#107 2nd Series Checklist 110-218 / Bob Gibson

As I did for the checklists in the 1965 Topps set, I'll use these posts to give a brief state of affairs as it relates to building the 1969 Topps set and life in general.  As of this writing, on January 6, 2023, we've got 40 cards out of the eventual 666 I plan to collect - the 664 base cards and then the two variations for the players traded early in 1969, Clay Dalrymple (#151) and Donn Clendenon (#208).  The cards have come together in dribs and drabs, and there are a few major purchases coming up in future posts from the December 2022 Philly Show.

Our sons are as busy as ever, with Doug now pole vaulting for his high school winter track team and spending at least two days a week doing some baseball activities.  Ben is taking a break from school sports, still taking tennis lessons and gearing up for cross country in the spring.  His piano playing continues to improve and amaze us.  They are both excellent students, getting great grades and we're immensely proud of both of them.  Work is work.  Recently, and for the first time, I allowed myself to do the actual math and determine the earliest date at which I could retire with some pension benefits.  The date is actually a little closer than I had thought it was, and knowing the exact date gives me a strange sense of calm.  It's crazy to think I have more work days in my past than I do in my future.

I didn't think I'd want to do a complete set blog again so soon after completing our 1965 Topps set, but I'm glad I made the decision to move forward with this set.  I'm cheating a little, copying and pasting sections from my prior blog as players repeat, but still learning new things about a lot of players who had retired before I was born.  The bottom line is, this is fun for me and even if I'm the only person ever reading this, it's brought me happiness and relaxation.  It's incredibly important to have enjoyable hobbies.

Building the Set / Card #26
September 9, 2022 from La Verne, CA
In early September, I found myself taking the first of two required work trips and I purchased Wifi access on a flight to Orlando in order to catch up on work e-mails.  Dutifully catching up, and not having enough time to watch a full movie, I turned to eBay for the duration of the flight and found a Gus Suhr Diamond Stars card for sale at a very reasonable But It Now price from seller earhart47.  Not wanting the card to travel by itself from La Verne, California, I found four more cards for future set builds at reasonable prices and from high above somewhere over Georgia I clicked Add to Cart on those four cards too.  One of the random cards added to my cart was this checklist card, the first of seven checklists to be added to our set.  The cards were waiting for me when I got home late on the night of September 9th.  Sadly, during the second work trip, this time to Dallas, no new baseball cards were purchased while in flight.  Ironically enough, as I write this, I'm getting ready to go on another work trip, departing on Sunday night.  Maybe I'll need to do some online shopping during the flight . . .

The Card / Cardinals Team Set / Checklists

I like the idea of adding a star player to a checklist card.  With Bob Gibson appearing here, there's a chance the card wouldn't have been immediately discarded by a young collector and it allowed another chance for Topps to feature some of the game's top players.  Topps added star cameos to its checklists between 1967 and 1969, and I'm just now realizing Gibson is featured on the checklist in which his base card (#200) also appears.  He was by far the biggest star in the game in 1968.  Looking ahead to who else received recognition on the checklists in the set, there aren't any surprises.  Topps opted to go full checklist mode with the set's third series, allowing for the 33-card Deckle Edge set to be included as well.

There are two versions of this checklist available, and I've added the error version listing card #161 as "Jim" Purdin.  The corrected version shows him as John Purdin.  I don't feel the need to track down the corrected version - sorry, John.

#106 Jim Hannan - Washington Senators / #108 Tony Taylor - Philadelphia Phillies