Best of 1979 Topps

[brewing]

List (highly encouraged to post pics) your top 5. The criteria of your selection is up to you (photo, great season, error, first card, favorite player, etc.).

We'll do each year starting from 1980 to 1952. I'll start a new year about once a week. I'll close voting a month after the first post of the thread and tally up the results.

With these basic rules...
1. You can only vote for a player's card twice during his entire run (Let's not make this a Mantle and Ryan love fest). Consider that when making your selections.

2. Provide a reason for each choice if you're the first person making that selection. You are encouraged, but it's not necessary to restate the point if someone already said it.

3. Pick only 5. We are going through 29 years, limiting to only Topps regular releases, tough decisions will be made. List honorable mentions if you desire, but they will not be counted in the final tally.

[brewing]

Although this is my least favorite set ever, I still have a Top 5


The pre-steriod HR leaders on one card. From an era when 50 HR's were a big deal and 60 was mythical.


The baddest pitcher in baseball, at his peak, and in full windup.


The first corrected error that I ever owned. It's kind of weird that Topps neglected to change teams on so many players that changed teams before this. Yet when they decide to do it, they screw it up.


Another intimidating force on the mound. Is he really standing on one heel?


When I was a kid, Rose cards were like Mantle cards are today. His last card as a Red (at the time) and a nice action shot.

Honorable Mention:
Ozzie Smith (boring card that didn't really get much attention until people started realizing he was a HoFer)

[JollyElm]

I loved the All Star cards. When you opened a pack and saw that extra strip of color there, you knew you had someone good!! These are three of my favorites:

garvey.jpg

morgan.jpg

palmer.jpg

Can anyone say psychopath???

yount.jpg

On August 2 of that year we lost Thurman Munson. This card will always have a big place in my heart.

munson.jpg

[Samsdaddy]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

I loved the All Star cards. When you opened a pack and saw that extra strip of color there, you knew you had someone good!! These are three of my favorites:

Attachment 119779

Attachment 119780

Attachment 119781

Can anyone say psychopath???

Attachment 119777

On August 2 of that year we lost Thurman Munson. This card will always have a big place in my heart.

Attachment 119778

I too always have loved the all star cards from the 50s, 60s and 70s. They were always my favorite cards to collect from each set it seemed.

I was also fortunate enough to see his last game as his Yankees pummeled by White Sox 9 - 1. I could remember a couple days later looking at the Sun Times and Chicago Tribune and reading the story on his tragic death.

[brob28]

Nice choices here's a few more of my favorites. Sorry about Sigourney, the older I get the better she looks!

[pepis]

Here is a very rare 1979 topps super cello,
the only one i've ever seen with Ozzie showing.

[Beatles Guy]

The first year I ever opened a pack of cards, oh the memories. Love this set.

[PM770]

I love the 1979 design. Liked it as a kid, love it as an adult.

1) George Brett - This might be my favorite card from my youth. Easily top 5. He's ready for action, I love it. And of course, the most important part, the All-Star designation.

2) Bump Wills (Ranger variation) - The first error/variation card I became aware of. I remember my friends and I getting the Bump Wills card with the Blue Jays team and still in a Rangers uni and also looking at the box scores and seeing he was still with the Rangers. Then later in the summer at the toy store as I was going through the racks and what is this?!?!? Bump Wills with the Rangers?!?!? They changed it?!?!? I thought that was so cool that they corrected it

3) Freddie Patek - He got cheated out of the All-Star designation. That year my friends and I went crazy looking at all the AL SS trying to find who the All-Star was. Burleson? No Dent? No Yount? Smalley? Still no. I'm not sure that we ever realized they just didn't have one. How disappointing. Poor Freddie Patek.

4) Jim Palmer - Another quasi-action shot. Ready for action and an All-Star

5) Jim Rice - I really liked Rice when I was a kid. That 3-year stretch from 1977-1979 he was the biggest slugger in the game. Of course, another All-Star card.

[pepis]

Originally Posted by PM770

I love the 1979 design. Liked it as a kid, love it as an adult.

1) George Brett - This might be my favorite card from my youth. Easily top 5. He's ready for action, I love it. And of course, the most important part, the All-Star designation.

