[Here's my entry for Matt's Blog Bat Around]
Showing posts with label Blog Bat Around. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Blog Bat Around. Show all posts
Saturday, November 4, 2023
Sunday, January 27, 2019
Blog bat-around/thinking exercise: NBA edition
The previous installment of this three-part series didn't do so well with readers, a smart person might take that as a sign and just forget about doing the planned third edition, but I never graduated high school so...
I think everybody knows what's what by now, but just in case you don't, these bat-around posts are based on the first player that comes to mind when thinking of a particular team, simple enough, yes?
Atlanta Hawks - Dominique Wilkins: Depending on what era you grew up in, the Hawks player that comes to mind first could vary quite a bit, but if you're anywhere near my age, it's most certainly going to be The Human Highlight Film.
Boston Celtics - Bill Russell: For anyone whoever gets caught up in these incessant GOAT discussions regarding Jordan v. LeBron, I'm going to do you a little favor, free of charge, and tell you that that conversation is seriously flawed - because Bill Russell is the greatest player of all time! Oh, and one other thing, if defense was still allowed in the NBA, Mr. Russell could easily play in today's game, and would be just as successful... if not more so.
Brooklyn Nets - Brooke Lopez: I thought of Jason Kidd first, but I'm pretty sure he was retired when the Nets moved to Brooklyn, so I guess it's Brooke by default.
Charlotte Hornets - Larry Johnson: I know that technically speaking, this current Hornets franchise isn't the original, but LJ was my favorite player when I was young, so if someone says Charlotte Hornets, I think of Larry... even if it isn't the same franchise.
Chicago Bulls - Michael Jordan/Scottie Pippen: Here's a hot take for ya, without Pippen, Jordan never wins a single title!
Cleveland Cavaliers - Mark Price: Mark was the Bob Cousy/Steve Nash of my childhood.
Dallas Mavericks - Derek Harper: Sign #3,014 that you're old, you think of anyone other than Dirk Nowitzki when the Mavericks are brought up.
Denver Nuggets - Antonio McDyess: He was so much fun to watch before the knee injury.
Detroit Pistons - Bill Laimbeer: Very few, if any, players could stir sh*t up like Bill could.
Golden State Warriors - Chris Mullin: The Warriors were absolutely loaded with talent in the early 90's, and were probably only one dominant big away from being a serious contender.
Houston Rockets - Hakeem Olajuwon: There will never be a better Rocket than The Dream!
Indiana Pacers - Reggie Miller: Another obvious choice.
Los Angeles Clippers - Darius Miles/Lamar Odom: When thinking of the Clippers, I think late 90's... I think greatest of the Nike commercial ever... and I think of these two knuckleheads dancing in said commercial.
Los Angeles Lakers - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: The second best player in NBA history (my opinion, of course).
Memphis Grizzlies - Pau Gasol: I would imagine that most people would think of one of the Gasol brothers, Pau was the first one to give the team a taste of success, so he get's the nod.
Miami Heat - Rony Seikaly: The original Mr. Heat! Zo eventually came along and made everyone forget how consistently good Rony was in his prime, but if you're old enough, you remember.
Milwaukee Bucks - Ray Allen: Jesus Shuttlesworth!!!!!!!
Minnesota Timberwolves - Pooh Richardson: Garnett would probably be the obvious choice here, but thanks to my early collecting days, I always associate the Twolves with Pooh... in more ways than one :)
New Orleans Pelicans - Anthony Davis: He's literally the only Pelican I know of, and from what I keep reading, it sounds like it's only a matter of time before he leaves - after all, LeBron needs other superstars around him to win championships. Also, I know it's been a few years now, but the Pelicans is still dumb name for a team.
New York Knicks - Larry Johnson: I already told you, I was big LJ fan!
Oklahoma City Thunder - Kevin Durant: I gotta be honest, because of how the Sonics were stolen from Seattle, I really haven't paid much attention to the Thunder since everything went down.
Orlando Magic - Shaquille O'Neal: He should've never left!
Philadelphia 76ers - Julius Erving: One of my first "vintage" basketball cards was a 1981-82 Topps Dr. J (#30), so even though I never saw him play live, I always think of him on that card, hands on hips, anytime the Sixers are mentioned.
Phoenix Suns - Dan Majerle: Thunder Dan was another one of my favorite players growing up, were I to make a list, he'd most certainly be in the top five.
Portland Trail Blazers - Bill Walton: No Walton, no lone championship!
Sacramento Kings - Kenny Smith: A 1989-90 Fleer inspired pick.
San Antonio Spurs - Tim Duncan: I grew up with David Robinson, but Timmy was just such an all-around great player that it's hard not to think of him first.
Toronto Raptors - Damon Stoudamire: The first relevant Raptor!
