Player Profile: Tom Amante

I have one card of Tom Amante, from 1987 ProCards.

Playing career: Outfielder Tom Amante played five seasons in the Cardinals organization from 1983 to 1987, hitting .280 with 52 HR and 250 RBI.

My memories: Only know him from his card.

Where he is now: Anyone know where Tom Amante is now?

Google Autocomplete results: He is second when you type Tom Amant, between Tom Amanti, who was drafted by the Cubs but didn’t sign, and Tom Amant Fairways Brookside, owner of an apartment building. There are no references to the ballplayer on the first page of Google results; the first is for a General Motors employee.

Coming up next: The next profile will be Tim Anderson.

Player Profile: Brant Alyea

I have one card of Brant Alyea, from 1990 ProCards.

Playing career: Outfielder Brant Alyea played six seasons in the Blue Jays, Rangers and Mets organizations, hitting .281 with 49 HR and 299 RBI.

Interesting stories: His father, Brant Alyea Sr., played several years in the major leagues. He had a one-night stand in February of 1966 while playing winter ball in Nicaragua. He came back in November for the next season to find out he had a son. Two months later political trouble erupted in Nicaragua, forcing him to flee the country, and he lost touch with his son’s family. The elder Alyea drifted away from baseball and ended up working in an Atlantic City nightclub in the mid-1980s. His boss read an article in Baseball Card News about sons of former major leaguers active in baseball, and that is how he found out his son was in the United States, playing pro baseball. Brant Jr., after growing up in great hardship in Nicaragua, seeing a couple of friends get killed in that country’s fighting, had defected to Canada to sign with the Blue Jays. Thanks to the article in Baseball Card News, father and son finally reunited after almost eighteen years.

Where he is now: General Manager of Toyota of Goldsboro in North Carolina.

My memories: Only know him from his card.

Google Autocomplete results: Brant Alyea Jr. is third when you type Brant Al, between Brant Alyea and Brant Alyea Baseball. There do not appear to be any other prominent Brant Alyeas.

Coming up next: The next profile will be Tom Amante.

Player Profile: Javier Alvarez

I have one card of Javier Alvarez, from 1989 Best.

Playing career: Infielder Javier Alvarez played in 69 games in the Royals organization from 1989 to 1990, hitting .214 with 4 HR and 13 RBI.

Where he is now: Anyone know where Javier Alvarez is now?

My memories: Only know him from his card.

Google Autocomplete results: He is fourth when you type Javier Al, between Javier Alatorre and Javier Alatorre Gay, referring to a Mexican newscaster. There are no references to the ballplayer on the first page of Google results; most are for a Mexican composer.

Coming up next: The next profile will be Brant Alyea.

Player Profile: Chris Alvarez

I have two cards of Chris Alvarez. This one is from 1987 ProCards.

Playing career: Infielder Chris Alvarez played six seasons in the White Sox, Yankees and Tigers organizations from 1985 to 1990, hitting .281 with 31 HR and 238 RBI.

Where he is now: Anyone know where Chris Alvarez is now?

My memories: Only know him from his card.

Google Autocomplete results: He is third when you type Chris Alv, between Chris Alvarado, a musician, and Chris Alvanas, a photo editor. There are no references to the ballplayer on the first page of Google results. Another prominent Chris Alvarez is a painter.

Coming up next: The next profile will be Javier Alvarez.

Randy Marshall on baseball cards

After Eric Bickhardt mentioned his former teammate Randy Marshall in my interview with him, I looked up the former first baseman. I found that Marshall, who hit 17 home runs in three seasons in the Rangers organization, is now a Product Availability Supervisor at PepsiCo in Florida. I wrote to him and he quickly responded to my questions about baseball cards.

"My favorite card of all time is the Billy Ripken card with F^#& Face written on the end of the bat.  Priceless.  I do not collect cards, I had a ton of them growing up from all sports.  In high school, one of my good friends went through them all and took everything of value.  He did end up giving me a Wayne Gretzky rookie card, when I got married.  It was mine to begin with, along with 3 others and a bunch of others that I will never see again.  I still have the Gretzky card in a drawer by my bed."

Thanks! Here is a card of Marshall from my collection.

Baseball card stories from Eric Bickhardt

Eric Bickhardt pitched four seasons in the Rangers organization, going 16-12 with a 3.31 ERA. Now a Compliance Specialist at FINRA, he kindly answered my questions about baseball cards.

