CAREER-CAPPER: 1975 BOB VEALE

Today on the blog we have my 1975 "career-capper" for former flame-thrower Bob Veale, who wrapped up a nice Major League career as a member of the Boston Red Sox:

Veale appeared in 18 games for the Sox that season, posting a record of 0-1 with a bloated 5.54 ERA over thirteen innings, striking out 16 while walking four.

Veale was one of those power arms that the National League was blessed with in the 1960's, even topping the Senior League with 250 K's in 1964.

A year later he'd strike out 276 batters, and would have another two season with 200+ strikeouts while throwing for the Pittsburgh Pirates, the only other team he'd pitch for in his 13-year career.

He'd retire with a tidy 120-95 record, with a 3.07 earned run average and 1703 K's with 20 shutouts.

Between 1964 and 1970 Veale was a very solid Major League starter, averaging 15 wins and 213 strikeouts over those seven years, easily keeping pace with contemporaries like Don Drysdale, Jim Bunning and Jim Maloney.

 

REVISIT: MISSING IN ACTION 1973 GARY PETERS

Today on the blog we'll revisit a 10-year-old post, this time my "missing" 1973 card for pitcher Gary Peters:

Peters appeared in 33 games for the Boston Red Sox in 1972, posting a 3-3 record with a 4.32 earned run average over 85.1 innings of work.
That would close out a very respectable 14-year career that saw him lead the league in wins with 20 in 1964, while also leading the league in ERA in both 1963 (his rookie year) as well as 1966 with a sparkling 1.98 figure.
His rookie year was awesome, as he went 19-8 for the Pale Hose with that league-leading ERA, along with 189 strikeouts and four shutouts to take home the R.O.Y. honor.
His final numbers were 124-103 with a 3.25 ERA, along with 23 shutouts and 1420 K’s over 2081 innings and 359 games, 286 of which were starts.

FIXING UP ALL-STAR CARDS: 1981 JIM RICE

Today we'll really begin a fun thread that will take us into 2026, fixing up All-Star cards that Topps either messed up or just disregarded outright during the 1980s, beginning with the "Missing" 1981 A.L. outfielder, Jim Rice:

If you were a kid like me collecting then, you were immediately frustrated with the All-Star cards that were pulled out of the packs, especially when the National League starter for 1980, J.R. Richard, wasn't given the All-Star banner in lieu of Steve Carlton and Jim Bibby. Huh???

Breaking with tradition, Topps started giving All-Star cards/banners to players not necessarily voted by the fans like they always did.

In the case of Jim Rice, he was indeed voted as a starter for the 1980 game, and though he wouldn't play due to injury and was replaced by Ben Oglivie, neither of them were given the All-Star banner, with the A.L. missing a third outfielder to go with Reggie Jackson and Fred Lynn!

That killed me, especially coming off 1978 with Richie Zisk and 1979 with Freddie Patek also being denied card immortality.

Moving forward I also hope to give All-Star cards to players that were actually voted to start through the decade, as opposed to some really odd Topps picks for All-Star cards.

Keep an eye out for that!

 

WTHBALLS CUSTOM SET SPOTLIGHT: 1960S STARS OF THE GAME: PETE RUNNELS

Good day all.

On the blog today we spotlight my 1960 "Stars of the Game" card of two-time American League batting champ Pete Runnels, from my custom set released in 2018:

Runnel's career began with the Washington Senators in 1951, where he'd play through the 1957 season as a solid infielder who averaged about .2880 while playing mainly shortstop and second base, hitting as high as .310 in 1956.

In January of 1958 he was traded to the Boston Red Sox for Albie Pearson and Norm Zauchin, and he would really find his groove, hitting .322 in his first year in Beantown, with a career-best 103 runs scored and 183 hits, finishing tenth in the MVP race by season's end.

In 1960 and 1962 he would go on to take home batting titles, hitting .320 and .326 respectively, making the All-Star team(s) each season while transitioning to first base, though still putting in some time around the infield.

