1990 jim gott

jim gott left the pirates and joined the dodgers as a free agent in december of 1989.  here's his 1990 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

once in la, he was a standout in the bullpen for some very forgettable, and i'll be honest - bad, dodger teams.  he allowed less than a third of his inherited runners to score, while maintaining an era in the twos for most of his dodger career.  he even spent a single season (1993) as the dodgers' primary closer, and saved 25 games in that role.  things fell apart in 1994, however, as his era ballooned to over 5.  after that season, he became a free agent and wound up re-signing with the pirates once the strike ended

voici à vous, 1990 jim gott!

1985 jim gott

jim gott was traded by the blue jays to the giants for gary lavelle in early 1985. here is his 1985 o-pee-chee card

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

let me start by saying that these are the types of variations i enjoy the most - the ones with the most color clash. awesome. gott had been used primarily as a starter in his days in toronto, and the giants used him in that role exclusively in 1985. however, a couple seasons later, the giants converted gott into a reliever and he spent the rest of his career setting up and closing out games. gott made his national league debut against the dodgers in 1985, singling in his second career at bat and earning the win over jerry reuss. later that same season, he hit two home runs in a game off of bob forsch of the cardinals.

i appreciate how topps points out gott's karate hobby before mentioning ballet and opera interests.  i am sure this saved many a person from a hapikido beatdown.

voici à vous, 1985 jim gott!