A SET THAT NEVER WAS: 1971 ALL-STAR TICKET SET: BOBBY MURCER

Up on the blog today, we move into the outfield of the American League in my "set that never was", a 1971 All-Star game special custom set, featuring the players that actually started that classic Midsummer game:

Bobby Murcer actually started the game in place of the injured Tony Oliva, who was selected by fans.

Murcer really did have a very nice career, especially those seasons between 1969 and 1977 when he drove in over 80 runs eight times, while topping 90 five of those seasons.
He hit as high as .331 (1971) while hitting as many as 33 homers (1972), while also leading the league in runs scored with 102 in 1972, OBP with a .427 mark in 1971 and total bases with 314 again in 1972.
He made five straight All-Star teams from 1971 through 1975, and was in the top-10 in MVP voting three straight years: 1971-1973.
Much more importantly, the man was one of the nicest human beings on the planet, as I can attest to, meeting him on more than a few occasions.
He was just as “real” as it got.
Rest in Peace Bobby. You are truly missed.

 

DEDICATED ROOKIE: 1966 BOBBY MURCER

Today on the blog, we have a fun addition to my 1960's "dedicated rookies", my 1966 edition for Bobby Murcer, a beloved man not only in the Bronx but wherever he laid his ball-cap over his illustrious career:

Murcer made his MLB debut in 1965, appearing in 11 games for the New York Yankees and hitting .243 with a homer and four runs batted in while putting in time at shortstop.

After 21 more games in 1966, he lost two years to military service before coming back as a full-time Big League outfielder in 1969, slugging 26 homers with 82 RBIs and a .259 batting average over 152 games.

Murcer really did have a very nice career, especially those seasons between 1969 and 1977 when he drove in over 80 runs eight times, while topping 90 five of those seasons.
He hit as high as .331 (1971) while hitting as many as 33 homers (1972), while also leading the league in runs scored with 102 in 1972, OBP with a .427 mark in 1971 and total bases with 314 again in 1972.
He made five straight All-Star teams from 1971 through 1975, and was in the top-10 in MVP voting three straight years: 1971-1973.
Much more importantly, the man was one of the nicest human beings on the planet, as I can attest to, meeting him on more than a few occasions.
He was just as “real” as it got.
Rest in Peace Bobby. You are truly missed.

 

REVISITING A POST FROM 2013: GIMMIE A DO-OVER-1977 BOBBY MURCER

Revisiting a post from 2013 today, my first year of the blog, with today's card(s) being my do-over from July 6th of that year of one of the game's good guys, Bobby Murcer, and his 1977 card:

As issued by Topps

My re-do

Bobby Murcer's 1977 card was always one that I didn't like.
You see, I grew up a Yankee fan and I always loved Murcer. So even the cards of him on either the Cubs or Giants were cards I sought out as I ripped open packs in the late 70's.
So seeing this card with catcher Joe Ferguson taking up most of the frame irked me. So today I'm posting a much cleaner redesigned card with Murcer posing in a batting stance, facing the camera.
Yeah it's a little tame, but at least we're not distracted by some other guy's back to the camera instead of Murcer himself.
On a side note: I do like the fact that on the original card Murcer seems to be arguing balls and strikes with the ump. He seems a bit pissed, which if you know Murcer the player or announcer, there was probably not a nicer person on the baseball diamond or in the booth calling games.
Anyway, would have made for a great card if the photographer got Murcer and the ump in the shot instead what was actually depicted.

Reflecting the mega-trade that saw Murcer head to Chicago for reigning National League batting king Bill Madlock, OPC scrambled to get Murcer airbrushed into a Cubs uni, while Topps had an in-game shot of him at the plate.

Murcer really did have a very nice career, especially those seasons between 1969 and 1977 when he drove in over 80 runs eight times, while topping 90 five of those seasons.
He hit as high as .331 (1971) while hitting as many as 33 homers (1972), while also leading the league in runs scored with 102 in 1972, OBP with a .427 mark in 1971 and total bases with 314 again in 1972.
He made five straight All-Star teams from 1971 through 1975, and was in the top-10 in MVP voting three straight years: 1971-1973.
Much more importantly, the man was one of the nicest human beings on the planet, as I can attest to, meeting him on more than a few occasions.
He was just as “real” as it got.
Rest in Peace Bobby. You are truly missed.

