Brooks Robinson and the Baltimore Orioles

[BaltOrioles]

Spring is in the air. I picked up my Orioles spring training season tickets this morning at Ed Smith Stadium. In honor of that great event, I'm posting a few early Orioles spring training programs/scorecards.

These are from 1956, which I believe are the first spring programs Brooks appeared in. My earlier spring training programs don't have him listed on the roster.

Brooks did appear on the cover of a few spring training programs in the 60's, that I'll post once spring training starts.

This one is from when the Orioles trained in Scottsdale, Arizona.

1956 Spring Training (ScottsdaleScorecard).jpg

Inside of the scorecard. Brooks is wearing #40.

SCAN7749.jpg


This one is from the end of spring training when the Orioles played the Dodgers in Baltimore.

1956 Spring Training (Baltimore).jpg

[Mark70Z]

Originally Posted by BaltOrioles

Spring is in the air. I picked up my Orioles spring training season tickets this morning at Ed Smith Stadium. In honor of that great event, I'm posting a few early Orioles spring training programs/scorecards.

These are from 1956, which I believe are the first spring programs Brooks appeared in. My earlier spring training programs don't have him listed on the roster.

Brooks did appear on the cover of a few spring training programs in the 60's, that I'll post once spring training starts.

This one is from when the Orioles trained in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Inside of the scorecard. Brooks is wearing #40.

This one is from the end of spring training when the Orioles played the Dodgers in Baltimore.

Alan,

You have some great items. Thanks so much for posting your programs.

I try to find photos of Brooks in different number jerseys, but I haven’t been very successful. Never seen Brooks in #40 that I can recall.

[BaltOrioles]

I've finally crossed something of my want list, sort of.

My collection for me has always been about collecting what I enjoy versus worrying about future value. That's probably why I get most of my 8x10 photos personalized.

I've mentioned in several posts that one of my collecting goals is to have photos, preferably head shots, of everyone to ever play for the Orioles, pictured in an Orioles uniform. Up until now, one guy has always eluded me.

John Buzhardt had a nice major league career with the White Sox and several other teams. In 1967, Buzhardt played briefly for the Orioles and to my knowledge no photos of him in an Orioles uniform have ever popped up. The Orioles don't even have any photos of him. While I prefer original items in my collection and not copies/reprints, sometimes you have to make an exception, if an item doesn't exist. See post #175 about my customized Hartland statue of Luis Aparicio.

Having all but given up hope of finding John Buzhardt as an Oriole, I enlisted my son's girlfriend. She is very good with Photoshop and turned a head shot photo of John Buzhardt with the White Sox into a 1967 photo with the Orioles. She took parts of about four different 1967 Orioles team issued player photos and this is the result.

While not actually original, I'm very happy to have finally added John Buzhardt to my collection. Total value to me - priceless....

1967 John Buzhardt photo

Buzhardt, John 1 - Copy.jpg

[ksfarmboy]

Alan that looks really good and if you hadn’t told me I wouldn’t have known. Congrats on your new photo!

[Mark70Z]

Alan,

Very cool; now let’s do that for the ones your still missing.

[roarfrom34]

Wow Alan, that photoshop was really well done! When I first saw it I thought you had landed an original!

Back in 1988, I knew Cal Ripken Jr. was approaching his 1,000th consecutive game (which was to be played at Fenway Park). I called the Red Sox box office about a week prior, bought a couple tickets which were mailed to me.

All was fine however over the years, the printing on the ticket itself began to fade to the point where you couldn't read the date, opponent, etc.

In the interim, I also found out that June 25th was the day that the infamous Bill Ripken baseball card photo was taken. A collector friend of mine who collects all versions of that card, scored a couple of season tickets to that game (which used stronger printing) recently and he generously sent me one.

For years I've owned the lineup card to that game, so the ticket stub now makes a great companion piece:

[BaltOrioles]

Originally Posted by roarfrom34

Wow Alan, that photoshop was really well done! When I first saw it I thought you had landed an original!

Back in 1988, I knew Cal Ripken Jr. was approaching his 1,000th consecutive game (which was to be played at Fenway Park). I called the Red Sox box office about a week prior, bought a couple tickets which were mailed to me.

All was fine however over the years, the printing on the ticket itself began to fade to the point where you couldn't read the date, opponent, etc.

In the interim, I also found out that June 25th was the day that the infamous Bill Ripken baseball card photo was taken. A collector friend of mine who collects all versions of that card, scored a couple of season tickets to that game (which used stronger printing) recently and he generously sent me one.

For years I've owned the lineup card to that game, so the ticket stub now makes a great companion piece:

Thanks. I think she did a great job.

Interesting you should mention that game. I was actually at the game in Boston and yes both of my tickets have faded like yours. I tried to laminate them, but that didn't help.

Cool story. I didn't know the connection to the Billy Ripken card. I wonder if I witnessed the photo being taken and never knew it. LOL

[BaltOrioles]

Originally Posted by Mark70Z

Alan,

Very cool; now let’s do that for the ones your still missing.

Thanks. My list is very short now. Wally Westlake is the only player left that I don't have any photo of as an Oriole. I have copies of Babe Birrer, Grady Hatton, Roger Marquis and Buddy Peterson.

I know the Orioles did a team issued postcard of Westlake, so that means an 8x10 should also be out there somewhere. Originals of the other four reside in other collections, so there's still hope there. Buzhardt is the only guy I think might be impossible to find as an original.

The search continues.....

[ripfan008]

Congrats Alan, what a great gift!