Options
What is your "what could have been but never was" card?
jskirwin1
Posts: 13 ✭
Contrary to my stats I've been around this forum since the early 00s. While cleaning my harddrive I found this. Having the typical centering problem of the era, it gave me a twinge of nostalgia for what could have been but never was.
1974 Topps Baseball Roberto Clemente.
So, what is your "what could have been but never was" card?
6
Comments
That's Cool!
I don’t have a mock-up but mine is a Clemente too. 1955 Bowman Roberto Clemente rookie.
In the theme of 1974, you could have easily had a 1974 George Brett. Or a Winfield "Washington" card.
kevin
As today is August 2nd: 1980 Thurman Munson - courtesy of waxpackgods.com
It's the singer not the song - Peter Townshend (1972)
Not even a minute do I buy the whole buh buh buh I'm a man-child japery - Me (2025)
1975,1976,1977 Joe Namath. A 1974 does exist in proto form
It's the singer not the song - Peter Townshend (1972)
Not even a minute do I buy the whole buh buh buh I'm a man-child japery - Me (2025)
1980 Roger Staubach
Didn't Beckett in the 90s do a whole feature on this? What's most interesting about cards that never were was that for 1993 Fleer, not only was there no Mike Piazza card (despite being in the previous year's update set), there was no Ozzie Smith either!
D's: 50P,49S,45D+S,43D,41S,40D,39D+S,38D+S,37D+S,36S,35D+S
Q's: 52S,47S,46S,40S,39S,38S,37D+S,36D+S,35D,34D,32D+S
71T: 003,037,061,070,110,141,176,177,190,198,203,239,262,265, 273, 275, 286, 319, 330, 335, 339, 344,351,357,364,384,397,432,439,442,465,493,495,496,529,530,532,535,541,544,545,549,552,571,583,590,594,599,611,620,
629,630,632,644,645,646,648,649,650,658,671,672,673,680,683,688,692,715,735,739,740,744,750
73T:31,55,61,62,63,64,65,66,67,68,80,152,165,189,213,235,237,257,341,344,377,379,390,422,433,453,480,497,545,554,563,
580,606,613,630
95 Ultra GM Sets: Golden Prospects, On-Base Leaders, Power Plus, RBI Kings
1967 mets rookies seaver/ryan
1960 Topps Ted Williams A.S. Card would have been cool.
Kiss me twice.....let's party.
1978 Bert Jones
Wow. I hadn't realized that. 42 years to the day. Great card, BTW.
Earl Campbell post 1979
1967 Sandy Koufax - wish he had waited to announce retirement until after the cards were printed. Imagining a 1967 Koufax with full stats on the back so bad I can taste the gum residue left on the card.
It's the singer not the song - Peter Townshend (1972)
Not even a minute do I buy the whole buh buh buh I'm a man-child japery - Me (2025)
1978 Seaver as a Met would be nice. I searched the interwebs and it doesn’t seem to be out there, surprisingly.
The ones that always come to my mind every time this question comes up on the CU board:
1951 Parkhurst Bill Barilko (needs a base card, even though he has the Winning Goal one)
1954 Topps Satchel Paige
1964 Topps Early Wynn
1966 Topps Satchel Paige
1967 Topps Sandy Koufax
1974 Topps Willie Mays (needs a base card, even though he has a WS one)
1975 Topps Al Kaline (needs a base card, even though he has a Highlights one)
1977 Topps Hank Aaron
Also, it is really too bad that OPC quit making WHA cards too early, as they could have had a pretty epic Gretzky if they kept going with making cards for that league...
1959 and 1960 Ted Williams.
Base set ‘89 Topps Future Star Griffey. Would have looked lush, and made ‘89 Topps so much more fun having that card to find.
Not wishing for this card (courtesy Project 70) but it is passing strange to see an All-Star card in this set but not a regular issue.
A 72 Schmidt solo card would have been cool
1954 Red Heart Willie Mays
1954 Topps Mickey Mantle - a 1954 Sports Illustrated (2nd issue) had a mocked up one but it was never actually colorized and printed by Topps):
But because I always enjoyed that card, I ended up buying the original “drag bunt” photo for that card:
Curious about the rare, mysterious and beautiful 1951 Wheaties Premium Photos?
https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/987963/1951-wheaties-premium-photos-set-registry#latest
1975 Walter Payton
PC Walter Payton - Bear Down!
Every great basketball card that would have featured Len Bias. Starting with the 1987 Fleer, finest refractors, PMG greens etc. So sad.
Stan Musial 1950, ‘51, ‘54 and ‘55 Bowman. Weird that he had a ‘48 , ‘49, ‘52 and ‘53 but not the others- and these were the years he was exclusively with Bowman because supposedly Topps didn’t pay him enough. (Maybe Bowman wasn’t paying enough in the years he missed, who knows.)
welp. this thread costs me $10.
had to buy 2. one for the collection & the one to turn into a fridge mag for the man cave:
1983 Topps Traded Don Mattingly. Mattingly and Darryl Strawberry's rookie cards in the same set would have made the hobby go even crazier than it already was in the mid-80's. Mattingly played a few games in 1982, and more than half of 1983 in the majors - not sure why he wasn't in the 1983 update.
