OPC IMAGE VARIATION: 1977 PHIL NIEKRO

Here's a really odd OPC to Topps "image variation" set for you all, the slight, and I mean really slight image change for Phil Niekro and his 1977 cards:

OPC version

Topps version

I have no idea why the change between the two companies and their cards, as you can see that all OPC did was slightly zoom in a touch, and place the facsimile autograph a little higher on the card. Very strange.

Also seems to be a little brightness added to the OPC card as well.

As for Niekro, incredibly, though getting a bit of a "late-start" in his career, the man would end up putting in 24 years in the Majors, pitching his knuckler until the age of 48 in 1987.

It is astonishing to think Niekro didn’t have a full season on Big League duty until 1967 at the age of 28, yet still went on to pitch those 24 seasons, winning 318 games with a very nice 3.35 ERA along with 45 shutouts and 3342 strikeouts before he was done at the age of 48!
I always thought it amazing that at the age of 44 in 1983, he took home the last of his five Gold Gloves, ALL of which were garnered beginning his age 39 season in 1978.

Just an amazing talent!

REVISIT: MISSING IN ACTION- 1971 RICK JOSEPH

Today on the blog, we revisit another 10-year-old post, this one my 1971 "missing" card for former infielder/outfielder Rick Joseph of the Philadelphia Phillies, who already wrapped up a five-year Big League career in 1970:

Joseph finished-off his career batting .227 with 27 hits over 119 at-bats in 71 games in the City of Brotherly Love, giving him a .243 career average with 154 hits in 633 at-bats, with 13 homers and 65 runs batted in along with 69 runs scored.
All but four of his pro seasons had him playing for the Phillies, with his rookie year of 1964 seeing him suit up for the Kansas City Athletics.

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1969 TONY LARUSSA

Up on the blog today, we have a "not so missing" 1969 card for future Hall of Fame manager Tony LaRussa:

As we all know, Tony LaRussa the "manager" is one of the all-time greats.

Between 1979 and 2011, a span of 33 years, he managed three teams (White Sox, A's and Cardinals) to 2728 victories, six pennants, three world championships, and 12 first place finishes.

You can easily make an argument for LaRussa as the best modern era manager in baseball.

Now, Tony LaRussa the "player". Well…

Let's just say that he never really fulfilled the promise on THAT end of his career.

He came up in 1963 for a brief cup of coffee with the Kansas City Athletics, but wouldn't make it back up to the big leagues again until 1968, when he appeared in only five games, good for three at-bats.

In 1968 he only appeared in five games, going 1-for-3 at the plate, never appearing on the field for defense. 

Actually, in his six year playing career, he never really got a chunk of playing time in any one season.

Topps didn't have a LaRussa card in their 1969 set, even though he WAS included in their sets in 1964, 1968 and 1972.

Even though his playing days left a lot to be desired, he was well on his way to the Hall of Fame once he got the hold of managing a squad in 1979.

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1957 CURT FLOOD

Today on the blog we have a fun card to create, a "missing" 1957 card for Hall of Fame worthy outfielder and trailblazer Curt Flood, who started his Big League career with a handful of games with the Cincinnati Reds in 1956. 

The card was part of my recent "1960's Dedicated and Missing" set released early this year:

Flood appeared in five games for the Reds that year, going 0-1 at the plate while putting in some time as a pinch runner.

The next year he'd appear in three games for Cincinnati, going 1-for-3 at the plate with two runs scored, that one hit a home run.

During the ensuing off-season Flood found himself traded to the St. Louis Cardinals as part of a five person trade involving Willard Schmidt, Marty Kutyna and Ted Wiend to the Reds, and Flood and Joe Taylor to the Cardinals.

His first three seasons with his new team were stutter steps, as he played sporadically and hit about .250 combined.

