- John Wathan played well as a backup first baseman and catchter in 1978. Wathan didn't have a lot of power, but he batted .300 for the season.
- 1978 Stats:
- Regular Season: .300, 2 HR, 28 RBI in 67 games
- AL Championship Series: .000 (0 for 3) in 1 game
- 1978 Highlights:
- April 28: Appeared as a pinch hitter in the bottom of the 8th inning. He singled in a run and then scored the tying run in Kansas City's comeback 7-6 win over the Seattle Mariners.
- July 9: Had 3 hits, including a double and a home run, as the Royals beat the Baltimore Orioles 10-4.
- It was a tough year for Steve Busby as he tried to come back from rotator cuff surgery. Steve started the year with the Royals but was sent to AAA Omaha in late April after making four starts. Busby injured his back in July and missed more time. Steve was brought back to Kansas City in late August and made three September appearances.
- 1978 Stats:
- Kansas City Royals: 1-0, 7.59 ERA in 7 games (5 starts)
- Omaha Royals (AAA): 3-7, 5.45 ERA in 12 starts
- 1978 Highlights:
- April 9: Started the third game of the season and got the win by pitching 5 1/3 scoreless innings as the Royals beat the Cleveland Indians 5-4.
- Whitey Herzog was signed by the New York Yankees in 1949. Whitey spent the next for years in the Yankees' farm system before spending two years in military service. Herzog had a good year in AAA Denver in 1955, but he wasn't going to crack the Yankees club.
- In April 1956 Whitey was a throw-in in a large trade between the Yankees and the Washington Senators. He spent all of 1956 in Washington and then split time between AAA Miami and Washington in 1956. Herzog was traded to the Kansas City A's in 1958 and played for three teams between 1958 and 1963.
- Herzog scouted, coached, and managed in the minors and for the New York Mets from 1964-1967. He then became director of player development for the Mets in 1967 and served in that position for six years. Whitey was a candidate to replace the deceased Gil Hodges as manager of the Mets in April 1972 but Yogi Berra was selected instead.
- In 1973 Herzog replaced Ted Williams as manager of the Texas Rangers. The Rangers were a terrible team in 1973 and Whitey didn't even last the whole season. He was canned when the Rangers got the chance to sign the newly available Billy Martin to manage.
- Herzog was a coach and an interim manager for the California Angels in 1974.
- In 1975 Whitey was hired to manage the Kansas City Royals. The Royals were very successful under Herzog, winning three AL West titles from 1976-1978. They were never able to reach the World Series during that time and Whitey was dismissed after a disappointing 1979 season.
- Whitey became the General Manager (as well as manager) of the St. Louis Cardinals in 1980. He was the GM from 1980-1982. Herzog took the Cardinals to the World Championship in 1982 and won pennants in 1985 and in 1987. Herzog was named NL Manager of the Year in 1985. Whitey stepped down as the Cardinals' manager in July 1990 when he was dissatisfied with the team's performance.
- Herzog never managed again (although he was offered the managerial position in Boston in 1996). He served in various front office and consultant positions after leaving the Cardinals.
- Whitey was elected to the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 2010.
- Managerial Record:
- Texas Rangers (1973): 47-91 (.391)
- California Angels (1974): 2-2 (.500)
- Kansas City Royals (1975-1979): 410-304 (.574) - 3 AL West titles
- St. Louis Cardinals (1980-1990): 822-708 (.530) - 3 NL Pennants, 1 World Championship
- Frank White won the second of eight Gold Gloves at second base in 1978. Frank also made the All Star team (he was 0 for 1) for the first time.
- 1978 Stats:
- Regular Season: .275, 7 HR, 50 RBI in 143 games
- AL Championship Series: .231 (3 for 13) in 4 games
- 1978 Highlights:
- May 7 - Went 2 for 4 with 2 runs, 2 RBI, and a home run to help the Royals beat the Milwaukee Brewers 8-6.
- May 28 - Doubled in the go-ahead run in the top of the 12th inning as the Royals beat the Minnesota Twins 8-7. Frank had three hits and two runs scored.
- Sept 5 - Knocked in all three runs in the Royals' 3-0 victory over the Oakland A's.
- Marty Pattin did good work as a middle reliever and spot starter for the Royals in 1978.
- Pattin retired after the 1980 season and coached the Kansas University baseball team from 1982-1987.
