Baseball Cards, Spring 1981, Issue #1, Volume 1, No. 1

Cover: Honus Wagner, 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle, 1974 Topps Dave Winfield
Articles:
"Errors Discovered in '81 Fleer"by Larry Fritsch, p14. Detailing the errors/corrections in the 1981 Fleer set.
"In'the Beginning..." by Vivian Barning, p18.  Collecting strategies to fit a budget.
"Is PVC Destroying Your Cards?" by Bob Lemke, pp28-30, 79.  A detailed explanation about the dangers of storing cards in PVC pages.
"Players in Plastic" by Bob Parker, pp32, 64.  Hartland Statues from the 1940s-1960s.
"An Investor's View of Baseball Cards" by Tony Galovich, pp37-40, 80-83.  An in-depth look at the finer points of various factors to account for when viewing baseball cards as investments.
"Collecting Your Favorite Team" by Doug Watson, pp42-48, 84-85.  St. Louis Cardinals collectibles.



Baseball Cards, Autumn 1981, Issue #2, Volume 1, No. 2
Cover: 1953 Topps Andy Pafko, tobacco cards
Articles:

     For the first time ever, Panini is FINALLY issuing a baseball sticker set for a country other than the US or Venezuela.  Panini will be producing a sticker set and album for Liga de Beisbol Dominicano (LIDOM) this season.

     Bernie played the better part of four seasons in Batavia, New York, with the Trojans, who were the low A affiliate of the Cleveland Indians at the time. In this first picture, we have Bernie in his first professional season, standing on the left end of the back row.  Bernie didn't have a very structured introduction to baseball in the Dominican Republic, so 1981 would have been a major adjustment for him, speaking little to no English and really only knowing how to crush a baseball against teenage pitching.  That he is even in this photo at all is something of a surprise as he only played 12 games for Batavia in 1981.

     Despite his unimpressive initial showing, Bernardo returned to Batavia for the 1982 season, this time appearing in 41 of the team's 75 games that season.  He improved a bit, showed some of that pop he was signed for with four home runs, and actually stole a base, which is impressive as he only stole 24 in his entire minor league career.  Here, Bernie is in the third row, four down from the man in the suit.  I had to adjust the exposure on the scan as a black & white photo of all of those dark jerseys didn't make for a very good photo.  In any case, looks like Mr. Brito blinked at exactly the wrong time.


     1983 saw Bernardo Brito returning for his third season in Batavia.  This time around, he appeared in 60 games, and had improved enough that he was promoted to High A Waterloo for part of the season.  He didn't stick, though, his batting average dropping 40 points with the change of scenery and he was back in Batavia for the 1984 season.  Another case of the photographer apparently not using a fill light.  Had to adjust the levels again just to make out Bernardo's face.  This time he's on the back row, third from the right.


     The sellers that listed these apparently did not have a 1984 photo of either Waterloo or Batavia, but I did land this 1985 Waterloo Indians photo.  In 1984, Brito finally started to put the pieces together in his hitting game and finished with 19 home runs and a .300 batting average.  That was enough to earn him a promotion (again) to Waterloo for the '85 season.  This time around he did not disappoint and racked up  29 home runs, to lead the Midwest League.  Accordingly, Bernie would not spend another season in A ball and would be play the 1986 season with the Indians AA affiliate Waterbury Indians.


    After five years in A ball, Bernie finally made the jump to AA, in 1986, to play with the Waterbury Indians, and it took a bit of adjustment.  I've heard it said that the jump from A to AA is almost the same difference in level of competition as the jump from AA to the majors.  His average and power numbers dropped a bit, but not an alarming amount.  He would recover all of that when the team moved to Williamsport in 1987.



    Skipping ahead to 1987, Bernardo made what at first glance appears to be a lateral move, but in fact was just him repeating a grade.  After the 1986 season, Cleveland moved their AA Eastern League affiliate from Waterbury to re-establish baseball in Williamsport, Pennsylvania (which had been without baseball since the Williamsport Tomahawks closed up shop in 1976) with the creation of the Williamsport Bills.  Bernie put up another good year at AA, batting .277 and clobbering 24 home runs, tops in the Eastern League.  1987 would be the final year for Brito in the Indians organization as he would be released the following spring, to be signed as a free agent by the Twins the following week.

    Following a 1987 design that resembled 1986 Donruss, Best Cards patterned the fronts of their 1988 team sets after the 1986 Topps set.  I think I actually like Best's approach a little better, though the "Orlando '88" is perhaps a bit reduntant, due to the inclusion of the team logo.  Best Cards' back designs didn't change much for the entire 1987-1990 length of their existence, and were always a bit spartan.

     After seven seasons in the Indians organization, 1988 found Bernardo Brito still murdering the ball, but also still stuck at the AA level.  In early March, the Cleveland Plain Dealer had a good feature on Brito that helped explain his seeming lack of progress.  Bernardo was from the hills of San Cristobal, not the bigger cities of Santo Domingo or San Pedro de Macoris, and didn't grow up in quite the same baseball saturated environment as most young Dominican prospects.

     "He's still got a long way to go," [Luis] Isaac said. "He never had any coaching when he was a kid.  He never heard of a cutoff man or a bunt play until he got here.  Usually it takes Latin players about three or four years longer to reach their maximum."

     Isaac was the scout who heard about Brito and drove into the mountains of the Dominican Republic to find and, ultimately, sign him.  The article goes on to say that Brito  would most likely only succeed as a designated hitter, but then explained how most such players were usually experienced veterans, and that it would be difficult for a rookie to break into the majors in the DH role.  To me that was, perhaps, a perfect description of Major League baseball's perpetual resistance to the entire concept of the DH.  Basically until Edgar Martinez came along, it was somehow foreign to just put a good hitter with limited fielding ability in the DH role and take full advantage of that.  Most designated hitters were either aging veterans who no longer had the mobility to play in the field, or utility-type guys who were perhaps too good to leave in the minors, but little more than average bats in the Majors.

    Despite the praise and high hopes by March 25th the Indians decided he was a no longer a prospect and released Bernardo Brito.  Five days later, Brito was signed by the Minnesota Twins and sent to Orlando, their AA affiliate in the Southern League.  By June 15th, Brito was leading the Southern League in home runs for the Twins with 15.  By July 5th, Brito had been named to the Southern League All-Star team and was leading the league with 19 HR and 57 RBI.  Not bad for a non-prospect!

     I was excited when some of the players I collect started having bobble heads issued, and couldn't wait to add them to my collection.  I try to stay under $25 if at all possible, and have been fairly successful with that approach, but at least one will likely remain out of reach.  Dave Henderson was issued a bobble head by the Yakima Bears in 2009.  No clue why they did it, as Hendu never played for Yakima, and they were not an Oakland or Seattle affiliate, but when they surface, they usually sell for over $250.  It is, however, one of the better likenesses I've seen on a bobble head.

     Prior to becoming a coach for the Giants, Roberto Kelly managed their Single-A affiliate in the South Atlantic League from 2005-2007.  He led the Greenjackets to 1st place finishes in 2006 and 2007, and won SAL Manager of the Year honors in 2006.  Kelly's very first bobble head was given away by the Augusta Greenjackets on July 30, 2016.



     Dave Winfield is now represented in bobble head form by 4 of the 6 teams for which he played over his 20+ years in the Majors.  The Padres have now issued three bobble heads for Big Dave.  The one shown here was given away at Petco Park on June 15th, 2003.  There is also a more rare version featuring Dave in a brown jersey.  It tends to be much pricier than the more common white jersey version.  Winfield got one more bobble head from the Padres, a mini, that was limited to 2000 and given away at the 2016 All-Star Fan Fest.  It looks to be 4-5" tall.  I'll probably pick one up after the prices settle down a bit.

      The Yankees bobble head was not a stadium give away (the Yankees still don't seem to care much for Winfield, even all these years later), but rather is an exclusive from Man of Action Figures, a Miami, Florida based action figure store.  They have a large presence online and on eBay.  I am grateful for them as they produced Winfield's only Yankees figure of the man since his retirement.  According to the eBay listing, it is limited to 288 pieces, but can be had for a very reasonable $14.99 + $13.99 shipping (which might seem steep, but it arrived quickly and fully intact).  The Yankees bobble actually reminds me more of Walt "No Neck" Williams than Dave Winfield.

     Toronto honored Winfield with a Blue Jay bobble head on April 7th, 2002.

     Two bobble heads have been issued by the Minnesota Twins for the home town favorite.  The one with the green base was issued on July 22, 2001, in honor of Winfield's Hall of Fame induction.  Given the serial numbers on the laminated card that came with the statue, I suspect upwards of 10,000 of these were given out at the stadium.  The second, with the red base, was given out to Twins season ticket holders for the 2002 season, and is supposedly limited to about 2500 pieces.  As he played for the Angels for a season and a half, I'm hoping to one day see an Angels bobble head issued for Winfield, but I'm not holding my breath for anything from Cleveland.



     Tuffy Rhodes received three bobble heads, all in fairly quick succession, during his time playing with the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes.  I previously posted about the double bobble with Nakamura.  Each of the individual bobble heads was supposed to come with a Buffaloes lanyard (typically for carrying your game tickets), but all I received was the figures.  I haven't been able to track the exact release information, but I suspect these were released (from left to right) in 2001, 2002 and 2003.  I have seen a small figure of Tuffy in his Orix uniform, but I think it is just a statue and not a bobble head.



     I have yet to post anything about my collections of players who share my last name (or derivations thereof), but thus far it seems only one of them has a bobble head to his name.  That would be Josh Pressley.  He was a decent hitting first baseman who bounced around a lot from 1998-2006 before finally hitting the independent circuit where he would spend the rest of his career.  His one statue comes from the Somerset Patriots of the Atlantic League, where he played for 5 seasons.

     Another area that is perhaps a bit neglected in the sports memorabilia hobby would be the various round, pin-backed badges produced by a variety of parties and issued though a multitude of avenues.  While some sets are very well documented, others just seem to coast along in an odd state of limbo.  One such set that is both very well known, yet very poorly documented would be the "1978" Sports Photo Associates pins.  I put 1978 in quotes because, while almost all of the pins issued feature a 1978 copyright notice along the outer edge, the set clearly extended well beyond 1978.

     In addition to the set being extended across several years, there are also multiple sets that seem to overlap in that time period.  I will try to break them down as well as I can, with the relatively limited information I have, and try to put some order to the chaos.

    In 1978, "Sports Photo Associates" began issuing two sets of numbered pins, three inches in diameter, full color, and based on uncut sheets found on eBay, they two sets were printed together for at least part of the run.  One set featured contemporary players and managers, mostly featuring the individuals name, a facsimile signature and a small number.  The other set had "Baseball Hall of Fame" arching across the top, in a sort of gothic calligraphy, and featured the players name and a number beginning with 'HF' and showed a copyright of either 1978 or 1981.  The Hall of Fame set seems to have included 40 players as follows:

HF1	Babe Ruth (1978)
HF2	Lou Gehrig (1978)
HF3	Jackie Robinson (1978)
HF4	Hank Greenberg (1978)
HF5	Lou Bourdeau (1978)
HF6	Al Kaline (1978)
HF7	Hank Aaron (1978)
HF8	Yogi Berra (1978)
HF9	Ernie Banks (1978)
HF10	Eddie Mathews (1978)
HF11	Whitey Ford (1978)
HF12	Bob Feller (1978)
HF13	Monte Irvin (1978)
HF14	Roy Campanella (1978)
HF15	Roberto Clemente (1978)
HF16	Bob Lemon (1978)
HF17	Sandy Koufax (1978)
HF18	Willie Mays
HF19	Bob Gibson (1981)
HF20	Duke Snider
HF21	Robin Roberts
HF22	Joe DiMaggio (1981)
HF23	Ted Williams
HF24	Mickey Mantle (1981)
HF25	Brooks Robinson
HF26	Frank Robinson
HF27	Hank Aaron
HF28	Juan Marichal
HF29	George Kell
HF30	Walter Alston
HF31	Jack Brickhouse
HF32	Harmon Killebrew
HF33	Pee Wee Reese
HF34	Luis Aparicio
HF35	Don Drysdale
HF36	?
HF37	Enos Slaughter
HF38	John Mize
HF39	Hoyt Wilhelm
HF40	Lou Brock

     The other main set was numbered from '1' to at least '363'.  The last two pins I've seen were of Pete Rose, and the second highest numbered was '344' and featured him in his Montreal Expos uniform  (these can be seen over at 4192cards.com).  Several players were included multiple times.  In some cases, as with Dave Winfield and Pete Rose, with different teams.  In other cases, players were included on multiple pins for the same team, including Reggie Jackson, Fred Lynn, George Brett and Johnny Bench.  The Fleer Sticker Project features an interesting post about this set as the pins were available as part of a promotion on 1981 Fleer wax wrappers.  The Sports Photo Associates also seems to have beena resource for photos for Fleer for their inaugural sets.
1981 Fleer and Sports Photo Associates Buttons      Below is the checklist I have assembled so far (which will be updated as new pins are uncovered). Thus far, it covers 242 of the known 400+ pins in the set:

1	Ron Guidry (Yankees)
1	Ron Guidry (ASCCA advertisement)
2	Jim "Catfish" Hunter (Yankees)
3	Rich Gossage (Yankees)
4	Thurman Munson (Yankees)
5	Ed Figueroa (Yankees)
6	Willie Randolph (Yankees)
7
8	Billy Martin (Yankees)
9	Reggie Jackson (Yankees)
10	Lou Piniella (Yankees)
11	Graig Nettles (Yankees)
12
13
14
15
16	Bucky Dent (Yankees)
17
18	Greg Luzinski (Phillies)
19
20
21	Larry Christianson (Phillies)
22	Larry Bowa (Phillies)
23
24	Ron Reed (Phillies)
25	Steve Carlton (Phillies)
26	Tug McGraw (Phillies)
27
28
29
30
31	Mike Schmidt (Phillies)
32
33
34
35
36	Jim Rice (Red Sox)
37
38
39	Carlton Fisk (Red Sox)
40
41
42
43	Rick Burleson (Red Sox)
44
45	Fred Lynn (Red Sox)
46
47	Carl Yastrzemski (Red Sox)
48	Butch Hobson (Red Sox)
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56	Lee Mazzilli (Mets)
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69	Dave Parker (Pirates)
70
71	Willie Stargell (Pirates)
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81	Rich Gossage (Yankees)
82
83	George Brett (Royals)
84	Bob Lemon (Yankees)
85	Mike Flanagan (Orioles)
86	Jim Palmer (Orioles)
87	Eddie Murray (Orioles)
88	Ken Singleton (Orioles)
89	Frank Robinson (Orioles)
90	Andre Thornton (Indians)
91	Toby Harrah (Indians)
92	Rick Manning (Indians)
93	Rick Waits (Indians)
94	Duane Kuiper (Indians)
96	Dennis Leonard (Royals)
97	Paul Splittorff (UER, Last Name Misspelled)
98	Darrell Porter (Royals)
99	Fred Patek (Royals)
100	Amos Otis (Royals)
101	Al Cowens (Royals0
102	Al Hrabosky (Royals)
103	Clint Hurdle (Royals)
104	Sparky Lyle (Rangers)
105	Jim Sundberg (Rangers)
106	Bert Campaneris (Rangers)
107	Richie Zisk (Rangers)
108	Al Oliver (Rangers)
109	Jim Kern (Rangers)
110	Buddy Bell (Rangers)
111	Chet Lemon (White Sox)
112	Don Kessinger (White Sox)
113	Lamar Johnson (White Sox)
114	Jorge Orta (White Sox)
115
116	Dwight Evans (Red Sox)
117	Dennis Eckersley (Red Sox)
118	Larry Hisle (Brewers)
119	Mike Caldwell (Brewers)
120	Robin Yount (Brewers)
121	Gorman Thomas (Brewers)
122	Sixto Lezcano (Brewers)
123	Ron LeFlore (Tigers)
124	Mark Fidrych (Tigers)
125	Jason Thompson (Tigers)
126	Dave Rozema (Tigers)
127	Rusty Staub (Tigers)
128
129
130	Rick Cerone (Blue Jays)
131
132	Nolan Ryan (Angels)
133	Frank Tanana (Angels)
134	Bobby Grich (Angels)
135	Don Baylor (Angels)
136	Joe Rudi (Angels)
137	Rod Carew (Angels)
138	Matt Keough (Athletics)
139
140	Dave Revering (Athletics)
141	John Henry Johnson (Athletics)
142	Butch Wynegar (Twins)
143	Dave Goltz (Twins)
144	Roy Smalley (Twins)
145	Ruppert Jones UER (misspelled Ryppert, Mariners)
146	Leon Roberts (Mariners)
147	Bruce Bochte (Mariners)
148	Dan Meyer (Mariners)
149	Pete Rose (Phillies)
150	Dave Kingman (Cubs)
151	Bobby Murcer (Cubs)
152
153	Bruce Sutter (Cubs)
154	Ivan DeJesus (Cubs)
155	Ted Simmons (Cardinals)
156	Gary Templeton (Cardinals, no signature)
157	Lou Brock (Cardinals)
158	Bob Forsch (Cardinals)
159	Ron Cey (Dodgers)
160	Tom Lasorda (Dodgers)
161	Davey Lopes (Dodgers)
162	Reggie Smith (Dodgers)
163	Don Sutton (Dodgers)
164	Tom Seaver (Reds)
165	Johnny Bench (Reds)
166	Joe Morgan (Reds)
167	Dave Concepcion (Reds)
168	George Foster (Reds)
169	Ken Griffey (Reds)
170	Phil Niekro (Braves)
171	Jeff Burroughs (Braves)
172	Gary Matthews (Braves)
173	Biff Pocoroba (Braves)
174	Bob Horner (Braves)
175	Ross Grimsley (Expos)
176	Gary Carter (Expos)
177
178	Ellis Valentine (Expos)
179	Tony Perez (Expos)
180	Vida Blue (Giants)
181	Willie McCovey (Giants)
182	Jack Clark (Giants)
183	Gary Lavelle (Giants)
184	Bill Madlock (Giants)
185	Dave Winfield (Padres)
186	Gaylord Perry (Padres)
187	Rollie Fingers (Padres)
188
189	J.R. Richard (Astros)
190	Cesar Cedeno (Astros)
191	Bob Watson (Astros)
192	Enos Cabell (Astros)
193	Yogi Berra (Yankees)
194	Bill Buckner (Cubs)
195
196	Doug DeCinces (Orioles)
197	Tommy John (Yankees)
198	Steve Kemp (Tigers)
199	Darrell Evans (Giants)
200	Thurman Munson (Yankees)
200	Thurman Munson (Yankees) "The Captain 1947-1979"
201	Craig Reynolds (Astros)
202	Joe Niekro (Astros)
203	Paul Molitor (Brewers)
204	Scott Thompson (Cubs)
205	Jerry Martin (Cubs)
206	Ray Knight (Reds)
207	Terry Puhl (Astros)
208
209	Keith Hernandez (Cardinals)
210	Earl Weaver (Orioles)
211	Brian Downing (Angels)
212	Alan Bannister (White Sox)
213	Ken Kravec (White Sox)
214	Lance Parrish (Tigers)
215	Willie Wilson (Royals)
216
217	Jerry Koosman (Twins)
218	Rick Bosetti (Blue Jays)
219
220	Joe Sambito (Astros)
221	Lee Mazzilli (Mets)
222	Fred Lynn (Red Sox)
223	Carl Yastrzemski (Red Sox)
224	Bucky Dent (Yankees)
225	Rick Cerone (Yankees)
226	Bobby Murcer (Yankees)
227	Oscar Gamble (Yankees)
228
229	Dale Berra (Pirates)
229	Phil Garner (Pirates)
230	Bill Madlock (Pirates)
231	Omar Moreno (Pirates)
232	Dave Collins (Reds)
233	Johnny Bench (Reds)
234	Junior Kennedy (Reds)
235	Billy Martin (Athletics)
236	Nolan Ryan (Astros)
