1981 Atlanta Braves Police Set

The Atlanta Braves, in conjunction with Hostess, Coca-Cola and the Police Athletic League, released the first of six yearly safety sets in 1981. A complete set features 27 cards; twenty-five active players, manager Bobby Cox and Braves legend Hank Aaron.

These cards are typical of the police sets released during the first half of the 1980s. Measuring a bit larger than the standard card size, these measure approx. 2-5/8 inches wide by 4-1/8 tall. Cards were printed on soft white card stock with a nice coating of semi-gloss across the fronts. Every card but Hank Aaron and Terry Harper features a studio portrait with a neutral background (Aaron and Harper are pictured at the ballpark). Though the year of issue is mentioned nowhere on the cards, they are easily identifiable as '81s because of the green ribbon graphic found at the top right of each card front. A Police Athletic League logo is found at the top left; this logo appears on all six Braves police sets. Card backs feature Coca-Cola and Hostess logos, as well as a short player biography and a "Tip from The Braves." Cards are not numbered except for uniform numbers.

Braves fans were treated to good baseball in the 1980s, and this set offered a preview of what would be many of the key players. Infielder Jerry Royster, 1978 Rookie of the Year Bob Horner, Hall of Fame pitcher Phil Niekro, All-Star outfielder Claudell Washington and two-time NL MVP Dale Murphy are just some of the players who contributed to the success of the club during the first half of the decade. Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry is also found in the set, his lone year with the Braves. Four-time Manager of the Year and Hall of Fame skipper Bobby Cox is also pictured, one year before heading to the Toronto Blue Jays. Cox would return to the Braves in 1990, and the rest is baseball history with his fourteen first place finishes in fifteen years.

It was reported that 33,000 sets were printed. Allegedly, the Terry Harper card is a bit harder to find than the other cards; while it isn't scarce by any means, it is technically a short print. The Hank Aaron card, on the other hand, was triple-printed (I saw an uncut sheet several years ago to verify this) and is by far the easiest card in the set to find. This means that approximately 99,000 Aaron cards rolled off the presses back in 1981, and examples are easily found these days.

A NRMT complete set is valued in the $10 to $15 range today, including the "slightly" short-printed Harper. This set, along with the other five '80s Brave police issues, are loaded with quality cards and should be a part of every baseball oddball portfolio.

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 (1) Jerry Royster

(3) Dale Murphy

(4) Biff Pocoroba

(5) Bob Horner

(6) Bobby Cox, MGR

(9) Luis Gomez

(10) Chris Chambliss

(15) Bill Nahorodny

(16) Rafael Ramirez

(17) Glenn Hubbard

(18) Claudell Washington

(19) Terry Harper (SP)

(20) Bruce Benedict

(24) John Montefusco

(25) Rufino Linares

(26) Gene Garber

(30) Brian Asselstine

(34) Larry Bradford

(35) Phil Niekro

(37) Rick Camp

(39) Al Hrabosky

(40) Tommy Boggs

(42) Rick Mahler

(45) Ed Miller

(46) Gaylord Perry

(49) Preston Hanna

(NNO) Hank Aaron

1980 Los Angeles Dodgers Police Set

 

After a couple years of writing this blog, it finally occurred to me that an L.A. Dodgers set has not been the subject of a post... An oversight that will change today.

What better way to kick off some Dodger love than to feature their first police set, which was issued back in 1980 -- an era of blue Lasorda baseball that ranks among L.A.'s best and most exciting. The club would win 92 games that season behind the efforts of a talented blend of veterans and youngsters. Seasoned pros Steve Garvey, Don Sutton, Ron Cey, Charlie Hough, Bill Russell, Jerry Reuss and Dusty Baker shared the field with up-and-comers Pedro Guerrero, Mike Scioscia and Bob Welch. Unfortunately, Steve Howe (the 1980 NL Rookie of the Year) was not included in the set; nor was fellow pitcher Fernando Valenzuela, who managed to sneak into ten games during the 1980 campaign.

As for the '80 police set, it is complete at 30 cards (29 players and a team photo). Printed on soft, white card stock, the fronts have a semi-gloss coating that give the large action photos a nifty look. Basic player info is printed along the bottoms of the fronts. Backs are printed in blue and feature a large LAPD badge in the background, but the cards are not numbered except for uniform numbers. Each card back also features a baseball term and a helpful tip for California's youth ("Boost your grades at school and hit .300 with your chores at home." In other words, kids were only expected to do 30% of their schoolwork and chores correctly...) The cards are larger than the typical Topps size, measuring 2 13/16" by 4 1/8".

