Been a while since I checked in here. Life's been busy, lots of big life changes, figuring out this whole parenthood thing, the Cubs have been a whole bucket of bleh this year, the hobby has lost it's collective mind... I have a whole laundry list of reasons and/or excuses why my passion for blogging has ebbed, but who really cares, right?
However, yesterday, that part of my heart twinged for the the first time in a while. All it took was an *extremely* surprising transaction. Seriously, when I read that swingman, Alec Mills (he of no-hitter fame), was going on the 10-day injured list with a lower back strain, you could have given me two dozen guesses and I never would have called the corresponding roster move. But before I talk about the guy going the other way on the transactional log, a little background information is needed for proper context.
For most of my conscious life, the Windy City Thunderbolts have been my local baseball team. I've been going to 'Bolts games regularly for nearly two decades now and the independent, Frontier League club has kept me engaged with the game in ways that would be prohibitively costly with the Cubs or any Major League franchise. I have always been able to count on a cheap ticket, a quick commute, and a good show whenever I get bored or antsy in the summer. Sure, the level of play is nowhere near the Big Show and is roughly equivalent to Low-A ball, but baseball is baseball and the Thunderbolts are the best show in town.
With the climb up the ladder so long long, I feel an intense bit of local pride any time a 'Bolt gets scooped up to the affiliated ranks, let alone makes the ultimate ascent to the Major League level. Just two Big Leaguers previously wore the black and blue of this Crestwood, IL-based club before reaching the summit - Andrew Werner of the Padres and Dylan Axelrod of the White Sox. Technically, a third Bolt alumni has an MLB resume and he played with my favorite team - Billy Petrick, a reliever on the 2007 Chicago Cubs. That being said, his time in Crestwood came on the downswing of his career, years after his time in the Friendly Confines. Thus, no player has ever made the dizzying climb from Ozinga Park to Wrigley Field, which isn't all that surprising, considering the almost insurmountably long odds. Well, that is, no player had made the climb until yesterday...
With Millsy going onto the injured list, Tommy Nance was called up from AAA-Iowa to take his place. Nance's story is incredible, a Disney-worthy feel-good tale that is guaranteed to make you rediscover your love for baseball. This undrafted hurler was given a shot by the Thunderbolts in 2015 to get his pro career off the ground. His success and stuff got him noticed by the crosstown Cubbies and they inked him to a minor league deal for 2016. In fact, I covered this transaction at the time because deals between these two Chicago-based teams are so rare and I was pumped about a Bolt just getting a shot with my beloved Cubs and I had a longshot prospect to root for and follow.
From there, Nance got hurt almost immediately and lost a good chunk of 2016 and all of the 2017 season. When he came back, he was deployed at multiple levels of the minor league system and seemed destined for a career as a roster reinforcement, organizational arm. After the pandemic provided the excuse Rob Manfred was looking for to retool the minors and axe so many teams and players, I thought Nance's career was surely over - he was far from a blue-chipper and there just didn't seem to be a spot for him anymore. Lo and behold, I could not have been more wrong.
Nance survived the chopping block and turned heads in spring training this past March. He was deployed in a handful of Major League exhibitions and parlayed that exposure into a spot at the alternate training site and then AAA once the season began - just a phone call away from the Majors. After being part of a combined no-hitter with the Iowa Cubs, Nance punctuated his storybook breakout with a call-up to the Major League roster. Needless to say, I was thrilled and actually yelped with excitement when I read the news.
Nance on the mound in Big League camp, 2021. Image courtesy of Cubs Den.
It's not everyday a thirty-year old, undrafted, indy league alum makes it all the way to show, especially when their career is bookended by stints on my favorite local ballclubs! It's with great pleasure that I now get to add the above Choice, Thunderbolt SGA giveaway to my Cubs All-Time Roster Collection binder - like Nance himself, the very first such card to make that impressive ascent.
Coincidentally, I'll be taking my son to his first baseball game today and it just so happens to be a Thunderbolts contest. The club never charges admission to their spring training games, so Rowan and I will be playing hooky to see their exhibition against the Schaumburg Boomers this afternoon. Like I said the Thunderbolts have been a big part of my life for a long time now; now, I get to share one of the most important moments of fatherhood with my son thanks to the Thunderbolts. This is symbolic of why Nance's call-up inspired me to open Blogger for the first time in months.
Here's hoping that Nance can continue to build on this momentous surge and stick with the Big club. The opportunity is there seeing as the bullpen has been in flux all season - a run of good results could keep him up all year, or at least maintain his spot on the 40-man roster. Lord knows I'll be rooting for the Thunderbolt alumnus - welcome to Chicago, Tommy Nance!
Today is my son's sixth month "birthday." I honestly cannot believe that little Rowan is already half of a year old. Even more incredible than that fact is that I've managed to keep him alive for that long! I think anyone out there on the blogosphere who also has children will understand that surprising sentiment, as the chaos, stress, and unpredictable challenges that come with raising a newborn. The false alarm health scares, the bottomless pit appetite, the inconsolable colic-caused temper tantrums, random night terrors, etc. - it's hard not to feel like you're doing it wrong! Yet, here we are, half of a calendar year later with a happy and healthy little cherub.
