#432 Bob Gibson AS - St. Louis Cardinals

All-Star cards returned to Topps sets in 1968 under The Sporting News banner for a three-year run between 1968 and 1970.  Topps included 20 All-Star cards in its 1969 set, featuring 10 All-Stars from each league and one player from each position, including both a right-handed and left-handed pitcher.  

Building the Set / Card #640

September 21, 2025 from The Philly Show (Richie's Sports Cards)

On Sunday morning, September 21st, I made the hour-long drive to the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania for the latest installment of the Philadelphia Sports Card & Memorabilia Show, known to its friends as The Philly Show.  The show has a legitimate official sponsor (eBay) and the advertisement for the event notes the show is in its 50th year.  I hadn't attended a baseball card show since the last Philly Show in December, and I was flying solo to this one as our oldest son is in his first month of college at Villanova.  I posted a full summary of the show over at The Phillies Room.

I made stops at six tables at the show, all yielding needed cards for our 1969 Topps set, and I left the show with just 16 more cards to go for my version of a complete set.  After about 90 minutes of walking and buying, while running low on funds, and even lower on stamina, I found a nice display of vintage Topps star cards at Richie's Sports Cards, from Manalpan, New Jersey.  I quickly and easily picked up six more star cards needed for our set from Richie's, my fourth stop of the show.  This is the sixth of those six cards and it cost around $9 after a discount.

The Card / Cardinals Team Set / Pete Rose Puzzle

Nine-time All-Star Bob Gibson (#200) started the All-Star Game twice in his career, in 1968 and again in 1970.  In between those two years, his teammate Steve Carlton (#255) got the start, with Gibson relieving Carlton in the fourth inning.  Gibson struck out a pair, but allowed a run on an RBI-single by Bill Freehan (#390).

Linked below is a great article from Sports Collectors Daily, and the author did his best in tracking down the origins of the action photos appearing on these All-Star subset cards.  The black and white photo behind Gibson is actually him, and Topps repurposed a photo originally appearing on a 1968 Topps World Series subset card.

The backs of these All-Star cards contain a puzzle piece of either Pete Rose (#120) or Carl Yastrzemski (#130).  The back of Gibson's card features half of Rose's face, and with all All-Star cards now collected for the set, I can present the full Rose puzzle below.  This one turned out even more off-kilter than my Yaz puzzle!

Topps All-Star Card Appearances (2):  1968-69

1968 Topps #154

1968 Topps #378

Sources:  
Baseball Reference

Sports Collectors Daily - Mistaken Identities

#431 Bill Freehan AS - Detroit Tigers / #433 Denny McLain AS - Detroit Tigers

#430 Johnny Bench AS - Cincinnati Reds

All-Star cards returned to Topps sets in 1968 under The Sporting News banner for a three-year run between 1968 and 1970.  Topps included 20 All-Star cards in its 1969 set, featuring 10 All-Stars from each league and one player from each position, including both a right-handed and left-handed pitcher.  

Building the Set / Card #639

September 21, 2025 from The Philly Show (Richie's Sports Cards)

On Sunday morning, September 21st, I made the hour-long drive to the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania for the latest installment of the Philadelphia Sports Card & Memorabilia Show, known to its friends as The Philly Show.  The show has a legitimate official sponsor (eBay) and the advertisement for the event notes the show is in its 50th year.  I hadn't attended a baseball card show since the last Philly Show in December, and I was flying solo to this one as our oldest son is in his first month of college at Villanova.  I posted a full summary of the show over at The Phillies Room.

I made stops at six tables at the show, all yielding needed cards for our 1969 Topps set, and I left the show with just 16 more cards to go for my version of a complete set.  After about 90 minutes of walking and buying, while running low on funds, and even lower on stamina, I found a nice display of vintage Topps star cards at Richie's Sports Cards, from Manalpan, New Jersey.  I quickly and easily picked up six more star cards needed for our set from Richie's, my fourth stop of the show.  This is the fifth of those six cards and it cost around $27 after a discount, making it the most expensive All-Star card I purchased for our set build.

