Chuck Dobson (#438)

Here's another last look at a Kansas City Athletics' player. I really like these A’s cards – it's sad to see the mess Topps created in the 1968 set after the team moved to Oakland.

This looks like a Spring Training shot, with palm trees behind the fence. His rookie card in 1966 (below) shows him in the same location.

Chuck Dobson was signed by the Athletics late in 1964. After one game in the Florida Instructional League that year and splitting the 1965 season between A and AA ball, he debuted with the Athletics at the start of the 1966 season. His first major-league appearance was to start Kansas City's final home opener on April 19th, where he collected his first career win.

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Dobson was one of several youngsters who made up the Athletics' starting rotation for the next few years. He teamed with Catfish Hunter, Blue Moon Odom, and (for the first few seasons) Jim Nash and Lew Krausse. In the early 1970s they would be joined by Vida Blue.

Chuck won between 10 and 16 games every season from 1966 to 1971. He missed all of 1972 due to elbow surgery, and spent all of 1973 in the minors, only pitching 1 game that year for Oakland (on 9/25).

Released by the Athletics during Spring Training in 1974, he hooked on with a Mexican League team until the California Angels came calling in late-June.

Although he pitched a few games for the Angels in '74 and '75, he spent most of 1974-76 pitching for their AAA team, before retiring.