#126T - Bobby Valentine

What a card: This card marks the beginning of Bobby Valentine's managerial career. He took over for the dismissed Doug Rader after the Rangers started the 1985 season 9-23.

My observation on the front: Valentine is one of the guys who I've seen age on cardboard through the 1970s, '80s, '90s and '00s. He looks relatively young here.

More opinion from me: I remember when Valentine received his first managerial opportunity. It was a big deal, probably because he was coaching for the Mets and everything is a big deal in New York.

Something you might know: Valentine made his first World Series (and postseason) in his 13th year as a manager when he led the Mets to the 2000 Series against the Yankees.

Something you might not know: Valentine managed more games (1,186) with one team (the Rangers) without winning a title in major league history.

My observation on the back: Valentine lost his first game as Rangers manager, 4-2, to the White Sox. Carlton Fisk hit the big blow, a two-run home run in the fourth inning that gave Chicago a 3-1 lead.

The blog wants to speak now: The TV category is updated.

#107T - Don Slaught

What a card: Don Slaught was traded from the Royals to the Rangers in the monster four-team deal on Jan. 18, 1985 that included the Mets and Brewers. Other players dealt included Jim Sundberg, Danny Darwin and Tim Leary.

How'd that go: OK. Slaught missed out on the Royals' 1985 World Series title, but he provided three solid platoon years for the Rangers before heading off to the Yankees and Pirates.

Backatya: Regarding the trivia quiz: It's not 40 anymore!!!!!

Back-to-back: Catchers get all the best cards.

I've already raved about Slaught's flagship card. It is No. 542 in the set and was originally blogged on June 13, 2016.

The Traded card reminds me that you don't know what you'll miss when it's gone and I miss old-style chest protectors. Also, note to those who don't have an MLB license: this is how you show catchers on your baseball cards.

The blog wants to speak now: The Other Cards category is updated.

#97T - Dave Rozema

What a card: Dave Rozema signed as a free agent with the Rangers in December, 1984.

How'd that go: Rozema was mostly a reliever for the Rangers in 1985 and set a career high in saves with seven. But Texas let him go early in the 1986 season and he was out of the majors for good.

Backatya: The trivia question fit nicely with Rozema's flagship card when he was with the Tigers. Not so much here. Still about the easiest trivia question ever. 

 
Back-to-back: The Traded card is fine and all but it can't come close to the flagship card.

The flagship card is No. 47 in the set and was originally blogged on May 10, 2012. It also happens to be the second-most viewed card on this blog, after Tom Hume. Yup, Hume and Rozema. Those are the kind of readers of this blog. 

The blog wants to speak now: I'm cramming this post in between a very busy few days. I'll skip this part.

#82T - Oddibe McDowell

What a card: I believe this is the 19th rookie card in the Traded set. I'll explain my hesitation in a minute. Oddibe McDowell played in 31 games in Triple A in 1985 before joining the Rangers for the rest of the season.

How'd that go: McDowell finished fourth in the AL Rookie of the Year voting in 1985. He appeared in 111 games, hitting 18 home runs as part of his 97 hits in 406 at-bats.

Backatya: That is a freaky card back. NO PROFESSIONAL RECORD. McDowell was drafted by the Rangers in June of 1984 but then participated in the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics as baseball was a demonstration event that year. He didn't start his pro career until 1985. 

Back-to-back: Here is the confusion about his rookie situation. McDowell actually appeared in the 1985 flagship set, in the U.S. Olympic team subset. He is the only player in that subset to get a card in the Traded set, too. I know that the rookie card is a player's first appearance with a major league team, but it does make things a bit muddled, don't it?

The McDowell flagship card is #400 in the set. It was originally blogged on April 14, 2015.

The blog wants to speak now: The News category is updated.

#63T - Cliff Johnson

What a card: Cliff Johnson signed as a free agent with the Texas Rangers on Dec. 5, 1984. It was his seventh major league team.

How'd that go: Johnson was well on his way to the same kind of season produced for the Blue Jays the previous year when he was traded from the Rangers back to the Blue Jays in a late-August deadline deal.

Backatya: The factoid assumes you're up on baseball and know who Mike Easler is. But keep in mind that this is the same set that asks "who plays in Tiger Stadium" in its trivia questions.

Back-to-back: Mighty swings from Cliff in each, but that flagship card is flat-out awesome. It was originally blogged on Aug. 24, 2016. It's card No. 568.

The blog wants to speak now: The Ballgames category is updated.

