1977 Topps Baseball #197 - Ed Ott

• Ed Ott was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1970. Ed was 18 when he started playing in A ball in 1970. He stayed at the single-A level through the 1972 season and then spent three years (1973-1975) at AAA Charleston. Ott had two short looks by the Pirates in 1974 (0 for 5 in 7 games) and in 1975 (1 for 5 in 5 games).
• Ott stayed with the Pirates for the entire 1976 season, but he wasn't used much. Ed batted .308 (12 for 39) in 27 games.
• Ed split time with Duffy Dyer behind the plate in 1977 and batted .264 in 104 games.
• Ott batted .269 with 9 HR and 38 RBI as the starting catcher in 1978.
• Ed had his best year and was part of the "We Are Family" Pirates in 1979. He batted .273 with 7 HR and 51 RBI during the regular season. He didn't do a lot in the NLCS (3 for 13 in 3 games), but Ed went 4 for 12 (.333) in three games in the World Series.
• Ott played in a career-high 120 games in 1980 and batted .260 with 6 HR and 33 RBI.
• Just before the 1981 season Ott was traded to the California Angels for Jason Thompson and Mickey Mahler. Ed caught the majority of the games for the Angels in the strike-shortened season, but batted only .217 in 75 games.
• Ott injured his rotator cuff during spring training in 1982 and missed the entire season. Ed tried to come back and played two seasons in the minors, but his major career was done.
• After his playing career Ott coached and managed in the minor leagues. He also coached with the Houston Astros from 1989-1993.
• Here is a 2010 interview with Ed.
• 1977 Stats: .264, 7 HR, 38 RBI in 104 games
• 1977 Highlights:
• Aug 10 - Appeared as a pinch hitter and hit a sacrifice fly to win the game for the Pirates. Pittsburgh beat the Chicago Cubs 2-1 in 18 innings.
• Aug 12 - Made a hard slide into New York 2B Felix Millan to break up a double play. Millan shouted at Ott and hit him with the baseball. Ott responded by body slamming Millan into the turf. Millan hurt his shoulder and his career was essentially over.
• Sept 23 - Hit a 2-run homer to account for the only scoring in a 2-0 Pirate victory over the Chicago Cubs. Only 3,757 fans attended the game at Wrigley Field.
• Other card blogs: 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983