#72 - Walt Terrell

On nearly every card I've seen of Terrell, he looks about 5'6". This one is no exception. And of course, it surprised me to find out he's listed at 6'2". I didn't like Topps' choice for the logo for Detroit. I much prefer the "D" to the silly tiger head that looks too much like a Bengal.

Only four batters had more than 10 RBI against Terrell: B.J. Surhoff, Harold Baines, Mel Hall and Gary Gaetti. Why is this interesting? It's not, but there's over 700 cards in this set so leave me alone.

#70 - Charlie Hough

FINALLY! Thank you, Topps, for giving us a full body shot. Hough looks like, well, Hough in this shot, just finishing his release on that knuckler he threw for 25 seasons. The photo gives us a nice look at the stirrups and the "TEXAS" across the jersey, a look I always liked.

Hough was an interesting story. He didn't become a full time starter until he was 34. AND THEN STARTED 400 MORE GAMES. That's pretty amazing. And it's not as if he wasn't an effective pitcher to that point. He had several good seasons out of the pen for LA but didn't get a chance to start regularly until he was sold (yes, sold) to Texas. From there he churned out start after start, even starting 40 games 1987. He was remarkably consistent, winning between 10 and 18 games every year from '82-'90, never having an ERA+ better than 128 or worse than 91. He finished his career with the expansion Marlins, even acting as Florida's opening day starter in '93 and '94 (at 46 years old).

#67 - Bill Swift

Decent shot during what looks like pre-inning warmup tosses. The apathetic look on Swift's face gives that away. The photo gives us a good look at those old Seattle unis with the blue and yellow stripes and a hint of that ugly "Mariners" typeface on the jersey. And wow, is that one blurry crowd or what?

On the back of the card, we're treated to the nugget, "[Bill] is one of 15 children." I assumed (probably stupidly) that he was from Utah, but nope, good ol' Maine. How many bathrooms do you think his childhood home had? Oh wait, he was from Maine. How many outhouses do you think his childhood home had?

Swift was a decent pitcher, who began his career as a starter without much success, then transitioned to the pen and was fantastic. In '92 he was traded to San Francisco and became a starter again. That ended up being a great decision as Swift led the league in ERA in '92 and finished second in the Cy Young Award voting in '93 (21-8, 2.82).

#65 - Tom Browning

"Hi, Mrs. Johanssen, I'm here to clean the pool." Browning looks like quite the athlete in this photo, doesn't he? Ignoring his pudginess, it's actually a decent photo. Lots of red and white and even a guy way in the background with a red jacket on. Plus, we have three different Reds logos visible. The Topps one in the upper left, the cap logo and the jacket version. Nice.

Browning was an average starter who had a couple great years, victory-wise, and is definitely best known for throwing a perfect game in 1988. There are a bunch of cool things about that game. First, Browning threw it against the Dodgers, who of course ended up winning the World Series. Second, the LA starter for that game was Tim Belcher, who pitched almost as well. He went the distance, giving up only 1 run on 3 hits, with 1 walk and 7 Ks. I figured that must have been a quick game...and I was right. 1:51. 1:51! That's unbelievable. Can you imagine if a network game happened that quickly? Fox would crap themselves.

#61 - Bobby Thigpen

Aside from Thigpen looking like a giant dork in this photo, it's not a terrible card. We have the cap-logo-next-to-the-card-logo thing, which I love, a nice clear shot of a somewhat broken-in Rawlings glove, and a background that looks almost fake. I seem to remember seeing it on other Chi-Sox cards in this set.

Thigpen is best known for his ridiculous 1990 season, when he notched 57 saves with a 1.83 ERA for a White Sox team that won 94 games. Unfortunately they played in the same division as the As back then, so they didn't have much shot at the pre-wild card era postseason. Due mostly to back injuries, Thigpen was done by the time he was 30.

