#523 Mike Brumley

Now is probably a good time to remind you that I'm still in the midst of posting the results of a big trade with Max. As you can see, he really gave me a boost with the high-numbered series! Today we have another photo taken in Yankee Stadium. The subject is catcher Mike Brumley, who is apparently pretending that he is a train conductor. That's the best explanation I can muster as to why his hat is sitting so high on top of his head, anyway.

Fun facts about Mike Brumley:

-His full name is actually Tony Mike Brumley. I couldn't determine whether it is short for "Anthony Michael", which is his son's full name. (More on the younger Mike later.)

-Was the first major leaguer to come out of Granite, OK, beating out pitcher John Gelnar by four months. They are the only two sons of Granite to ever play in the MLB.

-Despite wielding a solid bat in the minors, spent seven years riding the buses after being signed by the Dodgers in 1957. He topped the .280 mark four times in that span, peaking at .305 in 1958.

-After being purchased by the Senators prior to the 1964 campaign, Mike caught 132 games in his rookie season and hit .244 with 19 doubles and 35 RBI. He was named to the Topps All-Star Rookie team, although as you can see, his card did not have the Rookie Cup logo.

-Hit only five home runs in his career, but made them count. Two were two-run shots, another two were three-run jobs, and only one came with the bases empty. Two of his longballs came in one game, a 10-7 win over the Twins on July 27, 1965.

-He slumped to .208 in 1965 and saw his playing time halved. Cups of coffee at the beginning and end of 1966 bookended a season spent primarily in the minors. He was only 2-for-18 in what proved to be his final crack at big league ball.

-His final career hit was a single off of Jim Palmer on April 19, 1966.

-Mike found his way into the Houston organization, where he finished up his playing career close to home with AAA Oklahoma City in 1969-1970.

-Mike's son, also named Mike, was a journeyman utility player (primarily a shortstop) who played in the majors between 1987 and 1995. He hit .206 in 295 games for the Cubs, Tigers, Mariners, Red Sox, Astros, and Athletics.