Who the heck is Nowbatting19???

Good question. The number 19 has been used by several athletes (Tony Gwynn & Johnny Unitas come to mind) But for me, number 19 was FRED LYNN. Why was Fred Lynn my favorite player? Well, like teammate Carl Yastrzemski, Lynn was a 5-tool player; he could hit for both average (1979 A.L. Batting Champ, .333) and power (Career high 39 HRs in 1979), run (Fred played both Football & Baseball at USC and was a centerfielder for most of his career), field (4 Gold Glove Awards) and throw.  He was also clutch in the spotlight (4 All-Star Game home runs including the only GRAND SLAM in AS Game History, 1982 A.L. Championship MVP). Lynn was the first player to win the Most Valuable Player AND Rookie of the Year Award (1975, Ichiro Suzuki is the only other player to accomplish this, and technically he wasn't really a "Rookie" as he was already an established star in Japan). So like most kids back then I would emulate Fred's batting stance and sacrifice life & limb to (try, in my case) make acrobatic, not to mention impossible catches in the outfield. Later in life I finally was able to meet him and his lovely wife Natalie in person and it was the 2nd biggest thrill of my life (getting married to my wife was first; I'll get killed if I say otherwise). Well I exaggerate a bit, but you get the point. It isn't everyday you get to meet your favorite player or idol. And the Lynn's are truly genuinely nice and charitable people. Sometimes you can meet someone and your expectations can disappoint, but not with them.   So, THANK YOU Fred & Natalie!

"Useless Trivia" - I asked Fred once about how he came to have number 19. He said he wore number 8 in college (where he won a couple of Championships for USC) but when he came to the Boston Red Sox that number was already taken by a certain CARL YASTRZEMSKI (whose #8 was later retired by the Red Sox). So Lynn said he picked 19 because "9 minus 1 is 8...a useless bit of trivia for you." Hahahaha. True Fred. True. But I just had to know! Or, as the bank robber says to Clint Eastwood after the "Well do you PUNK?" line in "Dirty Harry," "Hey man... I GOTS to know!" Now I do. Or doos...Hahahaha. 

• Fred Lynn TRIVIA - What uniform number did Lynn wear when he first came to the California Angels? No it's not 19! ANSWER at bottom of page!

"FAN FAVORITES" Player Pages to Explore! 

(Click links below!)

A small sampling of vintage Sports Cards, & Non-Sports Cards you will find on this website!

TOPPS VENEZUELA (1959-60, 1962, 1963-64, 1966-68)

I not only collect Baseball cards, but Basketball, Boxing, Football, Hockey & Non-Sports cards too. I like to collect my favorite players, obscure cards ("oddball" cards, or cards that are not your typical "mainstream" cards. For instance, notice the 1962 Topps Venezuela 200 Luis Aparicio card (above left). Topps issued cards for the Venezuela market from 1959-60, 1962, 1964 & 1966-68. The Topps Venezuela cards are RARE in comparison to regular Topps card and are commonly found in low grade condition.

• NOTES - Who was a bigger star in 1962... Luis Aparicio or Mickey Mantle? Obviously, the Yankees famous slugger up against a small slick-fielding speedster is going to win that popularity contest...except in VENEZUELA! How popular was Luis Aparicio in Venezuela? The Venezuela Topps cards were a shortened version of the regular Topps set with only 200 cards (Topps reg. set consisted of 598 cards). Card number 200 in the regular Topps set (made in the U.S.A.) was MICKEY MANTLE. But for the Venezuela set, Mantle's card was dropped in favor of the Venezuelan superstar. So that is why you have a 1962 Topps #200 Mickey Mantle & #325 Luis Aparicio in the regular set, but NO Mantle and card #200 Luis Aparicio in the Venezuela Topps set! Also note the text on the 1962 Venezuela Topps cards is in Spanish.

