1979 TCMA Lodi Dodgers Baseball #5, Skip Mann

Right now, my hair looks a lot like Skip's on this single-A Dodgers card and that's why I scheduled a haircut for 5:30pm. Maybe they can trim its unkempt sides and fashion me his mustache.

Add "Skip Mann" to the roll of great baseball names, especially good for its connotation of being The Man. Skip Mann does for the 70s what "Bobo Newsom" did for the 30s and 40s.

More recently, St. Louis Softball inducted Skip into their Hall of Fame. Congrats!

I like the flower and MLB baseball tie on Mr. Mann, Cubs and Rangers logos most visible. Can't find that specific tie for sale online, but there are plenty of good options out there.

This TCMA Dodgers checklist includes 20 players and the manager, Stan Wasiak. (An 18 year-old Fernando Valenzuela made three starts for Lodi, his first pro pitching, but must've arrived too late for a card.)

1. Rod Kemp
2. Augie Ruiz
3. Paul Bain
4. Alfredo Mejia
5. Skip Mann
6. Mike Marshall
7. Rocky Cordova
8. Steve Perry
9. Jesse Baez
10. Jim Nobles
11. Larry Powers
12. Johnny Walker
13. Bill Swoope
14. Stan Wasiak, Manager
15. Miguel Franjul
16. Jerry Bass
17. Bob Foster
18. Chris Malden
19. Brian Hayes
20. Hank Jones
21. Evon Martinson

Value: Skip's #5 cost $2 at MinorLeagueSingles.com and most of his teammates would run the same.

Fakes / reprints: Mike Marshall made a splash for LA in the 1980s, so he's the highest risk for fakery. (Haven't seen any in the actual marketplace.)

1977 TCMA St. Petersburg Cardinals Baseball #5, Denzel (Danzel) Martindale

If there's one boogeyman of low-budget set production like TCMA offered to a growing roster of minor league franchises, it's editing. Tracking stats, player movements, and getting baseball's bevy of unusual names just right take a back seat to finishing, printing, and delivering team sets to their clients on schedule. Thus did Danzel, a two-year pro in the Florida leagues, became Denzel, a jersey-and-hat-wearing Jack Black look-a-like.

According to Martindale's card back, 35 years ago today--June 28, 1977--St. Petersburg hosted Winter Haven's Red Sox, as managed by baseball name All-Star Rac Slider. I hope they included wacky mid-inning promotions you find at today's minor league parks, like the Bat Spin Race or Mascot Races.

St. Petersburg's TCMA team roster includes 25 players and an unnumbered card for staff member Mike Nagle.

1. Kelly Paris
2. William Bowman
3. Felipe Zayas
4. John Littlefield
5. Denzel Martindale
6. John Fulgham
7. Raymond Searge
8. Frank Hunsacker
9. Michael Stone
10. Terry Gray
11. Daniel O'Brien
12. Jorge Arazamendi
13. Hub Kittle, Manager
14. Thomas Herr
15. Raymond Donaghue
16. Henry Mays
17. Scott Boras
18. Claude Crockett
19. Michael Pisarkiewicz
20. Robert Harrison
21. Hector Eduardo
22. Alfred Meyer
23. David Pennial
24. Benny Joe Edelen
25. Ralph Miller Jr., General Manager

Thanks to the Internet, you can view card scans for everyone save Mr. Nagle. Its biggest names include future All-Star Tom Herr and sports agent Scott Boras, who played four years of minor league ball before moving on to legal work and sports representation.

One wonders--did Boras pitch his services to former teammates? Given that many of his former clients came back to work for Boras after retirement, I'm thinking probably yes. He came across as sharp and self-possessed as a panel guest at this year's Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, qualities most people like in an agent or employer. This on-site interview says a lot about his current perspective.

Value: Mr. Martindale cost $2.50 at MinorLeagueSingles.com. "Full" sets might or might not include the unnumbered Nagle, so check with the seller if you want every card.

Fakes / reprints: These black-white-yellow cards would be easy to fake with modern equipment, but low demand means few people attempt it. Tom Herr's the riskiest for counterfeits, since his playing peak coincided with a card market boom in the mid-1980s.

