1975 Topps Page by Page: Page 69 (613-621)

 I'm sure that you all remember that I finally completed my 1975 Topps set.

Now that it's done I thought it would be fun to look through the set and talk about it. Going page by page seemed like a good way to go about it. Hopefully you find it interesting to read what I have to say.

How about we continue with page 69?

Red Sox Cards on the Page  

1. All those players to choose from, and only one Red Sox? At least it's a good one. 

Cards that make the 1975 Topps set cool 

Multi-player rookies are cool. Which is good, since that's almost all there is on this page. Cards of young Hall of Famers are cool. Can't get much younger than rookie cards of two Hall of Famers on one page with Rice and Carter. Definitely a cool page.

My favorite card on the page 

This is the easiest one yet. If you had told ten year old me that he would own a Rice rookie, I'm not sure the laughing would have stopped yet. Other than that, I'm intrigued by all the rookies. What are there, 32 rookie on this page. Of those 32, two ended up in the Hall of Fame. The rest were...nobodies? Am I missing someone? So no borderline guys. just two stars and 30 scrubs? That's one heck of a non-bell curve.

What would your answers to those last two categories be?

Check Out My 1975 Topps

Did you know that I was working to complete a 1975 Topps set? I ask because I have been using a pretty loose definition of “working” the last few years when it came to this set build. Sure, I had a want list posted in case anyone was actually looking at it, and had some cards I needed. But I hadn't exactly been actively looking for cards for a while.

When I started building the set I was, naturally, able to add cards in big chunks. Buying lots 100 or 200 cards at a time would result in few duplicates, and was easy. Then, that sort of dried up. If I found a “lot” of even 50 cards, chances are I had more than half of them. That was thanks to my want list getting smaller, and the larger percentage of star cards I needed. Those tended to not show up in bulk lots. So, the hunt became more challenging. Not that I'm not up for a challenge, but it really slowed things down. I'm not even sure if I have a local card shop, let alone know how far away one might be. So, I was pretty much limited to eBay. Of course, the problem with buying small quantities of cards on eBay is paying to ship small quantities of cards. I could never bring myself to spend $1 plus $3 shipping for a common 1975 Topps. So, my quest slowly ground to a halt.

Until recently.

I finally decided that enough was enough. I was down to about 25 cards, and just needed to end the hunt. I decided to “check out” COMC since I had heard so many other bloggers talk about it. Bingo. I was able to combine all the single cards I needed into one shipment. Not only were the prices low, but the shipping didn't squash the deal. So I filled my cart and completed my set. Finally!

When the package arrived, I realized that the cards did a pretty good job of representing the reasons why I liked the set so much in the first place. So I thought it would be fun to explore that here.

Of course, we all know how much fun the design is. Those colors just draw the eye., As a Red Sox fan, the 1975 World Series was a big deal...an event I'm reminded of with these two cards from the Reds Machine. So that was a cool aspect of this set. I'm so glad that as Red Sox fans we've finally moved past saying we won that series three games to four.

Speaking of the World Series, this set had commemorative cards for the 1974 series. A subset that allows me to see that series whenever I look through the set.

My favorite subset is the MVP series. What a great way to not only relive baseball’s history, but also obtain affordable “cards” of so many hall of farmers. Robinson, Koufax, Gibson, Clemente, and more all show up on these really cheap cards. Some of my favorites.

Oh, and about the 1975 World Series, what Red Sox fan wouldn't love a set that had the rookie cards of the Gold Dust Twins? Have to wonder how that series would have turned out if Rice was able to play. I actually already had the Rice, but decided adding another at the price was a good idea. I actually also bought the Lynn on eBay before, but when I got the card I realized I had accidentally bought the mini. Oops.

Team cards! Not only a fun way to laugh at the uniforms from the seventies, but a way to get cards of great old-time managers like Anderson with the Reds or Martin with the Rangers.

Of course the set also has hall of famers. And great all-star cards.

League leaders cards are another way to grab some hall of farmers on the cheap. When I started collecting the set, I had this feeling that 1975 was a fun "generational crossover" set. It had players like Hank Aaron who started playing in the mid fifties, and a player like Nolan Ryan who retired in the early nineties. That quite a range. (I wonder if anyone ever determined what the biggest career range ever in a set is.) It really makes me feel like this set is a perfect slice of history.

The other really appealing part of this set is that it contained a couple key rookie cards of Hall of Famers, and the Yount and Brett cards were iconic ones. The fact that I already had the Brett (even in rough shape) was a key point in my favor at the beginning. My plan was always to make this Yount card the last one I got to complete the set. For one thing, it would save me from spending a lot of money on a card for a set that might never be completed. It would also mean that I wouldn’t spend time trying to track down some random common just because it was the last card I needed. As it happened, this card might not have technically been the last card I got, but it was part of the last purchase I made.

Or, so I thought.

When I went to put these cards into the binder with the rest of their friends, I had a problem with this one.

I couldn't put away this #347 Mike Caldwell because there was already a Mike Caldwell in that spot. Yup. I bought a card I already had. Now, that would have been just a minor annoyance...a few extra dimes spent on a card I didn't need...if it weren't for something else.

There was a blank spot on the page where #346 Bobby Darwin should be.

Yup. I'm still one card short!

So, what I had planned on avoiding has happened. I'm forced to track down one last common card just to complete the set.

Hopefully it won't take me years.

36 Pack Wax Match: Pack 30

The Stage has been set. The Match is underway. Who will come out on top? There’s only one way to find out.

Keep going, and open that thirtieth pack!

As we dive into this pack, each set is hoping to grab the series lead after 1988 tied things up with a victory in pack 28 and they tied pack 29. Who will do it with this pack? Let's see!

Yankees -2

 Ouch. That's not helping things. This painfully boring card of Dan Pasqua starts the pack off in a deep hole.

Red Sox +2, Hall of Fame +1

 That's more like it! This dual scoring card is the perfect thing to climb into positive numbers. I'm hoping Rice made contact on the swing. Otherwise he's looking in the completely wrong direction.

Hall of Fame +1

A great early card of the legendary Greg Maddux. One of the nicer action shots too.

Red Sox +2

Oh, in 1988 this card would have been the pull of the pack. This young outfield was going to be carrying the Sox to multiple championships. (In the end, only one of them ended up with a ring in Boston.) Not to mention, it's kind of a rookie card for Burks and Benzinger. Too back it's not worth six points.

That's where the scoring ends with this powerhouse pack! Four points will be tough for 1990 to beat!

Red Sox +2

 But, it's starting off on the right foot! I'm not sure I ever figured out which Decade Roger was supposed to be the player of. If it was the "80's" wouldn't he be "Players of the last Decade"?

Red Sox +2

 Dennis Lamp is staring you down as if to ask, "Where are my two points?" No worries. I counted them.

Hall of Fame +1

The second Cubs Hall of Famer in this battle gets 1990 another point.

And that's where the scoring ends. Can you believe it? 1990 pulled it out! Five points was enough to rip the round out of the hands of 1988. Crazy!

Box Bottom: 1988 +1 (1-0)

Pack 1:  1990 +6 (1-1)
Pack 2:  1990 +4 (2-1)
Pack 3:  1988 +3 (2-2)
Pack 4:  1990 +1 (3-2)
Pack 5:  1990 +1 (4-2)
Pack 6:  1988 +2 (3-4)
Pack 7:  1988 +3 (4-4)
Pack 8:  TIE   +0 (4-4)
Pack 9:  1990 +2 (5-4)
Pack 10: 1990 +4 (6-4)
Pack 11: 1990 +4 (7-4)
Pack 12: 1990 +1 (8-4)
Pack 13: 1990 +5 (9-4)
Pack 14: 1988 +3 (5-9)
Pack 15: 1988 +2 (6-9)
Pack 16: 1988 +3 (7-9)
Pack 17: 1990 +3 (10-7)
Pack 18: 1988 +2 (8-10)
Pack 19: 1988 +3 (9-10)
Pack 20: 1990 +2 (11-9)
Pack 21: TIE   +0 (11-9)
Pack 22: 1990 +2 (12-9)
Pack 23: 1988 +2 (10-12)
Pack 24: TIE   +0 (10-12)
Pack 25: 1988 +3 (11-12)
Pack 26: TIE   +0 (11-12)
Pack 27: TIE   +0 (11-12)
Pack 28: 1988 +1 (12-12)
Pack 29: TIE   +0 (12-12)

