On the blog today we have a do-over for Tom Underwood and his 1978 Topps card, which originally was an airbrush by the fine folks at Topps, now fixed to an actual image of him suited up with the St. Louis Cardinals:
For those that don't remember the original card issued by Topps, here you go:
Ironically, all that fine
airbrushing work was all for naught as Underwood would be pitching for
the Toronto Blue Jays come the 1978 season.
Nevertheless,
after a fine rookie season in 1974 that saw him go 14-13 with a 4.14 ERA
for the Philadelphia Phillies, he followed that up with a record of
10-5 in 1975, lowering his ERA to 3.53 over 33 appearances, 25 of those
starts, with the first two shutouts of his career.
After
starting the 1977 season with a 3-2 record, he was traded to the
Cardinals as part of the Bake McBride trade, and Underwood would go 6-9
the rest of the way for a combined 9-11 seasons, with an ERA at an even
5.00 over 33 games.
He would move on to the Blue Jays for two
seasons, going a combined 15-30 with an ERA around 4.00 before finding
himself with the New York Yankees in 1980, having arguably his finest
year in the Big Leagues, going 13-9 over 38 appearances, with a 3.66 ERA
and two shutouts for the American League East champs.
He
would move on to the Oakland A's during the 1981 season, traded along
with Jim Spencer for Dave Revering and two Minor Leaguers, where he
would play another two seasons before one last year with the Baltimore
Orioles in 1984.
All told, he finished his career with a record of 86-87, with an ERA of 3.89 in 379 appearances, 203 of them starts, along with six shutouts and 18 saves.
