feeling complete, except for some cards that should have been that i didn't make

i certainly didn't think this would happen, but i completed my 1955 topps brooklyn dodger team set recently by adding ed roebuck's card to my collection.

that means that my topps flagship/update dodger team sets are complete from 1954 through 2013, including variations (except for those super short printed 2012 topps update cards of the red sox three), and through 2015 if we are just considering the base cards.  add in a 1955 bowman team set, a 1963 fleer team set, and what i believe to be 1960 and 1961 fleer team sets, and i'm feeling pretty good about that part of my collection.

speaking of 1955 topps and completion, quite a while back i completed the 1995 topps archives brooklyn dodgers set, which includes some cards that should have been, including a 1955 topps tom lasorda card

topps created backs for these cards, too

because of this card, a 1955 topps lasorda card was never on my list of 'cards that should have been' to create, but 1956 and 1957 topps lasorda cards were.  bob lemke created a 1956 card, but i've never gotten around to a '57 lasorda.  speaking of '57's, jackie robinson was on my list of cards to create, since 1957 would have been a final tribute year with jackie's last season coming in 1956.  bob lemke has a '57 jackie, but he's in giants gear which is frankly disturbing.  still, i haven't made the time to finish that card that should have been, either.  other cards on my list were also final tributes that i haven't gotten around to, such as a 1980 topps willie davis card, and a 1995 topps steve sax card. some of the cards on that list, however, have been created by others.

for instance, here's a 1958 topps roy campanella

created by bob lemke

a 1959 topps pee wee reese

that would fit right in with the '59 set. unfortunately, i've misplaced the source for this card. if you know who created it, please let me know and i'll update the post.

a 1965 topps duke snider

created by cards that never were.  only slightly less disturbing than seeing jackie in giants gear.  and to think that the duke actually suited up for the nocals.

it's not just final tributes that were on my list - there are some cards just plain missing from history, like this 1977 topps reggie jackson

created by bob lemke, although i believe that there is a test/proof of this as an actual topps card out there (in keith olbermann's collection?).

still, most of the cards i wanted to create were final tributes, like this 1978 topps brooks robinson

created by uncle doc's card closet - when topps had (base)balls also created a final tribute for brooks, who was given the al kaline treatment and just had a season highlight card in what should have been his final tribute set.

in keeping with the oriole theme here at the bottom of the post, here are some cards that i made for ryan at o no another orioles blog a while back.  they are all of o's pitcher jamie walker.  i made a 2007 topps

a 2008 topps

and a 2009 topps

for ryan, who, like me, lamented the lack of cards given to non-closer relievers in sets these days.

as for all of the other cards i've created, i think there are some good ones in there, and certainly there are a lot of talented folks out there making their own cards that should have been, never were, or just need to be.  one of the best is travis from punk rock paint/the baseball card blog.  i still think that topps should pick up his 'pugilists & other pugnacious princes of play' idea and give us a real copy of this chan ho park card

made with a 2009 topps allen & ginter-ish feel.  come on, a set with that card, juan marichal wielding a bat, alex rodriguez getting punched by jason varitek, and aj pierzynski getting clocked by michael barrett among others? it's a no-brainer set that really ought to be made.  i'd collect the whole thing.

filling in the gilliams

this is jim gilliam's 1964 topps card

it's also his last topps card (as a player), and for good reason.  gilliam joined the dodger coaching staff following the 1964 season.  however, the team, and particularly the infielders (john kennedy and dick traczewski) that were supposed to replace gilliam faltered, and buzzie bavasi reactivated junior from the coaching squad.

gilliam played for two more years, helping the dodgers reach the world series in both of those seasons.  not that topps noticed.  so, here is a 1965 topps jim gilliam card that should have been

i used the photo from his 1962 topps card, which is a bit of a throwback, but topps has done that same sort of thing before.  the 1966 topps card that should have been

is very similar to one created by cards that never were.

i didn't do a back, but here is what would have been gilliam's final tribute - a 1967 topps card that should have been

it's not the best photo, but i liked the backdrop of dodger stadium.  it would have been nice to see dodger stadium in the background of some of those cards from the 1960's. topps did get the los angeles coliseum (the dodgers' home prior to moving to chavez ravine) on some 1959 cards, so why weren't they able to do the same for dodger stadium?

gilliam returned to coaching after the 1966 world series, and he appears on the manager/coaches cards in the 1973 and 1974 topps sets, but he should have had more cards as a player than he did.

a dodger black armband for a teammate's wife and some cards that should have been

ken mcmullen, a dodger double dipper and third baseman, lost his 30-year old wife bobbie to breast cancer in april of 1974, just five months after she had given birth to their third child.  he laid his wife to rest on april 8 while most of his teammates (i believe don sutton attended the funeral) were in atlanta to take on the braves.  that night, the dodgers wore a black armband on their left sleeves in honor of mcmullen's wife.  that also happened to be the night that hank aaron hit career home run number 715 to break babe ruth's career home run record.  here's the 1994 topps card that celebrates the 20th anniversary of hammerin' hank's historic home run.

