1992 eric plunk

eric plunk was released by the yankees after the 1991 season, and wound up signing as a free agent with the blue jays. here's his 1992 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

unfortunately, plunk was released by the blue jays during spring training in 1992 and didn't sign with the indians until after the season had started. he was 9-6 with 4 saves in 1992, and proved to be a key cog in the indians' bullpen over the next few seasons.

voici à vous, 1992 eric plunk!

1991 mike boddicker

mike boddicker joined the royals for the 1991 season via free agency. here's his 1991 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

after a 17-win season for the red sox in 1990, boddicker won 12 games for the royals in 1991. his era was up up bit, as was his whip, but he pitched well enough to win at least a couple more games. in what was likely to be his second to last start of the season, boddicker made 3 pitches and was removed after injuring himself trying to field a rickey henderson grounder. he didn't pitch again until the 1992 season when he was used primarily out of the royals' bullpen.

voici à vous, 1991 mike boddicker!

1990 damaso garcia

damaso garcia signed a free agent deal with the yankees in december of 1989. here's his 1990 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

garcia had begun his career with the yankees but his return to the big apple was stopped short. whether due to injury or a poor spring showing, he did not appear in a game for new york in 1990, nor did he play for any of their minor league affiliates. now retired, garcia returned to the dominican republic and was shortly thereafter diagnosed with a brain tumor. the tumor was removed, and garcia now runs a baseball camp in the dominican.

voici à vous, 1990 damaso garcia!

1977 bill campbell

bill campbell went from the twins to the red sox after the 1976 season, and, not satisfied with topps' bad airbrush job (which left campbell in baby blues), o-pee-chee created one of their own for their 1977 set.  here it is:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

at least topps and o-pee-chee both had the sense to leave campbell in his twins gear for the league leader card.  yes, campbell had been the 'fireman of the year' for the american league in 1976 while a member of the minnesota twins as a result of his league leading 78 relief appearances, 17 relief wins, and 20 saves.  after signing a free agent deal with the bosox in the offseason, cambpell repeated as the american league's leading reliever in 1977, leading the league with 31 saves.

voici à vous, 1977 bill campbell!

1992 dave burba

dave burba was traded in december of 1991 from the mariners to the giants. here's his 1992 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

the giants tried burba out as a starter to begin the season before using both as a reliever and a piece of the rotation over the course of the rest of the campaign. he finished with a 2-7 record (1-6 as a starter) and a 4.97 era.

voici à vous, 1992 dave burba!

1991 wes gardner

wes gardner was traded from the red sox to the padres in december of 1990 for a couple of minor leaguers. here's his 1991 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

gardner wound up splitting the season between two teams as he was released by the padres in may, and then picked up by the royals in late june. in total, gardner was 0-1 with a save in 17 games in 1991, his last year in the big leagues.

voici à vous, 1991 wes gardner!

1990 hubie brooks

in december of 1989, hubie brooks signed a free agent contract with the dodgers. here's his 1990 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

brooks was brought in to replace mike marshall in right field, and he provided the dodgers with a solid season in doing so. he hit 20 home runs and drove in 91 runs in 153 games. after the season, the dodgers traded him to the mets for bob ojeda and replaced him in the lineup with darryl strawberry.

voici à vous, 1990 hubie brooks!

1977 ray fosse

o-pee-chee took the liberty of moving and stacking ray fosse's facsimilie autograph on his 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

they also cropped the photo ever so slightly (his entire left cleat is visible in the o-pee-chee version). i really wish they would have been more dramatic with their cropping. anyway, fosse had returned to the indians after a three year sabbatical in oakland (where he won two world series rings) just in time to wear the full red uniforms. he hit over .300 in 1976, but was traded by the tribe to the mariners late in 1977. after the season, fosse signed with the brewers, so we are sol as far as ray fosse mariners cards go. unless you check out 1977 topps baseball cards updated, that is.

voici à vous, 1977 ray fosse!

1992 andres galarraga

the 'big cat', andres galarraga, was traded in november of 1991 by the expos to the cardinals. here's his 1992 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

in his lone season with the cardinals, galarraga played in 95 games and hit 10 homers with 39 rbi. it was a down year for galarraga, and perhaps the lone highlight of the season was the grand slam he hit off of john wetteland when he returned to montreal in august. after the season was over, he was granted free agency and ultimately signed with the rockies. to say his career enjoyed a resurgence as a result is an understatement.

voici à vous, 1992 andres galarraga!

1991 ivan calderon

ivan calderon was acquired by the expos as part of the december 1990 trade that sent tim, sorry - rock raines to the white sox. here's his 1991 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

it should be noted that we also got his 1992 upper deck card as a result of the deal. nice haircut. anyway, calderon hit an even .300 for the expos in 1991, and was the starting left fielder for the national league's all-star team. in the midsummer classic he was 1 for 2 with a single off of jack morris. for the season, he hit 19 home runs, drove in 75, and stole 31 bases. he played one more season in montreal before splitting 1993 between the red sox and white sox to end his career.

voici à vous, 1991 ivan calderon!

1990 joe carter

joe carter was traded from the indians to the padres in december of 1989 for sandy alomar and carlos baerga. here's his 1990 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

carter spent only one season in san diego, but he played in every game, hitting 24 homers and driving in 115 runs. the padres then sent carter (along with roberto alomar) on to the blue jays in a postseason deal that netted them fred mcgriff and tony fernandez.

voici à vous, 1990 joe carter!

1977 dave concepcion

dave concepcion got a photo variation (cropping), award variation, and autograph placement variation, all rolled up into one in 1977. here's his 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

concepcion was in the midst of his all-star and gold glove domination in 1977, having been named to his 4th all-star team (third consecutive time as the starter) and having won his 4th (of 5) gold gloves at shortstop. concepcion gave way to larry bowa in 1978 and 1979 and bill russell in 1980 before reclaiming the starting spot for the national league in 1981 and 1982. while he was 0 for 1 with a walk in the 1977 midsummer classic, for his career, concepcion was a .250 hitter in the all-star game.

voici à vous, 1977 dave concepcion!

1992 storm davis

storm davis was traded from the royals to the orioles in december of 1991. here's his 1992 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

davis continued his transition from starter to reliever in his lone year in baltimore. in 48 appearances and only 2 starts, davis went 7-3 with 4 saves on the season. he parlayed his performance into a free agent contract with the a's for the 1993 season.
 
voici à vous, 1992 storm davis!