PLAY BALL: Game 2, first inning

GAME 2

Mudville Nine are the home team in Game 2.

Mudville Nine lead the series 1-0

TOP OF THE FIRST INNING
New York Knights at bat

#108 Von Joshua: fly out (one out)
#109 Joe Torre (no play)
#110 Richie Zisk: triple (runner on third, one out)
#111 Mike Tyson: rules card (no play)
#112 Houston Astros (no play)
#113 Don Carrithers: BB (runners on first and third, one out)
#114 Paul Blair: HR (three runs score, bases empty, one out)
#115 Gary Nolan: foul out (two outs)
#116 Tucker Ashford: fly out (three outs)

0 runs on 2 hits and 1 walk. New York Knights lead 3-0

BOTTOM OF THE FIRST INNING
Mudville Nine at bat

#117 John Montague: ground out (one out)
#118 Terry Harmon: single (runner on first, one out)
#119 Denny Martinez: double (runners on second and third, one out)
#120 Gary Carter: single (one run scores, runners on first and second, one out)
#121 Alvis Woods: foul out (runners on first and second, two outs)
#122 Dennis Eckersley: fly out (three outs)

0 runs on 3 hits and 0 walks. New York Knights lead 3-1

Dale Murray

Greg from Night Owl Cards pointed out the similarity of the 1976, 1977, and 1980 photos on the Dale Murray card. I wanted to see, so here they are.







Indeed. No wonder why Murray never seemed to age.

1978 Topps Cards #145 through #150

THE PLAYERS

#145 Rick Monday
#146 Doyle Alexander
#147 Lee Mazzilli
#148 Andre Thornton
#149 Dale Murray
#150 Bobby Bonds



THE DESIGN

Good: I had absolutely no idea that Andre Thornton was known as "Andy" until I read the back of his card. Let's here it for Andys everywhere!

Bad: This isn't exactly bad, but the comment on the back of Alexander's card is interesting. It says he was one of the leading hurlers of the Rangers' staff in 1977. While it's true that he led that staff in wins, he had the worst ERA among the top 4 starters. Incidentally, those 3 other guys weren't so bad: Gaylord Perry, Bert Blyleven, and Dock Ellis.


THE PHOTOS

Good: There is nothing to like in this set except for the unusual photo for Bobby Bonds. I'm not sure I even like it, but it's certainly interesting to see such a closeup.

Bad: Where do I start? Why did they show such a lazy, strange photo of Monday? Lee Mazzilli's got a terrible shadow on his face. Murray's photo is another lame shot of a Cincinnati pitcher. Ho hum.




THE STATS

Rick Monday is one of 23 guys with between 240 and 250 career homers. He had the 3rd fewest RBI of that group.

There are 17 pitchers to finish with a career ERA+ between 99.9 and 100.1--extremely average. Murray was in the middle of the pack in terms of career IP. (Actually one guy, Sean Marshall, is still active.)

Before 1980, Bobby Bonds was the power-speed king of baseball. He had by far the most seasons of 30 HR and 20 SB up to that point. After 1980, only one player beats Bobby Bonds anyway. Who? Well, uhh, Bonds.


THE COUNTERS

Hall of Famers: 16
(none)

Deceased: 6
(+1 for Bonds)

Future managers: 12
(+1 for Mazzilli)

Fathers and sons of major leaguers: 9
(+1 for Barry Bonds, son of Bobby)

Loyalty counter: 16
(none)

Rookies of the Year: 11
(none)

Total all-star appearances: 320
(+2 for Monday, +1 for Alexander, +1 for Mazzilli, +2 for Thornton, +3 for Bonds)

Total MVP awards: 14
(none)

Total Cy Young awards: 8
(none)

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1978 Topps Cards #139 through #144

THE PLAYERS

#139 Wayne Gross All-Star Rookie
#140 Rollie Fingers
#141 Ruppert Jones All-Star Rookie
#142 John Montefusco
#143 Keith Hernandez
#144 Jesse Jefferson



THE DESIGN

Good: Topps went to great lengths to mention the All-Star game at Yankee stadium. Check out the back of Gross' and Jones' cards.

Bad: It was an odd decision to put two of the All-Star rookie cards so close in the set. In this set, they are spaced randomly around the set. In 1988 Topps, they were pretty evenly spaced.


THE PHOTOS

Good: The best thing in these photos is the nice look at the front of the Mariners jersey. We also have another nice body shadow from Montefusco.

There are some weird pairings in the group of 6 cards. Obviously, we have 2 All-Star rookies. Then Fingers and Montefusco are in almost identical poses. Gross and Hernandez are also in nearly identical poses. Hernandez and Jefferson both have one person in the background, as well as a nice view of the warning track. And finally Gross and Fingers both have nice foliage in the background.

Bad: The backgrounds on Montefusco's and Hernandez's card are making me dizzy...



THE STATS

Wayne Gross was the Ken Phelps of his time. From 1977 to 1984, he was one of the leaders in most seasons with at least 10 homers but fewer than 500 AB.

Ruppert Jones was one of the leading power-speed hitters from 1977 to 1986. He was one of the top 20 players with double-digit seasons in homers and stolen bases.

Montefusco threw 10 shutouts over 1975-76, tied for 4th-most in baseball.

In baseball history, Jesse Jefferson has the 3rd-worst W-L% for all pitchers with at least 1000 IP, and the two guys ahead of him pitched before 1910. Mind you, he wasn't absolutely terrible, but mostly pitched for bad teams.

THE COUNTERS

Hall of Famers: 16
(+1 for Fingers)

Deceased: 5
(none)

Future managers: 11
(none)

Fathers and sons of major leaguers: 8
(none)

Loyalty counter: 16
(none)

Rookies of the Year: 11
(+1 for Montefusco)

Total all-star appearances: 311
(+1 for Gross, +7 for Fingers, +2 for Jones, +1 for Montefusco, +5 for Hernandez)

Total MVP awards: 14
(+1 for Fingers, +1 for Hernandez)

Total Cy Young awards: 8
(+1 for Fingers)

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Just curious

Please take a second to vote in this poll:

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Also, check out Night Owl's Top 10 cards from 1978 Topps.

1978 Topps Cards #133 through #138

THE PLAYERS

#133 Jerry Augustine
#134 Steve Henderson
#135 Ron Guidry
#136 Ted Sizemore
#137 Craig Kusick
#138 Larry Demery



THE DESIGN

Good: Larry Demery had some good moments in his carer but overall wasn't that special. Topps went way above and beyond writing all sorts of good things about him on the back of his card, including mentioning that he pitched in 2 post-seasons. They left out how he had an ERA of 36.00 the first year and 18.00 the second year. Way to make lemonade from lemons, Topps!

Bad: The comment on the back of Sizemore's card is just crap. The best thing they can say about the guy is that he had a 3-hit game and "played a flawless 2nd base"? Just what does that mean? Were they at the game? I'm sure he wasn't credited with any errors, but playing a flawless 2nd base takes more than that. I'm not saying he didn't do it, I just don't know what Topps expects us to take away from that comment. I call laziness on their part.


THE PHOTOS

Good: The Guidry photo is remarkably similar to Sparky Lyle's photo. Other than that, the only other half decent photo here is Augustine's, yet another nice Brewer shot.

There's something quite odd on Demery's card, though. In the background, there is a player running, and he's not part of a play captured in the photograph. He's just running. Can anybody think of another such example?

Bad: Pick any card from the right column. I'm sure all three of these guys are quite handsome, but you'd never know it from these photos. Kusick, who died from lukemia, also deserved better than a sideways shot where you can't see his face at all.



THE STATS

Not terribly surprisingly, HOFers hit very well off Jerry Augustine, especially Reggie Jackson.

Ron Guidry has the most recent, and probably last ever, season with at least 25 wins and a WHIP below 1.00.

