Night Owl Cards

  I don't need to tell you that I don't like the Astros. I don't need to tell you that I like Dusty Baker.   You can imagine the conflict when watching a postseason game.   Dusty Baker isn't enough to make me root for the Astros. One man -- one manager -- can't do it all. I mean right now I'm rooting for the Rangers, despite that team containing a manager I rooted against for years as well as one odious relief pitcher.   But, if the Astros win it all, as they've done too many times before, Dusty Baker will make it OK. Because at least Dusty won again, as he did way back in 1981 when he was a player, playing for my team.   I've been a fan of Baker ever since I read about him being traded from the Braves to the Dodgers in the newspaper way back in November 1975. I recall actually being excited about getting Baker though I couldn't have possibly known much about the guy at the time.    Dusty Baker played for the Dodgers for longer than he did for any ot...

  OK, back by popular demand, here is a look at my collection based on who is in the Division Series (what used to be the lowliest of the playoff series, but now we have a bunch of wild-card hoo hah and fandoodle).   There are four new teams to consider. Of course, there are four holdover teams that I've already considered, so for those four repeats, I'm going to select my second "oldest" and "newest" card for that team. The random is still random.   All right, I have the Dusty Baker card above that represents three teams in this postseason. Let's do this:   ORIOLES VS. RANGERS   Baltimore Orioles (cards in my collection: 2,574. Overall rank: 14th)   Oldest card in my collection: 1956 Topps Chuck Diering (I decided to leave a lot of these uncropped, because I like the effect ... or did at the time).     Newest card in collection: 2023 Topps Heritage New Age Performers Gunnar Henderson.  Random card in my collection: 1988 Topps Jim Dwyer Thou...

  I better get this post finished before the World Series is finished. I'm expecting that to happen today (not that I want it to).   I mentioned in an earlier post that this year's Series matchup between the Phillies and Astros is just an NLCS from 42 years ago. That 1980 National League championship will always be the foremost thing in my mind when these two teams meet.   Much like 42 years ago, I am rooting for the Phillies to win and it's not looking too good. Just like the 1980 NLCS, the Phillies are one win away from elimination (although the '80 series was just five games). The Phillies came back and won the last two games against the Astros back then. I want history to repeat. But I'm not confident.   Hoping to put out a little good mojo I have a Joy of a Team set post in which I'll review each of the teams from the 1980 NLCS, using the 1981 Topps set.   The design for '81 Topps is so prominent as far as colors that I tend to like a team's '8...

  The World Series is about to start -- way later than it should -- and it's another odd matchup with the Phillies playing the Astros. Everyone of a certain age knows that can't happen -- the Phillies and Astros are in the same league! But ever since the Astros were transplanted into the American League and started cheating ... er, winning, there have been odd Series matchups all over the place. Last year's matchup, the Astros and Braves, was something I knew for years as a midseason get-together for two National League West teams going nowhere. The Astros-Dodgers World Series of 2017 began as, hey, this is a showdown for the 1980 NL West pennant, before turning into something more sinister. And the Astros-Nationals Series from three years ago was just plain odd, unless you turn the Nationals into the Expos and then that's a National League game I saw in Olympic Stadium in 1990. This season's World Series can be summed up in the card above. The Astros and the Philli...