Cake or gum? 1976 Graig Nettles

Last time Topps rolled to a 9-3 win. Who will come out on top here?

Two shots of Graig Nettles in his home Yankees uniform in his home park, but neither are at Yankee Stadium. The Hostess photo is at Shea Stadium, the Yankees home park in '74 and '75, while Topps's photo was taken at spring training in Ft. Lauderdale.

Coincidentally this is my second Nettles post in a week, so I'll just copy and paste what I write for the '81 Topps post. Nettles has the highest WAR total of any third baseman not in the Hall of Fame, and the highest WAR total of any player with a batting average below .250. The six-time All Star was one of the big stars of the Yankee teams that won four pennants and two World Series between 1976 and 1981. He led the AL with 32 HR in 1976, and in 1977 had his best season, hitting .255 with 37 HR and 107 RBI. The Yankees traded him to the Padres before the 1984 season and helped San Diego win their first-ever pennant that year. In 2,700 major league games he hit .248 with 390 HR and 1,314 RBI. Nettles was also a terrific defender, with the most impressive highlight reel of postseason defensive gems since Brooks Robinson. Nettles was a scout and coach for a while but is now retired. He was known for his irreverent sense of humor - his autobiography was titled Balls.

Wood vs. Wood #215

Last time it was a 6-3 victory for 1987. Who will win this time?

Woody Held holds his wood at Yankee Stadium. The C on his batting helmet is mostly worn away. Usually known as Woodie, and born Woodson Heldt, he was originally a prospect for the Yankees, but was traded to Kansas City with Billy Martin in the Copacabana trade. A year later, the A's sent him to Cleveland in the Roger Maris trade. He had his best years with the Indians, with at least 18 home runs in each of his six full seasons with the Tribe. Held held the Cleveland record for career home runs by a shortstop with 85, until it was broken by Jhonny Peralta in 2009. Held's value was mostly his power; he had high strikeout and error totals and a low patting average. Overall in 14 seasons for seven teams, he hit .240 with 179 HR and 559 RBI. After his playing career he retired to Wyoming where he operated a dude ranch, owned a pizza place and coach Little League. He died of cancer in 2009.

 Mark Langston is in mid-delivery at Anaheim Stadium. Langston pitched in two day games there in 1986 and was roughed around by the AL West champs both times, allowing eight earned runs in 15 innings (4.80 ERA), walking eight and striking out five. Seattle lost both games. Langston came up with the Mariners in 1984 and became one of the franchise's early stars, leading the AL in strikeouts three of his first four seasons. However, he also had high walk totals and gave up a lot of home runs, so outside of strikeouts his numbers were not that outstanding. He was traded to the Expos in 1989 for young fireballer Randy Johnson. Though Langston pitched well for the Expos, they failed to make the playoffs, while Johnson became a Hall-of-Famer with Seattle. After the season he signed with the Angels. Though his strikeouts were down with California, he pitched well in his first three seasons there. He ended his career with stints in San Diego and Cleveland. Overall in 16 seasons he went 179-158 with 2,464 strikeouts and a 3.97 ERA. He is currently in his 13ths season as a radio announcer for the Angels.

1974 Topps Deckle Dating: Ron Bryant

Ron Bryant at Candlestick Park.

July 15, 1973.

Bryant did not pitch this day, but teammate Juan Marichal was masterful, pitching a 4-hit shutout, striking out six, as SF crushed the Pirates 12-0. Willie McCovey hit two home runs, including his 400th, and Garry Maddox and Ed Goodson also went deep for the Giants.

Perhaps this photo is from the same day?

Meanwhile, in Detroit, Nolan Ryan was even better than Marichal, pitching his second no-hitter of the season. In other news, a mudslide in the Kazakh region of the USSR killed dozens, Kinks singer Ray Davies checked himself into a hospital after a suicide attempt, quitting the band; and Byrds guitarist Clarence White was killed by a drunk driver.

TCDB/OBC roundup

Leading off with a really fun trade package from TCDB's rencherg. Starting off with three great pitching action shots from Sportflics. Two of them are sidearmers - the Eichhorn in particular gives some great looks not usually seen on a baseball card. Needless to say the cards look a lot better in person.

