1981 Topps John Stearns

The front: Stearns bats with eye black on, with a bright sunny sky at Shea Stadium.

The back: Stearns holds the University of Colorado record with 16 career interceptions.

The player: Drafted by both the Bills and the Phils, Stearns chose baseball, and played in one major league game with the Phillies before being traded to the Mets. He supplanted Jerry Grote as the starting catcher and played in parts of ten seasons for the Mets in their down years between championships. A four-time All Star, Stearns was a better defensive catcher than hitter. Overall in 810 games he hit .260 with 46 HR and 312 RBI.

The man: Stearns was a long time coach after his playing career. He died in 2022.

My collection: I have 20 of his cards, from 1976 to 1984. I would be interested in trading for 1975 SSPC New York Mets #8.
 

1976 SSPC Willie Montanez

 

The card, in brief: Those three streaks are on every card. I guess the best shot they had of Montanez was damaged during development.

Playing career, in brief: The flamboyant Montanez was an outfielder with some good power, most notably leading the NL in doubles with the Phillies in 1972. He played for nine teams in 14 seasons, seven of those with the Phillies. In 1,632 major league games, he hit .275 with 139 HR and 802 RBI.

Post-playing career, in brief: After his playing career he returned to his native Puerto Rico where he was a scout and ran a baseball school.

My collection: I have 22 of his cards, from 1971 to 1982. I would be interested in trading for 1972 Topps #690. 

1986 Renata Galasso Mattingly #16

Mattingly with a beard! He famously was never the most comfortable with the Yankees' hair regulations. Seeing Yankees with beards the past couple of years has been weird. Some of them just look like a sloppy mess, like Dominguez and Rodon. Amed Rosario has a really good one though.

I wonder where this was, with the low ceiling - a finished basement maybe? My first thought was a garage but that's an odd place to hand a trophy. 

Keep your eye on the ball!

1988 Domino's Don McMahon

 

A simple photo, one that wouldn't have looked out of place on a Topps card of the era, though Topps might not have gone in as close up.

McMahon was an excellent relief pitcher at a time when relief pitchers were not as valued as they are now, so he pitched for seven teams over an eight-year career where he put up excellent numbers - in 874 games he went 90-68 with 152 saves and a 2.96 ERA. As a Milwaukee Braves rookie in 1957 he held the mighty Yankees scoreless over five innings in three games, helping the team win the World Series. Neither he nor the Braves fared as well in the following Series, though McMahon did make his only All Star team in 1958. He was traded in the middle of the season four years in a row - 1966 to 1969. In 1968 the Tigers sent Dennis Ribant to the White Sox for McMahon, who became a key member of the team's bullpen, going 3-1 with a 2.02 ERA in 20 games. He was traded to the Giants the next season, and retired at the age of 42 after the 1972 season. The Giants named him their pitching coach, but the team's bullpen was so depleted that McMahon was reactivated in both '73 and '74. The oldest player in the majors those years, he pitched in 31 games and went 4-0 with 6 saves and a 1.93 ERA. McMahon had gone to Erasmus Hall High School in Flatbush with future Raiders owner Al Davis, and even scouted for Davis during his playing career. In 1986, Davis recommended McMahon to his friend Tommy Lasorda, who hired McMahon as a Dodgers coach. In July of 1987, while pitching batting practice at Dodgers Stadium, McMahon suffered a heart attack and died shortly after.

I have 14 of his cards, from 1958 to 1972. I would be interested in trading for 1962 Topps #483, 1963 Topps #395 and 1965 Topps #317. 

1930 album: Mrs. Ruth Greeson

This page of stamped envelopes leaves little doubt as to the owner of the book. 

 

Chronologically, we have here Christmas cards from 1920 and 1921, both To Ruth May, From Miss Carter. A letter postmarked February 3, 1929, addressed to Miss Ruth Martin, Rt, 1 Box #924, So. Jacksonville, FL. The rest, all postmarked between October and December 1930, to Mrs. Ruth Greeson, or Mr & Mrs. Kelley (or K.U.) Greeson (sometimes Greason), 510 Tuttle Street, August, GA. 

It certainly seems that Miss Ruth May Martin of Jacksonville married Mr. Kelley Greeson and moved to Augusta in 1929 or 1930.

Thanks to the magic of the internet, specifically Ancestry.com, we can indeed confirm it. 

Here's 510 Tuttle today. Judging by the chain-link fence and bars on the windows, this is probably not the fancy part of Jacksonville.

