#455 Norm Siebern

Hey, it's another Oriole! This card was also part of my trade with Bobby. It's kind of funny to see an O's player wearing #4, which of course has been retired for Hall of Fame manager Earl Weaver since he called it quits in 1986. Norm was just one of six players to sport the number in Baltimore, the most renowned of which was slugging first baseman "Diamond" Jim Gentile, who the Birds traded to Kansas City to acquire Siebern! Of course, being traded for heavy hitters was nothing new for Norm; earlier in his career, the Yankees had sent him to the A's for Roger Maris.

Norm Siebern was a pretty good hitter, grabbing attention during his three straight All-Star seasons (1962-1964). His final season as an All-Star was his first in Baltimore, when he hit just .245 but still had an above-average OPS+ on the strength of 106 walks (compared to only 117 hits). His most impressive season with the bat was probably 1962, when he hit .308 with 25 home runs, 117 RBI, and 110 walks for a putrid Kansas City Athletics team that lost 90 games. He was the only one of Charlie Finley's men to drive in 100 runs, and the only one to score 100 times himself. But Norm was no slouch with the leather either, winning a Gold Glove as a left fielder during his first full season (1958).

Fun fact: In the aforementioned Maris trade, one of other players the Yankees swapped to the A's was Hank Bauer, who would become Norm's manager in both K.C. and Baltimore.