Chicago Cubs Top 10 Prospects From 35 Years Ago In Baseball Cards

Baseball America began their organizational top 10 rankings in 1983. Thirty-five years ago. Can it really be that long ago since 1983? Prospects have always fascinated me since discovering that 1989 Topps Ty Griffin future stars card as a seven year old. There may be nothing better in baseball, in my eyes, as combing through old prospect lists and Major League Baseball draft.

Since the first organizational ranking of the Chicago Cubs minor league system was released in 1983, it makes for a nice round 35 years ago to go back and reflect. So, here are the Cubs top 10 prospects from 1983 as ranked by Baseball America….in baseball card form.

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1) Shawon Dunston

Background: Shawon Dunston was the Cubs number one overall draft pick in 1982 out of high school in Brooklyn, New York. As a senior, he hit .790 with 10 home runs and 37 stolen bases. Yes, nearly eight out of 10 at bats were a hit.

MLB Career WAR: 11.5

Career Overview: Dunston lived up to the hype over 18 seasons in Major League Baseball. The shortstop was a two-time All Star with the Cubs in 1988 and 1990. After playing his first 12 years with the Cubs, he also spent time with the Giants, Pirates, Indians, Cardinals, and Mets.

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2) Joe Carter

Background: Joe Carter was the Cubs first round draft pick a year before Dunston, in 1981, where he was selected second overall.

MLB Career WAR: 19.3

Career Overview: Carter made his big league debut with the Cubs in 1983, his only season in Chicago. He hit .176 in 23 games during his rookie season. While Carter went on to become a five-time All Star, the Cubs did get great value in return for the slugger. On June 13, 1984, Carter was sent to the Cleveland Indians with Mel Hall, Don Schulze, and Darryl Banks for Rick Sutcliffe, Ron Hassey, and George Frazier. Sutcliffe only went on to win 16 games during the second half of the 1984 season and claimed the Cy Young.

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3) Vance Lovelace

Background: Vance Lovelace was also a Cubs first round pick in the Joe Carter draft, picked 14 spots behind at number 16 overall.

MLB Career WAR: -0.1

Career Overview: Lovelace proved to be a bust. The pitcher did reach the big leagues, though, appearing in nine games over three seasons from 1988 to 1990 with the California Angels and Seattle Mariners. The Cubs were clear winners of the trade that sent Lovelace and Dan Cataline to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The return: Ron Cey.

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4) Mel Hall

Background: Mel Hall was a second round draft pick by the Cubs in 1978 out of Port Byron High School in Cayuga, New York.

MLB Career WAR: 8.7

Career Overview: Hall debuted with the Cubs in 1981 playing in 10 games. He appeared in 24 games in 1982 and put together a full season by 1983. Hall joined Carter in the trade to Cleveland for Sutcliffe. The outfielder did enjoy a long career in MLB playing 13 seasons.

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5) Pat Tabler

Background: Pat Tabler was a first round pick of the Yankees in the 1976 draft. New York gave up on their former first rounder by 1981 and shipped Tabler to Chicago on August 19, 1981 for a player to be named later. The Cubs later sent Bill Caudill and Jay Howell to complete the trade.

MLB Career WAR: 3.0

Career Overview: Tabler made his big league debut with the Cubs in 1983, but only played in 60 games over two seasons with Chicago. He was traded to the White Sox with Scott Fletcher, Randy Martz, and Dick Tidrow for Warren Brusstar and Steve Trout. Tabler would make one All Star game for the Cleveland Indians in 1987.

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6) Stan Boderick

Background: Stan Boderick was the Cubs’ supplemental first round pick in the 1982 draft (27th overall).

MLB Career WAR: 0.0 (did not play)

Career Overview: Boderick did not make it far in his professional career. That could be attributed to some very interesting comments made by Madison Muskies (Oakland Athletics minor league team) manager Brad Fischer. Boderick had been traded by the Cubs to the A’s in 1983 and then hit .093 in 25 games for the Class A Midwest League Muskies.