But beginning in 1961 Flood strung together nine fantastic seasons starring for the St. Louis Cardinals, consistently batting over .300, two 200-hit seasons, and seven straight Gold Glove Awards, right up to the 1969 campaign.
Then it all began with a trade to the Philadelphia Phillies along with others including Tim McCarver for superstar slugger Dick (Richie) Allen and a couple of other players.
Flood refused to report to his new team, eventually forcing the Cardinals to send prospect Willie Montanez to complete the deal, essentially ending his career as a player while he fought to have control over his own career, fighting the “reserve clause”.
After sitting out the season in 1970, the Phillies eventually sent him to the Washington Senators, where Flood played the last 13 games of his career before leaving the team within the first month, abruptly closing out a great career that could have been Hall of Fame worthy had he played longer.
If you’re not familiar with Flood’s case, and his teaming up with Players’ Union head Marvin Miller, you MUST read up on this to understand the state of the game today.
I just touched upon some brief points here, but the case and Flood’s decision to pursue this cause is incredible.
Every single player today has much to thank Flood and his sacrifice, allowing the Free Agent boom of the mid-70’s to change the game forever, leading to the salaries and benefits even the average players have today.

REVISIT: OPC IMAGE VARIATION: 1977 DAVE ROBERTS

On the blog today, and interesting OPC image variation to spotlight, that the 1977 cards of former #1 overall pick Dave Roberts:

OPC Version

Topps Version

I covered the craziness of the Topps Blue Jays edition way back in 2013, explaining how Roberts never actually ended up playing for the them at all!

Funny story with that actually.
Roberts, who was the #1 overall draft pick by the San Diego Padres in 1972 out of the University of Oregon, never really panned out as the star infielder San Diego was hoping for.
In all fairness, that 1972 draft wasn't exactly teeming with stars. You have to go all the way to the third round to find a legitimate "star", those being Dennis Eckersley and Gary Carter. But you DID have Chet Lemon go late in the first round. Oh well...
Regardless, Roberts did manage to stick around with the Padres on the Major League level for four years, but in 1976 he spent the entire year in the minors, not really showing enough to be promoted before the year was up.
In October of 1976 San Diego sold Roberts, along with Dave Hilton and John Scott to the Toronto Blue Jays, seemingly giving up on their failed future star.
With that, Topps went ahead and airbrushed Roberts (along with Hilton, who I profiled earlier on this blog) in a Blue Jays uniform in anticipation of his new team for the upcoming season.
Only problem is Toronto then managed to turn right around and trade Roberts BACK to San Diego for pitcher Jerry Johnson in February of 1977, immediately making this an outdated card before it even came out!
Damned if you do, damned if you don't. Topps must have been scratching their heads with this one.
Check out the airbrushed Blue Jay logo on Roberts' cap...a bit on the small side don't you think?

As for OPC, they had him in the correct uniform, that of the San Diego Padres, for whom he'd go on to play another two seasons before putting in two years with the Texas Rangers, followed by a year with the Houston Astros and one final MLB season with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1982.

All told, the former top pick finished his 10-year career with a .239 average, with 483 hits over 2017 at-bats in 709 games, with 194 runs scored and 208 RBIs, putting in time out in the field at every position except for pitcher.

 

REVISIT: MISSING IN ACTION- 1971 HAWK TAYLOR

On the blog today, we revisit a 10-year-old post featuring a "missing" 1971 card for Hawk Taylor of the Kansas City Royals:

Taylor put in an 11-year career between 1957 and 1970, even though the most action he ever saw in a season was back in 1964 as a member of the New York Mets when he appeared in 92 games.
Other than that he mainly got to play in about a few dozen games every year of his career, playing for the Milwaukee Braves (1957-1963), Mets (1964-1967), California Angels (1967) and Kansas City Royals (1969-1970).
For the 1970 season Taylor appeared in 57 games, batting .164 with nine hits over 55 official at-bats while splitting time behind the plate and first base.
For his career, Hawk batted .218, with 158 hits over 724 at-bats spread out over 394 games, just about 38 games a year.

 

NOT REALY MISSING IN ACTION: 1970 RICK BLADT

Good day all!

Up on the blog today, we have a "not so missing" 1970 card for former outfielder Rick Bladt, who made his MLB debut in 1969 with the Chicago Cubs:

Bladt appeared in 10 games for Chicago that season, hitting .154 with two hits over 13 at-bats, driving in and scoring a run.

He'd be stuck in the Minors until 1975, when he found himself a member of the New York Yankees, as he appeared in 52 games, good for 133 plate appearances and a .222 batting average.

He also chipped in 13 runs, 11 runs batted in and 5 extra-base hits, all while manning center field.

That would be it for his Big League tenure.

He did put in a solid 12 years in the Minors, spanning 1966 to 1977 with the Cubs, Yanks and Orioles organizations.

