Highlighted Year: Johnny Callison, 1962

Outfielder, Philadelphia Phillies

Age:  23

3^rd season with Phillies

Bats – Left, Throws – Right

Height: 5’10” Weight: 175 

Prior to 1962:

Born in Oklahoma, Callison moved to Bakersfield, California with his family in his youth during World War II. Shy and quiet, but with outstanding athletic skills, he performed well in baseball at East Bakersfield High School. Upon graduation he signed with the Chicago White Sox. Initially the 18-year-old Callison stayed close to home when assigned to the Bakersfield Bears of the Class C California League where he batted an impressive .340 in 86 games with 18 doubles, 6 triples, 17 home runs, 61 RBIs, 31 stolen bases, a .423 on-base percentage, and a .571 slugging percentage. Advancing to Indianapolis of the Class AAA American Association in 1958, he hit .283 while leading the league with 29 home runs and producing 93 RBIs, a .372 OBP, and a .517 slugging percentage. He also displayed an outstanding throwing arm in the outfield. A late-season call-up to the White Sox resulted in his appearing in 18 games and batting .297 with a home run and 12 RBIs. Impressed by his power potential in the outfield, Callison started the 1959 season with the White Sox, but while hitting only .173 at midseason, he was sent back to Indianapolis where, in 79 games, he batted .299 with 16 doubles, 9 triples, 10 home runs, 46 RBIs, a .353 OBP, and a .505 slugging percentage. In the offseason he was traded to the Phillies for third baseman Gene Freese. The Phillies were in rebuilding mode with a youth movement. Although hindered in 1960 by an injury sustained while playing winter ball, Callison appeared in 99 games and hit .260 with 11 doubles, 5 triples, 9 home runs, 30 RBIs, a .360 OBP, and a .427 slugging percentage. He continued his development with the last-place Phils in 1961, batting .266 with 20 doubles, 11 triples, 9 home runs, 47 RBIs, a .363 OBP, and a .418 slugging percentage. He also accounted for 10 assists in the outfield. After initially being tried in left field, entering 1962, he was Philadelphia’s starting right fielder.

1962 Season Summary

Appeared in 157 games

RF – 151, PH – 10, CF – 5, LF – 3

[Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Batting

Plate Appearances – 672 [18]

At Bats – 603 [17]

Runs – 107 [6, tied with Vada Pinson]

Hits – 181 [11, tied with Vada Pinson]

Doubles – 26 [17, tied with Orlando Cepeda & Eddie Kasko]

Triples – 10 [1, tied with Bill Virdon, Willie Davis & Maury Wills]

Home Runs – 23 [16, tied with Vada Pinson]

RBI – 83 [18, tied with Ron Santo]

Bases on Balls – 54

Int. BB – 1

Strikeouts – 96 [7, tied with Lou Brock & Jim Hickman]

Stolen Bases – 10

Caught Stealing – 3

Average - .300 [14]

OBP - .363 [17]

Slugging Pct. - .491 [15]

Total Bases – 296 [7, tied with Bill White]

GDP – 8

Hit by Pitches – 6 [13, tied with six others]

Sac Hits – 8 [14, tied with five others]

Sac Flies – 1

Midseason snapshot: 2B – 19, 3B – 4, HR – 10, RBI – 45, AVG – .312, OBP - .372, SLG – .489

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Most hits, game – 4 on five occasions

Longest hitting streak – 12 games

Most HR, game – 1 on twenty-three occasions

HR at home – 10

HR on road – 13

Multi-HR games – 0

Most RBIs, game – 4 at St. Louis 8/12

Pinch-hitting – 4 for 9 (.444) with 1 R, 1 HR & 5 RBI

Fielding

Chances – 358

Put Outs – 327

Assists – 24

Errors – 7

DP – 7

Pct. - .980

Awards & Honors:

All-Star

18^th in NL MVP voting, tied with Ernie Banks, ChiC, Ken Boyer, StL & Harvey Kuenn SF (5 points, 2% share)

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The Phillies went 81-80 to finish seventh in the NL, 20 games behind the pennant-winning San Francisco Giants. Following four straight last-place finishes, the retooling Phillies started slowly but finished strong in August and September to nose just above .500.

