Card fact: John Vukovich is airbrushed into a Reds cap. He was traded from the Brewers to the Reds on Oct. 22, 1974.
What I thought about this card then: I never saw it. In fact, I didn't even know Vukovich existed until his final card, from 1981 Fleer. By then his career was a matter of at-bats from being over. Also, I thought he was Brewers pitcher Pete Vukovich's brother for a long time. They are not related.
What I think about this card now: The two Vukovichs don't look alike at all. I don't know what I was thinking.
Other stuff: Vukovich is associated mostly with the Phillies. He came up to the majors with Philadelphia and spent 1970, 1971 with the team. After two years with the Brewers and one with the Reds, he returned to the Phillies and stayed there the rest of his career.
Actually, he rarely played for Philadelphia the second time around. But the fans liked him.
After his career, he became a coach, mostly with the Phillies, even serving as interim manager for Philadelphia in the late '80s. His coaching career lasted almost two decades, despite being diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2001.
Vukovich remained a coach through 2004. Despite surgery back in '01, he became ill again in 2006 and died at age 59 in 2007.
Back facts: It is almost painful when I see high school exploits brought up in the card bios of major leaguers.
Other blog stuff: The orange-brown border color combination reties the green-light green border combo for the overall lead with its 51st card.