Pack 30: 1990 +1 (13-12)


What will happen next time?

The 30-Day Baseball Card Challenge: Day #11

Tony, the wonderful writer of the “Off Hiatus Baseball” blog, started a fun activity based off the “30-Day Music Challenge” that Twitter users were taking. The list of challenges looks like this:

Today, we’ll continue with Challenge #11: One of your favorite cards from the 1970’s.

I’ve talked before about my evolution as a collector. I’ve even highlighted a card in this series that played an important role in that transition. Today I have another milestone card in that transition.

It was around 1986 or 1987 that I was trading cards with a new friend. While looking through his collection, I came across this beauty.

Look at that thing! The old vintage design was fantastic. Jim Rice was pictured wearing that goofy looking pullover uniform. That awesome red hat. There was a Topps rookie cup right there in the corner. I didn’t even care that there was a pinhole in the top of the card. I needed to have it.

Thankfully my friend was willing to part with it. The price? A 1984 Topps Darryl Strawberry. It was a no-brainer.

Of course, in the years to come, that decision looked a little foolish. The Strawberry card soared in value, while I was left with a damaged Jim Rice. While I wasn’t sure I “regretted” the trade, it probably wasn’t my best move.

But, then something happened. Strawberry dropped. His cards are worth a fraction of what they were before. Like a 1/100 type of fraction. I certainly don’t need to have a card like that in my collection.

But, I still have the Jim Rice. It was that realization that (along with the Gonzalez card mentioned earlier) helped push me to team collecting. With the Red Sox I could ride out the highs and lows. I’m always going to love having this Jim Rice. Or a Phil Plantier. I won’t always love having Gonzalez and Strawberry as they experience ups and downs. So, why would I collect them?

Looking back, the only regret is that I probably sold a little low on the Strawberry. But, if I could read the future of the card market perfectly, I would be rich. All that matters is that I was happy that I made the trade at the time, and I’m glad I made it now. I’ll ignore whatever happened in-between.

After all, just look at that card!

Blog Bat Around: Why Do I Collect Who I Collect?

I’m not sure I’ve ever participated in one of the blog bat arounds before. Not really sure why (or if that’s the case) but I thought I should give it a whirl this time.

P-Town Tom of the wonderful Eamus Catuli blog offered the topic this time: What is the reason for collecting the players you collect?

It was an interesting question, one that I wasn’t sure I had an answer for. I think, like most people, that reason has evolved over time.

When I first started collecting cards there was no real organization involved. I kept my limited inventory sorted by team in the Topps Sports Card locker that my aunt gave me for my birthday.  Eventually the collection outgrew the locker, and moved into boxes sorted by set. But, when I started finding friends who also collected, and who wanted to trade cards, I needed to be better. So, binders were introduced pulling out star players that my friends might want to trade for. While the binders were now sorted by player, I wouldn’t call them player collections quite yet.

The only two players that somewhat stood out at that point were Jim Rice and Pete Rose. Jim Rice was the fading star of the Red Sox, and my favorite player at the time. Pete Rose was an “old time star” who was on his way to breaking the all-time hits record. Plus, he was a player-manager. That was pretty weird, and a unique feature to collect.

But, while those two players had their own pages in the book, so did lots of other players. I didn’t really do a lot to actively collect either one, and don’t actively look for either of their cards today.

