#14 Frank LaCorte

Card: This is LaCorte's fifth Topps card.  His rookie card was in the '76 set with three other young pitching prospects.  LaCorte did not appear in another card until the 1980 set.

Pic: Pitchers should never be pictured on a baseball card in a helmet...ever. I do like the action shot as the ball leaves his hand.

Player: Frank LaCorte was signed as a 20 year old undrafted free agent by the Braves in 1972.  LaCorte spent two full years in the minors before making his MLB debut as a September call up in '75. From '76 through '78 LaCorte bounced around from AAA Richmond and Atlanta mainly as a starter.  At this point to say LaCorte's major league career was not successful would be an understatement.  Through his first four seasons, LaCorte was 4-24 with a 6.17 ERA. The 1979 season would bring change however as LaCorte would pitch out of the pen for the Braves.  In May he was traded to Houston and although he started three games for Houston the hard throwing righty was now entrenched as a reliever.
Everything was working for LaCorte in 1980.  Through June 2, LaCorte had given up just one run in 23.1 innings (0.39 ERA) with 4 saves and a 3-0 record out of the pen. Sharing closer duties with Joe Sambito and Dave Smith, LaCorte was an important part of the NL West champions Astros.  LaCorte finished the year with 11 saves and a 2.82 ERA in 83 innings of work.
LaCorte had a decent year in the strike shortened '81 season with five saves and a 3.64 ERA in 42 innings.
Wildness always seemed to haunt LaCorte and it seems to have caught with him in '82 as his ERA inflated to 4.48 in 76.1 innings. 1983 was even worse with a 5.06 ERA in 53.1 innings.
LaCorte left Houston via free agency signing a three year deal with the California Angels. Frank appeared in only 13 games as a torn rotator cuff put him on the shelf.  He came back in '85 but was hit hard at AAA Edmonton.  LaCorte was released by the Angels in spring training of '86 as the injury had been too much to overcome.

Stuff: Fastball (up to 96 mph), Curveball



Flipside: As you can see LaCorte was very wild walking more than a batter every other inning. LaCorte's lone major league complete game was a win on 9/16/76 when he gave up just one run over nine innings, striking out five and walking three Dodgers.  Amazingly LaCorte came back three days later and pitched ten shutout innings again versus the Dodgers.  Frank did not get credit for a complete game however as Adrian Devine relieved in the 11th.  The Braves finally won in twelve innings but LaCorte was probably worn out as he gave up twelve runs in 17 innings in his last three starts of the year.

Oddball: LaCorte once burned his uniform in a fit of rage after walking the bases loaded and blowing a lead late in the game.  When asked about it later LaCorte responded that he thought his number 31 was the source of all his 3-1 counts.

History: LaCorte is remembered as a key part of the '80 and '81 playoff Astros pen. LaCorte is now owner of Marx Towing in his hometown of Gilroy, CA.



#13 Larry Herndon

Ok hopefully I'm back to posting daily...I've been fighting sickness while working 12 hour days.

Card: This is Herndon's seventh Topps card.  His rookie card is in the '77 set.  He appears on the card with the Topps All Star Rookie trophy in the corner.  As a kid I always  called those "cup" cards. 
This is Herndon's first card as a Tiger.

Picture: Herndon is following through with his long swing. Its kind of a cool shot as it appears he made contact and is starting to run out of the box.

