Phillies Oddballs: 1979 Burger King Set
During the summer of 1979, kids in select regional markets were scooping up cards at their local Burger King restaurants. In exchange for the purchase of a small french fry, customers were given a pack of three baseball cards - not a bad deal. In Philadelphia-area stores, these packs included cards of their hometown Phillies.
Produced by Topps, the 22-card set mimicked the company's flagship design, with most cards matching their regular-issue counterparts. However, the real interest in the set lies in the cards that are unique to the release. For example, Topps did not account for Rose's move to Philadelphia as a free-agent in December 1978; he is a Red in their 1979 set. And so the air-brushed Burger King card became his first in a Phillies uniform. Others appearing in uniforms other than the one in their 1979 Topps include: Manny Trillo (Cubs), Nino Espinosa (Mets), Doug Bird (Royals) and Greg Gross (Cubs). Also of interest, those who did not have a card in the regular set: Pete Mackanin and Danny Ozark.
Measuring 2.5"x3.5", the cards are fairly easy to find at flea markets, card shows or online. As a result, they are also inexpensive to buy. Complete sets can typically be had for $10 or less.
Checklist:
- Danny Ozark
- Bob Boone
- Tim McCarver
- Steve Carlton
- Larry Christenson
- Dick Ruthven
- Ron Reed
- Randy Lerch
- Warren Brusstar
- Tug McGraw
- Nino Espinosa
- Doug Bird
- Pete Rose
- :Manny Trillo
- Larry Bowa
- Mike Schmidt
- Pete Mackanin
- Jose Cardenal
- Greg Luzinski
- Garry Maddox
- Bake McBride
- Greg Gross