#493 Tigers Rookie Stars - Bill Roman / Bruce Brubaker

William Anthony Roman
Detroit Tigers
First Base

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  190
Born:  October 11, 1938, Detroit, MI
Signed:  Signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent before 1960 season
Major League Teams:  Detroit Tigers 1964-1965

Bruce Ellsworth Brubaker
Detroit Tigers
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  198
Born:  December 29, 1941, Harrisburg, PA
Signed:  Signed by the Milwaukee Braves as an amateur free agent before 1959 season
Major League Teams:  Los Angeles Dodgers 1967; Milwaukee Brewers 1970

Originally signed before the 1960 season, Bill Roman was in the midst of his second strong year with the Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs in 1964 when the Tigers made him a late season call-up.  In his big league debut on September 30th, Roman pinch-hit for pitcher Fred Gladding (#37) in the seventh inning and hit a home run off Yankees' pitcher Jim Bouton (#30).  He'd make the Tigers' opening day roster in 1965, but only collected four more hits, all singles, over the remainder of his brief big league career.  Roman played in 24 games for the Tigers overall, batting .143 (5 for 35) with his one memorable pinch-hit home run.

Bruce Brubaker pitched for 14 seasons in the minors within the Braves, Tigers, Phillies, Dodgers and Brewers organizations, making it to the majors for exactly two games.  He was a 16 game winner in 1960 at the age of 18, and a 15 game winner in 1964.  Brubaker made his big league debut on April 15, 1967 with the Dodgers, throwing an inning of relief in a lopsided loss to the Cardinals.  He allowed three runs in the outing, including a home run to Lou Brock (#540).  He next pitched in the majors on August 5, 1970 with the Brewers, throwing two innings and allowing a pair of runs on two hits against the White Sox.  He compiled a 13.50 ERA over 3 1/3 innings pitched.

1967 Topps #276

Building the Set
March 6, 2022 from The Philly Show (Sports Cards Plus - Cooper City, FL) - Card #585

This is the 101st 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.  After our 51 card haul from Uncle Dick's, and with more card spending budget still in place, I set out to find another dealer with a binder of 1965 Topps cards with reasonable prices.  I had purchased cards from Sports Cards Plus before, finding the last few cards needed for our 1971 Topps set from this dealer back in December 2019.

Settling in, we found 37 cards needed for our set with an average price per card working out to around $6.  The lot, including this Tigers Rookie Stars card, consisted mostly of semi-stars and team cards.  This was the last of the 37 cards acquired from Sports Card Plus, and after paying for this mini haul we were officially 13 cards away from a complete set, with one more purchase coming to end the day.  I had seen a semi-pricey card we still needed at another dealer's table earlier in my travels, and before leaving the show I headed back to that table to try to negotiate a better deal for the card.

The Card / Tigers Team Set
This is it for Roman, as he doesn't appear on any other baseball cards.  His two cards listed in the TCDB include this original Topps card and the stamped buyback version included within packs of 2014 Topps Heritage.  The Beckett database doesn't even count the buyback version.  Brubaker would get a surprise solo card in the 1967 Topps set with the Dodgers.  This is the final card we needed to complete our Tigers team set.

1965 Season - Roman
Roman began the season with the Tigers, starting three games at first base in April and May.  He'd return to the club in September, serving solely as a pinch-hitter and once as a pinch-runner.  Roman collected just a pair of hits, batting .074 overall in 27 at bats.  Somehow Roman spent the middle part of the season playing for the Toledo Mud Hens, then the Yankees' top farm team in the International League.  With the Mud Hens, Roman batted .299 with four home runs and 29 RBIs.

1965 Season - Brubaker
Brubaker would never pitch for the Tigers, and he spent this entire season with the Syracuse Chiefs.  He was 9-9 with a 3.99 ERA in 28 games overall, pitching a team-leading 187 innings and striking out 128.