#56T - Burt Hooton

What a card: Burt Hooton signed as a free agent with the Rangers on Dec. 20, 1984, after 10 years with the Dodgers.

How'd that go: Well, he pitched one season for the Rangers, posting a 5.23 ERA in 29 games (20 starts) and retired after the season.

Backatya: Hooton's well-known nickname is "Happy," bestowed upon him because of his perpetual glum nature. The nickname was likely created by Tom Lasorda while they both were in the Dominican Republic that offseason. The two had joined other ballplayers in a packed hotel room on New Year's Eve as they counted down to 1975. During the revelry Lasorda happened to look at Hooton, who was in the corner playing solitaire. "Hey!" Lasorda yelled. "Doesn't he look happy? It's 'Happy' Hooton."

Back-to-back: I'm not sure when I first saw the card of Hooton as a Ranger, but it looked very odd to me seeing him dressed as anything but a Dodger. He lasted longer with the Dodgers than many of his well-known teammates from the 1970s.

The flagship card is No. 201 in the set. It was originally blogged on Aug. 13, 2013.

The blog wants to speak now: The Ballgames category is updated.

#47T - Greg Harris

What a card: Greg Harris arrived with Texas when the Rangers purchased him from the Padres in February 1985.

How'd that go: Quite nicely. Harris appeared in 58 games for the Rangers in 1985 and saved a career-high 11 games. The following year he saved 20 games. Those were the only two seasons in his 15-year career in which he saved in double figures.

Backatya: This is interesting. The trivia question on this card is different from the one that was shown on Greg Harris' flagship card (in most cases, the trivia question is duplicated on the Traded card).

 
Back-to-back: The Traded card turned out a bit better than the flagship card, which I'm still thinking is airbrushed, although the erased Marlboro ad certainly makes the flagship card interesting.

The flagship card was original blogged on Dec. 12, 2013.

The blog wants to speak now: The Movie category is updated.

#46T - Toby Harrah

What a card: Toby Harrah returned to the Rangers -- the franchise with which he began his career (actually the Senators) -- on Feb. 27, 1985 when the Yankees traded him and Billy Sample to Texas for a player to be named.

How'd that go: Much better than his one year with the Yankees, in which he hit .217. Harrah returned to more Harrah-like numbers with a .270 average in 126 games in 1985.

Backatya: How much property do you think Harrah had at one point to store antiques, riding horses and motorcycles?

Back-to-back: There is Harrah again during that very strange Yankee period. I miss the long-hair period from 1976 to 1983.

The flagship card was first blogged on Sept. 17, 2012.

The blog wants to speak now: The News category is updated.

#777 - Ned Yost

What a card: Backup catcher Ned Yost completed his first and only season with the Texas Rangers in 1984. He was released by the Rangers in April of 1985 and picked up by the Expos. This is his final Topps card as a player.

My observation on the front: Scanning really brings out a cards imperfections. I never noticed the speckles on the left border until I scanned it.

More opinion from me: Players from the '80s who are now managers make me feel old. Yes, I know there are managers who played in the '00s.

Something you might know: Yost was the manager for Royals World Series teams of 2014 and 2015 and helped K.C. to its first World Series title since 1985.

Something you might not know: Yost worked an after-school job at Kentucky Fried Chicken when he was a teenager. He credits scrubbing pots for building up his catcher's arm strength.

My observation on the back: Mantle is still the all-time World Series RBI leader. The only non-Yankee that is in the top-10 in this category is Duke Snider.

The blog wants to speak now: The News category is updated.

#745 - Buddy Bell

What a card: Buddy Bell really went out with a bang with the Rangers in 1984. In his last full season with Texas, he .315 with a career-high on-base percentage of .382 and came close to career marks in several other categories.

My observation on the front: This is card number 9 of a Ranger in the wonderful red jersey. These cards rule.

More opinion from me: Bell is one of those players that was first hitting the majors when I was first learning the game. I feel a connection with those players and it seems like they should never be old.

Something you might know: Bell is one of four three-generation (grandfather-father-son) families in baseball as the middle man between father, Gus, and son, David.

Something you might not know: Bell grew up in Cincinnati (where his dad played) and didn't live far from future Reds owner Marge Schott. He used to cut across her lawn (unbeknownst by Schott).

My observation on the back: It seems odd to see David Bell's name mentioned casually with the other kids' names. (If David had as much success as his father, it'd be even more odd).

The blog wants to speak now: The Ballgames category is updated.

#723 - Dave Stewart

What a card: Dave Stewart was coming off his first full season with the Rangers when this card was issued. He set career highs for losses (14) and home runs allowed (26) in 1984.