From the May 12, 1985 Chicago Tribune:

Stan Boderick, a first-round draft pick in 1982 along with shortstop Shawon Dunston, hit .313 at Sarasota that summer. But the speedy outfielder slipped to .188 and struck out 124 times in 1983 at Quad City. The Cubs sent him to Oakland in the Tim Stoddard trade in March, 1984, but the A`s sent Boderick back to the Cubs three months later after he batted .093 in 25 games at Madison of the Midwest League.

His manager at Madison, Brad Fischer, said he talked to the Cubs`

organization about Boderick after he was returned.

“I told them I wasn`t impressed at all by what I`d seen the year before when he was at Quad City,“ Fischer said. “Then, when we got him, he had no power, no contact hitting ability, a poor throwing arm and poor overall mechanics. He just wasn`t a very good player at all for us.“

How did Boderick become a first-round draft pick?

“It looks to me like a scout must have caught him in high school on a very good day and never bothered to have him cross-checked,“ Fischer said.

“That`s the only explanation I can think of. And if that`s the case, I wonder if that scout is still in the Cubs` organization.“

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7) Geoff Doggett

Background: Geoff Doggett was also a member of that 1982 draft class. Unfortunately, Doggett’s career was similar to Boderick’s rather than Dunston’s. The outfielder was a 9th round pick out of the University of South Alabama.

MLB Career WAR: 0.0 (did not play)

Career Overview: You may have noticed Doggett’s baseball card is from the Lynchburg Mets. To my knowledge, there are no Cubs minor league cards featuring Doggett, as he spent just two seasons in the Cubs system, with the Geneva Cubs in 1982 and Salinas Spurs in 1983. After his 1985 season with the Lynchburg Mets, Doggett was out of professional baseball.

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8) Craig Lefferts

Background: After not signing as a 7th round draft pick by the Kansas City Royals in 1979, Craig Lefferts returned to the University of Arizona and was taken in the 9th round by the Cubs a year later.

MLB Career WAR: 9.3

Career Overview: Another 1983 top prospect that spent limited time with Chicago. Lefferts pitched for the Cubs just one season (1983) going 3-4 with 3.13 ERA in 56 games. He made five starts. Following the 1983 season, Lefferts was involved in a three-team trade that saw the Cubs send Lefferts, Fritzie Connally, and Carmelo Martinez to the San Diego Padres. The Padres sent Gary Lucas to the Montreal Expos, and the Expos sent Al Newman to the Padres, while the Cubs received Scott Sanderson from Montreal. Lefferts played 12 seasons in the big leagues and played in two World Series (1984 Padres and 1989 Giants).

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9) Carmelo Martinez

Background: Carmelo Martinez was signed by the Cubs as a free agent in 1978 as an 18-year old out of Puerto Rico.

MLB Career WAR: 11.0

Career Overview: Carmelo played in 29 games for the 1983 Cubs. He hit six home runs in 89 at bats before the trade that sent him to San Diego that saw the Cubs get Scott Sanderson from the Expos. Martinez went on to play 9 seasons in MLB.

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10) Don Schulze

Background: Don Schulze was drafted by the Cubs in the first round (11th overall) of the 1980 draft.

MLB Career WAR: -1.6

Career Overview: Schulze played in parts of two seasons for the 1983 and 1984 Cubs going 0-1, 7.94 ERA in 17 innings. Schulze was sent to Cleveland in the Rick Sutcliffe trade.

Gypsy Oak Custom Cubs Cards Mailday

Three packages welcomed me home today. A total of 522 Cubs cards were added to the One Million Cubs Project. The best package was an envelope containing 10 custom cards.

Gypsy Oak reached out to me via direct message on Twitter last week and said he had some cards to send me. I have been following him and seen his work and is very talented.

