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.
Fonzie Trivia
Here’s a bit of baseball bar trivia to store away: Infielder Edgardo Alfonzo put up more wins above replacement for the Mets than either Mike Piazza or Keith Hernandez.
Plan A: Play Baseball; Plan B: See Plan A
Education. Health. Duty to one’s country. These are the demons you must slay to be a baseball player if your name is Hoot Evers.
A Player Agent That Can Say “I’ve Been There”
Reggie Jefferson had several formative run-ins with MLB roster management led to his career as a sports agent.
2001 Finest Origins Scott Rolen
Playing an entire career with a single team does something to break the brains of baseball fans. Guys with “team loyalty” are given way more leeway and ranked higher than similar performers with a few more airline miles under their belt. I’ve always preferred it when players shuffle around more, going to where they can best perform and leaving dysfunctional organizations. That makes me a Scott Rolen fan.
Trade Bait in the Biggest Ever Transaction
Imagine a player trade so large that it makes more sense for the general managers to just switch caps rather than move the underlying players. The thought must have run through the minds of Yankee and Oriole fans alike in 1954 as the teams swapped 17 players after more than two weeks of negotiations.