Topps Cards That Should Have Been: 1999 Harold Baines

 

It always amuses me which short-term stops Topps misses. 

Harold Baines played for only five teams over the course of his career, and it feels like more because he played for the White Sox and Orioles multiple times in a 20 year period. The last several years of Baines' career was a constant volley back and forth between Chicago and Baltimore, oftentimes both in the same year. Not that Baines' material was an issue, as Baines routinely hit loads of RBIs and a bunch of 25-homer years along his lengthy career. It was mostly just one team losing momentum and the other getting him for a playoff spot, and then back again.

The only time from 1993 til 2001 that Harold Baines played for a team that wasn't the Orioles or the White Sox was the tail end of the 1999 season, a season that began with some of the last great numbers of Baines's career, a .322 average, 24 homers and 82 RBIs in 107 games in Baltimore. And let's be clear, Baines did all of this as a 40-year old. However, during the waiver wire period in August, the Indians, still needing a surefire DH bat in the years since Eddie Murray's departure, took a chance on Baines for a stretch run, and traded two never-to-develop minor leaguers to the O's to get him. 

Baines's time in Cleveland was short but somewhat memorable. The regular season didn't add a whole lot to his full season effort, he hit .271 with 1 homer and 23 RBIs, at the very least enough for his third 100+ RBI year, and his first since he was 26 years old. Not quite Orioles hot, but still productive. The postseason is where Baines really hits his stride for the Indians. In 4 games, over the course of a contentious ALDS that the Red Sox would eventually win in 5 games, Baines hit .357 with 1 homer and 4 RBIs in 14 at-bats. Somehow, a 40-year-old DH was enough to keep the Indians alive until Game 5. Even if it was futile, the Cleveland massive would not forget this. 

After the season, Baines would re-sign with Baltimore, then be dealt back to Chicago, where he'd finish his career a year and a half later. Topps only had time to make a card of Baines in a Cleveland uniform in 2000 Stadium Club; there would be no luck for the flagship set, not even for a Traded set. Despite the lack of true photo options, I did manage to make a fitting 1999T issue for Baines, filling in the gap of a career that has otherwise been well documented on Topps cards.

The Stars Are Out: July & August 2019

It's getting harder and harder to plan these Stars are Out posts at the end of every month. Lots of work goes into, uh, doing a whole bunch of them and not forgetting they're in the file.

I'm doing two months worth today, because it's Labor Day weekend and y'all deserve a treat.

Let's start with this guy, because football season's on its way- Will Shields is Kansas City Royalty, Nebraska Royalty (hence the colors), and, according to my dad, an insanely nice person to work with. It was Nebraska day at Kauffman, and they figured they'd get some guaranteed applause up in there, so Will Shields threw out a pitch. All class.

[For the record, Will Shields has seen this custom. Folks, it is incredibly scary when people who have accomplished things are looking down on your amateur work, but, since he approved, perhaps it'll be less scary in the future]

 Let's throw in some other sports stars. Anthony Davis is happy he didn't wait til New Orleans got a baseball team in order to do one of these. I'm sure he'll be fantastic as a Laker, but...knowing their luck with LeBron, I'd be slightly skeptical.

 This wasn't even a cross-town kind of thing- Giannis Antetokounmpo just showed up at Yankee Stadium because he's awesome, and they just let him do his thing. I don't blame them.

 This isn't cross-town either, as Landry would have to be pitching in LA. No, former 76er Landry Shamet is from Kansas City, so he's a hometown hero in a way, if you define 'hero' as 'guy who was traded for Tobias Harris'.

You want a hero? Here's Carli Lloyd. She's won two Women's World Cup Championships by now, she's the face of the sport, and she's from Philly. And she can rock some 80s blues. Gotta love all of that.

One last non-baseball sports guy: Ric Goddamned Flair. The Naitch. In the flesh. Throwing one out in Houston. I imagine there was a lot of 'WOOOOOOO'ing that night.

 Now onto some MLB team legends. For 90s Weekend in Miami, Antonio Alfonseca, one of the stars of the 2003 World Series squad, showed up to give a six-fingered wave to his adoring fans (which, in Miami, he's got some of), and threw one out. I do love those old-school Marlins vests.

Luis Castillo also threw one out, but...since his implication in a drug ring, I didn't think it'd be a good idea to post his.

