A SET THAT NEVER WAS: 1971 ALL-STAR TICKET SET: JOE TORRE

On the blog today, the next "card that never was" from my never-released 1971 All-Star Game ticket set, the starting third baseman for the National League in that historic game, Joe Torre of the St. Louis Cardinals:

Of course, we all know that Torre had the season of his career in 1971, leading the N.L. in both batting average, hitting at a .363 clip, while also pacing the league with his 230 hits and 137 runs batted in.

The man was just converting over to full time third base work after coming up as a catcher with the Milwaukee Braves in 1960 at the age of 19, before shifting to first base later on when the team moved to Atlanta in 1968.

The Brooklyn-native really did put together a career that gives him a second look as a Hall of Fame player.
It’s easy to forget how he came up as a catcher and had some monster years for the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves between 1961 and 1968 before being traded to St. Louis for Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda right before the 1969 season opened.
Five times he would top 100 runs batted in, while topping 200 hits twice, 20 home runs six times and a .300+ batting average five times on his way to career numbers of 1185 RBIs, 2342 hits, 252 homers and a very nice .297 MLB average.
He finished second in the NL Rookie of the Year race in 1961 behind future Hall of Famer Billy Williams, and was named to nine all-star teams over the course of his career.
Of course, once he moved on to managing, particularly when he took over duties with the New York Yankees in 1996, his path to Cooperstown was laid out in front of him, leading the Bronx Bombers to World Series wins four times, including three in a row between 1998-2000, with the ‘98 team considered one of the best teams of all-time, winning 114 regular season games along with 11 more, steam-rolling through the San Diego Padres for a world championship.
Over 29 seasons as a manager, Torre finished with 2326 wins along with a nifty .538 winning percentage. Looking at his Yankee tenure, he finished an incredible 1173 and 767, good for a sparkling .605 percentage, averaging just under 100 wins a season!
So of course, in 2014 he made it into the Hall, being selected by the Veteran’s Committee after a combined 47 years in Major League ball as a player or manager.

1960S ALL-DECADE TEAM: N.L. CATCHER JOE TORRE

Starting a new thread today on the blog, following my popular "1970s All-Deade Team" set a few months back, we go ahead and acknowledge my (and I do stress "MY") picks for the 1960s team, beginning with my National League catcher of the 1960s, Joe Torre:

Some of you may be surprised at my pick of Joe Torre as the catcher of the decade, but take a look at the guy's numbers and you'll see why.
With a decade that didn't have that Campanella or Bench behind the plate, Torre out-distances other catchers in the league in my opinion.
A five-time all-star during the '60's, Torre had a couple of "monster" years that kind of get lost in history.
In 1964 playing for the Milwaukee Braves, Torre hit .321 with 20 homers and 109 runs batted in. He also chipped in 193 hits and 36 doubles. Not bad!
But in 1966, with the Braves relocated to Atlanta, Torre clubbed 36 home runs to go along with a .315 average and 101 R.B.I.'s.
Later on when he'd switch over to third base he'd win an M.V.P. with the St. Louis Cardinals, and tack on a few more excellent years at the plate, and it's those years that people generally remember Torre as a player.
But his catching days for the Braves organization were very good in their own right. yet easy to overlook.
Later on, as we all know, Torre would be inducted into the Hall of Fame as a manager in 2014 for his days leading the New York Yankees through their most recent dynasty in the late-90's/early-00's, along with taking the helm of the Mets, Braves, Cardinals and Dodgers as well between 1977 and 2010, finishing up with 2326 wins and four championship titles.

Next week, my A.L. catcher, which should be a no-brainer for all of us!

 

1977 N.L. CENTENNIAL SUB-SET: JOE TORRE

The next National League player given a card in my 1977 "Centennial" sub-set celebrating the 100th anniversary season of 1976, future Hall of Fame manager Joe Torre of the New York Mets:

By the 1977 season Torre was a Player-Manager (remember those?) for the New York Mets after a distinguished career playing for the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals.

By the time the 1978 season opened, Torre became a full-time manager, thus ending a rock-solid 18-year career that saw him finish second in Rookie of the Year voting in 1961, and win a Most Valuable Player Award in 1971.

It's easy to forget that Torre's career was so good for some reason.

A nine-time all-star, Torre excelled while catching, playing third base, and even first base over his Major League tenure.

