Random Topps Card of the Day: 1989 Topps Traded #80T Larry McWilliams

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Saturday, June 8, 2013:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1989 Topps Traded #80T.
• Player Name, position, team: Larry McWilliams, pitcher, Pittsburgh Pirates.
• Major League Debut: July 17, 1978.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1988 stats (Cardinals): 42 G, 136 IP, 6-9, 64 R, 59 ER, 70 SO, 45 BB, 17 GS, 2 CG, 1 SHO, 1 SV, 3.90 ERA.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Braves #1st, June 1974. Signed with the Phillies as a Free Agent 01/30/1989. Bats: left. Throws: left.
• Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 12. This is his twelfth and final Topps card.
• Blurb on the back: "His first major league Two-Hitter: 9-18-81."
• Commentary: Now this is more like it. Because the Topps Traded set was printed on white card stock (at least the sets sold at Hobby shops everywhere), you can actually read the statistics on the back a lot better than on the regular grey-stock printed cards. The pink background really helps, although the black borders still are condition sensitive. Larry McWilliams 1985 Topps card was a previous Random Card of the Day subject, so today's commentary will be a brief summary of his 1989 season. Long past his glory days with the Pirates in the early 80's, McWilliams signed with the Phillies in 1989 after a subpar year with St. Louis. In 40 games, 21 as a starter, McWilliams had a record of 2-11, 2 saves, an ERA of 4.10, 54 strikeouts, and a WHIP of 1.425 in 120.2 innings pitched. Needless to say, his stay in Philly was a disaster. So much so that by September 2, long after the trading deadline, McWilliams was traded to the Kansas City Royals for a player-to-be-named-later. He appeared in 8 games for KC, earning a 2-2 record, one save, 4.13 ERA, and 24 strikeouts in 32.2 innings of work. In 1990, the Royals released McWilliams after appearing in 13 games. In 8.1 innings, Larry's year ended with a high ERA of 9.72 (9 earned runs) and a WHIP of 2.280.
• Beckett value: $0.01-$0.05.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 13 cards.

Tomorrow is Retro Sunday, the one day of the week that we feature a card from 1951-1975. The card we will feature tomorrow is: 1973 Topps #621. Come back at 1:00 PM CST to see who (or what) it is.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama