Review: BrentAndBecca

This one is long overdue - but I figured it's never too late to give a recommendation or provide feedback for fellow hobby enthusiasts.

Brent Williams is a very active, energetic and enthusiastic player in the sports card hobby.   Most of us know him and his business - "BrentAndBecca" - in several different mediums.   He regularly reviews Topps products and comments on the various attributes of the product breaks he conducts from the perspectives of both a collector and "dealer".   Is that term accurate?   Topics such as profitability, overall enjoyment and collectability are usually the heart and soul of his articles and I enjoy them a lot.   I try not to get too bogged down in the financial details of our hobby but with the varying costs of different products and conservative status of most family budgets these days (including my own) - a little reading and research can go a long way towards maximizing our enjoyment and comfort as the consuming collector.   His reviews can be found at the Cardboard Connection throughout the year as the 'collecting calendar' progresses through various sports and Topps releases.

BrentAndBecca also has a very active presence on Twitter as, wait for it.......... @brentandbecca  (https://mobile.twitter.com/brentandbecca)!   Looks like some great minds think alike when choosing twitter handles and website and blog names!   He tweets pretty regularly to promote upcoming products or highlight interesting items in his inventory.   He's a collector like us, so some of the cardboard he encounters finds its way into his own collection but the rest of it is packaged up nicely and available for the rest of us via his Ebay Store.   One thing that I find to be really useful is Brent's frequent twitter banter with the folks at Topps.   I can usually gleam some very insightful information and updates from their conversations, thereby saving both time and money on my end.   That's a win-win - and absolutely free.

You can read much more about Brent and how his business got started in an archived CC article, so I won't get too bogged down in the details of recreating that wheel.   Let's move on to my own experience with BrentAndBecca.

I tried out several different collecting approaches last year, as I was on a mission to compile a very diverse assortment of the year's sets for my son's future enjoyment.   Even though I enjoy hand-building complete sets pack by pack, it's way too expensive for me to do that with every release.   So, I tried to save some funds by buying one of the complete sets from a dealer (Seller?) like BrentAndBecca.   The set I was looking for?   2012 Topps Heritage.   I had purchased several blasters of '11 Heritage the year before and, while I am now closer than ever to complete my building of that set (YES!), I had a run of bad luck and suffered through a high duplication rate and lack of "hits" amongst the blasters I bought.   It's all random and part of the chase, but it left a bad (placebo effect) taste in my mouth.   Therefore, 2012 Heritage would be bought outright as a complete set.   My E-Bay searches provided plenty of options, as you might imagine.   I considered several but definitely felt very comfortable with the company I was most familiar with, B&B.

His prices were never THE lowest - depending on how you look at it, how much time you were willing to spend and how much risk you wanted to eliminate.   Sure, there were some sets up for bid that were a few bucks lower than B&B's no-haggle, "Buy It Now" price point.   But most of these came with shipping costs that were just as much if not higher than B&B AND......they were open bids.   So you never knew where the final sales price would fall.   Brent Williams and his team conducts an incredible amount of research and is usually quite fair with their assessment of value and price for the sets they collate and sell from their break efforts.   In the end, price was definitely a big PLUS for B&B and it carries the largest weight with me for consideration.

But what about quality?   Will the cards be packaged well?   Shipped quickly?

Since this was my first experience with BrentAndBecca, I would have to find out for myself when my Heritage set arrived.   The good news was that customer reviews and Ebay feedback scores were all very positive and I detected no negatives for them when it came to collectors' experience with purchasing collated sets.

So, I rolled the dice and took the plunge.  Within 7 working days of the product's release date, the package arrived!   Here it was:

Highlighter Provided By Ryan's Pitch

Exactly what you want to see from a dealer.   It doesn't have to be an official USPS box - but that certainly doesn't hurt.   And while it's common practice for us individual collectors to recycle packaging supplies in an effort to keep costs down, I didn't want to see my Heritage set arrive in a shoe box.   The box was neatly and thoroughly sealed.   Looking good!

Amongst the packing worms and bubble wrap were these two card boxes.   The exact "count" sizes elude me but I am sure some of the astute collectors out there can size them up pretty easily.   The fact that two boxes were used threw me off a little bit as I had ordered one complete set.   Had there been a mistake made?  