237
238	Cecil Cooper Brewers)
239	Ben Oglivie (Brewers)
240	George Brett (Royals)
241	Joe Lefebvre (Yankees)
242	Ruppert Jones (Yankees)
243	Bobby Brown (Yankees)
244	Jim Spencer (Yankees)
245	Bob Watson (Yankees)
246	Rudy May (Yankees)
247	Steve Stone (Orioles)
248	Kiko Garcia (Orioles)
249	Al Bumbry (Orioles)
250	Rick Dempsey (Orioles)
251	Maury Wills (Mariners)
252	Bump Wills (Rangers)
253	Mike Norris (A's)
254	Rickey Henderson (A's)
255
256	Steve Trout (White Sox)
257	Jose Cruz (Astros)
258	Jeff Reardon (Mets)
259	Neil Allen (Mets)
260	Alex Trevino (Mets)
261	Len Barker (Indians)
262	Lonnie Smith (Phillies)
263
264	Mike Easler (Pirates)
265	Bob Stanley (Red Sox)
266	Dennis Eckersley (Red Sox)
267	Jim Rice (Red Sox)
268	Glenn Hoffman (Red Sox)
269	Carlton Fisk (Red Sox)
270	Manny Trillo (Phillies)
271	Tug McGraw (Phillies)
272
273	Bob Boone (Phillies)
274	Larry Bowa (Phillies)
275	Bake McBride (Phillies)
276	Garry Maddox (Phillies)
277	Dave Winfield (Yankees)
278	Jerry Mumphrey (Yankees)
279	Dave Kingman (Mets)
280	Rusty Staub (Mets)
281	Mookie Wilson (Mets)
282	Hubie Brooks (Mets)
283	Joe Charboneau (Indians)
284	Steve Balboni (Yankees)
285	Joel Youngblood (Mets)
286	Steve Garvey (Dodgers)
287	Reggie Jackson (Yankees)
288
289	Dale Murphy (Braves)
290	Lee Mazzilli (Yankees)
291	Reggie Jackson (Angels)
292	Steve Sax (Dodgers)
293
294
295	Fernando Valenzuela (Dodgers)
295	Dave Righetti (Yankees)
296	Dave Winfield (Yankees)
297	Steve Kemp (Yankees)
298	Tony Armas (Red Sox)
299
300
301	Charlie Moore (Brewers)
302
303	Tom Seaver (Mets)
304	Cal Ripken Jr. (Orioles)
305	Steve Garvey (Padres)
306	Darryl Strawberry (Mets)
307	Jody Davis (Cubs)
307	Leon Durham (Cubs)
307	Wade Boggs (Red Sox)
308	Mel Hall (Cubs)
308	Hal McRae (Royals)
309	Ryne Sandberg (Cubs)
310	Fergie Jenkins (Cubs)
311	Ron Kittle (White Sox)
312	Ted Simmons (Brewers)
313
314	Greg Luzinski (White Sox)
315	Keith Moreland (Cubs)
316	Don Sutton (Brewers)
317
318	Jerry Remy (Red Sox)
319
324	Bo Diaz (Phillies)
327	Gary Matthews (Phillies)
330	John Denny (Phillies)
331	Al Holland (Phillies)
332
333
334
335	Don Mattingly (Yankees)
336
337
338
339
340	Dan Quisenberry (Royals)
341	Steve Bedrosian (Braves)
342
343	Glenn Hubbard (Braves)
344	Pete Rose (Expos)
345	Tom Seaver (White Sox)
346
347	Julio Cruz (White Sox)
348	Doug DeCinces (Angels)
349	Fred Lynn (Angels)
350	Bob Boone (Angels)
351	Mike Boddicker (Orioles)
352	George Foster (Mets)
355	Bob Dernier (Cub)
356	Scott Sanderson (Cubs)
357	Gary Matthews (Cubs)
359	Jack Morris (Tigers)
360	Alan Trammell (Tigers)
361	Kirk Gibson (Tigers)
362	Lee Smith (Cubs)
363	Pete Rose (Reds)
400	Ron Cey (Cubs)
795	Jody Davis (Cubs)
802	Rick Sutcliffe (Cubs)
808	Keith Moreland (Cubs)
818	Davey Lopes (Cubs)
824	Dennis Eckersley (Cubs)
826	Leo Durham (Cubs)
868	Ryne Sandberg (Cubs)
870	Ryne Sandberg (Cubs)
?	Bob Bailor (Blue Jays)
?	Kevin Bell (White Sox)