Phillies Connection - Brubaker
Left unprotected in the annual rule 5 draft, Brubaker was selected by the Phillies on November 29, 1965.  He'd spend the entire 1966 season with San Diego Padres, then the Phillies' top farm team, going 8-13 with a 4.45 ERA in 29 games.  Left unprotected again following the season, Brubaker was selected by the Dodgers in the 1966 rule 5 draft.

Other Notable Baseball Cards - Roman
First Mainstream Card:  1965 Topps #493
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (1):  1965
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1965 Topps #493

1 - Roman non-parallel baseball card in the Beckett online database as of 10/9/22.

Sources - Roman:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
Wikipedia

Other Notable Baseball Cards - Brubaker
First Mainstream Card:  1965 Topps #493
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (2):  1965, 1967
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2016 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-BBR

7 - Brubaker non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 10/9/22.

Sources - Brubaker:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #492 Gene Freese - Pittsburgh Pirates

Next Card:  #494 Jay Ritchie - Boston Red Sox

#429 Don Demeter - Detroit Tigers

Donald Lee Demeter
Detroit Tigers
Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  190
Born:  June 25, 1935, Oklahoma City, OK
Signed:  Signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers as an amateur free agent before 1953 season
Major League Teams:  Brooklyn Dodgers 1956; Los Angeles Dodgers 1958-1961; Philadelphia Phillies 1961-1963; Detroit Tigers 1964-1966; Boston Red Sox 1966-1967; Cleveland Indians 1967
Died:  November 29, 2021, Oklahoma City, OK (age 86)

Don Demeter was a slugging outfielder who also played solid defense for parts of 11 big league seasons, primarily with the Dodgers, Phillies and Tigers.  Demeter became the Dodgers' regular center fielder in 1959, seeing his only postseason action when his team defeated the White Sox in six games in the World Series.  He was dealt to the Phillies in May 1961 and he'd enjoy his best seasons while in Philadelphia as the team's regular center fielder or third baseman between 1961 and 1963.  Demeter compiled a career year in 1962, batting .307 with 29 home runs and 107 RBIs while finishing 12th in the league's MVP voting.  Following the 1963 season, Demeter was part of the trade package that brought Jim Bunning (#20) to the Phillies from Detroit.  He put together a few more solid seasons with the Tigers, mainly as a back-up to Mickey Stanley and Jim Northrup (#259).  Demeter would spend the last few seasons of his career as a pinch-hitter, retiring following the 1967 season as a result of a heart condition.

In 1,109 games, Demeter batted .265 with 163 home runs and 563 RBIs.  He'd later serve as the president of the minor league Oklahoma City 89ers and he'd found Grace Community Baptist Church in his home town in 2002 where he served as a pastor for over 16 years.

Building the Set
March 6, 2022 from The Philly Show (Sports Cards Plus - Cooper City, FL) - Card #575

This is the 91st 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.  After our 51 card haul from Uncle Dick's, and with more card spending budget still in place, I set out to find another dealer with a binder of 1965 Topps cards with reasonable prices.  I had purchased cards from Sports Cards Plus before, finding the last few cards needed for our 1971 Topps set from this dealer back in December 2019.

Settling in, we found 37 cards needed for our set with an average price per card working out to around $6.  The lot, including this Demeter card, consisted mostly of semi-stars and team cards.  After paying for this mini haul, we were officially 13 cards away from a complete set, with one more purchase coming to end the day.

The Card / Tigers Team Set
This is Demeter's first Topps flagship set appearance where he's shown in an actual Tigers uniform.  His 1964 Topps card listed him on the Tigers, but he's wearing a full Phillies uniform.  His in-progress errorless streak is highlighted on the back, as his clutch hitting from the 1964 season.

1965 Season
In his second season with the Tigers, Demeter was the club's opening day center fielder, and he'd make 97 starts overall between the outfield and first base.  Demeter batted .278 with 16 home runs and 58 RBIs, with seven of those RBIs coming on August 12th against the Athletics.  He went 3 for 4 that day with a grand slam.

