Adam Jones, 2011 Topps Allen and Ginter #264

Okay, the rules are out, so let the wild Gint-A-Cuffs rumpus begin! I'm going to try to knock this out in four posts this week, six packs per post. Onward and upward!

BOXTOPPER

CB-5 Alex Rodriguez Baseball Highlights Cabinet Card: A-Rod Does It A-Gain, for the 600th Time - Bleah. Not the kind of start I wanted. This one is up for trade, Yankee fans. That's +8 for the Cabinet, -1 for the Yankee = 7 points

PACK 1

229 Juan Pierre
250 Ichiro - I'm surprised none of the participants picked Ichiro as their favorite player. East Coast Bias?

197 Jay Bruce +2 Other favorite player
153 Scott Cousins - BONECRUSHER!

324 Domonic Brown SP Code Card +2 short print, +3 Ginter Code = +5 total

BHS-10 Ryan Howard Baseball Highlight Sketches +3

312 Cody Ross SP Mini Base +3 short print mini parallel

HH36 Gordon Beckham Hometown Heroes (Atlanta, GA) +1 I can't believe there's not a single freaking Oriole in this whole 100-card insert set. I mean, did the world need another Slobba Chamberlain card?

Pack 1 Total = 14 points. Box Total = 21 points. That was a damn good pack, I think. I certainly wouldn't have expected it after leading off with Juan Pierre.

PACK 2


90 Roy Halladay - I have Roy on my fantasy team. Adam Jones said he was glad that Doc isn't in the A.L. East any more, and I would agree with him.
185 Justin Upton

23 Aubrey Huff 

31 Jimmy Rollins - Sheesh, I should have picked the Phillies as my favorite team.

10 Miguel Cabrera

21 Logan Morrison Code +3 Ginter Code

123 Rajai Davis Mini A&G Back +2

#HH65 Adrian Gonzalez Hometown Heroes (Chula Vista, CA) +1 Hometown Heroes, +2 Favorite Player = +3 total. I've been to Chula Vista. Had my first-ever In n' Out Burger there. Delicious.

Pack 2 Total = 8 points. Box Total = 29 points. A bit of a downturn there.

PACK 3

130 Robinson Cano -1 Yankees player. Aww, ratfarts.

220 Prince Fielder

102 Wandy Rodriguez

83 Mat Hoffman - A BMX stunt rider. He lost the second "t" in a nasty accident.

272 Wee Man - If he was French, would he be Oui Man?

302 John Buck SP +2 short print

126 Jair Jurrjens Mini A&G Back +2 - I think it's impossible to say his name without sounding drunk. Try it!

FF5 Sovereign of the Seas +2 Floating Fortresses

Pack 3 Total = 5 points. Box Total = 34 points. Stupid rassumfrassum Yankees.

PACK 4

252 Omar Infante

137 Carlos Beltran

264 Adam Jones +1 Favorite Team, +4 My Favorite Player = +5 total. Thanks a bunch, Dr. Jones!

286 Cory Luebke

151 Brandon Beachy - Hacky headline writers must love this guy.

343 Drew Stubbs SP +2 Short Print

WMF1 Rasputin World's Most Mysterious Figures Mini +3 As a bearded man myself, this is an early entry for my favorite card in the set. Glorious.

HH56 Brett Anderson Hometown Heroes (Stillwater, OK) +1

Pack 4 Total = 11 points. Box Total = 45 points. Knowing my luck with pulling Orioles, it's amazing that Adam Jones was in this box. I would've looked really dumb if I failed to get my designated favorite.

PACK 5

98 Jason Bay

18 Daniel Hudson - My high school physics teacher was named Dan Hudson. He was a squirrelly little guy with shoulder-length hair. He looked so young (he was 26 at the time) that the lunch ladies didn't believe he was a teacher.

260 Alex Rodriguez -1 Yankees - Turds!

28 John Lindsey - I think it's awesome that this guy, who made his big league debut last year at age 33, gets an A&G card.

149 Lars Anderson RC

#BHS-3 Starlin Castro Baseball Highlight Sketches +2 Other favorite player, +3 Baseball Highlight Sketches = +5 total

AP2 Mountain Gorilla Animals in Peril Mini +3 I got Rasputin and a gorilla in consecutive packs. The rest of this box is gravy.

HH74 Jayson Werth Hometown Heroes (Springfield, IL) +1 Did you hear that a DC-area bar is selling draft beers for prices equal to Werth's batting average? $2.18 is almost a good price for a Bud.