In 1962 Kelly and Ruth moved to Keystone Heights, southwest of Jacksonville. Kelly passed away in 1988, but Ruth, who was an accountant, lived until 2000, passing away at the age of 90, a great-great-grandmother. 

 Here is her full obituary. At some point I might try to track down some of these people, though the common names and large cities will make it difficult, not to mention that this information is over 25 years old. I am very curious if John might recognize a name here, particularly the one from Ocala.

(source: https://www.genlookups.com/fl/webbbs_config.pl/noframes/read/2413)  

 Ruth Greeson
KEYSTONE HEIGHTS - Ruth May Martin Greeson, 90, died Sunday, Nov. 12, 2000.
Born in Bainbridge, Ga., Mrs. Greeson lived most of her life in Jacksonville before moving to Keystone Heights in 1962. She was a past recorder, senior regent and junior graduate regent of the Women of the Moose, Chapter 305 and was an accountant.
Mrs. Greeson is survived by: two daughters, Dawn Greeson Smith Gordon of Charlotte, N.C. and Wanda Greeson Phillips of Jacksonville; a sister Cornelia Harrell of Moorhead City, N.C.; a brother Paul Martin of Ocala; seven grandchildren, eight great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild. She was preceded in death by her husband of 57 years, Kelly Greeson, and a grandson Kelly H. Smith.
Funeral services for Mrs. Greeson were Nov. 15, 2000 in the chapel of Jacksonville Memory Gardens Funeral Home with the Rev. John Hunt and the Rev. Buddy Friedman officiating. Interment followed in Jacksonville Memory Gardens, Garden of The Last Supper.
Memorial contributions may be made in her memory to Hospice of NE Florida, 4266 Sunbeam Rd., Jacksonville, FL 32257 or Fresh Start Fellowship, Keystone Heights, FL 32656. 

[I'll show the contents of the envelopes in another post. Appeared to mostly be Christmas cards and birth announcements, but they weren't coming out easily so that'll be another post for another time.]
 

Wallet Card in Nashville: Yorke Men's Shop

When I knew I was going to Nashville I did some research on ghost signs in the area to look for. One of the most prominent is one for Yorke Men's Shop. As a much smaller city than New York, there aren't as many people documenting these signs, and one post I saw about this sign doubted that this store had ever existed, so I didn't even plan to take a photo, but I ended up passing by it and so I decided to, just in case it was real. Upon further research, it seems quite possible it is.

Unfortunately the van blocks part of the sign - "If it's new, if it's sharp - we have it." This is in an outdoor mall called the Arcade that was initially opened in the 1920s. Looking it up again, I found this Instagram post from a user named mcarsten with a photograph of the store in 1973, from an article about crime in the Arcade. In the past few years the Arcade, like much of Nashville, has been refurbished and made more tourist-friendly. This sign was revealed in 2019, and it wouldn't be out of character for a fake, retro-looking sign. Mcarsten suggests that the sign had been covered with wood rather than painted over, perhaps explaining why it was in such good shape.
 

Mediocre street trade

Not much pickings in Al's boxes this time. He says he has dozens of long boxes of cards at home, and he brings one or two each time for me to look at, marking them when I'm done so they don't repeat. These boxes are almost always junk wax or maybe recent Topps base cards, very few cards that I need. Stars are almost always gone, and there are virtually never rarities. Sometimes, like today, it's just picking out the very few cards that are not 1988 Donruss or 1992 Score.

Mostly dupes this time; heck, the originals in my collection for a lot of these probably came from his boxes over the years. A Jake Peavy rookie and a bunch of Bowman's mostly 2014.

Still, I came away with four cards I didn't have before, and a card I don't have is a card I need. Jose Bautista rookie and some more Bowman.

 

Burgers or gum? Jack Morris

Last time it was a 3-1 win for Wendy's. Hopefully there are more voters this time!

Like many players in this series, we have a Wendy's card with a spring training portrait and a Topps card with a Tiger Stadium action photo.

Like the whole Tiger team, Jack Morris's 1984 started off with a bang - in his case, a no-hitter on April 7. Morris started the season 10-1, tailed off a bit and finished the regular season 19-11, with a 3.60 ERA. However, he was dominant in October. In three postseason starts, two in the World Series, Morris went 3-0 with a 1.80 ERA. The Hall of Famer pitched 14 seasons for the Tigers, and then spent time with the Twins and Blue Jays, helping both teams win World Series. Overall in 549 games, he went 254-186 with a 3.90 ERA. He has since been an announcer for each of the three teams he won a World Series with.
 

Wood vs. Wood #337

 Last time it was an 8-0 drubbing by 1962. Will this be closer?