Ted Sizemore made his 23 career homers count. Of the 23 HRs, 5 tied the game and 10 put his team ahead. One was a walkoff shot against Tug McGraw, and 5 came in the 8th, 9th, or extra innings. Truly amazingly, not a single one of his homers came with more than 1 runner on base.

The late Craig Kusick also did a lot with his 46 career homers, tying 4 games, giving his team the lead in 16 others, and hitting 3 walk-off jobs, including the last homer of his career in this game.

Larry Demery started 139 games in his career, and his top game score came in a complete-game loss.

THE COUNTERS

Hall of Famers: 15
(none)

Deceased: 5
(+1 for Cusick)

Future managers: 11
(none)

Fathers and sons of major leaguers: 8
(none)

Loyalty counter: 16
(+1 for Augustine, +1 for Guidry, +1 for Demery)

Rookies of the Year: 10
(+1 for Sizemore)

Total all-star appearances: 295
(+4 for Guidry)

Total MVP awards: 12
(none)

Total Cy Young awards: 7
(+1 for Guidry)

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Various

A few quick notes:

• I just wrote a piece about dwindling offensive output by catchers right here.
• A word of warning for the person who wins 1978 Topps cards #63-#144: I pulled #100 (George Brett) and #120 (Gary Carter) to sent to Saints of the Cheap Seats since Dan is close to finishing his 1978 set. So you will not be winning those cards.
• I'm gradually gathering more 1971 and 1973 Topps cards. If you have some you might want to trade, please email me and tell me YOUR want lists. Any cards I post on the blog are possibly available for trade, too. Hit me up at 78topps at gmail dot com.

1978 Topps Cards #127 through #132

THE PLAYERS

#127 Chet Lemon
#128 Bill Russell
#129 Jim Colborn
#130 Jeff Burroughs
#131 Bert Blyleven
#132 Enos Cabell



THE DESIGN

Good: The three cards in the right column all use the photos to enhance the design. We have two script "Dodgers" in close proximity on Russell's card, a nice full "Atlanta Braves" on Burrough's card, and a block "Astros" and script "Astros" on Cabell's card. I love it.

Bad: Apparrently, Chet Lemon is a zombie. According to the back of his card, he doesn't "possess excellent speed" but rather he is "possessed with excellent speed." I believe the way to ward off that evil plague is to wear a brick on a chain around one's neck. Also, what does having a sure glove have to do with being a brilliant baserunner?


THE PHOTOS

Good: It's hard not to love the Lemon photo as an excellent example of the White Sox's uniform of the period.

Also, the Colburn photo is great since there must have been a woman pulling her top off in the upper deck, since that's the only reason Topps would have used such a dumb photo, since Colburn refused to look away from that spot.

Bad: If you've got a guy like Burroughs wearing Coke bottle eyeglasses, please try to shoot him from the front, not the side.

If you look quickly at Cabell's photo, you might think his little soul patch beard is sticking out quite a bit. But look more carefully: that's actually a person in the background, right along the edge of Cabell's face. Are you kidding me? What a terrible photo choice.




THE STATS

Russell once had 9 total bases in a game, and the Dodgers won 12-11. You'd think that Russell had 4 or 5 RBIs in that game, but with his triple, homer, and two singles, he got only that 1 RBI. Kind of amazing. That game was also the only time in his career that he got on base 5 times.

Colburn had one of the lowest strikeout rates in a 20-win season during the last 50 years.

When it comes to MVP awards, voters are usually seduced by big HR and RBI totals without much regard for the actual value of those numbers. Not so in 1977, though, where Burroughs hit 41 HR but finished 16th in the NL MVP voting. A big reason for that was George Foster's 52 HR the same year. But also, that season puts Burroughs in the top 10 for worst 40-HR seasons from an OPS+ perspective. To hit that many homers and still have an OPS+ under 130 is pretty difficult to do, unless you played at Coors field in the late 1990s (as was the case with 5 of the top 18 seasons on that list.)

I have already writetn tons online about Bert Blyleven. The guy belongs in the Hall of Fame without question. See here and here.

