Phil Bradley, 1989 Bowman #17

Every time I look at a 1989 Bowman card, I find it hard to believe that there was ever a 1990 Bowman set released. These cards are ugly, dull, and clunky. Nearly every card in the set looks just like this, a portrait of a player staring straight ahead. Some smile, some grimace, and some just kind of go slack. They're bigger than standard cards, making them a pain in the ass to store in boxes. Sure, you could put them in 8-pocket binder pages, but who would want to do that? Boo to you, 1989 Bowman. Boo.

Phil Bradley, 1990 Score #24

10 Fun facts about Phil Bradley:

1. He quarterbacked the University of Missouri football team from 1978-1981, leading the Tigers to three bowl games and being named Big Eight Conference Player of the Year three times. He also set a then-conference record with 6,459 yards of total offense.

2. Phil grew up as an Orioles fan; his father coached future O's outfielder Al Bumbry at Virginia Tech, and Bumbry became a family friend and a mentor to the younger Bradley.

3. On August 8, 1988, Bradley (then with the Phillies) played in the first ever night game at Wrigley Field. He hit the first ever nighttime home run at the Cubs' stadium, but the game was rained out and the homer was taken out of the record books.

4. Phil is currently a Special Assistant to the General Manager for the MLB Players Association.

5. He played high school ball at Macomb (IL) High. The school later dedicated their baseball field in his name.

6. After wearing #29 early in his career with Seattle and the Phillies, Bradley wore #16 in 1989 with the Orioles. The following year, he wore #1, a number most identified with...Al Bumbry.

7. Phil was the final strikeout victim in Roger Clemens' record-breaking 20-strikeout game in 1986.

8. Phil's son, Curt, was a chip off the old block as a two-sport athlete at Northern Iowa University. He played wide receiver for the Panthers' football team and second base and outfield for the baseball team. In 2007, he hit .265 with a .419 on-base percentage for the Dodgers' rookie-class team in the Gulf Coast League.

9. On April 13, 1985, Bradley hit an "Ultimate Grand Slam": a game-winning shot in the bottom of the ninth with his team trailing by three runs. He hit the home run off of the Twins' Ron Davis.

10. Phil was head coach of the Westminster College Blue Jays from 1994-1996. The team won two conference tournaments during his tenure.