#134 World Series Game 3 - Mantle's Clutch HR

The 1964 World Series opened in St. Louis on October 7th and it ended 8 days later back in St. Louis with the Cardinals winning the decisive Game 7.

It was the fifth time these two teams had faced each other in the World Series, with the Yankees winning in 1928 and 1943 and the Cardinals prevailing in 1926 and 1942.  This also marked the end of an era for the Yankees, as the club had appeared in 14 of 16 fall classics since 1949 and they wouldn't appear again until 1976.  Former Yankee catcher Yogi Berra (#470) was in his first year as the team's manager, and he'd be unceremoniously fired following the series loss and replaced with (ironically enough) the Cardinals' manager, Johnny Keane (#131).  Keane would only last with the Yankees until 20 games into the 1966 season.

World Series cards were a key subset in Topps offerings throughout the 1960s and 1970s, with a card highlighting each game along with a series capping "Celebration" card.

Building the Set
May 6, 2021 from Port Washington, NY - Card #260
This was an unexpected buy consummated while watching the Phillies blow a game against the Mets on Saturday night, May 1st.  Specifically browsing for one of the last three "big" cards* needed from the 1965 Topps set's second series, I found this World Series card reasonably priced from seller Clean Sweep Auctions and impulsively clicked Buy It Now.  The card arrived a few days later.  Apparently the card I had purchased was already gone, so Clean Sweep upgraded me to a NM version of the card, which had a price tag almost three times higher than what I had actually paid.  Having now purchased a string of star cards for our set, I'd like to turn my attention back to the remaining commons needed to complete the second series.  

*The other two "big" second series cards remaining from our checklist are Frank Robinson (#120) and Roberto Clemente (#160).

The Card / Cardinals Team Set / Yankees Team Set

The Cardinals and Yankees split the first two series games in St. Louis, and Game 3 was played in the Bronx at Yankee Stadium.  Former Phillie Curt Simmons (#373), 18-9 during the regular season was starting for the Cardinals with Jim Bouton (#30), 18-13, on the mound for the Yankees.  A pitcher's duel resulted with the Yankees touching Simmons first when Clete Boyer (#475) doubled home Elston Howard (#450) in the second inning for the game's first run.  Simmons helped his own cause in the fifth, singling home Tim McCarver (#294) to tie the score.  McCarver's run was unearned as he had singled to start the inning, but moved to second base on a fielding error by Mickey Mantle (#350) in right field.

In the top of the ninth, the Cardinals stranded the potential go-ahead run at third when Curt Flood (#415) lined out to Mantle to end the inning.  In the bottom of the ninth, Simmons yielded to the Cardinals' closer, veteran Barney Schultz (#28).  Mantle didn't waste any time, connecting for a game-winning, walk-off home run that sailed over right fielder Mike Shannon's (#43) head to give the Yankees a 2-1 victory and a 2-1 series lead.

The interesting thing about this card is the photo used is clearly not from Mantle's game-winning at-bat, and it's not even from Yankee Stadium.  Mantle is wearing the Yankees' away jersey here, with "New York" shown across the jersey's front.  And that sure looks like Bob Gibson's (#320) follow-through as it's clearly not Schultz shown on the mound.  Gibson started Game 2 and Game 7 of the 1964 World Series in St. Louis, facing off against Mantle eight times as follows:

Game 2, first inning - strike out swinging

Game 2, fourth inning - strike out looking

Game 2, sixth inning - walk

Game 2, seventh inning - RBI groundout to second

Game 7, second inning - strike out swinging

Game 7, fourth inning - groundout back to Gibson

Game 7, sixth inning - three-run home run

Game 7, eight inning - flied out to center

In the photo used for this Topps cards, the catcher, McCarver for all those Mantle plate appearances, has just caught the ball here so this could simply be a swing and a miss by Mantle or one of the two times above he struck out swinging.  Shown above are two photos from those Gibson/Mantle match-ups, and shown below is the actual video of Mantle's Game 3 home run.  The black and white photo above is from Game 2 with a different umpire and different spectators in the stands behind home plate when compared to this Topps card.  That leads me to believe the photo shown on 1965 Topps card #134, celebrating Mantle's Game 3 walk-off home run, is actually him striking out swinging against Gibson in Game 7.  (Given the multitude of baseball card bloggers out there I have to imagine someone has discovered and written about this before.)

Sources:
Baseball Reference

Prior Card:  #133 World Series Game 2

Next Card:  #135 World Series Game 4

#138 World Series Game 7 - Gibson Wins Finale

The 1964 World Series opened in St. Louis on October 7th and it ended 8 days later back in St. Louis with the Cardinals winning the decisive Game 7.