After playing for Rochester of the International League in '77 he was out of baseball for good.

As a side note: he did appear on another card, a Topps 1974 multi-player rookie card (#601) which also features Bake McBride, Brian Downing and Ed Armbrister, three players who went on to have decent careers, especially the former two.

 

"CLASSIC BASEBALL" CUSTOM WTHBALLS SET: GEORGE SCOTT

Time to add "Boomer", George Scott to my long-running "Classic Baseball" custom WTHBALLS set, celebrating the great game that has kept me entertained my entire life:

He put together an excellent career playing for the Red Sox, Brewers, Royals and Yankees between 1966 and 1979, slamming 271 home runs with 1051 RBI's, 1992 hits and a .268 batting average.

Defensively all he managed to do was take home eight Gold Gloves for his work at first base, and though he was only named to three all-star games, he garnered MVP attention in seven seasons, or half his career!

Not too shabby to say the least...

 

AVAILABLE NOW! WTHBALLS "1963 FLEER SECOND EXTENSION SET"

Good day all!

Happy to announce the latest WTHBALLS custom set, 1963 Fleer "Extension Series 3" is now available!

 

The second WTHBALLS "extension"series for the classic 1963 baseball card set has another 20 player cards that were NOT in the original issue, plus a bonus "In-Action" card of the great Mickey Mantle, and finally another checklist card. 22 cards total with full-stat backs with bio.

As with my my first Fleer extension set, this one comes with repro 1963 Fleer baseball wax wrapper.

This time I am NOT trying to include a cookie, as that experiment failed miserably the first time because of cookie oils. Luckily I tested it first on a couple packs before making up the rest!

They are $17 each with postage at $6.00 1st Class w/tracking. As usual, the postage stays the same no matter how many sets you buy. Sorry about the bump of $0.50 in postage. USPS just raised shipping another 8% in April.

Same paypal email: slogun23@gmail.com or if you prefer Venmo my ID is: @Giovanni-Balistreri-1

Another fun set of cards to add to the WTHBALLS checklist!

If anyone has any questions please feel free to reach out!

Take care and thank you for the continued interest and support!

Gio/wthballs

1963 FLEER EXTENSION MISSING IN ACTION: FELIPE ALOU

Today on the blog we have a "missing" 1963 Fleer card for baseball lifer Felipe Alou, which also happens to be part of my latest WTHBALLS custom set:

During his career he'd top the National League in hits twice, runs once and total bases once.

His finest year would have to be 1966, when he led the N.L. in runs with 122, hits with 218, at-bats with 666, total bases with 355, while hitting 31 home runs, driving in 74 and batting a cool .327.

He'd end up fifth in MVP voting, and was named to his third all-star team.

After his playing days were over he'd coach and eventually manage in the Major Leagues, leading both the Expos and Giants to first place finishes (1994 and 2003 respectively) during his 14 years as a skipper.

Of course it's also worth mentioning that Alou comes from an incredible baseball family, as brothers Jesus and Matty, son Moises, cousin Jose Sosa and nephew Mel Rojas all got to play in the Big Leagues as well.

As a matter of fact, Felipe got to play with both his brothers, AND even go on to manage his son and nephew later on.

Pretty cool…

 

MISSING IN ACTION: 1957 BILL WHITE

Really fun card to create for today's blog post: a "missing" 1957 card for All-Star first baseman and true baseball "lifer" Bill White:

Sorry for the watermark!

For the life of me I can't figure out why White was left out of the 1957 set considering he had a "Rookie of the Year"-worthy 1956 campaign with the New York Giants.

In 138 games that season, White hit .256 with 22 homers and 56 runs batted in, with 63 runs scored.

He would put in military time for the entire 1957 season and part of the 1958 campaign, but I'm still surprised Topps didn't include him in their 1957 set.

Growing up with watching the Yankees on T.V., I was very familiar with White, being that he was a longtime announcer on channel 11 here in the NYC area for games along with Phil Rizzuto.

As a matter of fact White would end up being a sort of fall-guy for all of Rizzuto's hilarious antics, which made for some really funny moments during the game.

White closed out a brilliant, if not shortened 13-year career in 1969, returning to the Cardinals, for whom he played between 1959 and 1965 and put together his best years as a big-league player.

