Tuesday, December 27, 2016

Ranew survived 1966 bat attack


Uncommon commons: In more than 30 years in sportscards publishing I have thrown hundreds of notes into files about the players – usually non-star players – who made up the majority of the baseball and football cards I collected as a kid. Today, I keep adding to those files as I peruse microfilms of The Sporting News from the 1880s through the 1960s. I found these tidbits brought some life to the player pictures on those cards. I figure that if I enjoyed them, you might too.

One of the most memorable on-field incidents occurred on Aug. 22, 1965, when S.F. Giants pitcher Juan Marichal hit Dodgers catcher John Roseboro over the head with a bat.
An iconic photo that shows Sandy Koufax trying to intervene has insured that the ugly attack has not been forgotten 50 years later.

Many baseball fans and collectors are not aware that a similar incident occurred a year later. That attack is little known because it took place in the Pacific Coast League, rather than the majors.

In the May 28, 1966, issue of The Sporting News, Clancy Loranger, Vancouver B.C. baseball writer, provided this account under the headline, “Rosario Banned for Season / After Bat-Swinging Ruckus”.

Dewey Soriano, Pacific Coast League president, acted swiftly and forcefully here following an ugly bat-swinging incident reminiscent of the Juan Marichal-John Roseboro affair in the Vancouver-Seattle game May 11. Seattle Angels catcher Merritt Ranew was taken to a hospital with head injuries when Mountie outfielder Santiago Rosario conked him with a bat during a wild riot that erupted in the fourth inning. Fewer than 24 hours after the free-for-all which saw both benches emptying following a two hour forty minute investigation during which more than 20 witnesses were interviewed, Soriano delivered these rulings.

The 25-year old Rosario who was batting .257 for the Mounties was suspended for the remainder of the PCL season including the playoff and fined $250.

Vancouver outfielder Ricardo Joseph, who precipitated the fracas by charging the mound after he’d been hit in the back by a pitch thrown by pitcher Jim Coates and continued the feud in a hotel lobby the next day was suspended for the four remaining games of the six-games series and fined $100. Soriano made it clear that Joseph was suspended for visiting a downtown hotel the morning after the riot, punching Coates in the mouth, loosening two of the pitcher’s teeth. Mounties outfielder Tommy Reynolds was fined $100.  After the first Joseph-Coates altercation peace had been restored but Reynolds started a second phase of the battle at Capialano Stadium by bunting, then veering off the base patch and charging Coates, knocking him down.

Seattle’s Ranew, who is suffering considerable pain was released from the hospital the day after the brawl and flown back to Seattle also drew a $100 fine. Ranew had twice roared to Coates’ defense, socking Joseph the first time. He was doing battle with Reynolds when Rosario, who had been in the on-deck circle, rushed into the fray and felled him with the bat. Manager Bob Lemon of the Angels also drew a $100 impost. Soriano said he fined Lemon for quotes in the Vancouver and Seattle papers to the effect that if the league doesn’t take care of Rosario, we will.

Coates, long-time Yankees pitcher who is accused by Vancouver players of throwing at Negro and Latin-American players, wasn’t fined. Soriano said that he couldn’t find that the pitcher had deliberately thrown at the hitter after reading the reports of umpires Jerry Dale and George Maloney and talking to the two umpires. Soriano did rule however that Coates couldn’t pitch in any remaining games of the series. Coates added an extra fillip to the wildest night in the 15-year history of the stadium by coming within one strike of pitching a no-hitter against the Mounties. He had allowed only two Mounties to reach base, had two outs and two strikes on Ted Kubiak in the 9th inning when the Vancouver shortstop singed sharply to center. Ramon Webster then homered but Coates emerged with a 3-2 victory.
  
In imposing what is thought to be the strongest sentence ever assessed in an incident of this kind, Soriano stressed that Rosario had the right to appeal to Phil Piton, National Association president, but also said that there could be a review of Rosario’s case and the suspension could be increased but no decreased depending on the ultimate condition of Ranew. Ranew suffered a concussion and four-inch gash on his head. Doctors described him as badly hurt and said he was shelved at least a month. Several others came up with physical injuries in the free-for-all. Joseph was cut in the face and head requiring four stitches. Lemon nursed a gashed left leg while his opposite number, Manager Mickey Vernon of Vancouver also suffered a leg cut while trying to break up the melee.