It was the fifth time these two teams had faced each other in the World Series, with the Yankees winning in 1928 and 1943 and the Cardinals prevailing in 1926 and 1942.  This also marked the end of an era for the Yankees, as the club had appeared in 14 of 16 fall classics since 1949 and they wouldn't appear again until 1976.  Former Yankee catcher Yogi Berra (#470) was in his first year as the team's manager, and he'd be unceremoniously fired following the series loss and replaced with (ironically enough) the Cardinals' manager, Johnny Keane (#131).  Keane would only last with the Yankees until 20 games into the 1966 season.

World Series cards were a key subset in Topps offerings throughout the 1960s and 1970s, with a card highlighting each game along with a series capping "Celebration" card.

Building the Set
April 17, 2021 from San Diego, CA - Card #257
With no in-person baseball card shows scheduled until at least June in my area, I've fallen into a pattern with my 1965 Topps set building.  After adding a group of commons (say 10 to 20 cards) I then feel the need to add a few star cards as well.  Back in the 1980s and 1990s when my Dad and I were actively building Topps sets, we'd follow a similar pattern when attending baseball card shows.  I'd spend time hunched over a common box, picking out a stack of 1974 or 1976 or 1973 commons while my Dad would scour the showroom floor for deals on a few star cards.  After adding 18 common and semi-star cards through eBay auctions in late March, I went directly to Kit Young Cards to offset those purchases with a few minor star card additions.  This World Series card was one of four 1965 Topps cards that arrived from San Diego in mid-April, and the card cost $15.

The Card / Cardinals Team Set / Yankees Team Set

With the series tied at three, Mel Stottlemyre (#550) got the ball for the Yankees with Bob Gibson (#320) on the mound for the Cardinals.  This was the third time these two pitchers had faced each other in the series, with Stottlemyre winning Game 2 and Gibson prevailing in Game 5.  Stottlemyre and Gibson shut down each team's offense through the first three innings, with the Cardinals scoring first in the bottom of the fourth on three singles, a walk and a steal of home by catcher Tim McCarver (#294).  That was enough to chase Stottlemyre from the game and his replacement, Al Downing (#598), surrendered a home run to Lou Brock (#540) to begin the bottom of the fifth.  A few more hits, another RBI groundout and a sacrifice fly later, it was 6-0 Cardinals.

The Yankees mounted a small comeback with Mickey Mantle (#350) connecting for a three-run home run off Gibson in the sixth.  Ken Boyer (#100) added a solo home run for the Cardinals in the seventh, and the score was 7-3 heading to the ninth with Gibson still on the mound.  Cardinals' fans were undoubtedly a little nervous when Gibson allowed solo home runs to Clete Boyer (#475) and Phil Linz (#369), but he ultimately got Bobby Richardson (#115) to pop up to second baseman Dal Maxvill (#78) to end the game and secure the World Championship for St. Louis.

The photo on the front of the card was colorized with Topps only getting the sleeve colors (red) correct.  Gibson's hat that day, and obviously the front of his jersey, were both red.  The back of the card mentions his World Series strikeout mark of 31 over his three complete games, and Gibson was named the World Series MVP.  He'd win that honor again in the 1967 World Series.

Sources:
Baseball Reference

Prior Card:  #137 World Series Game 6

Next Card:  #139 World Series Celebration 

#12 1964 N.L. Strikeout Leaders - Veale, Gibson & Drysdale

Beginning in 1961, Topps started including league leader cards in its sets and there are 12 league leaders cards kicking off the 1965 Topps set.

Building the Set
December 25, 2020 from Marco Island, FL - Card #184
This is one of 32 cards (mostly commons) I received from Jenna and our sons on Christmas morning, as I was asked to do some surrogate shopping on their behalf and I gladly obliged.  Hunting specifically for first series cards, this is one of 5 cards I added from eBay seller Super Bowl Auctions from Marco Island, Florida.  Thanks to the presence of Bob Gibson (#320) and Don Drysdale (#260), this league leaders card was $10, making it the third most expensive card added behind the Rico Petrocelli (#74) Rookie Stars card and the A.L. RBI Leaders (#5) card featuring Mickey Mantle (#350).

The Card / Pirates Team Set / Cardinals Team Set / Dodgers Team Set

I'll admit Bob Veale (#195) had been completely off my baseball knowledge radar until I received this card and I started looking closer at his career.  A pure strikeout pitcher, Veale finished in the top ten in that category in five seasons, leading the league in 1964 with 250.  His league leader finishes declined each year thereafter as he placed second in 1965 and third in 1966.  His second place finish in 1965 was despite his career-high 276 strikeouts that season as he finished a distant second behind Sandy Koufax's (#300) 382 mark.  Koufax by the way was the fourth place finisher in 1964 with 223.

Gibson would finish in the league's top ten for strikeouts a staggering 11 times, leading the league in 1968 with 268.  Along with his second place finish in 1964, he was the runner-up in two more years - 1969 and 1970.  Gibson is currently 14th on the all-time list with 3,117 strikeouts, one ahead of Curt Schilling.  Drysdale also had 11 top ten finishes for strikeouts over his career, leading the league in 1959, 1960 and 1962.  

