1976 SSPC Ken Forsch

  

The card, in brief: The photo itself is pretty standard, so I'll just point out the great orange uniform. This was the first year of the bright orange Astros uniform. Here's a great article about how it was almost even wilder.

Playing career, in brief: Ken Forsch came up with the Astros as part of the starting rotation in 1971. He moved to the bullpen in 1974 and put up excellent numbers over the next five seasons. In 1979 he returned to the rotation and was better than ever, going 11-6 with a 3.04 ERA, leading the NL in WHIP and BB/9. After the 1980 season he was traded to the Angels straight up for Dickie Thon. Both players had three excellent seasons for their teams. Then, on April 7, 1984 Forsch dislocated his shoulder, an injury which effectively ended his career, managing just a brief comeback in 1986. The very next day, April 8, Thon was hit in the eye socket by a Mike Torrez pitch, permanently damaging his sight and derailing his own promising career. Odd coincidence that two guys traded straight up for each other suffered devastating injuries a day apart, three years later.

Post-playing career, in brief: After his retirement Forsch worked in commercial real estate, and was a member of the Angels front office for many years, winning a World Series ring in 2002. He is now retired and living in California.

My collection: I have 34 of his cards, from 1971 to 1986. I would be interested in trading for 1979 Hostess #51.

1970 Topps Booklets: The Ernie Banks Story

According to Roy Carlson's research, this is based off the photo used on Banks's 1971 Baseball's Greatest Moments card.

The Bunyan-esque panel is fantastic.

So many great accomplishments in Banks's career. His vintage cards always seem undervalued to me.

Now that's a panel you would never see today!

Cake or Gum? 1976 George Brett

Last time it was gum winning, 8-4. Will cake do better on Thanksgiving?

Looks like these two photos are from the same shoot. The Hostess photo is a longer shot, showing Brett in a bit of a crouch as he poses in his stance. Topps went for the tighter crop, and as you can see from the angle of the dugout, he was probably crouching in this photo and Topps aligned the photo so he appeared more straight-up.

Arguably the greatest third baseman of all time and definitively the greatest Kansas City Royal of all time, Hall-of-Famer George Brett is one of four players all-time to hit .300 with 3000 hits and 300 home runs, the only player to win a batting title in three decades, and a 13-time all-star. Probably his most well-known accomplishment was his run at a .400 batting average in 1980. He finished at .390, led the league in both on-base and slugging percentages, and was the only player to have an OPS+ higher than 200 (203) between 1970 and 1991. After his 21-year playing with the Royals, he has just completed his 31st year as the team's VP of Baseball Operations. 52 straight years with one team!

Wood vs. Wood #238

Last time it was a 6-0 sweep for 1962. Can 1987 get on the board this time?

It's an identity switch for the two sets. The rare case where it's the 1987 card that is missing the cap!

Norm Sherry was a backup catcher for the Dodgers from 1959 to 1962, and the Mets in 1963. An excellent handler of pitchers, he is widely credited for teaching Sandy Koufax how to be a pitcher, not just a thrower, allowing him to fully harness his talent. In 194 MLB games Sherry hit .215 with 18 HR and 69 RBI. After his playing career he was a coach for many teams, mentoring another young Hall of Famer with the Expos, Gary Carter, and winning pennants with the Padres and Giants. He managed the Angels in 1976 and 1977. Sherry died in 2021 at the age of 89.

Bill Krueger was an undrafted free agent who eked out a 13-year-career as a journeyman pitcher for seven teams. His best season was 1991, when he went 11-8 with a 3.60 ERA for the Mariners. Overall in 301 games (164 starts) he went 68-66 with a 4.35 ERA. Krueger has been an announcer for the Mariners since he retired after the 1995 season. He has also had a successful career in asset management, currently working at Hohimer Wealth Management in Seattle. He has also been involved in many charitable endeavors over the years, mostly related to autism treatment.

1974 Topps Deckle Dating: Willie McCovey

A decent attempt, but clearly an airbrushed SD logo. What kind of BS will Topps give us for the date?

The exact same BS they used for Bobby Tolan! Same wrong date, same wrong ballpark. 

McCovey and Tolan, as well as Glenn Beckert and Matty Alou, were the big off-season pickups for the Padres to improve on their 60-102 1973 record. The strategy was unsuccessful, as the team again went 60-102. They did have a nice improvement in '75, to 71-91, with McCovey and young star Dave Winfield leading the San Diego attack.

Blogger/OBC roundup

 Come on people! Was I really the only person this month to claim a card in the monthly Diamond Jesters Time Travel Trade? There are so many fun cards to trade for, from all eras, and it's easy to find something to send in return. Just any older card! I was one of only two trades last month, but still found a vintage Hall of Famer I needed. I haven't sent my return yet - what kind of cards should I send Matt to maybe rekindle a little interest? Hall-of-Famers? OPC? Oddballs? Something else? Leave a comment with suggestions!

Another generous blogger is Johnny's Trading Spot. Johnny was giving away some cards recently and I was fortunate to win these. Two Mickey Mantle cards I needed! That Panini card is a nice, elegant design.

