1992 toronto blue jays

this post covers the 1992 toronto blue jays and cards numbered 294 to 296 in the set. here are the fronts:

and backs:

here, very near the end of the set, we get a new team, a new stadium on the back, and a new name on the checklist - all thanks to the first canadian team to win the world series!

what team is this?: the 1992 world champion toronto blue jays

why this team?: as noted, the '92 blue jays were the first canadian team to win the world series, as they defeated the braves in six games after taking out the oakland a's in the alcs.  they were 96-66 on the regular season, and won the al east by 4 games over the brewers.

which players are featured?: 40-year old dave winfield, 37-year old jack morris, and 32-year old joe carter.

why these players?:  winfield served as the team's dh while finishing second on the team in batting average, home runs and rbi, morris led the club with 21 wins, and carter was the one who finished ahead of winfield in homers and runs batted in.  let's break it down.

dave winfield hit 26 homers, drove in 108 runs, and had a .290 batting average as the blue jays' designated hitter in 1992 - the first year that he was primarily used as a dh.  he had not appeared in the postseason since 1981 when he struggled in the world series and was given the "mr. may" moniker by yankee owner george steinbrenner.  this time, winfield hit a pair of home runs in the alcs against the a's, and then exorcised any world series demons with the game and series winning double in the 11th inning of game 6 off of the braves' charlie leibrandt, the subject of his memorable moments card.

jack morris had been part of the 1991 twins team that beat the blue jays in the alcs, but he joined the blue jays as a free agent for the 1992 season and promptly led the league in wins.  unfortunately, the 1991 world series mvp who pitched so brilliantly in game 7 of that series against the braves, did not pitch well in the 1992 postseason.  he was 0-1 in the alcs against the a's, although the team was 1-1 in his starts, and the loss he suffered was a complete game effort in game 1.  against the braves in the world series, morris again made two starts but this time lost them both - game 1 to tom glavine and game 5 to john smoltz in a rematch of the final game of the 1991 world series.

joe carter was in his second season with the blue jays in 1992.  he hit 34 home runs and drove in 119 runs that year finishing second in the league in the rbi category.  he hit a home run in game 6 of the alcs against the a's to give the blue jays a lead they would not surrender en route to their first pennant, and then he hit two more homers in the world series.  the second of carter's world series home runs came in game 3 and again put the blue jays on the board in a game that they would go on to win.

the stadium on the back is...?: skydome, which opened in 1989, and is still the home of the blue jays, although now it is known as rogers centre.

did upper deck get it right?: first of all, the blue jays' logo upper deck used on each of these cards is not correct for the 1992 team.  the blue jay with the maple leaf behind it came into play in 1997 - back in '92, the team was still using the original logo with a smaller maple leaf beside the blue jay.

that leads into the photo selection.  winfield only spent one season in toronto, so we know his photo comes from 1992.  morris was there for two seasons, and the photo used could be from '92 or 1993.  carter's photo, however, is obviously from much later in his career. carter remained with the blue jays through the 1997 season, which (as mentioned above) was the first year that they used the logo seen on carter's sleeve, so we know the photo is from '97, not '92.

as for the players, i have kept in mind that some of the key players on this team, such as roberto alomar and jon olerud, were still active in 2004 and so were not considered for this set.  winfield and morris had previously appeared in the set, but both make sense for this team, too.  joe carter is also a no-brainer.  other players who might have made sense include devon white, jimmy key, and juan guzman, but i have no complaints.

is this team timeless?:  yes, although the 1993 team may be more memorable because of joe carter's walk-off series winner against the phillies.  still, this was the first team from outside the united states to win the world series and so i consider it to be a timeless one.

1991 minnesota twins

this post covers the 1991 minnesota twins and cards number 291 to 293 in the set. here are the fronts:

and backs:

upper deck skipped over 1989 and 1990 (sorry a's, giants, and reds) to get to 1991 and the unlikely world champion twins.

what team is this:  the 1991 world champion minnesota twins who beat the national league champion atlanta braves in 7 games, including two of the best world series games ever played - games 6 and 7.

why this team?: the twins went from worst to first in 1991 - their 95-67 record was a 21-win improvement over the previous year.  they won their second title in 5 years under manager tom kelly.

which players are featured?: just three - jack morris, kent hrbek, and kirby puckett

why these players?: aside from the fact that they have each appeared in the set previously, these three twins are good representatives for the 1991 team.  let's break it down.

jack morris was a free agent pick-up in the offseason, and the saint paul native came through for his hometown team.  he was 18-12 during the regular season and finished fourth in the cy young award voting.  in the postseason, morris was 2-0 in the alcs against the toronto blue jays, and 2-0 in the world series as well.  he won the world series mvp award in large part thanks to his 10-inning shutout of the braves in the winner take all game 7.

kent hrbek hit .284 with 20 homers and 89 rbi during the regular season.  the bloomington, minnesota native didn't play all that well in the postseason, but he did double and homer in the first game of the world series, as well as kind of/sort of pull ron gant off of first base on a pick off attempt in game 2 to help the twins win both of those contests.

kirby puckett was the mvp of the 1991 alcs thanks to his 2 homers, 5 rbi, and .429 batting average.  he had hit 15 homers with 89 rbi and a .319 average during the regular season and finished 7th in the league mvp voting.  when the world series rolled around, puckett put the team on his back for their must-win game 6, and wound up making a terrific catch early in the game to keep the braves off the scoreboard, and later hit an 11th inning walk-off home run to force game 7 the following night.  that home run is the subject of the memorable moment card puckett receives in this subset.

the stadium on the back is...?:  the no longer in existence hubert h. humphrey metrodome.  the new minnesota vikings stadium is currently being constructed in its place.

did upper deck get it right?: morris and puckett are no-brainers for this team, and hrbek is not a bad choice. other players that would have made sense include 1991 al rookie of the year chuck knoublach, 20-game winner scott erickson, and closer rick aguilera.  heck, even game 7 hero gene larkin who drove in the series winning run would have been welcome.

as for the photos, morris is obviously shown in 1991 as he did not pitch for the twins in any other season.  hrbek's picture looks about right as well, but puckett's may not be from 1991.  i don't think the twins wore their navy tops in '91, but i am not certain. either way, i wish upper deck had used the photo of puckett during his game 6 home run trot - the same photo that served as the model for his statue at target field.

is this team timeless?: yes. even though the twins won their first title in 1987, this team from just four years later is timeless.  thanks in large part to one-year twin jack morris and puckett's heroics in game 6, this team remains at the forefront of twins fans' minds.

1988 los angeles dodgers

this post covers the 1988 world champion los angeles dodgers and cards numbered 275 to 281 in the set. here are the fronts:

and backs:

1988 was the year that was so improbable for the dodgers, that the impossible happened.  i love vin scully.

what team is this?: the 1988 world champion los angeles dodgers

why this team?: did i mention that they were the world champs? they went from 73-89 and 17 games out of first in the nl west in 1987 to 94-68 and 7 games ahead of second place cincinnati in 1988.  this dodger team was an underdog to the 100-win mets in the nlcs and the 104-win oakland a's in the fall classic but won both series.  the team featured the league's mvp, cy young award winner, and manager of the year, although only one of those guys are included in the set.

which players are featured?:  there are no new players to the set checklist here.  representing the 1988 dodgers, upper deck gives us alejandro pena, jesse orosco, john shelby, kirk gibson, mickey hatcher, mike scioscia, and steve sax.

why these players?:  aside from the ease of obtaining autographed cards to meet the demands of a fully signed parallel set(s) that comes with not adding new players to the checklist, each of these folks contributed to the dodgers' success in 1988.  let's break it down.

alejandro pena returned to the dodger bullpen full time in 1988.  he pitched in 60 games and was 6-7 with 12 saves and a 1.91 era.  he saved game 2 of the nlcs, lost game 3 of the series, but earned the win in the extra inning affair that was game 4.  he next pitched in game 1 of the world series and wound up as the winning pitcher thanks to kirk gibson's home run, just as he had in game 4 of the nlcs.

