Young Superstars II #34 - Barry Larkin

Most likely, we're looking at a future Hall of Famer. And on top of that, our third MLB Network analyst in the last four cards.

Again we see the 50's sci-fi spacesuit Reds uniform. Since they're all wearing away jerseys, I'll say there's a pretty good chance that all the Reds cars we've seen were taken at the same game. This one shows us the third base dugout and a view of some cameramen.

Not sure where they were taken. Turf field with a blue wall. It's not Montreal because you can see the sun reflecting on his helmet.

Larkin has an impressive resume: 12 time All Star, 3 Gold Gloves, 9 Silver Sluggers, NL MVP in 1995 and a World Series ring from 1990. To top it all off, he spent his entire career in Cincinnati.

Hall of Fame? I think so.

Barry Larkin's career statistics

Young Superstars II #28 - Fred McGriff

That looks like either a spring training or pre game shot on McGriff based on the alternate jersey. The headshot on the reverse with the empty stands makes me think pre-game and the ammount and color of the seats makes me think SkyDome.

One of my best friends growing up was named Fred, but he looked exactly like another one-time Brave, Marquis Grissom.

McGriff put up some great numbers and hit over 30 home runs seven straight years. When I think of the Crime Dog, my first thought is of the fire at Fulton County Stadium the day of McGriff's arrival in Atlanta. My second thought were those silly Tom Emanski baseball training videos that you still see on ESPN from time to time very late at night.

Hall of Fame? The numbers are good, but I think he flew just a bit under the radar and wasn't a very outspoken player. In 19 seasons he hit .284/493/1550. As a first baseman, he sat right at league average.

He hit very well in his postseason appearances and has a World Series ring from 1995 with the Braves.

Fred McGriff's career statistics

Young Superstars II #20 - Darryl Strawberry

This is a great shot on Strawberry concentrating on the pitch. He had one of the nicest swings in baseball.

Who's that on deck behind him? It's most likely Kevin McReynolds.

We all know the tragedy of Darryl Strawberry, so I won't get into it. He was a great player who gave up a lot.

He's one of only three players who have played for all four original New York teams (Yankees, Mets, Dodgers and Giants).

Darryl Strawberry's career statistics

Young Superstars II #19 - Lenny Dykstra

I'm trying to figure out what's going on in the background. There's a person on the left side shielding their face from something. There's also a white spot and I can't tell if it's a ball or lense flare.

I kinda doubt that it's a ball, considering Lenny's getting ready to hit and there shouldn't be any other baseballs flying around. There seems to be a lot of non-players in that area back there. Press pit?

Lenny was a hardnosed player: he played hard, drank hard and partied hard. He was part of that blue collar Phillies team of the early 90s with John Kruk and Darren Daulton.

He'll probably best be remember for the car accident he and Daulton were involved in after leaving John Kruk's bachelor party on May 7, 1991. He wouldn't play again until July 15. Daulton fared a bit better and was back in the line up on May 25 (but for only two games and was then out until June 18).

In December 2007, Nails was named in the Mitchell Report and by Jason Grimsley.

Lenny Dykstra's career statistics

Young Superstars II #14 - Jeff Blauser

The picture on the reverse looks like it was taken after a rain delay (or an off day) because that looks like a tarp over the infield. The grey overcast sky in the background is another indication of rain.

For whatever reason I don't remember Jeff not being on the 1995 World Series roster. 1995 was not a good year for Jeff, in 115 games he batted only .211. In the division series and NLCS he went 0-10 with two walks and five strikeouts. Ouch. I guess that's why he wasn't on the World Series roster.

Blauser was just an average player who showed some streaks of brilliance from time to time. He was a two time All Star (he started at short in 1997) and won the Silver Slugger in 1997. But I'll always remember him as a much better player than he really was. I still miss Blauser and Lemke up the middle in Atlanta.

He had a great year in 1997, and though he cooled off considerably in early August, he was still batting over .350 as late as June 28.

Jeff Blauser's career statistics

Young Superstars II #12 - Barry Bonds

As I mentioned a few days ago, right here is one of the reasons the Pirates put together a few good seasons in the early 90s. A skinnier version of Bonds won the first two of his seven MVP awards as a member of the Pirates. After Bonds' departure from the Pirates after the 1992 season, the team went south and hasn't had a winning record since.

