TTM Success - Manny Sanguillen

Manny Sanguillen is a player that I have gotten in person before (2015 National VIP signer).  I got him on a ball then; this was before I was concentrating on cards.  Since then, I had put aside a few of his cards to try to get him into the autograph album.  Above is his 1974 Topps, which has a cool action shot.

This is his 1975 Topps.  Both of the cards came out of the Conrad boxes a while back. 

Sanguillen (b. 1944) played in the majors in 1967 and from 1969 to 1980 for the Pirates and A's.  He had 1,500 hits, 65 home runs and a .296 batting average.  He won the World Series with the Purates in 1971 and 1979.  He was an All Star in 1971, 1972 and 1975.  His best MVP finish was 8th in 1971 (NL).

Sanguillen appeared on the 1986 Hall of Fame ballot and appeared on 0.5% of the vote. 

I mailed to Sanguillen on December 24 and got the cards back on March 22 for an 88-day TAT.  I paid his fee of $10.00/card.

2015 National Free VIP Signer - Manny Sanguillen

I think the free signer I looked forward to the most was Manny Sanguillen.  I kind of follow the Pirates a little bit, here and there, especially since I have been to PNC Park twice now.  Sanguillen is a Pirates legend, having won two World Series in Pittsburgh (1971 and 1979).  He played in the majors from 1967 and 1969 to 1980 for the Pirates and A's.

What sticks out most to me about Sanguillen, though, is a story that I read about the memorial service for his former teammate, Roberto Clemente.  When Clemente passed away, the Pirates held a memorial service for him that was attended by all of his teammates, with the exception of one, Sanguillen.  The reason he wasn't at the memorial was because he was busy diving off the coast of Puerto Rico in shark infested waters, looking for Clemente's body.  That's true friendship, right there.

According to Sanguillen's SABR page, it says that Sanguillen was actually supposed to accompany Clemente on his ill-fated flight, but had misplaced his car keys and missed the flight.

Sanguillen was really quiet during the signing at The National, but he was friendly when I spoke to him.  I thanked him for the autograph and moved along, since his line was so long.

40 Years Ago Today

40 years ago today, baseball lost a legend.  Roberto Clemente was killed when his plane crashed as he was attempting do deliver goods and relief aid to earthquake ravaged Nicaragua.  He passed away doing something he enjoyed, helping others.  Clemente was a legendary player, one of the all-time great people, let alone players.  At the time of his death, he had exactly 3,000 hits, 240 home runs and a lifetime average of .317.  He was a 4-time batting champion (1961, 1964, 1965 and 1967).  He hit more than 200 hits in a season 4 times.  He was the 1966 NL MVP.  He hit .300 or better 13 times out of 18 seasons.  He won the World Series with the Pirates in 1960 and 1971.  He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1973 by a special election shortly after his death. 

His close friend, Manny Sanguillen, was the only Pirates player who did not attend Clemente's funeral because he was diving in the waters where the plane had reportedly crashed in an attempt to find Clemente's body.  That's friendship, right there.  True friendship.

So, tonight, as the curtain closes on another year, I am glad to shine a light on a true baseball legend and a great man.  Rest in peace, Roberto.

Some More Sportlots Pickups

I was bored the other night, so I checked out Sportlots and knocked a few more cards off of my want list for 1970 and 1971 Topps...

I knocked 4 high numbers off of my 1970 Topps set.  One of which is the above Frank Lucchesi.  I'm winding down on this set, but all that are left are high numbers.  This is still going to take a while, but it is nice to begin seeing a light at the end of the tunnel...

I knocked off 10 more 1971 Topps.  A few were the leaders cards like the NL Batting leaders card above featuring Rico Carty, Joe Torre and Manny Sanguillen.

Spaceman, spin the black circle...  Ahhh, Bill "Spaceman" Lee's crazy a$$.  Have you ever seen him on Ken Burns' Baseball?  Yeah, I think he is completely nuts, but he is always fun to listen to when he gives interviews.

3 Hall of Famers on this NL Strikeout Leaders card.  Not too bad, if you ask me.

Ooh, look, 3 more Hall of Famers, I did pretty well, plus I also knocked off 7 1963 Fleer for a friend of mine who is completing that set, so all in all, it was a good mail day for me.