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Worst Mets card ever?

metsguyinmichigan Jan 28 2010 08:11 AM

Uniwatch was having a discussion about the old Hostess baseball cards that were on the backs of Twinkies boxes, and I was reminded of this Rusty Staub disaster. Among the flaws: 1) They left the Expos logo on the jersey 2) They painted on only some of the pinstripes. 3) They used a photo that was more than three years old, as this is from 1975. I can only guess that the artists were on a major sugar buzz from eating too many Ring Dings and was distracted. Or, they just didn't give a damn.

Edgy DC Jan 28 2010 08:17 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

If this is from 1981, and I guess it is, Rusty was also a firstbaseman by then. Should cards that you have to cut out the bottom of a donut box really count as cards?

MFS62 Jan 28 2010 08:24 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Edgy DC wrote: If this is from 1981, and I guess it is, Rusty was also a firstbaseman by then. Should cards that you have to cut out the bottom of a donut box really count as cards? I don't see why not. They are: card shaped part of a series have baseball players on them are collectible. Later

attgig Jan 28 2010 08:34 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

do they have the player's stats on the back or nutritional info on twinkies?

John Cougar Lunchbucket Jan 28 2010 08:36 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

That's just hideous. Is that from your own collection?

metirish Jan 28 2010 08:40 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

The cap doesn't look painted on at all.

Edgy DC Jan 28 2010 08:42 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

I found the reference at Uni-Watch, and it credits MGiM. That's allegedly 1975?

metsguyinmichigan Jan 28 2010 08:44 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: That's just hideous. Is that from your own collection? Yup! But I'm not responsible for the equally hideous cutting job. I've only seen this card once, and picked it up. I like the oddball sets. There was a time when I had every Mets card. But then the companies got crazy with the inserts, short-prints, 1/1s and other nonsense that made it impossible. So now I have to say I have every base set Mets card.

metsguyinmichigan Jan 28 2010 08:44 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Edgy DC wrote: I found the reference at Uni-Watch, and it credits MGiM. That's allegedly 1975? The back has stats through 1974. Nasty!

batmagadanleadoff Jan 28 2010 09:17 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever? Edited 2 time(s), most recently on Jan 28 2010 09:32 AM

I wonder if Hostess had nothing but Expos pictures to work with because Staub was a Topps hold-out for the 1972 and '73 seasons. Staub was not included in the '72 and '73 sets. His first Mets card is from the 1974 set. Perhaps Hostess got their pictures from Topps and that was the most recent one available. If so, then maybe Topps also did the airbrushing. Just a theory.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Jan 28 2010 09:22 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

I wonder if Hostess had nothing but Expos pictures to work with because Staub was a Topps hold-out for the 1972 and '73 seasons. Staub was not included in the '72 and '73 sets. Perhaps Hostess got their pictures from Topps. Just a theory. Interesting... I guess I knew that players got a fee for their likenesses on cards but never occurred to me they would hold out. Staub I think was weird about baseball cards. Late in his career he was a guest at a banquet event I went to. They gave away packs of baseball cards and I was thrilled to find a Rusty Staub card in mine. I thought this was great because it would give me the CAHNfidence to walk up to him, which I did, only to be dumbfounded when he told me "I don't sign baseball cards." I was like, what? and he said "I don't sign baseball cards." End of story.

metirish Jan 28 2010 09:26 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

That kind of put down could ruin you for years......fecking Rusty

batmagadanleadoff Jan 28 2010 09:58 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

metsguyinmichigan wrote: Uniwatch was having a discussion about the old Hostess baseball cards that were on the backs of Twinkies boxes, and I was reminded of this Rusty Staub disaster. Among the flaws: 1) They left the Expos logo on the jersey 2) They painted on only some of the pinstripes. 3) They used a photo that was more than three years old, as this is from 1975. I can only guess that the artists were on a major sugar buzz from eating too many Ring Dings and was distracted. Or, they just didn't give a damn. I'm guessing that Hostess licensed their pictures from Topps and that the screwup with the Expos "elb" logo and pinstriping was not an artist's oversight, but that the photo was supposed to be cropped higher up, at around Staub's neck and through the shoulder line. I've seen several proofs of old Topps cards where the cap or helmet was airbrushed to reflect the player's brand new team. In those proofs, the jersey top (former team) was left unaltered. The final card was cropped above the jersey.

Frayed Knot Jan 28 2010 10:12 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

At his original restaurant (the one on 73rd St) Rusty had a sequential display of what I thought were all 20-whatever years worth of his bb cards on one wall - although I suppose it's possible there were a few missing. He was one of the earlier leaders in those nascent days of the player's union so there may have been some battles with the Topps folks and their monopoly at the time.

Edgy DC Jan 28 2010 10:13 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Pretty funny, considering Rusty's apparent antipathy toward the card industry, to see his 1974 card depicting him looking a bit sassy and petulant.

