This morning I did my customary check of the day's baseball birthdays, scanned the list for Padres (I'm such a nerd that I'm beyond having to Ctrl-f "SDP"), and spotted six. Of the half-dozen, I noted Jim Beswick and Steve Mura, recalling that they were both on a late-'70s Topps Top Prospects triptych card, and wondered if it was the same one. I flipped to where I keep all my team and multi-player cards, and sure enough. They share card #725 in the 1979 Topps set along with Broderick Perkins.
Jim Beswick, who turns 57 today, had already played his last major league game when this card hit the presses. He was a literal one-hit wonder, singling once in 20 at-bats over 17 games from August 9 through September 30, 1978. He was assigned to AAA Hawaii in 1979, where he got to wear that hat Perkins is pictured in, and spent three full seasons there without getting called back up to San Diego. He headed to the Mexican League to begin 1982, then was picked up by the Angels, and finished out his career with their AA clubs in Holyoke and Nashua that year and the next, respectively.
Steve Mura, who turns 60 today, had more staying power than his cardmate. He pitched poorly in five games at the tail-end of the '78 season, but unlike Beswick, he got another chance. Mura responded with a strong rookie season, in which he posted a 3.08 ERA that he would never match. He transitioned into the rotation the next year, and was adequate, but had a poor showing the following season, 1981. He was then sent to St. Louis in the deal headlined by Ozzie Smith and Garry Templeton. He earned a ring with the Cardinals that year despite being left off the postseason roster, then moved on to the White Sox for six games in 1983. He spent the entirety of '84 with the Phillies' AAA affiliate, then got his last hurrah in 23 games with the A's in '85.
As for Broderick Perkins, I'll get back to you on November 23.