Surprisingly, after that second batting title in 1962 he was traded to the new Houston franchise, then called the Colt .45's, for Roman Mejias, where he would put in a sub-par year, hitting .253 over 124 games.

The 1964 year would turn out to be his last, getting released by Houston in May after a dreadful .196 start after 22 games, with only 10 hits and three RBIs in 51 at-bats.

Nevertheless he'd finish his Big League tenure with a very nice .291 career average, with 1854 hits in 6373 at-bats, scoring 876 runs while driving in 630, with those two batting titles to cement his name in baseball history.

 

SPECIAL REQUEST: GIMMIE A DO-OVER 1974 REGGIE SMITH

By special request today, let us go ahead and re-do Reggie Smith's 1974 card, from an airbrushed original showing him as a St. Louis Cardinal player for the upcoming season, to one last card of him with the Boston Red Sox, for whom he suited up in 1973:

Smith now found himself as a Cardinal after a very nice run in Boston between 1966 and 1973.
During that run he finished second in Rookie of the Year, was an all-star twice, led the league in doubles twice, and led the league in total bases in 1971.
It's easy (and sad) to forget just what a nice career "the other Reggie" put together through the decade.
His first year with the Cardinals was indeed a good one, as Smith would not disappoint by hitting 23 homers with 100 runs batted in, while scoring 79 runs and hitting a robust .309, good enough for an 11th-place finish in the MVP race.
Not only was he a legitimate home run threat (finishing his career with 314), but he hit .300 or better seven times during his run, and even managed to swipe 137 bases as a Major League player.
He'd finish his career with over 1000 runs scored, 1000 runs batted in, 300 homers and 2000 hits.
And let's not forget that he was one of those FOUR Dodger sluggers in 1977 to become the first set of quadruple 30+ homers hitters during the same season.
Definitely an under-appreciated player from the era!

 

A SET THAT NEVER WAS: 1971 ALL-STAR TICKET SET: CARL YASTRZEMSKI

Today on the blog we come to the third starting outfielder in my 1971 "All-Star Ticket" set, celebrating perhaps the greatest Midsummer Classic of the all, Boston Red Sox legend Carl Yastrzemski:

The man was at his height of his game at the time this photo was taken, already a three-time batting champion, Triple Crown winner in 1967, and five-time Gold Glove winner.

As someone who grew up in New York City during the second half of his career, it's really easy to forget that Yastrzemski was a Long Island, New York boy before he went on to become a New England legend.

And how could he NOT become a legend, what with 23 years of Major League ball, all with the Red Sox, turning in three batting titles, a Triple Crown in 1967 along with an MVP Award, seven Gold Gloves, 18 all-star nods, and 25 league-leads in primary offensive categories.

By the time he did the retirement tour in 1983, he scored 1816 runs, collected 3419 hits, 646 doubles, 452 homers, 1844 runs batted in along with a .285 batting average.

He was just plain awesome…

 

A SET THAT NEVER WAS: 1971 ALL-STAR TICKET SET: LUIS APARICIO

Next up in my "set that never was" 1971 All-Star ticket custom set, the American League shortstop in that legendary game, Luis Aparicio of the Boston Red Sox:

From the moment he made it to the Majors in 1956 with the Chicago White Sox, Aparicio was a star.

He took home the A.L. Rookie of the Year that season, and proceeded to be an all-star player for most of his 18-year career.

Between 1956 and 1964, nine consecutive years, he led the American League in stolen bases every single season!

As a member of the "Go-Go" 1959 Chicago White Sox he finished second to teammate Nellie Fox for Most Valuable Player, and he'd go on to win nine Gold Glove Awards before hanging up the spikes.

All told he suited up for the White Sox, Baltimore Orioles, and Boston Red Sox for the final three years of his illustrious career.

By the time he retired the numbers were solid: 2677 hits, 1335 runs scored, 506 stolen bases and over 10000 at-bats!

It took a few years on the ballot, but he was finally inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1984.

