1975 Topps #541 - Roger Metzger
We'll lead off with a '75 Roger Metzger. Greg over at Night Owl Cards has been snatching these up at a good pace so I'm glad I've at least gotten a few of them to date!
1974 Topps #444 - Vic Davalillo
Born in Venezuela, Vic Davalillo began his baseball career as a pitcher before morphing into a speedy lead-off hitter. He was traded to the Pirates just before the 1971 season, and would win a World Series with them that year. Then, in 1973 the Pirates shipped him over to Oakland where he was instrumental in helping the team win the World Series that year. Not a bad stretch there for Vic in the early '70s.
1976 Topps #369 - Frank White
Frank White played his entire 18-year career with the Royals. He really began to enjoy some success in the late '70s, as he won 6 consecutive Gold Gloves beginning in 1977 (plus another two later on). He was first named an All-Star, an honor he'd achieve five times over his career, in 1978. He was voted ALCS MVP in 1980, and finally won a World Series with Kansas City in 1985. Frank is a member of the Royals HOF, has his number retired by the team, and even his own bronze statue outside of Kauffman Stadium!
1973 Topps #188 - Cookie Rojas
Coincidentally, the next card in the stack is Cookie Rojas, who Frank White actually supplanted at second base for the Royals. Cookie was a fan favorite and 5-time All-Star. My favorite thing about this card is the busy background, though.
1978 Topps #187 - Jerry Royster
Jerry Royster was basically an every-day infielder for the Braves throughout the late '70s and early '80s, seeing plenty of time at third base, shortstop and second base during that stretch. He didn't really have any stellar seasons, or win any awards, but he did stay involved in the game in a coaching/managing role for a long while after he retired.
1979 Topps #484 - Rick Waits
Rick Waits was drafted by the Texas Rangers (when they were still the Senators), and closed out his career with the Milwaukee Brewers. In between those two stints though, he was with the Cleveland Indians for the longest stretch of his career. To me this photograph looks as though Rick was standing in front of a fake backdrop.
1975 Topps #587 - Chris Ward
Another '75 here, and one of the more obscure names in the franken-set thus far. Chris Ward got in one single at-bat with the Cubs in 1972, 92 games with Chicago in 1974, and that was it. He is a nice relatively high number '75 Topps card though.
1977 Topps #508 - Dave Pagan
Some heavy, heavy airbrushing going on here with this '77 Topps Dave Pagan, which makes sense given that 1977 was the inaugural season for the Mariners. Pagan didn't last long in Seattle; he was dealt to the Pirates early in the year, and after just one appearance with Pittsburgh his MLB career was done.
1974 Topps #494 - Ed Goodson
Here's a pretty boring card of switch-hitting third baseman Ed Goodson. I truly know nothing at all about Ed, this is basically the definition of set filler (or franken-set filler, I guess). Hopefully another #494 comes along to displace this card someday.
1971 Topps #189 - George Mitterwald
George "Baron von" Mitterwald played close to 900 MLB games with the Twins and the Cubs during his 11-year MLB career. When his playing days were over he spent some time as a bullpen coach for the A's and the Yankees. A nice enough card, though his '75 Topps release is more interesting.
If I'm being brutally honest, that was a fairly bland grouping of cards right there. Has me on the verge of 200 cards in the franken-set though!
Franken-set Progress: 192/792 (24%)
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3 comments:
Your Metzger buyback is in a lot better shape than mine.
I love that Goodson card! Those types of cards are part of the appeal of the '74 set.
I like the Mitterwald card, if only for the awesome catcher's mitt.
I'm with Night Owl on the Goodson card. Maybe it helps to have grown up with these cards, but 1970's + Game Shot = Awesome... Even if the photo is just a guy waiting for a pitch.
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