this card represents the mcmullen memorial in my collection because the black armband is visible on al downing's left arm in the background photo.  joe ferguson, the catcher, is wearing the armband, too, but it is obscured by the home plate umpire, satch davidson.

it's too bad that topps didn't find a way to incorporate photos from the game into the 1975 set.  while i appreciate the 1994 card, i decided to try my hand at making some cards that should have been.

here's the card that topps did include in the set - at number 1, in fact.

now here's my take on it

this card gives us the black armbands on both ferguson and dodger shortstop bill russell.  here's another version using a color photo

now we see the armband on downing again, along with one of the guys who chased aaron around the bases.

speaking of downing, even though he allowed the home run (which tied the game), there's no shame in being linked to that kind of history. so, why not use a photo from that night on his card in the set?

and look - there's steve garvey lurking in the background!

i like this card better than his actual card from the set

even though it does feature dodger stadium in the background.

downing walked the next two batters after allowing the home run to aaron, and was removed from the game by manager walt alston.  here's a card showing downing on his way back to the dugout with alston having just handed the ball over to mike marshall

here's the full mound scene, with marshall and garvey, and davidson, i believe.

mcmullen returned to the dodgers and resumed his pinch-hitter role later that week, which must have been difficult even though it seems to be what she would have wanted based on this article from the associated press.  as for the dodgers, they have not worn black armbands since this particular memorial.  fortunately, lots of evidence of the memorial worn for ken mcmullen's wife exists, just not much on cardboard.

[edit - topps included this fantastic card

in 2023 topps heritage, and with the armband being way more visible on davey lopes' sleeve than what the 1994 topps card affords, i've put the new card in my memorials binder]

the 2011, 2012, and 2013 topps cards that should have been for a 1978 topps dodger

with the last of the manager cards featured in topps flagship sets coming in 2010 (even those were just on the backs of the team cards), i am forced to make cards that should have been to represent the member of the 1978 topps dodgers that was still managing a team in 2011 and beyond.  here are the dusty baker cards that should have been from 2011 topps

2012 topps

and 2013 topps

the 2011 reds fell from 1st to 3rd in the nl central with a 79-83 record, but baker's team returned to the top of the division in 2012, going 97-65 in the process.  they faced the eventual world champion giants in the nlds and blew a 2 games to none lead in the five game series.  still, baker returned to manage the team in 2013, and the reds won 90 games.  even though that put them in 3rd place in the central division, it was enough to win the newly created second wild card spot.  in their one game playoff, the reds faced the second place pirates and lost, 6-2.

baker was fired by the team a few days later.  he's said that he would be interested in managing again, but did not get the call for the 2014 season.  maybe he'll be back in 2015 or even sometime after that.  if a team does take a chance on him, i hope topps is making manager cards for their flagship sets.  i would like to see more cards of members of the 1978 topps dodgers.  if not, then this is the end of the evolutionary trail...

the rest of the cards that should have been from the garvey binders

i am almost done with showing pages from my steve garvey oddball binder.  then it will be time to show the pages from the 'regular' collection binders.  get excited.  here are the rest of the cards that should have been that i've created or received or otherwise had to print myself over the last few years.

punkrockpaint is responsible for the 1988 topps card, while the writer's journey sent me the digital version of the gypsy queen card.  the last three are topps bunt 'cards' that i printed out.

cards that should have been from the garvey binders

here are a couple more pages from my steve garvey oddball binder.  these two pages features cards that should have been of my favorite player. most i have created, but there are a couple that i have obtained from others - bob lemke and mrmopar.

the last 1969 topps card is the one that bob lemke made, while i lifted the first 1970 topps card from mrmopar.  i am partial to my 1970 topps card that should have been, as well as the 1978 topps record breaker.

andy messersmith was a dodger double dipper

i mentioned earlier today that andy messersmith would get a dodger double dipper post of his very own.  i wasn't joking.

[this is the eighty-ninth installment in the double dippers posts.  here are the previous posts - brett butler, omar daal, eric young, nick willhite, chris gwynn, mickey hatcher, dave anderson, don zimmer, rafael landestoy, dave hansen, jose vizcaino, hideo nomo, greg maddux, mike maddux, jon garland, chan ho park, vicente romo, gene mauch, denny lewallyn, von joshua, joe moeller, dioner navarro, rudy seanez, bart shirley, randy wolf, ismael valdes, bobby castillo, mike devereaux, pete richert, jay johnstone, jesse orosco, lee lacy, giovanni carrara, jeff weaver, ted sizemore,  orel hershiser, tom goodwin, joe ferguson, eddie murray, matt luke, ken mcmullen, tim wallach, jerry grote, don sutton, ralph branca, todd hundley, elmer dessens, guillermo mota, joe beckwith, jamie hoffmann, babe herman, joe medwick, juan castro, ron perranoski, clyde king, paul waner, hughie jennings, ron negray, broadway aleck smith, george smith, johnny cooney, jim fairey, frenchy bordagaray, doc casey, waite hoyt, luis olmo, clyde sukeforth, willie keeler,  harry howell, germany smith, johnny allen, marv rackley, bobo newsom, maury wills, dazzy vance, ray hayworth, zack taylor, john cronin, art herring, brian falkenborg, bill reidy, john anderson, vito tamulis, wally hood, jim bruske, bill dahlen, patsy donovan, jamey wright, and watty clark.]

