What a card: This is Juan Samuel's first base card in a Topps flagship set. He appeared in the 1984 Topps Traded set. He also appeared earlier in this set as a record-breaker.
My observation on the front: Still disappointed with the photo selection of one of the biggest rookies of the 1984 season. First, an unflattering head-and-shoulders shot for the record-breaker card and now a boring fielding photo. The guy set a rookie record for stolen bases. Get him running!
More opinion from me: I don't know if I could get used to wearing a red belt.
Something you might know: Samuel was known to strike out -- a lot. He led the league in strikeouts four straight years (1984-87), which tied a record.
Something you might not know: When the Phillies traded Samuel to the Mets in the deal that brought Lenny Dykstra and Roger McDowell to Philadelphia, Mets manager Davey Johnson actually said this about Samuel: "He reminds me of Barry Bonds. People don't realize what kind of impact player he is."
My observation on the back: I was curious about Fernando Samuel because I had never heard of him. Turns out he played one year for the Gulf Coast Blue Jays in 1983, batting .189.
The blog wants to speak now: The Movies category is updated.
Juan Samuel would need three upgrades to be Bobby Bonds. I believe Davey was talking out his ass there trying to make sense of one of the worst trades in Mets history (and that is saying a lot...).
ReplyDeleteBack in 1985, I thought my Juan Samuel rookie cards would be worth a lot of money one day. They're not.
ReplyDelete