He Was a Pirate? Part 7

The Pirates, like all MLB teams, experience a multitude of transactions throughout the year. And, you know, since it's the Pirates... no one really knows or cares about those moves. As a Pirates fan growing up in New York it was rare that I would come across anyone who shared my love for the black and gold. My Yankee-supporting counterparts were never aware of the frequent changes occurring a few hundred miles west in Pittsburgh. Oftentimes during friendly baseball-themed conversation, the question “He was a Pirate?” would arise. I’ve decided to honor this ever-occuring inquiry on my blog...

You definitely know the leg kick. But did you know he was a Pirate? Drafted in the third round of the 1995 out of high school, Bronson Arroyo is today’s subject.

Bronson’s career with the Pirates was very unspectacular. He was with them from 2000-2002 and he appeared in just over 50 games - about half of those being starts. He was shuttled back and forth between AAA and the majors to be used as a spot starter and a long reliever. His career ERA with the Pirates sits over 5.00, and frankly there’s not a whole lot in the history books regarding his time in Pittsburgh as he spent much of his time on the Disabled List.

Despite the tumultuous start to his career, his story is one of persistence as we went on to have a long and notable career. In 2003 the Red Sox signed him off waivers, and in 2004, he was an important part of the Sox rotation that went on to win the 2004 World Series.  Prior to the 2006 season, he was traded to the Reds in exchange for Willy Mo Pena. He went on to have the best year of his career at age 29. He led the majors in starts (35) and innings pitched (240 2/3) and was named to his first and only All-Star team. He continued on with the Reds for eight more seasons, making at least 32 starts a year and proving to be one of the most durable pitchers in majors.

In 2011, Arroyo placed himself in the record books for all the wrong reasons - He surrendered a whopping 46 home runs across his 199 innings pitched. Quick math tells me that’s roughly one home run every four innings… and that’s a lot. It’s just four shy of the MLB record (50) held by Hall of Famer Bert Blyleven.

Despite his affinity for giving up the long ball, his career numbers are those of a very solid MLB pitcher: 419 appearances, 383 stars, win-loss of 148-137, and a career ERA of 4.28. I know a lot of modern-day MLB teams that would jump all over a guy with a guaranteed W/L of .500 and a sub-4.30 ERA.

As for the cardboard, I don’t have a ton to to show, but I do have a pair of his cards.

Bronson Arroyo - 2001 Upper Deck

Bronson Arroyo - 2002 Upper Deck

Sadly, neither one captures the signature leg kick. 

Thanks for stopping by for this edition of "He Was a Pirate?"

Another EPIC Mailday from Collecting Cutch

If you've ever traded with Brian at Collecting Cutch you've probably been a on the receiving end of some the greatest generosity in the hobby. I hit Brian up a few weeks ago because I had an extra Cutch relic that I wanted to send his way. It was a nice card - nothing too crazy - a dual relic from Topps Tribute #/50, but obviously a better fit in his collection than in mine. In return, he asked if I'd prefer to work out specific cards or if I'd rather be surprised. The last time Brian surprised me, he sent me the single most generous trade package that I've ever received. It was loaded with autographs, memorabilia, and 1/1 cards. It was a quick decision and I opted for another surprise, and once again, I'm absolutely blown away...

This is exactly what the box looked like when I opened it up - sitting on top was a slabbed Cutch GOLD REFRACTOR! 

Andrew McCutchen - 2011 Bowman Chrome Gold Refractor #/50 PSA 8

If you're a reader of the blog, you've seen that I've been targeting black and gold refractors. Nothing better than opening this box to see a Gold Cutch form the King of Cutch himself! 

I can't make this stuff up - there were over 50 cards, many of which were memorabilia and autographs. It's too much to show all at once, so I'll show a few of my favorite cards from this lot.

Andrew McCutchen - 2014 Topps, Camo Parallel #/99

More Cutch! I actually really like the camo parallels and I couldn't tell you why - maybe because we're used to seeing camo jerseys in baseball now and MLB does an excellent job with military appreciation.

Trevor Williams - 2018 Topps Gallery Autograph

The art work of Tops Gallery is undeniably beautiful. This is such an easy-on-the eyes card - and somehow, the sticker autograph really works here. A welcome addition to my small collection of Trevor Williams autos.

