Night Owl Cards

  Did you ever hear that often-repeated theory that players who appeared on baseball cards without hats were rumored to be traded or had been traded?   While that was probably true during the first 20 to 30 years of Topps cards, that was no longer an indicator in the wild-and-hairy 1980s.   I didn't realize there were so many cards of players missing caps from 1980-89. I suppose it's logical with more trading card companies than ever and Magnum P.I. on the TV. I just never noticed much, probably because I wasn't a kid any longer and no longer horrified by a card of a haircut.   I had to make some tough decision to get this down to just 12 of the best hat-less cards from the '80s. This was much tougher than the '70s, which was tougher than the '60s. Some of the most iconic cards of the '80s feature players without hats, and even some of those didn't make the list.   So here are 12 of the best, fully realizing that my list is not your list:     12. White...

  I'm still working on the third of my series of Head Count posts, in which I show notable cards of hat-less players for each decade. The '60s and '70s were easy. The '80s, not so much, there is a lot to weed through. But at least it's not the '90s. In fact, that can be the 1980s motto: "at least we're not the 1990s!" It applies in cards, and in so much more. So, anyway, the '80s Head Count post is coming up. It'll be next week. But before I get to that, I wanted to relay something I thought was interesting (operative word: I) while looking through those '80s cards. There are several players who showed up repeatedly with their caps missing. This can only be an '80s phenomenon, or later decades, because with limited cards, you didn't get a ton of repeats in the "no hat" category. Maybe a player had three -- I can think of Billy Martin, for example. But it's nothing on the scale of the '80s. Certain players wer...

  Moving forward with picking out the most distinctive cards of cap-less baseball players in history, we're now in the 1970s. While it's not the 1960s , there is no shortage of players without head gear in 1970s Topps sets. But the way of presenting naked heads had changed. Except for 1970 and 1971, the old standby of head-and-shoulders shots of players' locks (what little of it they had in the '60s buzz-cut days) were replaced with candid shots of players sans cap. Think Don Hood in 1977 or Al Bumbry in 1978. Players were caught-in-the-act of missing their cap, rather than a profile shot where the missing hat may have actually been intentional. Then there are the action shots that showed up in the '70s with players who have lost their caps due to the frantic action. I considered cards like the '73 Darrel Chaney card, the '74 and '75 Ralph Garr cards and any number of catcher cards, but then discounted most of them. They're interesting, but I don...

There's one day left to vote in the final first-round Cardboard Appreciation Hall of Fame poll before we move into the semifinals. All you have to do is go here to see the eight selections and then vote by copying-and-pasting this link: https://vote.easypolls.net/62c7283b8d44710062513b7e      I recently came across this 2021 card of Mike Brousseau and it all came rushing back: All the shock and horror of a baseball player on my card, not wearing a cap. Why would they do this to him? Why? He's got no hair, put a hat on him, Topps! I think the fact that it took me more than a year for this card to register in this way is a sign that it's not as big of a deal to me as it was when I was a kid. I'm older. I actually associate regularly with people who have lost their hair. I've even suffered some hair loss. No matter, even though, still , I'd rather see a player on my card wearing his ball cap.   With my new frame of reference (i.e., I'm old), I decided to put ...