BLACK FRIDAY COMC PICKUPS - PART 23: COMIX

Y'ALL KNOW I LOVE TO READ COMICS SO HERE'S A COMIC FOR YOU TO READ

1970 TOPPS STORY BOOKLETS REGGIE JACKSON

LATE 60S-EARLY 70S TOPPS INSERT CARDS HAVE BEEN PART OF MY COLLECTION SINCE THE EARLIEST DAYS BUT UNTIL RECENTLY I NEVER BOTHERED TO EVEN ATTEMPT TO COMPLETE ONE OF THE SETS. A FEW YEARS AGO I FINALLY MADE UP SOME WANTLISTS FOR THE THINGS AND IN 2022, I VOWED TO COMPLETE ONE, ANY ONE. I FAILED MISERABLY, BUT I HAVE MADE SOME PROGRESS IN RECENT YEARS. ONE SET I HAD VERY FEW OF UNTIL RECENTLY WAS THE 1970 STORY BOOKLETS INSERT. I DON'T REMEMBER HAVING ANY AS A KID, MY FIRST ONES CAME OUT OF A TEN DOLLAR JUNK BOX I PICKED UP FROM THE FLEA MARKET MAYBE 20 YEARS AGO. I'VE PICKED UP MOST OF THE COMMONS AT THE LOCAL CARD SHOW IN RECENT YEARS AND GRABBING THE REGGIE ONLINE FOR A DECENT PRICE WAS A NO-BRAINER. I CAN SORT OF SEE WHY THESE ELUDED ME FOR SO LONG, THEY ARE ONE OF THE WEIRDER VINTAGE INSERTS AND SINCE THEY CAME OUT OF HIGH SERIES PACKS MAY BE JUST A SMIDGE SCARCER THAN THE SCRATCH OFFS OR POSTERS. I'M STILL NOT SUPER CLOSE TO COMPLETING ANY INSERT SETS, I PROBABLY NEED TO CHOOSE ONE AND GET FOCUSED. I SHOULD ALSO BECOME A BILLIONAIRE WHILE I'M AT IT

THE BACK OF THE BOOKLET SHOWS THE CHECKLIST AND HONESTLY IT'S A PRETTY FASCINATING COLLECTION OF PLAYERS. THERE'S A HANDFUL OF HALL OF FAMERS JOINING REGGIE. MAYS, BANKS, CEPEDA, OLIVA AND GIBSON ALONG WITH A COUPLE PLAYERS WHO HAVE A LEGIT ARGUMENT TO GET IN EVENTUALLY AND SOME COOL GUYS LIKE MIKE CUELLAR, WALT WILLIAMS AND TOMMY HARPER. BUT I WANT TO KNOW MORE DETAIL ON HOW SOME OF THE PLAYER CHOICES WENT DOWN FOR EACH TEAM. WALLY BUNKER WAS LEGIT THE BEST PLAYER ON THE INAUGURAL KANSAS CITY ROYALS SQUAD, SO I GET IT. I ALSO GET AL FERRARA FOR THE PADRES SINCE HE HAD A BETTER TRACK RECORD THAN NATE COLBERT AT THE TIME BUT TONY GONZALEZ MIGHT'VE HAD THE BEST STORY. BUT... DENIS MENKE FOR THE ASTROS? OVER JOE MORGAN, JIM WYNN AND A 20-WIN LARRY DIERKER? MIKE EPSTEIN OVER FRANK HOWARD AND HIS 48 DINGERS IN WASHINGTON? AND ROOKIE BOBBY MURCER FOR THE YANKEES OVER ANOTHER 20 GAME WINNER MEL STOTTLMYRE? ROOKIE CARDS WEREN'T EVEN A THING BACK THEN. AND THE GUY I REALLY WANT TO READ A COMIC ABOUT IS JOE PEPITONE. HONESTLY I CAN SEE ARGUMENTS FOR EVERYONE IN THE CHECKLIST BUT I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO KNOW IF THESE GUYS WERE CHOSEN BECAUSE THEY HAD A COOL STORY OR IF THEY WERE JUST THE FIRST GUY WOODY GELLMAN THOUGHT OF WHEN FINALIZING THE CHECKLIST. I AM THANKFUL CEPEDA GOT THE BRAVES NOD SO I HAVE ONE LESS PRICY VINTAGE AARON TO TRACK DOWN

EACH BOOKLET IS MADE UP OF TWO PIECES OF PAPER FOLDED IN HALF TO MAKE A SIX PAGE COMIC WITH THE FRONT COVER AND BACK CHECKLIST. I SCANNED THE INNARDS FOR YOU ALL FOR YOUR READING ENJOYMENT

FOOTBALL REGGIE! I NEED A ROOKIE CARD CUSTOM ON THE 1969 FOOTBALL DESIGN NOW

A LOT OF GREAT PLAYERS CAME OUT OF ARIZONA STATE INCLUDING BOB HORNER WHO HAD WAY WORSE KNEES THAN REGGIE

MOAR COMICS SHOULD HAVE DINGERS LEAVING THE WHOLE DAMN STADIUM BUT MARVEL AND DC ARE COWARDS

TOPPS REFERENCING A POP SONG FROM 1945 IS EXTREMELY ODD, ESPECIALLY SINCE REGGIE REPORTEDLY HAD A ROUGH TIME PLAYING IN BIRMINGHAM IN THE LATE 60S

ALWAYS WITH THE STRIKEOUTS. REGGIE HAD A 138 OPS+ WITH OVER 5 WAR WITH ALL THOSE STRIKEOUTS. STRIKEOUTS DON'T MEAN SHIT

NEWSFLASH: HE STILL LED THE LEAGUE IN STRIKEOUTS IN 69. WHILE HE DID NOT BREAK THE HOME RUN RECORD, HE LED THE LEAGUE FOUR TIMES AND ENDED UP WITH 563 HOMERS TOTAL. AND WON AN MVP AND TWO WORLD SERIES MVPS AND FIVE SERIES RINGS. AND HE WOULDA KILLED THE QUEEN IF NOT FOR THAT BUFFOON FRANK DREBIN. THAT'S A WHOLE LOTTA STUFF REGGIE DID! WE NEED MORE REGGIE COMICS!