Have you ever thought of a player, told yourself that you should really pick up one of his cards, put it on the back burner and forgot, only to think of the person months (even years) later and go through the motions again?
I finally did something about one of mine:
I've been wanting this card for a long while, and finally got around to making a trade proposal on the TCDB. Now, most traders will try to get the most out of their postage and send multiple cards. Not me. I proposed a simple one-for-one card swap. It must have struck my trade partner, a nice guy named Vaughan, as odd, because he sent me the following message:
Why indeed? It's not a Red Sox card, that would be easy to understand. It's not from a set I'm looking to complete. In fact, I don't even see myself picking up another card from this Orioles-themed set. The set does play an important role, because it was designed to include every single Orioles player in modern history.
So who is Dave Criscione?
Dave's career in the Majors amounted to a grand total of 7 games across 2 weeks in 1977. But in those two weeks he lived the dream of every baseball fan. Imagine you were given just 7 games as a Major Leaguer, how would you envision the perfect version of it?
Maybe have one of the greatest managers of all time pencil you in on a lineup card? Dave Criscione played for the immortal Earl Weaver.
Maybe have your locker next to a future Hall of Famer? Criscione suited up right next to Brooks Robinson.
An ovation from the hometown faithful? Criscione actually got multiple in one day! (Once when the scoreboard announced the birth of his daughter, then later when he got his first Major League hit. He got one last round of applause when his sacrifice bunt put the winning run on third during an 8th inning rally.)
Of course, what dream MLB scenario wouldn't be complete with a walk-off home run? The very next day, Criscione entered the game in the 10th inning of a 3-3 ball game against the Brewers. In the bottom of the 11th, Brooks Robinson grounded out in what was eventually his final home stadium at-bat. That brought Dave up to the plate. With family in the stands to witness it, Criscione hit a deep drive to left for a game-winning home run!
That home run represented not just the only home run he would ever hit, but also the only run he would ever score and the only RBI he would ever tally. It also ended up being his last hit in the Majors.
7 games, 3 hits in 9 at-bats, 1 amazing HR - that was his Major League career in a nutshell. A blip in the history of baseball, but one every baseball fan would have given anything for. A dream fulfilled.
As to why Dave Criscione keeps popping in my mind as someone I needed a card of. The answer is quite simple:
Yep, he's the only one born in the same small town as me. I never met him personally, although if I recall correctly, my dad went to high school with one of his brothers.
This card will get filed away with other cards that are special to me, easy enough to find, look at, remember that even someone from Dunkirk NY could make it to the Majors.
Resources and Fun Reads:
Very cool. Looks like he has some minor-league cards too.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on finally getting your much wanted card! I didn't look to see if he's still alive, but if so, have you ever thought of sending him a TTM request?
ReplyDeleteSounds like some pretty cool reasons to track down that card. Glad you finally added it to your collection.
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