2002 Topps Super Teams ‘Super Teammates’ Starring Lou Brock & Bob Gibson

2002 Topps Super Teams ‘Super Teammates’ Starring Lou Brock & Bob Gibson

It would be very hard to note like a card that featured Cardinals legends Lou Brock and Bob Gibson.  And if you’re a St. Louis Cardinals fan, you would probably tag this card as a ‘Must Have’.

Check it out:

While the design is not thrilling, in my opinion, it is still a pretty nice looking card.  I would have rather had seen this one feature a bit more of St. Louis in the card – maybe Yellow instead of Blue, and the arch implemented into the design would be pretty nice as well…

Still – anytime you can add a card of these two great HOFers to your collection, it is worth doing.

Lou Brock 2013 Topps Series One – ‘Chasing History’

Lou Brock 2013 Topps Series One – ‘Chasing History’

Another great looking card from the ‘Chasing History’ subset – and another card that just doesn’t do it for me…

Like many of the cards in this subset, the card itself looks fantastic.  The graphics are nice and clean, and the image used is perfect.

Have a look:

For me, I just cannot get behind this quest when it has already been conquered.  Sure, I appreciate what Lou Brock did during his career, and specifically to become the all-time stolen base leader.  But, his accomplishment was crushed.

Instead, with a theme like this, maybe Topps could have shown us the active player that ranks the highest in these categories and then combined their image with the leaders??  I don’t know – just an idea…

 

Lou Brock 2001 Topps ’50 Years Of Topps’ – “Noteworthy”

Lou Brock 2001 Topps ’50 Years Of Topps’ – “Noteworthy”

I have slowly been picking up cards from this set as I come across them.  And for the most part, I am scooping them up at pretty low prices.

While extremely busy, I really like the whole ‘Noteworthy ‘ theme and design.

The card also features a Gold ’50 Years Of Topps’ logo and a great image of Brock.

Man I wish that Dawson and Jenkins had a card in this set!!!

Lou Brock 2012 Panini Cooperstown – ‘High Praise’

Lou Brock 2012 Panini Cooperstown – ‘High Praise’

Now that I have obtained most, if not all, of the base cards from the 2012 Panini Cooperstown set, it is time for me to go after some of the great subsets that are also from this release.

This card of Lou Brock came to me via a trade:

The ‘High Praise’ theme is pretty neat.

The quote on the front of this card is courtesy of Larry Bowa.  It states, ‘Everyone in the park know he’s going to run and he makes it anyway’.

Pretty high praise from a peer – I LOVE IT!!!

Lou Brock 2001 Fleer Greats – FAIL!!!

Lou Brock 2001 Fleer Greats

I always enjoy a good ‘on deck circle’ baseball card.  But this one just doesn’t do it for me…

The 2001 Fleer Greats set is known for its dramatic Black & White images.  That is part of what makes the set a noteworthy one that still gets collectors excited about it more than a decade after its release.

But not every card can work with this theme.

And I think that I have found one:

Lou Brock absolutely belongs in a set tagged as ‘Greats’.  But the image selected is so far from that…

NEXT!

Lou Brock 2011 Topps Kimball Champions Of Games & Sports – mini

Lou Brock 2011 Topps Kimball Champions Of Games & Sports – mini

It has been more than five months since I have added a baseball card of Lou Brock into my collection.  This was not intentional, simply an oversight.

And while this card of Brock from the 2011 Topps Kimball Champions set is not on my official checklist as it is not a card that was issued during his playing days, it is still spectacular!

Have a look:

I am loving that action shot on the bottom of the card – SAFE!!!

This set is a great one.  I hope that Topps has plans to impress us with something similar in 2013!!

1985 Headline: Lou Brock Voted Into National Baseball Hall Of Fame

1985 Headline:  Lou Brock Voted Into National Baseball Hall Of Fame

On this day in 1985, Lou Brock was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame.  At the time of his election, Brock was the all-time stolen bases leaders in major league history.  Also a member of the ’3,000 Hits Club’, Brock collected 3,023 total hits during his 19-year career.  Brock was a 6-time All-Star, and was part of two World Series championship winning teams with the Cardinals.

Brock was first eligible for election into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985.  He was voted in on his first ballot capturing 315 of 395 votes cast, good for a 79.7% clip.

Santa Delivered Two New Signed Baseballs For The ’30-YOC’ Collection On Christmas. Come See!!!

Santa Delivered Two New Signed Baseballs For The ’30-YOC’ Collection On Christmas.  Come See!!!

My birthday and Christmas are exactly two weeks apart; Christmas is the latter of the two events.

And as much as I don’t want those two days to be made into big deals for me, as I prefer to focus on the kids as much as possible, my wife has other plans.  So, typically in early November she starts asking.  And by the middle of November, she starts dropping major hints.  And as the end of the month approaches, she demands a list of ‘stuff’ that I would like for my birthday and Christmas.

Simply stated, I oblige her.  We have been married for close to ten years now, and together for more than 12.  I know she will not stop, so I oblige.

And I have to say that this year, it was a lot easier to oblige her requests.

Why?

Because she is now on Ebay.

And that means I can add stuff to my list from Ebay that I want.  Whereas in the past, she would say, ‘just get it’ or ‘we’ll just give you a gift card’.  Neither of those ideas excited her to say the least.  But this time around, I just forwarded a few Ebay auctions to her and left it at that.

And the results??

Two new signed baseballs for my collection.  And I am super excited about both!!!

Ball #1 – Lou Brock signed Rawlings game ball done in Blue, right on the sweet-spot!!

Ball #2 – Fergie Jenkins signed Black Rawlings game ball in Gold, with a HOF inscription!!

Both balls are awesome additions to my collection.  Brock has been someone who I have been after for some time.  I missed out on a signing more than a year ago that was deeply discounted.  I have kicked myself for not taking part in that signing, so I was really excited when this one was unwrapped.  As for Jenkins, this Black ball is a great addition to my collection that honors Fergie’s career.  I have a Black ball signed by Dawson so it makes a lot of sense for me to add one to my Jenkins collection too.

2 fantastic signed baseballs for my collection.  1 great wife.  2 unreal kids.

Life is Good!!!

1974 HEADLINE: Lou Brock Sets Single-Season Stolen Base Record

1974 HEADLINE: Lou Brock Sets Single-Season Stolen Base Record

On this day in 1974, Lou Brock stole his 105th base of the season.  This stolen bases gave Brock the single-season record as he eclipsed the 104-mark set by Maury Wills in 1962.

But Brock didn’t slow down.  In fact, he kept right on running in 1974 and by the end of the baseball season, he had a new record – 118 swipes!

And while this record was relatively short-lived(it lasted just 8 years), this is what catapulted Brock’s status as one of the greatest runners that the sport had ever seen.

Congratulations and Happy Anniversary to Mr. Brock!!!

Lou Brock 1979 Topps ‘All-Time Record Holders – Stolen Bases’

Lou Brock 1979 Topps ‘All-Time Record Holders – Stolen Bases’

Make no mistake about it, I love baseball cards that honor the great history of the sport.  I find that the cards that do this hold their place in history well over time and emote a different kind of emotion from cards that celebrate moments of lesser significance.

So, while I love that this baseball card from the 1979 Topps set pays homage to the fact that Lou Brock was the single-season and career leader in stolen bases, I wish that Topps put as much effort into the card and its design as Brock did in to getting into these spots.

The card is a FAIL.  The player is a WIN!!!!