Two weeks ago, I did a Weird Card for Dan Murphy’s 14-laden 1969 card. Turns out, he had a penchant for turning out strange APBA cards. Scott Veatch passes this one on to me. This card is from 1970 when Danny moved to south side to pitch for the Sox.
He obviously didn’t pitch all that well. In 51 games as a reliever, his 5.69 ERA isn’t much to boast about. He did accumulate five saves though. He managed to walk 49 batters in 80 plus innings.
But he did some things as a batter. In eight plate appearances, he hit a homer and a single. He also walked twice and hit into a double play.
| Split | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 Totals | 51 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | .333 | .500 | .833 |
Murphy’s card runs the gamut. Other than his four 1s, he has what could be considered a normal hitter’s card (he did hit .333). For a pitcher, he has a considerable amount of 14s, six.
Then look at the number of 24s. Murphy has ten of them in odd places like 14, 34, and 54. And because the normal spots for the 13s are taken up, you find them in places like 12 and really? 35??? That’s almost sacrilege that an APBA card doesn’t have a 65-35.
Two more oddities… Murphy has a 32-23 and a 52-36.
thanks Scott!
Although he did not have much success in the major leagues, I really admire Danny Murphy. He came up too young and raw as an outfielder and never made it but then he retooled as a pitcher and made it back to the majors seven years later in 1969 with the White Sox. His career ended after 1970 but his perseverance is laudable. I attended a few White Sox games in 1970 and remember him on the mound. At the time, I did not know that he had previously played in the big leagues as an outfielder with the Cubs. I am glad to know the story now. Thanks for sharing his “weird” APBA cards!