Of course the 1971 season was his high-point, leading the league in batting (.363), hits (230), total bases (352) and runs batted in (137).

But the guy also topped 200 hits the year before, hit more than 20 homers in a season six times, drove in over 100 five times and batted .300 or better five times.

By the time he hung up the playing cleats, Torre retired with: 996 runs scored, 2342 hits, 252 homers, 1185 R.B.I.'s and a nice .297 batting average.

But it was his post-playing career that got him inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2014 by the Veteran's Committee.

As a manager over the course of 29 seasons for the Mets, Braves, Cardinals, Yankees and Dodgers, Torre won 2326 games and took home six pennants and four world championships.

Not bad for a kid from the neighborhood!

 

1970 IN-GAME ACTION: JOE TORRE

On the blog today, we take a closer look at my 1970 “In-Game Action” card for Joe Torre, somewhat of an underrated player since his managerial exploits years later gets all the attention:

 

Torre was transitioning from an All-Star catcher to All-Star infielder right about the time this card would have seen the light of day, just completing his first year with the St. Louis Cardinals after playing his first nine years with the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves.
Go ahead, take a look at Torre’s playing career, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at just how good he was.
The Brooklyn-native really did put together a career that gives him a second look as a Hall of Fame player.
It’s easy to forget how he came up as a catcher and had some monster years for the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves between 1961 and 1968 before being traded to St. Louis for Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda right before the 1969 season opened.
Five times he would top 100 runs batted in, while topping 200 hits twice, 20 home runs six times and a .300+ batting average five times on his way to career numbers of 1185 RBIs, 2342 hits, 252 homers and a very nice .297 MLB average.
He finished second in the NL Rookie of the Year race in 1961 behind future Hall of Famer Billy Williams, and was named to nine all-star teams over the course of his career.
Of course, once he moved on to managing, particularly when he took over duties with the New York Yankees in 1996, his path to Cooperstown was laid out in front of him, leading the Bronx Bombers to World Series wins four times, including three in a row between 1998-2000, with the ‘98 team considered one of the best teams of all-time, winning 114 regular season games along with 11 more, steam-rolling through the San Diego Padres for a world championship.
Over 29 seasons as a manager, Torre finished with 2326 wins along with a nifty .538 winning percentage. Looking at his Yankee tenure, he finished an incredible 1173 and 767, good for a sparkling .605 percentage, averaging just under 100 wins a season!
So of course, in 2014 he made it into the Hall, being selected by the Veteran’s Committee after a combined 47 years in Major League ball as a player or manager.

1972 ALL-STAR SUB-SET: JOE TORRE

Next up in my on-going 1972 All-Star sub-set special is the starting third baseman for the National League in the classic 1971 Midsummer Classic is Joe Torre, Hall of Fame manager who also put in a borderline Hall of Fame playing career:

 

Of course, we all know that Torre had the season of his career in 1971, leading the N.L. in both batting average, hitting at a .363 clip, while also pacing the league with his 230 hits and 137 runs batted in.

The man was just converting over to full time third base work after coming up as a catcher with the Milwaukee Braves in 1960 at the age of 19, before shifting to first base later on when the team moved to Atlanta in 1968.

The Brooklyn-native really did put together a career that gives him a second look as a Hall of Fame player.
It’s easy to forget how he came up as a catcher and had some monster years for the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves between 1961 and 1968 before being traded to St. Louis for Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda right before the 1969 season opened.
Five times he would top 100 runs batted in, while topping 200 hits twice, 20 home runs six times and a .300+ batting average five times on his way to career numbers of 1185 RBIs, 2342 hits, 252 homers and a very nice .297 MLB average.
He finished second in the NL Rookie of the Year race in 1961 behind future Hall of Famer Billy Williams, and was named to nine all-star teams over the course of his career.
Of course, once he moved on to managing, particularly when he took over duties with the New York Yankees in 1996, his path to Cooperstown was laid out in front of him, leading the Bronx Bombers to World Series wins four times, including three in a row between 1998-2000, with the ‘98 team considered one of the best teams of all-time, winning 114 regular season games along with 11 more, steam-rolling through the San Diego Padres for a world championship.
Over 29 seasons as a manager, Torre finished with 2326 wins along with a nifty .538 winning percentage. Looking at his Yankee tenure, he finished an incredible 1173 and 767, good for a sparkling .605 percentage, averaging just under 100 wins a season!
So of course, in 2014 he made it into the Hall, being selected by the Veteran’s Committee after a combined 47 years in Major League ball as a player or manager.

