it would have been cool if bob bailor had worn number 22

that's because bill buckner and brett butler both wore the double deuces.  this bb, however, opted for number 21 - the number he wore with baltimore before the blue jays made him their first pick in the 1976 expansion draft.  i guess that's ok - bob bailey wore 12 and 7 for the dodgers in the late 1960's, bill bean wore number 40 in 1989, and brian barnes was number 52 in his short stint for the dodgers in 1994, so maybe it's not as big of a trend as i thought.  

bailor, seen here on his 1986 topps card that he graciously signed for me through the mail a couple of years ago, 

did not appear in the team's first game, but soon established himself as their regular centerfielder and then their regular shortstop.  after four seasons in toronto, bailor was traded to the mets and eventually was dealt to the dodgers in the sid fernandez deal prior to the 1984 season.

bailor also included a card of his own - a 1984 coke dodgers postcard - that he signed as well.

and, he also signed the 1978 topps card that i had sent along with the '86.

bailor was first featured as a dodger in the 1984 topps traded set, a fact that i find unfortunate.  with the trade between the mets and the dodgers taking place in december of 1983, it's too bad o-pee-chee didn't include bailor in their 1984 set.  if they had, his card would have looked like this:

instead, the dodgers were left without a team/text variation in the set (mike vail was included in the o-pee-chee set, but didn't become a dodger until june).

that 1986 card up top was actually a final tribute, as bailor was released by the dodgers in the spring of 1986.  he singled and drove in a run in his final regular season at bat, but flew out in his final big league at bat which came in the 1985 nlcs.

here's to you bob bailor, and thanks for signing my cards!