Mike Flanagan - Fleer 1990

The Orioles are having the best season since a good couple of years. Right now they're 1.5 GB Yankees. I don't know if it is the retro bird that's helping them but they are truly making a run for the playoffs and something more.

And because of that this post goes to Mike Flanagan. Here is the 1990 Fleer card I got of him. Never mind it's from his Toronto times but that was all I got.

"Flanagan was a starting pitcher for the Orioles from 1975 through 1987. He was named to the American League (AL) All-Star Team once in 1978. The following year, the first of two times he would play on an AL pennant winner, his 23 victories led the circuit and earned him the league's Cy Young Award. He was a member of the Orioles' World Series Championship team in 1983." (info from wikipedia)

'79 was the year with most Ws for Flanagan in his career. And when he came back to Baltimore after the Blue Jays 4 seasons span, he even managed to pitch a no-hitter for the '91 season.

Will Baltimore make he playoffs alright and win something more? Will it be their year? Postseason is almost here to elucidate us.

Fleer Ultra 1991 - pack 4

I'm so ill it's hard to write whatever I try. So lets see if I can pull something with this opening pack 4 of 1991 Fleer Ultra.

First, I must say I'm growing more found of this set than I ever thought.
At first when seeing cards from decades ago I cannot help but compare with the current ones we have, or at least the last 5 or so years of cards.

'90s cards are not that well good looking like the ones we get now. I think there is a somehow a gap between the '90s and 2K cards. They started to be more shinny and ultra-hyper-mega designed to be purist and finest and so.

'90s cards are still a bit rough compared to the 2K cards but they are a truly improvement to '70s/'80s ones. Even if there are a lot of people turning to vintage cards nowadays. But we all know that retro is the style everywhere we go.

So, after all this talk, lets blame the fever for that, lets get going with the cards I got on this pack.

Sorry for the blurriness. Got nervous on the almost dust-is-in-the-air card of Delino DeShields. The thing is that the one making the dust go wild is not Delino. I don't know who the player is. Can get the team, San Diego Padres, but don't know him. So if someone knows his name please leave a comment. Much appreciate it.

Lets see what's next...A Yankee! Roberto Kelly a two times All-Star (one for as a Yankee) and more recently WS winner as a 1B coach with the Giants.

But what put a smile on my face was the Barry Bonds card. He was awesome! He has a handful of MLB records (info from wikipedia):

• 762 career home runs
• 73 home runs in a season
• 2,558 career walks
• 688 career intentional walks

And I don't need to go on the other many awards and highlights of his career. I'm probably the one discovering this by now.

Next, Spike Owen which was a Yankee for only one year ('93) and didn't show any relevance and was traded to Angels by a minor league player (uhhhhhhh); Jeff Russell which started as a starter (pun intended) and ended as a closer (lets 'pun' again); Jose DeJesus...well...farm-system and nothing else that matter.

Finally, for the first half cards Lee Smith. An other Yankee in the next years after '91. He was a Yankee for 8 games and did very well. The team didn't. Smith "did not allow a single run and picked up three saves and 11 strikeouts". (info from wikipedia)

Now for the second half of the pack.

Gerald Young seemed to be one of the fastest guys an the time recording 2nd in the NL in stolen bases in 1988 with 65 (info from wikipedia). Nothing else besides it since he went up and down between the majors and minors.

Alvin Davis was Rookie of the Year back in '84 and was a one-team-man. I have an other card of him that must be the worst of him. Will search and post. I think is from 1990 Upper Deck.

Rickey Henderson. Why do I get Yankees' players when they are not in the Yankees? I still cannot get why Yankees traded him back to A's. He is a HOF since 2009 with many MLB records, such as (info from wikipedia):

• 1,406 career stolen bases
• 2,295 career runs
• 81 career lead-off home runs
• 130 stolen bases, single season

The few cards I have of him I like them all. Even if he's not in a Yankee uniform.

Next is Dwight Gooden. An other 'will-be-a-Yankee-in-a-few-years-but-not-in-my-card'. He pitched a no-hitter as a Yankee in '96. Also was a WS champion three times, two of those with Yankees.

John Olerud. Also a Yankee in 2004. I think I might start a trend with all the cards of Yankees' players which I do have the cards from when they were not yet a Yankee. In this pack I already have a bunch of them!

Dwight Smith was never a Yankee. And also won a WS as a Brave back in '95.

And to end the pack a Ultra Prospects card of a Yankee Pat Kelly. He played 7 seasons for the Yankees and his great moment was when he "hit a crucial 2 run home run in the 9th inning against the Blue Jays in Toronto to cap a Yankee rally from a 3-0 deficit in the 3rd to last game of the season. Thanks to Kelly's go-ahead home run the Yankees won the game 4-3 and were able to qualify for the playoffs 2 days later." (info from wikipedia).


An other pack with great players. That will make it for the design.

Fleer Ultra 1991 - pack 3

So here for an other day and the third pack of 1991 Fleer Ultra. Meanwhile I got five more of it. Just open one yet but didn't have the time to look at the cards. Many many work...

So lets see what I got from the pack.

