2011 Bowman Platinum Florida Marlins 5-Card Team Set

2011 Bowman Platinum Florida Marlins 5-Card Team Set

I scooped this team set for $1.00 – Simply a deal that I could not refuse!

And while I am not that big of fan of the Bowman product, I have to say that this little 5-card set is pretty impressive from a style and design stance.

The set features 3 big leaguers, and Bowman certainly chose the right three players to showcase from the team – Hanley, JJ, and Stanton!

Here they are:

The set also features two prospects.  Of them, I have heard of and followed one (Dominguez) and have never heard of the other (Ozuna).

Now you are going to have to excuse me  I need to go find out who Marcel Ozuna is and see if he can help my team…

GO FISH!!!

Ron Santo 2001 Topps Archives – All Star Rookie!!

Ron Santo 2001 Topps Archives – All Star Rookie!!

I have a few copies of this baseball card in my collection already.  I accidentally added it to my cart when placing an order on www.sportlots.com.

So, while a regular collector may be a bit miffed at having bought a card that they already called ‘their own’, I simply smile!

We miss you Ronnie.  You are the best!!!

Ernie Banks 2012 Topps ‘Gold Standard’

Ernie Banks 2012 Topps ‘Gold Standard’

It’s always nice when you can scoop up a card of Ernie Banks…  Especially when it is affordable.

And especially when it looks like this:

This card is from Series 1 of the 2012 issue.  It is part of the ‘Gold Standards’ subset and it pays tribute to Ernie Banks hitting his 500th career home run on May 12, 1970.

At the time that Banks connected for number 500, he became just the ninth member of the ‘500 Home Runs Club’ – and was the first infielder to join the elite group.

Atta Boy Ernie!!!

Did You Know…

Carl Hubbell holds the record for most consecutive games won in major league history.  Hubbell won 24 straight games from July 17, 1936 through May 27, 1937.

Carlos Beltran Becomes 8th Member Of The 300/300 Club

 

ST. LOUIS — Cardinals outfielder Carlos Beltran became the first switch-hitter in Major League history to reach 300 home runs and 300 stolen bases with his stolen base in the second inning of a 3-2 loss to the Royals on Friday night.

He is the eighth player to reach the 300/300 milestone, joining Barry Bonds, Willie Mays, Alex Rodriguez, Andre Dawson, Bobby Bonds, Reggie Sanders and Steve Finley.

“I just have to thank God for the opportunity of being able to play this game for a long time,” Beltran said after going 2-for-4 in the loss. “All the glory is for him. I’ve been fortunate to be able to play this game for long, and today, it’s great. It would have been great if we would have won.”

Second base was pulled off the Busch Stadium field after the game and handed to Beltran at his locker in the Cardinals’ clubhouse. Team sources said Beltran is considering sending his used spikes from the game to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y.

Beltran, who spent parts of seven seasons with the Royals to open his career, played against Kansas City for the first time on Friday. He was named the 1999 American League Rookie of the Year as a 22-year-old, batting .293 with 22 homers, 108 RBIs and 27 steals.

It was a special moment for Beltran to achieve such a milestone against the team he began his career with.

“It is crazy, but at the same time, things happen for a reason,” Beltran said. “So I can say it was good to play them today, even though we lost. For me, personally, I started my career as a Royal, I spent 6 1/2 years there, so I have good memories there in Kansas City.”

The 35-year-old has seven stolen bases this season. He swiped a career-high 42 bags in 2004 while splitting time between Kansas City and Houston. He also leads the National League with 19 homers this year. He hit a career-high 41 home runs with the Mets in ’06.

