Putman appeared in five games for the Cubs as a 22-year-old, hitting a robust .429 with three hits over seven at-bats.
After spending all of 1977 in the Minors, he made it back to Major League ball in 1978 when he played in 17 games, hitting .200 with five hits over 25 at-bats along with three runs batted in.
After a trade to the Detroit Tigers for Steve Dillard in the 1978/79 off-season, Putman played in what turned out to be the last games of his career, playing in 21 games, going on to hit .231 with nine hits in 39 at-bats, apparently enough playing time to warrant a card in the 1980 Topps set. Go figure.
He’d spend the next two seasons in the Minor Leagues, for both the Detroit and Baltimore Orioles organizations, but would never play Big League ball again, retiring before the 1982 season.