1934-1936 Diamond Stars: #70 "Hal" Trosky

Sunday, April 23, 2023

#70 "Hal" Trosky - Cleveland Indians

Harold Arthur Trosky

Cleveland Indians

First Base

Bats: Left Throws: Right Height: 6'2" Weight: 207

Born: November 11, 1912, Norway, IA

Major League Teams: Cleveland Indians 1933-1941; Chicago White Sox 1944, 1946

Died: June 18, 1979, Cedar Rapids, IA (66)

Hal Trosky was the regular first baseman for the Indians for nearly a decade, starting almost every game for the team between 1934 and 1938. The slugging Trosky connected for over 100 RBIs each season between 1934 and 1939, with a league-leading 162 in 1936. His most impressive seasons came in 1934 when he batted .330 with 35 home runs and 142 RBIs, and 1936 when he batted .343 with 42 home runs and the aforementioned 162 RBIs. Trosky is considered to be one of the best players to have never made an All-Star Game, as he was blocked by fellow American League first basemen Lou Gehrig (#130), Jimmie Foxx (#64) and Hank Greenberg (#54) during the best years of his career.

Unfortunately, his career was cut short when he began experiencing painful migraine headaches, and he'd step away from the game in 1941. Trosky made a few brief comebacks with the White Sox during the war years, and he retired from the game for good following the 1946 season. In 1,347 major league games, Trosky batted .302 with 1,561 hits, 228 home runs and 1,012 RBIs. He still sits atop a number of major offensive categories on the Cleveland Indias/Guardians leaderboard. Trosky's career OPS of .892 is currently 75th all-time and he was inducted into the Cleveland Indians Hall of Fame in 1951.

Building the Set

March 12, 2023 from The Philly Show (Dean's House of Cards - Midlothian, VA) - Card #78

In mid-March, Doug and I attended the Philadelphia Sports Collectors Show, held within the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania. My main focus for this show was accumulating as many 1969 Topps commons as possible, which I did by adding a grand total of 193 cards to our set. That's almost 30% of the entire set added in one enjoyable afternoon. I wrote a full summary of the show in a post over at The Phillies Room, found here. When I wasn't making bulk 1969 Topps commons purchases, I was on the look out for more Diamond Stars cards to add to our set.

I was happy to again find quite a few dealers with Diamond Stars cards for sale. I visited three separate dealers, purchasing a total of five cards, and getting the number of cards needed for my version of a master set down to an attainable 38. This Trosky card was one of two cards purchased from Dean's House of Cards, and I've purchased cards from this dealer before. (And probably will again.)

Variations Available

1 - 1935 / green back / 1934 statistics / 1935 copyright

The Card / Indians Team Set

We get both the opposing catcher and home plate umpire making a cameo appearance here, as Trosky admires what appears to be a line drive single to right field. The tip on the back of the card attempts to help first baseman manage bad hops when trying to corral an errant throw from an infielder. It's interesting the back of this card refers to Trosky as a "guardian," 87 years before the Indians would change their identity to the Guardians.

1935 Season

A down season compared to the two years bookending this year, Trosky appeared in 154 of 156 total Indians games, batting .271 with 26 home runs and 113 RBIs. When mired in a September slump, coach Steve O'Neill (#87) suggested Trosky try hitting from the right-hand side. The slugger gave it a try for a brief series against the Senators, connecting for three singles and a home run from the right side. Seemingly out of his slump, Trosky never tried switch-hitting again.