Bad Wax

So back to why I began this set collecting frenzy starting with the year 1986. As I go through this set, I see cards of guys who played in the 60s and of guys who went on to play in the late 90s/00s. A side note, what are we supposed to refer to this decade as? The 00’s works for me, but it sounds weird. The blend of old and young players at very distinct parts of the career. For example, you had a very young Roger Clemens coupled with a very old Pete Rose. I just see 1986 as the changing of the guard. From a small ball focused league to a long ball focused league. I will continue to look at why I selected 1986 as the starting point in the next pack. But for now let’s take a look at pack 22.

1. Gary Mathews – OF – Cubs – 485 – You know who Gary Mathews Jr. is? Maybe? That guy that singed a huge deal with the Angels, then it was leaked that he tested positive for steroids, then it was retracted. You know him. Well, this is his father. Even though Sr. is much better than Jr, I bet you would have never known it. Senior was doing at 22 what junior couldn’t do until he was 27. Sr. won Rookie of the Year, Jr. didn’t . They are remarkably close in how many home runs they would average a year. I think in the end though Sr. is going to win out on that as well (234 vs. 96 and counting).

2. Joe Niekro – P – Yankees – 135 – First off Topps screwed up on this card as well, the type couldn’t be made small enough and the H in OH (Ohio) is missing. Joe was not quite as good as his brother but when you are a knuckleballer, isn’t it a 50/50 chance on your outcome. Joe was very effective until he turned 40. Unfortunately for this entry he was 42 so he had a tough season. He pitched for the Yankees, went 9-10 with a ERA approaching 5. He wasn’t even the oldest pitcher on the staff as Tommy John was 40. I would say he was ready to retire, but instead he played on as knuckleballers tend to do.

3. Chris Chambliss – 1B – Braves – 293 – He and Mickey Rivers were two of my favorite players from the late 70s. 1986 would be Chris’s last meaningful season. It was his last season in Atlanta and he did hit 0.311, but only got 122 at bats. He was a part time player at this point and he would mount one comeback 2 years later only receiving one at bat in which he struck out.

4. Steve Kemp – OF – Pirates – 387 – Steve came out of USC with 2 guns a blazing. He was 22 years old and hit 0.257/18/88 and he didn’t win Rookie of the Year that year!His stats increased steadily over the next 4 seasons, then the injury bug hit him in 1981.  Then  he was traded to the White Sox, he never really re-gained his offensive prowess after the injury.  He had a rough year in 1985 hitting 0.250/2/21, and hoped to have a great 1986, but only played in 13 games.  His career basically overy.

5. Brian Downing – OF – Angles – 772 – Brian had 2 careers, from 1973 – 1981 he basically was a guy who could hit well, but that was about it.  Then in 1982, the spinach kicked in and he became a serious power threat.  He went from averaging 8 homers a year to averaging 20+.  In 1985 he hit 0.263/20/85 so he was expecting another year similar to that one in 1986.  Guess what? He did have a very similar year, where he hit 0.267/20/95.  I do love his picture on this card, because he is either a) very in love with his bat and wants to kiss it or b) just swung at a bad pitch and wants to crack the bat over his head!  If it is b though it would be a shame because those glasses are just too stylin’.

6. Lloyd Moseby – OF – Blue Jays – 360 – The Blue Jays may have had the most potent outfield of the mid 80’s.  They had Moseby, Barfield and Bell.  In 1986 the three of them combined for 92 homers, 302 RBIs, and a 0.284 batting average.  Add the fact the Moseby was a speedster and stole 32 bases that year.  You had a 3 headed monster in the heart of that lineup.  Moseby was the senior of the 3 and the least consistent hitter, but really that doesn’t mean much when you had tow of the best hitters on baseball at the time you are comparing him to.

7. Don Slaught – C – Rangers – 761 – I always remember Don Slaught as the perfect catcher to take in the last round of your fantasy draft.  He always hit for average, he hit a few homers a year, knocked in 50ish RBIs a year and even stole a few bases.  He wasn’t a starter though so no one liked to pick him in the drafts. In 1986 he hit more homers that season than at any point in his career (13) not the best average though (0.253), I’m thinking I probably didn’t win my league that year because of it.

8. Dwight Evans – OF – Red Sox – 60 – You know there is a big push to get Dwight in the Hall of Fame and I just don’t get it.  Statistically, he does match up with some Hall of Famers, but he was never one of the best 5 hitters in baseball at any point he played.  He was only an All Star 3 times in a 20 season career.  Jim Rice I can understand, he had a higher batting average, usually hit more homers and drove in more runs. I would like to see Rice in the Hall, but Evans, may not even make the Hall of Very Good in my opinion.  He has some seriously bushy eyebrows in this picture.

9. Rich Bordi – P – Yankees – 94 – Up to this point in his career he was a mess, 6 years in and 4 teams later we end up in 1986 where he finds himself with his 5th team after being trading from the Yankees to the Orioles in the off season.  You know you are a bad pitcher when your team trades you to an in division rival.  I  1986 his ERA was around 4.5 and a WHIP of 1.37, I guess the Yankees did well in this trade both from an unloading perspective and a hitting perspective as I know they probably roughed him up a few times during the season.

10. Wade Boggs – 3B – Red Sox – 510 – He and Tony Gwynn were the best hitters in baseball through the early 90’s.  Wade was really a one tool player but, what a tool it was.  He had an OBP of nearly 0.45, almost every other at bat he got on base.  He scored over 100 runs a year for his first 10 years.  He averaged almost 215 hits a year in that same stretch.  If he had some speed he would have been one of the most complete players in baseball.  On a side note, when he became a Yankee in 1993 I was very weirded out by it.  Being I spent a good chunk of my childhood hating him, then all of a sudden he was our starting 3rd baseman.  It was very strange indeed.

11. Nick Esasky – Reds – 3B – 677 – One of the most eratic hitters of the 80s.  He had his good seasons where he would hit 0.270/20/80 and his bad seasons where he would hit 0.230/12/50.  They seemed to come one after the other too.  He was never a full time starter, but his bat made him a must in the lineup.  I can imagine being his manager over those years and just scratching my head as to which Nick was going to show up today.

12. Bill Madlock – 3B – Dodgers – 470 – When I think of Bill, I get an image of towering home runs and big batting averages.  Well my imagination was off because although he did hit homers, he really wouldn’t be considered a home run threat.  He had a great batting average, but mediocre on speed and power.  Don’t get me wrong, he had some very nice seasons, but overall, he wasn’t one of the best hitters in baseball during his time in the league.  I put him in the same camp as Dwight Evans, on the cusp of the Hall of Very Good.

13. Lenn Sakata – 2B – Orioles – 446 – I have two great stories about Len.  First off did you know that he was the last starting shortstop for the Orioles before the Cal Ripken Jr. streak?  Also, he played one game as a catcher for one inning.  Something he had never done in his career.  It was in an extra innings game and the pitcher had given up a hit to his first 3 batters, he also picked off all three.  So in the bottom of that inning, Sakata hit a GW homer.  He said after the game, he hit it so he wouldn’t have to go back out there as a catcher.

14. Charles Hudson – P – Phillies – 792 – The elusive card number 792, you know the last one of the set. 1986 would be his last season as a Phillie, as he would get traded to the Yankees in that off season and actually that is what I remember him for.  As a Phillie though he was a very average pitcher.  Until he tanked in 1986 posting a 7-10 record and ERA closing in on 5 and a which north of 1.45.  I have no idea why the Yankees wanted him.

15. Bill Buckner – 1B – Red Sox – 443 – The sad fact about Buckner (I mean aside from the 2 caterpillars living over his eyes) is that he was a very good player.  He had over 2700 hits in his career and was a career 0.289 hitter.  But no one will ever remember that, all they will remember is this:

Overall what a pack!  I have to give it 5 stars just because they gave me not only 15 new cards (unheard of in this box), but also so many stars and stories!  I even got to break out a You Tube video.  This took me almost 2 hours to write and I have to tell you it was a blast to look at these players stats and listen to that 1986 world series game.  I don feel bad for Buckner, but not as bad as I feel for 2008 rookie hopeful Billy Buckner who had to deal with a lot of crap through his career, you just know he did.