1972 Kellogg's Was Downright In-Speiered
But what of Jose's accolades in 1988?
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1972 Kellogg’s Chris Speier (#28) - Card of the Day
One of the most enthralling superpowers of baseball cards is their ability to teach even beginners about the game.
I know I’m preaching to the choir here, but there’s nothing in this world like settling down with a stack of mushy brown Topps baseball cards and inadvertently memorizing every number, dot, and hunk of text as you pore over them again and again and again.
How else is a kid going to learn math, I ask you?
I suspect it’s not quite the same for kids today because a) I’m not a kid, b) my kid avoided/avoids anything baseball like the plague, and c) get off my lawn.
But back then — the 1980s for me, maybe the 1990s or 1960s or 1990s or 1910s for you — there were few better learning implements than a box of cards.
And if you wanted to find out good and quick who the best players in the game were? Well, you had only to figure out who was on the checklist of your favorite “special” set.
For instance, you think I found Charlie Puleo in the 1985 Topps 3-D issue? Or Dave Van Gorder in 1983 Donruss Action All-Stars?
Heck no. Those sets only had so much real estate to offer, and they had to use it wisely.
And all those cards were part of the 1980s hobby boom. Turn the clock back to the early 1970s, and the pickings were much, much slimmer. In 1972, for instance, you had the gargantuan Topps set, and not a whole lot else.
But you did have the 1972 Kellogg’s set, the third in a run of 3-D cards inserted into cereal boxes. And this time around, Kellogg’s dropped their checklist from 75 players down to just 54.
Again, no room for fat, and you knew every player you pulled was a superstar.
And thus, I’m willing to guess (though not bet) that there’s a generation of card collectors running around out there who still think of Chris Speier as a superstar. A Hall of Fame snub, maybe.
After all, Speier appears on card card #28, nestled between Orioles 20-game winners Mike Cuellar and Dave McNally.
So, what exactly did Speier do to land in this heady company? Well, as a rookie shortstop for the Giants in 1971, Speier hit .235 with eight home runs, 46 RBI, and four stolen bases.
Breathtaking.
To be fair, Speier actually took a big leap forward in 1972, hitting .269, with 15 long balls, and 71 RBI. He also made the first of three straight All-Star appearances, his only such honors in a 19-year career.
Also to be fair, Speier did turn out to be a very good player for a very long time, but 1972 Kellogg’s didn’t know about that when they plopped into cereal boxes across the land. Well, unless that lenticular technology also had crystal ball capabilities.
But…
There was one other set of things that 1972 Kellogg’s knew about. See, the 1971 Giants won the first division title in franchise history before dropping the NLCS to the Pirates in four games.
Speier did his part in October, though, going 5-for-14 with a homer against Pittsburgh, though he did commit an error.
Did the Kellogg’s planning committee factor in Speier’s moments in the 1971 postseason spotlight when they were building their checklist for 1972?
It’s as good an explanation as any for why Speier — who turns 74 today — made the cut but players like Johnny Bench, Hank Aaron, and Dick Allen did not.
Of course, that doesn’t explain how Bill Parsons got into the set. Or Doug Rader.
Where Is Jose’s Kellogg’s Card??
Speier finished his career back with the Giants from 1987 through 1989. Though he didn’t make the cut for the NLCS appearance in that last year, he was there for the 1987 tilt with the Cardinals.
Of course, “there” in this case basically meant walking to the plate a few times and making an out. Overall, he went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts and grounded into a double play.
That was a tight series that went seven games. Early in Game 7, though, Jose Oquendo of all people broke things open with a three-run home run.
I wrote about another Oquendo trifecta — a cardboard version — a while back. You can read that piece right here.
July Swoon Reminder
Just a quick reminder that output from this corner of the interwebs will likley be light in July. You may not hear from me next week (though you might). Not quite sure yet about the rest of the month.
In any case, I’ll still be rambling in the weekly Wax Pack Gods newsletter, so I’ll see you Sunday, and the Sunday after that, if nothing else.
—
That’s a wrap for this week, and this month. Time flies faster than a seagull trying to get away from Dave Winfield, I tell you!
Thanks for reading.
—Adam
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