#57 - Scott Nielsen

'87 Topps is back! For good this time. And what better way to revive the dormant blog with...a really boring card. It's too bad the shadows didn't completely overwhelm Nielsen's face (instead of just mostly), because then we might have been spared the sight of his terrible teeth. But aside from that, I like the cap logo right next to that other "Yankees" logo Topps decided to use. I always hated that stupid top hat in that illustration.

Scott had an unremarkable career. He pitched parts of 4 seasons, sometimes as a starter, never very successfully. He did give up a large % of his homers to Red Sox and former Red Sox, which makes sense considering he played the bulk of his short career for the Yanks. Of the 26 homers he gave up, here are the one-time Sox:

Bill Buckner
Tom Brunanski
Jose Canseco
Dave Henderson
Gary Gaetti
Rob Deer

#54 - Bill Dawley

Kinda dorky posed shot here. But we do get a little peak at those goofy Chisox pants numbers they had in the '80s and those equally goofy warmup shirts that look like they were made from the tarp they roll out during rain delays. Do you think Bill's nickname was "Dilly"? I hope so.

As I've mentioned before, many relievers have great starts to their careers before batters figure them out. Dawley was no exception. He was fantastic his first two seasons, compiling a 120 ERA+ and 0.916 WHIP in nearly 80 innnings as a rookie, and followed that up with a whopping 171 ERA + and 1.194 WHIP in 98 innings his second year. Things went downhill from there and he was out of the league before he was 32.

Looking him up, I saw Dawley was drafted in the 7th round in the 1976 draft. I figured, he had a couple good years, so he might have been the most successful player drafted in that round. Uh, nope. Also drafted in the 7th round in '76: Two HOFers and an MVP. Ozzie Smith, Wade Boggs and Willie McGee. So much for that guess.

#52 - Keith Atherton

Quick, hold your tongue and say, "Keith Atherton." Sounds like "Keiss Asserton" doesn't it? Keith must have known that joke. With a 'stache like that, you gotta have a good sense of humor, right? Plus, what is going on with that cap? He's wearing that thing like a stovepipe hat. Maybe that's John Wilkes Booth in the background about to jump up and yell, "Thic themper tyrannis!"

Atherton was quite a middling middle reliever throughout his 7-season career. He had a great rookie season (as many relievers do) but then hitters figured him out and he settled into years of mediocrity, finishing with a 101 ERA+. He did contribute to the '87 World Series season for the Twins, but was pretty much a nonfactor in the postseason. He pitched the 9th in a 10-1 blowout victory in game one and then gave up 1 run in only a third of an inning in a 4-2 loss in game, getting called for a balk in the process.

#50 - Dave Smith

There's not much visually separating Dave Smith from a BP pitcher chosen to throw in the Home Run Derby here. Grey hair, protruding gut, toneless arms...

However, Dave Smith was actually a damn fine reliever. He started out is career with a bang, coming out of the pen to throw 102 innings and finish with an ERA of 1.93. Somehow that earned him only a 5th place finish in the NL ROY voting, losing out to Steve Howe (druggie), Bill Gullickson (so-so career), Lonnie Smith (druggie) and Ron Oester (I have nothing to say about Ron Oester). Smith averaged around 60-75 innings per year and finished his career with a 2.67 ERA (129 ERA+). All in all, he was a very valuable reliever for some competitive Astros teams.

#47 - Dennis Powell

This is a weird card. First, Dennis looks like he knows some secret that he's afraid we might figure out. And I'm guessing it's the identity of the guy behind him. Check out that stirrupped foot behind his back. If you look quickly, it almost makes it look like Powell is wearing one of those wireless mic battery pack things that talk show guests wear. That's also a strange edifice in the background. It almost looks like a travel trailer that's halfway underground. Maybe someone more knowledgeable about Dodgertown has an idea what that is.

Aside from that,w e have a decent look at the Dodgers logo on the cap, a nice shot of the Dodger "D" and good look at a new Rawlings glove.

I don't have any first-hand recollection of Powell, but looking at his stats, he was pretty crappy. He pitched 339 innings over an 8-year major league career for LA, Seattle and Milwaukee (as a reliever and spot starter) and finished with an ERA+ of 80. Blech.

