Wanted! - 1981 Topps

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Re-Defining the Design - 1981 Topps Ron Cey

One thing that has always bothered me as a collector is how the card manufacturers literally drop the ball on some of their designs.  I've heard plenty of grumblings about 2010 Topps, and the similarities between early Upper Deck sets.

With the power of photoshop and the ability to jump into my way-back machine, I've decided to pay a visit to Duryea, Pennsylvania circa late 1980.

For the life of me, I have never understood the color choices selected for Topps sets.  One year it will be spot on to team colors, then maybe it's a design like '71, '75 or even (gasp) '87 that has different colors or abstract designs.  However, I cannot understand what they were thinking when they designed 1981 Topps.

The concept was great, put the team hat on the lower left corner.  Brilliant, save for the fact nobody wears a hat the actually says "Dodgers" then their position.  Cute thought, but failed the big picture.  Perhaps Topps was limited by the MLBPA from placing hat logos on cards, but doubtful.

And finally, what in the world was up with the color choices?  Green for the Reds, White Sox and Blue Jays?  Red for the Yanks?  The only ones that were remotely right were the Red Sox (Red), Mariners (Yellow) and Mets (Orange).  Although, being a Padres fan, I take great joy in seeing the Dodgers and Giants adorned in a pink silouette.  Quite fitting.

Anyways, after altering history, a new 1981 Topps card has emerged.  Behold!  A new 1981 Topps Ron Cey (The Penguin was only chosen because the Dodger colors are easy to simulate and their logo is simple).

BEFORE

AFTER

Moving the position to the baseball (ala 75 Topps) and moving the Topps logo to the upper right enabled the actual hat logo to be placed on the hat (of all places).  And, Ron Cey is no longer shrouded in Hello Kitty and has a fitting frame of Dodger Blue.

So, what do you think?

BBCR History: 1981 Topps - The Charlie Leibrandt Incident

What:  1981 Topps – #126 Charlie Leibrandt – Cincinnati Reds
When:  Sometime in 1981
Where:  Second floor of 4024 Risa Court, Tierrasanta, CA

As my three older sisters and older brother will attest, I was a holy terror from the ages of 3 to 6.  In one instance, I ran out the front door while my sister E was babysitting.  She was on the phone at the time, saw me run out the door, chased me and slammed her foot into a steamer trunk, thus breaking her toe.  The said steamer trunk was for a trip to England I believe, so I was the culprit in sending a teenage girl on a once in a lifetime trip with a broken bone.

In another incident, I fancied myself as Indiana Jones.  I donned my best corduroys and vest, put on my holster and cap pistol, affixed my plastic Bowie knife to my belt and adorned my new found whip.  A whip that was incidentally my mother’s clothes line, which I had cut down.  I strutted around our cul-de-sac, acting the part, waiting for an adventure.  Soon enough, an older kid came by and gave me the business.  I pulled my whip out, reared back and SNAP, popped the kid right in the forehead.  He went home crying, and with no doubt, I was crying a few hours later.

Now that you get a feel for the terror I was as a child, I unfortunately did not hold back on my older brother, J.  On one day in 1981, something transpired between my brother and me.  I believe it had something to do with me going through his baseball cards, and if memory serves me correct, it was his New York Mets.  What I did or why I got the reaction I got is lost to the ages, but my brothers response was to storm into my room, grab my shoebox and pull out my Cincinnati Reds.  At this point, I know I was hysterically screaming. 

He snapped off the rubber band, and threw my Reds all over my room.  As the cards rained down, I was frantically whining for our mom to end the carnage.  Before my mom arrived, my brother reached down, and grabbed a 1981 Topps Charlie Leibrandt.  He then stood up and tore it right in half.  I’m sure I lost it at that moment.  That card remained in my collection until around the turn of the millennium.  I think I finally found a replacement card and decided to trash The Leibrandt Halves.
 

Should have kept the original for posterity

Soon our mother was there, and likely took my side, since I was the baby.  I remember her making my brother pick up all the cards and place a rubber band around them before placing them back in my shoebox.

In retrospect, I don’t know why it happened, but I can almost guarantee that it was my fault.

Topps Cards That Never Were: 1981 Willie McCovey

The third and final Willie to get his just due on a final Topps cards is here.  It is none other than the great Willie McCovey.

Willie broke into The Show back in 1959, and went 4 for 4 against fellow Hall of Famer, Robin Roberts, in his debut.  Amazingly, Willie won the ROY in '59 while only playing in 52 games.  Willie Mac continued to be an amazing power hitting 1B for the Giants and made a great tandem with Willie Mays.

For a two year stretch from '64 to '65, McCovey was part of a little unknown historical fact.  Those Giants were one of 3 teams to field five BBWAA HOFers at the same time.  Those Giants teams included: Mays, McCovey, Marichal, Gaylord Perry and Duke Snider (64) / Warren Spahn (65).  If you throw in Orlando "Baby Bull" Cepeda from the Veterans Committee, that makes six hall of famers on one field for one team.  Awesome.

McCovey went on to hit 521 home runs and is tied with Frank Thomas and Ted Williams.  McCovey also had a two and half season stop over in San Diego (yay!) and a brief stint with the Oakland A's.

Willie also wore number 44 in honor of Hank Aaron, who is a fellow Mobile native.

The Original Big Mac

Here are Stretch's stats from 1980:

YEAR	CLUB	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG
1980	Giants	48	113	8	23	8	0	1	16	.204