A Bunch of Wongs and More

Yes, it's another random pickup post, with a number of Connor Wong cards.  Not much else to say about this.  Let's get going:

2022 Panini Capstone Artist Proof.  I had been looking for this one for awhile actually.  This is one of my favorite photos on a Panini card of Wong because it does not matter that Panini doesn't have an MLB license.  It is serial-numbered to 35.

1.  Reggie Smith.  It's always nice to add some vintage to the collection, even better when it is a guy like Reggie Smith.  I still believe it is time to re-evaluate Smith for the Hall of Fame.  His 64.5 WAR and 137 OPS+ show that he is one of the most underrated players in Red Sox history.  

2.  Trevor Story.  It finally looks like Story might start to make an impact.  He just had a three-hit game today and homered yesterday.  

3.  Nomar Garciaparra.  Story is not in any danger of making the impact Nomar Garciaparra did as a Red Sox shortstop.  Nomar was an amazing hitter for a shortstop and I would like to see his Hall of Fame case re-examined as well.

4.  Chris Sale.  Sale is finally healthy this season and looks like he might finally win that Cy Young Award that has eluded him to this point in his career, particularly in 2017.  Unfortunately, it is happening in Atlanta instead of Boston.

5.  Pedro Martinez.  Martinez was denied a few awards in his career himself.  He should have won the MVP in 1999 and the Cy Young Award in 2002 and possibly 2003.

6.  Carl Yastrzemski.  1967 was Yaz's best season, but what was his second-best?  It looks like 1970 when he hit .329/.452/.592 with 40 home runs and 102 RBIs.  He led the league in OBP, SLG, OPS, total bases and runs.  He played more games as a first-baseman that season.

7.  Xander Bogaerts.  Bogaerts is having a rough second season in San Diego.  I imagine that contract is going to look brutal in a few more seasons.

8.  Bobby Doerr.  Doerr had one of his best seasons in 1950, the year before back trouble forced him to retire early.  It's a shame because if he had played another five seasons or so, his numbers would have been terrific.  He still made it to the Hall of Fame, but he could have gotten in a lot sooner.

9.  Enrique Hernandez.  One player who there is no chance of a Hall of Fame conversation for is Hernandez.  He was a decent player some years, and his 2021 postseason will be what I remember him for.

10.  J.D. Martinez.  Martinez has an outside shot at 400 home runs.  If he makes that, he has a stronger case for Hall of Fame consideration, but being a DH for most of his career and being a late-bloomer hurt his chances.  Ultimately, I don't think he gets in.

11.  Rafael Devers.  Devers already has 200 career home runs and is just 27.  We are witnessing a special player here.

12.  Wade Boggs.  Of course Boggs is still the all-time best third-baseman in franchise history.  Among his accomplishments are five batting titles and seven straight 200-hit seasons.

13.  Xander Bogaerts.

14.  Chris Sale.

15.  Jackie Bradley Jr.  JBJ's best season ended up being 2016 when he hit .267/.349/.486 with 26 home runs, 87 RBIs and nine stolen bases.  He looked like a future star at that point, but never really came close to that again.

16.  Rick Ferrell.  There are some who speculate that voters got the wrong Ferrell when they voted Rick in.  His brother Wes was a terrific pitcher and should be in the Hall of Fame himself.  

17.  Trevor Story.

2022 Panini Diamond Kings DK Signatures Purple.  This is the parallel serial-numbered to 10.  I always like the Diamond Kings sets.

2024 Topps Silver Crackle Foil.  Non-serial-numbered parallel.

2022 Panini Mosaic Green Swirl.  This is serial-numbered to 12.  I paid way more than I should have on this.  For some reason my mind didn't register it was out of 12.  I thought it was a lot rarer.  Still, I had to add it.

2024 Topps Yellow Crackle Foil.  Serial-numbered to 50.  I am a little annoyed that Topps Series 1 is the only set Wong has appeared in so far this year.

2022 Panini Mosaic Gold.  I have been adding a lot of parallels from this set lately.  This one is serial-numbered to 10.

1.  Dustin Richardson.  Richardson was a fifth-round pick by Boston in 2006 and made it to the Majors for three games in 2009.  He made it into 26 games in 2010 with a 4.15 ERA in 13 innings, striking out 12, but walking 14.  He was traded in the offseason to the Marlins for Andrew Miller and never played in the Majors again.  Miller, of course, took a few years to become established but became one of the best relievers in the game in 2013 and continued for several years.

2.  Enmanuel Valdez.  I suspect Valdez is running out of time.  I thought initially he would be the better of the prospects Boston got from the Astros in the Christian Vazquez trade.  Wilyer Abreu has proven me wrong.

2023 Topps Chrome Update Aqua/Blue Lava Lamp.  Closing things out for today is this parallel numbered to 175 that took me a weirdly long time to pick up.  Probably because it is so similar to the Blue/Green Lava Lamp parallel.