Juan Gonzalez was the first player to really change that. I started to actively seek out his cards. He was a hot-shot rookie hitting all those home runs. He also had that fun Donruss error rookie card that looked fun when displayed. It was also during a boom in baseball cards shows. So I had lots of opportunities to easily add to a budding player collection. But, when he started to fade as a player, my desire to collect him faded as well.

He also faded because another player came to take his place. I mentioned that my Phil Plantier collection formed almost by accident. Sure, he was my new favorite player. But, it seemed like I didn’t even have to try to get his cards, Every pack of 1991 Donruss I opened, it seemed, had Phil’s card in it. Again it was the card show era, so hunting down more of his cards was fun and easy. I was getting everything I could find. It’s the first player I’ve mentioned whose player collection still resides separated from the team in its own binder. I’m also still adding to it as I find cards I was never able to track down back in the day.

After Phil left the Red Sox, player collecting hit a bit of a snag. Then, along came Nomar Garciaparra. If you were a Red Sox card collector in 1997 and didn’t have a Nomar player collection, you were doing it wrong. My collection was given one big boost to get it started. I pulled a rare Hideo Nomo card from one of those packs in the late 90’s with the million parallels. Can’t even remember which one at the moment. But, it was about $150 book value. For some reason, I agreed to trade it via the AOL boards for a stack of Nomars. Like 100 or so. Looking back, it was a ridiculous idea to trade one $150 card for 100 $1 cards. But, it worked out for me, and I don’t really regret it. Even if my Nomar player collection has since been resorted into the team binder.

Which leaves Pedro Martinez. He is the only other player with a separate binder housing his collection. (Well, technically he’s in the same binder as Phil Plantier but you get the idea.) The best pitcher in at least a generation was the highlight of the Red Sox at the start of the 21^st century. He was something unique and special. Not only do I collect his cards, but he has his own shelf of collectibles. It’s a true player collection, even if it’s not as active as it could be. But after years of saying “Nomar’s my favorite player, unless Pedro’s pitching” or “Manny’s my favorite player, unless Pedro’s pitching” I realized that by saying that I was declaring Pedro as my favorite player. In the years since, his legend has aged like a fine wine. Time and again the Sox would have a star pitcher that would only prove how amazing Pedro was. Beckett’s amazing postseason, Sale’s dominating start? Bah. Pedro had an entire career better than those hot stretches. 

How could I not collect him?

Revised List of 36: The Best Players I've Seen Play in Person

Once again, the awards season has passed. With that, it’s time to revise the list of best players I’ve seen play live. As I’ve said, I make this list based mostly on awards. After all, my grandkids are more likely to ask me if I’ve seen a former MVP than some player who played well for a while (except for David Ortiz, I suppose). Since I’ve pretty much eliminated everyone from my top 36 who hasn’t won a Cy Young or MVP award, I’ll ignore the ROY winners. Which is nice, because I’m not sure I’ve seen either of them play anyway. The two Cy Young winners were Rick Porcello and Max Scherzer. I've seen Porcello once or twice. I know I've seen Scherzer before. Plus, this is his second Cy Young, so that puts him up a notch in quality. For the MVPs, I haven't seen Kris Bryant play yet. But, I have seen Mike Trout. In fact, I'm a little surprised he was't on the list already. Also, looking at the list, I notice someone missing. I don't usually pay much attention to Hall of Fame voting results when it comes to this list. After all, chances are they're already on this list if they're good enough for the Hall of Fame. Not so with Mike Piazza. His measly ROY wasn't enough to keep him on the list. But, his Hall of Fame election gets him back on. So, what about Porcello, Scherzer, or Trout? Looking at the list, everyone has at east an MVP. I think an MVP is better than just a Cy Young, right? That eliminates Porcello and his one Cy Young. Now, the big question. Are two Cy Youngs better than an MVP? Do they make the list? I think I'm going to go with "no". (Do you agree?) It's a tough call, but Scherzer doesn't make the list. That leaves Trout and Piazza to squeeze into spots. So, here’s the new updated list. 

