Ken Griffey Jr. turns the ‘Big 4-0′ today!!!
And what else would we do at ’30-YOC’ to celebrate one of the game’s greatest players???
You had to ask huh… We’re going to dedicate this day to Junior and reminisce and enjoy several of his amazing career achievements!!
Happy Birthday Mr. Griffey!!!
Posted in Birthdays & Anniversaries, Stars from the 80's
Tagged #1 draft pick, 500 home run club, 500 home runs, 500 HR club, 600 home runs, 600 hr club, all-star, baseball, baseball cards, Cincinnati Reds, first draft pick, gold glove, ken griffey, ken griffey jr, mariners, most valuable player, MVP, reds, seattle mariners, silver slugger
1968 Topps Fergie Jenkins
Finally I have added this card to my Fergie Jenkins player collection. The ’68 Topps card is not an easy one to find with good centering. And while this card is far from perfect, the corners are solid and the centering is probably close to an 80/20. I would love to have brought home a more well-centered card, but I am very aware of my spending limits so I got the best that I could currently afford.
1968 was a solid year for Fergie. In his second full season with the Cubs, the Hall of Famer started 40 ball games for the team en route to a 20-15 record along with 20 complete games. Fergie was progressing nicely at this point and he recorded a 2.63 ERA due to his hard work. The efforts of training on his mechanics in the off-season began to pay off too as he finished the year with 260 strikeouts while allowing just 65 walks.
I am thrilled to add this ’68 Topps card to my Fergie Jenkins collection!!
And now I am just 2 cards away from calling this player collection complete!!!
1989 Upper Deck Collector’s Choice Darryl Strawberry
I am in no way able to criticize art. My 3-year old son’s art skills surpassed my abilities quite some time ago.
I can, however, provide you with my opinion on what I find visually appealing, and this card from the 1989 Upper Deck set makes the cut!!
While I have no intention of bashing the artist or artists behind the Donruss Diamond Kings work, I personally find the work issued by Upper Deck to be more superior. Coming from a vintage guy that grew up hoarding Diamond Kings, that says a lot!!!
Thoughts?? Opinions???
There are only two pitchers in major league history with more than 3,000 strikeouts and fewer than 1,000 walks – Ferguson Jenkins and Greg Maddux.
**factoid courtesy of ‘Armchair Reader – Grand Slam Baseball’
My take – 2 of my favorite pitchers of all-time, these two players and their magnificent careers are intertwined for life!!!
Posted in Chicago Cubs, Did You Know...., Fergie Jenkins Collection, Greg Maddux Collection
Tagged #31, 300 wins, 3000 k's, 3000 strikeouts, all-star, baseball, baseball cards, Chicago Cubs, Cubs, cy young, cy young award, Fergie Jenkins, greg maddux, Hall Of Fame, HOF, jersey retirement, number retired, Wrigley Field
I had to do it!!
I couldn’t resist!!
The results from the Andre Dawson Grab Bag #1 were so perfect for my collection, that I had to do it again.
And today, I am a happy man as the cards have arrived!!!
More incredible cards from the #1 Andre Dawson collector in the hobby. Craig did it again and I now have 17 brand new cards to add to my Andre Dawson player collection.
Thanks Craig – You have outdone yourself again!!!
You better believe that I will be posting and sharing all of these in the coming weeks. And you better believe that Grab Bag #3 is in my future too…
Posted in Andre Dawson Collection, Autographs, Chicago Cubs, Stars from the 80's
Tagged all-star, Andre Dawson, Andre Dawson Collection, Autographs, baseball, baseball cards, bat card, certified autograph, Chicago Cubs, collection, collector, Cubs, Expos, Game Used/Memorabilia Cards, gold glove, hobby, jersey card, memorabilia card, montreal expos, most valuable player, MVP, silver slugger, TTM, ttm success
‘Same Card, Different Paths’ – Card #17
1986 Fleer - Card #653 – AKA – ‘The Cecil Fielder Rookie Card’
Cecil Fielder - ‘Big Daddy’ was one of the premier home run hitters during the 1980′s. When most of the league’s top sluggers were struggling to crush 30 bombs a year, Cecil Fielder was routinely out-slugging them in record fashion. After a 4-year stint with Toronto that resulted in very little playing time, Fielder played in Japan for a year before returning to the big leagues and joining the Detroit Tigers. The next 8 years resulted in 284 home runs, 3 All-star selections, and 2 Silver Slugger awards. Fielder went on to win 1 World Series in 1996 as a member of the New York Yankees.