The rest of his trade package included legends, stickers, and a weird oddball where Pepsi airbrushed their product colors over Jose Canseco's green A's uniform.

Meanwhile, three cards from peach_was_here including the final card needed for my 1992 Donruss Rookies set, Hall-of-Famer Pedro Martinez!

Leading off the OBC section with an even bigger junk-wax-era set kill. 1986 Topps Traded Barry Bonds! This came from Erik Greenwood.

I got two 1954 PWEs from OBCers this week. This quintet came from Doug Smith . . .

. . . while Bob D'Angelo sent three '54s along with a '53 Yankee card of Ewell Blackwell, best known for his time with the Reds. Among these eight '54s, the two coach cards (Scheffing and Hopp) have some of the most active poses.

Michael Salinsky sent three Empire Strikes Backs cards for me. I haven't put wantlists for my Star Wars sets on my blog, but if you have extra Star Wars cards let me know, I might be interested.

Finally, a very nice vintage mix from Dan Williams.

 

1986 Spokane Indians at the mall - Warren Newson

 

Newson is at the same Orange Julius location that we earlier saw William Taylor. That's a lot of oranges!

Newson was a long-time Padres minor-leaguer who finally got his major league chance when he was traded to the White Sox in 1991. He could hit fairly well and walked a lot, so his OBP was always considerably higher than his batting average. However, he did not have notable power or speed, and was only 5 feet 7 inches tall. These qualities likely prevented him from getting more of a chance. He was traded to the Mariners in 1995 and signed with the Rangers in 1996. In Texas, he started hitting for more power, but his BA and OBP suffered as his strikeouts went up faster than his home run rate. Overall in 489 games over 8 seasons, he hit .250 with 34 HR and 120 RBI. Since his retirement he has done some youth coaching but has mostly kept a low profile.

1981 Topps Graig Nettles

The front: Nettles has launched a long fly ball at Yankee Stadium. The green shin-guard indicates the opponent is Oakland. There's even a fan who appears to be wearing an A's green hat and yellow shirt. In two home day games against the A's in 1980 Nettles was 3-for-8, including a home run off of Mike Norris in a 5-3 victory on June 21. Perhaps that is what we are seeing here?

The back: 14 years in the majors leaves no room for a back blurb.

The player: Nettles has the highest WAR total of any third baseman not in the Hall of Fame, and the highest WAR total of any player with a batting average below .250. The six-time All Star was one of the big stars of the Yankee teams that won four pennants and two World Series between 1976 and 1981. He led the AL with 32 HR in 1976, and in 1977 had his best season, hitting .255 with 37 HR and 107 RBI. The Yankees traded him to the Padres before the 1984 season and helped San Diego win their first-ever pennant that year. In 2,700 major league games he hit .248 with 390 HR and 1,314 RBI. Nettles was also a terrific defender, with the most impressive highlight reel of postseason defensive gems since Brooks Robinson. 

The man: Nettles was a scout and coach for a while but is now retired. He was known for his irreverent sense of humor - his autobiography was titled Balls.

My collection: I have 58 of his cards, from 1969 to 1989. I would be interested in trading for 1972 Topps #590.

1976 SSPC Ken Griffey

 

The card, in brief: His son was known for always smiling, but Griffey Sr. has a serious look shortly before the game. Lots of fans already getting to their seats.

The player, in brief: A .300-hitting outfielder with some power and good speed, Ken Griffey was a three-time All-Star and a key member of the Big Red Machine. In a 19-year career with the Reds, Yankees, Braves and Mariners, Griffey hit .296 with 152 HR, 859 RBI and 200 SB.

Post-playing career, in brief: Griffey was a coach in the Reds organization for many years, and was commissioner of the short-lived Florida Winter Baseball League. He is now retired.

My collection: I have 77 of his cards, from 1974 to 1992. I would be interested in trading for 1982 Topps Traded #40.

Vintage star card roundup

Two weeks ago from Greg Morris auction, got just a small number of cards but a few big stars, highlighted by the fantastic 1962 Topps #1, Roger Maris. Other highlights include two Al Kaline's including a Post.

 

 Then from last week's, a few more cards but almost no stars, except for another Post Kaline.

