A few minutes ago, I checked my email and found a trade proposal. One of my readers saw that I needed Ron Perranoski's card for my 1965 Topps set, and I had replied to him over the weekend to find out what he'd be looking for in return. Interestingly enough, his favorite player is/was Jim Dwyer, and it looks like I'll be able to fill a need in his player collection. Next I checked the Baseball Reference Bullpen's daily almanac to see if there were any Oriole-centric tidbits for January 3. As serendipitous coincidence would have it, today is "Pigpen" Dwyer's 61st birthday! It's also Monkton resident A.J. Burnett's birthday, but he's both a Yankee and a multimillionaire, so he gets nothing and likes it.
One more Jim Dwyer fun fact: the 2011 Hall of Fame class is being unveiled this Wednesday, and Bert Blyleven and Jack Morris are candidates who each have very ardent supporters. Dwyer was a contemporary of both players, and faced them many times. He batted 50 times against Morris, drawing 9 walks and hitting safely 12 times for a .300 average and .420 on-base percentage. In 28 trips to the plate against Blyleven, he managed only two walks and four hits (.154 AVG, .214 OBP). Make of that what you will.