Jim Marshall's cap has the logo thoroughly blacked out. However, his inability to properly tuck in his collar allows just enough orange striping to be visible to show that this was a Giants uniform. A slugging first baseman with a decent batting eye but low batting average, he was better suited to today's game than the 1950s and 1960s. In parts of five seasons for five teams, he played in 410 games and hit .242 with 29 HR and 106 RBI. 1962 was the last of those seasons - he was purchased by the expansion Mets in the offseason and actually did well (.344 with 3 HR in 17 games) but was traded to the Pirates in May for Vinegar Bend Mizell. After the season, at the suggestion of the Pirates GM, he moved to Japan and became the first former American major leaguer to play there, hitting 78 HR over three seasons for the Chunichi Dragons. That theoretically freed up a '63 Pirates roster spot for Howie Goss, who was coming off a fine rookie season in 1962. However, in a move that probably frustrated the young fan who wrote "H. Goss" on the top of this card, Goss was traded to Houston right before opening day for Manny Mota. As a player, coach, manager and scout, Marshall had a 70-year career in baseball. He had managerial stints for the Cubs and A's, and was an American scout in Japan in the 1990s. In Japan he became friends with Ichiro Suzuki, advising the young star on his plans to play in the US. Suzuki's father had been a fan of the Dragons, and had a picture of Marshall in their home when Ichiro was growing up. Marshall died in 2025.

1986 was Don Sutton's first spring training as an Angel, and his influence is apparent on Darrell Miller's card, with the young catcher "Suttoning". Nice background with the stadium, the mountain, and possibly a palm tree. Miller played in parts of five seasons for the Angels. In 224 games the backup hit .241 with 8 HR and 35 RBI. After his playing career he became the Angels' Director of Community Relations, and later a scout. Since 2001 he has VP and Director of MLB's Urban Youth Academy in Compton, CA. In 2021 he became the first Black to be ordained as a Catholic Deacon in the Diocese of Orange, performing those duties at St. Juliana Falconieri Church in Fullerton, CA.

Cake or gum? 1977 Larry Bowa

 Last time was a 5-1 win for gum. Who will come out on top this time?

Hostess has Bowa in a spring training shot, with lots of interesting things going on in the background. Topps has him in a batting cage shot, with his Phillies jacket in their unusual purplish red color.

Larry Bowa held several shortstop fielding records during his career and remains the all-time NL leader in fielding percentage. In addition to his excellent glove Bowa had a solid bat. He led the NL in triples in 1971 and hit .375 in the 1980 World Series. Overall, in 2,247 games he hit .260 with 15 HR, 525 RBI and 318 SB. Bowa has been a coach for several teams and had managerial stints with the Padres and Phillies. He is currently Senior Advisor to the Phillies General Manager.

1981 Topps John D'Acquisto

 

The front: At Three Rivers Stadium, posing with his DAC42 glove.

The back: D'Acquisto no-hit the Tacoma Twins that day. The only Tacoma batter to reach base was future Twins manager Tom Kelly, who walked in the sixth inning.

The player: John D'Acquisto pitched ten years in the major leagues from 1973 to 1982. In 1974, he was the National League Rookie Pitcher of the Year. Overall in 266 games (92 starts) for six teams, he went 34-51 with 15 saves and a 4.56 ERA.

The man: D'Acquisto was involved in a wide variety of business ventures after his playing career, and is a published author and artist. He shared his thoughts on baseball cards with this blog in 2010.

My collection: I have 11 of his cards, from 1974 to 1983. I would be interested in trading for 1982 TCMA Richmond Braves #4.
 

Bimonthly roundup

It's been over two months since I did one of these posts  . . . 

A nice vintage trade with cdorso, TCDB.

Fun mix of cards from Randy Welk, OBC.

Elston Howard rookie! eBay

'65 Rose! eBay

10 OPC cards from  OBCer Scott Jensen.

Really nice Koufax oddball, '63 Fleer. eBay

Semi-high number cards from Casey Branton, OBC.

Gum and cake from Jennifer Roach, OBC.

Greg Henthorn from OBC, four from the fifties.

My first '51 Berk Ross cards, eBay. Willie Jones, Andy Seminick and Eddie Waitkus.

 

Street trade - 1984 Topps Traded

This was a fun find in one of Al's boxes today - 85 cards from 1984 Topps Traded! It's one of the few early 80s "major" sets I still haven't completed. I needed 37 of them, so a nice mix of cards I needed and cards to trade. I'm down to needing 25 for the set, so I've added the set to the wantlist on the blog, and will soon add it to my TCDB wants.