 

Other than that, just a couple of other cheap, rough stars. Looks like the only way I can get a cheap Koufax is if I don't want borders. Got a trimmed '59 a few weeks ago, now a trimmed '63:

This is one of the most popular league leader cards of the era, for good reason. Some inconsequential paper loss scared others away so I was able to get it cheap.

1970 Topps Booklets: The Bob Gibson Story

 

Two-sport star! In the 1940s, there was also a Harlem Globetrotters baseball team.

 

Nice image of the Gateway Arch. However, construction on the arch didn't start until 1963, four years after Gibson came up to the Cardinals.

Gibson was MVP of both the 1964 and 1967 World Series, winning a Corvette each time.
 

Cards from Diamond Jesters and Cards on Cards

Cards on Cards did another free card giveaway, with cards too "damaged" to trade on TCDB. Like last time, you would need a microscope to find any damage on most of these. The only exception is the '76 Brock, which looks like another August 4, 1973 photo like his '74 Deckle and base set cards!

I got some great cards from the latest Diamond Jesters Time Travel Trade. Sebastian Janikowski had a good career but he can't compare to Joe Montana. That Frank Thomas card has a nice shiny label for the big FRANK.

Cake or gum? 1976 Rick Monday

Last time it was gum with the 8-3 win. Will this one be closer?

Rick Monday with a batting pose, with blue sky behind him. With Topps, add a bit more background detail. These photos were probably taken at the same time, though one can't be 100% sure. Rick Monday had a solid 19-year career for the A's, Cubs and Dodgers, and would hit a career-high 32 home runs in '76. That year the ex-Marine made national news for foiling a flag-burning attempt in the Dodger Stadium outfield. Monday explained afterwards, "I’ve visited enough veterans hospitals and seen enough guys with their legs blown off defending the flag." To this day it is still unknown exactly what the two perpetrators were protesting. On the field, Monday's biggest moment came as a Dodger, with his ninth-inning home run in Game 5 of the NLCS giving the Dodgers a 2-1 over the Expos, a moment remembered by Expos fans as "Blue Monday". Monday remains in the Dodgers organization, currently in his 32nd season as an announcer for the team.

Wood vs. Wood #214

Last time we had a 4-4 tie. Will there be a winner this time?

Topps did a pretty good job turning Dom Zanni's Giants uniform into a White Sox. Zanni had already pitched in 18 games in parts of three seasons for the Giants, but still had rookie status when he was included in the trade that sent Billy Pierce and Don Larsen to San Francisco. As a rookie in '62 he pitched well, going 6-5 with 5 saves and a 3.75 ERA in 44 games, almost all in relief. He was traded to Cincinnati in '63 and pitched well in his limited appearances there, but retired after the 1966 season when one of his daughters needed a serious operation. Overall in 111 major league games, went 9-6 with 10 saves and a 3.79 ERA. On his '62 card, Zanni, who was born in the Bronx and grew up in Brooklyn, is listed as living in Rockville Centre, just one town over from where I live now. After his playing career he lived and worked (as an insurance agent) a little farther east in Massapequa. He died at the age of 85 in 2017, and per Baseball-Reference is buried in the same cemetery as some of my relatives.

"Hey Omar?" "What?" "Never mind." That kind of looks like what happened for this photo. Moreno was at the tail end of a fine career highlighted by becoming the first player ever with three straight 70+ steal seasons (1978-1980). His best years came with the Pirates, most notably his career year of 1979, when the Pirates won the World Series. Moreno hit .282 with 8 HR, 69 RBI and a league-leading 77 SB, scoring 110 runs. In the postseason he hit .311 with 7 runs scored. Speed was by far Moreno's biggest asset, and like many speedsters he struggled as he slowed down after age 30, with unsuccessful stints with the Astros, Yankees, Royals and Braves Overall in 1,382 major league games, Moreno hit .252 with 37 HR, 386 RBI, 487 SB and 699 runs scored. A beloved figure in his native Panama, he was named in 2009 as the country's first ever Secretary of Sport. Moreno currently lives in Florida, where he s a baseball coach at the Vaughn Sports Academy in Boca Raton.

1974 Topps Deckle Dating - Lou Brock

 Lou Brock at Shea Stadium.

August 4, 1973.