jesse orosco joined the dodgers as part of the three-team trade between the a's, mets, and dodgers prior to the 1988 season.  he teamed with pena and howell (also acquired in that trade) to form a closer tandem and earned 9 saves in his 55 appearances.  in the playoffs, orosco did not retire a batter (he faced 4) in his first two nlcs appearances.  in his next two against his former team, he didn't allow any runs in 2.1 innings pitched.  still, orosco did not pitch in the world series, and he left to join the indians as a free agent.

john shelby had a big season for the dodgers in 1987 after being acquired in a trade with the orioles.  his 1988 season was very similar, but with less power.  still, he played in 140 regular season games, and did not miss even an inning of the dodgers' postseason in '88.  he hit just .167 in the nlcs and .222 in the world series, but did provide the club with a very meaningful postseason walk.  in the 9th inning of the aforementioned game 4, the dodgers were down 4-2 with shelby leading off the inning.  he walked against dwight gooden and mike scioscia followed with his game-tying home run.  everybody remembers mike davis and his big walk, but shelby's was also hugely important to the dodgers' postseason success.

speaking of davis' walk, let's discuss kirk gibson next. gibby was the national league mvp in 1988, hitting .290 with 25 homers and 76 rbi, but instilling a focus in his teammates that was lacking in previous teams.  i have no problem with gibson winning the award over the statistically superior darryl strawberry, even though gibson won partly on 'intangibles'.  the dodgers would have been nowhere without him.  in the postseason, he had only 5 hits, but 3 were home runs.  he hit 2 of them in the nlcs, including the game 4 winner, a 12th-inning shot off of roger mcdowell, and a 3-run shot off of sid fernandez in game 5 that gave the dodgers a 6-0 lead that the mets could not overcome.  gibson had aggravated his already injured legs making a nice catch in game 3, but he still started every game of the nlcs.  unfortunately, he was unable to start game 1 of the world series, but famously came off of the bench in the 9th inning to hit the game winning home run off of dennis eckersley following a two-out walk issued to mike davis.  we all recall the hobbling and the fist pumping and the jumping up and down that ensued i am sure.  it was gibson's only appearance of the series, but the dodgers found a way to win 3 more games without him.

mickey hatcher returned to the dodgers as a free agent early in the 1987 season.  in doing so, he missed out on the twins' world series triumph that year, so i certainly was happy for him in 1988.  during the regular season, hatcher was used as a pinch-hitter and a sometimes first baseman/outfielder.  during the postseason, however, he was anointed by tommy lasorda to be the team's first baseman in place of franklin stubbs with mike marshall playing in the outfield instead of mike davis who had struggled all season.  then, when kirk gibson went down, hatcher moved to left field with stubbs taking over at first.  hatcher hit safely in every postseason game but one (in the nlcs), and his 2 home runs and 5 rbi in the world series led both teams (jose canseco also drove in 5).  speaking of hatcher's home runs - a 2-run shot in the bottom of the first inning in game 1 and a 2-run shot in the top of the first in game 5 - hatcher sprinted around the bases, almost catching up to steve sax following his game 1 blast.  if not for orel hershiser's pitching heroics in the series, hatcher may well have been the series mvp.

mike scioscia appeared in 130 regular season games (123 as a catcher) in 1988 and hit only 3 home runs.  that's why his home run in game 4 of the nlcs was so unexpected.  he did have a home run off of gooden earlier in his career, but still.  those two runs that scored on the homer were the only two rbi scioscia had in the nlcs, although he hit .364 in the series.  he only drove in one run in the world series, but it was a big one, too.  his 6th inning single in game 1 of the fall classic cut the a's lead to one run, putting the score at 4-3 and setting up gibson's two-run homer as the game winner.

steve sax began the 1988 season with a bang - he led off the bottom of the first in the season opener with a home run off of the giants' dave dravecky.  unfortunately, the dodgers didn't score any more runs that day.  1988 turned out to be sax's last season with the dodgers, and he hit .277 with 42 steals in 160 games in his regular season swan song.  in the '88 postseason, saxy hit .267 with 7 runs scored and 5 steals in the nlcs, then hit .300 in the world series.

the stadium on the back is...?:  dodger stadium, home of the dodgers since 1962 and site of gibby's game winning home run.

did upper deck get it right?: upper deck included both the mets and dodgers in the set, but surely the a's should also have been included.  as for the players upper deck chose, i think that they did ok.  the obvious misses are orel hershiser (the cy young award winner and nlcs and world series mvp) and tommy lasorda (the nl manager of the year), but one could make a case for tim belcher or jay howell, too.  on the flip side, upper deck could have included don sutton, who was already on the checklist, because he pitched for the club until his release in august.  kudos to upper deck for not including sutton - that would have been a pretty egregious checklist grab.

as for the photos, pena's is a head shot and certainly could be from 1988.  orosco's on the other hand looks more like the 2002 version of the dodger reliever (yes, he was a double dipper).  it's hard to tell about shelby, hatcher, and scioscia - they certainly look right based on the away grays that they are each wearing- and the dodgers didn't wear any sleeve patches during the 1988 regular season to help me know for sure (they did wear a vero beach 40th anniversary patch during spring training, and then the postseason patches on the right sleeve during the postseason).  we know that the gibby photo comes from game 1 of the world series, but i think that saxy's photo is from earlier in his career since it looks like there is a patch on his left sleeve.

is this team timeless?:  no doubt about it.

1987 minnesota twins

this post covers the 1987 minnesota twins and cards numbered 272 to 274 in the set. here are the fronts:

and backs:

this is the smallest team subset so far, but features two new players to the set - kent hrbek and kirby puckett.  that blyleven card is in the blog header - a nod to my adopted hometown(s).

what team is this: the 1987 world champion minnesota twins.

why this team?:  the twins went from worst to first under rookie manager tom kelly to win the world series over the saint louis cardinals 4 games to 3.  it was the first title for the twins and the first for the franchise since walter johnson led the senators to the crown in 1924.

which players are featured: bert blyleven, kent hrbek, and kirby puckett.

why these players?:  well, let's break it down

bert blyleven was three years into his second stint with the twins when he went 15-12 with 8 complete games and a shutout.  of course, he also led the league for the second straight year in home runs allowed.  the 36-year old hall of famer to be was also the only guy on the team who had been on the twins previous division winner, way back in 1971!  in between stints as a twin, blyleven had earned a world series ring with the pittsburgh pirates for whom he appeared games 2 and 5 of the fall classic.  in 1987, he was the winning pitcher in both game 2 and game 5 of the alcs against the tigers, and he also earned the victory in game 2 of the world series.  he took the loss in game 5 of the fall classic despite giving up only 2 earned runs in 6 innings.

kent hrbek was the hometown boy straight outta bloomington when he took over the first base duties in 1981.  by 1987, he was firmly entrenched in the lineup, and was one of three twinkies (tom brunansky and gary gaetti were the others) to hit over 30 home runs that year.  he hit only .150 in the alcs against detroit, and only .208 against the cardinals in the world series, but he did deliver a grand slam at the metrodome in game 6 to pad the twins' lead and force the decisive game 7.  that granny is the subject of the memorable moment portion of hrbek's card.

kirby puckett was in his prime in 1987.  he hit .332 during the regular season while leading the american league in hits with 207.  it was the second of four straight seasons in which he would surpass the 200 hit mark and hit .328 or higher.  he also fell just two home runs short of 30, which would have given the twins the first foursome to reach that mark since the 1977 dodgers did it with dusty baker, ron cey, steve garvey, and reggie smith.  in the postseason, puckett hit .208 with a home run and 3 rbi against the tigers, but then in the world series he hit .357.  he did most of his damage in the last two games with a 4 for 4 game 6 in which he scored 4 times and then with a game tying double in game 7 to turn the tide in favor of the twins.

the stadium on the back is...?: the hubert h humphrey metrodome, which was deflated (on purpose this time) a couple of weeks ago and is in the process of being demolished.  not sure when this photo was taken (maybe the 2002 alcs as the huge banners/seat covers are not being used so there were a lot of tickets sold for this game), but at least it's the right stadium for this team.

did upper deck get it right?: world series mvp frank viola, gary gaetti, and tom brunansky (and why not manager tom kelly?) would have been good choices for this team, in addition to bert, herbie, and puck.  kudos, by the way, to upper deck for not including steve carlton in this team subset (yes, he pitched for the twins in 1987) even though he was already included on the checklist with various phillie and cardinal teams.

the photos are all wrong, however, as the twins switched to their pinstriped uniforms in 1987, complete with a 'm' logo on their hats and helmets.  no more baby blues or 'tc' logo for a while.

is this team timeless?:  yes.  here in minny, they never forget their first.