After the game Reynolds told reporters “a Seattle player told me before the game to stay loose because Coates would be throwing at us. Joseph told me he heard the same thing.” Neither Joseph nor Reynolds would identify the Seattle players that issued the warning. Coates vigorously denied the charge. Last year San Francisco’s Marichal was fined $1,750 and given a nine-day suspension for striking the Dodgers’ Roseboro with his bat.

Rosario was playing center field for Vancouver in that May 11 game. Attendance was announced as 1,461. At the time, Seattle was in third place and Vancouver in sixth place in the six-team PCL Western Division.

Ranew had surgery in Seattle June 6 to remove a blood clot on the brain. He had been hospitalized since May 11. He was released from Swedish Hospital in Seattle on June 30, almost six weeks after being clubbed. Initially he was at liberty during the day, but because he had no home in Seattle he spent nights at the hospital for about another 10 days.

In its June 11, 1966, edition, TSN announced “Piton Nixes Rosario Appeal / Suspension for Full Year”

The unbylined article read,
The suspension of Santiago Rosario, Vancouver first baseman, has been extended to one full year with the possibility that his expulsion from the game might be made permanent. In a decision announced on May 27, President Phil Piton of the National Association rejected Rosario’s appeal from the penalties assessed by Dewey Soriano, the Pacific Coast League prexy, instead ruled that no request for reinstatement will be considered until May 11, 1967, one year from the date that Rosario hit Merritt Ranew of Seattle in the head with a bat. Ranew’s condition at that time will determine whether Rosario can be reinstated, Piton said “Soriano originally fined Rosario $250 and suspended him for the remainder of the 1966 season. Pitson said Ranew’s condition led him to increase the suspension for a full year.

The Seattle catcher is definitely through with baseball for the season, and possibly all time, his physician reported. Meanwhile Rosario, back home in Puerto Rico, asked the parent Kansas City A’s to pay his salary for the season but he received a negative reply.
The suspension may keep him out of winter ball.

On June 4, Ranew was still suffering from a brain injury and some facial paralysis. The final diagnosis of the extent of his injury was not yet available. Surgery was scheduled to relieve a blood clot on the brain.

The stricken catcher returned to his home at Albany, Ga., in late July. He maintained a quarter horse and Appaloosa breeding facility there.

The 1966 season was Ranew’s 10th in pro ball. He’d signed in 1957 with the Milwaukee Braves. He made his major-league debut in 1962 with the expansion Houston Colt .45s.

He was traded to the Chicago Cubs in March 1963, then to the Braves in June, 1964. After opening the 1965 season with AAA Seattle, he played most of the year with the California Angels.

Ranew was a light-hitting backup catcher in his major league days. In 215 games between 1962-65 he hit .248 with little power. His 1963 season with the Cubs proved to be a batting aberration, as he hit .338.

The Angels sent Ranew down to Seattle for 1966, where he suffered the near-fatal clubbing.

Ranew sat out the remainder of the 1966 season. He returned to Seattle for 1967 and moved on to Syracuse for 1968. He returned to the majors in May, 1969, catching, pinch-hitting and playing a little left field for the Seattle Pilots.

He didn’t stick with the team when it moved to Milwaukee for 1970, he split that season between AAA Hawaii and Denver, then closed his pro career with Hawaii in 1971.

The bat-wielding Santiago Rosario was in his 7th pro season in 1966, having been signed as a first baseman and reserve outfielder in 1960 by the St. Louis Cardinals. He climbed the Cards’ minor-league ladder for four years before being dealt to the Kansas City Royals for 1964.

With the Royals AA team at Birmingham in 1964, Rosario hit /273 with the 14 home runs. He returned to Birmingham to open the 1965 season and was batting .314 when the A’s called him up on June 23. He spent the remainder of the 1965 season at Kansas City, but that was the extent of his big-league career. He hit .235 in his time in the majors.

After serving his suspension in 1967, he returned to Birmingham but managed only a .167 average. He joined the Atlanta Braves organization, 1968-71, playing at AA Savannah and Shreveport and AAA Richmond. He played 1973-76 in the Mexican League.

Because his major-league career was less than a year long, Rosario never appeared on a Topps card. Larry Fritsch remedied that by including Rosario in his 1983 One-Year Winners card set. Rosario was also included among the postcards issued by Jim Elder in 1968 and can be found in the 1972 Puerto Rico League sticker set.