Judging by the camera man in blue, the photo looks to have been taken at the same game as the base release card. I'm not sure what's going on with the closeup on the reverse though. I think it's the only non-head shot in the set. Maybe Barry wouldn't let them get any closer. It's not a bad looking photo though.

Since I don't really want to talk much about Bonds, I'll just copy and paste what I said when I came across his card in the base release, it still fits.

It's a good looking card of a promising young player. A player who had the potential to be one of the very best the game has ever seen, but a player who let success get the better of him, a player who lost touch with the fans and a player who in my opinion didn't show a whole hell of a lot of respect to the great thing he accomplished. And in my opinion a player who should never be in the Hall of Fame, but I'm not a baseball writer so what I think as a fan doesn't really matter.

Barry Bonds' career statistics

Young Superstars II #10 - Eric Davis

Here's another card with really good color combinations on the front, and a nice swing by Davis with the ball coming into the frame. It's also another Wrigley shot.

Davis was touted as a five tool player, and he was exceptionally good at all aspects of the game. However, he was also exceptionally good at getting hurt and never managed to play in more than 135 games in any of his 17 seasons.

In 1997 Davis was diagnosed with colon cancer but said he'd return before the end of the season. During that year's AL Division Series, Davis did come back, hitting a game winning home run as a member of the Orioles.

A year after coming back from cancer, Davis put together his best season, batting .327 with 28 home runs and 89 RBIs. However, after 1998 his career quickly went down hill with three injury shortened seasons before retiring in 2001.

Eric Davis' career statistics

Young Superstars II #9 - Bobby Bonilla

Since it didn't auto post like a good little post... here it is, only five hours late...


I like that you can see Bonilla's number 25 written in Sharpie on the underside of his cap bill.

With guys like Bobby Bo, Barry Bonds, Andy Van Slyke and a pretty good pitching staff, things looked very promising for the Pirates in the late 80s. They won their division three straight years starting in 1990, but haven't posted a winning record since the 1992 season.

Bonilla is another guy who had already been traded before being called a Young Superstar.

In 1998, Bonilla was involved in the trade that took Mike Piazza to Florida for five games in May.

I think I've said this before, but I can't really remember much about Bonilla's season in Atlanta.

Bobby Bonilla's career statistics

Young Superstars II #8 - Andres Galarraga

Here's a great shot of the old Expos blue away jersey and their beautiful cap. I've said it before, but I really miss the Expos. Sure they didn't draw more than sixteen fans per game, they played in a dump and never won. But they always fielded a good team, but never could afford to keep their young players as they progressed.

I realize that the Expos just weren't going to last in Montreal, but in Washington they just don't seem to have an identity yet, they don't really seem to have a place. They're stuck in the middle of a lot of Phillies and Orioles fans.

Maybe in a few more years at the new stadium they'll develop a following, but they better put up a good season soon.

Expos talk aside, I really like Galarraga. It's certainly true that he benefitted from the thin air at Coors' in its early days, but after leaving Colorado he still put up good numbers.

The smile on his face on the back of the card never left. He was a joy to watch in Atlanta and of all the players that have come and gone, I was saddest of all to see the Big Cat leave.

He's no Hall of Famer, but he was a very good, very popular player. His ability with the glove was right at league average and he won two Gold Gloves.

He was a five time All Star and won two Silver Sluggers. He also had six top ten MVP finishes.

Andres Galarraga's career statistics

I just realized that this is the second Friday the 13th in a row...

Young Superstars II #7 - Julio Franco

The words "Young" and "Julio Franco" together in one place do not make sense.

Actually, Julio Franco is one of my all time favorite players. He just never seemed to stop, he never seemed old. When he played in Atlanta in 2007, he was in better shape than players half his age. I think he is a Hall of Famer, I could be wrong and he didn't reach a lot of those milestone numbers, but he was consistently good for nearly 25 years. I think the biggest plus for him is his .298 batting average over 25 seasons, and he was still hitting well until his last season (.222).

In 1999, at the age of 40, Julio batted .423 in the Mexican league. If that wasn't enough, a year later he hit .437. Then in 2001 he was back in the Major Leagues.

This is also another card that the ladies at Dinged Corners are sure to like.

The photo on the reverse looks to be taken at the same time as his base release.

Julio Franco's career statistics

Young Superstars II #3 - Dwight Gooden

I think Doc could be considered a legitimate superstar. He was pretty dominating through the late 80s, and a prooven winner in his career with the Mets.

