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Steven Absher Hamilton
New York Yankees
Pitcher
Born: November 30, 1934, Columbia, KY
Signed: Signed by the Cleveland Indians as an amateur free agent, April 3, 1958
Major League Teams: Cleveland Indians 1961; Washington Senators 1962-1963; New York Yankees 1963-1970; Chicago White Sox 1970; San Francisco Giants 1971; Chicago Cubs 1972
Died: December 2, 1997, Morehead, KY (age 63)
Steve Hamilton established several basketball records while attending Morehead State, and was later a power forward/center for the Minneapolis Lakers. After playing for the Lakers in the 1959 NBA Finals, during which his team was swept by the Celtics, Hamilton left the basketball court and set his sights on the baseball diamond. He'd establish himself as a reliable lefty reliever during his 12-year big league career, playing primarily for the Yankees. He appeared in the 1963 and 1964 World Series for the Yankees, although his team lost to the Dodgers and then the Cardinals. Hamilton earned a save in Game 6 of the 1964 World Series, recording the final two outs of the game after Jim Bouton (#30) had pitched 8 1/3 innings. He's one of only two people, along with Gene Conley, to have played in a World Series and in the NBA Finals.
Hamilton's best season came in 1965 when he was 3-1 with a 1.39 ERA in 46 appearances, pitching 58 1/3 innings as one of the Yankees' best relievers. He briefly served as the Yankees' closer in 1968, recording 11 saves. Late in his career, Hamilton developed an eephus-style pitch dubbed the "folly-floater." He retired after the 1972 season with a career record of 40-31 in 421 games, a 3.05 ERA in 663 innings pitched and 42 saves. Hamilton was the Tigers' pitching coach in 1975.
Building the Set
March 6, 2022 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards - Babylon, NY) - Card #500
Milestone card #500!
March 6, 2022 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards - Babylon, NY) - Card #500
Milestone card #500!
This is the 16th of 102 cards acquired for our set from the Baseball Card Sports Memorabilia Show, affectionately known as The Philly Show, held in the basement of the Valley Forge Casino Resort in King of Prussia in early March. We went nuts and left the show needing only 12 more cards to complete our 1965 Topps set, and I wrote about the show in detail over at The Phillies Room. Having wandered aimlessly among the dealer tables looking for binders with vintage commons, I decided to check to see if Uncle Dick's had refreshed their inventory following the December show, during which I had wiped out both their 1965 Topps binders. Much to my pleasant surprise, they had. This Hamilton card was $4 and was one of 49 commons purchased in my triumphant return to Uncle Dick's and his replenished neon green binders.
The Card / Yankees Team Set
That's most likely Tony Kubek (#65), wearing #10, standing behind Hamilton in this photo. His 1964 Topps card uses a photo from the same session and there's a clearer view of Kubek found there. The famous Yankee Stadium facade makes a cameo appearance in the upper right-hand corner. The cartoon on the back highlights Hamilton's three World Series appearances for the Yankees - one in 1963, and two in 1964. Topps couldn't pass up the chance to refer to him as one of the game's "tall men" and "lanky." His offseason coaching work at Morehead is also noted.
1965 Season
As mentioned above, this was Hamilton's career year. He was the most frequently used lefty out of the Yankees bullpen and he was part of a quartet of strong relievers that year for Yankees along with closer Pedro Ramos (#13), Hal Reniff (#413) and Pete Mikkelsen (#177).
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1963 Topps #171
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (10): 1963-1972
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1972 Topps #766
45 - Hamilton non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 4/18/22.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
Depending on my ability to compose five posts a week on the cards acquired at this show, I should be completely caught up on this blog by mid-October. It's entirely feasible we complete our 1965 Topps set by the end of 2022, although nine of the remaining 12 cards needed are fairly expensive.
The Card / Yankees Team Set
That's most likely Tony Kubek (#65), wearing #10, standing behind Hamilton in this photo. His 1964 Topps card uses a photo from the same session and there's a clearer view of Kubek found there. The famous Yankee Stadium facade makes a cameo appearance in the upper right-hand corner. The cartoon on the back highlights Hamilton's three World Series appearances for the Yankees - one in 1963, and two in 1964. Topps couldn't pass up the chance to refer to him as one of the game's "tall men" and "lanky." His offseason coaching work at Morehead is also noted.
1965 Season
As mentioned above, this was Hamilton's career year. He was the most frequently used lefty out of the Yankees bullpen and he was part of a quartet of strong relievers that year for Yankees along with closer Pedro Ramos (#13), Hal Reniff (#413) and Pete Mikkelsen (#177).
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First Mainstream Card: 1963 Topps #171
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (10): 1963-1972
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1972 Topps #766
45 - Hamilton non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 4/18/22.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
Wikipedia
Previous Card: #308 Mets Rookie Stars
Previous Card: #308 Mets Rookie Stars
Next Card: #310 Johnny Callison - Philadelphia Phillies
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