- Here is a good story from 2011 about Pattin's career.
- 1978 Stats:
- Regular season: 3-3, 4 saves, 3.32 ERA in 32 games (5 starts)
- AL Championship Series: 0-0, 27.00 ERA in 1 game
- 1978 Highlights:
- April 15 - Picked up his first victory of the year by pitching 3 2/3 scoreless innings in the Royals' 6-5 win over the Cleveland Indians.
- July 23 - Allowed one hit and no runs in 6 1/3 innings and earned the win as the Royals beat the Boston Red Sox 7-3.
- I've been gone for a few weeks tending to some home matters. We have two new foster boys (2 and 4) in the house and they've been keeping us pretty busy. Things are starting to settle down into a routine so I should be able to start blogging again :).
- Steve Carlton led the NL in victories four times during his Hall of Fame career. Lefty was the NL Cy Young Award winner in each of those seasons (1972, 1977, 1980, and 1982)
- There was a three way tie for the AL lead in victories. Jim Palmer led the AL in wins three straight years (1975, 1976, and 1977). Palmer was the Cy Young Award winner in 1975 and in 1976 and he finished second to Sparky Lyle in the 1977 balloting. Dave Goltz and Dennis Leonard had their only taste of the league lead in wins in 1977, although Leonard won 20 or more games in two other seasons.
- Hall of Fame count:
- American League: 2 - Jim Palmer and Nolan Ryan
- National League: 2 - Steve Carlton and Tom Seaver
- Freddie Patek had a career high of 53 stolen bases in 1977. This was toward the end of a run of eight straight seasons of 30 or more stolen bases from 1971-1978.
- Frank Taveras also had a career high in stolen bases in 1977. After falling a little short in 1976, Frank got his only stolen base crown in 1977.
- Hall of Fame count:
- National League: 2 - Joe Morgan and Lou Brock
- American League: 0
- Doug Bird had a rough season in 1978. Bird was roughed up in his first appearance (3 earned runs in 2 innings) against Cleveland and his ERA never recovered during the season. Doug's ERA was below 5 briefly in April and again for a week at the end of June, but was above 5 for the rest of the season.
- After the 1978 season Milwaukee Brewers catcher and former teammate Buck Martinez filed a lawsuit against Bird. The suit was in connection with a 1976 hunting accident in which Bird discharged his shotgun and hit Martinez in the left eye with a pellet. After the incident Buck's vision in his left eye was 20/200. I didn't find out what the outcome of the suit was.
- 1978 Stats:
- Regular Season: 6-6, 1 save, 5.29 ERA in 40 games (6 starts)
- AL Championship Series: 0-1, 9.00 ERA in 2 games (1 inning)
- 1978 Highlights:
- April 24 - Entered the game in the fourth inning and allowed no runs in 5 2/3 innings. The Royals were behind at the time Doug came in the game, but they came back to beat the Texas Rangers 8-6. Bird earned his first victory of the season.
- Sept 18 - Pitched six shutout innings and earned the win as the Royals beat the Seattle Mariners 7-6 in 11 innings.
- Here is another card of a player scratching himself. First Rick Monday, now Pete LaCock. I wonder why Topps chose some of these photos.
- Even though Pete LaCock was better known for his glove, he was no slouch at the plate. Pete had some good years in the late 1970s as a platoon first baseman. LaCock started 80 games at first base in 1978 and batted .295 for the season. Pete also had an excellent AL Championship Series, batting .364 in four games.
- 1978 Stats:
- Regular season: .295, 5 HR, 48 RBI in 118 games
- AL Championship Series: .364 (4 for 11) in four games
- 1978 Highlights:
- May 31 - Doubled and scored twice in Kansas City's 8-3 win over the Seattle Mariners.
- June 24 - Homered, doubled, and knocked in four runs as the Royals beat the Oakland A's 7-5.
- Oct 4 - Had two hits knocked in a run, and scored a run to help the Royals beat the New York Yankees 10-4 in game 2 of the AL Championship Series.
- Jim Colborn's final season was in 1978. He went from being a solid starter in 1977 to being a spare part in 1978. On June 1 Jim was traded to the Seattle Mariners for Steve Braun.
- After the 1978 season Colborn signed a 2-year contract with the Mariners. Jim was released during spring training in 1979 and the Mariners were on the hook for the contract.
