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Samuel Edward Bowens
Baltimore Orioles
Outfield
Born: March 23, 1938, Wilmington, NC
Signed: Signed by the Baltimore Orioles as an amateur free agent before 1960 season
Major League Teams: Baltimore Orioles 1963-1967; Washington Senators 1968-1969
Died: March 28, 2003, Wilmington, NC (age 65)
Sam Bowens was a back-up outfielder for parts of seven big league seasons, playing primarily with the Orioles. He appeared in a career-high 139 games for the Orioles in 1964, and was the team's opening day right fielder. He'd make 116 stars in right field that season, batting .263 with career highs in both home runs (22) and RBIs (71). Bowens would never again come close to those numbers as injuries and a battle with alcoholism led to a steady decline and decrease in playing time. He was a member of the 1966 World Champion Orioles, but didn't appear in any postseason games. Bowens was sold to the Senators following the 1967 season and he'd play two seasons in Washington before his big league career ended. In 479 career games, Bowens batted .223 with 45 home runs and 143 RBIs.
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| June 4, 2021 - Before the 8th grade dance |
June 5, 2021 from Tomball, TX - Card #290
To celebrate the unofficial beginning of summer, I took advantage of a 15% Memorial Day Weekend sale hosted by one of my favorite dealers, The Battersbox, from Tomball, Texas. With the second series now complete, I spent an enjoyable hour or so over the long holiday weekend picking 20 commons from the third series to add to our set and I'll feature those cards in the next 20 posts. The package of cards arrived on June 5th and in total, the lot cost me a little more than $63. This Bowens card was one of the lowest priced cards I added at about $1.28 after applying the discount.
For most of the Memorial Day weekend it rained where we live, washing out our oldest son's baseball tournament and confining us to the house during the heavier downpours. Doug did get to attend his first big school dance on June 4th, and he posed for a picture with his Mom before meeting up with his squad.
The Card / Orioles Team Set
Bowens' rookie card appears in the 1964 Topps set, where he shares a Rookie Stars card with pitcher Wally Bunker (#290). This is his first of four solo cards in Topps flagship sets. His #16 is peaking through on his jersey behind the Orioles pennant. As highlighted on the back of the card, his home run tally was indeed third on the Orioles, behind Boog Powell (#560) who had 39 and Brooks Robinson (#150) with 28.
1965 Season
Bowens had a forgettable 1965 season, appearing in 84 games for the Orioles and batting .163 - the lowest average of his career. He had seven home runs to go along with 20 RBIs. He was again the Orioles' opening day right fielder, but he soon lost playing time to Curt Blefary (#49) who started 69 games in right to Bowens' 44.
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1964 Topps #201
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (5): 1964-1968
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1981 TCMA The 1960s II #313
28 - Bowens non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/21/21.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
The Card / Orioles Team Set
Bowens' rookie card appears in the 1964 Topps set, where he shares a Rookie Stars card with pitcher Wally Bunker (#290). This is his first of four solo cards in Topps flagship sets. His #16 is peaking through on his jersey behind the Orioles pennant. As highlighted on the back of the card, his home run tally was indeed third on the Orioles, behind Boog Powell (#560) who had 39 and Brooks Robinson (#150) with 28.
1965 Season
Bowens had a forgettable 1965 season, appearing in 84 games for the Orioles and batting .163 - the lowest average of his career. He had seven home runs to go along with 20 RBIs. He was again the Orioles' opening day right fielder, but he soon lost playing time to Curt Blefary (#49) who started 69 games in right to Bowens' 44.
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First Mainstream Card: 1964 Topps #201
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (5): 1964-1968
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1981 TCMA The 1960s II #313
28 - Bowens non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/21/21.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
Wikipedia
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