the 1978 topps dodgers in 1992

no members of the 1978 topps dodgers returned to the topps set in 1992, but then again, nobody dropped out, either.  tom lasorda was still the dodgers' manager, and he came away with one of the best cards in the set

a nice jog with gary carter, kevin gross, john candelaria, orel hershiser, and bob ojeda is a good way to start the day, i think.  unfortunately for lasorda and his players, 1992 was a year we would all like to forget.  the team fell from 93 wins in 1991 to 99 losses in 1992 - the worst performance by a dodger team since moving to los angeles, and the worst record in terms of winning percentage for the franchise since 1912.  lasorda had signed an extension with the dodgers in 1992 that would keep him as the team's manager through the 1993 season, but there was speculation that he would leave the team anyway.  i recall reading about rumors of bobby valentine taking over, with lasorda going somewhere else where he could be a general manager, or that lasorda would move into the dodger front office with bill russell the heir apparent to the job (a more accurate scenario although not realized for a few years and under more dire circumstances).  but no, lasorda remained at the helm, hoping to right the ship that had almost lost 100 games for the first time since 1908.

charlie hough

hough was still chucking knuckleballs for the white sox in 1992.  he went 7-12 with an era under 4, and earned his 200th big league win with a victory against the twins in august.  it's too bad that ron karkovice was the designated catcher for hough in '92 - had carlton fisk been his catcher, the battery would have consisted of a couple of 44-year olds playing catch.

johnny oates

oates, only two years older than hough, was back for his first full season as the orioles' manager in 1992.  he helped turn the team around, going from a 95-loss season to an 89-win campaign.  although the orioles finished third in the al east, seven games behind the blue jays, it was a good showing for oates, and he finished third in the al manager of the year voting.

here is the yearly tally of appearances to date:

baker 17 (1971-1987)
burke 2 (1978-1979)
cey 16 (1972-1987)
davalillo 14 (1963-1974, 1978-1979)
forster 16 (1972-1987)
garman 8 (1971-1973, 1975-1979)
garvey 17 (1971-1987)
goodson 6 (1973-1978)
grote 15 (1964-1976, 1978-1979)
hooton 15 (1972-1986)
hough 21 (1972-1992)
john 26 (1964-1989)
lacy 16 (1973-1988)
lasorda 18 (1954, 1973-1974, 1977-1981, 1983-1992)
lopes 16 (1973-1988)
martinez 9 (1971-1976, 1978-1980)
monday 18 (1967-1984)
mota 18 (1963-1980)
oates 12 (1972-1981, 1991-1992)
rau 9 (1973-1981)
rautzhan 2 (1978-1979)
rhoden 16 (1975-1990)
russell 18 (1970-1987)
smith 17 (1967-1983)
sosa 10 (1974-1984)
sutton 23 (1966-1988)
yeager 15 (1973-1987)

teams represented so far: 23 (dodgers, indians, colt .45's, pirates, white sox, astros, mets, a's, red sox, angels, expos, cardinals, braves, cubs, orioles, giants, phillies, yankees, rangers, tigers, padres, brewers, mariners)