The 1979 OPC baseball card set marked a transition period in the baseball card industry. For years, Topps reigned supreme as the lone maker of mass-produced baseball cards. In 1978 a new competitor called O-Pee-Chee (OPC) entered the market for the first time by producing an alternate Canadian version of the Topps set. In 1979, OPC took a bold step by creating their very own original card design apart from Topps for the Canadian market.
The 1979 OPC set consisted of 366 total cards and featured all 26 Major League teams from that season. Unlike previous years where OPC simply re-packaged Topps’ design, the 1979 version broke new ground with a completely original card layout. Gone was the classic Topps design Americans had come to know and expect. In its place was a brightly colored card with team logos and player photos arrayed diagonally across the front. The border colors also matched each team, adding a vibrant splash of visual flair missing from duller Topps designs of that era.
An instantly noticeable difference between the 1979 OPC and Topps set was the photo sizes used. While Topps cards typically featured small headshots crammed into busy borders, OPC switched to much larger color action photos that dominated most of the card front. This allowed for clearer views of players in action and drew more attention to their facial features and uniforms. Concurrently, card statistics and details moved to a cleaner layout on the back with ample blank space. Overall, OPC’s design revolutionized the look of baseball cards and helped breathe new creative life into the hobby.
The changes didn’t please everyone. Some collectors lamented the loss of the classic Topps template they had known since the 1950s. There were also criticisms that OPC photos sometimes lacked sharp focus or had odd cropping that cut players off at the knees. Regardless of design opinions, there’s no denying 1979 marked a true original effort by OPC to establish its own brand identity apart from Topps. But would baseball fans warm up to this new modern look, or remain loyal to the status quo? Only time would tell.
In terms of the players and teams featured, the 1979 OPC set covered all the usual baseball stars of that late 1970s era. Some of the more notable rookies included Hall of Famers Dave Winfield and Don Sutton, as well as young talent like Donruss’s Buzz Capra and Rick Sutcliffe. The set also included the final cards for aging veterans like Rico Carty and Luis Tiant as they neared retirement. Team-wise, the set captured AL champions Baltimore and NL champs Pittsburgh in all their World Series glory from 1979.
One team noticeably absent was the Seattle Mariners expansion franchise that had recently joined the AL in 1977. Despite being an active MLB team for two seasons already, the Mariners did not receive any cards in the 1979 OPC set due to issues with new franchise trademarks and approval. This obvious omission displeased both Mariners fans and completionists trying to accumulate the full 366 card run. To this day it remains a blemish on what was otherwise a landmark year for OPC finally establishing autonomy from Topps.
When it came to production and distribution, the 1979 OPC set saw modest initial print runs compared to the industry giant Topps. This meant finding intact sets in subsequent years grew increasingly difficult as enthusiasts snapped them up. Although mainly a Canadian product, some OPC packs did make their way across the border to America. Without the marketing muscle of Topps, the cards failed to achieve the same high collecting saturation stateside. This contributed to their relative scarcity today when compared to contemporaneous Topps issues.
In the ensuing decades since 1979, OPC would go on to produce many more innovative baseball sets that blended colorful photography with fun bonus content. But the 1979 release holds a special place as the true starting point where OPC cut ties with Topps and chose to blaze its own trail. While not a universal favorite design-wise, it got collectors’ attention and demonstrated the company’s commitment to remain competitive through creative independence. For those reasons, the 1979 OPC cards reign as one of the most historically important baseball card sets ever made outside of Topps’ long shadow.