To celebrate this milestone, here's the only card in my collection with a baby on it.
The 2002 MultiAd Sports single that you see above - featuring journeyman catcher, Mike Mahoney - has long been one of my favorite cards due to it's unique photograph. Originally issued as part of a factory sealed SGA set, I have no doubt that it stuck out from it's cello-wrapped brethren - talk about a rookie card!
However, since Rowan has come into my life, it has taken on a new significance. Now, rather than just appreciating an off-kilter picture, I too understand and feel that beaming pride that Mike exuded while showing off his newborn daughter 19 years ago. Thus, when my wife scheduled Row's newborn photo-shoot a couple of weeks after his official introduction to this world, an idea crept into my mind.
First of all, let me just say that the photographer was a miracle worker. When your talent is a cranky newborn and a pair of neurotic, first time parents, I can't imagine it's easy to get anything done. That said, she produced a whole reel's worth of timeless snapshots that feel like they belong in a coffee table book more so than a simple photo album. If you ever need to book a photog in the Chicagoland area, I strongly recommend that you check out Photography By Angel for any occasion - she does far more than just newborn pictures. Exhibit worthy work, positively pleasant to work with, excellent customer service... she is, in fact, an Angel!
Anyway, after we got all of the posed shots that she wanted during our booked slot, we had a little bit of extra time. Luckily, I just so happened to have brought my Cubs jersey, hat, my high school baseball glove, and the perfect idea with which to close out our session:
And it turned out even better than I had hoped! Although, thankfully we shot on a blank background because it still seemed like it was missing something:
Rowan definitely needed a baseball backdrop to complete the look. To keep things close to home, I opted to use a picture that I took from the dugout of Howie Minas Field, a local ballpark that's been a cornerstone of the community since it was plowed into a cornfield 70 years ago. This field has played host to the National Baseball Congress champion Midlothian White Sox, the Cook County Cheetahs of the Frontier League, the Crestwood Panthers of the Midwest Collegiate League, and Rowan and I when we we noticed the gate was left open during a summer walk around the surrounding park. So, of course, we stopped to take some pictures in the dugout. As it turned out, they provided the perfect canvas for my latest Photoshop project.
Shhhh... don't tell anyone! But, here are a few more pictures from our little visit:
Howie Minas Field, as viewed from the parking lot.
The view from home plate at Howie Minas Field
Tossing a quick bullpen session
My god, I cannot wait to take him to a real game.
If you want to learn more about the history of our little ol' community ballpark, I get a little more in-depth in this previous post.
Anywho, circling back to the reason for this post, happy half a year birthday, Rowan! Six months simultaneously seemed to breezily fly by like a jet and yet also drag like a low rider with flat tires. It's funny what having a child - and the ensuing lack of sleep - will do to your sense of time. I'm sure that Mike Mahoney and his now college-aged daughter will agree.
Here's to a lifetime's worth of further baseball adventures, Row!
"Is this heaven?" "No, it's Iowa." - Field of Dreams
Honestly, I may be the person most impressed by anything Iowan since that exchange between Ray Kinsella and his father. As a fellow Midwesterner, I mean no offense to any Iowa natives who might have stumbled out of the corn fields and come across this blog. It can get pretty dull out here in the vast, flat center of our country.
What isn't boring, came from the Hawkeye State, and has caught my fancy are the cards that Nick from Dime Boxes sent my way. The royal dime box digger recently acquired a dream pasteboard of his - one that nearly causes this Cubs fan head explode - but, it came as part of a fully-packaged set. Luckily, among the cast-offs were a trio of cards that I had also been searching high and low for; although, admittedly, they are not nearly as mind-bending as seeing Hideo Nomo in Cubs colors.
In case you hadn't figured it out yet through the title card and the embedded link to Nick's blog, these mysterious Iowan trading cards that I'm dancing around are the 1999 Multi-Ad Sports Iowa Cubs team set:
Why do these basic cards with poor photography and thin cardstock have me so enthused? After all, these three players combined hardly add up to the significance of the 1995 National League Rookie of the Year and his famed tornado delivery. Nor do they show nationally renowned stars wearing unfamiliar uniforms. Does anyone remember Hideo Nomo's superfluous stint in the Chicago Cubs organization? One can hardly blame you if you don't as it was only three starts long - singed to a MiLB deal in March, Nomo exercised an opt-out after the Cubs neglected to add him to their MLB roster.
The 1999 Cubs were terrible and saw three of their regular starters post ERA's over five, including Andrew Lorraine above. Sure seems like they could have afforded to give Nomo a proper audition...but, what do I know? Maybe I'm just salty because I wish I could add such a noteworthy player to my Cubs All-Time Roster Collection.
Tell me that sight doesn't melt your brain a little bit! Image courtesy of the Des Moines Register.