Merritt Ranew has a number of Topps cards to his credit, including 1962 (Houston), 1964 (Cubs) and 1966 (Angels). The 1966 card can be found in two variations, with and without a sentence on back “Ranew was sold to Seattle (PCL) on October 28, 1965”.

 Renew is included in Venezuelan sets of 1962, 1964, 1966 and 1967, and 1966 O-Pee-Chee.

He’s pictured with the Seattle Pilots in Renata Galasso’s 1983 collectors’ team-set issue. He’s included in the 1989 U.S. Forest Service Smokey Bear team set of the 1962  Colts.


Ranew also has a card in the 1967 Seattle Angels popcorn set, pictured at top.

Friday, December 23, 2016

Holmgren didn't make either the Cardinals or Topps cuts




This is the fifth in a string of "football cards that never were" that I've created in December. It's likely to be my last football custom for a while; I'll be switching gears to do some baseball cards.

I showed you a 1969 Topps-style Winston Hill card (Dec. 2), and cards of Bucky Pope (Dec. 14) and Booth Lusteg (Dec. 17). Both of the latter had never before appeared on contemporary football cards, while Hill was part of a number of national and regional issues.

On Dec. 21, I presented my card of former Eagles and Jets head coach Rich Kotite. Kotite had a short, undistinguished career as a player with the N.Y. Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers, but didn't appear on a Topps or Philadelphia card during his playing days.

Mike Holmgren didn't have a card -- or a career -- as an NFL player. However, as the very successful head coach of the Green Bay Packers (75-37 1992-98), he can be found on a number of cards in the 1990s; from ProSet, Pro Line and various local team issues.

Holmgren had an even longer career as head coach for the Seattle Seahawks, 86-74 between 1998-2008. However, he doesn't seem to have appeared on any major card sets in that span.

There does exist a really nice Topps photo taken during his time in the St. Louis Cardinals camp in 1970. It's the picture I used on my custom card.

Holmgren had been drafted by the Cards in the 8th round (#201 overall) of the 1970 NFL draft. He'd been a backup quarterback with the USC Trojans 1966-69, when the team won the Athletic Association of Western University conference titles in 1966-67 and Pac-8 crowns in 1968-69. The 1967 Trojans were National Champions with a 10-0-1 record.

The team went to the Rose Bowl in each of Holmgren's seasons there.

Holmgren's pro prospects were dampened by a 1969 knee injury that limited his playing time. He never made it out of the Cardinals' pre-season camp. He went back to his high school alma mater in 1971, where he began his coaching career.



You can order this card. Unless otherwise noted, all of my custom cards are available to collectors for $9.95 each, postpaid. Complete checklists of all my custom baseball, football and non-sports custom cards were published on this blog on Dec. 10 (football), July 6 (non-sports) and Sept. 19 (baseball). To order, email me at scbcguy@yahoo.com for directions on paying via check/money order, or to my PayPal account.




Tuesday, December 20, 2016

Custom card for vilified Coach Kotite

If you follow my blog you've probably noticed I have been busy creating "football cards that never were."

I showed you a 1969 Topps-style Winston Hill card (Dec. 2), and cards of Bucky Pope (Dec. 14) and Booth Lusteg (Dec. 17). Both of the latter had never before appeared on contemporary football cards, while Hill was part of a number of national and regional issues.

Today I'm going to show you what I've come with for a former NFL player who did appear on several football cards, but only after his playing days, when he was head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, circa 1991-92.

Skimming the internet, you'd get the idea that Rich Kotite was the epitome of ineffectual NFL coaches. His name is found on virtually every list of "Worst NFL Coaches Ever." That distinction may well have been earned as he had a 37-29 record as head coach of the Eagles 1991-94 and was just 4-28 with the New York Jets, 1995-96.

His name continues to be evoked in Philly and New York when a current coach is going badly or made a particularly egregious mistake.

To be honest, Kotite's career as a player in the NFL was not any more distinguished. He was drafted out of Wagner college by the Minnesota Vikings in the 18th round (247th overall) in 1965.

Kotite, a tight end, had come to the attention of NFL scouts for his outstanding record with the 10-0-0 Wagner Seahawks, champions of the Middle Atlantic North College Division. That season he set school records for pass receptions (56) and passing yards (943). Those stats brought his 1962-65 career stats at Wagner to 119 catches for 2,065 yards, both school records.