1973 SPECIAL- LOU BROCK AND JOE TORRE

I’ve been sitting on this great image of Joe Torre and Lou Brock, waiting to create a “special” card, so today I whipped up a 1973 card for the two St. Louis Cardinals All-Stars:

Both players were magnificent trade pick-ups for the organization, Brock in the memorable trade in 1964 for pitcher Ernie Broglio, and Torre in 1969 for another future Hall of Famer, Orlando Cepeda.
Torre and Brock would produce 200-hit seasons, break records (Brock with his season and career stolen base totals) and even take home a National League MVP when Torre turned the trick in 1971 as he topped the league with his .363 batting average, 137 runs batted in and 230 hits.
Of course, Brock would go on to top 3000 hits, set a new career stolen base record when he retired with 938, and become a first-ballot Hall of Famer when he received 79.7% of the vote in 1985.
Torre would go on to have arguably an even better career as a manager, leading the New York Yankees to four championships, 13 first place finishes overall, and over 2300 managerial wins over 29 seasons.
Hope you enjoy these “specials” as much as I do. I’ve always wished Topps sprinkled them in through the 1970’s and 1980’s as they did the previous two decades.

A PROPER "CAREER-CAPPER" FOR JOE TORRE: 1978

I have been meaning to add a proper “Career-Capper” for Joe Torre in the 1978 for a long time, and figured today would be as good a day as any to do it, so here goes:

Of course, Torre was closing out a very nice 18-year playing career in 1977 as Player-Manager of the New York Mets, and would get one of those sweet manager cards in the 1978 set (one of my favorite Topps lay-outs of all-time), but since I came across this image of him during that last season, I figured a dedicated “player card” would fit the bill.
The Brooklyn-native put together a career that had him take home an MVP Award in 1971 when with the St. Louis Cardinals, then as a third baseman.
But it’s easy to forget how he came up as a catcher and had some monster years for the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves between 1961 and 1968 before being traded to St. Louis for Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda right before the 1969 season opened.
Five times he would top 100 runs batted in, while topping 200 hits twice, 20 home runs six times and a .300+ batting average five times on his way to career numbers of 1185 RBIs, 2342 hits, 252 homers and a very nice .297 MLB average.
He finished second in the NL Rookie of the Year race in 1961 behind future Hall of Famer Billy Williams, and was named to nine all-star teams over the course of his career.
Of course, though not necessarily Hall of Fame numbers, once he moved on to managing, particularly when he took over duties with the New York Yankees in 1996, his path to Cooperstown was laid out in front of him, leading the Bronx Bombers to World Series wins four times, including three in a row between 1998-2000, with the ‘98 team considered one of the best teams of all-time, winning 114 regular season games along with 11 more, steam-rolling through the San Diego Padres for a world championship.
Over 29 seasons as a manager, Torre finished with 2326 wins along with a nifty .538 winning percentage. Looking at his Yankee tenure, he finished an incredible 1173 and 767, good for a sparkling .605 percentage, averaging just under 100 wins a season!
So of course, in 2014 he made it into the Hall, being selected by the Veteran’s Committee after a combined 47 years in Major League ball as a player or manager.

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER AWARD- 1972 SUB-SET

Next in my on-going “Awards” sub-set is a 1972 card celebrating the 1971 Most Valuable Players, Joe Torre and Vida Blue from the National and American Leagues respectively:

Starting with Torre, after a handful of solid all-star seasons since coming up to the Majors in 1960, he put it all together in 1971 when he led the league in batting (.363), Hits (230), Runs Batted In (137) and Total Bases (352), while being named to his seventh all-star team while playing a position full-time for the first time (3B).
All of that easily handed him the award over Pittsburgh Pirates slugger Willie Stargell, 318 points to 222, with Torre getting 21 of 24 first place votes.
In the American League, we already saw what the Cy Young winner, Vida Blue, accomplished on his way to taking home the two big awards in the Junior Circuit.
Posting a 24-8 record while completing 24 of 39 starts, the 21-year-old also led the league with a 1.82 earned run average and eight shutouts while also striking out 301 batters for the burgeoning baseball dynasty in Oakland that would take three straight championships between 1972 and 1974.