Benjamin Grimm Jan 28 2010 10:14 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

I remember that 1972 Rusty Staub Topps card was one that everyone in my neighborhood wanted. Little did we know that it didn't even exist.

metsguyinmichigan Jan 28 2010 10:16 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Uniwatch was having a discussion about the old Hostess baseball cards that were on the backs of Twinkies boxes, and I was reminded of this Rusty Staub disaster. Among the flaws: 1) They left the Expos logo on the jersey 2) They painted on only some of the pinstripes. 3) They used a photo that was more than three years old, as this is from 1975. I can only guess that the artists were on a major sugar buzz from eating too many Ring Dings and was distracted. Or, they just didn't give a damn. I'm guessing that Hostess licensed their pictures from Topps and that the screwup with the Expos "elb" logo and pinstriping was not an artist's oversight, but that the photo was supposed to be cropped higher up, at around Staub's neck and through the shoulder line. I've seen several proofs of old Topps cards where the cap or helmet was airbrushed to reflect the player's brand new team. In those proofs, the jersey top (former team) was left unaltered. The final card was cropped above the jersey. That's a darn good theory! Not as much fun as the Ring Ding Defense, but it sure makes sense.

batmagadanleadoff Jan 28 2010 10:22 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

If my theory rings dings true, then that Hostess card might've been Staub's 1972 Topps card, but with better cropping: a head shot.

Nymr83 Jan 28 2010 10:26 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Benjamin Grimm wrote: I remember that 1972 Rusty Staub Topps card was one that everyone in my neighborhood wanted. Little did we know that it didn't even exist. shame on you guys for not inventing the internet so you could find a checklist!

seawolf17 Jan 28 2010 10:27 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

I want one. It's been added to my wantlist.

metsguyinmichigan Jan 28 2010 10:32 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

I've been trying to figure out the park in the background. Did Jerry Park even have a roof like that? Maybe the road grays were a light shade of gray, or this is from the spring? You rarely see Rusty in long sleeves, much less a windbreaker under the jersey.

Benjamin Grimm Jan 28 2010 10:33 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

batmagadanleadoff Jan 28 2010 10:36 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Frayed Knot wrote: He was one of the earlier leaders in those nascent days of the player's union so there may have been some battles with the Topps folks and their monopoly at the time. There were. It was Marvin Miller's idea to seek higher royalty fees from Topps for the players during the very early 1970's. Initially, Topps wouldn't budge; they had all the players signed up and thought that Miller and the Union were powerless to effect any change. Topps did not even bother to negotiate with Miller. But when players began refusing to renew their expired contracts, Topps saw the light and eventually caved in. It appears that there was no reserve clause in baseball card contracts.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Jan 28 2010 10:39 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Here's a classick:

metsguyinmichigan Jan 28 2010 10:40 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Benjamin Grimm wrote: Beautiful!!!

Benjamin Grimm Jan 28 2010 10:41 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

And only 38 years late!

metsguyinmichigan Jan 28 2010 10:43 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

I love those 1972s. I'm about 45 cards away from finishing the set, and about 20 cards away from the 1971. I've got all the Topps base sets from 1973 on.

seawolf17 Jan 28 2010 10:51 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

I'd ask which ones you need in case I have dupes, but I'm assuming they'll be high numbers. I'm only missing two: Foli and Sudakis.

batmagadanleadoff Jan 28 2010 11:04 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

That's neat. I just remembered that in the 1972 set, some traded players were carded with an airbrushed cap, , while others appeared in later series', photographed in their new team's uniform with the word "Traded" stamped over the picture, stencil style:

Benjamin Grimm Jan 28 2010 11:10 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Yeah, I remember thinking it was a ripoff that both Fregosi and Ryan were depicted as Angels. If they knew that Ryan was an Angel, how could they not have known that Fregosi was a Met? I made a version of that 1972 traded card immediately after the Mets acquired Santana two years ago:

Edgy DC Jan 28 2010 11:14 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Benjamin Grimm wrote: I remember that 1972 Rusty Staub Topps card was one that everyone in my neighborhood wanted. Little did we know that it didn't even exist. Were some guys claiming that they had seen it? Or even had it?

Benjamin Grimm Jan 28 2010 11:15 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Not that I recall, but there may have been.

G-Fafif Jan 28 2010 12:35 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

And here I was thinking the worst Mets card ever had to be any that portrayed the 2009 Mets.

batmagadanleadoff Jan 28 2010 12:38 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Benjamin Grimm wrote: Yeah, I remember thinking it was a ripoff that both Fregosi and Ryan were depicted as Angels. If they knew that Ryan was an Angel, how could they not have known that Fregosi was a Met? Fregosi appeared as an Angel, probably because his card was included in the earliest First Series (card #115). In all likelihood, the First Series had already been printed by the time he was traded to the Mets. Ryan's card (#595) appeared in the 5th Series; Topps, presumably, had time to airbrush an Angels logo on his card.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jan 28 2010 12:44 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

G-Fafif wrote: And here I was thinking the worst Mets card ever had to be any that portrayed the 2009 Mets. Got caught in Citi 3-4 times last year with time to kill-- couple of rain delays, couple of waits for friends-- and a couple of extra bucks burning a hole in my jeans pockets. Ended up buying 4 big packs total of last year's Topps set. Bought one of the '08s, too-- I think they might have been on sale. EVERY pack-- each one purchased AFTER the first week of June, and the A-Rod pop-up-- had a Luis Castillo pop up in there. (The '08 one was foil-stamped, and gave its life to the Two Boots wall for a pint of Brooklyn Lager.)

metsguyinmichigan Jan 28 2010 02:06 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

No discussion of Topps and air-brushed Mets is complete without the 1973 Agee. Is that Harrelson and Rusty suddenly joining Tommie on the Astros?

