RetroSimba

Convinced Bob Gibson no longer should be a starter, the Cardinals acquired Ron Reed from the Braves and put him in the rotation as the replacement for their long-time ace.

On May 28, 1975, the Cardinals traded relievers Ray Sadecki and Elias Sosa to the Braves for Reed and a player to be named. Five days later, the Braves sent Wayne Nordhagen, a minor-league outfielder, to the Cardinals, completing the deal.

At the time of the trade, the Cardinals’ rotation consisted of Gibson, Bob Forsch, Lynn McGlothen and John Curtis. With the May acquisitions of Reed from the Braves and Ron Bryant from the Giants, the Cardinals planned to move Gibson to the bullpen and go with a revamped rotation of Forsch, McGlothen, Reed, Curtis and Bryant.

Embarrassment to Bob

Gibson, 39, was upset with the decision.

“I think they’re making a mistake,” Gibson said to The Sporting News. “I still think I can throw better than 50 percent of the pitchers in the league. I think I’ve still got good stuff, not just competitive fire.”

Said Cardinals manager Red Schoendienst: “It was a tough decision to make. He’s still a good pitcher, but he’s not pitching as great as he has in the past.”

Gibson was a five-time 20-game winner and eight-time all-star with the Cardinals. He twice was named winner of the World Series Most Valuable Player Award and twice was named winner of the National League Cy Young Award.

In 1975, though, his record was 1-5 with a 4.80 ERA when he was dropped from the rotation on June 1. He yielded 71 hits in 65.2 innings and had more walks (33) than strikeouts (32).

Gibson was hampered by damaged knees. He also admitted he was reeling from a divorce.

In his 1994 book “Stranger to the Game,” Gibson said, “I didn’t conceal my anger at being sent to the bullpen, but I suspect now that some of it actually stemmed from my frustrations at home. There was a lot of pressure in suddenly being the primary parent for two teenage girls and a degree of devastation over the shattering of a family life that had been nearly 20 years in the making.”

Said Cardinals outfielder Reggie Smith: “When his body didn’t respond and then the club put him in the bullpen, it was an embarrassment to Bob.”

Two-sport standout

Reed, 32, was a good acquisition for the Cardinals. Bryant, 28, wasn’t.

Like Gibson, Reed was an outstanding basketball player. Gibson played basketball in college for Creighton and as a professional for the Harlem Globetrotters. Reed played basketball in college for Notre Dame and as a professional for the NBA’s Detroit Pistons.

A basketball and baseball standout at LaPorte (Ind.) High School, Reed was offered a contract by Athletics owner Charlie Finley, a LaPorte resident, after he graduated. Instead, Reed accepted a basketball scholarship from Notre Dame.

At 6 feet 6, Reed averaged 19 points and 14 rebounds per game in three varsity seasons at Notre Dame. He holds the Notre Dame single-season record for rebounding average at 17.7 per game.

After his senior season, Reed was selected by the Pistons in the third round of the 1965 NBA draft. Reed, who played baseball at Notre Dame only as a senior, wasn’t selected in the 1965 major-league amateur draft.

Looking for something to do in the summer before the start of the 1965-66 NBA season, Reed used a connection to contact Braves general manager John McHale, a fellow Notre Dame graduate. McHale signed Reed to a free-agent contract and assigned him to the minors.

The player-coach of the Pistons was Dave DeBusschere. He had pitched for the White Sox in 1962 and ’63. As a rookie, Reed averaged 7.5 points in 57 games for the Pistons. In his second season, Reed averaged 8.5 points in 62 games, including a 30-point performance on Dec. 16, 1966, versus the Baltimore Bullets.

At a crossroads, Reed opted for baseball. “At 6-foot-6, I was sort of caught in the middle (between forward and guard) and I doubt if I could have become anything more than a utility player in the NBA,” Reed told The Sporting News.

By 1968, Reed was in the Braves’ starting rotation. He achieved double-digit wins in five of his seven full seasons with the Braves.

Cardinals contributor

Reed was having breakfast when he learned he had been traded to the Cardinals. “I stood there with my mouth wide open,” Reed said. “I didn’t know how to react. I had never been traded before.”

In his Cardinals debut, on June 3, 1975, Reed got the start against the Braves and earned the win in a 4-2 Cardinals triumph. “When the game started, my knees began to shake,” Reed said. “I wasn’t scared … but my knees were just shaking.”

Reed won each of his first three starts with the Cardinals and had a 0.76 ERA.

Bryant, meanwhile, was a bust. A left-hander who had 24 wins for the 1973 Giants, Bryant was acquired by the Cardinals from San Francisco on May 9, 1975, for outfielder Larry Herndon and minor-league pitcher Tony Gonzalez.

In his first and only start for the Cardinals on June 16, 1975, Bryant gave up five runs in one inning against the Pirates.

Unimpressed, the Cardinals yanked Bryant from the rotation. Given a reprieve, Gibson replaced him and made four starts, winning one and losing three between June 21 and July 8. After the all-star break, Gibson was sent back to the bullpen, didn’t start again and retired in September.

John Denny and Harry Rasmussen were promoted from the minor leagues to join Forsch, McGlothen and Reed in the rotation, with Curtis being sent to the bullpen.

Reed won eight of his first 12 decisions with the Cardinals and finished 9-8 with a 3.23 ERA in 24 starts for St. Louis.

On Dec. 9, 1975, the Cardinals traded Reed to the Phillies for outfielder Mike Anderson. Converted to a reliever, Reed pitched for the Phillies in the 1980 and 1983 World Series.

Reed finished his career for manager Tony La Russa and pitching coach Dave Duncan with the 1984 White Sox. In 19 big-league seasons, Reed was 146-140 with a 3.46 ERA and 103 saves.

Previously: Bob Gibson and his final Opening Day with Cardinals