Friday, November 18, 2011

Action Shots in the '80s: Not Shea, Again!

Action shots first showed up on Topps cards in 1971. Throughout the '70s they slowly crept onto more cards. And during the '80s they became more and more common. But Topps, based in New York, seemed to shoot most of the National League action shots at Shea Stadium. And once the photographer picked his shooting spot in 1981, he stayed put there the rest of the decade. That led to some pretty boring cards.



This is Scot Thompson's 1981 card. Take note of the dugout in the background, because you're going to see it seven more times!



Shea got a paint job in 1981, but otherwise, it's the same spot on Jim Tracy's 1982 card....



....and Jody Davis in 1983....



....Jody again, 1984....



....Bobby Dernier in 1985....



Steve Lake in 1986....



....Ryno in 1987....



....and in almost a carbon copy of the Ryno card complete with ball coming off the bat, its Jerome Walton in 1989.



Here are the eight all together. Do you have a sense of deja vu? Do you have a sense of deja vu?
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4 comments:

  1. AnonymousNovember 18, 2011 at 12:44 PM

    Combing thru the '82 set, I find A TON of cards showing batters at the plate in Shea. It gets ridiculous. Although, I understand Topps reasoning -- they are based in NY and it cuts travel costs.

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  2. Wrigley WaxNovember 18, 2011 at 12:49 PM

    ...but it sure makes for some boring, repetitive cards!

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  3. Anthony HughesNovember 19, 2011 at 11:12 AM

    Jody Davis is never boring! Never! :)
    But I see your point.

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  4. Mariner1November 19, 2011 at 4:56 PM

    I never knew that they would wear their home white pants on the road. I always thought it was the standard boring gray pants away from Wrigley. It's fun to learn something new.

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