Edgy DC Jan 28 2010 02:39 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Rusty can't win, can he?

Ashie62 Jan 29 2010 12:54 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Could be worse, he could be Russell Jay Kuntz "Rusty Kuntz"

metsguyinmichigan Jan 30 2010 06:54 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

[url]http://metsguyinmichigan.blogspot.com/2010/01/solving-mystery-of-horrific-hostess.html Had to give the awesome Crane Pool Forum the love for solving this mystery!

Ashie62 Jan 30 2010 08:44 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

metsguyinmichigan wrote: I've been trying to figure out the park in the background. Did Jerry Park even have a roof like that? Maybe the road grays were a light shade of gray, or this is from the spring? You rarely see Rusty in long sleeves, much less a windbreaker under the jersey. It is Jarry Park....small roof..The big LF bleachers give it away..Been there for what its worth

batmagadanleadoff Feb 07 2010 09:03 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Uniwatch was having a discussion about the old Hostess baseball cards that were on the backs of Twinkies boxes, and I was reminded of this Rusty Staub disaster. Among the flaws: 1) They left the Expos logo on the jersey 2) They painted on only some of the pinstripes. 3) They used a photo that was more than three years old, as this is from 1975. I can only guess that the artists were on a major sugar buzz from eating too many Ring Dings and was distracted. Or, they just didn't give a damn. I'm guessing that Hostess licensed their pictures from Topps and that the screwup with the Expos "elb" logo and pinstriping was not an artist's oversight, but that the photo was supposed to be cropped higher up, at around Staub's neck and through the shoulder line. I've seen several proofs of old Topps cards where the cap or helmet was airbrushed to reflect the player's brand new team. In those proofs, the jersey top (former team) was left unaltered. The final card was cropped above the jersey. Comparing the 1974 Topps Bob Miller card with its' Topps proof (below) illustrates why I thought that the Hostess Staub image was intended to be cropped, rather than airbrushed further.

batmagadanleadoff Feb 07 2010 09:06 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Here's another example --- Casey Stengel's 1962 Topps card, and proof:

John Cougar Lunchbucket Feb 07 2010 09:12 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Where do the Topps proofs come from?

batmagadanleadoff Feb 07 2010 09:16 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever? Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Feb 08 2010 08:27 AM

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Where do the Topps proofs come from? The Topps [crossout]ostrich[/crossout] stork.

batmagadanleadoff Feb 07 2010 09:48 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Where do the Topps proofs come from? They were auctioned on ebay last year.

batmagadanleadoff Feb 08 2010 08:31 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

batmagadanleadoff wrote: John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Where do the Topps proofs come from? The Topps [crossout]ostrich[/crossout] stork. Stork. I meant to write stork. Because, you know, "where do _______ come from? Come from. Get it?

Benjamin Grimm Feb 08 2010 08:42 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

You had me thinking that maybe an ostrich chick was called a "proof."

metsguyinmichigan Feb 09 2010 08:50 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever? Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Feb 09 2010 09:23 AM

[url]http://metsguyinmichigan.blogspot.com/2010/02/for-every-hello-there-is-goodbye-metdom.html Had some fun with the other perspective -- guys traded away from the Mets. Some examples of badness, but nothing as horrid as that Hostess Staub. The 1972 Bobby Pfeil is a disaster, first because the Mets lettering is not totally covered, but also because he played for several other teams before getting to the Sox -- and I don't think he ever made it to Fenway. And the 1973 Dave Marshall has a Padres collar and cap, with the Mets pinstripes.

Edgy DC Feb 09 2010 09:01 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Comparing the 1974 Topps Bob Miller card with its' Topps proof (below) illustrates why I thought that the Hostess Staub image was intended to be cropped, rather than airbrushed further. The other problem with this card is that they took the picture in the future of a 51-year-old Miller at an old-timers game and then went back in time to use it to represent him as a 35-year-old.

Edgy DC Jul 29 2010 09:00 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Bam!

Zvon Jul 29 2010 10:37 PM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

Hey Grimm, is there a checklist for your cards? I have 42 cards. I am not counting Santana's '71 card back as a separate card, and I am counting the Bensen babe.

Benjamin Grimm Jul 30 2010 05:22 AM Re: Worst Mets card ever?

They're all on the UMDB Facebook page.