WTHBALLS CUSTOM SET SPOTLIGHT: 1960S STARS OF THE GAME: TED WILLIAMS

Up on the blog today we showcase my 1960 custom "1960s Stars of the Game" card for the great Ted Williams, who was wrapping up a legendary career by the time this card would have seen the light of day:

The last .400 hitter, 521 home runs, a .344 lifetime average with SIX batting titles, and the man missed MULTIPLE years in his prime due to war and his service in the military.
I remember as a kid (nerd alert) I used to love averaging out the three seasons before and after his missed seasons and then factoring them into his final career numbers, and they were insane!
If I remember correctly he would have had somewhere in the neighborhood of 700 home runs, 3500 hits, 2000+ runs scored and runs batted in along with the slugging and on-base percentages that would have made his already monster career just other-worldly!

The man was truly a “hitting-machine”, perhaps the greatest pure hitter ever (or the Babe? Or Cobb? Musial?).

By the way, by today’s rules, Williams should have won SEVEN batting titles, but in 1954 he lost out to the Cleveland Indians Bobby Avila, who hit .341 with the THEN required official at-bats instead of 501 plate appearances.
Williams hit .345 with 526 plate appearances based on his 386 at-bats and 136 walks, but under the rules of the day was denied that seventh title.

The man was just incredible!

"CLASSIC BASEBALL" CUSTOM WTHBALLS SET: TED WILLIAMS

Today on the blog, the "Splendid Splinter" Ted Williams gets his place in my custom "Classic Baseball" set, a WTHBALLS unique set that should see the light of day as a printed set this year:

The last .400 hitter, 521 home runs, a .344 lifetime average with SIX batting titles, and the man missed MULTIPLE years in his prime due to war and his service in the military.
I remember as a kid (nerd alert) I used to love averaging out the three seasons before and after his missed seasons and then factoring them into his final career numbers, and they were insane!
If I remember correctly he would have had somewhere in the neighborhood of 700 home runs, 3500 hits, 2000+ runs scored and runs batted in along with the slugging and on-base percentages that would have made his already monster career just other-worldly!

The man was truly a “hitting-machine”, perhaps the greatest pure hitter ever (or the Babe? Or Cobb? Musial?).

By the way, by today’s rules, Williams should have won SEVEN batting titles, but in 1954 he lost out to the Cleveland Indians Bobby Avila, who hit .341 with the THEN required official at-bats instead of 501 plate appearances.
Williams hit .345 with 526 plate appearances based on his 386 at-bats and 136 walks, but under the rules of the day was denied that seventh title.

The man was just incredible!

 

1984 CAREER-CAPPER: CARL YASTRZEMSKI

Time to "break out of the 1970's" once again and create a 1984 "career-capper" for Boston Red Sox legend Carl Yastrzemski, who closed out a stellar Big League career in 1983:

As someone who grew up in New York City during the second half of his career, it's really easy to forget that Yastrzemski was a Long Island, New York boy before he went on to become a New England legend.

And how could he NOT become a legend, what with 23 years of Major League ball, all with the Red Sox, turning in three batting titles, a Triple Crown in 1967 along with an MVP Award, seven Gold Gloves, 18 all-star nods, and 25 league-leads in primary offensive categories.

By the time he did the retirement tour in 1983, he scored 1816 runs, collected 3419 hits, 646 doubles, 452 homers, 1844 runs batted in along with a .285 batting average.

He was just plain awesome…

 

THE WHOLE NINE: SERIES 2- MISSING IN ACTION: 1968 SPARKY LYLE

Good day all.

On the blog today, from my recent custom "Whole Nine: Series Two" set, not so missing 1968 card for one of the all-time relievers of the game, Sparky Lyle, who made his big league debut on July 4th of 1967 with the eventual American League champion Boston Red Sox:

Lyle appeared in 27 games for the Red Sox that year, going 1-2 with a 2.28 ERA over 43.1 innings, striking out 42 while walking 14.

All he would do from then on is put in what I think is a Hall of Fame career, appearing in 899 games, all in relief, saving 238 games while posting a record of 99-76, with an ERA of 2.88.