MISSING IN ACTION-"IN ACTION" #29: 1972 JOE TORRE

Time for me to give reigning (at the time) National League Most Valuable Player Joe Torre a "missing" In-Action card from the 1972 set. Check it out:

As we all know by now, Torre was coming off of his monster 1971 season, where he led the N.L. in hits with 230, runs batted in with 137, batting with a .363 average, and total bases with 352.

But beyond that the man put together a very nice 18-year career as a player before putting in his Hall of Fame career as a Major League manager.

Five 100-R.B.I. seasons, six 20+ home run seasons, nine all-star nods, and a second-place finish in 1961 for Rookie of the Year, AND hailing from the same neighborhood in Brooklyn as yours truly!

"Hey Joe, you done good!"

THEN AND NOW #29: JOE TORRE 1977

Today we give fellow Bensonhurst, Brooklyn native Joe Torre a "Then and Now" card as part of the 1977 set.

Check it out:

 

By the 1977 season Torre was a Player-Manager (remember those?) for the New York Mets after a distinguished career playing for the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals.

By the time the 1978 season opened, Torre became a full-time manager, thus ending a rock-solid 18-year career that saw him finish second in Rookie of the Year voting in 1961, and win a Most Valuable Player Award in 1971.

It's easy to forget that Torre's career was so good for some reason.

A nine-time all-star, Torre excelled while catching, playing third base, and even first base over his Major League tenure.

Of course the 1971 season was his high-point, leading the league in batting (.363), hits (230), total bases (352) and runs batted in (137).

But the guy also topped 200 hits the year before, hit more than 20 homers in a season six times, drove in over 100 five times and batted .300 or better five times.

By the time he hung up the playing cleats, Torre retired with: 996 runs scored, 2342 hits, 252 homers, 1185 R.B.I.'s and a nice .297 batting average.

But it was his post-playing career that got him inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2014 by the Veteran's Committee.

As a manager over the course of 29 seasons for the Mets, Braves, Cardinals, Yankees and Dodgers, Torre won 2326 games and took home six pennants and four world championships.

Not bad for a kid from the neighborhood!

#500 FOR THE BLOG!

So I've reached my 500th post for the blog, and I thank you all for reading so far!

As I've done with 100, 200, 300 and 400, let's go ahead and look at each card numbered 500 throughout the 1970's, shall we?

1970: Hank Aaron

Ugh.

As I profiled (and redesigned) this card months ago, you all know how I feel about it.

What a boring photo of "Hammerin' hank"!

Uninspired and even oddly voyeuristic, like we caught him doing something he's not pleased about. Just odd.

But hey, it's Hank Aaron, and that alone keeps this a classic for the ages.

1971: Jim Perry

I like this card because it catches Perry at the height of his career, coming off a Cy Young Award win in 1970.

The Perry household must have been incredible around this time, with Jim taking home the hardware, and brother Gaylord finishing second over in the National League.

Mom and Dad must have been proud!

And man I do love those 1971 Topps cards. Just a beautiful set.

1972: Joe Torre

Another card catching a player at the peak of his career.

Recent Hall of Famer (and fellow Bensonhurst/Dyker Heights native) Joe Torre smiling up a storm after collecting an M.V.P. Award for his tremendous 1971 season in St. Louis.

Besides his solid playing career (somewhat underrated if you ask me), his LONG managerial career eventually got him to Cooperstown, and I'm sure that smile on his '72 Topps card would truly be ear-to-ear if he knew then where his baseball resume would get him come 2014.

1973: A's team card

Now, my first reaction was, "boring, a freaking team card!".

However, when you really take a look at the photo, it's just a perfect 1970's baseball time capsule!

The shaggy players, the technicolor sports coats, and the fact that it depicts the three-time World Champs with guys like Reggie Jackson, Catfish Hunter, Rollie Fingers, all now members of the Hall of Fame.

It really becomes clear quickly that this is indeed a special card! Love it!

1974: Lee May

Easy to forget how good a player May was throughout his career.

The man was downright thumping the baseball during a weak offensive era in the game's history.

The choice of photo Topps went with is a bit lame, but it does show the dude's quite "substantial" size as one of the games underrated sluggers.

2000 hits, 350+ homers, 1200+ runs batted in…not too shabby for the "Big Bopper"!

1975: Nolan Ryan

Well, what can you say?

Classic card set, classic player, nice photo.

I love this card.

The "Ryan Express" at the height of his career, tearing through line-ups and smashing records.

