#426 Brewers Leaders

Card thoughts: The Brewers finished in 6th place in the AL East with 90 losses. They were an aging team, still trying to hold on to the veteran hitters than brought them the pennant in '82. Unfortunately, they never developed many young pitchers in the intervening years.

The player: Another prominent Brewer to make their debut in 1973: Gorman Thomas.

Rear guard: The surprise here is that Robin Yount didn't lead the team in any offensive category. A shoulder problem limited him to just 122 games. Teddy Higuera, a 27-year old rookie from the Mexican League, made a big splash with the Brewers in '85. And I do not remember Danny Darwin being on the Brewers.

#398 Earnie Riles

Card thoughts: Say this for Topps: when they mistakenly spell a player’s name (“Earnie” instead of “Ernie”) they don’t let the mistake get to them. No, they just keep on perpetuating the mistake. Riles’ name didn’t get corrected until he was traded to the Giants in 1988.

The player: Riles was supposed to be a star. After all, he hit .349 in AA, and was a good fielding shortstop to boot. But the Brewers farm top farm clubs in the 80s (El Paso, Vancouver, and later, Denver) really skewed to offense numbers of its players as they played in notorious hitters parks/leagues. Such was the case of Riles.

Born in Cairo, Georgia (also the birthplace of Jackie Robinson), Riles hit well everywhere in the minors, his standout season being at El Paso in 1983 when he had a .957 OPS (of course that team scored on average over 7 runs per game!). Making it to the majors early in the 1985 season, he displaced the light hitting #317 Ed Romero as the starting shortstop. He acquitted himself well, coming in third in the Rookie of the Year voting, driving 45 runs while hitting .286.

He didn’t slack off in his sophomore year, upping his power numbers (24 doubles, 9 home runs) while playing a career high 145 games. However, Riles would be bitten by the injury bug in 1987. A finger injury curtailed his season in 1986 to a mere 83 games, and when he came back, he had lost his starting shortstop job, instead he ended up starting at third as rookie Dale Sveum took over the job.

As a third baseman, Riles’ bat was no longer so valuable. By 1988, Paul Molitor was back at starting at third, and Riles was a man without a position. He was dealt to the Giants midseason for disgruntled outfielder Jeffrey Leonard. With the Giants, he became more of a utility player, playing all over the field. But he did end up starting the majority of games at third in 1989, when rookie Matt Williams proved to be ineffective there. However, Williams started at third in the World Series and NLCS, forcing Riles into the designated hitter role in the former, where he was hitless in 8 at bats.

Riles once again found himself as a fill-in starter at third, when he was shipped to his opponent in the 1989 World Series, Oakland. But he hit poorly (.214 average, .614 OPS), which doomed him to a utility role the rest of his career, which lasted two more seasons, one with the Astros (1992) and one with the Red Sox (1993).

Ernie Riles daughter, Kelli, plays college basketball for UNC Asheville.

Rear guard: Roberto Pena was a journeyman infielder with little power. He ended up being the Brewers' starting shortstop by default in 1970. For his career, he hit just 13 home runs in over 1900 at bats. Here's his 1971 card.  

#385 Cecil Cooper

Card thoughts: Cooper sported a variety of facial hair on his cards. In the 70s, he was fond of the mutasche/long side burns combo. By the time he came to the Brewers, he took to wearing shaded specs and the neatly groomed full beard you see on this card.

The player: Like his teammate (on both the Red Sox and Brewers) #373 Ben Ogilve, Cooper was blocked for years by a veteran at his position (in his case, legend Carl Yastrzemerski). But with a batting stance change (an exaggerated crouch), and a change in scenery, Cooper became a star in the 80s for the Brewers.

Raised in a large family full of pro baseball players (both his father and older brothers played in the Negro Leagues). Drafted out of high school by the Red Sox, he hit .336 with their Midwest League affiliate (Danville) in 1970, prompting the Cardinals to draft him, but he was returned at the end of spring training the next year.

Cooper spent a couple of years as the Red Sox’s primary designated hitter, which was a shame because Yastrzemski was playing first because he was old, not because he was a good fielder. It was hard to keep Cooper out of the lineup because he had a good bat, but he got hit in the face in 1975, and that sidelined him for a while.

Finally finding Cooper’s bat superfluous to their team, the Red Sox sent him to the Brewers in 1976 for Bernie Carbo (great pinch hitter, troubled person) and George Scott (a bit over the hill, but had one great season left in him). Out of the shadow of Fenway, Cooper began to shine. He hit over .300 in each of his first three Brewer seasons, with an especially good 1979 season, when he made the all star team, won a gold glove, and led the league in doubles (44).

