Every so often, someone in the hobby strings together something so clean, thoughtful, and downright fun that you can’t help but stop scrolling. That’s what happened when mattingly23vintage shared a five-card tribute to Thurman Munson on Instagram—five unique 1977 issues lined up like a well-earned 5-for-5 day at the plate. I reached out to ask if I could share his post here, and he graciously agreed. What follows is his original write-up.
On rare occasions, your favorite hitter goes 5 for 5 and just mashes.
Here’s my 5 for 5 Munson lineup!
From L to R:
- 1977 Topps Cloth Sticker #32
- 1977 Burger King #2
- 1977 Venezuela Sticker #178
- 1977 O-Pee-Chee #30
- 1977 Topps #170
Fun side quest within a side quest here. The Venezuelan Sticker is extremely rare, and in pretty rough shape – as most of this were adhered to sticker books during their lifetime, including this example.
Fun observations:
- O-Pee-Chee card backs have brighter bolder colors and says Printed in Canada
- Topps original card is the only one with the AL All Stars banner across the bottom
- Burger King version used a different facsimile auto layout than all the other 4 (horizontal as opposed to stacked)
- Venezuelan sticker has no “Catcher” distinction in top right blue banner like the others, and also includes the card #178 on the front
Happy collecting!
P.S. The only thing I’ll add is that the only other player with a card in all five of those sets is Reggie Jackson. Catfish Hunter appears in four of the five—he’s missing a Venezuela Sticker.
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