John "Blue Moon" Odom was one of the first star pitchers for the Oakland Athletics after they moved from Kansas City. He made the All-Star team in 1968 and 1969, winning at least 15 games and posting an ERA under 3.00 both seasons.
When the Oakland A's won their first World Series title in 1972, he went 15-6 with a 2.50 ERA. The team won additional world championships in the next two years.
Over the last two seasons of his career, he bounced around to four clubs: from the A's to the Cleveland Indians to the Atlanta Braves to the Chicago White Sox.
Blue Moon Odom was an excellent all-around athlete and was quite fast, as Johnny Bench was about to find out in this picture. He was used as a pinch-runner 105 times in his career. However, and important in the subject of this baseball card, he is remembered for killing this A's rally in the 1972 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds. He tagged up and tried to score from third base on a short pop up in the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 5. With one out and the A's down 5 to 4, Bert Campaneris popped up into short right field. Odom made his mad dash for home and was thrown out easily by Reds second baseman Joe Morgan, making the last out of the game.
Luckily for him, the A's eventually won the Series anyway, in 7 games.
He was the last pitcher to steal a base in the American League on April 26, 1973, until Gene Nelson did so on June 11, 1988.
For his entire big league career, he wore the number 13.
In 1989, Odom played for the St. Petersburg Pelicans of the Senior Professional Baseball Association.