1969 Globe Imports Playing Cards Baseball #5, Willie McCovey, Earl Wilson, Bud Harrelson, Met Stottlemyre

I've seen today's playing card set throughout my two decades of collecting, often mixed into odds-and-ends quarter boxes at shows or set aside for team collectors. It wasn't until recently, however, that an SCD taught me they're an "official" set--printed by the Globe Imports company--and not just a fan project made with old photos and copy machines.

Printed with blank backs and no company info, these small (~1.5" x 2") cards come on cheap paper and look like a one-weekend job. Globe Imports distributed them via gas stations in southern states and they might not've been an MLB-approved product. Baseball's players union started licensing player images in the late 1960s, so Globe might've paid them for the photos instead of working through team ownership. Or they might've told (and paid) no one, as hinted by an example below.

Most of the set's 52 suited cards match up to one player, but a handful get two variations.

• 3 Hearts: Tony Conigliaro, Don Drysdale
• 3 Clubs: Jerry Koosman, Mike McCormick
• Ace Clubs: Richie Allen, Yaz
• Ace Diamonds: Bob Gibson, Babe Ruth
• 2 Spades: Denny McClain, Cesar Tovar
• Ace Spades: Ken Harrelson, Mickey Mantle

There's also a joker, making 59 cards in all. See the PSA registry for a master set checklist and several scans.

Bud's one of the few players with a head-on photo. Unfortunately, this shot also confirms another reason Globe cards get the hairy eye from collectors: it's a direct copy of 1967 Topps #306.

Not every card took an existing Topps image, but even one is enough to make me think Globe wanted to make a quick buck and copied available newspaper, media, and card photos. (Know more about the set's history? Add your voice to the comments.)

Value: The KeyMan Collectibles profile named four key players: Drysdale, Mantle, Mays, and Yaz, which might cost a few dollars. Most singles belong in quarter boxes, thanks to poor production quality and low demand.

Fakes / reprints: It'd be easy to reproduce these grainy, black-and-white cards with modern equipment, so I hope their low value keeps people out of that mindset.

Favorite (Vintage) Baseball Card: 1956 Topps #30, Jackie Robinson

Fellow blogger Fuji's running a "favorite card" survey over at his Chronicles that asks readers to pick their top vintage or 90s insert. I won't keep you in suspense, mine's this classic right here.

The above Jackie Robinson card made an easy pick, as it's the card that sparked a pursuit of 1956 Topps, my overall favorite set. I originally bought two of this #30 to get both grey and white back variations, but traded one away some years ago--probably to land another star from the same set.

Thanks to today's many reprints, you can find both originals and modern versions at shows or online. The second scan's nicked from 2001 Topps Archives #410 on COMC and costs a fraction of Jackie's vintage cards. Almost everyone can afford a dollar, right?

Got a favorite card to call out? Stop by Fuji's blog and chime in.

Fourth Anniversary HOF Winners

Thanks to all thirty-eight people who entered last week's contest and every one who reads my blog. A search through the card box turned up a bunch of vintage HOFers as prizes (with two *), including the clean-cut character below.

Feel weird saying it, but Roberts looks sharp in that Orioles cap, even if it's not Philly pinstripes. Let's warm up my dice-rolling hand!

• 1951 Bowman #46 George Kell: The Dimwit
• 1957 Topps #25 Whitey Ford: Jason
• 1959 Topps #408 Luis Aparicio / Nellie Fox: Matt (Tenets of Wisdom)
• 1960 Topps #1 Early Wynn: FISHLEGBOOTS
• 1961 Fleer #57 Heinie Manush: Rhubarb Runner
• 1961 Topps #380 Minnie Minoso (*): BA Benny
• 1961 Topps #440 Luis Aparicio: Josh D
• 1963 Topps #125 Robin Roberts: Mark A
• 1964 Topps #38 Harmon Killebrew: Reds Card Collector
• 1964 Topps #342 Willie Stargell: Mariner1
• 1969 Topps #410 Al Kaline: The Diamond King
• 1971 Topps #50 Willie McCovey (*): arpsmith

Let's explain the asterisks. First, Minoso is a member of the Hispanic Baseball Hall of Fame, but makes for a terrific baseball card, so couldn't leave him out.

Second, I originally rolled up arpsmith and Mariner1 near their favorite players, so swapped in a 1971 McCovey and (ideally) made them both happy.

