1988 Topps

“There’s never been a player who has gone to Italy and come back to make it in the majors. I’d like to be the first.” Did he do it? 

This catcher, known best for his record-breaking hitting streak, hustled to make it 20 years in the majors. Plus, Al Pacino as an English instructor?   

Player's family recommendation episode! Plus, find out which town in New England you're pronouncing incorrectly (SPOILER ALERT: It's all of them.) 

1 Cy Young, 0 Grammys. But Black Jack showed everyone on Chicago's south side that grunge music and baseball do mix. 

It's like that one Gwyneth Paltrow movie, but instead of Gwyneth on a train platform, it's the Cubs GM on Draft Day 1988. 

Thank you to guest Beau from the One Million Cubs Project! Send him your Cubs cards! 

In this episode of the 1988 Topps Literary Magazine, our hosts encounter a submarine-throwing poet who had control of every pitch—and every word.

Historian Clayton Trutor introduces us to “the least imposing future Hall of Famer in the history of baseball cards.”

Is there a German word for an athlete who has won a championship, but is better known for a moment of epic failure? Find out! 

What to buy for the pitcher in your life who already has it all, including a World Series ring? A king's crown? Scuba gear? Or a cherry red 1988 Pontiac Firebird?

He is a winner, watch him glimmer
Like the sunset from a ship's mast!
He's really red, but he's not dead
Ron Robinson's on the podcast! The podcast!

So many questions: 1) Can a 26-year-old rookie really be a "Future Star?" 2) Did that homer really go 582 feet? 3) Where is Joey's chair? Your intrepid hosts travel the globe to find answers, as well as some thirst-quenching Molson beer. 

Andy from High Heat Stats returns to help the 1988 Topps Podcast take a bite out of crime. 

When this bomber steps to the plate, rooftops, 2x4s, steel beams, and nacho plates all cower in fear. White Sox fans, this is one you've been waiting for. 

Season 2! 

Matt and David learn that when, at age 8, you meet your favorite player at a card show, you feel like a kid in a candy store. Joined by guest Mark Simon (Sports Info Solutions and formerly of ESPN Baseball Tonight!)

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Join guest Andrew from @PaintedCap on a tour of Taiwan, an epic painted cap card, and the awkwardly-named Chinese Professional Baseball League. Will Ultraman join the Uni-Lions cheerleaders in a victory dance? Find out!  

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In 1991, The Simpsons made this All-Star 2B an offer he couldn't refuse. But you wouldn't know anything about that, would you, Saxy boy? Also, Barney was right: Britain's greatest Prime Minister was Lord Palmerston. 

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This week's episode of 1988 Topps Ghost Hunters has it all: an All-Star Rookie pitcher, a pioneering woman who founded Bradley University, a scary story about an insane asylum, and an Italian restaurant chain. Spooky! 

In the 1990s, you could count on two things with this player: he'd get a hit during the day game, and he'd be a hit during the night game. Plus, a visit with lifelong Cubs fan and Matt's Father-in-Law, Bill!

A lanky, awkward-looking submarine-thrower from Ohio ends up as the star reliever for a famous Pittsburgh Family. Trust us, you're gonna lose control when the Rubberband Man starts to jam. 

Yankee fans remember the trade, Seinfeld fans remember the reference, but when comes to this guy's power hitting abilities and moustache—they're real, and they're spectacular. 

While it's true that Jim Walewander would be viewed as "norm-core" by today's alternative standards, the 1998 Topps Podcast does feel that unironically listening to Dead Milkmen in 2021 classifies one as "weird."

The most entertaining Expo ever lit a fire that burned bright, but was snuffed out far too soon.

A World Series hero gets dissed, and The Cradle of Quarterbacks is avenged.

The Topps standardized test makers unleash a logic puzzle for the ages. Luckily, Andy from High Heat Stats joins the show to save the day!

After a case of mistaken identity, we jerry-rigged this Perry show as a herald of maximum Gerald.  

We took Satan to court, and the verdict rang out: Theft...of 42 bases!

If you believe the stats, this Big Daddy belongs in the Hall. And no, we don't mean Blanche Deveraux's father. 

Special Guest: Adam Darowski of Hall of Stats! 

The star of the 1984 Olympic team finds Major League left-handers—and a butter knife—too much to handle. 

What happens when you drive across the country to meet your childhood hero, and it turns out he's—gasp—a human being?!

With special guest, Dr. Brad Balukjian, author of The Wax Pack: On the Open Road in Search of Baseball's Afterlife. 

THIS BOOK IS 1988 TOPPS PODCAST CANON. BUY IT NOW.

A contemporary of Doc Gooden doesn't match Gooden's success—or fall from grace. And that's...maybe ok? 

Come on, Papa! Make yourself pretty and put on your hat. We'll eat fries and chocolate and listen to podcasts!

Find the 1988 Topps Spotify playlist here!

A second baseman has a good run in the majors and in Japan, but things backfire in the Mets front office when he tries out some unusual motivational techniques. 

At the 1988 Topps Podcast, it's as easy as ABC: Always. Be. Collecting.

While this Hall of Famer's pitches lacked heat, he compensated for it with his command and cool curls. 

Plus, a tribute to Hank Aaron, the greatest home run hitter of all time.  

A hard-throwing pitcher finds success by playing chin music, but ultimately finds redemption through sobriety. And, what happens when the podcast you're listening to is also the podcast to be named later? Bar fights and recursion abound. NOW WITH TIGERS.

Robbed of AL Rookie of the Year honors, this versatile infielder was also robbed of $5 million by poor negotiating. 

Ain't no sense in goin' home!  1988 Topps got your girl and gone.

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Take everything you thought you knew about knuckleballers and throw it right out the window. 

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A journeyman in the minors finally makes it to The Show, then ends up in an exclusive society: The Jamie Quirk Club.

Thanks for listening in 2020! We put a pretty big dent in the set of 792 cards. Requests and feedback welcomed on Twitter @Topps1988 or our Facebook Page, just search 1988 Topps. 

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One of the best pitchers of his generation battles fear, the bottle, and family tragedy on his way to the Hall of Fame. Cheese for the kitchen and a yakker for the kudo.  

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Pop Quiz: 

1) Without looking it up, pronounce "IORG"

2) Name your Top 5 Garths.

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How a poor kid from the Dominican Republic kept a knee on the ground and kept reaching for the stars. 

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What do you get when you cross a flameout shortstop prospect with 1850's American Literature? Tune in and find out on the 1988 Topps Podcast! 

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A beloved Phillies shortstop who couldn't hit, but he sure did shine. 

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