#301 Darrell Brandon - Seattle Pilots

Darrell G. Brandon
Seattle Pilots
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'2"  Weight:  200
Born:  July 8, 1940, Nacogdoches, TX
Signed:  Signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as an amateur free agent before 1959 season
Major League Teams:  Boston Red Sox 1966-1968; Seattle Pilots 1969; Minnesota Twins 1969; Philadelphia Phillies 1971-1973

Darrell "Bucky" Brandon played in parts of seven seasons in the majors, primarily as a reliever.  He found some success early in his career with the Red Sox, appearing in 40 games as a rookie in 1966 and pitching in 39 games for the Impossible Dream pennant-winning team in 1967.  Arm problems and a return to the minor leagues interrupted Brandon's big league career for the next three seasons.  In 1971, Brandon joined the Phillies where he was one of the club's most frequently used relievers for three years.  He'd retire in 1975 after a brief stint in Mexico.

1972 Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

Brandon was 28-37 with a 4.04 ERA in 228 big league games, recording 13 saves.  After his playing days he opened a pitching clinic in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, where one of his early students was future Dodgers' great Orel Hershiser.

Building the Set / Card #279
September 23, 2023 from The Philly Show (Ed's Old Baseball Cards)
Given the massive haul of 193 cards acquired for our 1969 Topps set at the March Philly Show, I held off on adding more cards throughout the summer of 2023.  We weren't even going to go to the Philly Show last September, but our oldest son's baseball tournament was rained out, and we found ourselves with a free weekend.  I wrote about the show originally over at The Phillies Room.

I added just 15 cards to our set build at this show, all from the same dealer, Ed's Old Baseball Cards out of the Buffalo area.  Technically, the cards I bought were from Ed's associate, Gary, who explained he was along for the ride and brought a bunch of his vintage cards for sale.  I picked four needed star cards first, and Gary gave us a nice discount on the purchase, so we went back after securing a few autographs.  I picked 11 more commons and semi-stars from his modest selection of 1960s Topps cards for sale, including this Brandon card.  Posting for these 15 cards should take me a lot less longer than what it took to get through the box of cards brought home from the March 2023 Philly Show.

The Card / Pilots Team Set / Accuracy Index -8

Brandon is wearing a Red Sox uniform here, with the photo likely taken at the same time as the photo used for his 1968 Topps card.  He'd be absent from Topps sets for the next two years before returning in 1972.  The back of the card references his time in the Houston system, and Brandon toiled with the Colt. 45s/Astros minor league teams between 1962 and 1965.

Accuracy Index:  Brandon receives a fairly standard -8 for the Red Sox jersey (-5) and blank hat (-3).

1969 Season
Brandon was left unprotected by the Red Sox for the expansion draft and selected by the Pilots as the 44th pick.  Between the major and minor leagues, he'd pitch for five different teams during the season.  With the Pilots, he was 0-1 with an 8.40 ERA in eight appearances, including one start on May 4th.  Brandon was sold to the Twins on July 8th, and relieve in three games with the club, pitching just 3 1/3 innings.

Phillies Career

After spending the entire 1970 season pitching for the top farm team in the White Sox system, Brandon was traded to the Phillies on January 12, 1971 for infielder Rick Joseph (#329).  Over the next three seasons, Brandon would pitch in 130 games for the Phillies, the most of any of his four major league stops.  He made a career-high 52 appearances in 1971, leading all Phillies' relievers.  He was 7-7 with a 3.45 ERA for the 1972 Phillies, one of the worst teams in recent franchise history, saved primarily by Steve Carlton's (#255) 27-win season.

Brandon was back in the bullpen for the 1973 season, making 36 appearances but seeing his ERA balloon to 5.43.  He'd spend all of 1974 pitching for the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens, then the Phillies' top farm team, and despite a respectful 2.97 ERA in 46 games pitched, the Phillies didn't call him up at any point throughout the season.  Over three full seasons, Brandon was 15-17 with a 4.06 ERA for the Phillies, throwing 243 2/3 innings and earning eight saves.  He appears in the 1972 and 1973 Topps sets with the Phillies.

1966 Topps #456

1967 Topps #117

1968 Topps #26

1972 Topps #283

1973 Topps #326

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1966 Topps #456
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (6):  1966-1969, 1972-1973
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1990 Pacific Senior League #44
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  29 in the Beckett online database as of 4/16/24.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
The Phillies Room

#300 Felipe Alou - Atlanta Braves / #302 Jim Pagliaroni - Oakland Athletics