My Yankees Collection - 1998 Topps Gold Label Roger Maris

I cam across this card of Roger Maris and had to have it for my collection. 

Roger has become one of my favorite players since I returned to collecting and baseball itself a few years ago. His "unsung hero" story strikes a chord with me and as I continue to read books about his career and life, he always comes across as just an all-around good guy.

This Gold Label issue from Topps is not one that I am familiar with, but I like the design. Colorful shots of Roger in his prime as a Yankee are always welcome, and the subdued colors of this card's foil construction enhance the view for me.   Here's the front of the card:

Connecting the dots between the "98 Home Run Race" and Maris' ownership of the single-season record until that summer (or despite it), the card mentions Roger's 61st long ball in 1961. As most of us know, he made history on the final day of the season - a campaign that became almost unbearable for Maris to endure as many baseball fans refused to believe that the legendary Babe Ruth could be dethroned. Even a certain portion of Yankee fans gave Roger a hard time, both for threatening the Babe and for never (in their minds) living up to their favorites like Mantle, Gehrig and DiMaggio. It was a heartbreaking situation in so many ways, and one that I truly believe can be seen in the eyes of Maris.

Here's the back of the card: 

I'm not sure what Topps meant with the "HR1 Black Label" stamp on the right-hand side? Perhaps there were 61 different versions of this card that could be collected? I love the fact that the card back gives us the name of Tracy Stallard, off of whom Maris knocked #61. This gives us a little bit extra in the way of detailing the epic achievement, a feat not often achieved.

Trace Stallard was hurling for the Red Sox in 1961, and has stated that he was having the best game he ever pitched that fateful day, until Maris took him deep in the 4th inning. When all was said and done, Tracy took the 1-0 loss with Maris' solo shot providing the only run of the day. Stallard recorded 5 K's, 5 hits and allowed the single run over seven innings of work.   It would be the only hit that Maris would record against Stallard in seven AB's. As luck would have it, his involvement in record has endured as his best-known association with the sport he played for a couple of decades, but Tracy has kept a positive outlook on things:

        "I'm glad he did it off me. Otherwise, I would never have been thought of again. 

That was about all I did, and I've had a good time with it." 

You have to admire that perspective! Interestingly, Tracy was traded to the upstart Mets in 1963 along with Pumpsie Green and Al Moran. He did enjoy some success but was involved in another amazing baseball feat in 1964, Jim Bunning's perfect game, an event that I wrote about in May of last year. Once again, Tracy was on the losing end of somebody else's 'best day'. Despite another downer for his personal story, perhaps Tracy can always come back with a wink and reminder that, through the tough days, he managed to date Julie Newmar while playing ball and living it up in New York for a few years.

Nicely done, Tracy.

And nicely done, Topps - I'm thrilled to add this Maris card to my Yankees Collection!

Thanks for reading!

My HOF Collection - 1969 Topps #480 Tome Seaver

I decided that I didn't have enough "vintage" Tom Seaver in my collection.

Alright, I didn't have anything before 1978.   The rest of his cards are absolutely fabulous, don't get me wrong.   But there's something special about cards of these stars from their younger years.   Vintage cards are extraordinary in their own right - but vintage cards of a Hall of Fame hurler like Tom Terrific are a rare treasure for a collector like me.

I jumped on a chance to snag this Seaver on the Bay of E for what I thought was a pretty good price.   There were more affordable versions in lesser condition, but I thought this one struck a good balance for me when it came to one of my preferences for decently-centered cards.   And after doing some research, I quickly learned that finding this particular card in well-centered condition is a challenge.

Without further ado, here she is:

She's a little 'low' top-to-bottom and it's easy to see the wider margin on the left-hand side, but overall this was a reasonable card with very little bidding.   A couple of last minute snipers drove up my final purchase price, but at slightly m ore than a blaster, I was thrilled to win this card for my collection.

The '69 design is very basic and this photo of Tom is not helping at all - but what are you going to do.   It is a nice close-up mug shot of a young ace staring wistfully into a promising yet still unknown future....

In 1969, Seaver had just wrapped up an amazing sophomore season by eclipsing the 200 K mark (205) for the first of many times while going 16-12 over....get this, 278 innings pitched!!!!!   He would subsequently take it easy in '69, deciding to only go to work for 273.1 frames....but increase his K total to 208.   OH, and win the Cy Young.   Yawn.   Ho-hum!   The "Miracle Mets" would also take the pennant in 1969 and win the World Series by defeating the Baltimore Orioles

Whoa.   This 1969 Seaver card keeps getting better and better.   What about the back?

Ah, yes - love it.   Right off the bat we can see an umpire from the Jetsons add his flavor to the very same '68 K-total stat I mentioned above.   Love it.   Mr. Seaver's bio data appear right next to a really cool retro-Topps logo.   The write-up highlights some of Seaver's tremendous accomplishments during his first couple of seasons but the final mention has definitely grabbed my attention - his "15th inning" pitching that saved the Senior Circuit's 2-1 victory!

