A Witness to the Dawning of Big Hurt

Plus...Casey's triumphant (if temporary) nose-thumbing of the Yanks

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1990 Donruss Jerry Kutzler (#503) - Card of the Day

The summer of 1990 was a heady time for the Chicago White Sox and their fans.

Coming off a 69-92 last-place finish in 1989, the Sox were in the race for the American League West crown from the earliest days of the new season.

They were strong contenders well into August and ended up second to the mighty A’s in the division, though a distant second.

Along the way, the White Sox’ fortunes and hopes for the future were bolstered by strong performances from up-and-coming youngsters like Robin Ventura, Sammy Sosa, Carlos Martinez, Jack McDowell, Alex Fernandez, and Melido Perez, all 25 years old or under.

And, of course, the big gun arrived in August, when Frank Thomas arrived on the south side.

That 42-year-old Carlton Fisk led the team in home runs (and WAR, as it turns out) could have been a red flag, but Pudge looked like he might play forever.

Add in a Michael Jordan batting practice appearance in August and a Bobby Thigpen saves record, and you had some real baseball magic.

Right there to bask in all the excitement that a winning team brings, at least for a little while, was Jerry Kutzler.

If you weren’t a Sox fan in the late 1980s or early 1990s, you might not remember much about Kutzler, if you remember anything at all. But he was there for you, sliding out of your bloody 1990 Donruss baseball card packs.

Before any of that happened, though, Kutzler was Chicago’s sixth-round pick in the 1987 draft, out of William Penn University in Iowa. Three solid minor league seasons as a starter landed him on the doorstep of the majors.

In late April, as the Sox faced a long stretch of games with no days off, manager Jeff Torborg leaned on Kutzler, calling on the 25-year-old to start at home against the Blue Jays.

Kutzler gave up three earned runs in five innings but got the win. He made six more starts by the end of May, when his record stood at a healthy 5-2. That was largely a testament to Chicago’s offensive firepower, as Kutzler’s clocked in with a thick 6.03 ERA.

With the Sox heading into summer and trying to compete in earnest, Torborg and GM Larry Himes had seen enough — Kutzler spent the rest of the season with the Triple-A Vancouver Canadians.

But Donruss had made their bet on the righty long before, in planning their bloodbath set, so collectors continued to pull Kutzler’s rookie card into the fall. And the next year, and the next decade, and the next century.

Even today, there’s generally enough 1990 Donruss to go around for anyone who might ever want some, Kutzler’s RC included.

As for the man himself, he never did make it back to the major leagues, spending two more summers in the Sox system, one in the Dodgers’ system, and two on the Royals’ farm.

Today, Jerry Kutzler turns 59 years old — if you want to celebrate with a birthday card, you can add 1990 Donruss The Rookies, 1990 Score Rookie & Traded, and 1991 Score to your Kutzler shopping list.

Dodgers Mets Over Yankees?

On this day (March 25) in 1962, the expansion Mets took on the defending world champion Yankees in a Spring Training exhibition game. For old-school National League fans, it was a chance to see another New York team take a shot at the Bombers for the first time since the Dodgers and Giants left town before the 1958 season.

Casey Stengel, who won seven World Series as manager of the Yanks from 1949 through 1960, was at the helm of the Mets. The Old Professor clearly wanted blood against his former team and pulled out all the stops to beat them — including calling in veteran Richie Ashburn to deliver a pinch-hit, walkoff single in the ninth.

There wouldn’t be many wins for the Amazin’s that first year, or even that first decade (until the very end, at least). A few years later, Stengel seemed to be pontificating about the whole situation on his 1965 Topps card (#187).

You can read my silly take on that card right here.

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Hope you have a great Monday. And even if you don’t, just remember it’s the last one without regular season baseball for the next six months.

There is joy in Mudville…or at least there soon will be.

Thanks for reading.

—Adam