Catchers Finding Jesus: Bob Watson

It's later at night than I normally like it to be when I nod off, but I'm still grading after a great weekend away with the compa. Heck, I even met a fellow blogger GCRL IN PERSON, which was way cool. Added bonus was I got to give him an overdue trade package, which saved me a few ducats. Anyway, more on that later. 

Without further ado, the latest catcher finding Jesus, Bob "Bull" Watson. 

Technically he's not listed as a catcher here, but his 1969 card lists him as a C/OF, so he did know the position. According to BB reference, Bull even played a total of 10 games at catcher in a 17-year career, a full 1 of them (a whopping 2 innings worth!) in 1969. 

But here, on this card, he's listed as an OF and appears to be posing as if he were catching a pop-up (or witnessing the second coming of Christ), while wearing a catcher's mitt. And seriously: who needs Jesus more than a catcher who, inexplicably, has gone in to play the OF with his catcher's mitt? The ball is in the air, it's coming in his direction, and yes, he'll need divine intervention for this to come out right.

Indeed, who among us hasn't been the metaphorical Bob Watson?

Have a good one everybody and goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!

Catchers Finding Jesus: Clint Courtney

Things have been nuts, but should only be like that for another week or so. I've moved (temporarily) across the country, and am slowly getting back into the order of things should be go to go late next week. There are a few emails I haven;t responded to yet (sorry!) but I'll get there.

Anyway, I'm back in my hometown for awhile and, like most of us, the first thing I did when hitting the area was goole card shops. When I left (in 1994) there were none left. Thankfully, one apparently opened up in 1995 and is still going strong. The need for an oil change gave me the perfect excuse to check out Hooked on Cards. I'll give a rundown of the store later (nice little place with a friendly owner!), but wanted to showcase this gem I picked up while there, an 1955 Bowman Clint Courtney, the latest update in the Catchers Finding Jesus series.

What's that? Something's amiss? You're right. Not only is this catcher finding Jesus, he's also wearing glasses. He's definitely one of the first catchers to don spectacles, and at least one source has him as THE first.

But don't let that fool you. His nicknames were "Scrap Iron" and "The Toy Bulldog," both of which make sense for a guy who caught, wore glasses, and stood all of 5' 8".  He was, apparently, a natural lefty who taught himself to catch right-handed, robbing the world of another in the line of distinguished left-handed catchers. He was also, according to Wikipedia, myopic.

Sporting News ROY in 1952 and an original Oriole, he had a solid 11-year career, but as his nicknames would lead you to believe he's best remembered for being an all-out ass kicker. Wikipedia, BR Bullpen, and The Baseball Library all dedicate significant verbiage to his brawls, fights, and fines. Even his obituary mentions the endless fines he received for on-field shenanigans. Seriously, check out those links for details on some of the fights. They're good stuff. WWJD, indeed.

Great surprise card to find during a brief stopover. Have a good one everybody and goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!

Pitchers Finding Jesus: Manny Sarmiento

First, don't forget the group break. Teams still available!

Manny Sarmiento following through on a pitch only to see Jesus and a choir of angels hovering above the batter. With an ERA+ of 82 in '78 I image Sarmiento saw Jesus-aided batters hitting softballs off him pretty frequently. Take a look at the awkward stance, the mouth agape, the eyes looking toward the sky. Dude's definitely experiencing something frighteningly supernatural out there on the mound.

Have a good one everybody and good night Pumpsie Green, wherever you are.

Catchers Finding Jesus: Darren Dalton

St. Paul had the Damascus road. Darren Dalton had a play at the plate with Dave Martinez.

Dude can't even look. Maybe this is why he's so nutty now. He thought he was playing ball. He went on to vie for our souls.

Don't forget the group break, here.

Have a good one everybody and goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!

Jimmy Wilson: A Special Catchers Finding Jesus

You may have already seen this card over at Troll's blog, posted here. And before we continue, this is the SAME card. It was sent over by Troll in the package I posted about yesterday.

Troll's post is pretty authoritative on Mr. Wilson, so I'll pretty much stick to the finding Jesus aspects. Wilson's glove isn't up so he's not chasing a pop up or even participating in any action. He's just taken his mask off and, looking toward the heavens has this quizzical look on his face like angels are descending or he's watching a UFO break through the clouds. Given the focus of the series, my vote is for Jesus on a chariot drawn by lions through the sky, or at the very least those bears that Elisha had eat those kids. It says a lot about my upbringing that I still have nightmares about animals who maul children for simple things like jeering an authority figure.

Anyway, Mr. Wilson isn't dealing with any of that. His savior is coming down in a celestial vision, and if we were all so lucky, just once, the world would be a much different place. Or, at any rate, one in which we use threats of bear maulings to get children to behave.

Thanks again Troll, this card is amazing!

Have a good one everybody and goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!

3B Finding Jesus: Enos Cabell

He's no catcher, but if Enos Cabell's not finding Jesus I have no idea what he is doing.