In '69, he appeared in 49 games, hitting .211 with 12 hits over 57 official at-bats.

But when you take a good look at what he did over the eleven seasons that he played full-time, you see an excellent, consistent player who also played his position superbly.

At the plate White put together four 100-RBI seasons, reached 200 hits once (with two other 190+ hit years thrown in), clubbed 20+ homers seven times, topped .300 four times and scored 100+ runs once.

Defensively, all White did was take home seven consecutive Gold Glove Awards between 1960 to 1966, leading his league in fielding twice along the way as well.

Admittedly I didn't know any of this as a young kid watching Yankee games at first.

Wasn't until I was bestowed with my first MacMillan Encyclopedia around 1979 that I was able to soak it all in.

I just remember him as a somewhat reserved guy who'd crack a joke here and there while Rizzuto was running wild at the mouth with all of his anecdotes.

 

1981 DRAKE'S BIG PITCHERS: NOLAN RYAN

Good day all!

On the blog today, we spotlight my 1981 "Drake's Big Pitchers" card for the great Nolan Ryan, from my fun custom set released last year:

 

What really needs to be said about a guy who has become more myth than baseball legend?

300+ wins, 5700+ strikeouts, 60+ shutouts, and oh yeah SEVEN no-hitters, two of which came when he was well into his 40’s while with the Texas Rangers!

I love thinking about the fact that he did most of his damage in the American League with the designated hitter. Now imagine how many strikeouts he could have had in his prime pitching in the National League where the pitcher batted?!

Would it be safe to say you could add 20-30 strikeouts a season to his total? More?

Hey, you never know…

Nevertheless, the man became a baseball God, eventually finding his place in the Hall of Fame upon his first year of eligibility as an absolute no-brainer.

I just thank the skies above that I got to see him pitch in-person!

 

CAREER-CAPPER: 1989 JOSE CRUZ

Super fun card to add to the WTHBALLS roster today, that a 1989 "Career-Capper" for Jose Cruz, who closed out a brilliant Major League career in 1988:

Playing in his 19th Big League season, Cruz suited up for 38 games with the New York Yankees, and I was happy to have witnessed some of them in person!

The man hit an even .200 over 80 at-bats with the Yankees, hitting a homer and driving in seven with nine runs scored and eight walks.

Cruz, who would go on to find fame and fortune with his 13 seasons playing for the Houston Astros between 1975 and 1987, appeared in six games for St. Louis in his first taste of the Big Leagues in 1970, hitting a robust .353 with six hits over 17 at-bats.
He’d never find his true hitting stroke over the parts of five seasons he spent in St. Louis, but after being purchased by the Astros in December of 1974, he would go on to become an All-Star outfielder.
He would be named to two All-Star teams, win two Silver Slugger Awards, and three times finish in the top-10 for N.L. MVP, even leading the league in hits with 189 in 1983.
By the time he finished with one season as a New York Yankee in 1988 at the age of 40, he retired with 2251 hits, a .284 batting average, 165 homers and 317 stolen bases.

 

FIXING UP ALL-STAR CARDS: 1984 FRED LYNN

On the blog today, a real travesty for Topps regarding their All-Star cards of the 1980s.

Imagine being selected as a starter for your league, and THEN you go on to hit the FIRST grand slam in All-Star game history, helping your league win its first Midsummer Classic in 12 years, and you get OVERLOOKED for an All-Star card the following year!?

Well, welcome to California Angels star Fred Lynn, who had this very thing happen in 1984 when the new Topps baseball cards came out.

So here is his rightful All-Star card, 42 years later:

As for Mr. Lynn, after a wonderful college career at USC, Lynn became an instant star in 1975 when he led the Boston Red Sox to the World Series after copping both the Rookie of the Year AND Most Valuable Player Awards. The first player ever to do so, and still only one of two (Ichiro Suzuki joined him in 2001).
He’d go on to win four Gold Gloves, get named to nine all-star teams, and hit the only Grand Slam in All-Star game history, a memorable shot off of Atlee Hammaker in the 1983 classic that gave the American League it’s first win over the National League since 1971.
Hampered by injuries throughout his 17-year career, he still finished with a very solid MLB resume: 306 homers, 1111 RBI’s, 1063 runs scored and a .283 batting average, with 10 seasons of 20+ homers over 1969 games.