Pack 5 Total = 8 points. Box Total = 53 points. As if I needed another reason to despise the Yankees.

PACK 6

297 Travis Hafner

17 Jonathan Papelbon - I hate this guy so much, I'm tempted to deduct points from myself.

25 Nelson Cruz

60 Brandon Belt RC -The Giants playing Huff over Belt is about as dumb as the Orioles playing Felix Pie over Nolan Reimold.

188 Daniel Descalso RC

113 Miguel Montero Code +3 Ginter Code

149 Lars Anderson RC Mini Base - Rookie card hot pack!

HH26 Torii Hunter Hometown Heroes (Pine Bluff, AR) +1


Pack 6 Total = 4 Points. Box Total = 57 Points. Woof.


Alright, I've fallen behind in my blog-reading, so I have no idea where I stand at the quarter-point of my Gint-A-Cuffs entry. I guess that's just more suspense!

Vintage Fridays: Bill Dillman, 1969 Topps #141

Am I the only one who sees the resemblance between Bill Dillman and former O's closer Gregg Olson? Dillman's not quite as goofy looking as "the Otter", but they might pass for brothers. Unfortunately, Bill never had nearly as much major-league success as Gregg.

Bill Dillman was a Trenton, NJ native who the Orioles drafted out of Wake Forest University with their sixth-round pick in 1965, the first year of the June amateur draft. He was taken 18th in that round, one pick behind Hal McRae and one pick ahead of Sal Bando. Two years later, Bill was on Baltimore's Opening Day roster, and his big league career got off to an auspicious beginning. He debuted on April 14, 1967, working long relief against the A's after Earl Weaver yanked Tom Phoebus for walking his fourth batter to lead off the fifth inning. The rookie reliever, handed a 7-1 lead, induced a double play grounder from Danny Cater, walked Ed Charles, and then set down the final 13 Kansas City batters in order to get credit for the win. Eight days later, Earl again called on Dillman to mop up against the Athletics. Despite having a 7-2 lead, Wally Bunker had allowed 11 men to reach base in 6 innings. Once again, Bill retired the first batter he faced, allowed the second to get on base (a Bert Campaneris single), and was perfect for the rest of the game. Three innings of one-hit ball, and he had his first career save despite a 12-2 final.

In fact, Dillman reeled off 12.2 scoreless innings in his first half-dozen appearances before he proved human. On May 10, the White Sox clobbered him for 5 runs in 1.1 innings. From there, his performance was up-and-down. He won his first four decisions, including a complete-game 5-2 duke over the Twins on June 11, but lost his last six to finish at 5-9. In all, he totaled 124 innings in 32 games (15 starts) with a 4.35 ERA. Among the team's regular pitchers, only Dave McNally (4.54 in an injury-shortened season) had a higher earned run average that year.

Bill spent the entirety of the 1968 and 1969 seasons at AAA Rochester, with ERAs of 4.29 and 4.95 respectively. The Cardinals purchased his contract, but traded him to Montreal a month into the 1970 season. The Expos, still finding their footing a year after entering the league, promoted him to the majors quickly. He made 18 relief appearances for the club, and was 2-3 with a 5.28 ERA when he was demoted in mid-July. He never made it back to the big leagues, and walked away after the 1972 season at age 27. But he'll always have that six-game scoreless streak to kick off his career.

Leo Gomez, 1995 Fleer Ultra Gold Medallion #255

Well, I am exhausted, but for the right reasons. I took a day off of work to drive down to Kings Dominion with my sister, my cousin, and my cousin's boyfriend. Lest you question my sanity too much, rest assured that the trip was planned before this triple-digit heatwave slammed the Mid-Atlantic. That said, we spent a few brutal hours in the early afternoon sweating buckets as we knocked out all of the roller coasters: the Anaconda, the Volcano, the Shock Wave, and of course the Intimidator 305, the Dale Earnhardt-themed coaster that climbs to 305 feet in the air before dropping at an 85 degree angle. (I would question the propriety of the ride's theme, considering Earnhardt's gruesome death in a high-impact collision during a NASCAR race, but what do I know?)

The most enjoyable part of the day was the few hours we spent on the water rides. I made the conscious decision to just wear my shirt and shorts as I got thoroughly drenched on water slides, and I was much more comfortable spending the rest of the day walking the park in soggy clothes than you would probably imagine. Driving two and a half hours home was another story.