The Card / Reds Team Set / Pete Rose Puzzle

Johnny Bench was a 14-time All-Star, going to the All-Star Game each year between 1968 and 1980, and then again in 1983 to honor the end of his career.  He was the starting catcher for the National League All-Stars in 1969, batting seventh and receiving starting pitcher Steve Carlton (#255).  Bench got the scoring started for the National League, hitting a second inning, two-run home run off Mel Stottlemyre (#470).  He'd single in the third off Blue Mood Odom (#195), draw a walk against Denny McLain (#150) and line out against Dave McNally (#340) in the sixth, before being replaced by back-up Randy Hundley (#347).

The stock photo used in the background behind Bench has yet to be identified, but the article linked below figured out by combining the background photos on this card and Ken Harrelson's All-Star card (#417), a full action scene showing a mystery play emerges.  The backs of these All-Star cards contain a puzzle piece of either Pete Rose (#120) or Carl Yastrzemski (#130).  The back of Bench's card features a patch of dirt behind Rose's photo.

Topps All-Star Card Appearances (9):  1969-70, 1974-79, 1981

1970 Topps #464

1974 Topps #331

1975 Topps #260

1978 Topps #700

1981 Topps #400

Sources:  
Baseball Reference

Sports Collectors Daily - Mistaken Identities

#429 Willie Horton AS - Detroit Tigers / #431 Bill Freehan AS - Detroit Tigers

#428 Lou Brock AS - St. Louis Cardinals

All-Star cards returned to Topps sets in 1968 under The Sporting News banner for a three-year run between 1968 and 1970.  Topps included 20 All-Star cards in its 1969 set, featuring 10 All-Stars from each league and one player from each position, including both a right-handed and left-handed pitcher.  

Building the Set / Card #630

September 21, 2025 from The Philly Show (Niagara Sports Cards)

On Sunday morning, September 21st, I made the hour-long drive to the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania for the latest installment of the Philadelphia Sports Card & Memorabilia Show, known to its friends as The Philly Show.  The show has a legitimate official sponsor (eBay) and the advertisement for the event notes the show is in its 50th year.  I hadn't attended a baseball card show since the last Philly Show in December, and I was flying solo to this one as our oldest son is in his first month of college at Villanova.  I posted a full summary of the show over at The Phillies Room.

I made stops at six tables at the show, all yielding needed cards for our 1969 Topps set, and I left the show with just 16 more cards to go for my version of a complete set.  My third stop was a smaller table with the impossible to pass up offer of 1969 Topps commons that were only $1, unless marked.  The binder was right at the end of the table, making it an even easier sell.  The prices on some of the cards were stunningly low, so I was even more surprised when the dealer, Niagara Sports Cards, gave me an even deeper discount upon tallying up my total.

I found 12 cards needed from Niagara Sports Cards, and this was the eighth of those 12, and the 71st of 91 cards for the set added overall on the day.  I paid less than $1.50 for it after the bulk dealer discount was applied. 

The Card / Cardinals Team Set / Pete Rose Puzzle

Lou Brock (#85), teammate Curt Flood (#540) and Pete Rose (#120) each get outfield spots on The Sporting News National League All-Star team.  Flood, Henry Aaron (#100) and Willie Mays (#190) were the starting outfielders in the actual 1968 All-Star Game, with Matty Alou (#490), Aaron and Cleon Jones (#512) starting in the outfield in the 1969 game.  I wonder what made Topps give the nod to Brock for this card over Aaron?  Brock was a six-time All-Star, earning a spot on the team in 1967, 1971-72, 1974-75 and 1979.

Linked below is a great article from Sports Collectors Daily, and the author did his best in tracking down the origins of the action photos appearing on these All-Star subset cards.  There's some fantastic detective work explained in the article, but there are six All-Stars cards, including this Brock card, where the author has had no success yet in identifying the background photo.  Ironically, Brock does actually appear as the background photo on the All-Stars card of Rod Carew (#419).