1986 new york mets

this post covers the 1986 new york mets and cards numbered 255 to 264 in the set. here are the fronts:

and backs:

it's all downhill from here - these 10 players represent the largest remaining team subset.  and, with 9 new players (plus ray knight), we get a boost to the checklist.

what team is this?:  the 1986 world champion new york mets

why this team?:  the 1986 mets won 108 games en route to the nl east title, beat the astros in an epic 6-game nlcs, and then defeated the boston red sox in dramatic fashion to win their second world championship as a franchise.

which players are featured?:  darryl strawberry, dwight gooden, gary carter, jesse orosco, keith hernandez, lenny dykstra, mookie wilson, ray knight, wally backman, and sid fernandez.

why these players?:  this is a good representation of the 1986 team.  pretty much all of the regulars (no rafael santana, though) plus three of the main pitchers on the staff.  still, let's break it down.

darryl strawberry was just 24 in 1986, yet it was his fourth full season in the majors.  he went 20/20 for the third straight year, with 27 homers and 28 steals.  on the down side, his batting average was just .259 and he struck out a career high 141 times.  he hit .227 with 2 homers in the nlcs against the astros (one off of nolan ryan), and .208 with a solo shot and 3 steals against boston in the world series.

dwight gooden had strawberry beat - he was just 21 in 1986, his third season in the majors.  after posting an insane 1.53 era and a 24-4 record in 1985, gooden came back to earth a bit with a 2.84 era and 17-6 record in 1986.  he made 4 postseason starts, two in each series, but was 0-3 overall.  he lost game 1 of the nlcs 1-0 against mike scott (who was named series mvp despite being on the losing end), and then pitched 10 innings in game 5, allowing just one run. the mets eventually won that game in the 12th inning.  in the world series, however, gooden didn't pitch as well.  he was the losing pitcher in both game 2 and game 5, allowing a total of 8 earned runs in 9 innings of work.

gary carter had joined the mets in 1985, and in 1986 he finished third in the league mvp voting.  he drove in over 100 runs for the third year in a row and the last time in his career.  the 1986 postseason was the first time carter had returned since the 1981 nlcs in which his expos lost to the dodgers.  he hit .207 against the astros in the nlcs, and then had 2 homers (both in game 4) and 9 rbi against the red sox in the fall classic.  his biggest hit may have been his two-out single in the bottom of the 10th in game 6 to start the mets' unbelievable comeback.

jesse orosco is the all-time leader in games pitched.  he was also the oldest player in the majors for a few years.  and, he was a dodger double dipper.  despite all that, jesse orosco is probably best remembered as the reliever who threw his glove to the sky at the completion of game 7 of the 1986 world series.  during the regular season, orosco was the southpaw part of a closer platoon with roger mcdowell.  he saved 21 games to mcdowell's 22, and had 2 more in the world series, including the game 7 clincher.  orosco also won 3 games in the nlcs, thanks to all the extra innings and late inning met heroics.

keith hernandez finished fourth in the league mvp voting, behind mike schmidt, glenn davis, and teammate gary carter.  he won his 9th straight gold glove (his streak started after steve garvey had won four straight), and also hit .310 with a league-leading 94 walks.  he hit .269 and .231 in the nlcs and world series, respectively, but that's ok - he's keith hernandez.

lenny dykstra was a 23-year old spark plug for the 1986 mets.  he hit .295 with 31 steals during the regular season, and in the nlcs the leadoff hitter hit .304 with 3 extra base hits and 3 rbi, including what turned out to be the series winning rbi in game 6.  he also hit .296 with 2 home runs in the world series.

mookie wilson made the move from center to left field in 1986 to accommodate dykstra.  he is best remembered for hitting (as vin scully said) 'a little roller up along first' that got 'through buckner' and allowed ray knight to score the winning run in game 6 of the world series.  he hit just .115 in the nlcs and .269 in the world series otherwise.

ray knight, as mentioned above, scored the winning run in that wild 10th inning of game 6.  he was also the mvp of the world series, hitting .391 with a home run and 5 rbi.  1986 was his third (and final) season with the mets, but the only season in which he was their full-time third baseman.

wally backman, the mets' second baseman, hit .320 in 124 games during the regular season.  in the postseason, he hit .238 in the nlcs and .333 in the world series.  despite the low average in the nlcs, backman contributed some key plays.  his bunt single in the 9th inning of game 3 sparked the game winning rally, although it was not so much of a rally as it was a two-run walk-off homer by dykstra, and backman also scored the winning runs in games 5 and 6.

sid fernandez won a career high 16 games in 1986.  nicknamed 'el sid' which is spanish for 'the sid' (thank you for the inspiration, chris farley), fernandez lost his only nlcs start (game 4) and then was moved to the bullpen for the world series.  after allowing a run and 3 hits in a third of an inning in game 2, fernandez was lights out.  he pitched 4 innings of shutout ball while striking out 5 in an appearance in game 5, and then turned in a key 2 and a third innings of hitless relief in game 7.

the stadium on the back is...?:  shea stadium.  in the 1969 mets post, i just noted that the photo wasn't from 1969 due to the presence of the diet coke sign.  let's try to figure out just when that photo was taken.  using the scoreboard, we know that the mets are hosting the astros.  it's 3:05 in the afternoon, and the game is in the top of the 6th.  it looks like the mets have only 1 hit and have yet to score, and the count is 1-0 on ed taubensee with 1 out.  ok baseball reference, do your thing!  and...my money is on april 11, 1993.

did upper deck get it right?: it's hard to argue with the player selection - sorry rafael santana.  certainly, bob ojeda and ron darling were also strong starters on the team (ojeda led the staff in wins and era), and roger mcdowell led the team in saves. any of those three would have also made sense.  the biggest headscratcher in terms of personnel featured however is davey johnson.  johnson was the manager of the team, and was included in the set with one of the orioles teams.  i am not sure why upper deck didn't add him to this team subset as well.

as for the photos, most of them match with the uniforms the mets were wearing in 1986.  in fact, backman's card shows what i believe to be a photo from the world series.  same for orosco.  there are two cards, however, whose images don't work with 1986.  keith hernandez's image is from no earlier than 1988 (that's when the team introduced the away grays with 'new york' on them, according to baseball reference), and mookie wilson's photo comes from 1980, 1981, or 1982 based on the collar and the lack of striping on the sleeves.

i would have liked the 1986 astros to have been included in the set, but you can't disagree with the angels, red sox, and mets.  still, with nolan ryan and personal favorite davey lopes already in the checklist, upper deck could have made it happen.

is this team timeless?:  no doubt about it - the '86 mets are a timeless bunch.

1984 detroit tigers

this post covers the 1984 detroit tigers and cards numbered 229 to 235 in the set. here are the fronts:

and backs:

it's the third appearance for the detroit tiger franchise, but these are all new faces.  well, in a tigers' uniform, anyway. 

what team is this?:  the 1984 world champion detroit tigers

why this team?:  the 1984 tigers began the season by going 35-5 in their first 40 games.  they wound up winning 104 games and led the american league east from start to finish.  the team also featured the league's mvp and cy young award winner, although he is not included in the set.  more on that later.

which players are featured?:  we have the ace, three-fourths of the infield, two-thirds of the outfield, and the manager.  that would be jack morris, alan trammell, howard johnson, lou whitaker, chet lemon, kirk gibson, and sparky anderson.

why these players?:  let's break it down.

alan trammell had a big year in 1984.  he matched his career highs to that point in doubles, triples, and home runs, and set a new personal best in rbi.  he hit .314 over 139 games and finished 9th in the al mvp race.  he also was named to the all-star team and won a gold glove.  he hit .364 in the alcs against the royals, and a huge .450 in the world series against the padres.  in the fall classic, he had 2 homers, 6 rbi and won the mvp award for the series.

chet lemon was in his third season as the tigers' centerfielder in 1984.  he hit .287 with 20 home runs and 76 rbi, and was a starter in the all-star game that year.  unfortunately, lemon was 0 for 13 in the alcs, but he did rebound to hit .294 with a couple of steals in the world series.

