1968 Topps #37 - Billy Williams

I like the Cubs new owner already. Tom Ricketts has announced that the Cubs will erect a statue in honor of Billy Williams on September 7. Hopefully this will be the first of several statues to honor the Cubs players that have made this a very special franchise.

So it is fitting that the first card in my 1968 Graded Topps set is Billy Williams. 1968 was a "typical" year for Williams. He played in every game and made 699 plate appearances. Williams posted a .288 batting average with 30 home runs and 98 RBI's. During Williams 18 year career, he had a batting average of .290 with 28 home runs and 96 RBI's.

Williams 16 year career with the Cubs was a special time for Cubs fans.

1975 Mistake Cards- These Guys Are Cubs!!

The 1975 Topps baseball set has at least four error cards that I can find…..or at least they are error cards in the eyes of this Cubs fan. These four cards feature players who are obviously pictured in the wrong uniform and listed as playing for the wrong team.



Billy Williams is shown in an Oakland A’s uniform. Williams played for the Cubs for 16 seasons in 2,213 games. As a Cub, he hit 392 home runs and drove in 1,353 runs. His Cubs batting average was .296. Williams was traded to the A’s in October 1974 for many Trillo, Darold Knowles and Bob Locker. He played just two seasons for the A’s before retiring.

Ron Santo is shown as a White Sox in the 1975 Topps set. Santo played most of his career in Wrigley Field. As a Cub, he appeared in 2,126 games over 14 seasons. He hit 337 home runs during those 14 years with 1,290 RBI’s and a .279 batting average. In December of 1973, the Cubs sent Santo to the White Sox for Ken Frailing, Steve Stone and Steve Swisher. Santo retired after just one season for the White Sox. Even though he was pictured in the 1975 Topps set, he did not play during that season.

Fergie Jenkins is shown as a Texas Ranger in the 1975 Topps set. Jenkins had six of his seven 20 win seasons as a Cub. Altogether, Jenkins was a Cub for 10 seasons compiling a record of 167 wins and 132 losses with the Cubs. He pitched 2,673 inning for the Cubs with 2.038 strikeouts and ERA of 3.20. Jenkins was traded to the Rangers in October 1973 for Bill Madlock and Vic Harris. After playing for Texas and Boston, Jenkins returned as a free agent in December 1981 to the Cubs to finish his career.

Glenn Beckert played for the Cubs for 9 years in 1,247 games. Along with Don Kessinger, Beckert was a fixture in the middle infield for the Cubs for nearly a decade. Beckert collected 1,423 hits and scored 672 runs for the Cubs. In November of 1973 he was traded to the Padres for Jerry Morales. Beckert played for two seasons in San Diego before retiring.

It just seems wrong for any of these players to be pictured in a uniform other than the Cubs. However, these errors will seem minor after Andre Dawson goes into the Hall of Fame as an Expo.

1975 Topps #617 Rookie Infielders - Manny Trillo

This card is one of the 11 card sub-set of Rookies in the 1975 Topps baseball set. The Cub featured on card #617 is Manny Trillo. Trillo had minimal MLB experience with the A's in 1973 and 1974 (38 games with 45 AB). In October 1974, Trillo along with Bob Locker and Darold Knowles were traded to the Cubs for Billy Williams.

In all, Trillo played 7 seasons as a Cubs during two different stints (1975 -1978 and 1986 - 1988). As a Cub, Trillo played in 881 games. During his Cubs career he scored 265 runs and drove in 300 runs. His Cubs batting average was .261. As a Cub, he was an All-Star in 1977.

Manny Trillo was also a member of the 1980 World Champion Phillies.

Sport magazine - September 1969

I have just recently received an issue of Sport Magazine. This one came from an EBay auction and was the September 1969 issue featuring Leo Durocher, Ernie Banks, Ron Santo and Billy Williams on the cover. At the time this issue was put together, it looked like the Cubs might be playing in the World Series. Unfortunately, shortly after this issue of Sport magazine hit the news stands, the Cubs went into a losing streak that ended up throwing them into 2nd place behind the Mets.

Sport magazine went out of business in 2000 but I remember the magazine as part of my youth. My father bought each issue at Hook’s Drugstore or Kroger’s Grocery store when it came out. I had to wait until he was done with it before it was my turn. I spent time reading about my heroes in baseball each month.

This 1969 issue is probably one that I never saw when I was younger. My father had died and I was newly married and away at Indiana University. It was the Vietnam War that was the hot topic on the IU campus. Serious students did not have time for such trivial things as pennant races. The General would arrive at IU after the 1971 season.

The report in Sport focused on Durocher’s managerial style. He questioned player’s abilities and commitment to create tension. Durocher believed that such an approach would either make a player better or show that he did not belong on Leo’s team. Whether one believes in Durocher’s approach or not it did seem to work. When he took over the reins of the team in 1966, the Cubs were a last place team with a record of 59 wins and 103 losses. By 1969, Durocher had the team in first place bringing hopes of a World Series to Cubs fans. From 1967 through 1972, the Cubs won 515 while losing only 449. This was a winning percentage of .534.

