Upgrade - 1964 Topps #286 Don Landrum - PSA 7 to PSA 8

I was able to upgrade one of my 1964 Cubs cards. I have replaced the PSA 7 Topps #286 Don Landrum with a PSA 8 version of the same card.

Don Landrum was an outfielder who had blazing speed but little in the way of offense. He was originally signed by the Phillies in 1954 and made his MLB debut for the Phillies in late 1957. In 1960, Landrum was traded by the Phillies to the Cardinals. After two years of minimal playing time with the Cardinals, Landrum was traded to the Cubs along with Alex Grammas for Bobby Gene Smith and Daryl Robertson in June of 1962. Landrum played in 309 games for the Cubs from 1962 through 1965. He was the regular centerfielder for the Cubs in 1965 playing in 131 games. However, his lack of offensive ability ultimately hurt as he batted only .226 with 6 HRs and 34 RBIs during 1965.

In December of 1965, Landrum was traded to the Giants along with Lindy McDaniel for Bill Hands and Randy Hundley.

Landrum played MLB for eight seasons but was a part of two different famous error cards. The first was Landrum’s 1963 Topps #113. The photo on card #113 was not that of Landrum but rather Ron Santo. The scan on the left shows the 1963 error card.

The second error card was corrected so there are three different variations. Landrum’s card #43 in the 1966 Topps set is sometimes known as the “Button on the Fly” card. The scan shows the two more common versions of this card. The card on the left is #43A and has a button showing on the fly of Landrum’s pants. The card on the right is 43C and has the button completely airbrushed away. The rarer version of the card is 43B and the button is partially airbrushed away.

Landrum’s final MLB game came on July 21, 1966. Landrum died in 2003.