Aftermath of 1962:

The Phillies rose to fourth place in 1963 and Callison contributed by batting .284 with 36 doubles, 11 triples, 26 home runs, 78 RBIs, a .339 OBP, and a .502 slugging percentage. He led NL right fielders in assists for the second straight year with 25 and placed fifteenth in league MVP voting. With surprising power despite his slender build thanks to his well-developed forearms, he prospered despite Connie Mack Stadium’s 34-foot right field wall. He was outstanding in 1964, a season in which the Phillies lost the NL pennant due to an epic September collapse. Along the way Callison’s ninth inning three-run home run at New York’s Shea Stadium won the All-Star Game for the NL. He went on to hit .274 with 30 doubles, 10 triples, 31 home runs, 104 RBIs, a .316 OBP, and a .492 slugging percentage. He continued to excel defensively and placed second in league MVP balloting, although it was widely believed he would have won the award if the Phillies had not failed to win the pennant. The club dropped in the standings in 1965 but Callison continued to excel. He batted .262 with 25 doubles, a league-leading 16 triples, 32 home runs, 101 RBIs, a .328 OBP, and a .509 slugging percentage. Defensively, he led all NL outfielders in assists for a record fourth straight season with 21. Callison’s power production dropped significantly in 1966 as his home run total fell to 11 and his RBIs to 55 although he still led the NL in doubles (40) and accumulated 7 triples. Complaining of problems with his eyesight, he began wearing glasses later in the season. His OBP was .338, his slugging percentage .418 and he remained capable defensively. 1967 proved to be another disappointing offensive season for Callison despite a solid start. He was hitting .282 with 10 home runs and 45 RBIs at the All-Star break but tailed off in the second half and finished at .261 with 30 doubles, 14 home runs, 64 RBIs, a .329 OBP, and a .408 slugging percentage. Dealing with nagging injuries (and some speculated a loss of confidence) the decline continued in 1968 as his batting production dropped to .244 with 18 doubles, 14 homers, 40 RBIs, a .319 OBP, and a .415 slugging percentage. Still a skilled defender, he had an errorless season in the outfield. Callison showed some signs of improvement in 1969, batting .265 with 29 doubles, 16 home runs, 64 RBIs, a .332 OBP, and a .440 slugging percentage. With the declining Phillies in need of a shakeup, he was traded in the offseason to the Chicago Cubs. Taking over in right field for the second-place Cubs in 1970, Callison hit .264 with 23 doubles, 19 home runs, 68 RBIs, a .348 OBP, and a .440 slugging percentage, although he was platooned starting in midseason. During 1971, unhappy with being platooned, he was one of several veteran players who feuded with manager Leo Durocher and his playing time diminished. Appearing in 103 games he batted .210 with 8 home runs, 38 RBIs, and a .298 OBP. In the offseason he was dealt to the New York Yankees where he finished his career as a reserve and occasional outfield starter during 1973 and ‘74. For his major league career, Callison batted .264 with 1757 hits that included 321 doubles, 89 triples, and 226 home runs. He scored 926 runs and compiled 840 RBIs, a .331 OBP, and a .441 slugging percentage. With the Phillies he batted .271 with 1438 hits, 774 runs scored, 265 doubles, 84 triples, 185 home runs, 666 RBIs, a .338 OBP, and a .457 slugging percentage. A three-time All-Star, he was honored on the Phillies Wall of Fame (now at Citizens Bank Park) in 1997. After retiring to suburban Philadelphia following his playing career, Callison worked as a car salesman, among other pursuits, and died at age 67 in 2006.

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Highlighted Years feature players who led a major league in one of the following categories: batting average, home runs (with a minimum of 10), runs batted in, or stolen bases (with a minimum of 20); or pitchers who led a major league in wins, strikeouts, earned run average, or saves (with a minimum of 10). Also included are participants in annual All-Star Games between the National and American Leagues since 1933. This category also includes Misc. players who received award votes, were contributors to teams that reached the postseason, or had notable seasons in non-award years.