1981 Topps Clint Hurdle

The front: Swinging for the fences at Yankee Stadium. Must be July 20, when the Royals roughed up Ron Guidry and two relievers, 14-3. Hurdle went 2 for 3, both singles.

The back: The inside-the-parker came a week later in Kansas City off of Luis Tiant. The Royals won that game too, 6-1.

The player: Hurdle was a highly touted prospect for the Royals who never really clicked. 1980 was by far his best season. After a disappointing 1981 he was traded to the Reds, for whom he played in just 19 games. He then bounced around the Mets and Cardinals, but he kept picking the wrong team each year (Mets in ’85 and ’87 when the Cardinals won the pennant, Cardinals in ’86 when the Mets won the pennant). Overall in 515 games he hit .259 with 32 HR and 193 RBI.

The man: Hurdle has gone on to a long managerial career, attempting to wring out wins from some small-market, limited-talent teams, most notably winning a pennant with the Rockies in 2007. He has now managed sixteen seasons without a first-place finish (though he has won three wild cards). In 2018 he steered the Pirates to a fourth place finish with an 82-79 winning percentage.

My collection: I have 14 of his cards, from 1978 to 1987. I would be interested in trading for 1982 Coca-Cola Reds #10.