I’ve since found a great Topps Vault image that makes for a much better version, so here goes:
Blackwell was actually "missing" from both the 1976 AND 1975 sets (Which I remedied some time ago with a 1975 edition as well here on the blog).
The guy posted over 135 plate appearances both seasons, yet Topps didn't have him on a card until the 1978 set, which is ALSO strange since in 1977 he only appeared in 17 games, good for only 25 plate appearances (???).
So weird…
For the 1975 season, (relating to the card here), Blackwell played in 59 games, good for 157 plate appearances, which saw him hit .197 with 26 hits, 15 runs scored and six runs batted in while filling in for Carlton Fisk and the Red Sox.
After his first two MLB seasons with the Red Sox, Blackwell was purchased by the Philadelphia Phillies, and only got into four games during the 1976 season.
He collected two hits over those contests, spread out over eight at-bats, and would find himself playing for the Montreal Expos the following year, before finding his groove with the Chicago Cubs in 1978, who he’d play for through the 1981 season.
After two more years with the Expos in 1982 and 1983, his MLB career would come to a close, batting .228 with 238 hits in 1044 at-bats in ten seasons, generally as a back-up/platoon catcher.