Player: Herndon was a 3rd round pick of the Cardinals in 1971 and made his MLB debut as a September call up in '74.  The speedy Herndon played in eleven games, ten as a pinch runner and singled in his only at bat.
In '75 Herndon was traded mid-season to the Giants but would not see major league action until the following year.  Playing centerfield, Herndon enjoyed a 14 game hitting streak his rookie year and batted .288 with two home runs. Herndon made the team in '77 but only appeared in 49 games and batted .239.  In '78 Herndon regained his starting job, batting .259 but with only one home run and thirteen stolen bases. 
Herndon slowly added a little more power to his game hitting seven, eight, and five homeruns over the next three seasons while batting .257, .258, and .288.
After the '81 season the Giants traded Herndon to the Detroit for Dan Schatzeder. By now Herndon was exclusively a left fielder and Tigers skipper Sparky Anderson must have seen something in Herndon as he often batted him in the middle of the lineup. Herndon responded hitting .292, with 13 triples, 23 HR, and a team high 88 RBI. Herndon followed up his '82 season by hitting .302 with 20 HR and 92 RBI in 1983.
Coming off the two best seasons of his career Herndon saw his playing time cut in '84 as he platooned with Ruppert Jones.  The Tigers ran away with the AL East and Herndon hit a HR in game one vs. the Royals. The Tigers went on to sweep the Royals and faced the Padres in the World Series.  Herndon had the deciding home run in game one and caught the final out in the series as the Tigers prevailed in five games.
Playing semi-regularly over the next two years, Herndon hit .244 and .247 with twelve and eight home runs. In 1987 Herndon had a productive year batting .324 with nine home runs in 225 at bats. The Tigers were chasing the Blue Jays all year and finally passed them with a one game lead with one game left vs. the Blue Jays. Herndon's solo home run was the only run either side allowed as the Tigers won their second division title in four seasons.  The Tigers lost in the ALCS to the Twins despite three hits from Herndon in nine at bats.  Herndon played one more season batting .224 in 1988.

Flipside: As you can see the 23 home runs and 88 RBI were quite a jump from his previous highs. It is quite remarkable, given his previous track record, that he hit long balls in four consecutive at bats.  Before coming to Detroit Herndon had hit a total of 24 HR in 2,129 at bats.  In 2,748 at bats with Detroit Herndon would hit 83 HR.

Oddball: Herndon hit one of the longest home runs in Tiger Stadium when on opening day in 1987 he hit a blast off the facing of the upper deck in center field. Considering the centerfield fence was 440 feet away from home plate, this was quite a blast.
Herndon's minor-league roomate in 1971 was Randy Poffo...better known as wrestling superstar Randy "Macho Man" Savage.

History: Herndon is remembered as part of the World Series winning '84 Tigers and division winning '87 squad. Herndon had an odd career.  He started as a speedster with little power and finished his career with increased but sporadic power.  Herndon didnt walk much and his defense was poor over the last half of his career as his bad knees sapped his range.  Herndon is currently the batting coach for the Tigers single A affiliate in Lakeland.

#12 Paul Mirabella

Card: This is Mirabella's third Topps card. His rookie card is in the 1981 set.  Although he played in thirteen big league seasons Mirabella only had five cards.  Such is the life of the journeyman left-handed reliever.

Picture: Nice picture of Mirabella getting ready to fire towards the plate.  The background is so out of focus it makes it seem kind of weird.  Topps got lazy and posted an inset picture that is so similar to the action shot that it must have been a frame or two prior.

Player: Mirabella, Mirabella. Each time I type that name I want to type Mirabelli... as in former catcher Doug Mirabelli.
Anyway, Paul Mirabella was a 1st round pick of Texas Rangers in the 1976 January draft. He started at A ball in '76 and moved up a level each year.  While at AAA in '78 Paul got the call to the big leagues appearing in ten games with four of them starts.
In the off-season Mirabella was traded to the Yankees in a ten player deal that brought Dave Righetti to NY and Sparky Lyle to the Rangers.  Mirabella bounced between Columbus and New York and was once again traded in the off-season in a six player deal to Toronto.
Inserted into the rotation for the '80 Blue Jays, Mirabella would throw a career high 130.2 innings with 22 games started and 11 relief appearances.  Paul didn't get much support and suffered a 5-12 record despite an ERA on par with the league average of 4.34. He spent most of '81 starting games for AAA Syracuse with an 11-7 record and 3.06 ERA. In December the Jays traded Paul to the Cubs who traded him in March back to Texas, his original team.
Although he spent the entire year in the big leagues, Paul had a 4.80 ERA in 40 games, all in relief.  He failed to make the Rangers in '83 and was released.  Paul played in both the Orioles and Phillies organizations in '83 with only three games in the big leagues.
Paul spent all of '84 with the Mariners, sporting a 4.37 ERA in a career high 52 games.  He spent most of the next two years pitching for Seattle's AAA affiliate Calgary pitching in only 18 games for the Mariners. 
Released by the Mariners in October of '86, Mirabella latched on with the Brewers where he would struggle in 1987 with a 4.91 ERA.  1988 would be Mirabella's best year with four saves and a 1.65 ERA in 60 innings.  Unfortunately Mirabella couldn't build on that success and would scuffle in '89. In the off season found himself pitching in the Senior Baseball Association.  He bounced back for one more year of ball with the Brewers and had a decent finish to his career with a 3.97 ERA in 59 innings.
For his career Mirabella finished with a 19-29 record, 13 saves and nearly as many walks (239) as strikeouts (258) in 499.2 innings.