Brock was right in the thick of things as the Cardinals edged the Mets, 4-3. His 3rd-inning sac fly tied the score at 1-1. In the 8th inning, with the score tied at 2-2, Brock led off with a single, went to second on a sac bunt, and scored the eventual game-winning run on a single by Ted Simmons. However, the victory was a costly one for the Cardinals, as Bob Gibson was injured, tearing cartilage in his knee. Gibson didn't come back until September 29, and his absence may well have been the deciding factor in a division race where the Cardinals finished just 1.5 games behind the Mets.

I think his regular Topps card that year also features Brock at Shea Stadium, so perhaps these photos were taken the same day, though Brock is on the other side of the field here.

In other news, astronomers were able to get their first ever look through Venus's thick cloud layer to observe the surface of the planet; rising meat prices were triggering anger at President Nixon and, in some places, meat hoarding; and Juan Peron and his wife Isabel were nominated to be President and Vice President of Argentina.

1986 Spokane Indians at the Mall - Craig Cooper

  

It was hard to tell for many businesses what store the photo was taken at for their card. Not so for Pizzabella - whether it was luck or foresight, their name was written on a piece of paper on the back of the cash register (or drink machine)? I really like the Pepsi menu board too. It's been fun seeing the classic logo come back lately.

First baseman Craig Cooper played seven seasons in the Padres, Brewers and Indians organizations, reaching as high as AAA. In 599 games he hit .271 with 51 HR and 348 RBI. He is now an instructor at the West Florida Baseball Academy.

1981 Topps Mike Davis

 

The front: Davis is wearing aviator glasses on his rookie card.

The back: Davis played his high school ball at Herbert Hoover High in San Diego.

The player: Mike Davis had several solid seasons as the starting right fielder for the A's in the early- and mid-1980s. He had five straight seasons of double-digit steals and three straight seasons of double-digit home runs. He was not a particularly patient hitter, with over twice as many strikeouts as walks. However, by far his biggest plate appearance, in 1988 with his new team the Dodgers, against his old Oakland friends, was a base on balls. In Game 1 of the World Series, with two outs and the Dodgers down by a run, Davis worked a pinch-hit walk against Dennis Eckersley to set up Kirk Gibson's famous game-winning home run. Overall in 963 games he hit .259 with 91 HR, 371 RBI and 134 SB.

The man: Since his playing days ended he has done some youth and professional baseball coaching, and has been involved in a variety of business ventures.

My collection: I have 46 of his cards, from 1981 to 1991. I would be interested in trading for 1988 Sportflics #206.

1976 SSPC Tony Perez

 

The card, in brief: A hall of fame slugger, in a bunting pose! Back when superstars were all-around hitters, not mindless hackers.

The player, in brief: Tony Perez was one of the most important pieces of the Big Red Machine. Between 1967 and 1977 the consistent Perez hit between 19 and 40 HR, and drove in between 90 and 129 RBI each year. In a 23-year career, mostly with Cincinnati but also Boston, Montreal and Philadelphia, he hit .279 with 379 HR and 1,652 RBI.

Post-playing career, in brief: Perez was a longtime coach and team executive, and had managerial stints with the Reds and Marlins. He is now retired.

My collection: I have 43 of his cards, from 1966 to 1987. I would be interested in trading for 1965 Topps #581, 1967 Topps #476, and 1971 Topps #580.

1970 Topps Booklets: The Al Ferrara Story

 One player per team, Ferrara was the choice for the expansion Padres.

Nine years ago I pulled this card from one of Al's street boxes. To celebrate I took a wallet card photo at Carnegie Hall.

In later years John Franco, Pete Falcone, Benny Distefano and Kevin Baez came out of Lafayette. The school closed by the DOE in 2010 and was broken down into several smaller schools.

 

I'm not sure what hammering has to do with the pennant drive. Driving the nails in?

Cake or gum? 1976 Jerry Grote

 Last time cake beat gum, 6-3. Will gum come out on top this time?

Two very different, but excellent, photos of Mets catcher Jerry Grote. Hostess has him in a hitting pose, with a great look at the fans just starting to get into their seats at Shea Stadium. Topps, meanwhile, has a closeup photo of Grote catching.