O-PEE-CHEE Baseball Cards - TOPPS cards issued for Canadian Fans

O-PEE-CHEE (abbr. O.P.C.) cards are basically TOPPS cards printed for the Canadian market. Topps began producing them in 1965. The sets are sometimes much smaller than their Topps counterparts, though in 1971, 1973, 1975-76 OPC did the complete set like the Topps issue. OPC used different card stock than Topps; creme color instead of Topps typical "grey," and cutting methods on the OPC cards sometimes resulted in "rough" cuts on the card edges. While the card fronts are usually identical, the card backs of the O-Pee-Chee cards will have printing in English & French as well as a "Printed in Canada" copyright (see 1973 OPC 220 Nolan Ryan card; pictured). Sometimes they would use a "OPC" logo instead of "Topps" as well. The reason I like to collect the O-Pee-Chee cards is that they were printed in far fewer quantities than Topps cards. If printed properly, the color really "pops" out on the OPC cards. Also because O-Pee-Chee cards were issued later than the Topps cards, they sometimes would note team changes ("Signed as Free Agent...," "Traded to...," etc.). One such example is the 1972 O-PEE-CHEE 495 GIL HODGES (pictured). Note OPC mentions Hodges untimely death in 1972 ("DECEASED APRIL 2, 1972"). The 1972 TOPPS 495 Gil Hodges (pictured) was issued prior to April, hence no mention of his death. Because of their scarcity, O-Pee-Chee cards generally sell for more than their Topps counterparts, especially Rookies, Stars & Canadian players (Montreal Expos and later Toronto Blue Jays).

"What Are My Cards Worth?" and other questions we will answer on Nowbatting19.net!

VIVA FERNANDO! 1981 Topps 302 Dodgers Future Stars Fernando Valenzuela

• This 1981 Topps 302 Dodgers Future Stars card (pictured), while shared with 2 other players, is Fernando Valenzuela's rookie card. Donruss & Fleer both debuted in '81, and they also included Fernando rookie cards. But most collectors prefer the longer running TOPPS name ("The REAL One"). Topps also issued their first TRADED set in 1981. This set of 132 cards included players who had been traded during the season, plus rookies on their own "solo" card. And of course, Topps absolutely HAD to include a card of the Dodger rookie sensation in the TRADED set. Which they did- 1981 Topps TRADED 850 Fernando Valenzuela. Both rookie cards are extremely popular, with the TRADED card slightly more valuable. I actually prefer this one as this depicts the rookies of 2 Dodgers Future Stars in both Fernando Valenzuela and Mike Scioscia!

CONGRATULATIONS TO FERNANDO VALENZUELA! The Los Angeles Dodgers recently announced they will be retiring Fernando's jersey number 34. The Dodgers have a stingy reputation for NOT retiring jersey numbers, UNLESS you are in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Which is kind of ridiculous in my opinion. I always wondered, if that is the Dodgers policy, why did they retire Jim Gilliams's #19? While being a lifetime Dodger player & coach, he was not in the HOF in Cooperstown. Fernando changed the baseball landscape when he came up as a rookie in 1981. He started the season with 8 straight wins, including 5 shutouts! He also happened to be Mexican, so thousands of Latinos here in Los Angeles (really, everywhere) became fans of both Fernando, and the Dodgers almost overnight. The phenomena was called "FERNANDOMANIA." Everywhere he pitched brought thousands of new fans to the game. Fernando went on to win both the 1981 N.L. Rookie of the Year AND N.L. Cy Young Award, the first time that was ever done. The Dodgers also went on to the World Series in 1981 and beat the New York Yankees. So, it was a sweet year. For Dodgers fans! Hahaha! Even my grandmother wanted to see Fernando, so we took her to a Sunday game, and wouldn't you know, he hit a home run! Fernando went on to win nearly 200 games by the time he was through. He was on 2 Dodgers World Championship teams (1981, 1988) and brought a new fan base to both the Dodgers and baseball. MLB & Latino players today owe a debt of gratitude to players like Fernando Valenzuela. And we shouldn't forget the Latino players who came before: Minnie Minoso, Roberto Clemente, Luis Aparicio, Orlando Cepeda, Juan Marichal, Pedro "Tony" Oliva, Luis Tiant, Tony Perez and so many more! Viva Fernando!

1962 Topps #318 The Switch Hitter Connects (Mickey Mantle) - When 50 HR actually meant something...

TOPPS first did "Highlight" cards in 1959 with their "Baseball Thrills" subset. Some of these included Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Stan Musial, & Mickey Mantle. Topps included 1959 World Series highlight cards in the 1960 set, and a set of highlight cards including Lou Gehrig & Babe Ruth in 1961. Topps did a little bit different in 1962, using sequenced "in action" cards of popular players., Included in these were Rocky Colavito, Whitey Ford, Warren Spahn, & the "M & M Boys," Mickey Mantle & Roger Maris. Both sluggers had chased after Ruth's single-season HR record (60) in 1961. Maris, of course broke the record on the last day of the season at (old) Yankee Stadium. Mantle succumbed to injuries and finished the regular season with 54 HR. The 1962 Topps #313 Maris Blasts 61st is a great card, but so is this 1962 Topps #318 The Switch Hitter Connects (Mickey Mantle) card. It highlights Mantle's powerful swing, & also has his career (up to that point) statistics. You can see the big 54 HR in the stats for 1961, but Mantle also slugged 52 HR in his 1956 Triple Crown season. Remember, this was an era when hitting 50 or more home runs was really something. It didn't happen often. In the 1950's only 2 players did it, Mantle & Willie Mays. In the 1960s, again, Mantle & Mays. In the 1970s  only 1 player did it (George Foster, 1977). In the 1980s? Once, by Cecil Fielder. Then of course we had the steroid era of home runs, and today 50+ HR is... ho-hum. We can thank guys like Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Brady Anderson (& many more) AND Major League Baseball (MLB). MLB knew what was going on, did nothing about until after the fact, & in the meantime reaped in the cash. Fans were getting their jollies & spending their hard-earned bucks to be a part of it all. What's cool about vintage cards like this is they remind us of a simpler time, when your heroes really were. Now, who knows. I don't. Do you?

1948 Leaf Knock-Out Gum #1 Jack Dempsey "The Manassa Mauler"

Leaf Gum of Chicago was one of the first to issue a mainstream set of baseball cards in 1948. Bowman Gum was the other big player at the time. Leaf also issued a BOXING issue. The 1948 Leaf Knock-Out Gum cards were a knock-out with kids! With bright colors, and big names like Jack Dempsey,  Jack Johnson, Jake La Motta, Joe Louis, Ray "Sugar" Robinson & more, the cards were popular then, and popular today. At one time I had the entire set of (49/50) cards. Card number 50 Rocky Graziano was pulled early in production and so rare, a set is considered complete at 49 cards. My favorite card in the set is Jack Dempsey. Why? 

Well first, it leads off the set as card #1. And Dempsey at the time, although retired for many years, was at that time considered one of the All-Time Greats. When I think of Jack Dempsey, I think about America and the tough people who built this country. Most were immigrants, hard-working, industrious. Those people lived during 2 World Wars, The Great Depression, "the Dust Bowl," so much. Dempsey came from nowhere. His mother was of "ill-repute" and Dempsey fought and brawled his way into a career in the ring. To me he signifies the hard-nosed, "roll up your sleeves" and start busting your ass mentality that people at that time possessed. I'm talking about the blue-collar workers. Like today,  shoveling shit for peanuts. We can't even make anything in this country anymore. Except guns, pharmaceuticals, & McNuggets. We complain about "illegal aliens," but who do we need to clean our homes, cook, watch the kids, do the laundry, walk the dog, wash our cars or hack our lawns?  Who builds homes now? Skilled tradesmen? Once we put greed & Capitalism at the forefront, we were, and are doomed.  Who will save us? Complete buffoons', liars. cheats, & crusty, old white men as our President? Good grief.

So that is why I like this 1948 Leaf #1 Jack Dempsey card. Americans were tough back then. Now I don't know what we are. Certainly not tough, though we talk "tough." And certainly not "united" either. We "deserve," nothing, or maybe a huge ass-kicking. We have it coming. So, in order to not go absolutely bonkers, I do things like work on this site, watch the "kids," take a ride, & pet the pooch. And pick up lots of poops. It's a nice distraction. 

Questions? Comments? Email me at nowbatting19@yahoo.com. Thanks for visiting! 

• Fred Lynn Trivia Answer: 8  

Fred originally wore number 8 when he came to the Angels in 1981. When Fred was traded to the Angels, number 19 was already taken by veteran shortstop Bert Campaneris. So, Lynn took his old number 8. When Campaneris left the Angels, Fred got back number 19! If you knew the answer to that, you get a FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper thumbs up!

DISCLAIMER. Collecting cards are a long-time hobby of mine. Some cards depicted are going to be from my own personal collection (notably the CARDS FOR SALE and most FRED LYNN cards). Many of the images here are going to be taken ("borrowed" or "liberated") from the world wide web; however if they do happen to belong to you personally and DO have a problem with that then let me know (email Nowbatting19@yahoo.com) and I will remove the image(s) promptly. Just remember that these cardboard treasures are going to outlast you and me! So why not let everyone enjoy 'em! Don't be a POOP! At least that is how I feel on the matter.