Judging by the dirt on his pants, the photo on the front of the card was taken during the same game as the photo on the base release.

However, the photo on the reverse of the base card is interesting. It's a bit more common these days, but back in the 80s, you rarely saw a pitcher batting on a baseball card. While he's not exactly batting, Gooden is wearing a batting helmet. He is the owner of a Silver Slugger award prooving that he knew what to do with a bat, so showing him in a batting helmet isn't completely off the wall.


Doc's career quickly went down hill quickly, and the vast majority of his 194 career wins came before his 29th birthday.

Had it not been for troubles with drugs, Gooden could have had a Hall of Fame career. As it was though, he is still the owner of three World Series rings (all with the Yankees), four All Star selections, the NL Rookie of the Year and a Cy Young award. He threw a no-hitter against the Mariners in 1996.

Dwight Gooden's career statistics

Young Superstars II #1 - Don Mattingly

This is our first Yankee Young Superstar. With all their success starting in the mid-90s, a lot of people forget that the late 80s and into the early 90s were a pretty bleak time for the Yankees. Between 1987 and 1992, they finished no higher than fourth place.

There were bright spots in the lineup but an aging pitching staff limited their ability to win games.

One of the bright stars was of course Donnie Baseball. In 1988 Mattingly had been in the league for parts of six seasons and was regarded as one of the top players in the game.

It's interesting that we see Mattingly bunting here. Baseball Reference doesn't show any sac. bunts or attempts in 1987.

I'm not sure about the front (both at Yankee stadium), but the photo on the reverse was taken in the same place, more than likely at the same time.

Mattingly went on to have a great career, though the chances of him entering the Hall of Fame are slim despite his popularity. He was a six time All Star, nine time Gold Glover, three time Silver Slugger, 1985 American League MVP and in 1997 the Yankees bestowed the highest honor upon him by retiring his number 23.

Don Mattingly's career statistics

Young Superstars #37 - Ellis Burks

For some reason he looks a ittle bit like Darryl Strawberry in the photo on the front of the card.

He, along with guys like Larry Walker, Dante Bichette and Andres Galarraga, started getting national attention as members of the Colorado Rockies, with the elevated (nudge nudge wink wink) home run numbers at Coors Field. But despite that, I've always thought he was an underrated player.

He'll never be a Hall of Famer, but he put up some great numbers for a long time. He had an outstanding year in 2000 while playing for San Francisco. That year he batter .344/.419/.606 with 24 homers and 96 RBIs. His 2.8 plate apperances per game kept him from top ten finishes in a lot of the batting categories though.

These days he's working in the Cleveland Indians front office.

Ellis Burks' career statistics

Young Superstars #36 - Ruben Sierra

Here's another card that was most likely taken at the same game as the Polonia, Canseco and Incaviglia cards. This is a great looking photo of a player who put together a very solid twenty year Major League career.

He's no Hall of Famer, but he was a very good player for a lot of years, going to the All Star game four times, winning one Silver Slugger and he was named 2001's AL Comeback Player of the Year.

Ruben Sierra's career statistics

Young Superstars #30 - Jose Canseco

Here we go. This is the biggest card in the set, at least in 1988 terms.

Canseco's got the rubber bat thing going on that Andy has mentioned several times on the 88 Score Rookies & Traded blog. And the ball is coming into the picture right along the righthand border. I wonder where that ball landed?

He's also got the field cap under the batting helmet look here, which is always nice to see.

What can you say about Jose Canseco's career that hasn't already been said? For all the things that he did wrong, I don't think there's a whole lot of us who grew up in the 80s who can honestly say we didn't like him (late 80s Dodger fans are .

Like I said months back when we were looking at the base release, I don't have a lot of respect left for Canseco, but I still like him. He was fun to watch in his prime, and he was almost painful and embarassing to watch as his career declined.

There are some who would argue that Canseco never really reached the potential he was capable of. In light of the steroid issue I don't know how valid of an argument that is. I'm sure side effects of the steroids played some role in the injuries he suffered later in his career.

But I'm not here to criticize him for what he did to baseball and what steroids have done to baseball. I'd like to, and I have a lot to say about it. But in the end, in 1988 there was no one in baseball that was more popular, larger than life and more fun to watch than Jose Canseco. And for that reason I'll always like him, even if I do know the truth about him.

