Player: Willie Randolph
Set: 1976 Topps
Card Number: 592
Why is This Card a Must Have?: Simply put, it’s because I’m a Yankee fan. What I liked about Willie, was the lack of flash. He simply came to work every day and got a hit or two when you needed it the most. I actually had forgotten that he came up with the Pirates. He was part of the trade that included Doc Ellis and Ken Brett (George’s brother) to the Yankees for Doc Medich. He did have a very solid career, where he had over 2200 hits, 6 All Star appearances, and a Silver Slugger award. The one thing he never had was pop. He averaged about 7 homers a season, stole about 15 bases a season, and hit about 0.276. Sounds boring, but he defensive ability was outstanding . What’s interesting is that 3 of his top ten in comparisons on Baseball Reference are in the Hall of Fame. Willie doesn’t deserve to be there, but it does put him in with some elite company.
On a Scale of 1 to 10, How Must Have Is This Card?: A 2, it’s not a truly significant card, but it’s needed to call your set the definitive collection. He wasn’t a superstar, but he was a very solid player. Go get it on eBay for $1.
I agree…seeing Willie as a Pirate is just weird.