5 Baseball Cards to Rev You Up for the New Year

They're your vehicle, baby; they'll take you anywhere you wanna go

Today is Dave Ford’s birthday. More on that in a minute, but we’re going to use the occasion to check out some new wheels. I mean, the new year is just ahead, right? So why not get our engines revving with some vehicles that would make even the Ides of March envious?

Feels like a must

Here, then, are five baseball cards of players who could really motor. Or, at least their names could.

1965 Topps Mack Jones (#241)

It takes a special type of person to go shopping for a Mack — you know, like a truck driver, or maybe a fleet owner. Similarly, it took a special kind of person to appear on a Mack Jones baseball card.

You know, like an underrated star whom the Braves loaned to the Tigers’ Triple-A affiliate in 1964. Probably not what Jones was hoping for after spending parts of 1961 through 1963 in the majors with Milwaukee. He made the most of the situation, though, setting Syracuse Chiefs records for runs (111), total bases (337), RBIs (102), triples (18), and home runs (39). He also hit .317 and stole 13 bases.

International League pitchers must have felt like they got run over by a…well, you know. He’s still a legend in central New York.

Jones also parlayed that success into a pretty nifty Topps card and his best season in the majors in 1965: 31 homers, 75 RBI, 4 WAR.

1971 Topps Cotton Nash (#391)

Cotton Nash played in the NBA in 1964-65 and in the ABA in 1967-68.

At the same time, and in between, he was busy working his way through the minor leagues, for the Angels, Dodgers, Phillies, and White Sox. In 1967, he pulled double big-league duty, debuting for the ChiSox in September and then suiting up for the Kentucky Colonels that fall.

But that would be the end of his hardwood career, giving baseball a clear shot at grabbing onto Nash for the long haul.

With basketball behind him and traded to the Twins in July 1969 while he was still in the minors, Nash set his sights on getting back to the majors.

He made it…for six games that September.

And for four more at the end of 1970.

In 1971, while Nash was toiling for the Triple-A Portland Beavers, he also finally debuted on a big league baseball card — the black-bordered Rookie Stars number from Topps that he shared with Steve Brye, who would play in the majors through 1978.

Nash never would make it back, though, leaving his half of the rookie card as mysterious to future generations as those old ads for cars made by Nash Motors.

1981 Fleer Don Zimmer (#230)

You say you don’t remember any Zimmer cars? Well then, Skippy, I suggest you hop in your space-time machine and haul tail down to Pompano Beach in the 1980s. Keep your eye out for modified Mustangs and Fieros, and you just may catch a glimpse of a shiny new Golden Spirit or Quicksilver. Maybe even a Zimmer limo.

As for Don Zimmer, and this Don Zimmer in particular, this is one of the first baseball cards I remember owning. I was basically forced into the hobby by my mom (thanks, Mom) — which I’ve written about before — and didn’t really like any of the cards that came into my purview.

Still, there was something about the bowling-ball-jawed Zimmer that made me wonder if there might be a nut here, someday. He looked like just the type of old man you might find running a filling station in the middle of nowhere, dropping pearls of wisdom that could change your life forever.

Turns out, all that was basically true, even though the Old Man Zimmer on this card was younger than I am now. Oh, the humanity. Oh, the slings and arrows of cruel fate. Oh, the joy of realizing that there’s still a lot to life after 40…and 50…and 60…and 70…and 80…and…

1982 Topps Dave Ford (#174)

Dave Ford turns 68 years old today, and I’ve thought more about him in the last several minutes than I have in the last 40+ years combined. Looking at his stats, I understand why that is.

The deal is, Ford pitched for the Orioles from 1978 through 1981, before heading back to the minors for good — for the O’s, A’s, and Brewers. That makes this 1982 card a career-capper, showing his complete major league line: 5-6, 4.02 ERA, 3 saves.

And, though he was with the 1979 Orioles at the end of the regular season, he didn’t take the mound at all in their run to a seven-game World Series loss.

Given that low profile, and the fact I didn’t pick up the hobby in earnest until 1983, it’s little surprise that Ford is not emblazoned in my memory like, say, Jerry Don Gleaton.

But maybe the Orioles righthander did have some impact on me. After all, my first car a few years later was a Ford Escort.

1992 Donruss Luis Mercedes (#6)

For the discriminating driver and card collector, I present Mr. Luis Mercedes and his revved up 1992 Donruss baseball card.

You wouldn’t know it from the prices and reputation of the set today, but 1992 Donruss was something of a sensation out of the gate. Leaving behind the garish designs of the previous couple of issues and the standard Donruss card backs, the 1992s were bright and clean and featured glossy, full-color photos on both sides.

Likewise, Topps and Fleer made big leaps forward in card quality in 1992. Too bad all three companies — and Upper Deck and Score and pretty much whatever other brands there were back then — relegated their sets to the trash heap of history by keeping the printing press buried on the “Junk Wax” setting all through the run.

Still, this is a nice looking card, and a Rated Rookie to boot, of a young Mercedes, whom the O’s thought might be part of their next great team.

He wasn’t, but he did play sparingly for two winning teams in 1992 and 1993 before finishing his career with a stretch-run stint with the Giants. As such, he was on hand to witness the last great division title race, and one of the greatest ever.

Mercedes died way too young in 2019, but on this card, he’ll always be young and showroom shiny.

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So, who are your favorite baseball “car” players? Or is that baseball car cards? Baseball cars? You get the picture, whatever you want to call them. I’d love to hear your picks.

Happy New Year, and I’ll see you on the other side of midnight (now, doesn’t that sound mysterious/majestic?).

Thanks for reading.

—Adam

Last week in the daily newsletter…

The Baseball Cards Daily newsletter returned last week as we began running through the 2025 Hall of Fame ballot, but with a twist: for each candidate, we focus on a wax-pack era card of a similar player from history.

Here’s the first six oldsters in our lineup:

• Will Cobra Boost El Comedulce?

• Dipping into the Junk Wax Well(s)

• When Omar Met Davey...Coming and Going

• Rocky Mountain Lows with Dale Murphy

• Billy Williams Was 'Pure' to the End

• Billy the Kid and The Terminator