Thought it'd be fun for you "newer" blog followers to see an older blog post today, this one from October of 2014, my 1976 "traded" card for uber-star Reggie Jackson:

 

I wanted to try something different from what Topps did for their traded sub-set, a set I was never a fan of.

Since I've always been a sucker for horizontal lay-outs, I tried it with the 1976 template and this is what I came up with.

Here's the original write-up from that post:

"This is my second card (following the 1977 Tom Seaver) in my "Traded" sub-set, creating cards of players that were traded before Topps could get them on the correct team by Opening Day.

As we all know, Reggie was traded by the Oakland A's right around the start of the 1976 season to the Baltimore Orioles.

And even though we were left with what is STILL one of my all-time favorite cards, that '76 card of Reggie would have been nice to have depicted him on the correct team.

There are a lot of really takes on this out there, for sure. Hope you all think this one is an adequate addition to them as well!"

On the blog today, we take a closer look at my 1970 "In-Game Action" card for former slugger Lee May, from my first series of the special two-series set released earlier this year:

 

You have to wonder what could have been with May, since he was already a feared slugger putting together a very nice career before he was traded to the Astros as part of the Joe Morgan trade before the 1972 season opened up.

Would the "Big Red Machine" have happened? If so, would May's legacy on the diamond have been elevated to the point of true stardom?

He put up big seasons with the Reds, the Astros, and then the Orioles before ending his career after two partial seasons with the Royals in 1982.

His total numbers are very good, especially for a guy who played the bulk of his career in the "dead" late-60's/early-70's: 959 runs, 2031 hits, 354 home runs and 1244 runs batted in.

His last year in Cincinnati, 1971, was killer: 39 homers with 98 R.B.I.'s, 85 runs scored and a .278 average to complement the likes of Pete Rose, Tony Perez and Johnny Bench.

Granted the guy struck out a ton, and his final batting average of .267 leaves a lot to be desired, but it's interesting to wonder "what could have been" with both his career and the legend of the Reds teams of the mid-70's.

On the blog today, adding the Cleveland Indians flamethrower Sam McDowell to my long-running 1971 "Minor League Days" thread, something I haven't done in a while:

 

McDowell is shown here as a member of the Portland Beavers in 1964, his last stint in the Minors before sticking in the Big Leagues for good, establishing himself as one of the premier strikeout pitchers of the era.

He did not disappoint the Portland fans in his short nine-game tenure with the team, starting nine games, completing seven of them, with five of those games shutouts, going 8-0 with a miniscule 1.18 earned run average over 76 innings, collecting 102 strikeouts! Just dominant!

Once called up he'd continue with his performance, going 11-6 for the Cleveland Indians over 31 appearances, 24 of them starts, posting a very nice 2.70 ERA over 173.1 innings, with two shutouts and 177 strikeouts at only 21 years of age.

Over his 15-year career he was at times unhittable, six times topping 200 strikeouts, two of those seasons saw him top 300.
He’d go on to lead the league in K’s five times during his amazing run between 1965 and 1970, along with a 20-win season in 1970 and a career low 1.81 ERA in the “Year of the Pitcher” 1968.
It’s a shame he only had ten full seasons during his career, seeing as he ended up with 2453 career strikeouts with a 141-134 record and a nice 3.17 ERA.
Once he was traded to the San Francisco Giants for Gaylord Perry after the 1971 season his career went downhill quickly, barely hanging on the final four years before retiring after 1975.
Nevertheless between 1964 and 1971 he was a monster on that mound, striking fear in opposing batters while racking up the K’s and getting named to six all-star teams.

Today’s blog post has a 1976 “Then and Now” Super Veteran card for three time batting champion Tony Oliva of the Minnesota Twins, who wrapped up a wonderful career that season:

Even though Oliva played out the 1976 season as a player-coach, I don't think he officially stated that it would be his last season as an active player.
But Oliva established himself as possibly the second best Twins hitter ever at that point (behind Rod Carew), and would retire with a .304 career average, 220 homers and just under 2000 hits (1917) in his 15 year career.
Oliva was well on his way to the Hall of Fame until injuries derailed his Cooperstown march once he reached his 30's.
He burst onto the Major League scene in 1964 when he easily won the American League Rookie of the Year award.
In that year, all he did was lead the league in batting, hitting .323, while slamming 32 homers with 94 runs batted in. 
He also lead the league in runs scored with 109, hits with 217, doubles with 43 and total bases with 374!
Those numbers also got him a fourth place finish in M.V.P. voting as well.
The following year there was no sign of a sophomore jinx, as he once again lead the lead in batting, this time hitting .321, with 16 homers, 98 R.B.I.'s, 40 doubles and 107 runs scored.
He also lead the league in total hits again, this time with 185.
All told in his career, Oliva would win three batting titles (the third coming in 1971 when he hit .337), and would lead the league in hits five times, slugging once (1971), get named to eight straight all-star teams, and have two second-place finishes for M.V.P., in 1965 and 1970.
I wouldn't say his final numbers warrant a Hall of Fame spot for Oliva. But I'll admit that you can argue a good point for it with the career he left us with, and come 2022 he would be selected for a spot in Cooperstown, which is just fine with me!
When you really take a look, he only had 11 full seasons in the Majors, with the half-season in 1976 and three pretty much non-existent years in 1962, 1963 and 1972. 
So his numbers carry a bit more weight in that light.
And wow, what a great hitting combo he and Rod Carew made for the Twins, huh?!
Nice 1-2 punch right there.

