Cake or gum? 1976 Mike Ivie

Last time Hostess held on for a 6-4 victory. Who will win here?

Mike Ivie takes some cuts for the photographer  at Candlestick Park. I believe that is the Giants' #12 Gary Thomason in the background on the Hostess card. Some large ads for Chevron gas and Olympia beer are visible in in the background.

Ivie was the first overall pick of the 1970 draft, but his major league career failed to live up to expectation. This was partly due to emotional and mental issues that Ivie opened up about later in his career. Overall, in 857 games for four teams over 11 seasons, he hit .269 with 81 HR and 411 RBI. Ivie originally came up as a catcher, but developed a mental block about throwing the ball back to the pitcher and was moved to first baseman. After the 1979 season, when Ivie seemed to finally be putting it all together, (.286, 27 HR, 89 RBI), Ivie badly cut his hand with a hunting knife. The Sporting News Guide said, "The sensitive first baseman couldn't cope with the long rehabilitation process, and the injury also affected his brittle confidence." Ivie, who kept a low public profile after his playing career, died in 2023.