The front: Pettini was traded from the Expos to the Giants
in spring training; the photo is an airbrush of his Expos uniform. They also
airbrushed out part of his muttonchop sideburns. Pettini told mlb.com in an
article about this card: “What was my reaction? Yuck. . . . I was so excited to
get my first card and to have that one come out was kind of a shock.”
The back: Pettini also takes issue with the back of this
card. "That's the other thing: how in the hell did that ever get on there?
I played the saxophone when I was like 6 or 7. I haven't picked it up since
then, but I do play the guitar and a little bit of piano."
The player: Pettini played in parts of four seasons in the
majors for the Giants, hitting .203 with 1 HR and 20 RBI in 188 games.
The man: Pettini was Tony LaRussa’s bench coach on the
Cardinals’ 2006 and 2011 World Championship teams. He now appears to be
retired.
My collection: I have six of his cards, from 1981 to 1984. I
would be interested in trading for 1985 Riley’s Louisville Redbirds #12.
That article is great! Interesting how Topps sent a photo along showing that Pettini didn't have a full beard, but that weirdly still there was airbrushing.
ReplyDeleteTopps must've got its research mixed up on the cartoon.
I had the pleasure of interviewing him a few years back. Funny guy.
ReplyDeleteWow! What was Topps issue with the sideburns? Great read.
ReplyDelete