I must do some follow-on research to dive deeper into that story.......yes.......

For the card itself, the color is great on both sides and the corners are in pretty good shape, too.   Overall, I found the card to be a slight pleasant surprise, condition-wise, when it showed up.   Too often, a raw card purchase on the Bay is very risky and can result in a 'card in hand' that varies dramatically from the image you peered at in the middle of the night, on your iPhone screen.

I'll take my successful escape.

I'm very excited to add my first vintage Seaver card to my collection!

Thanks for reading and keep collecting -
Ryan

A Hobby Farewell, Ralph Kiner

A few years ago, I was very fortunate to get the wild idea of sending a bunch of baseballs to Hall of Fame legends in the hopes of achieving TTM success.

Systematically and for obvious reasons, I began with the oldest members first and worked my way forward in time.   As many of you can probably confirm, I enjoyed MUCH  more success with the oldest players and slowly saw my return success rate dwindle to NOTHING by the time I reached the players who retired in the late 70's and beyond.....

One of those earlier success stories was the late Ralph Kinder. Mr. Kiner passed away recently at the age of 91.   He played in the majors for an injury-abbreviated 10 years but completely OWNED the League with his slugging ability from '46 to '52 with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Get this - Kiner arrived on the scene in '46 with a respectable 22 home runs but troubling 109 K's.   Hank Greenberg was set to retire but the Bucs convinced the slugger to stay on with the club, during which time he tried to impart some of his batting wisdom to the young Kiner.   It must have worked because Ralph blasted 51 home runs that very next season and struck out less than 100 times.  

Kiner's 51 round trippers led the League, a feat he would then continue for seven consecutive years. SEVEN!   He was known to deposit a fair amount of his homers into the short left porch at Forbes Field - an area that had been known as Greenberg's Gardens.   Rightfully, the landing pad was bequeathed to Ralph and acquired the name of Kiner's Korner, a name that Ralph would later use for  his own broadcasting show.

Mr.  Kiner was elected into the Hall in 1975.   He finished his ten years of playing with an average of over 36 home runs and 100+ RBI every year he played.   He was also a six-time All Star.   Ralph Kiner would go on to be a manager for several clubs before settling into the role of radio announcer for the New York Mets, a job he held and excelled at from the first game the Metropolitans ever played until the day Mr. Kiner passed away this month.

I am so glad I have Mr. Kiner as a part of my collection.   I am sad to say that I don't yet have any cards of Mr. Kiner but here is the baseball and signature cards that he signed for me:

 

Despite being in his late 80's, Mr. Kiner put a couple of great looking signatures on these items and I really appreciate his HOF inscription on the ball.   I'm going to make it a priority to add some cards of his to my collection.   I can't wait to begin my search.

By all accounts, Mr. Kiner was another one of those Greatest Generation, true gentlemen GOLDEN ambassadors for the game.    Everyone who knew him LOVED him and there doesn't seem to be a bad thing said about the man.   My grandfather helped to instill my love for the game and he himself was a product of PA - so he always had a soft spot in his heart for the Pirates.   I can recall that he was very excited to see Mr. Kiner's autograph in my collection.   At the time, I thought this was a little odd considering some of the other names on the other baseballs......but now, I kind of get it.

Yes....I will have to seek out some Ralph Kiner cards for my collection.

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my letter, Mr. Kiner.   I am glad we were able to connect if but for a simple TTM so that I can now learn more about you and appreciate your contributions to the game.   Rest in peace, sir.

Thanks for reading!

Gary Carter, Never The Last Out

Way too early.

That is the sentiment that I've heard repeatedly as the baseball world, and the world beyond, comes to grips with the passing of Hall of Fame catcher, Gary Carter.

And I couldn't agree more.

What did Gary mean to me? As a kid, collector, baseball fan and little leaguer in the late 80's - you knew who Gary Carter was. You knew he was a good guy. How could he not be? The man was ALWAYS smiling. He was an outstanding catcher and clearly deserved his own pages in my "Star" binders. Sure, he wasn't my favorite player. I didn't seek him out or work up trades with friends to build my Gary Carter collection. But he was a great ball player. When I ripped open packs of cards as a youth, Gary Carter's cards would definitely be placed in the GOOD players pile as I sorted and tucked away.   For a kid collector, this was obviously a notable tip-of-the-hat!

SI thought he deserved a tip-of-the-hat, too!

I knew Gary as a Mets player back then. If you recall, I began collecting in the 1986-1987 time frame, so Gary and his "Miracle Mets" teammates were coming off of their historic come-from-behind victory over the Boston Red Sox in the '86 Series.

As a Yankees fan - sure, I enjoyed that. Still do!

