Fun card to add to the blog today, a "not so missing" 1979 card for future NL Rookie of the Year and Cy Young winner Rick Sutcliffe of the Los Angeles Dodgers:
Sutcliffe, who actually
made his MLB debut in 1976 with a start of five innings as a
20-year-old, was back in the Big League for two games during the 1978
season, tossing 1.2 innings of shutout ball, allowing two hits while not
factoring in a decision.
In 1979 he'd be back and would put
in an award winning season when he posted a record of 17-10 over 39
games, 30 of those starts, with a 3.46 earned run average and a shutout.
Of
course we all know how his career ended up, going on to pitch 18 years
in the Majors, winning the Cy Young Award in 1984 when he was traded to
the Chicago Cubs after the season started and proceeded to go 16-1 with a
2.69 ERA and three shutouts, leading the NL in wins with 18 in 1987,
leading the AL in ERA with 2.96 in 1982 while with the Cleveland
Indians, and making three All-Star games along the way.
By the
time he was done after the 1994 season, he finished with a record of
171-139, with an ERA of 4.08 over 457 appearances, throwing 18 shutouts
while striking out 1679 batters.
The man was a true workhorse.