Anyway, these guys are no Nomo, but they are significant to me and my CATRC. All three of these men made brief appearances with the Chicago version of the Cubs either before or after their cards were printed. Unfortunately for this team collector, with the exception of one rarely seen oddball for Lorraine that I only discovered after this acquisition, none of this trio appeared on a card in their Windy City digs. Thus, these Multi-Ad's are as close as I can possibly get to representing them within the pages of my CATRC in proper Cubbie Blue. When it comes to fringe roster guys, I often have to dip into their minor league cards in this manner.
So, when I saw Nick's post about his purchase of the 1999 Iowa team set and that he really only cared about the Nomo, I quickly perused the checklist for short-termers and offered to trade. Being the kind and generous soul that he is, the Dime Box king gladly obliged.
In case you were curious, here's the skinny on there three mostly Iowa, sometime Chicago Cubs. Doug Creek snuck into three games out of the bullpen in 1999 and was walloped for seven runs in just six innings. Lorraine rode the Iowa/Chicago shuttle as a Quad A-type player from 1999-2000 getting into a total of 19 games as a swingman. Derrick White's Cubs tenure and entire MLB career was already over when this card rolled off the presses, having appeared in 11 games with the surprise 1998 NL Wild Card winners. While he did not appear in the playoffs, he did contribute to the playoff cause by smacking a game winning home run in a contest against the White Sox - his only big fly of the season.
Above, you can see the cards from other organizations which were unseated by Nick's generosity. The White and Lorraine singles will be repurposed for my binder of extra minor league cards feature Major League Cubs, seeing as they hail from each player's prospect days. Meanwhile, you might say that this Giant Doug is up a Creek.
Now, with Nick being the gracious ruler of Dimeboxdonia that he is, the monarch didn't just send me the agreed upon Iowa cards. Also stuffed into the PWE was a bunch of bonus Cubs-related cardboard, which packed an extra thrill into a trade that I was already pumped about. What a guy, eh?
Taking a look at the surprise inclusions, let's stick with the minor leagues for a minute:
Syketo Anderson has one heckuva name - too bad he didn't make the Major Leagues because that would be a mighty moniker for the CATRC. However, his brother was able to break through onto the game's biggest stage and you might have heard of him: 12-year veteran, Marlon Anderson. Little brother was only able to top out at A-ball in 2001; though, he did stay active in the indy leagues for a little while after that.
Gotta love Total for really digging into the weeds. I'm so glad that Topps rebooted this brand!
Getting a little more modern, Nick got me updated on 2020 Update too:
Figures that I just bought the team set for this set a couple of weeks prior - that's what I get for being impatient. That's okay though, a few extras never hurt a blogger. Plus, even though he didn't end up playing in 2020, dig that awesome double play turn on Daniel Descalso's card!
At this point, the trade started getting odd.... oddball heavy, that is!
Next up, was a pair of pasteboards from the 2000 Fox Sports Net set that was given away at Wrigley Field that year. I absolutely love the unique design on these cards and I am strongly considering swapping these into my CATRC for whatever cards are already repping Brown and Tapani. The TV-like graphical elements (apropos for a set sponsorship by a television station) make this SGA collation rather unique and any set that incorporates uniform numbers gets some bonus points from this blogger as well.
Finally, in stark contrast with a TV-based set, we close with a couple of cards that are aping designs from sets of long ago, when such a modern luxury wasn't even a glimmer in your granpappy's eye:
Adbert Alzolay's appearance in the PWE comes via a rookie card insert evoking the hand-painted lithographs of the Turkey Red days near the turn of the previous century. Here's hoping Adbert does some painting of his own in 2021, specifically painting the corners seeing as he'll be heavily counted upon to shore up the Cubs', shall we say, iffy starting rotation. Furthermore, for as easy on the eyes as this RC is, let's hope that Adbert is just as tough on opposing hitters!
Finally, the last card contained with the plain, white envelope was a modern-ish reprint of a 1910 Plow Boys tobacco antique, featuring a World Champion outfielder in Jimmy Sheckard. Much like Iowa Cubs minor league issues, reprints are another fertile source for new additions to the CATRC due to their offering low budget options for aged and obscure players from the distant past. I already have a Sheckard in my collection, but I like the look of this sepia-toned re-do - Jimmy looks so regal!
With that, we've reached seen all of the contents of Nick's PWE and what a PWE it was. I should have known that it was going to be a doozy and not just because it came from Nick - just look at the awesome, tone-setting stamp that he affixed to the front:
We all know that Nick has exquisite taste in cardboard. Don't sleep on this man's taste in music though, as his ongoing and fascinating saga with Jim Walewander and the Dead Milkmen also indicates.
Meanwhile, if you are sitting on any minor league cards of Cubs affiliates or reprints featuring Cubbies of long ago era, I would love to talk trade. They don't just have to be Iowa Cubs cards; it's just that since they are the Cubs AAA affiliate, those sets often feature the most eventual Major Leaguers. Plus, I selfishly like that the team uses the same colors, name, and similar logos to the parent club. These factors allow me to cross my eyes and see a true Cubs card for the purposes of my CATRC!