"I was in Gastonia in 1990 and I think there were four different companies that put out cards that year. There was some sort of mixup with one of the companies, and the card they issued with my picture carried the name of Randy Marshall who played first base for us that year. I lived with Randy (aka Moose) and Craig Newkirk in Gastonia and we were good friends so I didn't mind it. I actually thought it could turn out to be a good thing if Randy or I made it to the big leagues -- you know it would be one of those error cards that turns up every now and then. Unfortunately, neither of us did so it's not very valuable after all!

 
When I was a kid I purchased packs of baseball cards every chance I could at the 7-11 near my house. They were all eventually lost, but when I was in college I visited my brother in Nashville and he took me to a card shop there. I was able to pick up cards of  the players I liked when I was growing up, like Ron Guidry, Nolan Ryan, and Tug McGraw-- I think everybody in and around Philadelphia loved Tug because of the 1980 World Series.

The funny thing is Tug actually pitched a game for us in Gastonia in 1990. It was a one off sort of thing to attract fans, but it was a real game and as I recall Tug pitched about 6 innings and only gave up a couple of runs. Watching him pitch that night was a thrill for me. He was a competitor and I'm sure almost anyone could have learned something just by watching him go about his business. One thing i regret is not getting a picture or autograph that night."

Thanks! Here is a card of him from my collection.

Player Profile: Aaron Altherr

I have one card of Aaron Altherr, from 2011 Topps Pro Debut.

Playing career: Outfielder Aaron Altherr was the Phillies ninth round draft selection in 2009. Four years later, he has yet to crack AA ball.

Where he is now: At Class A Lakewood for the second year in 2012, he hit .252 with 8 HR, 50 RBI and 25 SB.

My memories: Only know him from his card.

Google Autocomplete results: He is second when you type Aaron Alt, between a character in the movie Broadcast News, and Aaron Alter, a partner at the law firm Wilson Sonsini. There do not appear to be any other prominent Aaron Altherrs.

Coming up next: The next profile will be Chris Alvarez.

Player Profile: Yonder Alonso

I have two cards of Yonder Alonso. This one is from 2011 Bowman.

Playing career: First baseman Yonder Alonso played briefly for the Reds in 2010 and 2011, then broke out in 2012 after being traded to San Diego, hitting .273 with 9 HR and 62 RBI, good for sixth in the Rookie-of-the-Year voting. His 39 doubles set a Padres rookie record.

My memories: Only know him from his card.

Where he is now: Expected to be the Padres first baseman again this year.

Google Autocomplete results: He is fourth when you type Yond, between Yonder Mountain String Band, a bluegrass band, and Yondemasu Yo Azazel-San, a Japanese manga. There do not appear to be any other prominent Yonder Alonsos.

Coming up next: The next profile will be Aaron Altherr.

Player Profile: Stetson Allie

I have one card of Stetson Allie, from 2011 Bowman Prospects.

Playing career: In the second round of the 2010 draft, the Pirates took high school pitcher Stetson Allie, despite the fact that he only started pitching his senior year, and signed him to a $2.25 million signing bonus. In seventeen minor league games, he went 0-3 with a 7.76 ERA, walking 37 batters in 26.2 innings, throwing ten wild pitches and hitting ten batters. In attempt to recoup something from their multi-million dollar investment, the Pirates converted him to a first baseman in 2012, and he hit .213 with 3 HR and 19 RBI in 42 rookie league games.

Where he is now: He will presumably be back in the Pirates organization in 2013.

My memories: Only know him from his card.

Google Autocomplete results: He is second when you type Stetson A, between Stetson Athletics and Stetson Apparel, referring to the college team in Florida, and Stetson Apparel, the hatmaker. There do not appear to be any other prominent Stetson Allies.

Coming up next: The next profile will be Yonder Alonso.

Player Profile: Steve Allen

I have one card of Steve Allen, from 1990 ProCards.

Playing career: Steve Allen pitched seven seasons in the Rangers, Dodgers and Rockies organizations, going 36-23 with 21 saves.

My memories: Only know him from his card.

Where he is now: Anyone know where Steve Allen is now?

Google Autocomplete results: Steve Allen is fifth when you type Steve A, between Steve Austin, the wrestler, and Steve Albini, a musician. There are no references to the ballplayer on the first page of Google results for Steve Allen; most refer to the comedy legend who appeared on everything from Kraft Theater to Get Smart to Sabrina The Teenage Witch but is most known for being the first host of the Tonight Show.

Coming up next: The next profile will be Stetson Allie.