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Francis Elmore Bolling
Milwaukee Braves
Second Base
Born: November 16, 1931, Mobile, AL
Signed: Signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent, June 4, 1951
Major League Teams: Detroit Tigers 1954, 1956-1960; Milwaukee Braves 1961-1965; Atlanta Braves 1966
Died: July 11, 2020, Mobile, AL (age 88)
Second baseman Frank Bolling was a four-time All-Star with the Braves and an excellent defender in the majors for 12 seasons. Bolling never played an inning at any position other than second base. His best season came in 1961 when he was the starting second baseman for the National League All-Star team in both games held that summer. Bolling and shortstop Roy McMillan (#45) formed a solid double play combination for the Braves in the early 1960s, with Bolling finishing in the top five for double plays turned as a second baseman in eight seasons. His 1,003 double plays turned currently ranks 28th all-time and his .987 fielding percentage ranks 87th all-time. Bolling topped the league in fielding percentage in four seasons and if not for the Pirates' Bill Mazeroski (#95) he would have won more than the one Gold Glove he was awarded in 1958 while playing for the Tigers. 1958 was his most productive season at the plate, as he attained career highs in hits (164) and RBIs (75). Bolling hit at least 13 home runs in four different seasons, hitting a career-high 15 home runs in both 1957 and 1961.
Building the Set
June 19, 2021 from Moorestown Mall Baseball Card Show - Card #325
Following our youngest son Ben's flawless performance of Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy at his piano recital, our family headed to the Moorestown Mall in New Jersey to browse a real live baseball card show. Traditionally, I only venture into malls for baseball card shows and I can't honestly remember the last time, pre-pandemic, I had stepped foot into a mall. The show was small, hosted by S&B Sports Promotions, with about a dozen tables and not much vintage to offer, but it was a sight for sore eyes. It took us only about 15 minutes to scout the whole place out and I was lucky enough to find a friendly dealer with 1960s and 1970s Topps cards in great shape, in order and (best of all) reasonably priced. I took my time going through his 1965 Topps commons, settling on 29 cards we needed and adding a card from the star pile to give us 30 new cards total. I spent an even $100 (after a generous dealer discount) and this Bolling card was a little over $2.
The Card / Braves Team Set
This is Bolling's final appearance in a Topps flagship set and he signed reprints of this card for the 2014 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs set. The back of the card mentions his older brother Milt, also an infielder, who played for the Red Sox, Senators and Tigers between 1952 and 1958. Frank and Milt were briefly teammates on the Tigers in 1958.
1965 Season
This was Bolling's final full season as the everyday second baseman for the Braves, and his usual double play partner at shortstop was Woody Woodward (#487). Bolling appeared in 148 games, batting .264 with seven home runs and 50 RBIs. In the Braves final game ever in Milwaukee on September 22nd, before moving to Atlanta for the 1966 season, Bolling hit a second inning grand slam off Dodgers' starting pitcher Sandy Koufax (#300). It was the only grand slam of Bolling's career.
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First Mainstream Card: 1955 Bowman #204
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (9): 1957-1965
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2014 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-FBO
60 - Bolling non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 9/4/21.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
Wikipedia
Previous Card: #268 Ken McBride - Los Angeles Angels
Previous Card: #268 Ken McBride - Los Angeles Angels
Next Card: #270 Milt Pappas - Baltimore Orioles
I love the picture of the cards on what I presume is the piano bench....beautiful
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