However, he does share a pretty meaningless record. He accumulated 3 hits in his career, all doubles. That ties him for the MLB record for career hits totaling nothing but doubles with Earl Hersh and Verdo Elmore. Good for him.

#44 - Greg Harris

What is Greg looking at here? I hope it's a skywriting ad for mustache trimmers. That is a terrible, terrible 'stache, and a pretty boring photo to boot. Hey, I just used the expression, "to boot."

Greg Harris (not Greg W. Harris, mind you--hey, I just used the expression, "mind you") was a very useful reliever throughout his 15-year major league career. He spent most of the time coming out of the pen, but did make nearly 100 starts. I remember Greg best as the reliever for the Red Sox who led the league in appearances in 1993 (throwing 112 innings) and had that goofy ambidextrous glove. It seemed like we would see him in every game that year, and thanks to a team playing .500 ball, we almost did.

Throughout the latter part of his career, Greg repeatedly made it known that he wanted to pitch with both arms, alternating as dictated by the opposing hitter. He finally got a chance with the Expos in '95, and, according to Wikipedia:

"In the ninth inning, Harris retired Reggie Sanders pitching right-handed, then switched to his left hand for the next two hitters, Hal Morris and Ed Taubensee, who both batted lefty. Harris walked Morris but got Taubensee to ground out. He then went back to his right hand to retire Bret Boone to end the inning."

#40 - Dave Righetti

Not much to say about this card. We see Righetti's high leg kick here, which is kinda cool, but I'm partial to the pitcher shots where the guy is a little further into his delivery, showing some more physical intensity. Looks like Dave liked Pumas.

While pretty much everyone (myself included) remembers Righetti as a closer, he was actually a pretty solid starter for the Yanks at the beginning of his career. He made 15 starts in '81, edging such future stars as Shooty Babitt in the Rookie of the Year voting. In '83, he went 14-8, 3.44 with 169 Ks. Not too shabby. But the next year, NY converted Righetti into a closer and that's where he found a home. In '86 he set the single season save record with 46 and continued to be an effective, though not dominant closer into the early 90s.

#38 - Dennis Leonard

Could there possibly be more blue in this photo?

Blue jersey.
Blue hat.
Goofy blue trash bag-lookin' jacket.
Blue glove.
Blue sky.

That's a lotta blue.

It's interesting that Topps gave Leonard a card, being that he retired after the 1986 season. I assume he retired toward the beginning of the 1987 calendar year. Regardless, Leonard was off to a nice start before he hurt his knee, which really wrecked his career. From 1976-1980, he won 92 games and threw a ton of innings. He was never a truly dominant pitcher, but before he got hurt, he was very reliable, pitching 20+ complete games in consecutive seasons, 9 of which were shutouts.

#36 - Eric King

Well, not a whole lot to say about this card. The shot is about as bland as they come, except for the fact that the placement of the logo makes it look sorta like one of the fans in the background has a tiger head. But not really.

Eric King didn't have much of a career, but he was pretty effective for most of it. He put together consecutive seasons for the ChiSox with 25 starts and ERAs under 3.40. Not bad. But beginning in '91, King lost it and was out of the majors for good after '92.

Some Seattle fans might remember that Eric King gave up the first career homer of their once and future outfielder, Ken Griffey, Jr. Speaking of whom, I hope the kid stays healthy as I think he has one more semi-productive season in him. As long as no one throws him fastballs over 93 MPH.

#34 - Jose Rijo

Stripes aside, I like this card. It shows a hard throwing right-hander who wasn't yet a star at full physical exertion. Both his glove hand and pitching hand are a little too blurry, but there are some cool things going on. Rijo looks furious as he 's about to let loose, and his right foot looks like it's stepping onto the diagonal border of the card. Cool stuff.

