1988 FLEER BASEBALL – WAX PACK #1

A baseball nerd’s simple pleasure – 36 wax packs in 36 days

I have driven by this antiquated strip mall on numerous occasions. Discount retailers, a bank, a dry cleaner, a nail salon, Chinese take-out. It’s quite literally, Any Town USA. Nothing ever stood out.

This particular morning, while performing the mundane task of running errands, something grabbed my immediate attention. The kid in me was drawn to a bright yellow, rectangular sign with two simple words – Collectors Box! (No apostrophe.) After a less than ideal traffic maneuver, I entered the parking lot and headed for the shop.

For approximately fifteen minutes, I wasn’t a late-40 something anymore. I was a fourteen-year old kid with a pocket full of money from my lawn mowing enterprise. The unmistakable smell of wax packs had me in a time warp. It was suddenly 1986 again – sadly my 10-speed Huffy wasn’t parked by the front door.

For a kid who grew up in the 1980’s, the names still roll off the tongue – Topps, Fleer, Donruss! This place has boxes and wax packs everywhere. Most days I can’t remember where I placed my eyeglasses or car keys, but I certainly remember baseball card and wax pack designs from nearly forty years ago. Ooh, a box of 1987 Topps! And over there, 1988 Fleer! Oh boy, 1982 Donruss packs?! Decisions, decisions.

Since I’m not an oil tycoon or hedge fund manager by day, purchasing the entire shop would not have been prudent – plus, my life-span would have decreased dramatically. So, after agonizing over my choices, I settled on a box of 1988 Fleer wax packs – 36 count. Sadly, this wasn’t the neighborhood drug store I used to frequent as a kid. Otherwise, an ice cream sandwich and ice cold bottle of root beer would have been included in the transaction.

I drove my newfound treasure home, hurriedly brought it into my office, and slowly unwrapped the first pack. My recollections of most of the players were quite vivid. Some, a bit fuzzy. All recognizable, nonetheless. Solid everyday players, journeymen, cups of coffee, and a Hall of Famer.

It was not easy, but decided not to open all thirty-six packs the first day. I will open one pack a day until my supply has been exhausted. Each wax pack has fifteen trading cards. For the next thirty-six days, I will post an article about that day’s pack. A little-known or forgotten fact – or two, an opinion, or a personal memory about each of the fifteen players. A trip back in baseball’s time machine, if you will.

April 16, 2021 – Wax Pack #1

Mark Thurmond, pitcher (Detroit Tigers)

• During spring training in 1988, Thurmond was traded by the Tigers to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for Ray Knight. Unfortunately for Thurmond, the Orioles started the 1988 season 0-21 (a major league record). By the end of April, Thurmond was 0-5 with a 6.23 earned run average.

Kirk McCaskill, pitcher (California Angels)

• McCaskill was a part of major league history on September 14, 1990. In a game at Anaheim Stadium, Ken Griffey and Ken Griffey Junior took McCaskill deep in consecutive at-bats. To this day, they are the only father/son combination to hit back-to-back home runs.

Dale Mohorcic, pitcher (Texas Rangers)

• Looking for bullpen depth for the stretch run, the New York Yankees acquired Mohorcic in late-August, 1988. On September 3, 1988, in his first game for the Yankees, Mohorcic relieved legendary lefty Ron Guidry in the sixth inning. Staked to a 4-2 lead, Mohorcic pitched an easy sixth and seventh innings. In the eighth, he surrendered a three-run home run to American League MVP Jose Canseco for what would be the margin of victory for the Athletics. It was Guidry’s final major league season.

Mike Aldrete, first baseman/outfielder (San Francisco Giants)

• Aldrete capped off a 10-year major league career as a World Series champion with the 1996 New York Yankees.
• In 34 career plate appearances against Mike Scott, Aldrete batted .357/.455/.679, 2 home runs, 3 doubles, 5 walks, 7 runs batted in.
• One of Chris Berman’s popular baseball nicknames: Mike Enough Aldrete.

Jay Aldrich, pitcher (Milwaukee Brewers)

• In his major league debut on June 5, 1987 at County Stadium in Milwaukee, Aldrich surrendered a long home run to Yankees slugger Dave Winfield.

Jeff Blauser, shortstop (Atlanta Braves)

• Blauser was the starting shortstop for the Chicago Cubs on May 6, 1998 at Wrigley Field. If the date sounds familiar, it should. Cubs starting pitcher Kerry Wood mowed down the Houston Astros with 20 strikeouts en route to a 2-0 victory. Blauser was one of three Cubs players with an assist that afternoon.

Eric Bell, pitcher (Baltimore Orioles)

• While finishing his six-year major league career with a nondescript 15-18 record and 5.18 earned run average, Bell finished the minor league portion of his career with a 109-82 record over 14 seasons.

