Came across this nice image of former pitcher Grant Jackson suited up with the New York Yankees, and thought it would make for a great re-done 1977 card, since he was originally shown as one of the upcoming "original" Seattle Mariners, for whom he never actually ended up playing with. So here you go:
Jackson was sent over to
the Bronx in mid-season in 1976, and boy did he contribute to the
Yankees reaching the World Series for the first time in 14 years, going
6-0 over 21 appearances, with two starts thrown in and a shutout,
posting a wonderful 1.69 earned run average.
Already a veteran
of eleven Big League seasons by the 1976 campaign rolled around, he
would eventually go on to pitch 18 years in the Majors, winning a
championship in 1979 as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates, getting an
All-Star nod back in 1969 as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies.
His
final numbers were solid, posting a record of 86-75, with a 3.46 ERA
over 692 appearances and 1358.2 innings, saving 79 games while throwing
five shutouts.
I always loved when players were shown on cards for teams they never ended up playing for, as with Jackson in 1977.
He
was drafted in the expansion draft of 1976 by Seattle on November 5th,
but was traded to Pittsburgh about a month later for Craig Reynolds and
Jimmy Sexton, thus the "Mariners" call-out you see on his 1977 card.
Gives you a clear cut idea of when Topps would go to press for their baseball cards.
