Random Topps Card of the Day: 1974 Topps #48 Dick Sharon

It's Retro Sunday!!! Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Sunday, January 2, 2011:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1974 Topps #48.
• Player Name, position, team: Dick Sharon, outfielder, Detroit Tigers.
• Major League Debut: May 13, 1973.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1973 stats (Tigers): 178 AB, 43 H, 9 2B, 0 3B, 7 HR, 16 RBI, .242 AVG.
• Any special information about players: Drafted by the Pirates, #1st, June 1968. Bats: right. Throws: right.
• Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 2. This is his rookie card.
• Blurb on the back: "Was All-League in baseball, basketball, & football in high school. Originally signed with the Pirates as a third baseman. Has excellent baseball instincts."
• Commentary: One look at the 1974 Topps design, and you have no idea what would be unleashed to the masses the following season. The design is simple, with many elements that would be continued to be used by the Topps Company in years to come, specifically, the colored ribbons that hold the city or team, the oval photo, and the team-colored border surrounding said picture. The 1974 Topps set is infamous for one of the company's greatest miscalculations (the Padres possible move to Washington, DC, led the company to replace San Diego with Washington Nat'l on a number of Padres players). Here is Dick Sharon at the cages before that evening's game, and in a unique batting pose, points the bat in the direction of the cameraman as if he's aiming a rifle (he even has the wink one uses when aiming to focus). Maybe he's indicating where he's going to hit the ball in that evening's game, although by the looks of things, he's aiming for foul territory. The back of the card includes a cartoon indicating that Dick "gets a great jump on the ball in the outfield." as the player is literally jumping on the ball. And he was a decent fielder, playing all three outfield positions and contributed in five assists to go with a .970 fielding percentage. He was named the Tiger's "Rookie of the Year" after the 1973 season.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.20-$0.50.
• How many cards of each player do I own?: 0 cards.

In case you're actually wondering, I don't own this card, but was able to get a crystal clean copy of the image from the from the Baseball Card Cyber Museum. So thank you Joe McAnally and the folks at the BCCM. (You have to stop by and visit them now. They just announced that they are allowing more people to enter the museum at one time.)

Well, it's back to normal on Monday. Tomorrow's card will be: 1994 Topps Traded #92. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Come on back then to see what the Topps Card Randomizer gets us to look at then.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama