Baseball Backgrounds : 1981's Weird Year and 1982 Reggie's Reflection Redux

Last time, I looked deep into Reggie Jackson's glasses on 1982 Topps #300, searching for that man within.

That other guy wore a light uniform and chatted at the batting cage, where Reggie himself sported a Yankees warmup pullover.

Ferreting out that figure felt a lot like identifying background photos in 1956 Topps, where you use on-field context and historical box scores to work out who made a specific play at a particular time and proved worthy of a photo. (In this case, I think Puddin' Head's sliding safe into home on August 17, 1949.)

1956 Topps Puddin' Head Jones (detail)

Two comments on my 1982 Topps Reggie post called out new-to-me info that merits more investigation, just like my second look at 1956 Topps #171 Jim Wilson, whose card shows not Jim Wilson or even #91 Gail Harris, two cards that share the same background action.

and the runner's Richie Ashburn...or is it a recolored Pee Wee?

New context to consider for Reggie

• Look at 1981 All-Star Game in Cleveland instead of Yankee Stadium, per POISON75
• Yankee Stadium lacked bunting for their mid-Sept 1981 series hosting Boston, by Bo

Let us remember 1981, a weird year

Baseball endured a work stoppage that canceled the middle of 1981's season. I own this complete Seattle Mariners ticket because games ended the day before. MLB kicked off 1981's "second half" with a rescheduled All-Star Game on August 9 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium.

First and second half division leaders reached the playoffs, including the Yankees, yet neither of the NL's best overall divisional records (CIN and STL) "won" a playoff berth. The 1981 Cincinnati Reds won more games than any other MLB team and did not qualify for the playoffs, leading to this memorable photo and custom card.

That short season also influenced player award voting. Brewers reliever Rollie Fingers turned high-leverage, late-inning success into an AL MVP, cementing his impact on the closer's role in our modern game. Topps featured Milwaukee's voluminous pitching jackets on his 1982 card.

Reggie at Cleveland's All-Star Game

1981 All-Star team photos do indeed show Reggie in a black pullover, seated adjacent to Yankee teammates Bucky Dent and Goose Gossage. So far, so good.

The National League photo contains a shocking amount of powder blue, courtesy of the Phillies, Expos, Cubs, and Braves.

1981 All-Star game highlights show Reggie changed to full sleeves that also feature the black armband worn that year for Elston Howard.

from YouTube game highlights (18:50)

That's Bob Hope sitting first row above Cleveland's stadium bunting and their pairing reminds me of George Bush's cameo on a future Derek Jeter card.

If Topps did indeed take Reggie's 1982 card photos at this game, they limited those to his #300 (base) and #551 (All-Star) cards, as their red-bordered sticker shows a shortsleeve undershirt.

Back to our man in the mirror

Now that we see Cleveland pregame warmups for Reggie, consider All-Star Game participants that resemble that reflected image.

My eyes see a white jersey with horizontal team, no number on front, a lighter complexion, and bare arms. Would you believe just one gent from 1981's team photos checks all four boxes? Don Zimmer.

Rangers coach Zimmer oversaw third base that day and first appeared on the broadcast applauding Ken Singleton's second inning homer off Tom Seaver.

As a baseball lifer, I assume Zim knew enough to talk with anyone about anything, anytime. A veteran like Reggie could keep things going for a good while and they intersected more often in future years at Yankee legend events.

Looks like Zim's our real man in the mirror on Reggie's 1982 Topps card. Sorry, Joe Rudi!

For fans of glasses reflections, the Getty archive also provides this easier-to-identify version of these longtime legends.

"Remember that 1981 All-Star Game? Bob Hope had this joke..."

Thanks to attentive readers for helping nail this down!

Baseball TTM from Richard Billings (Dec 1972 Sport Grafica cover story)

How many of these Sport Grafica magazines are still around? At least one I picked up from eBay to feed my research into Grafica winter league photo sets. This 15-Dec issue sits about halfway through their 1972-73 season (set profile).

Richard Billings (career stats) satisfied my autograph request in less than two weeks with this handwritten letter.

