#77 Johnny Mize

#77 John Mize

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"His Walk About" - Mize made his MLB debut in 1936 with the St. Louis Cardinals.  Over the next 18 years he'd play 15 MLB seasons (he lost three years to military service in his prime) and be named to ten All-Star teams.  Along the way, he played for the Cardinals, New York Giants, and New York Yankees, making at least one All-Star team with each squad.  A 4x League Leader in Home Runs, Mize would retire with 359 homers, 2,011 hits, and a .312 lifetime average.  In 1939 Mize just missed winning a Triple Crown, when he led the NL in home runs and batting average, but finished 3rd in RBI's.  Before ending his walkabout with an induction ceremony in Cooperstown, Mize won five World Series Rings with the New York Yankees.

"That's Not a Knife" - But it is some extremely impressive baseball pedigree.  Mize's wikipedia page describes him as being a distant cousin of Ty Cobb, and a "second cousin married" to Babe Ruth.  I'm not sure what that means, but when you lead the league in homers four times, and make ten All-Star teams I'm inclined to think it means something.

"More of a love bite really..." - This card may have been glued to inside a scrap book at some point in its history, given the stain pattern on the back and the way the wrinkles along the front edge give the appearance of having been peeled off of a page.  That said, it's still a very nice looking card.

"Down Under" - Mize is card #129 the 1952 set.  Let me first say, that I really like this 1953 card.  Particularly the way it names Mize as "John" on the front.  That said, there's really no debate here.   Between the Yankee Stadium facade and the three bats, the '52 is a far superior looking card.  With this Mize, the sets are now all tied up at 12-12-1.

"At the Oscars"

Baseball Hall of Fame Inductee 1981
10x All-Star 
5x World Series Champion
Led NL Home Runs 4x ('39, '40, '47, '48)
NL Batting Champion '39
Led NL RBI's 3x ('40, '42, '47)
Led NL Runs '47
Led NL Doubles '41
Led NL Triples '38
2nd NL MVP voting '39
2nd NL MVP voting '40
3rd NL MVP voting '47
5th NL MVP voting '42