I thought I would take a moment to share a couple more 2005 Upper Deck SPx autograph cards of some former Dodgers. Check out the DJ Houlton and Cesar Izturis cards above and below.
There was a time when I was sure Izturis would be our long term solution at shortstop. In 2004 he had a big season where he continued to shine on the field, but also added a little spark with the bat. He hit .288 and had a respectable OPS of .770 as a lead-off hitter. Izturis had nearly 200 hits while stealing 25 bases and scoring 90 times. For his efforts the Dodgers signed him to a mutli-year/ multimillion dollar contract. However, it was obvious by the next season that 2004 was a career year. He came back to earth offensively, and was subsequently traded in 2006 for Greg Maddux.
DJ Houlton could never quite stick. Not that the Dodgers didn't give him a bunch of opportunities. He started 19 games in 2005, but looked no better then an end of the rotation pitcher. Ultimately, he was a stopgap until someone better came along. Today, Houlton has found his grove in Japan. He has played there since 2008. In five season in Japan he has a 47-33 record with a 3.32 ERA.
No comments:
Post a Comment