perfect sells

with the 1975 baseball season on our minds this year thanks to topps heritage, i thought it would be fun to revisit a meaningless yet meaningful game from september of that year. it involves pitcher dave sells, who i think only has this 1974 topps card

to mark his time as an active player in the big leagues, although he pitched in parts of four seasons. he also has a 1990 target dodgers card, as he was the player to be named later in the trade between the angels and dodgers that saw jim brewer head to anaheim. he wasn't anyone i was aware of growing up, as his career ended with the 1975 season, but i took note of him when i first saw his card from the 1974 set because his name, like rick waits or davey lopes, forms a complete sentence.

according to baseball reference, sells appeared in his penultimate big league appearance 49 years ago today. it was a day after his 29th birthday (he turned 78 yesterday - happy birthday!), and he was called in to relieve charlie hough at the start of the bottom of the 9th inning against the astros at the astrodome., replacing willie crawford in the batting order. the game was tied 4-4 as hough had surrendered a solo home run to cesar cedeno in the bottom of the 8th after lee lacy had scored on a wild pitch in the top of the inning to give the dodgers a lead. sells set down the side in order, and the game went into extra innings.

neither team scored in the 10th, with sells striking out dodger nemesis jose cruz en route to another perfect inning. in the 11th, the dodgers make two quick outs before lacy, batting ahead of what was now the pitcher's slot in the order, draws a walk. now, to this point, only doug rau, hough, and sells have pitched, so you would think there would be some arms in the bullpen and the dodgers would send up a pinch hitter, especially with the expanded rosters that they had in september back then. however, manager walter alston has already used a fair number of position players in the game, and with the reds running away with the division, the game didn't really matter too much. whatever the reason, sells is allowed to hit.

the next thing you know, lacy is on second after a wild pitch. the dodgers have steve garvey on deck, and there is no need for a force out with two outs, so the astros continue to pitch to sells. he is a pitcher, after all, and this is his first major league at bat. well, what do you know - sells goes and promptly bangs a hit to left, driving in lacy and the go ahead run. garvey grounds into a force out, and we go to the bottom of the 11th.

now, let me inject myself into this story for a moment and share an experience i had in little league. in the second game of my 12-year old season, i was the starting pitcher for our team and pitched the top of the first inning with no problem. in the bottom of the inning, i hit a home run to center. i was so amped on adrenaline that i couldn't get anybody out in the second inning and had to be replaced by my coach. i wasn't a professional like sells, but i would think that getting your first big league hit to drive in the goahead run in a game in which you are in line for your first win with your new team might have you pumped up a bit. 

whether it was adrenaline or not, sells gave up a home run to the first batter he faced in the 11th - cesar cedeno. after that, he retired the next five astros he faced on groundouts before he walked milt may and gave up back-to-back singles to wilbur howard and ken boswell in the bottom of the 12th resulting in a 5-4 astro victory. not the ending sells was hoping for, but still a pretty memorable game for him. i decided i would create a 2024 topps heritage baseball flashbacks card for him to mark the occasion:

in his next outing, sells did not get an at bat, so he ended his big league career 1 for 1 at the plate with an rbi to boot. the only other dodger i know of off the top of my head with a career 1.000 batting average is roy gleason. it's worth noting (at least for me) that one of sells' teammates who appeared in this game was tom paciorek, whose brother john also hit 1.000 for his career, although he was 3 for 3. baseball is a crazy game.

the marshall matters post

i got an email from gio, the proprietor of when topps had (base)balls, about a month and a half ago about one of his custom sets that was for sale. this particular set focused primarily on final tributes that should have been, as well as some single-player rookie cards that could have been. the kicker was that gio created stat backs for these cards, and as i am always looking for a good final tribute card that topps missed, i ordered a set.

there were a couple of key cards for me in the set, and as usual, gio hooked me up with a couple extras for a small amount. first, here's a 1958 topps roy campanella card that should have been

gio chose to go ahead and show campy as a los angeles dodger to fit all of the other dodger cards in the set, but we know that he sadly did not get to suit up for the club in california. here's the back:

solid!

gil hodges was the other player that i was looking to get a dupe of for my final tribute collection. here's his 1964 topps card that should have been

and the back

hodges was actually included in the 1964 topps set, but as a manager for the senators. that would have been ok if topps had done what they did for joe torre in the 1978 set and put his playing stats on the back, but instead, they went with a standard manager narrative writeup. happy to have a playing days hodges final tribute finally!

knowing that i am a dodger fan, gio also sent an extra 1961 topps style don newcombe card

that covers his final season which was spent with two ohio teams. here's the back

newk was only with the indians for a short time, appearing in 20 games in 1960. as such, the hatless photo comes in handy.

here are the other cards in the set, in threes:

the 1957 musial is just a lost card, but the 1959 lemon card would be a final tribute and the 1960 williams card a rookie card that could have been.

here's stan the man's back:

it's an uer thanks to the birth year which made me do a double take!