 

WTHBALLS CUSTOM SET SPOTLIGHT: 1960S STARS OF THE GAME: ORLANDO CEPEDA

On the blog today, the next card from my 2019 "1960 Stars of the Game" custom WTHBALLS gelatin set, this time HOFer Orlando Cepeda:

Cepeda was a much heralded prospect coming up in the Minors before making his Big League debut in 1958, and of course, he would not disappoint, as he would take home the Rookie of the Year that season, hitting .312 with 188 hits, 25 homers, 96 RBIs and a league-leading 38 doubles, in what was to become a "typical" season for the future Hall of Famer.

While Cepeda's career was productive enough to get into Cooperstown, it's well known that if not for his bad knees, his final statistics could have been mind blowing.
Nevertheless, by the time he retired, he posted final numbers of: 379 homers, 1365 runs batted in, 2351 hits and a .297 average, with a Rookie of the Year (1958) and M.V.P. award (1967) thrown in.
It took a little while, but he was finally inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1999 after being selected by the Veteran's Committee.
What a power trio San Francisco had in Cepeda, Willie Mays and Willie McCovey! Power to the ultimate degree!”

 

REVISIT: MISSING IN ACTION 1975 GEORGE THEODORE

Time for another "revisit" for many of you that weren't following the blog 10 years ago.

This time it's my "missing" 1975 card for former New York Mets first baseman/outfielder Geprge Theodore:

Theodore did get a card in the 1974 set after his rookie year of ‘73, but after appearing in 60 games during the 1975 season, it didn’t warrant a card the following year in Topps’ eyes, and considering he never played another Major League game again, they made the right choice.
For the ‘74 season, Theodore hit .158 with 12 hits over 76 at-bats, giving him a combined .219 career batting average based on 42 hits in 192 at-bats over 105 games.

 

CAREER-CAPPER: 1973 JIM ROLAND

Up on the blog today we have a 1973 "career-capper" for pitcher Jim Roland, who put in ten seasons on a Big League mound:

Roland appeared in 23 games during the 1972 season, split between three teams: the New York Yankees, Oakland A's and Chicago White Sox.

Over those appearances he finished with a record of 0-1 with a 5.28 earned run average in 30.2 innings, striking out 17 while walking 18 (ouch!).

Originally up as a 19-year-old with the Minnesota Twins in 1962, he'd generally be used out of the bullpen as a middle reliever, moving on to the Oakland A's in 1969 until that final 1972 season.

Overall, he'd finish with a record of 19-17 over 216 games, with a nice 3.22 ERA in 450.1 innings, saving nine while tossing a complete game back in 1963.

 

1981 DRAKES BIG PITCHERS: PHIL NIEKRO

The next card from my wildly successful 1981 "Drake's Big Pitchers" custom set released last year to get the spotlight here on the blog is the one for Hall of Fame pitcher Phil Niekro:

Incredibly, though getting a bit of a "late-start" in his career, the man would end up putting in 24 years in the Majors, pitching his knuckler until the age of 48 in 1987.

It is astonishing to think Niekro didn’t have a full season on Big League duty until 1967 at the age of 28, yet still went on to pitch those 24 seasons, winning 318 games with a very nice 3.35 ERA along with 45 shutouts and 3342 strikeouts before he was done at the age of 48!
I always thought it amazing that at the age of 44 in 1983, he took home the last of his five Gold Gloves, ALL of which were garnered beginning his age 39 season in 1978.

Just an amazing talent!

 

WTHBALLS CUSTOM SET SPOTLIGHT: 1960S STARS OF THE GAME: ROCKY COLAVITO

Today on the blog we focus on my 1960 "Stars of the Game" custom for slugger Rocky Colavito, from my 2019 set released in authentic WTHBALL gelatin box with gelatin packet:

Colavito ended his playing days back in 1968 before immediately going into coaching, putting in a great MLB “lifer” career that began way back in 1955 when the 21-year-old debuted with the Indians.
Between 1956 and 1966 there were few Major League batters who hit homers as frequently as he, hitting 358 home runs playing for the Indians, Detroit Tigers and Kansas City Athletics.
He topped 40+ homers three times, with a career-best 45 in 1961 while also leading the American League in 1959 with 42 blasts.
By the time he retired, he hit 374 homers with 1159 RBIs over 1841 games in 14-years, finishing Top-5 in MVP voting three times and making the All-Star team six times.

