longtime orioles backstop rick dempsey signed as a free agent with the cleveland indians in february of 1987. here is his 1987 o-pee-chee card:
here's the topps front:
now the o-pee-chee back:
and the topps back:
the 1983 world series mvp was coming off of a year in which he set a career high (for the third year in a row) in home runs, although his rbi total and batting average had dropped significantly. still, the indians did not likely expect dempsey to hit only .177 with just 1 home run in 60 games. unfortunately, that's what he did. although he was released at the end of the season, dempsey did not appear in a game for the indians after july 21st.
still, fred claire saw something and added dempsey to the dodgers' roster for the 1988 season. in la, dempsey enjoyed a comeback season of sorts, hitting .251 with 7 home runs in 77 games as he helped the dodgers win the world series.
voici à vous, 1987 rick dempsey!
