Monster Card Monday: 1977 Rod Carew

“I’ve got more action than my man, John Woo
And I’ve got mad hits like I was Rod Carew”

-“Sure shot”, Beastie Boys

I remember Rod Carew’s season of 1977.  That was the year he threatened the .400 mark with the Minnesota Twins.  If you look at his game log, you’ll see that he was last hitting .400 after the game on July 10.  Then he went 1 for 5 the next day and never saw it again. He sunk as low as .375 by late August but a last minute surge brought him back up to his final mark of .388.

Three years later, George Brett would top the mark with a .390 average.  No one else has had a higher batting average in a full season since then.

Unfortunately for Carew, his biggest hurdle in 1977 were the California Angels.  He hit a paltry .255 against the division rivals.  On the plus side, he practically teed off against the Chicago White Sox with a .492 average against them.

While this is no Babe Ruth card, it certainly merits consideration.  Carew’s 51-7 is especially worthy when you appreciate the balance of pitching to hitting in 70s era.

Again, Carew is no power hitter but I distinctly remember getting the original 1977 set as a 14-year old and marveling at not just Rod Carew’s hit numbers (“wow, a 51-7”) but his four 0s.  Back then, four power numbers actually meant something especially for a fast middle infielder with a slick glove.

Worthy of mention:  he has three 31s… also, he has no 24s.