 Now we're talking. One of the more likable outfield bats of his era, Dusty Baker, who wowed in San Francisco, Atlanta and Los Angeles, before becoming a pennant winner and 3-time manager of the year with the Giants, Cubs, Reds and Nationals. Glad they still love him in SF.

 And then there's David Cone. I dunno, man, you pitch a perfect game in New York and we love you for life. This was the 20th anniversary of said perfect game, and he showed up to commemorate. Good stuff.

And I can't not mention a worthy appearance from former Cubs whiz-kid fireballer Henry Rowengartner. Good to see he's still got his velocity. And all I could say is thank god Chet Steadman wasn't in attendance.

 Yes, some Hall of Famers did show up around induction weekend to thank the fans. Harold Baines, a guy I never thought would be inducted in, showed up with his kid, threw one out at Comiskey, and was all class.

And of course...Edgar Martinez, who's pretty much a deity in Seattle, albeit a humble one, got to come back to T-Mobile park and throw one out as well. He's gotta be loving this.

Now, let's get to some fringy pop-culture ones. James Holzhauer had a record-breaking run on Jeopardy, and captured the minds of a nation. Of course he's a Cubs fan. Of course he is. They've got to love him at Wrigley, though.

Also, while it's not rare for a Murray brother to throw out a first pitch at Wrigley, it's not everyday you see Joel Murray do one, one of the under appreciated greats. Joel's been making the rounds with Whose Live Anyway, with Greg Proops, Ryan Stiles and Jeff Davis, so he's clearly gotten some improv genes from the rest of his family.

Another Cubs first pitch came from Mexican movie star and recent US crossover favorite Eugenio Derbez, who's been in a few US movies like Overboard and the new Dora movie, but...I mean, like any of this is gonna top Instructions Not Included? I mean, come on.

And for one last Cubs one, here's music legend Mavis Staples. You may have heard her collab with Arcade Fire or Hozier, or...know about her fantastic career of singing soul and blues and such, which is even better. Another person that it's nice to know is a Cubs fan.

 A few more pop culture ones to round this post out. Rian Johnson's a fantastic director- he did Looper, and the less-beloved Star Wars: The Last Jedi, but he's a genuinely likable guy, and a Dodgers lifer. According to this photo, his first pitch may have missed a little.

 Tea Leoni's baseball bias may not be a factor here, but her character on Madam Secretary is, in fact, a Mets fan, and they got to shoot a scene from the show at CitiField, with her in character, which was nice.

And we end on Seinfeld. How the hell can I NOT end on Seinfeld?

Jerry Seinfeld is a huge Mets fan. I remember his excitement in 2015, for the 'Cespedes for the rest of us' stretch run. And here he is loving it all with Conforto. Gotta love him.

Hopefully the September ones of these won't come too far into October.

On the Veteran's Committee Picks: That's....Intriguing

So...good day for Chicago.

Two names, out of 12, were chosen by the Veteran's Committee for the Baseball Hall of Fame. One of them, Lee Smith, is definitely supported by me. Smith has been in my binders for years, he's been a perennial pick on the blog's HOF ballots, and he's one of the most dominant closers of all time. Like Goose Gossage, Smith was one of those pitchers that would just get on the mound and dare you to hit him. He's also one of those pitchers that was on fire no matter where he played, though he's going in as a Cub, and he's remembered most fondly by Cubs and Cardinals fans.

Smith I could have called. I didn't know it'd take this long, but Lee Smith is a Hall of Famer.

Harold Baines, though? That one didn't really occur to me until he got voted in last night. Harold Baines was a fantastic hitter, a wonderful DH, and a gifted home run hitter, who was, rightfully, a legend in Chicago and Baltimore, was a part of those great A's teams of the early 90s, and hit well into his forties. I always considered him a member of the 'Hall of Very Good' despite some support from bloggers out there.

Now...here's what I have a problem with. Baines is a career DH, essentially, and a great one at that. But...as a DH, I don't think Baines was as good as Edgar Martinez, who still hasn't been voted in. Does this Baines decision means 2019 induction is inevitable for Edgar? Or does it mean it's not happening? It'd be cool to have Edgar and Baines go in together, which is just as cool as Mariano Rivera going in alongside Smith (and that is happening, FYI). But...I dunno, something makes me slightly uneasy about the fact that Baines was voted in slightly before Edgar was, even if Edgar was the better player. I'm not completely there on that.

Still...these are some solid picks, and better than some run-of-the-mill administrator inductees (and thank the gods Steinbrenner didn't get in). I'll look forward to adding them to my HOF binder.