1952 Topps Profile
Still Looking for A Missing Bud Podbielan Corner
I picked up most of this card in my early 2022 return to a card shop had not been visited since childhood. I say “most” because there is a missing corner which could still be floating around in a shoebox somewhere.
The ’52 Topps Coin-Flip Guy Finished What Kershaw Could Not
Picked up by the Braves on the results of a coin toss, Vern Bickford threw a no-hitter that would be in line with modern pitch counts.
Woody Main and the Wooden Fence
The story behind the wooden fence appearing in the background of so many 1950s Pittsburgh Pirates cards.
The Cubs Want a New Pitcher, This One’s Broken
Paul Minner had been playing off and on in the Majors since 1946, though it would take the expanded checklists of 1952 for him to finally get rookie cards from Topps and Bowman.
Never Injured, Bob Friend Spent a Lot of Time with the Nurse
Bob Friend was durable. He was never on the disabled list at any point in his career, but that didn’t stop him from hanging around the office of the team doctor. He married the resident nurse.
The Non-Yankee Yankee Card in ’52 Topps
He’s wearing a Yankees cap. There’s a Yankees logo in the lower left corner. He pitches for the Washington Senators.
A Surprise ’52 Topps Mantle?
Searching the background of a 1952 Topps common to find Mickey Mantle.
Ehhh…Close Enough
My octogenarian neighbor invited me to fight him this past summer, and it all started with a hat.
The Worst Pitcher in 1952 Topps
I had to change the axis on my player performance graph to capture just how awful Ed Blake’s MLB career was.