All-Star Break Experiments in Cardboard
With a leadoff home run to get the ol' Bun(t)sen burning
(This is a test of the Wax Pack Gods Silliness Network. This is only a test. For now.)
Wow! We made it to the 2022 MLB All-Star break.
It may be later than we expected it to be back before the lockout, and parts of the season may be a little more jammed together than usual, but we’re here.
The Midsummer Classic will proceed as usual, with all the bells and whistles that make it feel like a real celebration, and something decidedly different than the rest of the baseball season.
So …
Why not take this opportunity to do something different of our own? To experiment a little?
No reason at all that I can think of.
So, while this newsletter is still on hiatus, I’ve been kicking around ideas about what it might look like down the road a bit.
One of those ideas is to give each week its own theme. You see where this is going, right?
Right, so …
Welcome to All-Star Week at Baseball Cards Daily!
Each day this week, starting with today (Monday, July 18, if you’re keeping score), I’ll send out some tidbits related to both baseball cards (duh) and the All-Star Game itself.
(Today’s entry is a bit more than a tidbit, since I had to word-a-lanche you with that introduction.)
The Futures Game and the beginning of the draft have already passed us by, so we’ll start with something more timely and topical.
Namely, here is my …
All-Time Home Run Derby Dream Team
The Home Run Derby is tonight, and it should be a great show. But how much better would it be if we could see these guys duking it out for all-time swatting bragging rights?
(Click over to WaxPackGods.com in each section to see the baseball card portions of our program. You’ll love those articles, or I’ll eat my 1976 Chicago White Sox shorts).
1927 Babe Ruth
You have to have the Sultan of Swat on any home-run-focused dream team, but he’s especially important here, for reasons that will become clear below.
Babe Ruth posts on Wax Pack Gods
1961 Roger Maris
Since we can shape this contest any way we want, we *have* to see primetime Maris and Ruth go head-to-head. HAVE to.
Roger Maris posts on Wax Pack Gods
1961 Mickey Mantle
Likewise, we can’t pass up on the chance to see a full-strength 1961 Mickey Mantle battling a full-strength 1961 Maris. There are no injuries in our fantasy world, and these two can settle things once and for all (though Maris pretty much already did that in real life).
Mickey Mantle posts on Wax Pack Gods
1965 Willie Mays
Similarly, I want to see Mantle and Mays duke it out with my own eyes, when both men are at their most powerful.
Willie Mays posts on Wax Pack Gods
1977 George Foster
You might say this is a homer pick since I’m a diehard Reds fan, but Foster was the ONLY man to top 50 home runs in a season between Mays’ 52 in 1965 and Cecil Fielder’s 51 in 1990. Yahtzee is a bridge between eras and just might surprise some folks.
George Foster posts on Wax Pack Gods
1998 Mark McGwire
McGwire brings the BIG bombs to the party, and he also has to be here in order to settle the historical score with Maris and Ruth and all the rest.
Mark McGwire posts on Wax Pack Gods
2001 Barry Bonds
Bonds has to be in this contest for the same reasons that Big Mac does, PLUS he shook up the offensive side of the game like no one since Ruth himself. I’m personally pulling for a Barry-Bambino final.
Barry Bonds posts on Wax Pack Gods
2019 Mike Trout
Trout is touted (trouted?) as the greatest player of his generation for good reason, and he’s also one of the best ever. We won’t be denied seeing him take cuts with the rest of this murderer’s row.
Mike Trout posts on Wax Pack Gods
One More Thing
OK, two more things …
First, here is another Home Run Derby tidbit guaranteed to deliver the long ball — a rundown of the baseball cards from 1980s derby winners, starting with the Cobra himself …
And, second, let me know how you like this format.
Would you be interested in seeing a theme of the week rolled out across several days here at the ol’ newsletter as we move forward?
Love to hear your thoughts!
Thanks for reading.
—Adam
Late to the party as I get behind from time to time, but I like the idea of a weekly theme. Even a weekly team, season. decade.... or something more statistical because there are plenty of those in baseball. How about something fashionable? Didn't Topps release a flashiest feet set this year? Lets get some old school "Tekulve" style fashion going. From the Bird talking to the ball to Turk Wendell trying to eat it, I love it. Same concept, either way and no matter what you do, I can't wait to read it.