Jose Rijo had an interesting career. He came up to the bigs at 19 years old for the Yankees, seemingly to steal some attention from the Mets' own phenom, Doc Gooden. Looking back, that was far too soon. Rijo struggled for the Yankees and was shipped to Oakland in a trade that brought the Bombers Rickey Henderson. Rijo spent three mostly tough seasons in Oakland as a part-time starter, until he was involved in another big-name trade that sent him to Cincinnati and brought Dave Parker to Oakland. Parker would help the A's win the World Series in '89 but Rijo would later come back to absolutely PUNISH his former club. More on that in a minute.

Keep in mind, at this point Rijo was still only 23, an age when it starts to become clear what kind of ballplayer most guys will become. He got his first start for the Reds June 8th of 1988, tossing 6 innings of 2-hit ball in a 7-1 win. Rijo started the rest of the year and finished at 13-8, 2.39, cementing his place in the Cincy rotation.

In 1990, Rijo took the Reds to the Series against Oakland and absolutely mowed down his former team to the tune of two wins, 15 innings, one earned run, 14 Ks and a 0.59 ERA. Ladies and gentlemen, that's dominance.

Injuries ended a remarkable 8-year stretch when Rijo was just 30, but he would make a comeback a whopping 6 years later. In his first game back after the long layoff, he pitched two innings, giving up no runs and striking out two. What a gamer. He pitched well in a reliever role that year before hanging it up for good a year later.

I know that is about the longest I've written about anyone in this set so far, and I'm sure some of it has to do with a documentary I just saw on the 1990 season, but I've always been a fan of this guy.

#32 - Tim Leary

When Leary's on the mound, you turn on, tune in, ground out.

OK, that was a little forced, but it was the only joke I could think of for a marginal major league pitcher who shared a name with a famous proponent of LSD.

Anyway, I remember getting this card when I was a kid and thinking Leary looked a lot more like an actor playing a baseball player than an actual player. The combination of the athletic stretch pose, soap opera looks, strong brow...ok, I'm going to go confirm my heterosexuality...

...and we're back. So anyway, the one interesting thing about this shot is that we get a look at the memorial patch the Brew Crew wore during the '86 season in remembrance of longtime Milwaukee equipment manager Robert "Sully" Sullivan.

Predominantly a starter throughout his 13-year major league career, Leary was ineffective (78-105, ERA+ of 90) with one notable exception. In 1988, Leary went 17-11, 2.91 for the World Series champion Dodgers. Like just about any other LA starter, um, ever, Leary benefited greatly from the dimensions of Chavez Ravine (check out his splits), but even his away numbers that year blew his career averages out of the water. His season earned him the Comeback Player of the Year Award, which, in Leary's case doesn't really make sense because he had no history of success to "come back" to.

#29 - Jimmy Key

Not a bad shot at all on this card. It's a good action photo of the lefty's delivery, giving a nice look at the Jays' logo and Jimmy's Rawlings glove. His eyes are in a shadow, but you can still see the focused concentration on his face. Nice card.

Jimmy Key pitched in the AL East at the right time. He spend his entire career in that division for the Jays, Yanks and Os at a time when it wasn't as strong as today. Still, Key was a great pitcher. He won at least 12 games every year from '85 through '97 (except for 1995, which he missed due to injury), and won 16+ games 5 times. He finished his career with a 3.51 ERA (122 ERA+) and was Cy Young runner up twice. The first was in 1987 when Key went 17-8/2.76/1.06. Compare that to that year's winner, Roger Clemens, who went 20-9/2.97/1.18. Key's numbers actually look better, but keep in mind Clemens did his damage for a lousy 78-win Sox team, while Key did it for a great 96-win Toronto team. Add to that Clemens' 256 Ks and you gotta give it to the Rocket.

Key's second near Cy win was in '94 when Key was in New York. He was just barely edged by David Cone who was lights out that year in KC. Cone would join Key in New York the next season.

Overall, it seems as if Key has been all but forgotten over the years, which is a shame, because he was one of the best, most consistent pitchers, in the '80s and '90s.

