1971 rusty staub

rusty staub was the benefactor of an extra card in the 1971 o-pee-chee set, as he was inserted into an earlier series assumedly to capitalize on his popularity with the card purchasing youth of canada. here's his 'bonus' 1971 o-pee-chee card:

number 289 in the set. 

staub's topps card in the set is number is 560 - front:

and back:

this is just a checklist variation despite the different pose since o-pee-chee also kept him in his original spot - front:

and back:

how awesome is it that his nickname needs no translation?  the answer is, very awesome.  so, which card did the bonus o-pee-chee staub replace? none other than the white sox team card!

le grand orange spent most of his career in the national league so he didn't square off against the south siders too often, but he did have a .314 lifetime average against them with an .866 ops in 45 at bats. he scored another hit against them in the 1971 o-pee-chee set.

i should note that, while the 'bonus' staub card pictured above (in all of its trimmed glory) is from my collection, the 'regular' issue is not. i decided against shelling out $80 or whatever the ebay seller was asking for, especially when i could just 'borrow' the images.

also of note is that this is the last of the 1971 o-pee-chee variations! so far we have finished the 1971, 1972, and 1974 variations, with 1978 very close to being done. thank goodness for the 1977 set!

voici à vous, 1971 rusty staub!