My thanks go out to Dime Box Nick and to the state of Iowa for stuffing the coffers of my favorite baseball card collection. Nick - keep an eye on your mailbox! Iowa - keep hosting the Iowa Cubs, please!
In fact, Ian Miller is so speedy that you might not have even seen him in 2020. While the fleet-footed outfielder is celebrated for his fast-twitch muscles, his MLB tenure last season lasted through exactly one pinch-running appearance in a single game. He didn't even get to attempt a stolen base either. Talk about "blink and you missed him!"
Nevertheless, quick though he may be, he did not sneak by Wrigley Roster Jenga and my Cubs All-Time Roster Collection binder. No sir. When I read that the speedster had been called up to the Major League roster - right before the trade deadline - I immediately pounced on saved Ebay listing, like a certain coyote chasing after a certain roadrunner. Only, in this instance, I was able to catch the card and had exactly no anvils dropped on my head. It was as if I knew that he'd be streaking back to the alternate training site as soon as trade reinforcements were brought into the fold.
I'd saved the listing for this 2017 Grandstand Texas League All-Star single shortly after I read about his NRI. I always do research on what's available for such potential Cubs, just in case, and I was quite pleased to find a MiLB single at a reasonable price. After all, such pieces usually command a bizarre premium on the secondhand market and Miller doesn't have much of a mainstream cardboard footprint.
While, as of now, Miller's Cubs career has flashed by about as speedily as possible, the entirety of his Major League tenure hasn't been much slower. Prior to his one-game cameo in Chicago, the 28-year old's only other time spent in the Bigs came with the Twins for a paltry 12 games in 2019. It seems that the eight-year professional is constantly zooming through towns!
In all seriousness, Miller is a post-hype prospect that comes with a weak bat and plus speed, making him an excellent candidate for a September call-up on a contending team, just as he was used in the Twin Cities. I imagine the Cubs invited him to Spring Training last season with the intentions of employing the same strategy - they almost always stash a speedster for the pennant drive - but the whole COVID thing kinda tossed everything about. Nevertheless, due to a rash of outfield injuries, he still managed to sneak into that one game before getting designated for assignment. The team would eventually acquire a different base stealer, but that's a tale for another day.
Being that Miller's time spent in a Cubs uniform lasted less than your average trip to the bathroom, I thought that the Texas League Ebay purchase would represent the player on a permanent basis in my CATRC tome. Thus, imagine my surprise when I saw this on the checklist for Topps' 2020 Update set:
Initially, I was taken aback by Miller's inclusion in the product. Hell, I sure wasn't against it - in an ideal world, I want every player who appears in Major League game to have a card in that year. That being said, I was completely blindsided by the one-game cameo Cub making the cut.
Although, upon further thought, the checklist for Update has usually been finalized by mid-summer and with the COVID abbreviated schedule last season, we were still in "Summer Camp" mode at that point. Thus, NRI's and waiver claims that otherwise would be completely ignored by Topps and maybe even cut before the start of the regular season were needed to fluff out the checklist. This is likely why otherwise unexpected Cubbie inclusions like Miller, Josh Phegley, and Jharel Cotton made it into packs, the latter of which never even appeared in a game for the Cubs. I mean, even the picture dates from training camp. It also probably didn't hurt that Miller was on fire in Cactus League play and appeared to be a dark horse candidate to break camp with the Big Leaguers before the shutdown began.
Like I said, I'm not complaining - I'm thrilled to be able to have short-termers like Miller and Phegley properly repped in my CATRC. Although, now I wish I'd been a little more patient with the Ian hunt. Oh well.
Ian displaying his skillset during Spring Training 2020. Photo: Ralph Freso/Getty Images
There may be even more Cubs cards of Ian printed yet, as it was announced earlier in the winter that the Cubs are bringing him back into the fold, once again on a minor league contract with an invitation to Spring Training. Seeing as the team currently has just three outfielders on their whole 40-man roster, the path to extended playing time in Chicago looks pretty damn clear for Miller in 2021. You might say that he is definitely in the "running" for a regular spot on the roster! *This post was drafted before the Cubs signed Joc Pederson*
At any rate, to Mr. Miller the speedster, here's an ironically belated welcome to the Windy City, goodbye from the Second City, and welcome back again to Chicago from Wrigley Roster Jenga!
While Wrigley Roster Jenga was on extended holiday, I was grieved to discover that Mr. Carl Aldana had passed away. Apparently, he had ventured on into the next realm early in 2019; however, I did not hear about his death until a year and a half later, in the middle of my blogging hiatus. Thus, quite unfortunately, I have never had the chance to post a proper tribute to the artist, being that I am both slow on the uptake and prone to long disappearances. Now, almost two years later, please allow me to rectify this grave injustice.
