Bannister maybe the type of big leaguer who gets obscured by history once their careers are over, but it's fun for me to give these guys a second look - despite a losing W-L record, the one-time Angel pitched more than 200 innings in 6 of his 15 years in the Major Leagues and had a double digits wins in 8 of those 15 years.
After the boom, now everyone was going to pounce on any future Shore release and the hype was huge as Junior happened to be the next Shore card - because of FOMO I bought one just the same, but I knew there was going to be 70,000 of these cards made instead of the sub 10,000 numbers his early cards did.
Just to show I’m either not looney or maybe just not smart enough at the time, I didn’t get the other card - a Joshua Vides Nolan Ryan because while any of these Project 2020 cards might have been cash money cards, I’m only focused on the Mike Trouts [regardless of print run or future value] and a card or two that catch my eye.
After the fact, I was only off about 20,000 as there were 99,177 Shore Griffey Jr. [and 64,629 Vides Ryan] cards - the lure of the flip value brought in chumps who keyed in on the Griffey Jr., believing very new Project 2020 card was going to be a quick flip for at least $500 each.
After the Shore Griffey Jr. release, the values crashed and no one is going to be bragging about making a mint off any one particular card - I lost about $13 on the Griffey Jr. since I paid the full price [$21.44 including tax] on Topps.com for a single card.
Maybe the Vides Ryan, paired with the Griffey Jr. wasn't a serious consideration for me but I can pick one up for $10 as well.
Ichiro might have been going out to dinner when the prominent 'all-star' grapher back in the day begged, "there's only four of us" and Ichiro came over, grabbed the guy's pen and quickly signed our items - it was such a satisfying get, since it was the most random 'never gonna happen' thing.
Looking back, the Mariners were supposed to play the Angels - but the MLB games were postponed because of 9/11.
I bought a copy of this card last year, but there was a stray mark on the top left hand corner and on principle, I returned the card to the seller - even though it cost me s/h to send it back.
Because the impulse buy didn’t end up working last year, picking up a copy of the card ended up itch I had to scratch - Ichiro was a universally loved player and as a personal tribute to the player and the man, I wanted a cheap, classy looking 'bookend card' for my micro-mini Ichiro PC.
While I don’t have an extensive Ichiro card collection [maybe three or four of his cheapest rookies in addition to whatever loose cards I may have] - I do have several in-person autographs I was able get through parts of his legendary career with a few stories on those IP quests for his scribble.
I would have originally settled for a raw copy of the card as they were released, but after the fact, a slabbed copy [$10.99 BIN - $3.00 eBay promo on purchases of $3.01 or more] only cost several dollars more - while third party grading can be a straight up joke, especially for the most recent of cards, having a card entombed in plastic gives me some peace of mind as far as getting a relatively clean card.
These cards aren't hard to find at all, so PSA 10 listings are not much more than the PSA 9 ones - as far as I’m concerned a PSA 9 is what I'll usually what settle for as the most common grade for most modern cards I’m looking to pick up.
I liked him just like everyone else seemed to - mainly it was because he was all about infield singles, stealing bases, showing off his arm and his defensive skills as a fast-paced contrast to the plodding all-or-nothing players who had one skill [slugging a lot of home runs], but offered little else.
Maybe for years, the media couldn't pin a narrative to Ichiro's career - part of the appeal was the quirkiness and mystery of this far east hit machine who crashed the major leagues at 27, yet was a year-to-year threat to reach the 200-hit plateau that he made up for 'lost years' to reach the 3,000 hit milestone.
This maybe a condition sensitive card as chrome cards from the 1990s tend to ‘hulk’ when exposed to the weather conditions - the copy of the card I picked up doesn’t appear to be discolored, though I have to account for when it happens.
Admittedly for the longest time, up through when the retiring Beltre was gunning for his 3,000th hit - I didn’t think much of him as having the numbers to merit any sort of serious consideration for the Hall of Fame.
I’ve always thought he was a minor star at best who lucked into a flukish season in 2004 - after collecting his 3,000 hits in 2017 and passing Rod Carew in 2018 as the all-time Latin American hits leader, Beltre's baseball playing accomplishments have the substance as he looks to become a first ballot Hall of Famer in five years.
Accounting for his all-world defense, the hitting numbers and the quirkiness he’s occasionally exhibited, Beltre has become a fan favorite to be goofed on in good fun - he didn't he like his head touched by his teammates and he had one of the most exaggerated follow throughs on his swing.
He and Texas Rangers teammate Elvis Andrus never get tired of messing around with each other - Andrus seems to be Beltre’s best friend on the field, but also his main antangonist.
I'm afraid as the years pass and new players sprout, there will be less guys to count - but it's fun to go back and remember times when I've gotten someone like Ichiro's autograph in-person.
Now, the all-world hit king is stepping away for a bit away for a bit, likely maybe forever as a player - despite the feel good aspect of Ichiro signing with the Mariners in spring training, the team just couldn't carry his corpse any longer as one of the guys on the team's 25-man roster.
