Final Card: Dick Calmus

After reading about all the goings-on at Wrigley Wax Headquarters, I decided to offer up a little-known Cubs card.

After first appearing in the 1964 set as a Dodger, Dick Calmus (#427) dropped off Topps' radar for 3 years, but returned here for his final card. When I first got this card back in 1968, I thought he looked like a young Jack Kennedy!

Calmus was signed by the Dodgers in 1962. After playing 1 season of class-D ball, he spent the entire 1963 season with the Dodgers, appearing in 21 games (all but 1 in relief). He then spent the next 3 seasons in the Dodgers farm system, mostly as a starting pitcher. Calmus was at AA Albuquerque in 1964, and AAA Spokane in 1965 and 1966.


In late April 1967, he was traded to the Cubs for pitcher Fred Norman (who would go on to pitch many years with the Padres and Reds). Calmus spent the entire season at triple-A Tacoma, then made one appearance with the Cubs on September 2nd. It would be his last major-league game.

Dick would play in the minors for 2 more seasons: for the Cubs in 1968 and the Dodgers in 1969.

I wonder why he even has a card here in 1968, since he pitched a grand total of 4.1 innings in 1967, and none in 1968.

Final Card: Jimmie Schaffer

Tonight, my blogs feature another triple-shot of Cincinnati Reds (for no particular reason). However, these 3 cards don't match as well as Zanni-Coker-Nottebart did a few days ago.

Here is the final baseball card for journeyman backup catcher Jimmie Schaffer (#463). After having a card for each year from 1962 to 1965, Schaffer fell off Topps' radar in 1966 and 1967. Now he's back for one more card, though I don't see how he swung it, based on 2 at-bats in 1967!

Jimmie was signed by the Cardinals in 1955, and spent six full seasons and part of 1961 in the minors before making his major-league debut on May 20, 1961. That season, he started 45 games behind the plate - the most by any of the 6 catchers used by the Cardinals that season.



In 1962, Schaffer settled back into the backup role (behind Gene Oliver and Carl Sawataski) that would follow him for the rest of his career. After the season he was traded to the Cubs (along with pitchers Larry Jackson and Lindy McDaniel) for pitcher Don Cardwell, outfielder George Altman, and catcher Moe Thacker.

Jimmie was the Cubs 2nd-string catcher (behind Dick Bertell) for the 1963 and 1964 seasons. He was traded to the White Sox in December 1964, and split the 1965 season between the White Sox and the Mets. That was pretty much the end of Schaffer's major-league career.

Prior to the 1966 season, Schaffer was one of three players the Mets traded to the Phillies for first baseman Dick Stuart. Jimmie spent the 1966 and 1967 seasons with the Phillies' triple-A team in San Diego, getting only a few at-bats in September call-ups each season.

Schaffer only played 4 games for the Reds in 1968, his final game coming on July 11th, He spent most of 1968, and all of 1969 and 1970 with the triple-A teams of the Reds, Dodgers, and Orioles.