Baseball cards in some form have been around for over a century.
They’ve been in my house for over 40 years. I remember sitting in the front yard under a tree sorting them by teams.
My grandfather and I built a big wooden box to store them under my bed. It seemed to be a project for my mother as much as it was for me.
Every now and then one of the more interesting things that happens with a player’s baseball card is due to a trade.
They appear in a different uniform with an airbrushed hat. Overall, most of them are just plain ugly.
But there are some instances where a player is shown with a team, where he never actually wore that organization’s uniform.
The end of Curt Flood‘s baseball career has been well documented with his role in the free agency saga, which was important to the case against baseball’s reserve clause.
This part of Flood’s story begins after the 1969 season with a trade from the St. Louis Cardinals to the Philadelphia Philles. He never played for the Phillies because he refused to accept the trade, which started his legal process that led him all the way to the United States Supreme Court where he lost his case.
However, he did end up with the Phillies on his Topps baseball card in 1970. Flood was sent to Philadelphia in what started out to be seven-player deal.
The Phillies would get Flood, catcher Tim McCarver, pitcher Joe Hoerner and outfielder Bryon Browne. The Cardinals received Dick Allen, Jerry Johnson and Cookie Rojas. Since Flood didn’t joined the Phillies, the Cardinals ended up with first baseman Willie Montanez and minor leaguer Jim Browning.
After sitting out the entire 1970 season, Flood was traded by the Phillies in November of that year with the infamous player to be named later to the Washington Senators. His 1971 Topps card listed him with the Senators, but he was still in a Cardinals uniform.
In a strange twist, Jeff Terpko, who was one of original parts of the deal to Philadelphia, was sent back to Washington by the Phillies before the 1971 season began as the player to be named later. Like Flood, Terpko never played with the Phillies either.
The Beginning
At 18, Flood was signed by the Cincinnati Reds in 1956 and played his first big league game later that year. He was in three games for the Reds in 1957 before he was sent to the Cardinals the next season.
Flood became a fixture for the Cardinals until his trade at the end of 1969. He was a part two world championships and a National League pennant.
The Gold Gloves
Flood was considered by many to be the top defensive centerfielder in baseball as he won seven straight Gold Gloves from 1963 to 1969. He was a NL All-Star in 1964, 1966 and 1968.
In 1964, he was a key component of the Cardinals when they won the World Series as he led the NL with 211 hits.
The Cardinals won another title in 1967 before losing to the Detroit Tigers in the World Series the following season. That year, Flood finished fourth in the NL Most Valuable Player balloting behind teammate and winner Bob Gibson, Pete Rose of the Reds and Willie McCovey of the San Francisco Giants.
Another Refusal
Like Flood, Donn Clendenon refused to report to his new team before the 1969 season.
As a result, Clendenon ended up with two cards in the 1969 Topps set. The same photo is on No. 208 with one labeled Houston and then it was changed to Expos.
Left unprotected by Pittsburgh after the 1968 season and eight years with the Pirates, Clendenon was picked in the expansion draft by the Montreal Expos.
Clendenon was later traded to the Houston Astros and refused to report. He ultimately retired, but eventually returned and signed with the Expos.
In June of 1969, the Expos were able to trade Clendenon to the New York Mets. He went on to lead the team to the World Series title and was named the MVP.
Another 1969 Card
Leon Wagner played 12 years in the big leagues from 1958 to 1969.
He began his career with the San Francisco Giants and played with Flood in 1960 with the Cardinals.
In 1961, Wagner became a member of the expansion Los Angeles Angels where he was an American League All-Star in 1962 and 1963.
His best season was in 1962 when he hit 37 homers and knocked in 107 runs.
Wagner was sent to Cleveland prior to the 1964 season.
The slugger finished with 31 home runs and 100 RBI for the Indians as he also swiped a career-high 14 bases.
During the 1968 season, the Indians traded Wagner to the Chicago White Sox. After the season, the White Sox sold him to Cincinnati, which led to Wagner’s 1969 Topps card being with the Reds.
After spring training with the Reds, they sent him back to the White Sox and he was then released before the season. He later signed with the Giants for what would be the final season of his career.