The article has a number of great stories about the 1969 Cubs and how Durocher’s firm hand was guiding the team. There are also a few great pictures like this one of Durocher in the Cubs dugout.

1972 Cubs Scorecard

Here is another early 1970s Cubs scorecard that I have in my collection. This scorecard is from the 1972 season. 1972 was actually a good year for the Cubs. They completed the season with a record of 85 wins and 70 losses. This was good enough for second place in the NL East. The Cubs started the season with Leo Durocher as manager but replaced him with Whitey Lockman ninety games into the season. Durocher had a winning record of 46 and 44 but Lockman apparently inspired the team even more as they finished the season by winning 39 and only losing 26 with Whitey as manager.

This scorecard is from the September 1st game against the Padres. The Padres under Don Zimmer were already 33 games behind in the standings with a record of 46 and 79. The Cubs added to the Padres woes by beating them 14 to 3 in this game.

The starting pitcher for the Cubs was Bill Hands. Hands went 5 2/3 innings before Bill Bonham came in to get the save. Hands would complete the season with a record of 11 and 8. Bonham was only in his second year with the Cubs but would have a solid 7 year run with the Cubs.

This game apparently was after the call up from the minors so there were several unfamiliar faces in starting lineup. The regulars in this game included Cardenal, Kessinger, Williams, Santo and Monday.

The unfamiliar faces included Ellie Hendricks (catcher), Carmen Fanzone (1st Base) and Al Montreuil (2nd Base). The Cubs got Hendricks from Baltimore for Tommy Davis in mid-August. He was traded back to Baltimore after the season. Hendricks played in 17 games for the Cubs.

Fanzone would play a part-time roll for the Cubs from 1971 through 1974 and then be out of baseball. Montreuil would play only five games for the Cubs in 1972 and never play in the majors again.

Three Cubs HOFers - Game Used Card

Around the end of November, the new names elgible for the Hall of Fame were announced. This made me remember a game used card that I won in an EBay auction earlier this fall. The card from the 2008 Upper Deck Premier set featured three Cubs HOF's. The serial numbered card (24/50) featured a Sandberg Bat, a Banks uniform and a Williams uniform. Although the green uniform piece from Williams makes me think it came from an Oakland A's uniform instead of a Cubs uniform.

The Greatest Team That Didn’t Win – The 1969 Cubs

1969 is a memorable year. A man walked on the moon. The Vietnam War was consuming and dividing the nation. And the Cubs fielded arguably one of their best teams ever. Ernie Banks, Billy Williams, Fergie Jenkins, Ken Holtzman, Randy Hundley, Ron Santo and Don Kessinger were led by their unforgettable manager, Leo Durocher. The Cubs finished April 1969 in first place and held that position through August. Then they lost 8 in a row, dropped out of first place and finally lost the pennant to the “Miracle Mets”.

As difficult as it is to read about the 1969 season, this is a rich part of Chicago Cubs history. I have recently added two books about the 1969 Cubs to my collection.

The first book is “The Cubs of “69” by Rick Talley. Talley is a noted former sports columnist who contributed to the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Today and the Los Angeles Daily News. This is a well written book containing stories and recollections about the 1969 Cubs.
The second book is called “Durocher’s Cubs – The Greatest Team That Didn’t Win” by David Claerbaut. Claerbaut is a lifelong Cubs fan who works as a consultant in Chicago. This book covers the 1967 through 1972 Cubs seasons with a focus on the 1969 season.
Both of these books are well written and would be enjoyed by nearly any baseball fan. Of course they are particularly interesting for a Cubs fan. Regardless of the outcome of the 1969 season, the stories about Ernie, Fergie, Billy, Ron and the others are great reading for the Cub fan.

Building Graded Cubs Sets

I mentioned earlier that I got back into collecting baseball cards when I put together Chicago Cubs sets for my son. At the same time, I was also collecting Cubs sets for myself. I have partial and complete Cubs sets as far back as 1948. However, as my interest has turned to graded cards, I am also building some graded Cubs sets. Right now I have focused on 1964, 1966, 1967 and 1968. I will start more as time and money permits.

As you might expect, my 1964 graded Cubs set is the most complete of the Cubs sets. My 1964 graded Cubs set is about 82% complete. I have 23 of the 28 cards that are required to complete this set.

The 1964 Chicago Cubs were not very good. They finished with a record of 76 Wins and 86 Losses. However, this team had three of the Cubs all-time favorites playing that year.......Ernie Banks, Ron Santo and Billy Williams. In the next few postings I will present the 1964 Cubs as depicted by the Topps Baseball card from that year.