He went to camp  that summer with both the Vikings and the Jets, but was unable to make a team. In 1967 he was on the roster of the N.Y. Giants, but appeared in only four games. With the Steelers in 1968 he had six receptions in the dozen games. He returned to the Giants in 1969, playing sparingly, and in 1970 was relegated to the taxi squad. 

Kotite played the entire 1971 season with the Giants and was cut after a couple of unremarkable games with the team in 1972. He was 30 years old and the team's player representative. 

There's lots of vilification of Kotite on the internet, but for a rather more balanced look, check out what Mark Bowden wrote about him in his book Bringing the Heat. Rich Kotite

As you can see, I chose the 1972 Topps format for my Rich Kotite custom card. It's a nice shot of him in the environs of Yankee Stadium.



You can order this card. Unless otherwise noted, all of my custom cards are available to collectors for $9.95 each, postpaid. Complete checklists of all my custom baseball, football and non-sports custom cards were published on this blog in late May (football), July 6 (non-sports) and Sept. 19 (baseball). To order, email me at scbcguy@yahoo.com for directions on paying via check/money order, or to my PayPal account.




Saturday, December 17, 2016

Lusteg used brother's ID to make Buffalo Bills in 1966

As I mentioned in my Dec. 14 posting, I'm in the midst of making a handful of custom football cards for players whose careers had some interesting twists, but who who never appeared on contemporary Topps or Philadelphia bubblegum cards.

Today I present my 1968 Topps-style custom card of Booth Lusteg.

Lusteg never played college football, though he told the Buffalo Bills that he did when he appeared at an open tryout prior to the 1966 season. Buffalo was looking for  a replacement for Pete Gogolak, who had jumped the AFL for the New  York Giants.

Gerald Booth Lusteg had played college baseball at Connecticut. In 1965 he had kicked and played some defensive back for the champion New Bedford Sweepers of the Atlantic Coast Football League.

However, he was 27 years old when the Bills were looking for a kicker for 1966. Feeling he'd have a better chance as a 24-year-old prospective rookie, Booth told the Bills that he was his younger brother, Wallace, who had played a little for Boston college.

Booth won the job, but by the time season opened, Buffalo had uncovered his deception.

Nonetheless, Lusteg had a good season for the AFL Eastern Champion Bills. He led the league with 38 field goals attempts, though he was successful only 19 times. His 41 extra points and 42 extra-point attempts were also league-best and his total 98 points were tied for second in the AFL.

After the Bills lost to the Chiefs in the AFL title game, Lusteg was released. He finished his NFL career as a peripatetic boot for hire. He was with the Dolphins for 1967, the Steelers in 1968 and the Packers in 1969. 

Unable to catch on after the 1969 season, Lusteg retired to a career as a writer and motivational speaker. His specialty was creationism. His best-known work is his book Kick Rejection . . . and Win.

Lusteg came out of retirement in 1974 to play for the Portland Storm in the new World Football League. He kicked five field goals as the Storm Finished third in the WFL West.

Lusteg died in 2012.


You can order this card. Unless otherwise noted, all of my custom cards are available to collectors for $9.95 each, postpaid. Complete checklists of all my custom baseball, football and non-sports custom cards were published on this blog on Dec. 10 (football), July 6 (non-sports) and Sept. 19 (baseball). To order, email me at scbcguy@yahoo.com for directions on paying via check/money order, or to my PayPal account.

Wednesday, December 14, 2016

Rams rookie sensation Bucky Pope is custom card subject in 1965P style


For a couple of years now I've had in my photo files some images from the Topps vault that were recommended to me as good candidates for some 1960s style custom football cards.

I decided to work up a few of them, as much for the challenge of working in new formats as to create football cards of guys that never made the card cut with Topps and/or Philadelphia back in the day. All these players had interesting NFL careers, though none were stars.

First up is Frank "Bucky Pope," who played 1964 and 1966-67  with the L.A. Rams and in 1968 for the Packers.

Pope had a sensational rookie year in 1964 after being drafted in the 8th round (#105 overall) by the L.A. Rams out of tiny Catawba college, an NAIA school in North Carolina.

Tall (6'5"), fast and sure-handed, Pope became the Rams' long-ball threat. His 10 receiving touchdowns were two more than the rest of the team combined and tied for first in the NFL that season.

Pope's 31.4 yards per catch average in '64 were best in the league and remain the second-best all time in the NFL. His 786 receiving yards were team-best.

Following the season he went to camp with the Army reserve, being released in time for the opening of the 1965 exhibition season. He immediately injured his knee and his football career was over.