Nothing insightful here tonight. I just grabbed this card because I noticed the reflection of Leo Gomez's flip-up shades peeking out on the shoudler of his jersey, and thought it was a cool effect. You can also make out his number 10 written in black ink on white tape on the band of the shades.

Nick Markakis, 2011 Bowman Gold #171

The Orioles may be crummy (I wonder how many times I've said that on this blog), but Nick Markakis keeps rolling along. He was named the American League Player of the Week last week, when he went 6-for-14 (.429 AVG, 1.000 SLG) with two doubles, two home runs, four RBI and five runs scored. To top it all off, Nick collected the 1,000th hit of his career when he singled in the third inning on Friday night. In just his sixth season in the majors, the right fielder is now the 14th player in O's history to reach four digits in hits. Congratulations Nick! Someday, may you have an actual competitive team to share the field with you.

P.S.: A quick keyword search shows that this is the tenth time I've used the word "crummy" to describe the Orioles team and/or individual players. So this is a milestone of sorts for me too! Hurrah!

Ben McDonald, 1995 Pinnacle #120

Sunday night's blog entry about the Orioles' five straight shutouts to end the 1995 season made me think about another standout pitching performance from that year.

It was Monday, June 5, 1995, and school had either just ended for the summer or we were already sliding into the abbreviated days at the end of the term. My friend H.D. was going to the game with his mother, and offered me their extra ticket. It took about two seconds for me to say yes, so they picked me up at my house and we went on our way.

We had pretty decent seats, although it's hard to find fault with any location at Camden Yards. We were down the third-base line, and we settled in for a strong matchup between Ben McDonald, who had gone 14-7 in the strike-shortened 1994 season, and Mariners ace Randy Johnson. It was 81 degrees at first pitch (so Baseball Reference tells me) and it was a clear night with a bit of wind. A fine night for baseball.

Neither pitcher disappointed, as Seattle and the O's traded zeroes for five innings. Baltimore put a runner on base in each of their first four at-bats, but never seriously threatened. A single by Cal Ripken, Jr., a walk by Leo Gomez, a single by Manny Alexander (wonders never cease), and another single by Chris Hoiles were all wasted. None of the four even made it to second base. McDonald was only slightly more vulnerable. He pitched around an Edgar Martinez double in the first, got a Mike Blowers double play grounder to negate a Darren Bragg single in the second, followed a Felix Fermin walk with a Joey Cora DP liner in the third, and yielded a Jay Buhner double and an intentional walk to Martinez in the fourth before stranding both men by striking out Bragg to end the fourth.

However, the Mariners finally broke through in the sixth. Ben started out smoothly with a pair of groundouts, but surrendered another hit to Martinez to bring Buhner to the plate. The bald, goateed slugger belted McDonald's 1-0 offering deep down the left field line for a two-run home run. Though the lanky Oriole pitcher rallied, keeping Seattle hitless throughout the rest of the game, the damage was done.

The Big Unit, on the other hand, seemed to get stronger as the game moved along. After Hoiles' leadoff single in the fourth, Johnson didn't allow another base runner. He retired the last 17 men, and if you take into account Jeff Manto's double play that wiped out Hoiles, he got 18 consecutive outs. Overall, he yielded only one walk and three hits (all singles) and struck out a dozen. He whiffed all three batters in the fifth inning, and did it again in the ninth to cap his sixth win in as many decisions on the year. He finished with a pitch count of 141, something that would be a rarity today, and had an excellent Game Score of 92. By comparison, his 1990 no-hitter against Detroit (8 K, 6 BB) garnered a Game Score of just 89. In fact, using that statistic, this game ties for 12th-best among his 603 career starts.

Ben McDonald, of course, took a heartbreaking complete-game loss. He allowed only five hits and two walks while striking out six, but three of those hits went for extra bases. It would be the best game of the year for Ben, who suffered through a frustrating injury-shortened campaign and finished just 3-6 with a 4.15 ERA in 13 starts and a single relief outing.

It's always disappointing to see your team lose a close game, but even at a young age I was aware and appreciative of the fact that I had just watched a dominant performance by one of the best pitchers in the sport.

PS: Click the box score and get a load of that stinker of an Oriole lineup. Curtis Goodwin leading off? Washed-up Kevin Bass #2? Bret Barberie at DH? Bleagh. They might have had a hard time scoring runs against the batboy.