Speaking of Topps, their nationally-distributed baseball cards were still the only game in town back in 1980. Hungry collectors were eager to snap up anything they could find in those simpler times, especially with stacked clubs like the Dodgers. Like all true police sets these cards were a regionally-distributed issue, so hobby publications and sports magazines of the day featured advertisements that offered to sell a set to anyone willing to part with a ten dollar bill. 

The Dodgers would be featured on yearly police issues through the end of the century, with the one exception being the 1985 season (and we're not sure why). Regarding scarcity, none of the Dodgers police issues from the 1980s or early 1990s are difficult to find; sets from the mid to late 1990s are a bit harder to track down, but they're out there too.

These days, a complete set in NRMT or better condition is valued at the same ten dollar bill that folks paid 35 years ago... Not the best investment a collector will ever make, but definitely one of the coolest sets a collector can own!

Uninteresting Fact: Light-hitting infielder Teddy Martinez was demoted to AAA ball before the 1980 season began, never again to make it back to the Majors. His inclusion in the set, and the omission of Steve Howe, leads us to believe that these cards were created very early in the season.

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Team Photo
(5) Johnny Oates, C

(6) Steve Garvey, INF

(7) Steve Yeager, C

(8) Reggie Smith, OF

(9) Gary Thomasson, OF

(10) Ron Cey, INF

(12) Dusty Baker, OF

(13) Joe Ferguson, C

(15) Davey Lopes, INF

(16) Rick Monday, OF

(18) Bill Russell, INF

(20) Don Sutton, P

(21) Jay Johnstone, OF

(23) Teddy Martinez, INF

(27) Joe Beckwith, P

(28) Pedro Guerrero, OF

(29) Don Stanhouse, P

(30) Derrel Thomas, OF

(31) Doug Rau, P

(34) Ken Brett, P

(35) Bob Welch, P

(37) Robert Castillo, P

(38) Dave Goltz, P

(41) Jerry Reuss, P

(43) Rick Sutcliffe, P

(44) Mickey Hatcher, INF

(46) Burt Hooton, P

(49) Charlie Hough, P

(51) Terry Forster, P

1979 San Francisco Giants Police

The modern era of police giveaway sets featuring athletes began in 1977/78, with the release of the Portland Trail Blazers basketball set. One of the first baseball examples is the 1979 San Francisco Giants set, which was issued both as a stadium promotion and a giveaway by police officers in the San Francisco area.

The Giants released two very similar sets, in 1979 and 1980. Neither set lists a year of issue, and both appear very similar on the fronts and backs. The easiest way to tell the difference is to look at the player's name and position listed on the front. The 1979 cards feature this information in thin font, while the 1980 cards list the info in bold font. In addition, the 1980 cards feature the player's name in an italicized font. One final, easy-to-spot difference is that the 1979 cards feature the player's uniform number with the "#" symbol, while the 1980 cards do not.

Here's a look at the Willie McCovey card from both sets:

Both sets were sponsored by KNBR 68 radio, and feature baseball terms and safety tips on card backs. The 1979 set is complete at 30 cards, which includes a manager card and four coaches cards. Fronts feature color photos taken by longtime Giants and 49ers photographer Dennis Desprois. Cards are not numbered except for player uniform numbers.

Loaded with all the big and small names of the day, baseball fans will be happy to find the likes of Willie McCovey, Jack Clark, Vida Blue, Bill Madlock and Darrell Evans within their 1979 set. More than enough sets were printed to handle today's demand, and a complete set should cost no more than ten dollars in the current market.

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(1) Dave Bristol, Manager

(2) Marc Hill, Catcher

(3) Mike Sadek, Catcher

(5) Tom Haller, Coach

(6) Joe Altobelli, Manager

(8) Larry Shepard, Coach

(9) Heity Cruz, Outfielder

(10) Johnny LeMaster, Infielder

(12) Jim Davenport, Coach

(14) Vida Blue, Pitcher

(15) Mike Ivie, Infielder

(16) Roger Metzger, Infielder

(17) Randy Moffitt, Pitcher

(18) Bill Madlock, Infielder

(21) Rob Andrews, Infielder

(22) Jack Clark, Outfielder

(25) Dave Roberts, Pitcher

(26) John Montefusco, Pitcher

(28) Ed Halicki, Pitcher

(30) John Tamargo, Catcher

(31) Larry Herndon, Outfielder

(36) Bill North, Outfielder

(39) Bob Knepper, Pitcher

(40) John Curtis, Pitcher

(41) Darrell Evans, Infielder

(43) Tom Griffin, Pitcher

(44) Willie McCovey, Infielder

(45) Terry Whitfield, Outfielder

(46) Gary Lavelle, Pitcher

(49) Max Venable, Outfielder