Mets in pillbox caps

[Frayed Knot]

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Are y'all saying that's not Schmidt? Then it must be Warren Brusstar.

Sure looks like Schmidt to me

[Guest AG/DC]

Frayed Knot wrote: ="John Cougar Lunchbucket"]Are y'all saying that's not Schmidt? Then it must be Warren Brusstar. Sure looks like Schmidt to me

Hair's darkier and curlier, skin's smoother and less pink, he's bulit lower to the ground, and looks older.

[Guest themetfairy]

I'm with FK - it looks like Schmidt to me.

[batmagadanleadoff]

It must be Schmidt because he did go to Japan in 1979 with the All Stars. Link to Mitchell & Ness Mike Schmidt '79 Japan Tour Jersey.

But where's our Keith - the 1979 co-MVP?

[Guest holychicken]

batmagadanleadoff wrote: ="metsguyinmichigan"]$48 ????? Yikes. Nothing is immune from the current inflation. Not even baseball caps. Those caps were $38 a few months ago. It's a high-quality cap, though.

Why couldn't this picture been posted a few months ago! heheh

thanks for the link. I might still get one.

[Guest AG/DC]

Did Bowa go?

[batmagadanleadoff]

I have an old baseball mag that reports the following late additions to the NL roster for Japan '79:

Elias Sosa, reliever (ATL)
Joel YOunglbood (NYM)
Joe Ferguson, C (LA)
Craig Reynolds, SS (HOU)
Gary Matthews OF (ATL)

A few stars were disgruntled because their team owners would not permit them to participate. I don't know who, but judging from that picture, Winfield and Hernandez come to mind immediately.

[HahnSolo]

Interesting that other Padres and Cardinals were there, but that Winfield and Keith were held back by their owners.

[Guest AG/DC]

Well, that's a guess. Winnie may have opted out on his own.

Keith might have opted instead for a tour of Colombia.

[batmagadanleadoff]

HahnSolo wrote: The NL team needs a second baseman. I nominate Craig Reynolds as the "guy in back who may have on an Astros cap."

You win.

[batmagadanleadoff]

There aren't any Giants in that picture. Maybe Jack Clark was held back. Lavelle was their star reliever that year. I'm not gonna say closer with what that being 1979.

[batmagadanleadoff]

batmagadanleadoff wrote: I have an old baseball mag that reports the following late additions to the NL roster for Japan '79: Elias Sosa, reliever (ATL) Joel YOunglbood (NYM) Joe Ferguson, C (LA) Craig Reynolds, SS (HOU) Gary Matthews OF (ATL)

I left out Dave Parker and Bert Blyleven, both Pirates. They were also late additions to the roster.

[batmagadanleadoff]

This picture gets freakier and freakier everytime I look at it. Youngblood's uniform is all wrong! His #1 in "18" has a serif. Stearns has the right style #1 digit - sans serif.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Holy crap that is freaky!

[Guest AG/DC]

A bunch of them are also wearing shoes branded with an M. Is that an old Mizuno logo?

[Benjamin Grimm]

I have a feeling that they bought their uniforms and shoes in Japan at Modells (or Herman's!) after they arrived.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Yep! The old and original Mizuno logo. Know what else I'm seein'? Youngblood's got black stirrups. (I'm just the messenger here)

[Guest Vince Coleman Firecracker]

batmagadanleadoff wrote: This picture gets freakier and freakier everytime I look at it. Youngblood's uniform is all wrong! His #1 in "18" has a serif. Stearns has the right style #1 digit - sans serif.

Weird. Also- mis-matched warmup jackets and black stirrups?

[Guest cooby]

I think the Phillie in the front is Larry Bowa

[soupcan]

That Phillie is definitely Bowa, not Schmidt.

I'm telling you - there was a luggage issue at the airport and they mixed and matched the unis with whatever they could find.