In his 11+ years as the Mets' primary catcher, Jerry Grote was considered one of the best defensive catchers in the game, though he never won a Gold Glove. He was also considered an excellent handler of pitchers, and his guidance of the Mets' young staff helped them to their surprise 1969 World Series win. At the plate he was an adequate hitter with doubles power. In 1,421 games for the Colt .45's, Mets, Dodgers and Royals he hit .252 with 160 doubles, 22 HRs and 404 RBI. In his retirement he did a little coaching and a little announcing, and worked in a variety of other industries, including real estate and cattle ranching. He died in April at the age of 81.

Wood vs. Wood #213

Last time 1962 cruised to a 7-3 win. Will it win again here?

Richie Ashburn sticks his tongue out at spring training. The Hall-of-Famer was picked up by the expansion Mets before the 1962 season, in what would be the last of his 15 seasons. He was coming off two years with the Cubs, but the photo that Topps used looks older than that, more like the Phillies pinstripes he wore from 1948 to 1959. Considered the fastest player and best defensive outfielder in the league, Ashburn led the NL in hits three times and walks four times, with over twice as many walks as strikeouts. For his career he hit .308 with 2,578 hits and 1,198 walks. After his retirement as a player he immediately became an announcer for the team. In September of 1997 he died of a heart attack at New York's Grand Hyatt Hotel after a Mets game, weeks before he was planning to retire.

Rookie Randy Myers is also in a spring training shot, perhaps deep in thought, perhaps staring into space. Myers pitched in just five big league games in 1986 and was not on the postseason roster, but by 1988 he was sharing the closer role with Roger McDowell. After the 1989 season the Mets traded him to Cincinnati for John Franco in a rare swap of closers. Both teams did well with the trade, but the Reds had more immediate success, with the team riding the Nasty Boys bullpen anchored by Myers and his 38 saves, all the way to a World Championship. Myers was dominant in the postseason with 8.2 scoreless innings and four saves, earning NLCS MVP honors. Myers would become an itinerant closer throughout the 1990s, with a year in San Diego, three years (and two NL saves titles) with the Cubs, two years (and an AL saves title) with Baltimore, and brief stops in Toronto and San Diego, as shoulder woes brought his career to a premature end. Overall in 728 games he went 44-63 with a 3.19 ERA and 347 saves. He is now President of the T.O.D.A.Y. Foundation in the state of Washington.

Cards from Night Owl

Always fun to get cards from Night Owl.

He found a few Dodgers that fit some Score set needs for me. He had also posted that Boggs card recently, and I had expressed my admiration for the card. I guess he had an extra. I love how it looks like he's on a grass field somewhere with a UFO landing nearby. Actually it's Shea Stadium at night during the 1986 World Series. Fleer used a lot of pregame photos from Shea in that series in their boxed sets in '87.

Some vintage too! Rich Gossage looks a little uncomfortable in that airbrushed Pirates uniform. Craig Swan looks a lot happier. And topping it off is some great Canadian vintage with two OPC cards!

TCDB/OBC roundup

Or, This Week in Vintage Cards . . . 

Larry Leonard of OBC sent these three brightly-colored 1958 Topps cards.

Ten from 1959, from Jim Silva. My favorite is Dick Groat with a great view of the buildings next to the Polo Grounds.

From Brian Betza, a mixture of '75 minis and Return of the Jedi. I guess that's a Mon Mothma rookie card?

14 1980 Topps football from Michael Salinsky. Includes four Giants!

My only recent TCDB trade was also all vintage! These came from RParsons17.

 

1974 Topps Deckle Dating: Tim Foli

 A simple spring training headshot.

March 9, 1973 in Daytona Beach.

That day in Daytona Beach, the Expos beat the Twins, 3-1. Meanwhile, the Expos were the only National League to vote for using the new "designated hitter" in spring games against the AL teams that were experimenting with it.

This is probably when the photo for Foli's regular Topps card was taken.

Elsewhere on March 9, China announced that they would free American John Downey, who had been imprisoned there since 1952; Heinz Wossipiwo set the world ski jump record (554 feet); and in a small bar in Amityville, Long Island called The Daisy, a rock band called KISS performed for the first time in the designs and makeup that they would later make world-famous.