1977 rick monday

truth be told, this might be the card that provided the impetus for this blog.  i started to purchase o-pee-chee cards on a family vacation in 1978, and i was able to amass a fair number of cards from then until 1986.  i did not come across rick monday's card until much later, and i frankly regretted not knowing about it sooner.  so, eventually i decided to see what other variations might be out there and once i found them, i figured they were worth sharing.  but before i get to the wrap up post, there is this final variation to showcase.

in january of 1977, rick monday was traded from the cubs to the dodgers.  o-pee-chee whipped up a team variation, complete with a different (although poorly airbrushed) image and a slightly relocated facsimile autograph.  i wouldn't have it any other way.  here is monday's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

monday became the center fielder on the team of my youth by virtue of that trade, and bill buckner became someone who simply 'used to be a dodger'.  i learned to appreciate billy buck a few years later when he won the batting title, but monday was one of 'my guys' from the start of my fandom.

unfortunately, monday had some injury issues in 1977, and his production was off from his big numbers in 1976. still, he helped the dodgers get to the postseason, and did so again in 1978 and especially 1981, when he had me jumping around the lunchtime elementary school playground as he circled the bases in montreal.

voici à vous, 1977 rick monday!

1977 john lowenstein

today, let it be lowenstein.

this one hits all the bases as far as basic o-pee-chee variations go: team variation, text variation, photo variation, autograph placement variation.  the only thing missing is the position variation, but john lowenstein was primarily an outfielder, so there was no reason for o-pee-chee to make that change.  they changed pretty much everything else, however, as they caught lowenstein in blue jays' attire during spring training in 1977.  he had been traded by the indians to the blue jays with rick cerone for rico carty in december of 1976, but the jays dealt him back to the tribe towards the end of spring training.  luckily for us, o-pee-chee didn't slap his topps photo back on the card, but instead chose to use their photo with some good ol' traded text.  of course, they also unstacked his facsimile autograph and put it somewhere that made it legible.  here is lowenstein's 1977 o-pee-chee card: 

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

lowenstein hit .242 in 81 games for the indians in 1977, and was traded again prior to the next season.  this time, he went to texas where he played just one year before heading to baltimore.  there, he helped the orioles reach the world series in 1979 and again in 1983 when they won it all.

this is the last of the blue jays to be featured here on the blog from the 1977 o-pee-chee set, by the way.  we are really getting close to the end of the o-pee-chee variations.

voici à vous, 1977 john lowenstein!

1977 richie zisk

this is one of the better known o-pee-chee variations from the 1977 set.  without it, we wouldn't have much to remember zisk's days in chicago by.  that's because topps left him in his pirates uniform in 1977 and then hurried to show him as a ranger in 1978.  at any rate, we get a team variation, photo variation (both cropping and airbrushing), and the good ol' autograph placement variation (plus they shrunk his auto!) from o-pee-chee.  here is richie zisk's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

the white sox acquired zisk after the 1976 season in the deal that sent goose gossage and terry forster to pittsburgh.  oh, how i wish forster and gossage were part of the 1977 o-pee-chee set.  like zisk, topps didn't acknowledge their one year on the move and airbrushed forster into a dodgers hat and gossage into yankee pinstripes for the 1978 set.  i don't know if there are any cards of forster or gossage in pirates uniforms.

back to zisk - the chisox moved him from left to right field and he responded with a career high 30 homers and 101 rbi.  ok, the two probably don't have anything to do with each other, but zisk did play well enough to earn a starting spot for the american league in the 1977 all-star game.  he made the start in left, and went 2 for 3 with 2 rbi and a double off of tom seaver.  of course, topps gypped him out of the all-star shield in 1978. zisk also homered in his first at bat with the white sox, and in doing so, became the first player to hit a home run against the blue jays.

voici à vous, 1977 richie zisk!