2) Bump Wills (Ranger variation) - The first error/variation card I became aware of. I remember my friends and I getting the Bump Wills card with the Blue Jays team and still in a Rangers uni and also looking at the box scores and seeing he was still with the Rangers. Then later in the summer at the toy store as I was going through the racks and what is this?!?!? Bump Wills with the Rangers?!?!? They changed it?!?!? I thought that was so cool that they corrected it

3) Freddie Patek - He got cheated out of the All-Star designation. That year my friends and I went crazy looking at all the AL SS trying to find who the All-Star was. Burleson? No Dent? No Yount? Smalley? Still no. I'm not sure that we ever realized they just didn't have one. How disappointing. Poor Freddie Patek.

4) Jim Palmer - Another quasi-action shot. Ready for action and an All-Star

5) Jim Rice - I really liked Rice when I was a kid. That 3-year stretch from 1977-1979 he was the biggest slugger in the game. Of course, another All-Star card.

Paul,
Judging by your post, i feel like me you are an american league fan!
is that true?

[PM770]

I am a Cleveland Indians fan, so I do watch a lot more AL games than NL games. But truth be told, I prefer No-DH.

[campyfan39]

Here is my tops 5:

1. Winfield: Great old school uniform and helmet and beard.
2. Palmer: Classic card
3. Carew: Great looking card
4. Schmidt: Classic look
5. Ozzie Smith rc

here are ones not previously pictured:

[ALR-bishop]

[brewing]

Very low voting for this set, 5 total votes.

I'll close the voting prior to starting the Best of 1970. Can we get some more votes before then?

Jim Palmer 3
Bump Wills 2
Rod Carew 2

[Samsdaddy]

Brent, I will add to this list.

Jim Palmer by far is my favorite card in this set. Classic. When he pitched against my White Sox I knew we were going to lose.

Rod Carew, George Brett, J.R. Richard and Carlton Fisk round out my top five.

I don't think there was a better pure hitter in baseball during the 1970's than Rod Carew.

[brewing]

The winner is



2nd place

[Harliduck]

Originally Posted by Beatles Guy

The first year I ever opened a pack of cards, oh the memories. Love this set.

Me too...in my first pack ever I pulled a 79 Reggie Jackson...still one of my favorite cards. My younger brother pulled a Rick Honeycutt, who was a Mariner...that was pretty exciting. We were hooked...

[brewing]

Any additions or comments on quarantine edition of Best of 1979 Topps?

[nolemmings]

Putting myself back in the day for a moment, I really liked the Molitor, Murray and Welch cards for non-action, and the Guidry, Carlton and Mickey Rivers for action.

[rats60]

Willie Stargell
George Brett
Pete Rose
Jerry Koosman
Alan Trammell

[Cliff Bowman]

I wish I could do my alternate version Worst of 1979 Topps, but rules are rules. 79 was an absolute banner year for print freaks making it out of the factories and into packs and vending boxes. Shoddy quality control.

[mrmopar]

When I posted on the 80T thread, I didn't notice it was almost a decade old! It was less exciting to be adding to a very old thread, so this reply is less enthusiastic.

79 Rose is probably my favorite card image for that year. As noted, any of the AS badged cards are extra special and no all rookie trophies to compete with other cards makes picking the cards a bit easier too for me. My favorites will almost always be action shots too, although sometimes a portrait catches my eye. The 79 Reggie with the AS banner, for example. The Record Breaker cards were cool, with those red, white and blue name banners, too bad they were all lame posed shots. An action shot RB would have been top 5 for sure. The all-time record breakers were awesome as a kid, but the design isn't all that great. I remember seeing these old photos and wanting to learn more about the older players though.

I will say Carew and Brett are both great cards worthy of top 5, earning spots 2 & 3. I like most of Carew's mid-late 70s cards though.

Rounding out top 5 for me are Fisk and Cliff Johnson. Johnson works with the minimum vote per player rule, but Fisk had some epic 70s cards and this one is only so so compared to his 74 and 77 cards.

Several great pitching action cards would get honorable mention, like Reuschel, W. Wood, Kaat, T. John, Carlton, Messersmith, Wise, Goaassage, B Forsch, B. Lee, Borbon, M Keough to name several. Dan Driessen and Willie Montanez have nice fielding action shots that are somewhat unique.