One of the cooler things about TTM autos is they make you start investigating the careers of players you otherwise might not have known about. In short it gives you a deeper appreciation of the game and how good some of the non-famous players really were. For me, Gary Peters is one of those guys.
Peters was ROY in 1963 although he was already 26 and had failed to stick in brief stints with the big club from '59-'62. And oddly enough, from '63-'67 he put together one of the more dominant 5-year periods you'll ever see out of a pitcher. Just for context, in 4 of those 5 years he posted an ERA+ of 132 or above. That's pretty $%#% dominant.
While this isn't the RC (that's a 1960 Topps card) it's a sweet card with a dour Peters on the front. I guess you'd be pretty dour, too, if in '63 you finally stuck in the Majors after 7 years in the minors.
Speaking of, the Rays are now at 0-4 after a loss to the Angels tonight. Ugh. Gotta gettem tomorrow, boys!
Have a good one everybody and good night Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!
I, too, enjoy learning about some of the older guys that I send TTMs to.
ReplyDeleteGreat card!
love gary peters
ReplyDeleteWhen i was young,we used to go to 1 red sox game every year.On July 2,1970,we went to Boston to see the red sox and Gary Peters out duel the washington senators and Dick Such 5-0.Complete game shutout for Gary.On June 26,1971 we saw the red sox and gary peters outduel the pennant winning Baltimore orioles and Mike Cuellar (who was 11-1 at the time,and one of the 4 pitchers who won 20 for the '71 orioles) 3-2 in 10 innings.Most impressive was how peters held shut out the great hitting orioles for 8 and two thirds until boog powell hit a 2 run homer in the right field bullpen.peters picked himself up,got the last out in top of ninth,boston couldn't score in bottom of ninth,Gary comes back out in 10th,shut down orioles,and boston wins in bottom of tenth on a luis aparicio hit.Great competitor and great athlete was Gary Peters,who was not only an excellent pitcher,but a good hitter as well.Thanks for the great efforts Gary,whether you know it or not ,you carved a nice memory with your great pitching these 2 games when i was a kid (who just finished 2nd grade,and third grade.Now I'm 48 years of age.And thanks Dad,for being such a good father ,and being so loving and giving to your family,as well as others.Hope to see you in heaven one day with Mom and Luke.You're always in my heart -Love Mark
ReplyDeleteGary Peters is one of the unsung heroes of the sixties. It's a shame more people don't know about him today. Posts like this one should help.
ReplyDelete