1. Roberto Alomar (HOF)

2. Wade Boggs (HOF)

3. Barry Bonds (MVP)

4. Ryan Braun (ROY, MVP)

5. Miguel Cabrera (MVP, triple crown)

6. Jose Canseco (ROY, MVP)

7. Roger Clemens (MVP, CYA)

8. Josh Donaldson (MVP)

9. Dennis Eckersley (HOF)

10. Jason Giambi (MVP)

11. Tom Glavine (HOF)

12. Juan Gonzalez (MVP)

13. Ken Griffey Jr (All-Century Team)

14. Vladimir Guerrero (MVP)

15. Josh Hamilton (MVP)

16. Bryce Harper (ROY, MVP)

17. Rickey Henderson (HOF)

18. Matt Holliday (MVP)

19. Randy Johnson (HOF)

20. Chipper Jones (MVP)

21. Greg Maddux (HOF)

22. Pedro Martinez (HOF)

23. Andrew McCutchen (MVP)

24. Justin Morneau (MVP)

25. Dustin Pedroia (ROY, MVP)
26. Mike Piazza (HOF)

27. Kirby Puckett (HOF)

28. Albert Pujols (MVP)

29. Jim Rice (HOF)

30. Cal Ripken (HOF)

30. Alex Rodriguez (MVP)

31. Ivan Rodriguez (MVP)

32. John Smoltz (HOF)

33. Ichiro Suzuki (ROY, MVP)

34. Frank Thomas (HOF)
35. Mike Trout (MVP)

36. Mo Vaughn (MVP)

There's my list. Who’s on your list?

Favorite Font from Favorite Players

I don’t know how closely you’ve been paying attention, but I’ve made a change to the font the last couple posts. I got a new laptop not too long ago with a smaller screen than I was used to. It made the print on the blog seem really small. I didn’t know if other people were having the same problem, but figured that I should try to fix it. The problem is, blogger doesn’t seem to give you a lot of choices when it comes to font sizes. (Or, I’m clueless when it comes to figuring out font sizes on blogger. Both explanations are equally possible.) I had been using the “normal” sized font. For the last few posts, I switched to the “large” font. Of course, now, in comparison the font just looks enormous! I feel a little bit like the kid using the biggest font he can find so it’s easier to write his one page book report. But, I don’t know. Maybe the larger size works for people.

So, I need your help. I’m going to write this post using a different font/size combination for each paragraph. Maybe the different sizes work better with the different fonts. If you can let me know which one you like, and or any other comments you have on font size, it would be appreciated. As content for this post, I’m going to talk about the evolution of my favorite Red Sox player by decade.

The eighties were really my first decade of fandom, although it’s probably only the second half. Even still, my favorite players at the time were carryovers from the seventies. When I wanted the Red Sox, I was a big fan of Jim Rice and Dwight Evans. Probably not a huge surprise. They were pretty much the best players on the team in their prime years. Each of them had a special player collection in my baseball card binder. For some reason I never grabbed onto Boggs or Clemens, despite their obvious appeal. (Arial Normal)

The nineties saw a change. Rice and Evans were gone, and I was in need of someone new. Thankfully, the Red Sox had two promising rookies come right in to take their place. Mo Vaughn and Phil Plantier. Both of them became my favorite players because of what they did at the plate. Phil Planter, of course had that squatting batting stance. You knew it was him at the plate just by seeing that. Of course, he also burst onto the scene with one of the best Septembers I can remember. He was my guy. Player card collection number two. Unfortunately, he didn't stick around very long before heading to San Diego. Mo, on the other hand, stayed a bit longer. His batting stance was all intimidation. He just looked t the pitcher over his shoulder like he knew he was going to hit the ball really hard. And, he usually did. It didn't take much to make Mo my newest player collection. (Arial Large)

By the end of the nineties, Mo was gone too. Thankfully, the Red Sox had another player come and take his place. Nomar. he was everything. He could hit for power. He could hit for average. He did that crazy thing with his gloves in the batters box. What more could you want? Nomar would be come my largest player collection yet. Along with Nomar, the Red Sox added Pedro Martinez. My standard answer at the time to who my favorite Red Sox player was, "Nomar, unless Pedro's pitching." I doubt I was alone in that. There's never been anything like Pedro, and there's really nothing more I can saw. If you don't know, then i can't explain it to you. At the moment, Pedro is my only "active" player collection. After all, it's Pedro. (Times normal)