Cory Snyder – Snyder had and still has a cult-like following. A member of the 1984 Olympic team that represented the United States, Snyder’s professional career looked like it would be a mighty one. Unfortunately sub-par season after sub-par season led to just a 9-year career in the majors. Snyder left the game with 902 career hits, 149 home runs, 488 RBI, and no post season memories.
Posted in 'Same Cards, Different Paths'
Tagged 50 home run club, 50 home runs, 50 home runs in a season, 50 HR, 50 hr season, all-star, baseball, baseball cards, blue jays, cecil fielder, cleveland indians, Cory Snyder, detroit tigers, indians, new york yankees, stolen base, tigers, toronto blue jays, yankees
1990 Donruss Greg Maddux
Another card has been added to my Greg Maddux player collection!!
Typically when I see a card, especially one that I have not seen in a while, I take a few moments to quickly analyze the overall design before I make my final decision and form my opinion of the card.
For this one, the jury is still out. And I got this card a few weeks ago…
I like the action photo, but the background draws my eye away from Maddux. I like the Red border, but the odd confetti-esque elements running down the side of the card look strange. The only part that I definitely love about this card is the script used for the player’s name – what a great change from the normal and boring fonts used in previous issues!!
So while I decide if I am going to give this card a thumbs up or down, tell me your opinion…
9 days. 9 days was all that it took for this Hall of Fame and Dodger great to return these 2 cards to me signed.
Of the 5 autograph requests that I put in the mail less than 2 weeks ago, I am a little surprised that Mr. Sinder is the first one that I got back. I’m not at all surprised that he signed for me, as he has one of the best reputations of all of the HOF’ers when it comes to signing through the mail. I’m just surprised it was back to me that quick.
My envelope had to go across the country from Florida to California and them back to me. And Veteran’s Day was mixed in there too…
Thank you for the great autographs Mr. Snider!! These are incredible additions to my collection.
On this day in 1987, Andre Dawson was awarded with the National League’s MVP award.
The headlines across baseball on that day had everything to do with Andre’s incredible year for a terrible team. Dawson was the first and only player to capture this award while playing for a last place team. Oh, what a year it was!!!
The 1987 season was magical for Andre. In his debut season playing for the Cubs, Dawson took center stage on a star filled roster, and he quickly became the centerpiece of their offense as well a fan favorite. His incredible numbers from that season include 178 hits, 90 runs scored, 49 home runs, 137 RBI, and a .568 slugging percentage.
In addition to winning the MVP award in ’87, Dawson also walked away with a Gold Glove award, a Silver Slugger trophy, and his first of five All-star appearances as a Cub.
Congratulations Mr. Dawson!! I am so thankful that I got to enjoy watching this year-long sensational performance!!
Posted in Andre Dawson Collection, Birthdays & Anniversaries, Chicago Cubs, Stars from the 80's
Tagged all-star, Andre Dawson, Andre Dawson Collection, baseball, baseball cards, Chicago Cubs, collection, collector, Cubs, Expos, gold glove, hobby, montreal expos, most valuable player, MVP, silver slugger
1978 Topps – Victory Leaders
This card is 31 years old and I have to say it looks pretty good!! But any card featuring Jim Palmer and honoring him is going to bring a smile to my face…
This 1978 Topps card celebrates the pitchers that won the most games during the 1977 baseball season. Palmer won 22 games during that campaign.
1976 was the 7th time in his career that Palmer would match or eclipse the 20-win mark. By the end of his amazing career, he would accomplish that feat 8 times.
A great pitcher and a great card!!! A perfect addition to my Jim Palmer collection!!!
