1988 Chattanooga Lookouts (Best)

This is the only set I got from 1988 Best. It's layout is very similar to that of 1986 Topps, except for a red instead of white lower border. I don't know if they change the color based on the team color, but it looks great with this Cincinnati Reds AA affiliate. Most of the pics are pretty standard poses, almost all taken at waist level against the same background.

 Being a AA team, there were very few of the major league veterans on the tail end of their career that make AAA sets so much fun. One exception was Lary Sorensen, whose once promising big league career was derailing due to alcoholism.

 At age 32, Sorensen was five years older than his pitching coach, Rich Bombard. Bombard, the brother of former major leaguer Marc Bombard, never pitched above AA-ball. I wonder how it went when he tried to give instruction to a big league veteran several years his senior?

 Tony DeFrancesco, you may remember, was the Astros' interim manager for the last couple of months of 2012.

 He was not the only player with a four-syllable last name with a future in major league managing.

 Here is a theme that comes up frequently in minor league cards - a pitcher posing with a bat.

 Phil Dale had an undistinguished career in the US, but was a longtime star in his native Australia, where he is now a manager. His team, the Melbourne Aces, lost the Australian Baseball League championship series earlier this year.