Phillies Career
On May 4, 1961, the Phillies acquired Demeter and Charley Smith (#22) from the Dodgers for Turk Farrell (#80) and Joe Koppe.  Demeter appeared in 106 games for the Phillies, batting .257 with a team-leading 20 home runs.  In 1962, his career year as mentioned above, Demeter moved to the infield, starting 95 games at third base.  He'd make 50 starts overall in the outfield as well, beginning a 266 consecutive game errorless streak that would stand until broken by Darren Lewis in 1994.  Demeter's marks won the team's triple crown in 1962, and he continued to move around the field the next season when he was the Phillies' opening day first baseman.  He'd start 21 games at first base, 36 games at third base and 72 games in the outfield.  Despite all the moving around, he still produced at the plate, batting .258 with 22 home runs (second on the club to Johnny Callison - #310) and 83 RBIs (tops on the club).  

Now a valuable trade chip, Demeter was sent to the Tigers on December 5, 1963 with Jack Hamilton (#288) for Bunning and Gus Triandos (#248).  The Tigers had acquired Demeter to replace slugger Rocky Colavito (#380), who had been dealt to the Athletics the previous month.  In 413 games with the Phillies, Demeter batted .276 overall with 71 home runs and 258 RBIs.

1958 Topps #244

1962 Topps #146

1963 Topps #268

1964 Topps #58

1967 Topps #572

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1956 Topps #63
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (10):  1958-1967
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1979 TCMA 50's #237

58 - Demeter non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 10/1/22.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Phillies Room
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #428 Bob Shaw - San Francisco Giants

Next Card:  #430 Gary Peters - Chicago White Sox

#390 Bill Freehan - Detroit Tigers

William Ashley Freehan
Detroit Tigers
Catcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  203
Born:  November 29, 1941, Detroit, MI
Signed:  Signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent before 1961 season
Major League Teams:  Detroit Tigers 1961, 1963-1976
Died:  August 19, 2021, Petoskey, MI (age 79)

Playing his entire career for his hometown Tigers, Bill Freehan was a perennial All-Star, a five-time Gold Glove winner and one of the best catchers of his era.  Freehan played baseball and football at the University of Michigan before signing his first contract with the Tigers in 1961.  Assuming regular catching duties for the team in 1964, he made his first of ten straight All-Star teams while batting .300 for the season with 18 home runs and 80 RBIs.  A year later, his offensive output would slip but he'd win the first of five consecutive Gold Gloves.  Freehan's career year helped win the Tigers win the pennant in 1968, as he batted .263 with 25 home runs 84 RBIs.  He didn't do much in the World Series at the plate, but he caught every inning of all seven games as his Tigers defeated the Cardinals.

Freehan had several steady seasons after that championship season, continuing as the Tigers' regular catcher through the 1975 season.  He'd later instruct Lance Parrish, his heir behind the plate for Detroit, while also doing some broadcasting work and returning to the Tigers for several seasons as a catching instructor.  Freehan had 1,591 career hits, batting .262 with 200 home runs and 758 RBIs.  He led the league in being hit by pitch three times and had a career mark of 114 HBPs.  He ranked among the top of just about every defensive catching category when he retired, and he's currently 17th in putouts (9,941), 26th in games (1,581), 88th in runners caught stealing (433) and 40th in fielding percentage (.993). 

Building the Set
March 6, 2022 from The Philly Show (Sports Cards Plus - Cooper City, FL) - Card #564

This is the 80th 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.  After our 51 card haul from Uncle Dick's, and with more card spending budget still in place, I set out to find another dealer with a binder of 1965 Topps cards with reasonable prices.  I had purchased cards from Sports Cards Plus before, finding the last few cards needed for our 1971 Topps set from this dealer back in December 2019.

Settling in, we found 37 cards needed for our set with an average price per card working out to around $6.  The lot, including this Freehan card, consisted mostly of semi-stars and team cards.  After paying for this mini haul, we were officially 13 cards away from a complete set, with one more purchase coming to end the day.