At the turn of the century, I liked Manny Ramirez in Cleveland. When I saw that he signed with the Red Sox, I was beyond elated. Still am. He created a nice Red Sox favorite "trinity" if you will. My standard answer changed a bit to "Manny and Nomar. Unless Pedro's pitching." Oddly, I never started a Manny player collection. Maybe because he overlapped the Pedro and Nomar so much. But, he outlasted the two of them, and for three years, Manny stood along as my favorite. Possibly the only time that's happened. (Times Large)

Which brings us to the 2010's. And, I really don't know what to say. Since Manny left in 2008, I've been a little bit in Limbo. Papelbon was fun for a while. But, can a closer be a favorite? I never really attached to Lester or Beckett. Looking back at the moment, I can't think of one player that has grabbed me. Yes, I know. Ortiz has been on the team that whole time. While I can't deny he's an amazing player, there's always been "something" about him. I've just never latched on as a "favorite player" type thing. I liked Adrian Gonzalez a lot, but that didn't last long. I always knew Ellsbury was leaving soon. Sure, I loved the 2013 team. But, as a team. None of the players had that certain draw. No idea why. (Georgia normal)

Going forward? I think like most people, I'm enjoying the youngsters. Love Xander Bogaerts and Mookie Betts. I know. Going out on a limb there. But, they'd definitely be the ones that I'd pick, with the slight edge to Xander if I had to give one. Either way, it looks like I'm set for a couple more years, at least. Hopefully for much longer than that. (Georgia large)

So, what do you think? Does one of the fonts work better for you? Leave a comment with your favorite. Or, with another helpful suggestion. Or, a comment on to content of the post itself. Or, heck, all three!

Thanks for the help!

Card of the Week: 1976 Topps #340

This card is a perfect example of why I am a Red Sox team collector. It illustrates clearly why I am a much happier collector since I decided to focus on the seven-time World Champions.

I acquired this card during the ’85-86 off-season. I just had to have it. I didn’t have many “old” cards like this one. I loved the photo showing the red caps, and pullover uniform top. I also didn’t have any cards displaying the Topps All-Star rookie cup. What a great element. (Of course, I just had to wait a couple months to get some more since Topps included them on their 1987 set) The card was so perfect that I was willing to overlook the small pinhole at the top of Rice’s cap. I didn’t care. What did I need to give up to add this beauty to my collection? A1984 Fleer rookie card of some youngster named Darryl Strawberry. Sure, he was an up and coming star. Sure he just beat my Sox in the World Series. It was still well worth parting with his rookie in order to grab this Rice.

Of course, in the coming years, I wouldn’t be so positive about that. I watched Strawberry have monster year after monster year. The value of his rookie cards shot through the roof. Rice on the other hand started limping to the end of his career. But, I was still glad I had the Rice card, even if it meant taking it on the chin with Strawberry. Then, of course, things reversed themselves. The value of the Strawberry card went in the toilet along with his career. Suddenly, the Rice card was the better of the two again.

Which, I suppose, is the moral of the story. If you collect what you like, you’ll always be pleased with it. If you try to collect all the hot young stars, you’re going to be burned along the way. Sure, I might have been able to get more for my Strawberry if I had dumped him at his absolute peak. But, I still love the Rice.

And that’s really all that matters.

More Thoughts

Once again, I opened the mailbox and found an unexpected bubble mailer inside. It’s always quite exciting to see what wonders lie within. Just like last time, this surprise package was from Adam of Thoughts and Sox. It seems that as I post my wantlists, he’s been finding more and more cards that I need. It’s been fantastic to knock of chunks of my wants like that. What did he send over this time? Here’s a quick sample.