(Left) Quinn Priester - 2018 Leaf Perfect Game Green Shimmer Autograph #1/1

(Center) Adam Frazier - 2017 Panini Chronicles Prizm Red Autograph #/25

(Right) Oliver Perez - 2005 Upper Deck Origins Old Judge Autograph

Three firsts here. This the first 1/1 autograph that I'm adding to my collection - and it's no small name. Quinn Priester was the Pirates first pick in the 2019 draft and projects to be a big part of the rotation in the future. 

The Adam Frazier autograph is also a first for me. For whatever reason, Adam Frazier has only signed autographs in non-licensed products, which I typically don't purchase. But my goodness, for a non-licensed card, this is as good as it gets. That red ink pairs beautifully with the red ice background. 

Oliver Perez was one of my favorite Pirates in the mid 2000's, which was a very very dark time for the franchise. Outside of Freddy Sanchez, Jack Wilson, Brian Giles, and Jason Bay, we didn't have a whole lot to cheer for. Ollie made his debut in 2002 with the Padres, but he really broke out in 2005 when he went 12-10 with a 2.98 ERA and 239 K's for the Bucs. He was one of the best lefties in the league that year, and would have had a shot at 20 wins if he was on any other team but Pittsburgh. 

Oh, and this dude is still pitching in the major leagues. He moved to a reliever role around 2012 and has a made a living there ever since. Aside from Albert Pujols, I can't think of any player that is more tenured than Oliver Perez. This is my first autograph of his and I'm excited to add to this to my collection. 

Pedro Alvarez - 2015 Bowman Chrome Gold Refractor #/50

Andrew McCutchen - 2009 Bowman Sterling Rookie Gold Refractor #/50

Saving the best for the last. Even if shiny gold cards aren't your thing, you can't tell me that this isn't a gorgeous card. Seeing Cutch here in the old pinstripes is a reminder that he really was the central part of the Pirates turning the ship around (pun intended) and becoming a competitor. He joined the big league club in 2009 and had to compete every day for three years before even dreaming about the playoffs. The card embodies his rookie year: his dreadlocks starting to grow in, the dirt on the pants, and following through on a big swing demonstrating his signature bat speed. This card is a competitor for the top card in my Cutch collection, and is an early contender to be in the top 5 coolest cards I've acquired this year.

Thanks again, Brian! I'm grateful to have friend like you in the hobby. 

The Return of: He Was A Pirate?

When I launched this blog back in 2013 under a different name, I began segment called "He Was A Pirate?" which I had a lot of fun writing. I've been back to blogging pretty consistently since July and I still feel committed. And hey, baseball was supposed to start today! It feels like a good time to bring this back.

The inspiration here is quite simple. The Pirates, like all MLB teams, experience a multitude of transactions throughout the year. And, you know, since it's the Pirates... no one really knows or cares about those moves.

As a Pirates fan growing up in New York it was rare that I would come across anyone who shared my love for the black and gold. My Yankee-supporting counterparts were never aware of the frequent changes occurring a few hundred miles west in Pittsburgh. Oftentimes during friendly baseball-themed conversation, the question “He was a Pirate?” would arise. I’ve decided to honor this ever-occuring inquiry on my blog. 

The posts are be sequentially numbered. Each post features one former Pirate who stint in the Steel City. Some will be somewhat obvious, and some will come as big surprises. There will be stars, there will be Joe-Schmo’s, and everything in-between. I will, of course, have at least one card from my PC to represent each player.

Today's feature is a decorated pitcher that has a place in Pirates history, but he's much better known for his 17-year tenure with the Red Sox. The story is a good one.

Tim Wakefield was drafted in the 8th round of the 1988 Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was drafted as a first baseman out of Florida Tech, where he set a number of home run records. After being told by a Pirates scout that he would never make it past Double-A as an infielder, he learned how to throw a knuckleball and began pitching in Single-A. He was effective and began to progress through the minor leagues.

Fast forward to July 31, 1992. A 25 year old Tim Wakefield makes his MLB Debut, where he throws a 146-pitch, 10 strikeout complete game shut-out against the Cardinals. The Pirates won 1-0. The win improved the Pirates record to 55-48, and with Wakefield's help (he went 8-1 during the stretch), they went on to win 96 games and the NL Central.