The first card that stood out was a Helmar Art Stamps of Browne. This early 1900’s looking mini card is aged to perfection truly looking like a turn of the century item. In looking up Browne, I could only find a George Browne who played with the Cubs in 1909. The right fielder spent 12 years in Major League Baseball.

Next was a Ryne Sandberg Alpha Testing Game Piece 16 of 20. I love pencil sketches and that’s what this print appears to be. The font used for Gypsy Oak is classic and the stamped 412085 looks authentic.

I’m very familiar with the next few cards. At least the templates, not the actual artwork. The templates are printed from Rookies App, the same app I printed my Cubs Convention cards last month. Hiram Bithorn was the first Puerto Rican to play Major League Baseball, debuting with the Cubs on April 15, 1942. In 1943, Bithorn’s second season, he sported a 18-12 record with a 2.60 ERA and then served during World War II before returning to the big leagues in 1946.

Kris Bryant is featured with the Iowa Cubs.

A classic pose of Greg Maddux.

And Ryne Sandberg. Judging by the long hair, this appears to be based on an early 1980’s (1983 or 1984) picture of “Ryno.”

Finally. Some miniature mini cards. These are named Gypsy Oak Micro and are part of a game. The “Rifleman” Chuck Connors (#122) is a walk, Andre Dawson (#139) is a fielder’s choice, Lou Brock (#218) is a reached on error, and Ernie Banks is a double.

Great art and a unique addition to the One Million Cubs Project. Thanks, Gypsy Oak.

Not Just Another 1981 Topps Cubs Future Stars Card

Rare and unique items are a favorite in my collection. I also like items that make for a good story. My “Ball Wall” has dozens upon dozens of stories. One major reason for that is autographs are personal. Only a few of my autographed baseballs are purchased, so each one of them typically has a story behind it.

Baseball cards don’t really have a story, especially in my collection. You buy baseball cards, whether it be from a local card shop, someone on Facebook or Twitter, an eBay auction, etc. Not too many stories behind those means of acquiring baseball cards.

I have some unique cards in my Cubs collection. The cards themselves are a story, but nothing personal for me. Now, I have a story to tell.

Jeff Pearlman is a well known writer. He first entered the mainstream in the 1990’s for his Sports Illustrated piece on the highly controversial John Rocker. Since his Sports Illustrated days Pearlman has authored several books, including “Sweetness: The Enigmatic Life of Walter Payton,” which spent four weeks on the New York Times best seller list.

Another successful football book was the recently released, “Gunslinger,” about Brett Favre. Other books are: “The Bad Guys Won,” about the 1986 New York Mets as well as “Love Me Hate Me,” an unauthorized biography on Barry Bonds. Pearlman is currently working on an upcoming book about the USFL.

The author also writes for The Athletic, which is where today’s story begins. A few weeks ago I wrote about Steve Macko after receiving a 1980 Topps Cubs Future Stars in a trade. Macko also appeared on a 1981 Topps Future Stars card, the same year he would pass away at a young age.

Pearlman had followed me back on Twitter, and reached out to me via direct message last week after a piece he wrote about Macko and that 1981 Topps Cubs Future Stars card.

I read the Macko story and was enthralled, because it’s a fascinating story that is not well known 37 years later. It’s also about a baseball card of a Chicago Cub.

After reading I shot Jeff a quick note back thanking him for reaching out and letting him know it was another well done piece. Throughout the day I kept thinking about that article and my one-on-one communication with one of my favorite authors.

My other favorite author is George Castle, who had penned several books on the Chicago Cubs. I hated reading in school, unless it was Sports Illustrated or Pro Wrestling Illustrated. Once I hit college, I began reading real books, and Castle’s “The Million-To-One Team” was a page turner that sucked me in. I later had the privilege of working with Castle as I aired his radio program, “Diamond Gems,” on a radio station in Galesburg, Illinois where I served as sports director. I digress.

