Random Topps Card of the Day: 2007 Topps #567 Chris Stewart

(Before I begin, I'd like to wish my dad, Leslie, a very Happy Birthday. And many more.)

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Tuesday, April 30, 2013:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2007 Topps #567.
• Player Name, position, team: Chris Stewart, catcher, Texas Rangers.
• Major League Debut: September 6, 2006.
• Last Line of Statistics: 2006 stats (Charlotte, AAA-International League): 89 G, 272 AB, 40 R, 72 H, 17 2B, 3 3B, 4 HR, 28 RBI, 3 SB, 15 BB, 35 SO, .393 SLG, .707 OPS, .265 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the White Sox #12th, June 2001. Traded by the White Sox to the Rangers 01/12/2007. Bats: right. Throws: right.
• Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 1. This is his first Topps card.
• Blurb on the back: "In his first Major League start, Chris showed that all the talk about his defensive prowess was well-earned; he threw out Grady Sizemore on two attempted steals in a September 27, 2006 game at Cleveland. Before he was traded to Texas in '07, Stewart was named Best Defensive Catcher in the White Sox system in back-to-back years by Baseball America."
• Commentary: There are a few disadvantages that I have when scanning cards from the 2007 set. Because the cards utilize black borders, any chips or dings are easily noticeable. Also, because I use plastic holders whenever I scan cards I own and have done so since I started this humble little blog, the scanner picks up on all the scratches and other smudges that are on the holders. Maybe I need to buy new ones, I don't know. What were the White Sox thinking??! That A. J. Pierzynski was going to stay in the south side forever??! They traded their best catching prospect for a guy that hasn't even scratched the major leagues (for the record, pitcher John Lujan pitched for three seasons in the Sox' system before being traded to the Mets. He was last seen playing for los Diablos Rojos del Mexico in 2012). Christopher David Stewart made the Opening Day roster for the Rangers in 2007 as the team's backup catcher. In 17 games, Stewart hit a decent .243 (9-37) with 3 rbi's and an OPS of .597. But because the Rangers thought they could do better at catcher, they brought in Adam Milhaus in a trade from the A's, and demoted Stewart to Oklahoma City. He finished the season with the RedHawks, hitting for a .242 average, with 2 home runs and 21 rbi's in 45 games. He was released by the Rangers and signed on with the Yankees as a minor league free agent in 2008. He did appear in one game for the Yankees, filling in for an injured Jorge Posada, going 0-3 with a strikeout in his lone MLB appearance. Stewart re-signed to the White Sox as a minor league free agent, only to be traded back to the Yankees. After playing a full season with the Yankees' Triple A team in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2009, he signed with the Padres. He joined the team as a September call-up, but was DFA'd after the season ended. Refusing to return to the minors, he became a free agent. In 2011, he signed with the Giants, and remained on the team as Buster Posey's lower leg injury ended his season. He returned to the Yankees (his third run with the team) where he has remained as the second-string catcher ever since.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.20-$0.50.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 2.

Tomorrow's card will be: 2012 Topps #389. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. We're looking back at a card from 2012 here on the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama