... #4 ...
Rickey Henderson
Trips to Northwoods Mall and Kmart(or your favorite mall/store) back in the day were actually big deals. Likely never to be understood by younger generations. We had a great Kmart. Mego, Star Wars, Remco, G.I.Joe, Big Jim etc. action figures were always stocked. Spring of 1980 something else caught my eye in the Hot Wheels aisle. Topps Baseball Cards. Not in wax packs, but rather in Rack Packs. Example pic, not mine:
Those and the Topps 5x7 Supers took up a small area. Snagged quite a few rack packs that Spring. I had just started following MLB in late 79 so I loved getting cards of guys like Schmidt, Garvey, Brett, Lance Parrish, Rice etc. Racked up, no pun intended, nearly all the stars except for 3 notable misses. Dave Winfield. Nolan Ryan. And the man with the best rookie card in 1980: Rickey Henderson. Though in 1980 I had no clue what a rookie card was, and Rickey was playing at the time for a sorry team in Oakland that I had never seen play 😂. Plus, this is 1980. Pre card collecting, but into the comic books pretty good. A Collecting Act Minus One I suppose 😉.
Rickey Henderson may very well be the best MLB player of the last 45 years. Depending on how people view Barry Bonds among positional players and Roger Clemens among pitchers. Among all time rankings he solidly places in the Top 25 all time when including pitchers. Top 20 if sticking with positional players. As a young fan I became very aware of him by the 1982 season. Helped in part by our area finally getting cable tv in June 1982 😇
Intermezzo
Exciting news and fun ahead for the second half of the year ... Shhh ...
Meanwhile, 40 years ago this month
... okay ... Nice look Jax ... But stay focused ... 😂😂
By 1985 I was fully aboard the Henderson train. Don Mattingly had a huge 1985. Crazy stats across the board. Won the 1985 AL MVP. A solid choice with some dissenting views. Rickey's 1st season for the Yanks as Don's teammate was 1985. Rickey played a large part in Mattingly winning the MVP. Rickey would have been a solid choice as well. It was the perfect marriage so to speak. Finally snagged a Rickey Rookie in May 1987. Though it was only with me for three years before I sold it 😖
What, it happens 😏
Rickey was a bit ... mercurial during his nearly four and half seasons in the Bronx. Things got a little tense near the end of his Yankee run in June '89. Yankees were a tire fire at that point. Rickey was shipped back to Oakland for three players who provided little to the Yankees. Rickey back home in Oakland however, was Great Rickey again. ALCS MVP award in 1989. AL MVP in 1990. Career Stolen Base MLB record in 1991. A Career Stolen Base World Record in 1993. Stacking hardware.
The Hired Gun ...
In 1993 A quick stopover in Toronto didn't produce much for the two months of regular season work. An injury nick here/there. Nothing eye popping in the 93 ALCS or World Series but his contributions did help Toronto win a second consecutive World Series. Rickey's second ring as well.
Back to Oakland ... then San Diego ... then Anaheim ... Oakland again ... Mets ... Seattle ... San Diego again ... Boston ... Dodgers. With the Dodgers being the final stop. Rickey bounced around a bit. I wanted him back with the Yanks at various times from 96-00 but alas ...
His great years in the rearview mirror, Rickey did play long enough to become the All Time Runs Scored leader and get the 3000 hit plateau. A first ballot Hall Of Fame induction in 2009 with 94.8% of the vote. Along with the unofficial title of Greatest Leadoff Hitter of All Time. A legendary career. Though he's not everybody's cup of tea.
Rickey joined the collection here in January 2016. By complete accident. I got a real good deal on the Rickey Rookie pictured a few paragraphs above.
Glad to have Rickey in the AcesN8s here. Helps the credibility of the collection having that level of legendary player in house. Inner Circle Hall of Famer and a true great.
Links ...
Later ... Always remember. Have fun. Be unique and eclectic
Johnny & Janie will send us out ... 😎
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