Header - Baseball by the Letters

Year: 2011

1969 Topps Started My Fandom

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Topps seemed to allow
only a wind-up or
follow-through pose
in 1969!

I just found an eye-opening post on the http://www.sportscollectors.net/ forum.

Someone wanted to work on getting the 1981 Topps set autographed. All possible cards, that is. How many of those men pictured were deceased?

The post I found named 35.

I thought about the first set (unautographed) I ever collected: 1969 Topps.

I think about the first packs I ever owned. Although these men didn’t become my all-time heroes, I think about them like kindergarten classmates. They were the first faces I met as a fan. I don’t remember our family having a good TV until the early 1970s. These cards were the first COLOR looks my elementary-aged self had at baseball players.

I loved the cartoon backs and bubble gum pink backgrounds. I thought the expansion Padres would never last. They didn’t have enough money for real uniforms, and had to wear spray-painted hand-me-downs. I had never seen a game on TV in which players didn’t wear their caps. I thought these many bare-headed men were rule-breaking rebels.

Thumbing through some of my first cards, I picked out 10 names to write to this week. Each card eyed me like an old friend at a class reunion. Letters are headed to:

Dick Hughes
Al McBean
Bob Oliver
Dooley Womack
Wally Bunker
Joe Keough
Tom Satriano
Bernie Allen
Tommie Reynolds
Ray Sadecki

Coming Tuesday: Who’s George Brett? Pitcher-turned-teacher Don August reflects on his current students.

Personalized Praise For Bob Oliver

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Did Topps Get It Wrong?
Radio always called
him BigBob Oliver…

To Bob Oliver,

According to website http://www.sportscollectors.net/, you’re hitting at a smokin’ hot .860. That is, 86 percent of collectors who’ve written to you for autographs have gotten just that. All without any demand for pay. The hobby thanks you.

I encountered only one boobird. A collector felt you had personalized only as to discourage the autograph being sold on ebay. This person felt that you needed to add “good luck,” “best wishes” or another sentiment for the inscription to be complete and real.

Don’t listen. I choose to believe that you are being personal. You are proving that you read each letter.

Things could be much worse. You could be like catcher Cliff “CJ” Johnson, penning only your initials.

Wait! Please, don’t do that.

However, if you do want something to brag about, call son Darren Oliver. The hobby website claims that the pitcher’s only responded to 69 percent of autograph requests.

Oh. In case this praise doesn’t seem personalized enough…

Best wishes, good luck and thanks for the memories!
Tom Owens

Phillie Chris James Signs S-L-O-W-L-Y!

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This card was in every
pack I bought that year!

You know how popular those campfire ghost stories are?

I imagine old-timers reliving their diamond days. Then one retired player describes being haunted by a box of fan mail from the past. Dusty. Old. Neglected…and mad! BOO!!!

Just when it seemed Don Carman had a record for leisurely replies, I see on the always-amazing hobby website
www.sportscollectors.net that some collectors might need to carbon-date their envelopes from former Phillie/Indian/Padre/Giant/Astro Chris James.

A couple of collectors studied the vintage commemorative stamps to guess that the response was somewhere between 16-20 years in the making. James added a FOREVER stamp to each reply.

I looked up the website of James’ Texas business address, Fish and Still Equipment. It seems the company sells tractors, not sporting goods.

Someone popped in $5 for the slugger, getting a response in just two weeks. A little creative mailing might have worked just as well

Face it. Not every former player spends every day fixated on baseball (like us).

I’m guessing that his job keeps James outside a lot. Just a guess, but I bet he’s an outdoor sportsman-enthusiast, living in Texas. Golf at least. What major leaguer has never golfed?

Here’s what I’d do:

I’d only mention his baseball career at the beginning of a letter. I’d reference living near a minor league team he played for. Or, if I was on a farm, or owned a tractor, I’d tell about that. I’d send a snapshot, plop a John Deere logo on the envelope — anything to stand apart. Don’t be shy. Write “My Tractor Tale Inside” on the envelope. I’d let him know I had learned about his CURRENT life with Fish and Still. Read their “mission statement” and “core values” on their website, then share your own impressions with James.

Most of all, I’d get a FOREVER stamp on the SASE and be patient. Any autograph request to Chris James should be counted as “missing in action” for 16-20 years. Only then can it be branded a non-response.

COMING MONDAY: Slugger Bob Oliver, under attack?　

Pitcher Ron Negray ‘Sold’ On All Sports

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Is the smile same since 1956? Signature is!

Although the bulk of his career came as a Phillie, pitcher Ron Negray began and ended in Dodger blue.

That meant having Roy Campanella as a batterymate in 1952. Negray’s assessment of Campy?

“He had a great arm and personality.”

On April 5, 1957, Negray was traded back to the Dodgers. His reaction upon learning that the team was headed to Los Angeles isn’t what you might guess.

“I thought it was a good move for the Dodgers, financially.”

Most importantly, Negray spelled out how it feels to be featured on a baseball card, especially when someone wants that card autographed.

“I still feel the same today as before. It’s always nice to be thought of.”

 As a bonus, Negray added a letter recounting his life in sports — on an off the diamond.Most importantly, Negray spelled out how it feels to be featured on a baseball card, especially when someone wants that card autographed.

“I played pro baseball for fourteen years plus five years playing winter baseball. I played in Havana, Cuba; San Juan, Puerto Rico; Caracas, Venezuela and Dominican Republic, a total of eight winter seasons.


I played in the majors only a few years and spent most of my time in class AAA. Pacific Coast League, International League and American Association.


I had a great fourteen years playing pro ball and made many friends.


I was an athletic goods salesman for 34 years, traveling Ohio and Michigan.


I sold most of all the colleges and pro teams in my area. I also sold my products to sporting goods dealers. I sold uniforms, helmets, shoulder pads, training supplies, tape, etc.


Sincerely,
Ron Negray”

Tomorrow: Will Chris James take 16-20 years to sign for you?

Reds Pitcher Ed Erautt Shined In 1949

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At age 86, he’s still signing!

 Pitcher Ed Erautt proved one of my basic beliefs about baseball.

Sometimes, the game isn’t about a hit, play or even pitch. Sometimes, baseball is all about a feeling.

On May 29, 1949, Erautt spun a four-hitter against the Cubs. What memory stays with him?

“The confidence I could do it.”

Thanks to http://www.retrosheet.org/, the day lives on.

Although August 5 of that same season didn’t produce a win or save, Erautt struck out six Brooklyn Dodgers in a four-inning HITLESS relief stint. What K was most satisfying?

“Striking out Campanella.”

Erautt’s father played semi-pro ball in Saskatchewan. He trained his two boys as batterymates. Brother Joe Erautt (born in Canada three years before Ed) wound up as a cup-of-coffee catcher with the White Sox in 1950-51. How could two boys avoid the lure of hockey, that call from north of the border?

“My brother and I did play semi-pro hockey. My brother saw me play in the Majors. Dad did not, but my Mother did.”

Although this feature interview from accomplished Pacific Coast League historian Bill Swank is 15 years old, it’s a great look at the years Erautt spent in the high minors.

Tomorrow: What did pitcher Ron Negray pitch after baseball?