1998 HEADLINE: Barry Bonds Joins ‘The 40/40 Club’

1998 HEADLINE: Barry Bonds Joins ‘The 40/40 Club’

On this day in 1996, Barry Bonds joined an elite class of baseball player by becoming a member of the ’40/40 Club’.

On the road in Colorado, and nearing the end of the 1998 baseball season, Barry Bonds swiped the 40th base of his season.  That steal, his last one of the 1998 season, became monumental occasion launching Bonds into another world of player.

As the third member of the group, Bonds’ all-around athletic game put him on par with the other members of the ’40/40 Club’ – Jose Canseco and Alex Rodriguez.

Happy Anniversary Mr. Bonds!!!

1998 Headline: “Welcome To The 400/400 Club, Barry Bonds”

1998 Headline:  “Welcome To The 400/400 Club, Barry Bonds”

On this day in 1998, Barry Bonds stole the 400th base of his major league career!!  And in the process, he became the first and only member of the “400/400 club”.

There was no question prior, but this moment in baseball history solidified Bonds as one of the greatest offensive weapons that the sport has ever seen.  A dynamic player at the plate and on the base paths, Bonds was able to take over game and win with his amazing array of baseball talents!

Congratulations and Happy Anniversary, Mr. Bonds!!

Happy Birthday Barry Bonds!!!

Happy Birthday Barry Bonds!!!

Barry Bonds turns 50 years old today.

We are all entitled to our opinions, and I know that we all have them when it comes to Bonds. But, of all of the guys that have exited the game during the course of the last few years and are headed to Cooperstown, we saw sharp declines in their output – except for that of Barry Bonds. We saw it from Frank Thomas and Ken Griffey Jr. and John Smoltz and Randy Johnson and even my beloved Greg Maddux.  And while I don’t enjoy watching the demise of my baseball heroes, I do think that Barry Bonds was posied to give us more.

Bonds is the guy that I feel like he could have given us a lot more to watch. 3,000 hits was very close. As was 800 home runs. I would have liked to have seen him reach both milestones prior to his retirement from the game.

Easily one of the best hitters of his generation, Bonds worked very hard to get to that level.  He did that by learning on the job – becoming more disciplined at the plate, hitting the ball the other way, being disruptive on the bases.  He was a true menace – in a very, very good way.

Happy Birthday Mr. Bonds – you are missed by this fan!!!

1998 HEADLINE: Barry Bonds Joins ‘The 40/40 Club’

1998 HEADLINE: Barry Bonds Joins ‘The 40/40 Club’

On this day in 1996, Barry Bonds joined an elite class of baseball player by becoming a member of the ’40/40 Club’.

On the road in Colorado, and nearing the end of the 1998 baseball season, Barry Bonds swiped the 40th base of his season.  That steal, his last one of the 1998 season, became monumental occasion launching Bonds into another world of player.

As the third member of the group, Bonds’ all-around athletic game put him on par with the other members of the ’40/40 Club’ – Jose Canseco and Alex Rodriguez.

Happy Anniversary Mr. Bonds!!!

1998 HEADLINE: Barry Bonds Joins ‘The 40/40 Club’

1998 HEADLINE: Barry Bonds Joins ‘The 40/40 Club’

On this day in 1996, Barry Bonds joined an elite class of baseball player by becoming a member of the ’40/40 Club’.

On the road in Colorado, and nearing the end of the 1998 baseball season, Barry Bonds swiped the 40th base of his season.  That steal, his last one of the 1998 season, became monumental occasion launching Bonds into another world of player.

As the third member of the group, Bonds’ all-around athletic game put him on par with the other members of the ’40/40 Club’ – Jose Canseco and Alex Rodriguez.

Happy Anniversary Mr. Bonds!!!

Happy Birthday Barry Bonds!!!

Happy Birthday Barry Bonds!!!

Barry Bonds turns 49 years old today.

Where, oh where has Barry Bonds been? I can honestly say that I am not very pleased with how Bonds left the game. I kind of feel unfulfilled with his exit from the sport.

We are all entitled to our opinions, and I know that we all have them when it comes to Bonds. But, of all of the guys that have exited the game during the course of the last few years and are headed to Cooperstown, we saw sharp declines in their output – except for Barry’s. We saw it from Frank Thomas and Ken Griffey Jr. and John Smoltz and Randy Johnson and even my beloved Greg Maddux.

But Bonds is the guy that I feel like he could have given us more to watch. 3,000 hits was very close. As was 800 home runs. I would have liked to have seen him reach both milestones prior to his retirement from the game.

Happy Birthday Mr. Bonds – you are missed by this fan!!!

Barry Bonds 2006 Topps ‘Rookie Of The Week’ – 1987 Topps Design

Barry Bonds 2006 Topps ‘Rookie Of The Week’ – 1987 Topps Design

In most instances, modern cards that feature vintage designs with new images typically look better than the original.  And while I will almost always prefer the older look, I have to admit that some of the new stuff is really, really nice.

Topps released a set in 2006 called ‘Rookie Of The Week’.  The set features 25 cards, and boasts a grand checklist of Hall of Famers and baseball legends.  Each card features a vintage baseball card design with an updated photo.  In all of the cases that I have seen, Topps has done a fantastic job of finding images from the era that the card design comes from.

This is the Barry Bonds card from that set:

The card looks great, and you know that I am a sucker for a card that features a batting cage as the back-drop.

But for me, the original from the 1987 Topps set looks better.

Still, this is a great card.  And the more of these that I secure makes me want to possibly take a shot at going after the full set…

Time will tell…

1996 HEADLINE: Barry Bonds Joins The ’40/40 Club’

1996 HEADLINE: Barry Bonds Joins The ’40/40 Club’

On this day in 1996, Barry Bonds joined an elite class of baseball player by becoming a member of the ’40/40 Club’.

On the road in Colorado, and nearing the end of the 1998 baseball season, Barry Bonds swiped the 40th base of his season.  That steal, his last one of the 1998 season, became monumental occasion launching Bonds into another world of player. 

The third member of the group, Bonds’ all-around athletic game put him on par with Jose Canseco and Alex Rodriguez.

Happy Anniversary Mr. Bonds!!!

Happy Birthday Barry Bonds!!!

Happy Birthday Barry Bonds!!!

Barry Bonds turns 48 years old today.

Where, oh where has Barry Bonds been?  I can honestly say that I am not very pleased with how Bonds left the game.  I kind of feel unfulfilled with his exit from the sport.

We are all entitled to our opinions, and I know that we all have them when it comes to Bonds.  But, of all of the guys that have exited the game during the course of the last few years and are headed to Cooperstown, we saw sharp declines in their output – except for Barry’s.  We saw it from Frank Thomas and Ken Griffey Jr. and John Smoltz and Randy Johnson and even my beloved Greg Maddux.

But Bonds is the guy that I feel like he could have given us more to watch.  3,000 hits was very close.  As was 800 home runs.  I would have liked to have seen him reach both milestones prior to his retirement from the game.

Happy Birthday Mr. Bonds – you are missed by this fan!!!

Did You Know…

Of the 14 major league baseball players to hit at least 600 doubles during their playing days, Barry Bonds is the only player of the group that was never the league leader of that stat.  Bonds hit 601 doubles during his major league career, with a career-high of 44 in 1998.