Beautiful

Of course not!   The two boxes contained my complete base set of Heritage.   The 'breaking up' of the set into two separate boxes allowed BrentAndBecca to fit my order into the USPS box pictured above and may very well have saved them (and therefore, me) some shipping costs.   I would like to point out that both card boxes were brand-spanking new and in perfect condition.   That counts.   And while I will definitely have to say that dealing with two boxes is a hassle for me, it's because of a personal preference for having sets in a single box.   A reason for visiting a card shop or ordering card supplies?   Always welcome.   In the end, definitely not a deal breaker - particularly if it saved everybody money.

Collector Weirdness - The Smell Was Even Better Than You Think

Finally, here's a peek at how the cards were collated and packaged inside.   They were VERY neatly handled and placed into both boxes, resulting in perfect alignment.   While that's a fantastic sight for my OCD, I think it provides some legitimate support for the cards as they are shipped and helps to prevent the damage of edges and corners belonging to cards should they have been out-of-line with the rest of the set and poking out.   And just for good measure, BrentAndBecca surrounded the wide-side of the cards with strips of bubble mailer, to secure the set even more.

I'm still assessing my enjoyment of the various collecting methods I used (and continue to use!) for chasing last year's sets.   I have every intention of going through the entire '12 Heritage set and checking out each card for appreciation...but I have yet to do so.  I can't say the same for the other sets I am building for 2012.   Might be something to that!

But as for my experience with BrentAndBecca - it was a great experience and I would recommend them without hesitation to my fellow collectors.   Great quality control with their products and it's obvious they appreciate the cardboard just as much as we do.   Again, I would also encourage you to follow @BrentAndBecca on Twitter and check out Brent's columns when he takes a break from busting cases of Topps to put pen to paper.   I think you will find it to be both enjoyable and well worth your collecting time.

Thanks for the excellent service, Brent.

Thanks for reading!      

 

Milestone

One year!

Actually - one year and one day, sort of.   The date on this blog's first post, "Jellybeans", was officially January 31st, 2012.   Ha!  I missed it.   But just like one of the most important lessons I learned during the first year of Ryan's Pitch - nothing is perfect; nor should it be!   SO.......

Happy Birthday!

Blogging has been everything I had hoped it would be - and more.

• I was told it can be an outlet.   It certainly was.
• I was told it would connect me with other collectors.   It did.
• I was told it would be gratifying.   It has been.
• I was told that it would be difficult and that I would lose motivation to continue.   Damn straight.
• I was told it would help me explore our hobby.  It has.
• I was told to not take it too seriously and to make sure it was fun.   SO true.
• I was told it would be fun.   Bingo!

There were a couple of times over the past year when I wasn't sure if I would ever write another post.   It was never for lack of ideas, that's for sure....and I suppose that's the most important thing.   So many ideas and [random] thoughts - so little time.   Here's to hoping there's more time for all of it, for all of us, in year #2.

I ended up enjoying a much more robust "collecting interaction" experience on Twitter than I thought I would a year ago.   I thought that the @RyansPitch presence on twitter would serve purely as a way to spread the word about the blog and find more collectors.   It did both of those things but it also provided an alternate and more succinct method for sharing collecting thoughts, pictures, hobby-related stories and executing trades.   The posts/stories were, of course, limited to 140 characters at a time.....but that can often be a blessing in disguise for a long-winded gabber like me.   I would encourage anybody to check it out and join the fun if you haven't already.  Look me up.

Thanks to everybody who spent just one of your precious moments to read any part of Ryan's Pitch.   I hope it gave you something in return, even if it was just an urge to never read it again!   Which would mean you aren't reading this......errr.   Thank you to everybody who spent the time to comment on a post or email with thoughts and trade proposals - interaction with fellow collectors is a true joy for me and something I just don't have an outlet for or access to outside of THIS blogging and online community.   The support has been amazing and was particularly overwhelming in the beginning.   I am sure that some of my tremendous trading partners were lost in the shuffle when I realized I didn't have the time for complete reviews of every trade - if I missed you, please accept my apologies!   