Aubrey Huff, 2008 Topps Allen and Ginter Mini #342

Prepare yourselves...it's coming.

What did you say? What's coming? Seriously, have you been living under a rock? Gint-A-Cuffs is coming.

For the uninitiated, Gint-A-Cuffs is an annual contest that pits willing and hearty card bloggers from all ends of the earth against one another in feats of box-breaking supremacy. Started way back in the year two-thousand-and-nine by fellow Oriole fan Beardy, this hullabaloo goes as follows:

1. Challengers contact Beardy and Mark A. (the GAC Commissioner) to throw their names in the ring. A favorite team and favorite player must be listed in the entry. FYI, I listed the Orioles (of course) and Adam Jones (Brian Roberts was already taken).

2. Challengers purchase one (1) hobby box of the current year's Allen and Ginter cards.

3. Challengers rip open all 24 packs, and post the results on their blogs by the end of August.

4. Scores are tabulated according to the rules posted by the commissioner. This year's scoring criteria have not yet been determined, but traditionally points are awarded for special cards (inserts, short prints, autographs, relics, whathaveyou), cards of the challenger's favorite team, and cards of any challenger's favorite player. Points may also be deducted for cards of certain players, as chosen by the commissioner.

5.When the dust settles, the challenger who is verified as having the highest score is declared the winner of Gint-A-Cuffs and wins a super-special prize. This year, the prize is a shiny new hobby box of 2011 A&G, provided by Topps, who is officially sponsoring Gint-A-Cuffs!

This is the first time that I've stepped up to the plate as a Gint-A-Cuffs competitor. It seems like a lot of fun, and I'm all for anything that makes collecting more enjoyable. Plus, it's the perfect opportunity to talk a little trash to my contemporaries.

You hear that, dayf? Show's over. You might as well wave the white flag now, Night Owl. You're going down, Commishbob.

Bring on the Gint-A-Cuffs.

Mike Mussina, 1998 Donruss Elite #47

Last week, the Rangers pitched three consecutive shutouts, which is obviously something that doesn't happen often, especially these days. But it brought to mind an even more impressive stretch of pitching by a recent Orioles team.

In most respects, 1995 was a disappointing year for the O's. It was the only season from 1992-1997 that the team had a losing record, as they finished the strike-shortened campaign in third place at 71-73. If it weren't for Cal Ripken, Jr.'s successful pursuit of Lou Gehrig's consecutive games played record, most fans wouldn't remember the 1995 season at all. But the Birds did finish the year in style.

The Orioles did not permit a single run in the last five games of the 1995 season, a streak of 45 straight shutout innings. It started with a September 26 five-hitter by Mike Mussina, a 5-0 win over the Blue Jays. The next day, Scott Erickson bested Moose with a three-hit shutout over the Jays as the O's rolled 7-0. On Friday the 29th, the Birds returned home and Kevin Brown held the Tigers to five hits in a 6-0 victory. Though Ben McDonald lasted only six innings the following day, he pitched around five walks and a single hit and the Baltimore bats supported him with a dozen runs. Jimmy Haynes and Jesse Orosco yielded one hit between them in relief, setting the stage for the season finale. The rotation had turned back around to Mussina, who capped his own excellent season with a two-hit, two-walk, seven-strikeout whitewash for his 19th 'W' of the year. The Orioles won 4-0. No team has had four or more shutouts in a row since.

The longest streak in MLB history was crafted by the 1903 Pittsburgh Pirates, who kept their opponents from scoring for 56 straight innings. Of course, that was back in the Deadball Era. More recently, the 1974 Orioles (hey, how 'bout that?) had a 54-inning shutout streak, which is the American League record. From the eighth inning on September 1 through the eighth inning of September 7, no opponent touched the O's. Ross Grimsley, Mike Cuellar, Jim Palmer, Dave McNally, and Cuellar again put up the zeroes in complete-game efforts, with McNally and Grimsley tacking on additional scoreless frames at the beginning and end.

Meanwhile, the modern-day O's are fortunate if they can hold a team to three runs.

Cal Ripken, Jr., 1994 Upper Deck Collector's Choice Silver Signature #240

It takes a very special photo to ground a baseball card in a specific moment in baseball history, or even history in general. Take a look at that big, blocky, gray cordless phone in Cal Ripken's hand and you're transported back in time to the days before Blackberries and iPhones, a time when you had to have significant upper body strength to hoist a phone and its clunky battery to your ear. We are living in the future.

