Top 5 Cards: Tony Pérez

Out of all the members of the 70's Big Red Machine team, Tony Pérez had what was probably the longest career. The 7-time All-Star and 2-time World Series Champion played illustrious 23-year career with a number of teams including the Reds, Expos, Red Sox, and Phillies. 

With the addition of the Archives card (shown above) that I acquired not too long ago, my Tony Pérez player collection has reached exactly 5 cards. Only 10% of those cards made my top 5 list, here they are.

#5 1982 Topps

People generally associate Tony Perez with the Reds, but besides Cincinnati Pérez is generally recognized with the Red Sox. Tony played 3 seasons in Beantown where he hit an okay .266 with 175 RBI'S. His 2nd Topps card with the Red Sox features Perez baserunning in his home jersey. The blue and red "hockey stick" design bleeds from the top to the bottom, and it actually goes well with the card. I wish we could see more of his face as well as a more interesting and clear background, but it's a pretty nice card besides those few flaws, and that's why it made the top 5.

#4 2014 Topps Gypsy Queen

I'm sure by now you're all tired of seeing Gypsy Queen on my blog, but let me just show one card and then I'll try to stop for a while. This card shows Tony in one of the more classic uniforms in baseball history, practicing his swing. The spotless red helmet and the smile on his face are another 2 factors that cause this card to stand out. The background is pretty standard, but it looks nice and works well with the card. It doesn't blow you away, however, it does enough to make it to #4.

#3 1984 Fleer

This top 5 list covers 3/4 teams Pérez played for and the Phillies were not to be left out. This shot from 1984 features Tony coming out of the dugout for his new team. In modern sets, this would probably an SP action variation, but not back in 1984. This is just a great photo and a card that wasn't impossible to acquire. The dugout background is pretty great, but the only reason this card didn't make the top 2 is that it lacks a certain wow factor that the last 2 cards have.

#2 2003 Topps All-Time Fan Favorites

1967 Topps was a perfect example of making simple work, and so the recreation of Pérez's 1967 card also worked well. The major changes happened with the picture and camera quality. They enhanced the picture, big time and focused in on other elements than just the batter, while also allowing the background and fake signature to be seen. This card may look great, but it looks nothing like his actual 1967 card.

They changed the card design a lot, and I'm okay with that. I just don't understand why the team name in green suddenly became yellow, and so this small change from set to set is what prevented this from being the #1 card.

#1 1981 Topps

Rarely for top 5 card lists of retired players do I choose an original card from their playing career as the #1 card. I usually believe that modern sets do a much better job of making cards of retired players than past sets, but not in this case. This action shot of Pérez features him playing 1st base on the road with Boston and does an excellent job of it. We usually see the same shot of the player swinging the bat in every card, so this breath of fresh air and a unique picture is what landed this card the top spot on my list.