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James Philip Owens
Houston Astros
Pitcher
Born: January 16, 1934, Gifford, PA
Signed: Signed by the Philadelphia Phillies as an amateur free agent before 1951 season
Major League Teams: Philadelphia Phillies 1955-1956, 1958-1962; Cincinnati Reds 1963; Houston Colt .45s 1964; Houston Astros 1965-1967
Jim Owens found brief success as a Phillies starting pitcher in the late 1950s, and later remade himself as a top reliever for the Colt .45s/Astros in the early to mid 1960s. He missed the entire 1957 season and all but one game of the 1958 season due to military service and then rebounded with his best season in the big leagues in 1959. For the eighth place Phillies that season, Owens served as one of the team's top four starters with Robin Roberts (#15), Gene Conley and Don Cardwell (#502). He won a career high 12 games, going 12-12 with a 3.21 ERA over 30 starts. His strikeout total of 135 was just two behind Roberts' 137.
Later in Houston, Owens made at least 40 appearances in three straight seasons between 1964 and 1966. He was the Astros' closer in 1965, leading the club in appearances with 50 and saves with 8. In 286 career appearances, Owens went 42-68 with a 4.31 ERA and 21 saves. He pitched until the end of June 1967 with the Astros and retired in July to become the Astros' new pitching coach. He'd hold that position until 1972, working for managers Grady Hatton, Harry Walker (#438), and briefly Leo Durocher.
Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1956 Topps blog.
Building the Set
Building the Set
August 21, 2020 from Charleston, SC - Card #163
In my largest (by volume) purchase to date, I spent an enjoyable hour or so in mid-August browsing the eBay store of seller mantlerulz and clicking Add to Cart on 30 different cards. We had previously added 29 cards to our set back in February from the Philly Show. The 30 cards, all commons, cost me $52 total (before shipping and taxes) with the cards ranging in prices from $1 to $6. I love this haul and I found the seller's store by accident when I was browsing eBay in an attempt to add a few more cheap cards from the set's first series. With this purchase, we've now passed the quarter mark for completion of the set. We still have a long way to go, and quite a few pricey cards to add, but any day I can add 30 commons in excellent shape and at very low prices is a great day. This Owens card was $2.
In my largest (by volume) purchase to date, I spent an enjoyable hour or so in mid-August browsing the eBay store of seller mantlerulz and clicking Add to Cart on 30 different cards. We had previously added 29 cards to our set back in February from the Philly Show. The 30 cards, all commons, cost me $52 total (before shipping and taxes) with the cards ranging in prices from $1 to $6. I love this haul and I found the seller's store by accident when I was browsing eBay in an attempt to add a few more cheap cards from the set's first series. With this purchase, we've now passed the quarter mark for completion of the set. We still have a long way to go, and quite a few pricey cards to add, but any day I can add 30 commons in excellent shape and at very low prices is a great day. This Owens card was $2.
The Card / Astros Team Set
Owens went on a hatless run with his Topps cards between 1963 and 1966, appearing without either a Colt .45s or Astros hat for four years in a row. He was permitted to finally wear a hat again on his 1967 Topps card. Flipping to the back, Owens' minor league statistics on his Baseball Reference page are incomplete, but I'm guessing he led the International League in strikeouts in 1954 and 1955. With the Syracuse Chiefs those seasons, the Phillies' top farm team, he struck out 150 and 161 respectively.
1965 Season
As noted above, Owens was the Astros' closer in 1965, leading the team in appearances and saves. In 50 games, he went 6-5 with a 3.28 ERA and 8 saves.
Owens appeared in 13 games for the 1955 and 1956 Phillies before missing almost two full seasons while serving in the military. When he came back, and as described above, he found his most success. Apparently, Owens was known on the party circuit and he along with fellow Phillies pitchers Turk Farrell (#80), Jack Meyer and Seth Morehead were known as the Dalton Gang at the time. In parts of seven seasons with the Phillies, Owens went 24-46 with a 4.54 ERA. On November 27, 1962, the Phillies traded him to the Reds for their long-time infielder Cookie Rojas (#474).
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First Mainstream Card: 1955 Topps #202
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (12): 1955-1956, 1959-1967, 1973
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2016 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-JOW
44 - Owens non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 10/16/20.
Sources:
1956 Topps Blog
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