Enos Cabell had a pretty poor stolen base precentage. I'm surprised he isn't higher on this list of most times caught stealing for guys with no more than 250 career stolen bases. there are some really poor ratios on there, such as for Pete Rose and Alfredo Griffin.

THE COUNTERS

Hall of Famers: 15
(none)

Deceased: 4
(none)

Future managers: 11
(+1 for Russell)

Fathers and sons of major leaguers: 8
(+1 for Sean Burroughs, son of Jeff.)

Loyalty counter: 13
(+1 for Russell)

Rookies of the Year: 9
(none)

Total all-star appearances: 291
(+3 for Chet the Jet, +3 for Russell, +1 for Colborn, +2 for Burroughs, +2 for Blyleven)

Total MVP awards: 12
(+1 for Burroughs)

Total Cy Young awards: 6
(none)

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Loot

I got a whole bunch of packages in the mail today, including one from Don S who sent a whole bunch of awesome 1971 and 1973 Topps cards for my sets.

I also got 71 and 73 Topps from jackplumstead at Pursuit of 80's(ness) and dayf at Cardboard Junkie.

John and dayf were both generous, including a Mattingly jersey relic card. Amazingly, they included the same card!



One's got a stripe and one doesn't. Both are very sweet.

Thanks guys!

1978 Zest

Here is a beautiful 5-card set sent to me by JayBee of bdj610's Topps Baseball Card Blog.

JayBee wrote about it originally right here and Greg from Night Owl Cards (also a recipient of a free set from JayBee) wrote more about it here.

Here are the fronts...



and the backs...



The fronts are identical to those from the regular 1978 Topps set, except for the Montanez photo. The backs are similar but include both English and Spanish for everything, do not include the PLAY BALL game, and Montanez's name includes a cedilla over the "n" that is not present on the back of his regular 78 Topps card.

Thanks again to JayBee for sending this great set of cards!

1978 Topps Cards #121 through #126

THE PLAYERS

#121 Alvis Woods
#122 Dennis Eckersley
#123 Manny Trillo
#124 Dave Rozema All Star Rookie
#125 George Scott
#126 Paul Moskau



Al Woods is BRUT card #4.

THE DESIGN

Good: The back of Woods' card mentions that he hit an Opening Day pinch-hit homer. Neat. He's the 20th most-recent guy to do that.

Bad: This isn't exactly bad, but it's interesting. The back of Moskau's card abbreviates "Earned Run Average" as "E.R.A." with the periods. I wonder when the periods were completely dropped from stat abbreviations such as ERA, RBI, etc.


THE PHOTOS

Good: It's impossible not to love Scott's photo. He's displaying an actual real smile, so rarely seen on baseball cards. I wish the Boston logo on his helmet were visible, but otherwise it's a great shot.

Four of these cards feature batting practice paraphernalia.

Bad: Apparently, both Al Woods and Manny Trillo were hanging out in a criminal's hideout from the 1960 Batman TV show. The photos are so crooked, it's ridiculous.




THE STATS

Al Woods had an interesting year in 1980. He's one of the most recent players to get 15 homers in a season with no more than 400 ABs and 35 or fewer K's.

Dave Rozema is one of three guys with two different seasons allowing exactly 100 hits. Could this stat be more meaningless? I don't think so.

This is weird. George Scott, otherwise a great player, had one of the worst all-time OPS+ for a guy in his 3rd season or later, minimum 350 ABs. I wonder what happened that year?

Paul Moskau is one of three pitchers to complete at least one game and also finish at least one game every season from 1977 to 1980.

THE COUNTERS

Hall of Famers: 15
(+1 for Eckersley)

Deceased: 4
(none)

Future managers: 10
(none)

Fathers and sons of major leaguers: 7
(none)

Loyalty counter: 12
(none)

Rookies of the Year: 9
(none)

Total all-star appearances: 280
(+6 for Eckersley, +4 for Trillo, +3 for Scott)

Total MVP awards: 11
(+1 for Eckersley)

Total Cy Young awards: 6
(+1 for Eckersley)

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