Buyback Franken-set: Bright Blue Phillies

Time has not been on my side lately to say the least, but after a few days away from the blog let's return with another ten buybacks to be evaluated for my franken-set...

1982 Topps #478 - Ray Searage

Ray Searage was a relief pitcher who debuted in 1981 with the Mets.  He lasted through the end of the 1990 season, playing with the Brewers, White Sox and Dodgers along the way.  These days he's actually serving as pitching coach for the Pirates.  My favorite thing about this particular set is that it's my "birth year" set.  Also, I don't typically see a whole lot of '82 Topps buybacks in comparison to other years.

This '78 Rem-Dawg was already in slot 478 of the binder though.

I just can't bring myself to choose a relief pitcher I've barely heard of over the man I've listened to doing color commentary for the Red Sox hundreds and hundreds of times over the last few decades.

1972 Topps #509 - Don McMahon

Don McMahon was another bullpen arm, and saw a ton of action during his 15-year MLB career.  That lengthy career is even more impressive when you consider that he didn't make his MLB debut until age 27!  Don died doing what he loved, as he suffered a heart attack while throwing batting practice for the Dodgers in 1987, and passed away as a result just hours later.

I had this somewhat ugly Jim Nash card in the binder in slot 509 already.

Never really liked this one though, I think it's the very odd angle the photograph was taken at (presumably to prevent the logo on the cap from being shown).

1988 Topps #101 - Allan Anderson

Next up we have an example of a match-up where I may have made the wrong call.  When I first looked at this somewhat boring 1988 Allan Anderson buyback I figured it probably didn't have a prayer of making the binder.

So, when I then found this nice '61 Bubba Phillips occupying slot 101 I thought it was no contest.  Aside from being a much nicer, early '60s buyback Bubba had himself a really solid season in 1961, clubbing 18 home runs, driving in over 70, and even serving as the Indians' cleanup hitter at times.

So, I made the choice to stick with Bubba and send Allan off to the reject box.  It was only when typing this post though that I came to realize that Anderson actually led the entire American League in ERA in 1988!  Can you believe that?!?!  Seriously, go ahead and look it up.  I might need to revisit this one someday down the line...

1974 Topps #494 - Ed Goodson

The next conflict was a much easier one to resolve.  This '74 Ed Goodson buyback looked familiar to me.  I found that its entry to the binder was blocked by a buyback from my beloved 1990 Topps set:

Easy call here...

...because this same match-up (or close to it) already took place when the 1990 Terry Puhl ousted the 2015 buyback version of this very same Goodson card.

1986 Topps #632 - Dave Von Ohlen

After four straight conflicts to begin today's post, we finally get a new number for the binder with this 1986 Dave Von Ohlen.  Today's theme seems to be 'relief pitchers', as every single one of Von Ohlen's 181 career MLB appearances came in relief.  I actually like the way Topps framed Dave's photo on this particular card, to me this is an example of '86 Topps done right.

1973 Topps #352 - Don Stanhouse

Speaking of great framing, how about this '73 Don Stanhouse?  This might be one of my favorite '73 Topps cards, I just love the photograph here and I think the horizontal layout makes it even better.  I would love to get this one into the binder, but already have a buyback blocking it:

Not the most interesting card I've ever seen, that's for sure...

...certainly not enough to stand a chance against that great Stanhouse card!

1988 Topps #260 - Vince Coleman

Next up we have the 1985 NL Rookie of the Year, Vince Coleman.  Vince was one of the better base stealers of all-time, in fact he's still the only person to steal 100 or more bases in each of his first three seasons.  With the way the game is played today, that's a record I'm doubting will ever be broken.  This one is also significant in that 1988 was the first time that Vince was named an All-Star.  Without another #260 buyback to compete with Vince is in, and my franken-set just got a bit speedier!

1974 Topps #538 - Cesar Tovar

Cesar Tovar is a member of the Venezuelan Baseball Hall of Fame.  He was known as a versatile player defensively, and is actually one of a very small number of players to have played all nine positions in a single game!  I think that alone makes him more than worthy of franken-set induction, so I was pleased to find that this buyback filled an empty binder slot.

1986 Topps #637 - Rudy Law

Next we have an '86 Rudy Law.  The White Sox actually released Rudy at the outset of the '86 season, and he played with the Royals that year instead (who picked him up just a few days later).  He does have a card in the 1987 Topps set, however 1986 was his final season as the Royals released him during Spring Training in 1987 and he never appeared in a Major League game again.  Law makes the franken-set, as my first buyback with the relatively high number of 637.

1967 Topps #102 - Philadelphia Phillies

Last card for today is the lone Heritage buyback of the post, a nice 1967 Phillies team card.  I've said it before, more than once, but I really wish Topps still did these team cards in their present-day releases. 

The Phillies actually had a decent year in '67, finishing above .500 at 82-80.  Unfortunately that was only good enough to finish 19 1/2 games behind the eventual World Series Champion Cardinals squad.  It would be years before the Phillies were on the right side of .500 again.

This Bill Greif card from '74 Topps was in slot 102...

...but I'm going with the Fightin' Phils.

Well, that's all for today, slowly but surely I'm making my way towards the next significant milestone of 500 buybacks in the binder...thanks for stopping by!

Franken-set Progress:  423/792 (53%)
"Rejected" Buybacks:  215
Total Buybacks in Collection: 638