     To help confuse matters, unnumbered pins were issued for the Yankees, Red Sox, Mets, Pirates and Phillies.  These often feature the same photograph, but merely lack the small number on the front.  There were also a set of 4-inch pins issued for teams featuring multiple players.  Also pins 795 and up may not actually be part of the larger set.

SPA-1	New York Yankees (1979)
SPA-2	Los Angeles Dodgers (1979)
SPA-3	Philadelphia Phillies (1979)
SPA-4	Boston Red Sox (1979)
SPA-9A	Baltimore Orioles (1982?)
SPA-12	Philadelphia Phillies (1982)
SPA-13	Chicago Cubs (1982)
SPA-20	Chicago White Sox (1983)
SPA-22	Philadelphia Phillies (1983)
SPA-23	Chicago Cubs (1984)

---UPDATE---
 Thanks to Cliff Bowman, from the Net54Baseball.com forum for the addition of the most recent 25+ pins.

     Hensley Meulens spent parts of six seasons in the International League as a player, most notably 1988-1993 with the Columbus Clippers, and 1997 with the Ottawa Lynx.  Once his playing days were over, he returned as a hitting coach for the Indianapolis Indians from 2005-2008.   I don't take much time off work, but this week I made an exception and drove up to Columbus, Ohio, to witness the induction of Sir Hensley "Bam Bam" Meulens into the International League Hall of Fame.  Below is my shaky cell phone video of the ceremony.


     It was a beautiful evening for baseball at Huntington Park, with a season-high crowd of 11,373 turning out for the event.  I guess some of them also showed up to see the Clippers face the Indians (not a good night for Ross Detwiler and the Clippers) or maybe for Sugardale Dime-A-Dog night (10 cent hot dogs!).  In any event, in honor of Sir Bam Bam, the team was giving away these canvas printed plaques covering his career with the Clippers:


     I had really hoped to get a chance to finally meet the man himself, but it just never happened, mostly because I got wrapped up in the game and didn't think to go hang out by the Hall of Fame plaque after the ceremony.  However, he did notice me!  I was sitting in the front row behind the plate, right by the Clippers dugout, wearing my Hensley Meulens San Francisco Giants 2010 World Series away jersey, and he saw me from the second level box where he was sitting with his family and sent this down to me:
     He did smile and wave to me when he came through the dugout onto the field.

     The I.L. Hall of Fame now occupies two of these plaques, so next year they will need to start on a third.  Out front of the stadium is a bronze statue of Harold Cooper, the business man who brought baseball back to Columbus after the Cardinals had moved the previous affiliate (the Columbus Red Birds) to Omaha following the 1954 season.  Cooper bought the International League team in Ottawa and relocated them to Columbus, establishing the Columbus Jets.  Fast Forward to 1970, and unable to work out a deal for improvements to their existing stadium the team was again sold and was moved to Charleston, West Virginia, and became the Charleston Charlies.  The Clippers began in Columbus in 1977, in the same stadium, and in 1984 it was officially renamed "Cooper Stadium".  Harold Cooper is in the upper left corner of the plaque below.  Hensley Meulens is in the lower right.
  


  Here is a closeup of 2016's inductees:
    

     1987 saw a ramping up by a variety of companies using baseball cards as an enticement for purchasing their product.  Popcorn, breakfast cereal, iced tea and even the big mac & cheese lobby would get into the baseball card printing act.  Three years after their "First Annual" card set, the Ralston Purina Company produced a new set of 15 cards, in packs of three, buried in specially marked boxes of regular and vanilla Cookie-Crisp, and the less well known test run of Honey Graham Chex.


     Along with the cards was an instant win card for a "Win A Hero For A Day" contest.  There were apparently separate contest for Cookie Crisp and for Honey Graham Chex as the prize enumerations are different on each box.  From the Cookie Crisp rules, the grand prize being a visit from "a baseball hero" to your school or a Little League game.  Other prizes were 500 Rawlings gloves; 1,000 personalized Louisville Slugger bats; 10,000 Rawlings baseballs and 100,000  complete uncut sheets of the card set.  From the Honey Graham Chex rules, the grand prize being a visit from "a baseball hero" to your school or a Little League game (meaning there were actually two chances at this). The other prizes were 100 Rawlings gloves; 200 personalized Louisville Slugger bats; 500 Rawlings baseballs and 25,000 complete uncut sheets of the card set.

     As I haven't really posted about these in while, I thought it was time to catch up with what the various MLB teams have been providing at the autograph lines at their annual fan fest events and in fan packs.  The lists here will be works in progress as I am able to find more to add.

Houston Astros

2015
     For 2015, the Astros produced a very nice, clean design for their photo cards featuring a mix of current and former players.  Some cards have uniform numbers, some don't.  The back is mostly black with a phone number to call for Astros game tickets.