howard johnson began the season as the tigers' third baseman, but was replaced by marty castillo by the time the world series came around.  he did get one at bat (as a pinch hitter) in the fall classic, and reached on an error.  he was traded to the mets shortly after the series ended.

jack morris went 19-11 for the tigers in 1984.  he threw a no-hitter in his second start and was 5-0 at the end of april.  at the end of may, morris was 10-1 with 7 complete games in 12 starts.  he was 3-0 in the postseason, including 2-0 in the world series with wins in games 1 and 4.

kirk gibson played in right for the 1984 tigers.  he appeared in 149 games and hit 27 homers.  he drove in 91 runs and scored 92 times himself (the most on the team).  gibson hit .417 in the alcs and was named the mvp of that series.  he did well in the world series, too, hitting 2 home runs with 7 rbi and posting a .333 average.  both of his home runs came in the deciding game 5 - a 2-run home run in the first inning to start the scoring, and a mammoth 3-run shot off of goose gossage in the 8th to put the game away.  gibson also scored another run in the game, hustling home on a short sacrifice fly by rusty kuntz.

lou whitaker hit .289 with 14 homers and 56 rbi in 1984.  as the tigers' second baseman, whitaker played in 143 games, was the starter for the american league in the all-star game, and also won the gold glove and silver slugger awards.  he hit .143 in the alcs, and .278 in the world series.

sparky anderson won his fifth career pennant and third world championship with the tigers in 1984.  he was named the american league's manager of the year in his seventh season in detroit, and he would remain their manager for 11 more seasons.  so far, sparky is the only manager to appear in the set, and he's shown up twice.

the stadium on the back is...?: tiger stadium.  as it should be, although it's tough to tell when the photo was taken.

did upper deck get it right?: no doubt that this team, above all others (even steve garvey's 1984 san diego padres) deserves a spot.  still, it would have been good to see the padres represented in the set.  garvey, goose gossage, and graig nettles were all big parts of that team and are already on this set's checklist.  plus, dick williams would have been a good add (and he could have been featured with some of the early oakland a's teams in the set).  oh well.

as for the players, the obvious omission is willie (guillermo) hernandez.  he had pitched in a league leading 80 games during the regular season, compiling a 9-3 record with 32 saves.  he was also voted the american league mvp and cy young award winner.  he should be in the set.  lance parrish, their catcher, is another one conspicuous by their absence.  parrish led the team in home runs and rbi in 1984 and would have been a better choice than howard johnson for the set, even though hojo shows up again with the 1986 mets.

i don't see too much with the photos that make me think they are not from 1984 or the immediate era, but the tigers don't mess with their uniforms too often.  having said that, the whitaker photo is from no earlier than 1985, as that was the year that the team went to a button-up road jersey, as opposed to the pullovers that lemon, hojo, and morris are wearing.

is this team timeless?:  i believe so.  they were dominant from the start of the season, and gibson's home run off of gossage is fairly unforgettable.

1983 baltimore orioles

this post covers the 1983 baltimore orioles and cards numbered 225 to 228 in the set. here are the fronts:

and backs:

hey! long time no post, i know.  i hope to finish this up by the end of the postseason.  that's about a post a week - i think i can handle it.  by the way, this is the fourth time the orioles have been featured in the set.

what team is this?:  the world champion 1983 baltimore orioles

why this team?:  they were world champions!  the o's won 98 games during the regular season and then beat the white sox in the alcs and the phillies in the world series, 4 games to 1.  they also had the first and second place finishers in the al mvp voting that year.

which players are featured?:  we get cal ripken jr, dan ford, jim palmer, and john shelby

why these players?:  ripken was the mvp in his second full season, so he's a no-brainer.  the other three might be checklist fodder - let's break it down.

cal ripken jr played in 162 games for the first time in 1983.  he won the mvp award based on having led the league in runs scored, hits, and doubles, plus a .318 batting average, 27 home runs and 102 rbi.  his teammate, eddie murray, finished second in the voting (for the second straight year).  ripken also hit .400 in the alcs in 1983, but just .167 in the fall classic with no extra base hits.  the 'memorable moment' card that ripken receives in the set is pretty generic.  i suppose the 'moment' is supposed to be the final out of the series, which was a garry maddox line out to short, caught by ripken.

dan ford was the team's primary right fielder in 1983. he hit .280 in 103 games during the regular season, but was just 1 for 5 in the alcs.  he hit .167 in the world series, but did have a home run off of steve carlton in pivotal game 3.

jim palmer made just 14 appearances (11 starts) in 1983.  he was 5-4 with a 4.23 era during the regular season, and did not appear in the alcs.  he had one world series appearance which came in game 3.  in that game,  palmer pitched two scoreless innings in relief to earn the win in what would be his final postseason appearance.

john shelby, like ripken, spent his first full season in the majors with baltimore in 1983.  shelby was the team's center fielder, playing in 126 games.  he hit .258 with 5 homers and 15 stolen bases.  in the outfield, shelby was second among al center fielders with 10 assists.  he hit .222 (2 for 9) in the 1983 alcs and .444 (4 for 9) in the world series.

the stadium on the back is...?:  memorial stadium

did upper deck get it right?: as with the other orioles posts, we have to look at the logo.  for some reason, upper deck put a different logo on the front of the memorable moments card.  that logo seems to be the primary logo used by the team from 1999-2008 which makes sense since this is a 2004 issued set.  the bird logo on the other card fronts (and all the backs), however, is correct for the 1983 season.  in 2004, the o's were using a more ornithologically correct version of an oriole.

what about the player selection?  ripken is an obvious choice, but so too would have been eddie murray, scott mcgregor (18-7 on the season), and mike boddicker (16-8, alcs mvp).  rick dempsey would have made a ton of sense, too, since he was the world series mvp, and was also on the 1988 dodgers team that shows up later in the checklist.  sure, he would have been a checklist convenience as a part of the dodger team subset, but jim palmer is only featured here because he was already part of the set.  shelby and ford, who are also featured elsewhere in the set, were at least regulars in joe altobelli's lineup.

as for the photos, ripken's is from much later in his career (thanks to the bird on his helmet), and it is a shame that there isn't a photo used of him making the catch to end the 1983 world series.  that would have really tied the card and photo together.  the other photos look to be pretty good for 1983.

is this team timeless?:  it's the last orioles team to win the world series, and the only title for two hall of famers.  i would say yes.

1981 los angeles dodgers

this post covers the 1981 los angeles dodgers and cards numbered 198 to 207 in the set. here are the fronts:

and backs:

no memorable moment card (rick monday or fernando valenzuela would have made a good one), but we have exactly 10 players for the first time in the set, which is the most since there were 11 players featured for the 1969 and 1970 baltimore orioles.

what team is this?:  this is the 1981 los angeles dodger team that won the world series, beating the yankees in six games after the strike-shortened season and two rounds of playoffs.

why this team?:  the 1981 dodgers exacted their revenge on the yankees who had beaten them in two straight world series - 1977 and 1978.  they were 63-47 in the regular season, and their 'first half' record of 36-21 (one game better than the cincinnati reds) assured them a place in the postseason thanks to the strike-altered playoff configuration, despite finishing fourth in the nl west during the second half of the season.  it should be noted that the reds actually won the most games of any national league team in 1981, but they missed the playoffs altogether.

which players are featured?:  steve yeager, burt hooton, dusty baker, jerry reuss, mike scioscia, pedro guerrero, ron cey, steve garvey, alejandro pena, and steve sax.

why these players?:  there was a changing of the guard with the 1981 dodgers, and this is a good mix of the old and the new - especially with regards to the catcher and third base positions where we see both the veteran and the rookie represented.  if only it were the same for the second baseman...  anyway, we have the world series mvp trio as well as the all-star first baseman, nlcs mvp, and other key player represented.  let's break it down.

steve yeager was used in a platoon role with rookie catcher mike scioscia during the 1981 season, playing primarily against left-handed starters.  as a result, yeager appeared in 40 games and started behind the plate just 23 times, and he hit just .209 with 3 homers and 7 rbi in that limited playing time.  then came the postseason.  yeager made one start in two nlds appearances, and was used as a pinch hitter in just one game of the nlcs, but with the yankees featuring southpaws tommy john, ron guidry, rudy may, and dave righetti, yeager saw plenty of action in the world series.  good thing, too, as he hit two home runs, including the game 5 game-winner, and claimed one-third of the series mvp trophy.