He took home a Cy Young Award in 1977, helping the Yankees to their first title in 13 years, and finished in third for A.L. MVP in 1972 after getting traded from Boston in one of the most lopsided trades of all-time, as he saved a league-leading 35 games with a record of 9-5 and a 1.95 ERA.

One of the great characters of the game, his many quips, antics, etc are well documented, especially during his tenure with the "Bronx Zoo" Yankee dynasty through the 1978 season.

Just a great icon of 1970s baseball!

 

OPC IMAGE VARIATION: 1977 GEORGE SCOTT

Time to put the spotlight on George Scott and his 1977 image variation between his Topps and OPC cards, a classic photo with an airbrush-touch in only the way the 1970s could have given us:

OPC version

Topps version

Not too bad a job to put "Boomer" back in a Boston Red Sox uniform after some power-house years with the Milwaukee Brewers!

Already an all-star for the Red Sox between 1966 and 1971 before heading to Milwaukee, Scott came back and continued his bashing ways in 1977, hitting 33 homers with 95 runs batted in and 103 runs scored, getting him his third and final all-star nod.
Sadly for the Red Sox, Scott’s production would drop-off, to the point he found himself in Kansas City in 1979, whereas Cecil Cooper went on to a borderline Hall of Fame career with the Brewers through the 1980’s.
Nevertheless, Scott put together an excellent 14-year career that saw him collect just under 2000 hits, 271 home runs and 1051 RBI’s along with eight Gold Gloves for his fielding at first base.
Not bad at all...

WTHBALLS CUSTOM SET SPOTLIGHT: 1890 "BASEBALL CHAMPIONS" HUGH DUFFY

Today on the blog, we spotlight my custom "19th Century Base Ball Stars" card of Hall of Famer Hugh Duffy, a fun set I produced and released back in 2018:

The outfielder put in 17 years in the Big Leagues, beginning in 1888 with Chicago of the National League through the 1906 season when he appeared in one single game with the Philadelphia Phillies at the age of 39.

In between all Duffy would do it hit .326, collecting 2293 hits and score 1554 runs in 1737 games, winning two batting titles, including his RIDICULOUS 1894 season when he hit .440, also leading the league with 237 hits, 51 doubles, 18 homers and 374 total bases, while also driving in 145 runs for Boston.

Over the course of his career he'd win two home run titles, an RBI crown, the aforementioned batting titles, and one season that saw him lead the league with 161 runs scored, in only 137 games during the Players' League's one year of existence.

In 1945, he was selected for enshrinement in the Hall of Fame by the "Old Timers Committee", a precursor to the Veterans Committee.

After his playing days were over, he became a fixture in Boston baseball, as a manager, scout, batting instructor, coach and "all-around goodwill ambassador" for baseball until his death in 1954.

True baseball "lifer"!

REVISITING A 10-YEAR OLD POST: 1975 NICKNAME BILL LEE CARD

Thought it'd be fun today to look back to a 10-year old post from the blog, one of my first "nicknames of the 1970s" cards created by yours truly, that a 1975 "Spaceman" Bill Lee specimen:

Fun card and series to start on for the blog!

Lee was "something else". A perfect product of the times a'la Bill Walton from the NBA.

He brought a lot of that "hippie"/counterculture attitude to the game, which made him extremely popular with fans, but NOT with the people running the game.

As a pitcher, Lee was a solid starter for the BoSox during the mid-70's, winning 17 games a season three years in a row from 1973-75.

But his career would be someone derailed because of the very personality that made him popular.

His clashes with managers and management for both the Rex Sox and the other team he played for, the Montreal Expos, would make him expendable, eventually getting dumped by Montreal in 1982 because of a one-game walk-out he staged over the team releasing Rodney Scott.

He'd never play in another Major League game again.

His post-baseball days have been incredibly productive, as Lee has authored books, played semi-professionally, barnstormed, and even released his own wine, "Spaceman Red"!

