Awards and honors

 

I keep forgetting to acknowledge TCDB and their members for voting my blog as "Favorite Blog" again this year.

This makes it five years in a row and six out of the past seven. "Favorite blog" seems like an outdated award even to me -- sounds something like "favorite cassette tape" -- but it shows that people are still reading and still enjoying and it's nice to have that reminder. Or maybe it's like the Gold Glove award and people vote purely on reputation.

 

There is the medal table, except I get a crown.

Now on to the honor that more people care about -- and they really do care about it.

The Baseball Hall of Fame announced the baseball writers' selections for this year's Hall of Fame class. Three players are going in -- Ichiro, CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner -- joining the earlier committee picks of Dave Parker and Dick Allen.

This means I need to update the Most Hall of Famers tally, which I'll get to when the 2025 class is inducted. For now I want to go through some of my favorite cards in my collection of all five players. Let's take a look.

1. DICK ALLEN

Number of cards: 41

I like Allen's cards a lot. The first card of his I ever saw was his 1976 Topps card, which is his sunset card and not the greatest.

 

This is my favorite card of his. It's from 1966 Topps, which I've never been fond of, but this is a set highlight. It looks so damn cool. I like the dark stadium background behind him. Allen looks great. The Phillies colors really work here. Fantastic.

When I think my collection isn't so hot -- and, yes, I have those moments -- I like to do things like this. I have not one but two 1971 Dick Allen cards! It's not the easiest card to get, being a high number and I've got the requisite two for the '71 set and the Dodgers collection. Sure, they've got some wear. I'm not that fancy.

 

 

These two Kellogg's cards of Allen are great as well. He's positively beaming and that signature looks nice at an angle like that.

 

And, of course, his 1975 All-Star card is one of my favorites, too. It made the top 30 in the 1975 Topps countdown so I don't need to write anymore.

Least favorite Allen card? Maybe his 1972 Topps card as it seems like such a disappointment. Topps used the same image from his 1970 Topps card and pretended he was wearing a White Sox hat.

2. DAVE PARKER

Number of cards: 99

I should get that 100th, huh? 

Dave Parker also has a number of great cards. Out of all the Hall of Fame entrants this year, he is the one that is the biggest part of my younger days, making his debut right at the time I started getting interested in cards and baseball.

 

His 1976 card will always be the Parker card that strikes at the heart of my childhood wonder over baseball cards. It's the first one of his I pulled and it's my favorite.

That's saying something because, wow, did I love this card. It's one of my favorite from the 1978 All-Star cards. It's tough to explain to folks who weren't around to collect at this time how cool a card of a slugger just chilling by the batting cage is.

Least favorite Parker card? I don't like thinking in those terms for players like Parker, but I'm assuming it would be a Reds card, especially one showing him up close. He never looked right with the Reds who made him shave his facial hair.

3. CC SABATHIA

Number of cards: 59

I'm a bit surprised I have that many of cards of Sabathia, just because an extended time with the Yankees will always decrease the number of cards in my collection. 

 

His 2002 Topps rookie cup card will always be my favorite. It remains from the only pack (packs?) of 2002 Topps I bought. There was a period when I would give out '02 Topps to anyone (not that I had more than 25 cards). But the Sabathia stayed with me throughout. Today I have maybe 30 cards from the set, so CC has friends.

Once he arrived with the Yankees he became the enemy and none of his cards were favorites. Several of them are pretty goofy.

 

But I like this 1962 Topps tribute in 2011 Heritage. The players chosen for these multi-photo cards in 2011 Heritage did all right for themselves. Sabathia, Ichiro, Jeter, Cabrera,  Halladay and Mauer are all in the Hall of Fame.

 

Least favorite Sabathia card? I find his 2015 Heritage card really goofy.

 

 

4. ICHIRO SUZUKI

 

Number of cards: 90

 

I've written about Ichiro's cards quite a bit on the blog, since the very beginning, but I've never been a collector of his cards. He was one of the more popular players to collect 15 years ago. Still I was surprised that I have a fair amount (but not his rookie).

 

 I wouldn't say this is my favorite of his cards in my collection but I've always thought it was cool. It's the green parallel of this insert set and it matches with the outfield wall and Ichiro's uniform.

 

I've also always liked his action-packed 2004 Topps card (this is what you get when you photograph 2004 Topps on a sunny day).

 

My two "rarest" Ichiro cards. The 2008 Stadium Club card is one of the numbered base cards. The 2015 Marlins card is a short-print.

One thing I noticed in going through my Ichiro cards is they really liked to show this:

Lightsaber activate!

 

Least favorite Ichiro card? His 2007 Topps card that shows him sliding into home in which he'd spread his arms out is over-cropped and you lose the effect.

 

 

5. BILLY WAGNER

 

Number of cards: 13

 

I knew I had the least amount of Billy Wagner cards of the five. It's because of when Wagner started his career. He began when I started my collecting hiatus and I didn't come back until he was 12 years into his career and a New York Met.

 

 

My favorite Wagner card that I own has long been his 2005 Opening Day card. It was even an early blog post of mine (back when we ran images teeny-tiny and nobody cared). I know there's a lot going on with this card but it's kind of why I like it. 

But, yeah, I don't own the iconic 1998 fireman Wagner card or much else.

Per usual, I have nothing to say about the actual Hall voting -- who didn't get in, who the one person was who didn't vote for Ichiro, who might get in next year, blah, blah. It's bunch of noise to me and every year I can't wait for it to stop.

My favorite part of new players being honored by the Hall is we get to celebrate those players and maybe celebrate those cards if we're the card collecting type.

I'm happy there are five more of those guys this year. It should be a fun induction ceremony.