BY MARK A. LARSON
This is the story of Chi Chi Olivo and his baseball-playing family.
Frederico Emilio “Chi Chi” Olivo appeared on his one and only Topps card in the 1966 set (#578). It’s a high-number single-print that goes for approximately $27. He was 38 years old at the time. With the exception of Satchell Paige, Olivo may have been the oldest regular player (managers, coaches, etc. don’t count) to have a Topps rookie card.
Olivo, a native of the Dominican Republic, didn’t make his big league debut until 1961 at age 33 with the Milwaukee Braves. He was out of the majors in 1962-63, but returned to pitch for the Braves in 1964-66. His major league career ended after the ’66 season. He was 7-6 lifetime with a 3.96 ERA.
Chi Chi’s older brother, Diomedes, never had a Topps card. When he first pitched in the majors for the Pirates in 1960, he was 41 years old, the second oldest rookie ever, next to Paige. Diomedes pitched in the N.L. until he was 44.
One more chapter to the Olivo family story. A nephew of Chi Chi and Diomedes’ named Milciades – nicknamed “Mike” – appeared in the 1970 set (#381). The back of the card refers to his two uncles. However, Mike never made it to the majors.
It’s not clear why Diomedes never had a card or why Chi Chi didn’t have one until late in his final year of play, 1966. Perhaps neither was under contract with Topps in the early 1960s, especially if they had been playing in Latin America for most of their careers.
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See related article on BaseballCardFun.com entitled:
“BASEBALL HOBBY NEWS — Topps Issued its Blandest Set Since ’61 in 1966”
Click Link Here
• Originally Published in Mar. 1992 “Baseball Hobby News” •
THIS ARTICLE FROM “BASEBALL HOBBY NEWS” MAGAZINE IS REPRINTED WITH THE PERMISSION OF BOTH THE EDITOR/PUBLISHER AND THE AUTHOR. IT HAS BEEN RETYPED, BUT NO CONTENT HAS BEEN CHANGED (EXCEPT FOR VERY MINOR ADJUSTMENTS, CORRECTIONS TO TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS AND CHANGES TO GRAPHICS). COMMENTS OR INFORMATION IN THE ARTICLE MAY BE OUT-OF-DATE.
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