It’s been a while since I added to my 1975 “In-Action” sub-set, so today I’ll go ahead and post up my card for former slugger Reggie Smith, then of the St. Louis Cardinals:

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!

The next OPC image variation we take a look at is the 1977 card for pinch-hitter extraordinaire Jose Morales of the Montreal Expos:

 

Nothing earth-shattering between the two cards, but the OPC edition is indeed slightly nicer, and I suspect more up-to-date, image of Morales.
Never a full-time player, he'd find his groove as a bat off the bench, specializing as a pinch-hitter with some success in the role.
Of course if any of you remember the 1977 set, you’ll remember that Morales set a new Major League record for pinch-hits in a season in 1976 when he collected 25, breaking the record held by Dave Philley and Vic Davalillio, appearing on a “Record Breaker” card in the set.
He would play twelve seasons in the Big Leagues, finishing up with a nice .287 career batting average with 375 hits over 1305 at-bats between 1973 and 1984.

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.

On the blog today, we have a 1973 "Stars Retire" card featuring Pittsburgh Pirates great Bill Mazeroski and Los Angeles Dodgers speedster Maury Wills:

 

Today's blog post continues on my new thread extending the checklist of my favorite Topps odd-ball set, the 1971 "Baseball's Greatest Moments" rarity, this time adding a card for the great Roberto Clemente:

 

Today on the blog, we take another look at an OPC image variation from its Topps counterpart, this one the 1977 cards for former pitcher Bill Singer:

OPC issue

Topps issue

 

Definitely an improvement over the Topps airbrush edition, with OPC getting their photos in during Spring Training, giving kids their first cards of proper players in their Toronto Blue Jays uniforms for their inaugural season.

Sadly for Bill Singer though, 1977 was a bad year for him, as he’d go 2-8 with the new organization, posting an ERA at 6.79 over 13 appearances, all but one of them starts.

Consider that his 1976 season was not bad, as he combined to go 13-10 with a 3.69 ERA over 36 starts, with four shutouts split between the Texas Rangers and Minnesota Twins.
It was a quick decline for a guy who was a two-time 20-game winner, once with the Los Angeles Dodgers and the other with the California Angels, along with three 200+ strikeout seasons, with a high of 247 in 1969 while still in L.A.
His MLB career would end with a record of 118-127, along with a nice 3.39 E.R.A. And 1515 K’s in 322 appearances and 2175 innings pitched.

On the blog today, a career-capping "not so missing" 1974 card for former pitcher Dave Baldwin, who made it back to a Big League mound in 1973 after spending 1971 and 1972 toiling in the Minors:

 

Thought it'd be fun to revisit an early "do-over" I created for the blog, this one from August of 2013 when I re-imagined Steve Garvey's 1979 card, which irked me since there's a catcher's head in front of "Mr. Clean" in the original. So here goes:

My re-do

As issued by Topps

 

Here's my original write-up for those of you who joined the blog afterwards:

I wasn't the biggest fan of the 1979 set for it's design. There was something about the layout that bothered me big time, even as a kid way back when.
There were also a ton of boring, and I mean BORING photos used that year. Just bland shots that made for a less than desirable set in my eyes. I guess I got spoiled by four straight nice card sets in the 1975-1978 editions.
However, I generally did like a bunch of the all-star cards that year, especially (as written before) the Carew and Brett cards. The Larry Bowa card was another one that stuck with me as well.
There was something about that all-star banner that enhanced even a card that would have been "bleh" without it (like the Don Money card).
Sadly, Topps blew it with their Steve Garvey card that year. Just another one of those boring pictures that was easily forgotten.
Looks like Garvey was in between pitches during an at-bat against the Giants. That's catcher Marc Hill in the forefront.
Ho-hum.
Anyway, I've redesigned the card with a shot of Garvey at the plate, waiting for a pitch. Just a nicer shot of him with some decent color going on. Hope you all agree.
On a side-note: I have to say, I am STILL amazed that Garvey did not garner more support among Hall of Fame voters when he was eligible for induction. Yeah, I've read all the books that detailed who is worthy and who isn't, and how Garvey wasn't as good as his stats make it seem.
But I still have to disagree on his Hall omission. As a kid growing up in the 70's and 80's, Garvey was THE National League first baseman. And the way I saw it, and still do, the player who came to dominate a position during an era of the game should get into the Hall.
I'm sure many of you don't agree, especially with all the "new" stats that are worshiped these days.
But to me, guys like Garvey and Dave Parker are Hall of Famers. They made an impact on the game during their careers that should be honored with a plaque in Cooperstown.
If Jim Rice gets a nod, why not these two?
Anyway, my little rant for today. Take it for what it's worth (really not much, admittedly).