Thanks for your letter. How did you get this magazine? More importantly, why would you want this magazine? I still have a couple of those magazines that I brought back from Maracaibo, Venezuela, but never really knew the translation. I appreciate you translating this for me, Rich Billings

Mr. Billings garnered this cover story thanks to his Yogi-like role as player-manager, taking over Las Aguilas de Zulia after Larry Doby failed to find success.

Expand to enjoy Google's stab at translation

A leader of men and mustaches

This writer made key points about how catchers track pitchers as they tire and why managers need great assistant coaches. Reading between the lines, Billings might've leaned on his staff's expertise in ways Doby failed to do. Its closing note about Richard's ability to motivate players and inspire positivity explains how he became a Venezuelan fan favorite across multiple seasons in Maricaibo.

Richard's onfield interview from June 1972 mentions his Venezuelan club and gives you a feel for his personality. This 1974-75 winter league "sticker" (set profile) shows some Las Aguilas uniform and ballpark.

Thanks again to Mr. Billings! Always fun to add something so unusual to one's collection.

1976 Caruso Sacramento Solons Baseball #5, Bob Jones

Bob Jones the ball player or Bob Jones, your dad's bowling friend? Bob Jones could be anyone at first glance, so it's worth reading more about Bob's backstory on 1986 Topps #142 post. He was drafted by Washington twice, first by the Senators in 1967 and then by the military brass for Vietnam service in 1969. The combat left him deaf in one ear, but not dissuaded from his baseball career. Even a surfeit of sea foam green in Caruso's PCL team set couldn't hold him back.

This bicentennial-themed Sacramento Solons #5 came after Bob's 1974 MLB debut, but before his 1977 Topps #16 rookie card. Bob swung a good stick in just 26 games for Sacramento in 1976, slugging 10 homers and notching a 1.193 OPS, so they must've missed him when California called him up for half a season in halos.

Good penmanship & sweet shades

Bob flashed occasional power but low average in several seasons as a reserve outfielder, so didn't enjoy everyday duty until he switched to coaching. He's served that capacity in the Texas organization since 1988, with more than 1500 wins under his managerial belt and several tours as MLB base or position coach.

As of May 2015, Bob's the assistant hitting instructor for Texas wearing, yup, uniform #5. Above is a cameo with erstwhile Ranger owner (and President) Bush behind a lucky fan. ("Hey George, IS THAT REALLY BOB JONES?")

Value: 1970s Caruso singles cost a few dollars or $15-25 for the team set, assuming no future stars lurk within its checklist. Perfect game hurler Len Barker is the biggest name I recognize from this Solon set's checklist, so it won't break your bank. Guys with big-league experience in bold.

1. Dave Criscione
2. Keith Smith
3. Dave Moharter
4. Craig Skok
5. Bob Jones
6. Mike Bacsik Sr.
7. Tommy Cruz
8. Tommy Boggs
9. Doug Ault
10. Greg Pryor
11. Charlie Bordes
12. Art DeFilippis
13. John Sutton
14. Ed Nottle
15. Jim Gideon
16. Don Thomas
17. Bump Wills
18. Lew Beasley
19. Jerry Bostic
20. Len Barker
21. David Clyde
22. Rick Donnelly (Manager)
23. Greg Mahlberg

Fakes / reprints: Haven't seen any Caruso fakes or reprints in the marketplace, though it'd be easy enough to do.

Favorite Variations and World Wide Winner

Thanks for nominating great variations and permutations in my final 2013 National Wrap-Up! I'll run down each choice, add my own favorite to the end, and pick a winner for 1934 World Wide Gum #5.

1. Gil Hodges Passes Away

Sean Langon started with a card of significance to many, the 1972 Topps & O-Pee-Chee Gil Hodges.

1972 O-Pee-Chee #465 Gil Hodges (with note)

GCRL compared the Topps/OPC versions on his blog, but the short story is OPC must've edited their set later, so added a tag to let young collectors know why Hodges wasn't on the field anymore.

My dad's a big fan of the Dodgers and loved Hodges and Brooklyn's other Boys of Summer. Gil passed away the day before I was born, making it easy to link childhood stories to baseball and vice-versa.

2. Upper Deck Flips Dale Murphy

Classon of Adventures in 1952 Topps picked an infamous early Upper Deck chase card, the reversed Dale Murphy.

