Baseball History Through Cards

 Hello Friends!

I'm sure I'm not the first or the last to wax poetic about baseball cards and really, what they can teach us about the timeframe the card was from. 

On cards that show the stadium, you can see the advertisements at the time. You get a glimpse at the stadium itself. The giant wall in the Baker Bowl, The Ad Monster that became the Green Monster.. The giant cigarette ad in centre field Polo Grounds. 

You also get a chance to follow a team's history. Cards available for the Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia, Kansas City, Oakland, and Orphaned Athletics. Washington Try 1, Try 2, and Try 3.. The Pilots. 

Also slipping in are possible moves. I can only remember one such instance actually occurring with the Padres supposedly moving to Washington a mere 5 years after starting in SD... 

You also get to see the different companies/ad tie-ins there have been over the decades. We know of cigarettes, gum, and stickers being used as enticements, though really the cards were the enticement for the particular brand of cigarette... 

Companies like Hires, Wonder, Hostess, Squirt, Kelloggs, Post, and others using cards as incentive to buy their products. 

Now, I could probably make this an hours long presentation, but.... Nobody's going to read that, right?? 

I pulled some examples from teams off the TCDB, as I don't have many cards from the 30s-70s... 

So when the Oaklamento Athletics finally make it to Las Vegas, the Athletics franchise will have relocated the most of any team in modern history. Philadelphia to Kansas City to Oakland to Sortamento and eventually Vegas.. 

One thing that strikes me every time I actually sit to think about it is that the A's were in Philly until the mid 50s.. Kansas City was their home for 14 years before moving to Oakland for the 1968 season. Those changes are captured on cards.. Of course, a year after the A's moved to Oakland, Kansas City got the Royals. 

Now, this is a rebrand, really.. The Houston Colt 45's.. Honestly a team name that would never fly today. We all know the story about how the Colts became the Astros with the opening of the Astrodome. 

One of the food tie-ins I mentioned. Tip Top Bread. I cursory search tells me it was a bread sold in the Eastern Seaboard and the Midwest.. I feel it had a stronghold in the Brooklyn area based on the Brooklyn Tip Tops Federal League team. 

Rodeo Meats.. Fitting for a Kansas City regional promotion, no? 

Pepsi has had many tie-ins over the years. 

This was an early OPC/Butterfinger card.. 

This whole post was inspired by the Open Binders app through Blue Sky. It got me thinking about some of the teams that are no longer around and seeing them represented in cards. As I mentioned, these are just a few. Obviously there's the Pilots, The Senators Mk1, Senators Mk2, Boston Braves, Milwaukee Braves, and New York Giants.

I think this may be a big draw towards vintage cards. Yes, some can be insanely expensive, but they're a window to the past. A look back at a "simpler" time. (and honestly, if any of us were suddenly transported to 1950, we'd be so disoriented that we might not function properly) Definitely a time where there weren't 5000000 parallels and inserts for a set. Or one company churning out 50 sets a year.. 

Duane Ward

 Hello Friends!

Today I have a sad topic. Over this weekend, Duane Ward passed away while in Toronto for the celebration of the 92/93 teams. 

Above is the statement released by the Blue Jays.. 

Ward started out in Atlanta, being drafted by the team in 1982. In 1986, he was traded to the Blue Jays for Doyle Alexander. 

Duane was one half of the two headed monster in the Jays pen fron the time he arrived till 1992. Between Henke and Ward, games were shut down usually by the 7th.. 

In 1993 he took over the mantle of closer as Henke went back to Texas. 

I'm actually surprised by the number of cards produced of Ward that have him in this part of his delivery. 

Airbrushed Wardo. He was photographed as a Brave in their Spring Training facility

Ward was inducted to the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2020. 

Deepest condolences to family and friends of Duane Ward. 

If I Made A Commemorative Set

 Hello friends!

After the massive disappointment that was the 50th Anniversary Commemorative Box I purchased, I got to thinking. 

"What If I made a set, or more to the point, if I was in charge of making a set, what would I want as a Blue Jays Fan?"

So I think I'd make it a 50-60 card set.. No parallels or other shiny crap. It would have Greatest Moments in Franchise History, Greatest Players in Franchise History, cards of each Manager, and of the Mascots. I would also ensure there were cards of both the Ex and of the Dome. 

I grabbed some cards and kind of thre together an idea. I just grabbed cards of who would be in the set and the moments. I don't have the time or energy right now to actually design this set... 

Moments

The second Series Winning Walkoff. Obviously that would be here. I'd also put on the back the iconic call of Tom Cheek 

The 1985 AL East Win. The most wins in franchise history and of course, the beginning of one of the winningest times. 

I'd put George Bell's 3 Opening Day homers. 

Dave Stieb's long-elusive no hitter. 

The Catch.... 

The first World Series win. 

Jose Bautista's batflip. 

I'd also put the first game in Exhibition Stadium and the first game in the SkyDome. 

The cycles by Kelly Gruber and by Jeff Frye would also be in here. 

The Players

I think it's fairly self explanatory why he's here. The Ace of the franchise in its formative years

Can't really make a list without Whitt.. 

The Outfield of the 80s. 

One of the best shortstops in the 80s. 

Early power hitter

Lefty Ace

I could argue that Buck would have a moment as well, with the Double Play at Home Plate with a broken leg... He's been synonymous with the Jays basically since 1981 until his retirement from broadcasting last year. 

The Terminator

Freddie McGriff.. 

This one may be unpopular since he's basically persona non grata, but in a list of greatest Blue Jays, you can't really leave him off... 

Joltin' Joe.. Jumpin' Joe. And the dude can sing!

A One and Done for Cooperstown, but should have had more... Carlos Delgado

Winfield wanted noise.. He got noise... He also had an incident at the Ex where he killed a seagull.. 

Wardo

Shannon Stewart

Roy Halladay took up the mantle of Franchise Ace and ran with it

He was popular with the fans.. Many Zaunbies in the stands.. 

The first pick in the Expansion Draft.. 

Joey Bats.. 

Price and Estrada both played their part to get the Jays to the postseason in 2014

Vlad Jr!

Stroman, though he seems to put his foot in his mouth everywhere he goes.. 

MVP. 

Molitor

Edwing!!

Managers and Others 

I'd also have cards of the managers over the course of the franchise. The mascots. So BJ Birdy, Ace, Diamond... Junior.. 

I'd also want to put something in for the iconic radio voices of so many summers for Jays fans all over Southern Ontario: Tom Cheek and Jerry Howarth.

Exhibition Stadium and SkyDome/Rogers Centre. 

Each card would have an individual back. The moments would have a blurb on the moment the card commemorates. The Players cards would either have their full stats or their Jays stats. I know there are other things I'd do but I can't honestly think of them right now.. 

But, that's what my Commemorative Set would contain...