Scott Veatch is becoming one of my favorite contributors, I tell you. He suggested another 1969 XB, Danny Murphy of the Chicago Cubs.
Pitcher Danny Murphy’s batting stats in ‘69 are quite simple. He came to bat twice and walked once.
| Split | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 Totals | 17 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 | .500 | .000 |
APBA delivers with Murphy’s 1969 card. He received twenty-four 14s on his card. Every result number in the middle column except the the 43-29 is a 14. Even these automatic out numbers were 14s: 32-14, 34-14 and 41-14.
Scott writes about Danny Murphy:
“Danny Murphy was signed by the Cubs right out of high school in 1960, for a bonus of $100,000+. He was from the Boston area and was fast and had a great arm. So what did the Cubs do to protect and nourish this huge investment? Of course — they immediately brought him to Chicago and stuck him in the starting lineup in center field! HE WAS SEVENTEEN YEARS OLD when he made his debut. Wow. He hit .120 in 75 AB before they decided to send him to San Antonio for some seasoning. He was back with the Cubs for small parts of the next two seasons before the Cubs traded him. He bounced around with a couple of organizations before landing back in Chicago with the White Sox — this time as a pitcher…
The first game my dad ever took me to was July 6, 1960 at Wrigley Field. The Cubs beat the Cardinals (and a young Bob Gibson) 10-1 and Danny Murphy was in center field that day. It was his 16th big league game.”
Another thing worth noting… Murphy was graded as a C*YZ in 1969 based on his 2.01 ERA in 31 1/3 innings and 17 games. That really emphasizes how much the APBA cardmakers penalized pitchers with little playing time back in the early days. Pitching era or not, Murphy’s 2.01 ERA would have certainly warranted a better grade. We don’t have to look any further than 2013 Kevin Siegrist who received APBA’s best grade, an A&B* (albeit with a 0.45 ERA), based on 39 2/3 innings or Tanner Roark’s A starter grade on 53 2/3 innings.
If you’re looking for my opinion, I liked the change. The Company realized that APBA fans were mostly playing the game within the players’ limits and didn’t need artificial limits placed on them.
By the way, Murphy also has a pretty noteworthy card for his 1970 season but I’m saving that one for next week.
thanks again, Scott!
I remember Danny Murphy as a relief pitcher for the 1970 White Sox. He was 2-3 with 5 saves and a 5.69 ERA for the last place Sox (56-106). The White Sox were at a nadir that year on the filed and in the stands as the Sox drew under 500,000 for the season. However, I attended five games that year and I still have a soft spot for Melton, May, Wood, John, Horlen, Herrmann, “No Neck” Williams, et al.
Is Danny Murphy the reverse of Ankiel, moving from outfielder to pitcher? Of course, he wasn’t as good as Ankiel
at either spot.
Love seeing cards like this on here Tom. Made me go onto ebay looking for an original 1969 with xbs.