Up on the blog today, an interesting unissued proof card to take a look at, the 1971 card for former second baseman Marv Staehle:

Unissued proof

As-issued 1971 Topps card

 

Topps did have a version of him with the Montreal Expos, for whom he played in 1969 and 1970, but they had enough time to go ahead an whip up an airbrushed version to accommodate his signing with the Atlanta Braves just as the 1971 season was beginning, on April 3rd.

Staehle, who played the first four years of his Major League career with the Chicago White Sox, made it back to a Big League field in 1969 during the Expos inaugural season, appearing in just six games, collecting seven hits in 17 at-bats for a stellar .412 batting average with four runs scored and a home run.
The following year he would see the most playing time of any of his seven seasons, playing in 104 games and batting .218 with 70 hits over 321 at-bats.
In 1971 he appeared in 22 games, which would be the last of his career, batting .111 with four hits over 36 at-bats while playing some middle-infield.
All told, over those seven seasons as a Big League ballplayer, Staehle hit .207 with 94 hits in 455 at-bats over 185 career games, with 53 runs scored and 33 runs batted in.

On the blog today, we move on to a 1978 "expanded league leaders" card celebrating the National League's top three home run hitters of 1977, and it's a doozy:

 

Up on the blog today, we take a look at another OPC image variation from its Topps counterpart, this time the 1977 cards for former first baseman Jim Spencer:

OPC version

Topps version

 

It's been a while since I added to my long-running "Negro Baseball Leagues All-Time Legends" thread, so today we add Dick "Cannonball" Redding:

 

Up on the blog today, a special "fantasy" card creation I slipped into my "Series 11" set last month, celebrating the great Japanese baseball legend Sadaharu Oh of the Yomiuri Giants:

 

Today on the blog we take a look at another unissued proof card, this the 1977 card for former catcher Alan Ashby, who was one of the "original" 1977 Toronto Blue Jays, coming over from the Cleveland Indians:

Unissued proof

Topps issued card

 

Ashby appeared in 89 games for the Indians in 1976, hitting .239 with 59 hits over 247 at-bats, scoring 26 runs while driving in 32.
After being traded to the Jays from the along with Doug Howard for pitcher Al Fitzmorris in November of 1976, Ashby would go on to put in two seasons for the expansion team before moving on to play for the Houston Astros for the next eleven years.
I never realized that his career took him all the way to the doorsteps of the 1990 decade, finishing up with 22 games for the Astros in 1989 after 17-years as a Major League catcher.
In those 17 seasons he batted .245 while playing in 1370 games, collecting 1010 hits with 90 home runs and 513 runs batted in over 4123 official at-bats. After his baseball career ended as a player he hung around the game as a coach in the Astros system as well as a broadcaster for the Astros in both radio and television.

On the blog today, we spotlight my 1970 "In-Game Action" card for former Detroit Tigers ace Denny McLain, who was coming off his second straight Cy Young Award in 1969:

 

 

McLain experienced both the highs and the lows of playing in the Big Leagues, reeling off five super seasons between 1965 and 1969, including the aforementioned two Cy Youngs and an MVP, then plummeting in 1970 where he never again found his form, retiring from the game at only 28 years of age after the 1972 campaign.

His 1968 season was the stuff of legend, as he helped the Tigers on their way to a World Championship, with the 24-year old McLain led the way anchoring the staff with an incredible 31-6 record, along with a 1.96 earned run average, 280 strikeouts, six shutouts and completing 28 of 41 starts!
Not only was that good for the Cy Young Award, but he also took home the Most Valuable Player Award as well.
Of course 1968 will forever be known as the “Year of the Pitcher”, but it does not take away from what McLain accomplished.
He would lead the league in wins, winning percentage, complete games and innings pitched that year, and would follow it up with another Cy Young season in 1969 when he posted a 24-9 record along with a 2.80 E.R.A., nine shutouts and 181 strikeouts in 41 starts.
What an amazing run!

Up on the blog today, we have a "not so missing" 1979 card for former Houston Astros pitcher Bo McLaughlin, who appeared in only a dozen games during the 1978 season:

 

By special request today on the blog, here's a 1970 "retirement" card for the great Mickey mantle, who hung them up just before the 1969 season, breaking the hearts of many a baseball fan across the country:

 

Mantle is one of those guys I really don't think we need to get into as far as his accomplishments on the baseball diamond. It'd be kind of like a joke to start writing about his career since it would take up a book's worth.

But alas, 500+ homers, a bushel of World Championships, three Most Valuable Player Awards, a Triple Crown season in 1956 and the hearts of more fans than we can even imagine to this day.

"The Mick" in all his glory, enshrined in his rightful place in Cooperstown, along with his longtime buddy Whitey Ford in the same HOF class.

Not too bad a Hollywood script...

Up on the blog today, let's stick to the topic of Triple Crowns in my on-going "Turn Back the Clock" thread and celebrate the great Rogers Hornsby on a 1975 edition, on the 50th anniversary of his second Triple Crown season of 1925: