1976 Topps Autograph Blog

In the summer of 1975, I bought my first baseball cards after a T-Ball game in Marion, Indiana. My mom took me to Dennison’s Market to purchase some bubble gum and a cherry soda (my preferred elixir, both then and now). Only this time, instead of purchasing bubble gum, I bought my first few packs…

Off to See the Wizard…

Originally published August 10, 2013 This autograph is from arguably the best shortstop to ever play the game, Ozzie Smith. Ozzie – better known as “The Wizard” – dazzled sports fans for 19 seasons with his physics-defying defensive play. He was an 15-time All-Star and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2002 –…

“I Just Played Baseball…”

Originally posted August 10, 2013 In July 2013 while attending the 2013 National Sports Collector’s Convention, I met one of the giants of the sports world – Baltimore Orioles superstar, Cal Ripken, Jr., also known as Iron Man. Ripken’s streak of 2,632 straight games played is a feat to which there is no equal and is…

Yeah, I’m Talking to the Ball. What of It?

In 1976, Big Bird left Sesame Street for the comfort of  the mound where he often gave the ball a pep-talk before he sent it on its fast and nearly un-hittable path to the waiting catcher’s mitt 60 feet and six inches away. Mark Fidrych was known to many as simply, “The Bird,” for his…

The Magic ‘Fro

While there are many baseball cards that will forever remain etched in my memory, most of them are because the player pictured was a star. Sometimes cards were memorable because he played for my favorite team (go Reds!). And occasionally, they were memorable because they were especially difficult to find.  There are some cards, however,…

The Magic Mustache

I once tried to grow a handlebar mustache. Well, let’s say I tried to grow a mustache…any ol’ mustache, with or without handlebars. There were two problems with this plan: Problem #1: I can’t grow a real mustache Problem #2: See Problem #1 My inspiration for becoming a handlebar-mustached hero was one Rollie Fingers, Hall…

Dick “Crash” Allen

Dick Allen might not be a name that immediately comes to mind when thinking of the game’s power hitters. He’s been shamefully neglected by the Hall of Fame. He earned a reputation (unfairly, many believe) for being a malcontent. I, along with many others, think Allen’s difficulties were spurred mostly by the anti-black sentiments of…

Johnny Bench – An American Hero

If you were a boy who grew up in the 1970s or early 1980s and you even occasionally saw a baseball game, you knew that insofar as catchers were concerned, Johnny Bench was The Man. Bench epitomized all that was good about baseball. He had a great name. He played for one of the most…

Finding Pete?

In 1975, I was seven and growing up in Marion, Indiana. My beloved hobby was baseball card collecting – and baseball. At the time, I played T-Ball in the local PAL league for the Marion National Bank Giants. I remember my mother stopping at Dennison’s Market after my T-ball games and buying me a red…

Why Joe?

So why am I searching for Joe Schlabotnik? Fans of the Peanuts comics strips might remember Joe Schlabotnik as Charlie Brown’s favorite baseball player. Good ol’ Joe was a minor leaguer who occasionally got called up to the majors for a cup of coffee, as they say, but never became a big star. Fitting that…