Tulo Shines Light into the (Alvin) Dark
Wherein we discover a most unusual career-capper
1961 Topps Al Dark (#220) - Card of the Day
Troy Tulowitzki is on the Hall of Fame ballot for the first time in 2025. Once upon a time, he looked like he was on an express train from Denver straight to Cooperstown.
Over the first decade or so of his career, Tulo proved himself to be one of the best defensive shortstops in the game (see his two Gold Gloves) and also a potent power hitter (see 217 home runs through 2016 at age 31).
Sure, he played half his games at Coors Field, but he still carried plenty of pop with him on the road.
But staying on the diamond was always a problem for the Rockies’ shortstop, and things only got worse when they traded him and LaTroy Hawkins to the Toronto Blue Jays for Miguel Castro, Jeff Hoffman, Jose Reyes, and Jesus Tinoco at the trade deadline in 2016.
And especially after he signed with the Yankees as a free agent in January 2019 after missing all of 2018. Tulo appeared in just five games to open the season before hitting the skids again and retiring in July.
Done at 34 but without a productive season since he was only 31, Tulowitzki still managed an impressive resume: .290, 225 HR, 780 RBI, 5 All-Star appearances, 2 Silver Sluggers, and 44.5 WAR.
Put it all together, and Tulo stands as the 28th best shortstop in MLB history, by measure of JAWS (42.4). That’s ahead of at least a few Hall of Famers (Phil Rizzuto among them) and not far behind others (Joe Tinker and Luis Aparicio, for example).
Right there in that same neighborhood, at number 36, is a name that many long-time fans and collectors might remember more for his bench work than his glove and lumber: Alvin Dark.
Dark, who appears in Baseball Reference and on old baseball cards as “Al,” managed the Giants from 1961 through 1964, the Kansas City Athletics in 1966 and 1967, the Indians from 1968 through 1971, the Oakland A’s in 1974 and 1975, and the Padres for the last 113 games of the 1977 season.
Along the way, he won a pennant with San Francisco in 1962 and a World Series in 1974, the last of the A’s dynasty years (1970s version).
But before all that, Dark was a standout shortstop in his own right. Originally signed by the Boston Braves in 1946, he debuted in the majors late that season before spending 1947 in the minors. He was back in the majors for good in 1948, though.
That summer, Dark hit .322 and scored 85 runs en route to winning the Rookie of the Year award, besting future Hall of Famer Richie Ashburn (third).
Dark’s production took a step back in 1949, and the Braves traded him and Eddie Stanky to the New York Giants for Sid Gordon, Buddy Kerr, Willard Marshall, and Red Webb that December.
In New York, Dark’s game took flight.
He hit .267 with 16 home runs and 67 RBI in 1950, numbers boosted by his home confines of the Polo Grounds (shades of Tulo).
The power barrage continued the next few years as the Giants moved into elite status with the arrival of stars like Willie Mays, Monte Irvin, Hank Thompson, Don Mueller, and others. From 1951 through 1954, Dark hit 14, 14, 23, and 20 homers while batting around .300 most seasons — huge offensive numbers for a shortstop of the era.
Dark played in only 115 games in 1955, though, and the Giants traded him to the Cardinals in June of 1956. In his mid-30s and away from the Polo Grounds, Dark’s offensive output dwindled, though he did keep his average in the .290s for a couple of seasons.
Even so, he wasn’t the star he once was, and the Cards traded him to the Cubs in 1958. Chicago then sent him, John Buzhardt, and Jim Woods to the Phillies before the 1960 season in exchange for old “foe” Richie Ashburn.
Finally, after half a season at Wrigley, the Cubs traded Dark to the Milwaukee Braves for Joe Morgan (the other one).
Dark hit .298 in 50 games for the transplanted Braves, who traded him to the transplanted (San Francisco) Giants in December for Andre Rodgers.
This time, though, the Giants didn’t want the soon-to-be 39-year-old for their infield — they wanted him in the dugout.
And that’s where the 1961 Topps Al Dark baseball card comes in.
At #220, the card falls among a run of other managers, between Gene Mauch and Mike Higgins. But it also shows Dark’ full player stats from 1946 through 1960:
The card back also features an uncorrected error, as Dark was born in 1922, not 1923 as shown.
But no matter when he was born, Alvin Dark made a quick transition from player to manager, a transformation that left us with one of the most unusual career-cappers in the history of the hobby.
And we can thank Troy Tulowitzki for shining a bit of light on Dark.
What’s in a Name?
Old Topps cards and Baseball Reference say it’s “Al” Dark. Wikipedia, the SABR Bio Project, and MLB.com say it’s “Alvin” Dark. What say you?