#51 Jim Russell

#51 Jim Russell
Progress: 1st of this card
194 of 407  47.6% complete
How acquired: $6.00 on ebay
Condition: Good
This card could be the only one in my collection to feature two defunct teams.  He's wearing a Boston Braves hat, while the logo on the card reflects his trade to the Brooklyn Dodgers.  The novelty of it probably impresses me far too much, but I'm not ashamed to admit it.  

The 16 games this card shows Russell to have played in '51 were the last 16 of his career.   That's another trivial bit that I probably get too much of a kick out of.  Those 16 games allowed Jim to have a Topps card made of him.  For my entire childhood, I considered having a Topps card as about as high an honor a person could receive in life.  I'm guessing this is Russell's only card, but I like to think somewhere he has kids or grand kids who take a huge sigh of relief at the fact that he had one.  Because without the Topps card to prove it, being in the majors without one is much like the proverbial tree falling in the forest.

Stats: 10 seasons, 959 hits, 67 home runs, .267 avg.

Best Hall of Fame Showing: N/A