continuing with the next three cards

which are rookie, rookie, and final tribute. for some reason i thought that freehan had a rookie parade card in 1962 but i guess he didn't show up until the 1963 topps set.

next up are three more rookies that could have been

of the three, only raines had a multiplayer rookie card. lyle and gibson went straight to solo cards in 1969 and 1981, respectively

last up are these three

minnie minoso's 1981 card covers his two short stints with the white sox that made him a five decade player. here's the back:

a nice touch by gio to note his position as pinch hitter.

seeing the mike marshall 1982 topps card there reminded me that he was absent from topps sets after 1977. here's the back of what would have been his final tribute card:

seeing the card also reminded me that marshall was in the 1982 fleer set for real, and that i should add that card to my final tribute collection.

and so, here it is

with complete career stats on the back, just like gio's card

although fleer did not include the 10 saves that marshall earned in 1967 in their stats. saves weren't an official stat until 1969 so i assume that is why.

i will note that 11 year old gcrl may not have immediately connected the dots between this mike marshall returning to cardboard for the first time in five years back when 1982 fleer packs were being opened and the record setting, cy young award winning mike marshall who pitched for the dodgers. once i looked at the back and saw the stats it made sense, but i didn't understand why he was not in any other sets. besides, there was another dodger mike marshall who showed up in 1982 fleer and had more of my attention.

another final tribute card that i added to my binder is gil hodges' 1972 topps card

i mentioned this card when i posted about dusty baker's 2024 topps heritage card which serves as his managerial final tribute, and so i went and pulled a dupe of hodges for the collection as well. here's the back

hodges sadly passed away just before the 1972 season began, making this card his last.

gio's set included a couple of bonuses - this missing 1951 topps joe dimaggio card

(it's a blue back), a 1973 topps mike schmidt solo rookie card 

that was gio's original prototype for printing

and an official wthb@lls membership card featuring mark fidrych

here's the back:

i have another membership card that features reggie jackson on the 1978 topps design - both are great.

finally, gio included a stan musial sticker

if you aren't already, be sure to get on gio's email list to know when these sets are being offered. they are fantastic. thanks gio!

where there's a worrell, there's a way

it's been a while, but i am finally showing some cards that have come my way over the past few months. first up are some goodies from daniel of it's like having my own card shop. he posted a photo of some 1995 score platinum team set cards and offered some up to those who chose a team that was included in his stash. i spied todd worrell's leg in the photo and claimed some dodgers.  here's the worrell card

that also netted me a jim gott card

plus cards of henry rodriguez, delino deshields, dave hansen, and chris gwynn

plus the rookie subset cards of darren dreifort and garey ingram

these cards are really shiny and sparkly and were a redemption set.  thanks daniel!

next up, tom from angels, in order sent me some minor league cards from my want list. these are 1991 fleer excel cards, and i scanned a couple of triple-a cards - butch davis and carlos hernandez - plus a couple of double-a cards - braulio castillo and mike white

davis had already been in the majors for a couple of teams when his card was issued, but he only made one plate appearance as a dodger. i last saw him coaching for the twins a few years ago. hernandez was a backup catcher to mike piazza for a few years, and castillo wound up in the bigs with the phillies. as for white, he was another dodger first round pick who never did make the majors, peaking at triple-a with the mets in 1992.

and then there are cards from night owl, which i have previously referred to as hand-me-downs. it's a great thing when the preeminent presence in the blogosphere collects the same team as his doubles have to go somewhere...

one of my favorite cards he sent in these last two envelopes is this 1987 tcma 1955 brooklyn dodgers card of pee wee reese and jim gilliam

i also liked the two cards from the 1992 classic update travel blue and red set. greg sent ramon martinez

and dave hansen. i scanned the back of hansen's card

to show the marc okkonen uniform figure, which is the same as you will find online as part of the uniform database linked through baseball reference.

from 1996 upper deck, here's a die-cut mike piazza run producers insert

that i had not seen before.

kaz ishii was the darling of card companies back in 2002, and fleer provided this ticket to the majors card from their authentix release

nice to see maury wills making an appearance on the replica ticket stub embedded in the card. the dodgers did feature players on their stubs, but fleer didn't use actual tickets for this set like topps would in 2009.

here's a 2002 upper deck 40 man of dodger double dipper giovanni carrara

there aren't too many cards of carrara, and i could not track this one down for the post i linked to above. i did find his 2003 40 man card that came from his time away from the dodgers and i certainly overpaid to get it for the post.

greg and i both have a lot of clayton kershaw cards, but he was able to send a couple that were missing from my collection. first, a 2017 panini national convention vip prizm card

and then a 2022 topps royal blue parallel

i sure do hope kershaw returns in 2024.

there was some nonsense included in the way of this 2020 topps update mookie betts baseball collectible coin

that exists just to have something exclusive in blasters. i didn't buy any blasters of 2020 update (at least i don't recall finding any of these coins) so i am glad to have this one in my collection.