When I thought back to the exchange with Pearlman and his article, I needed that card. Not just any 1981 Topps Cubs Future Stars card because I probably have 20 already. I wanted that exact card. The one Pearlman had in a box under a bed that inspired his article.

So I reached back out to him and asked if he would sell me the card with a note. He responded back for a $10 donation to Make-A-Wish Foundation we had a deal. Done! Since it was such a great gesture I submitted a $25 donation.

The card was in my mailbox less than a week later with a personalized note from Jeff. It read:

Beau,

There’s something profound in remembering those who passed on – especially those who come and go as quickly as Steve Macko.

Best,

Jeff Pearlman

Wow! What a great mailday. Thanks, Mr. Pearlman.

Rick Reuschel, Parallels, and Sandberg's Galore

After celebrating President’s Day, or favorite mail deliverers were back delivering our baseball card goodies across America. It was a “Two For Tuesday” in my mailbox, and today I’ll highlight my box of Cubbies from Shane.

Shane has been pulling out Cubs for me and his box arrived full of new Cubs (459 to be exact) for my collection. I’m still compiling a box for Shane, and have actually found quite a few 80s oddballs from his want list.

Big Daddy times two! Rick Reuschel is one of my favorite Cubs players from the past. The 1976 Hostess with the sweet 70s ‘stache is already in my collection, though this one is an upgrade. The 1979 Kellogg’s 3D Superstars is a newbie. This card is also in great condition as these 3D cards are often cracked.

Jerome Walton appeared in several Oddball issues in 1989 and 1990 coming off his Rookie of the Year campaign. Walton is also sporting my favorite Cubs top. The blue with the large Cubs logo on the chest.

The first of three Ryne Sandberg’s is a 1988 Fold Out. I’ll keep this one flat, but the next one I’ll be folding out.

Another new Sandberg, and this one I’ve never seen before. It’s a 1989 Fleer Heroes of Baseball. This was another of Fleer’s 44-card sets that were popular in the 1980’s.

And another Sandberg I had never seen. At first glance, I thought it was a custom card based on the blurry photo. Still not exactly sure what this card is. The back says 1991 Stadium Club Herald. My search showed the same card, but with Charter Member on the front. I’ll have to do more searching.

Yet another new Oddball in the form of a 1989 J.J. Nissen Superstars Mark Grace.

This 2003 Topps Chrome Mark Guthrie is only highlighted here because a high school friend’s dad was Mark Guthrie. Baseball Mark Guthrie spent a short amount of time with the Cubs, despite two stints (1999-2000, 2003).

Ken Holtzman, on the other hand, spent plenty of time on the mound with the Cubs. Shane gifted me some vintage including this 1967 Topps.

Speaking of vintage. This isn’t vintage, rather a reprint from 2001 Topps Archives of Monte Irvin.

Sportflics are cool cards. I also hate Sportflics because they curve and I hate the feeling when you rub your fingers the wrong way in the front. It’s like fingernails on a chalkboard. But I love Vance Law!

Here’s another great card and I say that for three reasons:

1) Never knew this card existed

2) It’s serial numbered (248/250)

3) World Series Champs! 1907

Heritage Minors is my second favorite product of the year, only to regular Heritage (which releases in six days). Though, Heritage Minors is tops in my book for bang for your buck. You can typically grab two cases of Minors at the same price as one case of regular Heritage. Sure, the hits aren’t on the same level, but it’s great value.

And here’s a serial numbered Heritage Minors Albert Almora. The Orange bordered parallels are numbered to 25, and this is 21/25. Awesome!

Mr. Cub Ernie Banks checking in on this 1992 Front Row card. I have a few Front Row cards from the early 90’s (mostly basketball), but this is my first Front Row Cubs card.

Finally…the Ernie Banks of today, Kris Bryant. There’s only and will ever be only one Mr. Cub (Ernie Banks), though Kris Bryant is as close as they come these days. This is a cool Topps Bunt card which looks like the cover of a program.