Kevin Bass, outfielder (Houston Astros)

• Debuted with the 1982 Milwaukee Brewers and played in 18 games for the Brew Crew.
• Later that summer, the Brewers decided they needed to shore up their rotation for the stretch run. On August 30, 1982, they obtained future Hall of Famer Don Sutton from the Houston Astros for cash and players to be named later. Four days later, the trade was completed as Bass was one of the players to be named later (along with Frank DiPino and Mike Madden).
• Another Berman nickname: Kevin Smallmouth Bass.

Edwin Nunez, pitcher (Seattle Mariners)

• Nunez made his professional debut as a 16-year old with the Bellingham Mariners of the Northwest League in 1979. He was 4-1 with a 2.08 earned run average in six starts.
• Two years later, the 18-year old Nunez would post a sparkling 16-3 record with the Wausau Timbers of the Midwest League. He averaged 10 strikeouts per nine innings that season.
• While a reliever for the Oakland Athletics on May 16, 1994, Nunez would make the final appearance of his 13-year major league career. The final three batters he faced were Jose Canseco, Will Clark, and Juan Gonzalez.

Randy St. Claire, pitcher (Montreal Expos)

• One of five players in major league history born in Glens Falls, New York – ALL pitchers!
• His father, Ebba St. Claire, was a backup catcher for the Boston/Milwaukee Braves and New York Giants from 1951-1954.

Jay Bell, shortstop (Cleveland Indians)

• Bell was drafted by the Minnesota Twins with the eighth overall pick in the 1984 draft. He was part of a package that was traded to the Cleveland Indians for Bert Blyleven on August 1, 1985.
• The 20-year old Bell made his major league debut on September 29, 1986 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. In the top of the third inning, Bell hit a home run on the first pitch he ever saw in the big leagues. The pitcher? Bert Blyleven.
• Bell was in Sarasota, Florida playing in Cleveland’s instructional league when he received the call to take the first plane to Minneapolis. He arrived at 11:30 that morning and was informed by manager Pat Corrales two hours before game time that he would be in the starting lineup.
• Scored the winning run for the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 7 of the 2001 World Series.

Les Lancaster, pitcher (Chicago Cubs)

• Lancaster made his major league debut on April 7, 1987 – Opening Day at Wrigley Field. Cubs pitchers Rick Sutcliffe, Greg Maddux, and Jamie Moyer all preceded Lancaster on the mound that afternoon. That trio combined for an impressive 795 career victories.
• Lancaster enjoyed a stellar 1993 season with the St. Louis Cardinals: 4-1, 2.93 earned run average, 135 ERA+. Surprisingly, the Cardinals granted him free agency after the season ended. He never pitched in the majors again.
• In 2001, 39-year old Lancaster pitched for, and managed, the Lincoln Saltdogs of the independent Northern League. The old guy still had it – finishing 5-1 with a 2.89 earned run average in nine games.

Harold Baines, outfielder (Chicago White Sox)

• Baines made his professional debut with the Appleton Foxes of the Midwest League in 1977. One of his teammates that season was Orestes Minoso – son of White Sox legend Minnie Minoso.
• Traded to the Texas Rangers for Sammy Sosa on July 29, 1989.
• Baines played in 2,830 games over a 22-year major league career. Incredibly, he was ejected just ONE time in his entire career (arguing a called third strike on August 9, 1998).

Orel Hershiser, pitcher (Los Angeles Dodgers)

• While Bulldog’s epic 1988 season will forever be a part of baseball lore, it can be argued that his 1985 season was more dominant: 19-3, 2.03 earned run average, 171 ERA+, 1.031 WHIP, five shutouts, and allowed a microscopic 0.3 home runs per nine innings. In 239.2 innings pitched in 1985, Hershiser allowed a mere eight home runs.
• Hershiser was a September call-up in 1983. Manager Tommy Lasorda wasted no time in throwing him into the fire. Orel debuted on September 1 at Olympic Stadium in Montreal. He entered in relief of Burt Hooton and faced Gary Carter, Al Oliver, and Tim Wallach. It was a 1-2-3 inning.
• Like Baines, the mild-mannered Bulldog was ejected just once (May 8, 2004) during his long major league career.

Tom Hume, pitcher (Cincinnati Reds)

• Hume had an inauspicious beginning to his major league career. On May 25, 1977 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, Reds manager Sparky Anderson gave him the ball. It did not go well. Hume did not make it out of the first inning – allowing five earned runs, highlighted by a three-run home run by Gary Thomasson.
• New manager John McNamara converted Hume into the Reds closer in 1979.
• In 1980, Hume pitched 137 innings in 78 games – all in relief. He allowed just six home runs while posting a 9-10 record with a 2.56 earned run average (141 ERA+). Talk about having a rubber arm.