1989 Upper Deck #357, Dale Murphy (correct & reversed)

Radicards discussed the collecting environment that led people to buy pack after pack, hoping to score a well-known error that might've been intentional. The chase for errors and rookies eventually pushed companies to create parallels and other subsets for every issue, rather than depend on collectors themselves to find and hype company "mistakes." However Murphy's card happened, it's a stepping stone to today's collecting environment.

3. Billy Ripken

Some cards grow to outshine a player's own career, even guys with Hall of Fame last names. Greg Zakwin of Plaschke, Thy Sweater is Argyle nominated the infamous half of the only brother team to play for their manager father, Cal, Sr: Billy Ripken.

1989 Fleer #616, Bill Ripken (original)

Wikipedia quotes Fleer as creating "at least ten variations" to deal with Billy's batting practice bat expletive. See the "Versions" link at BillRipken.com for a full rundown of far more than I expected to see. At one point, obscure versions booked $100+ and all permutations continue to sell for well above Cal's own card from the same set.

4. Player I have Player I want!

Fellow OBC vintage collector Jason Chistopherson nominated his take on the "Minnie Minoso to Manny Mota" card I recently upgraded to a plain old Minoso. Let's say you have a 1953 George Crowe, but he leaves after a few years and now Felix Mantilla plays for the Braves. There's an easy solution!

1953 Topps #3, George Crowe Felix Mantilla

Sure am glad I finally found that Felix Mantilla card, yessir.

5. Wait, isn't that...?

Hackenbush of Can't Have Too Many Cards noted how Topps created accidental variations by putting the wrong photo on the right card.

1963 Topps #113, Ron Santo / Don Landrum

That's Santo's large photo, Landrum on the inset, and I bet Cubs collectors dream of finding a double-autograph version. (Landrum passed away in 2003 and Santo in 2010, so there's a good shot of at least one kicking around.)

Ron's normal card #252 is Santo through and through.

6. Cards that go Bump in Toronto Texas

Night Owl (of the eponymous card blog) called out the first variation I remember as a young collector, Topps' errant forecast of an off-season trade from Texas to Toronto.

1979 Topps #368, Bump Wills

Bronx Banter delved into the insider rumors that fed Topps' mistake, complete with recollection from the seminal Sy Berger. This card doubly stood out to me when Bump's father Maury Wills took over my Mariners for the 1980 season. Despite Maury's "unmitigated disaster" as the man in charge, having both father and son active in the same AL division gave games against Texas some extra sizzle.

7. Two Ted Williams, two Jackie Robinsons, two Mickey Mantles...

At one point, I sought to build a "master version" of my favorite set, 1956 Topps, an issue rife with multiple backs, dated-or-undated team cards, and minor print layout variations. The primary focus is on card stock for #1-180, which came in white or grey. Buying both backs for the type collection meant paying twice for this guy.

1956 Topps #5, Ted Williams

Here're the other HOF and star variations from that series that you need (at least) two of.

• #10 Warren Spahn
• #15 Ernie Banks
• #20 Al Kaline
• #30 Jackie Robinson
• #31 Hank Aaron
• #33 Roberto Clemente
• #79 Sandy Koufax
• #101 Roy Campanella
• #107 Eddie Mathews
• #110 Yogi Berra
• #113 Phil Rizzuto
• #118 Nellie Fox
• #120 Richie Ashburn
• #130 Willie Mays
• #135 Mickey Mantle
• #145 Gil Hodges
• #150 Duke Snider
• #164 Harmon Killebrew
• #165 Red Shoendienst
• #166 Dodgers team
• #180 Robin Roberts

I eventually ditched the master set goal because DAMN that's a lot of card spending. It's an admirable long-term goal to pursue and includes terrific variations along the way, but remains an expensive road to travel.

GIVEAWAY WINNER: I should probably send an obscure 1930s Canadian card to everyone as reward for reading this far. But since I have just one spare Flint Rhem, let's roll a virtual six-sided die.

RANDOM.ORG GENERATED 5 AS THE NUMBER, NOT A JOKE.

Congrats to Hackenbush, who nets the Flint Rhem with that 1963 Santo/Landrum nomination! Will contact him for a current address and thanks to everyone else for entering, I enjoyed poking around the history of those variations.