In virtual essence - thanks for letting me hang out with you guys and gals.   I hope you continue to enjoy Ryan's Pitch in Year 2.

Thanks for Reading!

Ryan 

'12 Update's Got 'ems and Need 'ems Updated

Let me know if we can help each other!

Hoping to make a good run at wrapping up the '12 sets early this year:

• Flagship Series 1
• Flagship Series 2
• Flagship Update
• Heritage - COMPLETE, but I have a lot for trade
• Allen & Ginter

You can check out all of my set NEEDS via the tabs to the right...although, with a wavering resolution to buy less and chase less in 2013......well, let's see where this takes us.   T-minus 2 months until Flagship Series 1!

Thanks for reading!

How About a Good 'ol Baseball Card Post?

It's been a month and a half since I blogged about a baseball card......pontifications about the Hall of Fame and an LCS-visit recap have run their course, setting universal records for page-visits and comments (thanks, 30YOC!).   Heehee.

Time to find my center of gravity!

This was one of my favorite pulls from a pack in 2012.   I don't exactly go coo-coo for Bowman and its sterile design, but it was fun to bust a few packs with the high hopes of pulling something exciting.  

Of course, it's me we're talking about, so this is usually about as exciting as it gets for current release pack bounties:

2012 Bowman #34, Mike Trout

Mike Trout has since fulfilled his destiny of being the 2012 AL Rookie of the Year.   I know that I swam against the current and put my support behind Yoenis Cespedes......but don't hate.   I just really dug what I saw in Yoenis as he became an injury-overcoming integral part of the magical run by the Athletics.   How many "games played" in a particular year does it take to not be a rookie the following year?   I guess it's more than 40.   All that being said, I can fully support Mike and his amazing accomplishments on the field this past season:

Batting average	.306
Home runs	35
Runs batted in	99
Hits	209
Stolen bases	53
Runs scored	149

Yowza.   And that was with Hunter, Pujols, Morales & Trumbo behind him!   Throw Josh Hamilton back there and we very well could see some even MORE amazing production from this guy in 2013.   I'm no Angels fan but I'm excited to see what happens.   I'm fairly certain that Trout has even earned himself the #1 draft pick status in many a fantasy baseball leagues next season, too.

You know, if you're into that sort of thing.

As far as the card goes, it's okay.   Again, the very basic and clean design does not offend but it doesn't WOW you, either.   The picture is kind of cool, capturing Trout in a Kung-Fu-like mid-air kick-slide sort of pose.   If he was a girl he'd probably be worried about the multiple chin thing...but he's not.  He's Mike Trout, baby.

So how about the back?

It's always pretty cool when a player who wins "Player of the Year" at one level goes on to fulfill their potential and continue that success on the big stage.   Bravo to Mr. Trout.   A very accurate assessment of his abilities, too.   "...can dominate the game in all phases..."?   Turns out - TRUE!   The touching story of the kudos from Jeter is solid.   I wish they were teammates.....

This isn't really a Trout RC, I guess?   That's kind of disappointing.   But still, I was glad to see this card emerge from the endless supply of prospects I didn't know in that hanger pack.   It's always fun to pull a card of a guy that's playing pretty well at the time.  One of those basic [out-dated] joys of card collecting that I can't (thankfully) seem to completely shake.  

I hope I never do!

Thanks for reading and have a great weekend, everybody!

My Latest Thoughts on The Hall

Ah!

I love sports.   I love passionate discussions about sports.   I love highly controversial debates about the best players in sports........and the annual discussion over who belongs in baseball's Hall of Fame is nothing short of a marquee example of just such a spirited conversation.   This post was inspired by an offering of just such a conversation from my good friend Brian over at his great blog, 30 Year Old Cardboard.  Thanks for the fuel, buddy!

This year's ballot of potential honorees is a big one.   Yes, the list is long.....but it's big in terms of how the baseball world (or at least a chosen few of us) will view a very controversial issue in comparison to the criteria by which they cast their votes.    This ballot includes several great baseball players who were, in one way or another, tied to the use of performance enhancing drugs - steroids, HGH, etc.   Not the first time an accused player has been up for election, but this is the first LARGE grouping.   And the grouping is as notable as they come!   These players were compiled very impressive stats over many years.   For the most part, these players were sluggers - known best for their prowess at the plate.   Their strength to display such prowess the very skill supposedly warped by poor decisions to break the rules of the game.   At the time though, we all cheered and marveled and followed....and then cringed in dismay as we were shown that gods could bleed.   The exact knowledge of when, where and to what extent will never be known for sure.   The exact contribution of the cheating towards results on the field can never be known for sure.   It is not an exact science.

