The next OPC to Topps image variation profiled here on the blog will be the 1977 cards of former catcher Barry Foote, with Topps coming out the winner in my humble opinion:
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| OPC version |
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| Topps version |
While OPC
went with a posed shot of Foote staring off into the distance, Topps
opted for a batting pose with Foote looking right into the camera.
Nothing
earth-shattering by any means, but in my opinion a nicer photo of the
young backstop who was still in his early 20's with a few seasons
already under his belt.
Foote put in 10 years as a Big League
catcher, coming up in 1973 with six games for the Expos and playing
through the 1982 when he appeared in 17 games for the New York Yankees,
which I remember very well.
In between he was generally a
back-up catcher, playing for the Expos, Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia
Phillies and Yanks, never having a season where he totaled more than
what would be officially a "full season".
In 1979 while with
the Cubs he did appear in 132 games, hitting .254 over 469 plate
appearances, hitting a career-best 16 homers while scoring 47 runs.
His
rookie season of 1974 could be his best year in the Majors, when he
ended up the Topps rookie all-star catcher after he hit .262 over 125
games, collecting what would end up being a career-best 110 hits, with
60 runs batted in.
Nevertheless, a solid back-up for a decade
that ended up with a career .230 batting average, with 489 hits, 191
runs scored and 230 RBIs over 687 games and 2127 at-bats.