Jose Canseco's career statistics

Young Superstars #29 - Ken Caminiti

Caminiti is wearing a home jersey here, but there's what looks like a whole lot of white caps in the crowd behind him. They could be very blurry Astros logos though, but they almost look like the old Blue Jays caps that had a white panel on the front.

I'm curious where this picture was taken. I don't think it's in the Astrodome because you can see what looks like the reflection of the stadium, a light standard and the sky in his helmet.

Spring training maybe?

Who outside of Houston paid much attention to Ken Caminiti before 1994? Probably not a whole lot of people.

He started his career in Houston in 1987 but didn't really stick until 1989. His production at the plate was far from outstanding, hitting above .283 only twice in his first tour of duty with the Astros. His highest homerun mark was 18 in 1994. A far cry from the numbers he'd put up a few years later, but the Astrodome was never known as a hitter's park.

He saw a remarkable upswing in production and power, though, once he moved to San Diego. His RBI totals in San Diego were considerably higher than in Houston, a byproduct of hitting in a batting order that also contains Tony Gwynn.

Caminiti was a three time Gold Glover and All Star and won the NL MVP (100% of first place votes) after putting up great numbers in 1996.

After four years with the Padres, Caminiti went back to Houston before splitting the 2001 season with Texas and Atlanta.

In 2002, Sports Illustrated informed us that Caminiti admitted to using steroids during his 1996 MVP season. His admission was the first time an MLB player came forward and said "yes I did." He had also previously admitted to struggling with drugs and alcohol throughout his career.

Caminiti suffered from coronary artery disease and an enlarged heart, only made worse by his drug problems. He died on October 10, 2004 at the age of 41. The official cause of death was a heart attack, made worse by the high levels of cocaine and opiates found in his system.

This is the first player we've seen who has died since the printing of this set.

Ken Caminiti's career statistics

Young Superstars #28 - Robby Thompson

Robby Thompson was a two time All Star (though he didn't appear in either game), Gold Glove and Silver Slugger award winner. In 1993 he had a career year, hitting tenth in the league at .312, and earned his second trip to the All Star game, along with the afore mentioned Gold Glove and Silver Slugger.

He was hit in the face by a Trevor Hoffman pitch late in the 1993 season and was never really the same player. He came back and played sparingly through the end of the 1996 season.

Granted free agency during the 1996 off season, he signed with the Cleveland Indians but never played in a Major League game with his new team.

This is just the second card showing a player not batting or pitching. It's the first interesting one, the other was Terry Steinbach standing around in his catcher's gear.

Young Superstars #25 - Will Clark

Here's another Young Superstar that I think lived up to that name. He was consistently productive for fifteen seasons and finished his career with a .303 batting average. At first base he was solid and won the Gold Glove in 1991.

The front of the card shows the sweet swing that Will Clark was known for.

If you want to see more Will Clark cards that you can shake a stick at, check out Thrill22.com.

Will Clark's career statistics

Young Superstars #24 - Mike Greenwell

Mike Greenwell put up good numbers in all but a few injury shortened seasons with the Red Sox. His life time batting average is over .300, he was an All Star twice. So why is it that you just don't hear too much about Mike Greenwell?

He played on some bad Sox teams and some good Sox teams, though he didn't perform well in the post season (he batted just .146 in 17 post season games). In 1988 he finished second in MVP voting to baseball's first 40-40 man. But since Canseco's admission of cheating, Greenwell has publically stated that he feels the MVP should have been his. But that's a debate for another time.

So why don't we hear much about Mike Greenwell? Because during his most productive days in Boston, there was another guy in the Sox line up who was regularly hittnig .330 and above.

Wade Boggs aside, Mike Greenwell had an outstanding career, the entirety spent with the Boston Red Sox. You don't see that too often anymore.

I'm not sure about the head shot on the reverse, but the photo on the front of this card was not taken at the same game as the base release (both were taken at Fenway though).

Mike Greenwell's career statistics

Young Superstars #18 - Matt Williams

Matt Williams is out second real superstar thus far, the other being McGwire. He was a sure handed third baseman who won four gold gloves. And at the plate he was a feared power hitter. Though he never put up the home run totals that some sluggers of his generation did, he still managed to put 378 balls over the fence. In 1994 he was chasing the single season home run record when the strike cancelled the rest of the season.

Williams was involved in the deal that sent Jeff Kent to the Giants for the 1997 season.

Since his retirement, he's been linked to steriods, HGH and other drugs in several different reports.

Matt Williams' career statistics