#60 Jim O'Toole - Cincinnati Reds

James Jerome O'Toole
Cincinnati Reds
Pitcher

Bats:  Both  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  190
Born:  January 10, 1937, Chicago, IL
Signed:  Signed by the Cincinnati Redlegs as an amateur free agent, December 23, 1957
Major League Teams:  Cincinnati Redlegs 1958; Cincinnati Reds 1959-1966; Chicago White Sox 1967
Died:  December 26, 2015, Cincinnati, OH (age 78)

Lefty Jim O'Toole was a mainstay in the Reds' pitching rotation throughout the early to mid-1960s, winning at least 12 games five seasons in a row between 1960 and 1964.  He was a 19-game winner in 1961, helping to lead the Reds to an improbable National League pennant along with 21-game winner Joey Jay (#174) and a line-up that included Frank Robinson (#120) and Vada Pinson (#355).  O'Toole held his own in the 1961 World Series against the Yankees, allowing just four earned runs over his two starts but the Yankees still prevailed, four games to one.  O'Toole made his lone All-Star team in 1963.  He finished in the top ten for ERA twice (1961, 1964) and strikeouts twice (1961, 1962).  

In his 10 seasons in the majors, O'Toole had a 98-84 record with a 3.57 ERA and 1,039 strikeouts.  Arm troubles cut his career short after 15 games spent with his hometown White Sox in 1967.  He went to spring training with the expansion Pilots, but retired after being asked to start the season in the minors.  O'Toole was inducted into the Reds Hall of Fame in 1970.

Building the Set
December 25, 2020 from Marco Island, FL - Card #185
This is one of 32 cards (mostly commons) I received from Jenna and our sons on Christmas morning, as I was asked to do some surrogate shopping on their behalf and I gladly obliged.  Hunting specifically for first series cards, this is one of 5 cards I added from eBay seller Super Bowl Auctions from Marco Island, Florida.  This O'Toole card was $5.

The Card / Reds Team Set
O'Toole seems to be standing in the exact same spot that Jay stood for the photo used for his 1965 card.  The World Series game referenced on the back of the card was Game 1 of the 1961 World Series.  O'Toole started for the Reds, facing off against the Yankees' Whitey Ford (#330).  His only two mistakes were solo home runs allowed to Elston Howard (#450) in the fourth and Bill Skowron (#70) in the sixth.  Ford dominated the Reds line-up, pitching a complete game shutout and allowing just two singles to Eddie Kasko and Wally Post.  O'Toole is in the harder to find 1965 Topps Transfers insert set, but he's not in the 1965 Topps Embossed insert set.

1965 Season
After his strong 1964 season, O'Toole was named the Reds' opening day starting pitcher and he never quite got it going all season long.  With young pitchers Sammy Ellis (#507) and Billy McCool (#18) trying to crack the starting pitching rotation, manager Dick Sisler (#158) went to a five-man rotation contributing to O'Toole's struggles.  He finished the season having thrown only 127 2/3 innings and with a 3-10 record and a 5.92 ERA.

1959 Topps #136

1960 Topps #32

1961 Topps #328

1963 Topps #70

1967 Topps #467

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1959 Topps #136
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (9):  1959-1967
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2016 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-JOT

86 - O'Toole non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 12/29/20.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database

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