Out of the three Team USA players I found in this pack, Darren Dreifort was the most successful.

“At Wichita State in 1991 Darren was accorded Freshman All-American Honorable Mention by Collegiate Baseball.  He compiled a 2.53 ERA in 1991 NCAA Tournament play following the campaign.  Darren allowed only 6 hits and 3 runs in 10.2 Innings in helping Wichita State to a second place finish in the College World Series at Omaha, Nebraska.”

In a career marred by injuries, Dreifort pitched for the Los Angeles Dodgers 1994-2004.

1991 Topps Traded:

1. #124T Jeff Ware (Team USA) (Rookie)
2. #41T Tony Fernandez
3. #34T Darren Dreifort (Team USA) (Rookie)
4. #31T Rich DeLucia (Rookie)
5. #13T Sid Bream
6. #52T Mike Hargrove (Manager)
7. #80T Dan Melendez (Team USA) (Rookie)

“Jose was signed as a Free Agent with the Dodgers, July 24, 1988 by Scouts Ralph Avila & Elvio Jimenez.”

Jose Offerman was banned from baseball in the Dominican Republic last year after he punched an umpire in the face while he was managing a Winter League game.

1991 Topps:

1. #283 Marquis Grissom
2. #761 Larry Andersen
3. #281 Larry Sheets
4. #396 Bobby Thigpen (All-Star)
5. #239 Darren Lewis (Rookie)
6. #723 Candy Maldonado
7. #501 Mike Bielecki
8. #586 Fred Lynn
9. #745 Doug Jones
10. #587 Jose Offerman (Future Star) (Rookie)
11. #785 Scott Fletcher
12. #705 Robby Thompson
13. #217 Chris Bosio
14. #421 Alex Cole (Rookie)
15. #639 Frank Robinson (Manager)

1991 Topps Traded:

1. #99T Jeff Robinson
2. #28T Glenn Davis
3. #131T Ivan Zweig (Team USA) (Rookie)
4. #98T Chris Roberts (Team USA) (Rookie)
5. #118T Garry Templeton
6. #22T Jack Clark
7. #112T Luis Sojo

“Chris was Metro Conference Player of the Year and Atlantic Regional MVP at Florida State in 1991.  His 2-year pitching statistics include 15-4 record and 3.91 ERA with 118 Strikeouts in 29 Games.  Chris batted .320 with 3 HR and 9 RBI at 1990 NCAA South II Regional Tournament.”

Neither of the Team USA players in this pack ever made it to the Major Leagues.

Ivan Zweig only played two seasons of independent pro baseball.

Chris Roberts was the more successful of the two, playing 8 seasons as a pitcher, mostly at the AA and AAA levels.  He retired from professional baseball in 2001.

1991 Topps:

1. #261 Bud Harrelson (Manager)
2. #386 Cecil Fielder (All-Star)
3. #623 Jeff Blauser
4. #42 Chris Hoiles
5. #401 Barry Bonds (All-Star)
6. #426 Joe Grahe (Rookie)
7. #364 Dan Pasqua
8. #60 Frank Viola
9. #789 Tom Lasorda (Manager)
10. #121 Eric King
11. #276 Bill Swift
12. #183 Clay Parker
13. #725 Ron Gant
14. #105 Kevin McReynolds
15. #552 Jeff Hamilton

Getting Tommy Lasorda in two consecutive random packs from different years must be a sign.  Therefore today’s feature card is Tom Lasorda lookin’ slim and fast with a jacket slung coolly over his shoulder.

Today, even at the age of 82, Lasorda travels the country promoting his beloved Dodgers.

1991 Topps:

1. #338 Luis Rivera
2. #22 Storm Davis
3. #507 Steve Jeltz
4. #457 Todd Hundley (Rookie)
5. #669 Lou Piniella (Manager)
6. #560 Greg Smith
7. #777 John Candelaria
8. #228 Rex Hudler
9. #360 Rock Raines
10. #321 Bob Rodgers (Manager)
11. #114 Lance Dickson (Future Star) (Rookie)
12. #336 Matt Nokes
13. #499 Melido Perez
14. #469 Chet Lemon
15. #30 Gregg Jefferies

“Rock was selected as MVP of the 1987 All-Star Game.”

The 1987 All-Star Game was Raines’ 7th in a row, but also his final one.  During his 12-year career with the Montreal Expos, he batted .301 and averaged 53 stolen bases per season.  However, he fell from favor after he was traded to the Chicago White Sox after the 1990 season.  Since he left the Expos, he batted .282 and averaged only 16 stolen bases per season.

1991 Topps Traded:

1. #105T Bob Scanlan (Rookie)
2. #21T Rick Cerone
3. #35T Kirk Dressendorfer (Rookie)
4. #51T Jeffrey Hammonds (Team USA) (Rookie)
5. #89T Dave Parker
6. #36T Jim Essian (Manager)
7. #106T Pete Schourek (Rookie)

This November we will hear the final verdict from the Baseball Writers Association of America on whether or not Dave Parker should be in the Hall of Fame.  The 7-time All-Star, 3-time Gold Glove winner, and 1-time MVP is in his final year of eligibility and last year he only received 15.2% of the vote.

1991 Topps:

1. #287 Mark Grant
2. #714 Marvell Wynne
3. #646 Andujar Cedeno (Rookie)
4. #576 Jeff Kaiser
5. #337 Keith Comstock
6. #374 Larry Casian (Rookie)
7. #6 Nolan Ryan (Record Breaker)
8. #651 Alan Mills (Rookie)
9. #96 Trevor Wilson
10. #97 Brady Anderson
11. #672 Shane Mack
12. #535 Ruben Sierra
13. #472 Kirt Manwaring
14. #522 Stan Belinda
15. #168 John Olerud

“When Ruben exceeded 100 Runs and 100 RBI in 1989, he became the first Texas Ranger to achieve feat.”

Ruben Sierra was one of my favorite players when I was growing up in the late 80′s.  I wasn’t aware that he played all the way until 2007 when he was over 40 years old.

My collection just reached 15,000 cards!  Here’s some new 1991 Topps Traded for the collection:

1. #74T Candy Maldonado
2. #117T Wade Taylor (Rookie)
3. #113T Kennie Steenstra (Team USA) (Rookie)
4. #20T Joe Carter
5. #122T David Tuttle (Team USA) (Rookie)
6. #88T Dean Palmer
7. #105T Bob Scanlan (Rookie)

Of the 4 rookies in this pack, Bob Scanlan was the only one who actually “made it” in the Major Leagues.  Between 1991 and 2001, he pitched as a starter, middle reliever, and a closer for 6 different MLB teams.  He is currently a broadcaster for the San Diego Padres flag station and has his own website at BobScanlan.com.