- The 1978 Topps Baseball set was the winner in the "next blog" poll. 1978 had 16 votes, 1981 had 9 votes, and 1960 had 6 votes. The link to the new blog is here.
- I'm toying with the idea of doing a 1981 blog as well. How much interest would there be in doing a "community blog" for 1981? It could be structured similar to the "Pack to be Named Later" blog where each person could post about any 1981 baseball card he/she wants. Please let me know in the comments or by e-mail.
- By the way, I "borrowed" the image from The Shlablotnik Report blog. I have the same magazine in storage but I couldn't dig it out. I used to dream about getting cards from these ads in Street and Smith's and so forth, but I wasn't able to afford it until I was 11 years old and got a paper route in the summer of 1978. Once I started making some money I sent out for a lot of stuff from these ads.
- I'm writing this post as my cat is crawling all over my lap and my desk. Hopefully I'll be able to catch any typos before I hit "publish."
- The 1977 set doesn't get as much attention as a lot of the other sets from the 70s, probably because there aren't as many huge "rookie cards.". I think people get too hung up on the rookie card thing. When I was a kid, I hated getting rookie cards. I wanted cards of the stars and my favorite teams.
- This was the last of the 660 card sets in the 1970s. The expansion to 26 teams in 1977 was the main reason why Topps bumped the set up to 726 starting in 1978.
- There were a total of 152 "traded set candidates" in this set. This does not include the 4-player rookie cards. A post will be forthcoming that lists the 132 cards I would put in a boxed "traded set" for the 1977 set.
- I still plan to blog about other sets from 1977 such as the cloth sticker set, Kellogg's, Hostess, and any others that I happen to come across. When I start getting more time and funds I plan to fill in the gaps of my 1970s collection. But for now I would like to take a break from 1977. Three sets come to mind for me to blog about:
- 1960 - I've been working on this set since 1980 and am still about 70 cards away from completing it. This is one of my favorite sets.
- 1978 - I think I need a few cards to complete this one. I thought I had it completed, but when I looked at the binder I saw a few gaps in there. This would fill in a gap in the blogging world.
- 1981 - This was an important year for card collectors. There were three companies making cards, and Topps put out several other interesting sets (Home Team Series, stickers, scratch-offs, traded)
- Which set should be next? Please vote in the poll and leave comments as you see fit. Thanks for reading!
- Willie Horton's long and successful career as a Detroit Tiger came to an end in 1977. On April 12 Willie was traded to the Texas Rangers for pitcher Steve Foucault. Horton had a pretty good year as the main Texas DH. Horton hit seven of his 15 home runs against the Kansas City Royals.
- Willie Horton's SABR biography
- Here is a "Where Are They Now" article from July 2013.
- 1977 Stats:
- Detroit Tigers: .250 (1 for 4) in 1 game
- Texas Rangers: .289, 15 HR, 75 RBI in 139 games
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1964, 1965, 1966, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980
- After several years of struggling as a backup outfielder, Merv Rettenmund found his niche as a pinch hitting specialist in 1977. Merv set a team record with 21 pinch hits and set National League records with 16 walks and 86 appearances as a pinch hitter.
- Merv Rettenmund's SABR biography
- 1977 Stats: .286, 4 HR, 17 RBI in 107 games (126 at bats)
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980
- During the first part of the 1977 season Marty Pattin had a tough time. On June 5 Marty was 0-2 and had an 8.25 ERA in 11 games. Pattin started to pitch better in June and made some spot starts from June-August. Marty made several starts in September and ended up 5-1 as a starter.
- Pattin was the butt of many practical jokes by his teammates.
- Marty recalls his career in an article from 2011. Pattin tells a story about striking out Mickey Mantle in his rookie season and how nervous he was when the count was 3-2. It looks like the story was about Marty's first major league game, but it actually happened on August 13, 1968. It's still a cool story.
- 1977 Stats:
- Regular season: 10-3, 3.58 ERA in 31 games (10 starts)
- AL Championship Series: 0-0, 1.50 ERA in 1 game
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980
- Mick Kelleher had the distinction of having the most lifetime at bats (1081) without a home run.
- Kelleher was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in 1969. Mick worked his way up the Cardinals' system from 1969-1972 and had a September call-up in 1972 (.159 in 23 games).
- Mick spent most of the 1973 season as a backup shortstop with the Cardinals. Kelleher batted .184 in 43 games, mostly as a late-inning replacement. Mick also spent some time in AAA in 1973.
- After the 1973 season Kelleher was sold to the Houston Astros. Mick spent most of the year in AAA. Kelleher was used by the Astros at shortstop for a couple of weeks in May and was also called up in September.
- After the 1974 season Mick was sold back to the Cardinals. Kelleher was in AAA for just about all of the 1975 season. He went 0 for 4 in seven games for the Cardinals in September. After the 1975 season Mick was traded to the Chicago Cubs for Vic Harris.
- In 1976 Kelleher split time at shortstop with Dave Rosello. Mick batted .228 in 124 games.
- Kelleher was a utilityman for the Cubs for the next four seasons. He batted .230 in 63 games in 1977, .253 in 68 games in 1978, and .254 in 73 games in 1979.
- Mick had a tough time at the plate in 1980. He batted .146 in 96 at bats. I remember his APBA card from that year and it was quite futile.
- During spring training in 1981 Mick was purchased by the Detroit Tigers. Kelleher didn't get very much playing time for the Tigers in 1981 (.221 in 77 at bats).
- Kelleher was 0 for 1 in two games in 1982 when he was sold to the California Angels in late April. Mick batted .163 in 49 at bats for the Angels in 1982.
- Kelleher was released during spring training in 1983. He signed with the San Diego Padres and played in AAA. Mick didn't get back to the majors and retired after the 1983 season.
- Since his retirement Mick has been coaching and has had coordinator assignments for several teams. Currently (2013) Kelleher is the first base coach for the New York Yankees.
- 1977 Stats: .230 in 63 games
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1979, 1980, 1983
- The 1977 season was Ron Guidry's first season as a starting pitcher. Ron moved into the starting rotation in late April and stayed there for the rest of the season (and as it turns out for the rest of his career). "Louisiana Lightning" won 16 games and led the Yankees in wins, ERA, and strikeouts.
- 1977 Stats:
- Regular season: 16-7, 2.82 ERA, 1 save in 31 games (25 starts)
- AL Championship Series: 1-0, 3.97 ERA in 2 starts
- World Series: 1-0, 2.00 ERA in 1 start
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1976, 1978, 1979, 1979, 1979, 1980, 1980, 1982, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988
