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Ronald George Brand
Montreal Expos
Catcher
Born: January 13, 1940, Los Angeles, CA
Signed: Signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as an amateur free agent before 1958 season
Major League Teams: Pittsburgh Pirates 1963; Houston Astros 1965-68; Montreal Expos 1969-71
Ron Brand played in parts of eight seasons with the Pirates, Astros and Expos primarily as a back-up catcher to John Bateman (#138), as the two were teammates between 1965 and 1971. Selected by Houston in the rule 5 draft prior to the 1965 season, Brand served as Bateman's back-up before taking over the position full-time in mid-May. He resumed his back-up role for the next three seasons with the Astros before being selected 58th by the Expos in the 1968 expansion draft. Bateman had previously been selected with the Expos' third pick. While Bateman was the first catcher in Expos history, Brand ended up starting more games than Bateman in 1969 with 79 to Bateman's 64. The arrangement lasted a few more seasons, with Brand also spending time in the infield and outfield, before he was released by the Expos following the 1972 season. Brand would later serve as a player/manager for the Class A Bakersfield Dodgers in 1975.
In 568 career games, Brand batted .239 with three home runs and 106 RBIs. And while he appeared in 349 games behind the plate, he also made a significant amount of appearances at shortstop (41 games), third base (26 games) and in the outfield (21 games).
Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1965 Topps blog.
Building the Set / Card #468
December 15, 2024 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards)
On Sunday, December 15th, Doug and I attended the latest Philly Show, spaciously spread out inside Hall A of the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania. I wrote a full show report over at The Phillies Room, including some thoughts on attending the show with our oldest son, who first graced the Philly Show floors back in 2012.
The Card / Expos Team Set / Accuracy Index +10
1969 Season
As the most frequently used catcher in the Expos' inaugural season, Brand batted .258 with 12 doubles, nary a home run and 20 RBIs. He batted .262 as a starter and just .208 as a pinch-hitter or late inning replacement. On July 5th, Brand went 4 for 4 with a pair of doubles against the Phillies at Connie Mack Stadium.
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1964 Topps #326
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (8): 1964-66, 1968-72
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1978 TCMA The 1960s I #41
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 36 in the Beckett online database as of 2/17/25.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / Wikipedia
December 15, 2024 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards)
On Sunday, December 15th, Doug and I attended the latest Philly Show, spaciously spread out inside Hall A of the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania. I wrote a full show report over at The Phillies Room, including some thoughts on attending the show with our oldest son, who first graced the Philly Show floors back in 2012.
Having had success the prior two shows at Uncle Dick's Cards with his well-organized, neon common binders, I opted to pull up a chair once again at the friendly dealer's array of tables. The aim was simple: Clear out Uncle Dick's 1969 Topps commons, starting off where I had left off the year before with card #501 and going through the end of the set, card #664. In less than 25 minutes, I completed my quest, and this is the 24th of 98 commons pulled from the binder. After a generous dealer discount due to my bulk purchase, this card cost me less than a dollar.
The Card / Expos Team Set / Accuracy Index +10
Brand is modeling the classic "catcher poses for a baseball card" pose by ripping off his mask and attempting to locate a pop-up. The chest protector all but covers up the new Expos' uniform, and eagle-eyed collectors would notice the Expos had a pinwheel effect with their hats, as the blue from the back of the hat is visible given Brand had turned it backwards. I'm guessing the photo used for his 1970 Topps card was taken at the same time as this photo. The write-up on the back of the card speaks to Brand's versatility in the field.
Accuracy Index: Brand's card scores a high +10 for the expansion uniform, although it's mostly hidden.
1969 Season
As the most frequently used catcher in the Expos' inaugural season, Brand batted .258 with 12 doubles, nary a home run and 20 RBIs. He batted .262 as a starter and just .208 as a pinch-hitter or late inning replacement. On July 5th, Brand went 4 for 4 with a pair of doubles against the Phillies at Connie Mack Stadium.
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First Mainstream Card: 1964 Topps #326
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (8): 1964-66, 1968-72
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1978 TCMA The 1960s I #41
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 36 in the Beckett online database as of 2/17/25.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / Wikipedia
Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
1965 Topps Blog
1965 Topps Blog
#548 Bob Locker - Chicago White Sox / #550 Brooks Robinson - Baltimore Orioles
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