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.gif) | '80; Topps | | '81; T, D, F, O | | '82; T, D, F, O | | '83; T, D, F, O | | '84; T, D, F, O | | '85; T, D, F, O | | '86; T, D, F, O | | '87; T, D, F, O | | '88; T, D, F, S, O | | '89; T, D, F, S, UD, O | | Other Sports | | 1970s |
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1983 Oddball Baseball CardsBy Patrick Mondout
Here's our look at the the unusual (or "oddball") sets of
baseball cards for 1983. Regular sets can be found here.
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1983
Oddballs at a Glance |
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The
3rd annual set of 33 Drakes
cards was once again produced by Topps
with backs that were similar to '83
Topps with the exception of the
logo. |
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Donruss
produced its first oversized set of
baseball cards with this
3.5"x5" set of "Action
All-Stars." Members of the
previous year's All-Star teams were
featured. Unlike some previous
efforts - most notably the 5x7s of
Topps from previous years - the
cards featured full statistics (even
fielding stats!) and more background
information (including hobbies) than
smaller cards could hold. Their size
and lack of a facsimile signature on
the front made them great for
autographs and you might learn
enough on the back to strike up a
quick conversation with the player
too! |
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Donruss
also overproduced a 44 card set
called the Donruss Hall of Fame
Heroes. It featured paintings of
former baseball greats by the
increasingly busy Dick
Perez. Collector's generally
weren't fond of cards featuring
long-retired old-timers, as Donruss
learned. |
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Gardner's
Baking Company of Madison,
Wisconsin produced this popular set
of 22 cards featuring the defending
AL champion Milwaukee Brewers.
The cards were distributed with
their bread products and, unlike so
many other regional sets, not
directly to dealers. Once that
became obvious, the price of the
sets rose considerably. The cards -
professional looking for a regional
food issue - were actually printed
by Topps and feature backs that are
virtually identical to the '83
Topps set. |
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The
third and final Granny Goose
set of the Oakland A's was
produced in 1983 and once again
distributed in greasy bags of the
company's potato chips. There are
actually two 15 card sets. The first
was made up of cards with instant
winner tabs (see left) on the
bottom. The second set was issued as
a giveaway at a game in July 1983
and did not have tabs. |
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Smaller
than in previous years, the 1983 Kellogg's
set would be the last such set until
the early 1990s. Read more about it
and view a checklist here. |
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The Minnesota
Twins issued their own 36 card
set that were sold at the Metrodome.
The 2½ x 3½ cards are one of the
more attractive team-issued sets you
will find from the era. |
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Mother's
Cookies distributed 15 of the 20
cards inn this popular set of San
Francisco Giants at Candlestick
Park on August 7, 1983. Along with
the cards was a coupon for five more
cards. However, you were not
guaranteed which five cards you
would get so the only way to
complete the set was trade with
other fans, which was the point of
the promotion. As usual, the point
was lost on some hobby dealers who
had no trouble obtaining adequate
supplies of the cards. It was the
cookie company's first set since
1953. |
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O-Pee-Chee's
annual subset of the Topps set
featured 396 cards in 1983. A
checklist is here. |
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Team-issued
police sets for 1983 include
the Kansas City Royals (which
were actually made for the Ft.
Meyers, Florida area - spring
training home of the Royals), LAPD/Los
Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves
(sponsored by Coke and Hostess), and
the Milwaukee Brewers set of
30 cards. The Brewers are a special
case for variation collectors: The
set was issued by no less than 28
police departments - each with their
own names on the cards. Thus there
are 840 "different" cards
to that set! |
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Permagraphics
(or Perma-Graphics) produced its
last sets of "credit-card"
baseball cards in 1983. The format
was the same as the previous year
and the photos were once again
licensed from Topps.