And who would even imagine that when this card came out, Ryan would STILL pitch for almost another 20 years!

Just incredible.

And every time I see a 1975 or 1976 baseball card, I can STILL get that little tingle of excitement, just like I did so many years before!

1976: Reggie Jackson

Just pure CLASSIC baseball card right there!

One of my all time favorite cards.

Here we have a beautiful card set design, with a fantastic photo of one of the game's most popular players, and that brilliant "All-Star" designation for all to see!

What a card, what a player, what a set!

1976 all the way for me my friends. Easily my favorite set of all time. 

Just perfect…

1977: Dave Kingman

Another one of my all-time favorite cards!

Great photo of "Kong" watching another of his famous blasts leaving the stadium, with all that blue throughout the card, and that "All-Star" banner running across the bottom.

I always thought those Mets cards from the 1976 and 1977 sets looked so good because of the blue color scheme. And you throw in a blue all-star banner along the bottom, and "bam!", just a great card!

1978: George Foster

I wish Topps would have had a better photo of Foster for this card.

The man does NOT look like a guy sitting on top of the baseball world here!

Fresh off his monster 1977 M.V.P. year, Foster should be positively BEAMING after slugging 52 home runs and nearly driving in 150 for the Reds.

It's a shame since the 1978 set is another of my favorite sets, but this card leaves a lot to be desired.

I may have to redesign this card in the near future.

1979: Ron Guidry

Funny story…I remember pulling my first 1979 Ron Guidry card out of a pack back then as a ten year old rabid Yankee fan, and was CRUSHED to see that he didn't have an All-Star banner running across the card!

This was before I learned that Topps didn't just go and pick all-stars based on their seasons, but based on who started the previous all-star game.

So I thought it was a terrible injustice to "Louisiana Lightning". I was already pissed that Guidry was ripped off an M.V.P. (sorry Jim Rice!), so seeing that "all-star" was missing bothered me to no end.

Well, I've calmed down a bit years later (but NOT about the Most Valuable Player Award!), and have come to appreciate the card for what it is.

Not the best action shot of the Yankee ace, but a nice photo nevertheless…

So there you have it...

All cards numbered 500 through that awesome decade of the 1970's!

Hopefully this blog will keep on rolling to all the cards numbered 600, as well as 700!

After that, we'll just get creative and see where we end up…

Thanks for the support so far!

"1960'S ALL-DECADE TEAM" SUB-SET FOR THE 1970 TOPPS SET: CATCHERS

The 1950's had all-time catchers like Roy Campanella and Yogi Berra, and the 1970's had superstars like Carlton Fisk and Johnny Bench, but in the decade of the 1960's, there weren't any "all-time" catchers that could really keep company with the guys I mentioned earlier.
But it's not to say there weren't any good catchers.
For my "all-decade" team, my two backstops are the Tigers' Bill Freehan and the Braves Joe Torre.
Take a look at my card:

It's safe to say that between Berra and Fisk, Freehan was easily the best catcher in the American League.
With all the superstars on the filed during the decade, it's easy to forget that Freehan was an eleven-time all-star, five-time Gold Glover, and finished in the top-ten in M.V.P. voting three times, with a second place finish in 1968 behind teammate Denny McLain.
1964, his first full year in the Majors, was arguably his finest season, as he hit .300 for the only time in his career along with 18 homers and 80 R.B.I.'s.
But for the rest of the decade Freehan put up comparable numbers year after year, while taking are of a Detroit pitching staff that featured guys like McLain, Mickey Lolich and Earl Wilson.
He really was ahead of the rest of the pack as far as A.L. catchers during the decade.
Over in the National League, some of you may be surprised at my pick of Joe Torre as the catcher of the decade, but take a look at the guy's numbers and you'll see why.
With a decade that didn't have that Campanella or Bench behind the plate, Torre outdistances other catchers in the league in my opinion.
A five-time all-star during the '60's, Torre had a couple of "monster" years that kind of get lost in history.
In 1964 playing for the Milwaukee Braves, Torre hit .321 with 20 homers and 109 runs batted in. He also chipped in 193 hits and 36 doubles. Not bad!
But in 1966, with the Braves relocated to Atlanta, Torre clubbed 36 home runs to go along with a .315 average and 101 R.B.I.'s.
Later on when he'd switch over to third base he'd win an M.V.P. with the St. Louis Cardinals, and tack on a few more excellent years at the plate, and it's those years that people generally remember Torre as a player.
But his catching days for the Braves organization were very good in their own right. yet easy to overlook.
Later on, as we all know, Torre would be inducted into the Hall of Fame as a manager in 2014 for his days leading the New York Yankees through their most recent dynasty in the late-90's/early-00's, along with taking the helm of the Mets, Braves, Cardinals and Dodgers as well between 1977 and 2010, finishing up with 2326 wins and four championship titles.
Next up on the all-decade parade, the first outfield slot, with a couple of future Hall of Famers: Carl Yastrzemski and Hank Aaron.

