On the blog today, we take a closer look at another OPC/Topps image variation, this one the odd 1977 cards for former All-Star third baseman Sal Bando, who was airbrushed into the uni of his new team, the Milwaukee Brewers:
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| OPC VERSION |
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| TOPPS VERSION |
Now,
for some strange reason except to the fine people at Topps/OPC, the
difference between the two cards were that Bando was "flipped", a luxury
that the "M" on the Brewers cap allowed since you wouldn't really know
the difference.
Though seriously, why even bother then?
Would love to know the reason behind this!
As for Bando the player, a huge cog in that Oakland machine of the mid-70's, he would end up making four All-Star
teams over his career, while placing top-4 in MVP votes three times
with a high of second place in 1971 when teammate Vida Blue took home
the honors.
Bando put together a very solid Big League career that saw him take
home three championships, participate in four all-star games, and finish
in the top-10 in MVP voting three times.
His five 20-homer and two 100+ RBI seasons were a nice compliment
to Reggie's offensive exploits, and with Joe Rudi, Gene Tenace and Bert
Campaneris thrown in you can see why those A's teams were so strong.
Then again, with starting pitching like Vida Blue, Catfish Hunter,
Ken Holtzman, Rollie Fingers et al, yeah, they were going to kick-ass no
matter what…
He retired in 1981 with 1790 hits, 982 runs
scored, 242 homers, 1039 runs batted in and a .254 batting average.