Classic card of the week

Ed Lynch, 1987 Topps

You probably can’t tell from this picture, but Ed Lynch was ecstatic when he found out he was being traded from the New York Mets to the Chicago Cubs back in 1986. Seriously, he was thrilled. Amazingly, the Ed Lynch-less Mets went on to win the World Series, while the Cubs…didn’t. But that certainly wasn’t Ed Lynch’s fault – his sparkling 7-5 record and dazzling 3.79 ERA placed him 112th in the NL Cy Young vote that year. Not too shabby for a guy with four chins. It is stated on the back of this particular card that “Ed lists reading and sailing among his hobbies.” So, it’s fairly obvious that Ed Lynch was one wild mother – shut your mouth. Unfortunately, Lynch would later retract that statement, claiming he was misquoted. What he really liked was reading about sailing. He couldn’t actually get on a sailboat because he suffered from seasickness, asthma, and nosebleeds, plus the sun wasn’t good for his fair skin. Many in and around baseball at the time believe it was Lynch’s “party animal” nature that got him sent packing from the notoriously reserved ’86 Mets. Keith Hernandez would later elaborate: “Ed Lynch just didn’t fit into that clubhouse. Like, this one time, I was chopping up some blow on one of his stupid sailing books, and he walks in, and just starts staring at me. I mean staring, like with his face all scrunched up and stuff, chins all popping out, with a look that was like, ‘Keith, what are you doing with your life?’ And I was like, ‘You can’t judge ME, Ed Lynch! I’m Keith Hernandez!’ And then his nose started bleeding. But then so did mine, but for different reasons. It was kind of funny actually. I hated that guy.”

Did you know?
In return for Ed Lynch, the New York Mets received not having Ed Lynch on their roster anymore.