#224 Bob Chance

It's not every day that you find a Rookie Cup player who was traded in the same offseason that he received the honor. But here's Bob Chance with that telltale missing hat...

Fun facts about Bob Chance:

-Born in Statesboro, GA, Bob signed with the Giants in 1961.

-After his first pro season, he was drafted out of San Francisco's organization by the Indians.

-Chance hit 30 home runs in his first two seasons in the minors and then broke out in 1963, winning the triple crown at AA Charleston (.343, 26 HR, 114 RBI). He was named Eastern League MVP.

-Was promoted to Cleveland at the end of that season, turning some heads in a sixteen-game trial (.288, six extra-base hits in 16 games).

-His 140 games played in 1964 would be a career high, as were his totals in home runs (14) and RBI (75). The rookie batted .279 for the Tribe.

-Bob hit .340 with four homers and a pair of doubles against Washington during his career year, so naturally the Senators traded for him prior to the next season. Manager Gil Hodges proclaimed that his new first baseman had potential to be a league-leading hitter, but Chance struggled with his weight and hit a disappointing .256 with four homers in 72 games in 1965.

-Washington quickly lost faith in him, as he spent much of 1966 and 1967 and all of 1968 at AAA. When he did play in the majors, he was awful, hitting .192 and slugging .364 in that span.

-The Angels took a brief flier on him in 1969, but he collected only one hit in seven at-bats and that was it for him as a major leaguer. In parts of six seasons, he hit .261 with 24 homers and 112 RBI.

-He also played for the Yakult Atoms in Japan.

-His son Tony played 19 seasons of pro ball, but never made it to the big leagues. He was a .269 hitter with 202 career home runs.