The Card / Tigers Team Set
The back of the card references his league-leading eight hit by pitches in 1964, and he'd go on to lead the league in the same category in 1967 (20) and 1968 (24).  The blurb on the back mentions Freehan was sixth in batting, behind league leader Tony Oliva (#340).  His .993 fielding percentage was second behind Elston Howard's (#450) .998 mark.  Freehan made seven errors in 991 chances, with Howard making just two errors in 1,008 chances.

1965 Season
Freehan was nagged by constant injuries during the season, leading to his temporary offensive decline.  He appeared in 130 games, making 120 starts at catcher, while batting .234 with 10 home runs and 43 RBIs.  Freehan was named to his second All-Star team and won his first Gold Glove.

1963 Topps #466

1968 Topps #470

1970 Topps #465

1973 Topps #460

1977 Topps #22

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1963 Topps #466
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (15):  1963-1977
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2013 Panini Golden Age #96

197 - Freehan non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 8/16/22.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #389 Don Larsen - Houston Astros

Next Card:  #391 Mel McGaha MG - Kansas City Athletics

#593 Tigers Rookie Stars - Jackie Moore / John Sullivan

Jackie Spencer Moore
Detroit Tigers
Catcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  180
Born:  February 19, 1939, Jay, FL
Signed:  Signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent before the 1957 season
Major League Teams:  Detroit Tigers 1965
As a Manager:  Oakland Athletics 1984-1986

John Peter Sullivan
Detroit Tigers
Catcher

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  195
Born:  January 3, 1941, Somerville, NJ
Signed:  Signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent before the 1959 season
Major League Teams:  Detroit Tigers 1963-1965; New York Mets 1967; Philadelphia Phillies 1968

Jackie Moore played professionally for 11 seasons, but only saw big league action in 1965 with the Tigers, appearing in 21 games.  With Bill Freehan (#390) as the regular starting catcher, Moore and fellow back-up John Sullivan didn't see much action.  Moore batted .094 (5 for 53) in his limited stint with the Tigers, making 16 starts behind the plate.  Following his last year as a player in 1967, Moore began a lengthy second career as a minor and major league coach and manager.  His major league coaching tenure spanned 32 seasons with the Brewers (1970-1972), Rangers (1973-1976, 1980, 1993-1994, 2009-2013), Blue Jays (1977-1979), Athletics (1981-1984), Expos (1987-1989), Reds (1990-1992), Rockies (1996-1997) and Astros (2008).  In between all of that, and his four different stints as a Rangers coach, Moore managed the A's for 353 games between 1984 and 1986, compiling a record of 163-190.  As manager of the Double-A Round Rock Express, Moore won league or division titles every season between 2000 and 2004.

From the 1969 Phillies Yearbook

Sullivan appeared in 39 games for the Tigers between 1963 and 1965, seeing limited playing time as a back-up catcher, similar to Moore, and pinch-hitter.  After spending all of the 1966 season in the minors, he was left unprotected by the Tigers and selected by the Mets in the November 1966 rule 5 draft.  Sullivan appeared in a career-high 65 games with the Mets in 1967, backing up Jerry Grote (#504), and making 29 starts behind the plate.  He'd bat .218 with five doubles.  Dealt to the Phillies before the 1968 season, he'd play his final 12 major league games with Philadelphia.  Sullivan managed in the Royals' system between 1973 and 1978, compiling an impressive 725-434 record over six seasons.  He'd join the big league coaching staff of the Royals in 1979.  Sullivan would also coach with the Braves (1980-1981) and Blue Jays (1982-1993), and he caught Joe Carter's game-winning home run ball in the bullpen during Game 6 of the 1993 World Series.

Building the Set
March 6, 2022 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards - Babylon, NY) - Card #546

This is the 62nd 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 Tigers Rookie Stars card was $8 and was the last of 49 commons and semi-stars purchased in my triumphant return to Uncle Dick's and his replenished neon green binders.  Having reached the end of the binders, I asked if there were any star cards from the set available for my perusal, and of course there were.  I'd buy two major cards needed for our set to go along with the 49 commons and semi-stars and those two cards will be featured in the next posts.