Don Nottebart (#469) and Bob Miller (#98) just missed the cut for inclusion on the back of the card, as they each had 77 strikeouts in 1964.

Previous Card:  #11 1964 A.L. Strikeout Leaders

Next Card:  #13 Pedro Ramos - New York Yankees

#320 Bob Gibson - St. Louis Cardinals

Robert Gibson
St. Louis Cardinals
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  189
Born:  November 9, 1935, Omaha, NE
Signed:  Signed by the St. Louis Cardinals as an amateur free agent before 1957 season
Major League Teams:  St. Louis Cardinals 1959-1975
Died:  October 2, 2020, Omaha, NE (age 84)
Hall of Fame Induction:  1981

One of the best, most feared and most competitive pitchers of his generation, Bob Gibson was a nine-time All-Star, a two-time World Series winner (1964 and 1967), a two-time Cy Young Award winner (1968 and 1970) and the second pitcher in history to reach the 3,000 strikeout plateau.  Along with his 1968 Cy Young Award, he also took home that season's MVP award as he went 22-9 with a 1.12 ERA, 28 complete games, 13 shutouts and 268 strikeouts in one of the most dominant seasons of pitching in baseball history.  Gibson won 20 or more games five times.  If that wasn't enough, he also won nine Gold Gloves for his fielding and was a lifetime .206 batter with 24 home runs.  He retired after 17 seasons with 251 wins, 56 shutouts and 3,117 strikeouts and the Cardinals retired his #45 in September 1975.

Gibson was a first ballot inductee into the Hall of Fame in 1981, the same year he returned to baseball as a Mets coach on the staff of former teammate and Mets manager Joe Torre (#200).  He moved with Torre to the Braves in 1982 where he stayed through 1984.  He coached one last time for Torre with the Cardinals in 1995.  Gibson passed away on October 2, 2020, 52 years after his dominant performance in Game 1 of the 1968 World Series in which he pitched a complete game shutout and struck out 17 Tigers batters.

Building the Set
October 8, 2020 from San Diego, CA - Card #173
By all accounts, and caused by a multitude of different events, 2020 has been a rough year.  The baseball world lost five iconic Hall of Famers in a span of about six weeks with the passing of Tom Seaver, Lou Brock (#540), Gibson, Whitey Ford (#330) and Joe Morgan (#16) between August 31st and October 11th.  The next three cards we added to our 1965 Topps set were the cards of Brock, Gibson and Ford as I wanted to selfishly cross them off our list but also to spend some time learning more about each of their careers.  (I've had a Morgan rookie card in my collection since around 1983, when he played with the Phillies as a member of the Wheeze Kids.)

We learned about the passing of Gibson early on the morning of my birthday as we were sitting in the parking lot of a baseball complex waiting for Doug's travel team to arrive.  They had the first game of the day, and our family had stayed overnight at a nearby hotel to avoid having to drive two-plus hours before dawn.  I asked my wife if she'd be willing to give me the Gibson card for our set for our birthday, she immediately agreed, and I was off to eBay on my phone.  It's fitting I bought this card from Kit Young Cards as that was my Dad's preferred baseball card dealer for major purchases.  The card arrived five days later and I snapped a quick photo to mark its arrival as Doug was heading out the door to another baseball practice.

The Card / Cardinals Team Set
Gibson first appeared in a Topps set in 1959, and after six years of getting nothing more than a head shot of the pitcher we get a great posed shot showing Gibson staring down an imaginary batter.  The back of the card rightfully cuts to the chase in pointing out Gibson had defeated the Yankees twice in the 1964 World Series.  He won Game 5 and the decisive Game 7, pitching complete games in both.  His Game 7 win is commemorated in the World Series subset with card #138.

As far as I can tell, this card has only been reprinted once as it appears on a 2010 Topps Million Card Giveaway insert.  Gibson, at card #69, is one of 72 players featured within the 1965 Topps Embossed insert set and one of four Cardinals in the set.  He's also in the harder to find 1965 Topps Transfers insert set.

1965 Season
Coming off his World Series heroics, Gibson won 20 games for the first time in 1965, going 20-12 with a 3.07 ERA in 36 starts.  20 of those 36 starts were complete games, with six shutouts.  Gibson earned a save in the 1965 All-Star Game, pitching the final two shutout innings and striking out three.  He also won the first of his nine Gold Gloves.

1959 Topps #514

1964 Topps #460

1968 Topps #100

1971 Topps #450

1975 Topps #150

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1959 Topps #514
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (18):  1959-1975, 1988
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2020 Topps Living Set #354

1,946 - Gibson non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 11/1/20.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
National Baseball Hall of Fame
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #319 Ken McMullen - Washington Senators

Next Card:  #321 Rusty Staub - Houston Astros