A little over a decade ago... I decided to put together a complete run of Steve Carlton's Topps flagship base (and traded) cards. Next up was Thurman Munson. In 2022, I completed the Steve Largent run. A month later, the Tony Gwynn run was finished too.
After putting it off for far too many years... last month I decided to start another run. This time, the subject is The Man of Steal. Before Gwynn, Rickey was my favorite baseball player. In fact... had he not been traded to the New York Yankees back in December of 1984... there's a chance he still would be.
Ultimately, he'd return to the A's in 1989 and help them beat the San Francisco Giants in the World Series. Unfortunately by then... there was no way he unseat Mr. Padre. But he'd settle comfortably into the #2 spot which is where he has remained ever since.
Over forty years after becoming a fan... I'm now making a point of completing his run. Considering all of the teams he's played for over his twenty-five season career... I've quickly discovered this is going to be a lot tougher than anticipated.
Let's start off with what I have...
1982 Topps #610
As of right now, his 1982 card is the oldest in the run. This is a chance to explain one of the guidelines I've created for myself... which is that the cards in these base card runs are not part of a set or set build. Rickey's 1980 Topps rookie card is the perfect example. I own a complete set of 1980 Topps, but I'm not willing to pull it out for this project. The same thing applies to a few other cards in this project: his 1981, 1983, 1985, and 1995 cards.
1984 Topps #230
1985 Topps #115
1987 Topps #735
1988 Topps #60
1989 Topps #380
1989 Topps Traded #48T
1990 Topps #450
1991 Topps #670
1992 Topps #560
1993 Topps #750
1994 Topps #248
1997 Topps #96
Assuming these seven eventually arrive safe and sound, I'll be down to nine cards. Here's a look at the ones I need:
The four cards highlighted in red were purchased over three weeks ago and haven't arrived... so I'm starting to think I'll need to purchase them again.
His rookie card will set me back a little, but I'm not too worried about that card. Living in the Bay Area, I'm hoping to find an affordable, lower grade, raw copy for a reasonable price. Not sure what the deal is with his 2002 and 2003 Topps Traded cards. If I'm lucky, I'll have to pay $15 for the 2003 card. Outside of his rookie card, that's about the most I want to pay for a card in this project.
Sadly... that puts me in kind of a bind, because his 2002 traded card currently sells in the $50 to $80 range. NO WAY WILL I PAY THAT KIND OF MONEY. Anyone know what the deal is with that card? Anyways... maybe the Hobby Gods will help me out and I'll find it lingering in a dime box or quarter bin.
If not... this might be one of those projects that take years... possibly decades to finish. That's kind of a bummer, but let's wrap things up on a happier note.
Hold on. My scanner does not do this card justice. Here's a photo of the custom:
Is this card awesome or what? It actually looks way better in person. And it's absolutely perfect for a St. Patrick's Day post.
Anyways... when he first showed it off... I asked him he was planning on selling it. He didn't reply to my comment... but eventually this card showed up in my mailbox with a note thanking me for supporting his 1991 MusiCards Blog.
He also used the scraps from this custom and a Canseco reject to produce this one-of-a-kind card:
The Green Super was put into a magnetic and will eventually be added to my A's shelf in the office, while this Gold Super will be added to my Sports Card Smorgasbord binder which contains all of the other customs I've received from him and others over the years.
Thank you Gavin for these welcomed additions to my Rickey collection.
Happy St. Patrick's Day and sayonara!