Ed Ott was born in Muncy, Pennsylvania and excelled on the wrestling mats and the gridiron of the football field. Although his high school did not have a baseball team, Ott was a standout on the diamond from a young age, eventually playing American Legion baseball and with a local traveling baseball club.
The third baseman was drafted by the home state Pittsburgh Pirates in the 23rd round of the 1970 MLB Draft.
After being converted to an outfielder in the minor leagues, Ott posted solid numbers before his major league debut in June of 1974.
That same season the Pirates asked him to make the move to catcher, which he did. Ott made the Buccos major league roster in 1976.
Known for his intense and hard nosed play, Ott wasn’t afraid to use his wrestling skills on the baseball field when necessary and was a field general in every sense of the word.
Ott had the best season of his career in 1979, hitting .273 with seven home runs and 51 RBI. That magical season was capped by the Pirates winning the 1979 World Series. The clubhouse leader had a good seven game series hitting .333 with three RBI, including the game winner in a pivotal game 2. He finished his career with the Angels and then moved on to minor and major league coaching roles for the next two decades.
“Otter” recently talked with us about cards, autographs and more.
Tony Reid–You have had 44 cards produced over the years. Your first card was with the Salem Pirates in 1972. Your official rookie card appeared in the 1976 Topps set, one you share with three other players. Do you remember seeing yourself on a trading card for the first time?
Ed Ott-I never saw myself as a minor league player on a card other than a 5×7 or something like that. I never saw a real minor league card of mine. When I got to the major leagues and finally saw my rookie card I thought ‘Oh, boy. I don’t even deserve my own card. It comes in fours now.’ It was a great thrill just seeing that the card existed. I am surprised how many were made. I still, to this day, sign between 20 and 40 cards a week. This is crazy. I never knew Topps made that many cards.
TR–What was the most memorable fan experience you’ve had over the course of your career?
EO-Probably the group from Pittsburgh. I came out one day and there was a sign that said ‘If it was Ed, it Ott to be Good’. The fan base there was tremendous. They picked me as their little team idol. That was a great thrill for me. The fans that love the game love the game. It was a big thrill.
TR–Whether it happened in high school in Muncy, somewhere in the minors or once you got to the majors, when was the first time you were approached and asked for your autograph?
EO-Boy, that is a good question. I know it didn’t take me very long, having the shortest name in baseball. It was probably back in the minor leagues when I played for the Niagara Falls Pirates. We played against Williamsport. I was born and raised in a little town called Muncy, which is only about 11 miles from Williamsport. Coming back here signing autographs probably for the first time.
TR–How much pride do you take in signing for fans?
EO-Tell me about it. I am surprised people even know who I am. I tried to sign as many autographs and make as many kids as happy as I could. The only time I didn’t sign was when I was eating, if I was at the hotel or something. Kent Tekulve and I were sitting there and we were eating breakfast. A little boy came up and asked for my autograph. I said ‘I will sign your autograph as soon as I finish eating. I don’t sign autographs when I’m eating. I don’t like cold food.’ So, the little boy walked back over and his mom and dad were mad at me. After it was all over I walked over and signed the autograph. I said to his parents ‘You must really like cold food.’ They asked why that was and I said ‘Well, you were mad at me because I didn’t sign his autograph because I didn’t like cold food. Evidently, you like cold food.’ That was the only time I didn’t sign. I signed as many as I could.
TR–That seems to be the cutoff line for a lot of athletes, when they are eating or when they are having a private moment with family.
EO– I would sign when I was with family but if I was eating that is a whole different ballgame (laughs)
TR–Whose cards did you want to collect and what athletes inspired you as a young kid in Muncy, PA?
EO-We collected baseball cards but it was for the sole purpose of putting them on the spokes of our bicycle to make some noise going down the street. I was a Roger Maris fan. He was my number one idol growing up as a kid. I always wore number 9 in Little League and all that. My brother was a Dodgers fan. I guess you would call me a Yankees fans because I liked Maris. Living in a small town was great because nobody ever collected anything thinking it would be worth anything later on. I always remember over at the elementary school there were steps leading downstairs to the basement. We would sit on those steps and toss our cards into a hat. Whoever go the card in the hat would win. You would win those cards. If there were three of us playing you would throw three cards and whoever got it in the hat won all three cards. We never put a value on them like they do nowadays.
TR- Did you manage to hold on to anything from your career as far as cards or memorabilia?
EO– Tony, we moved so many times. Wherever my wife wants to take the horses is where we go. As a matter of fact, our house is up for sale right now. The only things I have are a picture of me in a Pirates uniform during the World Series, I think it was game three where a helicopter took a shot of the stadium in Pittsburgh as the game was going on. That and one of me in the California Angles uniform. That’s about it. Anything I ever collected I gave to my brother Tom. He had a downstairs basement and he was a big time collector, not for resale but just as a collector. I gave him everything I ever got-stuff from Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson, Willie Stargell and all of those guys. I don’t need the item to tell me about how great of friends we are or a special moment that took place. I have that in my heart.
We’ll have a Card Back Q&A with Ed Ott in the days ahead.
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