burt hooton was named the nlcs mvp in 1981.  before that, however, hooton earned a spot on the all-star team for the first time.  for the season, he was 11-6 with a 2.28 era in the abbreviated season, logging 142.1 innings in 23 starts.  he threw 5 complete games and 4 shutouts to boot, including back to back 4-hit shutouts against the cubs and pirates in august.  hooton made one start in the nlds against the astros, and held them to 3 hits and one earned run in 7 innings as the dodgers took game 3.  he then made two starts against montreal in the nlcs.  in both game 1 and game 4, hooton earned the win by going 7.1 innings and allowing no earned runs. he also made two starts in the world series, going 6 innings in game 2 and allowing no earned runs in the dodgers' loss, and then pitching into the sixth inning and getting the win in their game 6 clincher.  overall, hooton had a 0.82 era in 5 postseason starts in 1981

dusty baker finished third in the national league in batting in 1981 with a .320 average.  he hit the second most singles (99) in the league behind pete rose, and was fourth overall in hits. he was named to the all-star team for the first time, and he also won his first gold glove and second silver slugger award in 1981.  one of his 9 home runs during the regular season was a pinch hit, walk-off home run in the 11th inning of a game against the cardinals.  in the postseason, dusty did most of his damage in the nlcs against the expos, and in fact, in the dodgers' game 3 7-1 victory  in which he was 3 for 4 with 2 runs scored and 3 runs driven in.  in the nlds and world series, he hit .167 with just one extra base hit.

jerry reuss was 10-4 with a 2.30 era during the regular season.  he was slated to be the dodgers' opening day starter before an injury caused him to give way to fernando valenzuela, sparking fernandomania.  in the postseason, reuss was terrific in three of his five starts.  he made two starts in the nlds against houston, pitching 18 shutout innings against the astros.  unfortunately, his nine scoreless innings in game 2 was rewarded only with a no-decision, as houston won the game 1-0 in 11 innings.  reuss did record the shutout victory in game 5 however, clinching the series win with a 5-hitter at home.  he made one start in the nlcs against the expos (game 3) but was the losing pitcher in that game.  he started game 1 of the world series against the yankees and took the loss after giving up four runs in 2.2 innings of work.  he rebounded to pitch a gem in the pivotal game 5 of the series, holding the yankees to one run in his complete game victory.

mike scioscia started 87 games as the dodgers' catcher in 1981, taking over the primary catching duties from steve yeager in the process.  he hit .276 with a couple of home runs and 29 rbi.  in the postseason, he struggled at the plate, hitting just .154, .133, and .250 in the nlds, nlcs, and world series, respectively.  his lone home run of the postseason came in game 1 of the nlcs, and was the second of the back-to-back home runs hit off of jeff reardon in the 8th inning.

pedro guerrero was the player who homered before scioscia in game 1 of the nlcs, in case you were wondering.  guerrero spent a good part of 1981 in right field covering for the injured reggie smith before moving to third base towards the end of the season (and in the nlds) when cey was injured.  he hit an even .300 with 12 homers and 48 rbi during the regular season, but had less than stellar statistics in the nlds and nlcs.  he did hit a home run in each of those series, but it wasn't until game 3 of the world series that his bat came alive.  with the dodgers down to the yankees two games to none, guerrero broke out of an 0 for 8 skid with a game-tying double in the 5th inning of game 3 that also moved ron cey to third base. cey scored the go-ahead run on mike scioscia's double play grounder, and fernando held the yankees scoreless the rest of the way to give the dodgers their first win of the series.  over the next three games, guerrero was 6 for 11 with a triple, two home runs, and 6 rbi, including 5 in the decisive game 6.  as a result, he was rewarded with a third of the series mvp award.  it's worth noting that even as the series was going on, there were rumors that the dodgers were planning to trade guerrero to the padres for ozzie smith.  i am guessing that his series performance went a long way to putting those rumors to bed.

ron cey hit .288 over 85 of the dodgers' 110 games that year, with 13 homers and 50 rbi.  5 of those homers came against the expos (one was a walk-off), and he also homered off of former teammate rick rhoden.  the highlight home run of the year for the penguin, however, must have been the one he hit at riverfront stadium off of mario soto on may 23rd. that was the 200th homer of his career.  cey missed most of the final month of the season after being beaned by the giants' tom griffin in early september, and he did not play in the nlds against the astros.  however, the penguin returned for the nlcs, where he had an .714 ops and 3 rbi. then, in the world series against the yankees, cey hit .350 and made a memorable fielding play in game 3 to catch a bunt and start a double play late in the game.  later in the series, he suffered a horrific beaning in the head by goose gossage, but his 6 rbi in the series and .958 ops earned him his third of the series mvp award.

steve garvey hit just 10 home runs in 1981, but he led the team in rbi with 64 and runs scored with 63. while he kept his consecutive games streak alive, another streak ended as, for the first time since 1973, garvey did not start in the all star game. he was still named to the all-star team as a reserve, and he went 1 for 2 with a double in the game.  in the postseason, garvey likely would have been named the mvp of the division series had such an award been given. he hit .386 with 2 home runs and an ops of 1.158 in the dodgers five game series against the astros. against the expos in the nlcs, he hit .286 with one home run and an ops of .714. garvey bounced back in the world series against the yankees, hitting .417, and leading both teams with 10 hits. 9 of those hits were singles, however, and he failed to drive in a run. he did get to be the second player to reach the mound during the celebration, and so he is in the iconic 1981 world champion photo with steve yeager and steve howe. speaking of yeager, he shared the series mvp award with pedro guerrero and ron cey, although during the locker room celebration, garvey was mistakenly told that he had won the award, not yeager.

alejandro pena made his big league debut in august of 1981 against the braves.  contrary to my memory, he did not walk the first batter he faced (it seemed like he always walked the first batter he faced when he entered a game) and instead recorded a 1-2-3 inning with his first career strikeout to boot.  pena wound up appearing in 14 regular season games, and was 1-1 with 2 saves and a 2.84 era.  he made the postseason roster, but appeared only in two games of the nlcs, allowing no runs and just one hit in 2.1 innings of work.

steve sax also made his big league debut in august of 1981.  his first appearance came as a starter against the cubs in chicago, and he singled in his first major league at bat.  in all, sax played in 31 games, taking over as the team's second baseman in davey lopes' absence due to injury.  he hit .277 with 2 homers and 15 runs scored.  he also had 5 stolen bases, but was caught an un-lopes like 7 times. lopes was back in time for the postseason, so sax was limited to just one late-inning defensive replacement appearance in each the nlds and the nlcs.  he got a pinch-hit at bat in game 1 of the world series (he flew out against ron guidry) and his final appearance in the series came in game 2 when he pinch ran for reggie smith in the 8th inning.

the stadium on the back is...?:  dodger stadium - home to the dodgers since 1962

did upper deck get it right?:  certainly this team belongs in the set as the world champions in 1981, but there are quite a few dodgers that i would have liked to have seen featured as part of this particular subset that also would have been sensible choices.  in fact, i think that upper deck had some other ideas as well.  typically, the featured players are included in the set in alphabetical order by first name.  the fact that steve yeager is first leads me to believe that someone else was considered - someone whose first name starts with an 'a' or a 'b', and falls ahead of 'burt' in that regard.  bill russell?  bob welch?  bobby castillo?  or was alejandro pena on the checklist all along, and he just got placed out of the regular order?

and who might have been between steve garvey and steve sax before pena was put there? the only person on the roster who fits there is steve howe, who was still around in 2004.  howe would have made a lot of sense because he was also on the 1995 yankees who are featured later in the set.  i personally would have loved a steve howe certified auto.  other players who would have made sense include russell and dave lopes (both featured in other dodger subsets), rick monday (the hero of the 1981 nlcs) and terry forster (who shows up with the angels later in the set, but for some reason was left out of the checklist as a dodger in 1978 and 1981).  of course, the biggest omission is probably rookie of the year and cy young award winner fernando valenzuela.  any of the players i mentioned are probably better representations of the team than pena or sax.

as for the photos, the yeager and guerrero images are definitely from 1981.  in fact, those photos were taken on october 28, 1981 in the visitor's locker room at yankee stadium.  yeager has guerrero's left arm draped over his neck, and you can see ron cey's right eyebrow in the frame as well.  as for guerrero, he is hoisting the series mvp award that was given to him, along with yeager and cey.  hooton's photo is inconclusive, although i would guess it is from later in his career.  the photo used for his 1980 subset card was from 1981 (thanks to the patch on his left sleeve) and he was wearing his stirrups differently than he is in the photo in this subset.  dusty baker's left sleeve doesn't have the los angeles bicentennial patch, so it's not from 1981 either.  reuss, scioscia, and pena have photos in which i can't tell what year they are from, but the cey image is definitely from 1982.  not only is the patch missing from his sleeve, he is wearing a helmet with an earflap which he did not do until after he was beaned by gossage in the world series.  garvey's photo is from 1981 as it has the proper patch, while saxy's photo comes from 1984, i believe, as i think that his left sleeve has the olympic patch on it.

is this team timeless?:  yes - the team of my youth finally won a world series, and they beat the yankees in doing so!  plus, it was the last time that the infield of my youth played together.  good times.