1993 Fleer Ultra #104 Rookie Card

All Pirates fans - and many baseball fans - remember the 1992 NLCS where the Pirates lost to the Braves in dramatic fashion. That playoff appearance was a turning point for the franchise. For the next 20 years the Pirates would finish each season under .500 and miss the playoffs. What most baseball fans don't remember is that a rookie Tim Wakefield pitched both Game Three and Game Six of that series. In both games he went a full nine innings, out-dueled Tom Glavine, and got the win. How's that for your first season?

Turns out the 1992 season was Wakefield's prime as Pirate. In 1993, he struggled at the Major League Level. He spent most of the year in the minors. 

1993 Upper Deck #66

He spent all of 1994 in the minors, and was eventually cut by the Pirates at the beginning of the 1995 season. A week later he signed with the Boston Red Sox and was assigned to Triple-A Pawtucket. Legend has it that he worked with Phil Niekro on his knuckleball while in the minors. Due to an injury to Rodger Clemens, the 28 year old Tim Wakefield made his Red Sox debut - just a month after being cut by the Pirates. In his first 17 games with the Sox, he complied a record of 14-1 with a 1.65 ERA. Talk about a hot start.

1994 Topps Tim Wakefield #669

The rest, as they say, is history. Wakefield went on to have a long an successful career. He appeared in an All-Star game, won two World Series, and was an 8-time Roberto Clemente award nominee and one-time winner.

As for the cards, I don't have anything too special. I only own three cards - all base cards. The Fleer Ultra Rookie is my favorite. I do love the photography on all of them. I imagine it's way easier to photograph a knuckleballer than any other type of pitcher. An interesting note is that Wakefield wore #49 with the Pirates - the same number he wore with the Red Sox. It's a very unique number and is clearly meaningful to him. I wasn't able to find any backstory behind that but I'm curious.

Thanks for reading this edition of "He Was A Pirate?", many more to come!

Collecting the Departed

Pittsburgh Pirates fans seem to be an ultra-critical fanbase. Frankly, sometimes I find it to be exhausting. The fanbase is a generally whiny group, readily armed with countless criticisms of the front office and particularly the ownership group.

This doesn’t come without merit. The Pirates haven’t been to a World Series since 1979. That’s a forty year drought, with no end in sight. It doesn’t help that the 70’s were a Golden Era for Pittsburgh Sports where the Pirates won two World Series, the Steelers won four Super Bowls, and the Penguins began to appear in the playoffs after joining the NHL in 1967. The bar was set very high.

So I get it. I understand the frustration. Winning cures all, and aside from some success in the early 90’s (thanks Barry Bonds) and a magical streak from 2013-2016, there hasn’t been much winning. A lack of winning will create a surplus of criticism from the fans. That criticism comes in many shapes and sizes. In the Pirates case, there are two main themes: It’s all the owner’s fault; and we can’t hold on to any of our most talented players, particularly younger players.

I'll spare you feelings on ownership. As for the latter – “not keeping good young players” – it often feels real. The recent examples include Gerrit Cole, Tyler Glasnow and Austin Meadows. Throw in Starling Marte. Going back a decade, see: Nate McClouth. The exception was Andrew McCutchen, who famously took a hometown discount to remain in Pittsburgh.  

From where I’m sitting, it seems to me that Pirates fans often get trapped in the bubble that surrounds Western Pennsylvania. What Pirates fans perceive to be “Pirates problems” or even “small market challenges” happen to be baseball challenges. The free agency system is broken. Players are under team control until their mid-late 20’s when they’ll peak physically and command big contracts - contracts which their current team can rarely afford. It often makes more sense for a team to sell these young assets while they still have a value and get something in return. Otherwise, they walk for nothing. Mookie Betts, anyone?

Bottom line: Yes, the Pirates do lose a lot of their good young players. So do most other teams. 

But that’s not going to stop me from collecting them!