My observation on the front: Stewart always looks bad-ass on his cards, even when he was lousy.

More opinion from me: The mid-80s Stewart cards remind me of how sad I was that the Dodgers traded him.

Something you might know: Stewart won 20 games four straight seasons from 1987-90.

Something you might not know: Stewart once threw a wild pitch that scored three runs while pitching for the Dodgers in 1983. During a July 11 game against the Cardinals, Stewart replaced starter Fernando Valenzuela in the sixth inning after Valenzuela walked opposing pitcher Bob Forsch to load the bases with the Dodgers ahead 3-2. Stewart walked the first batter he faced, Tom Herr, but his fourth ball went wild past catcher Steve Yeager. The runner on third, David Green, scored. The runner on second, Glenn Brummer, scored. And Forsch scored when Yeager's throw to Stewart, who was covering the plate, went past Stewart and backups Bill Russell and Pedro Guerrero. The Cardinals scored five runs in the inning to go ahead 5-3. But the Dodgers won in the 9th, 7-6, on a home run by Dusty Baker.

My observation on the back: Stewart didn't become an accountant, but he did become an agent and a general manager. So he was still dealing with people's money.

The blog wants to speak now: The News category is updated.

#678 - Joey McLaughlin

What a card: This is Joey McLaughlin's final card for Topps. He was released by the Rangers at the end of the 1984 season.

My observation on the front: What a way to go out! That's a nice, tight look at the mammoth eyewear that was in fashion during the 1980s.

More opinion from me: I got Bo McLaughlin and Joey McLaughlin confused since they were pitchers in the majors at about the same time. And when I figured out they were different people, I couldn't believe they weren't related. (There was also a pitcher named Byron McLaughlin at that time. For whatever reason, I was able to tell him apart).

Something you might know: McLaughlin spent most of his career with the Blue Jays, leading the team in saves with 10 in strike-shortened 1981.

Something you might not know: McLaughlin's first major league appearance, his first major league start, lasted all of six batters. On June 11, 1977, he started against the Phillies, giving up a single and two walks to his first three batters. Greg Luzinski then hit a grand slam for a 4-0 lead. McLaughlin retired Davey Johnson on a fly ball, but then Garry Maddox hit a home run and McLaughlin was replaced with Steve Kline.

My observation on the back: I missed posting on McLaughlin's birthday by five days.

The blog wants to speak now: The News category is updated.

#648 - Bob Jones

What a card: Bob Jones appeared in 64 games for the Rangers, his most major league playing time since he was with the Angels in 1976.

My observation on the front: Jones appears to be getting ready for his coaching career here.

More opinion from me: This card blew me away when I first saw it. There were very few players to appear on baseball cards who I had never heard of during the first half of the 1980s. He was one of them. And with the very generic sounding name of "Bob Jones" I half suspected Topps was putting me on.

Something you might know: Jones recently retired as the bench coach for the Rangers, participating in his last game in October 2016, his 50th and final season in major league ball.

Something you might not know: Jones has won more games as a minor league manager for the Rangers than anyone else.

My observation on the back: Jones led a howitzer group in Vietnam and is deaf in his right ear as a result.

The blog wants to speak now: The Pop Culture tab is updated.

#621 - Marvis Foley

What a card: Marvis Foley played his first season with the Rangers in 1984, appearing in 63 games. But he would be released by Texas before this card showed up in packs. This is his final Topps card.

My observation on the front: Foley spent most of his career with the White Sox, and he had a bushy beard, hair and a mustache then. Seeing this card of a clean-shaven Foley was bizarre, and a little bit sad.

More opinion from me: Topps, as it often did then, went with the more formal "Marvis" on Foley's cards, although he was more commonly called "Marv".

Something you might know: Foley jumped into managing immediately after his career and headed several successful minor league teams. He's the only manager to lead a team to a title in all three major Triple A leagues (there are just two now). He won the Pacific Coast title in 1989, the American Association title in 1993, and the International League title in 1997.

Something you might not know: Foley coached in the Rockies system for more than a decade. In 2013, he called Class A catcher Tom Murphy the best catching prospect he had seen in all his time watching players for the Rockies. Murphy is now catching for Colorado.

My observation on the back: Topps is determined to give us a stadium trivia question for every team, it seems. I'll have to go back at the end of this blog and see if it covered every team.

The blog wants to speak now: The Other Cards category is updated.

#594 - Curt Wilkerson

What a card: This is Curt Wilkerson's first Topps flagship card. He first appeared in the 1984 Donruss set, as well as the '84 Topps Traded set.