Utah Jazz - Karl Malone/John Stockton: You can't have one without the other, anyone that says otherwise is just lying. Growing up as a Blazers fan in Portland, I could not openly route for the Jazz under any circumstances, but I did do so in secret for many years... I was always impressed with Jerry Sloan's old school style of coaching as well.
Washington Wizards - Chris Webber: I know that it's been a couple of decades now, but the decision to ditch the Bullets team name in favor of the Wizards still sucks.
So I guess that's a wrap on my bat-around trilogy, they certainly were fun to put together, but if I'm being honest, I sure am glad that I don't have to do anymore for the time being :)
Thanks for taking a moment to look at my page.
I think everybody knows what's what by now, but just in case you don't, these bat-around posts are based on the first player that comes to mind when thinking of a particular team, simple enough, yes?
Atlanta Hawks - Dominique Wilkins: Depending on what era you grew up in, the Hawks player that comes to mind first could vary quite a bit, but if you're anywhere near my age, it's most certainly going to be The Human Highlight Film.
Boston Celtics - Bill Russell: For anyone whoever gets caught up in these incessant GOAT discussions regarding Jordan v. LeBron, I'm going to do you a little favor, free of charge, and tell you that that conversation is seriously flawed - because Bill Russell is the greatest player of all time! Oh, and one other thing, if defense was still allowed in the NBA, Mr. Russell could easily play in today's game, and would be just as successful... if not more so.
Brooklyn Nets - Brooke Lopez: I thought of Jason Kidd first, but I'm pretty sure he was retired when the Nets moved to Brooklyn, so I guess it's Brooke by default.
Charlotte Hornets - Larry Johnson: I know that technically speaking, this current Hornets franchise isn't the original, but LJ was my favorite player when I was young, so if someone says Charlotte Hornets, I think of Larry... even if it isn't the same franchise.
Chicago Bulls - Michael Jordan/Scottie Pippen: Here's a hot take for ya, without Pippen, Jordan never wins a single title!
Cleveland Cavaliers - Mark Price: Mark was the Bob Cousy/Steve Nash of my childhood.
Dallas Mavericks - Derek Harper: Sign #3,014 that you're old, you think of anyone other than Dirk Nowitzki when the Mavericks are brought up.
Denver Nuggets - Antonio McDyess: He was so much fun to watch before the knee injury.
Detroit Pistons - Bill Laimbeer: Very few, if any, players could stir sh*t up like Bill could.
Golden State Warriors - Chris Mullin: The Warriors were absolutely loaded with talent in the early 90's, and were probably only one dominant big away from being a serious contender.
Houston Rockets - Hakeem Olajuwon: There will never be a better Rocket than The Dream!
Indiana Pacers - Reggie Miller: Another obvious choice.
Los Angeles Clippers - Darius Miles/Lamar Odom: When thinking of the Clippers, I think late 90's... I think greatest of the Nike commercial ever... and I think of these two knuckleheads dancing in said commercial.
Los Angeles Lakers - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: The second best player in NBA history (my opinion, of course).
Memphis Grizzlies - Pau Gasol: I would imagine that most people would think of one of the Gasol brothers, Pau was the first one to give the team a taste of success, so he get's the nod.
Miami Heat - Rony Seikaly: The original Mr. Heat! Zo eventually came along and made everyone forget how consistently good Rony was in his prime, but if you're old enough, you remember.
Milwaukee Bucks - Ray Allen: Jesus Shuttlesworth!!!!!!!
Minnesota Timberwolves - Pooh Richardson: Garnett would probably be the obvious choice here, but thanks to my early collecting days, I always associate the Twolves with Pooh... in more ways than one :)
New Orleans Pelicans - Anthony Davis: He's literally the only Pelican I know of, and from what I keep reading, it sounds like it's only a matter of time before he leaves - after all, LeBron needs other superstars around him to win championships. Also, I know it's been a few years now, but the Pelicans is still dumb name for a team.
New York Knicks - Larry Johnson: I already told you, I was big LJ fan!
Oklahoma City Thunder - Kevin Durant: I gotta be honest, because of how the Sonics were stolen from Seattle, I really haven't paid much attention to the Thunder since everything went down.
Orlando Magic - Shaquille O'Neal: He should've never left!
Philadelphia 76ers - Julius Erving: One of my first "vintage" basketball cards was a 1981-82 Topps Dr. J (#30), so even though I never saw him play live, I always think of him on that card, hands on hips, anytime the Sixers are mentioned.
Phoenix Suns - Dan Majerle: Thunder Dan was another one of my favorite players growing up, were I to make a list, he'd most certainly be in the top five.
Portland Trail Blazers - Bill Walton: No Walton, no lone championship!
Sacramento Kings - Kenny Smith: A 1989-90 Fleer inspired pick.
San Antonio Spurs - Tim Duncan: I grew up with David Robinson, but Timmy was just such an all-around great player that it's hard not to think of him first.
Toronto Raptors - Damon Stoudamire: The first relevant Raptor!
Utah Jazz - Karl Malone/John Stockton: You can't have one without the other, anyone that says otherwise is just lying. Growing up as a Blazers fan in Portland, I could not openly route for the Jazz under any circumstances, but I did do so in secret for many years... I was always impressed with Jerry Sloan's old school style of coaching as well.
Washington Wizards - Chris Webber: I know that it's been a couple of decades now, but the decision to ditch the Bullets team name in favor of the Wizards still sucks.
So I guess that's a wrap on my bat-around trilogy, they certainly were fun to put together, but if I'm being honest, I sure am glad that I don't have to do anymore for the time being :)
Thanks for taking a moment to look at my page.
Friday, January 25, 2019
Blog bat-around/thinking exercise: NFL edition
As promised a couple of days ago, I went ahead and did an NFL version of the most recent blog bat-around, which ended up being even more fun to do than the MLB edition.
Everybody knows the deal by now, right? First name that comes to mind when you think of a particular team, and the "why", if you're so inclined, which I of course am (how am I suppose to ramble on if I don't add the "why's").
There will be a few obvious choices in here (can't avoid those), but like the MLB edition, there were a few unexpected (even to me) names that were thought of first, so here it goes:
Arizona Cardinals - Kurt Warner: The last complete NFL game that I watched from start to finish was Super Bowl whatever (I can never remember the numbers), the one with the Cardinals and Steelers. I was actually rooting for the Cardinals too, which is probably why they lost, sorry Cardinals fans :(
Atlanta Falcons - Michael Vick: I hate that he comes to mind first anytime someone mentions the Dirty Birds, but he does... and probably always will.
Baltimore Ravens - Ray Lewis: He's a blowhard, especially when the cameras are rolling, but he was also a pretty darn good football player.
Buffalo Bills - Bruce Smith: I knew of exactly four defensive players when I was a youngster, all four of which will be on this list, because after all these years I still identify them with the teams that they played for at the time. Here's a question, will Bruce's sacks record ever be broken? Don't answer that, because no, it'll never be broken!
Carolina Panthers - Jonathan Stewart: My favorite Duck of all time!
Chicago Bears - Steve McMichael: A couple of people on this list are there only because of their association with professional wrestling at a time when I was completely obsessed with the sport (I know, it's not a sport, but you know what I mean), and Mongo was one of those guys.
Cincinnati Bengals - Ickey Woods: There's been a lot of talk about end zone celebrations over the last year or so, personally I don't have a problem with them, but anytime I see one and/or hear about one, I always think to myself "Yeah that's nice and all, but it's no Ickey Shuffle!".
Cleveland Browns - Jim Brown: Upon his retirement, Cleveland should have just renamed their team the "Cleveland Jim Browns"!
Dallas Cowboys - Tony Dorsett: I don't remember which year it was, or even which particular card it was, but my first "old" football card was of Tony Dorsett, because of that, I will forever associate the Cowboys with him.
Denver Broncos - Floyd Little: Here's a pick that's a bit of a mystery to me, Floyd played way before my time, and I don't think that I've ever seen any footage of him, yet I still thought of him first when I got to the Broncos.
Detroit Lions - Barry Sanders: Upon his retirement, Detroit should have just renamed their team the Detroit Barry Sanders' :)
Green Bay Packers - Bart Starr: At this point in time, it's starting to feel like I've watched more old clips/games from NFL Films, than I have of things that have taken place during my lifetime - hence the Bart Starr association.
Houston Texans - JJ Watt: Can we refer to him as Mr. Texan yet?
Indianapolis Colts - Andre Rison: I know that most people associate Andre with the Falcons, but thanks to the 1989 Score set, and the crazy popular at the time rookie cards, he will always be a Colt to me.
Jacksonville Jaguars - Maurice Jones-Drew: He was literally the only Jaguar that I could think of.
Kansas City Chiefs - Joe Montana: Seeing him with anybody other than San Francisco was so weird at the time, and it's still weird to think about even now, but it was a pretty big deal at the time, big enough apparently that I still think of him more as a Chief than 49er.
Miami Dolphins - Dan Marino: One of the premiere quarterbacks from my childhood
Minnesota Vikings - Fran Tarkenton: Another NFL Films inspired pick.
New England Patriots - Tom Brady: Given the success that he's had over the last almost twenty years, this pick seems pretty obvious.
New Orleans Saints - Archie Manning: I already mentioned my first "old" football card of Tony Dorsett, well, my second one was of Archie Manning, so...
New York Giants - Lawrence Taylor: And now we've reached the third and final defensive player that I mentioned being familiar with as a wee one. His best days were behind him by the time I ever got to see him play, but even at that point in his career, he wasn't one to be taken lightly. His brief foray into professional wrestling just further solidified him with the Giants... at least in my mind.
