Ernie Lombardi finished his career with 1,792 hits, 190 home runs, and 990 RBI. On the surface that doesn’t seem worthy of the Hall of Fame. However, entry to Cooperstown isn’t solely a matter of career totals.
Lombardi is also a two-time batting champion and former National League Most Valuable Player. Many statistics do actually point to his greatness. Lombardi’s .306 average puts him 11th all time among catchers. His 126 OPS+ ties him on the catcher list with first-ballot Cooperstown man Johnny Bench.
Since he retired, many batters surpassed Lombardi’s career totals to push him further down the all time list. Shown here is the game-used lineup card from the first game of a Brewers double header on August 26, 1985. Signed by manager George Bamberger, it features Milwaukee great Cecil Cooper hitting in the three-hole.
On that day Cooper collected four hits and four runs batted in. With his second, third, and fourth RBI, Cooper passed Hall of Famers Frank “Home Run” Baker, Deacon White and Lombardi successively.