2001 UPPER DECK DECADE 1970 SINGLE GAME USED BAT PART XIV

 

                     "Now Batting #13 Dave Conception........"The Shortstop that was the keystone partner to Joe Morgan (another member of this exclusive set) as well the rest of the Big Red Machine of the 1970's teams. Dave was a 5 time Gold Glover 9 time All-Star (Including 1 All-Star MVP winner in 1982). Dave was from Venezuela who modeled his game after watching the former White Sox great & Venezuelan Chico Carrasquel. Dave is 1 of 4 players in this set that played their entire career with just 1 team (The other 3 are Bill Russell,Roberto Clemente, & Roy White) even though he was released prior to the 1989 season he signed with the Angels but didn't make the team out of Spring Training. 

                I will remember Dave in 1988 when I was 13 my family was on vacation my mom arranged us to keep me happy for my part & as usual a delayed birthday (mind you my birthday is in June) present 5 tickets for the whole family to watch the Cincinnati Reds play the Pittsburgh Pirates at 3 Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh on August 22 the Reds won 2-0 over the Pirates. I was happy to see Danny Jackson win his 18th game on the way to a 23-8 season & seeing Chris Sabo in his rookie year on his way to take the Rookie of the Year that year. Anyways so after the game I went to where fans could get autographs if they were lucky to get anything signed which I was able to get Rob Dibble,Chris Sabo,(When I told him I was a fellow Michigander he was surprised that a kid from Michigan came to see him even though I wore my Ohio State hat) then a huge crowd saw Doug Drabek & they all went after him including my little brother Ethan who said I'll go get his for ya brother I said thanks then out came Dave Collins I remember he was on his 2nd tour with the Reds plus I recognized him only no one else did we talked about his 1st tour of Cincinnati & then his only season with the Detroit Tigers & what he thought about the chances of the Reds being a contender he said probably won't happen until 1990 which turned out to be true & he was shocked that someone recognized him then I thanked him for his time & as went he said kid there goes Dave Conception which I recognized as well so I said Senor Conception may I please have your Autograph unfortunately Dave just brushed my request off & continued to walk away. It wasn't until later someone told me that Dave just heard he was going to be released after the year & he wasn't signing anything, which I understood but at least he could have said something to me saying sorry I don't sign. Meanwhile Ethan was lucky enough to get me Doug Drabek's then we went back to find the rest of the family & headed to our hotel room to gear up for the rest of the vacation which was going to Gettysburg the next day then end going to Hershey to see the chocolate factory. 

So despite what happened that family vacation is the image of him brushing me off say he doesn't deserve to be in the set no I think he does cause he was like I said earlier the shortstop of The Big Red Machine his bat came through in some good games during the 1970s especially hitting .370 against the Yankees in the 1976 World Series. So what is your take on him leave your comment below next up is Dave's former teammate of the Reds from 1984-1987 & Hall of Famer Class of 2025 Dave 'Cobra' Parker. Until then I leave you the quote unfortunately I disagree on that Mr. Conception is one but said by the great Rogers Hornsby "Any ballplayer who doesn't sign Autographs for little kids ain't an American, He's a Communist."

2001 UPPER DECK DECADE 1970s SINGLE BAT GAME USED PART XIII

 

                  "Now Batting #25 Don Baylor......." Don Baylor or known as his teammates Groove. Don played for the Baltimore Orioles,Oakland Athletics,California Angels,New York Yankees,Boston Red Sox,Minnesota Twins, then returning to the Athletics. After his playing career was over he was named in 1993 for the Expansion Colorado Rockies as their first Manager then he later managed the Chicago Cubs.               When Don was traded to the Athletics he was traded for a future teammate Reggie Jackson(Who's also a member of this set & was a Teammate of Don's in 1982 as well Bob Grich) Don was named MVP during the 1979 season leading the Angels to their first ever playoff appearance as well leading the American League in RBIs with 139 that went well when he hit .296 with 36 Home Runs.  Don however is best known for being hit by pitch a total of 267 times as well the first player to appear in the World Series 3 consecutive years with 3 different teams (Boston,Minnesota,Oakland his record was 1-2 winning only when he was with the Twins) later the feat was tied by Eric Hinske & Will Smith.  Don to me would be the 1970s equivalent to what David Ortiz was in the 2000s for the Red Sox cause mainly when Don played he was a DH so if you were to ask me does Don deserve to be in this set yes cause of he was man that would come through with clutch at bats plus he was an MVP for team that most critics said that the Royals would have won in 1979 but it was Don's Angels that took the American League West title that year unforunate they couldn't beat the Baltimore Orioles in the ALCS. Plus Don showed leadership qualities when he played for the Angels & the other teams that he used when he was either a batting coach & it was process that made the Rockies eligible for the post season the 3rd season of their existence at the time. So does Don make your selection in this set let me know in the comments below on deck is Shortstop Dave Conception until then I am remind you that Rogers Hornsby once said about signing autographs "Any Ballplayer who doesn't sign Autographs for little kids ain't an American, He's a Communist." 