New York Jets - Joe Namath: Three words... The Brady Bunch!
Oakland Raiders - Howie Long: I am such big fan of Howie Long's, so much so, that I've tried to avoid reading too much about him, you know, because usually when you find out too much about a particular athlete/celebrity, you almost always end up being disappointed. He was so great in Broken Arrow and Firestorm, and I can't believe that I'm saying this, but I actually kind of miss those Radio Shack commercials with him Teri Hatcher. Oh, and I do realize that most of his career was spent with the "Los Angeles Raiders", but he did play one season with the team in Oakland.
Philadelphia Eagles - Reggie White: Like Bruce Smith, Reggie was an absolute terror on quarterbacks when I was young, so once again, even though I didn't get to see him play a lot, it was kind of hard not to know who he was... and what he could do!
Pittsburgh Steelers - Joe Greene: Three more words... "Thanks, Mean Joe!"
St. Louis Rams - Kurt Warner: I know, twice on the same list, but I don't make the rules, so...
San Diego Chargers - Dan Fouts: Probably the most successful former Oregon Duck to ever play in the NFL.
San Francisco 49ers - Jerry Rice: I wasn't a huge fan of his when I was young, no real reason why, I just wasn't, but damn, every kid that I knew was either all about Bo Jackson or Jerry Rice... sometimes both!
Seattle Seahawks - Curt Warner: Never saw him play, but I've heard and seen enough Curt Warner Chevrolet commercials to last a lifetime.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Warren Sapp: I never really had a team in the NFL, but if I did, it probably would've been the Buccaneers, at least up until about ten years ago. Considering that they started acquiring some pretty talented players during the mid 90's, it's kind of amazing to think how long it took them to finally be consistently good.
Tennessee Titans - Kevin Dyson: Kevin Dyson is responsible for me losing $5 back in 1999, but I guess that's what I get for going against the grain and betting on the Titans to win the Super Bowl :(
Washington Redskins - Art Monk: I'm sure that some of you might be getting tired of hearing about my "old" football cards, it can't be helped though, at least not when making a list like this - anyways, an Art Monk rookie was the third "old" football card that was given to me. It's funny, I really can't remember much of anything anymore, but for some reason I can remember, in order, the first five "old" cards that I got, probably 25-30 years ago (Al Cowlings and Jack Youngblood were cards #4 and 5 respectively).
Okay, another one's in the books, now all that's left is an NBA edition, which I'm hoping will be ready to go live on Sunday - An NBA post on a Sunday? That's gonna bring in the views :)
Thanks for taking a moment to look at my page.
Everybody knows the deal by now, right? First name that comes to mind when you think of a particular team, and the "why", if you're so inclined, which I of course am (how am I suppose to ramble on if I don't add the "why's").
There will be a few obvious choices in here (can't avoid those), but like the MLB edition, there were a few unexpected (even to me) names that were thought of first, so here it goes:
Arizona Cardinals - Kurt Warner: The last complete NFL game that I watched from start to finish was Super Bowl whatever (I can never remember the numbers), the one with the Cardinals and Steelers. I was actually rooting for the Cardinals too, which is probably why they lost, sorry Cardinals fans :(
Atlanta Falcons - Michael Vick: I hate that he comes to mind first anytime someone mentions the Dirty Birds, but he does... and probably always will.
Baltimore Ravens - Ray Lewis: He's a blowhard, especially when the cameras are rolling, but he was also a pretty darn good football player.
Buffalo Bills - Bruce Smith: I knew of exactly four defensive players when I was a youngster, all four of which will be on this list, because after all these years I still identify them with the teams that they played for at the time. Here's a question, will Bruce's sacks record ever be broken? Don't answer that, because no, it'll never be broken!
Carolina Panthers - Jonathan Stewart: My favorite Duck of all time!
Chicago Bears - Steve McMichael: A couple of people on this list are there only because of their association with professional wrestling at a time when I was completely obsessed with the sport (I know, it's not a sport, but you know what I mean), and Mongo was one of those guys.
Cincinnati Bengals - Ickey Woods: There's been a lot of talk about end zone celebrations over the last year or so, personally I don't have a problem with them, but anytime I see one and/or hear about one, I always think to myself "Yeah that's nice and all, but it's no Ickey Shuffle!".
Cleveland Browns - Jim Brown: Upon his retirement, Cleveland should have just renamed their team the "Cleveland Jim Browns"!
Dallas Cowboys - Tony Dorsett: I don't remember which year it was, or even which particular card it was, but my first "old" football card was of Tony Dorsett, because of that, I will forever associate the Cowboys with him.
Denver Broncos - Floyd Little: Here's a pick that's a bit of a mystery to me, Floyd played way before my time, and I don't think that I've ever seen any footage of him, yet I still thought of him first when I got to the Broncos.
