#65 Von McDaniel

Longtime big leaguer Lindy McDaniel's younger brother, Von, didn't have the kind of career as his older sibling. In fact, he only enjoyed 19 games in the majors. But he certainly made a splash in that short time.

In 1957 he signed out of high school with the Cards (Lindy's team at the time) and was placed on the roster as per the bonus signee rules in effect then. After a couple of relief appearances (including a win in Ebbetts Field), he pitched a two-hit shutout to beat the Dodgers on June 21 for his first win. He went on to win seven games and helped the Cards to a second place finish. This Cardinals blog has an entertaining post describing McDaniel's rookie season.

Von developed arm issues the following spring and lost command of his pitches. After a couple of rocky outings, the Cardinals shipped him to the minors where he eventually transitioned into a third baseman (he was a pretty good hitter) but he never returned to the majors.

The McDaniel brothers only appeared in one game together that I can find. In September of '57 Von had a bumpy start against the Reds and was relieved by Lindy in the second inning. Older brother ended up getting a win out in that one.

#60 Del Ennis

Del Ennis doesn't look like a big hitting outfielder on this card but for a stretch form 1946 to 1957 he was just that. He played 11 seasons for the Phils and a few for the Cardinals as a double-digit home run threat with RBI and batting average numbers that should have gotten him more notoriety. But in the NL there was plenty of OF talent and Ennis never generated much buzz across the country.

He had an outstanding rookie year in 1946 and made the NL All-Star team and garnered some MVP votes. He was a year too early although as the RoY award wasn't instituted until '47 (and w/Jackie Robinson in the mix in '47 Ennis would have lost out anyway). 

Ennis rarely missed a game during his career and finished with 288 homers and a .284 average. He led the NL with 126 RBIs in the Phils 'Whiz Kid' 1950 season.

His numbers fell off sharply in 1958 and he finished his career by splitting the '59 season between the White Sox and Reds. He notably served in the Pacific Theater with the Navy during WWII. After baseball he owned a bowling alley, coached a bit at the college level and dabbled in greyhound racing.

#53 Morrie Martin

Morrie Martin's baseball numbers are not very impressive..... a 38-34 record with a 4.29 ERA while playing for seven teams in over ten seasons. But Morrie Martin was a combat engineer with the Army's 49th Battalion in World War II. He was hit by enemy fire twice and survived the landing at Normandy. He was awarded two Purple Hearts, four battle stars, and an Oak Leaf Cluster. Those numbers are very impressive. His service had him involved in Operation Torch, Operation Overlord, Operation Cobra, and the Battle of the Bulge.

Martin began with the White Sox organization but through a couple of murky, very 1940-ish transactions ended up with Brooklyn. He was impressive as he moved up through the Dodgers' system in the 40s (when he wasn't fighting Nazis, that is). He twice was a double-digit winner for some lousy Philadelphia Athletics clubs in the early 50s. Then he set out on a trip through the bigs that had him traveling through both leagues as a journeyman reliever until he retired in 1960. 

#45 Dick Groat

A two-sport star, Dick Groat went from being a hoops sensation at Duke to being a five-time big league All-Star and MVP. After seeing Groat's athletic talent Branch Rickey offered him a contract during his junior year at Duke but Groat wanted to complete his four-year obligation to the Blue Devils. He signed with the Pirates in 1952. He immediately was inserted into the club's lineup at shortstop. He hit .284 in almost 400 at-bats and was third in the Rookie of the Year balloting.

Meanwhile, he was drafted in the first round by the NBA's Fort Wayne Pistons franchise and he played in just under half their games in an unusual situation where the Pistons flew him in for games and then back to Duke where he was finishing up his coursework. He had the second highest PPG on the team but that was the end of his basketball career. He was drafted into the army and after his two years of service, he devoted himself to baseball only.

He was a standout at short for 14 seasons and finished with a .286 career average and World Series rings he won with the Pirates in 1960 and the Cardinals in 1964. He is a member of the College Basketball Hall of Fame. He was part of the Hall's second induction group, the Class of 2007. He went in alongside my man, Guy V. Lewis.

#24 Hobie Landrith

Hobie Landrith caught for seven different clubs over 14 seasons. He was mostly a backup but twice got into over a hundred games in a season. His first major league team was the 1950 Reds but he saw 'big league' action at the age of 15. Here's how he described it in an interview from this baseball history site named "This Great Game":

“When I was 15 years old, a Tiger scout approached me and asked if I would want to come down to Tiger Stadium and catch batting practice while they were trying to get Hank Greenberg into shape...I jumped at the chance.”

After a decade spent with the Reds, Cubs, Cardinals, and Giants, Landreth was the first player taken by the Mets in the 1961 expansion draft. Casey Stengel is supposed to have been asked why he took a catcher and replied: “You gotta have a catcher or you’re gonna have a lot of passed balls.” Despite Casey's 'endorsement' the Mets traded Landrith to the Orioles in June after he'd played just 23 games for them.

Landrith went on to play for the Senators in 1963 before retiring. For his career he hit .233 with 24 homers.

#8 Eddie Kasko

Eddie Kasko spent a lifetime in baseball as a player, manager, scout and team executive. His ten years in the majors came mostly with the Reds but he also played for the Cardinals (as seen on this card), the Colt 45s/Astros and finally the Red Sox. That last season on the field in Boston led to his managing in their chain and then for four seasons in Fenway.

