Gotta Give Them Their Due

Do you remember DeWayne Buice?  How about Pat McInally?  Chris Martin?  If you answered "no" to any of these questions, don't feel too bad.  You won't find statues of these guys in Cooperstown or Canton.  However if there was a Sports Memorabilia Hall of Fame... these guys just might be enshrined there.

Buice won nine games and earned twenty saves during his MLB career that spanned three seasons.

1988 Upper Deck Promo #A1

However he's probably better known for being one of Upper Deck's founding partners and the guy who sued them for $17,000,000.

If you're a football fan, you might remember Pat McInally.  He had a solid ten year career with the Cincinnati Bengals in which he was a First Team All-Pro in 1981.

1997 Kenner SLU Convention Piece

But did you know that McInally was the guy behind Kenner Starting Line-ups?  He pitched the idea of athlete action figures to Kenner in 1986.  Two years later they found their way onto store shelves and took the hobby by storm.

And finally there's Chris Martin... who is a former NFL linebacker who spent twelve years in the league.   Martin started ninety games in the NFL and recorded twenty career sacks.  He also turned three fumble recoveries into touchdowns, which ranks him 10th all-time.

1996 Pro Mags Die Cuts #19

But to this collector... he'll always be remembered for Chris Martin Enterprises, which produced Pro Mags during the 90's for all four major sports.

I recently picked up this Gwynn on Listia for 499 points.  If you're a fan of oddballs and you collect athletes from the 90's, then you might want to see if they made a magnet of your guy.

Okay... it's your turn.

Are there any other athletes you can think of who had a role in shaping our hobby off of the field?

If so... list them below and let's give them their due.

Well that's it for today.  Happy Monday and sayonara!