1977 bill stein

thanks to some left-to-right cropping differences between o-pee-chee and topps, we are here to recognize the 1977 o-pee-chee bill stein variation.  but, what's this?  could his facsimile autograph remain untouched by o-pee-chee?  i think it might have been.  that would be a rarity in this set.  here is stein's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

 the easiest way to see the cropping variation is to look at the guys over stein's left shoulder.

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

o-pee-chee could have gone with the position variation as stein was the mariners' primary third baseman during their first two years of existence.  in 1977, stein became the first third baseman in team history, as well as the first mariner to hit a double.  he was also the first mariner to have two doubles in a game, and was the first mariner to be left on base.  he did all that in their inaugural game agains the angels on opening day, 1977.  for the season as a whole, stein hit .259 with 13 homers and 67 rbi, and he tied for the team lead with 25 doubles.

voici à vous, 1977 bill stein!

1977 rennie stennett

a little north-south cropping difference and a totally relocated and differently stacked facsimile autograph are the reasons that rennie stennett shows up in my catalog of o-pee-chee variations.  here is stennett's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

stennett hit .336 for the pirates in 1977 - an average that would have placed him second to teammate dave parker on the national league leader board - but he did not have enough at bats to qualify for the title.  stennett played in only 116 games in '77 due to a broken leg that ended his season in mid august. although stennett debuted for the pirates in 1971, he did not appear in the world series that year.  fortunately, he was still with pittsburgh when they won it all in 1979, even though he was no longer their regular second baseman at the time.

voici à vous, 1977 rennie stennett!

1977 john lowenstein

today, let it be lowenstein.

this one hits all the bases as far as basic o-pee-chee variations go: team variation, text variation, photo variation, autograph placement variation.  the only thing missing is the position variation, but john lowenstein was primarily an outfielder, so there was no reason for o-pee-chee to make that change.  they changed pretty much everything else, however, as they caught lowenstein in blue jays' attire during spring training in 1977.  he had been traded by the indians to the blue jays with rick cerone for rico carty in december of 1976, but the jays dealt him back to the tribe towards the end of spring training.  luckily for us, o-pee-chee didn't slap his topps photo back on the card, but instead chose to use their photo with some good ol' traded text.  of course, they also unstacked his facsimile autograph and put it somewhere that made it legible.  here is lowenstein's 1977 o-pee-chee card: 

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

lowenstein hit .242 in 81 games for the indians in 1977, and was traded again prior to the next season.  this time, he went to texas where he played just one year before heading to baltimore.  there, he helped the orioles reach the world series in 1979 and again in 1983 when they won it all.

this is the last of the blue jays to be featured here on the blog from the 1977 o-pee-chee set, by the way.  we are really getting close to the end of the o-pee-chee variations.

voici à vous, 1977 john lowenstein!

1977 pepe frias

we get a little bit closer to pepe frias, and his facsimile autograph is not in the same spot that it was left by topps thanks to o-pee-chee in 1977.  here is frias' 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

there's not much to say about pepe.  he played slightly more second base in 1977 than he did shortstop, but he only appeared in 53 games total for the expos.  in those games, he garnered only 72 plate appearances, and hit .257 with 2 sacrifices, no walks, and just one extra base hit (a double).  frias was one of the initial wave of shortstops (along with frank taveras, ted martinez, and mario guerrero) to hail from san pedro de macoris in the dominican republic.

i did not realize that he had been in the dodgers' organization in the late 1960's (really just the offseason between the 1967 and 1968 seasons).  i had previously thought that his only turn with the blue was in 1980 and 1981.

voici à vous, 1977 pepe frias!

1977 richie zisk

this is one of the better known o-pee-chee variations from the 1977 set.  without it, we wouldn't have much to remember zisk's days in chicago by.  that's because topps left him in his pirates uniform in 1977 and then hurried to show him as a ranger in 1978.  at any rate, we get a team variation, photo variation (both cropping and airbrushing), and the good ol' autograph placement variation (plus they shrunk his auto!) from o-pee-chee.  here is richie zisk's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

the white sox acquired zisk after the 1976 season in the deal that sent goose gossage and terry forster to pittsburgh.  oh, how i wish forster and gossage were part of the 1977 o-pee-chee set.  like zisk, topps didn't acknowledge their one year on the move and airbrushed forster into a dodgers hat and gossage into yankee pinstripes for the 1978 set.  i don't know if there are any cards of forster or gossage in pirates uniforms.

back to zisk - the chisox moved him from left to right field and he responded with a career high 30 homers and 101 rbi.  ok, the two probably don't have anything to do with each other, but zisk did play well enough to earn a starting spot for the american league in the 1977 all-star game.  he made the start in left, and went 2 for 3 with 2 rbi and a double off of tom seaver.  of course, topps gypped him out of the all-star shield in 1978. zisk also homered in his first at bat with the white sox, and in doing so, became the first player to hit a home run against the blue jays.

voici à vous, 1977 richie zisk!

1977 pat zachry

with pat zachry's 1977 o-pee-chee card, we are treated to a slight photo cropping variation and an even slighter facsimile autograph relocation.  here is zachry's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

compare where the right leg touches the bottom border of the photo window.  then, look at the amount of space between the 'a' in 'pat' and that same border.

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

funny how there is no mention on the back of the card about zachry winning the 1976 nl rookie of the year award or going 2-0 in his postseason starts, including a win in game 3 of the world series against the yankees.  no, it's more important to point out his minor league success in 1975.

anyway, zachry didn't finish the 1977 season with the reds, as i am sure you are aware.  he was dealt in june to the mets as part of the package for tom seaver.  he was just 3-7 with a 5.04 era at the time of the trade, but he pitched better once he got to new york.  as a met, he was 7-6 with a 3.76 era, and he also threw his lone shutout of the season.

voici à vous, 1977 pat zachry!

1977 george medich

george medich was part of the march 1977 trade between the pirates and a's that saw phil garner leave oakland and head to the steel city.  as with garner, o-pee-chee had time to create a team variation for their set, and they outfitted medich in a nice yellow crew neck sweater in doing so.  they also moved his facsimile autograph a tad, and used a completely different photo than did topps.  here is medich's 1977 o-pee-chee card:

here's the topps front:

now the o-pee-chee back:

and the topps back:

medich made 25 starts for the a's in 1977, and he also pitched once in relief.  he had a record of 10-6 with a 4.69 era when the expansion mariners purchased his contract in mid-september.  medich was 2-0 in his 3 starts as a mariner, and pitched so well that the mets selected him on waivers shortly before the season ended.  medich made one start with the mets and took the loss, giving up 3 runs in 7 innings of work.  he was granted free agency after the season ended, and signed with the rangers, for whom he pitched until part way through the 1982 season when his contract was purchased by the brewers.

voici à vous, 1977 george medich!