Knuckleballer Phil Niekro was a white haired 43 year old on the 21-day disabled list, when the Braves started their season in ’82. Surprisingly though, Phil wasn’t washed up yet. He almost won 20 games while earning the NL gold glove. All he wanted though, was to get his team to win the NL West.
Danny Darwin played for 8 teams in a 21 year career, and in 1982 he was possibly the single reason the Texas Rangers didn’t lose 100 games.
Reliever Ron Davis was on fire when he took the mound in Anaheim on May 4, 1981. Nobody could hit him, and from the photo on this card, you can understand why. He looks like he’s going to beat up anyone who dares step up to the plate next. That’s rather intimidating.
John Verhoeven was 28, when he became the last Twins pitcher for another 28 years to throw pitches outdoors in a home game. He didn’t have much of a career, but he had some fun while he was a major leaguer.
At the beginning of ’82, nobody viewed the Yankees as a team in need of talent. They either had it, or could buy it when they needed it. Of course, history tells us that ’82 was the start of the Yankees playoff drought and time for some rebuilding of the franchise during some dark years.
Card #5 in the set celebrates September 26, 1981, when Nolan Ryan tossed his 5th career no-hitter against the Dodgers. Most anyone had ever thrown. This game actually came in the middle of a 24 inning scoreless streak for the Ryan Express. He’d go on to toss 7 no-no’s for his career.
Steve McCatty looks more like a nerdy kid who should be home playing baseball on a video game than actually in the major leagues. The plain and dull sense of the card is offset a little by the bright yellow and green theme, but it’s still just as boring as his career was in ’82
The epitome of streaky. About every 30 days or so in 1982, Dave Goltz managed to be a different pitcher. It was such predictable inconsistency that you have to wonder why the Angels put him on the post-season roster.
Vern Ruhle was a great Astros pitcher for a few years when they were contending to ruhle the NL West, but he suddenly broke down into a below average pitcher in 1982. He had his moment in the sun, even if it was in a dome.
Is it just me or does Claudell Washington look kinda goofy here? Rick Mahler looks like a perfect fit for a southern team with that shave. I’ve always imagined he’s in the middle of telling about a fish he caught earlier.
Current Hall of Fame candidate Lee Smith’s rookie card, from his breakout season of 1982. A top quality reliever in his time who saved 478 games, but doesn’t quite look like a Hall of Famer when you compare his ERA to his peers.
Brian Allard pitched his heart out for a month leading up to the strike in 1981, but then never threw another pitch in the majors again. I have no idea why. You’d think a sub-3.00 ERA for a month would at least earn you one more start.
Rickey Keeton played parts of 1980 & ’81, never making it back to the major leagues after a rough 7th inning on a summer night in Milwaukee facing some of the best hitters of the period.
When Jack Morris is the worst in your starting rotation, you know you’ve got a pretty good pitching staff. That’s exactly how it was for the ’82 Tigers. He beat who he should beat, and lost to the best. Good thing he pitched against weak teams more than strong ones.
Bert Blyleven is the greatest baseball player ever to come from the Netherlands, and possibly the greatest pitcher not in Cooperstown yet. Hopefully that Cooperstown thing changes very soon, ’cause he was truly great…