The Boggs and Rice are from commemorative all-star sets inserted into rack packs. The Boggs is from the 1987 set, and the Rice ’86. Since I didn’t buy many of these types of packs, my collection is limited. It’s always nice to add new ones. The Quinones is from the 1986 Topps Traded set. Despite the name of the set, Quinones hadn’t been traded. But, the set also included players making their ML debuts after the main set had hit the printers. That’s where Rey comes in. After three seasons in the Sox system, he got the call in 1986. The rest of the cards are from the 1985 Topps set. This is one of the first sets I remember having any quantity of. I remember buying a lot of “old” packs of 1985 Topps chasing the selecting of rookie cards including Roger Clemens, Dwight Gooden, and Mark McGwire. For some reason, though, not many of the ’85 Red Sox remain in my collection…and I never got the Clemens (or McGwire). But, this is a selection of some of the cards from that set. A young Oil Can looks out from behind some great spec’s. Bruce Hurst would have many fine years with the Sox. Jerry Remy looks to be having a pretty good time, years before he would begin his second career. The man who took Remy’s position, Marty Barrett, looks thrilled to be here. Mike Easler came off a fine year for the Sox in 1984, and was looking to do it once again. The Tony Armas is from the All-Star subset of cards. In addition to his regular issue, he appears on this card with special recognition. In the 1984 season, Armas slugged 43 home runs, and drove in 123 runs. That was a monster season. He was well deserving of the all-star nod.

As I mentioned, this was a small look at the selection Adam sent over. The rest are just as wonderful. As always, it was much appreciated.

I love surprises.

Team Sets: 1988 Donruss Team Set

Players Included: Marty Barrett, Todd Benzinger, Wade Boggs, Oil Can Boyd, Ellis Burks, Roger Clemens, Dwight Evans, Wes Gardner, Rich Gedman, Mike Greenwell, Sam Horn, Bruce Hurst, John Marzano, Al Nipper, Spike Owen, Jody Reed, Jim Rice, Ed Romero, Calvin Schiraldi, Jeff Sellers, Bob Stanley, Oil Can Boyd

Best Picture: Oil Can Boyd. For some reason, this picture reminds me of the wackiness that was Oil Can. He’s showing the high leg kick, and peering over his shoulder at the batter. It just looks like fun to me.

Hall of Famers: Wade Boggs, Jim Rice

Future Hall of Famers: Roger Clemens

Reason the buy the set: The three stars from the set are, obviously, Boggs, Rice, and Clemens. They would drive the set. Also included are the rookie cards of Ellis Burks, Todd Benzinger, Sam Horn, John Marzano, and Jody Reed. While not much of an issue these days, rookie cards are always nice to have. And, Burks made a nice little career for himself.

Overall Reaction: This is a fun set. I like the design of the Donruss cards this year, looking a little bit like a ribbon wrapped around a package. It’s also a fun set to remember a great group of Red Sox players. The Sox made the playoffs this year, thanks to some Morgan Magic and a collection of homegrown stars. It’s a nice snapsot in Red Sox history.

Congratulations Jim!

It will be all Red Sox, all the time at the Hall of Fame induction ceremonies this summer. Both Rickey Henderson and Jim Rice were elected for enshrinement. Rickey went in on his first try, while Rice needed his last ups to join the immortals. Both players are former members of the Boston Red Sox, though only Rice will actually “go in” as a member of the Red Sox.

The voting went about as I expected it to. I had previously posted that were it up to me, I would have only voted for Henderson. While I wouldn’t have voted for Rice, I expected him to get the vote. For one thing, people who saw more of him during his playing days than I did keep saying how wonderful he was. Plus, he only ended up seven votes short last year. There was no way that seven people wouldn’t think, “I don’t want to be the guy who makes him miss out on his last chance.” So, I figured he’d collect the votes he needed. Everyone else was left out, as I thought they should be.

So, congratulations to Rickey and Jim. I, for one, can’t wait to hear Henderson’s acceptance speech. It should be must-hear.

Next up, I guess, is the long awaited retirement of Rice’s number 14.