Operation Topps – 1987 Topps (Pack 5)

So Friday came and went with no post and I bet you are wondering what happened. I’ve decided to take a day off on Friday. Friday’s are the only day my wife and I have off, so from now on, unless I can get a post done on Thursdays, there will be no posts on Friday. Maybe I’ll do 2 reviews on Saturdays. Originally today I was supposed to meet someone from craigslist.org to buy a cell phone. He said I was the first person to inquire about the phone. I said, when can we meet, not two minutes later he emailed me the phone was sold. What the heck was that all about? I’ve had some pretty good encounters on craigslist, but I’ve also had some crap ones, where people set up a deal and never show, or like what just happened, they sell it before you can line up a place to meet. It’s just so annoying and I had to vent! Let’s take a look at pack number 5.

1. Johnny Ray – 2B – Pirates – 747 – Johnny was quite a nice little player. I mean he didn’t do a whole lot except lots of hits. He was a starter from his second year on and in 1987 he went 0.289/5/69 in split time between the Pirates and the Angels. Did you know that he swings a 34 inch, 30-31 ounce bat.

2. Tom Brunansky – OF – Twins – 776 – Tom’s last full season was in 1987 when he went 0.259/32/85/11. He was a home run hitting machine in the mid 80s. To give you an idea of how good Brunansky was he was traded for Tommy Herr at one point and Lee Smith at another point in his career. Tom’s father, Joseph, once played pro ball.

3. Floyd Rayford – C/3B – Orioles – 426 – Floyd was always a fringe starter. They always wanted him to become a full time starter but it never materialized and in 1987 his career in the majors came to an end. In 1987 he went 0.220/2/3 in 50 at bats. One of Floyd’s hobbies is electric trains. Man it would be funny to see him in an engineers cap.

4. Dave Bergman – 1B – Tigers – 700 – After looking at Dave’s stats, I got the feeling since he was only a one tool player, if he ever fell below 0.260 he was going to be out of baseball. Well that didn’t happen in 1987, when he went 0.273/6/22. He doesn’t have a fun fact on his card.

5. Chuck Finley – P -Angels – 446 – This was his rookie card. His first season was in 1986 and it wasn’t even a full season. But by the time 1987 rolled around the Angels were expecting big things from him. He went 2-7/4.67/1.61 in relieving work (his last season of relieving). Fun fact for Chuck is that in the offseason he works in the nursery business. Wouldn’t it be funny to see him working in a baby nursery? I know it’s a gardening nursery but wouldn’t it be funny?

6. Bill Campbell – P – Tigers – 674 – Bill’s nickname was Soup, what a great nickname! 1987 was the last year of his career. A career that spanned 15 years and ended in of all places Montreal. In 1987 he went 0-0/8.10/2.22, so you know why he was released and retired after that putrid season.

7. Willie Wilson – OF – Royals – 783 – Willie was known for one thing, it was speed and he generated lots of it. In 1987 in the prime of his career, he went 0.279/4/30/59, once again showing us his theft skills. Did you know that he received some 200 collegiate offers? Makes you wonder why he didn’t go to any of them?

8. Mitch Webster – OF – Expos – 442 – Mitch had a strict play in one place for 3 years rule, and this was year 2 in Montreal, he went 0.281/15/63. His fun fact was that his father played pro ball. Also he and his wife have a daughter.

9. Dick Howser – MGR – Royals – 18 – Actually Dick’s last year of coaching was in 1986 when he led the Royals to a 40-48 record and was fired. Even though he won the World Series in 1985. How is that for respect. Rodney Dangerfield would’ve been right behind him in getting no respect.

10 .Keith Hernandez – 1B – Mets – 350 – A classy two tool player, average and RBIs. Keith and Gary carter led the Mets to the World Series in 1986. In 1987 it was Kieth’s last year of starting. It was also his last All Star appearance, he went 0.290/18/89. A fun fact about Kieth, in the late 70s he was invited to participate in a porno (OK I made that one up), he didn’t actually have a fun fact.

11. Mickey Hatcher – DH/OF – Twins – 504 – In 1987 he was on the Dodgers. He ended up going 0.282/7/42 that year in a part time role. To make matters worse there were no fun facts for Mickey so if you have one, leave a comment.

12. Scott Bankhead – P – Royals – 508 – This was Scott’s rookie card. It was also the last year that he played for the Royals. He was traded to the Mariners where he went 9-8/5.42/1.37, pretty much the same for the rest of his career. He was a stud in college (UNC) where he had an 11-0 record with a 1.50 ERA, he also did quite well in the US Olympics in 1984.

13. Tommy John – P – Yankees – 236 – Has Tommy John retired yet . . . the answer is . . . flase. He didn’t and pitched for the Yankees that year. He went 13-6/4.03/1.38, not to shabby for a 44 year old. Believe it or not he went on to pitch for two more years. No fun facts for Tommy, which makes me cry a little.

14. Rob Woodward – P – Red Sox – 632 – Rob had a pretty short career (4 years). At least he got to play for the same team his whole career. In 1987 he went 1-1/7.05/1.84 in short time with the Red Sox. What the heck? No fun fact for Rob either. I hate when there are no fun facts.

15. Mike Boddicker – P – Orioles – 455 – There is a time in a pitcher’s career, where they are going to either make the leap to stardom or not. Usually after two good seasons, the leap has to happen. For Mike Boddicker it didn’t. He had two sterling seasons under his belt in his first two, then things went average on him. By 1987 he had already put together 2 average seasons after his two good seasons and in 1987 he went 10-12/4.18/1.28. Basically another average season. Did you know that Mike worked as a grain elevator operator? Growing up in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, I don’t find that a stretch to believe.

16. Pat Sheridan – OF – Tigers – 234 – I wish I scanned in this card. It’s a picture of him signing autographs. Why doesn’t this happen more at games now a days? Speaking of making the leap, there is a point in a hitter’s career where the at bats jump from 100 to 200 to 400 to 500+, some batters become stars and end up in that 500+ region, others become platoon players and hang around the 350 level. Pat was on of the latter. In 1987 he went 0.259/6/49/18, not a bad hitter at all but too many outfielders, he had to split time with Larry Herndon. His fun fact was that he hit over 0.300 in his three seasons at Eastern Michigan University.

17. John Kruk – OF – Padres – 123 – How can you not like Kruk. Not an evil bone in his body, also quite funny. He had a nice career, not very long, but definitely a fun ride. This is his Topps rookie card. He came in 7th in ROY voting in 1986 and put together this great season in 1987: 0.313/20/91/18, yep, I said 18 stolen bases! Can you believe that? He had 58 total in his career, so that was a big part of it. Did you know he attended Allegheny Community College?

Well that sure was a fun pack to review. Seeing the Kruk rookie really took me back. He looks so young in that picture, and no scruff! This was a good pack, chuck full of semi stars, the kind I like! So let’s give this pack a rating of 4.0 stars. I plan to do another review today, so keep checking back. Again I apologize yesterday but you have to balance blogging and home life. Something we (all of us bloggers) sometimes forget about. Hope you enjoyed!