The coolest part of the card is that the cropping and the off-center placing of the subject give you a sense of vertigo, that the world isn't right but, thankfully, Cabell sees something that's neither apparent to us nor to the shortstop who seems just as befuddled as we are. Everything is slightly out of focus from the hint of scoreboard to the OF wall, all of which foregrounds Cabell's crisply in-focus off-centeredness. The dramatic tension of the off-centered, unusually focused subject isn't too common in baseball card photography, but heightens Cabell's revelation.

"Going after a pop up?"

"Nah, I'm taking to Jesus."

Catchers Finding Jesus: Darrell Miller

We've seen a lot of catchers finding Jesus, but all of them were catching. Here we have Darrell Miller hitting on the back of his '89 UD.

Now sure, this is a really well composed shot for this space on the card. I mean, Miller in his samurai pose looking straight into the sky practically fills the entire rectangle. And then, of course, we've got the immortal question: what is he looking at? Sure, maybe a pop up, or a dude in a chicken suit hanging off the upper deck. More likely, after a big swing and a miss, he hears the voices overhead: "$#$# it Darrell, watch the $#$#**%# ball!!! I died for your sins, the least you could do is take a pitch." 

Have a good one everybody and goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are.

Catchers Finding Jesus: Dutch Dotterer

Henry John "Dutch" Dotterer had a five year career catching for the Reds (57-60) and Senators (61). He was a light-hitting back up who, lifetime, racked up 1 SB attempt, for which he was caught stealing.

He we have him on his '59 Topps card, captured in a moment of religious fervor. I know, "he's obviously going after a pop up." Really? The stands are EMPTY, so there's no game. And the photo is taken from directly in front of Dutch, so the photographer would have to be standing between him and the pitcher's mound. So we can conjecture there's NO BALL in the air Dutch is tracking, either. Legitimate conclusion: the heavens have opened up and Dutch is rapt by the choir of descending angels. Sadly, and unlike Ivan Dejesus, who used his encounter with the divine to be traded for Larry Bowa and Ryan Sandberg, get out of Chicago, and get a career as a starter, Dutch had no suck, only appearing in seven games for the Senators in '61.

And Dutch couldn't even catch a break on the back of the '59, as the cartoon basically underscores he's a light-hitting catcher who'd be surprised he'd ever drive one out. For shame Topps, for shame!

Have a good one everybody and goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!

Catchers Finding Jesus: Dave Nilsson

Oh man, what's not to love about this Hallelujah?

Is he turning to the crowd, asking for an "Amen"? Is he about to start speaking in tongues? A vision while chasing a pop foul? Whatever it is, Dave Nilsson is a more than appropriate addition to Catchers Finding Jesus.

Nilsson was a guy who played according to his own values and rules. For starters he is Australian and, when he was playing in Japan, had his name listed as "Dingo." He also retired from the majors at age 28 after his career year, 1999, when he had a career high OPS+ of 140 (versus a lifetime average of 110) and made the AS team. Why? Because he wanted to represent Australia in baseball in the 2000 Olympics. Praise the Lord good people, oh praise him!

Have a good one everybody and goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!

Shortstops Finding Jesus: Ivan De Jesus

OK---Ivan's epiphany isn't quite as dramatic as those experienced by most catchers, but check him out.

Ivan goes over to the bat rack and reaches in for a bat when he hears a voice. He looks up. "This is the bat I'm supposed to use today?" And who in Ivan's position wouldn't be asking for divine intervention? 1981 was his WORST year as a professional. He finished the year batting .194 in 403 ABs, an OPS+ of 44. Things were tough. He rebounded nicely the following year after a trade to the Phillies (OPS+ of 77) when his BA spiked by about 40 points. And as we all know, batting average on balls in play is all about luck, so who's to say that between getting traded out of Chicago and getting another 40 points on the old BA, Ivan wasn't the beneficiary of a little divine intervention?

Have a good one and goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!

Catchers Finding Jesus: Jerry Narron

Not quite as classic as the Bob Rodgers, but another convert nonetheless. Jerry Narron hears the celestial choirs, he's going down the aisle, we have another believer in the ranks of the saved tonight.

As an aside, I noticed someone "unfollowed" the blog after the Bob Rodgers post, so I figured I'd just get this out there. The CCC series "Catchers Finding Jesus" is definitely a tongue in cheek look at spirituality and catching. It's not a knock on spirituality, religion, or Christianity. It's a look at some great cards. For the record I grew up in one of the more repressive/oppressive Protestant denominations imaginable and yet have managed to cobble together some semblance of a fulfilling spiritual life, which has taken years to accomplish. As often as players pray to do things like catch fly balls (see Sunday, Billy) or credit a high power for their success (see most any post-game interview), I think that catchers finding Jesus happens a lot more than Topps photographers or this blog will ever capture. Just my two cents.

Have a great weekend! (And yep, I was working on this post and it got published out of turn by accident. D'oh! Ken MacKenzie will NEVER get his day in the sun)