OPC IMAGE VARIATION: 1977 BOBBY MURCER

Today on the blog we take a look at Bobby Murcer and the image variations between his 1977 Topps and OPC cards:

OPC version

Topps version

Reflecting the mega-trade that saw Murcer head to Chicago for reigning National League batting king Bill Madlock, OPC scrambled to get Murcer airbrushed into a Cubs uni, while Topps had an in-game shot of him at the plate.

Murcer really did have a very nice career, especially those seasons between 1969 and 1977 when he drove in over 80 runs eight times, while topping 90 five of those seasons.
He hit as high as .331 (1971) while hitting as many as 33 homers (1972), while also leading the league in runs scored with 102 in 1972, OBP with a .427 mark in 1971 and total bases with 314 again in 1972.
He made five straight All-Star teams from 1971 through 1975, and was in the top-10 in MVP voting three straight years: 1971-1973.
Much more importantly, the man was one of the nicest human beings on the planet, as I can attest to, meeting him on more than a few occasions.
He was just as “real” as it got.
Rest in Peace Bobby. You are truly missed.

ON-CARD ALL-STAR: 1974 BOBBY MURCER

Up on the blog today we are adding Bobby Murcer to my on-going "On-Card All-Star" project, slapping a big beautiful "All-Star" banner on the base card of starting All-Stars, as Topps did between 1975 and 1981:

 

Murcer really did have a very nice career, especially those seasons between 1969 and 1977 when he drove in over 80 runs eight times, while topping 90 five of those seasons.
He hit as high as .331 (1971) while hitting as many as 33 homers (1972), while also leading the league in runs scored with 102 in 1972, OBP with a .427 mark in 1971 and total bases with 314 again in 1972.
He made five straight All-Star teams from 1971 through 1975, and was in the top-10 in MVP voting three straight years: 1971-1973.
Much more importantly, the man was one of the nicest human beings on the planet, as I can attest to, meeting him on more than a few occasions.
He was just as “real” as it got.
Rest in Peace Bobby. You are truly missed.

EXPANDED YEARLY LEADER CARDS: 1973 A.L. RUNS BATTED IN

On the blog today, we move on to the American League and the top three Runs Batted In leaders of 1972 in my on-going "Expanded League Leaders" thread:

 

Of course we lead off with the great Dick Allen, who paced the league with his 113 RBIs in a season that saw him narrowly miss a Triple Crown.

His 113 RBIs were a career best and the third and final time he'd drive in over 100, all with different teams: Philadelphia Phillies (1966), St. Louis Cardinals (1970), and White Sox in 1972.

Coming in second in the RBI race is former Kansas City slugger John Mayberry, who enjoyed the first of what would be three 100-RBI seasons during his career when he drove in exactly 100 in 1972, along with 25 homers and a .298 batting average.

It was a breakthrough year for the 23-year-old after spending parts of the previous four seasons with the Houston Astros.

Right behind Mayberry in the RBI chase was former New York Yankees star Bobby Murcer, who was right in the middle of his prime when he drove in 96 runs, a career-best, while leading the league with 102 runs scored and 33 home runs, which was second best in the league behind Allen.

Well, there you have it! The top-3 RBI men in the American League for 1972, as we move on to the stolen base kings of the National League next week!

EXPANDED YEARLY LEADER CARDS: 1973 A.L. HOME RUN LEADERS

Moving along on my new “Expanded League Leaders” thread, we now hit the American League’s top home run hitters for 1972, shown here on my redone 1973 card:

 

Turns out there was a bit of a twist for this one, as there was a tie for third place, so it was a “squeeze” to get them in there along with the top two thumpers.

Leading the pack of course was the A.L. MVP Dick Allen of the Chicago White Sox, who had himself some season, almost winning the Triple Crown, led by his 37 homers while also pacing the league with 113 RBIs, and falling 10 points off the batting title to Rod Carew’s .318 average.

Behind Allen in the Home Run race was none other than New York Yankees All-Star outfielder Bobby Murcer, who smacked 33 homers that season in the middle of a great run during the Yankees “dark years”, allowing people to forget just how good Murcer was for a period of time.
In third place, as I mentioned earlier, was a tie between Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew and (surprise) the Oakland A’s Mike Epstein, who each hit 26 homers in 1972.

Of all the Oakland A’s hitters, like Reggie Jackson, Sal Bando, Joe Rudi and Gene Tenace, who would have thought it was Epstein that would place third in the league’s home run race?

This is the main reason I love creating these expanded league leader cards, as we all remember the first place finishers, but some of these second and third place guys seem out of nowhere!

Too much fun!