The backs of these All-Star cards contain a puzzle piece of either Rose or Carl Yastrzemski (#130).  The back of Brocks's card features Rose's batting grip.

Topps All-Star Card Appearances (3):  1968-69, 1976

1968 Topps #372

1976 Topps #10

Sources:  
Baseball Reference

Sports Collectors Daily - Mistaken Identities

#427 Tony Oliva AS - Minnesota Twins / #429 Willie Horton AS - Detroit Tigers

#427 Tony Oliva AS - Minnesota Twins

All-Star cards returned to Topps sets in 1968 under The Sporting News banner for a three-year run between 1968 and 1970.  Topps included 20 All-Star cards in its 1969 set, featuring 10 All-Stars from each league and one player from each position, including both a right-handed and left-handed pitcher.  

Building the Set / Card #629

September 21, 2025 from The Philly Show (Niagara Sports Cards)

On Sunday morning, September 21st, I made the hour-long drive to the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania for the latest installment of the Philadelphia Sports Card & Memorabilia Show, known to its friends as The Philly Show.  The show has a legitimate official sponsor (eBay) and the advertisement for the event notes the show is in its 50th year.  I hadn't attended a baseball card show since the last Philly Show in December, and I was flying solo to this one as our oldest son is in his first month of college at Villanova.  I posted a full summary of the show over at The Phillies Room.

I made stops at six tables at the show, all yielding needed cards for our 1969 Topps set, and I left the show with just 16 more cards to go for my version of a complete set.  My third stop was a smaller table with the impossible to pass up offer of 1969 Topps commons that were only $1, unless marked.  The binder was right at the end of the table, making it an even easier sell.  The prices on some of the cards were stunningly low, so I was even more surprised when the dealer, Niagara Sports Cards, gave me an even deeper discount upon tallying up my total.

I found 12 cards needed from Niagara Sports Cards, and this was the seventh of those 12, and the 70th of 91 cards for the set added overall on the day.  I paid less than a dollar for it after the bulk dealer discount was applied. 

The Card / Twins Team Set / Pete Rose Puzzle

Tony Oliva (#600) was an eight-time All-Star between 1964 and 1971, although he did not appear in the 1969 All-Star Game.  He had made previous starts in 1964 and 1966 (right field), and in 1967 (center field).  The starting American League outfield for the 1969 All-Star Game was Frank Howard (#170), Reggie Jackson (#260) and Frank Robinson (#250), with Carl Yastrzemski (#130), Oliva and Willie Horton (#180) getting the nod as the starting outfielders in this Topps subset.

The black and white photo behind Oliva is 1963 Topps #147, featuring Game 6 of the 1962 World Series.  Giants pitcher Billy Pierce is on the mound, and he had appeared behind Jerry Koosman on his All-Star card (#434).  At-bat is one of three Yankee lefties - Tony Kubek, Roger Maris (#164) or Whitey Ford.  The backs of these All-Star cards contain a puzzle piece of either Pete Rose (#120) or Yastrzemski.  The back of Oliva's card features half of Rose's head.

Topps All-Star Card Appearances (2):  1968-69

1963 Topps #147

1968 Topps #371

Sources:  
Baseball Reference

Sports Collectors Daily - Mistaken Identities

#426 Curt Flood AS - St. Louis Cardinals / #428 Lou Brock AS - St. Louis Cardinals

#434 Jerry Koosman AS - New York Mets

All-Star cards returned to Topps sets in 1968 under The Sporting News banner for a three-year run between 1968 and 1970.  Topps included 20 All-Star cards in its 1969 set, featuring 10 All-Stars from each league and one player from each position, including both a right-handed and left-handed pitcher.  

Building the Set / Card #559
December 15, 2024 from The Philly Show (Vintage Cardboard Collectibles)

On Sunday, December 15th, Doug and I attended the latest Philly Show, spaciously spread out inside Hall A of the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania.  I wrote a full show report over at The Phillies Room, including some thoughts on attending the show with our oldest son, who first graced the Philly Show floors back in 2012.

