1985 Kraft T-Shirt Offer

This was an insert inside packages of Kraft Cheese Singles in Canada.  It measures 3.5'' x 6'' and opens along the edge to measure 3.5'' x 12''.  The paper stock is extremely thin.  I'm not sure what I would compare it to, a magazine page is the closest thing I can come up with, but it's definitely a different material.  You could choose from 10 different players, and needed to send in 4 UPC's and $8, or 6 UPC's and $4.

I've never seen the actual Wallach T-shirt.  In fact the only shirt I've ever seen show up is a Steve Rogers shirt, and he's not listed as an option.  So I'm guessing this offer was an annual thing for awhile, with a rotating selection of players.  I'd be curious to see other fliers, and if the shirts changed pictures from year to year, or if it was completely different players each year.  The absence of George Bell and Andre Dawson makes me suspect they didn't use players more than once.

Below are the pictures from the ebay listing for the Steve Rogers shirt.  I can't say for certain it's one of these Kraft shirts, but it certainly appears to be.  When I put stuff on ebay, I try to use a clean, solid background for my photos, such as a piece of poster board, or clean table top.  This seller didn't go that route, and it's tacky enough that I hesitate to even post the photos.  I cropped out an absurd amount of bedspread.  If your curious, the seller wants $39.99 for the shirt.

Un-Cut 1986 Provigo Expos Team Set

This is one of those items I don't really know what to do with.  I actually acquired this before I had any copies of the "cut" Wallach card, and briefly considered it quite the find.  Then individual copies of the Wallach started showing up everywhere, and this team set took a back seat in a box.  It's nice enough to display, and not easy to store.

The set consists of 14 sheets, with 3 cards to a sheet.  There are perforations running between each card, making it very easy to tear them apart if one desired to do so.  The third card on each sheet is an advertisement or coupon. I'm not scanning the backs, but they're all in French and English, with French as the primary language.  All the shots appear to be from Spring Training, except for the Dawson and Raines which appear to have been taken in Olympic Stadium.  Not sure why Wallach wasn't given the star treatment after making his 2nd straight All-Star game in 1985.

The cards for the most part are pretty forgettable.  Cookie-cutter photos, boring design, and the card stock is extremely thin.  The two cards featuring group shots of the coaches are pretty interesting, as are some of the advertisement cards, but for me the real highlight is the card for Youppi.  Below are images for the entire set.

1986 General Mills booklet #6I

Card Review: 5.5  I much prefer this "action" shot to the generic portrait used by General Mills in their '87 set.  Though the '87 is interesting if for no other reason than it appears to be the same photo used on the '86 Topps All-Star card only with logos airbrushed off.  Like the '87 set, this '86 set came as a booklet, and someone cut the pages out to sell as cards.  It also appears to be running a year behind.  This photo looks like it was taken during the '84 or '85 season.  The cut job on this one leaves a little bit to be desired, but I'm not complaining.  That's Mitch Webster on the back.  Mitch had a way of looking like Wallach on his cards.  Much like this picture, his face always seemed to be obscured, and I feel like in every set I ever bought, I pulled his card before the Wallach, and thus eliciting a moment of false excitement on more than one occasion.

This card literally popped up on ebay while I was in the middle of drafting my "Most Wanted."  I debated going back and editing it to remove this card, but then I would have to wait another week to two weeks to receive this card in the mail, post about it, then publish the need list.

Maybe it's cheating technically, but I'm counting this as the first apprehension on my wanted list.  It'll be updated accordingly.

Number of this card in my collection: 1

1992 Donruss Durivage #19

Card Review: 8.9  This was a card and set that I didn't even know existed until a couple of years ago.  It was an Expos team set that Donurss made with the Quebec bakery Durivage.  I googled Durivage and didn't find anything, so I don't know if they still exists.  I also don't know how these were distributed.  Ultimately I don't really care.  Once I tracked down a Wallach (which was no easy task), my interest teetered off significantly.  I suspect these came inside loafs of bread, as that seems to be a somewhat common theme with Expos sets in Canada.

The photo on this card is clearly from the same photo shoot used for the 1992 Studio card.  The only difference is on the Studio, Donruss/Leaf cropped out the bat and Wallach isn't smiling.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2013 update: 2
2014 update: 3

1991 Holsum Disk #3

Card Review: N/A  I don't claim to be an expert on baseball cards.  I've bought a lot of them over the years, but I don't think of myself as any sort of an authority figure on the subject.  As such, as my Wallach collection has grown, I've turned to online databases to figure out what Wallach cards may still be out there that I don't even have one of.