This is going to be a great thread as we head through 1973, then on to 1974, 1975, 1977, 1978 and finally 1979!

FINALLY SOME JUSTICE FOR THE 1975 BOBBY MURCER ALL-STAR

Well it took me long enough, but I’ve finally gotten around to “correcting” an awful move by Topps from 1975, having Bobby Murcer on a Yankee card instead of the terrible airbrushed specimen they put out:

I mean, come on! The Yankees were just coming out of the lean years, Murcer was our one bankable star who started the All-Star game the year before, and we opened packs to find him painted into a San Francisco Giants uniform, yet STILL having “A.L. All-Star” on the front.
For a kid back then, it was heart-breaking.
Anyway, I may have to actually print this one out to slip into my 1975 binder alongside the original to really make it all complete!
Murcer really did have a very nice career, especially those seasons between 1969 and 1977 when he drove in over 80 runs eight times, while topping 90 five of those seasons.
He hit as high as .331 (1971) while hitting as many as 33 homers (1972), while also leading the league in runs scored with 102 in 1972, OBP with a .427 mark in 1971 and total bases with 314 again in 1972.
He made five straight All-Star teams from 1971 through 1975, and was in the top-10 in MVP voting three straight years: 1971-1973.
Much more importantly, the man was one of the nicest human beings on the planet, as I can attest to, meeting him on more than a few occasions.
He was just as “real” as it got.
Rest in Peace Bobby. You are truly missed.

1975 IN ACTION- BOBBY MURCER

Let’s go and give one of the nice guys of baseball, and underrated star of the early-to-mid 1970’s an “In Action” card in the 1975 set, Bobby Murcer:

Though Murcer would find himself playing for the San Francisco Giants in 1975 after the blockbuster trade that brought Bobby Bonds to the Bronx, I have him as a Yankee based on his 1974 action.
He and Thurman Munson were the stars of the “lean years” between 1964 and 1976, with Murcer making the All-Star team four times while also taking home a Gold Glove in 1972.
For three straight years, between 1971 and 1973, he placed no worse than ninth in the American League MVP voting, and was a fan favorite.
After spending 1975 through part-way through the 1979 season playing for the Giants and Chicago Cubs, he made it back to the Yankees and would play out the final four years of his 17-year career with the team he started out with, retiring during the 1983 season before moving on to a long-lasting broadcast career.
In 17 seasons, Murcer hit 252 homers along with 1043 runs batted in and 972 runs scored, with a .277 average in 1908 games.
Absolutely missed since his passing in 2008, he really was such a nice person who I had the privilege of meeting on more than one occasion at card shows and Yankee events. Always an easy-going guy.
R.I.P. Bobby.

TRADED- 1977 BOBBY MURCER

Here’s a 1977 “traded” card for one of the nicest men to put on a Major League uniform, Bobby Murcer, who found himself in Chicago playing for the Cubs after a blockbuster trade before the season got under way:

Murcer, who was part of another blockbuster trade when he was sent to San Francisco for Bobby Bonds before the 1975 season from the New York Yankees, was now traded to the “Windy City” for two-time batting champ Bill Madlock in February.
And just like with his time in San Fran, he’d only spend a couple of years, two-and-a-half to be exact, before finding his way back to where it all started, the Bronx and the Yankee pinstripes.
He wouldn’t disappoint the Cubs, having one of his best MLB seasons in 1977 with 27 home runs and 90 runs scored and 89 runs batted in.
But in June of 1979 he’d be dealt back East to the Yanks for a minor league player, where he would play the final four years of his career.
Of his 17 seasons as a Major League player, Murcer was a Yankee for 13 of them, and was always one of the most well-liked men in the organization.
I had the chance to meet him on more than one occasion and he was just the best. Genuinely a “nice person” in every sense of the phrase.
He is terribly missed since he passed away in July of 2008.

#700'S FOR THE 700TH POST-ABBREVIATED AS IT MAY BE...AND R.I.P. MR. MINOSO

 

 

"Mr. White Sox" Minnie Minoso: 1925-2015

 

Before I get on with today's scheduled post, I want to say it was sad news hearing that Cuban baseball great Minnie Minoso, the "Cuban Comet" passed away at the age of 89 yesterday.

Beyond the quirks of his Major League appearances in the 1970's and 1980's, the man was a legitimate star in the sport, and many may be surprised to see just how good he was during his playing days if they take a "refresher" and peruse his accomplishments on the baseball diamond.

