Memoirs of a Hoarder: Catching Gators

Some athlete's deaths hit harder than others.  When I read about Mike Greenwell passing away on Thursday, it took me back to the late 80's.  There was a brief period in my life when I was opening boxes upon boxes of baseball cards purchased at my local Costco/Price Club.

1987 Topps #259

I was obsessed with mimicking the shops advertising in card magazines and building player lots of rising stars.  One of those guys was Mr. Greenwell.  As long as I can remember, I've had a deep appreciation for guys who hit for average and that's exactly what he did.

The days of hoarding his cardboard ended when I sold off my collection in the early 2000's, but I have a copy of his Topps rookie card sitting in my set.  I also found this card sitting in a box of cards labeled "cheap, cool cards":

1991 Fleer Pro-Vision #8

This single is on the blogosphere's hot list.  Just saw it pop up over at Diamond Jesters in his Greenwell tribute post.

But my favorite card of his is this on-card autograph I purchased back in 2013 when I was putting together the set:

2013 Topps Archives Fan Favorites Autograph #FFA-MG

Rest in peace Gator.  Although the bulk of your cards that once resided in my collection have moved on to other collectors or landfills, I still treasure these three cards.  They'll always remind me of that special period on my hobby timeline.

Happy Saturday and sayonara!

Extra Innings

A few weeks ago, I received a care package from Adam over at Thoughts & 🧦.  Like Matt over at Diamond Jesters, he's a fan of the Boston Red Sox.  I figured since I was honoring Greenwell, I I'd also use this post to thank one of Greenwell's fans.

Adam sent me a variety of cards, but I'm going to stick to the unique items in his care package.  Let's start with some Oakland A's and San Diego Padres cards from the 2000 APBA MLB game:

I feel like I've seen these floating around at card shows or flea markets, but I'm not sure if any have actually landed into my collection.

I definitely needed this card for my Gwynn PC:

2000 APBA MLB #NNO

Here are a pair of 70's Oakland Athletics buybacks:

1977 Topps #261

Phil Garner kicked off his career in Oakland, but I remember him more for his time in Pittsburgh and Houston.  That being said, I absolutely love adding 70's and 80's Oakland A's buybacks to my collection.

1979 Topps #224

I'm definitely familiar with Dave Revering.  His mid-season trade to the New York Yankees in 1981 led to him have a very rare card in the 1981 Granny Goose set.

Moving along, here are a pair of cards for a set I'm building:

2018 Sport Kings #14

2018 Sport Kings #17

Adam actually sent me a fairly fat stack of Sport Kings singles ranging for the 2018 to 2022 sets, but these were the two I was most excited about.

Technically, I only need one more card... but Sport Kings created variations for Cobb and Payton.  The good news is neither of these cards are rare.  It's just about being patient.

He also sent me a stack of Japanese baseball players:

You're looking at almost the entire 2006 Upper Deck World Future Stars Japan team set.  I'm pretty sure I have the Dice-K which is the only card missing from the scan.  It's also nice to add three Japanese pitchers who played on playoff teams this season.  Although Yoshinobu's team is the only one still around.

Let's move along to a galaxy far, far away:

2024 Topps Chrome Star Wars Refractor #4

Grand Admiral Thrawn is one of the most interesting characters in the Star Wars Universe.  Adam included a few of these refractors, but this one was my favorite.

I was also surprised and excited to see this slide out of the padded envelope:

2022 Topps Chrome Black Star Wars Autographs #AB-MBJ

Based on my memory, Ranzar Malk only appeared in one episode of The Mandalorian.  However I am very familiar with the actor who portrayed him.  Mark Boone Jr. played a major role in Sons of Anarchy, which is a top 20 television show for me.  I've also seen him in Momento, Batman Begins, and The Last Man on Earth.

I'll wrap things up with the final three hits from the care package:

2002 Donruss Studio Private Signings #143

I wasn't familiar with Mr. Pena and his tenure in Oakland.  According to his Baseball Reference page, he never pitched for them.  I've added him to the Men of Mystery section in my Oakland A's PC.

2008 SPx Rookie Signatures Silver #131

On the other hand, I'm very familiar with Mr. Blevins.  He played seven seasons in Oakland and was a key piece of their bullpen in the late aught's and early 2010's. 

1994 Signature Rookies Tetrad Autographs #XCII

I just commented on Johnny's post about my history with Signature Rookies back in the 90's.  There's a good chance I pulled a copy of this card at some point back then.  If I did, I would have recognized this name because Adam Hyzdu was with the San Francisco Giants organization and briefly played in San Jose.  Although I haven't dove into collecting every single athlete born in San Jose, if I do this card will be part of it.

Thank you Adam for sending me this very generous care package.  I don't have a ton of Red Sox or Virdon cards, but I will try to dig up some stuff for your collection.