My Hall of Fame Collection - Class of 2015

That's IT. I'm done - and I couldn't be happier.

 

I've let go of my anger surrounding the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame.

 

I love a friendly and logical debate regarding the admittance policies for our game's highest honor. Like most things in life, black and white fades into gray for a great many things - including the comparisons between baseball players throughout history. Statistics can be mixed with memories, feelings and perceptions. Some things can be measured while other aspects are completely subjective. And when you only allow these musings of a select few to determine a very real, quanitifiable and final outcome?

 

Controversy will always ensue.

 

Heck, I've even jumped into the ring with my own two cents. My views have changed since then, and I consider myself to be a fairly steady and consistent person when it comes to my beliefs and views on the world around me. This personal shift alone has been enough to slap me in the face and say, 'let it go.'

 

And let it go, I have.

 

Now, I look forward to each and every Hall of Fame announcement. I fill in my own fictitious ballot and relish the great conversations and debates on TV and radio while the BBWAA have their votes tallied. I get to relive all of my childhood memories involving each of the players, whether they are elected or not. That's a precious gift that isn't dependent on votes.

 

In fact, for the first time in 15 years, I get to shrug off some weight and stress that has encumbered me since I first began to hope for something that always seemed a little improbable. I can make peace with that failure of fruition and move on, focusing on the positives instead of the negatives or, worse, the 'could have's' and 'should have's'.

 

More on that in a later post. For now, I'd like to honor this year's class with a little help from the Ryan's Pitch Collection!

 

The Unit. Randy Johnson. Man, this guy was larger than life for a young collector and baseball fan like me. Heck, he was larger than life for most of the guys he played with! I had a good buddy when I was growing up that was also a great baseball player. In fact, he ended up playing in college and made a trip to the College World Series. A great guy - and he was HUGE, too! So, for awhile, we all called him the Unit.

 

I can remember watching John Kruk make us all laugh in the '93 All-Star Game when a fireball from Johnson flew errantly over Kruk's head.

 

Or who can forget when Johnson's old Expo teammate and lefty, Larry Walker, turned his helmet around backwards and took a pitch as a right-hander in the '97 All-Star Game?

 

 

 

 



Randy Johnson was a helluva pitcher, one of the finest I was lucky enough to watch pitch as a youngster, and is very deserving of his election. Oddly, Johnson (as well as the rest of this class) never held much power within the hobby and by power, I mean card "value." Yes, a truly relative term in so many ways, but you all know what I mean. His cards were never "hot" or considered the "must have" items among my friends. We knew who he was and how awesome he was...and yet, the cardboard appreciation just never carried over for The Unit.

I wonder why that is? Because he was an Expo/Mariner/D-Back, perhaps? Doesn't explain The Kid's place in the Hobby. Of course, pitchers were/are always, in most cases, treated differently than home run hitters. Especially in The Unit's time...

Anyways, I went digging through my old collection and came up with these two beauties. 1989 Donruss was a colorful treat back then and these black/blue/purple bruisers are an EXCELLENT example. The hallowed "Rated Rookie" logo still makes me smile today - I love it. And int his case, it works really well with the Expos' blue. Not a great picture of The Unit by any stretch, but I dig this card. Wouldn't you know, I didn't even find these two (now) HOF RC's in my rows (upon rows) of top-loaded "good" cards from my youth. Nope, no room for one of the fiercest pitchers of the day when you have guys like Chad Mattola, Tim Salmon and Brien Taylor to reserve top-loaders for. Yep, found these two Johnson rookie cards completely raw, in a little 200 or 300-ct box of random cards. No penny sleeve. Nothing.

But not any more.

I'm sorry, Randy. Please forgive me and step out into the light...

Next, we have John Smoltz. Loved Smoltz as a Braves fan, of course. He helped guide us through the early years of nearly-but-not-quite dynasty success after years of mediocrity in the 80's. Part of a rotation for the ages, Smoltzy now joins Glavine, Maddux and Bobby Cox as wonderfully nostalgic reminders of my sports-crazy youth.

It's been just as wonderful to listen to Smoltz call ball games for Fox this past season, too. By all accounts, he is a great human being. Charitable with his time for good causes, he is also an avid golfer - my second favorite sport. While my claim to fame is an ancient high school match-up with Bubba Watson, Smoltz is a very close friend with Tiger Woods. I was watching MLB Netowrk the other day and he stated that he's probably played around fifty rounds with Tiger since they became friends. Tiger has been quoted as saying that he believes Smoltz to be the finest golfer he's played with that is not on the PGA. Powerful compliment, right there.

I could go down the long list of accomplishments from Smoltz's career but I'll leave you with this little factoid: he plays the accordion, just like my grandfather did. Need I say more?

After digging through the archives, I found these two Upper Deck cards - which I find to be very, very nice-looking cards. Man, Upper Deck really blew our minds in 1989, didn't they?! Unlike The Unit, these two HOF RCs were respectfully tucked into weird looking, yellow-tinted top-loaders.

Respect!

I don't know if I have any Pedro Martinez cards. Seriously, not a clue. I wish I did and I promise to be on the lookout for them when I conduct cardboard expeditions...but I make no promises. I can verify that there are no Pedro's in my rows of "top-loaded good players", but the fact that he's a Red Sox and not named Boggs, Yaz, Clemens, Greenwell, Fisk or Rice means that he very well might be drifting in the abyss of the dreaded COMMONS box!

Don't get me wrong, it would be great to discover some of his cards! I had the privilege of watching Pedro face Pettitte at Fenway back in '03. It was one of the finest pitching match-ups I've ever seen in person and extra special to witness in such a historic setting.

Doesn't hurt that the Yanks won, too.

