Up on the blog today we have the fourth "missing" card for former catcher Art Kusnyer I've created over the years, this one a 1974 edition for the guy who seemed to be overlooked by Topps year in and year out over his six year career:
Kusnyer
appeared in 41 games for the California Angels in 1973, hitting .125
with eight hits over 64 at-bats while picking up some time behind the
plate.
It
was his third straight year with the Angels after coming up with the
Chicago White Sox in 1970, appearing in just four games and collecting
one hit over 10 at-bats.
But when 1974 rolled around, Kusnyer found himself struggling to
find a spot for himself in the Milwaukee Brewers organization after
being traded by California in October of 1973 in a nine-player swap
between the two clubs.
He'd end up toiling in the Minors for the next two seasons before
finding his way back into a Major League game in 1976, getting into 15
games for the Brewers, hitting .118 on four hits in 34 at-bats.
His last hurrah on the Major League level would be in 1978 with the
Kansas City Royals, playing in nine games and getting three hits in 13
at-bats, good for a .231 average.
He'd scratch out another season of Minor League ball for the White
Sox in 1979 before calling it a career and eventually moving into
coaching work for the Sox and the Oakland A's over the next 28 years.
Not too shabby a career!