1977 george medich

george medich was part of the march 1977 trade between the pirates and a's that saw phil garner leave oakland and head to the steel city.  as with garner, o-pee-chee had time to create a team variation for their set, and they outfitted medich in a nice yellow crew neck sweater in doing so.  they also moved his facsimile autograph a tad, and used a completely different photo than did topps.  here is medich's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

medich made 25 starts for the a's in 1977, and he also pitched once in relief.  he had a record of 10-6 with a 4.69 era when the expansion mariners purchased his contract in mid-september.  medich was 2-0 in his 3 starts as a mariner, and pitched so well that the mets selected him on waivers shortly before the season ended.  medich made one start with the mets and took the loss, giving up 3 runs in 7 innings of work.  he was granted free agency after the season ended, and signed with the rangers, for whom he pitched until part way through the 1982 season when his contract was purchased by the brewers.

voici à vous, 1977 george medich!

1977 bill madlock

in february of 1977, the cubs traded the two-time reigning national league batting champion bill madlock to the giants.  as a result, o-pee-chee went to work on a team and photo variation, and they moved the facsimile autograph as well.  here is madlock's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

in 140 games for the giants in 1977, madlock hit .302 with 12 home runs and 46 rbi.  twice that year he hit two home runs in a game - the first time coming against doug rau and the dodgers.  defensively, the giants played madlock at second base for the first time in his career in 1977.  in 1978, he played primarily at that position and did not man the hot corner at all until he was traded to the pirates during the 1979 campaign.

voici à vous, 1977 bill madlock!

1977 pedro garcia

pedro garcia signed as a free agent with the blue jays in january of 1977, facilitating a nice team variation and photo variation card.  o-pee-chee went ahead and moved his facsimile autograph around, too.  here is garcia's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

garcia was the blue jays' first second baseman, and he also hit the first rbi single in franchise history.  he was 3 for 4 in the team's inaugural game, and was the only second baseman the team used in their first 20 games.  at the end of april, however, garcia was batting just .205, and he started to see his playing time diminish.  he was hitting .208 in june when the blue jays released him and went with dave mckay and then steve staggs at second base.  garcia spent the rest of the season and all of 1978 with the padres aaa team, but never made a return to the big leagues.

voici à vous, 1977 pedro garcia!

1977 darrell porter

darrell porter was traded in december of 1976 from the brewers to the royals.  that means we get a team variation, a photo variation, and almost certainly an autograph placement variation from o-pee-chee.  let's find out.  here is porter's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

yup - team, photo, and the facsimile auto is moved and unstacked.

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

porter enjoyed a successful first year with the royals, hitting 16 homers while driving in 60 runs and posting a batting average of .275.  he helped kansas city reach the playoffs, and hit .333 with 3 runs scored in the 5-game alcs against the yankees.  porter helped the royals get back to the postseason in 1978 and all the way to the world series in 1980, but his fall heroics were at their peak in 1982 when he won both the nlcs and world series mvp awards as a member of the champion saint louis cardinals.

voici à vous, 1977 darrell porter!

1977 johnny grubb

johnny grubb was traded by the padres to the indians as part of the fred kendall/george hendrick deal in late 1976.  as a result, we get this airbrushed photo team variation, complete with an adjusted facsimile autograph.  here is grubb's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

grubb appeared in just 34 games for the tribe in 1977, missing the entire second half of the season due to injury.  he hit .301 when he did play, however, and had a couple of home runs.  he returned in 1978, and hit .265 with 14 home runs for cleveland in 113 games before he was traded to texas towards the end of the season.

voici à vous, 1977 johnny grubb!

1977 marty perez

showing just how late in the year o-pee-chee went to press, marty perez was traded from the giants to the yankees on march 14, 1977.  the ontario airbrush artists used a different photo than topps, and were not only able to get a yankees cap on perez and change the team name, they also recognized that with willie randolph at second, perez might see some action at shortstop, and so they modified his position as well.  with its multitude of variations, here is marty perez's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

as it turned out, o-pee-chee was right.  perez didn't play second for the yankees, but he didn't play shortstop, either.  in fact, he appeared in only one game for the bronx bombers, getting the start at third base on april 26 in baltimore.  perez was 2 for 4 at the plate, but was traded the very next day to the a's in the deal that also sent dock ellis to oakland for mike torrez.

in oakland, perez played in 115 games at second, third, and short over the remainder of the season.  he hit .231 with 2 homers and 23 rbi.

voici à vous, 1977 marty perez!

