Top 100 Angels: Don MINCHER #76

by Rev Halofan on Dec 4, 2008 11:33 PM PST in 100 Top Angels

The Angels First Baseman during the Summer of Love was big Don Mincher, and All-Star that year who almost made the trade of Dean Chance to Minnesota make sense. His 157 OPS+ ranks 4th all time single season in Angels history, however #1 and #3 on that list (Jason Thompson in 1980 and Bobby Grich in 1981) were played recorded in seasons of 102 and 100 games respectively. This means that Don Mincher is second only to Tim Salmon's 165 OPS+ in 1995 as the single greatest FULL season in team history, a statistical smidge better than Vladimir Guerrero's legendary MVP 2004 campaign.

Don clubbed 25 HR and had 76 RBI on that anemic 84-Win Angels team and followed it up with an OPS+ of 111 on an even worse 67-95 1968 Angels squad.

Remember... Mincher's mashing monster seasons under the Halo were at the height of the deadball era. He was drafted by the expansion Seattle Pilots in 1969 and would be the answer to the trivia question What Angel was also an All-Star with the Seattle Pilots.

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I was somewhat perplexed as to why Mincher was not protected by the Angels, prior to the 1969 Expansion Draft, especially after being traded for Dean Chance, who was a CY YOUNG award winner in 1964.

Speaking of the 1969 Expansion draft, was each existing team allowed to protect 25 players from their roster ? I know that during the expansion drafts of the 1990’s, each team was only able to protect 15 players, such that those expansion teams were able, no doubt, to draw upon a good player talent pool…….plus free agency.

Having said that, the 70 win total of the 1961 LA ANGELS is the most by an expansion team thus far, quite remarkable, with the fact they did not have that great of a talent pool to draw upon, from the existing teams.

by Canada Angel on Dec 5, 2008 9:42 AM PST reply actions