and last but not least, greg included one of gio's custom cards - a 1978 topps dodgers card featuring the 30 home run teammates:

as always, fun to go through envelopes sent my way. thank you!

i can get accustomed to this

if you follow "when topps had balls", then you've seen gio's cards celebrating his 1970s all-decade team. i sat up and took notice back when he announced the first baseman on the national league squad

gio's post included a nice writeup about steve garvey, and he shares my opinion of the garv's hall of fame worthiness. so, when gio emailed saying that his complete set of the nl all-decade team was available, i sent my money posthaste.

i was surprised to see a different version of garvey's card

but enjoyed it nonetheless.  here's the back:

i appreciate the fact that the backs are written with a 1980 sensibility.

here's the full squad:

with the bonus card being a pete rose "player of the decade" card

i really liked the all-star banner on the 1980 cards back when i was opening packs. they are my favorite banners (over the 1979 and 1981 cards) but i still prefer the red, white, and blue all-star shields from 1978.  one more thought on the 1980 design - seeing it without the facsimile signature, the 1980 design is even more obviously a tweak of the 1974 look. at least in my opinion.

gio also released his series 14 set for purchase, and i decided to pick it up for my collection. this was a standard set that included a variety of his themes - not quite missing in action, career capper, dedicated rookie, fantasy cards, etc.

i'll show the bonus card first, it's a diamond/miscut dedicated rookie card of willie randolph!

jerry reuss also shows up as a dedicated rookie in the 1970 design

while carlton fisk is featured on a fantasy card from 1971

also using the 1971 design is this japanese special card of sigeo nagashima

i have to admit, even with everything i read during the height of nomomania, i was not familiar with nagashima until i received the card and read gio's post.

the next two cards were a big reason why i decided to purchase the set. first up is a "missing in action" card. literally

dick allen did not have an in action card in the 1972 topps set, and he wasn't shown as a dodger on his base card anyway. this card pairs beautifully with the custom that gavin sent me a while back.

and then there is this "gimme a do-over" 1973 topps frank robinson card

of course, robinson's actual 1973 topps card is fantastic, and really just needs the dodger script across his chest reinstated and his team affiliation changed from the angels, but this one is great, too.

speaking of the angels, here's a dedicated rookie of frank tanana

who was definitely a fan favorite of mine until he was dealt to the red sox, even though the halos got freddie lynn in return. speaking of the red sox, here's a missing in action 1975 topps dick mcauliffe card

complete with the slanted oakland coliseum background!

gio created another "gimme a do-over" with this 1975 topps billy williams card

that keeps him as a cub as opposed to an airbrushed athletic as he was presented by topps.

this next one is a special request "career capper" card for tony c

who finished his career with the red sox in 1975. he managed to hit a couple of home runs in his return to boston, but we are left to wonder what if? when it comes to his career.

similar to the williams card above, gio created a "gimme a do-over" card for my one-time favorite non-dodger don baylor

he was an airbrushed angel in the original topps set and so didn't have a card recognizing his one year stint in oakland. i like this custom very much.

here's another 1977 card, although this one is a "not really missing in action" card of willie wilson

wilson played in a handful of games in 1976 and 1977 but didn't get any cardboard love from topps until 1979. gio has also created a fantastic 1978 card of wilson, but i don't think it's been available in any sets yet.

also missing from the 1978 topps set were a couple of angels - willie mays aikens

and mike cuellar

no joke - aikens is 22 or 23 at the oldest in that photo. i thought at first it was from an alumni event or something but it is from the late 70's when he was the talk of my neighborhood. i still don't understand how he failed to receive any rookie of the year consideration in 1979. the aikens card is a "missing in action" and the cuellar is a "career capper". cuellar appeared in only two games for the angels in 1977, bringing an end to his career.

apologies to bruce robinson, but this 1979 topps a's prospects card

looks a lot better with rickey henderson on it. gio has also made a dedicated rookie card for dwayne murphy and a 1979 solo card for rickey. i would have loved this card as a kid.

finally, gio created a "dedicated rookie" card for another player who appeared on a 1979 prospects card - the dodgers' own pedro guerrero

when the card arrived, i emailed gio saying that i was pretty sure cesar cedeno made his way on to the card instead of guerrero, and gio confirmed it. he noted that the image was mislabeled as guerrero and he went with it as an intended error card. there aren't too many cards showing cedeno as a dodger, so i'll take it. as an aside, i've noticed some photos mislabeled back when i was doing a lot of customs including bobby castillo identified as davey lopes. must be the mustache.

here's the original guerrero card that gio created for his blog

i wouldn't mind getting one of those in hard copy form someday.

the dodger heavy checklist, along with the two 1978 cards, made this set a no-brainer for me. gio also fulfilled my request for an extra garvey from the first set and extra cuellar and aikens cards from the second. the garvey dupe goes to the pc and the two 1978 angels go in my 1978 "master set".

thanks gio!