The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly #4: Vin Mazzaro

The Good

Less than two years ago... Vin Mazzaro was making his MLB debut with the Oakland A's on one of the youngest, most talented pitching staffs in baseball. He sat along side Brett Anderson, Dallas Braden, Gio Gonzalez, and Trevor Cahill.

Brett Anderson currently leads the league in starts. Last season, Dallas Braden became threw the 19th perfect game in MLB history.

Mr. Gonzalez is starting off the 2011 season on the right foot with a 4-2 record and a 2.68 ERA (10th in AL). And Trevor Cahill is having a career year. He's 6-1 with an unearthly 1.82 ERA (2nd in AL).

All four of his 2009 teammates are still with the A's, but sadly Mazzaro was traded last November during the off-season to the Kansas City Royals. I say sadly... because Mazzaro was considered to very talented. He started his career with 2 amazing outings, going 2-0 while giving up 0 earned runs. The future definitely looked bright for Mr. Mazzaro.

The Bad

However... if you follow baseball, then you know the A's lack offensive firepower. And Mazzaro received very little offensive support and ended his rookie season 4-9 with a 5.32 ERA. Things didn't get much better in his sophomore season and by the end of last year, he had lost his starting job and deemed expendable by the Athletics.

So when the A's had the opportunity to acquire David DeJesus from the Royals for Mazzaro and minor league pitcher Justin Marks, they jumped all over it.

The Ugly

Then on Monday, Vin Mazzaro did something that hasn't been done in more than a century. In the top of the third inning against the Cleveland Indians, the Royals made a pitching change and inserted Mazzaro into the game at the top of the 3rd inning.

He started off ... retiring the first three batters he faced. But in the fourth things got ugly. He gave up 10 runs on 8 hits and 2 walks. Surprisingly, he was left in the game and ended up giving up 3 additional hits and 1 more walk, which led to 4 more runs.

Yep... if you did the math... that's 14 earned runs in 2.1 innings pitched. An accomplishment not achieved in over a century. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, it's the first time since 1900 that a pitcher has given up 14 or more runs in less than 3 innings pitched. In short... an ugly outing.

To make matters worse... Mazzaro was sent back down to the minors to play in AAA ball.

On the bright side... Mazzaro is only 24 years old and hopefully has a brighter future ahead of him... if not, at least he's made his mark in MLB history.

Sayonara Salute #8: Harmon Killebrew

First Game: June 25, 1954 (as a member of the Washington Senators)

13x MLB All-Star

1968 AL MVP

1971 Lou Gehrig Memorial Award Winner

573 Home Runs (11th most all-time)

Final Game: September 26th, 1975 (as a member of the Kansas City Royals)

Inducted into Cooperstown in 1984

I was only in preschool when Harmon Killebrew played in the final game of his career... way too young to remember watching him play... if in fact I ever saw him play in person.

But by the time I started analyzing sports statistics and collecting cards in the early 80's... I knew his feats were legendary. The first thing that comes to mind when I hear the name Killebrew is the same thing I think of when people bring up Babe Ruth, Reggie Jackson, and Hank Aaron... HOME RUNS.

Rest In Peace Mr. Killebrew...

Your presence will be missed, but the memories you gave your fans will never be forgotten.

Cheap Cool Cards #15: My Greg Maddux Team Pinnacle Collection

Within the last year or so, I've noticed a lot of collectors migrating back to the overproduced inserts of the 90's... and I'm right there with them. There's a myriad of reasons why I'm starting to appreciate them again... but it ultimately boils down to these three:

#1 - The two baseball players whom I will always collect were at the top of their games in the 90's, so they're featured on hundreds of different inserts/parallels during that decade.

#2 - I'm a huge fan of card technologies introduced during that decade: acetate, refractors, mirrors, dufex, foil, wood, and of course metal.

#3 - But... probably the biggest reason is that most of them can be picked up at a fraction of the cost on either eBay or COMC.

So... when I did my routine search for Tony Gwynn and Greg Maddux cards on COMC, I came across these Team Pinnacle cards from the mid 90's. The series of sets have always featured two players, who play the same position on one card (one on each side). Originally, the sets featured the artwork of Chris Greco... but eventually in 1995 they started using photographs.

The inaugural year for this set is 1992, but neither Gwynn or Maddux was featured in it. In 1993, Maddux was paired up with Mike Mussina of the Baltimore Orioles:

1993 Pinnacle "Team Pinnacle" #1 Greg Maddux/Mike Mussina (BV: $15)

That year the Team Pinnacle cards were inserted into Pinnacle Series 1 packs at a rate of 1:24 packs.

The following year, Maddux made his second consecutive appearance in the set. This time he was paired with White Sox ace... Jack McDowell.

1994 Pinnacle "Team Pinnacle" #9 Greg Maddux/Jack McDowell (BV: $10)

They were a little more difficult to pull in 1994... falling into collector's hands at a rate of 1:48 packs.

