Fred Lynn bounced back after battling an injury in 1977. Fred won the second of four Gold Glove awards in 1978 and went to the All Star game for the fourth time. He was an AL All Star every year from 1975-1983.
It is odd that Lynn's card didn't get the "All Star shield"
I didn't follow the American League very much when I was growing up, but Lynn was one of my favorite players. Too bad he had so many injuries during his career.
1978 Stats: .298, 22 HR, 82 RBI
1978 Highlights:
April 20 - Went 4 for 5 with three runs scored to help the Red Sox beat the Milwaukee Brewers 10-4.
Aug 28 - Went 5 for 5 and scored 4 runs in Boston's 10-9 victory over the Seattle Mariners.
Sept 29 - Knocked in five runs as the Red Sox beat the Toronto Blue Jays 11-0.
Bill Lee had a tumultuous 1978 season. Lee started the season 10-3, but from mid-July to mid-August he lost seven straight decisions. Bill clashed with manager Don Zimmer and was a founding member of the (in)famous Buffalo Heads club. Lee was pulled from the starting rotation in late August and appeared only a few times in relief during the remainder of the season. Lee was traded to the Montreal Expos after the season.
Carlton Fisk made his sixth AL All Star team in 1978 (he went 0 for 2). It would have been seven in a row if it weren't for an injury in 1975.
Fisk only led the team in one category (39 doubles), but he was a very important part of the Red Sox lineup. Carlton's last full day off was July 17. Pudge started 150 out of the team's 163 games.
Besides the oft-played 1975 World Series home run, the main memory I have of Fisk is the commercials he did for Copenhagen. He and Walt Garrison stand out for me with these ads. I wonder if he still chews the stuff.
1978 Stats: .284, 20 HR, 88 RBI in 157 games
1978 Highlights:
July 8 - Had three hits and five RBI to help Boston beat the Cleveland Indians 12-5.
July 24 - Homered and knocked in three runs in Boston's 4-2 win over the Minnesota Twins.
In spite of an off season, Rick Burleson was named to the AL All Star team for the second straight year in 1978. Rick was batting .194 after 35 games, but he started to heat up in late May. Burleson was out with an injury in July. His absence was keenly felt as the Red Sox were 6-10 while Rick was out.
1978 Stats: .248, 5 HR, 49 RBI in 145 games
1978 Highlights:
June 10 - Had three hits and three RBI in Boston's 13-1 win over the Seattle Mariners
June 17 - Went 4 for 5 and scored the winning run in the bottom of the 9th inning to help the Red Sox beat the Mariners 5-4.
Aug 2 - Knocked in the eventual winning run in the top of the 17th inning as the Red Sox beat the New York Yankees 7-5.
Mike Paxton was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in 1975. Mike quickly moved up in the Boston farm system. After starting the 1977 season with a 5-0 record and a 0.82 ERA in 7 starts for AAA Pawtucket, Paxton was called up to the majors in late May of 1977.
Paxton started in his first game for the Rex Sox on May 25. He got rocked and was used out of the bullpen for the next two months. Mike was put in the starting rotation in late July and had some success. He ended the 1977 season with a 10-5 record adn a 3.83 ERA in 29 games (12 starts).
On March 30, 1978 Paxton was traded (with Ted Cox, Rick Wise, and Bo Diaz) to the Cleveland Indians for Dennis Eckersley and Fred Kendall. Mike started the season in the bullpen. He earned the save on opening day by pitching three shutout innings against the Kansas City Royals. Paxton went into the starting rotation in May and after a few rough outings had a good season. Mike went 12-11 and had a 3.86 ERA in 1978.
Paxton had a rougher time in 1979. Mike was rocked in his first few starts. Even though he had a 4-2 record, Mike's ERA stood at 5.98 in early June. Paxton pitched out of the bullpen for three weeks in June. Mike was a starter for most of the rest of the season, but he had an 8-8 record with an ERA of 5.92.
Mike appeared in only four major league games in 1980 (0-0, 12.91 ERA). In early May Paxton was sent to AAA Tacoma. He would never see major league action again.
Paxton pitched in AAA through the 1981 season and then retired at the age of 28.
1978 Stats: 12-11, 1 save, 3.86 ERA in 33 games (27 starts)
1978 Highlights:
July 3 - Pitched a six-hit shutout against the Baltimore Orioles
July 21 - Pitched a two-hit shutout against the Seattle Mariners. Mike struck out four batters in the fifth inning. Dan Meyer reached on a passed ball after striking out. Paxton then struck out the next three batters.
