Junk Wax on the Hall of Fame Ballot
Get 'em while they're cold!
We’ll find out on Tuesday which, if any, players on this year’s Cooperstown ballot the writers elected to the Hall of Fame
For you and me and Wax Pack Gods proper and all the other dinosaurs (sorry if that’s not you) from our era, this season of life gives us one among a fast-dwindling set of opportunities to witness something we hold dear rise to relevance once again …
JUNK WAX!
Yeah, it’s a term that rankles some, but you know exactly what I mean when I say (type) it, right?
Sure you do. It’s an era. A way of life. And, nearly, a relic of a bygone era.
But not yet.
Because here and now, and on this year’s BBWAA ballot, there are still some guys who matter and who appeared on at least a few cards that might rightly be labeled Junk Wax.
So let’s do what we do — here are five Junk Wax cards featuring players who at least could be Hall of Famers in a couple days.
1989 Score Gary Sheffield (#625)
Sheffield was an uber prospect who lit up the hobby with rookie cards across all the major sets in 1989. The Topps and Fleer entries were and are especially iconic, and they were every bit as much Junk Wax-y as this one, really.
But Score fell out of relevance real fast once Upper Deck debuted, before they even had a chance to pay the bill for the honeymoon suite. By 1989, those plastic baggies already felt more like trash bags than actual packs.
Sheffield has struggled on the ballot and probably will again this time around, but he’s the best remaining shot for “our” generation.
1990 Bowman Omar Vizquel (#474)
There was a lot of excitement around 1989 Bowman until we found out a) they were oversize, b) the backs were weird, and c) they were not very limited.
The 1990 set fixed the size issue, kept the weird backs, and threw a double bird to all the collectors clamoring for published — and limited — production numbers.
Fitting that Vizquel shows up here on a ‘90 Bowman, then, considering his Cooperstown case is built on longevity and accumulations.
None of that will outweigh his recent bad-guy news bytes with the voters.
1992 Leaf Jeff Kent (#108)
Leaf followed the Score Plan to Quick Oblivion.
I mean, the 1990 Leaf set blew up the hobby and made Topps, Fleer, and Donruss look like, well, junk.
The 1991 set? That one brought in the dark gray borders and the hobby-choking production numbers.
By 1992, Leaf looked like every other card out there, and it could stand toe-to-toe with any set when it came to gluttony.
As for Kent, he carries some all-time-great-second-baseman offensive numbers into battle, with a journeyman glove for a sidearm.
1992 Upper Deck Manny Ramirez (#63)
Upper Deck pretended they weren’t Junk Wax, but they were.
By 1991, for sure. Likely in 1990. Maybe even in *gasp* 1989.
There are plenty of all Upper Deck cards to go around, no matter how great they look or how much those cherry old packs cost when they were cherry new packs.
And Manny …
One of the greatest hitters we’ll see in our lifetimes, but also a major league bonehead. As unthinkable as it would have been 15 years ago, Manny won’t get into Coooperstown.
1993 Topps Traded Todd Helton (#19T)
That thing I said about Sheff being our best chance? Yeah, it’s probably actually Helton.
But he’s just not as exciting and doesn’t feel as, well, vintage as Sheffield.
And including Helton here is a bit of a hedge, too, since you couldn’t buy 1993 Topps Traded in packs and since Helton was an Olympian in this set.
Otherwise, though, it has everything — mass produced, lost in the shuffle, not worth all that much.
Maybe The Toddfather and the voters can help with that last bit, even if just a bit.
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How about you?
What Junk Wax players — and cards, natch — on the 2023 Hall of Fame ballot are your favorites?
I’d love to hear your picks!
Until next time, better get that Philco tuned up. There’s a Cooperstown announcement in the offing, and you won’t want to miss a word.
Especially if the ballot turns out to me Junk-Wax-Flavored.
Thanks for reading.
—Adam