request fulfilled - the 1973 topps chris cannizzaro card that should have been

by request (way back on new year's day), here is the 1973 topps chris cannizzaro card that should have been.  johngy, this one's for you.

i could only find a black & white photo, and my colorizing skills are quite there yet, but it works in a pinch.  cannizzaro, as johngy pointed out, started more games at catcher (59) for the dodgers in 1972 than any other player.  duke sims was second, followed by steve yeager, dick dietz, and joe ferguson.  while sims moved on to detroit in 1973 (and was featured as a tiger in the 1973 topps set), cannizzaro stayed in la.  the other three catchers mentioned, yeager, dietz, and ferguson (who took over the majority of the catching duties), all appeared as dodgers in the 1973 set.  so why not cannizzaro?

after the 1973 season (in which he appeared in just 17 games), the dodgers released cannizzaro.  he was not featured in topps' 1974 set, but was picked up by the astros and then purchased by the padres prior to the start of the 1974 season.  in san diego, cannizzaro appeared in a mere 26 games, but that was enough to earn a card in their 1975 set. just a horrific airbrushing job - on a final tribute card no less!

here's to you, the 1973 topps chris cannizzaro card that should have been!