1934-1936 Diamond Stars: #8 Joe Vosmik

Sunday, June 12, 2022

#8 Joe Vosmik - Cleveland Indians

Joseph Franklin Vosmik

Cleveland Indians

Outfield

Bats: Right Throws: Right Height: 6'0" Weight: 185

Born: April 4, 1910, Cleveland, OH

Major League Teams: Cleveland Indians 1930-1936; St. Louis Browns 1937; Boston Red Sox 1938-1939; Brooklyn Dodgers 1940-1941; Washington Senators 1944

Died: January 27, 1962, Cleveland, OH (51)

Playing for his hometown Indians, Joe Vosmik was one of the league's top hitters in the early 1930s. He became the Indians' regular left fielder in 1931, keeping that job until a trade in 1937 sent him to the Browns. Vosmik batted over .300 in six different seasons, and his best season came in 1935 when he batted a career high .348 and finished third in the MVP voting behind Hank Greenberg (#54) and Wes Ferrell (#94). Vosmik led the league in hits (216), doubles (47) and triples (20) that season and was the lead-off hitter and starting left fielder for the American League team in the 1935 All-Star Game, hosted at Cleveland Stadium. He'd go on to play with the Browns, Red Sox, Dodgers and Senators after leaving Cleveland. With the Red Sox, he'd lead the league in hits again in 1938 with 201. Vosmik still ranks high on the all-time leaders lists in a number of categories as a left fielder, including assists (90 - 46th all time), putouts (2,613 - 29th all time) and double plays turned (23 - 22nd all time).

1934 Butterfinger (R310)

Vosmik appeared in 1,414 career big league games, batting .307 with 1,682 hits, 65 home runs and 874 RBIs. He managed in the Indians' minor league system between 1947 and 1950, activating himself occasionally to get some at-bats. He'd also work for the Indians selling tickets and as a scout in the early 1950s.

Building the Set

June 9, 2022 from Auburn, NY - Card #55

This was a fairly random eBay win from seller jamibe, located in Auburn, New York, and upon updating my tracking schedule I realized I had won another card from the same seller a month before. The Sam Byrd (#84) card also came from jamibe via an eBay auction. I was the first and only bidder on this card, winning the auction at a reasonable price of $40.

With school winding down, school sports are now over and our daily routine has become somewhat more manageable. Doug is still playing town ball, and the photo shown here is him on the mound for the Royals, about to close out a 4-2 win on the day before this card arrived.

Variations Available

1 - 1934 / green back / 1933 statistics / 1934 copyright ✅

2 - 1935 / green back / 1934 statistics / 1934 copyright

3 - 1936 / blue back / 1935 statistics / 1934 copyright

The Card / Indians Team Set

This is the first card I've added to my set actually issued in 1934, as evidenced by the back of the card showing Vosmik's batting average from 1933. The photo used also appears on a 1934 Butterfinger (R310) card for Vosmik, and the artist took the liberty here of adding a catcher in the photo behind Vosmik. The tip on the back of the card discusses finding a comfortable stance at the plate, whether you happen to be "tall or chunky." Mel Ott (#50), the Giants slugger and future Hall of Famer is name checked, as is Lyn Lary, an infielder at the time for the Yankees.

1934 Season

Vosmik appeared in 104 games for the Indians, with his SABR biography noting his playing time was limited due to issues with his vision and a broken right hand, suffered the previous year. Still, he hit an impressive .341 with 138 hits and finished in fifth place in the league's batting title race. He started 103 games in left field for the club, most often as the Indians' clean-up hitter.