My observation on the front: Can't get a happier card than that, smiling hitter in the batting cage.

More opinion from me: It's refreshing to see a bare arm on display. Not a tattoo in sight.

Something you might know: Wilkerson broke on the scene with a desperate Rangers team. He was the starting shortstop for last-place Texas in 1984, appearing in 153 games. He'd never come close to that playing total again, even though he stayed in the majors for 10 more years.

Something you might not know: Wilkerson was part of what's known as one of the worst trades in Cubs history. The Cubs acquired Wilkerson and Mitch Williams, Steve Wilson, Paul Kilgus, Pablo Delgado and Luis Benitez from the Rangers in exchange for Rafael Palmeiro, Drew Hall and Jamie Moyer.

My observation on the back: The trivia question interests me. According to sportslogos.net, the Phillies logo that the question references actually was their alternate logo at the time (the large, curved "P"). The main logo contained the city name and team name. If the same trivia question was asked for the NL teams today, the Diamondbacks, Pirates and Padres would be correct as none of the primary logos give the full city name or team name.

The blog wants to speak now: The News category is updated.

#571 - Charlie Hough

What a card: Charlie Hough had completed one of his busiest seasons of his career when this card was issued. He led the league in starts with 36 and complete games with 17 in 1984 and also in hits allowed (260).

My observation on the front: Hough looks like a tourist in the stands.

More opinion from me: I was always annoyed that Hough did so well for himself after he left the Dodgers. Ten years as a decent reliever with L.A. and he chucked all that for the glamour of a starter's job with Texas and then later the White Sox and Marlins.

Something you might know: Hough pitched 25 seasons in the majors, thanks to his dancing knuckler (he was the first knuckleball pitcher I ever knew), going from giving up the last of Reggie Jackson's three home runs in Game 6 of the 1977 World Series to starting the first regular-season game in Florida Marlins history in 1993.

Something you might not know: Hough once had nine balks called on him in a single game in 1988. Seven of them were in one inning. It came during a Texas spring training game against Toronto and the umpires were cracking down on balks, issuing 20 overall during the games played that day.

My observation on the front: Hough was born at an Army hospital in Honolulu. His father, also a third baseman in semipro ball, was a Prisoner of War in Japan for 3 1/2 years.

The blog wants to speak now: Got to get up early, so no updates tonight.

#548 - Larry Parrish

What a card: Larry Parrish, although known as a slugger for most of his career, was coming off his first 100-RBI season in 10 years in the majors when this card was issued.

My observation on the front: This is the eighth card of Rangers red jersey in the set so far. Love every one.

More opinion from me: Parrish featured one of the great mustache/long hair combos of the late '70s/early '80s. It's sad to see him clean-shaven like this.

Something you might know: Parrish is the only player in Montreal Expos history to hit at least three home runs in a game. He did it three times.

Something you might not know: Parrish tied a major league record in 1982 when he hit three grand slams in one week. All 3 came against relief pitchers, the first against Oakland's Fernando Arroyo, the second against Boston's Mark Clear, and the third against Detroit's Milt Wilcox.

My observation on the back: Larry and I do not see eye to eye when it comes to music.

The blog wants to speak now: The internet is being uncooperative this evening. So I'm skipping this part.

#519 - Doug Rader

What a card: Doug Rader was entering his third season as manager for the Rangers, but by the time most kids pulled this card from packs, Rader was gone. The Rangers fired him 32 games into the 1985 season.

My observation on the front: I'd like to know what's on that orange piece of paper Rader is holding.

More opinion from me: This is now the third set blog in which I've written about Rader (it's happened for a few other players, too). I'm running out of stuff to say, even for someone as colorful as Rader.

Something you might know: Rader was a steady performer at third base for the Astros in the early 1970s. He won five straight Gold Glove awards.

Something you might not know: When Padres manager Ray Kroc famously apologized over the stadium speaker system for his players' poor performance on Opening Day against the Astros in 1974, Rader was offended by Kroc's words, saying, "what does he think we are, a bunch of short-order cooks or something?" When the Astros came back to San Diego later in the season, the Padres held "Short-Order Cook Night," inviting cooks to attend the game for free. Rader played his part, taking the lineup card out to the umpires while wearing a chef's hat and apron and flipping the lineup card in a skillet as he walked from the dugout.

My observation on the back: (*Sigh*). The Rangers finished dead last in the AL West in 1984. Sure, Rader led the Rangers to 146 wins in 1983 and 1984 but he also led them to 177 losses.

The blog wants to speak now: The News category is updated.