GIMMIE A DO-OVER: 1975 RUDY MAY

On the blog today, a long overdue redo for Rudy May and his 1975 card, since he put in about half a season with them in 1974 yet Topps had a hilarious airbrushed card for him the following year:

For those who don't remember the original, oh please, allow me:

 

Ha! Just LOOK at that "NY" on his cap!

Wow. Not even close! That "N" is actually hilarious to look at!

May made his Major League debut in 1965 as a 20-year-old, appearing in 30 games and tossing 124 innings, certainly good enough for a card in the 1966 set.

He posted a record of 4-9 with a 3.92 earned run average, striking out 76 batters while throwing a shutout.

All told, he posted a 152-159 career record, with a 3.46 earned run average, 24 shutouts, 12 saves and 1760 strikeouts between 1965 and 1983.

His finest year was easily 1980, when he led the American League in E.R.A. with a nice 2.46 mark, WHIP at 1.044 and strikeouts-to-walks with a 3.41 number as a member of the New York Yankees.

 

GIMMIE A DO-OVER: 1970 RUDY MAY

Thought it'd be fun to give former pitcher Rudy May a "do-over" on his 1970 card, so here you go, using a much better image of him during his time as a California Angel:

My re-done version

Original Topps release

May made his Major League debut in 1965 as a 20-year-old, appearing in 30 games and tossing 124 innings, certainly good enough for a card in the 1966 set.

He posted a record of 4-9 with a 3.92 earned run average, striking out 76 batters while throwing a shutout.

All told, he posted a 152-159 career record, with a 3.46 earned run average, 24 shutouts, 12 saves and 1760 strikeouts between 1965 and 1983.

His finest year was easily 1980, when he led the American League in E.R.A. with a nice 2.46 mark, WHIP at 1.044 and strikeouts-to-walks with a 3.41 number as a member of the New York Yankees.

 

MISSING IN ACTION: 1966 RUDY MAY

Let's go way back into the 1960s for today's "missing" card, that of pitcher Rudy May, then of the California Angels, and a 1966 edition:

May made his Major League debut in 1965 as a 20-year-old, appearing in 30 games and tossing 124 innings, certainly good enough for a card in the 1966 set.

He posted a record of 4-9 with a 3.92 earned run average, striking out 76 batters while throwing a shutout.

All told, he posted a 152-159 career record, with a 3.46 earned run average, 24 shutouts, 12 saves and 1760 strikeouts between 1965 and 1983.

His finest year was easily 1980, when he led the American League in E.R.A. with a nice 2.46 mark, WHIP at 1.044 and strikeouts-to-walks with a 3.41 number as a member of the New York Yankees.

TRADED- 1978 RUDY MAY

On the blog to close out the week is my 1978 traded card for former pitcher Rudy May, who found himself North of the border when the Baltimore Orioles traded him to the Montreal Expos on December 7th, 1977:

May was traded to the Expos along with Randy Miller and Bryn Smith for Joe Kerrigan, Gary Roenicke and Don Stanhouse, which seems like somewhat of an even trade looking ahead to the future.
May just came off a very nice 1977 season that saw him post a career-high 18 wins, while also tossing four shutouts over 37 starts, with 11 complete games.
He’d go a combined 18-13 over two seasons with Montreal before playing out the final four years of his 16-year career with the New York Yankees between 1980-1983, even winning the ERA title in 1980.
It would arguably be his finest year, when he led the American League in E.R.A. with a nice 2.46 mark, WHIP at 1.044 and strikeouts-to-walks with a 3.41 number.
All told, he posted a 152-159 career record, with a 3.46 earned run average, 24 shutouts, 12 saves and 1760 strikeouts.

1971 TOPPS RUDY MAY- ONE AWESOME CARD

Here's another one of those awesome 1971 action cards that I've always loved, a Rudy May edition.

Check it out:

What a great photo! And I'm always a fan of the horizontal format.

My ONLY gripe is with the placement of May's autograph, which I wish Topps put on the right side of the image, so we have a clearer shot of the third baseman, who is looking towards home plate in anticipation of a play.

Nevertheless, great card!

I'll always remember Rudy May as a New York Yankee, as he had two stints with the Bronx Bombers in his nice 16-year career.

He actually ended his career with his second tenure with the club, a four-year run that ended in 1983.

All told, he posted a 152-159 career record, with a 3.46 earned run average, 24 shutouts, 12 saves and 1760 strikeouts.

His finest year was easily 1980, when he led the American League in E.R.A. with a nice 2.46 mark, WHIP at 1.044 and strikeouts-to-walks with a 3.41 number.

"WHEN AIRBRUSHING GOES TERRIBLY WRONG" PART I

Throughout the 1970's Topps used airbrushing to try and quickly fix a player's photo who switched teams at the last second, before cards went to press.

Some notable star players who had this done on their cards were Nolan Ryan in 1972 and Reggie Jackson in 1977. 

Now, while we all know that airbrushing only goes so far, kind of like lipstick on a pig, the Topps team did a decent enough job most of the time, considering what technology they had on hand.

However, there WERE times where we have to stare at the final result and wonder "W.T.F.?!"

A great example of these airbrush failures is the 1975 Rudy May card shown below. Just LOOK at that "NY" on his cap!

Wow. Not even close! That "N" is actually hilarious to look at!

I plan on revisiting this topic repeatedly in the future as I come across other airbrush failures, so keep an eye out for them! Enjoy…