Catch. The. Ball.
A catcher’s primary purpose, to put it in the simplest form, is to catch the ball. In terms of catching a ball, Charles Johnson may have been among the best ever.
CardBoredom
The Non-Yankee Yankee Card in ’52 Topps
He’s wearing a Yankees cap. There’s a Yankees logo in the lower left corner. He pitches for the Washington Senators.
Mapping a Nomadic Summer Road Trip
Mike Morgan nearly set a record for the number of teams played for. Could the dozen teams he pitched with be assembled into an epic road trip?
Good News: Jermaine Dye is a HR Hitter. Bad News: Jermaine Dye is a HR Hitter.
Which set of stats should I believe? Jermaine Dye showed some very good batting skills over the course of his career, averaging nearly 30 HRs/100 RBIs per 162 games. Joe Posnanski pointed out that Dye’s 2006 season would have won him the 1988 National League Triple Crown. Yet he barely averaged one win above replacement over the same period and his wOBA is just in the .350s.
A Surprise ’52 Topps Mantle?
Searching the background of a 1952 Topps common to find Mickey Mantle.
The Reigning AL MVP in ’93 Finest
Yep. MLB voters gave the 1992 American League MVP award to a relief pitcher, one who coined the term “walk-off” to describe homeruns he had personally given up.
The Non-Catcher
Kansas City Royals prospects are graded on a pretty steep curve. They’re either considered the next George Brett or on their way to a different team.
Ehhh…Close Enough
My octogenarian neighbor invited me to fight him this past summer, and it all started with a hat.
The Worst Pitcher in 1952 Topps
I had to change the axis on my player performance graph to capture just how awful Ed Blake’s MLB career was.
Opening a ’91 Donruss Wax Box
The joy of opening junk wax in search of Elite inserts. At least I got a Willie Stargell puzzle from the effort.