Oliver Chases 1996 Topps Laser!
This post is less about baseball cards and more to honor of my late cat Oliver, who was recently put down after his health problems worsened. For close to a decade, he was my near constant companion in Honkassland (Englewood, CO chapter), always placing himself in the middle of card sorting projects, writing projects, household chores or simply fighting me for equal couch time.
In addition to yelling at baseball cards, one of his favorite things back in his active and healthy days was to chase the laser pointer's red dot around the apartment. Pre-dating arthritic hips, kidney failure and melanoma, Oliver could run at top speed, then stop and change direction on a dime just to follow that elusive red dot.
Being a Manx breed, Oliver didn't have a normal cats tail. Instead, he had just a small nub at the base of his spine. As he was all jazzed up by chasing the laser, his nub would wiggle comically, like a small bunny rabbit, as he hopped around the apartment.
I adopted Oliver in April 2009, from the Englewood PetCoSmart. They were unable to determine his age, telling me that he was anywhere from 9 to 11 years old when I brought him home. He'd been staying at PetCoSmart for over six months, being nursed back to health after coming in sick. Even after releasing him to me, they warned that his various conditions (including an infected tooth) meant that he may not be around long. He could live five months, or even five more years.
But this little guy did such a sell job on me, that I had to take him home. When I first held him, he melted into my arms and purred loudly.
PetCoSmart was sad to see him go. His incredibly mellow disposition made him the perfect office cat. He would spend most of his days in the shop hanging out on the store manager's desk, instead of in a cage with the other kitties.
In 1996, Topps debut a set of laser cut baseball (and football, but who cares about those) cards, in effort to make a full 120 card set (over two series) of all "insert" cards.
At one time, I'd considered pursuing the entire Topps Laser set. Personally chasing them via rather expensive four card packs at Shinders. They look really nice, and are a fun set to look at in pages, but at last count, I was still over half the 120 card set short. So I kept the most album-worthy for my collection and recently sold/traded the rest.
I'm going to whip through these... This set comprises all the major stars (and a few rookies) of 1996, and represents that crew well... So you know all of these guys, so unless a story pops up about a certain card, I'm burning through this abbreviated Whatever quickly...
In honor of Oliver's favorite kitty game, here are Top 67 Topps Laser cards that were kept for my permanent collection!
Giant red advertising block makes another appearance. Note the run of Braves and Indians represents how I had to respect the players one these teams, while simultaneously disliking each player. In the Braves and Indians defense, can you imagine how much I disliked the 1995 World Series?
After an extended run of players/teams that I do not like, I have to wonder how Oliver feels about these guys...
Just as he would do at PetCoSmart, Oliver would stick close by at my desk. Including himself in my writing assignments, either at the computer or notebook. His thing was to always stay close to his human. Loyalty being his most dominant trait.
I recently acquired a 2003 Topps Kenny Rogers, picturing him with the Minnesota Twins. Which is slightly more strange than seeing him on a Yankees card...
Bonus catcher points! Though a laser cut out of a catcher in full equipment would have been so much cooler!
My old job in Denver printed a catalog of products dedicated to the programing precision laser cutters. The intricate designs these lasers would burn out of metal, made me appreciate the delicate efforts put into making this set. The overhead image of a batter, home plate and the fiery baseball looked very cool, and the intricate design had to be difficult to pull of some 22 years ago...
The Englewood, CO chapter of Honkassland featured a skylight, allowing the sun to travel across the room throughout the day. Oliver would follow the sun, and re-adjust his sleeping positions as soon as the sun had moved away from him.
In order to get my attention, Oliver would place himself between my face and the computer screen. Lightly tapping my arm with his paw, letting me know he would like another tub of Salmon, Seafood, Chicken Liver or WTF.
Another 1996 top prospect. I always seemed to pull and abundance of Green's cards. If I had found him to be even slightly interesting as a player, I would have started a collection. Instead, he was just a guy whose cards always ended up in my packs...
Back in 2010-2011, I was going through a rough patch in my personal life with ill health and a poisonous relationship. I spent a great deal of time sitting and writing about the state of various issues bogging me down. Often with Oliver sitting with me on the lap desk, resting on my notebook, staying as close by as he could during some of my darkest times.
You saw an increase of teal in premium card sets as the Marlins were ramping up for their (successful) financial World Series push of 1997.
A few years ago, I embarked on a massive sorting project where I dumped close to another 50,000 cards I didn't need. As I moved Monster Boxes around the apartment, I always had to leave room for Oliver to sit next to me. That way he had a prime seat for the MLB Network airing on the TV, while still in reach of my leg so he could tap me when he wanted head scratches or dinner...