2001 UPPER DECK DECADE 1970’S SINGLE BAT GAME USED PART XII

 

                           "Now Batting #41 Darrell Evans........" Back in January of 1985 I went to a show that was being held at North end of town it was the first show that introduced me to traded sets (Cause while waiting in line to get Darrell's autograph I saw my first traded set card of Darrell another collector had it for him to sign while I thought it was his 1985 Topps card #792 was his first instead it was the 1984 Topps Traded #36T) how I wish I could go back in time to tell younger self to get certain things now & don't question it but would it been able to find those things at that time maybe & maybe not (Like gather as many hockey cards mainly the Gretzky RCs as well some basketball cards from the `80/'81 set as well some older baseball from 66 on back or start making sets then). It was that show my mom met her favorite Detroit Tiger at the time as for me it was the 1st player I met that won a World Series even though it was the year after. The player Darrell Evans who in the 1970s was a member of the Atlanta Braves from 1969- 1976 then he was traded to the San Francisco Giants for Willie Montanez (a player who's also in the set) until 1983 then was the first big time name to sign as a free agent to the Detroit Tigers where he played until 1988 then went back to the Braves before being released in 1990. In 1973 Darrell hit 41 Home Runs which placed him 3rd behind Willie Stargell who hit 44 as well his teammate Davey Johnson who hit 43 but the funniest thing Darrell hit 1 more home run then teammate Hank Aaron(Another member of this set) it marked the first time that 3 teammates hit 40+ Home Runs in a season. Then as I mentioned in the Carlton Fisk part of this series that Darrell in 1985 hit 40 Home Runs making him the first in MLB history to hit 40+ Home Runs in both leagues.  Another interesting trivia answer that involves Darrell it was on 52 years ago today that Darrell was on 1st base in the bottom of the 4th inning of the Atlanta Braves hosting the Los Angeles Dodgers & Dusty Baker was on deck when Hank made history. Darrell in 2018 on our second encounter recalled how Hank was glad to hit the historic Home Run at home even though he wishes he tied it but Bowie Kuhn interfered & told the Braves he had to play at least Opening Day in Cincinnati which was 4 days earlier. 

                        Hank Aaron coming home after hitting #715 ya can see Darrell's #11 (Yes I know when I Introduced him I said he wearing #41 the thing is Darrell's Manager Eddie Matthews wore #41 when he was with the Braves only reason he wore 41 for the Giants & Tigers he couldn't wear #11 cause of Carl Hubbell had his # retired for the Giants & Sparky Anderson wore #11 when he was with the Tigers) in front of Joe Ferguson #13.

Darrell & I back in 2018 discussed April 8th 1974 as well when we first met in January 1985.

Now if you ask me does Darrelll deserve to be part of this set he again is on the fence so what do you say does he or doesn't he leave your comment below stay tuned as on deck is Don Baylor until then as former Brave Rogers Hornsby once said about signing autographs for little kids "Any Ballplayer who doesn't sign autographs for little kids ain't an American, He's a Communist."

2001 UPPER DECK DECADE 1970’S SINGLE BAT GAME USED PART XI

 

         "Now Batting #27 Carlton Fisk......" from 1969 to 1980 that's what you might have heard watching the Boston Red Sox play. Carlton was named Rookie of the Year in 1972 in fact he was the first unanimously American League winner. He was an 11x All-Star Catcher. He's best known as the Original 'Pudge' (The other was Ivan Rodriguez also a Hall of Fame Catcher as well). 

           Most of Carlton's career he was injured with knee injuries in fact in June 1974 he was bowled over by Leron Lee of the Indians & the doctors told him he'll never play again well.....Pudge with his feisty determination showed the doctors wrong by being behind the backstop again at spring training only to re-injured it leaving him to appear in 79 game appearances but it was good enough to help the Red Sox on to the post season with the help of 2 rookies Jim Rice & Fred Lynn (Another member of this set more on him later in the series) as well veteran Carl Yastrzemski. After Boston swept the 3x defending World Champion Oakland A's in the 1975 ALCS where Carlton hit .417 they were heading to the World Series to take on the Cincinnati Reds. It was in Game 3 in Cincinnati where Carlton hit the first Home Run of the series then in the bottom of the 10th inning with pinch-hitter Ed Armbrister at bat chaos occured when Fisk collided with Ed as he was hesitating after bunting the ball having Fisk throw the ball errorlessly into centerfield causing Catcher Interference which moved the winning run into scoring position Carlton & Red Sox Manager Darrell Johnson disagreed with the call you tell me by looking at the photo of it. Unfortunately umpire Larry Barnett didn't see it that way later in the inning the Reds won it on bloop hit giving them a 2-1 edge in the series.