1980 TCMA Charleston Charlies Baseball #5, Brian Allard

Not sure why I'm a fan of goofy blond curls on baseball players. Was it the post-disco zeitgeist? The Fidrych Effect? Anyway, add Brian Allard to that list of xanthic fashionistas.

Nice jersey! HARLIE-DAVIDSON WOOOOO! VROOM VROOOO....oh. "Charlies." As in, "the International League team from Charleston, West Virginia."

My 9 year-old self remembers Brian Allard for his 1981 stint in a Mariners uniform (game logs), which followed this big trade for Texas slugger Richie Zisk.

December 12, 1980: [Brian Allard] traded by the Texas Rangers with Steve Finch, Rick Auerbach, Ken Clay, Jerry Gleaton and Richie Zisk to the Seattle Mariners for Larry Cox, Rick Honeycutt, Willie Horton, Mario Mendoza and Leon Roberts.

Zisk stepped into the DH role vacated by 39 year-old Horton, who Texas ultimately released before the 1981 season. Rick Honeycutt nabbed an ERA crown as a starter in 1982, then evolved into a Tony LaRussa relief specialist for Oakland and St. Louis.

Speaking of roster moves, what else did Seattle's do with their side of the trade, other than Steve Finch (who never reached the bigs)?

October 23, 1981: The Seattle Mariners released Rick Auerbach.  

March 29, 1982: The Seattle Mariners released Ken Clay.

June 27, 1984:  Jerry Gleaton traded by the Seattle Mariners with Gene Nelson to the Chicago White Sox for Salome Barojas. 

January 16, 1985: Richie Zisk released by the Seattle Mariners.

At least Seattle got 3 solid (121 OPS+) seasons from Zisk, who retired following his 1985 release. A 1980 article about the trade noted a few other deals (both real and potential) I'd forgotten about. Fred Lynn almost swapped for Ron Guidry? Whitey Herzog acquiring future HOF relievers Bruce Sutter and Rollie Fingers and then flipping Fingers to MIL? That's a busy off-season.

Here's another look at that Seattle Mariners trading acumen.

November 18, 1980: The New York Yankees traded Brad Gulden and $150,000 to the Seattle Mariners for a player to be named later and Larry Milbourne. The Seattle Mariners sent Brad Gulden (May 18, 1981) to the New York Yankees to complete the trade.

Yup, trading a dude for himself. Mariners fever! Catch it!

TCMA printed 17 Charleston Charlies, below average for 1980 team sets.

1. Tom Burgess
2. Mark Scott
3. Wayne Pinkerton
4. Nelson Norman
5. Brian Allard
6. Greg Mahlberg
7. Dave Moharter
8. Mike Richardt
9. Richard Lisi
10. Mike Hart
11. Mark Mercer
12. Dan Duran
13. John Butcher
14. Fla Strawn
15. Odie Davis
16. Tucker Ashford
17. Bob Babcock

Value: This #5 cost $2 from MinorLeagueSingles.com and team sets run $15-20 on eBay.

Fakes / reprints: TCMA reprinted several of their 1980 teams for "collectors kits" in the late 80s. The reprints have black ink backs instead of blue.

Type Site: Night Owl Cards (and its first look at 2012 Topps)

Props to fellow card blogger Night Owl for an early look at 2012 Topps. His post captures their quantitative leap in player photos, a few of which I borrowed for commentary.

I don't blame collectors who specialize in "cool catcher gear" cards. The so-called tools of ignorance offer some of the coolest evidence of our sports' evolution, as with today's hockey-style protective masks.

This Matt Kemp promo is sort of a number five, as it's cataloged GGC-5. Topps upped the stakes in this year's online unlockable "contest" by manufacturing some (real) gold cards. Everyone loves the precious metals!

SEE YA. BOOM. Better call the Na-police and put out an APB on that baseball.

Color me impressed by this year's first look at Topps handiwork. Will it keep everyone coming to the candy store and (more importantly) attract new customers into the fold? Once our new baseball season ramps up, I wouldn't be surprised.

Was this my first week of all Type Site posts, Mon/Wed/Fri? I think so, but fear not: #5 card profiles will return as normal next Monday. (And as always, find entertaining baseball excellence at Night Owl Cards.)