He's even STILL active PLAYING ball at the ripe old age of 67!

The man is the definition of "character"!

If you're into professional athletes with a lot to say, do yourself a favor and read any of his books! Hilarious and insightful on pro-sports from a free-spirit perspective.

For his Major League career, Lee finished his 14-year run with a 119-90 record, with a 3.62 earned run average over 416 games, 225 of which were starts.

 

REVISITING A 10-YEAR-OLD POST: MISSING IN ACTION 1975 DICK McAULIFFE

Hello everyone!

On the blog today, we revisit my "missing" 1975 card for long time infielder Dick McAuliffe, which originally appeared here on the blog on October 22nd of 2014:

Here's my original write-up for the card way back when:

The long time Detroit Tiger infielder was wrapping up a nice 16-year career in 1975, appearing in only seven games for the BoSox.

However in 1974 he did appear in 100 games for Boston, batting .210 over 316 plate appearances.

Those two seasons would be the only ones where McAuliffe didn't suit up for the Tigers, for whom he played between 1960 and 1973 manning both second and shortstop.

He made three consecutive all-star teams between 1965 and 1967, and even finished seventh in MVP voting in 1968 when the Tigers won it all.

All told he batted .247 for his career, with 197 homers and 697 runs batted in over 1700 games.

 

WTHBALLS GUM PACK CUSTOM SET: CARLTON FISK

Today on the blog we take a look at my mini Carlton Fisk custom, from my fun "Gum Pack" set released last year in special packaging:

This was a quick little set that slipped under the radar for many, selling out pretty quickly I am proud to say!

Beautiful velvet touch card stock mini-cards that came wrapped in a pack of gum-sized package a la Wrigleys, etc.

As for Carlton Fisk, he immediately made his impact on the game, unanimously winning the 1972 Rookie of the Year Award by hitting .293 and leading the league with nine triples along with 22 homers and 61 runs batted in.
Of course, we all know he’d go on to star for both the Red Sox and then the Chicago White Sox over the next 21 seasosn, 24 overall, becoming one of the greatest catchers in the history of the game.
He'd be named to eleven all-star games, collect 2356 Major League hits, and slam 376 home runs with 1330 runs batted in and 1276 runs scored.
Of course, he’d also give us one of baseball’s all-time moments, hitting the game-winning home run in Game 6 of the 1975 World Series versus the “Big Red Machine” Cincinnati Reds, the image of him waving the ball fair a part of Major League history.
After eleven years in Boston, he would go on to play 13 more with the White Sox, playing until the age of 45! A tank of a man, and continue to put in solid season after season.
In 1985 at the age of 37, he set career highs in home runs (37) and Runs batted in (107), while tying his career high in stolen bases (17) while catching 130 games. Just amazing.
After missing out on a Hall of Fame selection in 1999 (how the Hell did that happen?), he made it in the following year when he was named on 79.6% of ballots, joining other all-time catchers like Campanella, Berra and Bench in baseball immortality.

OPC IMAGE VARIATIONS: 1977 CECIL COOPER

Up on the blog today, we have a look at the image variations for Cecil Cooper's 1977 Topps and OPC cards:

OPC version

Topps version

One of my favorite non-Yankee players as a kid at that time, Cooper found himself traded to the Milwaukee Brewers before the 1977 season, with OPC airbrushing him into a Brewer uniform for their set, while Topps still had him with the Boston Red Sox, the only team he'd suited up for during his career to that point in time.

Not bad an airbrushing job by the OPC folks to be honest, working with a photo that made it a little easier to transform.

Cooper was traded to the Brewers in December of 1976 for Bernie Carbo and George Scott, and immediately became a star, putting together seven straight seasons of a .300 batting average or higher, with a high of .352 in what is pretty much a forgotten incredible season in 1980 (thanks to George Brett), when he also led the American League in runs batted in with 122 while collecting 219 hits, 33 doubles and 25 homers.

The five-time all-star had three 200+ hit seasons, four 100+ RBI seasons, five 20+ homer seasons and even took home two Gold Gloves for his defensive work.

