#MyCardMonday

This week I am keeping the same trend for the past two weeks, a N.L. pitcher who has the ability to throw a no hitter every time he steps on the rubber.

Looking at Clayton Kershaw's numbers this year without knowing it was his numbers, but another pitcher in the majors you would think he is having a good year. ERA of 3.20 ERA+ of 116 leading the N.L. in strikeouts with 140 and a WHIP of 1.036. In reality for Kershaw his numbers are down this season. His career ERA is 2.53 and the ERA + 149, now his strikeout per 9 is up one whole strikeout this year compared to last year at 11.8. I would expect him to get back to the Kershaw of old and be that dominating pitcher that he has been. I just like looking at his numbers that are actually good numbers for anyone other then a handful of pitchers in the major league. Just goes to show how good Kershaw has been in his career.

#MyCardMonday

I should have done this post a week or so ago, but I am just not getting around to it. This year for the Detroit Tigers we are seeing some new familiar faces broadcasting the games with Mario Impemba. Former Detroit Tigers greats, Jack Morris and Kirk Gibson are splitting time with Rod Allen to broadcast the games. A week or so ago we found that unfortunately Kirk Gibson has been diagnosed with Parkinson.

Gibby was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in 1978 and played his first 9 seasons for the Tigers and then his final 3 years in the majors, including the 1984 World Series team. He is Michigan native from Pontiac. He was a solid outfielder who never made an All-Star team during his career, but he is best remembered for his walk-off home run in the 1988 World Series where he was a pinch hitter who could barely walk to the plate. He did win the MVP that season while playing for the Dodgers.

This is my favorite moment from Gibby's career. This was before I was born, but watching the highlights from the 1984 team this was great. Goose Gossage thought he could strike-out Gibby and you had Sparky yelling from the bench "He don't wanna walk you!"

I wish Kirk Gibson the best fighting Parkinson disease.

Bowman Chrome Hits

My other box that I had waiting for me when I got home from work on Saturday was Bowman Chrome. With Bowman Chrome you are guaranteed three autograph cards in the box. The series focuses on more younger players with their rookie cards. It is a good set to get familiar with young guys who are still in the minors. Out of the three autograph cards I pulled, I only had heard of one of the three.

Joes De Leon is a right handed pitcher in the Dodgers organization. He was drafted in the 24th round in 2013. He is ranked number 7 in the Dodgers organization in top prospects according to mlb.com. He is a strikeout pitcher who broke Clayton Kershaw's Great Lakes single game strikeout record with 14.

Alex Reyes is a top 3 prospect in the St. Louis Cardinals farm system. He is another strikeout pitcher with a fastball that can reach mid 90s and even touch triple digits. He even made baseball's top 100 prospect list. The card is #/499.

Brandon Finnegan was the one player that I knew. I did pretty well with pulling Royals cards this weekend (the other being Venture in Gypsy Queen). I heard of Finnegan last year when he was drafted 17th overall to the Royals and then made his major league debut later on that year. He would earn a win in the 2014 ALDS and throw perfect 10th and 11th innings in the AL Wild Card game also.

Topps Heritage Part 1

Last night I received my favorite baseball card series, Topps Heritage. I really like the retro design to their cards. I purchased two hobby boxes due to the reasonable cost and the fact that each box you are guaranteed either a relic or an autograph.

My first box started pretty slow for me. It wasn't until the last pack i ripped open that I pulled this Zack Greinke game used relic. I was pretty impressed with the card. Greinke is a good pitcher coming into his contract year with the Dodgers. I remember watching him come up with the Royals and show his dominating stuff against the Tigers. He is a little bit of a head case, but still a pretty cool card to add.

My second box I pulled another game used relic of Atlanta Braves first basemen, Freddie Freeman. This is probably my favorite of the two cards just because of having the red jersey piece compared to the usual white or gray. Freeman is good young first basemen who has a great glove and I like a guy who can flash the leather.

By the time I had a chance to rip into these boxes it was a little later in the evening. I did pull a few cool parallels that I will post in part 2 and I have to go through and look to see what short prints I pulled and if I did get any bubble gum stained cards.

#TwoForTuesday

Today I will look at a couple first basemen. I really just picked two random cards out of my relic box this morning and thought they would work for today's post. One is known for his power, but is coming off of an injury season while the other is a well rounded first basemen known for his gold glove.

Adrian Gonzalez is a consistent player throughout his career. He has played at least 156 games each year since 2006. His power might have peaked in 2008 and 2009 while with the Padres when he hit a combined 76 balls out of the park. What sets him apart from most first basemen is his glove. In his career he has four gold gloves to along with his two silver slugger awards.

Prince Fielder really left a bad taste in most Detroit Tigers fans mouth. I'm whatever with him. His first year in Detroit was great his second year not so much, but from the rumors of what was going on in the clubhouse could really play with a player's mind. Just like Gonzalez, Fielder seemed to play everyday until this past season. From 2009-2013 he only missed one game. Pretty cool feat for such a big man. Prince will always be best known for his power. If he can stay healthy I would expect to see him hit a bunch out Arlington.