Game 6 of the 1986 World Series will forever be remembered as Bill Buckner's worst moment. The moment when the "Curse of the Bambino" received a shock to the heart with two outs in the bottom of the (10th?) inning. The Mets were down by two runs. It must have felt pretty hopeless. Even the officials at Shea Stadium had felt such a premonition of finality that they briefly flashed a congratulatory message to the Red Sox on the stadium's jumbo tron.

SERIOUSLY?!

If I had been a Mets fan, I would have been furious, unwilling to acquiesce until the final out.   And that's exactly how Gary Carter felt.   He later recalled that he was determined to NOT be the final out of that World Series.   Apparently, he is a good listener when it comes to inner monologues.   Gary lofted a beautiful single into left field and ignited what would become one of the greatest come-backs in baseball history.

Mr. Carter was a tremendous contributor to the game of baseball.   There are copious amounts of memorial posts and articles being churned out right now in the wake of his passing.   Each one contains something new that I hadn't previously known about the man:

• he had a chance to play football at UCLA

• when he was drafted by the Expos, he prepared by taking the time to learn French (no provided interpreters back then!)

• as a rookie, he hit his first career HR off of Steve Carlton and proceeded to hit 10 more off of Lefty over the years, more than any other individual pitcher Gary punished with his 324 career home runs 

These factoids are just the tip of the iceberg and I can't wait to learn more.   The game we love is simply BETTER because a player like Gary Carter graced the field with his presence.   I hope we have more players like Gary in the future.   Actually, I hope the world has more people like the Kid.   It would certainly be an improvement.

When I got back into the hobby last year, I was fortunate to stumble upon a FANTASTIC little shop on the other side of town.   I believe it's simply called, "The Stamp Shop" - specializing mostly in stamps and currency collectibles.   The man who runs the store is a charming old fellow who doesn't mind a meandering conversation about...well, just about anything.   He is only open Friday through Monday becaue, well, that's when he wants to work.   I stumbled upon his shop during my Father's Day "afternoon off" last year and asked if he had any baseball cards.

Cards weren't his focus, but yes, he did.   OH, did he.

He had boxes and boxes, organized neatly by either year, team or price ($1 box, $5 box, etc.).   It was great and I had a lot of fun going through some amazing cards at reasonable prices.   It just so happened that I came across two Gary Carter cards in the  "$5 and under" binder.   Here's the first one:

Love that old-school gear, Kid!

Edmund...see?  Learned something else.

There's that smile!   Gary's rookie card.   For less than $5?   Yes, please.   Sure - it's well loved.   The corners are fuzzy but the colorful zeal of the '75 design still pops.   There's a solid crease in the upper-righthand corner but it doesn't come through on the back and disrupt any of the write-ups.   Gary is listed as a Catcher on this rookie parade of C's and OF's.   Ironically, Carter played most of that first full season witht he Expos in right field.   It didn't affect his performance at all - he made the All-Star team and even saw action when he relieved some guy named Pete Rose in left field.   I love this card and, so far, it's my best card from 1975.  

Here's the other Gary Carter card I picked up and didn't put down that day:
 

                                                

                                                         Always been a fan of the position icons!

 

Apparently, J-Lo was a 1964 Oriole?



You can't go wrong with the All-Star Rookie cup!   There's Gary again - okay, maybe the smile is more of a grunting smirk as he works to perfect his swing......but you can see the focus in his eyes as he prepares for the season.   Does anybody know the stadium pictured in the background?   I am fairly certain that it is not Jackie Robinson Ballpark in Daytona Beach, the home of the Expos' spring training from '73 - '80.   I always love the old Topps cards with fresh spring training images in the background.   It makes me th ink of sun, breeze, beer and....well, you know the rest.

This card was in much better shape than the '75 and since it was only his second year card (gosh, ONLY - ha!) it went for even less.   The corners are good with no creases and my blogging lamp clearly shows off that "original gloss".   The centering ain't too bad either - beautiful card.   Topps did a great job with the design that year.   You know, I think I like this one slightly more than his '75.   It's certainly a welcome addition to my collection.   I have a few other '76 cards and I can't wait to add more (do you hear me, Eck?!).   Carter had added a whole 5 pounds since his '75 stats.....I'm guessing he enjoyed a few more good meals after his successful rookie campaign.   You deserved it, Kid!

Finally, I also have a Gary Carter card with a piece of memorabilia.   The card explains this terrifically Metropolitan's-Orange swatch as being from a "game-worn jacket".   It's a clean layout and I enjoy its simplicity.   I think the clear shot of Carter's follow-through remains the focus, working well with the nearby square of jacket-y goodness:

Consider this "Call to the Hall" answered!

I picked it up as a whim, probably as an after-thought add-on to lower shipping expenses per card.

And I'm so glad I did.

Thank you for the memories, Mr. Carter and rest in peace.   Your contributions to baseball will live on forever, so don't worry - you'll NEVER be the last out.

Thanks for reading.