Between 1980-1983 he finished in the top-10 for Most Valuable Player, and also won three straight Silver Slugger Awards.

By the time he retired after the 1987 season, he finished with over 2000 hits, 1000 runs scored, 400 doubles, 240 homers and 1100 RBI's with just under a .300 batting average (.298).

What's astonishing to me is that when he became eligible for the Hall of Fame, he didn't get a single freaking vote! None! Yet guys like Bill Campbell, Andre Thornton and Davey Lopes got some support.

Just incredible to me…

WTHBALLS GUM PACK CUSTOM SET: FRED LYNN

On the blog today, my Fred Lynn mini custom card from my "Gum Pack" set released a few months back:

Fun little set to get out there in the world in Gum Pack packaging, using a velvety smooth card stock for the mini-cards themselves.

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.

"CLASSIC BASEBALL" CUSTOM WTHBALLS SET: TONY CONIGLIARO

On the blog today, we have my "Classic Baseball" custom card for Boston Red Sox young slugger Tony Conigliaro, who was on his way to a wonderful career before his tragic beaning in 1967:

Just a beautiful photograph of the promising right-fielder, who was already a home run champ by the age of 21, two years before a Jack Hamilton pitch to the face derailed his career.

We all know the story by now: "Tony C" was a budding star in the big leagues, leading the league in homers at the young age of 20 in 1965 and building on a career that was making the homegrown player a Boston darling.

But in 1967 he was hit in the face by a Jack Hamilton pitch that permanently derailed his career, eventually playing a single year for the Angels in 1971 before leaving the game for three years before making a dramatic "comeback" in 1975.

That season he appeared in only 21 games, good for 69 plate appearances. But it was an emotional return of sorts for Conigliaro, even if it would be the last games of his career, forcing him to retire at the age of 30.

Since he actually appeared in those final games during the 1975 season, I figured a 1976 card for him was more appropriate.

It is easy to forget that after his beaning in 1967, and missing all of 1968, Conigliaro came back and posted a remarkable return season in 1969, hitting 20 homers, driving in 82, and taking home the American League Comeback Player of the Year Award.

1970 was even more incredible, as he swatted a career high 36 home runs, while driving in 100+ for the only time in his career (116)!

Sadly because of the beaning he suffered eye-troubles and was never the same again, and he was traded to the California Angels with pitcher Ray Jarvis and catcher Jerry Moses for Doug Griffin, Jarvis Tatum and Ken Tatum.

As if that wasn't enough for the poor guy, the true tragedy of the Tony Conigliaro story would be in 1982, when he was about to interview for a broadcasting job in Boston and suffered a catastrophic stroke, leaving him in a vegetative state until his death eight years later in 1990.

Really a sad story that leaves you with the "what if's" of the sports world…

1960S ALL-DECADE TEAM: A.L. OUTFIELDER CARL YASTRZEMSKI

On the blog today, my pick for one of the three outfield slots in my 1960s American League All-Star team, and I went with Boston Red Sox legend Carl Yastrzemski:

Easy to pick the legend for this squad, as he had his best decade of his lengthy career in the 1960s, marked by three batting titles, an MVP monster year in 1967 when he took the red Sox on his shoulders and helped them reach the World Series, 

The man was at his height of his game at the time this photo was taken, already a three-time batting champion, Triple Crown winner in 1967, and five-time Gold Glove winner.

As someone who grew up in New York City during the second half of his career, it's really easy to forget that Yastrzemski was a Long Island, New York boy before he went on to become a New England legend.

And how could he NOT become a legend, what with 23 years of Major League ball, all with the Red Sox, turning in three batting titles, a Triple Crown in 1967 along with an MVP Award, seven Gold Gloves, 18 all-star nods, and 25 league-leads in primary offensive categories.

By the time he did the retirement tour in 1983, he scored 1816 runs, collected 3419 hits, 646 doubles, 452 homers, 1844 runs batted in along with a .285 batting average.

He was just plain awesome…