For those who are not familiar with the name Carl Aldana, he was born in Guatemala in 1938 and, as a child, immigrated to the United States his family shortly thereafter. Carl eventually picked up a watercolor brush as a freelance designer in the mid-60's and went on to become renowned throughout his adoptive home state of California for his portrait, landscape and cityscape painting. Furthermore, his artistic endeavors were not limited to still frames, as he also worked in the art department for over thirty big-budget Hollywood films, including serving as the art director for Air Force One. Some other movies that you might have seen his work in include Ferris Bueller's Day Off, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, and Pleasantville, among several others choice moving pictures. All in all, I'd say that's not a bad resume for a working artist.
But what does any of this have to do with Wrigley Roster Jenga's topic of interest, baseball cards? Well, you see, when Carl wasn't cleaning his brushes or going Hollywood, the avid creator was also designing his own baseball cards.
In fact, it's rather likely that you have read about his vintage, broder-adjacent sets in your Standard Catalog of Vintage Baseball Cards or seen them at a vender booth at a card show. In 1970, he made his pasteboard debut by producing a 12-card checklist paying tribute to the Baltimore Orioles and he followed that up with a 16-card offering featuring a smattering of players from across baseball. Both of these products are listed in the aforementioned Standard Catalog; that said, those guys neglect to mention his 1972 love-letter to the Pacific Coast League's San Francisco Seals of the early 50's, an 18-card set that cast the spotlight on a league and team that he saw plenty of as a Cali kid of the time.
Some examples of Carl's vintage output, culled from Ebay listings as I possess none of these oddballs.
I'm not quite sure how this baseball artiste distributed his handiwork. Perhaps he made use of mail order in early trade publications, a la Renato Galasso? Maybe he sold them at some of the hobby's first card shows? Heck, it could be possible that these were just a passion project that ended up on the second hand market. Does anyone out there know anything information that could help fill in this gap?
Questions about distribution aside, no matter what, we know that Mr. Aldana was a fan of the game and of the PCL, as both showed up in his work on canvas and cardboard. However, after the three outsider art card offerings that we detailed above, Mr. Aldana disappeared from the trading card scene for the next 40+ years, no doubt focused on his much more lucrative film and artwork projects throughout the ensuing decades.
Apparently, the itch never completely went away though, as a few years ago, Mr. Aldana burst back onto the hobby scene. He went back to the well again and came back with a series of sets paying tribute to his beloved Pacific Coast League. These art cards mimicked the style of the old Mother's Cookies sets of the mid-20th century, but featured a wider swath of players and made use of new colorizations performed by the artist in question. It's hard to get a full, documented scope of these releases, as they are quite prodigious in number and were released rather haphazardly (via single listings on the Ebay, I'm pretty sure) throughout the years - just search "Aldana PCL" on the 'Bay and you'll find a couple hundred different listings. Obviously, Carl was back with a vengeance and making up for a lot of lost time!
Back in 2017, I first came across these Aldana revival cards while perusing my saved Ebay searches. With such a diverse checklist of obscure and fringe minor league baseball players, this discovery got my blood pumping. As I had expected, digging into these oddities uncovered a new, fertile source for War Era randos that I still needed for my Cubs All-Time Roster Collection - the most cherished collation of my baseball card collection. So, of course, I added a selection of these beauties to my cart and crossed a few names off of my "needs" list that I was beginning to think would never be acquired.
In posting about the Jim Adair (briefly with the Cubs in 1931) single you see above, I received quite the unexpected thrill when Carl Aldana himself commented on my humble little blog, reaching out to talk turkey about baseball cards. Granted, he was no Cy Berger, but this accomplished artist, film maker, and baseball card creator was putting his digital signature on my web space and wanted to talk to me about his work? As if that wasn't enough of a thrill, after our conversation, he also sent me the Steve Bilko beauty that you see above as a "thanks for your great blog on my cards."
Three years later, this connection still ranks as one of the coolest moments of my time as a blogger.
Unfortunately, we lost touch after that dialogue and I was grieved when I discovered that Carl had passed away not-so-long after we spoke. At 81, he lived a creative life full of excitement, flashy colors, film sets, and glitz behind the lens and behind the canvas that I can only dream about. At least he didn't have to see what the world has become just a couple years later.
The man was important enough to receive a tribute from the Oscars and he still took the time to talk to this amateurish writer.
At this point, we're several paragraphs deep and I have yet to explain how I came to find out about Carl's death or describe the significance of the card which leads off this post. As you can tell from the central concept of this post, I have a recurring problem with tardiness. Let me clarify.
I was on Ebay on day back in the throes of the early days of the pandemic, scrolling through listings in order to kill some time while isolating to "flatten the curve." Despite my boredom, my attitude perked up when I came across a cache of Aldana PCL cards that I had not seen before - a whole set of cards patterned around the Los Angeles Angels of 1947. This was especially exhilarating to me because the original LA Angels were the top affiliate of my beloved Chicago Cubs at that time, meaning that the checklist contained a healthy sampling of fringe guys who became well acquainted with the travel schedules between the City of Angels and the City of Wind, guys who did not have much of a cardboard footprint because of their decidedly non-star status in the pre-Topps era.
