my retired number collection - 40

this is the 39th post in a series that shares the cards i have in my retired number mini-collection. you can find the links to the previous posts down at the bottom of this post. if you're eager to learn more right now, you can check out the full list of retired numbers along with what this collection will entail over at my want list site.

so, without further ado, here are the two people for whom number 40 has been retired:

don wilson (retired by the astros in 1975) 1972 topps

don wilson was 29 years old and was at the peak of his career when he passed away prior to the start of the 1975 season. he had already thrown two no-hitters and had just shy of 1,300 strikeouts over eight full seasons, and there was no reason to think that he wouldn't continue to pitch well for the astros for the foreseeable future.

his untimely death was a shock to the astro organization, and they retired his number on april 13, 1975. they also added a memorial patch to their jerseys for the 1975 season, which i previously wrote about here. that post also includes a link to a great article covering wilson's career and death, so i won't go into the details here.

wilson was obviously the last astro to wear number 40, but i was unable to find a card showing him wearing the number so his 1972 topps card will have to do. he is not a member of the national baseball hall of fame, but was included in the inaugural class of the astros' hall of fame.

danny murtaugh (retired by the pirates in 1977) 1971 topps

danny murtaugh managed the pirates over four different stints covering 15 different seasons. he first managed the club from midway through the 1957 season through the 1964 season, leading the team to the pennant and world series title in 1960. he then returned to manage the club for the second half of the 1967 season. he took the helm once again prior to the 1970 season and stayed through 1971, winning his second pennant and world series title. finally, murtaugh was convinced to return to the manager role towards the end of the 1973 campaign, and he remained in the job through the 1976 season before retiring again - for good. 

sadly, murtaugh passed away in december of 1976 at the age of 59 after suffering a stroke on november 30. the team retired his number 40, visible on his 1971 topps card, on april 7, 1977 to honor their skipper who, like wilson, was the last to wear the number. and, like wilson, murtaugh is not a hall of famer, although he fell just one vote shy of election by the eras committee in 2010. he is, however, in the pirates' hall of fame thanks to his leadership on the field that resulted in three division titles in addition to his two championship seasons, along with 1,115 wins which places him behind only fred clarke in franchise history. 

i am tracking a few things as we go, even though the information is already available elsewhere.

retired numbers by team (through the 38 posts so far):

yankees - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 20, 21, 23, 32, 37, 42

giants - 3, 4, 11, 20, 22, 24, 25, 27, 30, 36, 42

pirates - 1, 4, 8, 9, 11, 20, 21, 33, 40, 42

guardians - 3, 5, 14, 18, 19, 20, 21, 25, 42, 455

red sox - 1, 4, 6, 8, 9, 14, 26, 27, 34, 42

phillies - 1, 14, 15, 20, 32, 34, 36, 42

cardinals - 1, 2, 6, 9, 10, 14, 17, 20, 23, 24, 42, 85

reds - 1, 5, 8, 10, 11, 13, 14, 18, 20, 24, 42

braves - 3, 6, 10, 21, 25, 31, 35, 42

astros - 5, 7, 24, 25, 32, 33, 34, 40, 42

mets - 14, 16, 17, 18, 24, 31, 36, 37, 42

orioles - 4, 5, 8, 20, 22, 33, 42

dodgers - 1, 2, 4, 14, 19, 20, 24, 32, 34, 39, 42

twins - 3, 6, 7, 10, 14, 28, 34, 36, 42

white sox - 2, 3, 4, 9, 11, 14, 16, 19, 35, 42, 72

brewers - 1, 4, 19, 34, 42

tigers - 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 11, 16, 23, 42

cubs - 10, 14, 23, 26, 31, 42

royals - 5, 10, 20, 42

padres - 6, 19, 31, 35, 42

athletics - 9, 24, 27, 34, 42

angels - 11, 26, 30, 42

expos - 8, 10, 30, 42

rangers - 7, 10, 26, 34, 42

major league baseball - 42

rays - 12, 42, 66

diamondbacks - 20, 42

blue jays - 32, 42

rockies - 17, 33, 42

mariners - 11, 24, 42

nationals - 11, 42

marlins - 42

retired number frequency:

1 - retired by 9 teams

2 - retired by 5 teams

3 - retired by 7 teams

4 - retired by 8 teams

5 - retired by 7 teams

6 - retired by 7 teams

7 - retired by 4 teams

8 - retired by 6 teams (retired by yankees for two players)

9 - retired by 6 teams

10 - retired by 9 teams (retired by expos for two players)

11 - retired by 8 teams

12 - retired by 1 team

13 - retired by 1 team

14 - retired by 10 teams (retired by mets and dodgers for same person)

15 - retired by 2 teams

16 - retired by 4 teams

17 - retired by 3 teams

18 - retired by 3 teams (includes mets who will formally retire the number in 2024) 

19 - retired by 5 teams

20 - retired by 11 teams (retired by orioles, reds, and guardians for same person)

21 - retired by 4 teams

22 - retired by 2 teams

23 - retired by 4 teams

24 - retired by 8 teams (retired by giants and mets for same person)

25 - retired by 4 teams

26 - retired by 4 teams

27 - retired by 3 teams

28 - retired by 1 team

29 - retired by 4 teams (retired by twins and angels for same person)

30 - retired by 3 teams

31 - retired by 4 teams (retired by cubs and braves for same person; retired by cubs for two players)

32 - retired by 5 teams

33 - retired by 4 teams

34 - retired by 8 teams (retired by astros and rangers for same person; retired by brewers and a's for same person; retired by a's for two players)

35 - retired by 3 teams

36 - retired by 4 teams

37 - retired by 2 teams (retired by mets and yankees for same person)

39 - retired by 1 team

40 - retired by 2 teams

42 - retired by 30 teams (retired by cardinals and yankees for individuals in addition to jackie robinson)

66 - retired by 1 team

72 - retired by 1 team

85 - retired by 1 team

455 - retired by 1 team

unnumbered players - 12 players recognized by 4 teams

running total of unique hall of famers (including those without numbers): 147

running total of non-hall of famers: 53