Bobby Valentine to Manage Boston Red Sox

Did you know Bobby V was in the mix for Boston's bench? I sure didn't. Inevitable he ended up managing again somewhere, though my vote was for Seattle about 3 years ago, given his experience in Japan.

That's not my favorite Valentine card, though.

1981 Topps #445! Love the face mask and vertical uniform striping. Ellis wore the half-football bars to protect his injured cheekbone, as pioneered by Dave Parker not long before.

Sweet mother of mercy, that's creepy. Find the whole story at Aggh! It's Dave Parker at the Plate! by Paul Lukas.

And now the circle to "Valentine's Day Massacre" is complete. Welcome to Boston, Bobby V!

Take Five for Trivia: Losing a One-Hitter

On Saturday, May 14th, Chad Billingsley of the Dodgers lost a one-hitter, thanks to a double, missed pickoff play at second, and sacrifice fly from Melvin Mora. Short story, a 1-0 victory for the Diamondbacks.

"Nuts."

Chad's the latest pitcher to lose such a great outing, but hardly the only one. Knuckleballer Charlie Hough, in fact, threw a pair of one-hitters for the Rangers and lost both.

• June 16, 1986: California Angels win with two outs in the 9th on dropped strikeout pitch; Wally Joyner scores from second on the strikeout/passed ball, as Hough apparently fails to cover home (box score)
• August 15, 1989: Seattle scratches out first run on single, balk, wild pitch, and sac fly; second run scores on walk, steal, and error; Texas strands 15 (!) base-runners (box score)

Here's hoping Chad wins the next one!

1977 Pepsi Baseball Stars #5, Mike Hargrove

Happy Thanksgiving to my 2010 readers! Here's a food-related issue for everyone to warm up with before that third serving of turkey comes around: the 1977 Pepsi-Cola Baseball Star discs, shown with perforated "capliner."

Card front (click for detail)

Pepsi inserted these gloved discs one per carton, intending collectors to punch them out for easier storage. The included checklist numbers to 72 players, but Reggie Jackson and Mike Schmidt each came in 5 color variations, for a master set of 80.

Card back

Based on their listed players--2 Cincinnati Reds and 2 Cleveland Indians--Pepsi test-marketed these glove-shaped liners in Ohio or nearby states. They show up frequently at shows and online, often mixed with other 70s disc issues. (See a recent Vintage Sportscards Blog article for some football examples.)

I've never seen one of Pepsi's personalized shirts for sale, which either means they weren't worth saving or few people took the trouble to send away for one in the first place. 

Value: As of writing, many eBay sellers list disc-with-glove HOFers for $5 and under. This remains an affordable (if plain) set to put together.

Fakes / reprints: Several makers created baseball disc sets, but they're not actually reprints. Check for company names on the front or back to distinguish them--many collectors try to complete a set of specific advertisers.

1977 Topps Stickers #5, Bert Blyleven

Today's guest just missed 2010 HOF election, falling 5 votes short of the required 75% (full MLB.com story). Some writers have made his long-time excellence for (mostly) middling teams a fulcrum to critique the business of baseball and Cooperstown's own political history. I just remember Bert as a worthy opponent for my Mariners, going 14-7 against them in 27 games pitched (career splits).

Card front

In 1977, Bert led the AL with a career-best 1.065 WHIP (BB + H / IP), yet went "only" 14-12. Being third starter behind Gaylord Perry and Doyle Alexander meant missing a start every now and then, but a few extra wins probably wouldn't have gained Cy Young notice. (Sparky Lyle, the Yanks' dominant closer, took the award by winning 13 and saving another 26.)

Card back

Topps printed this 55-sticker, cloth-front set as a companion to their normal 660-count issue. It came in its own wax packs and proved relatively popular. The peel-away, self-adhesive back includes player highlights, though I think stats would've worked fine. (Perhaps that would've cost more than this one-off project was worth to them.)

1977's the best known cloth sticker set, but Topps tried them first in 1972. Robert Edwards Auctions sold a pair of uncut 1972 sheets for $1K not long ago.

Value: Ungraded sets go for up to $50 and singles cost a dollar or two. Nolan Ryan is the top star and could cost you $20.

Fakes / Reprints: Haven't seen any fakery for this set, as it's too costly to replicate a sticker issue for just a few dollars.