This could only hurt...forever.

Fortunately, neither is the criteria for being selected for eternal enshrinement amongst the game's greatest players in the Hall of Fame.

At best, we have ourselves an annual challenge.   At its worst, we must be subjected to a very subjective nightmare.....and one that has some very objective outcomes; for the players, their fans and the sport as whole. 

What could possibly go wrong, right?

So, where do we start?   Well, let's look at two key facts: WHO is responsible for making these very subjective selections and HOW they are supposed to be making them.......

Wait a second...

The "who" are "...active and honorary members of the Baseball Writers Association of America".   Okay.   So, who is that?   Well.......it's these guys and gals.   I'll let you dive into the history, purpose and current existence as much as you dare.   Basically, the BBWAA is a bunch of sportswriters (OR former sportswriters).   There are, according to the BBWAA site, over 700 current members.   They not only vote for Hall of Fame selection, though.   They determine the winners of other annual awards such as the League MVP's, Rookie of the Year, Manager of the Year and the Cy Young Award Winner.  

Pretty cool right?   I guess so.   The system is just too ripe for......subjectivity.

Can you place faith in a journalist who had previously decided that a particular player was the Rookie of the Year or Cy Young Award winner to be as objective when considering that player's body of work for the Hall of Fame against another player for whom that writer did NOT consider worthy of that same award but is hypothetically just as worthy based on their the rest of their career accomplishments?   It can quickly become a self-fulfilling effect.   But is that wrong?   Perhaps.  

Let's say a BBWAA member was really taken with a particular pitcher one year.   Maybe that writer was a journalist for the pitcher's hometown newspaper?   Maybe that writer was fortunate enough to attend a home game where that pitcher tossed an extraordinary complete game.   The kind of game that united the fans and produced an electric feeling amongst the spectators....the likes of which that said writer had never felt before, even though he/she had followed that team their entire life.......that's an epic moment!   Maybe that kind of moment can be combined with a pretty solid season of stats for that same pitcher.   And maybe that single-season body of work elicits a confident opinion from the very astute sportswriter that the pitcher is, clearly, the Rookie of the Year for his league.

Not a Pitcher, but...

Those feelings, those impressions, that compiling and consideration of the facts and images and "eye tests" from the entire season would have been (and should be!) taken into account by the writer and their vote should be considered no less relevant or honorable than any other voter.   Right?

But what about the vote from a writer in another town, for another player, with a similar body of work for that season........they both count.  Heck, they ALL will count - all 700+ of them, if everybody always voted.   Statistically, there is the effect of cancelling out individual biases with larger sample sizes, right?   So, there's nothing to really, truly complain about.  Right?

What if I told you that a BBWAA member could continue voting even if they retire from the profession?   They would no longer be obligated through their employment to follow the sport.  How can we guarantee that they'll remain as objective and engaged in their analysis as they were?   What if they move to south Florida and become an objective fan of a different team?   What if they spend more time on the golf range in their new life than they do scouring the box scores every morning?   Doesn't matter.   The BBWAA utilizes an honor code, whereby they can bestow lifetime membership with the expectation that their members maintain an adequate following of the game.

...nothing wrong with that...

Heh.   Okay.   Well, in between their 6 iron and 7 iron......HOW will these writers be asked to make their selection?   This is my favorite part!  In the words of the Board of Directors of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Incorporated:


"Voting shall be based upon the player's record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character, and contributions to the team(s) on which the player played."


Isn't that something?   We always talk so very much about the statistics compiled by potential candidates, comparing and contrasting with tremendous vigor and spite.   But the statistics of any particular player can only really lay claim to two, maybe three, of the criteria specified above.   A player's record and playing ability can be easily substantiated from the empirical evidence of the player's career statistics.   Career average, home runs, fielding percentage and other benchmarks are black and white.   They are what they are - and can't be disputed.