2018 Topps Chrome Austin Meadows Rookie Auto Refractor #/499

2019 All-Star Austin Meadows, a guy I’ve been following pretty closely since he was drafted #9 overall out of high school in 2013. 2013 was the year when the Pirates began to rise to relevance again. They also seemed to have a roster that could enjoy some sustained success, so Pirates fans started to pay more attention to the draft. Upon being drafted he was immediately labeled as the heir apparent to Andrew McCutchen, seeing as his projected arrival in the majors would correspond with the expiration of McCutchen’s contract. Five years later this actually proved to be true, and the timing lined up… until he was shipped to Tampa in the Chris Archer deal.

2017 Bowman Chrome Tyler Glasnow Rookie Refractor #/499

Speaking of being shipped to Tampa in the Chris Archer deal... Tyler Glasnow was the other big league piece sent south. He was one of the most exciting pitching prospects up through 2016 when he finally broke into the bigs. His big league career got off to an extremely rocky start – his career with the Pirates is *just* 5.79. He seems to have figured it out in Tampa - Glasnow finished the 2019 season with a 6–1 record and a 1.78 ERA in ​60 2⁄3 innings.

I picked up the gold parallel of this and showed it off earlier this month. I may continue to seek these out and see if I can put together a small collection of parallels.

2013 Topps Chrome Gerrit Cole Rookie Blue Refractor #/199

My love for 2013 Topps Chrome Blue Refractors strikes again. I already own this card as part of the complete set, but when I saw it pop up on eBay for very reasonable cost I couldn’t help but jump on it. I'm still hoping the best for Gerrit but I'll never be able to root for the Yankees. I hope he goes nine innings with 15 K's every game but loses 1-0.

2019 Topps Update Chris Archer Independence Day Parallel #/76

On an entirely unrelated note, here's a really badass card that was sent my way by Matt at Diamond Jesters. I sent him a small stack of Red Sox a month ago in return for a Bryan Reynolds parallel, and I guess he still felt like he owed me something. I really love this card and it showed up out of nowhere for a total surprise - so even better. We all love surprised in this hobby, don't we? Thanks a million, Matt.

Trade with Topps Cards that Never Were

In mid-September, Jeremy from Topps Cards that Never Were shot me an email about sending over some spare Pirates cards. This is the first time Jeremy and I have traded, and I’m really excited about this partnership. Jeremy sent me some great cards, but the best part about the partnership is that Jeremy collects the Rays. I’m excited to have a home for my unwanted Rays cards in the future.

First up is two pink parallels of formers Pirates, both of whom are participating in the Postseason (of course). One could/should win the Cy Young. You’ve probably heard of him by now.

Jose Guillen is one of very very few notable Pirates from the 90’s, so he shows up often in late 90s cardboard. This insert is awesome. He was 21 when he broke into the majors, hence the “Baby Boomers.”

As for Liriano, he’s one of my favorite recent Pirates. And while he was good for the Pirates, he was really nasty on the Twins. Really cool orange chrome parallel from 2010 Topps Chrome.

My favorite card of the lot. 2008 Topps Heritage High Number #/559. I don’t collect much Heritage, but maybe I should. Heritage refractors are so sweet. Maholm was pretty bad, maybe average at best over his 10 year career. He was a serviceable back-of-the-rotation starting pitcher who probably could of benefitted from some run support. Sadly, “run support” was not in the Pirates vocabulary in the mid 2000s.

And yet, this is still a great card. There’s just something different about the shine on Heritage refractors, which I tried my best to capture in the image above.

Thanks for the trade, Jeremy! Cheers to many more.

Newman and Kramer: PWE and Some Random PC Adds

I've been a big fan of Sport Card Collectors for a long time. I'm a frequent reader and I especially enjoy the product reviews, which have often inspired (or discouraged) my hobby box purchases. 

I was browsing through the blog the other day and noticed a few late 90's Topps football cards on the wantlist. I have a handful of football cards from that era, so I dug through some of my football commons and was able to dig up two of the cards on there. I contacted Matt who runs the blog and in a few days we had a PWE swap lined up.

I had my eye on a few of his recent breaks after seeing Matt pull a few good looking Pirates.

First up, Matt sent me this 2019 Stadium Club Auto from Kevin Newman. I've never busted open any Stadium Club myself, and I'm not sure I ever will. The photography is great - we know that - but I find myself gravitating towards bordered cards. Therefore, it's awesome to get another Stadium Club Auto in my collection, especially from a guy who has been super impressive in his rookie season.