To put it succinctly, pay dirt for my CATRC binder! This is evidenced by the set ledger found on the card backs:
Besides Marv Felderman, Bill Fleming, Cecil Garriott, Russ Bauers, Bukk Schuster, and Johnny Ostrowski would also make welcome new additions to my CATRC tome. Like I said, this soil is fertile.
In the grand scheme of the game, Marv Felderman is not a significant figure. Of course, that doesn't mean he wasn't notable in his own way. "Coonie" was a catcher who suffered from chronic injuries, but still managed to work his way up the ladder, thanks to his skills behind the dish. In 1942, he broke into the Bigs with the Cubs, but was only able to get into three games and take seven measly plate appearances. This was mostly due to the fact that, upon breaking camp with the club, he flubbed a play in extra innings that choked away a potential win and was immediately sent down. Back in the bushes, Felderman injured his finger and struggled, only earning his way back to Chicago late that season through the team's dismal performance and lack of other backstop options.
After the '42 season, Felderman joined a different kind of campaign and enlisted in the Navy, as there was a little skirmish going on at the time that you might have heard about. Marv was stationed in Hawaii, at Kaneohe Bay Naval Air Station, and regularly plied his talents on the diamond for their baseball team, eventually playing in the 1945 Navy World Series in Hawaii.
Felderman with the Cubs in 1942 (left) and with the US Navy's Kaneohe Klippers in 1944.
Not so long after that World Series, Felderman was discharged from the service and was able to watch a different World Series. The Cubs were taking on the Tigers in that year's fall classic and the club invited their former catcher to take in the festivities from their box seats. Upon the Series' conclusion (and you know how that went for Chicago), the players even voted Felderman a partial share of their pennant purse.
Come 1946, Marv was one of hundreds of pro ball players attempting to make a comeback upon the conclusion of World War II and found himself back in the PCL. By 1947, he was back with the Cubs organization, laboring for a second trial in the National League with the Angels, as the Aldana card illustrates. I've seen it reported that he was called up near the end of the season once again, but he did not appear in a boxscore and I cannot find any contemporary sources to confirm. Either way, Felderman continued to chase his dream in the minor league and semi-pro ranks through at least 1951, without ever getting a second chance.
It was in conducting this research on Marv Felderman's baseball career that I discovered Carl Aldana's passing. Ever the prodigious artist, thebaseballhobbyist (with whom Carl used to work directly) continues to list pieces of Carl's art card portfolio for sale to this day. I'm definitely tempted to grab myself a few more and encourage you to do the same - these colorful oddballs would look great in anyone's baseball card collection!
At any rate, it's time to wrap this up. Carl, sorry it took me so long to pay proper tribute, but thank you for your wonderful art and film work, for creating some of the most fun outsider baseball cards ever produced, and for being so generous and communicative with this random, blathering blogger. Your creative output is something to behold and I am ever thankful to have some pieces of it nestled safely in my binders.
R.I.P. Carl Aldana. To close, here's a short video showcasing some of his watercolor work, specifically impressions of a visit made to the home of the Cubs, Chicago:
Remember way back in the early aughts, when garage rock was king? I can't blame you if you don't - the genre's reign was blink-and-you missed it brief. Back when bands like Franz Ferdinand, the Strokes, Jet, and the Hives were the choice of music taste-makers. Back then, a throwaway line in a gibberish song based around Jack White's inability to say Salvation Army could make Wichita, Kansas seem like the most badass, rock and roll hive this side of New York. Those were the days
Of course, the way the world is today, being able to travel anywhere, Wichita included, seems like an exotic adventure.
Anyway, a good 25 years before White boasted of travelling to the middle of nowhere, Cubs' minor leaguers also spent a lot of time there, as the Wichita Aeros were their AAA affiliate throughout most of the 1970's. Thus, as a rabid Cubs collector and lover of minor league memorabilia, it should come as no surprise that the above 1973 J.B. Kelly Bank Wichita Aeros team set above piqued my interest when it showed up in my saved searches on Ebay earlier this month.
While the collation in incomplete - the nine above are missing 12 brethren - I was okay with that seeming black mark. These over-sized cards (about the same dimensions as the 4x6 photographic prints you used to pick up from Walgreens) don't pop up very often. The coyness is probably due to the fact that vintage MiLB cards are rare in and of themselves and the checklist contains a novelty card of Hall of Famer, Tony LaRussa (yup, he spent some time in the Cubs system). That being said, I'm not chasing the future Cardinals manager; rather, I have long been chasing after a different card found in the set and it happened to be part of the lot:
I know, Pete LaCock is cool and all, but it was Jose Ortiz who captured my attention. You might be asking yourself, why is that? Who the heck is this guy?
You see, if you're familiar with Wrigley Roster Jenga, you know that my main collecting focus for nearly two decades now has been my Cubs All-Time Roster Collection (CATRC) - one card of every single player to suit up in Cubbie Blue pinstripes. Ever. Seeing as the franchise stretches back into the Reconstruction Era, you might expect that the early days of the team's sprawling history would present the most obstructions to my lofty collecting goals and you would be right. That is, mostly right.