Stuff: Mirabella was a soft-tossing lefty with a sinking fastball around 83-84 mph. Mirabella also threw a curve and a slider.

Flipside: The complete game shutout in 1980 came in his second start of the year on April 17 against the Brewers.  Mirabella gave up seven hits, three walks and struck out three.  This would be the only shutout of his career.

Oddball: Mirabella wore ten different numbers in the big leagues and he never repeated a number that he had worn with a previous team.  In order Paul wore:13, 36, 50, 55, 42, 51, 34, 39, 52, and 27.
Mirabella is one of five players who played in the Senior Baseball League who made it back to the majors.

History: Mirabella never made it into the post-season and is likely remembered as a well traveled lefty.  Paul was a part of two big trades that involved stars such as Sparky Lyle, Dave Righetti, Damaso Garcia, and Chris Chambliss.  The last interview I found of Mirabella indicated that he was co-owner of a used tire shop in New Jersey.

#11 Billy Gardner

The first manager card in the set........

Card: This is Gardner's first card as a manager. Gardner appeared on seven base cards as a player with his rookie card issued in the 1957 set.

Pic: It's hard to tell on the computer but looking at the card closely it appears the hat Gardner is wearing has mesh sides and back.  I never thought major leaguers wore those cheapies. 

Player: Gardner was a scrappy blue collar infielder for ten major league seasons. Gardner led the league in plate appearances, at bats, and doubles for the Orioles in 1957. He won a world series as a backup 3B/2B for the '61 Yankees. 
Manager: Gardner's playing career ended after the 1964 season where he spent the year playing for AAA Seattle, Boston's top farm club. Gardner was a coach on the Red Sox staff for a few years and then managed in the Boston minor-league chain through 1971 and managed in Royals farm system through 1976.
In '77 Gardner moved on to the big leagues with the Expos as a coach for two years. He then returned to the minors to manage in the Expos chain for three years.
In 1981 Gardner joined the Minnesota Twins coaching staff and took over as manager when Johnny Goryl was fired.  Gardner led the team to 30-43 record in the strike shortened season. Managing a young team in '82, Gardner and the Twins continued to struggle with a 60-102 effort.  1983 saw a ten game improvement as the Twins went 70-92.  With young stars Kirby Puckett, Kent Hrbek, Tom Brunansky, Gary Gaetti, and Frank Viola, Gardner guided the team to a .500 finish in 1984.  After a 27-35 start to the '85 season, Gardner was canned and replaced by Ray Miller.
Gardner caught on as a coach on the Royals staff and took over as manager in 1987 when Dick Howser had to step down due to his fight with cancer.  Languishing around .500 Gardner would not get to finish the season as the Royals replaced him with John Wathan in August.

 

Flipside: Gardner is an even six feet tall not 6'10" as listed. 

Oddball: During his four years in Minnesota, Gardner lived in a Super-8 motel located in a truck stop.
As a player, Gardner was known by the nicknames Whitey, Shotgun, and Slick.

History: Gardner did not have success as a MLB manager but is credited with helping mold the core of the '87 Championship Twins. As a player Gardner was a member of a World Series champion and is remembered for his good glove and hustle.
Gardner still lives in his birth town of Waterford, Connecticut.

I am really enjoying researching these players and learning new things as I go through the '83 set.  Feel free to drop a comment or suggestion along the way.

#10 Gorman Thomas

Card: This is Gorman's ninth Topps card.  His rookie card is in the 1974 set.  Thomas did not have a card in the '78 set since he was in the minors for the entire '77 season.

