Johnny Podres Los Angeles Dodgers
Career: He was never the 'ace' of the Dodgers' staff but he was a solid #3 lefty starter in Brooklyn behind Newcombe and Erskine and later in Los Angeles behind Koufax and Drysdale. He won 136 games for that franchise in 13 seasons but he saved his best work for the World Series. He pitched in four Series and went 4-1 while winning a pair of rings. He was MVP of the 1955 Series with two dominating wins over the Yankees including a Game Seven shutout in Yankee Stadium.
In 1957 (after a year spent in the military) he led the NL in ERA, shutouts and WHIP. He finished his career with some time with the Tigers and the expansion Padres and retired after the '69 season. He went on to be a pitching coach for several organizations.
In 1960: He made the All Star team (his second of three selections) and pitched in the 2nd ASG that year. He won 14 games for the 2nd straight year but lowered his ERA by a full run over 1959.
WikiFacts: Podres helped the Dodgers win World Series championships in 1955, 1959, 1963 and 1965, although he did not pitch in the 1965 World Series itself.[1][2] In the 1955 series, after the Dodgers lost the first two games to the New York Yankees, Podres pitched a complete game, seven-hit victory on his 23rd birthday in Game 3. In the climactic Game 7, Podres pitched a 2–0 shutout to bring Brooklyn its only World Series championship. Podres was given the first-ever World Series MVP Award by Sport magazine and presented with a red two-seater Corvette. Later he was honored as the Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated magazine. -WikiPedia
The Card: I'm not sure why he is pictured capless in this one. It's not like he'd been traded to the Dodgers that winter. And since he's pictured in LA's Memorial Coliseum the excuse can't be that they only had shots from Ebbets Field in a Brooklyn cap.
At least we've got the cartoon, cream colored cardboard and season's highlights write-up to enjoy.
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