The first half of the 20th century and earlier contain, by far, the most gaps in my CATRC binder for reasons that should be obvious. Thus, these black holes in my collection are not all that frustrating, I know obtaining tobacco cards of roster fodder from 100 years ago isn't a quick process. However, the gaps aren't limited to those long bygone days of jazz, flappers, and Model T's. In fact, the most frustrating missing pieces in my most treasured tome are from a much more modern era, when bubblegum card collecting was one of the most popular childhood hobbies and Topps was doing a pretty good job of documenting our nation's pastime on cardboard.
Until recently, with just two exceptions, I had at least one card of every single Wrigley inhabitant since 1970, making those two MIA's all the more annoying. Now, thanks to this Aeros lot, it's just one.
Sidenote - if anyone know of a Wayne Tyrone card, please let me know. As far as I can tell, the 1976 Cub has never appeared on a pasteboard product. Or perhaps you know of a TTM address where I can send this custom creation? Either way, any help would be greatly appreciated!
Like Wayne Tyrone, Jose Ortiz has never appeared on a single traditional baseball card. Unlike Tyrone, he did at least showed up on a small handful of oddballs when he was still plying his trade. According to the Trading Card Database, there's a 1971 Picture Pack set that was sold at Wrigley Field which includes him, though those oddities are closer to photo prints than baseball cards. Also, there was spot for Ortiz in the 1972 Puerto Rican Winter League sticker set, but that release obviously has no connection to the Cubs. Thus, I settled for chasing the '73 Aero card, seeing as it's the best of both worlds.
Even though Topps did a decent job of documenting baseball, as the only game in town, a few of the more obscure players did slip through the cracks. It's not really a surprise that Jose Ortiz and his brief, three-year career was one of those unfortunate men. Please allow me to properly shine the spotlight on the forgotten Cubs outfielder, in honor of my latest acquisition.
In the winter of 1969, on the heels of one of the most infamous implosions in sports history, the Cubs were left licking their wounds. Centerfield had been a primary weakness for the team which ever-so-politely yielded to the Miracle Mets, with scrubs such as Don Young, Jim Qualls, Adolfo Phillips, and an afro-less rookie by the name of Oscar Gamble cycling through the position without making much of an impression. Obviously, the club was looking for answers as to why they wilted during the heat of the pennant race and centerfield was targeted as a prime area for improvement.
Of course, with the benefit of hindsight, we now know that the remedy to their outfield woes was already on the roster. The aforementioned Gamble would go on to star in the Majors throughout the next decade and a half; unfortunately, the most famous follicles in the game would be found under an assortment of non-Cubbie Blue caps during this time.
Looking for a shakeup, on November 30th, the talented newbie was swapped to the Phillies for Johnny Callison, who by then was decidedly on the other side of the proverbial hill. Much bellyaching is heard in the Northside bars of Chicago about an assortment of egregious trades - Brock, Madlock, Maddux (although he technically left in free agency) - but the quick punt on Gamble is rarely heard during these bootleg therapy sessions. However, we're not here to talk about Oscar and we've already devoted far too many lines to his tale. Instead, let's shift our focus to the another outfield-related transaction made exactly one-year later.
With Callison having proved to be to old and injury prone to handle center, the Cubs found themselves leaning on a Rule 5 pick (Cleo James) to pick up the slack. This sad trombone left the team having to upgrade the position after a near postseason miss for the second year in a row. Luckily, they had veteran, mid-season acquisition, Joe Pepitone, still in the fold; but, the club still lacked a long-term solution. Thus, the Cubs sheepishly turned to their South Side neighbors for assistance. In what was just the third trade between the ballclubs during their then nearly 70 year-long rivalry, the Cubs acquired a promising young centerfielder by the name of - you guessed it - Jose Ortiz.
All told, the summation of this transaction can be found listed in Webster's Dictionary under "obscure;" but, at the time, Ortiz was seen as a legitimate prospect. The Puerto Rican stole a whopping 79 bases in the minor leagues in 1967 and rose to the Majors for the first time just as the Cubs were dropping down the standings in September of '69. Ortiz was largely a singles hitter, as his 1969-70 slash of .314/.375/.381 suggested; however, those stats were accrued in just 25 at-bats. Perhaps with a little more seasoning on the farm, the speedy youngster's bat would develop enough to allow the Cubs to fill that gap in the center of the diamond.
Come 1971, the future quickly became now. Nearing the end of his MLB road, injuries forced Ernie Banks to start the '71 campaign on the disabled list and brought Pepitone in from center to cover first base duties. Suddenly, Ortiz no longer had time to figure things out in the minors - rather, he was #1 on the depth chart, #20 on the roster, #8 on the scorecard and starting on Opening Day at Wrigley Field.
Sadly, it was all downhill from there - 1971 was to be his last season in the Majors.