Detroit Lions - Barry Sanders: Upon his retirement, Detroit should have just renamed their team the Detroit Barry Sanders' :)
Green Bay Packers - Bart Starr: At this point in time, it's starting to feel like I've watched more old clips/games from NFL Films, than I have of things that have taken place during my lifetime - hence the Bart Starr association.
Houston Texans - JJ Watt: Can we refer to him as Mr. Texan yet?
Indianapolis Colts - Andre Rison: I know that most people associate Andre with the Falcons, but thanks to the 1989 Score set, and the crazy popular at the time rookie cards, he will always be a Colt to me.
Jacksonville Jaguars - Maurice Jones-Drew: He was literally the only Jaguar that I could think of.
Kansas City Chiefs - Joe Montana: Seeing him with anybody other than San Francisco was so weird at the time, and it's still weird to think about even now, but it was a pretty big deal at the time, big enough apparently that I still think of him more as a Chief than 49er.
Miami Dolphins - Dan Marino: One of the premiere quarterbacks from my childhood
Minnesota Vikings - Fran Tarkenton: Another NFL Films inspired pick.
New England Patriots - Tom Brady: Given the success that he's had over the last almost twenty years, this pick seems pretty obvious.
New Orleans Saints - Archie Manning: I already mentioned my first "old" football card of Tony Dorsett, well, my second one was of Archie Manning, so...
New York Giants - Lawrence Taylor: And now we've reached the third and final defensive player that I mentioned being familiar with as a wee one. His best days were behind him by the time I ever got to see him play, but even at that point in his career, he wasn't one to be taken lightly. His brief foray into professional wrestling just further solidified him with the Giants... at least in my mind.
New York Jets - Joe Namath: Three words... The Brady Bunch!
Oakland Raiders - Howie Long: I am such big fan of Howie Long's, so much so, that I've tried to avoid reading too much about him, you know, because usually when you find out too much about a particular athlete/celebrity, you almost always end up being disappointed. He was so great in Broken Arrow and Firestorm, and I can't believe that I'm saying this, but I actually kind of miss those Radio Shack commercials with him Teri Hatcher. Oh, and I do realize that most of his career was spent with the "Los Angeles Raiders", but he did play one season with the team in Oakland.
Philadelphia Eagles - Reggie White: Like Bruce Smith, Reggie was an absolute terror on quarterbacks when I was young, so once again, even though I didn't get to see him play a lot, it was kind of hard not to know who he was... and what he could do!
Pittsburgh Steelers - Joe Greene: Three more words... "Thanks, Mean Joe!"
St. Louis Rams - Kurt Warner: I know, twice on the same list, but I don't make the rules, so...
San Diego Chargers - Dan Fouts: Probably the most successful former Oregon Duck to ever play in the NFL.
San Francisco 49ers - Jerry Rice: I wasn't a huge fan of his when I was young, no real reason why, I just wasn't, but damn, every kid that I knew was either all about Bo Jackson or Jerry Rice... sometimes both!
Seattle Seahawks - Curt Warner: Never saw him play, but I've heard and seen enough Curt Warner Chevrolet commercials to last a lifetime.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Warren Sapp: I never really had a team in the NFL, but if I did, it probably would've been the Buccaneers, at least up until about ten years ago. Considering that they started acquiring some pretty talented players during the mid 90's, it's kind of amazing to think how long it took them to finally be consistently good.
Tennessee Titans - Kevin Dyson: Kevin Dyson is responsible for me losing $5 back in 1999, but I guess that's what I get for going against the grain and betting on the Titans to win the Super Bowl :(
Washington Redskins - Art Monk: I'm sure that some of you might be getting tired of hearing about my "old" football cards, it can't be helped though, at least not when making a list like this - anyways, an Art Monk rookie was the third "old" football card that was given to me. It's funny, I really can't remember much of anything anymore, but for some reason I can remember, in order, the first five "old" cards that I got, probably 25-30 years ago (Al Cowlings and Jack Youngblood were cards #4 and 5 respectively).
Okay, another one's in the books, now all that's left is an NBA edition, which I'm hoping will be ready to go live on Sunday - An NBA post on a Sunday? That's gonna bring in the views :)
Thanks for taking a moment to look at my page.
Tuesday, January 22, 2019
Blog bat-around/thinking exercise: MLB edition
So apparently there's a new blog bat-around that's sweeping the interwebs. I didn't even know this one was a thing until I read RAZ's post the other day, from what I've gathered it was started by the Night Owl, but the inspiration came from Fuji - so I guess you could say that this is a Fuji-Night Owl joint production. Since I don't want anyone else's list to influence mine, I'll have to go back read them all after my humble contribution is completed.
The premise seems to be pretty simple, just name the first player that comes to mind when you think of a particular team. I'm sure everybody ended up with a few unexpected choices, I know I certainly did:
Arizona Diamondbacks - Randy Johnson: It's funny, I watched pretty much all of his career with the Mariners, yet at this point in time I only associate him with the Dbacks.
