The front: Great action shot, with what looks to be the
distinctive red fences of Milwaukee County Stadium. Oliver had one hit, a
double, in ten at-bats in two day games against the Brewers in 1980.
The back: Oliver’s impressive hitting statistics take up the
whole back.
The player: A lifetime .303 hitter, Oliver hit over .300 for
nine straight seasons, from 1976 to 1984. He was a seven-time all-star, and hit
219 HR over his eighteen year career, reaching 20 twice. He retired after the
1985 season after no-one signed him, which he claims was due to collusion. He
has said that if allowed to sign with another team, he would have gotten 3000
hits and would thus have made the Hall of Fame. However, in 1986 he was going
to be 39 years old, was 257 hits away from 3000, and had only 197 in the
previous two years. So his odds of getting to 3000 if he signed somewhere in
1986 were still quite slim.
The man: He is now a licensed minister and the Chairman of
Deacons at Beulah Baptist Church in his hometown of Portsmouth, OH.
My collection: I have 38 of his cards, from 1969 to 1986. I
would be interested in trading for 1970 Topps #166, 1972 Topps #575 and 1975
Topps #555.
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