Tuesday, March 03, 2009

#564 Mel Nelson

NELSON.jpg #564 Mel Nelson picture by brotz13
This is not, I daresay, a flattering photograph of Mel Nelson. Based on the angle and the pose, his head appears to be shaped like a torpedo. They also seem to have caught him off guard, hence the facial expression that falls somewhere between a sneer and a squint. For a more becoming snapshot of Mel, check out his 1966 Topps card.

Fun facts about Mel Nelson:

-Signed with the Cardinals in 1954 as an amateur free agent out of San Diego, CA.

-Began his pro career as an outfielder, hitting .296 with 27 home runs at Class C Fresno in 1955.

-Converted to pitching in 1956-1957. A 13-7 record at AAA Spokane earned him a promotion to St. Louis late in the 1960 season.

-Struck out the first two batters he faced (Maury Wills and Charlie Neal) in a scoreless inning of relief in his major league debut.

-Did not pitch in the big leagues again until 1963, by which time he was a Los Angeles Angel. Put up a 5.30 ERA in 52 and 2/3 innings, mostly out of the bullpen.

-Re-emerged in 1965 with the Twins, pitching to a more-respectable 4.12 ERA in 54 and 2/3 innings.

-Joe Torre and Hank Aaron were each 0-for-6 in their careers against Mel.

-He pitched a single third of an inning of major league ball between 1966 and 1967.

-Finally had something approaching success in 18 games with the Cardinals in 1968. The 32-year-old had a league-average 2.91 ERA, a complete-game six-hit win over the Braves, and a scoreless inning of relief in the World Series.

-Spent the bulk of 1969 and all of 1970 at AAA for the Cardinals, Twins, and Braves before hanging up his spikes.

-Went on to become a baseball scout, signing future major leaguers Dmitri Young (Cardinals) and Jason Hirsh (Astros).
#564 Mel Nelson (back)

5 comments:

  1. he looks like a 'that guy' actor in this shot, of course, being a that guy, i cannot think of his name, or oddly enough, even a film with him in it. but think military and police flicks (not tackleberry, although he does have a little david graf in there too...) am i just rambling here at 4:30am, or are you following me?

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  2. Not to change the subject but... I can't view the card pix here at work so when a Twin shows up I go to twincards.com. I just noticed that Mudcat Grant's card is blue while all the rest are purple. Couldn't be a late trade because Grant finished the '64 season with the Twins. Hmmmm.

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  3. Max - If you're thinking of Gary Sinise (Apollo 13, Forrest Gump, CSI: NY), then I'm totally with you.

    Bob - I never saw that! (I don't have the Mudcat Grant card yet.) Could just be an error. For instance, I have a Bret Boone rookie card from 1993 Topps that has the Marlins color scheme on the back, when he was actually with the Mariners.

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  4. not gary sinise, but along those lines. i do see a little lt. dan in there...

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  5. Nelson's 1969 card is excellent as well. He is listed with the Cardinals, with a picture in a dark blue hat that has to be from 1960. A ten year old picture.

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