messersmith first joined the dodgers in 1973 after he was traded by the angels in the frank robinson deal.  i am sure the dodgers coveted his 2.78 era over the five seasons he pitched for the angels, and they weren't disappointed, as he had a 2.67 era in his first four years with the club, which included his fantastic 1974 season in which he went 20-6 and had an era of 2.59.  messersmith started the nl all-star game in 1974, as well as game 2 of the nlcs against the pirates which he won.  he also started games 1 and 4 of the world series, but took the loss in each.  

after a season like that, messersmith was looking for a raise, but when he tried to negotiate a contract for the 1975 season, things didn't go well.  here's his hostess card from 1975, by the way,

complete with the rare sighting of batting gloves on a pitcher's throwing hand.  he decided to pitch without a contract while his grievance against the reserve clause was being resolved.  he wound up winning 19 games in 1975 while posting an era of 2.29 and earning his second straight gold glove.  the baseball arbitrator ruled in his favor (the owners fired the arbitrator the following day), and messersmith signed a free agent deal with the braves.

he moved on to the yankees after the 1977 season, as his 1978 o-pee-chee card attests

but was re-signed by the dodgers when he hit the market again after the 1978 season.  it even says so on his 1979 o-pee-chee card

i really wish there had been a traded set in the late 1970's and 1980 so that there could have been more cards of players like messersmith.  here's a 1979 topps card that should have been that i made

to help ease my pain.

the second time around was not as successful for messersmith as he was 2-4 in 11 starts with a 4.91 era when the dodgers released him in early june.  he retired soon after, with a 2.86 career era which puts him between jim palmer and tom seaver, but well within the top 10 for starting pitchers after 1920.

here's another card i made for messersmith - it's his 1980 topps card that should have been

which serves as a final tribute with his entire career stats on the back.

i don't have any other double dippers lined up, so this may be the end of the line for these posts, at least until the dodgers reacquire matt kemp a few years from now for a torii hunter-esque swan song.  still, don't be surprised if i uncover some other heretofore unknown to me franchise double dipper in the 1990 target dodgers set...

one step closer (and one step back) to finishing off the garvey oddball binder

like many of you, i did some card shopping on black friday. i bought some cards on ebay and from check out my cards, and put in a sportlots order over the ensuing weekend.  one of the cards i bought from check out my cards was quickly inserted into the steve garvey oddball binder once it was delivered.  that would be this 1982 on deck disc

it looks a lot like the blank back msa discs from 1981 (which are actually the same thing as the peter pan/sunbeam discs i recently discovered), except these ones are not blank on the backs

there are still a number of garvey discs from the late 1970's that i don't own, and that's ok, although i currently have room for three more in my binder since this one is in a four-pocket page all by itself.  i'll probably do something about that eventually.

here's another sheet from the binder - it features a 1983 colorano silk cachet and a 1996 dodgers ticket

the cachet celebrates garvey tying billy williams for the national league consecutive games played record.  there's another one (that i could own for $1.98 right now on the bay if i really wanted it) that celebrates the next night's game (which i attended) when he broke williams' record.

the ticket stub comes from the 8/23/96 game against the mets.  i think these were the seats that my company had that i was able to use from time to time for free, usually on short notice.  there were four tickets, and sometimes only two or three of us would go to the game.  in this case, i decided to save the unused ticket that featured the first foursome to reach the 30 home run plateau in the same season.  the dodgers won the game 8-5, by the way.

the oddball binder is also home to the 1979 post raisin bran steve garvey's baseball tips set that i showed previously

it also contains the 1984 star set that reviews the garv's career through the 1983 season.  i've shown this set before, too, so it is featured here with no commentary.

what's left to show are non-certified autographs and cards that should have been.  here are a couple of oddball autographed items from a page in the binder

on the left is a 1983 padres postcard that i purchased in a lot of garvey stuff probably about 10 years ago, and on the first is a signed dodger sticker that is most likely from the late 1970's.  i got one as a kid that was signed by gerry hannahs, but i don't know where it is now.  the dodgers would have players sign these stickers at autograph stations before certain games.  these days, they have postcard type items printed up for the signers.

as for cards that should have been, here's one that bob lemke made - a 1955 topps football style card that features garvey in a michigan state spartan uniform.

that sits in an 8-pocket page all by itself.  we should get to the main garvey collection binders soon, unless i keep buying more oddballs to add (and post about) to the oddball binder.