I don't exactly play the game I've seen fans do [through occasional posts on Web sites] where when someone accomplishes a feat, leaves the game as a player or gets into the Hall of Fame - they do a mental calculation whether if they've seen him play in-person.
Too many times where I'm at a game and the last thing I'm paying attention to is the action on the field - as odd as it may sound, it maybe harder to get into a MLB game in-person because there is just this huge separation from the cheap seats to the field.
Unfortunately, despite his success, he was on the wrong end of a couple of big league home runs - hit in the 1985 National League Championship Series by Ozzie Smith and Jack Clark.
Because Griffey Jr. was one of UD's marquee athletes, I assume the company took more time in selecting an image that would pop - I do wonder how this image of Griffey Jr. leaping up in the air, trying to make an over the shoulder catch came to be.
Because UD SP was such a high-end product, it wasn't like I was able to go into a Target or Toys "R" Us and pick up loose packs - I want to say I finally picked up the Griffey Jr. years after the card came out, though I'd have to check where it is.
Maybe it's the least that can be done for someone who served his country and who has lived as long as he has - but it's nice for Waldron to get his 15-minutes of fame and be immortalized on a baseball card insert of his own.
I made it a point to send to an autograph request to Waldron with two First Pitch insert I found - after it became a thing where TTM collectors reported successes from him.
After a bounce back year in 2015, reality caught up to the 41-year old - who really knows what is on his mind and what maybe his possible options if he isn't bent on hanging it up just yet.
If A-Rod doesn't play in a big league game again, it will be interesting where he ends up as far as Hall of Fame consideration goes - because of the players' PED ties, I think the baseball writers have resigned themselves to letting three of the greatest players in baseball in Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and A-Rod sit in limbo as opposed to inducting them into the most exclusive club in any professional sport.
I think Bonds and Clemens have to get in first and that doesn't look like that is happening anytime soon - before they A-Rod gets any actual consideration.
While Cano still has 7 years left on his hefty contract, he already has the numbers of a probable Hall of Famer - particularly for a second baseman who still looks like he can post big batting numbers to pad his counting stats.
When I heard about Henderson's recent passing, I knew he had a son with a genetic disorder to take care of [actually obscured in the photo op photo] - it's hard to think that his adult son Chase won't have his father to lean on.
As an Angels fan, there is no way not to hear about the home run Henderson hit in the 1986 American League Division Series - that not only derailed the Angels' pennant hopes but perhaps started the fatal downward spiral for the Halo pitcher that gave up the home run.
As is, I really remember Henderson more as a 'junk wax guy' who was more of complimentary player type on the Bash Brothers Oakland A's teams of the late 1980s-early 1990s - he wasn't a star compared to Jose Canseco, Mark McGwire or Rickey Henderson, but I always heard about how 'Hendu' always smiled and had the right attitude out on the field.
As is, I should have gone with my better judgement and left the blasters where I found them in the card section - the cutesy Archives inserts are missing from years past and I'm also vaguely aware that the short prints are harder to pull.
Pulling mostly base cards, I didn't care how thin the card stock was and the cards look fine - maybe I can't be making snap judgements busting only one retail box, but I felt like these should probably be $10 blasters i.e. like 2015 Topps Opening Day.
Pack one
#248 Catfish Hunter
#66 Dalton Pompey
#192 Matt Barnes
#WF-2 Will Ferrell - Seattle Mariners
#175 Masahiro Tanaka
#211 Kenley Jansen
#33 Oswaldo Arcia
#134 Duke Snider
#213 Brooks Robinson
#35 Eddie Murray
Pack two
#261 Gary Brown
After being suspended by Major League Baseball in 2014, A-Rod has come back and actually put up some fine hitting numbers as a designated hitter - who knows if A-Rod will continue to put up the numbers, but he's had his share of hitting highlights, including passing Willie Mays on the all-time home run list, getting his 3,000th hit and hitting three home runs in one game.
A-Rod is a flawed, tained player who has stumbled in more ways than one - but by being able to play well again, his road to irrelevance has taken a little detour.
At the end of last these season, I wanted cards of these players - even though as is, they might not really stick in the major leagues.
The last guy I wanted a card for was minor league veteran Doug Bernier - he was up with the Minnesota Twins in 2013 and I got him to sign a ticket stub when he got his first MLB hit.
However, Bernier didn't stick around long enough to have a card out - he has spent the 2014 season in the AAA and even if Topps made a card of him, I don't know if I'd see him or not.
Waits pitched in the Major Leagues from 1973-1985 and while he wasn't great [79-92 won-loss record], he hung around for 12 years - I usually laugh and scoff at the cards of rank-and-file guys, but there are players [maybe lefthanders since they tend to hang around even past their primes] whose careers are a trip.
Even though I might not have been around [literally] to follow their Waits' career first-hand - having his cards and doing a little research makes me think about what he did as a professional baseball player.
One of the cards he signed was his 1985 Fleer [which shows him at Anaheim Stadium] and while it's not a big deal - it's ironic I got him to sign where he was pictured on the card, even though the stadium is now called Angel Stadium and the place has probably gone through a bunch of cosmetic changes since 1984.