George Foster obliterated the rest of the field in the home run race in 1977. George had one of those "once in a decade" seasons, leading the NL in home runs and in RBI.
Foster led the NL in home runs twice -- 1977 and in 1978.
Jim Rice led the AL in home runs three times -- 1977, 1978, and 1983.
Hall of Fame count:
National League - 3 (Mike Schmidt, Johnny Bench, and Gary Carter)
Bob Stanley spent his entire 13 year major league career with the Boston Red Sox.
Stanley was drafted by the Red Sox in 1974. Bob moved up the minor league chain from 1974-1976.
Bob made an impression on manager Don Zimmer in spring training in 1977 and he made the Red Sox staff. Zimmer originally planned to carry nine pitchers but because of Stanley's spring performance Don decided to carry ten pitchers instead. Stanley was in the starting rotation until early June and then went to the bullpen for the rest of the season. Bob was 8-7 with three saves in 41 games (13 starts) in 1977.
Stanley had a great season in 1978. He had a .882 winning percentage due to his 15-2 record. Bob made three spot starts and was a reliever for the rest of the season. Unfortunately for Red Sox fans, Stanley gave up a solo home run to Reggie Jackson in the top of the 8th inning of the AL East playoff game that eventually proved to be the winning run (the Red Sox lost the game 5-4). Bob was 7th in AL Cy Young award voting in 1978.
In 1979 Stanley was mostly used as a starter. Bob was 16-12 with 1 save and had a 3.99 ERA in 40 games (30 starts). Stanley also made the AL All Star team in 1979.
Bob had identical records in 1980 (10-8, 14 saves, 3.39 ERA in 52 games/17 starts) and in 1981 (10-8, 3.83 ERA in 35 games/1 start).
Stanley was used exclusively in relief for the next four seasons. In 1982 he was 12-7 with 14 saves and had a 3.10 ERA in 48 games. Bob was 8-10 with a career-high 33 saves, had a 2.85 ERA, and made the AL All Star team in 1983. In 1984 Stanley was 9-10 with an ERA of 3.54 and had 22 saves in 54 games. Bob went 6-6 with 10 saves and had a 2.87 ERA in 48 games in 1985.
Bob's last season as a closer was in 1986. He made 66 appearances (1 start) and led the Red Sox with 16 saves. Stanley had a 6-6 record and had a 4.37 ERA. Bob was roughed up a bit in the AL Championship Series (0-0, 4.76 ERA in 3 games), but he pitched well in the World Series (0-0, 1 save, 0.00 ERA in 5 games). Stanley had a wild pitch in the 10th inning of game 6 of the World Series that allowed Kevin Mitchell to score the tying run.
In 1987 Stanley had his toughest season. He was used as a starter for the first 2 1/2 months of the season and again during the month of August. Bob went 4-15 with a 5.01 ERA in 34 games (20 starts).
Stanley had his last good year in 1988. He went 6-4 with 5 saves and had a 3.19 ERA in 57 games. Bob made two appearances in the AL Championship Series and allowed one run in one inning pitched.
The 1989 season was Stanley's final season. He was 5-2 with 4 saves and had a 4.88 ERA in 43 games. Bob retired after the 1989 season.
After his playing career Stanley settled down about 25 miles from Boston and had a landscaping company. Bob did charity work for the Jimmy fund and helped raise money for cancer research. In 2012 and 2013 Stanley was the pitching coach for AAA Las Vegas in the Toronto Blue Jays organization. Bob became the Blue Jays' bullpen coach in 2014.
1978 Stats: 15-2, 10 saves, 2.60 ERA in 52 games (3 starts)
1978 Highlights:
Aug 2 - Shut out the New York Yankees for three innings and earned the win. Boston beat New York 7-5 in 17 innings.
Aug 28 - Earned the win by pitching 2/3 of an inning in Boston's 10-9 comeback win over the Seattle Mariners. It was Bob's seventh victory in the month of August.
Sept 29 - Started the game and allowed no runs and two hits in seven innings. The Red Sox beat the Toronto Blue Jays 11-0.
Butch Hobson played through elbow, knee, and hamstring injuries in 1978. The most serious of these injuries was bone chips in his throwing elbow that hampered his ability to throw the ball to first base. Butch made 43 errors in 1978 and had an .899 fielding percentage. It was the first time since 1916 that an everyday third baseman had a fielding percentage below .900.
