1979 TCMA Newark Co-Pilots Baseball #5, Mike Overton

Mike Overton took this his time in uniform quite seriously. Mike Overton was all business. After this photo shoot, I bet Mike Overton went right over to the Newark Chamber of Commerce and created some local jobs.

Notice anything unusual about that jersey? Someone in the clubhouse added M.O. to Mike's undershirt--the first time I've seen handwritten initials appear on a baseball card--possibly to keep track of everything they spent money on. (Most minor league teams operate on a shoestring and that goes double for unaffiliated teams like the Co-Pilots.)

Unfortunately, this set captures Newark's final year of play. They spent ten years farming for the Seattle Pilots and Milwaukee Brewers, but dropped affiliation for 1979 and folded after one season as an independent. (Find Mike's stats at B-R.com.)

Some TCMA minor league team sets include sponsorships, which the team likely arranged in advance and included with their print order. McKanes Sporting Goods seems to be gone for good, though I found a few mentions of Newark's Pro-May Mall, including this 1984 newspaper article about a videotape service hosted in the same mall. And speaking of mustaches and videos, wish I could grow one half as good as Mike's.

UPDATE: Sadly, Mike passed away in 2011. Thanks for the visits and comments from his family and teammates. Here's the full TCMA set checklist, so others can also find his card.

1. Tom Dann
2. Steve Nicastro
3. Joe Rigoli
4. Bob Bill
5. Mike Overton
6. Mike Fichman
7. Steve Dembowski
8. Mike Oleksak
9. Don Clatterbuck
10. Michael Lacasse
11. Kevin MacDonald
12. Joe McCann
13. Harry White
14. Mark Grier
15. Carl Adams
16. Bob Cross
17. Billy Clay
18. Keith Gainer
19. Richard Block
20. Kevin Rose
21. Mitch Wright
22. Len Spicer
23. Lance Viola
24. Andy Pascarella

Value: This #5 cost $2 at MinorLeagueSingles.com and team sets run as little as $10 on eBay.

Fakes / reprints: Haven't seen any in the marketplace.