Wednesday, September 28, 2016

no. 580 - tony perez


Who is the man: Tony Perez had just completed arguably his best season when this card was issued. In 1970, he hit a career-high 40 home runs, drove in a career-high 129 runs and batted .317.

Can ya dig it: Perez has some terrific cards. This one may not rank up there with his '66, '67, '70, '76 or '77 cards, but it's a nice reflective shot. I enjoy the bat on the shoulder, the helmet and the batting glove.

Right on: This would be the last time that Perez would be listed as a third baseman on the front of his card (he was still a third baseman for the '72 Topps set, but there are no positions on the front of that set). He would move to first base full-time in 1972, and his 1973 Topps card is his first at first base since the 1967 set.

You see that cat Perez is a bad mother: The Hall of Famer won the 1967 All-Star Game with a home run off of Catfish Hunter in the 15th inning.

Shut your mouth: When Perez was traded to the Expos, Perez's wife said that their sons, Victor and Eduardo, wanted to know if the Expos catcher (Gary Carter) could hold as many balls in one hand as Johnny Bench. (Both sons would go on to play professionally, and Eduardo reached the majors and then became an ESPN broadcaster).

No one understands him but his woman: Perez's wife's name is either Petuka or Pituka. I've seen it spelled both ways multiple times.


(A word about the back): Albert Pujols now holds the NL mark for most homers in April with 14, set in 2006.

No comments:

Post a Comment