Any Old Timers?

[Duquephart]

Anyone been around long enough to take a crack on the ID of the player pictured on this 1983 pocked sked?

[strumdatjag]

Only to mimic Harmon on color commentary on TV, could it be Ron Warshington (note the third letter)?

[Linus]

Wash is correct. Give the man a cigar. 

[USAFChief]

Weird number, but looks like Wash.

[lecroy24fan]

Definitely a spring training photo based on the lack of stands in the background so probably from 1981 before he switched to 38.

[theBOMisthebomb]

Gary Ward. 

[Rigby]

Gary Ward

[lecroy24fan]

1 hour ago, lecroy24fan said:

Definitely a spring training photo based on the lack of stands in the background so probably from 1981 before he switched to 38.

Looking closer that is likely Gary Ward. But he wouldn't have worn 50 in this time either. I'm going to take a closer look at spring training rosters in that era.

[Nine of twelve]

I think Gary Ward. The man in the photo doesn't look skinny enough to be Ron Washington. I don't know if spring training numbers from that era are findable but neither player wore 50 in the regular season.

[lecroy24fan]

10 minutes ago, Nine of twelve said:

I think Gary Ward. The man in the photo doesn't look skinny enough to be Ron Washington. I don't know if spring training numbers from that era are findable but neither player wore 50 in the regular season.

All the media guides have the rosters so I might be able to find it.

[lecroy24fan]

The 1981 media guide does list Washington as #50 so I'm sure it is him, as Ward had 32 already at that point. 

 

EDIT: However, Ward had 50 in 1979 ST. S0 it's a tossup.

[lecroy24fan]

I would also lean to the Ward side based on him being the bigger name at the time. He was a key player whereas Ron was a utility player.

[theBOMisthebomb]

4 hours ago, lecroy24fan said:

I would also lean to the Ward side based on him being the bigger name at the time. He was a key player whereas Ron was a utility player.

Yes, Ron Washington doesn't seem the type of player you place on a media guide based on the on field production. Great guy, great coach, great ambassador of the game. Hopefully, he can get a ring now as a manager with Mike Trout and the Angels. 

[RpR]

I would go with Ron Washington as he was the starting SS in 1982 and 1983.

[TopGunn#22]

I agree with Gary Ward.  Too "thick" for Ro-Wash.

[ziggy]

Gary Ward. Ron Washington is way too skinny for this photo.

[nicksaviking]

I wanted to play the game before digging for research, and I right away thought it was Ward.

Also, the jersey number is clearly a red herring, no Twin wore #50 in the regular season between between 1980 and 1989 and no Twins hitter EVER wore #50 until Matt Lawton in 1995.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/MIN/uniform-numbers.shtml

It's not power blue, so that's a home uniform and that's definitely not the 1982 Metrodome. Plenty of t-shirts in the stands though so spring training seems like it's a certainty. Maybe it was an old stock photo from four years prior when Ward had yet to make the team.

Plus as others have said, you don't put your utility infielder on the pocket schedule. Weird thing is, looking for this online, I found a *nearly* identical one on ebay:

Ha, but this one was sponsored by True Value instead of Miller High Life. I suppose a beer sponsor may have been objectionable in some locations. Or maybe they didn't want to pour too much support to the sponsors of the border state rivals.

[Seth Stohs]

OK, my first thought too was Ron Washington... but he does look too thick to be Washington...

Gary Ward maybe... 

I don't know if Ron Jackson was still around...

But I also think it looks like Downtown Darrell Brown... 

[Doctor Wu]

20 hours ago, theBOMisthebomb said:

Gary Ward. 

That was my first guess.

[Doctor Wu]

13 hours ago, theBOMisthebomb said:

Yes, Ron Washington doesn't seem the type of player you place on a media guide based on the on field production. Great guy, great coach, great ambassador of the game. Hopefully, he can get a ring now as a manager with Mike Trout and the Angels. 

I loved Ron Washington as a player, and also as a coach and manager. Plus he played in the short-lived "Senior League" back in late 80s, or was it early 90s? Whenever it was, he was the league MVP that year, then went back to MLB and played another year, I think with the Astros (saw him giving infield trips in spring training to a young catcher who was converting to the infield by the name of Craig Biggio!). Anyway, Wash was a handy , versatile player, but not the type that you would put on the cover of some mag or advert.