But he didn't even get a 1973 solo though...
D's: 50P,49S,45D+S,43D,41S,40D,39D+S,38D+S,37D+S,36S,35D+S
Q's: 52S,47S,46S,40S,39S,38S,37D+S,36D+S,35D,34D,32D+S
71T: 003,037,061,070,110,141,176,177,190,198,203,239,262,265, 273, 275, 286, 319, 330, 335, 339, 344,351,357,364,384,397,432,439,442,465,493,495,496,529,530,532,535,541,544,545,549,552,571,583,590,594,599,611,620,
629,630,632,644,645,646,648,649,650,658,671,672,673,680,683,688,692,715,735,739,740,744,750
73T:31,55,61,62,63,64,65,66,67,68,80,152,165,189,213,235,237,257,341,344,377,379,390,422,433,453,480,497,545,554,563,
580,606,613,630
95 Ultra GM Sets: Golden Prospects, On-Base Leaders, Power Plus, RBI Kings
1955 bowman Koufax or Clemente
Eventually this thread will have every popular player who was on multi-player rookie card. So imma gonna go ahead and lay down the marker for 72 Fisk.
1975 Freddie Lynn and Jim Rice solo cards. The gold dust twins
1953 bowman satchel Paige would have been a awesome card.
This is my new #1 wish card. Forget the 1955 Bowman Clemente I mentioned before.
Even though I’m a die hard Vikings fan made this years ago
Current obsession, all things Topps 1969 - 1972
1953 bowman Jackie Robinson
I bet that would have been his best card hands down!
Just about every big name 1953 red Williams bowman. 1953 bowmans are just awesome. Love that set
Some really cool cards here. Just from a personal collection standpoint a 1996 Topps Charles Johnson Rookie Cup card. For some weird reason the guy is a beast coming out of the gates in Miami but doesn't have a card at all from Topps from his traded USA cards until they make one of him with the Dodgers in '99. I'd love to get an explanation on that sometime. I'm assuming it was a contract thing.
www.questfortherookiecup.com
I also think that Topps really missed out in its base set in 1986 with the incredible group of rookies that made the "traded" set, including Canseco, Bonds, Will Clark etc. Those cards included in the base set would have made 1986 an epic set.
I also wish Topps would have given Johnny Bench and Yaz a 1984 base card to reflect their complete career stats.
kevin
That's way better than most of the photography used in the '74 Topps set!
I would love to see Steve Garvey in the 1972 O-Pee-Chee and 1981 Coca Cola sets.
Keith Conforti (Con40 here, but not sure if he's on this board anymore) designed some incredible cards that never were. Any would make my list.
Always looking for N690 Kalamazoo Bats and Newsboy Cabinets
that gibson card is amazing. i do wish he had at least one mainstream card!
eta: dont consider the toleteros card mainstream & not sure if theres even been a documented sale of the harrison. plus its a postcard. and the laughlin isnt even a viable option, imo.
Agree. The toleteros card is the best there is though, but with it being posthumous it is not really a playing days card. One of my if I won the lottery cards for sure!
Ok.. This is one of my favorite eTopps sets.
10 cards.. Beautiful.. enjoy.
those etopps look really, really clean.
so far ahead of their time. especially considering those ‘83 & ‘84 cards look exactly like what they just released in 2018 & 2019 topps baseball products.
Those etopps are pretty cool.
1952 Topps Teddy Ballgame
Just giving a VERY cool thread a much deserved bump to the top.
Ironically no Killebrew card the year I was born.
Cody Lambert: He hit more home runs than Mickey Mantle and Reggie Jackson! And they gave that dude a candy bar!
PS: Actually at the time he hit more runs than everyone but four guys (Aaron, Ruth, Mays, Robinson). Now above him additionally are Pujols, Griffey, and Thome. But hey, hitting more home runs that everyone except seven guys ('roid guys don't count) is still pretty darn sweet!
D's: 50P,49S,45D+S,43D,41S,40D,39D+S,38D+S,37D+S,36S,35D+S
Q's: 52S,47S,46S,40S,39S,38S,37D+S,36D+S,35D,34D,32D+S
71T: 003,037,061,070,110,141,176,177,190,198,203,239,262,265, 273, 275, 286, 319, 330, 335, 339, 344,351,357,364,384,397,432,439,442,465,493,495,496,529,530,532,535,541,544,545,549,552,571,583,590,594,599,611,620,
629,630,632,644,645,646,648,649,650,658,671,672,673,680,683,688,692,715,735,739,740,744,750
73T:31,55,61,62,63,64,65,66,67,68,80,152,165,189,213,235,237,257,341,344,377,379,390,422,433,453,480,497,545,554,563,
580,606,613,630
95 Ultra GM Sets: Golden Prospects, On-Base Leaders, Power Plus, RBI Kings