Brewers sticker. I like their retro logo. Perhaps a little childish but what is baseball than a kid playing ball with some friends?

Lets see the cards...yep a 'Ultra Team' duplicate insert card. They are 10 and I got 2 #3 Doug Drabek. I trade duplicates so if you want it I'm trading.

I looked at Al Newman's card and thought he was Ken Griffey Jr. They look much the same don't you think?

Chris Hoiles is a one-team-man. That makes me like him for start and besides that he was one of the best Catchers out there! I have a soft-spot for Catchers you know.

Both Zeile and Tartabull were Yankees for a brief time but they were not succeeded. Zeile even trash talk Yankees but oh well, cannot be perfect all the time.

The first half of cards didn't make much for me so lets see what I got in the other half...

Ok! Got 2 Yankees! That's the thing!
Don Mattingly was simply Don. Great great great. Now he's Dodgers manager but I think I can manage to forgive him. He wants to work so who am I to say that's a bad thing. He could've just chosen other team I like better but oh well, cannot be perfect all the time (again!).

And if one Yankee 1B wasn't enough I got Maas, the other 1B! Maas was drafted by Yankees in '86 and had MLB debut only on '90. 4 year waiting but started very well, setting a lot of rookie records along the 'Maas-tops' girls. After that he started to downgrade his performance and ended up released. But love the photo they chose to put on his card.

Then Galarraga. Lot of awards and even won a couple of Championships titles but no WS. He deserved at least one. But baseball is a team effort. This is card is from his Expos years and those were probably the most complicated ones for him.

And Yount? HOF in the house! Even if this is not the best photo of him...But at least is a card of his player-years. Nice!

I posted a dusty-is-in-the-air card yesterday. The Kevin Mitchel '87 Topps card. But look at other dusty card I got here for Geno Petralli.
That photographer got be eating dusty until today. Never mind this was almost in the end of his career but in this card it shows a Catcher effort to get a foul ball even going over people/stands to get it. Like it!

All of all I got pretty happy with this pack.

Dust is in the air

I saw this post made by Nick at his blog and the Oscar Gamble card right at the top of the post reminded me of this one I got a couple of days ago from a mini pack of 1987 Topps card (my first ever! and only I must say...).

Nick says Gamble's card must be one of the best, well I can agree with him but I must add that this Kevin Mitchell '87 card is quite tied to it.

Dust is in the air.

Cal Ripken Jr.

Just showing off my chromy Ripken card.

The value box I got for 2010 Topps Series 2 brought along a bonus card. From the possible 3 I got this one. The other 2 options were Babe Ruth and Stephen Strasburg. I'd prefer the Ruth card but got the second best. Sorry Strasburg.

2010 Topps Series 2 Favourites

I have already posted 2 cards from this set. The Babe Ruth History of WS and Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig card.
Now let see the other favorites of mine.

C.J. Wilson - the swan pose.

Washinghton Nationals - I like team cards and this one shows more team than others that have only 2 or 3 players and they call it 'team card' don't know why.

Miguel Montero - Look! Look! There is someone scoring a run! Throw to the home plate man! Oh..there is no one there...

Kelly Johnson - run Kelly, run!

Luis Castillo - something is right when the there is a dirty uniform.

B.J. Upton - diving for the ball.

Jack Wilson - 2B play!

Alexi Casilla - how much bunts do you get on a card? Few. So I treasure each one of those.

Gavin Floyd - reliable Pitcher.

Fleer Ultra 1991 - pack 2

I confess that I have too many packs and cards and cannot post about them all like I'd like. When a package arrive on the mail I open the packs and try to take the photos of the cards but then I take a bit to process them, aka, list them and try to post here on the blog. Maybe when I get on vacations by the end of the year I can post more often.


So lets get to pack 2 of the 6 I got from 1991 Fleer Ultra the other day.

When I pictured some blue in the sticker I thought I had a hit and got the Yankees one but oh no...it was Dodgers'.

I got one of the "Ultra Team" inserts card  which are numbered to 10. I got the Doug Drabek #3 of the insert set. If you like gold this is the thing to collect because the main set is all silver. Which I like.

Besides this insert card what I liked to see was the Ryne Sandberg card of course. His a HOF player and having one card from his player years is always good. Not that it is rather difficult since he played for 16 years. But I'm new to the hobby people!
But beside the fact of a great player card it is a great photo card. Not too HD for our current standards but I like it.

Got 2 Catchers. One in Catcher photo and other batting. Cool. Slaught even played for Yankees so I like it. Daulton being a Catcher and winning a Silver Slugger Award in 1992 is quite good.

Also found a Prospect card - can it count as a RC? - of Rich Garces which leaves me with not much to say but look I got 2 more Catchers. A pack with 4 Catchers! That's almost a Bingo line. Pagnozzi is a one-team-man and I like it. He even impressed Joe Torre to become Cardinals main Catcher. Winning 3 Gold Glove Awards (1991, 1992, 1994) must had something to do with it.

Last note to the only Yankees card I got on the pack - Jim Leyritz.
I don't quite like having a player with position 'infield'. Don't know why...
He was part of 2 WS champs teams for year 1996 and 1999. Nice.



Note: players' info came from wikipedia.