Manny Ramirez Released By The A’s

OAKLAND — The Manny Ramirez experiment has come to an uneventful end. The A’s announced before Friday’s game against the Padres that they granted Ramirez his outright release after the outfielder requested it. With the improved play of outfielders Seth Smith and Collin Cowgill and the expected imminent return of Yoenis Cespedes, there didn’t appear to be a place for Ramirez to play in Oakland anymore. Ramirez began playing with Triple-A Sacramento in May while serving a 50-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs. The organization said initially that Ramirez would be brought up as soon as his suspension ended on May 31, but Ramirez struggled with nagging injuries and didn’t show an ability to drive the ball consistently, which the team wanted to see before it called him up. Ramirez was hitting .302 with three doubles but no homers and 17 strikeouts in 17 games for the River Cats. He has a career .312 Major League average over 19 seasons, with 555 home runs and 1,831 RBIs. A’s assistant general manager David Forst intimated that the team would have continued to hold on to Ramirez at Triple-A, but the outfielder wanted to pursue a better opportunity with another team. “We wish him the best,” Forst said. “He was great in Sacramento. We enjoyed having him. Unfortunately, there wasn’t an opportunity to get him here. I wasn’t surprised, and he thinks he has a better shot somewhere else. I hope he does.” Praver Shapiro Sports Management released this statement on behalf of Ramirez: “Manny believes he has demonstrated that he is ready to return to the Major Leagues. However, given that the Oakland Athletics could not give Manny any assurance that they plan to promote him in the immediate future he asked for his release. Manny thanks the A’s for providing him with this opportunity.” Oakland made a splash when it signed the controversial and colorful outfielder to a Minor League contract in February. The team viewed it as a low-risk, high-reward move — it was hoping the slugger might be able to add some pop to the A’s lineup. When asked before Friday’s game if anything had changed regarding Ramirez’s status, A’s manager Bob Melvin simply said, “No.” After the game, Melvin didn’t have much to add. “He wanted an opportunity, if we weren’t going to do something, to go somewhere else,” Melvin said. “It is what it is. I don’t have much to say about that. Certainly wish him the best.”

Happy Birthday Wally Joyner!!!

Happy Birthday Wally Joyner!!!

Wally Joyner turns 50 years old today.

Once looked upon as a basebal savior, Wally Joyner was a hitter that possesed the skills to excite baseball fans, young and old.

Blessed with a swing that was ‘picture perfect’, Joyner had the task of coming into the league as a 24-year old rookie and saving the California Angels franchise.

And while that job may have been to large a burden for any one player to tackle, especially a rookie, Joyner excelled immediately.  As a rookie, Joyner made the All-Star team, finished in 2nd place for the Rookie of the Year voting, and finished in 8th place for the MVP award.  He collected  172 hits, 100 RBI, scored 82 runs, and compiled a .290 batting average during that campaign; the most successful one of his career.

In total, Wally Joyner amassed 2,060 career hits.  He retired after 16 big league seasons with a .289 batting average.  Other notable stats from his career include 973 runs scored, 409 doubles, 204 home runs, and 1,106 RBI.

Avery solid career for someone with a world of pressue on his shoulders – Congratulations!!!

Happy Birthday Mr. Joyner!!

A Trade Post On ’30-YOC’??? Yes, A Trade Post On ’30-YOC’!!!!

A Trade Post On ’30-YOC’???  Yes, A Trade Post On ’30-YOC’!!!!

Well, well, well, look at who has completed a trade…

It has been a long time since I was able to officially call a baseball card transaction a trade, but I believe that I am correct with the naming for this exchange of cards.

Let’s get right down to it…

After tearing though a blaster of 2012 Topps Archives, a few readers of the blog showed some interest in some of the cards I pulled.

One of those readers was Doug, of the blog ‘Baseball Cards And Life’.  He saw two cards that appealed to him.  And he has good taste!!  Check out what I sent him:

Pretty nice stuff huh?

Yeah well, Doug sent be back some pretty sweet stuff too…  Four cards as a matter of fact, and they all share a very common theme.

Have a peek:

Oh yeah, Miami Marlins.  And they look great!!

Thank you, Doug.  That was a lot of fun!  I am on my way to collecting the team set from this issue.

Anyone else want to work out a trade??  Let me know.