1979 luis tiant

el tiante! it's hard to believe that luis tiant was released twice in a 2 month span back in 1971, prior to joining the red sox. he went on to win two games in the 1975 world series in addition to registering three twenty win seasons in boston. anyway, the red sox let him walk after the 1978 season, and the result is this 1979 o-pee-chee card.

a text and team variation - red sox and yankees together on one card.

much like 1978, the 1979 o-pee-chee release is a pared down version of the topps set. there were only 374 cards in the set, and the checklists don't match at all. once again, only the blue jays and expos have their team cards in the set. finally, o-pee-chee only issued the correct version of the bump wills card, showing him as a ranger rather than a blue jay.

here's the front of the topps version of tiant's card

and the o-pee-chee back

so bright! as you can see, the card is number 299 in the set. as in 1978, the team affiliation is updated on the back, but the 'how acquired' line remains untouched.

here's the back of the topps card

and it's number 575 in the set. like 1978, there's no rhyme or reason regarding the sequencing of the cards.

voici à vous, 1979 luis tiant!