Zane Smith Autographed 1986 Topps Card

Zane Smith was a starting pitcher who didn't have a spectacular career but is a player I am a big fan of.  There is no rhyme or reason to why but he was an Atlanta Brave and Boston Red Sox which is obviously a good start and as a kid I don't doubt I thought his first name was cool.  I mailed off for his autograph but that is about all I remember.  I'm assuming I got the mailing address for the team via a Becket price guide or other sports magazine.  I must not of had many of his cards at the time because I really don't care for the '86 Topps cards.  I do like the photo on the card though and I love this card.  I think I  was in high school or junior college when I got this card and for me just the experience of getting an autograph is too cool.  I also got Harold Baines' autograph through the mail and will share that in another post.  

Smith was only 39-58 with a 4.06 ERA in 6 seasons with with Atlanta. Traded to Montreal he had a great year as a reliever before going back to starting and ended up with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1990 via trade.  He stayed there 6 seasons pitching in two National League Championship Series.  He finished his career with one poor season in Boston.   His 3.74 career ERA was pretty good considering he finished with a losing record.  He didn't strike out many but also didn't give up homeruns or walks which is always a big plus. 

2016 Topps Archives Blaster Break

Picked up a 2016 Topps Archives blaster box at Wal-Mart. They've brought back some of the different blasters at reduced prices.  I really enjoyed these last year so this was a no brainer.

Again I'm very happy.  I didn't pull a redemption card like last year nor did I get any major inserts but I still grabbed quite a few cards for my personal collection. 

Plenty of retired players in this set which is something I really enjoy.  Smoltz, Chipper, Rice - some of may all-time favorites not to mention Ted Williams and Griffey Jr. and Reggie Jackson cards that are pretty sweet looking. 

I like that the set isn't huge which means it is packed full of stars.  The different card designs mean that if I don't like one design there are others to enjoy.  I may have to hit some other Wal-Marts to see what I can find.  This was a lot of fun. 

Baywatch Movie

As a late birthday celebration me and the family went to see Baywatch last week. Yep, my idea.  Something about the trailers just looked fun.  It didn't disappoint me. I know this movie is getting ripped left and right but it is exactly what I thought it would be.  It doesn't take itself too seriously and was just a fun movie to watch.  The Rock and Zac Efron were great in their roles and the supporting cast was right there with them.  I'm not sure what most viewers were expecting so the all the criticism has caught me off guard.  The family all enjoyed it to include my wife.  I know it isn't for everyone but I thought it was funny.  Maybe they should have gone the 21 Jump Street route and kept it PG-13?  I don't know. I thought it was funny and as long as you know what you are getting yourself into I think folks shouldn't shy away from Baywatch the movie.

Albert Pujols Hits Homerun #600

Albert Pujols hit homerun number 600 for the Los Angeles Angels last night against the Minnesota Twins.  His grand slam put him 9th on the all-time list with a real chance of moving past Ken Griffey Jr. (630) for 6th place next year.  He also has a good chance of passing Willie Mays (660) during his career if he stays relatively healthy.  Living near St. Louis I'm very familiar with Albert Pujols.  Albert is one of the greatest right handed hitters of all-time.  That is a fact.

Unfortunately since joining the Angels injuries have limited what Pujols has been able to accomplish. Combined with a 10 year, $240M contract that has been criticized since he signed it and Albert is not looked upon as well as he once was. Pujols is 37 now and still has four years left on the deal.  He has had three years of 30+ homers with the Angels but his .265 batting average and .793 OPS shows he is not the Albert that came to prominence in St. Louis.

And it is shame.  Angels' fans have not embraced Pujols for the great hitter he is because they have rarely seen him play as well as they expect him too.  They see a huge contract and a player that is constantly hampered by injuries though he has played 152+ games in four of his five full seasons with the team.  The lack of coverage of his chase or 600 homeruns has in itself shown  how far Albert Pujols has fallen.  Him leaving the Cardinals was right for both sides.  St. Louis couldn't afford him at that price at his age and Albert could get so much more money with the Angels.  The Angels are seemingly the losers here.  Again it is a shame.  He was such a great, not very good, great hitter with the Cardinals and MLB and fans should be touting his rise up the charts.  Unfortunately too many things worked against him.  It is still a monumental achievement and I, for one, are more than happy to appreciate Albert for what he is in MLB history and enjoy his rise up the homerun chart. 

