double play stragglers

well, the day is finally here.  i have, after this post, showcased all of the double play cards that i own.  i think.  i haven't gone through all of my sets to make sure, but i am thinking i've scanned and shown them all.  so, it makes perfect sense to start this post off with a non-double play card.

that's a 1997 pacific prism rey ordonez card from the 'gems of the diamond' insert set, and it features tony gwynn on a forceout at second base.  who knows, it might be a double play if gwynn is sliding in to second from the third base side after ordonez snagged a line drive.  sadly, i believe that this is a forceout, and that it occurred during the mets/padres series played in monterrey, mexico during the 1996 season.  in fact, i believe that this is from the ken caminiti 'snickers' game - 8/18/96.  in the bottom of the seventh, after a tony gwynn single, steve finley grounded to second baseman edgardo alfonzo who threw to ordonez to get the out.

believe it or not, i was a fan of ordonez from 1996 through 2000 or so.  i didn't see him play often, but i admired his defensive abilities.  so much so that i had a pc going of his for most of his mets career.  once he made the move to the devil rays, however, i was no longer as enamored.  there were a couple of times playing in my adult baseball league when i successfully imitated his 'slide to the right, plant the foot, and throw to first' approach to a ground ball that might otherwise be backhanded.  and, when i turned double plays, i sometimes looked like ordonez as well - especially as he is depicted on his 1998 score rookies/traded card

here he is on his 1999 topps chrome card looking a little more controlled while turning two

and this 2000 mlb showdown card is pretty standard when it comes to dp turns.

hello, ryan klesko.  as the card notes, ordonez won three gold gloves prior to 2000.  he wound up missing most of the 2000 season after dodger fp santangelo slid head first into ordonez's forearm after being picked off of first base in a late-may game at dodger stadium.  ordonez had a broken arm that required a couple of surgeries and screws and metal plates and all that jazz.  he missed out on the mets' world series appearance, but did return to play pretty much full-time in 2001 and 2002.

this 2001 pacific card is my favorite of the ordonez double play turns.

the confidence and the flexibility to not bother to jump as preston wilson is bearing down on you is pretty awesome.

and now for some jeff kent double plays, including this one which is also from the 2001 pacific set

this was one of the cards that i mentioned i was on the lookout for when i did my 'turns of kent' post a couple of weeks ago.  it's a wonder what sportlots can do for you.

here's the other kent card i mentioned needing in that post.  it's a 2001 pacific private stock 'extreme action' card

with mike piazza sliding in.  the back makes mention of kent and his double play partner rich aurilia and their offensive prowess

here's another kent card that i didn't know i needed.  it's a 2001 donruss retro '99 insert

kent looks sort of reno 911-ish on that card.

here's a 1994 topps stadium club walt weiss card

probably one of his weakest double play cards

and here's a ho-hum 1995 topps stadium club mark grudzielanek card

with another appearance by ryan klesko

alex rodriguez looks to see if his turn was successful on his 1997 pinnacle card

as does marty barrett on his 1991 topps card

a quick look at baseball reference tells me that barrett was successful, as charlie o'brien there was out on the front end of a 6-4-3 double play off the bat of gary sheffield on april 14, 1990.  i'm not sure about a-rod, though.

finally, here is a 1993 upper deck sp mark mclemore card

the front is so nice, that they put a different double play on the back

even though the play on the front is from a spring training game, i really like the background.  i will guess that this mclemore will show up in the 'greatest double play card of all time' tournament.  which might just be a series of posts ranking the top 50 or so.  i haven't decided.

thanks to all for suffering through my seemingly endless flurry of double play card posts.  i am glad that these fantastic cards showcasing my favorite play got their due on the blog, though.