And this is a shiny Stadium Club Insert, “Beam Team.”

Awesome cards from Shane! Hoping to get his box out by Saturday and hope he enjoys his box as much as I enjoyed mine.

Previewing The 2018 Topps Heritage Cubs Checklist

Today marked Checklist Release Day for 2018 Topps Heritage, which will be out this time next week (February 28).

Heritage has quickly become my favorite release of the year due to the variety of parallels, relics, and autographs that it delivers. The product does not deliver many autographs (an average of 2-3 per case, but I pulled five in my case last year), but when it does they are usually a great hit.

While the #AllRise Aaron Judge fever turned the hobby into gold mining in 2017, we could see similar pandemonium in 2018 with Shohei Ohtani, especially as we are now seeing Heritage case prices reach and exceed the $1,500 threshold.

Fortunately, I pulled the trigger early on two cases at $800 each (I actually missed $735 prices by one day before they rose). Those prices are looking like a bargain at the moment.

Back to the checklist. We all know Ohtani is here in autograph form as well as a non-Auto card. Today, we found out Ohtani will be in the set as an action parallel. He will not have a card in the 1-500 master set as expected. But this is a Cubs blog, so enough about Ohtani.

The base 1-400 set features 16 Cubs cards. Here is the rundown:

20 – Anthony Rizzo

43 – Jon Lester

63 – Ian Happ

80 – Kris Bryant

106 – Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant

107 – Kris Bryant

126 – Jose Quintana

171 – Javier Baez

241 – Addison Russell

247 – Willson Contreras

264 – Carl Edwards Jr.

268 – Kyle Schwarber

288 – Jake Arrieta

297 – Cubs Rookies (Taylor Davis, Dillon Maples, Jen Ho Tseng)

362 – Kris Bryant

368 – Jason Heyward

Reviewing Base Cubs Checklist

Not many surprises here. The Rizzo/Bryant card #106 will likely be a Bryzzo card which has become popular…and I’m not complaining. The Cubs get the triple rookie card as opposed to the dual rookies. Our trifecta truly shows we are no longer in the Rookie sensation phase. Again, this is a good thing when the Rookies of yesteryear are now Bryant, Schwarber, Russell, Baez, Happ, etc. my only complaint is Jake Arrieta, when it’s long been known he would not be in Chicago in 2018. However, Arrieta remains unsigned even today, so there is nowhere else to put him and being one of the game’s top pitchers Topps has to include him. So, all in all this is an A+ team checklist.

High Number Short Prints

The Cubs get five players in the 100-card short print portion of the set. They are as followed:

403 – Ben Zobrist

411 – Albert Almora

423 – Kyle Hendricks

430 – Wade Davis

455 – Drew Smyly

I do have an issue with 40-percent of this checklist. First off, Wade Davis isn’t a Cub, and wasn’t expected to resign. He signed with the Colorado Rockies at the end of December, likely two weeks past the Heritage deadline for players that switched teams. So, I get it, but don’t like it. Drew Smyly is a surprise addition here as he will likely not throw a pitch in 2018 due to injury. Overall, a solid B. The short print checklist as a whole for 2018 is much weaker than years past.

There are several parallels and inserts featuring Cubs players. Overall, I like the Cubs checklist and looking forward to receiving my two cases.

For the full 2018 Topps Heritage checklist view it HERE .

No Mail Monday: One Million Cubs Project Update

This blog comes a day late and several hundred thousand Cubs cards short of a million. Monday presented us with empty mailboxes due to President’s Day.

The holiday also gave me an extra day to play catch up, but not enough time to write about it. So here we go.

Three trade packages were packed up yesterday and will be shipped out today. A few EBay and Sportlots sales were also packed up.

Additionally, continued sorting occurred. A nice amount of Cubs cards has been picked out of about a dozen monster boxes from the haul three weeks ago. A separate post later this week will highlight some of the finds.