Vintage Fridays: Al Bumbry, 1974 Topps #137

Today I thought we'd jump into the Wayback Machine and see what the O's were up to 35 years ago on this date. It was Thursday, July 15, and the Orioles were having an uncharacteristically subpar season by their standards. They were 40-42 despite having won 4 straight games, and were in a distant third place, trailing the rejuvenated Yankees by 11 games. The Angels were in town for a four-game series following the All-Star Break; prior to the break, the Birds had swept a three-game set from the Halos in Anaheim.

Earl Weaver's charges kept the good times rolling in front of a scant weeknight crowd of 9,182. After a scoreless frame by starter Jim Palmer, Al Bumbry got the O's started in the bottom of the first with a walk and a stolen base, and two batters later Lee May touched up Angels pitcher Gary Ross for a run-scoring single. Bumbry did his job again with a leadoff double in the third, and Reggie Jackson thrilled the Memorial Stadium spectators with a two-run homer, his tenth as an Oriole following a monthlong holdout in April. The Birds tacked on a seventh-inning insurance run, also scored by (who else?) Al Bumbry. He singled as the first batter of the inning, stole his second base of the night, and advanced to third on a wild throw by old friend Andy Etchebarren. Reggie was the straw that stirred the drink once more, picking up an RBI single (his third hit of the night) and stealing second (his second swipe of the night) before being stranded.

Four runs was plenty for Jim Palmer, who disposed of the Angels without much trouble despite striking out only two batters. He allowed only three hits - all singles. In the top of the sixth, he walked the first two batters; those were his only free passes of the night, and it was the only inning with more than one Halo batter reaching base. He then promptly retired the next three hitters. The O's also turned a pair of double plays behind him. "Cakes" went the distance to boost his record to 12-8 with a strong 2.85 ERA. It was his 39th career shutout, and kicked off a second half in which he went 11-5 with a 1.91 ERA to finish the year at 22-13 with a 2.51 mark. He captured his third and final career Cy Young Award.

Steve Stone, 2005 Donruss Greats #79

Do you realize that Steve Stone was the last Oriole pitcher to win the Cy Young Award? Sad but true. The 32-year-old righthander won an incredible 25 games against just 7 losses in 1980, accounting for a quarter of the team's victories in a thrilling season that saw the club finish 3 games back of the Yankees. He still holds the O's single-season record for wins, and his peripherals were the best of his career as well: a 3.23 ERA, 149 strikeouts, and 8 hits allowed per game, all in a career-high 250.2 innings. He made the only All-Star Game of his career, getting the starting nod and tossing three perfect innings. However, it all came at a great cost: the increased workload and his heavy use of curveballs put enough wear and tear on Stone's right arm to bring an end to his career the following year, as his ERA inflated to 4.60 in just 62.2 innings. To an outside observer, it might seem as if Steve Stone had sold his soul to the devil. That's just what teammate Ken Singleton suggested, anyhow.

For much more detail about one of the most headline grabbing seasons by any Baltimore starting pitcher, you can check out Bill Pemstein's new book A Stone's Throw. Bill is a frequent reader of this very blog and a former D.C.-area account executive for the Orioles. He's spent the past 20 years as a Chicago reporter covering high school sports. If you follow that link, you can read a preview of the book and order a paperback copy (if you're so inclined). From the few pages I've seen, it looks like a worthwhile detailed chronicle of a sometimes overlooked chapter in Orioles history.

Manny Alexander, 1993 Score Select #391

It seems like it's a link-sharing sorta week. In that spirit, here are The Worst 100 Baseball Players of All Time, compiled for Deadspin by Eric Nusbaum. It's by no means a comprehensive list; rather it's a fun look at several dozen of the unluckiest/lousiest/most one-dimensional/weirdest/etc. men to ever play the game. There are several former Orioles on the list, including the crummy and steroid-abusing Manny Alexander and a certain tubby judge-punching drunk whose name rhymes with Squidney Non-Scone. Enjoy!