1980 philadelphia phillies

this post covers the 1980 philadelphia phillies and cards numbered 191 to 197 in the set. here are the fronts:

and backs:

it' a new franchise to the set! with the return of the memorable moments subset (with a dickie noles appearance) and four players being featured for the first time.

what team is this?:  the 1980 world champion philadelphia phillies

why this team?:  this was the first philadelphia baseball team to win a world series championship.  ever.  and the last of the 'original' sixteen franchises that were in existence when the world series began in 1903.  they were 91-71 in the regular season (winning the national league east by one game over the montreal expos). they beat the houston astros in the nl championship series 3 games to 2, and won the world series by beating the kansas city royals in six games.

which players are featured?: bake mcbride, bob boone, dickie noles, manny trillo, mike schmidt, sparky lyle, and steve carlton.

why these players?:  we've got the league mvp, the league cy young award winner, and five other guys.  let's break it down.

bake mcbride was the phillies' regualar right fielder in 1980, the final season in which he would be a regular in the big leagues.  mcbride hit .309 with a career high 87 rbi in the regular season, and then hit .304 with a home run and 5 rbi in the world series, doing most of his damage in the first two games of the fall classic.

bob boone's 1980 season is probably best remembered as the year that he dropped frank white's pop up, only to have it caught by pete rose near the first base dugout.  that play occurred in the 8th inning of the decisive sixth game of the world series.  during the regular season, boone (who had won two straight gold gloves coming in to the 1980 season) pretty much matched his offensive totals from 1979, although his batting average dropped by almost 60 points.  he caught all 11 postseason games for the phillies, including four extra inning games, missing only one inning in the nlcs. boone hit .412 in the world series with 2 doubles and 4 rbi.

dickie noles was in his second big league season in 1980, in which he appeared in 48 games, 45 of them in relief.  he had a record of 1-4 with 6 saves during the regular season, and made two scoreless relief appearances in the nlcs against the astros.  in the world series, he made just one appearance, as he was called into relief in game 4 after starter larry christenson got knocked around by the royals.  he gave up just one run (a solo home run by willie mays aikens) and struck out six in his 4.2 innings of work, but his appearance is best remembered for one pitch that he made to george brett.  as the back of his 'memorable moments' card attests, noles threw a brushback pitch to brett in the fourth inning with the phillies down 5-1.  although the phillies lost the game and the series was tied at two games apiece, some feel that noles' pitch was a turning point in the series.  me, i'm not so sure, but the phillies wound up winning so i guess they can see it however they want.

manny trillo won a silver slugger award as the phillies' second baseman in 1980. he hit .292  and scored a career high 68 runs in 141 games that year.  trillo hit .381 in the nlcs against the astros, but the royals held him to a .217 batting average in the world series.

mike schmidt set career highs in home runs (48) and rbi (121), and led the league in both of those triple crown categories - the first of four times that he would do so in his career.  as a result, he earned the national league mvp award, as well as the gold glove and silver slugger awards, and he was voted to start the all-star game (although he missed the game with an injury).  his 48 home runs were the most ever by a third baseman, and he hit his last two of the season when it mattered most - in a division-deciding series with the second place expos.  schmidt hit 2 more home runs with 7 rbi in the world series, and was named the mvp of the fall classic.

sparky lyle was acquired by the phillies in september of 1980.  luckily for kevin saucier, the deal was for a player to be named later, so he was able to pitch in the world series and get a ring before he became a texas ranger in november.  as for lyle, he made 10 appearances for the phillies down the stretch, posting an era of 1.93 with two saves, but was ineligible for the postseason due to his late arrival in philly.

steve carlton was 24-9 in 38 starts during the regular season, with a 2.34 era.  he led the league in wins and strikeouts (286), and was second to don sutton in era.  still, his cy young award was not unanimous, as one voter put jerry reuss at the top of the ballot.  carlton was named to the all-star team, but did not pitch in the game.  i always found it odd that carlton's 1981 topps card featured the all-star banner, when it was jr richard who started the game for the national league.  anyway, carlton made 2 starts in each the nlcs and the world series.  the phillies won each of those games, and carlton earned the victory in three of them, including games 2 and 6 of the fall classic.

the stadium on the back is...?:  veterans stadium.  home to the phillies from 1971 through 2003.

did upper deck get it right?: with pete rose being ineligible, the only regulars not included in the set are larry bowa, greg luzinski, and garry maddox.  and, i would suggest that bob boone is as deserving as any of those three to be included, so i think upper deck did ok with their player selection.  besides, boone will show up later with the 1986 california angels.  as far as pitchers go, dick ruthven would have been a good choice, but i don't have much of a problem with dickie noles.  tug mcgraw would have been an obvious choice, but he passed away in january of 2004 - i assume prior to the finalization of the set checklist.  kudos to upper deck for not giving us a tim mccarver card just because he was already part of the set.  mccarver played in only a handful of games for the phillies after being signed to a contract in september of 1980, and did not appear in the postseason.

regarding the photos, the uniforms are all correct (as is steve carlton's perm) as far as what the phillies were sporting in 1980, although i would guess that the boone photo is from sometime earlier in the 1970's.

is this team timeless?:  yes.

1979 pittsburgh pirates

this post covers the 1979 pittsburgh pirates and cards numbered 171 to 174 in the set. here are the fronts:

and backs:

the pirates make their first and only appearance in the set.  it would have been nice to have seen them featured back in the early 1970's subsets, but with roberto clemente and willie stargell having passed away, i guess upper deck chose not to feature them.  they could have still made a go at it with the likes of al oliver, dock ellis, dave cash, manny sanguillen, richie hebner, and dave giusti, but oh well.

what team is this?: the 1979 world champion pittsburgh pirates.

why this team?:  the pirates were family in 1979, defeating the baltimore orioles in the world series 4 games to 3.  they won 98 games during the regular season, and then swept the cincinnati reds in the nlcs before facing the orioles in the fall classic.  they became the only team to recover from a 3-1 deficit in the world series and win the championship.

which players are featured?:  bert blyleven, bill madlock, dave parker, and phil garner.

why these players?:  let's break it down and find out.

bert blyleven was 12-5 for the 1979 pirates.  he made 37 starts, which means he had 20 no-decisions (a record for one season).  i believe blyleven blamed chuck tanner for removing him from starts quickly for his lack of wins in pittsburgh, and even quit the team for a short time in 1980 as a result.  anyway, blyleven was allowed to pitch a complete game in the third game of the nlcs against the reds.  he held cincy to 8 hits and struck out 9 en route to a series clinching 7-1 victory.  in his first world series, blyleven started game 2, but left after 6 innings with the score tied at 2.  the pirates wound up winning 3-2 on a manny sanguillen single.  blyleven returned to the mound in game 5, pitching 4 innings of scoreless relief to earn the win as the pirates began their comeback.

