What a card: This is Tommy Dunbar's first Topps card. He would have just one more, in the 1986 set, and that would be it. His first card is in the 1984 Donruss set, in which he's known as "Tom" Dunbar.
My observation on the front: Dunbar appears rather serious here, although from what I've read, he was pretty jovial.
More opinion from me: I wonder if the guy standing in the background with the tie on is anyone important. He's standing like he's someone important.
Something you might know: Dunbar played just three limited seasons for the Rangers, from 1983-85. He would put up some big minor league seasons afterward until 1991. He died last year recuperating from prostate cancer surgery.
Something you might not know: Dunbar blasted the go-ahead home run for the Rangers in a game against the Yankees on July 17, 1984. In the fifth inning, with the Yankees ahead 3-2 and two Rangers on base, Dunbar hit a Phil Niekro pitch out of Yankee Stadium in an eventual 10-4 win for Texas.
My observation on the back: Other than noting the gum stain, I can update the trivia question. Davey Johnson still holds the record for the most pinch-hit grand slams in a season with two, but he's been equaled by four other players. In fact, one of those players -- Mike Ivie -- shared the record with Johnson at the time this trivia question was written, yet he's not included in the trivia question.
The other players are Darryl Strawberry (Yankees, 1998), Ben Broussard (Indians, 2004) and Brooks Conrad (Braves, 2010).
The blog wants to speak now: No it doesn't. It was one hellacious night at work.
2 comments:
Entries like this remind me of why it was better to collect sets from packs rather than buying a complete set. I have no recollection whatsoever of this card. I bought the complete sets in 1985 and I didn't really look at each card.
I’m reading this entry with the Phil Niekro reference about 1 hour after reading an article that Niekro just died.
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