There are several of these databases, and for the most part they're the same.  They're all the same for Wallach give or take one or two cards, and they can't seem to agree what year the Alaska Gold Panners set was from.  In any event, they're a useful tool for me.  My pet peeve is they all have a very loose definition of what a "card" is.  I don't consider this to be a "card."  I can see the argument, it's cardboard, numbered, and has stats, but it's not really a baseball card.  Other stuff isn't even close.  For instance, they list postcards, and 8x10 photo sheets, and things of that nature.  And because it's on there, I feel an obligation to track it down.

None that is the fault of this Holsum disk.  I actually really like it for some reason.  I'm pretty sure these came inserted in loafs of bread that were sold in Canadian grocery stores.  I could be wrong.

Number of this "card" in my collection: 1

1993 Donruss McDonald's Expos #8

Card Review: 7.1  I like this design a lot more than the '93 Donruss base set.  This card is part of a 33 card set issued by Donruss for the Expos 25th anniversary.  They were distributed in McDonalds throughout French Speaking parts of Canada.  There was also one done for the Blue Jays, but allegedly that set looks a lot more like the '93 Donruss base set.

Number of this card in my collection: 3
2014 update: 7 
2015 update: 8 
2016 update: n/a
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: 10

2019 update: n/a

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: n/a

2022 update: 11

 

1987 Hostess #5

Card Review: 5.6  This is another card I've seen pop up on ebay with some regularity but never pulled the trigger on due to pricing.  When it popped up on sportslots for a reasonable price I happily pulled the trigger.  Like the '93 Humpty Dumpty, every ebay listing I'd ever seen failed to mention the size, or rather, lack thereof.  At full size this would easily be one of my favorite odd-ball issues.  But it's tiny.

Number of this card in my collection: 1

2014 update: 2

2015 update: n/a

2016 update: 3

2017 update: 4

2018 update: n/a

2019 update: n/a

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: 5

2022 update: 6

*Update*

A reader (in a comment below) has informed me that this is in fact a sticker.  They came in bags of chips and stores offered a poster on which they could be stuck to build a set.  If anyone has a photo of the poster, please share it with me.

1993 Humpty Dumpty #33

Card Review: 1.5 I've seen this card popping up on ebay over the years but never pulled the trigger on it.  It was always over-priced and just didn't look that exciting.  I recently picked up a couple on Sportslot.com and when they arrived I was very proud of myself for holding off on ebay.  Every ebay listing I'd ever seen failed to mention the card wasn't a standard sized card.

Both of my copies (at this point) are still sealed.  I assume these came packed with some sort of food product.  Probably chips given what information is available on the "Humpty Dumpty" wiki page.

Number of this card in my collection: 2
2013 update: 4
2014 update: n/a
2015 update: n/a
2016 update: 6
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: 7

2019 update: n/a

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: 8

2022 update: n/a

2023 update: 9

1993 Mother's Cookies #6

Card Review: 8.1  I like these goofy Mother's Cookies sets.  Simple and unspectacular, but they work.  I've learned since the 1st Mother's Cookies post that these were given out at stadiums, and hence the autograph line on the back.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2014 update: 2
2015 update: n/a
2016 update: n/a
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: n/a
2019 update: n/a
2020 update: 3

2021 update: n/a

2022 update: n/a

2023 update: n/a

2024 update: 4

1982 Hygrade #29

Card Review: 5.6  Hygrade is food products company.  From what I could find it seems to be based in Detroit, but given the complete lack of English on this card, I assume it's primarily in Canada.  Any time I discover a new Wallach that is this old, it's a pretty exciting event.  I don't know anything about this set, I can't even tell if it's numbered, or what it says on the back.  I also have a Dawson that is still sealed in plastic, so I'm pretty sure that these came with cereal or bread or some kind of food.  The B.P. 343 and H8S 4C2 numbering is identical on the Dawson.

At first I didn't think this was actually from '82.  Every other '82 and older Wallach card/item I have shows him with a moustache.  But after comparing this to other '82 cards and '83 cards, it's clearly the same hair cut he has on the '82 cards.  So I'm sticking with the '82 label.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2013 update: 2

1985 Frito Lay Pepsi Pennant

Here's another odd-ball item that's not being counted toward the card total.  I didn't really know what to call it.  It's a decent size pennant that must have come packaged in bags of chips or 12 packs of soda.  I'd guess primarily in Cananda or even just Quebec.

The material is nearly identical to those sort of "paper" priority mail envelope/bags they have at the post office.  I'm not certain (ok I'm like 99% certain), but I think that's water damage on the left side of Wallach's hat, and not done by design.  These pop up on ebay once in awhile but they're usually way over-priced, like in the $10 range.  I can live with one water damaged copy at that price.

1986 Provigo #11

Card Review: 6.3  These came in sheets of 3 cards.  Provigo is a grocery store chain in Quebec.  The card is a little thin, but it's sort of cool to see the logo on a food product card like this.  I don't know what sort of food these came with, but for some reason I feel like I heard it was some sort of cheese.  

