i don't know how target assembled the set as far as which players appeared on which sheet, but there are a couple of common threads on this week's sheet - by name and by way many of the players came to be a part of the franchise.
this week's sheet of players from the 1990 target dodger 100th anniversary set starts off with number 1.
pee wee reese
reese was the dodger shortstop from 1940 through 1956 except for three seasons (1943-1945) during which time he served in the armed forces. he was a 10-time all-star and a 7-time world series participant who sits atop the dodger all-time career leaderboard in war, walks, and runs scored, and is second to zack wheat in a number of other categories.
bobby reis
as a robin/dodger, reis played everywhere but catcher and shortstop. his big league career began with the robins in 1931, and he played exclusively third base at that time, hitting .294 over six games. he was back up in 1932, but played in just one game going 1 for 4 at third. reis returned to the big leagues in 1935 with the dodgers, but this time he found himself on the mound 14 times, including 2 starts. reis put together a record of 3-2 with 2 saves, a 2.83 era and an 11-inning complete game to boot. he also played in the field in about three dozen other games that year. reis was traded to the boston braves for the 1936 season, where he maintained his two-way play for three seasons. his photo, by the way, comes from 1932 when he played for the jersey city skeeters.
jerry reuss
reuss came to the dodgers at the start of the 1979 season from the pirates in exchange for rick rhoden. i was a fan of rhoden, and so i wasn't too excited with this development especially when reuss went 7-14 in his first season with the dodgers. then came his 1980 season, complete with an 18-6 record, 2.51 era, all-star berth, league-leading six shutouts, complete game victory in must-win game 161 against the astros, and most importantly his no-hit performance against the giants. i was a reuss convert. reuss also pitched well in 1981, helping the dodgers win the division series against the astros and eventually the world series over the yankees with complete game clinchers in each series, and he stayed with the team into the 1987 season. don't forget to check out
his website for some cool photos and other stuff.
bob bailey
bailey was a hot prospect for the pirates in the early 1960's, but he failed to live up to the lofty expectations, later becoming half of the haul (gene michael was the other half) that the dodgers received from the pirates in the maury wills trade prior to the 1967 season. he played for the dodgers for two seasons, hitting .227 (73 for 322) in both 1967 and 1968, and his contract was purchased by the expos following the 1968 season. bailey was the first baseman in their inaugural game, and became the first expo to get a hit and the first to drive in runs. in fact, bailey had his best offensive years with the expos as he realized some of the potential that the pirates had hoped for. after several seasons in montreal, bailey eventually found his way to the reds, where he was a member of their 1976 world championship team, although he did not play in the postseason.
mark bradley
bradley was a late-season call up for the dodgers in 1981 and 1982. he was their first round pick in 1975, and appeared in a total of 17 games for them in those two aforementioned seasons. bradley's last game as a dodger was their final game of the 1982 season, when joe morgan and the giants dashed their postseason hopes. he was traded to the mets prior to the following season.
augie galan
galan was acquired by the dodgers from the cubs during the 1941 season. he remained a dodger through the 1946 season, playing mostly outfield, and was a national league all-star in 1943 and 1944. it appears that he enjoyed a crossword puzzle as well as playing baseball.
ray lamb
lamb was a reliever who pitched for the dodgers in 1969 and 1970. he even found his way on to a topps card in 1970, sharing space with bob stinson. he was 0-1 with a save and a 1.80 era in 10 games during his debut season, and then 6-1 with a 3.79 era in 35 games the following year. lamb was traded to the indians in the duke sims deal after the 1970 season, and he spent three seasons in cleveland working as a reliever and a sometimes starter. he is the only dodger to wear number 42 after jackie robinson, doing so in the 1969 season.
vic lombardi
lombardi pitched for the dodgers from 1945 through 1947. he won 10, 13, and 12 games in those seasons with his era consistently around 3.00. following the 1947 world series, in which lombardi made two starts, he was traded to the pirates in the dixie walker deal that netted the dodgers, among others, preacher roe.
al mamaux
mamaux was part of the trade between the robins and pirates prior to the 1918 season that saw casey stengel head to pittsburgh with burleigh grimes going to brooklyn. mamaux had won 21 games twice for the pirates, but his high during his six seasons with the robins was 12 in their pennant-winning 1920 season.
norm sherry
norm was the older brother of larry sherry, the dodger pitcher. together they formed a rare fraternal battery from 1959 to 1962 - the span of norm's dodger career. norm is probably best known as the guy who suggested to sandy koufax that he relax and not try to throw so hard prior to the 1961 season. koufax took his advice and went on to dominate the league for the remainder of his career, while norm wound up with the mets in 1963.
eddie stack
stack pitched for the dodgers and superbas in 1912 and 1913. he was 11-9 with a 2.99 era in that span, but was traded to the cubs during the 1913 campaign.
jigger statz
arnold john 'jigger' statz played in the major leagues for eight seasons beginning in 1919, the last two of which he spent in brooklyn with the robins. while he hit .264 over those two seasons, bringing an end to his major league career, he found tremendous success in the pacific coast league with the los angeles angels. statz had spent time with the angels while bouncing up and down from the big leagues, but he returned to the club for good in 1929 and wound up setting pcl records in a number of categories. as such, statz is a member of the pcl hall of fame.
chuck templeton
templeton debuted for the dodgers on september 9, 1955 in chicago. he retired all six of the cub batters he faced that day, but the dodgers lost despite his perfect relief effort. he appeared in three more games during that midwestern road trip, allowing runs in each of those appearances while taking the loss in his last appearance of the season thanks to the fact that he walked the only batter he faced (stan musial) to lead of the bottom of the 12th innning. templeton returned to the majors in 1956, taking the second loss of his career in his first start of the season which just happened to take place in saint louis. he finally got to pitch in brooklyn his second time out in 1956, going four innings as the starter in what turned out to be a 7-5 dodger win over the cards. he was sent down to the dodgers' saint paul affiliate in the summer of '56, and did not return to the majors.
chuck ward
ward was part of the trade i referenced earlier between the pirates and dodgers. not the bob bailey/maury wills trade nor the preacher roe/dixie walker trade nor the jerry reuss/rick rhoden trade, but rather the burleigh grimes/casey stengel trade. ward, who had succeeded honus wagner as the pirates' shortstop, accompanied grimes and mamaux to the dodgers in january of 1918, and appeared in 111 games as a backup shortstop and third baseman over the next 5 seasons. he apparently has some connection to rutgers university, but i failed to uncover exactly what that connection was.
the fifteenth brooklyn-ite on the sheet is john anderson, who double dipped with the franchise and so gets his own post later today.
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