Ken MacKenzie--1962
Looking through my early cards, it is
interesting to see the number of
players who had their pictures taken
without donning a cap. Most of the
“cap-less” appear to be journeymen
who wear a certain degree of
anonymity on their Topps cards.
Ken MacKenzie was one of them. A
lefty reliever in the early 1960s,
MacKenzie found himself moving
between five organizations in six big
league seasons. Tucked inside
his 8-10 career record, was a 5-4
mark in 1962 for the expansion New
York Mets. He would be the lone
Mets’ hurler to break the .500 mark
on Casey Stengel’s club that lost
120 games.
A Yale graduate, history has it that
Stengel once greeted the reliever on
the mound with the inspiration, “Make
believe they’re the Harvard’s.”
After his career came to a close in
1966, MacKenzie would return to his
alma mater to guide the Bulldogs
baseball program. Just 27 days short
of the four years needed to qualify
for the baseball players’ pension
fund, the Yale coach wrote to the five
former teams he had played with
(Braves, Mets, Giants, Astros and
Cardinals) in 1969 and explained his
unfortunate situation. He also
penned a note to John McHale,
president of the expansion Montreal
Expos, who crossed paths with the
southpaw during their days with the
Braves.
The classy McHale gave the only
positive response, as the then 35-
year-old joined the Montreal Expos
on September 1, when rosters could
be expanded to 40 players. So, for a
month, the Yale coach threw batting
practice while he enjoyed a return to
the big leagues, without appearing in
a game.
As for his salary, MacKenzie was
quoted in Sports Illustrated
(Sept. 22, 1969): “I told him I didn’t
expect anything. They’re treating me
like a ballplayer, and that’s all I want.”
Behind every card is a story, even for
the players who don’t wear a cap.
Editor's Note: Here's a wonderful
recount of MacKenzie's career and
his Montreal experience:
MacKenzie Joins the Expos
interesting to see the number of
players who had their pictures taken
without donning a cap. Most of the
“cap-less” appear to be journeymen
who wear a certain degree of
anonymity on their Topps cards.
Ken MacKenzie was one of them. A
lefty reliever in the early 1960s,
MacKenzie found himself moving
between five organizations in six big
league seasons. Tucked inside
his 8-10 career record, was a 5-4
mark in 1962 for the expansion New
York Mets. He would be the lone
Mets’ hurler to break the .500 mark
on Casey Stengel’s club that lost
120 games.
A Yale graduate, history has it that
Stengel once greeted the reliever on
the mound with the inspiration, “Make
believe they’re the Harvard’s.”
After his career came to a close in
1966, MacKenzie would return to his
alma mater to guide the Bulldogs
baseball program. Just 27 days short
of the four years needed to qualify
for the baseball players’ pension
fund, the Yale coach wrote to the five
former teams he had played with
(Braves, Mets, Giants, Astros and
Cardinals) in 1969 and explained his
unfortunate situation. He also
penned a note to John McHale,
president of the expansion Montreal
Expos, who crossed paths with the
southpaw during their days with the
Braves.
The classy McHale gave the only
positive response, as the then 35-
year-old joined the Montreal Expos
on September 1, when rosters could
be expanded to 40 players. So, for a
month, the Yale coach threw batting
practice while he enjoyed a return to
the big leagues, without appearing in
a game.
As for his salary, MacKenzie was
quoted in Sports Illustrated
(Sept. 22, 1969): “I told him I didn’t
expect anything. They’re treating me
like a ballplayer, and that’s all I want.”
Behind every card is a story, even for
the players who don’t wear a cap.
Editor's Note: Here's a wonderful
recount of MacKenzie's career and
his Montreal experience:
MacKenzie Joins the Expos
