Help for my Daughter ?

Can someone help me . . . my daughter who was born in 1991 loves these cards and I am missing three (3).

These are a Fleer 1991 subset of only 12 cards (I think they were called Pro-vision ?). I am missing # 7, Gooden, #11 Mattingly and #12 Strawberry. They are illustrated by T Smith and have a look like the 1971 with the black border yet with a very modern and "out of this world" feel.

This set has nicknames for players like #1 Kirby Puckett is Dynamite, Bo Jackson # 5 is Bionic Bo and Eric Davis # 10 is All Universe.

Anyone interested ? I have many options for trade.

Ferguson Jenkins - Cub Leader and League Leader

Ferguson Jenkins is an all-time fan favorite of the Chicago Cubs and is also a League Leader –shown here paired with fellow Hall of Famers, Gibson and Perry as a 1970 League Leader in Wins and Strikeouts.

Between these four pitchers there are eight Cy Young awards (Perry actually had one in each league).

Jenkins was the backbone of the Cubs rotation and had six consecutive years of 20 wins or more from 1967 until 1972. Jenkins also boasts membership in the over 3000 under 1000 club; over 3000 strikeouts and under 1000 walks (can any other pitcher say that ?).


An interesting note about the 1969 Cubs team; Jenkins was the only non-USA born player on that roster, being a proud Canadian.

Jenkins has 267 career complete games, more than Gibson (255) or Seaver (231) to go along with his 284 career wins.

Fergie will always be a Cub Leader, League Leader, Hall of Famer and a top tier pitcher of all-time.

Are the Cubs playing Monopoly ?

I was bored today . . . and while I am a “vintage” card hobbyist (60's and 70's) and Chicago Cub fan, I still hope that the summer of 1969 repeats itself but with a different ending. I am sorry to those "modern day baseball enthusiasts" but I find myself compelled to comment on the latest of the Chicago Cubs acquisitions. Are the Cubs playing Monopoly with Milton Bradley ? It seems to be so.

They “purchased” a property that is terribly expensive and serves no purpose. $ 30 million for a DH – has anyone told the Cubs top brass recently that we are in the National League ! Buying Pennsylvania Avenue (Bradley) is the worst money wasting move any good Monopoly player can do. The Cubs are taking a Chance !

Will we end up advancing to Boardwalk but not making it all the way ?

Will the Cubs be sent “directly to jail” for deceiving us fans once again ?

Will the Cubs make it HOME but not much past.

Are we “going back three steps”.

I am sorry (yet still very hopeful) that the Cubs have decided to play Monopoly and take such a CHANCE with Milton Bradley.

I will stick to believing there is a new ending to the summer of 2009.

What is more important ?

Last night on the MLB Network they highlighted a segment called Prime Nine – counting down the nine greatest “something’s” in the history of baseball. They bill this show as “not to end any arguments but to start them”. I am not a confrontational kind of guy . . . and everyone is entitled to their opinion . . . but . . .

Monday night they showcased the greatest Center Fielders and greatest Home Runs of all time. Center Fielders I wont argue with; from #1 being Willie Mays to # 9 Kirby Puckett (see complete list below). But the homerun list . . .

Since when is winning a pennant more important or a greater accomplishment than winning the World Series ? The 1960 blast by Bill Mazeroski is the ONLY world series ending game 7 walk off homerun in the history of the game. I know that Thompson’s 1951 pennant winning homerun was “heard around the world” but it did only win the pennant for the Giants (who eventually lost in the World Series to the Yankees). Flip flop the top two and MLB Network got it right.

I highlighted Mazeroski’s 1961 card in an earlier post, take a look in December 2008.

As far as the Cub players go, no greatest moments in these two categories; we may just have to wait for 3rd baseman (Santo), 2nd base (Sandberg), 1st base (Banks), LF (Williams) and Pitchers (Jenkins). Former Cub Joe Carter and Wrigley Field (Ruth’s “called HR” at Wrigley in 1932).

Here is the MLB Network list of greatest CF’s and HR’s in case you missed it.
Center Fielders: 9. Puckett 8. Edmonds 7. Snider 6. Griffey Jr 5. DiMaggio 4. Speaker 3. Mantle 2. Cobb 1. Mays

HR’s: 9. Chambliss 1976 pennant winning 8. Boone 2003 Pennant winning 7. Fisk 1975 world series 6. Ruth 1932 “called HR” 5. Aaron # 715 4. Gibson 1988 game 1 3. Carter 1993 game 6 w/s 2. Mazeroski 1960 w/s 1. Thompson 1951 pennant

Between the MLB Network and my blog . . . my wife wants to know when I will come back to reality ? ! I gave her a prime nine count down with various dates. Now that is something to argue about.