Rest in peace Minnie, you'll be missed for sure...

Well, onto today's business...I've reached 700 posts.

And I can't thank you all enough for following all I put into this blog.

It's been too much fun and I like to think I'll keep right on rolling with it as long as there is material to cover regarding baseball cards and the 1970's.

As we all know, Topps only had five sets in the 1970's that had a 700th card, with the years between 1973-1977 having only 660 cards in their sets.

So with that in mind, let's go and look at the cards numbered "700" in the 1970-1972, and 1978-1979 sets shall we?

1970 Frank Robinson:

 

 

A decent-looking high-numbered card for the Hall of Fame slugger.

As boring as the 1970 set could be, it was loaded with all-time greats, so there was some "meat" on the bones of the set.

Nothing really awesome about the card, but certainly not the worst in the set by any means.

1971 Boog Powell:

 

 

Coming off of his MVP season, Powell was the man of the hour when this card came out.

A nice photo of yet another Orioles slugger with the brilliant blacl-border design Topps came out with for the set. 

One of my favorite sets of all-time.

1972 "In Action" Bobby Murcer:

 

 

Great card of Yankees outfielder Murcer sliding home against what seems to be the Chicago White Sox at the "old" Yankee Stadium.

Look at the crowd in the background waiting for the call! Awesome!

THIS is what all the "in action" cards of the '72 should have been like.

1978 Johnny Bench:

 

 

After a five year run of issuing 660-card sets between 1973 and 1977, Topps came out with a 726 card set in 1978, and boy was I happy about that as a nine-year-old kid obsessively collecting.

I don't know WHY I love this card so much, but I always have.

The mystic of Johnny Bench back then just made me look at this card like I was looking at a "God".

Just a nice photo of the all-time great catcher coming off the prime of his career, yet STILL a perennial all-star for the Cincinnati Reds.

1979 Reggie Jackson:

 

 

While I always prefer an action shot of a player over a portrait, this photo makes for a very nice card of "Mr. October" in the prime of his Bronx legend-making days.

I'm always a sucker for the "all-star" designation, and here we have a nice shot of reggie with "All-Star" emblazoned across the bottom (albeit with that annoying "Topps" logo to the left).

Nice card overall though.

I've already decided that if I do reach an 800th post (and quite honestly unless I drop dead it should happen!) I'll profile all the "final cards" of each set during the 1970's.

Would be nice to revisit each card that closed out the sets of the decade, no?

"GIMME A DO-OVER"- PART X: 1977 #40 BOBBY MURCER

Bobby Murcer's 1977 card was always one that I didn't like.
You see, I grew up a Yankee fan and I always loved Murcer. So even the cards of him on either the Cubs or Giants were cards I sought out as I ripped open packs in the late 70's.
So seeing this card with catcher Joe Ferguson taking up most of the frame irked me. So today I'm posting a much cleaner redesigned card with Murcer posing in a batting stance, facing the camera.
Yeah it's a little tame, but at least we're not distracted by some other guy's back to the camera instead of Murcer himself.
On a side note: I do like the fact that on the original card Murcer seems to be arguing balls and strikes with the ump. He seems a bit pissed, which if you know Murcer the player or announcer, there was probably not a nicer person on the baseball diamond or in the booth calling games.
Anyway,, would have made for a great card if the photographer got Murcer and the ump in the shot instead what was actually depicted.

#40 Topps card as issued.

Redesigned with a portrait picture.

THE MISSING ALL STAR CARDS: 1973 TOPPS: AMERICAN LEAGUE

Continuing on this week's thread of all star cards, today we move on to 1973 and what I like to think Topps' cards would have looked like had they designated the previous years starters in the Midsummer Classic for the American League.
I kept the design simple to match the overall 1973 set design Topps used. The location of the "all star stripe" seemed to be a natural at the bottom. It keeps the image unobstructed while still calling out the "all star" designation.
After a win in the 1971 game for the A.L., which was their first since 1962, it was back to the losing side as they lost this one in extra innings, 4-3. As a matter of fact the American League would end up losing every All Star game up until 1983.
Of note here: the Freehan card is an excellent example of an "action shot" done right. The in-game action, the player clearly represented, and look at that crowd in the background. Awesome as they are clearly hanging on the play at the plate, waiting to see the outcome.
Carl Yastrzemski is called out as a first baseman on his card, but was voted into the all star game as an outfielder. Dick Allen was the starting first baseman for the A.L.
Tomorrow I'll post the National League starting nine.