A second change was the addition of an yellow rectangle with the player's autograph. Perhaps they got complaints that buyers didn't know who the players were on the cards. Plus, Topps has featured autographs on both the '52 and '53 sets and Bowman may have felt the need to keep up with the Jones.
Bowman was able to increase their set size by another 64 cards, and that meant that there were more Cubs in the set, too. Fifteen were featured including one hall of famer....but it's not who you think it might be. You'll have to guess someone else besides Ernie Banks, and I'll bet your wrong!
Go ahead and take a look at the cards and find your hall of famer.
Here is your hall of fame...broadcaster, Joe Garagiola
Garagiola was a great broadcaster...but Ralph Kiner was no slouch, either.
ReplyDeleteRalph Kiner is a Hall of Famer too, for his actual playing. His broadcasting was, well, interesting?
ReplyDeleteKiner asked for more money from the Pirates and they turned him down. The team was awful; only reason anybody went to the games was to see if Kiner would "hit one out". But Pirates figured, they had finished last with him, they could finish last without him.
Yea, that's my mistake for forgetting about Kiner and the hall.
ReplyDeleteThat's ok. He was primarily a Pirate anyway and may have "slipped under the radar" a bit with a Cub fan.
ReplyDeleteEver hear his story of the day he was elected to the Hall? It was his 15th and final appearance on the writers' ballot, but prospects were good as it was a weak year. Just about the time the Hall rep would usually call with the verdict, Kiners' mother-in-law called to gossip with his wife. He was worried he'd be elected, they'd get a busy signal, and he'd never get into the Hall!