pinch hitters get their due - the jim thome card that should have been (and still might be)

with the arrival of jim thome in los angeles as the designated pinch hitter, it brings to mind the question of position on his 2010 cards. since 1974, 'dh' has been an acceptable position for players, including thome as seen on this 2009 upper deck o-pee-chee card.'ph' is a bit different. even manny mota, one of the best pinch hitters ever, was listed as an outfielder (and coach) on his last card, a 1981 donruss.this despite the fact that all 7 of his appearances in 1980 were as a pinch hitter. using the pinch hitter position is not unprecendented, though. take a look at lloyd mcclendon's 1992 donruss card.in 1991, mcclendon had 183 at bats including 33 as a pinch hitter, yet donruss deemed it more fitting to list him as a pinch hitter. fair enough.

and then there is perhaps the most famous pinch hitter in dodgers history: kirk gibson, who was given the title of an all star ph on this 1989 topps card.so, it would seem that we might expect to see 'ph' on thome's cards next year. heck, we could see it this year with the topps traded release. wouldn't it be nice if upper deck would update their o-pee-chee issue with this card?awesome. and even though he's only 1 for 6 so far with the dodgers as the designated pinch hitter, gibson showed that it only takes one to make it count.