[Chstrite]

Day 157 – 6 June 2024
Today I am showing you a few of my 1975 Clarance Mengler Baseball’s Best 3x5 inch unlicensed post cards for signatures. This is a 125 card set that the MLBPA went after Mr. Mengler as the cards were not sanctioned by the MLB. Mengler created these cards for signatures but ran into legal challenges by the MLB so he stood down with the set. MLBPA was upset with other companies, too, such as TCMA. I believe he created as many as 125 cards each in a set and sold 100 sets and kept 25 sets for himself. I have Frank Robinson with the Indians. Included in the first picture is also McNally with the Expos but this one is an original hand drawn in pencil by Mr. Mengler’s artis, Mr. Neil Patterson. At the time when the set was created, Patterson was a student at a Chicago Art School. The 1st picture shows Brooks, Blair and Singleton are are part of the set but not originals. You can tell if the card is an original if stamped on the back like the second picture. The next picture are originals of Grich, Singleton, May, Belanger and Blair. These are part of the set but original hand drawn. The Bumbry at the top left is not part of the set. Mr. Mengler told me he planned another set in 1976 but he did not get to it based on the MLBPA legal challenge. The last picture shows these are originals with the markings on the back. I had several conversations with Mr. Mengler and was able to get these originals and the insights above. He sent me a photo copy of an article published about his sets in 1975. More on this set tomorrow.