Just Barry

Unless......

You consider the impact of our earlier issue, performance enhancing drugs.   But this leaves the realm of black and white and quickly adopts a very solemn shade of grey.   From here, any debate reaches a fork in the road.   You can either go left or right.   You can either say that you don't consider the use (or non-use) of PED's to be an issue or you do.   There is no in between.   Well......we could jump really far down the rabbit hole and begin to dissect the possibility of PED use before there were testing programs.   We could say that testing programs are not absolute.   We could say that every offending player was not caught or, in some cases, ratted out by other players.   And our brains would quickly ooze out of our ears if we tried to ascertain any of this for any season prior to.....well, next season.   We'll simply never know for sure.   Which is a pretty strong argument for simply ignoring the PED issue in its entirety.   IS PED use 100% responsible for a player's performance?   Of course not.  I could start injecting myself right now but I won't be slugging homers into McCovey Cove on a regular basis!   But there are rules in life.   Baseball is a game of rules.   For the most part.  Sometimes fallible humans screw the rules up and cause a tremendous and biblical gnashing of teeth......but if we had seen it.......well, the rules would RULE.   You're out.  It's a fair ball.  Take your base.   You trapped it.   Get off the field.   Your banned for life.

Reasonable doubt, right Ray Kinsella?

Ouch.  It hurts.  But so does life every once in awhile.  And that's what baseball is sometimes - a beautiful parody of our lives.

So, you have the statistics.   We can stare at those all day and average them out.   We can extrapolate to simulate longer careers if a player's actual playing days were untimely cut short.   We can argue over the greatness of a stolen base or save in comparison to total runs batted in, error-free innings or - (gasp) one of those subjectively voted-for awards!   I won't even touch the issues with fan-based All-Star selections........I mean, many of us fans aren't even sportswriters!  How lame.

Awkward........

Back to the criteria.

My favorite elements of the voting criteria are.....ironically, the least objective of the lot: integrity, character, sportsmanship and contributions to the teams on which the player played.   How beautifully mysterious are these general qualifications?  It doesn't even say that players must have honorable integrity or fine character or positive contributions to their teams in order to be considered.  They must simply have them, right?   I know, I know.   I'll stop.   OKAY -  we'll assume that the spirit of the criteria for selection implies that players should meet these criteria in a positive light.   Sound character.   Exemplary sportsmanship.   Steadfast integrity.   If we do that, though - doesn't that make it impossible....in a black and white kind of way......for any of us to take the "other fork" in the selection road that we mentioned earlier?   This criteria makes it impossible to vote for anybody who has been connected to the use of performance-enhancing drugs.   Yeah, they had the skills that may, MAY have been enhanced by some 'roids here or there....but they lost their integrity, right?  They tried to gain an unfair advantage over the competition.   Isn't that poor sportsmanship and character? 

Criteria Antonym

And what of the players who refused to partake?   That is a clear example of integrity and honorable character and sportsmanship, yes?   I tend to think so but I know that many others do not.

How about contributions to one team?   What does that mean to everybody?   I'll tell you what it doesn't mean to everyone - the SAME thing.   A player's contribution to a championship team throughout a miracle season will live on in legends and highlight reels.   A player's league-leading contributions to a losing team?   Man, do I find that respectable and deserving of great admiration?   It's easy to try your best to the roar of approving fanatics as they cheer their beloved winners......but to go out and dominate your competition as an individual while your team wallows in the cellar of their division and your fans heckle with scathing disappointment?   That's legendary, too.   In my opinion.   But would that player have been able to perform and produce and dominate under the microscope and pressure of the sport's post season?   We'll never know!

Love ya, Murph!

Does "contributions to a team" even make sense?   The player's contribution to a team should be, uh, fairly quantifiable and identical to their statistics, right?   If we go that route, then we really need to be careful when considering any importance being placed on a player's record when it comes to post season records, championships won, etc.   A player does not make the post season.   Teams win titles.   But players are elected to the Hall of Fame........

You had to see this coming...

