Monday, June 26, 2017

Dust In the Wind

Thirty years ago, I discovered pallets of 1987 Topps baseball cards at Costco.  To the average person this experience would be a meaningless hiccup, but for me... it was a life altering experience.  I blossomed from the kid collector who opened up a few packs here and there to the sports card investor who busted entire boxes in an effort to build sets and player lots.

That summer I shared my vision with my mom, grandma, and two aunties who were visiting us from Hawaii and somehow convinced them to finance this dream.  I can't remember exactly how many boxes of 1987 Topps they purchased, but ten seems like a nice ballpark figure.

I can still remember sitting on my family room floor busting pack after pack of this stuff... and sorting the thousands upon thousands of cards for what I can imagine must have occupied a week or two of my summer vacation.

With that many boxes at my disposal, I was able to build a bunch of sets.  In fact, I'm 98% certain that 1987 Topps was the first trading card set I built... although there's a 2% chance I may have completed the 1986 Topps set the year before.

That's why I've decided to use this Kevin Mitchell card for my Day 17 submission to Tony's 30 Day Baseball Card Challenge, which is a card from the first hand collated set you put together:

1987 Topps #653

When it comes to "play at the plate" cards, this card has to be considered one of the most memorable from that era.


The iconic dust cloud created by Mitchell and his pop up slide gives off an old Western movie vibe that goes perfectly with the wood bordered design Topps utilized that year.

Normally I'm sitting around complaining about how Topps always seems to find a way to chop off players' limbs or pieces of equipment, but whoever was in charge of this card did an excellent job.  He/She chose a photograph that somehow captured action, emotion, and intensity all at the same time, then wisely kept Mitchell intact.

If there were a baseball card hall of fame, I'd have no complaints seeing this card hanging up on its walls.

Well that's it for today.  I hope all of you are managing to stay cool as we head into the heart of summer.  I know some of you enjoy this warm weather, but I can't stand it.  Too bad my local Costco doesn't carry boxes of baseball cards anymore.  I'm sure busting boxes of 2017 Topps baseball cards at wholesale prices would help take my mind off of the heat.

Happy Monday and sayonara!

13 comments:

Big Tone said...

One of my favorite cards.This card got hot when Kevin went on his tear In San Fran.

Brian said...

Yes - one of the greatest cards of the 1980s, for sure! 87 Topps always has had a soft spot in my heart, no matter how much Topps is trying to make me sick of it.

Tony Burbs said...

Wonderful image - somehow I've never seen this card before, despite the ubiquity of '87 Topps.

Sidenote, I just saw Kansas at the local fair. Hearing Dust in the Wind live was a haunting and moving experience; that band still has it, after all these years!

Fuji said...

Tony - I'm glad I was able to witness some of his best years during his time in the Bay Area.

Brian - For years, I didn't like the 87T design, because I was so sick of it. But these days... it's one of my favorite designs from the 80's.

Tony Burbs - Lots of great action shots in the 87T set. Wow. Seeing Kansas live? That's awesome! I saw him at our local county fair 10 to 15 years ago. It was a very cool experience.

Man said...

Fantastic card-I always cross my finger when I walk in to our Cosco thinking maybe just once they will have cards

Matt said...

Would be sweet if Costco carried cards ever again. Might be worth investing in a Costco card

Fuji said...

Brady - Oh man... wouldn't that be awesome? Who knows... maybe if they carried it, it would inspire a new generation of collectors.

Sport Card Collectors - I totally agree. Although anything carried at Costco would never be considered rare.

BobWalkthePlank said...

When my wife was in college she had to do a rotation in rural WV and she said the local radio station would play Kansas about every three songs.

SumoMenkoMan said...

1987 was the first set of cards I hand collated as well. Love the card and the set!

Fuji said...

Matthew Scott - I sure hope Kansas was one of her favorite bands... otherwise that would get old pretty soon ;)

SumoMenkoMan - I have a feeling there are a bunch of us have a sentimental attachment to the 87T set.

Pro Set Cards said...

That is one baseball set I actually do have and I agree, love that card!!

Collecting Cutch said...

87 Topps was my first year collecting cards and this card is a classic.

Fuji said...

forestrydave - i'm not sure if you flip through it very often, but there are some pretty nice action shots hidden within the set.

collecting cutch - great year to start collecting. remember all of the rookie cards people were chasing back then?