Close up action of the bump.

Left to right Barnett watches Carlton collide with Armbrister at the plate. 

                        Later on in the series what most fans remember of this series is what happened in Game 6 with the score deadlocked at 6 thanks to a Bernie Carbo pinch-hit Home-run to tie the game in the bottom of the 8th. Carlton found himself in the top of the 10th hearing Pete Rose "Man isn't this the most exciting game you ever played in." with Carlton replying "Some kind of Game." Then Carlton proceeded to come up in the bottom of the 12th with no outs in the on deck circle Carlton turned to Fred Lynn saying "Freddy I am going to hit one off the wall. Drive me in" instead on 1-0 pitch from Pat Darcy Carlton swung & hit the ball close to the Left field foul pole but somehow Fisk was waving the ball with some english to ween it fair giving the Red Sox a 7-6 victory to force a Game 7. Most people can thank a rat for the iconic scene for NBC Cameraman Lou Gerard saw this rat scurry by him instead of following the ball he kept the camera directly on Carlton as he waved it fair. 

"....The 1-0 Delivery to Fisk. He Swings ....long drive left field if stays fair it's GONE!!!!! HOME RUN!!!! The Red Sox win!!!!  & the series is tied, 3 games apiece......" -Ned Martin calling it on the radio.

                Moments after hitting the winning Home Run the organist broke out in the infamous 'Halleljuah Chorus" by Handel. Then came the aftermath once the game was over the fans had left the park looking forward to Game 7 Carlton however couldn't find a place to sleep so he had to drive all the way New Hampshire cause all the hotels in the Boston area were booked solid due to the series & the surrounding areas so picture if ya will ya win a world series game & your denied a place to stay over night. 

                  It was also in the decade of the 1970's that Fisk would be compared to another catcher in the American League that being 1 Thurman Munson. During some of the heated rival games between the Red Sox & New York Yankees the 2 would be at each other's throats neither one like the other. The 2 would battle on who really deserves to be the starting catcher for the All-Star games through out the whole decade. 

                 After the 1980 season Fisk was declared a free agent even though he waited for the Red Sox to resign him unfortunately they didn't so instead Carlton changed his color of Sox from Red to White joining the Chicago White Sox where he would concluded his Hall of Fame career until 1993. It wasn't the only thing that he changed he went from wearing #27 to reverse his fortune by wearing #72 both Boston & Chicago would go on to retired those numbers after Carlton was inducted to Baseballs Hall of Fame in 2000. Funny thing he was inducted to the Hall the 25th Anniversary of the that famous World Series & he was inducted along with former teammate of his Tony Perez (Tony went in as a Cincinnati Reds though) & the Rival Manager of the Reds Sparky Anderson. Another thing most people perhaps didn't know was  that his sister Janet married Rick Miller a teammate of Carlton's when they were in Boston. I could go on & on about Carlton's career how he almost led the league in Home Runs in 1985 but Darrell Evans (Another member of this set) beat him by 3 Evans had 40 & Fisk 37 both were old veterans of the game. Fisk was 37 when he hit that many home runs while Evans was 38. Instead I'll end this post before it becomes a novel. So does Carlton Fisk deserve to be in the set I would say without a doubt he deserves to be what's your take my reader. Waiting on deck is Darrell Evans until then remember what Rogers Hornsby once said about signing autographs for little kids "Any Ballplayer who doesn't sign autographs for little kids ain't an American, He's a Commuinst." 

2001 UPPER DECK DECADE 1970s GAME USED BATS PART X

 

                     "Now Batting #3 Bud Harrelson......" Derrel Harrelson is his given name but he was better known as Bud. Now what makes this bat piece interesting its the 1st of 6 bats that are limited to a certain run this piece has only 290 pieces he also appears in the quad bat pieces with 3 of his Mets teammates(Harrelson,Ron Hunt,Tom Seaver, & Tug McGraw are the 4 on the card) as well a piece that honors the 1973 World Series (Harrelson,Reggie Jackson, Bert Campaneris, Tom Seaver) but neither of the quad pieces are a limited run. Bud was a shortstop on the 1969 Amazing Mets squad plus as I mentioned in the 1973 World Series. 

                     The road to the 1973 World Series is the reason why I believe the reason why Upper Deck included him in this set is cause of the National League Championship Series when the Mets took on the Cincinnati Reds when in Game 3 with the Mets beating the Reds 9-2 it was in the top of 5th Inning with 1 out Pete Rose on 1st base & Joe Morgan hits a slow dribbler to 1st baseman John Milner who quickly threw out Rose at 2nd then Harrelson threw back to Milner for a 3-6-3 Double Play to end the Inning. What happened next is what you see in the picture below there was a scuffle between Rose & Harrelson leading a bench clearing brawl funny thing after clearer heads prevailed neither Rose or Harrelson were ejected from the game just makes ya wonder what would happened if were to happened in the game now. My guess would be both would've been ejected & later both would have been fined or suspended for an amount of games. What do you think let me know in the comments below. 

