1962 Topps NL Stolen Base Leaders: Wills, Pinson, F.Robinson, Aaron

 

Topps would not include leader cards for stolen bases until the 1973 set. I still have to believe that the delay has to do with the fact that Maury Wills was not under contract with Topps. It would have been nice if Topps could have secured rights to use Wills' image in time for the 1962 style 2011 Heritage set. Topps managed to obtain rights to use his image in the 2013 Heritage set as well as last years Archives set. Since he set a record for stolen bases and was the NL MVP in 1962, their timing seems to be a bit off.

To illustrate Topps' lapse of judgement here is the back of their 2011 Heritage Then and Now card:

But here is the front:

I'm a White Sox fan and  Luis Aparicio is one of my favorite players but this is what that card should have looked like:

1962 Topps NL RBI Leaders: Cepeda, F.Robinson, Mays, Aaron

 

 This is one of those cards that if I didn't make it myself, I would have sworn was a real card. I mean how could Topps not include RBI Leaders in their set? This would have been a sought after card for many years. All 4 players are Hall of Famers. At the time this card would have been produced Mays, Cepeda and Robinson had all been elected Rookies of the Year and Aaron, Robinson and Mays had all been recent NL MVPs. Topps must have realized their missed opportunities because by 1964 RBI Leaders would become a staple of every set.

When I looked at the 2011 Heritage set, I saw that Topps was true to their original 1962 set and did not include an RBI Leader card. When I looked into who should have been on this card, I was struck by the similarities. I felt compelled to create a 2011 Heritage Card That Never Was:

Once again 3 of the 4 were recent NL MVP winners and 2 were Rookies of the Year. Are these 4 also destined to be enshrined in Cooperstown?

2011 Heritage Armando Galarraga In Action

Detroit Tigers CTNW Fan Favorites #4

The blown call on Armando Galarraga's near perfect game was arguably the biggest story of the 2010 season.  There was an Allen & Ginter Highlight sketch card commemorating the event but it edited out the umpire. There was no mention of the controversial call at all. That was the story. The call and the way Galarraga and Joyce conducted themselves afterward. 

They acted with dignity and sportsmanship that is more common in the sport than we are led to believe. It is simply more interesting to show players showboating or smashing Gatorade coolers in the dugout. I'm just as guilty as anybody. I love a good bench-clearing brawl or watching the manager lose it and get kicked out after the ump makes a questionable call. 

If this call hadn't been made with 2 outs in the 9th inning of a perfect game, Gallaraga and Joyce probably would have acted the same way, with dignity and sportsmanship. The difference is, we never would have known.

2011 Heritage Then & Now: White Sox Managers

Ozzie Guillen was traded yesterday for 2 players to be named later. Only Kenny Williams could find a way to get something in exchange for a manager he was probably going to fire anyway. In the mean time, bench coach, Joey Cora will run the White Sox for their remaining games.