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 / Tigers Team Set
This is the rookie card for both Moore and Sullivan, and it's unusual to see a multi-player rookie card from the same team with two catchers.  Moore was still with the club when this card was created, but as noted on the back Sullivan had been optioned down on May 11, 1965.

1965 Season - Moore
In his major league debut on April 18th, Moore started and caught 12 innings of a game ultimately won by the Tigers, 4-1, over the Angels in 13 innings.  His single helped spur the rally in the top of the 13th to give the Tigers the win.  He'd appear sparingly throughout the rest of the season, getting the most playing time in June when he appeared in 13 games, but batted just .108 (4 for 37).  Demoted briefly to the Syracuse Chiefs in the International League during the season, he appeared in 17 games and batted .180.

1965 Season - Sullivan
Sullivan was the Tigers' opening day catcher, and he'd make 25 more starts behind the plate as the primary back-up to Freehan following a brief demotion between May and June.  He batted .267 with a pair of home runs and 11 RBIs.  Sullivan played 29 games in Syracuse, batting .169 (13 for 77).

Phillies Career - Sullivan
The Mets sent Sullivan and Johnny Lewis (#277) to the Phillies on February 19, 1968 for a player to be named later, who turned out to be utility player Billy Sorrell.  With the Phillies, Sullivan began the season with their Triple-A team in 
San Diego, and he'd bat .246 overall for the Padres in 83 games.  He was recalled in mid-July for catching depth, playing behind Clay Dalrymple (#372) and Mike Ryan (#573).  Sullivan made it into just 12 games with the Phillies, batting .222 (4 for 18) and making three starts behind the plate.

On April 12, 1969, the Phillies traded him with Anthony Giresi to the Orioles for catcher Vic Roznovsky (#334), ending his short time with the club.  He's not on any Phillies baseball cards, but he received an entire page in the team's 1969 Yearbook.

1973 Topps #549

1974 Topps #379

1977 Topps #113

1985 Topps #38

1986 Topps #591

Other Notable Baseball Cards - Moore
First Mainstream Card:  1965 Topps #593
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (7):  1965, 1973-1974, 1977, 1984-1986
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1986 Topps #591

36 - Moore non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 8/1/22.

Sources - Moore:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
Wikipedia

Other Notable Baseball Cards - Sullivan
First Mainstream Card:  1965 Topps #593
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (3):  1965-1967
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2016 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-JSU

10 - Sullivan non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 8/1/22.

Sources - Sullivan:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
Wikipedia

1966 Topps #597

1967 Topps #568

Previous Card:  #592 Frank Bork - Pittsburgh Pirates

Next Card:  #594 Joe Gaines - Houston Astros

#576 Terry Fox - Detroit Tigers

Terrence Edward Fox
Detroit Tigers
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  175
Born:  July 31, 1935, Chicago, IL
Acquired:  Sent from New Iberia (Evangeline) to the Milwaukee Braves in an unknown transaction, September 23, 1955
Major League Teams:  Milwaukee Braves 1960; Detroit Tigers 1961-1966; Philadelphia Phillies 1966

Terry Fox appeared in 248 big league games over parts of seven seasons, all in relief.  After a brief stint with the Braves in 1960, he joined the Tigers bullpen in 1961 where he'd be a mainstay through the 1965 season.  He was one of the most reliable late-inning relievers in 1961 and 1962 when he posted ERAs of 1.41 and 1.71 while saving 12 and 16 games respectively.  Fox appeared in a career high 46 games in 1963, pitching in also a career high 80 1/3 innings.  He was the most frequently used reliever by the Tigers between 1961 and 1966, appearing in 206 games and recording 55 saves.  He struggled at the start of the 1966 season and the Tigers sold him to the Phillies where he'd pitch in his final 36 major league games.  Fox spent all of 1967 with the Phillies' top farm team in San Diego, retiring from the game following the season.

In 248 total games, Fox was 29-19 with a 2.99 ERA and 59 saves.  He struck out 185 batters over 397 innings pitched.