HALL OF FAME LEADERS X: BACK-TRACKING A BIT: 1972 R.B.I. LEADERS

Well well.

In light of recent events, specifically Joe Torre becoming a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, seems there's a "new" card that falls into the "Hall of Fame Leader Cards" from the 1970's, card # 87 from the 1972 Topps set, N.L. R.B.I. Leaders".

Now that Torre is in the Hall, we see that he was featured on the card along with other Hall of Famers Willie Stargell and Hank Aaron.

 

 

And though technically Torre was inducted as a manager, he did fashion an excellent career as a player over the course of 18 years, playing for the Braves, Cardinals and Mets.

For this card, we see Torre lead the National league in ribbies during his M.V.P. 1971 season with a nice total of 137, followed by Stargell's 125 and Aaron's 118.

Nice bit of National League power right here. 1482 homers and 5022 runs batted in between them!

While Torre had to wait until this year for Hall induction, Aaron was voted in almost unanimously in 1982, with Stargell joining him in 1988.

A little oddity here to mention: seems that Stargell's image on the leader-card is a closely cropped version of the image on his 1970 baseball card. Wonder why?

UGH...THOSE 1972 TOPPS "AWARDS" CARDS...(#621 THROUGH #626): TODAY, CARD #622 "M.V.P. AWARD"

Following my introduction to this topic from last week focusing on the awful 1972 sub-set of "awards" cards, we take a look at the "Most Valuable Player" card (#622), which originally depicted the actual award plaque instead of the players who took it home in 1971: Vida Blue and Joe Torre.

 

 

Again, as I have stated before, why Topps went with the idea of having cards of hardware instead of the players themselves is beyond me.

So allow me to show you all my redesign of the card, this time featuring Blue and Torre after their awesome 1971 campaigns.

A bit better than the original, no?!

Vida Blue just exploded in 1971, winning both the Cy Young and the M.V.P. by posting awesome numbers like a 24-8 record with a 1.82 earned run average, as well as eight shutouts and 301 strikeouts.

Just fantastic numbers for someone in his first full season of Major League ball.

It was a sign of what was to come, as the Oakland A's became a three-time world champion dynasty between 1972 and 1974, with Blue anchoring the pitching staff, bolstered by guys like Catfish Hunter, Ken Holtzman, Blue Moon Odom and Rollie Fingers.

As for the National League Most Valuable Player, Joe Torre was already a star in the big leagues for some time, and actually had an excellent 1970 season splitting time between catching and third base for the Cardinals, hitting a robust .325 with 21 home runs and 100 runs batted in. For that effort he finished with M.V.P. Consideration when votes came in.

The following year, he WAS the player taking home the award, having by far his best season in a solid 18-year career.

In 1971, now solely entrenched at third base, Torre was on fire as he hit a league-leading .363 with 24 homers and a league-leading 137 runs batted in.

He also lead the N.L. with 230 hits and 352 total bases, getting him 21 of 24 first place votes when M.V.P. balloting came around at the end of the year.

So again I have to ask: why not have the players themselves on this card, celebrating some awesome performances, than some static image of a plaque?

Oh well, at least it gives me the opportunity to "fix" it all right here, some 40+ years later!

Next time, we look at my redesign for the Cy Young Award card (#623), featuring Blue again and Fergie Jenkins.

MEET THE NEWEST HALL OF FAMERS! LaRUSSA, COX AND TORRE!

I think a hearty "CONGRATULATIONS" needs to go out to the newest members of the Baseball Hall of Fame: Tony LaRussa, Bobby Cox and Joe Torre!
News just broke of all three being inducted into Cooperstown today, and it could NOT have gone any other way.
The three new Hall members represent the third, fourth and fifth highest winning field skippers in Major League history.
Tony LaRussa was the big winner with 2728 wins as a manager, with Cox winning 2504 and Torre getting 2326 wins respectively.
Funny enough, all three started managing Major League ball within three years of each other: Torre in '77, Cox in '78 and LaRussa in '79.
"Cheers" to all three and their winning ways!