Number of this card in my collection: 26
2014 update: 27
2015 update: n/a
2016 update: n/a
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: n/a
2019 update: 29

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: n/a

2022 update: 31

1987 General Mills Booklets #4H

 


















Card Review: 4.8  I believe this was cut out of some sort of mini comic book type thing.  That's Bryn Smith on the back.  The stock is extrmely thin, like the page of a magazine.

It's also the same picture as used on the 1986 Topps All-Star card of Wallach, just re-croped with the logo airbrushed out.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2013 update: 2
2014 update: n/a
2015 update: n/a
2016 update: n/a
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: n/a
2019 update: 3

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: n/a

2022 update: 4

1988 Nestle #23

Card Review: 8.1  I'm not sure what sort of Nestle Product this came with, but it's not a bad looking card.  The red Expos batting practice jersey makes for a nice primary colors effect.

I didn't notice originally, but as pointed out in the comments, this card lists Wallach as a "Pinch Hitter."  I'm not sure if that was just a goofy mistake, or if the set was some sort of All-Star team and "Pinch Hitter" was just Nestle's way of including extra players.  In either event, it's inexcusable, as Wallach was the best player in all of MLB in 1987 and should have been a no-brainer for Nestle at 3B.  And given his MVP-caliber (should of won) season in '87, Nestle should have known what position he played.

In any event, I still really like this card.

Number of this card in my collection: 2
2015 update: 3
2016 update: n/a
2017 update: 4
2018 update: 6

1991 Post #2

Card Review:  8.8  This card is one that eluded me for a very long time.  I actually acquired an uncut sheet of this card before the actual card.  Once in hand, it's very a nice card, at least as far as cards from cereal boxes go.  I like all the red, and there's a decent attempt at putting stats on the back.  I've often seen this listed as "Post Canadian," which makes sense due to the French.  I'm guessing the player selection was different in Canada than it was in the United States.  I know my brother and I ate obscene amounts of Post raisin bran chasing these things, and we never pulled a Wallach (I don't recall even thinking he was in the set).  It stands out in my memory because we preferred Kellog's Raisin Bran (well, actually my brother and I preferred Frosted Flakes and Captain Crunch, but that didn't happen on school mornings, or any mornings at all for that matter in my house).  But when Post had baseball cards, we suffered through it.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2012 update: 3
2014 update: 5
2015 update: 8
2016 update: 11
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: 14
2019 update: n/a
2020 update: 15

2021 update: n/a

2022 update: 16

2023 update: 17

1996 Mother's Cookies #10

Card Review: 2.1 Not much to say here, a very basic card.  I'm assuming these came packaged with cookies, though I'm not familiar with the brand.


*Update* 
I've learned that these cards were Stadium Giveaways.  SGA's with a twist too.  Kids were given a pack of cards, but the packs were incomplete sets.  My understanding is they came with duplicates and the idea was to encourage kids to trade them to complete the set.  That's actually a cool idea (even if I would have just preferred to be given a set and be done with it as a kid).  Given this creative idea, it's a shame they didn't put more effort into the photo's.  For a set like this, they would have a lot more room to get creative with action shots, candid's in strange parts of the park, etc. if they had wanted to.  I get that just going with a generic press photo is easier, but given the way they were distrubuted, it's clear someone put some thought into this set.

Fun Facts: *Wallach's 57 games with the Angels in 1996, were the only games he played in the American League.  On May 17, 18 and 19th the Angels played @ Yankee Stadium.  It was the only time Wallach played in Yankee Stadium.  He played in 2 of the three games and had one hit.
*In Wallach's first game in Fenway he had 2 hits and 2 walks

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2013 update: 3
2014 update: 13
2015 update: 14

1988 Hostess Disks #7

Card Review: 4.4  I'm assuming these were issued primarly in Canada.  I have no idea what kind of food they were packaged with.  Any info on these would be appreciated, fill it in the comments box.  I think they're kind of cool.  Also, note that they didn't have to airbrush the Expos logo.

Number in my collection: 1
2014 update: 2
2015 update: n/a
2016 update: n/a
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: 4

1991 Denny's #12

Card Review: 3.5 I remember these being a very big deal at the time.  There was no Denny's in Cooperstown, so I didn't come across this until years later on ebay.  By then the excitement was long gone.

Fun Facts: *Wallach's 3rd grand slam came off of Nolan Ryan.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2012 update: 5
2013 update: 7
2014 update: 11
2015 update: 15
2016 update: n/a
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: 16
2019 update: 18

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: n/a

2022 update: 21

2023 update: 22

2024 update: 23

2025 update: 24