Pic: Thomas is following through with his swing possibly in a spring training game.  I never liked the follow through shot and always wondered why it has been popular with Topps.  Thomas has a killer mustache.  It was first observed on his 1980 card and has been scaring youngsters ever since.

Player: Stormin' Gorman was drafted in the first round of the 1969 draft by the Seattle Pilots.  Thomas started his pro career at shortstop but moved to centerfield after his first two years.  Thomas spent the '69-'72 seasons in the minors while the Pilots moved east to Milwaukee and became the Brewers. 
Thomas made the team out of spring training in 1973 but had trouble making contact and would split time between AAA the next two seasons.  He would stay up with the big team in '74 and '75 but hit only .179 and .198.  Thomas would then spend the entire 1977 season at AAA.  The Brewers traded Thomas away to the Rangers in October, only to reacquire him in February. As 1978 approached Thomas was a 27 year old with 22 home runs and 227 strikeouts in 668 career at bats, and the future didn't seem all that bright.  But Gorman Thomas was definitely a late bloomer.
Thomas won the starting CF job in 1978 and would go on to be one of the most feared sluggers of the late 70's and early 80's.  Thomas led the AL with 45 HRs in 1979 and again with 39 in 1982. Although he struck out a lot and didn't hit for average, from '78-'82 he averaged 35 HR and 98 RBI. Taking into account for the strike of '81, Thomas averaged 40 HR per 162 games during that span. 
Managed by Harvey Kuenn the 1982 pennant winning Brewers  were known for their slugging prowess.  Featuring Thomas, Cecil Cooper, Ben Oglivie and on-base machines and future HOFers Robin Yount and Paul Molitor, the squad was nicknamed Harvey Wallbangers.  The Brewers lost the '82 World Series to the Cardinals in seven games.
Thomas slumped badly in '83 and was traded to the Indians.  He finished with 22 HR but his average slipped to .209. Traded to the Mariners, Thomas hit .157 in 35 games before a shoulder injury sidelined him for the remainder of the season.  Used almost exclusively as a DH, Thomas bounced back somewhat with 32 HR in '85 but batted only .215. Thomas was batting .187 when he was released by the Mariners in June 1986.  He was picked up a few weeks later by the Brewers and finished his career with his original franchise.

Flipside: Thomas also had two homerun games on June 13 and August 26 of '82.  Those strikeout totals in '79 and '80 led the league.

Oddball: Thomas spent most of the '74 season with the AAA Sacramento Solons where he hit 51 HRs in 474 at bats.  This didn't even lead the team as Doug McNulty hit 55.  The Solons home field was Hughs Field. Converted from a football field to a baseball field for the summer, the leftfield fence was only 233 feet away from home plate! As a team the Solons hit 305 homeruns and their unfortunate pitchers gave up 301 and had a 6.70 team ERA. 

History: Stormin' Gorman is remembered for his tremendous power and as a big part of the Harvey Wallbangers.  Thomas was a low average, high strikeout slugger who despite his muscular frame was able to patrol centerfield adeptly for most of his career. 
Thomas has done some scouting for the Brewers and currently makes personal appearances on behalf of the Brewers in the Milwaukee area.

#9 Joey McLaughlin

Card: This is Joey McLaughlin's fourth Topps card. His rookie card is in the 1980 set. 

Pic: McLaughlin is pictured here on the mound in Oakland. He appears to have what the biomechanic analysts call the Inverted W with his arms.  If you are interested in pitching mechanics check out the link.
McLaughlin with his beard and dour expression looks kind of like a digruntled plumber or cable guy.

