Airbrushed Fridays: 1987 Topps #383

Here's another one from reader Scott. At this point, people are going to start to wonder why he isn't on the Cards on Cards payroll. I've already got AJ doing banners for peanuts (er, spare Dodgers cards) and Erin as a consultant, after all.

Scott writes this about Ron Davis: "You can airbrush him into a different uniform, but you can't airbrush the stink of the 1986 season off of him." He then launched into a tirade about Ron's historically awful 1986 season that finally saw his exodus from the Minnesota Twins. He may not have been around for the Twins title season, but he still managed to get a contract nonetheless.

Why did Topps airbrush Ron's photo? Davis was acquired just six weeks prior to the end of the season, before what would now commonly be referred to as the non-waiver trading deadline. The former closer was traded in part for former Airbrushed Fridays subject Ray Fontenot and ex-Cardinal George Frazier.

What's wrong with this picture, anyway? Well, aside from the fact that it shows a lousy reliever - er, make that a lousy Cub reliever - it looks like this card got the watercolor treatment something fierce.

(If you are interested in obtaining a card featured here, please send me an e-mail. If you have a card you would like to nominate for Airbrushed Fridays, please get in touch as well. I will require that I am able to see the card in person, either on loan or as a donation, so that I can examine the card and experience it in all its cruddiness.)