FIXING UP ALL-STAR CARDS: 1984 MARIO SOTO

Today on the blog we go ahead and "fix" another All-Star card snub, this time a 1984 All-Star card for the National League starter for the 1983 game, Mario Soto of the Cincinnati Reds:

1984 is really where Topps went off the rails with their All-Star cards, pretty much just ignoring the starters of the Midsummer Classic and just giving the honor to whomever they wanted.

There's NO better example than ignoring the pitcher who started the game in 1983 for the N.L., Mario Soto, ace of the Reds.

Soto started the game, tossing two innings and taking the rare loss for the N.L., though he only gave up two unearned runs in that game before the American League blew it open later on, capped off with the Fred Lynn grand slam off Atlee Hammaker.

Soto would go on to have an excellent 1983 season, finishing runner-up for the Cy Young Award with a record of 17-13, with a 2.70 ERA and 242 strikeouts, with three shutouts along the way.

An absolute stud on the mound between 1980 and 1985, he'd strikeout as many as 274 batters (1982) while averaging 14 wins a season before arm troubles did him in by the age of 30.

He'd retire at only 33 after the 1988 season with 100 wins and a 3.47 ERA over 297 appearances, with 13 shutouts over 72 complete games, striking out 1449 along the way.

 

OPC IMAGE VARIATIONS: 1977 ROY HARTSFIELD

Today on the blog, another image/card variation between Topps and OPC, this time the 1977 cards for inaugural Toronto Blue Jays manager Roy Hartsfield:

OPC version

Topps version

While I do like what Topps did with their card, giving the new franchise skipper a horizontal layout with the coaches listed as well (like earlier in the decade for manager cards), I definitely prefer what OPC did, just giving the field manager a card of his own.

Funny enough, OPC did NOT do the same for the other new franchise manager, Darrell Johnson of the Seattle Mariners, instead giving the same honor to the Montreal Expos skipper, Dick Williams, the other Canada-based leader.

As for Hartsfield, he certainly did not have an easy task taking over a new team, as the Blue Jays struggled (as any new franchise would), going a combined 166 and 318 record over his three-year tenure.

His Blue Jay teams would lose 107, 102 and 109 games respectively in those three seasons, finishing last each time in the tough American League East.

As a player, Hartsfield played three years in the Big Leagues, 1950 through 1952, all for the Boston Braves, hitting .273 over that time while playing second base.

 

"CLASSIC BASEBALL" CUSTOM WTHBALLS SET: DAVE PARKER

The next baseball star to get a card in my ongoing "Classic Baseball" custom set is "Cobra", Dave Parker, one of my favorite players growing up and now rightfully a member of the Hall of Fame:

An all-around super-star, Parker hit for average, for power, had a cannon for an arm, and would even steal some bases if needed.

By the time he retired after the 1991 season, a nice 19-year career, he posted over 2700 hits, 1200 runs scored, 500 doubles, almost 1500 runs batted in, 339 home runs and over 150 stolen bases!

He was a seven-time all-star who also finished in the top-10 in M.V.P. voting six times, with three Gold Gloves thrown in for good measure.

The fact that Dave Parker never garnered more than 24.5% of the BBWA Hall of Fame vote (1998) before becoming ineligible in 2011 is just criminal in my eyes.

This man should have been in the Hall of Fame YEARS ago. Plain and simple! "Analytics" be damned!

Rest in Peace Dave Parker, a heck of a ballplayer.

 

CAREER-CAPPER: 1975 CURT MOTTON

On the blog today, we post up a 1975 "Career-Capper" for Curt Motton of the Baltimore Orioles, who wrapped up an eight-year Major League career with seven scane games in 1974:

Motton went 0-8 at the plate over those seven games, this after going two-for-six at the plate the previous season when he appeared in five games for the O's.

Over his eight-year MLB tenure, he hit .213 with 121 hits in 567 at-bats, but most importantly was a member of the juggernaut Oriole teams between 1969 and 1971, with a World Championship in 1970.

Of his eight MLB seasons, seven were with the Orioles, while he split the 1972 season between the Milwaukee Brewers and California Angels.

A SET THAT NEVER WAS: 1971 ALL-STAR TICKET SET: REGGIE JACKSON

Here's a special request for a card to be added to my 1971 "All-Star Game Ticket" set, which I never did print up as originally planned, a Reggie Jackson edition to add to the starting line-up of both leagues as well as manager cards:

Now, I still haven't designed an Earl Weaver card yet since I'm looking for a full-resolution time appropriate image of him, but this Reggie card is the first for any non-starting player in that classic All-Star game.

Granted, it was his epic home run off the Detroit Stadium light tower that most remember from that magical game, which saw no less than six future Hall of Famers hit one out of the park.

Just an incredible game that saw the aging stars of the 1950s and 1960s play with the up and coming stars of the 1970s, changing the landscape of the game and pushing towards what I consider a second "Golden Age" for baseball over the next 10-15 years.

I do still think I'll print this set up in the future, just have to fit it in my planned release schedule for 2026!

Keep and eye out for it!

1963 FLEER EXTENSION MISSING IN ACTION: WILLIE STARGELL

Good day everyone!

On the blog today, a fun one requested by my buddy Ron, a 1963 Fleer Willie Stargell "rookie", if the Fleer company was allowed to continue making cards for the inaugural set:

For Stargell, over 21 seasons, he would lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to two world championships, take home an MVP Award in 1979 (shared with the Cardinals Keith Hernandez), and get named to seven All-Star teams.

"Pops" would also have a great three-year run between 1971 and 1973 that saw him finish second, third and second respectively in MVP voting, winning two home run titles, an RBI title and even lead the league with 43 doubles (1973).

Luckily, I got to see him towards the end of his career in the late-70's/early-80s before he retired after the 1982 season.

His final numbers? Hall of Fame worthy as he'd finish with 475 home runs, 1540 RBIs, a surprisingly high .282 batting average and 2232 hits over 2360 games and 7927 at-bats.

Think about those numbers in UNDER 8000 at-bats!

Of course when eligible for the Hall of Fame, he was in, with 82.4% of the vote in 1988.

So sad that he would pass away at only 61 years of age in 2001.

 

REVISIT: MISSING IN ACTION 1978 JIM UMBARGER

On the blog today, we revisit another 10-year-old post, this one my "missing" 1978 card for former pitcher Jim Umbarger of the Texas Rangers:

Umbarger appeared in 15 games over the 1977 season, split between the Oakland A’s and Texas, posting a 2-6 record with a 6.32 earned run average over 57 innings of work.
His first two years in the Majors were much better, as he went 8-7 and 10-12 in 1975 and 1976 respectively with Texas, posting ERA’s of 4.12 and 3.15 with five shutouts splitting time between starting and the bullpen.
He wouldn’t fare much better in 1978, posting a 5-8 record with a 4.88 ERA, thus completing what would be his 4-year career, giving him a 25-33 record with a 4.14 ERA over 133 games, 61 of which were starts, and 483 innings pitched.