Jose spent the month of April as the starter in centerfield, but was kicked back to the bench in favor of fellow prospect, Brock Davis, come May. Ortiz maintained a spot as a regular pinch-hitter and extra outfield glove that month; however, playing time became sparce by June and he was back in the bushes by July. All told, Jose posted a slash line of .295/.347/.398 seemingly stunted as a slappy, singles hitter and the team felt they could do better.
Alas, centerfield continued to be a problem for the Cubs throughout the rest of the 20th century and well into the next one. Much was made of the team ineptitude at the hot corner before Aramis Ramirez came along, but sustained success in center has been every bit as rare.
While Jose was done in the Bigs before 1971 was out, he hung on the Cubs chain as a minor league journeyman through '76. At first, he played with the Cubs' AAA affiliates in Tacoma and Wichita (as my baseball card attests) but was then further demoted to AA Midland before he was granted release. After one more go-round in the Mexican League in '77, Ortiz finally hung up his spikes without clawing back up to the top.
And that's the story of Jose Ortiz. He was an Aero longer than he was a Cub, so I guess the card I ended up with is quite appropriate.
While Jose represented my chase card - one of my most desired and longest sought after, at that - he was not the only intriguing pasteboard in the stack. In fact, among the oddballs, there was a card of a guy who never appeared on another card, before or after, and also saw time with the Major League club:
Like Ortiz, Compton's time in Major League Baseball was already over with by the time he posed for this photograph, he just didn't know it. The hurler pitched in a single game during the 1972 season and that was the end of his MLB tenure. Clint drew mopup duty in an eventual 11-1 loss to Philadelphia on October 3rd, the second to last day of the season. Two innings pitched, two earned runs allowed, and that's all she wrote.
The 3rd round of the 1968 MLB June amateur draft played one more season in Wichita and then abruptly retired at the age of 22.
Were he to have played today, the high draft choice would have had a million Bowman cards on his ledger before he even took the mound on that fateful October afternoon. As it stands, being a one-game wonder in an era where baseball cards were still all about actual Major Leaguers, Mr. Compton never made it onto a Topps piece. In fact, according to my sources, this Aeros single is the only card that Compton ever appeared on. Thus, I should also need this one for my Cubs All-Time Roster Collection? It's not like there's another option, right? Well...
As it turns out, I already have Compton in my binder, as a Cub even. How is that possible?
You may or may not be familiar with the Rookies App. This iPhone program allows users to create custom baseball cards from pre-built templates, just add photos and text to the front and back and *bam* you have a brand new, unique to you baseball card. Then, you have the option to order a bonafide wax pack filled with your creations, printed on quality cardstock all professional-like and everything. You honestly wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a Rookies App card and your average Topps or Panini product unless you scientifically studied them.
The first pack I ordered through the Rookies App back in 2014
Also, unlike Topps' card creator, this one doesn't block you from using photos with MLB trademarks. So, I created a few pasteboards of guys who didn't have any previously or only had realistically unattainable pieces to their name. At the time, I though Compton fit that profile. It appears as though I was quite wrong and now I am at a crossroads.
On one hand, cards which feature players in a Cubs uniform always receive priority in my collection and, though you can't truly tell from the photo I originally selected, Clint is in his Cubbie duds. However, the Wichita Aeros card feels more like a "real" card, i.e. not a bootleg creation I whipped up to fill a gap that actually doesn't exist. So, I don't know what to do.
Which card would you chose to represent Clint if you had a CATRC? Please help me to decide!
All inner turmoil aside, the rest of the cards won from this Ebay lot feature a bunch of eventual or former Cubs already found in my CATRC, including the aforementioned LaCock:
These will slide nicely into my "Nothing Major" collection, made up of minor league cards of Major League Cubs.
Lastly, there was also a former MLB moundsman in Floyd Weaver.
Weaver spent time in the Bigs with the Indians, White Sox, and Brewers by never made the trip from Wichita to the North Side of Chicago. Interestingly enough, Weaver made only one appearance with the '73 Aeros, which marked the end of his pro career. Anyway, this card will be inserted into my "Coulda Been a Cub" binder, made up of players who were under contract with the Lovable Losers but never suited up with the MLB club, for one reason or another.
Do you have any favorite off the beaten path type-minor league cards like these '73 J.P. Kelly Bank Wichita Aeros in your collection? If so, what makes them worthy of your collection? Is it because they're just so obscure and/or peculiar? Do they show a favorite player in a "before they were famous" bush league uniform? Or, perhaps they depict a PC player who doesn't have much in the way of a cardboard footprint, like Mr. Jose Ortiz? I highly encourage you to share your stories in the comment section below.
At any rate, the highlight of this purchase - far and away - was finally being able to cross Jose Ortiz off of my "needs" list. Once I figure out a way to get a custom TTM out to Wayne Tyrone, I will have a card of every single player to suit up for the Cubs since 1970 and I can shift my entire focus on vintage and super-vintage targets.
And the best part was that I didn't even have to go all the way to Wichita to get that bad boy - I made Wichita come to me. I didn't have to worry about Seven Nation Armies holdin' me back - take that, Jack White!