Having spent the first half hour or so pulling 98 commons and semi-stars from the neon green binder of Uncle Dick's Cards, and adding the big purchase of the day, the Rollie Fingers (#597) rookie card, and after adding a few more star cards, the remaining cash I had was starting to burn a hole in my wallet.  I had noticed the common/semi-star boxes at the tables of Vintage Cardboard Collectibles, and I found 14 more cards for our 1969 Topps set and six cards for our not-yet-officially collecting 1959 Topps set.  This is the last of those 14 cards.  After the obligatory dealer discount, I handed over the last of my cash, and we exited the show for the drive home.

And with this post, for the first time in a very, very long time, I am completely caught up on creating a post for each card added to our 1969 Topps set build . . . so far.  My project table is empty.  I posted about the 147 cards acquired at the December 2023 Philly Show between May 2024 and January 2025.  Next came posts covering the 134 cards purchased at the December 2024 Philly Show, published starting in January 2025 and ending here.  The next Philly Show takes place next weekend, the weekend of September 19th, and I plan on adding as many of the remaining 105 cards needed for our set as possible (and within my spending budget).

The Card / Mets Team Set / Pete Rose Puzzle

Jerry Koosman (#90) relieved Bill Singer (#575) in the 1969 All-Star Game, allowing a double to Rico Petrocelli (#215) and striking out Brooks Robinson (#550) in 1 2/3 innings of work.  Koosman had earned a save in the 1968 All-Star Game, striking out the only batter he faced, Carl Yastrzemski (#130), to end the game and preserve a 1-0 victory for the National League.

The stock photo used in the background behind Koosman features the Giants' Billy Pierce pitching to an unidentified Yankees batter during the 1962 World Series from a card from the 1963 Topps set.  Like Koosman, Pierce was a lefty, so the choice of photo is at least somewhat logical.  The backs of these All-Star cards contain a puzzle piece of either Pete Rose (#120) or Yastrzemski.  The back of Koosman's card features Rose's armpit.

Topps All-Star Card Appearances (2):  1969-70

1963 Topps #147

1970 Topps #468

Sources:  
Baseball Reference

Sports Collectors Daily - Mistaken Identities

#433 Denny McLain AS - Detroit Tigers / #435 Sam McDowell AS - Cleveland Indians

#431 Bill Freehan AS - Detroit Tigers

All-Star cards returned to Topps sets in 1968 under The Sporting News banner for a three-year run between 1968 and 1970.  Topps included 20 All-Star cards in its 1969 set, featuring 10 All-Stars from each league and one player from each position, including both a right-handed and left-handed pitcher.  

Building the Set / Card #558
December 15, 2024 from The Philly Show (Vintage Cardboard Collectibles)

On Sunday, December 15th, Doug and I attended the latest Philly Show, spaciously spread out inside Hall A of the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania.  I wrote a full show report over at The Phillies Room, including some thoughts on attending the show with our oldest son, who first graced the Philly Show floors back in 2012.

Having spent the first half hour or so pulling 98 commons and semi-stars from the neon green binder of Uncle Dick's Cards, and adding the big purchase of the day, the Rollie Fingers (#597) rookie card, and after adding a few more star cards, the remaining cash I had was starting to burn a hole in my wallet.  I had noticed the common/semi-star boxes at the tables of Vintage Cardboard Collectibles, and I found 14 more cards for our 1969 Topps set and six cards for our not-yet-officially collecting 1959 Topps set.  This is the 13th of those 14 cards.  After the obligatory dealer discount, I handed over the last of my cash, and we exited the show for the drive home.

The Card / Tigers Team Set / Pete Rose Puzzle

Bill Freehan (#390) was an 11-time All-Star, starting behind the plate seven consecutive times, between 1966 and 1972, and having his streak broken by Carlton Fisk in 1973.  Freehan was 2 for 2 in the 1969 All-Star Game, hitting a solo home run of Steve Carlton (#255) in the third and adding an RBI-single against Bob Gibson (#200) in the fourth.  He was one of the only bright spots for the junior circuit, as they lost the game by a score of 9-3.