#27 - Joe Cowley

There is zero chance Joe finished his career without being called the Cowley Lion several times. To perpetuate the animal similarity, Joe looks like a deer in the headlights in this photo. I can't believe that of all the shots they snapped during this spring training session, THIS was the best one. At least we have a nice, new, black Mizuno glove to show for it. AND we have a great look at those retro White Sox unis. Any baseball fan knows the ChiSox have had some bad, bad, bad uniforms over the years, but I still think these look cool. You know, when they're not on a player who looks like he spent all night at Denny's.

I don't know much about Cowley, but I'm not sure why his career fell off a cliff. I'm going to assume injury, because after two consecutive solid seasons:

1985: 26 starts, 12-6, 3.96
1987: 27 starts, 11-11, 3.88

...Cowley pitched only 11 more innings in the big leagues. And those 11 innings did not go well (15.43 ERA). Those innings came over 4 starts in April of '87, so it's possible he just lost his effectiveness, was sent down and never came back.

#25 - Bert Blyleven

Um, what are you looking at, Bert? If it's the train leaving the station for the Hall of Fame, I'd jump aboard. And what is UP with that goofy Twins logo in the upper left?

And by the way, my earlier sentence isn't an endorsement for Bert's Hall chances, just that after getting nearly 63% this year, I'm positive he will get in soon. But let's look at the reasons why he should and shouldn't be a HOFer.

Why He Should
He won 287 games, which would have been well over 300 had he not played for so many crappy teams.
He won two World Series with the Pirates in '79 and the Twins in '87 and was a fantastic postseason pitcher, going 5-1 with a 2.47 ERA. In fact, he had only one postseason series that wasn't stellar (the '87 ALCS against Detroit), but he still managed to win both the games he pitched, even beating a guy everyone sees as the ultimate big game pitcher (Jack Morris) in the process.
He compiled an incredible 3701 strikeouts. That's 5th all time.
He pitched 4970 innings. That's 14th all time. And of the 13 guys ahead of him, 5 played either in the late 19th or early 20th century.
He has 60 career shutouts. That's 9th all time. And he led the league in SHO 3 times.
His 10 most similar pitchers according to B-R are Don Sutton, Gaylord Perry, Fergie Jenkins, Tommy John, Robin Roberts, Tom Seaver, Jim Kaat, Early Wynn, Phil Niekro and Steve Carlton. All except Tommy John and Jim Kaat are HOFers.

Why He Shouldn't
Despite all the above, he never finished better than 3rd in the Cy Young voting, and only got votes in 4 years.
He won 20 games only once, in 1973, when he made 40 starts and went a whopping 20-17.
He made only two all star teams.
He gave up a LOT of homers. In '86 and '87 he gave up 50 and 46 homers, respectively. That is incredible.

The Verdict
I don't think it's even close. The guy should be in. Voters hold that 300-win total as a magical threshold, but when you play for so many awful teams, your win totals are affected. And Bert played a large chunk of his career in a 5-man rotation, which, of course, makes a big difference. Besides, wins are not the real measure of effectiveness anyway. The fact remains, Bert was an excellent, durable starter for a long, long time and should be recognized as such. Voters, get him in!

#23 - Lee Smith

Why was Lee Smith always squinting? Seriously, he's squinting above, here, here, and here. Aside from that, this card is actually pretty nice. Lots of red, white and blue, a nice shot of two Cubs logos and a brand spankin' new Rawlings glove. I'll ignore the fact that the background suggests Smith is standing on a cloud. I think I chose that same background for my 4th grade school photo.

I remember that when Smith was traded to the Sox in '87 I saw him as an old, war-battered veteran who was nearing the end. I don't know why I thought that considering he went to the Sox when he was 30. Smith was one of the first of the modern day closers who you could count on to come in, throw peas and slam the door, while only pitching in close games. Smith was a great pitcher (one who I think should be in the HOF, as one of the first of his kind - Bruce Sutter is the other and he's in), but it shows you how little regard the voting community has for saves when the guy who is 3rd ALL TIME in a major statistical category isn't in the hall. For the record, I don't have much regard for saves either, but I think if Sutter is in, and Eck is in, Smith should be, too.