After many months, I "finished" the sorting project. Wanting to photograph my completion, Oliver came running in and photobombed each shot...
With the set comprising (roughly) the top 120 players in baseball for 1996, the addition of Hollins remains a head scratcher. Cool in that it's one of few Hollins' Twins cards...
The firey baseball works well with Nomo here. was a big fan during his first few seasons, before he became Hideo Nomad...
When Laura moved in with me in 2012, she brought a thick warm grey blanket that Oliver declared his own. We had to move it from the bed to the couch as he insisted that only he gets to sleep on it...
Since I started writing Four Baggers, Knoblauch has been a planned extended subject. A key player in both my following of baseball and my personal collection. I've actually written some parts of it as well!
It just struck me, out of all the famed Mets pitchers of the late 1980's teams, how many had as successful a career as Aguilera? Besides Dwight Gooden -and even then, arguably...
Given his advancing age by the time we needed to move from Colorado to Minnesota, we were worried his declining health would be a problem in transit...
But Oliver had no issues with the near 1000 mile drive. Spending a good portion of the trek sitting on my lap, a small furry co-pilot to my navigation...
So how dare you Larry, for appearing on a card awesomer than Alou's... Though in this case, it's the golden rainbow stadium facade that takes the crown.
We brought Oliver in to the vet for the final time on August 22, 2018. She said that he could have easily been 22 years old at that point, and his body was ravaged by cancer and kidney failure.
It's really hard to let go of something that was this big a part of your life, and an even bigger part of your family, but you have to for his sake. His run was much longer than predicted nearly a decade ago when I adopted him, and will forever be grateful we crossed paths and could have each other in our lives.
Oliver went peacefully and quickly, purring strongly through his last seconds of life, as Laura and I rubbed his ears and neck, like he loved so much...
In addition to yelling at baseball cards, one of his favorite things back in his active and healthy days was to chase the laser pointer's red dot around the apartment. Pre-dating arthritic hips, kidney failure and melanoma, Oliver could run at top speed, then stop and change direction on a dime just to follow that elusive red dot.
Being a Manx breed, Oliver didn't have a normal cats tail. Instead, he had just a small nub at the base of his spine. As he was all jazzed up by chasing the laser, his nub would wiggle comically, like a small bunny rabbit, as he hopped around the apartment.
I adopted Oliver in April 2009, from the Englewood PetCoSmart. They were unable to determine his age, telling me that he was anywhere from 9 to 11 years old when I brought him home. He'd been staying at PetCoSmart for over six months, being nursed back to health after coming in sick. Even after releasing him to me, they warned that his various conditions (including an infected tooth) meant that he may not be around long. He could live five months, or even five more years.
But this little guy did such a sell job on me, that I had to take him home. When I first held him, he melted into my arms and purred loudly.
PetCoSmart was sad to see him go. His incredibly mellow disposition made him the perfect office cat. He would spend most of his days in the shop hanging out on the store manager's desk, instead of in a cage with the other kitties.
And now he was my kitty!
Meanwhile...
Or what insert cards looked like then...
At one time, I'd considered pursuing the entire Topps Laser set. Personally chasing them via rather expensive four card packs at Shinders. They look really nice, and are a fun set to look at in pages, but at last count, I was still over half the 120 card set short. So I kept the most album-worthy for my collection and recently sold/traded the rest.
I'm going to whip through these... This set comprises all the major stars (and a few rookies) of 1996, and represents that crew well... So you know all of these guys, so unless a story pops up about a certain card, I'm burning through this abbreviated Whatever quickly...
In honor of Oliver's favorite kitty game, here are Top 67 Topps Laser cards that were kept for my permanent collection!
(Lint not representative...)
#67 - Rafeal Palmeiro
Yeah, he deserves to fall last...
#66 - Carlos Bearga
Topps cheapens the red border by choosing a giant red block to cover advertising...
#64 - Reggie Sanders
#63 - Fred McGriff
#62 - Marquis Grissom
#61 - Eddie Murray
#60 - Albert Belle
After an extended run of players/teams that I do not like, I have to wonder how Oliver feels about these guys...
Yeah... I'm pretty bored by them too...
#59 - Alex Fernandez
The fireball going up the sides of pitchers cards became favorites.
#58 - Ken Caminiti
#57 - Kevin Appier
Topps patented pitcher face... LASER edition!
#56 - Juan Gonzalez
#57 - Shane Reynolds
#56 - Tony Phillips
#55 - Ray Lankford
I'm fairly certain that is one of Oliver's hairs leaving an impression on Lankford's shoulder...
