1985 Cubs 7UP Set

We have almost reached the bottom of the box of oddball Cubs cards.  I could go another set, or two, but we will see how I am feeling next week.  For your Sunday afternoon, I am going to post the 1985 Cubs 7UP set.  The other team sets that I posted earlier in the week all had similar designs, but the Cubs switched things up a little bit for their 1985 stadium baseball card giveaway.

This set has a really simply white and blue border.  Sort of reminds of something that Donruss would have used in the early part of the 1980s.  As for the players in the set, many of the same names that were in the 1984 set reappear in this one.  Why not?  The 1984 Cubs won their division and came close to the World Series.....

However, the 1985 season ended up being not so great for the Cubs.  Older position players like Larry Bowa, Ron Cey, and Davy Lopes found out they were old.  Pitchers like Rick Sutcliffe and Steve Trout regressed, others were injured.  Most telling difference between the two seasons was the Cubs record against three in-division teams.  In 1984 the Cubs went 35-18 against the Mets, Cardinals, and Expos.  The next season the Cubs went 15-39 against the same three teams.

Despite finishing fourth, there were some positives for the Cubbies too.  Ryne Sandberg continued to be a great second baseman and the team brought up Shawon Dunston to replace the inept Larry Bowa.  Dunston did not have a great year in 1985, but he was a fixture on the Cubs teams during the later half of the 1980s and through the mid 1990s.

Here is the 1985 Cubs 7UP team set...