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1970 DANNY FRISELLA

On the blog today, we have a "not so missing" 1970 card for pitcher Danny Frisella, who appeared in only three games for the New York Mets in 1968:

Frisella was drafted by the New York Mets in 1966 out of Washington State University and made it up to the Major Leagues the following year.
He pitched for New York over the next six seasons, having his best year in the big leagues in 1971 when he went 8-5 with a sparkling 1.99 E.R.A. to go along with 12 saves in 53 games after learning to throw a forkball from Diego Segui over the Winter in Venezuela.
In November of 1972 he was traded to the Atlanta Braves along with pitcher Gary Gentry for George Stone and Felix Milan and stuck around for two years before going over to the San Diego Padres in 1975.
Though he posted a record of 1-6, he did have decent numbers overall, but San Diego shipped him to St. Louis after the season, where Frisella started the season in 1976.
But after only 18 games, he was once again traded, this time to the Brewers where he appeared in 32 games, posting impressive numbers of a 5-2 record and a 2.74 E.R.A. as a man out of the bullpen.
Sadly, Frisella never made it back to a Major League mound.
While riding a dune buggy near his home on January 1st, his vehicle tipped over and Frisella was not able to escape in time. He was caught underneath the roll bar as the vehicle rolled over his body, crushing him. He was only 30 years old with a wife and two sons.

His final numbers were: 34-40 record, 3.32 ERA and 57 saves over 351 appearances and 609.1 innings pitched between 1967 and 1976.

 

"CLASSIC BASEBALL" CUSTOM WTHBALLS SET: CURT FLOOD

Time to post up another card from my custom "Classic Baseball set that I hope will see the light of day in the near future, this one of pioneering outfielder Curt Flood:

Flood pretty much sacrificed his career by the early-70’s , fighting MLB for their handling of players “as cattle” in regards to trades, releases, eventually opening the doors for Free Agency and allowing players some control over their own careers.
You have to understand how HUGE this was, as it was something players have been trying to do since the late-1800’s (think of the failed Players League of 1890).
Sadly for Flood, while it did end up helping ballplayers soon after he left the game, his own playing career was over by the age of 33, really 31.
Beginning in 1962 Flood strung together eight fantastic seasons starring for the St. Louis Cardinals, consistently batting over .300, two 200-hit seasons, and seven straight Gold Glove Awards, right up to the 1969 campaign.
Then it all began with a trade to the Philadelphia Phillies along with others including Tim McCarver for superstar slugger Dick (Richie) Allen and a couple of other players.
Flood refused to report to his new team, eventually forcing the Cardinals to send prospect Willie Montanez to complete the deal, essentially ending his career as a player while he fought to have control over his own career, fighting the “reserve clause”.
After sitting out the season in 1970, the Phillies eventually sent him to the Washington Senators, where Flood played the last 13 games of his career before leaving the team within the first month, abruptly closing out a great career that could have been Hall of Fame worthy had he played longer.
If you’re not familiar with Flood’s case, and his teaming up with Players’ Union head Marvin Miller, you MUST read up on this to understand the state of the game today.
I just touched upon some brief points here, but the case and Flood’s decision to pursue this cause is incredible.
Every single player today has much to thank Flood and his sacrifice, allowing the Free Agent boom of the mid-70’s to change the game forever, leading to the salaries and benefits even the average players have today.

FIXING UP ALL-STAR CARDS: 1984 ROBIN YOUNT

Up on the blog today we have another 1980s Topps All-Star fix, this time a 1984 All-Star card for the 1983 American League starting shortstop, Robin Yount:

If you remember, Topps decided to give Cal Ripken the All-Star card in their 1984 set over the rightful player, Yount. Still a mystery as to why Topps changed their All-Star card selection process in 1981. Never a fan of that!

Yount went 0-2 at the plate with a run scored and an RBI in the 1983 Midsummer Classic, the first win for the A.L. since 1971! I remember that game vividly, as I watched it as a 14-year-old and witnessing an A.L. win for the very first time as a young baseball fan.

