-11, 2.83) led the pitching staff with closer Al Worthington (#216) recording 21 saves.

Update Cards
For each team card featured, I'll be building a checklist of cards that could have been included in a 1965 Topps update set.  For the most part, the major players from the Twins roster were already represented in the 1965 Topps set, but here's who I would add to an update set:

• Jerry Kindall - Kindall was the regular second baseman for the Twins, starting 101 games and hitting .196.  1965 was to be his final season in the Majors, and his last Topps card appearance had come back in 1963 with the Indians.
• Frank Quillici  - Kindall's back-up was Twins' future manager Quillici who made 39 starts at second base and started all seven games at second base for the Twins in the World Series.  His rookie card can be found in the 1966 Topps set.
• Andy Kosco - Kosco was a late season call-up, appearing in 23 games.  With the Triple-A Denver Bears, Kosco had a monster season with 27 home runs and 116 RBIs while batting .327.
• Sandy Valdespino - Left fielder Valdespino shares a Rookie Stars card with Cesar Tovar (#201) but I'd give him his own solo card in my update set.
• Billy Martin - Finally, coach Billy Martin gets a card.  He was the Twins' third base coach and helped mentor the careers of Versalles and later, future Hall of Famer Rod Carew.

Honorable mention for a card goes to 4th round draft pick Graig Nettles.

Sources
Baseball Reference

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