            

See!  I love this stuff.   Life is baseball and baseball is life for many of us.   Life is also a philosophical cornucopia of thought-provoking conversations and debate.   A beautiful disaster.   A perfect game in a not-so perfect world.   Ergo.......we chat about it from time to time.

Thanks for chatting about it here with me!   I'd love to hear what you think and in the meantime....

Here we are!   It's December of 2012 and the ballots for another year of consideration have been sent out.   Who would you vote for?  

One quick thing I'd like to add - please note that I do not harbor an unhealthy hatred for BBWAA members or even sportswriters in general (especially those that vote for Donnie Baseball......).   Some of them have provided some of the very best things that I have ever had the pleasure of reading....they are responsible for Sports Illustrated and Golf Digest.   Baseball Weekly.   ESPN.   The countless sports books that are scattered throughout my basement.   The newspaper clippings that adorned my childhood bedroom.   Basically........almost everything that makes life possible for us sports fans!   So I am grateful for their talent and gifts - and understand that they haven't asked for the responsibility described above, established more than a century ago.   But it IS theirs to protect.

And, in some small, minuscule way......don't we fans who have ever put pen to paper about the sports that we love......kinda sorta qualify as one?   I've never been into self-loathing.  

     

That's no moon.....it's a LCS!

I recently had to take a day trip down to Charleston, SC and found myself with a few spare moments.

Cue the iPhone maps search (I don't have Siri capabilities yet): baseball cards

Results: Hooked on Cards (.2 miles away)

Sweet!

I tried to contain my excitement as I circled in on the alleged location.   I say 'alleged' because we've all been duped before by bad intel from internet-based searches.   Was the information up to date?   Was I headed towards a nail salon? Was it actually a Local Card Shop?

Jackpot:

OPEN

I hadn't been inside of an LCS since Columbia's last card shop,  Rudy's Upper Deck, closed its doors forever last year.   It's really one of my favorite kinds posts to read about on everyone's blogs - the card shop re-cap.   Napkin Doon's stories about "Cleve's" are some of my favorites.   Highly recommended to satiate your thirst if you find yourself in a hobby geographical doldrum - check 'em out here.   It conjures up images of a cardboard cornucopia.   Packs and singles and memorabilia and posters and magazines and supplies and.....and friends.   A local hobby shop is our "Cheers".   A place where people not only want to know your name but understand why you're excited to tell them about that super sweet Topps-Update-Series-All-Star-Game-Yankee-23/25-Tri-Relic that you pulled a couple of weeks ago.   My waitress at lunch that day didn't even know what I was talking about!

Gratuitous, yes.

  

If they're a really understanding bunch, they'll be patient when you fog the windows of their display case for half an hour and then walk out with nothing but supplies (Oh, I'm back to the LCS....not talking about fogging Jessica's case).   Not because you're a ruthless small business hater - no.   They know you're a collector because hey, they are, too!   And they know you have a method to your madness and......they know you'll be back.

Okay.  Maybe they knew I'd be back when I did a back flip in the parking lot and took a picture of their store?

Anyways - Hooked on Cards is a great hobby shop.   Most impressive to me was the flawless organization of their small space.   Divided by sport, you had bargain bins on the counter to leaf through with the more valuable singles and autographed pieces within the display case.   If you looked up, you would see shelves of row after row of unopened wax - conveniently labeled with name and price.

Ah!

They were very helpful and a pleasure to talk to.   I enjoyed my experience.   I cautiously asked how business was going......and breathed a huge sigh of relief when they said everything was going great.   They seem to have a very loyal following and are trying to incorporate a winning marketing strategy that builds the hobby network through trading, customer appreciation and quality.   Great job, guys.

I can't wait to go back and if you ever find yourself in the Charleston area - I recommend you check them out.   Here's their information:

Hooked Indeed

 Thanks for reading!

One of My Favorite Cards: 1954 Topps #153 Albert "Rube" Walker

As promised, some Dodger "blue"!

I love this card.   It's a 1954 Topps card, so I would love it anyways - but this one definitely has my attention.   It's in pretty good shape, so I feel lucky to have it in my collection as a great representation of baseball in its golden age.   The coloring is terrific and the old-school look of Rube's collapsed hat should be in the dictionary to explain what exactly a "ball cap" is!

Classic. Period.