Winners, please email me (glidden period matthew at the gmail) with your address for card delivery! Thanks again to everyone for reading and look forward to more giveaways soon.

Happy Baseball Fathers Day

Starting in 1976 and returning in 1985, Topps honored father and son duos with subsets picturing both dads on older sets and sons as current players. Night Owl did a nice breakdown of them back in 2010, which you can revisit now.

Dad and I played catch quite a few times and pretty sure he helped ferry me to and from Little League games across the five years I spent on those mini-diamonds. Thanks, dad!

Can't remember any bleacher fights from my own years in a kid-sized Cubs jersey, but I understand that people get a little rowdier these days.

"Happy Fathers day! Give your kid something to remember by starting an angry, drunken brawl at a little league game... Oh the memories." - Dirk Hayhurst (Twitter: @TheGarfoose)

I recently finished Hayhurst's pair of baseball memoirs, The Bullpen Gospels and Out Of My League, available at Amazon and finer public libraries across the country. He paints a harrowing family picture that pitching helped him escape and reshape. They're worth a read for both baseball insight and Dirk's longer-term introspection.

I wish we'd had another round of Father and Son cards in the 90s, at least to see these guys.

The back-to-back homers Griffey Sr/Jr hit on Sept 14, 1990 remain the only ones hit by a father-son duo and the Seattle Times put them first on their list of Junior's 10 most memorable long balls.

(P.S. Thanks to the many Fourth Anniversary HOF Giveaway entries. Compiling the cards for prize announcements tomorrow.)

Baseball (and more) Blog Contest Roundup

Thanks for all the entries so far in my Fourth Anniversary Giveaway! The contest ends Friday, so there's about 30 hours left to throw your name in the hat. Here's another vintage HOFer that'll be part of the fun, confused expression and all.

Don't forget these other sites running concurrent card contests--enter everywhere and you're pretty much guaranteed to end up with cards. ("Pretty much" = not based on actual statistics or math.)

Fuji's running his 3rd annual The Chronicles of Fuji, requesting your flea market finds. How can you ignore a prize package with samurai headband cats? You can't.

Visit the buffet of BA Benny for Legends of the Hall (and a contest), whose prize includes HOFers Clemente and McCovey.

SportsCardBlog.net is gifting a pair of autographs for fans of the NBA (Bob Sura) or NHL (Colin Greening).

"You did WHAT with the cup?" a.k.a. dgreen1899's LA Kings-themed giveaway.

Did I miss any? Add a link below!

Fourth Anniversary HOF Giveaway

The first #5 type card profile went up four years ago yesterday. Big, cardboard-y thanks all who've read my blog, follow tweets @Number5TypeCard, or just enjoy a nice vintage set from time-to-time.

To commemorate, I'm giving away several vintage HOFers from the years when Yogisms sprang fresh from the mouth of Berra himself. Cards like this guy...

1964 Topps Giants #38, Harmon Killebrew

TRIVIA: Killer didn't wear #29, so that bat belonged to Julio Becquer (1961), Wally Post (1963), or Chuck Nieson (1964), depending on the photo year.

WHAT'S UP FOR GRABS: 1950s-60s HOFers, including the above Killebrew. Exact number of cards depends on number of entrants and links, as below.

June 19 UPDATE: Winners are picked and posted!

(For the record, my first post was 1952 Topps Larry Jansen on Things Done to Cards. I later updated the set's profile here with intact back scans.)

1977 TCMA Cedar Rapids Giants Baseball #5, Ken Feinburg (Feinberg)

This young Kenneth Feinberg ("e," not "u") spent three years in Iowa and California pursuing his dream of pro ball, collecting 252 hits and 34 minor league homers along the way (career stats at B-R.com). Ken hit well as an everyday player at 22, but made few appearances thereafter and might've struggled with injuries or set off-the-field goals that eclipsed a long-term baseball career, like so many before and after him.

TCMA kicked off their minor league sets with Cedar Rapids in 1972, so today's Creamsicle color combo marks the sixth straight year that fans from Iowa's second-largest city could take home local baseball heroes, starting with the players below.