In 1980, Cooper would hit .352 and led the league in RBIs (122). Most years, that batting average would have topped the league, but George Brett hit .390 that year. Cooper would continue to be consistently productive until 1984, generally ranking in the top 5 in MVP voting, hitting over 30 home runs, and driving in over 100. In doing so, he was a favorite in Milwaukee, even penning a kids’ column in the in-house Brewers organ What’s Brewing. He also gave back to the community, winning the Roberto Clemente award for public service in 1983.

1984 was a down year for Copper, as he failed to hit above .300 for the first time since 1976. In addition, his power numbers were down (just 28 doubles and 11 home runs). Although he was aging, by the time this card came out, he had come off a year that a return to form (39 doubles, 99 driven in, and even 10 steals, the most he’d swiped since 1980). But Cooper would play just one more full year, before retiring early in the 1987 season.

Since retirement, he’s worked as a sports agent, farm director, scout, and manager (most recently for the Houston Astros). Cooper is still one of the greatest Brewers off all time, and although not of Hall of Fame caliber, he comes close.

Rear guard:  I wonder if Topps picked these dates because they were almost exactly two years apart? Well, I don't know what day his first grand slam was, because on July 26th, Cooper went 0-4 with 2 strikeouts.

#372 Ben Ogilve

Card thoughts: Pensive. Serene. How appropriate.

The player: Born in Panama, but raised in the Bronx, it took quite a long time for Ben Ogilve to establish himself as a legit everyday player.  He found it hard to break into the Red Sox outfield in the early 70s, as the Red Sox were solid there with Carl Yastrzemski, Reggie Smith, and Tommy Harper out there.  Part of the reason was his defense. Although he had a good arm, Ogilve had a tendency to over run the ball, which led to batters taking an extra base on him. He also had not filled out yet. Gangly and a little clumsy, Ogilve was derisively nicknamed “Spiderman” by the club.

Ogilve got more chances when he was traded to the Tigers for infielder Dick McAuliffe in 1973. Appearing in over 100 games for the first time as a platoon partner with Dan Meyer, he did exhibit the power he would in later years, but hit a respectable .286. The power began to show up in 1976, when he hit 15 home runs (while playing more often as a designated hitter) and 21 as the regular right fielder the following year. But despite his success with the Tigers, like the Red Sox they never really believed in his talent. Once again, a derisive nickname was attached to Ogilve: the “Banana Man” (because he ate a lot of bananas, but note the racist overtones).

Ogilve tried to not let the lack of faith get to him. Teammates seemed to think that he was a bit of a dunce, who lacked passion for the game. But he was a mellow fellow, who was into philosophy—reportedly, Rousseau, Plato, and Thoreau were among his favorites.

It was after the age of 30 when Ogilve really began to shine. With the Brewers, Ogilve was inserted more regularly into the lineup, usually in the fifth spot. He got his big break when incumbent right fielder Larry Hisle tore a rotator cuff early in 1978. By necessity, Ogilve became an everyday player.  In 1979, he drove in 81 runs while slugging .525. In 1980, he was even better, tying for the league lead in home runs with 41 while driving in 118. His league lead in intentional walks with 19 showed how much opposing pitchers respected Ogilve. And fans noticed as well. Ogilve was voted into the all-star game as the starting left fielder, over players like Rickey Henderson and Jim Rice. In the game, he went 0 for 2 with 1 walk.

Ogilve was a huge reason why the 1982 Brewers were nicknamed “Harvey’s Wallbangers.” Although his average dipped to .244, he slugged 34 homes and drove in 102 runs, while once again making the all-star squad as a reserve. In Game 5 of the ALCS, he hit an important home run off of Bruce Kison, for only his second hit of the series. He once again hit a solo home run in a deciding game, this time Game 7 of the World Series, but it was in a losing cause.

Ogilve would remain with the Brewers until 1986, a veteran presence who still commanded respect for his power, despite its decline over the years. He spent 1987 and 1988 with in the Japanese League, where he hit for both power and average. Since retirement, he’s been a hitting coach with various minor league clubs, most recently with the West Michigan Whitecaps (Class A). 

Rear guard: Ogilve's first three homer game came against the Tigers. His home runs drove in four of the Brewers five runs in that game.

#347 Teddy Higuera

Card thoughts: I think Teddy is pitching in old Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, but I can’t be sure.

The player: How was a talent like Higeura’s passed over for so many years? The guy consistently had ERAs around 3 in the notoriously hitter happy Mexican League. Yet, he only crossed the border to the Brewers AA club in El Paso at age 26.