The stock photo used in the background is actually Freehan from a photo featured earlier in the set on a World Series subset card (#165).  The backs of these All-Star cards contain a puzzle piece of either Pete Rose (#120) or Carl Yastrzemski (#130).  The back of Freehan's card features the top of Rose's hat.

Topps All-Star Card Appearances (3):  1968-70

1968 Topps #375

1970 Topps #465

Sources:  
Baseball Reference

Sports Collectors Daily - Mistaken Identities

#430 Johnny Bench AS - Cincinnati Reds / #432 Bob Gibson AS - St. Louis Cardinals

#435 Sam McDowell AS - Cleveland Indians

All-Star cards returned to Topps sets in 1968 under The Sporting News banner for a three-year run between 1968 and 1970.  Topps included 20 All-Star cards in its 1969 set, featuring 10 All-Stars from each league and one player from each position, including both a right-handed and left-handed pitcher.  

Building the Set / Card #385
December 3, 2023 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards)

Doug and I returned to The Philly Show in early December, once again held inside the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania.  eBay has taken over sponsorship of the show, with the quaint, bubble-lettered Philly Show logo that had been in place since the 1980s replaced with a more modern logo, keeping with the times.  I wrote about the show in a post over at The Phillies Room.

Similar to my strategy from March, I wanted to focus on accumulating commons and having found success with Uncle Dick's Cards before, I didn't mess around and headed right for the neon green binders.  I pulled 145 cards from the binder containing cards 301 to the end of the set, stopping when I reached 500.  This card was the 93rd of 145 cards purchased for our set, and after the dealer discount due to my bulk purchase, it cost a little less than $2.

1970 Topps #469

The Card / Indians Team Set / Pete Rose Puzzle

The American League's All-Star pitchers for this subset (and again for the 1970 Topps subset) were Denny McLain (#150) from the right side and Sam McDowell from the left.  The veteran McDowell was a six-time All-Star between 1965 and 1971, and he had a 1.13 ERA in eight innings pitched, with 12 strikeouts.  McDowell was the losing pitcher in his first All-Star Game in 1965, as he allowed a tie-breaking RBI single to Ron Santo (#570) in the top of the seventh inning, with the National League eventually winning, 6-5.

The black-and-white background shot is a young McDowell in a photo that could date back to 1961.  The linked article below from Sports Collectors Daily has a good look at the actual photo used.  The backs of these All-Star cards contain a puzzle piece of either Pete Rose (#120) or Carl Yastrzemski (#130).  The back of McDowell's card features the bottom half of Rose's jersey, including his iconic #14.

Topps All-Star Card Appearances (2):  1969-70

Sources:  
Baseball Reference

Sports Collectors Daily - Mistaken Identities

#434 Jerry Koosman AS - New York Mets / #436 Gene Alley - Pittsburgh Pirates

#433 Denny McLain AS - Detroit Tigers

All-Star cards returned to Topps sets in 1968 under The Sporting News banner for a three-year run between 1968 and 1970.  Topps included 20 All-Star cards in its 1969 set, featuring 10 All-Stars from each league and one player from each position, including both a right-handed and left-handed pitcher.  

Building the Set / Card #384
December 3, 2023 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards)

Doug and I returned to The Philly Show in early December, once again held inside the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania.  eBay has taken over sponsorship of the show, with the quaint, bubble-lettered Philly Show logo that had been in place since the 1980s replaced with a more modern logo, keeping with the times.  I wrote about the show in a post over at The Phillies Room.

Similar to my strategy from March, I wanted to focus on accumulating commons and having found success with Uncle Dick's Cards before, I didn't mess around and headed right for the neon green binders.  I pulled 145 cards from the binder containing cards 301 to the end of the set, stopping when I reached 500.  This card was the 92nd of 145 cards purchased for our set, and after the dealer discount due to my bulk purchase, it cost a little less than $2.