A Milwaukee Brewer for life, Yount finished his great career with 3142 hits, 1632 runs scored, 251 homers and 271 stolen bases, taking home two A.L. MVP Awards and incredibly only making three All-Star teams. How on earth?!
Anyway, it’s amazing to realize that when he had his first true All-Star season in 1980, after what was already seven years in the Big Leagues, Yount was STILL only 24 years of age!
He was on cruise-control from then on, elevating his game to become one of the elite players in the American League, with 1982 the high point when he led the Brewers to the World Series and taking home his first MVP Award.
What a player...

 

EVISIT: MISSING IN ACTION- 1976 DIEGO SEGUI

Good day all!

On the blog today, we revisit another 10-year-old post, this time my "missing" 1976 card for pitcher Diego Segui:

Segui appeared in 33 games for Boston in their American League championship season, posting a 2-5 record with a 4.82 earned run average over 71 innings of work.
He would miss the 1976 season before joining the Seattle Mariners team for their inaugural 1977 year, a forgettable one for Segui as he went 0-7 with a bloated 5.69 ERA in his swan-song.
For his 15-year career he would go 92-111 with a 3.81 ERA over 639 games, 171 of them starts, leading the A.L. in ERA in 1970 with a 2.56 mark when he split the year between starting and relieving for the Oakland A’s.

 

WTHBALLS CUSTOM SET SPOTLIGHT: 1960S STARS OF THE GAME: ROBERTO CLEMENTE

Good day all!

On the blog today, we spotlight my 1960 "Stars of the Game" card for the great Roberto Clemente, from my 2019 custom set in WTHBALLS gelatin packaging:

I instantly knew the direction of how this set would be released, and I hope you all found it just as interesting, with deluxe packaging and special inserts! Too much fun putting this one together!

Anyway, as for the man himself, Clemente's career is the stuff of legend: His fiery play on the field, his good deeds, and his absolute adoration by teammates and fans alike.

On the field Clemente's numbers were incredible: four batting titles, five seasons batting over .340, four 200 hit seasons, 12 all-star nods, 12 Gold Gloves and a Most Valuable Player Award in 1966.

And a prime example of Clemente's importance to the game was his immediate induction into Cooperstown by special committee in 1973, waiving the standard five-year wait before a player joins the Hall ballot, as well as the establishment of the "Roberto Clemente Award", given every year to the player that exemplified "outstanding baseball playing skills who is personally involved in community work."

The man was truly something else, and I'm not even thinking of his baseball prowess.

Just special and truly one of a kind!

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1972 FRANK BROSSEAU

On the blog today, we have my 1972 "not so missing" card for pitcher Frank Brosseau of the Pittsburgh Pirates, who appeared in a single game during the 1971 championship season:

Brosseau appeared in one game that year, pitching two innings of relief and not allowing a run on one hit, with no walks or strikeouts.

It was his first taste of the Big Leagues since his debut in 1969 when he appeared in two games for the Pirates, tossing an inning and two-thirds and giving up two runs on two hits for a bloated 10.80 ERA.

Those three games made up the entirety of his Major League career as well as professional career, as there is not a record of him appearing in a Minor League game after the 1971 season.

So for his MLB career: three games, no record and a 4.91 ERA over 3.2 innings, with two strikeouts and two walks.

 

OPC IMAGE VARIATIONS: 1977 LARRY HISLE

The next OPC to Topps image variation we cover here on the blog is that of Larry Hisle and his 1977 cards, which is really just a cropping change:

OPC version

Topps version

As you can see, OPC decided to zoom in on the image Topps used for their 1977 card, just as we have seen with other cards that year.

Nothing big, but different nonetheless.

For posed shots like these I actually prefer the zoomed in OPC cards since there's no need to be backed up for such photo.

As for the man Hisle himself, had some productive years with the Twins, even leading the American League in runs batted in in 1977 with 119, and driving in another 115 in 1978 as a member of the Milwaukee Brewers.

But that 1978 season would be his last solid year, as he'd scratch out another four years with Milwaukee, never appearing in more than 27 games in any of those seasons due to injuries.

He'd retire after 1982 with 166 lifetime homers, 674 R.B.I.'s, and 1146 career hits.

 

1981 DRAKES BIG PITCHERS: ROLLIE FINGERS

Today on the blog we spotlight another card from my recent 1981 "Drake's Big Pitchers" custom set, this time Hall of Fame reliever Rollie Fingers:

Fingers was in his superstar prime at the time this card would have seen the light of day, unknowingly about to find himself with the Milwaukee Brewers that year on his way to both a Cy Young Award and a Most Valuable Player Award.