Higuera had a meteoric rise not unlike Dwight Gooden, but he crashed a lot sooner. Somehow, despite a 15-8 record, he came in second to #254 Ozzie Guillen in the Rookie of the Year voting. He followed that up with a 20-10 sophmore campaign, where he led the league in WAR (9.4), and placed in the top ten in ERA (2.79), Win-Loss percentage (.645), strikeouts (207), complete games (14), and shutouts (4). Despite these excellent numbers, Higuera finished second to Roger Clemens in the Cy Young voting. He did make the all-star team, however, and was struck out by fellow Mexican Fernando Valenzuela in the game.

Higuera continued his excellent work in both 1987 (18-10) and 1988 (16-9, with a league leading 0.999 WHIP). But injuries to his back and ankle limited him in 1989 to 22 starts. Even more career threatening was a rotator cuff injury that sidelined him for the entire 1992 season. When he came back, he struggled with a 7.20 ERA in 8 starts. Higuera was even more terrible in 1994, where in 17 starts, his ERA once again ballooned above 7. That was it for Higuera, who retired as the Brewers career leader in strikeouts (since surpassed by another early career burnout, Ben Sheets).

Higuera coached the Mexican National baseball team in several WBCs, and gained admission to the Salon De Fama (the Mexican version of the Hall of Fame) in 2011.

Rear guard: Topps continues it's tradition of breaking words in the most inopportune places (defeat-ed), despite the fact that the text is justified. I guess poor John O'Donoghue (card representing 1970, featured here) has too long of a name for Topps to handle.

It only took 4 games for the Brewers to win their first game (although shouldn't the Pilots' first win on April 8, 1969 be the first franchise win?). O'Donoghue was a terrible journreyman starter who at this point ion his career was a long relief guy. He pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth inning to get the win. 

O'Donoghue was so bad for the Brewers, that he was traded to the Expos for Jesus Herrera, who never played a major league game for the Milwaukee team.

#317 Ed Romero

Card thoughts: Finally, an action shot. Although, I’m not sure I can place the stadium. It isn’t Yankee or Tiger Stadium. I recall the old County Stadium had this color, but Romero’s wearing an away uniform. Any guesses?

The player: Romero had been a late inning defensive replacement for several years with the Brewers by the time this card was issued. His best position was second base, but he also played a little third and short. Romero couldn’t hit a lick, but relied on good range and an accurate arm to keep himself in the bigs.

In the minors, Romero primarily played shortstop. But of course Robin Yount had a lock on that position with the Brewers. So he needed to be versatile to stick in the majors.  Coming up initially in 1977, Romero didn’t play regularly until 1981 when he (barely) helped the Brewers to the Eastern Division crown by batting .198. He was on the ALDS roster, however, and he started at second for the deciding Game 5. Romero delivered a hit in two at bats and scored a run but it wasn’t enough as the Yankees defeated the Brewers 7 to 3.

Despite hitting better in 1982, Romero was left off the roster and did not participate in the World Series that year. By default, he was the starting third baseman in 1984, as three other players (#209 Randy Ready, Roy Howell, and Willie Lozado) also started at least 30 games there (Romero started only 40).

A big position player shuffle went on in 1985, with Paul Molitor moving to third, Earnie Riles taking over for Yount at short, and Yount moving to left field. Romero was the odd man out, and went back to the bench, hitting .251 in 251 at bats while playing shortstop, second base, and the outfield.

The Brewers traded Romero to the Red Sox after the season for pitcher Mark Clear, and, despite only hitting .210 during the regular season, he managed to make it onto the post-season roster. He mainly was there as a defensive replacement, and failed to get a hit in three post-season at bats. Romero hit much better in 1987, but barely played in 1988. He was hitting just .212 in 1989 and got into a running feud with manager Joe Morgan over playing time. The manager showed him up by pinch hitting for him after he had run the count to 3-0, and Romero hurled a Gatorade cooler onto the field in protest. He was released soon after and went to the Braves for 7 games, but was quickly acquired by the Brewers who were only 2 ½ back in the East at the time (the Brewers had lost both of their starting second basemen to injuries a week apart).

Despite being back where he was most comfortable, Romero continued to struggle at the plate, hitting only .200 the rest of the way. A 32 game stint in Detroit the following season ended a career where his WAR was -5.8; he never had a season where the average player couldn’t have taken his job and done it about the same.

After he stopped playing, Romero managed in the minors, and did some minor league infield instruction for a variety of teams. He coached for the Astros from 2008-2009.

Rear guard: 1970 would be the only year Danny Walton was a regular player. He was a good power hitter for the era, sporting a .790 OPS. But he would never again play in more than 40 games a season during his nine year career.

Walton also contributed a double to his power barrage. Both homers were off of a starter I've never heard of, Billy Wynne. Walton would only hit 28 homers in his career. Here's his card representing his 1970 season. He would show up as "John Ellis" on a later card by Donruss in the '81 set (those early Donruss sets were lousy with errors).