Quick! Which team do you associate Terry Mulholland with? You have a pretty good chance of getting it right as he played on 11 different teams over the course of his 20 season career. This doesn't even account for multiple stints with the Giants, Cubs and Phillies.
I do remember his time with the Cubs but only vaguely and because of weird circumstances. Mulholland signed with the Cubs as a free agent for the 1997 season. He went 6-12 with a 4.07 ERA in 25 starts before being placed on waivers and picked up for his third stint with the Giants. He finished the season in San Fran and then the Cubs signed him again as a free agent for the 1998 season.
Huh?
Some Cubs fans have heard the rumors that this was going to happen with Ryan Dempster when he was traded away and with David DeJesus again this season, yet neither happened.
It was a little different story in 1998 as the Cubs moved Mulholland to the bullpen. He only made 6 starts in 70 appearances but significantly lowered his ERA to 2.89 with a 6-5 record.
In 1999, Mulholland moved back and forth between the starting rotation and the bullpen, starting 16 of his 26 appearances, but while his record remained relatively the same at 6-6, he ERA skyrocketed again to 5.15. In July, the Cubs sent him and Jose Hernandez to the first place Atlanta Braves for a couple of guys you (and many Cubs fans) wouldn't have heard of.
By then, he was in his mid-30's so a complete bullpen conversion extended his career another seven seasons.
According to sportscollectors.net, Mulholland was a pretty good signer TTM during his playing days but nobody on the site has had a success since 2006, when he retired. So when I saw the opportunity to participate in a private signing over the summer, I jumped in and got this ATCRCS cards signed.
He was on the D-Backs but I probably associate him most with the Phillies
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