There are several good accounts of Pope's career on the internet; I recommend you start with this one: Bucky Pope .

As I mentioned, Pope never had a mainstream football card. I made my custom in the format of 1965 Philadelphia.

Keep following the blog for a couple of more football cards that never were.

You can order this card. Unless otherwise noted, all of my custom cards are available to collectors for $9.95 each, postpaid. Complete checklists of all my custom baseball, football and non-sports custom cards were published on this blog Dec. 10 (football), July 6 (non-sports) and Sept. 19 (baseball). To order, email me at scbcguy@yahoo.com for directions on paying via check/money order, or to my PayPal account.

Saturday, December 10, 2016

Checklist 1960-77 custom football cards

Until now, there has been no place where all of my custom cards could be found in checklist form.  It is my intention to update this posting as new cards are created. Similar checklists for my baseball, non-sports and other football custom cards will also be posted.


Custom card availability. Unless noted, all of my custom cards are available to collectors for $9.95 each, postpaid. To order, email me at scbcguy@yahoo.com for directions on paying via check/money order, or to my PayPal account.














1960 Topps
133 Emlen Tunnell, Packers
134 Fuzzy Thurston, Packers















1961 Fleer
221 Emlen Tunnell, Packers
222 Charley Tolar, Oilers





















1962 Topps 
177 John Havlicek, Browns















1962 Fleer
89 Wahoo McDaniel, Broncos



















1965 Topps
177 Wahoo McDaniel, Jets

1965 Philadelphia
199 Bucky Pope, Rams















1966 Philadelphia
199 Brian Piccolo, Bears















1967 Philadelphia
200 Jim Taylor, Saints





















1968 Topps
220 Brian Piccolo, Bears
221 Jerry Kramer, Packers
222 Emerson Boozer, Jets
223 Tom Brown, Packers
224 Booth Lusteg, Steelers















1969 Topps
264 Johnny Sample, Jets
265 Babe Parilli, Jets
266 Winston Hill, Jets




1970 Topps
264 Mike Holmgren, Cardinals















1971 Topps
264 Carl Weathers, Raiders
















1972 Topps
352 Matt Snell, Jets
353 Rich Kotite, Giants















1972 O-Pee-Chee
133 Carl Weathers, Lions





















1974 Topps
529 Joe Namath, Jets (proof, profile)
529 Joe Namath, Jets 















1977 Topps
529 Joe Namath, Rams

Checklist 1951-59 custom football cards

Until now, there has been no place where all of my custom cards could be found in checklist form.  It is my intention to update this posting as new cards are created. Similar checklists for my baseball, non-sports and other football custom cards will also be posted.

Custom card availability. Unless noted, all of my custom cards are available to collectors for $9.95 each, postpaid. To order, email me at scbcguy@yahoo.com for directions on paying via check/money order, or to my PayPal account.



1951 Bowman
145 Don Shula, Browns
11 Herm Wedemeyer, St. Mary's (1946)




















1952 Bowman
145 Roger Staubach, Navy
146 Tom Brady, Michigan (blue jersey)
146 Tom Brady, Michigan (white jersey)
147 Brett Favre, So. Miss. (large, blue)
147 Brett Favre, So. Miss. (small, orange)
148 Marion Motley, Browns
149 Dexter McCluster, Ole Miss.
150 Troy Polamalu, USC
151 Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M














1954 Bowman
129 Don Shula, Colts
130 Chuck Noll, Browns




















1955 Bowman
161 Otto Graham, Browns
162 Raymond Berry, Colts
163 Max McGee, Packers
164 Johnny Unitas, Steelers (horizontal)
164 Johnny Unitas, Steelers (vertical)
165 Don Shula, Colts
166 Hardy Brown, 49ers




















1956 Topps
121 John Unitas, Colts
122 Max McGee, Packers
123 Bart Starr, Packers
124 Earl Morrell, 49ers
125 Chuck Noll, Browns












1957 Topps
155 Don Shula, Redskins
156 Jim Brown, Browns




















1958 Topps
133 Dave Hanner, Packers
134 Don Maynard, Giants
135 Fuzzy Thurston, Colts




















1959 Topps
89  Don Maynard, Tiger-Cats (OPC)
177 Sharman Plunkett, Colts
282 Jim Taylor, Packers
291 Ray Nitschke, Packers
292 John Madden, Eagles
296 Packers All-Star Rookies (Nitchke, Taylor)