Random Topps Card of the Day: 1978 Topps #306 Joe Niekro

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Saturday, January 15, 2011:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1978 Topps #306.
• Player Name, position, team: Joe Niekro, pitcher, Houston Astros.
• Major League Debut: April 16, 1967.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1977 stats (Astros): 44 G, 181 IP, 13-8, 66 R, 61 ER, 101 SO, 64 BB, 3.03 ERA.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Cubs, #3rd, June 1966 (Special). Traded by the Braves to the Astros 04/05/1975. Bats: right. Throws: right.
• Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 23. This is his twelfth card.
• Blurb on the back: "Joe had 5 Saves for Astros in 1977."
• Commentary: The 1978 has now become a classic in its own right, its' blandness being its most endearing quality. A simple design, most distinguished by the fonts and colors used for the team name. The baseball that holds the player's position looks like it's ready to bean Niekro as he takes his pose. Although this Niekro brother did not have the career his big brother had, he did have his best seasons with the Astros in 1979 and 1980. An All-Star in 1979, he led the NL in wins with a 21-11 record, and finished second in the Cy Young voting. In 1980, he again reached the 20 win plateau, going 20-12 with 127 K's. Niekro, who passed away in 2006, is the father of Lance Niekro, who played for the Giants between 2005 and 2007.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.25-$0.60.
• How many cards of each player do I own?: 17 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: 1957 Topps #219. Come back at 1:00 PM CST to see who (or what) it is.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama