Ted Turner (1938-2026)

We learned of the passing of Ted Turner today. In terms of Baseball most of us know of Ted Turner the owner, but he was also a MLB manager... for ONE DAY. And that qualifies him for the Cup of Coffee Club. 

Sketch of Ted Turner on a Disposable Coffee Cup a la 1977 Topps

For the Ted Turner Cup of Coffee we used 1977 Topps for the design. This is the year of Turner's only game as manager - The Braves lost 2-1. 

In the background we see the logos for two of Turner's media outlets channel 17 which broadcast Braves games across the country via cable and his 24 hour news service CNN

The Ted Turner profile drawing is based upon a screen print done by Andy Warhol.

Sources and Links

Cup of Coffee Index

Phillips Auctions (Andy Warhol Painting of Turner) 

baseball-reference

TASR: 1977 Topps #58 Chet Lemon

This week we got the tough news that Chet Lemon has been having health issues. It's complicated - he has had blood clotting issues for a while and this has led to a series of strokes that has left the Major League outfielder in a near non-communicative state. You can read more about Chet Lemon's condition in Jeff Seidel's sad but interesting Detroit Free Press article here. 

1977 Topps #58 Chet Lemon

1976 was an okay year for Chet Lemon, his .245/4/38 13 SB, 0.4 WAR season beat out Ellis Valentine .279/7/39 14 SB 1.4 WAR and Jerry Turner .267/5/37 12 SB 2.1 WAR and others for cup honors. 

Regardless TASR voters must have foresaw something, after that mediocre start Chet Lemon went on to a productive 16 year career where he racked  up a 55.7 Career WAR, a number that ranks above fellow Centerfielder and first ballot Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett. Meanwhile Lemon got a single 10th place HOF vote.     

In addition to personal accomplishments that included 3 All-Star appearances Lemon's career team highlight was being a member of the 1984 World Series Champion Detroit Tigers.

Chet Lemon 2024

The Lemon family has remained private about Chet's condition until recently. They are only coming forward now because they would like to raise awareness about his condition and they also wanted fans to be aware of Lemon's condition prior to the Detroit Tigers 40th anniversary celebration honoring the 1984 World Series team this weekend. 

I hope that Chet Lemon is well enough to make the trek to Detroit this weekend and enjoy the celebration with his teammates and TIgers fans.  

1977 Topps

This is the first card we have featured from the 1977 TASR class, good design that doesn't get discussed much - The Rookie Cup looks good here, it's present but out of the way. 

Chet Lemon is featured here with his other team the Chicago White Sox. Note the Faux Collar Jersey worn by Lemon. This fashion detail was likely used to dress up the Shorts that Bill Veeck came up for the 1976 White Sox uniform. 

One last detail I want to discuss is the facsimile signature. Chet goes with his more formal full name "Chester Earl Lemon" 

Oh Canada

1977 OPC #195 Chet Lemon

Posting Lemon's 1977 OPC card here so we can take a look at the card sans Rookie Cup. This allows the aforementioned facsimile signature to run at an up angle which is more consistent with 1977 Topps commons.  Also both these cards are screen caps from eBay but the OPC has stronger color and the Marlboro sign in centerfield of Yankee Stadium is a lot more identifiable. 

Closing Thoughts

Just wanted to reiterate I hope the fans and Detroit Tigers get a great 40th Anniversary Celebration and Chet Lemon makes it to the event. 

Sources and Links

1977 TASR Index

Jeff Seidel Detroit Free Press

Detroit Tigers

NBC Sports Chicago

Baseball-Ref

1977 Topps All-Star Rookie Cup Team (1976 Season Honorees)

This is an Index to postings related to the 1977 Rookie Cup Team which honors rookies for their 1976 Season

291	JASON THOMPSON	Tigers	1B
359	WILLIE RANDOLPH	Yankees	2B
549	JERRY ROYSTER	Braves	3B
161	GARRY TEMPLETON	Cardinals	SS
58	CHET LEMON	White Sox	OF
93	TOM POQUETTE	Royals	OF
397	LARRY HERNDON	Giants	OF
175	BUTCH WYNEGAR	Twins	C
265	MARK FIDRYCH 1st ASG Flair	Tigers	RHP
577	JERRY AUGUSTINE	Brewers	LHP

Sources and Links

TASR Master Index

Baseball_ref

Topps.com

Happy Birthday Mike Schmidt: 1977 Topps #140

On September 27th Mike Schmidt will celebrate his 70th birthday. To mark the occasion we are examining a card that was issued back when Schmidt was 27 just on the cusp of hitting his prime.

1977 Topps #140 Mike Schmidt

In 1976 the Phillies wore a Bicentennial/All-Star Game patch on their left shoulders. The 1977T card which displays the patch most prominently is Mike Schmidt's.

That is probably my favorite aspect of the card. I have two other photo observations:

1) I believe this is Shea Stadium which is the setting for several Phillies cards in the era.

2) Schmidt appears to be swinging a Rawlings bat. Adirondack/Rawlings bats from the middle 70s carried a ring on the bat handle in the team color - seen in red here.

However, during a Louisville Slugger tour I took a few years ago I found out something interesting:

Louisville Slugger Museum

Above we have four Louisvlle Slugger Bats. Schmidt's lumber is the 3rd one from the top, notice the Red ring. Schmidt had an exclusive contract with Rawlings, however at times he felt the need to change bats. To hide the switch, Schmidt disguised the Louisville Slugger bat by creating his own red ring using tape. More detail on this can be found at the PSA Card site.

The four bats top to Bottom are Cal Ripken, Eddie Murray (HR #501, last as an Oriole), Schmidt and George Brett (note the Pine Tar).

 Flip

1977 Topps #140 Mike Schmidt (b-side)

This is the first card issued following Schmidt's Four Home Run game on April 17 1976 and the text leads of with that fun fact. The blurb closes mentioning that Schmidt had 11 Homers in April which is a record - not sure if this is for any month or specific to April. Regardless both records have been eclipsed since 1976. Sammy Sosa holds the MLB Record for HR in a month with 20 (June 1998), While the April Record of 14 is shared by Albert Pujols (2006) and A-Rod (2007).

Talkin Toons
Always good to see a cartoon on the back of the card. The subject of today's comic is Yankees Slugger Hank Bauer and his17 game Wolrd Series hitting streak( 1956 OCT 3 - 1958 OCT 4).  At the time this card was released Bauer had held the record for 18 years. Here we are almost 42 years later and he still holds the record. the 2018 World Series marked the 60th Anniversary of the record.

Bauer's 17 game hitting streak is also the record for consecutive postseason games as well. He shares the record with Derek Jeter (1998-1999) and Manny Ramirez (2003-2004).  The Astros George Springer has an active streak of 14 games

Bauer Toons
A couple of Hank Bauer own cards have comics that feature the record including 1960 and 1961.  My favorite is a manager card from 1969.

1969 Topps #124 Hank Bauer (b-side / baseball card datbase)

Rather than featuring a lengthy text bio the Manager cards from 1969 featured a full size cartoon that include a nice profile sketch.

Artsy
Speaking of sketches and bringing this back to our original subject, I created my own version of the 1977T Schmidt card.

1977T Mike Schmidt (Phungo Original)

Drawing 1997 Topps doesn't present any unusual challenges. The Team names are italicized which is a minor hassle. I like the drop shadow on the pennant.

I elected to leave the team logo and number off the uni, which are largely covered in the original - unfortunately this leaves a lot of blue space on the drawing and elongates Schmidt's Torso.

1980 Phillies
I am including this post as part of our 1980 Phillies Series. I hope to return to Schmidt again next year as he is not only one of the  most significant members of that particular team but also the franchise history.

Sources and Links
Mike Schmidt HoF Index
1980 Phillies World Champs Index
Phungo Artwork Index
Baseball Almanac
PSA Card
baseball card database
mlb.com / Astros 
Baseball-Ref

ANNIVERSARY: September 16 1976 - Jerry Morales Sets Pinchhitting Mark

Check it out an Expos Posting!

1977 Topps #233 Record Breaker Jose Morales Most Hits, Season, Pinchhitter

40 Years ago the manager Charlie Fox did something that he and the Expos previous manager Karl Kuehl had already done 73 times in 1976 - He sent Jose Morales to Pinch Hit.

Montreal was clinging to a 1-run lead but had the bases loaded. The scheduled batter was reliever Steve Dunning. Morales who had recorded 24 pinch hits on the season was the clear choice for the critical AB. 

Facing future Hall of Famer Bruce Sutter, Jose Morales came through one more time. He hit a bases clearing double to put the Expos up 4-0, o their way to an eventual 4-3 victory. A grand total of 2877 Fans witnessed the feat - which is probably the appropriate number for a team that would go on to lose 107 games.

1977 Topps #233 Record Breaker Jose Morales Most Hits, Season, Pinchhitter (b-side)

The flip side of the card has a synopsis of the game and includes nods to the previous record holders Dave Philley (who did play for the Phillies but not during his record setting season) and Vic Davalillo. Philley Remains the AL Record Holder today - A standard he has maintained for 55 Years.

John Vander Wal
Morales was surpassed in 2005 by Catcher John Vander Wal who logged 28 Pinch Hits for the Rockies.

Sources and Links
1977 Topps Record Breakers Index
Stand and Deliver: A History of Pinch Hitting - Paul Votano
Baseball Almanac
Baseball-Ref
 

ANNIVERSARY: September 12 1976 - Minnie Minoso becomes Oldest Player to Hit Safely in a Major League Game

Today marks the 40th anniversary of an event that gave birth to one of my favorite cards from my youth.

1977 Topps #232 Minnie Minoso (Oldest Player to Hit Safely)

On September 12th 1976 Minnie Minoso started the first game of a Double Header for the White Sox. He was the DH and batted 9th. With two outs in the 2nd inning Minoso singled off of Angels left-hander Sid Monge. This made Minoso the oldest player to get a Hit in a Major League game.  is a

1977 Topps #232 Minnie Minoso (b-side)

The Fact that the White Sox won 4-2 in extras is such an afterthought that the games outcome is not even mentioned on the back of the card.

Topps does mention discuss Nick Altrock who held the record previous to Minoso.  Altrock single was recorded for the Washington Senators during a 2-1 Loss to the Boston Red Sox. The hit was off of a 20 year old reliever named Pat Simmons, in what turned out to be Simmons last major league game. 

Altrock was a pitcher who also had a side career as an entertainer, his interesting SABR Bio can be found here.

Index
1977 Topps Record Breakers Index
MInnie Minoso Index
Baseball-Ref
SABR Bio Nick Altrock - 
 

1997 Topps Record Breakers Index

This is an Index to our postings regarding 1977 Topps Record Breakers

1977 Topps #232 Minnie Minoso (Oldest Player to Hit Safely)

Index
1977 Topps #231 George Brett (Six Consecutive 3-Hit Games)
1977 Topps #232 Minnie Minoso (Oldest Player to Hit Safely) 
1977 Topps #233 Jerry Morales (Most Pinch Hits Season)

Reds Retire Pete Rose's #14

Over the weekend the Cincinnati Reds Retired Pete Rose’s number.

1977 Topps #450 Pete Rose
The Reds drew 40,805 fans for the ceremony and 120K+ for a three game series versus the Padres for Pete Rose weekend.  Outside of an early season Saturday Game against the Cubs and the Home Opener versus the Phillies, the trio of games rank as the Reds top 3 draws of the season. 
 
1976 ASG
In 1976 Pete Rose made his 10th All-Star Team. However, it was his first at Third Base the fourth different position he played in the Mid-Summer Classic. Rose batted leadoff in the game and recorded a single off of AL Starter Mark Fidrych. Pete went 2 for 3 in the game wit the 2nd hit coming off of Luis TIant. After Five innings Rose was replaced at third by the Home Town player and future teammate Mike Schmidt.

During Rose's first AB in the All-Star Game a fan in the stands can be heard screaming "Where's Mike Schmidt" 

Reds alums present for the number retirement ceremony on Sunday included 3 of Rose’s Reds teammates that were on that NL ASG squad in ’76, Tony Perez, Johnny  Bench and David Concepcion.
 
 Flip

1977 Topps #450 Pete Rose 

Just wanted to show off the cartoon on the back of the card. As far as I know the 30+ year old factoid remained true until the stadium closed. In 2008 Josh Hamilton came close during the Home Run Derby and there is also a debate as to the possibility of Josh Gibson hitting one in a 1930s Negro League game. For a New York Times article regarding those homers and other long ones at the House that Ruth built click here.

Sources and Links 
1976 All-Star Game summary
Pete Rose Non-HoF Index
Baseball-ref
Cincinnati Reds
New York Times 2008 07 16
YouTube - 1976 All-Star Game 

ANNIVERSARY: George Brett Sets Record for Consecutive 3-Hit Games

Forty years ago George Brett set a bit of an odd record. He logged 3 or more hits in six consecutive games.

1977 Topps #231 Record Breaker George Brett 

I am a little amazed that in the pre-BigData era that anyone (probably Elias in this case) was able to research this record. The Streak began on May 8 1976 in Baltimore where Brett recorded 3 hits in the last two games of a three game set. The Royals then returned home to face the Twins, Brett collected 3 hits in each of the three games of that series and then he was able to repeat the feat for one game versus the White Sox.

During the six games Brett went 18 for 26 and added a pair of Walks for an average of .692 and an OBP of .714. His long hits were a Double and a Homer for a slugging number of .846.

The Royals went 5-1 during the streak.

Brett's Victims
May 8 vs Orioles - Ken Holtzmanman (2), Doyle Alexander (3rd Hit in 8th inning),
May 9 vs Orioles - F Jim Palmer (2), Ross Grimsley,
May 10 vs Twins - HoF Bert Blyleven (3, Double, 3rd Hit in 8th, but batted in 9th),
May 11 vs Twins - Jim Hughes (2), Tom Burgmeier
May 12 vs Twins - Joe Decker (2), Vic Albury
May 13 vs White Sox - Bart Johnson (2, HR), Francisco Barrios (3rd Hit in 8th Inning

During the streak Brett saw his average rise from .277 to .396. Pretty good for mid May.

 1977 Topps #231 Record Breaker George Brett (b-side)

According to Baseball-Ref the record still stood as of 2009. Although B-Ref also mentions a streak by Dodgers second baseman Ted Sizemore in 1970 that is overlooked by Topps. 

1976 All-Star Game
We ran a column on George Brett and the 1976 ASG previously, just wanted to take this opportunity to post a couple of screenshots and addendums to that post:

George Brett introduced himself as "Ken Brett's baby Brother"

During his first At Bat ABC put up his stats and it is easy to see why Brett made the All-Star game.

Brett tailed off a bit but still ended up leading the league in batting with a BA of only .333. He also led the league in Hits, Triples, Total Bases and Offensive WAR. For a more detailed discussion of the 1976 AL MVP voting check the post from last month. 

Sources and Links
1976 All-Star Game Index
1977 Topps Record Breakers Index
George Brett HoF Index
Baseball-Ref
YouTube - 1976 ASG
Baseball Almanac

1976 ASG +40: Ken & Bob Fosch 1977 Topps #632

Hello Houston!

The Astros are once again noteworthy and are getting national recognition on Sunday Night Baseball. To mark that return we turn our 1976 All-Star Game Anniversary coverage to one the Astros reps on the NL Squad.

1977 Topps #632 Big League Brothers Bob and Ken Forsch

In 1976 Ken Fosch made the first of his two all-star appearances. He finished the game setting down the AL in order, finishing with a strike out of Amos Otis.

Ken Fosch had a 16 year career, 11 with the Astros followed by five with the Angels.  A swingman Forsch made the All-Star team as a reliever who would save 19 games for the 1976 Astros.  He pitched to a a cumulative career WAR of 27.1 with his single best WAR season during his first full one in 1971 at age 24, +3.6. 

Phillies fans my remember his only Postseason appearance, the 1980 NLCS.  He pitched during deciding game 5. Forsch entered the game with an Astros 5-4 lead and 2 men on bases. He gave up back to back hits to Del Unser and Manny Trillo which led to three Phillies runs. The Phillies would eventually triumph 8-7 in ten innings.
 

1977 Topps #632 Big League Brothers Bob and Ken Forsch 

Nice synopsis of the Forsch's little league years. Bob Forsch never made an all-star team But did win a World Series as a member of the 1982 Cardinals.

1977 Topps Big League Brothers
Big League Brothers is barely a subset clocking in at four cards. However two of those four cards were represented in the 76 ASG. In addition to the Forsch siblings there were also the Brett's. George Brett started at 3rd Base for the AL squad. He and his brother Ken occupy the #631 slot in 1977T. 

A career highlight for Bob Fosch features the Phillies. The first of his two no-hitters was versus the Phillies on April 16, 1976, A 5-0 Cardinals victory.

Sources and Links
1976 ASG 40th Anniversary Index
Cardboard Connection
Baseball Card Database
Baseball Almanac
Baseball-ref

1976 ASG +40: Randy Jones 1977 Topps #550

Tonight with the Padres in town for the Phillies first home series we are going to take a look at the the NL Starting Pitcher for the 1976 All-Star game Randy Jones.

1977 Topps #550 Randy Jones

Randy Jones earned the honor by recording an NL record 16 victories during the first half of the 1976 season. Jones got the W in the game pitching 3 shutout innings for the Home Squad, allowing 2 hits and a walk. Jones was a ground ball specialist and induced a double play to eliminate one of those runners. Notables that Jones shut down in those three innings were Rod Carew twice including the DP, as well as borderliner Hallers Bobby Grich, Fred Lynn and Thurman Munson.

It was the 2nd All-Star game for Jones who had also recorded a save in the 1975 Mid-Summer Classic. He was the first player to Earn a Save followed by a W in consecutive All-Star Games.

His first half success continued throughout the season, Jones finished 22-14 with a 2.74 ERA leading the league in Wins, Starts, CGs (25!!), Innings (315+), Batters Faced and WHIP (1.027). It all added up to a Cy Young Award for the 26 Year Old Jones.

1977 Topps
Great Card, The Padres Colors, The 77T All-Star Flair, Randy Jones Warming Up, and his epic 1970s hair.

1977 Topps #550 Randy Jones (b-side)

The text here hits the highlights of Jones' 1976 ASG performance which ties in nicely to both our theme and the the All-Star flair on the front.

I also like the Trivia Toon, Lolich set the LH K record in 1975 and we honored the 40th anniversary of that game in a posting from our 1976 Topps Record Breakers Series.

Instream Sports
If you have any interest in the 1976 ASG and have some free time there is a terrific article at Instream Sports where they basically watch a stream of the game and discuss it with folks that were involved. In the 1976 ASG article the players that are interviewed are Randy Jones and Phillies Alum Al Oliver.

Yes Randy Jones is wearing a Perm, his wife did his first one with a bottle of Toni. 

Sources and Links
1976 All-Star Game Index 

Randy Jones Index
Dave Jordan Instream Sports

Sarasota Herald Tribune 1976 0708

1976 All-Star Game +40: Ron LeFlore

Tonight ESPN Sunday Night Baseball was supposed to be airing from Detroit but the Tigers game with the Yankees had to be postponed due to inclement weather.

Here at Phungo HQ we are up to the challenges of the elements and will continue our 1976 All-Star Game retrospective with a look at Tigers Alum Ron LeFlore

1977 Topps #240 Ron LeFlore All-Star

1976 was probably LeFlore's best season and he was rewarded with his only All-Star nomination. He started Left Field and led off for the AL squad. Unfortunately LeFlore was erased on a double play ground out so he didn't get to show off his speed during the game. His 455 career steals rank 52nd all time and include leading each league once (68 SB AL 1978, 97 SB NL 1980).

LeFlore is an interesting baseball figure. A troubled youth he found himself in prison for armed robbery at the age of 22 in 1970. While in prison he picked up baseball and was discovered by Tigers manager Billy Martin. The story was chronicled in his (auto)-biography "Breakout: From Prison to the Big Leagues" co authored with Tigers writer and Spink Award Nominee Jim Hawkins. The book begat the film "One in a Million: The Ron LeFlore Story" which was starred LeVar Burton as LeFlore and was directed by prolific TV filmmaker William A Graham

1977 Topps
Nice to see LeFlore get honored with the 77T All-Star Flair, plenty of players in the 1970s era made multiple ASGs but never get an All-Star card.

1977 Topps #240 Ron LeFlore All-Star (b-side)

The text covers LeFlore's All-Star game appearance and also mentions a 30 Game Hit streak he had in 1976. The streak lasted from the Tigers fourth game on April 17th through May 27th. Yankees Pitchers Ed Figueroa and Tippy Martinez shut down LeFlore on May 28th, 1976.

Also I would like to point out the demographics note LeFlore was both born and lived in Detroit. Definitely despite a troubled past (and present) a Tigers favorite.

Finally the Cartoon. Love this one as it covers Frank Robinson winning MVP awards in both leagues. This was discussed in our posting on Robinson's 1967T #100 card, which mentions the fact in the text and has it's own -toon mentioning his 1966 AL MVP award.

Voices in the Crowd
This card was covered by the Baseball 1977

Sources and Links
Baseball 1977
1976 All-Star Game Index
Robert Niemi: History in the Media: Film and Television
Jim Hawkins - Toronto Sun (2013 0226)

BBWAA
Baseball-ref

1976 All-Star Game Index - 40th Anniversary Series

This is an index of our postings related the 40th Anniversary of the 1976 All-Star Game which was held in Philadelphia.

1977 Topps #30 Greg Luzinski (NL All-Star)


1976 Bicentennial ASG Index
Bob Boone - 1976 Topps #67 Father n Son with Ray Boone
Larry Bowa - 1975 Topps #420
Dave Cash - 1993 UD BAT Trifold #26
Greg Luzinski - 1977 Topps #30
Mike Schmidt

Robin Roberts

Johnny Bench
Ron Cey
Ken Forsch - 1977 Topps #632 Big League Brothers 
George Foster
Steve Garvey 1981 Topps #530
Dave Kingman
Randy Jones - 1977 Topps #550
Jon Matlack
Bake McBride - 1975 Topps #174
Joe Morgan - 1976 Topps #420
Pete Rose - 1977 Topps #450 AS (Red Jersey Retirement)
Tom Seaver

George Brett - 1982 Topps/Kmart 20th Anniversary #34
George Brett - 1976 Topps #231 Record Breaker (consecutive 3 hit games)
Rod Carew - 1991 Bowman #3
Mark Fidrych
Carlton Fisk
Bobby Grich
Catfish Hunter
Fred Lynn
Ron LeFlore - 1977 Topps #240
Don Money - 1979 Topps #265
Thurman Munson
Luis Tiant - 1976 Topps #130
Carl Yastrzemski

Sparky Anderson - 1978 Topps #401 (As Manager/As Player)
Bob Uecker - 1967 Topps #326
Bob Lemon
Gene Mauch

Night Owl Cards 40th Anniversary Posting

1976 All-Star Game Program (Ed Larry Shank, Chris Wheeler)
1977 Topps Blog
YouTube - 1976 All-Star Game
Stars and Strikes - Dan Epstein
baseball-ref
baseball almanac

NEW FEATURE 1976 All-Star Game 40th Anniversary: Greg Luzinski - 1977 Topps #30

Annually we here at Team Phungo attempts to put a year long feature dedicated to a single team. Past editions of the Phungo Annual have included the 1964 and 1983 Phillies as well as a feeble attempt at the 1915 NL Pennant Winners last year.

This year we are going with a different type of feature. 2016 Marks the 40th anniversary of the Bicentennial All-Star Game which was held at Veteran's Stadium in Philadelphia. To mark the occasion we are going to put together several postings related to the event. I don't anticipate hitting every player that made the team but if I am going to cover a good chunk of them we are going to have to start now..

And we lead off with a Clean Up Hitter.

1977 Topps #30 Greg Luzinski (NL All-Star)

Five Phillies made the 1976 NL All-Star roster but only one of them got to start the game in his home city. Greg Luzinski played Left Field and batted fifth, unfortunately he went 0-3 in the game. It was the second All-Star appearance for the Bull and His first of three consecutive starts in the mid-summer classic.

Luzinski's All Star Game qualifying resume at the break included a slash line that read .307/.360/.502 with 12 Homers and 57 RBIs. His All-Star campaign continued as the Bull finished 8th in the 1976 MVP voting.

SABR Star?
Despite the impressive power numbers mentioned above Luzinski's 1976 WAR was +2.3 which ranked a pedestrian 40th in the NL and 19th among outfielders. In general Greg Luzinski's defensive shortcomings probably would prevent him from being a SABR star in any given year. His Peak WAR was +5.2 in 1978 which was 11th in the league and 5th among outfielders.

Regardless he was a slugging machine over his four year all-star period running from 1975-78, averaging 32 Home Runs with 112 RBI while maintaining a .295 BA and an impressive 150 OPS+.

1977 Topps
The starters for the 1976 All-Star teams are honored in the following years Topps set so if I follow through with this feature plan on seeing plenty of 1977T AS cards. This is my favorite type of All-Star card, take the base card and add a flair to them - In the case of 1977 it is more fo a banner, but still solid. During our 1976 ASG redux, I am going to try and hit a few different years and I am sure the relative merits of the different flairs will be over-analyzed.

Lots to like about the the image on Luzinski's card - The All-Star flair, the powder blue road uni, and The uphill dugout roof that draws the photo focus to the Bull's powerful swing. Luzinsnki's uniform #19 appears to be inked on the bat knob - there is a patch on his right shoulder not sure but it may be a bicentennial patch. A final note of interest is the shot appears to be taken at Shea Stadium where Luzinski made his MLB debut on September 9 1970.

1977 Topps #30 Greg Luzinski (NL All-Star / b-side)

The text on the back of the card refers to the Phillies 4-1 NL East Clincher. Luzinski's two out 3-run homer broke a 0-0 tie in the 6th inning. The Plate Appearance had a +34 WPA, which was the best in the game. 
 
Something tells me we will be hearing from Joe Morgan later in the 1976 All-Star Game feature - he would extend his 100 Walk Season streak to 6 in 1977.

Other Voices
I am sure we will be checking in with The 1977 Topps Blog numerous times during this series. The posting on the 1977T Luzinski card can be found here.

Sources and Links
1976 All-Star Game 40th Anniversary Index
Baseball Almanac 
Baseball-Ref

Sunday Night Baseball: Big League Brothers Lee and Carlos May 1977 Topps #633

ESPN is in Baltimore tonight to feature the AL East leading Orioles as they host the New York Yankees.  To honor this match up of division rivals we present a card from teh 1977 Topps Big League Brothers Subset.

1977 Topps #633 Big League Brothers Lee and Carlos May 

Lee May and Carlos May combined to play 28 years of Major League Baseball. The elder brother, Lee, spent most of his career with two clubs the Reds and the Orioles. Carlos is pictured here with the Yankees but spent 9 of his 10 seasons with the White Sox. 

Lee was the more prolific of the brothers logging 354 Home Runs over 18 seasons. His 109 RBI in 1976 led the league. Lee was a three time all-star and a member of two league championship teams - 1970 Reds and 1979 Orioles.

Carlos May had the less stellar career of the two brothers, but things could of ended up differently. On August 11 1969 Carlos was on Marine Reserve duty in California when a Mortar accident occurred. An interesting and scary interview can be read here. The accident cost May part of his thumb. Carlos was able to recover and return to baseball. As noted he had a significant career but only topped his rookie HR output of 18 once over his decade long career.

One would expect a major thumb injury to hinder a hitters performance. In the interview cited above Carlos mentions that it may have actually helped him. The Wilson Sporting Goods Co made him a custom batting glove that May acknowledged helped a lot, but he also believes that the injury forced him to change his approach. Carlos approach at the plate went from being a pull hitter to more of an fields spray hitter.

As of 2011 Lee was working in the Cincinnati Reds PR department. He is a member of both the Reds and Orioles Hall of Fame.

Carlos May is currently the first base coach for the Schaumburg Boomers, A Chicago area minor league team in the unaffiliated Frontier League.

1977 Big League Brothers
The 1997 Topps BLB subset consists of four cards. In addition to the May Brothers there are also the Forsch's, Reushel's, and the Brett's.

Sources
SABR Bio Lee May by Eric Aron
Boomers Baseball
White Sox Interactive
Baseball Card Database

Sunday Night Baseball: Nolan Ryan 1977 Topps #650

This week the Baseball Big Show heads to Anaheim to see the Angels host the Rangers in an AL West battle. One of the first names that comes to mind when those two teams are mentioned is Nolan Ryan

1977 Topps #650 Nolan Ryan

We have had a couple of posts here that have casually mentioned Ryan cards but we really haven't dedicated a post to a single one of his cards.

Nolan Ryan is very popular with collectors, fortunately he played for an eon so there are a great many of his cards available. To me Ryan is an Angel, this is despite the fact that he spent more years with Houston, and that he faced the Phillies in a memorable NLCS as a member of the Astros. However the memories of our youth persist and Nolan Ryan was an Angel during my early years. It is also with the then California Angels where the Ryan Express was the most dominant. Seven of his eleven strikeout titles were while he was pitching for the Angels.  Oddly he never took home a Cy Young award - his best finish was 2nd in 1973.

Ryan remained with the Angles through 1979 before leaving for Houston via Free Agency. In 1988 He moved across Texas to pitch for the Rangers. 

Topps issued 10 cards of Nolan Ryan as an Angel the first of which was 1972 Topps #595 (Hi Number). The card back mentions an incredibly dominant game that Ryan had as a member of the Mets at the expense of the Phillies. His final Angels Card is 1980T #580 which features a fine action shot and it's flip mentions Ryan's famous 100.9 mph velocity.

Nolan Ryan's first Topps Ranger card was produced in 1990, he was featured five years through his retirement in 1994. The first five cards of the 1990 Topps honor Nolan Ryan.  Card #1 is his base cards while cards #2-5 are dedicated to the pitcher reaching the 5000 strikeout milestone. Each of the four cards represents a different era and team: Mets, Angels, Astros, and Rangers.

Topps then gave Ryan the honor of the #1 spot each of the next two season. I will need to check, but I think that makes him the only player to get the set debut spot in three consecutive years. In 1993 He is on Hero #700. Finally in 1994 Topps gave Ryan his Uniform Number #34 for his final card. The Card also features a special 27 seasons logo.     

The Nolan Ryan Rookie Card, 1968 Topps #177,  is shared with Jerry Koosman who we profiled last month. The 1969T #533 is the first card which Ryan appears Solo. Both of these cards are with the Mets as well as his memorable 1971 Topps Card #513

1977 Topps
I am not positive of this but I think this card is from the Phungo 1.0 collection. At one time I probably had 80%-90% of the 1977T set. It is easily the set that I bought the most of when I was a kid. Most of those cards are long gone, and I have very few cards from that set today. If I see them at a show I rarely pick them up. 

Sources & Links
Phungo Nolan Ryan HoF Index
Baseball Card Database
Old Cardboard
Baseball-ref