The other card I requested is the 2019 Topps Chrome Kevin Kramer Prism. I do love some me shiny! At this time last year, Newman and Kramer were projected as the future middle infield for the Pirates. "The Seinfeld Double Play." That hasn't gone exactly to plan as Kramer has been on a slower path of progression. 

Matt also threw in the 2019 Topps Heritage Gregory Polanco Purple Parallel #/175. A really pleasant surprise. Thanks, Matt!

Now for a few random PC pick ups:

Top left: 2018 Bowman Draft Chrome Oneil Cruz #10/50. This guy is super intriguing. First off, he was traded at the deadline in 2017 straight up for reliever Tony Watson, who went on to pitch very meaningful innings for the Dodgers in the playoffs that year. Need more? His dad named him after Paul O'Neil! Not enough for you? He's a 6'6 shortstop, who has a cannon for an arm and a ton of raw power. 

He's 21 years old and was promoted to AA in August. He probably won't stick at that position, but so far his pure athleticism has been enough to keep him there. This is my first Cruz card. I'd love an auto, but he's only signed one licensed product so far and the prices aren't reasonable. 

Top right: 2014 Bowman Chrome Francisco Liriano Bubble Refractor /99. I think the bubble refactors are sooo sweet and I don't know why.

Bottom: 2019 Topps Series 2 Steel City Slammers. I mean... Steel City Slammers. Only two of the players on this card are still Pirates, which sounds about right since it's September and I'm a Pirates fan. Sweet card nonetheless, and a really great way for me to remember Corey Dickerson in one card.

Thanks again to Matt for the awesome PWE swap, and thanks to you for reading!

"Released to a Join a Contender"

Life as a Pirates fan in September. The games are meaningless, the rosters expand and we're told we'll get a glimpse into the future.

This year we also get to reflect on the past, as one of the clubhouse leaders decided to move on from the NL-Central-bottom-dwelling Buccos. About two weeks ago, the Pirates released Francisco Cervelli so he could join a contender. His request. As a fan, you never want to hear those words.

Hell, I don't blame the guy. Why stick around for 25 more meaningless games, if you don't have to? I'm not saying he's a quitter. He's not. By all accounts Cervelli poured his heart and soul into his job. On the day of his release essentially every Pirates starting pitcher posted a thank you to Cervelli for helping them grow as pitchers. 

After seven concussions it's a miracle he's still playing. He's 33, and in an 11 year career he's only had about 2200 ABs. A healthy everyday player would get that in four seasons.

I've casually tried to collect some of his cards and I'll be the first to tell you that there's just not that much out there. There are bunch of dual autos of him and Buster Posey in 2009 Bowman Sterling -- with those heinous silver stickers -- and for the price, that's just not for me. Of the Cervelli cards that are out there, most of them are Yankees. My personal favorite of my collection is the black parallel from 2010 Topps Update.

I promise that someday soon I'll get a decent scanner. The good ol' point-and-shoot with my iPhone just really isn't cutting it when it comes to cards. Seriously, the pictures are pitiful. I know.

You'd never know unless and I told you: You're going to have to zoom like crazy to confirm this, but this card is serial numbered to 59. Bottom left corner on the back of the card, celebrating 59 years of Topps.

Best of luck to Francisco in Atlanta.

Marte Par-tay

Judson over at My Cardboard Habit and I were able to work out another easy deal. The plan was essentially: "Hey Judson I really want that Marte auto..."

And his response was "It's yours, just send whatever and I'll send you Marte."

...pretty sweet deal. I sent Judson just about every Ranger in my collection. Sure enough, he fired back the autograph. Not just the autograph, but also an awesome GQ Jersey Card. 

Judson, thanks so much for the cards. The Stadium Club autograph is easily one of my favorites out of my whole Pirates PC. Although I wasn't a huge fan of Stadium Club overall, I absolutely love the poses and the photography captured in the set. This card is no different.

Thanks for reading!

Pirates PC Additions

A quick post on this Saturday afternoon to demonstrate that I do, in fact, still collect baseball cards.

One of my goals as a Pirates collectors is to have at least one certified autograph of player on the active roster. It's not always easy- finding certified auto's can be tough, especially with all the roster change in baseball.

