In celebration of the USA’s Independence Day, we figured why not use the nation’s most-celebrated Patriot (at least on the athletic field)?
Say hello to what might have been, if only future Pro Football Hall of Famer Tom Brady had taken the Montreal Expos up on their generous offer to an 18th round draft pick in 1995. (The club was rumored to have offered him a signing bonus similar to that of a late second or early third-round draft choice.)
Brady, of course, chose to attend the University of Michigan on a football scholarship and things worked out OK for the 7-time Super Bowl champion quarterback.
The photo used today is from a Bowman Chrome baseball card produced by the Topps Company in 2023. The story, however, gets better. Because Brady never signed with the Expos and never, so far as anyone is aware, even tried on a cap, this image on the card is, understandably, Photoshopped.
After some sleuthing by eagle-eyed trading card afficianados, it is now presumed Brady’s face was placed on the body of 14-season Major League catcher, Darrin Fletcher. Check out the video below from “Junk Wax Hero” to see who actually might be standing next to Brady when his image was repurposed from a separate photo. As for the picture of Fletcher pounding his catcher’s glove, it seems to have been taken prior to a game played April 10, 1993, against the Colorado Rockies at Mile High Stadium (the second-ever home game for the Rockies); Fletcher did not play.
Two other fun facts about Brady, the Expos, and his card:
- First, Brady signed a limited edition 1/1 of this card that sold at auction for $158,600. The highest price ever recorded at auction for an Expos uniformed player. A figure, by the way, that’s just over $10,000 less than what Darrin Fletcher earned for the 1993 season ($170,000).
- Second, when Brady retired a second time from the NFL in 2023, he became the final Montreal Expos draft pick to retire from a professional playing career.
Just to review, The Fan Teaser was the creation of former Ann Arbor News Sports Editor Geoff Larcom. Longtime friend and fellow Ann Arbor News alum, Pat Schutte, took it to heights previously unknown. We aim to keep it alive here at The Sports Fan Project. The cropped photo and the accompanying clue give you an idea as to who or what the image is of. We invite you to use the Comment option to take a crack at solving the Teaser and, if you’re so inclined, participate in some good-spirited banter with your fellow sports fans. The Fan Teaser will appear each Friday morning with the reveal coming to you Sunday.
Probably one the Fan Teaser Puzzler!