Kellogg's Caught Steve Blass at the Top
A cereal box full of faded memories
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1973 Kellogg’s Steve Blass (#11) - Card of the Day
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When their 1972 season ended in October, Steve Blass and the Pittsburgh Pirates were disappointed, but still excited about the future.
The Bucs had just won their third straight National League East title and came within three outs — and a combo meltdown by Dave Guisti and Bob Moose — of reaching their second straight World Series.
Even with the disappointment of losing the National League Championship Series to the Reds, Pittsburgh still had a strong offensive core that included Willie Stargell, Richie Hebner, Al Oliver, and Roberto Clemente — aging but an All-Star. And Blass was the ace of a pitching staff that also included Moose, Nelson Briles, Dock Ellis, and Bruce Kison, with Guisti leading a solid bullpen.
Manager Bill Virdon had to be feeling pretty confident about the future.
And, entering his age-31 season, it looked like Blass might also be entering his peak years. After all, his .704 winning percentage and 2.48 ERA in 1972 were the second-best marks of his career, behind only his “Year of the Pitcher” performance in 1968 (.750 and 2.13, respectively). His 19 wins were a career high, and those big numbers came with accolades, too.
To wit, Blass made his only All-Star team in 1972 and finished (a distant) second in National League Cy Young voting to the Phillies’ Steve Carlton.
And, while baseball card choices were pretty limited in those days, collectors got a pretty clear indication of Blass’ stardom when he showed up on card #11 in Kellogg’s 1973 set. That’s the dandy “Pro Super Stars” deal you see up top, and it was a pretty big deal for a player to be included considering the checklist included just 54 cards.
Unlike previous (and future) Kellogg’s sets, the 1973 issue did not feature 3-D “lenticular” technology (nor fine Corinthian leather), but it did cram a ton of information on card backs:
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Today, that highpoint snapshot of a career, and great team, rings sort of like an old Polaroid taken on a happy day at the amusement park just before summer break ended. Or a streamer from your child’s last “kiddie” birthday party before he discovered hormones and girls and driving and his parents’ general lameness, turning up out of nowhere when you’re searching through the junk drawer for a spare mouse battery.
Because, as it turned out, Johnny Bench’s home run and Moose’s wild pitch, and George Foster’s race home to flip the NLCS were just the opening salvos in a rough year ahead for the Pirates.
Two-and-a-half months later, Clemente died in a plane crash on New Year’s Eve.
Three-and-a-half months after that, Blass gave up five runs, all earned, in five innings against the Cardinals on Opening Day 1973.
No doubt he and the Pirates chalked that up to early-season bad luck, maybe even jitters, but things never got better. By the All-Star break, he was 3-6 with a 10.27 ERA. He finished the season 3-9, 9.85.
The problem was control, as he suddenly had trouble finding the plate. He walked almost a batter an inning and hit a major league high 12 batters.
As for the Bucs, they spent much of the first half in the bottom half of the N.L. East, then made a late run and had a chance at the title in September. In the end, they landed third, 2.5 games behind the champion Mets…but with a losing record (80-82).
Blass made just one April appearance in 1974 before spending the rest of his season at Triple-A Charleston. But with 15.2 walks per nine innings and a 9.74 ERA, there was nothing encouraging to take from the experience.
At the end of the year, Blass hung up his spikes. “Steve Blass Disease” was born, with no one ever really able to explain his sudden loss of control. Several years later (1983), Steve Sax developed a fielder’s version of the malady, colloquially labeled, appropriately, “Steve Sax Syndrome.” It should be noted, though, that Sax seemed to mostly conquer his case of the yips by the late 1980s.
Blass did appear in the 1974 Topps set, but not in 1975, which means he had no true career-capper card. That’s probably all well and good, though, considering how things played out. And besides, like that fading birthday stream, we always have his 1973 Kellogg’s card.
For the good times.
Today, Steve Blass turns 83 years old.
1972 Topps World Series Clemente a Classic in Waiting
Clemente was featured on plenty of baseball cards over the years, and the checklist is still growing today. A sort of stealth “feature” card of the Pirates great, though, is the 1972 Topps card (#226) celebrating Game 4 of the 1971 World Series. Read all about this one right here.
1971 World Series DVD
Since we’re going old school in this post (as usual), how about checking out highlights of the 1971 World Series…in DVD format? This Baseball Classics entry covers the Pirates’ seven-game win over the Orioles in just over an hour, then adds on a tribute to Clemente.
Check it out on Amazon right here (affiliate link).
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