1900s - 1970s: Topps 1964 #469 Cubs Rookies Both of these guys did pitch for the 1964 Cubs, though not very well. Norman made eight appearances, including five starts, and was 0-4 with a 6.54 ERA. He stuck around with the Cubs organization until he was traded after the 1967 season. Sterling Slaughter has a great name, though it sounds more like a WWE name than a baseball name. He made 20 less than sterling appearances in 1964, going 2-4 with a 5.75 ERA. He spent the next three seasons in the minors and never made it back to the majors.
1980s: 1989 Fleer #420 Doug Dascenzo Doug Dascenzo was the 1980s version of Tony Campana....short, fast, and not much of a hitter. His 1990 season was split between Iowa (111 games) and the Cubs (47 games). The card lists his weight as 160 pounds. Lil' Dougie barely hit his weight with the Cubs; his average was only .165.
1990s: 1990 Fleer #37 Greg Maddux Another card from Fleer, one year later. After winning 18 and 19 games the previous two seasons, Maddux tailed off a bit in 1990, going 15-15. He did, however, win his first gold glove, starting a streak that would see him win 18 of the next 19.
2000s: 2002 Topps Total #112 Julio Zuleta Julio is swinging a big bat on this card. The Cubs brass didn't think his bat was that big...he was designated for assignment at the end of spring training in 2002 and spent the year at Iowa. He had a big AAA bat, hitting .293 with 31 HRs and 104 RBIs. The Cubs brass still weren't impressed and Zuleta left Iowa after the season as a free agent.
2010s: 2013 Bowman #17 Starlin Castro The random number generator is teasing me with a card from last year's Bowman while I wait from my 2014 Cubs set to be delivered from this year's just released set.
Julio didn't make it but that's a nice shot.
ReplyDeleteDascenzo was a beast. I loved watching him play, especially when he got called in to pitch. I'm going to start a PC on him in the near future and document it at All-American Baseball Cards when I'm done with Kurt Stillwell.
ReplyDelete