My wife had three college friends in town over the weekend, so I had to use my Tetris skills at squeezing those 51 monster boxes into my existing card room and closet. They fit…barely.

While picking up card room, I did start to organize my recent trade acquisitions into monster boxes, which is important to get a better estimation on my current count. At this time, I have roughly 80,000 Cubs cards sorted. It’s unknown how many additional Cubs are within many unsorted boxes. At any rate, I would guess my total count is approaching, but not more than 90,000 cards.

In tap this week: mailday reviews with a few incoming packages in transit, an update on the Cubs cards from the 51-monster box pickup, and hopefully a special card that will arrive late this week.

Mailday Saturday: Pre-Rookie Ryne Sandberg

Throughout the years I have had many Cubs cards on my want list. Last week, one set was scratched off that list when I acquired a sealed complete set of 1990 Topps TV.

This week, another card has been crossed off that want list, but this one will not count toward the One Million Cubs cards because it’s not a Cubs card. The 1981 TCMA Ryne Sandberg is part of the Oklahoma City 89ers set, a Philadelphia Phillies minor league set.

Sandberg came up through the Philadelphia Phillies minor league system before a trade to the Chicago Cubs. Over the years I have always eyed this particular set, especially a decade ago when I began picking the up several minor league team sets.

Typically, this set has been running for an average of $60. Since the quest to collect a million Cubs cards began roughly six weeks ago I have begun searching for some of these cards I have long wanted including this non-Cubs entry.

There were two of these cards in a PSA 7 for sale on eBay for $39.99 delivered. My wife gave me an eBay gift card for Valentine’s Day and with 8% eBay bucks in effect I quickly made the purchase. It was purchased Thursday and in my mailbox Saturday. That’s a great turnaround.

I still have funds left on the card and will be saving it for when something else pops up. Two more cards on my want list are an Ernie Banks rookie card and an old 1887 Old Judge card of any Cubs player. At one time, a seller had a few authenticated Old Judges for sale in the $125 vicinity, but haven’t seen them listed in a while. A future blog post will list some more Cubs want list items.

1990 Topps TV Chicago Cubs Review

Two weeks ago I posted about my steal of a deal on EBay acquiring a sealed complete set of 1990 Topps TV Chicago Cubs.

That eBay purchase was about as perfect timing as one can get after a random search. An email that morning offered 8% eBay bucks for a limited time and my eyes had been set on a 1990 Topps TV Cubs lot. When I typed in 1990 Cubs Topps TV something else showed up on my screen. It was a complete sealed set on auction and ending in just a few hours.

The bid was placed and by the afternoon I had the set coming my way for just $22 shipped. Another sealed set is listed on eBay for $57.91 so I was happy with my final purchase price.

After submitting payment I realized I’m not going to unseal this set. But I want to see these cards, so back to eBay I went to purchase the one 20-card lot I had my eyes on. This particular lot includes Ty Griffin, whom I loosely collect. It was still available and for $11.90 it was on the way to my mailbox.

The Topps TV set includes 66 cards, and many of the players didn’t appear on any other big league cardboard. First, though, the card I was after was Griffin. The Cubs first round draft pick in 1988 did appear in many sets from 1988 to 1991, despite never appearing in a MLB game.

Jeff Hearron did appear in a Major League game, but his last appearance came four years before this Cubs card. The catcher played 16 games for the Toronto Blue Jays in 1985 and 1986.

Phil Harrison was a 16th round draft pick out of the University of Nebraska in 1986. Harrison topped out at AAA Iowa in 1990.

Brian Guinn was so close to the big leagues…for seven seasons. The outfielder from Berkeley, California was drafted three times (1979 30th round by the Oakland Athletics, 1982 6th round by the San Francisco Giants, and 1983 5th round by the Oakland Athletics). He made it all the way to AAA Tacoma in Oakland’s system in 1986. Before the 1987 season, Guinn came over to the Cubs and spent the year with AA Pittsfield. Guinn played with AAA Iowa from 1988 through 1991 and his final pro baseball season in the White Sox organization in 1992.

