Unhittable for a day

 

Back in the 1990’s, every year the Yankees won the World Series, they also had a no-hitter. In 1996, Dwight Gooden no-hit the Mariners. In 1998, David Wells threw his infamous perfect game versus the Twins. Then, just one year later, David Cone pitched a perfect game against the Expos.

In the year 2000, I actually got nervous entering the playoffs. The Yankees didn’t no-hit anyone this year, I thought. I was young, and just figured these types of things went hand-in-hand. Well, the Yanks went on to win World Series titles in both 2000 and 2009 without a no-hitter, so certainly my theory proved incorrect.

In fact, David Cone was the last Yankee to throw a no-hitter back in 1999. Somehow, it’s been 15 years! It just goes to show how hard it is. Many teams wait far, far longer than that. I’m sure I’ll see another Yankees no-no, I’m just not sure when. Will a healthy Masahiro Tanaka or Michael Pineda be the next? Will CC find a few late-career bullets left to throw one well after his prime? What about someone no one would think of, like Nathan Eovaldi? That’s the fun part about no-hitters. They can come from someone you least expect.

That’s why I love this dual relic of Doc Gooden and David Wells. These two are forever linked by no hitters in May, just two years apart. Dwight was not the Doctor K from the mid-80s when it would have been no surprise if he threw a no-hitter. He was a guy who overcame a lot to get back on the mound, figuring out how to pitch without the stuff that made him a Cy Young Award winner. Wells, on the other hand, while a very good pitcher, but had a rough start to his Pinstripes career. Just as it was dubbed for Don Larsen, Wells pitched a perfect game by the imperfect man.

Two pitchers, neither the ace of their staff, unhittable for a day.

JBF Bombs Away - Part 3

Last but not least, part three of JBF’s package bombs. I claimed the following two cards in a recent post:

But of course he didn’t leave it there. Nope. He had to throw in some sweet cards he picked up on his trip to Mobile. We’ll start with the two autos. Yep, two. First off, Bubba Crosby! Remember when Cashman said that Bubba was going to be the starting CFer? Then signed Johnny Damon out of nowhere. I did not own a Bubba auto, so this is a sweet addition.

Next up, a Steve Howe auto. Seriously?! Freakin’ sweet. The Leaf Signature Series card s signed perfectly on-card. Most of us know about Steve’s rough life and the fact that he passed away at a young age. He was a very talented reliever, and unfortunately fought with substance abuse for the majority of his career.

Well also included a team bag of Yanks, and here are a few favorites. I love any of the mid-90’s Denny’s cards, so this Boggs is money. It actually shows a short clip of his swing instead of just a 3D image.

No words necessary for this guy.

And finally, a random yanks prospect who never made it, and a guy who just participated in the NFL combine.

Wes, thanks again for everything.

Fleer? 10 cents? Brilliant!

Remember the Guinness guys? Brilliant! That was a good marketing campaign. Memorable, which is all you can ask for really. Whatever happened to those guys? I haven't seen them in a while. I'm not even sure if Guinness has a campaign in the market place right now. You've got the Dos Equis guy, the Miller Lite unmanly dorks, the Heiny guy walking through that party, the Coors Light train on a crowded broken down subway. I'm sure there are more, but I can't recall a current Guinness spot.

Oh yeah, baseball cards. Well I picked up a lot of four 1999 Fleer Brilliants. I had never owned any of these cards, but I couldn't pass up bidding on this auction. The bid started (and ended) and $.01 + $.09 shipping, so I was out a whole dime. The lot consisted of four cards - Jeter, Paul O'Neill, Bruce Chen, and a David Wells blue parallel. The cards are very nice - thick and the coating is very smooth. They have a mirror-like effect which made them hard to scan. In a way, they were Fleer's version of Bowman Platinum.

Here are the Wells and Chen. If any of my Blue Jays or Braves friends want the cards below, let me know. For as sucky as Bruce Chen is, I'm impressed he's still pitching. Just goes to show if you are a lefty and can throw strikes, there is always a place for you.

Trade Review: Angels In Order

Tom from Angels In Order (in my head I always call it 'Angels in the Outfield') reached out following a prior trade post and asked if I'd be interested in a Yankees for Angels trade. Ok! I dug up a few Angels that I had - some Salmons, Edmonds, Hunters, etc. Tom needed a few of the cards on the list I sent him, so we set up set up a semi-blind trade and Tom didn't disappoint. He sent me 27 Yankee cards (appropriate number, Tom!), all of which I didn't have. There were a lot of cards from 2003-2009, which is awesome because those are a lot of the cards I missed and hadn't seen while I was out of the hobby.

I'd say my favorite card from the lot is a 2009 A&G National Pride Robbie Cano. Just a classy looking card. There were a few of the sweet looking 2004 Cracker Jacks, and some nice cards of ARod, Jeter, Bernie, Posada, Clemens and Moose. I like the Bowman Heritage David Wells cards from 2003 - there was a base card and a black boarder version. It's cool because the card says "Boomer Wells." I also liked two shiny cards in the lot - a 2001 Bowman's Best David Justice and a 1952 Topps Reprint of Johnny Sain.

Tom, hope you enjoy the Angels cards I sent. Thanks again!