Atlanta Braves - David Justice: David is one of those guys that I will always associate with my early card collecting years, even though most of those memories are just a blur at this point. His rookie cards were hot amongst my age group at the time, and I only ever had about a dozen SLU figures, but DJ was one of them.
Baltimore Orioles - Cal Ripken Jr.: This was just one of those instant associations, a fairly obvious one though.
Boston Red Sox - Oil Can Boyd: How's that for coming out of left field (baseball pun!)? This is definitely another card related association, thanks 1988 and 1989 Topps! Find me a person anywhere who doesn't like his nickname, and I'll tell you that that person is lying.
Chicago Cubs - Ernie Banks: He's Mr. Cub... nuff said!
Chicago White Sox - Frank Thomas: Yet another guy with hot rookie cards when I was a kid, that Topps no-name was such a big deal, I can just vaguely remember going into a card shop where a guy had just purchased like a dozen boxes just to try and find that card... I sure hope he found one!
Cincinnati Reds - Eric Davis: I knew a pair of brothers who were absolutely obsessed with baseball when I was in my early teens, part of this obsession manifested itself with their trying to identify who everyone in the neighborhood's swing reminded them of, mine was Eric Davis.
Cleveland Indians - Bob Feller: I immediately thought of Bob Feller, followed by Satchel Paige, it then took me a minute or two to come up with another name, Jim Thome.
Colorado Rockies - Todd Helton: This pick was no doubt inspired by all of the recent HOF ballot posts that I've read. For the record, I think he should be voted in.
Detroit Tigers - Ty Cobb: One could easily argue that Ty was the best baseball player ever, personally I'd rank him as #2, number one will be further down on this list. Fun fact: Ty Cobb passed away on my birthday (different year though).
Florida Marlins - Giancarlo Stanton: He was literally the only Marlin that I could think of.
Houston Astros - Craig Biggio: No offense to any other former Astro, but in my mind, Craig Biggio is Mr. Astro(s).
Kansas City Royals - Bo Jackson: When it comes to baseball, Bo's hype, and popularity, was second only to Junior when I was a youngster, every kid wanted to be one or the other. And of course he's always going to be one of the great sports "What if's...".
Los Angeles Angels (of Anaheim) - Jim Fregosi: Jim was before my time, but every time someone mentions the Angels, I immediately think of his 1972 Topps Boyhood Photos card, you know, the one with him and his giant accordion... that's my favorite card in that set btw.
Los Angeles Dodgers (of Los Angeles) - Johnny Podres: Normally I wouldn't think of Johnny first, but I recently decided to try and collect all of his cards, so his name has been on my mind as of late.
Milwaukee Brewers - Robin Yount: When I think of the Brewers, I think of mustaches, specifically those of Robin Yount and Rollie Fingers, Yount's stache comes to mind first though, so he gets the nod.
Minnesota Twins - Frank Viola: I know that this one is most certainly not the obvious choice, but he's who I thought of first. I can remember opening up cheap boxes of '87 and '88 Topps from Kmart ($5 a box) and still getting excited when I pulled Frank's cards, I say "still" because these cheap boxes were being opened as late as the mid 90's... that's some high regard!
New York Mets - Doc Gooden: Growing up on the opposite coast, the Mets were one of those teams that I rarely got to see play, and knew almost nothing about. What little I did know, was gleamed from cards, and the cards told me that Doc was pretty darn good there for awhile, so I just kind of assumed that he was their best player.
New York Yankees - Lou Gehrig: My choice for the greatest baseball player of all time.
Oakland Athletics - Jose Canseco: I already mentioned that Griffey and Bo were 1 and 2 respectively when it came to popularity amongst the kids I knew at the time, well, if there was a #3, it would've been Jose. I think in general though, he was more popular with kids that would've been a few years older than me, I could be wrong about that, but I don't think that I am.
Philadelphia Phillies - Darren Daulton: The Phillies were another team that I didn't know a lot about when I was young, but they had Darren, a former Portland Beaver, so I could never hate on them too much.
Pittsburgh Pirates - Bob Walk: Thanks for screwing up my thought processes, Matt!
St. Louis Cardinals - Bob Gibson: I don't recall the title at this point, but one of the first baseball related books that I ever read had a whole chapter devoted to Bob's 1968 season, so even though I never saw him play, that chapter left enough of an impression on young me that I have just sort of always identified the team's name with him ever since. [side note: I sure wish I could figure out which book that was, something by Scholastic maybe?]
San Diego Padres - Tony Gwynn: Has there ever even been another Padre of note?
San Francisco Giants - Kevin Mitchell: Other than getting to watch Junior on a regular basis, growing up a Mariners fan kind of sucked. For as long as I can remember, guys that had been having success elsewhere were always being brought in, and almost always ended up being a disappointment. There was an awful lot of hype when Kevin came over from the Giants back in '92(?), and big surprise... he didn't live up to that hype (my memory tells me that it was actually one of his worst seasons).