Earl Weaver, 2004 Topps All-Time Fan Favorites #64

It's All-Star night, and here's a reminder that once upon a time, you could manage the Orioles AND the American League All-Stars. In fact, Earl got to hold the reins of the A.L. squad four times in his illustrious career. One such occasion was the 1971 Midsummer Classic in Detroit, which was notable for the presence of 22 future Hall of Famers. Six of these legends hit home runs: Johnny Bench, Hank Aaron, Reggie Jackson (whose blast may have left Tiger Stadium if it hadn't struck a light tower on the roof), Frank Robinson, Harmon Killebrew, and Roberto Clemente. For the only time in a 20-year span, the American League bested the National League by a 6-4 score. Aside from Frank Robby's homer, other Orioles contributing to the effort included Brooks Robinson, who singled once in three at-bats and caught a Johnny Bench pop-up for the final out; Jim Palmer, who turned in two scoreless innings; and Mike Cuellar, who earned a hold with two shutout innings of his own. For more details on the 1971 All-Star Game, check out the Fleer Sticker Project, where there are several great full-color screencaps from the original TV broadcast.

Jerry Hairston, Jr., 2000 Upper Deck #53

As I attempt to drown out the obnoxious horror of Chris Berman's braying Home Run Derby calls, let's play another round of "When Is This Card?". Right off the bat, we know that Jerry Hairston, Jr. is attempting to turn a double play in a road game against the Phillies, presumably in 1999. Without checking, I'm going to guess that the runner barreling into second base is center fielder and Strat-o-Matic enthusiast Doug Glanville. And now...off to Baseball Reference!

Well, I'm off to a good start. Glanville wore #6 with the Phils from 1998-2002 and 2004. Checking his game log for 1999, he played in all three home games vs. the Orioles, July 9-11. He didn't reach base on the 10th, so that game is out. Hairston played in both of the remaining games, so we'll dig deeper.

On July 9, Glanville singled in his first at-bat, and advanced to second on a Juan Guzman balk. He struck out in the third inning, singled in the fourth and was stranded, flew out to end the sixth, and grounded out to third in the eighth. So that's not our game. By the by, the Phillies beat the O's 4-2, with Curt Schilling going the distance.

By process of elimination, it should be July 11, 1999. Whaddaya know? Glanville singled to lead off the bottom of the first against Scott Erickson, but Ron Gant followed with a ground ball to third. Reboulet to  Hairston to Will Clark, 5-4-3 double play. Doug was retired in each of his next two at-bats, doubled in his fourth, and that was that. So this photo was snapped in the bottom of the first inning. What else happened in that game? The Orioles jumped out to a 2-0 first inning lead against Chad Ogea, who surrendered an RBI double to B. J. Surhoff and a run-scoring single to Clark. Charles Johnson doubled in Clark in the third, and Brady Anderson blooped a single into shallow center field an inning later to plate Hairston. The Birds further extended their lead in the seventh, when Albert Belle doubled in a pair against Randy Wolf to make it 6-0.

Meanwhile Erickson cruised, inducing three double plays and stranding the bases loaded in the fourth inning. He took a shutout into the eighth before the Phillies finally got to him. Glanville doubled to lead off the inning, Gant tripled him in, and Bobby Abreu grounded to short to make it 6-2. That would be the final, as Mike Timlin sealed the win with a 1-2-3 ninth inning. The Orioles took two of three in the series, but were still mired in last place at 36-51. It would take a 20-8 Baltimore record in September just to finish in fourth place at 78-84.

Eddie Murray, 1987 Donruss 3x5 All-Stars #31

Finally, mercifully, the All-Star Break has arrived. The Orioles will not lose a game for at least the next three days. Rest easy, you battered orange and black masses.

Jorge Julio, 2003 Upper Deck First Pitch #81

Some guy named Derek Jeter is apparently very close to collecting his 3,000th career hit, which means that I've had to read and hear more about him lately than I could possibly stomach. But I did come across a really strange and delightful statistic. In 16 career plate appearances vs. Jorge Julio, Jeter is 0-for-14 with a pair of walks. That's the most at-bats he has against any pitcher without managing a hit. I'll never understand baseball.

Vintage Fridays: Curt Blefary, 1966 Topps #460

Wow, this is the second straight Vintage Friday that I've posted on a Saturday. I must really be slipping. In my defense, I didn't arrive home from the Capital Fringe Festival until nearly 1:00 AM this morning. I had load-in for my play at 2:30, followed by our performance at 6:00 (it went very well, thanks for asking), followed by a couple other friends' shows at 8:15 (Sisters of Ellery Hollow) and 10:15 (The Road to Nowhere). I heartily recommend both, if you're so inclined. But I'm rambling.

