Starting in 1959 Topps began printing cards for the Venezuelan market. They were typically the same design on the front with some design changes on the back that varied by years. Usually the set was smaller, for example the 59 set was just the first 196 cards of the set.
Although Willie McCovey first appeared in 1960 Topps, he wasn't in the Venezuelan parallel set until 1964. He actually has 3 cards in the set, the HR Leaders, a Friendly Foes multiplayer card with Leon Wagner and his base card. In 1964 they paralleled the first 370 cards.
I don't have the HR Leaders card in my collection but do have the other two. Here is a look at the fronts, they look about the same as the regular Topps issue.
It is when you flip them over that you can see the difference. 1964 Topps is known for its nice orange backs while the Venezuelan parallel is black.
I feel fortunate to have cards in this good condition. Many of the copies of these cards that I have come across appear to have been glued into books and have paper loss and/or residue on the back.
Topps stopped with the Venezuelan parallels in 1968 and overall Willie Mac had 7 cards and I have 5 of them. In addition to the missing 1964 HR Leaders card, I still need to track down a 1966 HR Leaders card.
I have always wanted a Venezuelan card, but never come across one. Very nice!
ReplyDeleteThose are super cool, great pieces for your collection for sure. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteOh man... a Venezuelan McCovey? I mean... two Venezuelan McCoveys. That's awesome. I only own one Venezuelan. It's a 1964 Wayne Causey that was given to me by a fellow blogger. It's a treasured piece of cardboard in my collection.
ReplyDeleteWow two Venezuelan McCoveys and neither is beat to hell. I've been intrigued by these for a long time but they're always much much more than I want to spend on a card.
ReplyDeleteYeah, those are fantastic. I do have some Venezuelan cards of recent vintage (Edgardo Alfonzos, mostly), but I'd love to come across some of the Topps Venezuelan stuff in decent shape at a reasonable price.
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