Darrin Duffy played the 1990 season with AA Charlotte, and fell back to Single-A Peoria in 1991. Duffy did get back to AAA in 1992 with the Iowa Cubs.

A highly touted prospect, Derrick May was the Cubs first rounder in 1986 and made his MLB debut in 1990. May played with the Cubs through the strike-shortened 1994 season, and the final years of his career with the Brewers, Astros, Phillies, Expos, and Orioles.

Ray Mullino joined May in the Cubs draft class of 1986. The Mississippi State product was selected in the 25th round. Mullino never made it past Double-A.

Bill Long had a six-year big league career with the Cubs, White Sox, and Expos. Long split the 1990 season on both sides of Chicago going 6-1, 4.37 ERA in 55.2 innings on the north side. He was released by the Cubs in December 1990.

Cedric Landrum played one season for the Cubs, batting .233 with 27 stolen bases in 56 games during the 1991 season.

1990 was the final year of pro baseball for Greg Kallevig. The pitcher played six seasons in the Cubs organization.

Doug Strange played in 55 games for the Cubs in 1991 and 1992. Strange also played with the Tigers, Rangers, Mariners, Expos, and Pirates in his nine-year career.

Jeff Small spent the 1990 and 1991 seasons with the AAA Iowa Cubs. Small finished his career with both the Reds and Marlins organizations.

I’ll always remember Laddie Renfroe from his 1991 Score rookie card. Renfroe went 0-1, 13.50 ERA in just four games for the Cubs in 1991.

Dave Pavlas appeared in 13 games for the 1990 Chicago Cubs sporting a 2-0 record in 21.1 innings. He was released by the Cubs in September 1991, and later made a return to MLB with the Yankees in 1995.

Steve Parker appeared in 44 games for the 1990 Iowa Cubs, and was later sent to the St. Louis Cardinals where he played in six games for Louisville in his final year of pro ball.

Fernando Zarranz was drafted by the Cubs in the 14th round of the 1985 draft. After working his way up the ladder he made his first AAA appearance with the 1988 Iowa Cubs. Zarranz reached AAA again in 1990 for five games. It was also his last season in the Cubs system.

Here’s a surprise. And typically I am not surprised when reading about players in the Cubs organization…even as a minor leaguer. Dana Williams had me stumped. First, I saw the Williams Cubs card and said to myself: “who?” Then, I turned the card over and read Williams previously played in the Red Sox organization. Then it dawned on me. This is the same Dana Williams that appeared on a 1990 Fleer rookie card with Rich Monteleone. I know the card well, but never knew he would later be a member of the Cubs minor leagues. Williams played eight games for the 1989 Boston Red Sox. He was traded to the White Sox in 1989, and then came over to the Cubs in 1990 playing in 50 games for the 1990 Charlotte Knights.

This player certainly didn’t make me go, “who?” Rick Wilkins had some good years with the Chicago Cubs in the early 1990’s. He made his debut in 1991 and played in Chicago through the 1995 season. Wilkins batted .303 with 30 home runs and 73 RBI in 1993.

Another catcher that didn’t quite have a splashy year like Wilkins ’93 was Hector Villanueva. Though, the big guy was a highly regarded prospect early on. Villanueva played 174 games with the Cubs in three seasons.

Finally, Gary Varsho, who had already played two seasons with the Cubs by the time this card was printed. His final season in Chicago was 1990, but did play an additional five seasons with the Pirates, Reds, and Phillies.

The plan is to finish off the set by finding lots and cheap singles. This set gets a solid A from me. A great junk era set that is fairly difficult to find.

