John Elway Card Lot

I picked up this John Elway card lot last year and it had some really cool cards including this great 2013 Topps Magic card.  Elway ended his career as a 2X Super Bowl champion, MVP, Super Bowl MVP, All-1990s Team, Walter Payton award winner and 9X Pro Bowl selectee.  

I've made no secret that John Elway is my favorite football player of all-time.  That 1999 Upper Deck MVP card is really cool because of the photo.  Unfortunately, it was a culmination of Broncos defeating my Falcons soundly in the Super Bowl.  But what a way to end your career.  Two straight Super Bowl victories.  That first Score photos is nice as well.

The art on those Upper Deck cards have always been a favorite of mine.  There are so many 90s football sets I don't remember like these Bowman and Donruss sets.  Lots like these allow me to go back and look at those sets.  

And we have Pinnacle.  So much variety.  This was a 35-card lot I picked up on eBay.

Upper Deck, Pinnacle, Topps.  I really like those old Denver unis.  I grew up with those of course, but they really did look good.

John Elway played in 5 Super Bowls.  Three of those did not go as planned but it is still a great accomplishment to quarterback a team to that many championship games.  Shannon Sharpe really was a great combo with John Elway.  He was a 4X All-Pro with the Broncos and really revolutionized the tight end position.

I like the Select '95 with the muted background.  Makes those colors and photo pop.

I was surprised by how the photos didn't feel repetitive to me.  I thought I'd really just get the classic Elway look right before throwing but I'm very happy with all the different looks which are helped by so much variety in designs amongst the sets.

That Topps Season Highlights card is one of my favorites from the lot.

A nice look at Elway as a Stanford quarterback.

I'd never seen that Goodwin Champions card before and I like it.  That Fleer Ultra is also a favorite of mine.  It is that classic look, but I like how that photo is framed really well.  It was fun sharing these and reliving so many memories watching Elway in his career.

 

Kirby Puckett Card Lot

I was always a low-key Kirby Puckett fan though the Twins victory over the Braves in the '91 World Series muted some of my fandom at the time.  But really, how can anyone not like Kirby?  Once he retired it was easier let that fandom grow. 

Puckett retired suddenly in 1995 when he lost vision in his right eye due to glaucoma.  He finished his 12-year career with 2,304 hits and a .314 batting average having led the league 4 times in hits while winning 1 batting title.  He was known for that big smile and these three ards really showcase that.

I've always liked the Triple Play cards.  Fun cards for collectors and they were just that for me.

In his career he was an 10X All-Star, 6X Silver Slugger, Clemente Award winner, and won 6 Gold Gloves.

I'm a big 1990 Donruss fan and the All-Star design is one of my favorite cards.  The American League logo makes it work so well.  That said, I've never connected with the MVP cards.  Really bland design to me.

This was a 42 card lot I purchased off eBay earlier this year.  His cards aren't too expensive overall, and it was a fun pickup.  I owned a few already but there were others I've never even seen before like the Topps Finest and Topps Ames cards.

Another All-Star card I like.  That 1990 design and the colors work for me for some reason.  Early Upper Deck usually impressed, and I like that we get to see Kirby on the base paths for a change. 

Score had some fun sets, and I like both the '88 and '90 designs.

What was happening here?  Did Kirby come in from the outfield to cover during a rundown?   Just happened to be playing in the infield?   Something else happen?  No matter why, I really like this card and photo.

Again, we see Kirby in the infield on the back of his Upper Deck card. He did play some infield but it was rare, so I assume this was just one of those occasions.  Always been a fan of the UD art cards across the sports.

One of Kirby's 1987 highlights was winning his 1st championship as the Twins took down the St. Louis Cardinals.  I really like All-Star specific cards, and the Fleer SuperStar Special cards are a nice take on them.

Nice photo on the Fleer card.  I get it's staged but I like it.

I like seeing him flex his fingers as he readies his grip in that last photo.

We get to see him getting out of the batter's box on this last Fleer card.

Great looking card.

Some different photos and a caricature.  I'm digging all these and the '88 Donruss design to finish off the post.  Really enjoy showing these off and reminiscing about Kirby Puckett.  Just an amazing player and one of the best right-handed hitters I've ever seen.

   

Zane Smith Card Lot

 Zane Smith is one of my all-time favorite baseball players.  No real reason other than he did pitch for the Braves and something just clicked for me.

This 1985 Fleer Major League Prospect is Zane's third card.  His first card is a 1983 TCMA Durham Bulls trading card.  I just purchased that one and I'll show it off once it comes in.

Smith was 39-58 with a 4.06 ERA in 6 seasons with the Braves.  This lot had 40 total cards that I purchased on eBay.  I won't show of every card.  From this lot I think this '87 Donruss is my favorite Braves card.

His best season in Atlanta was 1987 when he went 15-10 with a 4.09 ERA in 36 games.

I like that '88 Donruss card as well and the prominent Braves logo.

Smith was traded to the Expos for three players. none of which amounted to anything.  

He was 6-8 with a 2.79 ERA in 21 starts in Montreal.  Get to see those classic Expo blue jersey on that 1990 Score card.

He was then sent to Pittsburgh as part of a trade that netted Montreal a young Moises Alou.  I like that Upper Deck photo even though there's really not anything going on there.  He had his best season as a pro going 16-10 in 1991 with a 3.20 ERA.

He was 47-41 with the Buccos with a 3.35 ERA over 6 seasons.  That included those powerhouse teams of the early 90s that lost three straight National League Championship Series.  He was 1-4 in his playoff career with a 2.88 ERA in 25 innings.  I do not remember that Pittsburgh alternate jersey.

Zane on the run!  Maybe that was his only stolen base of his career.  One SB and never caught stealing.  A pitcher will take that.  He spent just one year with the Red Sox.  Zane Smith is a top-ten all-time favorite for me so this post was a lot of fun.

He would play one more season with the Pirates after leaving Boston. He finished with a 100-115 record and a 3.74 ERA over 13 seasons.

Eric Dickerson Card Lot

 I picked up a lot of Eric Dickerson cards off eBay.  Only 15 cards but still fun.  I love this classic look for Dickerson in that great Rams uni.  We also see him staring us down as he heads up field.

Another good look of his more straight up and down running style and a nice look at his SMU college uni.

Eric Dickerson is 5th all-time in rushing yards for Indy while Addai is 9th.  Dickerson was involved in three-team "Trick or Trade" that happened on October 31, 1987 sending him to the Colts.  Lots of first rounds picks and players going between Los Angeles, Buffalo and the Colts.  I didn't remember that Buffalo received the rights to Cornelius Bennett as their part of the trade.

I've always liked that 1989 Pro Set card.  He may well have fallen after that, but it looks like he just avoided what looks to be Chargers defenders.  I like the colors on that 2002 Fleer Throwbacks card.  Nice and bright.

Dickerson was taken 2nd in the 1983 draft behind John Elway.  There were four other Hall of Famers in the 1st round of that draft besides those two.

I would have liked to see his blue SMU jersey here but still a nice looking 2005 Topps All-American card.

Nice looking contenders card but I never liked them going with black and white photos for retired legends.  That second card is a 2014 SPx card.  Not familiar with the set but a nice-looking card.

Jackson and Dickerson are #1 and #2 all-time in Rams rushing.  Never cared for the colors on the Stephen Jackson era Rams unis but this is a good-looking card as they almost matched each other.

Love the Upper Deck cards.  Dickerson's lone season with the Raiders wasn't a great one and he would play only one more season, with Atlanta, after his time with the team.  These cards are fun and while there are a few duplicates of what I already have, I hadn't really built up my Dickerson collection, so this helps do that.