Seattle Mariners - Ken Griffey Jr.: I don't know how it was in other parts of the country, but if you were a kid living in the Pacific Northwest during the late 80's/early 90's, Junior was your guy.
Tampa Bay Rays - Uhhhhh?: No Rays player came to mind when I tried to think of one, so I moved on to the next team. After a couple of minutes I thought of Wade Boggs, and then Evan Longoria, but since none came to mind immediately, I will be leaving this selection sort of blank... hopefully this doesn't upset Tampa's one fan :)
Texas Rangers - Nolan Ryan: When I was growing up it seemed like the Rangers had exactly two players, Nolan, and Juan Gonzalez. Nolan came to mind first though, probably only because of that Cursed Texas Express that Pacific apparently printed in numbers that would make Michio Kaku's head spin.
Toronto Blue Jays - Joe Carter: I know it's not true, but part of my brain tells me that Joe's walk-off home run during the '93 World Series was the last truly great World Series moment.
Washington Nationals - Bryce Harper: I really hate that his is the first one that I thought of, but the Nationals are just too new for me, I don't have any memories to associate the team, or any of it's players, with.
Wow, that took a lot longer to do than I thought it would, totally worth it though. Because of the fun I had while writing it up, I think I'll do an NBA and NFL version as well, which I will try to sprinkle in between regular posts over the next couple of days.
Thanks for taking a moment to look at my page.
The premise seems to be pretty simple, just name the first player that comes to mind when you think of a particular team. I'm sure everybody ended up with a few unexpected choices, I know I certainly did:
Arizona Diamondbacks - Randy Johnson: It's funny, I watched pretty much all of his career with the Mariners, yet at this point in time I only associate him with the Dbacks.
Atlanta Braves - David Justice: David is one of those guys that I will always associate with my early card collecting years, even though most of those memories are just a blur at this point. His rookie cards were hot amongst my age group at the time, and I only ever had about a dozen SLU figures, but DJ was one of them.
Baltimore Orioles - Cal Ripken Jr.: This was just one of those instant associations, a fairly obvious one though.
Boston Red Sox - Oil Can Boyd: How's that for coming out of left field (baseball pun!)? This is definitely another card related association, thanks 1988 and 1989 Topps! Find me a person anywhere who doesn't like his nickname, and I'll tell you that that person is lying.
Chicago Cubs - Ernie Banks: He's Mr. Cub... nuff said!
Chicago White Sox - Frank Thomas: Yet another guy with hot rookie cards when I was a kid, that Topps no-name was such a big deal, I can just vaguely remember going into a card shop where a guy had just purchased like a dozen boxes just to try and find that card... I sure hope he found one!
Cincinnati Reds - Eric Davis: I knew a pair of brothers who were absolutely obsessed with baseball when I was in my early teens, part of this obsession manifested itself with their trying to identify who everyone in the neighborhood's swing reminded them of, mine was Eric Davis.
Cleveland Indians - Bob Feller: I immediately thought of Bob Feller, followed by Satchel Paige, it then took me a minute or two to come up with another name, Jim Thome.
Colorado Rockies - Todd Helton: This pick was no doubt inspired by all of the recent HOF ballot posts that I've read. For the record, I think he should be voted in.
Detroit Tigers - Ty Cobb: One could easily argue that Ty was the best baseball player ever, personally I'd rank him as #2, number one will be further down on this list. Fun fact: Ty Cobb passed away on my birthday (different year though).
Florida Marlins - Giancarlo Stanton: He was literally the only Marlin that I could think of.
Houston Astros - Craig Biggio: No offense to any other former Astro, but in my mind, Craig Biggio is Mr. Astro(s).
Kansas City Royals - Bo Jackson: When it comes to baseball, Bo's hype, and popularity, was second only to Junior when I was a youngster, every kid wanted to be one or the other. And of course he's always going to be one of the great sports "What if's...".
Los Angeles Angels (of Anaheim) - Jim Fregosi: Jim was before my time, but every time someone mentions the Angels, I immediately think of his 1972 Topps Boyhood Photos card, you know, the one with him and his giant accordion... that's my favorite card in that set btw.
Los Angeles Dodgers (of Los Angeles) - Johnny Podres: Normally I wouldn't think of Johnny first, but I recently decided to try and collect all of his cards, so his name has been on my mind as of late.
Milwaukee Brewers - Robin Yount: When I think of the Brewers, I think of mustaches, specifically those of Robin Yount and Rollie Fingers, Yount's stache comes to mind first though, so he gets the nod.
