Fun With 95 SP: The Conclusion

What better place to start the conclusion of "Fun With 95 SP" than with the Cardboard God, Bip Roberts.

Once again, Bip shows off what makes him a legend. SUre, he could have mailed it in with just the million dollar smile, but he took it to another level by pulling off the ball balancing on a bat act.

But did Bip's presence end there? Of course not.

Bip showed up on a regular season card sliding back into first...


And from a spring training game trying to break up the double play. Props to Vinny Castilla on the athleticism.

If you think seeing Vinny Castilla jumping in the air seems a little out of place, this will make your jaw drop

Jim Thome looking like a skinny second baseman levitating in the middle of the Oakland infield. Definitely worth a double take.

Hairstyles also played a prominent role in 95 SP, we've already seen Will Clark and his combover, but we also have the stylings of Sammy.

Apparently Mr. Sosa had swimmer's ear, or maybe a tick that needed to be checked out. Digging the racing stripe down the side.


Mark Portugal showing off the mid 90s mullet.


Not to be outdone by the famous ginger mullet of some guy who seems to have disappeared from baseball all together. You gotta wonder if Will Clark was more interested in getting some juice to prolong his career or some hair styling tips.

Finally, the winner for Best Mullet in a 1995 baseball card set goes to...well let's him come on out and show it off to you.

As Juan prances in from the outfield, he lets us all know the source of his strength. It's nothing from the locker of Mr. Canseco, instead it's all about the locks.

If we're going to give Juan an award for that hair, how about an award for the most awkward card of 95 SP.

Director's chair on baseball field...check.
Pasty white skin accented by sleeveless shirt...check.
Odd expression from Mr. Nevin...check.
Officially awkward.


It's not often that you get a good run down captured on cardboard, however I'm more interested in the fact that the catcher has made his way out to the infield, displaying just how intense of a run down this was.

Random Oddities:

Ray Lankford, #1 Fave 4 Cardinal and aspiring gymnast.


The awful gray hats of the Baltimore Orioles. You will only find evidence of these caps on a few cards out there.


1st oddity, a time when Pedro Martinez needed the J. to help in identifying himself.
2nd oddity, Pedro is taking a vicious hack.


No one loves their fat guys quite like I do, but I really don't think Kirby should have been throwing himself around like this in a spring training game.

Finally, we take a look at the rookies of 95 SP. A chance for me to realize just how old I've become.


Yup, there was a time when Edgardo Alfonzo was a bright young rookie making his way onto the scene and not a washed up hitter barely holding on.


Nomo-mania!


I just figures Grudz began his career as a 6 year veteran.


Seriously, this guy was young once.


Even as a rookie Tony Clark looked like he was 40.

And thus ends our look back at the wackiness that was 95 SP. Feel free to look here, here and here for more of the fun. They just don't make 'em like they used to.

Go Halos!

Fun With 95 SP: The Continuation

It started here and continued here, now the saga continues.

The great thing about 95 SP is that the oddities are at times of the routine variety, example below:

Jose Rijo examining some pictures that I can only pray are of him, but likely they are pictures of Dominican embryos that he plans on signing illegally once he becomes a part of the Nationals front office.

But the oddities aren't always so obvious, occasionally they don't register immediately, example below:

What's so odd about a player making a leaping grab at the wall? Let me count the ways.
1. It's Gary Sheffield. A man not always known for his great effort.
2. This is a spring training game as evidenced by the peculiar wall/fence.
3. That is Gary Sheffield putting out maximum effort in a meaningless spring training game. Cats and dogs living together!

95 SP actually had a couple of nice wall shots outside of the Sheffield miracle.

Rickey Henderson with gold chain flying. Does Rickey ever not look smooth?


Maybe the most expected player to have a wall catch card other than Kenny Lofton in 1995. Finley seemed to make these plays regularly during the mid to late 90s.

Maybe my favorite card of the set is Rod Beck.

What could be better than a card that shows Beck lacing up the gloves? I know when I think of Rod Beck I instantly flash to his off-season workout regimen which by glancing at his physique, you instantly can determine that it is filled with intense sessions. So I return to the original question of what could be better? Well, just check the back.

Yup. Beck has graduated from the lacing up the gloves to absolutely annihilating the heavy bag. You can instantly see why Beck is the finely tuned professional athlete that he is. An absolute cardio beast!

The madness continues with the hairline of Nuschler.

Oh Will. Why oh why did you continually insist on doffing your cap? I certainly understand that the Star Spangled Banner is a justified reason to take off the hat, but it seemed like your hat was always off. Could you have done us all the favor of shaving it off or at least going with a different hairdo than the one you had when you were 6? And shame on the photo editors who decided to torture us with this sight.

Finally, we will round out today's action with a look at one of the best second basemen of our generation, Ralph Macchio, I mean Daniel LaRusso.

The secret to Roberto's great success wasn't natural talent passed down from his father. It wasn't hours spent on little league fields honing his craft. Nope, Roberto's success is due to the teachings of an elderly Asian maintenance man who fled to America in order to escape the wrath of Sato. Early on he took Roberto under his wing and taught him the importance of wax on, wax off. Unfortunately, Roberto spent a brief time under the mesmerizing tutelage of the Cobra Kai who influenced him to spit on an umpire in an act of disrespect that was difficult to live down. Thankfully, he returned to the teachings of Miyagi and lived happily ever after.

Thank you for this reminder 95 SP. Only one more installment is left, I know you're on the edge of your seat.

Go Halos!

Fun With 95 SP

Recently I opened a cheap box of 95 SP and came across a bit of an odd trend. Apparently around 1995, players suddenly felt quite generous and were often photographed giving back to the fans. The oddities in 95 SP don't stop there though.

A few other cards popped out at me and over the next couple of days I'd like to document the oddities, wakiness and at times awesomeness that is 95 SP.

First up, broken bats.

Billy Ashley

Broken bat, broken dreams for Mr. Ashley. Supposed to be the next in a long line of Dodger rookie standouts, Mr. Ashley instead never lived up to the hype. Perhaps his use of lumber was the problem.

Matt Williams

The balded one with broken bat. Apparently this lack of stable wood was prevalent among the sluggers as well.

Mo Vaughn

Seriously, was it necessary to have three cards featuring broken bats. It's not like I even have a complete set here, there couldn't certainly be more.


Next up for today, the error.
Honestly, how often do you come across a photo and instantly know that the play was botched? It certainly seems like these photos should have been left on the editing floor.

The best part of it, the errors happened to:
Career backups wearing #58 on their jersey,


Catchers who had no business on the infield,


Talented offensive first basemen,


And perhaps the greatest defensive shortstop of all-time.


95 SP, a set of oddities. Coming tomorrow, Rod Beck's two sport career, Will Clark's hairline, and the Karate Kid as interpreted by an umpire spitting second baseman.

Go Halos!