Doug Can't Bair One More Trade
Unless the Mets are coming back to Three Rivers -- then he's in!
1978 Topps Doug Bair (#353) - Card of the Day
Doug Bair is one of those mostly forgotten players who holds different memories for different types of fans.
If you were a Reds fan as they transitioned from the Big Red Machine to the dark days of the early 1980s, you might remember him as a member of the 1979 division winners. Or the 1981 club that should have made the postseason, but didn’t.
Or if you were a Cardinals fan right after that, you might remember Bair from the 1982 world champs.
Or if you were a baseball fan at all in 1984, you might recall that he was part of that great Detroit Tigers team that steamrolled the sport all season long and through the World Series.
Sure, his 5-3 record and 3.75 ERA was a modest contribution, and he didn’t even take the mound during the ALCS, but he was part of history, nonetheless. Heck, Bair even got two outs in the seventh inning of Game 2 in the Fall Classic, Detroit’s only loss that October.
And if you were a collector or a transaction-wire junkie in the early 1990s, you might even remember that Bair ended up playing for seven teams in his big league career.
What might be a bit less obvious is that Bair’s major league ride started with the Pirates in 1976, five years after they drafted him out of Bowling Green State University. Four appearances that September yielded an 0-0 record, a 5.68 ERA…and a trade to the Oakland A’s.
It was a monster deal that saw Bair, Tony Armas, Dave Giusti, Rick Langford, Doc Medich, and Mitchell Page head to the Oakland Athletics while Chris Batton, Phil Garner, and Tommy Helms landed in Pittsburgh.
With superstars like Sal Bando, and Joe Rudi following Reggie Jackson and Catfish Hunter out of town (and Vida Blue soon to join those ranks), the A’s spun immediately out of their glory years and into a rebuild — or more like a do-nothing.
That gave Bair a window, and he made the Opening Day roster. Alas, he was back in the minors after posting a 14.85 ERA in four appearances. He’d be back in the majors by July, though, and he stuck.
In all, he put together a solid rookie season that yielded a 4-6 record with a 3.46 ERA and eight saves in 28 big league appearances. That performance was good enough to send Bair packing again before the 1978 season.
In February, the Reds sent Dave Revering and moolah to Oakland in exchange for the 28-year-old right-hander.
A month or so later, Bair’s rookie card started popping out of wax packs across the land, greeting young collectors with an unreadable expression and a moment-in-time player-team matchup.
As things turned out, Bair would have an encore in Oakland, returning to the A’s for one more summer in 1986 on his way between the Cardinals (for the second time) and the Phillies.
That second Bay-area go-round yielded a more chipper Bair on his 1987 Fleer card (#386):
And today’s a good day to smile with and about Doug Bair, considering it’s his 75th birthday.
A Bair of a Coincidence
Bair’s first major league appearance was a two-inning relief stint for the Pirates against the Mets at Three Rivers Stadium. He was the third and final pitcher for the Bucs on September 13, 1976.
Bair’s final major league appearance was a two-inning relief stint for the Pirates against the Mets at Three Rivers Stadium. He was the third and final pitcher for the Bucs on October 3, 1976.
The Pirates lost both games.
Pittsburgh’s starter in the first contest was Larry Demery, who came into the game with a 10-4 record and a 2.84 ERA. He didn’t win the rest of the season and struggled in 1977, his final year in the bigs.
Read more about Demery and his snazzy 1978 Topps card right here.
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So now we know we need to look for coincidences whenever the Mets show up at Three Rivers, which would of course be a real trick these days. I mean, really, where have all the cookie cutters gone??
Wherever they are, I’m sure they’re still dazzling the local patrons with that ethereally green turf of theirs. It’s the color of 1980s baseball fan dreams.
Thanks for reading.
—Adam
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