Final Card Friday: 1968 Roger Maris

Roger Maris was the Harold Baines of the 1960s. Both were quiet, unassuming, productive professionals, who often were overlooked for their accomplishments. Even though he played ten fewer seasons than Baines, Maris’s productivity was eerily similar.

Baines’s career WAR: 38.7; Maris’s career WAR: 38.2

Baines’s career OPS+: 121; Maris’s career OPS+: 127

Baines’s career OPS: .820; Maris’s career OPS: .827

Baines’s career OBP: .356; Maris’s career OBP: .345

I’m not convinced that either Baines or Maris belongs in the Baseball Hall of Fame, yet both were significant players during their careers. Of course, Roger Maris is most famous for breaking Babe Ruth’s single-season home run record in 1961 when he hit 61 homers. But, it shouldn’t be forgotten how productive Maris was in the 1960s. Roger played in seven World Series during the decade, hitting six homers and diving in eighteen runs. He was a four-time All-Star and back-to-back AL MVP in 1960 and 1961. For three years in a row (1960-1962), he drove in 100 or more runs. Six-times in his career, he hit 20 or more homers. In addition to his slugging prowess, Maris was an excellent defensive outfielder, frequently receiving Outfielder (3) ratings from APBA. Maris was a steady player that every championship caliber team needs.

Roger Maris’s final APBA card is productive and worthy of a spot in your lineup. Overall, it’s fairly accurate. I project this card to produce a .264 average. Many of the cards in the 1968 set were given an extra 7 by APBA to offset the tremendous pitching grades for that season. This card seems to be one of those. For accuracy against normal pitching, this card should have one of the 7s replaced with an 8 and it would produce a .258 average.

After suffering a wrist injury in 1965, Maris was trade by the New York Yankees to the St. Louis Cardinals. He regained some of his productiveness, but was never the same player again and retired at the young age of 33. After retirement, he ran a successful distribution business with his brother. Unfortunately, he died of cancer in 1985 when he was only 51 years old.

I’m still in the midst of my 1968 Detroit Tigers replay. Soon, I’ll finish the regular season and head straight to the World Series. I’m looking forward to playing with this Maris card and seeing if the series is as exciting as the one in real life. If he does do well against me, it’ll be acceptable to get beat by such a classy player.