• 1972 Cedar Rapids Cardinals - #5 Jethro Mills
• 1973 Cedar Rapids Astros - #5 Bob Dean
• 1974 Cedar Rapids Giants - #5 Tom Rima
• 1975 Cedar Rapids Giants - #5 German De Los Santos
• 1976 Cedar Rapids Giants - (unnumbered)

Minor league affiliations change rapidly, but Cedar Rapids kept its team alive, as they have since the Canaries took their positions in 1890; find more franchise history at Wikipedia. (This is the same city Rob Deer and John Rabb shared time on in 1979 and current LA phenom Mike Trout tore up in 2010.)

Two local McDonald's signed on as co-sponsors for TCMA's set, but are they still operating at 3916 First Ave N.E. and 2615 Williams Blvd S.W. in Cedar Rapids? The latter location is, despite that buzz-killing NO NOISE sign Google Street View spotted at its entrance.

1977's checklist includes 24 numbered players and one unnumbered, late-season addition (John Laubhan).

1. Rich Murray
2. Bob Brenly
3. Dave Anderson
4. John Sylvester
5. Ken Feinburg
6. Brian Moulton
7. Phil Nastu
8. Henry Macias
9. Gary Ledbetter
10. Ken Barton
11. Jack Mull MGR
12. Drew Nickerson
13. Jim Pryor
14. Mike Wardlow
15. Dave Myers
16. Bart Bass
17. Steve Sherman
18. Jon Harper
19. Don "Bucky" Buchhiester GM
20. Mark Kuecker
21. Dan Hartwig
22. Chris Bourjos
23. Jeff Shourds
24. Steve Pearce

Many online sellers call Laubhan's card "rare," but I'll believe something's hard-to-find when Google can't spit out online images on the first try.

Value: Fulls sets cost about $20 (with Laubhan's card adding a premium) and singles cost a few dollars.

Fakes / reprints: Haven't seen any in the marketplace. If Laubhan really is rare, it's likely someone tried to fake the card for the sake of scarcity.

1979 TCMA Cedar Rapids Giants Baseball #5, John Rabb

TCMA didn't snap today's shot on a baseball diamond, unusual for the "surprise, it's a camera" approach often taken in minor league photos. John Rabb's wearing a Cedar Rapids hat in front their Giants logo, so I'll guess it's a locker room intro, and perhaps an early-year press conference.

Single-A teams aren't expected to be All-Star factories, but Cedar Rapids hit the low end of expectations and produced just three future big leaguers in 1979: Rob Deer, John Rabb, and Jeff Stember. (This card calls Rabb an outfielder, but he actually spent more time behind the plate in Iowa and added a handful of games at 3B.)

John's versatility continued in the big leagues, splitting time at C, 1B, and OF across stints with San Francisco, Atlanta, and Seattle. He might've pushed for everyday playing opportunities that didn't exist in SF, as the Giants ultimately dealt Rabb to the Braves for a veteran player with a similar skill set, Alex Trevino.

TCMA included an above-average 32 players in this set, including the aforementioned Rob Deer, whose home run power won over many a Milwaukee fan in the 1980s and 90s. (He's also the only man ever to hit .220 or less and slug more than 220 career homers.)

1. Steve Duckhorn
2. Jesus Cruz
3. Mark Benson
4. Jorge Mundroig
5. John Rabb
6. Robbie Henderson
7. Jeff Stadler
8. Matt Sutherland
9. Francisco Fojas
10. Rick Doss
11. Bruce Oliver
12. Bill Bellomo
13. Glen Fisher
14. Bud Curran
15. Wayne Cato
16. Jeff Stember
17. Paul Plinski
18. Jose Chue
19. Rick Mean
20. George Torassa
21. Ned Raines
22. Lou Merietta
23. Craig Hedrick
24. Kelly Anderson
25. Harry Wing
26. Juan Oppenheimer
27. Ray Cosio
28. Rob Deer
29. Don Buchheister
30. Phil Sutton
31. Doug Linduyt
32. Bob Cummins

Value: John Rabb cost me $2 at MinorLeagueSingles.com. Rob Deer will run a little extra, at least in Wisconsin.

Fakes / reprints: Cardboard Zoo notes that TCMA reprinted several team sets as "collector kits" in the late 1980s, but I'm not sure about this 1979 set specifically. Founder Mike Aronstein's interview about their Cal Ripken card says a little more about how young stars (and hobby demand) led to minor league fakery.