Cards I needed part I. Lots of players I don't get to add a new card from these days. 

Cards I needed part II. These were mostly commons but a few bigger names as you can see. 

Cards to trade part 1. Let me know if there's a player here you collect, or a team, or if you just have a wantlist you want me to check out.

Cards to trade part II. Hope to find good homes for these!

 

Wallet card in Nashville: Acme Farm Supply

This building, built in 1890, housed various businesses before Acme Feed and Hatchery moved in in 1943. In 1965 the business changed it's name to Acme Farm Supply. The business closed in 1999, and the building was vacant until 2013, when a bar/music venue was opened on the site, one of many catering to the tourists on Nashville's Broadway. What I really like here are the Purina privilege signs on this side of the building.

 

1976 SSPC Bruce Miller

 

The card, in brief: The dark, cloudy background makes it looks like he's standing on a foggy pier at night.

Playing career, in brief: Infielder Bruce Miller played in parts of four seasons with the Giants. In 196 games he hit .288 with 1 HR and 51 RBI. In September of 1976 he punched the Giants' team statistician. The Giants released Miller after the incident, ending his pro baseball career.

Post-playing career, in brief: Miller was a long time teacher and baseball coach at North Side High School in Ft. Wayne, IN. He is now retired.

My collection: I have four of his cards, from 1975 to 1976. I would be interested in trading for  1976 Cramer Phoenix Giants #NNO.

1986 Renata Galasso Mattingly #15

 Mattingly in the red, white and blue of the Nashville Sounds.

Error card! Mike Flanagan's name is misspelled. Looking at baseball-reference, if I am using their tool right, here's Mattingly's batting record through 1985 against each of these pitchers.

Candelaria: 0-for-5

Flanagan: 3-for-13 with two doubles

Hurst: 5-for-36 with two doubles

Boddicker: 6-for-21 with two doubles

The biggest ones missed are Mike Smithson (6-for-28 with three doubles); Storm Davis (2-for-15, most AB without an XBH) and Teddy Higuera (0-for-8, most AB without a hit).

1988 Domino's Denny McLain

 

Very classic pitching motion in this photo. 

Denny McLain had a meteoric rise to success in the major leagues, and an even more sudden plummet to the depths. He won 20 games as a 22-year-old in 1966, and in 1968 became baseball's last 30 game winner. He had another AL win title in 1969, but lost most of 1970 due to suspensions for gambling and for carrying a gun on a team plane. He was traded to the Senators in 1971, openly feuded with manager, Ted Williams, and lost a league leading 22 games. A year later he was out of baseball at the age of 28. Overall in 280 games McLain went 131-91 with a 3.39 ERA. After his career he was involved in numerous illegal activities and served jail time for cocaine trafficking, embezzlement and racketeering. In the past 15 years he has managed to stay out of legal trouble, and currently is involved in sports radio, magazine columns, and podcasts.

I have 14 of his cards, from 1965 to 1973. I would be interested in trading for 1966 Topps #540 and 1971 Topps #750. 

Burgers or gum? Aurelio Lopez

Last time it was a 3-3 tie. Will there be a winner here?

Like many players in this series, we have a Wendy's card with a spring training portrait and a Topps card with a Tiger Stadium action photo.

Lopez pitched eleven seasons in the major leagues, seven of them for the Tigers, for whom he won 53 games and saved 85. His best season was 1984, when he went 10-1 with 14 saves and a 2.94 ERA, and threw six scoreless innings in the postseason, winning a game in both the ALCS and World Series. The popular Lopez served as mayor of his home city of Tecamachalco, Mexico from 1990 until his tragic death in 1992 in a car accident, the same cause of death of the only other MLB players named Aurelio (Monteagudo in 1990, Rodriguez in 2000).
 

Street trade set kill

As the name of this post suggests, Al did bring the Yoo-Hoo's back today and I was able to knock off that pesky Yogi Berra to finish my 1993 Yoo-Hoo set.

Lots of other fun cards. Random highlights include red foil versions of both of Gregory Polanco's 2014 Topps Update card, and a Topps archive card of female trailblazer Eleanor Engle.

Years ago I got some on-card auto's from Al, all from 1986 and 1987 cards. I imagine these two came from that.

About a third of the cards I picked out I had already, so into the trade boxes go these.

 

Wallet card in Nashville: Kress

I was recently in Nashville for work and had the chance to snap a few wallet card photos. This is an old Kress 5 & 10 store. Kress was a nationwide chain - there's even a former Kress location in Upper Manhattan I should get out to at some point. The first Kress opened in Memphis in 1896. The chain at one point reached 246 stores around the country. The last Kress closed in 1981. 

