Monday, September 9, 2013

Card(s) of the Week: 1978 Burger King Tigers Alan Trammell & Lou Whitaker

This week I am featuring two cards of the week.  Frankly, you can not have one without the other.  The Detroit Tigers soon realized this after this day back in 1977.  On this date, during a second game of a doubleheader in Boston, Trammell and Whitaker debuted together at shortstop and second base.
Together they would set a MLB record of playing 19 seasons together as a double play combination.  Individually, each would have careers that would put them up for consideration for the Hall of Fame. Trammell, has a couple more years left on the ballot, while Whitaker is now only eligible on the veteran's committee. I believe both will eventually will be inducted at some point in the future



Burger King ran promotions for baseball cards at local restaurants during the 1978 season. Several regions gave away a 3-card pack free with any sandwich purchase.  One of the teams was the Detroit Tigers.  It used the 1978 Topps cards and pictures(when available) for the sets.
Another note is that the 1978 Topps is Trammell, Whitaker and Jack Morris' rookie cards. Each featured on multiple player cards within the set.  The Burger King set allows the collector to have solo rookie year cards of these players.  Hopefully, in the future, one can say this 23 card set will feature three Hall of Famers rookie year cards.

1 comment:

  1. I was not aware of the Burger King Rookie Cards for a long time. Missing Lou Whitaker since it is hard to find centered.

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