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Julio Enrique Gotay
Los Angeles Angels
Third Base-Shortstop
Born: June 9, 1939, Fajardo, Puerto Rico
Signed: Signed by the St. Louis Cardinals as an amateur free agent before 1957 season
Major League Teams: St. Louis Cardinals 1960-1962; Pittsburgh Pirates 1963-1964; Los Angeles Angels 1965; Houston Astros 1966-1969
Died: July 4, 2008, Ponce, Puerto Rico (age 69)Major League Teams: St. Louis Cardinals 1960-1962; Pittsburgh Pirates 1963-1964; Los Angeles Angels 1965; Houston Astros 1966-1969
Infielder Julio Gotay played in parts of ten seasons in the majors, appearing in a career-high 127 games in 1962 as the regular shortstop for the Cardinals. He batted .255 that season while attaining career bests in just about every offensive category, including hits with 94 and RBIs with 27. Gotay was dealt to the Pirates in November 1962 in the deal that sent All-Star Dick Groat (#275) to St. Louis. Gotay played in just seven games for the Pirates between 1963 and 1964, spending the bulk of those seasons in the minor leagues. After playing in the Angels' organization for a year and a half as a back-up infielder and pinch-hitter, Gotay moved on to the Astros, where he'd play in parts of four seasons. He was an effective back-up for Joe Morgan (#16) and Denis Menke (#327), batting .264 overall with the Astros in 202 games.
Gotay played two more seasons in the minors, retiring following the 1971 campaign which he spent back in the Cardinals' organization. In 389 major league games, Gotay batted .260 with 257 hits. His nephew Ruben Gotay was an infielder with the Royals (2004-2005), Mets (2007) and Braves (2008).
Building the Set
December 4, 2021 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards, Babylon, NY) - Card #471
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
It's impressive Topps was able to secure a recent picture of Gotay, given he only played in four games with the Pirates in 1963 and three games with the club in 1964. He's shown here wearing the sleeveless Pirates jersey from one of those seasons. Gotay is the second card we've added with the 3B-SS position designation and John Kennedy (#119) was the first. Topps is a little off with the comment on the back that Gotay "opened the campaign as the Angels' regular third-sacker," as Paul Schaal (#517) had secured that job. Gotay started only five games at third base between April and his demotion (see below) in June.
1965 Season
On February 1st, the Pirates dealt Gotay to the Angels for outfielder Bob Perry. Gotay played in 40 games for the Angels and 48 games for their top affiliate in the Pacific Coast League, the Seattle Angels. He spent the first half of the season with the big league Angels, batting .247 with 20 starts at second base, third base and shortstop before a late June demotion to Seattle. In Seattle, he batted .311, but didn't return to majors with the Angels. He remained within the organization until his trade to Houston in June 1966.
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1962 Topps #489
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (4): 1962-1963, 1965, 1968
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1968 Topps #41
20 - Gotay non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 3/5/22.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
December 4, 2021 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards, Babylon, NY) - Card #471
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 Gotay card which was less than $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.
With the addition of this Gotay card, we have a complete Angels team set (linked below) and that's the first complete team set we've finished within the set.
The Card / Angels Team Set
It's impressive Topps was able to secure a recent picture of Gotay, given he only played in four games with the Pirates in 1963 and three games with the club in 1964. He's shown here wearing the sleeveless Pirates jersey from one of those seasons. Gotay is the second card we've added with the 3B-SS position designation and John Kennedy (#119) was the first. Topps is a little off with the comment on the back that Gotay "opened the campaign as the Angels' regular third-sacker," as Paul Schaal (#517) had secured that job. Gotay started only five games at third base between April and his demotion (see below) in June.
1965 Season
On February 1st, the Pirates dealt Gotay to the Angels for outfielder Bob Perry. Gotay played in 40 games for the Angels and 48 games for their top affiliate in the Pacific Coast League, the Seattle Angels. He spent the first half of the season with the big league Angels, batting .247 with 20 starts at second base, third base and shortstop before a late June demotion to Seattle. In Seattle, he batted .311, but didn't return to majors with the Angels. He remained within the organization until his trade to Houston in June 1966.
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First Mainstream Card: 1962 Topps #489
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (4): 1962-1963, 1965, 1968
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1968 Topps #41
20 - Gotay non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 3/5/22.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
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