- After his playing career Jim was a coach in the majors from 1984-2010. Colborn now operates the Jim Colborn Baseball League in California.
- 1978 Stats:
- Kansas City Royals: 1-2, 4.76 ERA in 8 games (3 starts)
- Seattle Mariners: 3-10, 5.35 ERA in 20 games (19 starts)
- Total: 4-12, 5.24 ERA in 28 games (22 starts)
- 1978 Highlights:
- Aug 2- Allowed one run in a complete game 3-1 victory over the Minnesota Twins.
- Aug 19 - Went the distance and allowed three hits to lead the Mariners to a 4-1 victory over the New York Yankees. It ended up being Jim's final career victory.
- George Brett missed some time due to injuries and batted under .300 for the first time in four seasons in 1978. George missed three weeks after injuring his shoulder while breaking up a double play on April 29. Brett also missed three weeks in late July and early August.
- Although he played in only 128 games, Brett led the AL with 45 doubles.
- 1978 Stats:
- Regular Season: .294, 9 HR, 62 RBI in 128 games
- AL Championship Series: .389 (7 for 18, 3 HR, 7 runs scored) in 4 games
- 1978 Highlights:
- April 17 - Homered, doubled, scored twice and knocked in two runs in Kansas City's 3-2 win over the Toronto Blue Jays
- Sept 18 - Had four hits and scored twice as the Royals beat the Seattle Mariners 7-6 in 11 innings.
- Oct 6 - Hit three solo home runs in a losing cause as the Royals lost to the New York Yankees 6-5 in game 3 of the AL Championship Series.
- Andy Hassler started the 1978 season with the Kansas City Royals. Andy didn't pitch until mid-May. He was a fifth starter and an occasional reliever for the next two months. Hassler was sold to the Boston Red Sox on July 24. He had a stint on the disabled list in August and was used as a reliever after coming off of the DL in late August.
- It was interesting to notice Andy Hassler was never traded for anyone even though he played for six teams during his career. Andy was sold four times, released once, and was a free agent once.
- 1978 Stats:
- Kansas City Royals: 1-4, 4.32 ERA in 11 games (9 starts)
- Boston Red Sox: 2-1, 1 save, 3.00 ERA in 13 games (2 starts)
- TOTAL: 3-5, 1 save, 3.87 ERA in 24 games (11 starts)
- 1978 Highlights:
- July 24 - Earned the win in his first appearance for the Red Sox. Hassler pitched 3 1/3 innings of scoreless ball in Boston's 4-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins
- Sept 18 - Was the winning pitcher in a 5-4, 11-inning victory over the Detroit Tigers. Andy allowed no runs in 1 2/3 innings pitched.
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- Al Cowens had a drop-off in 1978 after finishing second in AL MVP voting in 1977. Cowens missed a month of the season because of strained ligaments. The rest did Al some good. Cowens was batting .249 before the injury -- his hitting picked up after he came back in late July and he ended up at .274.
- 1978 Stats:
- Regular Season: .274, 5 HR, 63 RBI in 132 games
- AL Championship Series: .133 (2 for 15) in 4 games
- 1978 Highlights:
- Apr 10 - Had two triples and knocked in three runs to lead the Royals to a 4-2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.
- Aug 22 - Had three hits, including a 3-run home run, as the Royals beat the Chicago White Sox 6-3.
- Darrell Porter finished 10th in AL MVP voting in 1978. Porter made the AL All Star team - he was a pinch hitter and fouled out to end the game. Darrell started 141 games behind the plate in both 1978 and in 1979.
- 1978 Stats:
- Regular Season: .265, 18 HR, 78 RBI in 150 games
- AL Championship Series: .357 (5 for 14), 3 RBI in 4 games
- 1978 Highlights:
- April 12 - Hit an inside the park home run to help the Royals to a 5-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles.
- June 20 - Batted cleanup for the first time in 18 months and drove in two runs as the Royals beat the Cleveland Indians 3-2.
- June 25 - Ejected from the game for charging the mound and throwing the first punch at pitcher Mike Lacey in a 6-3 Kansas City loss to the Oakland A's. There were some unkind words by both sides after the game.
- Oct 4 - Had two hits and two RBI to help the Royals to a 7-1 win over the New York Yankees in game 2 of the AL Championship Series.
