The front: Not sure the location. With the long sleeves and
leafy trees, I don’t think this is a spring training shot. Maybe Baltimore?
The back: Remmerswaal’s heroics weren’t enough as the
Pawtucket Red Sox lost to the Richmond Braves in the Governor’s Cup Finals.
The player: The first Dutch baseball player to make it in
the major leagues (Remmerswaal played ball in the Netherlands, unlike Bert
Blyleven who was born there but grew up in the US), Win Remmerswaal pitched in
22 games in the major leagues in 1979 and 1980.
The man: Remmerswaal had a great arm, considered the best in
the Red Sox system. However, he had problems adjusting to life in the US, as
well as general maturity and substance abuse issues. Many of his issues with
the Red Sox involved disappearing from the team, in both the minor and majors.
His SABR biography details many of his idiosyncrasies and anecdotes about his
off-field activities. Released by the Red Sox after the 1981 season,
Remmerswaal returned to Europe, where he continued to struggle with alcoholism.
In 1997, Remmerswaal came down with double pneumonia and pleurisy, which put
him in a coma for three weeks and caused serious brain damage. He has spent the
past 20 years in a wheelchair in a Dutch nursing home.
My collection: I have two of his cards, 1981 Donruss and
1981 Topps. I would be interested in trading for 1981 TCMA Pawtucket Red Sox
#7.
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