Minnesota Twins - Frank Viola: I know that this one is most certainly not the obvious choice, but he's who I thought of first. I can remember opening up cheap boxes of '87 and '88 Topps from Kmart ($5 a box) and still getting excited when I pulled Frank's cards, I say "still" because these cheap boxes were being opened as late as the mid 90's... that's some high regard!
New York Mets - Doc Gooden: Growing up on the opposite coast, the Mets were one of those teams that I rarely got to see play, and knew almost nothing about. What little I did know, was gleamed from cards, and the cards told me that Doc was pretty darn good there for awhile, so I just kind of assumed that he was their best player.
New York Yankees - Lou Gehrig: My choice for the greatest baseball player of all time.
Oakland Athletics - Jose Canseco: I already mentioned that Griffey and Bo were 1 and 2 respectively when it came to popularity amongst the kids I knew at the time, well, if there was a #3, it would've been Jose. I think in general though, he was more popular with kids that would've been a few years older than me, I could be wrong about that, but I don't think that I am.
Philadelphia Phillies - Darren Daulton: The Phillies were another team that I didn't know a lot about when I was young, but they had Darren, a former Portland Beaver, so I could never hate on them too much.
Pittsburgh Pirates - Bob Walk: Thanks for screwing up my thought processes, Matt!
St. Louis Cardinals - Bob Gibson: I don't recall the title at this point, but one of the first baseball related books that I ever read had a whole chapter devoted to Bob's 1968 season, so even though I never saw him play, that chapter left enough of an impression on young me that I have just sort of always identified the team's name with him ever since. [side note: I sure wish I could figure out which book that was, something by Scholastic maybe?]
San Diego Padres - Tony Gwynn: Has there ever even been another Padre of note?
San Francisco Giants - Kevin Mitchell: Other than getting to watch Junior on a regular basis, growing up a Mariners fan kind of sucked. For as long as I can remember, guys that had been having success elsewhere were always being brought in, and almost always ended up being a disappointment. There was an awful lot of hype when Kevin came over from the Giants back in '92(?), and big surprise... he didn't live up to that hype (my memory tells me that it was actually one of his worst seasons).
Seattle Mariners - Ken Griffey Jr.: I don't know how it was in other parts of the country, but if you were a kid living in the Pacific Northwest during the late 80's/early 90's, Junior was your guy.
Tampa Bay Rays - Uhhhhh?: No Rays player came to mind when I tried to think of one, so I moved on to the next team. After a couple of minutes I thought of Wade Boggs, and then Evan Longoria, but since none came to mind immediately, I will be leaving this selection sort of blank... hopefully this doesn't upset Tampa's one fan :)
Texas Rangers - Nolan Ryan: When I was growing up it seemed like the Rangers had exactly two players, Nolan, and Juan Gonzalez. Nolan came to mind first though, probably only because of that Cursed Texas Express that Pacific apparently printed in numbers that would make Michio Kaku's head spin.
Toronto Blue Jays - Joe Carter: I know it's not true, but part of my brain tells me that Joe's walk-off home run during the '93 World Series was the last truly great World Series moment.
Washington Nationals - Bryce Harper: I really hate that his is the first one that I thought of, but the Nationals are just too new for me, I don't have any memories to associate the team, or any of it's players, with.
Wow, that took a lot longer to do than I thought it would, totally worth it though. Because of the fun I had while writing it up, I think I'll do an NBA and NFL version as well, which I will try to sprinkle in between regular posts over the next couple of days.
Thanks for taking a moment to look at my page.
Tuesday, June 12, 2018
BLOG BAT AROUND: red cards for Red Schoendienst
Last week, Collecting Cutch started a Blog Bat Around to honor the recent passing of Red Schoendienst. The idea is pretty simple, just find ten of your favorite "red" cards, and then show 'em off.
I have never participated in one of these before, mostly because they usually seem like they're going to require a lot more effort than I'm willing put forth. This one however seemed like it wasn't going to be just too easy/fun to pass up, so without further ado, here's ten of my favorite "red" cards... seven of which have never been shown here on the blog before:
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| 2012 Panini Cooperstown Signatures Red Schoendienst |
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| 1949 Bowman Willie Jones RC |
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| 1974-75 Topps Bill Walton RC |
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| 1960 Fleer Ted Williams |
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| 1955 Bowman Bob St. Clair RC |
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| 2008 Topps Chrome Ichiro Trading Card History Refractor |
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| 1952 Topps Look N' See Amelia Earhart |
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| 1999-00 Skybox E-X E-Xceptional Tim Duncan |
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| 1951 Topps Ringside Max Baer |
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| 2013 Panini Golden Age Historic Signatures Stan Lee |
Thanks to Collecting Cutch for starting the Bat Around, as I had a lot of fun putting this one together. The best part was that it only took me about 15 minutes to find all the cards. I've only seen one other "red" post as of this writing, so hopefully a few more of you will be jumping on board, as I'd really like to see what everyone else can come up with.
Thanks for taking a moment to look at my page.
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