Reggie Jackson 1979 Topps Baseball Card

Reggie Jackson 1979 Topps Baseball Card

As October approached, I knew that I was going to have to buy some card of Reggie if I wanted to continue with my annual praise of ‘Mr. October’ throughout the month.

With that came the goal of bringing home at least one card from the 1970’s.  And since I only have a few that go back that far, the task seemed like it would be rather simple.

And then I started to shop.  And it got tough.  It probably did not help that I started seeking out the 1971 and 1972 Topps base cards first.  They were pricey and out of my price range.  A man can dream, can’t he….

Anyway, I then flipped my strategy and started with the last issue from the decade – 1979 Topps.

And I found one rather easily.  And she is in great shape!!

Have a look:

 

So, while I won’t abandon the thought of owning a few Reggie Jackson cards from the early part of the 1970’s, it may be a better strategy to work backwards to get myself there.

Wish me luck.

Giancarlo Stanton 2013 Bowman Platinum ‘Cutting Edge Stars’ Die-Cut

Giancarlo Stanton 2013 Bowman Platinum ‘Cutting Edge Stars’ Die-Cut

I picked up this card during a recent shopping spree on COMC.com.

While adding cards of Stanton was not my main purpose for the shipping trip, when I have a great deal on combined shipping for my card buys, I tend to shop a bit longer in hopes of finding a few gems.

And this one is truly a gem!!  Have a look:

 

The card comes from the 2013 Bowman Platinum subset tagged as ‘Cutting Edge Stars’.  The card is a die-cut, and features superb coloring.

Stanton may not have had a great 2013 baseball season, but the upside potential is still on par with the great young stars of the game.  Hopefully, his health can stay in tact in 2014 as I am predicting that the Marlins pitching staff will keep them ‘in’ a lot more games than they did this year.

And if that is the case, Stanton will have a chance to prove his status as a ‘Cutting Edge Star’.

Frank Robinson 2006 Topps ‘Rookie Of The Week’

Frank Robinson 2006 Topps ‘Rookie Of The Week’

What a sweet looking baseball card here – too bad that she isn’t the original…

 

This card comes from the 2006 Topps ‘Rookie Of The Week’ set, and it features a very young Frank Robinson and the 1957 Topps baseball card design.

I love those old sleeveless Reds uniforms from the 1950’s, and the fact that Robinson is not wearing batting gloves takes me back to a time when the sport did not have as many advancements in equipment as it does today.  And it makes me wonder just how a player with that kind of talent would perform today…

Something tells me that he would be just as elite, if not more.

A great addition to my Frank Robinson player collection!!

Did You Know…

The first player in the major leagues to post a season of .300/30/100 was Rogers Hornsby.  In 1922, Hornsby hit .401 with 42 home runs and 152 RBI.

UNREAL!!!!

 

‘Hall Of Fame Debate’ – Jim Rice VS Dave Parker

‘Hall Of Fame Debate’ – Jim Rice VS Dave Parker

One of the amazing things about baseball is that sometimes the numbers just cannot tell you about the true impact that a player had on his team or the sport.

Case in point – there are several players that starred in the 1970’s whose numbers are on par with the best players of the decade, the Hall of Famers, from the same era.  Some of those names are Jack Morris, Keith Hernandez, Steve Garvey, Alan Trammell, and one that I especially am fond of, Mr. Dave Parker.

I tried to find the best player to compare Parker to so I could demonstrate this through the numbers, and I think that a player that fits the bill is Jim Rice.

Personally, when I review these careers of these two players side-by-side I see the same player.  Both great, not elite, but certainly upper-crust.

Have a look:

	Jim Rice	Dave Parker
Seasons	16	19
Games	2,089	2,466
Hits	2,452	2,712
200 Hit Seasons	4	1
150-199 Hit Seasons	6	10
Batting Average	0.298	0.29
.300+ Seasons	7	6
Batting Titles	0	2
On-Base %	0.352	0.339
Walks Drawn	670	683
Strikeouts	1423	1537
Doubles	373	526
Triples	79	75
Home Runs	382	339
30-39 HR Seasons	3	3
40+ HR Seasons	1	0
Stolen Bases	58	154
Runs Scored	1,249	1,272
100-Run Seasons	3	3
RBI	1,451	1,493
100-RBI Seasons	8	4
All-Star	8	6
Gold Glove	0	3
Silver Slugger	2	3
ROY	0	0
MVP	1	1
Postseasons	2	5
WS Titles	0	2

The stand-out stats for me:

• Parker has almost 275 more career hits
• Very consistent annual hit tally from both
• Extremely close lifetime batting average
• Parker’s two batting titles is a solid accomplishment
• Plate discipline is close
• Parker’s doubles is much greater than that of Rice who played in a ‘doubles friendly’ park for his whole career
• Rice has almost 50 more HR’s
• Parker has almost 100 more stolen bases
• Run production is extremely close
• Post-season accolades is similar
• Parker’s 2 World Series rings is HUGE

So, the players appear to be comparable in baseball accomplishments – yet one is in the Hall of Fame and one is not.

Why?

Let’s Debate!!!  Who would you choose?  Who was the better player??

For me, it comes down to a few things – and all of them point to Dave Parker getting my vote.  Parker was a contributor on two different teams that won World Series titles – that means a lot.  He also won two batting titles (1977 & 1978) in a time that featured a handful of guys that were collecting 200+ hits per season.  Based on the stolen base numbers, Parker was a much more aggressive base runner than Rice and he also averaged fewer strikeouts than Rice as well.  While Rice put up solid numbers, and maybe was a bit more consistent with the power production, his numbers do not exceed those by Parker by an overwhelming amount.

So, my vote goes to Dave Parker.  I firmly believe that he belongs in the Hall of Fame alongside Jim Rice.  And while neither player was the lone star on the teams that they played for, both were very solid teammates that produced wins and winning seasons for their clubs.

What do you think?  Who would you take: Jim Rice OR Dave Parker??

Let the debate begin!!!

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