What Pulled Me Away From My Beloved Chicago Cubs in the 1990's

In my recent post about securing Pearl Jam tickets for their Wrigley Field concert, several Twitter followers began discussing their favorite 1990’s (and 1980’s) bands.

One tweeter mentioned the Presidents of the United States of America. That brought back a flood of memories. The band that brought us “Lump” and “Peaches” was the first compact disc (CD) I purchased as an 8th grader in 1995.

It also took me back to a time in which I had abandoned my childhood love for the Chicago Cubs. In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, my collecting memories take me back to sorting during the Friday night TGIF lineup of Full House, Perfect Strangers, Just The Ten Of Us, Boy Meets World, etc.

By the way, Perfect Strangers was set in Chicago, and Wrigley Field was in the opening montage.

I would pull aside my Cubs cards and make “card houses” with all the rest.

Basketball became my favorite sport in the early 1990’s and I would spend every waking hour in my driveway shooting hoops. Then Shaq came along and basketball was my game. The strike of 1994 didn’t help my baseball fandom at all, either.

A Saturday trip to Eagle Country Market (a regional Midwest grocery chain that is no longer) with my mom reintroduced me to professional wrestling. While mom shopped, I would head over to the magazine section. During the fall of 1994 on one of these trips I glanced at a WWF Magazine with Doink the Clown on the cover. I was intrigued.

This brought me into wrestling again. It also began my newest hobby. No longer was I after Shaq or Grant Hill basketball cards, or Cubs cards from my baseball card collecting days of the late 1980’s. Wrestling magazines was my new jam.

Through 1995, 1996, and 1997 my weekly ritual was going grocery shopping in Kewanee, Illinois, about a 10-minute drive from my small hometown. It included a stop to the Book Emporium. I would grab two or three wrestling magazines each trip and sit in the car while mom shopped.

This practice ended around 1998 when the great home run chase brought me back to baseball. More on that in another blog.

One Million Cubs Project on Pearl Jam

No mail came today, but there were two packages in the mailbox Monday. The first, from Mark, contained the vintage I blogged about yesterday. The second package was the 20-card lot of 1990 Topps TV cards I purchased from eBay last week. When time permits, I’ll do a full post on the Cubs Topps TV haul.

Normally, that post would have came today, but it’s shaking out to be a busy week. The One Million Cubs Project continues to gain steam…and Cubs cards. I do have numerous trades in the works. Now I just need to find some time to put packages together.

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Last night I put together two boxes from trades that have already brought in Cubs cards. Additionally, I spent a couple hours adding existing cards to the Project database. Even after that time, I’m at less than 9,000 cards catalogued.

Today, I received some great news that is slightly Cubs-related. Tickets are secured for the August Pearl Jam concert at Wrigley Field. In 2016, I attended Pearl Jam’s show at Wrigley and it was amazing. It marked the first Pearl Jam concert I had attended since their Bootleg Tour stop in Champaign, Illinois in 2003.

Less than three months after Eddie Vedder belted out “All the Way” on a stage in centerfield at Wrigley Field, the Chicago Cubs did in fact go all the way. I still get goosebumps watching my grainy iPhone video from that night.

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While the concert was awesome, the merchandise tent also did not fail to disappoint. Adorning one of my walls is this concert poster that features some iconic 1980’s Chicago characters in Molly Ringwald from Chicago-based John Hughes films and Harry Caray. The girl on the far left, according to many Internet sleuths appears to be a dancer from a float in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. The dog head on the far right is unknown, but a few threads regarding this poster reveals it could be an artist (David Failes) trademark.

And…the band sold baseball cards! I bought several packs and sold most of them off.

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I did keep my Vedder in a Cubs uniform card. This is a set that I will be lookin to re-add to my collection down the road.

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day and my wife and I have a romantic dinner planned for our local sports bar for trivia night with another couple. This is the married life young lads.

Apologies for the cheap post with lack of Cubs cards. I’ll do better next time.