A few more from OBC to show off. Greg Henthorn always make me say "wow!" with what he sends. No exception here.

Shawn Smart sent this fun quartet, including Joe Torre's brother.

Ron Hoehne sent a nice mix that included Eli Manning's father and Hall of Famers in two sports.

 

A couple from OBC

Not too many old cards in this post, but a couple of interesting, fully-packed PWEs from OBC members.

Starting off with Dan Williams, whose envelope included two 1960s cards. Bean and Cookie.

Also two from 1990 Sportflics. The first run of Sportflics sets always put a smile on my face.

I hardly ever get junk wax variations, so I found these particularly fun. The Aldrete is a uniform number variation while the other two are reverse-negatives. Fun to still be able to add cards from these sets years after completing them.

Aaron Shirley sent several PWEs, this all didn't fit into one. Impressive variety in these. Starting off with some 1983 OPC. I would guess that of all the cards with Ron Cey as a Dodger, this is Night Owl's least favorite.

Some Return of the Jedi needs.

Aaron sent a whole lot of the 1982 TCMA Baseball's Greatest cards. Some are in color . . .

Some are in black-and-white. Fun photos either way.

A few football needs.

Finally, some great vintage Hostess cards.

1981 Topps Jay Johnstone

 

The front: Johnstone smiles big at Shea Stadium.

The back: His career dates back to 1966; no room for anything else.

The player: Jay Johnstone was a semi-regular outfielder for eight teams over a 20-year career. In only two seasons did he reach 400 at-bats. Overall in 1,748 games he hit .267 with 102 HR and 531 RBI.

The man: Johnstone was much more well-known for his pranks than his playing ability. Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda was Johnstone's favorite target. Johnstone played up the clown persona after his career with three books about his crazy antics and hosting a sports bloopers show. He also did some regular announcing for the Yankees and Phillies. He died from COVID-19 in 2020.

My collection: I have 35 of his cards, from 1967 to 1986. I would be interested in trading for 1978 SSPC #43.

1976 SSPC Jim Crawford

The card, in brief: We are now finished with Cincinnati and move to Houston as we travel alphabetically through NL West cities. The #40 patch is in memory of Don Wilson.

The player, in brief: Jim Crawford pitched for the Astros in '73 and '75, and the Tigers from '75 to '77. In 181 games he went 15-28 with 13 saves and a 4.40 ERA.

Post-playing career, in brief: Crawford seems to have kept a low profile since the end of his playing career.

My collection: I have five of his cards, from 1974 to 1977. I would be interested in trading for 1973-74 Venezuelan Winter League Stickers #225.

Wallet Card at Hoboken Furniture

Not the oldest sign ever, but I like this quirky sign for the long-defunct Hoboken Furniture. After WWII this location was a diner called City Queen. The sign, with some decoration on top to look a bit like a crown, said City along the top and Queen down the bottom. In 1972 it became a furniture store. The lettering in Hoboken certainly gives off a 1972 feel. At some point in the 1980s or early 1990s the furniture store closed, but the sign still remains.

 

1970 Topps Booklets: The Pete Rose Story

 Roy Carlson's research revealed that this image was based on the photo that Topps would use for Rose's coin the next year.

Rose's father actually played semi-pro football, with the original semi-pro Cincinnati Bengals. A long career through the age of 42 - like father, like son.

I like the angle used for the drawing on the left. Gives some of the excitement of Rose the sparkplug.

Rose would hit .316 in 1970, 13th among major leaguers and 50 points behind Rico Carty.

Vintage star card roundup

Been almost a month since I did one of these posts. Four more Greg Morris auction results to show. Last week I skipped it for the first time since I started doing them about a year ago. I'll probably go back to it this week though.

Getting a cheap Mantle is a baseball thrill. So is adding a card of Al Schacht, Clown Prince of Baseball.

Another Mantle in here. He's not even on the card but it's still hard to get cheap. I like the photo of Griffith Stadium with the buildings around. Also two football checklists with the same Giants action photo cropped differently in '70 and '72.

The week before I snagged a whole lot of cheap '66 Venezuelans. The '67 Tony Perez is not a high number but people treat it like one, so glad to add that one.

Nothing too outstanding here. Did nicely on '72 high numbers, including an extra #683 that can be trade bait.

Speaking of trade bait I got this six-card lot of '57s. I needed the top three; the bottom are all available.

Only one other star card pickup in the past month, but it's one I'm very excited about! My first T206! It was trimmed so it stayed pretty cheap, I got it for about $15. Wouldn't have paid that much except it is a Yankee card. Actually my first Highlanders card!

Here it is unscrewed from it's prison. Bridie Cree was a solid outfielder for the Highlanders/Yankees from 1908 to 1915. His best season by far was 1911 when he hit .348 with 30 2B, 22 3B, 4, HR, 88 RBI and 48 SB.

Here's the back. A little rough but not too bad. I'm sure I won't be picking tobacco cards up very often but it sure is fun!

 

Cake or gum? 1976 Ted Simmons

Last time there was a 5-5 tie. Will we have a winner this time?

