Random Topps Card of the Day: 1995 Topps #542 Brian Anderson

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Tuesday, June 15, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1995 Topps #542.
• Player Name, position, team: Brian Anderson, pitcher, California Angels.
• Major League Debut: September 10, 1993.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1994 stats (Lake Elsinore-A): 2 G, 12 IP, 0-1, 4 R, 4 ER, 9 SO, 0 BB, 2 GS, 0 CG, 0 SHO, 0 SV, 3.00 ERA.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Angels #1st, June 1993. Bats: both, Throws: left.
• Any special information about this specific card: Anderson's second Topps card (total includes regular and traded cards only). The 1995 Topps set, what I like to call the torn pages set because of the edges of the picture (and the shadow behind it) was so popular, that Topps' football and basketball cards shared the same design. While Anderson (Brian James Anderson) did play for the Angels in 1994, he did have to spend a couple of days doing what looks like rehab work with the team's California League affiliate in Lake Elsinore. Because his stats with the Storm were the last line of statistics (his major league stats were above them), that's what I listed above. Either it was a really poor year for rookies in 1994 or Anderson had a great year as he was 6th in the ROY Voting, and as you can see by the big trophy on the card (bigger than usual, it seems), he was named as the LHP for Topps All-Star Rookie team in 1994. His stats for that year? In 18 games, he compiled a 7-5 record, an ERA of 5.22, and struck out 47 batters. The blurb on the back of the card, which includes the Mitsubishi Diamond Vision portrait...think scoreboard in the 1990's, an action shot, and the MLB Players and MLB Properties logo, suggests that the Angels "pace their rotation so Brian pitches on his birthday this year." The story is that on April 26, 1993, he pitched a shutout for his alma mater, Wright State. Exactly one year later, he pitched 8.2 innings to lead the Halos to a 3-0 shutout of the Yankees. In 1995, thanks to the strike and how the Angels set their rotation, Anderson didn't get to pitch until April 30. He is one of the rare players to be drafted and reach the majors in the same year. He continues his career in Cleveland, then is drafted by the Diamondbacks in the 1997 Expansion draft (their first pick, second overall), and later on goes on to play for the Indians and Royals before ending his career in 2005. He now works for the Tampa Bay Rays as an assistant to the pitching coach, in the Rays' front office, and fills in occasionally as a broadcaster for the Rays.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.05-$0.15.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 10 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1986 Topps #637. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. We're looking back at a card from 1986 here on the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama