NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1979 ED FARMER

Up on the blog today we have a “not so missing” 1979 card for former reliever Ed Farmer, who made it back to the Majors after struggling for a few years, now with the Milwaukee Brewers:

Farmer, who was originally up to the Majors in 1971 with the Cleveland Indians but eventually spent all of 1975 and 1976 in the Minors before one appearance with Baltimore in 1977, appeared in three games for the Brewers in 1978, going 1-0 with a sparkling 0.82 earned run average over 11 innings.
It was indeed the beginning of a comeback for the righty as he went on to play for another five seasons in the Big Leagues, even making the American League All-Star team in 1980 when he had his best season, saving 30 games for the Chicago White Sox, pitching to an ERA of 3.34 over 64 appearances.
By the time he retired after the 1983 season he finished up with a record of 30-43, with 75 saves over 370 appearances and 624 innings pitched over 11 Major League seasons.

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1978 ED FARMER

Here’s a “not so missing” 1978 card for former relief pitcher Ed Farmer, who was yet to hit his MLB stride as a Chicago White Sox bullpen ace later on, throwing a total of ZERO innings in 1977 with the Baltimore Orioles, giving up a hit and a walk in his only appearance of the year:

Farmer, who originally came up to the Major Leagues as a member of the Cleveland Indians in 1971, bounced around after that, playing for four organizations in three seasons while missing the 1975 and 1976 campaigns altogether before getting that one taste of a big league mound again in ‘77.
But he would right his ship soon enough, eventually having an All-Star season in 1980 with the White Sox when he posted 30 saves over 64 appearances and 99.2 innings pitched.
He would end up pitching eleven seasons as a big league pitcher, leaving the game in 1983 with a career 30-43 record, with 75 saves and a 4.30 earned run average in 370 appearances and 624 innings before moving on to a long broadcast career.

(BARELY) MISSING IN ACTION- 1975 ED FARMER

Here’s a card I would consider right on the fence between “missing in action” and “not really missing in action”, a 1975 card for former relief pitcher Ed Farmer:

Farmer appeared in 14 games for the Phillies in 1974, with a bloated 8.42 earned run average over 31 innings of work while posting a record of 2-1. Not really a cup-of-coffee, yet not truly enough action to consider him “left out” of the 1975 set.
He would miss the following two seasons before making one sole appearance in 1977 with the Baltimore Orioles and three appearances with the Milwaukee Brewers the following year.
Finally healthy, Farmer would be a mainstay in Major League bullpens until the 1983 season, with his finest year coming in 1980 when he saved 30 games for the Chicago White Sox and was named to his only all-star game.
After his playing days were over he scouted for the Orioles for a few years before settling into his well familiar role as a Chicago White Sox radio announcer, a position he has held to this very day, 25 years running.