1995 marked the first year that Tony Gwynn was inserted into the set. He was paired with another one of my favorite players... Mr. Kirby Puckett. Maddux was also in the set along with his 1993 partner... Mike Mussina. I'm still trying to hunt down both of these cards, so if you have either and want to work out a trade... please PM me. The odds became even more insane as Pinnacle inserted them into packs at a rate of 1:90 packs.

In 1996, Maddux made his fourth straight Team Pinnacle issue... while Gwynn was left off the checklist. This time Maddux was paired up with Seattle's Randy Johnson.

1994 Pinnacle "Team Pinnacle" #9 Greg Maddux/Randy Johnson (BV: $12)

Pinnacle made it a little easier to pull that year, but not by much. They were inserted into packs at a rate of 1:72 packs.

Neither Maddux or Gwynn were part of the 1997 set. Maddux was replaced by teammate John Smoltz and Pinnacle went with Gary Sheffield instead of Gwynn to represent the National League's right field. Pinnacle went back to the 1:90 packs ratio that year.

1998 was the final year Team Pinnacle cards were produced and thankfully Maddux and Gwynn were both included. Unfortunately... neither are part of my collection, so I'm looking for these too. In it's final year, due to Pinnacle filing for bankruptcy... they were inserted into 1:71 packs.

In 2009, Panini purchased Donruss/Playoff, who own the rights to the Pinnacle brand. So... maybe one day Panini will obtain the right to produce MLB cards again... and we'll see these beautiful cards again.

Until then... I encourage you to head over to COMC and check out these cheap cool cards that were once considered pretty valuable. I was able to pick up all three of these cards for $4.60 (shipping not included).

So what about you...

What's your favorite baseball card insert set from the 90's?

Happy Saturday everyone... Sayonara!

Today I will find out if I truly am a jedi...

"Setoguchi, you can destroy the Red Wings. Fuji has foreseen this. It is your destiny. Join Thornton, Marleau, and Niemi, and together you all can rule the NHL as skaters and goalies."

It's funny how much things can change in just eight days. Last Wednesday, Devin Setoguchi score the overtime goal to lift the Sharks to a 3 to 0 lead in the series. I made the mistake of stating that they had given me an opportunity to breathe a sigh of relief... well the relief has disappeared... along with the silly, little grin.

The Red Wings... the team I dread the most... the New York Yankees of the NHL... has clawed it's way back to tie the series. If you're a Red Wings fan, I give your team props... they've worked hard the whole series... even in the first three games the Sharks won... and especially in the last three games you've taken.

I've heard a lot of different views on the Sharks... some will say they haven't played well. Others are saying they're playing good... but the Wings are just better.

Personally... I think both teams have played well. However, I think Detroit has played with more passion and it's gotten into the heads of some of the Sharks.

Well tonight... if the Sharks want to have any hope of winning this game and continue their journey towards the Stanley Cup Finals, then they have to put all three losses in the past and look at this as a one game playoff. Winner moves on... loser goes home.

Right now... Detroit has the momentum and are road teams actually have a winning record in the playoffs this year, so logic has to favor the Wings. BUT, my heart says that the Sharks are going to pull it off tonight in a very close game... possibly an overtime win.

This season nothing has come easy for the Sharks. They started off slow and had to fight their way back to the #2 seed playing in the very tough Pacific Division. Then the Los Angeles Kings made them earn every win in the six game Western Conference Quarter Finals. Now... they're forced to take on one of their biggest rivals... in Game 7 of the Western Conference Semi-Finals. Like Darth Vader... I believe IT IS THEIR DESTINY. It's just another step on this fairy tale journey.

And in less than 12 hours... we'll see if my instincts are correct and whether or not the force is strong with me.

Go Sharks!

Sayonara Salute #7: Robert "Tractor" Traylor

Sixteen years ago, Robert Traylor was a McDonald's All-American with some of today's biggest names in the NBA: Kevin Garnett, Chauncey Billups, Paul Pierce, and Vince Carter.

Today, he was found dead in his oceanfront apartment in Puerto Rico, where he had been on the roster for the Bayamon Cowboys basketball team. Initial reports state that he died from an apparent heart attack.

Traylor has had a history of health issues dating back to his days with Michigan, where he used his size to help Michigan win the 1997 NIT title. He was named the tournament's MVP and was rewarded by the Dallas Mavericks, who selected him with the 6th pick in the 1998 NBA Draft.

The Mavericks immediately shipped him out to Milwaukee for the #19 pick Pat Garrity and some German guy named Dirk Nowitzki.

Traylor managed to last seven seasons in the NBA on three different teams, averaging 4.8 ppg and 3.7 rpg over 438 games. However many will say he never lived up to the expectations of a #6 pick. I've actually considered making him an honorary member of my Sports Card Bust PC on several occasions, since technically he can't be a member because he wasn't a top 5 pick.

But today isn't the appropriate time to talk whether or not he was a draft bust... but rather it's a time to say goodbye and honor a player who was a big part of my collection back in the late 90's.

Here's a look at my rookie card collection of The Tractor:

And a couple of his late 90's inserts/parallels:

And finally two autographs from his rookie year:

Rest in peace Mr. Traylor. My thoughts go out to your wife and two children you are leaving behind, along with the rest of your family, friends, and fans. Sayonara!