1977 george hendrick

it's not a difference in cropping, o-pee-chee used a whole different photo of george hendrick (while also relocating his facsimile autograph) in 1977, thanks to the december 1976 trade that sent hendrick from the indians to the padres.  here is hendrick's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

it's true - i checked.  hank aaron and babe ruth both scored 2174 times in their careers.  i was worried that the elias sports bureau took away a run or two from one of them like they took two hits away from ty cobb, who now has 4189 career base knocks.  no such corrections - hank and the babe remain tiedfor fourth place all-time.

this post is about george hendrick, however, and those amazing hats he's wearing on his 1977 cards.  the padres cap is obviously airbrushed, but i don't know about the indians hat.  it almost looks like a visor because i think i can see some hair exposed on top of hendrick's head.  what do you think?  besides, i don't think the indians wore white caps. ever.

hendrick's first season in san diego was a good one.  he played in a career high 152 games and hit over .300 (.311) for the first time.  he hit 23 homers and drove in 81 runs on the season, and in june he hit the 100th home run of his career.

voici à vous, 1977 george hendrick!

1977 dave w roberts

not to be confused with dave (arthur) roberts, featured here just a short time ago, dave (wayne) roberts earned his spot on this blog with an even better variation - team, photo, and autograph placement.  here is dave (w) roberts' 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

the joke was on topps in 1977 as they rushed to get roberts, acquired by the blue jays from the padres shortly after the end of the 1976 season, into some semblance of blue jay gear.  o-pee-chee, on the other hand, was able to wait until roberts was returned to san diego via trade in february of 1977 and then use a real photograph with no need for airbrushing.

at any rate, roberts saw action in the big leagues in 1977 after not getting a promotion in 1976.  in fact, he played in 82 games for the pads and played catcher with a little bit of second, third and short mixed in.  roberts' versatility was on display at the end of april when he caught a complete game and then spent the entire game the next day at shortstop.

voici à vous, 1977 dave (w) roberts!

1977 rich hebner

rich hebner signed with the phillies as a free agent in december of 1976, so o-pee-chee modified the 'p' on his hat and did some coloring to give us a nice team variation in 1977.  they also moved his facsimile autograph.  here is hebner's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

referring to the text on the back of the cards, hebner didn't homer on opening day in 1977 - his first home run didn't come until may - but he did have a walk-off against the mets and a grand slam later in the season.  in two of the years hebner homered on opening day (1973 and 1974), the home runs came at the expense of bob gibson.  in fact, hebner hit two off of gibson on opening day 1974.

in his first season with the phillies, hebner made the switch from third base to first (mike schmidt was playing third, so this was a no-brainer) and so o-pee-chee missed the opportunity for a position variation.  hebner hit .285 in 118 regular season games, and then hit .357 in the nlcs against the national league champion dodgers.

voici à vous, 1977 rich hebner!

1977 woodie fryman

let's break the monotony by showcasing a good ol' fashioned team variation shall we?  woodie fryman was acquired by the reds after the 1976 season in the tony perez trade.  o-pee-chee took the time to airbrush the lefty into a cincy cap, and wound up with this, his 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

it should be noted that fryman's card is one of the very few that breaks the o-pee-chee 'expos rule of 9' in the 1977 set.  every ninth card in the set, with only a couple of exceptions, features an expo.

now the o-pee-chee back:

see?  fryman's card is number 126 in the set, and so it sits in the lower right hand corner of the 9-pocket page.  i am guessing that it pained some o-pee-chee worker greatly to have to airbrush woodie out of his expo duds and knowingly violate the checklist pattern.

and the topps back:

fryman had put up a 5-5 record in 12 starts and 17 appearances for the reds when he up and 'retired' in early july.  supposedly unhappy with the way sparky anderson was leading the defending world champs, fryman left the team.  he later asked for a trade, but he wasn't dealt until after the season ended when he was sent to chicago with bill caudill for bill bonham.  after all of that, fryman was re-acquired by the expos after he had spent just a couple of months with the cubs.

voici à vous, 1977 woodie fryman!