He would put together a wonderful 17-year career which would see him lead the league in saves three times, post sub-2.00 ERA's 12 times and finish up with a sparkling 2.90 career ERA over 944 games and 1701.1 innings pitched.

He was named to seven all-star teams, both in the A.L. and N.L., before closing out his career in 1985, finishing with a 114-118 record with 341 saves.

One of the great characters of the decade! But a force out of the 'pen as well.

He was voted into the Hall in 1992, his second year on the ballot, garnering 81.2% of the vote.

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1971 JIM JOHNSON

Today on the blog we have a great "old fashioned" 1971 "not so missing" card for three-game Major League pitcher Jim Johnson of the San Francisco Giants:

The entirety of Johnson's Big League tenure was during the month of April, 1970, when he appeared in the aforementioned three games, going 1-0 with a 8.10 earned run average over 6.2 innings.

He was hit hard over those 6+ innings, giving up eight hits and six runs while walking five, striking out two with a balk and two wild pitches.

Though he was sent down to the Minors for the rest of the season, it seemed probable that he would be back up either later in the year or the following season, however because of a stubborn Giants front office and later on a sore arm, Johnson decided the best move for his family was to retire and move onto a long and distinguished career in Education.

Sadly he passed away at the young age of only 42 due to Pancreatic Cancer in 1987, at the time he was the Superintendent of Schools at North Muskegon, Michigan High School.

He had devoted his life to Education even before he retired, attaining advanced Degrees at University while toiling in the Minors.

 

1981 DRAKES BIG PITCHERS: RICH GOSSAGE

Good day everyone!

On the blog today, a spotlight on another card from my 1981 "Drake's Big Pitchers" custom set released late last year, this one of Hall of Fame reliever Rich "Goose" Gossage:

After spending his first five Major League seasons with the Chicago White Sox, Gossge found himself with the Pittsburgh Pirates for the 1977 season, performing very well as he would go 11-9 over 72 appearances, with 26 saves and a sparkling 1.62 earned run average over 133 innings, striking out 151 batters.

He parlayed that season in the new Free Agent world, signing with the New York Yankees, where he would star for the next six years, gaining tons of fans, me included.

Gossage was a true character of the game. He was all legs and arms whipping near-100 mile-per-hour fastballs while sporting that trademark 'stache, closing out games for those "Bronx Zoo" teams I loved so much.

He spent six years in the Bronx, and never had an E.R.A. over 2.62, even sporting a microscopic 0.77 in 1981!

He also led the league in saves twice while wearing pinstripes, as well as getting named to three all-star teams.

In 1978, 1980 and 1981 he'd also finish in the top-5 in Cy Young voting, in addition to getting some M.V.P. attention.

Around the school-yard I literally spent most of my childhood in, the nickname "Goose" was taken by so many kids it was ridiculous. We all loved that "crazy dude" who looked as mean as any biker.

By the time he was done, Gossage put in a 22 year career that landed him in the Hall of Fame, being inducted in 2008.

He was also given a plaque out in Yankee Stadium this year (to which I am a bit puzzled by), cementing his Yankee legend for all to look back on.

The "Goose", a real wild-man of a closer…

 

CAREER-CAPPER: 1965 PETE RUNNELS

Up on the blog today, let's delve into the 1960s and give two-time batting champ Pete Runnels a 1965 "Career-Capper" shall we?

Here you go:

Runnels put in what turned out to be the last Major League action of his career in 1964, as a member of the Houston Colt .45s, or Astros as they were making that transition at that time.

Just two years removed from his second batting title in 1962, he hit .196 over 22 games for Houston, with 10 hits over 51 at-bats with three RBIs.

Runnels took home the American League batting title in 1960 and 1962 as a member of the Boston Red Sox, hitting .320 and .326 respectively, topping the .300 mark all of his five years with Boston.

His first seven years in the Big Leagues were with the Washington Senators between 1951 and 1957, where he average about .280 while playing both the infield and outfield, even getting some MVP votes in both 1952 and 1956.

Overall, by the time he retired, he finished with a .291 batting average, with 1854 hits in 6373 at-bats over 1799 games, getting named to five All-Star teams along the way.

Not too shabby a career!