Kasko was originally signed by the Giants and passed through the Browns organization and saw military service before he landed with the Cardinals and made their squad in 1957. 

His hitting was nothing special but he had a good glove at both short and third. He also seemed to shine when the spotlight was on. He hit .318 (7 for 22) for the Reds in his only World Series, the '61 five gamer versus New York. And his only All-Star at-bat (in the first of the '61 ASGs) produced a single.

As a manager for the BoSox from 1970 through 1973, he led them to two second- and two third-place finishes. The Sox finish just a half-game behind the Tigers in 1972. Despite his clubs playing 50 games over .500 in his four seasons, he was replaced as manager by  Darrell Johnson in 1974. But he worked for Boston for many years and was eventually selected for induction in their Hall of Fame.

He actually posted on Twitter as recently as 2013. I'd have to believe there can't be many others with cards in this set who have been active on that social media platform. 

#51 Del Rice

Del Rice played for 17 seasons in the majors after signing with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1941. He made the Cardinals as a platoon in '45. He became the Cards' primary backstop in1950 and held that role through the 1953 season. He played in three games of the 1946 World Series splitting time with Joe Garagiola behind the plate. He went three for six in the Series and was catching when Harry Brecheen pitched a shaky top of the ninth to nail down Game Seven and the Cardinals' title.

1953 was the year he made his only All Star team (Campy played the whole game). His playing time decreased in 1954 and in June of  '55 he was dealt to the Braves.

Rice backed up Del Crandall through the second half of the decade as the Braves made two World Series appearances, winning the title in 1957. He caught Games 3 & 6 of the Series and picked up a hit in six at bats.

In 1958 he hit .223 in very limited duty behind Crandall. He did not get into the World Series that year but would have played in Game Six had Frank Torre, who was hitting for Crandall, been able to tie the game in the bottom of the 10th. Torre ended it by lining out to Yankees' second baseman Gil McDougald with Hank Aaron on third.

His playing time dwindled and by 1960 he was off on a tour of four big league towns to wind things up. He even got one at bat with the Orioles that year! He retired after spending the 1961 season with the expansion Angels.

Rice, who had also played pro basketball early in his career, managed, coached and scouted for a couple of organizations after his playing days.

Like most of the Braves in the set Rice resides on a green background. His name on the card's back is rendered in the less frequent 'plain' font. I really need to look into this aspect of the set in more detail.

#180 Lindy McDaniel

Lindy McDaniel enjoyed a long and very successful career as a big league pitcher. He broke in with the Cardinals in 1955 and retired 21 years later. Along the way he spent a couple of seasons in the Cardinals rotation, led the NL in saves three times, made a couple of All Star squads and finished fifth in the 1960 MVP balloting while landing third in the Cy Young vote. He also holds the distinction of having pitched the most games without a post-season appearance of any player in history (987, nearly 200 more than the second guy on the list).

Lindy pitched for the Cards for eight years before moving on to the Cubs, Giants, Yankees and finally the Royals. His only minor league experience came during the year this card was produced. He had established himself with 15 wins in 1957 but 1958 was disastrous and he was relegated to the bullpen before being farmed out for 6 weeks of so late in the year. He bounced back in '59 and his 1960 season, as noted above, was outstanding.

The back of this card sings McDaniel's praises and he appeared poised for another big year but his final numbers for the '58 season were among the worst of his career. Those are a couple of outstanding cartoons though.

I've collected most if not all of McDaniel's Topps cards. He's been a favorite of mine for a long time. I've related several times the two 1970 games in which he participated that are among my most memorable ever. I wrote to him a few years ago and asked him about both games. Here is the letter with his responses:

He also sent along several of his own signed items with the cards I sent. He remains a good TTM signer and accepts donations to his Christian ministry.

Finally, a few tidbits about Lindy McDaniel. He had two brothers who played pro baseball. One of them, Von McDaniel, has a card in this 1958 set. His cousin is longtime University of Texas football coach Darrell Royal. He homered for the Yankees in 1972 and that's the last home run hit by a Yankee pitcher. When he retired in 1975 his 987 appearances was second all time only to Hoyt Wilhelm. He's since been bypassed in that category by many others and currently ranks 17th. (Wilhelm is now 6th).

#199 Don Blasingame

Known as 'Blazer' Don Blasingame was a hard-nosed, hustling infielder over two decades in the majors and Japan. He began his career with St. Louis and played for the Giants, Reds, Senators and Athletics. He caught a nice break in April of '61 when the Giants dealt him to the Reds and he went on to play in the World Series that year. It was his only postseason appearance. 

After 12 seasons stateside he went to Japan where he extended his career by playing three years then coaching and managing. He became the third American to pilot a Japanese team. His dugout career in Japan lasted through 1982.

In 1958 Blasingame saw his numbers slip a bit from the previous season but he made the NL All Star squad. It was his only All Star experience and he flew out to center pinch-hitting for Warren Spahn in the game. 

WikiFacts:  "For all those years Blasingame and his wife and children spent half the year in Japan and half in the United States. After it was all over, Blazer said living in Japan was a good experience. “We lived in an international community. The kids made friends from all over the world that they still hear from.”15 The Blasingame youngsters learned to speak fluent Japanese." -From his SABR bio