Managing Iowa in 1979. The beginning...

Cox at the beginning of his managerial career, with the 1978 Braves.

The beginning of Torre's managerial career, with the Mets.

THE MISSING ALL STAR CARDS: 1973 TOPPS: NATIONAL LEAGUE

Here we have the final installment in my series of "missing all star cards" between 1971 and 1973. This time, for the '73 all stars from the National League, I gave them a red stripe running across the bottom, following the design introduced on my American League cards yesterday.
Of note is the fact that Willie Stargell is portrayed as a first baseman, with an action shot of him obviously manning that position. Yet for the second year in a row he was voted in as an outfielder.
One other noteworthy thing to mention is the fact that Roberto Clemente's card was a bit of a "memorial" card, as by the time it was released, he already died in a plane crash while on an aid mission to help victims of an earthquake in Nicaragua in December of 1972.
Well, this wraps up the "missing all stars" thread, and it was definitely fun to work on. I've been contemplating recreating all star cards from 1970 and 1974 where the "all star" designation is on the players' regular issue card instead of an all star sub set. If time allows I'll get that posted up sooner rather than later.

THE MISSING ALL STAR CARDS: 1972 TOPPS: NATIONAL LEAGUE

Today we have the National League all stars for the 1972 Topps set, as voted by the fans for the '71 game in Detroit. That is, if Topps would have gone ahead and designated all stars as they did later in the decade.
For the N.L. players, I gave a green bar across the bottom, as opposed to the red bar I gave the A.L. players (posted yesterday).
While the bulk of the N.L. was represented  by all star stalwarts like Aaron, Mays and Bench, we do have a couple of players who were starters for only a single all star game: Dock Ellis and Buddy Harrelson.
Of course we all know Ellis was the pitcher who gave up Reggie Jackson's mammoth blast in the bottom of the Third Inning, taking the loss as the American League won their first Mis-Summer Classic since 1962, 6-4.

MANAGING A MANAGER SUB-SET THE RIGHT WAY...1978

I always thought Topps nailed it when it came to their manager cards in the 1978 set. The horizontal orientation, the dual images of both player and manager, and the full playing statistics that, at the time, were not readily accessible in the pre-internet world we lived in.

Up until that point, and sadly, ever since, manager cards were usually run of the mill "throw-ins" that really didn't add much to the set, and you were left wondering if the slots wouldn't have been better served with some players that were left out, or some other sub-set that could garner more interest. 

But for this set, all teams but the Brewers had their managers represented with nicely designed and well thought out cards. 

***Milwaukee hadn't yet named their manager for the upcoming season when cards went to press. However I created a George Bamberger card below to finally "complete" the sub-set.

All told, no less than six of the managers are Hall-of-Famers (either as managers or players): Earl Weaver, Whitey Herzog, Bob Lemon, Dick Williams, Tommy Lasorda and Sparky Anderson. And that number will most assuredly go up by two once Joe Torre and Bobby Cox are inducted as well. Some can even make a case for Billy Martin to eventually get in as well, possibly bringing us to NINE members of the Hall. Not too shabby for a sub-set.

Of these managers, the most accomplished as players were Bob Lemon and Joe Torre. Lemon fashioned a Hall of Fame career as a pitcher for the famed Indians staffs of the '40's and '50s, while Torre was a one-time MVP with the Cardinals in 1971, after a solid career as a power hitting catcher for the Braves in the '60's as a power hitting catcher with the Braves.

However, Alvin Dark and Bill Virdon were no slouches either, with both winning Rookie of the Year awards, in 1948 and 1955 respectively.

Sure, there were some guys that really didn't leave much of a mark in baseball history, but overall, this sub-set was one of the better executed sub-sets of the decade in my eyes. It's a shame that Topps decided to abandon this format for their Manager cards after this set.

Anyway, now onto the cards themselves. Enjoy!

AMERICAN LEAGUE EAST

***This card was never issued. I've created here to complete the sub-set***

AMERICAN LEAGUE WEST 

NATIONAL LEAGUE EAST 

NATIONAL LEAGUE WEST