bill madlock, who had won two batting titles with the cubs earlier in the decade, was acquired by the pirates in june of 1979.  he took over at the hot corner in pittsburgh and hit .328 over the rest of the season.  in his first taste of the postseason, madlock hit .250 against the reds, but then hit .375 in the world series against the orioles.  i am guessing that upper deck is referring to one of madlock's four hits in game 5 on the back of his card, as he was held hitless in games 6 and 7 when the pirates were facing elimination.

dave parker had a few memorable moments in 1979, and he gets a card telling us as much.  for me, his most memorable moments came in the 1979 all-star game when he threw jim rice out at third and brian downing out at home.  in the games that counted, he hit .310 with 25 home runs and 94 rbi.  in the postseason, he hit .333 in the nlcs and .345 in the world series.

phil garner split his time between third and second in 1979, and he even played a little bit of shortstop.  he hit .293 in 150 regular season games, and then had a postseason for the ages.  as the back of his card says, garner hit .500 in the world series (12 for 24).  he had 4 doubles and 5 rbi, and an on base percentage of .571.  this was after he hit .417 (5 for 12) in the nlcs with a triple and a home run.

the stadium on the back is...?:  three rivers stadium, with a photo taken from either the allegheny, monongahela, or the ohio river.  it was home to the pirates from july of 1970 through the 2000 season, and so is appropriate for this team.

did upper deck get it right?: they certainly got the stadium and the team right, but i wonder why they didn't include the 1979 orioles in the set.  the o's were the only 1979 playoff team not featured, and i will assume that it is because they will show up in 1983.  still, it would have been appropriate for another round of jim palmer and al bumbry cards, plus maybe a don stanhouse or even an eddie murray card.

willie stargell passed away in 2001, so his absence is understood.  and as for the players upper deck chose for the pirates, i can't complain.  some other sensible choices would have been bill robinson (third on the team with 24 homers), lee lacy and rick rhoden (not really, but it would have been cool to see these former dodgers in the set), and kent tekulve who sported some fantastic glasses and saved 31 games for the champs.

as for the photos, the three color images all feature the full yellow unis (or in blyleven's case, at least the yellow jersey) which the team did wear in 1979 and a few seasons prior.  they continued to wear the yellow jerseys but not the pants after 1980, and then brought back the full yellow ensemble in 1981 and wore it for a few more seasons.  so, blyleven's photo could be from 1978, 79, or 80, and garner's could be shown as he was in any year from 1977 through 1979, or 1981.  on the other hand, madlock's is certainly from the 1979 season because, even though the pirates wore that color combination during his later years with the team, the 'stargell stars' on his hat were only given out in late 1978 (when madlock was still a giant) and 1979.  i'm sure one of those stars was for his walk-off home run he hit against the dodgers in late september. as for dave parker, his photo is from 1980 at the earliest, thanks to the v-neck, solid white jersey that the team debuted in 1980 and continued to wear throughout the remainder of parker's time in pittsburgh.

is this team timeless?:  this team is family, it is the last pirates team to win a title, and it helped the city of pittsburgh attain its 'city of champions' moniker.  yes, i believe that it is timeless.

1978 new york yankees

this post covers the 1978 new york yankees and cards numbered 153 to 161 in the set. here are the fronts:

and backs:

back-to-back yankee posts.  almost as tough to take as the back-to-back world series titles they won at the expense of the dodgers in 1977 and 1978.  this is the only 1978 team featured in the set, too.

what team is this?:  the 1978 new york yankees, who defeated the los angeles dodgers 4 games to 2 to win their second straight world series title.

why this team?:  the 1978 yankees won 100 games, including a one-game playoff with the red sox to claim their third straight american league east pennant.  what's more, they overcame a 14-game deficit in july to force the game 163.  in the postseason, they beat the royals for the third straight year to win the pennant, and then beat the dodgers to win the title.  also, because they are the yankees.

which players are featured?:  we've got all the players that were featured as part of the 1977 team, except for don gullett whose career came to an end during the 1978 campaign, and we've added brian doyle and rich "goose" gossage to the checklist.

why these players?:  let's find out, shall we?

brian doyle was a rookie in 1978 who appeared in all of 39 games in the regular season.  he hit .192 with an obp to match, and was without an extra base hit.  in the postseason, he and fred stanley were called upon to replace the injured willie randolph at second base.  doyle responded by hitting .286 in the alcs and .438 in the world series with 2 rbi and 4 runs scored.

bucky dent gets a memorable moment card for his game 163 home run that beat the red sox.  he had only four other home runs in 1978 before he hit the 7th inning, three-run blast off of mike torrez.  he hit only .200 in the alcs, but won the world series mvp award thanks to a .417 average and a team leading 10 hits.

chris chambliss had the opposite results in the postseason.  he hit .400 against the royals, but just .182 against the dodgers.  during the regular season, he hit .274 with 12 home runs and 90 rbi.  he also won his first (and only) career gold glove.

ed figueroa won 20 games for the only time in his career in 1978.  he was 20-9 with a 2.99 era in 32 starts.  he won 8 of his last 9 starts, the final one being a 5-hit shutout of the indians in game 161 that preserved the team's one game lead over the red sox in the east.  figueroa's late season success didn't translate to the postseason as he took the loss in game 2 of the alcs, giving up 5 runs (3 earned) in 1+ innings of work.  he didn't make it out of the 2nd inning in game 1 of the world series, either, giving up 3 runs on home runs by dusty baker and davey lopes (with rick monday on base) in the second inning.  figueroa returned to start game 4 of the world series, and gave up a 3-run home run to reggie smith in his 5 innings of work.  he left the game trailing, but thanks in part to reggie jackson's hip, the yankees chipped away at the dodgers' lead and wound up winning the game.

graig nettles was an all-star and won his second straight gold glove at third base in 1978.  he hit 27 home runs with 93 rbi and a .276 batting average during the regular season.  he was 5 for 15 with a triple and a home run in the alcs, but went just 4 for 25 with no extra base hits in the world series.

lou piniella hit .314 for the yankees over 130 games while splitting time between left field, right field, and dh.  he had 7 hits in the world series, but they were all singles. still, he had 4 rbi and even stole a base in the fall classic.

roy white was one of the few yankees who was consistent in his play throughout the entire postseason. after appearing in 103 games and hitting .269 in the regular season, white hit .313 with a triple and a home run in the yankees' four game series against the royals.  he then hit .333 in the world series, scoring 9 runs and driving in 4 over the six games against the dodgers.

rich "goose" gossage joined the bronx zoo as a free agent from pittsburgh prior to the 1978 season.  in his first season as a yankee, gossage was 10-11 with 27 saves (the most in the league) and a 2.01 era over 134.1 innings of work.  after a shaky postseason debut in game 3 of the alcs (he blew the save but earned the win), gossage saved game 4 with a perfect inning of work to send the yankees to the world series.  there, he pitched in 3 games (he earned the save in game 4) and gave up just one hit and one walk in 6 innings of work.

sparky lyle was the reigning cy young award winner in 1978, but he was replaced as the team's closer with the arrival of gossage.  still, lyle appeared in 59 games (all in relief, of course) and posted a record of 9-3 with 9 saves.  he made just one appearance in the postseason - a 1.1 inning effort in game 2 of the alcs in which he allowed 2 runs on 3 hits.  that would be his last appearance in the pinstripes (so to speak - the game was in kansas city), as the yankees traded lyle to the rangers after the postseason.

the stadium on the back is...?:  yankee stadium, although not a photo from 1978.

did upper deck get it right?: i can understand why the royals (the team the yankees beat in the alcs in 1976, 1977, and 1978) weren't featured - the franchise was completely ignored by the set - and the 1977 and 1978 phillies are pretty similar teams to the 1980 team that we will see later on, but i think a case could have been made to feature the 1978 red sox.  they were a bucky dent home run away from making the postseason, and the beantown franchise has already been featured in the set.  also, i personally would have been ok with the 1978 dodgers being featured in the set, even though the players would likely be identical to the ones featured for the 1977 team except for the super cool bob welch memorable moment card that would have been made to commemorate his strikeout of reggie jackson to end game 2 of the world series.