Player: Drafted in the 2nd round in 1974 by the Altanta Braves, McLaughlin was a starter in the minors. In June of '77, 20 year old Joey made his MLB debut and got hit hard by the Phillies.  He pitched a couple of more games that year and was not back in the majors until '79.  McLaughlin had a good year out of the pen setting up for closer Gene Garber and getting an occasional save of his own.
After the season the Braves made a multi-player trade with the Blue Jays to bring McLaughlin north of the border.  He started the year in the pen and made ten starts but was more effective in a relief role.  McLaughlin led the Jays with ten saves in '81 sharing closer duties with Roy Lee Jackson.  The next year was another good one with 8 saves and a 3.21 ERA.  1983 was a disaster with more blown saves (11) than saves (9). The timing was poor since the Blue Jays finished with a winning record for the first time in franchise history.
In '84 McLaughlin tried to work his way out of the dog house.  Seeing action in non save situations he gave up only one run in his first nine innings of work.  Then in a May 12 game vs the Indians the wheels came off. McLaughlin gave up four runs in 1.2 innings and was released the next day.
Picked up by the Rangers, he pitched poorly in fifteen games and was released after the season.
McLaughlin pitched in AAA over the next three years for the A's and White Sox organizations but never made it back to the majors, retiring at age 31.

Stuff: High 80's fastball, knuckle-curve, slider, and change up

Flipside: Those ten saves in '81 were the first time a Jays pitcher reached double digits. McLaughlin earned back to back wins on June 18-19 with a total of seven K's and 4.2 innings of scoreless ball. That seems more noteworthy than some of the other highlights Topps chose.

Oddball: Joey isn't short for Joseph- his full name is Joey Richard McLaughlin. 
In the inset picture it appears that McLaughlin has a unibrow but upon further examination it is the frame of his glasses.

History: McLaughlin is remembered for his success in the Jays bullpen. McLaughlin was the Blue Jays all-time saves leader with 31 until Tom Henke obliterated the record ending up with 207.  His fall from glory seems so sudden having been trusted with closing duties from 1980 through most of 1983.  He was given a short leash in '84 and couldn't capture his old form.  With a mediocre fastball he didn't have much margin for error, and when he crashed he crashed hard.
McLaughlin is currently a high school pitching coach

#8 Steve Balboni

Card: This is Balboni's first card of his own.  He shared a prospects card with Andy McGaffigan and Andre Robertson in the '82 set.

Pic: Balboni poses with a batting practice top and pinstriped pants in Yankee Stadium.  Something doesn't look right with the NY logo on his hat.  Not sure why that is.  Was he wearing a Columbus Clippers or Bob's Towing hat that had to be airbrushed?  Maybe I'm just seeing things.  Balboni's mustache (wow, that would be a good name for a punk band) looks pretty weak here.  It's much more developed on his '84 card. 

Player: Steve Balboni was drafted with the last pick of the 2nd round in the '78 draft, four picks behind a guy named Cal Ripken.  Having played ball at Eckerd College Balboni found the adjusment to pro ball difficult batting just .205 with one homer in 176 at bats at single A Fort Lauderdale.  Balboni would soon become a minor league phenom bashing 26, 34, 33, 32, and 27 home runs over the next five minor league seasons while shuttling between Columbus and New York in '81, '82, and '83.
Balboni was then traded to the Royals where he made a big impact with 28 bombs in '84.  In 1985 Balboni upped his home run total to 36 but led the league with 166 strikeouts.  Balboni and the Royals won the World Series over the Cardinals in seven games with Balboni batting .320. 
Balboni kept hitting home runs but was missing the ball more and more.  After being released by the Royals in May of 1988, Balboni DH'd for the Mariners for a season and the Yankees for two more.  Balboni then spent the '91-'93 seasons in AAA for the Rangers 
mashing 92 home runs.  Balboni returned to the big leagues one last time as a late season call up for Texas in '93.

Flipside: It lists Balboni as drafted in the 4th round, but that's an error. That is quite the season he was having at Comlumbus in '82 with 32 taters and 86 RBI in 83 games.

Oddball: Balboni, who once K'd in nine consecutive plate appearances, developed quite a cult following for his all-or-nothing hitting approach and guy next door appearance.

History: Balboni won a WS ring with the Royals.  He'll be remembered for his slugging prowess and propensity to strikeout.  In fact The Hardball Times awards The Balboni Award weekly to the most K-prone batter for the week.
Balboni has done some coaching and managed in the Expos farm system for a year.  He does some personal baseball training, has his own website and is currently a scout for the SF Giants.
Balboni was recently inducted into the International League Hall of Fame for his successful minor league career.