The cards were produced by taking
the paper prints and permanently
laminating them with vinyl through a
high-impact process. The result was
a fairly thick card the size of a
Visa or MasterCard. There was a spot
on the back for an autograph in
addition to some statistics. |
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7-Eleven
produced a set of 12 discs featuring
Angels and Dodgers that were
distributed with large Slurpee
drinks in Southern California. Read
more about them here. |
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Stuart
baking in Quebec issued this set of
30 Montreal Expos with their
snack cakes. The 2½ x 3½ cards
featured bilingual backs in
full-color. |
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TCMA's
minor league team sets for
1983 included the initially very hot
Lynchburg Mets (Dwight Gooden and
Len Dykstra) plus the Waterbury Reds
(Eric Davis), Portland Beavers (Juan
Samuel), Chattanooga Lookouts (Mark
Langston and Danny Tartabull),
Syracuse Chiefs (George Bell, Tony
Fernandez), Louisville Redbirds
(Andy Van Slyke), Columbus Astros
(Glenn Davis), and Arkansas
Travelers (Terry Pendleton). In
addition, there were a number of
team-issued and non-TCMA sets such
as the Visalia Oaks (Kirby Puckett),
Cedar Rapids Reds (Kal Daniels),
Madison Muskies (with Jose Canseco)
and Las Vegas Stars (Kevin
McReynolds). |
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The
company that produced the hot dogs
at Wrigley Field sponsored a
"Baseball Card Day" there
in 1983 and these Thorn Apple
Valley set of 27 Chicago Cubs
cards were given away. They are
substantially similar to the '82
Red Lobster Cubs and may well
have been made by the same
printer/photographer. |
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Topps initially angered
some veteran dealers with the
announcement that it would reprint
their classic 1952 set in
1983. Many feared it would lessen
the value of the real set and
confuse collectors. They needn't
have worried on either account. The
reprint set was clearly marked on
the back as such and the cards were
standard sized (the 2½ x 3½ we
have come to expect) rather than the
larger size of the originals.
It wasn't quite a complete set,
however. Topps had to reach
agreements with all 407 of the
original players or their estates in
order for them to appear in the set
and five refused permission. Those
five were Dom DiMaggio, Billy Loes,
Solly Hemus, Saul Rogovin, and Tommy
Holmes. Hemus made a considerable
sum in the Houston oil business and
didn't need the money. Rogovin was a
school teacher in New York at the
time.
Topps marketed the 10,000 boxed
sets in The Sporting News for
$42 meaning they have barely kept
pace with inflation. The set did not
sell particularly well, was sold for
less than $42 for many years, and it
would nearly another decade before
another legitimate reprint set was
made.
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Topps
distributed an unusual test set late
in the 1983 season. The Topps
Foldouts were distributed one
per cello pack and each of the five
different packs featured great
postcard-sized photos of the stars
of the era. The first pack featured
home run leaders, the second
pitching wins while stolen base,
batting average and saves leaders
were also featured. Each foldout
package was clearly marked on the
outside as to which category (stolen
bases, etc.) and the cards folded
out like an according or like some
of the postcards packs you can buy
at tourist traps. Each foldout had a
header card with advertising and
then eight more cards on the front
with nine cards on the back. Some of
the best looking Topps
printing/photography of the era is
in this set and yet it was and is
largely ignored. |
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Topps
produced its first mail-in set of Topps
Glossy send-ins in 1983. The
attractive 40 card set featured
uncluttered glossy fronts.
Purchasers of wax packs collected
special game cards and sent them in
(with a check for postage and
handling) for one of eight different
five card sets. Buying them
through this method set you back $20
while dealers were selling them for
less than half that. These are very
attractive cards and it is
unfortunate that Topps didn't do a
792 card set in this format. |
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Topps
pleased the few collectors of these
Italian-made sticker sets by
making its largest set yet - 330
cards including 28 of the coveted
foil stickers. |
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True
Value hardware stores sponsored
a set of 23 Chicago White Sox cards
that were to be given out one player
per game on Tuesday night home
games. This and the fact that three
of the cards (Marc Hill, Harold
Baines, and Salome Barojas) were
never given out at games (but
instead to card dealers) made this
set expensive to collect. The set
was popular at the time because the
Sox won the AL West and had Cy Young
winner LaMarr Hoyt and AL Rookie of
the Year Ron Kittle. |
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Wheaties
sponsored their second straight set
of 32 Cleveland Indians cards
for 1983. The 2⅝ x 4⅛
cards were distributed on
"Baseball Card Night" at
Municipal Stadium. |
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Share Your Memories!What are your memories of the 1983 oddball cards? Share your stories with the world! (We print the best stories right here!) |
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1983 ODDBALL BASEBALL CARDS |
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| | Image courtesy of O-Pee-Chee | | |
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