This season, I was in luck. The three major acquisitions all certified auto's out there.

I'm a huge fan of Sean Rodriguez, as well as this card. He has a very elegant signature, and I was able to pick this up for a very affordable price (as it should be, he's only a bench guy). 

Another card that I was very happy to acquire. Remember when Upper Deck had an MLB license? This may have been the last year. This card was probably a great pull back when Corey Hart was a complete, 5-tool player for Milwaukee. The story is much different now, as Hart is used only in pinch hitting roles, with a rare start mixed in.

I really enjoy this card. The gold parallel look blends well the jersey color (even though it's Milwaukee). A plain white jersey, with a clean sticker signature... and short printed /99. Solid!

I have yet to find an affordable Cervelli auto. He's having a great year which of course I love, but I can't bring myself to shell out $15 bucks just yet. In all reality, he's very unproven as a professional, so I'm surprised his cards are calling for such a pretty penny. 

So, this A&G bat piece will have to do for now! It fell nicely into my budget. I was happy to see him in a Pirates jersey in 2015 Topps Series 1, and I'm hoping to see some more cards with him in the black and gold this year.

He Was a Pirate? Part 2

The second installment of "He Was a Pirate?" has arrived! This week, I'll be introducing a flame throwing righty who, in 2007, was given a 3-year $47 million dollar contract from the Dodgers. Any ideas? He's tall as Manu Ginobili, and weighs as much as B.J. Upton (Or did when he was active).

Still not sure? In 2003, he was the runner-up for the Cy Young which was awarded to Eric Gagne. He rocked a killer white guy chin goatee.

He was also featured on this incredibly strange baseball card:

Oh yeah baby. It's Jason Schmidt! DUH! 

Just kidding. If you knew actually guessed who it was from my clues, that's impressive. Aside from the fact that those clues are relatively obscure, I wouldn't expect many to remember Jason Schmidt- especially as a Pirate. I barely remembered myself until I stumbled across this gem. Here's the back:

1998 Pacific

The back of the card is acutally way cooler than the front. I love the fact that Schmidt was caught smiling, and I've always been a big fan of the grey hats. What's absolutely awesome about this card is that it's plugging the internet. Not an online promotion. Not Topps PowerPlayers, not Topps BUNT, but simply the internet. What gold. I tried the first URL at the top of the card, which unfortunately is no longer in service. The second URL redirects to the Pirates current website.

Number of seasons with the Pirates: 5 1/2

Career stats with the Pirates: 

His legacy: Jason's time with Pirates was the definition of mediocrity- maybe slightly above. He was usually right around .500, with an ERA consistently over 4.00. '97-'99 was definitely the most consistent period of his career, when he made over 30 starts each year with 200 IP. He would battle injuries in many of the following years. The Pirates were pretty terrible during these few years, aside from '97 which was a fluke, more or less. Fun fact, in 1998 he led the league with 15 wild pitches.

Schmidt turned out to be a late bloomer. He would go on to find his groove in San Francisco at the age of 30, where he enjoyed 17 and 18 win seasons and as previously mentioned, was a Cy Young candidate in 2003. He signed that monster contract with the Dodgers in 2007, but would only appear in 10 games for them in 3 years. 

I'll remember Jason Schmidt just like everyone else: A member of any team but the Pirates.

An Exciting Return From My Hiatus - Polanco, PC's, Pimps, and More

I'm back! It's been a few weeks since I've posted, and for good reason. As many of you have probably learned, my line of work requires me to move around quite frequently. I am excited to announce that for the foreseeable future, I have settled back in Pittsburg... just in time for baseball season! This of course means I've got a new address. If you're planning on sending anything, please ask me for my new address before sending. I've put in forward requests at all of my old addresses, so it's not the end of the world if something goes there, but I'd love to avoid that step if possible.

I've been so busy with work that I hadn't been home long enough to set up an appointment with the cable company. I finally got my cable and internet installed yesterday, so I'm up and running for the first time in two weeks. 

I'll start with some very exciting news- not just for the city of Pittsburgh- but for the sport of baseball. As I'm sure you've heard, the great Gregory Polanco has arrived on the North Shore. Even better, I was lucky enough to be in attendance.