#54 - Gary Sheffield
Dislike Sheffield, dig the teal... So 1990's...
#53 - Kenny Rogers
#52 - Jim Thome
I like Thome more than his Indians teamates and Braves counterparts...
#51 - Rey Ordonez
How many mid-90's prospectors loved Ordonez?
#50 - Mike Mussina
#49 - Jeff Montgomery
#48 - Javy Lopez
#46 - Jim Edmonds
#45 - Devon White
Like White... Dig the teal...
The Englewood, CO chapter of Honkassland featured a skylight, allowing the sun to travel across the room throughout the day. Oliver would follow the sun, and re-adjust his sleeping positions as soon as the sun had moved away from him.
Almost as if he was chasing a much larger and much slower and much less red, laser from above...
#44 - Hal Morris
#43 - Tim Salmon
#42 - Roberto Alomar
#41 - Lenny Dykstra
#40 - Paul O'Neill
#39 - Johnny Damon
Back in the days of being a top prospect, even while being weighed down by Oliver hair...
#38 - Tino Martinez
Stop all of this writing and feed me!
#37 - Shawn Green
Another 1996 top prospect. I always seemed to pull and abundance of Green's cards. If I had found him to be even slightly interesting as a player, I would have started a collection. Instead, he was just a guy whose cards always ended up in my packs...
#36 - Todd Hundley
#35 - Ivan Rodriguez
#34 - Andy Ashby
More Topps pitcher face!
#33 - Barry Larkin
Barry's Reds caps always sat way high on his head. Just a pet peeve about Larkin...
#32 - Jason Isringhausen
#31 - Dennis Eckersley
This card should so have Eck in an A's uniform... His Cardinals cards always bugged me...
Doesn't he appear to be proof-reading?
#30 - Edgar Martinez
#29 - John Olerud
#28 - Eric Karros
May have underranked this one... I like the photo and border here a lot... Even if it is a Dodger...
#27 - Barry Bonds
Even worse, a Bonds card I like...
#26 - Mo Vaughn
#25 - Jeff Conine
#24 - Will Clark
This picture still looks odd to me.
#23 - David Cone
After many months, I "finished" the sorting project. Wanting to photograph my completion, Oliver came running in and photobombed each shot...
#22 - Vinny Castilla
The first of only two Rockies to make this (unofficial) Whatever... I like the photo and border combo here...
#21 - Rondell White
Oh, why not... Here's the first Expo!
#20 - Cal Ripken
#19 - Mike Piazza
A laser catcher here next to Pizza would make this card so much better!
#18 - Andres Galarraga
The other Rockie... El Gato!
#17 - Matt Williams
I like this card for some reason... Never was a Matt Williams fan...
#16 - Dave Hollins
With the set comprising (roughly) the top 120 players in baseball for 1996, the addition of Hollins remains a head scratcher. Cool in that it's one of few Hollins' Twins cards...
Yeah dood... I'll be right there to feed you...
#15 - Ken Griffey Jr.
Underranked!
#14 - Tom Glavine
#13 - Hideo Nomo
#12 - Manny Ramirez
#11 - Jay Buhner
#10 - Kirby Puckett
#9 - Mark Grace
But he learned to share... Unless Gracie got too close!
#8 - Chuck Knoblauch
Since I started writing Four Baggers, Knoblauch has been a planned extended subject. A key player in both my following of baseball and my personal collection. I've actually written some parts of it as well!
#7 - Kevin Brown
Flaming teal!
#6 - Ryan Klesko
How could I like a Braves card THIS much?
#5 - Rick Aguilera
#4 - Mo Vaughn - Power Cuts
Insert set insert...
#3 - Pedro Martinez
Love this card, I still have 4 of them!
Given his advancing age by the time we needed to move from Colorado to Minnesota, we were worried his declining health would be a problem in transit...
But Oliver had no issues with the near 1000 mile drive. Spending a good portion of the trek sitting on my lap, a small furry co-pilot to my navigation...
#2 - Moises Alou
Expos pinstripes and Spring Training jersey combined with black laser cut out equals awesome!
#1 - Chipper Jones - Bright Spots
That being said, the laser cutting on Larry is pretty incredible...
It's really hard to let go of something that was this big a part of your life, and an even bigger part of your family, but you have to for his sake. His run was much longer than predicted nearly a decade ago when I adopted him, and will forever be grateful we crossed paths and could have each other in our lives.
Oliver went peacefully and quickly, purring strongly through his last seconds of life, as Laura and I rubbed his ears and neck, like he loved so much...
Rest in peace Oliver.
Such a good boy!
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