Star minors - Ivan 2 for 1.

Decided to throw out two of Pudge's cards today. Partially because I missed last Monday but more because they are almost twins.

First up is the 1990 Florida State League All-Stars by Star. This is number 41 in the 50 card set. Looking at this card we only see one line of stats on the back. Good ones to be sure but not a total indicator of what was to come. Perhaps a better indicator might be the look of the player pictured on the front. The kid is still visible but he seems to have picked up a little confidence. For the first time we see the grin. The grin that says, I love this game.

Second up is a 1990 Star number 26. Practically the same card but with a different color border. Well, the back is the same yellow as the border as opposed to the white of the previous card. Why Star chose a yellow border for a Rangers affiliate is beyond me.

Obviously this picture was taken during the same photo shoot as the first one. It appears that Ivan wasn't quite ready for it either. He seems to still be blinking away the flash from the first shot and re-gripping the bat. Kind of a unique pose since Ivan made his name by taking base runners by surprise.

Base runners aren't the only ones he has surprised either. Two different teams have decided he was too washed up to resign only to have him go on and help another team to the post-season. With him leading Spring Training in home runs it looks like more surprises might be in store.