1991 Classic/Best, Sam Militello Jr.

#150 Sam Militello

I got this card signed through the mail in 1992, I believe. I got this one in the same fashion as the Easley card I posted yesterday (waiting for a call-up).

The thing that stands out to me on this card is the inclusion of Jr. on the card. It would make sense to include that if his father had played baseball professionally, like Pete Rose or Ken Griffey. But he didn't. Orel Hershiser is technically Orel Hershiser IV, but I've never seen the IV added to any of his cards. Apparently Classic thought that Sam was a special case that needed the Jr. tag added. Maybe Classic was located in Florida (Sam's home state) and Senior was a big-time lawyer or carpet store owner or something. Either way, it is still kind of weird.

I was checking out Sam's minor league stats and they look very impressive. His first season in pro ball was 1990, and by 1992 he got a call-up to the Big Leagues. In that call-up, he posted a 3-3 record in 9 starts, with a 3.45 ERA. The next season, he must have tore his arm up since he only made 10 appearances (7 in AAA and 3 in the Majors). In the three seasons after that, he only made 11 starts and didn't fair too well. That is too bad. He was on the fast-track and it all fell apart.

I like to post a summary for the previous minor league teams that I've done, so here is this one. The first one from this set featured the Harrisburg Senators. They are still alive and kicking and are in the same league and with the same parent club, kind of. They were with the Expos and now they are with the Nationals (same organization, different name). The second card featured the Miami Miracle. With the Marlins in town, this team moved to Ft. Myers and is affiliated with the Twins, I believe. Yesterday's card showed off the Midland Angels. That team is now the Midland RockHounds and they are affiliated with the A's. Today's card is a Prince William Cannon. This team is still around, but they are now called the Potomac Nationals and are obviously affiliated with the Nats.

Another cool thing about this card is the pose. Off of the top of my head, I can't think of too many posed shots of pitchers where he is lifting his lead leg. They are usually just toeing the rubber or have their hands over their heads like the 1976 cards.