Wednesday, March 31, 2021

#240 Bob Bruce - Houston Astros


Robert James Bruce
Houston Astros
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  200
Born:  May 16, 1933, New York, NY
Signed:  Signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent before 1953 season
Major League Teams:  Detroit Tigers 1959-1961; Houston Colt .45s 1962-1964; Houston Astros 1965-1966; Atlanta Braves 1967
Died:  March 14, 2017, Plano, TX (age 83)

Bob Bruce's main claim to fame is that he threw the final pitch from a member of the Colt .45s in Houston's Colt Stadium on September 27, 1964 and then threw the first pitch from a member of the Houston Astros inside the Astrodome on April 12, 1965.  Traded by the Tigers to the expansion Colt .45s on December 1, 1961 for Sam Jones, Bruce was one the franchises first reliable starting pitchers.  Although the team struggled mightily in its early years, Bruce, Ken Johnson (#359) and Turk Farrell (#80) consistently led the club in games started.  Bruce's best season came in 1964 when he went 15-9 with a 2.76 ERA over 35 games pitched.  On April 19th of that year against the Dodgers, he threw an Immaculate Inning, recording three outs on nine strikes and three strikeouts.

Bruce was dealt to the Braves on December 31, 1966 in a trade that sent future Hall of Famer Eddie Mathews (#500) to Houston.  He pitched with the Braves in 1967 before retiring with a 49-71 record and a 3.85 career ERA over 219 games pitched.

Building the Set
February 13, 2021 from Edmonds, WA - Card #227
Busy with my chosen profession, rarely leaving the house and anxiously awaiting the return of live baseball, I turned to eBay in early February for some cardboard therapy.  After another largely unsuccessful bidding exercise on a 1965 Topps set break hosted by Greg Morris Cards, I went the Buy It Now route with 10 cards from Mitchell's Cards located in Edmonds, Washington.  As we've been completely unable to find packs of 2021 Topps locally, the much-needed package of baseball cards was a welcome sight in our mailbox on February 13th.  I spent $34 on the 10 cards from Mitchell's, with this Bruce card costing $1.50.

The Card / Astros Team Set
Like all other Astros cards in the set appearing after the first series, Bruce is shown hatless and wearing a Colts jersey.  On the back of the card, his one-hitter thrown against the Reds on April 26, 1963 is highlighted.  Bruce allowed a first inning single to Vada Pinson (#355) and then held the Reds hitless over the next eight innings.  No one on the Colts' staff in 1964 came close to his four shutouts, with Johnson and Don Larsen (#389) each throwing one a piece.

1965 Season
Bruce was the Astros' opening day pitcher, losing 2-0 to the Phillies with his sole blemish being a two-run home run allowed to the Phillies' Dick Allen (#460) in the third inning.  The Astros lost 97 games in 1965, and Bruce went 9-18 with a 3.72 ERA over 35 games.  He suffered from a complete lack of run support as his Astros offense scored only 20 runs over the 18 games he lost.  His 34 starts and 229 2/3 innings pitched led the club with Farrell (29 starts and 208 1/3 innings) finishing second in both categories.

1960 Topps #118
1961 Topps #83
1964 Topps #282
1966 Topps #64
1967 Topps #417

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1960 Topps #118
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (8):  1960-1967
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2016 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-BB

38 - Bruce non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 2/25/21.

 Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database
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