Hostess shows Simmons squinting at the camera. I'm not sure which ballpark this is. Topps definitely has their usual spot at Shea Stadium for Simmons's batting pose.

Ted Simmons was a fine catcher for many years for the Cardinals, Brewers and Braves. He was a nine-time All-Star who hit for a fairly high average (.285) and some power (six 20+ HR seasons). He is considered one of the weaker Hall-of-Fame selections in recent years (he had 50.4 WAR in 2,456 games, compared to Thurman Munson, 46.1 WAR in 1,423 games). After his playing career he was an executive, coach and scout for several teams.

Wood vs. Wood #229

Last time it was an 8-0 sweep for 1987. Can 1962 get on the board this time?

Orlando de Jesus McFarlane was usually known as Orlando, but is called Jesus here on his rookie card. Great photo at the old Forbes Field with the big catching glove. Born in Cuba, McFarlane made his MLB debut in 1962 with eight games for the Pirates. He also played for them in '64, the Tigers in '66, and the Angels in '67 and '68. Overall in 124 games he hit .240 with 5 HR and 20 RBI. He died in Puerto Rico in 2007.

Simple headshot of Mike Birkbeck. 1987 was the first baseball set I collected and I'm pretty sure this was one of my first cards. The Brewers had two pitchers whose names were fun to say out loud over and over - Birkbeck and Clutterbuck. (I have to admire someone like Night Owl who seems to remember every card from his childhood in the order he got them.) Birkbeck made his MLB debut in 1986 with seven games for the Brewers. He was a part-time member of their starting rotation through the 1989 season. He also had brief stints with the Mets in '92 and '95. Overall in 54 games (51 starts) he went 12-19 with a 4.86 ERA. In 1997 he joined Kent State as their pitching coach, where he remains to this day. 

Wallet Card with some more 100+ year old ghost signs

 Some more signs visible on a building at 7th Avenue and West 17th Street.

 Many of these have faded beyond the point where the business can be made out, including a neckwear business and a leather business. Two that are legible are Brandenstein Trimmings, which operated from 1907 to 1931, and Geo A. Powers Printing, which also operated in the early 20th century; their most notable book appears to be 1903's Lincoln in Caricature.

1974 Topps Deckle Dating - Luis Tiant

RIP Luis Tiant.

March 4, 1973. Seems right as he didn't have a mustache on 1973 cards.

The same day Tiant was posing, his Red Sox suffered an injury blow, as catcher Vic Correll broke his leg in a sliding drill. In other news, 34 American POWs were released in Vietnam, elections were held in Chile and France, and Yankees pitchers Fritz Peterson and Mike Kekich held press conferences to announce that they were swapping wives.

1976 SSPC Merv Rettenmund

First off, RIP Don Ferrarese, who pitched for five major league teams, and died last week at the age of 95. He shared his thoughts on baseball cards with this blog in 2022.

 

The card, in brief: The wad of chaw in Rettenmund's face gives him a goofy look.

Playing career, in brief: Rettenmund was a semi-regular outfielder for the Orioles in the early 1970s, with great seasons as a platoon player in 1970 and 1971. Injuries and tinkering with his swing led to decreased effectiveness as a hitter. Overall in 1,023 games for the Orioles, Reds, Padres and Angels, he hit .271 with 66 HR and 329 RBI..

Post-playing career, in brief: Rettenmund was a hitting coach for several teams, most recently the Padres. He is now retired.

My collection: I have 13 of his cards, from 1969 to 1980. I would be interested in trading for 1972 Kellogg's #11.

1981 Topps Charlie Hough

  

The front: Hough is prepared for the cold and for being sweaty. That towel sure looks dirty, though.

The back: Hough's stat line is too long for any comment or cartoon. And yet he wasn't even halfway through his career yet!

The player: At the time of this card, the knuckleballer was a long-time reliever, recently traded to the Rangers after just over a decade with the Dodgers. In 1982 the Rangers moved him to the starting rotation, reviving his career at the age of 34. From 1982 to 1990 Hough was a reliable member of the Rangers starting rotation, winning at least 10 games a year. He ended his career with two solid seasons each for the White Sox and Marlins. In 858 games (440 starts) he went 216-216 with 61 saves and a 3.75 ERA.

The man: After his playing career he was a pitching coach for several minor league teams, as well as the Dodgers and Mets. He is now retired.

My collection: I have 114 of his cards, from 1972 to 1995. I would be interested in trading for 1983 Fleer Star Stickers #163.

1970 Topps Booklets: The Denis Menke Story

 In the comments of the last post, Night Owl mentioned that Roy Carlson just did a deep dive on this set for Sports Collectors Daily. Carlson has been posting a lot of very interesting articles lately about the images in vintage Topps sets. Turns out the drawing of Menke here is based on the image later seen on his 1971 Topps coin.

Great cartoon there on page two.

The panel at the top of page 3 seems confusing to me. I wonder if it was originally meant to be part of the "Mr. Versatility"  bit on page 4? It doesn't match the part about batting .336.

Bad use of an apostrophe in the last panel.