This particular location was the site of some prominent sit-ins in 1960. It is now the Kress Condominiums. 

 

Mothers madness

I picked up a real cheap lot of Mothers cards off of eBay, this whole lot was under $1.50. All Mariners and Astros. No cards that I had before.

Not much variety in the Mariners section. Any Mike Jackson fans out there? How about Harold Reynolds? You've got a pitcher with a bat card with the '90 Jackson. Anyone want any of these, just let me know. 

Much better with the Astros. More variety including two each of '86 Astros legends cards - got an extra Joe Niekro, Lee May and Claude Raymond for the trade pile.

 

Wood vs. Wood #335

 Last time 1962 edged 1987, 6-4. Who will win here?

Bill Bruton poses at spring training wearing his new Tigers uniform, after eight years as a Milwaukee Braves. He was considered one of the fastest players in baseball in an era where stolen bases were infrequent. He led the NL in SB his first three seasons in the majors, and later twice led the league in triples. He had four good seasons in Detroit before retiring. Overall in 1,610 games he hit .273 with 241 2B, 102 3B, 94 HR, 545 RBI and 207 SB. After his retirement Bruton became an executive at Chrysler, rotating through various business departments over 23 years. He retired in 1988 after serving as Special Assistant to CEO Lee Iacocca. He died of a heart attack while driving in 1995.

Topps goes for the seldom-used over-the-shoulder portrait on Candy Maldonado's card. The background is blurry but I think it might be a bat rack or helmet storage. Maldonado played for seven teams in fifteen seasons, as a corner outfielder with some power. He lost a fly ball in the lights in the 1987 NLCS that was key in the Giants losing to the Cardinals, but had a walkoff hit in the 1992 World Series to help Toronto win that championship. Overall in 1,410 games he hit .254 with 146 HR and 618 RBI. He has been an announcer for ESPN Deportes for many years.
 

Cake or gum? 1977 Ted Simmons

Last time gum rolled to a 7-2 win. Will cake win here?

A couple of interesting photos here. Hostess has Simmons in a spring training shot, with lots of interesting things going on in the background. Topps has Simmons in his catching gear, in full bicentennial mode with the patch and the Cardinals' commemorative pillbox cap.

Ted Simmons was a fine catcher for many years for the Cardinals, Brewers and Braves. He was a nine-time All-Star who hit for a fairly high average (.285) and some power (six 20+ HR seasons). He is considered one of the weaker Hall-of-Fame selections in recent years (he had 50.4 WAR in 2,456 games, compared to Thurman Munson, 46.1 WAR in 1,423 games). After his playing career he was an executive, coach and scout for several teams.
 

1981 Topps Warren Brusstar

 

The front: Fun background with cars and a warehouse.

The back: Brusstar's 199 innings were 12 more than the second place pitcher, Rick Sutcliffe.

The player: Brusstar's career was a good example of the volatility of middle relievers. He had some excellent seasons, such as 1978 (the year he allowed 0 HR), 1981 and 1983, but most of the other seasons he was mediocre. Overall in 340 games over 9 seasons, mostly for the Phillies and Cubs, Brusstar went 28-16 with 14 saves and a 3.51 ERA.

The man: After his playing career Brusstar had a long coaching career, but is now retired. He also works with the Tug McGraw Foundation, where his wife Jennifer Brusstar is the CEO.

My collection: I have 15 of his cards, from 1978 to 1986. I would be interested in trading for 1978 SSPC #54.
 

1976 SSPC Dave Rader

 

The card, in brief: No sky is visible on this card but it certainly seems to be a night card.

Playing career, in brief: Rader had a fine rookie season with the Giants in 1972, hitting .259 with 6 HR and 41 RBI. The next season his averaged dipped to .229, and from then on was primarily a backup catcher. The Giants traded him to the Cardinals after the 1976 season, starting a string of four teams in four years, ending his career with Boston in 1980. Rader, who caught Ed Halicki's no-hitter in 1975, played in 846 games, hitting .257 with 30 HR and 235 RBI.

Post-playing career, in brief: After his playing career, Rader became a plumber, like his father and grandfather before him. He also worked in real estate, and appears to now be retired.

My collection: I have 12 of his cards, from 1972 to 1981. I would be interested in trading for 1976 Hostess #21.

1986 Renata Galasso Mattingly #14

Both bride and groom wearing white to symbolize purity. Don and Kim got married in 1979 and divorced in 2008.

Mattingly's thoughtful approach to baseball is apparent even in these brief answers.