 |
 |
Edgar Leon Kirkpatrick
Los Angeles Angels
Outfield
Born: October 8, 1944, Spokane, WA
Signed: Signed by the Los Angeles Angels as an amateur free agent before 1962 season
Major League Teams: Los Angeles Angels 1962-1965; California Angels 1966-1968; Kansas City Royals 1969-1973; Pittsburgh Pirates 1974-1977; Texas Rangers 1977; Milwaukee Brewers 1977
Died: November 15, 2010, Mission Viejo, CA (age 66)Major League Teams: Los Angeles Angels 1962-1965; California Angels 1966-1968; Kansas City Royals 1969-1973; Pittsburgh Pirates 1974-1977; Texas Rangers 1977; Milwaukee Brewers 1977
Ed Kirkpatrick put together a solid 16-year big league career, playing every position except pitcher and middle infield, on mostly small market teams. Signed at just 17 years old, Kirkpatrick toiled in the Angels system for seven seasons, appearing in a then career-high 117 games in 1966. He was included in the first-ever trade for the expansion Royals, dealt with Dennis Paepke to Kansas City for Hoyt Wilhelm (#276). With the Royals, Kirkpatrick found his greatest success and he was one of their most regularly used catchers in the early 1970s. He reached single season career highs in 1970 with 18 home runs and 62 RBIs and batted a career-high .275 in 1972. Kirkpatrick was traded to the Pirates following the 1973 season, and he'd help that team win division titles in 1974 and 1975. He finished his career in 1977 with 49 games for the Pirates, Rangers and Brewers, serving mainly as a pinch or designated hitter.
Nicknamed "Spanky," Kirkpatrick had a knack for being in the middle of several bench-clearing brawls, including an incident in September 1965 against the Athletics (see below) and another in 1974 against the Reds in which he got into a physical altercation with Reds' manager Sparky Anderson. Kirkpatrick played in 1,311 big league games, collecting 824 hits while batting .238 with 85 home runs and 424 RBIs.
Building the Set
December 4, 2021 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards, Babylon, NY) - Card #432
You'll be seeing this particular passage on my 1965 Topps blog for quite some time as we added a whopping 97 cards to our set during the December Philadelphia Sports Collectors Show. If I'm ambitious and compose posts for five cards a week, I should be completely caught up by the end of May. If I'm not as ambitious, I might still be going through this stack by the time we hit July. Either way, I'll enjoy the process and I'm looking forward to taking my time. I've posted a complete summary of this fantastic show over at The Phillies Room.
The Card / Angels Team Set
Kirkpatrick is shown in a pose nearly identical to his 1964 Topps card, gripping a bat while posing behind a batting cage. His exploits as a high school football star from Glendora, California are highlighted with the cartoon on the back of the card.
1965 Season
Kirkpatrick was a September call-up by the Angels and he was immediately inserted into their starting line-up as the regular right fielder. Lou Clinton (#229) and Albie Pearson (#358) had platooned at the position all season up until Kirkpatrick's arrival. In 19 games, Kirkpatrick batted .260 (19 for 73) with three home runs and eight RBIs.
December 4, 2021 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards, Babylon, NY) - Card #432
You'll be seeing this particular passage on my 1965 Topps blog for quite some time as we added a whopping 97 cards to our set during the December Philadelphia Sports Collectors Show. If I'm ambitious and compose posts for five cards a week, I should be completely caught up by the end of May. If I'm not as ambitious, I might still be going through this stack by the time we hit July. Either way, I'll enjoy the process and I'm looking forward to taking my time. I've posted a complete summary of this fantastic show over at The Phillies Room.
After securing Doug's Jim Thome autograph, I returned to Uncle Dick's and their neon green shirts, pulled up a chair, and settled in. Over the course of 45 minutes or so, I found 79 cards needed for our set, including this Kirkpatrick card which was a little under $4 after the dealer discount. I was surrounded by six or seven other seated collectors, all who looked similar to me, with a touch of gray, focused on their individual quests. I wiped out Uncle Dick's two 1965 Topps commons binders, paid for my haul and then retreated to a table with Doug to update our checklist.
The Card / Angels Team Set
Kirkpatrick is shown in a pose nearly identical to his 1964 Topps card, gripping a bat while posing behind a batting cage. His exploits as a high school football star from Glendora, California are highlighted with the cartoon on the back of the card.
1965 Season
Kirkpatrick was a September call-up by the Angels and he was immediately inserted into their starting line-up as the regular right fielder. Lou Clinton (#229) and Albie Pearson (#358) had platooned at the position all season up until Kirkpatrick's arrival. In 19 games, Kirkpatrick batted .260 (19 for 73) with three home runs and eight RBIs.
On September 8th, Kirkpatrick's first game in the majors since the final game of the 1964 season, the Athletics' Bert Campaneris (#266) moved from pitcher to catcher in the top of the ninth inning, completing his circuit around the diamond playing all nine positions. Kirkpatrick reached on a single and would be thrown out trying to advance home, colliding with Campaneris in the process. As a result of injuries from the collision, Campaneris missed an entire week of games.
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1963 Topps #386
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (16): 1963-1978
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1978 Topps #77
62 - Kirkpatrick non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 2/6/22.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
|
|
|
|
|
First Mainstream Card: 1963 Topps #386
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (16): 1963-1978
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1978 Topps #77
62 - Kirkpatrick non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 2/6/22.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
Wikipedia
Previous Card: #392 Bob Friend - Pittsburgh Pirates
Previous Card: #392 Bob Friend - Pittsburgh Pirates
Next Card: #394 Jim Hannan - Washington Senators
No comments:
Post a Comment