Bud Anderson Broke Hobby Bounds
Dude just couldn't stay on his own card
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1983 Topps Bud Anderson (#367) - Card of the Day
It took Bud Anderson a while to find his way to the major leagues, and he didn’t stick around long once he got there. But he made the most of his limited time in the bigs, at least from a hobby perspective.
One of the Mariners’ original draft picks in 1977 (third round), Anderson became the player to be named later in March 1980, when the M’s sent Rob Pietroburgo and Rafael Vasquez to the Indians for Ted Cox.
In the meantime, he was making starts in the minors, with his ERA climbing at each step up the ladder. After more of the same — a 4.15 ERA at Double A in 1980 — the Indians reset their plans.
In 1981, Anderson made 41 appearances between Double and Triple A, but only 13 of them were starts. In the process, he lowered his ERA to 2.68, which got him a full season with the Triple-A Charleston Charlies in 1982, along with a promotion back into the rotation.
Despite a 1-5 record and a so-so 3.68 ERA, Anderson got the call to Cleveland before midseason and stayed there the rest of the summer. He went 3-4 with a 3.35 ERA in 25 games that included a complete game in five starts.
That performance earned Anderson a spot back in the minors to start 1983, but also a rookie card in the iconic 1983 Topps set, as you see at the top of this post. Anderson didn’t languish too long on the farm, either, making his way back to Cleveland before June.
The results were a little less promising this time around, as Anderson put up a 1-6 record with a 4.08 ERA in 39 appearances that included just one start. That would spell the end of Anderson’s major league career at age 27, but he wasn’t quite done in the hobby.
Indeed, Anderson found a home in all three 1984 sets. And if you’re looking for a bonus Bud Anderson card?
Well, then, you might want to check out 1983 Fleer Ed Glynn (#408):
(You can read more about Glynn and his baseball cards in this post.)
Today, Bud Anderson turns 68 years old.
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Boston Bat Booster
Anderson’s last appearance in the majors was a start on the last day of the 1983 season against the Red Sox in Boston. Both teams had already been eliminated from postseason consideration, but there were still some personal marks on the line…and Anderson lent a hand with those.
Though he didn’t give up a run in the first two innings, Anderson did walk Wade Boggs in the first. That helped Chicken Man tighten his hold on the major-league lead in on-base percentage.
Another walk to Boggs following a one-out double from Jerry Remy got things cooking for the BoSox in the third inning, though. Jim Rice smashed a three-run home run to put Boston up 3-1, and that’s how the game would end.
That was Rice’s 39th bomb, extending his league lead to make sure he stayed ahead of teammate Tony Armas (36 home runs).
Rice had a powerful, often frightening swing, but Topps managed to catch him in the off-balance, pretzeled shot above in their 1982 Topps set. You can read more about this specimen, and see more of Rice’s cards, in this post.
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Hey, it just occurred to me that today is Memorial Day — I tend to put these posts together a bit in advance, and those obvious connections aren’t always so obvious to me ahead of time.
So, if you want some baseball content that fits the occasion a bit more snugly, you could always revisit my rundown of Vietnam veteran Garry Maddox’s on-field heroics on Memorial Day in 1980.
Of course, you can also get some Red, White, and Blue filling from the 1976 Hostess set, or this article about said sweet cardboard.
See you tomorrow, and thanks for reading.
—Adam