Today's tardy vintage card was helpfully improved upon by a previous owner. He or she realized that Topps was selling Curt Blefary's defensive prowess and versatility short by designating him as "just an outfielder". He wasn't any old outfielder, he was a left fielder, by god. His talents didn't end there, either. He could play first base in a pinch as well! Isn't that something?

Of course, that's not the half of it. Over the course of his career, Curt also logged time in right field, at catcher (however reluctantly), second base, and third base. But as our unknown editor has rightly noted, he got most of his playing time at first and in left. It's worth noting that there were two separate seasons in Blefary's career in which he played exclusively at those two positions: his sophomore year of 1966, and 1969 (his first year in Houston).

Sammy Sosa, 2005 Topps Updates and Highlights #UH1

Sammy Sosa was renowned for his on-field theatrics, from his double-hop out of the batter's box on well-struck balls to his dead sprint out to right field on defense. I'm engaging in some theatrics myself this weekend, and I've been a nervous wreck about it all week. For the fourth consecutive year, I and my friends at Zero Hour Theatre have produced a play as part of the Capital Fringe Festival in Washington, D.C. However, this year I wrote the play that is being performed. It's called Apocalypse Story, and it's a one-act dark comedy about a pair of wayward twentysomethings coping with the aftermath of a nuclear strike and fighting for the affection of an attractive young woman. I'm dealing with all of the usual nagging worries:

-What if nobody comes to see the show?
-What if the audience and/or the critics hate the show?
-What if the actors forget their lines and/or blocking?

That's pretty much it, but those are really big Whats. I'm feeling even more anxiety than usual because this is the first full-length play I've written that has made it to the stage. Should it fall flat, I'll feel a lot more personal responsibility than I would under normal circumstances. I realize that I'm probably overblowing things, but knowing that everything is out of my hands now is a bit scary. As Tom Petty said, the waiting is the hardest part.

All that being said, if you're going to be in the D.C. area during either of the next two weekends and you're curious to see what all this fuss is about, drop on by the Wonderbox theatre and say hello. You can get more information and buy tickets here.

Jim Palmer, 2001 Topps American Pie #46

I went out in search of the little extra touches tonight, and I found one stashed in the background of this posed photo from an indeterminate date late in Jim Palmer's career. Yes, that's Elrod Hendricks milling about in the background in his familiar #44 jersey. It appears that he's doing exactly what Ellie was known best for: signing autographs for appreciative Orioles fans. That's why you should always look closely at your cards once in a while, no matter how long you've had them. You don't know what you'll see that escaped your attention in the past.

Rafael Palmeiro, 1996 Score Dugout Collection #88

Alright, this summer is shaping up in a way that's all too similar to every other Baltimore summer since 1998. But there are still moments of fun, and many of them have come from third baseman Mark Reynolds. His 2 home runs last night gave him 5 in 11 at-bats, 13 since June 1 (most in the majors in that span), and 20 for the season. I don't think any of them have been shorter than 400 feet; the dude just kills baseballs. Obviously power has been in short supply 'round these parts, so I found myself wondering just how long it has been since an Oriole player had more than 20 homers before the All-Star Break. If my crack research is correct, you'd have to go back to 1998, when Rafael Palmeiro had 26 heading into the Midsummer Classic en route to a season total of 43. Going forward from there:

-The following year, B.J. Surhoff went deep 20 times in the first half and finished the year with 28.

-In 2000, Charles Johnson had 20 big flies at the break and finished with 31 altogether. The last 10 HR he hit came with the White Sox after the July fire sale.

-In 2001, Jay Gibbons and Chris Richard tied for the team lead with 15 home runs...for the entire season. Ugh.

-Aaaand no one else has reached 20 in the first half in the past decade.

So Reynolds has already done something no Oriole has since 2000, and if he can hit one out in the next few games he'll be in even rarer company. Brady Anderson's 1996 tally of 30 homers at the break is probably out of reach...but never say never.

Nick Markakis, 2010 Topps Allen and Ginter National Pride #NP34

Today, we celebrate America. Since Independence Day is all about fireworks, how about the fireworks that Nick Markakis has been putting on for the past few weeks? Ever since an 0-for-4 performance on June 7, the rightfielder has hit safely in 21 of 22 games, including a career best 5-for-5 outing in yesterday's win over the Braves. He's batted .436 (44-for-101) with 7 doubles, 3 home runs, and 14 RBI to boost his season average to .296 entering tonight's game. While he's still not producing walks and extra-base hits at his career rate, he's given O's fans a reason to exhale after his struggles in the early part of the season.