 

The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher

 The Princess Diarist was the last of Carrie Fisher's books prior to her passing away.  I was excited as it was to be her Star Wars behind the scenes tales.  I wouldn't quite call it that. While it revolves around Star Wars it is not a behind the scenes book.  It talks little about the making of the movies or even what happened during the making of the movies.  She does speak quite frankly and at length about her affair with Harrison Ford while filming Star Wars.   I have to admit I was looking forward to what she had to say on the subject once I heard she'd be opening up on the subject in this book.  And it was fun to hear the details. But that is about it as behind the scenes notes. 

Don't take that to mean this isn't a good book.  I thoroughly enjoyed it and it is an easy read.  It is my first book of hers but I'm sure the style seen here is similar to that in her others.  She is very open, honest, self depreciating, and funny.  I find her honesty refreshing and enlightening.  It is nice to see her thoughts and I think many will either agree with her or understand where she comes from. 

Besides her tryst with Ford, her diaries during the making of Star Wars are also shared and she talks about the celebrity of being "Princess Leia" and the stardom that comes with it.  I would have liked to have seen more behind the scenes content but I won't hold that against the book - that is purely a personal preference and what I thought I'd be seeing.  Her writing style appeals to me and matched with her honest and humor had me hooked.  It won't take long to read once you get started (sans maybe the diaries which are introspective centric writings).  Anyone who is a fan of Star Wars should enjoy this book.  I did and it was nice to get to know Carrie Fisher more than just what I've seen on screen or short articles online.  Like thousands of others she is seared into my consciousness and someone I'll never forget even if you take a way the iconic metal bikini.  I recommend this book to anyone who remotely thinks it would interest them. 

Warriors Thump Cavs in Game 1 of the NBA Finals

Golden State beat up on Cleveland pretty good in game one of the 2017 NBA Finals.  Two points.  This shouldn't have been unexpected.  Golden State was a great team prior to winning the Kevin Durant sweepstakes so a thumping of the Cavaliers was definitely not out of the question.  That said Cleveland is still a great team with the best player on the planet on their side.  GS didn't turn over the ball at a record setting level and Kevin Durant feasted on the Cleveland defense while Clay Thompson and Draymond Green couldn't score to save their life.  If you're Golden State you have to think those guys will skew closer to their norms which should help even if they do have more turnovers moving forward.  The Cavs can't continue to turn the ball over and must get better contributions from Kevin Love and Tristan Thompson who were both nearly invisible out there (sans rebounding from Love). Love must score and score efficiently and play better defense while Thompson must be a force on the boards and on defense.  I still think this can be a good series.  Most of the games from last year's Finals weren't close yet it went seven games.  I do think Durant is the difference maker here and I just don't know how Cleveland can win the series without playing near perfect ball from here on out.  That is why the play the games, right?  You just never know.  I'm hoping for a seven game series but thinking six with the Warriors getting some revenge on the current champs.

Wonder Woman Movie Review (No Spoilers)

DC Comics got this one right.  I truly enjoyed the Wonder Woman movie last night.  No matter how good the trailers look you just never know what you'll get when you sit down to see a movie.  Everything from the beginning origin story to Diana being sucked into World War I to the villain it all worked.  I won't say it was perfect because there is no such thing but Gal Gadot was great as our hero.  She worked no matter the scene or situation and you leave believing there could be no better actress in that roll.  The trailers and what you can read on the net pretty much lay out the story so there are only minor surprises throughout but I still won't divulge any of those.  I will just tell everyone they should go see this movie.  It was fun to watch and gives me some hope that the upcoming Justice League flick will not be a disappointment.