Cheap Cool Cards #32: 1975 Topps Tom Seaver

[sanjosefuji]

In 1975, Topps issued a truly iconic baseball card set that happens to be one of my personal favorites. That same year, on November 12th... Tom Seaver won his third and final Cy Young Award.

I grew up in the 70's and was a huge fan of the pitching greats that dominated that decade: Carlton, Hunter, Jenkins, Palmer, Perry, Ryan, and of course Mr. Seaver. During the decade, he had 178 wins(tied for 3rd in MLB), 2,304 K's (2nd in MLB), 40 shutouts (3rd in MLB), a 2.61 ERA (2nd in MLB), and was arguably the best pitcher from 1970 to 1979.

He wrapped up his 20 year career in 1986 and finished with 311 wins, 3,640 K's, and a 2.86 ERA. In 1992, he was enshrined at the Baseball Hall of Fame and to this day has the highest voting percentage in Cooperstown history. An astounding 425 of the 430 ballots submitted had Seaver's name on it and according to Sports Illustrated, 3 of the 5 ballots that left him off were left blank in protest of Pete Rose's exclusion.

He's the only player wearing a New York Mets hat in the Hall and is the only player (outside of Jackie Robinson) to have his jersey number retired by the organization.

So if you're in the market for a cheap, cool card of one of the greatest pitchers to take the mound... you might want to consider picking up a 1975 Topps #370. Beckett has it listed at $12, but you should be able to find one at a card show in the $2 to $3 range. I picked up my copy for $2.67 over at COMCtwo years ago.

Okay, it's time for you to chime in...

In terms of pitching... what's your favorite decade? Who were some of your favorite pitchers?

Happy Monday and sayonara!


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