50 - Jason Bere

Front photo: Pretty generic pitching photo.

Back photo: Ditto.

Better photo?: If I had to pick between these two rather blah options, I'd select the back just for the visible patch.

Ties to my personal collections: Nothing.

Paragraphs in wikipedia entry: 7

Wiki-facts: "Bere and his high school sweetheart, Dinelle (née Erwin), were married in November 1994"

Google it: He's now the bullpen coach in Cleveland, the team he played his last games for.

How was his strike-shortened 1994? Really good. Was an all-star, finishing with a 12-2 record and a 3.81 ERA. Then the injuries hit, and for the next 3 years with the White Sox, he had only 12 more wins.

Birthday boy: May 26, 1971. I can find a tie to my personal collections here, as he shares the day with Kitchener Rangers alum Steven Rice. Also born that date was Matt Stone of South Park fame.

Up Next: #51 - Sean Berry

50 - Ken Griffey Jr. (Promotional Card)

I figured that since zistle lists this as part of the main set, I might as well include it in this.

50 (Promotional Card) - Ken Griffey Jr.

Front photo: Close-up.

Back photo: Jay Buhner Fan Club!

Better photo?: Is it any competition? The back photo wins easily. But, that front photo might be seen again. Probably in 2019 at this rate. I'd love a reason as to why the back card photo was never seen in other portions of the set.

Ties to my personal collections: Nothing direct.

Paragraphs in wikipedia entry: 58

Wiki-facts: "Griffey was named an American Public Diplomacy Envoy by then Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on November 18, 2008."

Google it: Attempted suicide in 1988. Wow.

How was his strike-shortened 1994? Batted .323, with his 40 HR leading the AL.

Birthday boy: November 21, 1969. No other MLBers were born that date. In fact, nobody at any of the reference sites was born that day. Even on

wikipedia's November 21st entry, nobody else is listed that date. Strangely appropriate for a player of Griffey's abilities.

Up Next: #50 - Jason Bere

49 - Rod Beck

Front photo: Pitching photo

Back photo: The same.

Better photo?: The back of the card is more mullet-tastic than the front, and that's enough for me.

Parallel: Silver signature. There seem to be way more first half loops that you expect in a name like Rod Beck

Ties to my personal collections: See Google it.

Paragraphs in wikipedia entry: 12

Wiki-facts: Was an all-star this season. Googling was far more interesting.

Google it: Helped start a (now annual) AIDS related event, "Until There's a Cure Day" with the Giants. A member of my 2/14 collection, Candice Wiggins, has appeared in ads for this organization. Her father, former MLBer Alan, died of AIDS.

How was his strike-shortened 1994? Really good, with 28 saves, and no blown saves. ERA was 2.77.

Rest in Peace: Passed away on June 23, 2007.

Birthday boy: I won't be doing this portion of the write-up for those that have passed on at the time I write their card up.

Up Next: #50 - Ken Griffey Jr Promotional Card

48 - Kim Batiste

48 - Kim Batiste

Front photo: Pop-up on the infield!

Back photo: Ground ball, complete with a cameo from an anonymous base runner.

Better photo?: The front, for both uniqueness of the shot and the Mets logo in the background.

Ties to my personal collections: Nothing direct.

Paragraphs in wikipedia entry: 3

Wiki-facts: "Batiste went on to play in the independent Atlantic League, batting .233 in 12 games in 2003 for the Atlantic City Surf in his final professional season."

Google it: On the first page, there is a video of him going from goat to hero https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kK513xQFLFo on the first page of the results, as he went from a throwing error to a walk-off winning hit.

How was his strike-shortened 1994? Went .234 with 1 HR and 13 and RBI over 64 games.

Birthday boy: March 15, 1968. Nobody listed at the *-reference.com was born that date, but he does share it with TV host and singer Mark McGrath.

Up Next: #49 - Rod Beck

47 - Bret Barberie

47 - Bret Barberie

Front photo: A nice view of the plate. With all the close crops nowadays with cards, we get a rare appearance of the catcher. And it is PC guy Mike Piazza there.

Back photo: A close up, but one with a really nice view of the Marlins first season patch.

Better photo?: Really close, but I vote for the patch photo on the back.

Ties to my personal collections: Former Montreal Expo.

Paragraphs in wikipedia entry: 7.

Wiki-facts:  Bret is the former husband of Jillian Barberie (now known as Jillian Reynolds). Jillian has 9 more paragraphs in her wiki article.

Google it: First video is not of him playing baseball, but from some sort of incident involving a fantasy draft.

How was his strike-shortened 1994? Batted .301 with 5 HR and 31 RBI.

Birthday boy: August 16, 1967. Former football defenders Stacey Hairston and Matt Vanderbeek were born that date. Outside the *-reference world, British TV presenter Ulrika Jonsson was also born on that date.

Up Next: #48 - Kim Batiste

46 - Willie Banks

46 - Willie Banks

Front photo: Pitching photo.

Back photo: Pitching photo.

Better photo?: The partially open jersey makes me think that maybe he is endorsing a fresco company on it. But, it proably just says "Minnesota Twins".

Ties to my personal collections: Shares an "Idols" card from 1992 Pinnacle with Dwight Gooden.

Paragraphs in wikipedia entry: 3

Wiki-facts: Nothing of note beyond baseball information.

Google it: 3 Willie Banks are on the first page. He's third behind a track and field athlete and a gospel musician.

How was his strike-shortened 1994? He went 8-12 with a 5.40 ERA with the Chicago Cubs.

Birthday boy: February 27, 1969. Nobody at any of the *-reference has that birthdate. The only people listed at wikipedia's Feb 27 page are author Stuart MacBride and Welsh rugby player Gareth Llewellyn.

Up Next: #47 - Bret Barberie

45 - Bob Ayrault

#45 - Bob Ayrault

Front photo: A pitching photo.

Back photo: The same, although more grimace-y.

Better photo?: The front has a better view of the sleeve patch, so that's enough to break a bland tie.

Ties to my personal collections: None.

Paragraphs in wikipedia entry: 2

Wiki-facts: He is an alumni of UNLV.

Google it: The first link is his baseball-reference page, and it uses a cropped image of the front of this card on the page.

How was his strike-shortened 1994? Spent it in the minors with the Marlins' AAA affiliate. He never played another major league game, and this 1994 issue was his last MLB card from his career.

Birthday boy: April 27, 1966: The only other person at *-reference born that date was former NFLer Mark Stock. He spent 3 seasons in the NFL, interestingly enough, not consecutive ones. He saw action in 1989, 1993 and 1996. He also saw action with the San Antonio Texans during the CFL US expansion. Outside the sports world, director (and frequent JJ Abrams co-worker) Matt Reeves was also born that date.

Up Next: #46 - Willie Banks.