as for the players, once again ron guidry should have been included.  he was 25-3 in 1978 for goodness sakes.  reggie jackson's absence is again conspicuous, and willie randolph and mickey rivers are probably the only other two guys who could have been featured but weren't.  kudos to upper deck for not going for a weak checklist grab and adding reserve outfielder paul blair (previously seen in the set with the orioles) or rawly eastwick (seen earlier in the set as a cincinnati red) to this team.  especially eastwick, as he started the 1978 season with the yankees, but was traded to the phillies during the season for jay johnstone. i would have been ok with johnstone being included, however, as long as he would have also been included with the 1981 dodger team.  but, he wasn't added to the checklist of either team, so it doesn't matter.

now let's talk about the photos.  doyle was with the yankees for parts of three seasons - 1978, 1979, and 1980.  for part of 1979 and all of 1980, the yankees wore black armbands, so there is a good likelihood that doyle's photo comes from 1978.  that same possibility exists for bucky dent, although i am disappointed that upper deck didn't use a photo from the actual home run he hit to beat the red sox.  that game was played at fenway park, so he shouldn't be in the yankee pinstripes.  the photos for chris chambliss, roy white, and sparky lyle are definitely from before 1978, and the images for graig nettles and rich "goose" gossage are from later because of the black armbands.  that leaves ed figueroa and lou piniella, but there's no real way to tell what year it was that their photos were taken.

is this team timeless?:  when i think of the yankees, i think of the 1977 team - not this 1978 squad.  still, the 1978 team is the one that won the second title in a row, so i guess this team is timeless.  what do you think?

1977 new york yankees

this post covers the 1977 new york yankees and cards numbered 145 to 152 in the set. here are the fronts:

and backs:

so, upper deck gives us our first look at the yankees, and it's their 1977 world championship team.  1977 was the first time the yankees had won the title since 1962, and it brought to an end a three-series losing streak, as they were defeated by the dodgers in 1963, the cardinals in 1964, and the reds in 1976.  notice the lack of a 'memorable moment' card - 3 home runs in one world series game certainly would have qualified had reggie jackson not been excluded from this set.

what team is this?:  the 1977 world champion new york yankees

why this team?:  the yankees won 100 games in 1977, and were the american league champions for the second year in a row.

which players are featured?:  bucky dent, chris chambliss, ed figueroa, graig nettles, lou piniella, roy white, don gullett, and sparky lyle.  gullett and lyle have been featured in the set before, but the other guys are all first timers here.

why these players?:  let's break it down.

bucky dent was the yankees' shortstop in 1977, as he was acquired from the white sox just before the start of the season.  he hit .247 with a career high 8 home runs during the regular season, and then hit .242 in the postseason.  nothing too exciting, and not even close to what he would do in the 1978 world series against the dodgers.  heck, even the back of his card ignores his 1977 performance and goes straight to the home run he hit against the red sox in 1978.

chris chambliss was in his fourth year of manning first base for the yankees in 1977, and he put up numbers that were nearly identical to those he attained in 1976 when he was named to the all-star team and finished 5th in the league mvp voting.  this time, however, he finished 29th in the mvp voting and was not part of the all-star team.  he struggled in the alcs, going 1 for 17 against the royals, after sending them home a year earlier, but came back to hit .292 with a home run (as alluded to on the back of his card) in the world series against the dodgers.

ed figueroa is kind of an odd choice for this set.  i get it - he was a 20-game winner in 1978 (as we will see in the next post), and his 16 wins in 1977 led the yankees' staff (tied with ron guidry, who frankly would have been a more sensible addition to this set).  however, figueroa made only one start in the 1977 postseason, and it didn't go well.  although the yankees won the game, the royals knocked figueroa out of game 4 of the alcs after 3.1 innings after being down 4-0 at one point.  you can tell upper deck didn't have much to say about figueroa in 1977 from his card back.  i'm not sure what they mean by 'sweep through' the regular season either.

graig nettles, the yankees' third baseman, led the team with 37 home runs in 1977.  that was five more than he hit in 1976 when he led the league, but jim rice hit 39 bombs for the red sox (bobby bonds also hit 37 in 1977).  nettles did make the all-star team and he won his first gold glove in 1977.  nettles was held without a home run while hitting under .200 in both the 1977 alcs and the world series, but the yankees won anyway.

lou piniella split his 1977 season between the outfield and the dh spot.  he was in a dh platoon with carlos may (who was picked up by the angels in september of '77), and usually played the outfield on days that may would dh.  he hit .330 with a career high 12 home runs in 103 games with this playing arrangement.  when it came to the 1977 postseason, piniella was the yankees' left fielder in all but one game (he was the dh in game 3 of the alcs).  the back of his card suggests that he 'achieved greatness' in the playoffs, and while piniella hit .333 with 3 doubles and 2 rbi in the alcs that year, i wouldn't say that he achieved greatness.

roy white had the misfortune of being the left fielder (and often best player) on the yankee teams that missed the postseason 11 years in a row.  he debuted in 1965, a year after the yankees lost the world series to the cardinals, and it wasn't until 1976 that white and the yankees reached the postseason together.  in 1977, white hit .268 with 14 home runs and 52 rbi as the team's regular left fielder.  for the postseason however, billy martin decided to replace white in the starting lineup with lou piniella.  white did get the start in game 3 of the alcs with piniella dh-ing, and he went to 2 for 4 with 2 doubles and a run scored.  in the world series, however, he was back on the bench, and was hitless in his two at bats.

don gullett makes his third appearance in the set, as he had won two straight titles with the reds in 1975 and 1976 when he joined the yankees as a free agent.  fighting shoulder problems, he wound up with a 14-4 record for new york in 1977, leading the league in winning percentage.  he made 3 starts in the postseason, including game 1 in both the alcs and the world series.  he lasted only 2 innings (and took the loss) against the royals, but pitched into the 9th inning (with no decision) against the dodgers in the kick off of the fall classic.  gullett later took the loss in game 5, as the dodgers scored 7 runs (6 earned) off of him in 4.1 innings.

sparky lyle has also been here before - as a member of the 1967 red sox.  lyle was traded to the yankees prior to the 1972 season, and he quickly took up residence at the back of the yankee bullpen.  in 1977, lyle appeared in 72 games (all in relief, of course) and pitched 137 innings.  he won 13 games and saved 26 others on his way to winning the cy young award.  in the postseason, he pitched in 4 of the 5 alcs games, earning the win in game 4 by pitching 5.1 scoreless innings of relief and then returning the next day to earn the series clinching win with another 1.1 innings of scoreless relief.  lyle actually blew the save in the 9th inning of game 1 of the world series, but remained in the game to earn the win in the 12th inning.  he also pitched in the second game of the series, and gave up a home run to steve garvey in what would be his last appearance of the postseason.

the stadium on the back is...?:  yankee stadium (post 1973 renovation) which would be the right venue for the 1977 team, obviously.  the photo is much more recent than 1977, however, as evidenced by the advertising (no 'brut' billboard).

did upper deck get it right?: from a player standpoint, each person featured in the set can be rationalized, but it would have made sense to include ron guidry (16-7, 2-0 in the postseason), newcomer reggie jackson (again), and maybe even willie randolph, too.  after all, reggie was the 'straw that stirred the drink', and hit 5 home runs in the world series to earn the series' mvp trophy, and randolph was an all-star in each of his first two seasons with the yankees, including 1977.  as for the photos, thanks to the yankees' consistency with their uniforms it could be tough to tell if upper deck used images from 1977 or not.  i will say that i believe the bucky dent photo to be from sometime later than 1977, and the chris chambliss to be from sometime prior to that year (thanks to the facial hair), but no earlier than 1974 which is when chambliss joined the yankees.  ed figueroa could certainly be from '77, but graig nettles and lou piniella are betrayed by the black armband on his left sleeve.  during piniella's time with the yankees, such an armband was only worn in 1979-80 for thurman munson, and in 1981 for elston howard.  the roy white photo is almost certainly from the late 1960's, and sparky lyle's photo looks to be from about the same time as chambliss's - say 1973-ish.  however, we do know that don gullett's photo is not only from 1977, but that it is from game 5 of the world series.  we know this because the photo was taken in dodger stadium (that's the visiting team's bullpen in the background) and gullett made only one appearance during the series at dodger stadium - his game 5 start.  and, while the dodgers and yankees would meet again in the world series the following year, gullett's career was brought to an end prior to the 1978 postseason due to injury.

is this team timeless?:  yes.  aside from being the first yankee team to win in the steinbrenner era, it was the bronx zoo!