This autograph was obtained with a through the mail (TTM) request on December 9, 2009 to Mr. Hamilton at his restaurant in Missouri. If you are interested in contacting players through the mail, I highly recommend sportscollectors.net as a resource to the addresses of your favorite players and teams. Jack Hamilton graciously signed my card with a blue ballpoint pen and returned it to me 8 days later. Thank you, Mr. Hamilton. As of March 2, 2012, I have accumulated 569 different signatures in my collection of 1967 Topps Autographed cards.
Jack Hamilton pitched 8 seasons in the major leagues, with the Philadelphia Phillies, Detroit Tigers, New York Mets, California Angels, Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox. His career started in 1962 with the Phillies, after signing as a free agent with the St. Louis Cardinals. Although he began his career as a starter, he spent most of his time in the big leagues as a reliever. His career statistics include 32 wins versus 40 losses while also accumulating 20 saves and 4.53 earned run average.
Jack seemed to lack command and control during his career, walking 348 batters while striking out 357 and throwing 74 wild pitches in his 8 seasons. He only hit 13 batters during his campaigns, but he will always be linked to one batter he hit in 1967, Tony Conligiaro. Conligiaro was an up and coming slugger for the Boston Red Sox and involved in the 1967 pennant race. On August 18th, Hamilton was pitching for the Angels and he hit Tony Conligiaro in the left creekbone with a fastball, fracturing the creekbone and eye socket and damaged the retina. Although the pitch was a complete accident and part of the game, both players and their careers were never the same.
To learn more about Jack Hamilton, go to his biography at wikipedia.org.
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