I Bet ya Pete blames Bud for this Brawl. Meanwhile Wayne Garrett tries to break it up.

                              Bud later was a Teammate of Rose's in 1979 when Rose joined the Phillies in 1979 as Harrelson himself was traded to them in 1978 but neither gentleman discuss about the brawl. Then Bud was released days prior to the Phillies opener in 1980 during the last 8 days of Spring Training that year when their was a labor dispute but opening day wasn't effected cause the Phillies started their opening day on April 11th. Then Bud signed with the Rangers in May when Rusty Staub a former Mets Teammate sprained his thumb then the Rangers let Harrelson go at the end of the season. Bud later was coaching 3rd base during the 1986 season which plays a significant part for Bud he was the only person to wear a Mets Uniform for both World Champions titles that the Mets have won as the time of this posting. Like Rose who later managed the Reds from 1984 to 1989, Bud was named Manager of the Mets in 1990 after they fired Davey Johnson & then he himself was fired after a dismal 2nd half performance in the 1991 leading the Mets to into a new direction for the 1992 season.   

        Now if you ask me does Bud deserve to be in this position simply to say had Upper Deck decided to do eras like this Bud would have gotten my vote for the 1960s. However Bud doesn't get mine for the 70s 1 little scuffle in the playoffs so what is your take lmk until then when we talk about Carlton Fisk & just remember that Rogers Hornsby once said "Any Ballplayer who doesn't sign Autographs for little kids Ain't an American, He's a Communist."

2001 UPPER DECK DECADE 1970s GAME USED SINGLE BATS PART IX

 

                    "Now Batting #18 Bill Russell........" The player is a Dodgers favorite as well one of 2 bloggers favorite players in the 1970s that being Mr. Night Owl & Mr GCRL. Bill was the Shortstop in the famous infield of Ron Cey at 3rd, Russell at Short, Davey Lopes at 2nd, & Steve Garvey (Another member of this set) that roamed the Dodger infield from June 23rd, 1973 Until the final out of the 1981 World Series. Russell was the only one to spend his entire career in the Dodger Blue cause as we all know Lopes went to Oakland in 1982 Garvey tested free agency in 1983 to join the Padres & Cey went to the Cubs in 1983 to help a struggling 3rd baseman at the time so he could move to 2nd base that 3rd basemen was Ryne Sandberg. Russell was always one of those unsung heroes of the game he just happened to play around the same time at a position that was dominated by another member of this set Dave Conception. 

                    Now as I mentioned before Bill spent his entire career with the Dodgers after the 1986 season concluded he stayed on to become the Dodgers bench coach with Tommy LaSorda at the helm. Then when Tommy had to be forced out to leave the game in 1996 due to health issues the Dodgers called on Bill to be the interm he stayed on as Manager until June 21 1998 he was fired due to a disappointing start of the 1998 season. I am sure that Night Owl & GRCL can share their Dodger insights on why they believe Bill Russell deserves to be on this list if were up to me in my opinion he's another borderline member if ya ask me so what's your take on it yeah or nay. Next up in the line up is Bud Harrelson Until then I am reminded of what Rogers Hornsby once said about signing autographs for little kids "Any Ballplayer who doesn't sign autographs for little kids ain't an American,He's a Communist."

2001 UPPER DECK DECADE 1970s BAT SERIES PART VIII

 

                   "Now Batting #26 Booooooooooooooooog Powell.............." John Wesley Powell aka Boog or "Booger" from his teammates on the Orioles would call him the lather even though it was his father that was the first called him Boog. 

             Boog would play from 1961 to 1977 mainly with the Balitmore Orioles but had stints with the Cleveland Indians where he was managed by former teammate Frank Robinson in 1975 & 1976 before going to the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1977. While Boog was an All-Star caliber player he won the American League MVP award in 1970. He once commented on the all red Indians uniforms he wore that he looked like a Bloody Tomato or a Big Red Blood Clot if you ask me I agree. After Boog retired he did Miller Lite commercials then in 1992 he opened up beyond the right field stands at Camden Yards a BBQ place to eat. Now I have only been to Camden one time I like to go back someday & taste test the food from others I had heard he makes a mean BBQ Brisket. 

You tell me does he look like a blood clot or a bloody tomato.

Regardless despite winning the MVP that one year he's another I would say is borderline on being in the set what's your take on it lmk until then next on the line up is Bill Russell & I don't mean the legendary Boston Celtics Center until then I am reminded of Rogers Hornsby once saying about signing autographs "Any Ballplayer who doesn't sign autographs for a little kid ain't an American, He's a Communist."