#529 Jerry Fosnow - Minnesota Twins

Gerald Eugene Fosnow
Minnesota Twins
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  195
Born:  September 21, 1940, Deshler, OH
Signed:  Signed by the Cleveland Indians as an amateur free agent before 1959 season
Major League Teams:  Minnesota Twins 1964-1965

Jerry Fosnow originally signed with the Indians and was unceremoniously released by the club after pitching three seasons in their minor league system.  He signed with the Twins in 1962, vowing to make the majors and prove the Indians wrong.  Fosnow spent all of 1962 and 1963 in the Twins' minor league system, but earned a promotion in late June 1964.  He appeared in seven games out of the Twins' bullpen, allowing 13 runs in 10 2/3 innings for a 10.97 ERA.  He fared better in 1965, making the club out of spring training and earning the win in the 1965 season opener against the Yankees after pitching two innings of scoreless relief.  Fosnow appeared in 29 games for the Twins, all in relief, and was sent back down to the minor leagues in July.  Suffering from an apparent arm injury, he'd struggle the rest of the season with the Twins' top farm team in Denver, and he wouldn't be recalled by the club for the stretch run.  Having won the American League pennant, the Twins would go on to lose the 1965 World Series to the Dodgers in seven games.

Fosnow pitched in the minor league systems of the Twins and Dodgers through the 1967 season.  In 36 total big league games, he was 3-4 with a 5.65 ERA over 57 1/3 innings pitched.

Building the Set
March 6, 2022 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards - Babylon, NY) - Card #527

This is the 43rd 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 Fosnow card was a surprising $6 and was one of 49 commons and semi-stars purchased in my triumphant return to Uncle Dick's and his replenished neon green binders.

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 / Twins Team Set
This is it for Fosnow - his first and last mainstream baseball card.  He signed reprints of this card for inclusion in the 2014 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs insert set.  The cartoon on the back highlights a no-hitter he threw while a member of the Selma Cloverleafs in the Class D Alabama-Florida League in 1959.

1965 Season
Dealing with an arm injury, Fosnow appeared in 29 games for the Twins before his demotion in July.  He was 3-3 with a 4.44 ERA over 46 2/3 innings pitched.  In his last major league game on July 16th, he allowed three runs on two hits and three walks as the Twins were blown out by the Athletics, 10-2.

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1965 Topps #529
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (1):  1965
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2014 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-JF

3 - Fosnow non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 6/20/22.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

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