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C.A.: 1956 Topps Don Mossi

(I have a high school reunion coming up. I'm still debating whether to go. I haven't seen many of these people since graduation. Then there's the horrible realization that after all the "hellos" and "what do you dos," all I would have to talk about extensively is ... baseball cards. Time for Cardboard Appreciation. This is the 192nd in a series):


I've got a lot of cards. I don't really know how many. I've had a project going for as long as this blog has been around to find out. I don't know when or if I'll ever finish.

If I had to guess, it's in the neighborhood of 50,000.

I know there are some people who have a lot more. But 50 thou is a lot for a majority of people and honestly it shocked me when I first tried to estimate how many cards I had and came up with that number. I always figured it was half of that.

But no matter how many cards I have, it will feel inadequate. That's because I'll be trying to do some sort of post, or reading a blog, and I'll realize that there is some often-displayed player or card that I DON'T HAVE.

And you can't read the blogs for very long before you realize that if you don't have a card of Don Mossi then your collection ain't nothing.

Probably the most notable Mossi cards are his 1958 and 1966 Topps cards. Both super-close head shots with very little going in the background to distract from what many have called the ugliest ballplayer ever. Jim Bouton himself placed Mossi on his All-Ugly Nine.

This is Mossi's second-year card and it suits me perfectly given the whole '56 collecting thing. It came from David K., who sent another fantastic package, which I'll display some other day.

I wanted Mossi to get his own post.

Because, this week, I officially became a Mossi collector. And I feel like I've passed yet another collecting milestone.

Today my collection feels a little more adequate than it did yesterday.

Until tomorrow, when it doesn't.

Like the sports folks say:

"I'll enjoy this one for 24 hours. Then it's back to work."

Comments

BASEBALL DAD said…
Well !!!! Thanks for letting me know my Indian collection "ain't nothing" . lol

Seriously, I admit it, I'm an Indian collector and don't have a Mossi card !

I should be banned from League Park when it reopens !!
Zayden said…
Yep, going to need a Mossi now!
jacobmrley said…
I went to my 20 year reunion a couple of weeks ago - mostly because it was open bar and a mile from my house. It was a couple of dozen one minute conversations I didn't want to have and about a dozen 5 minute ones I did. I say go just for the morbid curiosity factor.

Oh, and most people were most fascinated by my baseball card blog, though I don't think anyone actually looked it up.

And my 1966 Mossi is simply the best. He's old and ugly on that one.