Comments on: Rod Carew

By: nunyer

nunyer — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 15:48:21 +0000

Rod Carew’s two strike, time-to-just-slap-whatever-is-close-over-top-of-the-second-baseman-swing was probably the most imitated thing on the whiffle / baseball fields of my youth. Everybody had one they would try… leaning out a little more over the plate, choking up ever so slightly, trying to pull off that almost nonchalant snap of the wrists… Great player to watch growing up, even if I didn’t get to see him play during his true salad days.

By: brenttopping

brenttopping — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 23:56:55 +0000

I’m the Brent Topping who sent Josh the card. Interesting that it’s being suggested that there was a shortage of these. If so, I’m all the more happy to have sent it to Josh. It’s doing much more now that it did sitting in my big box of 1980 Topps cards – the only set I own any significant amount of.

Josh – Hope your book has sold well, and good luck with the paperback!

Awesome post too at #3 figuring out which day this picture was likely taken.

By: letthefansvote

letthefansvote — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 18:45:42 +0000

Interesting that the ’79 Carew card may have been scarce. Perhaps Topps was aware of that since I had accumulated enough ’80 Carew cards to make an entire A.L. All-Star lineup to the point where it became “not ANOTHER Carew!” And it wasn’t the kind of card kids relished with a his head filling out the frame, making me then think illogically that “maybe Topps just needs to get rid of all these Carew cards.”

By: brent67

brent67 — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 03:22:39 +0000

“How am I supposed to hit when I’m more hole than swing?”

Damn, that’s poetry. Great work…I’m totally stealing that.

By: Josh Wilker

Josh Wilker — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 18:26:55 +0000

brooklynfunbus:
“Topps must not have printed many of Carew’s card this year.”

You might be on to something. As I mentioned in the post, I didn’t get this card as a kid and was only able to include it out of the kindness of reader Brent Topping.

By: brooklynfunbus

brooklynfunbus — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 18:14:44 +0000

Read about your blog in the Times, and am fascinated. I went straight to my big box of cards from the same era and started pawing through them.

Topps must not have printed many of Carew’s card this year. I had multiples of all the other all-star cards, but it took all summer (buying 5 packs every week, all that my 8-year-old allowance could afford) to get this Carew card. I was in my mother’s upper west side manhattan kitchen when I opened the pack and saw it, and started jumping up and down so much that the downstairs neighbor came up to complain.

Thanks for the great posts. Keep it up.

By: sb1902

sb1902 — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 20:12:33 +0000

14. I'm amazed at how Rod Carew was at the top of the list of baseball greats when he played, now he is largely forgotten. Josh's recollections about the emotion of seeing his name at the top of the list in the papers every single Sunday certainly rings true with my experience as well. I've often wondered why Carew is ignored now? I thought it was because he didn't walk enough and didn't hit for power, but recently I looked him up on B-R and he walked quite a bit more than I expected. I thought maybe playing for the Twins hid him a bit, but he played for some good Twins teams at the start of career and some good Angels teams at the end, and when he played, he got tons of All Star votes. I guess there were just too many good first basemen with power for him to stand out.

By: Scott Long

Scott Long — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 04:02:23 +0000

13. I got to this story a bit late. Loved the memory of the sunday paper batting averages. It was the best part of the paper and something we are spoiled about now, with the instant access of the net. 2 memories. Carew swallowed his chaw in one all-star game and looked about as ill as man can get. Also, I loved watching him bunt more than any other player, as he would hold the bat like he was swinging away and control the ball like his stick was a magic wand.

By: 68elcamino427

68elcamino427 — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 03:46:57 +0000

12. it seemed to me that he had always been an all-star How am I supposed to hit when I'm more hole than swing? Josh, sometimes you're just too damn tough on yourself, although that's probably a part of what makes your work so great. Thanks.

By: sansho1

sansho1 — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 03:22:28 +0000

11. Richie Ashburn is a decent precursor to Carew et al.