Happy Baseball Birthday...Baseball Hall of Fame

Today is the 75th Anniversary of the National Baseball Museum and Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.

On June 6, 1939 the first four classes of ballplayers elected into the HOF, from 1936, 37, 38, 39, were inducted.

The first five players voted in by the Baseball Writers Association of America in 1936 were Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Bonus Wagner, Christy Matthewson, and Walter Johnson. 

Baseball Card Mailbox... 2/22/2014

My fellow baseball blogger Steve Gierman, the man behind ChiSox Cards... http://whitesoxcards.blogspot.com, sent me three packs of Topps 2014 Baseball from my hometown of Kalamazoo/Portage, Michigan.

I asked him if he would do this for me to test a theory of mine,  that the cards that are sent here in Jacksonville,  Florida, and the packs Steve can get in Michigan, could be different in card selection. 

Yes, it's a small sample size...ugh, a Sabrmetrics reference...but I thought it would be interesting, and Steve will be getting three pacs of cards from here in Jax.

So, batter up...

...Pack #1...

This pack has a gem insert...a 1977 Topps embossed 75th Anniversary buy back card of former Boston Red Sox Reggie Cleveland.

What I like about the card is the dinged corner in the upoer right hand corner,

Baseball cards in 1977 were our major way of learning about baseball players, and their stats.

There was alao a RC if 2014 Tigers third baseman Nick Castellanos...see...a terrific card from a Kalamazoo/Portage pack of cards.

Pack #2...

The top card starring at me?

ChiSox lefty Chris Sale...wearing the throwback 1983 White Sox uniform.

The Southsider card will be headed back to Steve and his beloved White Sox card collection. 

I also loved the card if the Athletics pitcher Ryan Cook, sporting  a 1970s green and gold Swinging A's sleeve less uniform.

Pack #3...

The die cut 1989 Topps retro cards look terrific, and I pulpulled The Bambino, the Sultan of Swat, George Herman Ruth. 

The Nate Schietholtz card is terrific..." a diving catch."

Three terrific packs of baseball cards, from my hometown, including a RC of the Tigers #1 prospect, a real Topps card from the '70s, and a  baseball card of Babe Ruth.

Thanks Steve, ya picked well.

Play Ball!

The Bambino wishes you a Merry Christmas

Can't imagine getting a Christmas card from Babe Ruth.

Thanks to "When We Wore Fedora's" for posting the Babe Ruth card on their Facebook page.

The Babe in Boston.

This is a cool piece of art, Babe Ruth with some lumber in a Red Sox uniform.

BOSTON STRONG.