A Very Strange Set of Baseball Cards

I recently wrote about MLB’s relatively unknown “bannermark” logo, which debuted at the 1970 All-Star Game and appeared on the All-Star Game MVP trophy throughout the 1970s. You can see the bannermark-emblazoned trophy in the photo above, which shows Reds outfielder George Foster receiving the trophy in 1976. (Also: UPI misspelled Monte Irvin’s first name in the caption!)

But here’s something I didn’t know until reader Michael Ortman recently brought it to my attention: The bannermark was also showcased on a trading card! In fact, the entire All-Star MVP trophy had its own card in 1972.

There are so many weird things about this. For starters, Topps referred to this hardware as the “Commissioners Award” (note the missing apostrophe), but the object in the photo is engraved with “Commissioner’s Trophy” (emphasis mine).