Two Great Cubs - One Card

I was looking through some of my League Leader Cards from my “old” collection and found this gem. The usual superstars appeared quite often; Mays, Aaron, McCovey, Clemente, Rose, Robinson, Yastrzemski etc. I even found a few Cubbies appeared throughout the years. But this 1969 card (Topps # 4) features two Cubs, that’s right Santo and Williams on the same League Leader card, for RBI’s in 1968, tied for 2nd in the league with 98 (behind Coveys’ 105). Was there ever another year that two Cubs appeared on the same League Leader Card ? Help me Cubs fans . . . help me league leader statisticians ?

Nine years old and my new bike

I remember when I was nine years old and got a new bike . . . I feel the same way now. Forty years ago it was the green machine banana seat and all, today it is my blog. Two weeks ago my life changed . . . I started a blog . . . exactly two weeks ago today. This blog is my new bike. I want to show it off to everyone, use it everyday and will take very good care of it.

Thank you to all of you who share my excitement, all my new friends. I am reading, learning and enjoying everyone’s input and I am trying to write every day and learn how to make my “old” card collection come alive for others to enjoy. I have not done as much reading, writing and learning since my first two weeks in college – over 30 years ago.

I greatly appreciate everything and everybody in this new hobby called blogging and my new world within blogosphere. I have just over 500 “hits” in two weeks, paltry in comparison to others but I am having a great time sharing. I hope you all continue to enjoy my “new bike” as well.
The pillar of my collection is almost forty years old; that old heavy cloth pennant announcing the Chicago Cubs as Eastern Division Champs 1969. My inspiration is all those players who fought hard in 1969 through the heat of a Chicago summer to keep our hopes going. Remembering that summer still gets me excited like I am nine years old again with my new bike.

It has been forty years for us Cub fans (ok coming up on 101 years if we are really counting) but some of us still feel like we’re still just nine years old with a brand new bicycle . . . still wanting to share with everyone, still believing in our youth, still loving baseball and still “waiting til next year”.

Glenn Beckert - a second baseman on my mind

I’m in a second baseman kind of mood . . . don’t ask . . . so here goes . . .

Glenn Beckert, 2nd baseman for the Chicago Cubs for nine straight seasons, from 1965 to 1973. Only old time great Billy Herman and the modern day “Mr. Cub” Ryne Sandberg played 2nd for more consecutive seasons.

A more than solid defensive player (one gold glove in 1968) and a knack for putting the ball in play, Beckert was a key ingredient to a Cubs infield that stayed together for five straight years (Santo at 3rd, Kessinger at SS and Banks at 1st) from 1965 through the heartbreak year 1969.

Beckerts’ success in a Cubs uniform actually had a tragic beginning with the off-season death of 1962 Rookie of the Year Ken Hubbs in February of 1964. The Cubs had lackluster performance from the 2nd baseman position for all of 1964 and acquired Beckert via the “first year draft” (as it was called back then) during the winter of 62-63, as a young prospect at shortstop.

A four time consecutive all-star (1969 to 1972) and a career batting average of .283 tells only one part of the story. Beckerts’ ability to “put the ball in play” was his trait. His career numbers boast of fewer strikeouts than walks. He led the league five times for fewest strikeouts per at bat and has a career stat of 21.4 at bats per K. That ranks him 86th all time (minimum of 3000 plate appearances) and ahead such players as Tony Gwynn, Bill Buckner and Joe DiMaggio (three pretty darn good hitters of all time).

Beckert is also remembered for this unique moment. He drove in the only run in a 1 – 0 win against the Cincinnati Reds on June 3, 1971; the day Ken Holtzman pitched his no hitter.

Featured here (at top of blog) is Beckerts 1966 Topps card # 232. His second year card (above to the right is his rookie card the 1965 Topps # 549 partnered with Roberto Pena and his face is completely hidden in the shadow of his cap). On his 1966 card he is posed in a bunt stance, signaling to us his need to put the bat on the ball. A look at his bat closer and it seems to be rather thin and small – almost something a little leaguer would use although Beckert was 6’1” and weighed 190 lbs, pretty good size back then for baseball.

A card I would be interested in trading for is his 1974 card # 241-A. Beckert is one of the handful of players who are depicted with Washington and “Nat’L Lea” on his card, as the San Diego Padres were supposedly moving to D.C. Beckert is in his Cubs uniform swinging away “putting the ball in play”.

Glenn Beckert, a long-time consistent player with both a solid glove and bat that played one position for the most remembered Cub teams of all time. I still hear Jack Brickhouse announcing that double play call of “Kessinger to Beckert to Banks”. Somethings just stick in your head . . .