The details on the front side of this card provide you everything you need to know - team, team logo, position, autograph, close-up and "position action shot".   Rube was a catcher for the Dodgers, so this card provides the extra bonus of getting to see some of that classic catcher's gear.   Love it.

The back of this card is just as good.   It divulges the full spectacle of Albert Bluford Walker Junior's name.   Would never have guessed he was from North Carolina with a name like that, eh?   Rube batted left but fielded as a right hander.  Rube never played ball in college and was drafted by the Cubbies out of high school in 1948.   The write-up gives a great tidbit on a couple of records that Mr. Walker lay claim to as a young player with Brooklyn who was finally getting a shot in '52.   Campanella was obviously the main guy behind the plate for the Dodgers at this time, so I can only imagine the frustration that Rube felt as he battled to make the starting line-up.   Or, perhaps he was enjoying every minute of it!?   Topps squeezes even more information into the comprehensive review of Walker's minor league batting numbers.   That's good stuff and something we don't see too much of anymore.

Call me Al......unless it's the FRONT of this card...

Topps provides the previous year's statistics along with the cumulative career numbers, as was the standard.   It looked like Rube was a pretty good fielder with a .978 fielding percentage.   You combine that with a .250 average and I think you have the makings of a solid back-up catcher.  Plus, his name was Rube and that's just awesome in itself.

Ah, the cartoon strip, "Inside Baseball".   Love these things, and this particular 3-panel strip is a great example.   It relates a portion of Rube's contribution to the epic Dodger-Giants playoff series of 1951.   Most of us know about that (the "Shot Heard 'Round the World") Series and its incredible/terrifying finish but what I personally did not know was that MVP Campanella did not play in Games 2 or 3.   If I am reading the comic correctly, the "...a Dodger was hurt..." refers to Campy, right?   First of all, I am a bit shocked that Topps didn't provide the star player's name here......perhaps it was a simple factor of not being able to fit "Campanella" - but I don't think so!   There's a lot of space still available in Panel #1.   My second complaint is that I can only find mention of Campanella's injury in one remote space in the internet universe......somebody refers to Roy "injuring his thigh" at some point.   But I can't find a write-up of Game 2 that describes some type of in-game injury or event and the resulting substitution.   In fact, Baseball-Reference.com doesn't portray Campanella as being on the starting lineup.   Therefore, I'm assuming that the Dodger backstop suffered something during Game 1 and just couldn't make the start in Games 2 or 3. 

Can anybody confirm this?   For you Dodgers fans - do you think this had any impact on the Series' outcome.......well, more than that whole telescope, thing?

Anyways - Rube Walker got his chances in Games 2 and 3 and, as it says on the back of this card, made good use of his time.   He pounded 3 hits and 2 homers to assist the Dodgers on their way to a 10-0 victory that necessitated that epic Game 3.

Or did he?

The back of this 1954 Topps card credits two home runs to Walker but the box scores at baseball-reference.com do not agree - they report only 1 home run, in the 9th inning, for 'ol Rube.   Huh.   I wonder what happened there?   Does anybody know?   Perhaps some kind of in-the-park deal from earlier in the game?   You can read over the numbers from that Game 2 here.   That would be interesting - again, if anybody can provide some insight, I'd be grateful.   Otherwise, it may just be a baseball card curiosity! 

Rube much closer to achieving "full Medlen" than Tom.

Walker went on to do some managing for the Dodgers and Yankees farm systems before becoming a pitching coach for the Senators, Mets and Braves.   A testament to the role a good catcher can play in successful pitching, he was a pitching coach for the Mets from '68 through '81, including the Amazin' Mets of '69 and oversaw development of two pitchers that made their way through the Metropolitans organization: Nolan Ryan and Tom Seaver.   'Nuff said, Rube!

Guess what just got added to my "Want" list?

Mr. Walker finished out his days in the Game as a scout for the Cardinals and passed away in '92.

So there you go - some great stories to go along with this Rube Walker card from 1954.   I hope you enjoyed them as much as I did researching (even though I feel a bit incomplete for the effort).   Mr. Walker sure is a great part of the Dodgers' franchise history and another classic component of our great Game, too.

Thanks for reading!