The Bronx Zoo

The Big Red Machine

The We Are Family Pirates

The 1971 Baltimore Orioles Starting Rotation

Ten Cent Beer Night

Disco Demolition Night

Charlie O. Finley

Ya Gotta Believe

Bill Veeck

Fisk Waving It Fair

Jackson's Trifecta In Game 6, 1977

Hey there! If you've followed or researched 1970s baseball at all at any point in your life, those phrases listed above should be very recognizable. It was a decade which featured not only colorful uniforms, but colorful characters as well. There was a stark difference from the clean-cut ballplayers of prior decades to this one. Zany haircuts, facial hair, and afros ran rampant during 1970s baseball, as did iconic moments and historic changes to the game that still stand today. The 1970s saw the conception of the designated hitter rule in the American League, with New York Yankee Ron Blomberg becoming the first in 1973.  In addition, free agency started up in this decade too. Catfish Hunter became Free Agent #1 following the 1974 season, after Athletics owner "Charlie O." failed to make insurance annuity payments as stated in his contract. By and large, the 1970s decade in baseball is a fascinating one to read about, and is entertaining without question. For this blog post, I would like to call attention to certain names of that era who have not been as celebrated or remembered as well as their peers. With that segue, I give you '5 Potentially Forgotten Figures From 1970s Baseball'.

1. JR Richard - I promise you readers, this guy was good. Sure he only won 107 games over his abbreviated career. Sure he led the league in walks and wild pitches more than once. But he did lead the league in a lot of positive categories on many an occasion too. He led in hits per 9 innings in 1976, 1978, and 1979. Strikeouts in '78 and '79. K/BB ratio in 1979 with a 3.194 marker. 1979 was JR's final full big league season, which saw him finish 3rd in the Cy Young Award voting and lead the NL with a league-low 2.71 ERA. The rise he was on at the end of his career was simply dazzling. And in 1980 (yes we're going to stray just outside the 70s for a moment here, afraid it's necessary) he was even better. He pitched to the tune of a 1.90 ERA over 17 starts, and got the nod to start the 1980 All-Star Game where he whiffed 3 batters in 2 scoreless frames. Unfortunately, those 17 starts would be the final ones of his career. Prior to a game, Richard suffered a stroke on the field during warmups, and had to be rushed to the hospital for an emergency blood clot removal. Though he attempted comebacks over the next handful of years, they all ended up failing, and thus the career of JR Richard ended both prematurely and unfairly.

2. Lyman Bostock - Bostock, like Richard, was another figure from the '70s whose career ended in both a premature and unfair manner. A 26th round draft pick of the Minnesota Twins in 1972, Bostock quickly rose through their minor league system (posting a lifetime .326/.414./.422 slash line down on the farm) and contributed immediately upon arrival to the big leagues. Bostock hit .311 over the first three seasons of his career, all with Minnesota, before signing a free agent deal with the California Angels. There he got off to a woeful April, and even donated his first month's salary to charity as a result, feeling as if he simply did not deserve it. But from May onwards, Bostock returned to his usual self, hitting .318 up until his final career game on September 23, 1978. On that night, he paid a visit to his uncle who lived close by. In addition, he also paid a visit to a woman named Joan Hawkins whom Bostock had tutored in his youth and had not seen in years. Unbeknownst to the group, Hawkins's estranged husband, Leonard Smith, was outside her home when Bostock and his uncle came to pick her up. Jumping to the conclusion that the two were having an affair, Smith pulled up alongside the vehicle Bostock was in while stopped at a red light and shot him right in his right temple. He would die 2 hours later in a hospital.

3. David Clyde - Texas's own wunderkind! Back in 1973, the Texas Rangers used the first overall pick in the draft to select hometown pitcher David Clyde. The southpaw was cited by scouts as 'the next Sandy Koufax',  and the hype surrounding Clyde was quite considerable. With attendance at Arlington Stadium scuffling, Rangers owner Bob Short included a clause in Clyde's contract that stated his first two professional starts had to be at the Major League level for Texas. So, less than 3 weeks after his final game in high school, Clyde tossed two quality starts for the Rangers at home, which resulted in huge crowds for both games. Subsequently, Clyde did not go to the minors as originally planned, but remained on the roster at age 18. Clyde would soon develop woes with his shoulder due to the workload, and all in all appeared in just 84 career games. It has now become clear that Short and the Rangers had bungled their prize pitcher and spoiled what could have been a fantastic career. 

4. Wilbur Wood - Wilbur Wood? Now he was a late-blooming knuckleballer. Spending 1961-1965 with both Boston and Pittsburgh, it wasn't until he was dealt to the White Sox in 1966 did his career truly take off. On Chicago's roster that season was legendary knuckleballer and future Hall of Famer Hoyt Wilhelm, who was the one to encourage Wood to start throwing a knuckler with regularity. (By the way, Wilhelm achieved a very notable achievement in the 1970s, becoming the first pitcher ever to appear in 1,000 games. Credit the durability to that knuckleball!) From there on it was a new leaf for Wood. 163 of his 164 career wins came during his 12 seasons with the Chisox. He wound up winning 20 plus games from 1971-1974, and was a regular league-leader in both the games appeared and games started categories over the course of his career. In 1973, Wood also made headlines by joining the list of pitchers to start both games of a doubleheader.

5. Darold Knowles - Don't know Darold Knowles? You should! He made some significant history against the New York Mets in the 1973 World Series. Spending 757 of his 765 career games coming out of the bullpen, Knowles carved out a long and respectable 16 year career with 7 different teams. He amassed a 3.12 career ERA with a 1.36 WHIP, to go along with 143 saves. Knowles also won three World Series rings from 1972-1974 as a member of the dynasty Oakland Athletics. It was in the 1973 World Series where Knowles may have shined the brightest. He became the first, and to this date only, pitcher to appear in all 7 games of a World Series. And perform he did. Knowles tossed 6.1 scoreless innings over the life of the Series. In the top of the 9th during Game 7 with the tying run at the dish for the Mets, Oakland manager Dick Williams pulled his closer Rollie Fingers in favor of Knowles. He then promptly retired Wayne Garrett on a pop up to short, locking up the title for the Green and Gold.

Check out the scripture of 1970s Baseball here at the NYPL!