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Giraldo Ruiz
Cincinnati Reds
Infield
Born: December 5, 1938, Santo Domingo, Cuba
Signed: Signed by the Cincinnati Reds as an amateur free agent before 1958 season
Major League Teams: Cincinnati Reds 1964-1969; California Angels 1970-1971
Died: February 9, 1972, San Diego, CA (age 33)
As a Phillies fan, Chico Ruiz's name evokes stories of the great collapse of 1964 as his steal of home on September 21, 1964 resulted in the start of a ten game losing streak that would cost the Phillies the pennant. With Art Mahaffey (#446) on the mound and Frank Robinson (#120) at the plate in the sixth inning of a scoreless game, Ruiz made the bold decision to steal home. He was safe, with catcher Clay Dalrymple (#372) unable to handle the pitch and the Phillies' historic collapse had started. They had been up by 6 1/2 games with 12 games to play prior to Ruiz's dash for the plate.
Known for his speed, Ruiz saw limited playing time at the start of his big league career, as the Reds had Pete Rose (#207) at second base, Deron Johnson (#75) at third base and Leo Cardenas (#437) at shortstop. Ruiz enjoyed his best seasons in 1967 and 1968, seeing semi-regular playing time after Cardenas broke a finger. Ruiz appeared in 85 and 88 games respectively those two seasons, batting .220 and .259. He was dealt to the Angels following the 1969 season with Alex Johnson (#352), and he'd conclude his big league career with two seasons as a back-up infielder and pinch-hitter for California. In his rocky final year in the majors, Ruiz was accused of often arguing with Johnson and he allegedly pointed a gun at his teammate in the Angels' clubhouse following the team's loss on June 13, 1971. (This is ironic given the cartoon Topps uses on the back of this card.)
Ruiz was released following the season and was set to attend spring training with the Royals in 1972. On February 9, 1972, he died in a single car accident while driving outside of San Diego. Ruiz appeared in 565 big league games, collecting 276 hits, 34 stole bases, including one unforgettable steal of home, and batting .240.
Building the Set
March 6, 2022 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards - Babylon, NY) - Card #534
The Card / Reds Team Set
Despite not making his big league debut until April 13, 1964, Ruiz appeared in the 1963 Topps set on a multi-player Rookie Stars card, and he'd repeat on a Rookie Stars card in the 1964 set. This is his first solo appearance in a Topps set. The back of the card highlights his speed, and there's an uncorrected error in the first line of the text as Ruiz split time between Cincinnati and San Diego in 1964, not 1965.
1965 Season
Ruiz spent the entire season with the Reds, but was the last man off the bench and appeared in only 29 games with 18 plate appearances. He batted just .111 with a pair of hits the entire year. His season ended on August 25th when as a pinch-runner he broke his ankle on a slide into third base.
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1963 Topps #407
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (9): 1963-1971
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1978 TCMA The 1960s I #35
39 - Ruiz non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/28/22.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database
March 6, 2022 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards - Babylon, NY) - Card #534
This is the 50th 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 Ruiz card was $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 / Reds Team Set
Despite not making his big league debut until April 13, 1964, Ruiz appeared in the 1963 Topps set on a multi-player Rookie Stars card, and he'd repeat on a Rookie Stars card in the 1964 set. This is his first solo appearance in a Topps set. The back of the card highlights his speed, and there's an uncorrected error in the first line of the text as Ruiz split time between Cincinnati and San Diego in 1964, not 1965.
1965 Season
Ruiz spent the entire season with the Reds, but was the last man off the bench and appeared in only 29 games with 18 plate appearances. He batted just .111 with a pair of hits the entire year. His season ended on August 25th when as a pinch-runner he broke his ankle on a slide into third base.
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First Mainstream Card: 1963 Topps #407
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (9): 1963-1971
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1978 TCMA The 1960s I #35
39 - Ruiz non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/28/22.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database
Wikipedia
Previous Card: #553 Astros Rookie Stars
Previous Card: #553 Astros Rookie Stars
Next Card: #555 Jack Baldschun - Philadelphia Phillies
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