1970 Topps #467

The Card / Tigers Team Set / Pete Rose Puzzle

Denny McLain was coming off his 31-win season in 1968, and as the reigning Cy Young and MVP from the American League, it's no wonder this is one of the pitcher's six appearances in the 1969 Topps set.  McLain is the right-handed pitcher on The Sporting News All-Star team, with Sam McDowell (#220) getting the nod as the left-handed pitcher.  McLain pitched two scoreless innings in relief in the actual 1968 All-Star Game, allowing a hit and two walks and striking out Willie McCovey (#440).  In the 1969 All-Star Game, McLain again relieved and McCovey got his revenge with a solo home run in the top of the fourth.

The black-and-white background photo may be McLain, but it's most likely an anonymous pitcher from the Topps archives, blurry enough to pass for McLain.  Linked below is a great article from Sports Collectors Daily, and the author did his best in tracking down the origins of the action photos appearing on these All-Star subset cards.  

The backs of these All-Star cards contain a puzzle piece of either Pete Rose (#120) or Carl Yastrzemski (#130).  The back of McLain's card features a close-up of Rose's shoulder.

Topps All-Star Card Appearances (2):  1969-70

Sources:  
Baseball Reference

Sports Collectors Daily - Mistaken Identities

#432 Bob Gibson AS - St. Louis Cardinals / #434 Jerry Koosman AS - New York Mets

#429 Willie Horton AS - Detroit Tigers

All-Star cards returned to Topps sets in 1968 under The Sporting News banner for a three-year run between 1968 and 1970.  Topps included 20 All-Star cards in its 1969 set, featuring 10 All-Stars from each league and one player from each position, including both a right-handed and left-handed pitcher.  

Building the Set / Card #383
December 3, 2023 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards)

Doug and I returned to The Philly Show in early December, once again held inside the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania.  eBay has taken over sponsorship of the show, with the quaint, bubble-lettered Philly Show logo that had been in place since the 1980s replaced with a more modern logo, keeping with the times.  I wrote about the show in a post over at The Phillies Room.

Similar to my strategy from March, I wanted to focus on accumulating commons and having found success with Uncle Dick's Cards before, I didn't mess around and headed right for the neon green binders.  I pulled 145 cards from the binder containing cards 301 to the end of the set, stopping when I reached 500.  This card was the 91st of 145 cards purchased for our set, and after the dealer discount due to my bulk purchase, it cost a little less than $2.

1964 Topps #139

The Card / Tigers Team Set / Pete Rose Puzzle

In the outfield for the American League All-Stars is Willie Horton (#180), Carl Yastrzemski (#130) and Tony Oliva (#600).  The outfielders for the actual 1968 All-Star Game had been Yastrzemski, Horton and Frank Howard (#170).  A year later, the American League All-Star starting outfielders were Howard, Frank Robinson (#250) and rookie Reggie Jackson (#260).  Horton was a four-time All-Star, joining the team in 1965, 1968, 1970 and 1973.

That's not Horton swinging away in the black and white photo in the foreground.  It's his outfield All-Star mate from 1968 Howard, featured on a photo Topps recycled from its 1964 Topps set.  Howard was shown on that card connecting for a home run off Yankees' pitcher Whitey Ford in Game 4 of the 1963 World Series.  Linked below is a great article from Sports Collectors Daily, and the author did his best in tracking down the origins of the action photos appearing on these All-Star subset cards.  

The backs of these All-Star cards contain a puzzle piece of either Pete Rose (#120) or Yastrzemski.  The back of Horton's card features a close-up of Rose's elbow.

Topps All-Star Card Appearances (1):  1969

Sources:  
Baseball Reference

Sports Collectors Daily - Mistaken Identities

#428 Lou Brock AS - St. Louis Cardinals / #430 Johnny Bench AS - Cincinnati Reds