My Fave Five Andre Dawson Cards!

One thing about Andre was that he always knew how to take a good photo. His cards always had something special to them. You just got a sense of how hard he played the game by looking at them.

Below are the five cards out of my collection that are my favorite. They remind me of all of the reasons I've enjoyed watching The Hawk and collecting his cards over the years.


1. 1991 Donruss The Elite Series #04363/10,000


I remember when these cards were introduced. It was the first real numbered insert that I can recall. I bought so many 1991 Donruss wax packs trying to pull one of these bad boys. Never had any luck, I finally had to purchase this one on eBay a few years ago. I love the design and that from Andre's expression; you know he must have got a hold of one. It's like a piece of artwork!


2. 1977 Topps Rookie Card


Your favorite player's rookie card always holds a special place in your heart and I'm no different.


3. 2003 Donruss Signature Series Legends of the Summer #56/100


This card is just beautiful to me. I love the nostalgic design and what more could you ask for from that signature, I love that he scribed it "MVP '87."


4. 1996 Leaf Signature Series


I thought this was the greatest thing when Leaf Signature Series came out. Before this series, almost the only way to get an autographed card was at card shows. The idea of getting an autograph from opening a pack of cards was amazing to me. Of course these packs were expensive to a high school kid; I believe they were something ridiculous like $16 a pack!


5. 1990 Leaf


This has been a favorite of mine for a long time. I just love pictures of Andre batting. The design is so clean and simple that it looks perfect to get an autograph on.


Those are my fave five, what's yours?

Looking Forward to 2010

Now that the World Series is over -- I can't believe people were making a big deal out of the Yankees not winning one for the last nine years, one every nine years sounds good to a Cubs fan -- anyway I digress, the baseball world will now turn it's attention to free agent signings, the new Cubs owner and the Hall of Fame voting in January, the latter being what I am anticipating the most.

But first, I just want to mention that I don't know a whole lot about the Cubs new owner Tom Ricketts, but I do know that Andre Dawson was his favorite Cub. Mr. Ricketts on Andre in recent interviews, "When he was here, he set such a high standard for future players. He was just awesome, a great gentleman who played on some really average teams."* Not sure how he will be as an owner, but any fan of Andre's is alright by me.

So Hall of Fame voting is around three months away, it's time to buckle down and really start campaigning on Andre's behalf. I know I'm not the only one that feels that way. When I came across the online petition "Get Andre Dawson in the hall," and posted the link on my blog, it had 65 signatures. That petition has now grown into 105 signatures in just a few months!

What better way to demonstrate why Andre deserves to be in the Hall than to share some of the comments from those signatures.

"I grew up in Montreal and had the opportunity to watch him play many times. He was the best I ever saw..."

"No one gave up their body to baseball the way he did."

"He was a 5 tool player, how many players are in the 300/300 club? Only 5, and Dawson is one."

"Best right fielder of the eighties."

If you want to show your support and haven't signed the petition yet, it's under my Recommended Websites.


*www.dailyherald.com and www.nbcchicago.com