From My Collection: 1987 Topps Mail-In All-Stars

If I had to guess how many 1987 Topps wax packs I ever opened, I would guess about 150.  And in every one, I think, there was this red advertising card -- win a trip for 4 to 1988 spring training!  I don't know that I ever entered, but I did take advantage of the other offer, at least once.  If you send in $1 and 6 of these cards, you got a 10-card glossy set of either all-stars or hot prospects. 

1987 Topps Ad Insert

I have about 15 of the all-star cards, so I must have either sent in for them twice and then traded a few of the cards, or I sent in once and picked up a few more cards here and there.

1987 Topps Mail-In All-Star card of Dave Parker.

Dave Parker was one of my favorite players in the 80s.  I had a bunch of his cards from his time with the Pirates, my favorite team, and it wouldn't be long before he joined the A's for their 1989 World Series championship.  I don't remember much about his time with the Reds, though.

1987 Topps Mail-In All-Star card of Johnny Ray.

Every team has to have an All-Star, but it turns out that Johnny Ray wasn't that guy.  He wasn't an All-Star until 1988, with the Angels.  But he's in this All-Star set anyway.  The 1987 Pirates All-Star was Rick Reuschel, and the 1986 Pirates All-Stars were Rick Rhoden and Tony Pena.  Nothing against Johnny Ray, though -- he was a good second baseman for the Pirates for several years, winning The Sporting News Rookie of the Year in 1982 and a Silver Slugger in 1983.  (I haven't checked for the other players in this post as to whether they were actually All-Stars.)

1987 Topps Mail-In All-Star card of Lance Parrish.

Lance Parrish is showing up in this blog much more than I would have expected.

1987 Topps Mail-In All-Star card of Tim Raines.

I've said before that I was always a fan of the base stealers; Raines is fifth on the all-time stolen base list with 808 in his career.  I'm glad he was eventually elected to the Hall of Fame.  I remember very clearly when he won the 1987 All-Star MVP award, for a game-winning hit.

1987 Topps Mail-In All-Star card of Harold Baines.

I've said before that Harold Baines was one of my favorite players.  I'll be developing something more of a player collection for him, looking for 1980s oddballs of him and other interesting cards.

1987 Topps Mail-In All-Star card of Eddie Murray.

Same goes for Eddie Murray -- I'll be looking to collect more offbeat cards of his for a player collection.  I grew up in Delaware in the late 1970s and the 1980s, and while we were mostly Phillies fans, we were close to Baltimore as well.  Eddie Murray was the other local home run hitter, after Mike Schmidt.

1987 Topps Mail-In All-Star card of Joe Carter.

In 1988, I started 8th grade, and my social studies teacher, Mr. Kennedy, was an Indians fan (and especially talked about Larry Doby).  I had some 1988 Topps folders for my school work, including one of Joe Carter of the Indians.  I took an interest in his career after that, and was happy for him when he ended the 1993 World Series with a home run (not exactly the same as Bill Mazeroski's 1960 Game 7 blast, but similar) even if his home run did defeat the Phillies.