Cake vs Gum: 1976 Joe Morgan

Last time gum rolled to a 7-1 victory.  I've run out of '75 Hostess cards so it's on to the bicentennial '76 set. In the 75's, the Topps border was so thick that the photo space was actually the same as on the smaller Hostess cards. In the '76 design there is more room for the photo, I wonder if that will give Topps an edge.

Hostess has Joe Morgan striking a batting pose at Shea Stadium. On his Topps card he is in his home jersey, but looking down at the grass, don't know if it is spring training or Riverfront Stadium. Probably spring training as I believe Riverfront had turf and I think that is grass behind him. Joe Morgan is considered one of the best second baseman of all time. Morgan originally came up with Houston as a 19-year-old in 1963 and had several solid years there. He really blossomed after being traded to Cincinnati in 1971, with eight straight seasons as an All-Star, five straight Gold Gloves, and was MVP both seasons that the Reds won the World Series (1975 and 1976). 1976 was his best season, hitting .320 with 27 HR and 111 RBI, leading the NL in both OBP and SLG. In 1980 he returned to Houston as a free agent and helped them win their first NL West title, and at the age of 39 in 1983 he helped the Phillies win the NL pennant. In 2,649 games Morgan hit .271 with 268 HR and 1,133 RBI and 1,650 runs scored, walking 1,865 times compared to 1,015 strikeouts. In 50 postseason games he hit just .182 but did hit five home runs, scored 26 runs and had a 2:1 BB/K ratio (38/19). After his career he was a longtime announcer for ESPN. He died of leukemia in 2020.