And what a special night it was. The young man has made quite the splash for the Bucs, and the entire team has responded well. I've often heard that with him, McCutchen, and Startling Marte, the Pirates outfield should be the best in baseball and I hope that proves to be true. After the game, I went home and scoured my collection for any Polanco cards, and here's what turned up:

Not a bad lot at all. I remember purchasing the auto, of course. I grabbed it back in the fall for less than the cost of blaster. It's value has since doubled, although I would never consider selling it.

Next order of business, the newest additions to my Jason Grilli PC:

My favorite card here is the Archives gold parallel, which arrived courtesy of Gavin at Baseball Card Breakdown. He's also holding SICK contest right now, so I highly suggest you head over there right now!

My Grilli PC has been shaping up nicely, mostly because he's not a big enough name to drive up autograph prices. Both of the autographs combined cost me less than a blaster, and the blue Tribute is numbered to 50. I also love his sig, sleek and sharp! 

Last PC addition is this 2012 Topps Jared Hughes Gold Sparkle. This is my first and only Jared Hughes card. Due to Jared's recent success, I had to jump on a nice rookie of his. He's a been a very consistent reliever for the Bucs this season.

I also splurged on a Topps S2 blaster, which I'm sort of regretting. What actually sold me was the $10 of coupons, which I figured would be nice for some future discounts. However, the coupons are relatively useless. My pulls very unspectacular, and I only one Pirate, a Jordy Mercer base card. 

I've posted all of the cards that I'm not looking to keep in a separate post, HERE! Shoot me an email if there's anything you'd like. Some PWE swaps might be fun!

Last order of business: Part 2 of "He Was a Pirate?" will up within the week. If you missed Part 1, please check it out HERE!

Thanks for reading!

He Was a Pirate? Part 1 - Doug Mientkiewicz

I’m excited to introduce a new segment to the blog!

The inspiration here is quite simple. As a Pirates fan growing up in New York it was rare that I would come across anyone who shared my love for the black and gold. The Pirates, like all MLB teams, experience a multitude of transactions throughout the year. Existing in a small market magnified this even more. The Pirates were constantly signing players to one year, minimum contract deals.

With that said, my Yankee-supporting counterparts were never aware of the frequent changes occurring a few hundred miles west. Oftentimes during friendly baseball-themed conversation, the question “He was a Pirate?” would arise. I’ve decided to honor this ever-occuring inquiry on my blog.

The posts, which will be titled just as this one is, will be sequentially numbered- each post featuring one former Pirate whom-in my opinion- had an “under the radar” stint in the Steel City. Some will be stars, some will be Joe-Schmo’s, and so on. I will, of course, have at least one card from my PC to represent each player.

In a perfect world I would post weekly, but my schedule simply doesn’t allow for such consistency.  I’ve got a ton of guys/cards in mind, so keep an eye out for them!

This week’s “He was a Pirate?"

 2009 Topps Series 1 #328

Doug Mientkiewicz! Come on, you remember Doug! Yes, the guy that finished 14^th in MVP voting in 2001! Yeah, him!

Number of seasons with the Pirates: 1

Career stats with the Pirates:

His legacy: I'll always remember Doug as a contact hitting first baseman with a slick glove. I always enjoyed watching him get some playing time, which was limited behind the legendary Adam LaRoache (foreshadowing?). Even as a back-up, Doug managed to find himself well over 200 at bats. He did well as a back up- a role in which he had become familiar in the twilight of his career. 

Unlike the prototypical first baseman, Mientkiewicz was by no means a power hitter. His career high in homers was a meager 15, and he only made it to double digit homers four times. Even with absent power, he was able to make an impact by driving in runs and slapping singles. I remember him best as the first basemen for the Twins in the early 2000's, but also as a defensive replacement with other clubs- most notably the Boston Red Sox in 2004. That's when he received the final put out of the World Series and broke the Curse of the Bambino. The moment was captured in a series of images such as the one below.

The moments after this became incredibly controversial, when Mientkiewicz ended up hanging onto the game ball. The saga of the ball is catalogued nicely in this ESPN article.

In summary, I remember Doug Mientkiewicz just like everyone else: As a member of every team but the Pirates.