another original post - with rankings!

this post is not about 2015 topps original buybacks, but rather 2004 topps originals - a set that included signed buybacks.

1975 topps cards are not the best to get signed as they already have the facsimile auto on them, but i decided not to pass up a 1/1 of steve garvey

yay!

the 1975 topps card may be my least favorite of the garv's dodger flagship cards, but it is still a card of my favorite player and i have a card that nobody else does.

with that said, let's see how i rank the aforementioned garvey cards.

13. 1975

chronologically, this is the first garvey card that features the all-star designation, but not the first one i saw.  plus, 1975 topps is not my favorite set overall, and so this card suffers from formed opinions which are not this particular card's fault.  however, there are cars in the background and the gray uniform coupled with the pose that obscures the red number or blue script on the front of the jersey makes the colorful border only exacerbate the dullness of the photo.  plus, the pose is pretty passive.

12. 1982

this image is not too far from the one that i like so much on another card, but it is not as good in my opinion, so here we are.  the modern helmet and dual batting gloves (not a garvey look i was used to), plus the use of pink and purple detract from the aesthetic. i do like the 1980 all-star game patch and the bright blue sky, and the batting pose is a bit more authentic.  with a better card design, this one would be higher.

11. 1976

not too different from the 1975 card.  i just find this one kind of blah with an inauthentic pose and a washed out photo.  perhaps if the cropping had been different so that his feet were shown symmetrically it would be more appealing to me.

10. 1980

there are a lot of batting cage shots for the dodgers in the 1980 set, so this card didn't really stand out to me back then.  i do like the black all-star banner, and the ribbon design.

9. 1983

i was really looking forward to this card, even though i knew it would be his last as a dodger.  i didn't mind the porthole design, and i liked the photo selection for the main photo, even though there's a lot of white and brightness.

8. 1981

more pink for the dodgers, something i know night owl has addressed in the past.  i liked the unusual photo selection, even though i've always wondered where his bat is and how many steps out of the batting box he's taken.  it can't be that many - i assumed that this was the first step - but then where is the bat?!?

7. 1979

the second garvey card i pulled from packs, this was a letdown following the 1978 card, but i liked the fact that it featured some in-game action against the giants (hello, marc hill), and i thought that the all-star ribbon was well-integrated into the design.  i have no idea, obviously, what garvey and hill are reacting to, but i figured that garvey had tried to check his swing on a slider away and didn't care for the first base umpire's call.  his inability to lay off the slider away cost him a lot of walks and who knows what else.

6. 1977

another in-game photo, but this one features garvey in his entirety. i've always been confused by the plurality of the all-star banner on the 1977 cards, but i'm glad that topps didn't crop this card any differently due to the presence of the banner.  i don't recall who it was that pointed out to me that 1977 topps was really just a 1971 topps re-do, but i can't unsee it.  aside from the position pennant, they really are similar.  anyway, i like this garvey card.

5. 1973

this one ranks this highly because of the 'passing of the torch' symbolism of wes parker reaching out to garvey at home plate.  it is otherwise an odd photo choice, and the cropping is pure 1973 topps.  still, it is one of my favorite cards of garvey's.

4. 1972

there was a time, about 38 years ago, when i thought that i would never own a 1972 topps steve garvey card.  it's a high number, and was a legend like bigfoot or the loch ness monster in my neighborhood.  as such, i probably like it more than i should.  it does show garvey in the 1971 away uniform with the piping on the shoulder, which makes it unique among these other cards.

3. 1971

the rookie card.  from the time i first saw this card, i was enthralled with his youthful appearance, the black batting glove, the mlb anniversary patch, the fact that he played 3rd base, and the card design itself.  i still like it very much.

2. 1974

this is one cool card.  it's dark and moody and horizontal and awesome.  it's also my wallet card.

1. 1978

yes, there are a couple of light standards and a scoreboard/billboard thing in the background, but the colors, the all-star shield, and everything else results in perfection on cardboard.