[batmagadanleadoff]

I think it's Schmidt and not Bowa. The trick is to put your finger (or thumb) on your computer screen over the Phillie's hair that's sticking out from his cap on the right side of his head. It sticks out too much. With this thumb haircut, he looks more like Schmitty than even Mike Schmidt himself. Plus that choppy-like skin complexion that Schmidt had, especially around his chin (and cheeks). You'll have to stare at the picture up close to get that chin-skin detail. I suggest you press your nose against your computer screen to get a better look at Schmidt's chin. So with your finger covering the right side of his head and your nose right up against your monitor --it's Mike Schmidt. See? Plus the NL already had two shortstops (Ozzie Smith and Craig Reynolds) and wouldn't need a third (Bowa) for a two game exhibition series.

[batmagadanleadoff]

The pillbox hats worn by the two Mets in this picture aren't like the Mets Bicentennial caps. The '76 caps had three horizontal orange stripes. These Japanese versions have five or six stripes. This isn't necessarily an error in uniform design, without evidence that the Japanese pillbox hats were intended to mirror the Bicentennials. It's no surprise, though, that the Japanese pillbox hats worn by the ML'ers were manufactured specifically for the All-Star Exhibition, as it would be unreasonable to ask the players (or the teams) to produce hats that in most cases, haven't been worn in three years.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Here is the original first edition unrevised NL roster for the 1979 Japanese All Star Tour:


Pitchers
Jim Bibby - Pirates
John Candelaria - Pirates
Bob Forsch - Cards
Gene Garber - Braves
Tug McGraw - Phillies
Phil Niekro - Braves
Dick Tidrow - Cubs

Catchers
Gary Carter - Expos
Ted Simmons - Cards
John Stearns - Mets

Infielders
Larry Bowa - Phillies
Steve Garvey - Dodgers
Davey Lopes - Dodgers
Bill Madlock - Pirates
Pete Rose - Phillies
Ozzie Smith - Padres

Outfielders
Lou Brock - Cardinals
Jack Clark - Giants
George Foster - Reds
Dave Kingman - Cubs
Greg Luzinski - Phillies

No Mike Schmidt, so far, although there is this M&N throwback jersey from the Japanese tour


The League indicated that one additional player will be added to the roster for this nine-game exhibition. Because seven players were eventually added to the original roster, I will assume that some of the later additions were to replace originally named players who could not make the trip to Japan. I will further assume that Bowa was one of those players who could not ultimately make the trip to Japan, based on the later selection of shortstop Craig Reynolds to the roster. Perhaps I am making these assumptions out of some bias to support my idea that the phront-row Phillie is Schmidt. The flaw here, however, is that I have yet to find any reported evidence that Schmidt was named to the NL roster, and am relying entirely on my visual interpretation of the photograph at the top of this thread and that Mitchell & Ness jersey. But Mitchell & Ness wouldn't make a Schmidt Japan '79 jersey if Schmidt never made the trip to Japan, would they?

[HahnSolo]

Magadan and his Scooby gang are all over the clues in this case.

[seawolf17]

Could that be Kid afro sticking out from under that Expos hat? Naah.

[HahnSolo]

Would be very un-Carterlike to not be front and center at any photo opportunity.

[Guest AG/DC]

I'm thinking that we're looking at a light-skinned African American back there. Man, Aurelio Lopez's hair could obscure the sun, couldn't it?

I'm also leaning towards the idea that the sea blue hat in the back may be on the head of another American Leaguer.

[seawolf17]

AG/DC wrote: I'm thinking that we're looking at a light-skinned African American back there. Man, Aurelio Lopez's hair could obscure the sun, couldn't it? I'm also leaning towards the idea that the sea blue hat in the back may be on the head of another American Leaguer.

Unless it's some sort of pillbox Dodgers hat.

[Guest AG/DC]

Yeah, I thout of that, but the Dodgers (especially then) don't strike me as the sort of outfit that would send teammates off to a game in two different uniforms.

[HahnSolo]

AG/DC wrote: I'm thinking that we're looking at a light-skinned African American back there.

Or a tall Latin guy? Tony Perez, anyone?