Building the Set
March 6, 2022 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards - Babylon, NY) - Card #539

This is the 55th 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 Fox 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 / Tigers Team Set
The back of the card highlights his 21-win season with the New Iberia Pelicans in 1955, before he had been converted to a full-time reliever.  The first line of the write-up on the back, "When his pitcher's arm is sound," makes me think Fox was frequently injured during his career.  The narrative goes on to highlight his success out of the Tigers' bullpen including his 38 saves to date.

1965 Season
This was Fox's last full season in Detroit, and he seemed to share closer's duties with several other pitchers.  While he still led the Tigers bullpen with 10 saves, Larry Sherry (#408) and Fred Gladding (#37) both recorded five saves while Orlando Pena (#311) recorded four saves.  Fox was 6-4 overall with a 2.78 ERA in 42 relief appearances.

Phillies Career
Sold to the Phillies on May 10, 1966, Fox bolstered a bullpen consisting of Darold Knowles (#577), Ray Culp (#505) and veteran Ray Herbert (#399).  He'd appear in 36 games, going 3-2 with a 4.47 ERA and four saves.  Fox would return with the Phillies in spring training in 1967, appearing in the official team photo in the 1967 Phillies Yearbook, but he wouldn't travel north with the team.  Assigned to the San Diego Padres, then the Phillies' top farm team, Fox appeared in just 28 games, going 3-0 with a 5.23 ERA in 43 innings pitched.  That was to be his last action in professional baseball.  He appears in the 1967 Topps set with the Phillies.

1961 Topps #459

1962 Topps #196

1964 Topps #387

1966 Topps #472

1967 Topps #181

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1961 Topps #459
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (7):  1961-1967
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1967 Topps #181

18 - Fox non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/29/22.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #575 Jose Pagan - San Francisco Giants

Next Card:  #577 A.L. Rookie Stars

#547 Jake Wood - Detroit Tigers

Jacob Wood
Detroit Tigers
Second Base-Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  163
Born:  June 22, 1937, Elizabeth, NJ
Signed:  Signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent before the 1957 season
Major League Teams:  Detroit Tigers 1961-1967; Cincinnati Reds 1967

Jake Wood won the Tigers' starting second baseman job out of spring training in 1961, and started 160 games at the position for a team that won 101 games but finished in second place to the Yankees.  He led the league in triples (14), errors at second (25) and strikeouts (141), placing sixth in the Rookie of the Year voting.  He started the majority of the Tigers' games at second base in 1962 and 1963, but a dislocated finger cost him playing time in the second half of the 1963 season.  Still, he hit .271 in 1963 with 11 home runs.  Veteran Jerry Lumpe (#353) was acquired prior to the 1964 season, and Wood settled into a bench role.  He'd make only 22 starts in 1964, 19 in 1965 and 49 in 1966.  Wood was sold to the Reds in June 1967 and he'd wrap up his big league career with 16 games for Cincinnati.

Overall, Wood batted .250 in 608 major league games, collected 469 hits, 35 home runs and 168 RBIs.

Building the Set
March 6, 2022 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards - Babylon, NY) - Card #533

This is the 49th 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 Wood 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 / Tigers Team Set
Like a lot of the cards of his Tigers teammates, Wood is posed on the team's spring training field with a large light standard behind him as well as several field house buildings.  The back of the card celebrates his versatility in the filed and his success as a pinch-hitter.  The "2B-OF" position designation is an odd choice by Topps as Wood had appeared in one game as a left fielder in 1964.  For his career, he'd play three games in the outfield over seven seasons.

1965 Season
With Lumpe returning as the regular second baseman, Wood made only 17 starts at second base, with one start each at first and third.  He appeared in 58 games, with 30 pinch-hit appearances and eight pinch-run assignments.  He batted a decent .288 with a pair of home runs and seven RBIs in his limited playing time, and was 9 for 25 as a pinch-hitter, good for a .360 average.

1961 Topps #514

1962 Topps #427

1964 Topps #272

1966 Topps #509

1967 Topps #394

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1961 Topps #514
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (7):  1961-1967
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2016 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-JW

36 - Wood non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/28/22.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
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