1978 Stats: .250, 17 HR, 80 RBI in 147 games
1978 Highlights:
Apr 14 - Broke out of a slump by going 3 for 5 with a home run and 2 runs scored. Butch scored the winning run in the bottom of the 10th as the Red Sox beat the Texas Rangers 5-4.
June 2 - Hit a grand slam to lead the Red Sox to a 6-1 win over the California Angels.
Aug 28 - Doubled in the tying and winning runs in the bottom of the 9th inning as the Red Sox beat the Seattle Mariners 10-9.
This was George Scott's last year as a starting first baseman. He was out for about five weeks from late April to early June. He initially went out due to back trouble. George came back from the disabled list on May 15 and broke the middle finger on his throwing hand and was out for another couple of weeks. Scott slumped to his lowest offensive numbers since 1968. He appears to be in a jovial mood on this card though.
Aug 29 - Hit a grand slam in the 5th inning of Boston's 10-5 victory over the Seattle Mariners
Aug 30 - Went 3 for 5 with a triple and a run scored as Boston beat the Toronto Blue Jays 2-1. He also had two hits in the second game of the doubleheader, but the Red Sox lost that one 7-6.
Sept 27 - Had three hits, including a 2-run home run, as Boston beat the Detroit Tigers 5-3.
Reggie Cleveland wasn't with the Red Sox for very long in 1978. Cleveland pitched 1/3 of an inning and took the loss in a game on April 10 (he allowed one hit and an unearned run). Reggie was the 11th man on a 10-man staff and wasn't being used much, so on April 18 Reggie was sold to the Texas Rangers. Cleveland was successful as the main closer for the Rangers, leading the team in appearances and saves.
1978 Stats:
Boston Red Sox: 0-1, 0.00 ERA in 1 game
Texas Rangers: 5-7, 12 saves, 3.09 ERA in 53 games
1978 Highlights:
April 28 - Pitched four innings and earned the win as the Rangers beat the Red Sox 5-4 in 11 innings.
Sept 12 - Went 2 2/3 innings without allowing a hit or a run and picked up the save in the Rangers' 7-5 win over the California Angels
Bob Montgomery was virtually nonexistent in the Boston lineup in 1978. Manager Don Zimmer wasn't keen on using his bench in 1978. Starting catcher Carlton Fisk started 150 games behind the plate in 1978, leaving only 13 starts for Montgomery and Fred Kendall.
1978 Stats: .241 in 10 games
1978 Highlights:
May 21 - Went 4 for 5 and knocked in four runs as the Red Sox beat the Detroit Tigers 9-3. Bob got more than half of his seven hits for the year in this one game.
Aug 30 - Had two hits in Boston's 8-7 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays
Topps did a nice job with these manager cards. It's interesting to see the pictures of these managers when they were players.
Don Zimmer started managing in the minor leagues at the age of 36 in 1967. When Zimmer didn't have a managing job, he coached for several clubs. He currently works for the Tampa Bay Rays during spring training and during home games. Zimmer has boasted that every paycheck he has ever earned has come from baseball.
Carl Yastrzemski had back problems and a bout with bronchitis during the 1978 season, but he still managed to play in 144 games. Carl was elected to start in the 1978 All Star Game, but he declined in order to rest his ailing back.
I like the little plaques that indicate the player was an All Star. They look better than the "banner" style that Topps sometimes used.
1978 Stats: .277, 17 HR, 81 RBI in 144 games
1978 Highlights:
May 14 - Went 3 for 5 with a run and two RBI in Boston's 6-2 win over the Minnesota Twins.
June 17 - Grounded a bases loaded single through a drawn in infield in the bottom of the 9th inning to win the game. The Red Sox came from behind to beat the Seattle Mariners 5-4.
Sept 6 - Hit a 2-run home run for the only runs in the game as the Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles 2-0.
Don Aase actually pitched for the California Angels in 1978. Don was traded from the Boston Red Sox to the Angels for 2B Jerry Remy after the 1977 season.
The 1978 season was Don's best as a starting pitcher. Don set a career high with 11 victories.
1978 Stats:
11-8, 4.03 ERA in 29 starts.
1978 Highlights:
June 21 - Pitched his first complete game of the season as the Red Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 5-2. Don allowed the Twins' two runs in the first inning and then allowed only two baserunners for the remainder of the game.
July 13 - Shut out the Toronto Blue Jays on four hits. Don wasn't supposed to pitch, but Chris Knapp jumped the club due to a contract dispute and Aase got the start.
Aug 23 - Missed his start against the New York Yankees and was replaced by Knapp. Don was involved in an automobile accident before the game and although he wasn't injured, he was shaken up.
