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FatJack · 06-29-2016, 08:18 PM

Several years back, someone on eBay offered up some pictures of minor league players from the International League of the 70s, including a lot of Tidewater Tides. The Tides were the Mets AAA franchise at the time. The colors were a bit washed out and I tried to "restore" them on a picture or two, but my skills were still fairly sucky at the time. I thought I'd give it another go, the other night, just to see whether my skills had improved at all. Little bit.

Bill Dillman pitched in the majors for the Orioles and Expos and was Cardinals property in between. For most of that time, he was on the shuttle--major leaguer one day, minor leaguer the next. He finished his pro career with Tidewater in 1972. This wasn't one of those "NRI/minor league contract" deals with the major league club. He was actually NRI that spring with the Phillies, who chose not to sign him. So he signed a contract with Tidewater in the hopes that he could impress someone in some front office somewhere.

Dillman pitched out of the pen for Tidewater--mostly in mop-up duty. He finished 5-5 with 2 saves and an ERA of 4.20. He did make the headlines once that season. In a game with the Peninsula Whips on June 29, a pitch got away from Bill, hitting Chico Diaz on the elbow. Diaz, who, interestingly, had been a Mets farmhand with Tidewater the year before when Dillman was an Expos farmhand with the Winnipeg Whips, became incensed and threw the bat at Dillman who had his back turned to the plate at the time. Dillman ducked in time and the bat sailed over his head, but Diaz was suspended and fined.

After the season, Dillman decided he'd had enough of the constant travel and uncertainty, as well as the meager minor league paychecks. He had three kids and just wanted to settle down.

Last year, Bill was inducted into the Bucks County Chapter of the Pennsylvania Hall of Fame. But, when the announcement was made, the papers mistakenly identified him as "the late Bill Dillman", so Bill had to let everyone know he was still alive and kicking.

Below, the original image of Bill Dillman, 1972 Tidewater Tides as sold on eBay and my "restoration". If I "restore" any more of these, I'll certainly post them up.

Edit: To answer the question of how Bill knew to duck if he had his back to the plate... Both the umpire and catcher shouted a warning to him. Sorry I left that out in my initial overnight post.

06-29-2016, 08:18 PM	#1411
FatJack All Star Reserve Join Date: Sep 2013 Posts: 847	Bill Dillman - 1972 Tidewater Tides Several years back, someone on eBay offered up some pictures of minor league players from the International League of the 70s, including a lot of Tidewater Tides. The Tides were the Mets AAA franchise at the time. The colors were a bit washed out and I tried to "restore" them on a picture or two, but my skills were still fairly sucky at the time. I thought I'd give it another go, the other night, just to see whether my skills had improved at all. Little bit. Bill Dillman pitched in the majors for the Orioles and Expos and was Cardinals property in between. For most of that time, he was on the shuttle--major leaguer one day, minor leaguer the next. He finished his pro career with Tidewater in 1972. This wasn't one of those "NRI/minor league contract" deals with the major league club. He was actually NRI that spring with the Phillies, who chose not to sign him. So he signed a contract with Tidewater in the hopes that he could impress someone in some front office somewhere. Dillman pitched out of the pen for Tidewater--mostly in mop-up duty. He finished 5-5 with 2 saves and an ERA of 4.20. He did make the headlines once that season. In a game with the Peninsula Whips on June 29, a pitch got away from Bill, hitting Chico Diaz on the elbow. Diaz, who, interestingly, had been a Mets farmhand with Tidewater the year before when Dillman was an Expos farmhand with the Winnipeg Whips, became incensed and threw the bat at Dillman who had his back turned to the plate at the time. Dillman ducked in time and the bat sailed over his head, but Diaz was suspended and fined. After the season, Dillman decided he'd had enough of the constant travel and uncertainty, as well as the meager minor league paychecks. He had three kids and just wanted to settle down. Last year, Bill was inducted into the Bucks County Chapter of the Pennsylvania Hall of Fame. But, when the announcement was made, the papers mistakenly identified him as "the late Bill Dillman", so Bill had to let everyone know he was still alive and kicking. Below, the original image of Bill Dillman, 1972 Tidewater Tides as sold on eBay and my "restoration". If I "restore" any more of these, I'll certainly post them up. Edit: To answer the question of how Bill knew to duck if he had his back to the plate... Both the umpire and catcher shouted a warning to him. Sorry I left that out in my initial overnight post. Attached Images Last edited by FatJack; 06-30-2016 at 05:33 PM.