Wednesday, May 15, 2013

#55 Darrell Evans






As a Giant's fan since the late 70's Darrell Evans has always ranked as one of the most frustrating players I've ever seen. Having a superb batting eye he could walk, in an off year,  80 times in a season sometimes even receiving as many as 126 as he did in Atlanta in 1974. He also had a .248 career batting average and 414 homers (its a typo on the back of the card adding 10 more homers to his career totals) but with that ability to get walks and his power those are two numbers it was always difficult to understand why he didn't hit at least .265 to .270 and knock out 500 homers. 
Drafted by the Kansas City Athletics in 1967 he was taken by the Braves in the 1968 Rule 5 Draft. His breakthrough season came in 1973 when he hit .281 with 41 home runs and 104 RBI's-both of which were career highs. Evans also had an awe-inspiring WAR of 9.0! A high he wouldn't really get close to again.  Hitting 47 homers over the next two years he was sent to San Francisco in 1976 in a mid-season multi-player deal that sent Willie Montanez to the Braves. With the Giants he hit his Giant's career high with 20 homers twice in 1978 and 1980 along with his best RBIs of 78 in those two years. However, those numbers were surpassed in the final year of his Giant's contract in 1983 with 30 home runs and 82 RBI"s and his first All-Star Game appearance since his monster 1973 season. 
Signing with the Tigers for the 1984 season Evans struggled in his new league as the 37 year-old his just 16 homers and drove in only 63 runs. In the postseason he hit .300 with an RBI in the League Championship Series which the Tigers swept the Royals in three. In the World Series he only hit .067 with another lone RBI against the Padres who were defeated in five games and Evans won himself a World Series Ring. In 85 he had a great season hitting 40 homers and driving in 94.  A good 87 saw the Tigers lose to the Twins while Evans hit .294 but had no RBI's or runs scored.
Signing with the Braves for 89 he was a reserver who hit just .207 but added 11 homers in his final season making this card his final one and also contains all his career numbers.  

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