Now, the Astros' KILLER B? That's a different story. I can vividly recall chasing down Biggio cards with gusto and relishing them in my collection. The Astros weren't my team but boy, were they fun to watch and collect! I can picture several in my head without even looking.

Here they are!

Oh my. Wait a second.....NO Biggio cards in the "top-loaded good players" section? This can't be!? Surely, I picked up some Biggio cards along the way. I remember the name. I remember the team...I remember...well, what exactly DO I remember? I know, let's check my alpabetized "Star Player Album"!

Here we are with Jorge George B-E-L-L.....

...so next should be....Boggs?!

Seriously!? Do I not have ANY Biggio cards, RC or not? Have my memories betrayed me THAT much?

My friends, a serious excavation into the cardboard tar pits is in order after this deficient HOF post. No Pedro and no Biggio is both unbelievable and unacceptable. I'm not sure what I'm most upset with- my memory or my adolescent baseball card judgment calls.

This is an OUTRAGE!

I take it back - my anger is NOT gone when it comes to the MLB HOF. It is back with a fervor! This will not stand! This injustice will not STAND! I want Pedro and I want Biggio and I want...I want....I want to step back and smile and enjoy this moment. This is the kind of faux-anger I can handle. Cardboard anger will trump current-event anger every time, and in so many ways. I can actually DO SOMETHING about my lack of Biggio's and Pedro's.

I can't, on the other hand, do a darn thing about the BBWAA!

And you know what? I'm finally okay with that. Congratulations to this year's inductees! I look forward to the induction ceremony in July and what looks like some fun pursuit of (affordable, for once) HOF cardboard to plug holes in my collection in the coming months.

Let the hunt begin!

Thanks for reading -

Ryan

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!

One Of My Favorite Cards: 1953 Topps #138 George Kell

The 2013 MLB season is almost here!

Let's take a quick break from the modern day excitement and enjoy some 60 year-old cardboard, shall we?

I can't recall exactly how I acquired this old '53 Topps card, but I'm sure glad I did.   Yes, it's technically a Red Sox card......but hey, it's a '53 Topps card of a Hall of Fame slugger George Kell!

The Player

Mr. Kell played professional ball from 1940 to 1957 with the A's, Tigers, Red Sox, White Sox and Orioles.   He was one of the most successful players to emerge during the player shortage of World War II.   Though not known for slugging home runs (78 for his career total), the third baseman was a tough out and captured the batting title in 1949 - displacing Ted Williams from the top slot during the final week of play by a margin of .0002!   His "2 for 3" performance on the season's final day prevented Williams from earning his third Triple Crown.

He finished his career as a 10-time All Star with a .306 average, 2,054 hits and 870 RBI.   he is probably best remembered for his time in Detroit, where he played for six years from 1946 to 1952.   Replaced by some up-and-comer named Brooks Robinson, George decided to hang up his spikes and became a broadcaster for the Orioles in 1957.   He began his broadcasting career in Baltimore but soon returned to Motown and joined up with the likes of Al Kaline to call Tigers games almost continuously from 1959 to 1996.   He was elected into the Hall of Fame by the Veteran's Committee in 1983.

Two of my favorite stories about Kell showcase both his grittiness and humility.

Keeping in mind the 'delicacy' of our modern day heroes, George missed some games during the 1948 season when he broke his wrist on a Vic Raschi pitch.   A few weeks later - YES, a few weeks later - misfortune found Kell again when a line drive off of the bat of Joe DiMaggio busted his jaw.   Kell recalled the DiMaggio smash play later on, "...I got up, made the play at third and then passed out."

And all of that was without deer antler spray, I suppose....Can you imagine that timeline these days?   By the way, George Kell won that batting title the next season, remember?   The other memorable moment of humility came during his Hall of Fame acceptance speech in '83:

    "I have always said that George Kell has taken more from this great game of baseball than he can ever give back. And now I know, I am deeper in debt than ever before."

   Awesome, awesome stuff.

The Card

It's a 1953 Topps card.   Classic design - a baseball card.   The painted portrait here doesn't give us any action but you can get a good sense of the country man from Arkansas who probably made a few folks smile in Boston back then.   It was a sunny day for this portrait, with the traditional puffy clouds drifting by in the skies beyond as Kell gazes forward.....we also get a sneak peek at the corner of the stadium's roof down the first base line.   A crumpled up Sox cap.......good stuff.   My favorite part of this vintage card is probably the old school Red Sox logo featured in the lower left corner:

Delightful

The card is pretty well centered with some touched edges and corners....okay, some rounding of the corners.   I don't really care too much.   The coloring is great too and the original gloss/surface of the card is fantastic.   No major creases that take away from the overall appearance either - I'm a happy camper.

Here's the back:

Efficient

My labeling of this year's card backs as efficient is not a slam!   I love everything we get here.   The biographical information up top (Clyde!) and quick synopsis of his career easily gives us a sense that Kell had already established himself as one of the game's highly regarded players by this time in his career.   The ode to his fielding abilities is a nice touch.   I love having the facsimile autograph but it makes it a tiny bit frustrating to read the write-up.......yeah, I'm nit-picking.   I just don't want to be 100% fan boy, you know?

The streamlined 'past year & career' stat columns is easy to review and a cartoon/trivia opportunity is ALWAYS welcome in my collection!   This one is no slouch, either, as the card quizzes the collectors of 1953 on who "participated in the greatest number of consecutive games?"

Of course, the answer to this question became outdated on September 6, 1995 when Cal Ripken Jr. played in his 2,131st consecutive game.   But this is George's post - so I'll keep it at that.   The back of the card is in great shape for me, too.   Some hairline crease action in the top right but no paper loss and some more great color on that wonderful, wonderful old card stock.

Have a great weekend and thanks for reading!