Cardboard Time Machine: The Magic of My First Pack

Do you remember your first wax pack?

It was August 25, 1986 and my family and friends had gathered at the local skating rink for my 6th birthday. Honestly, I don't remember a lot about the day, the party, or the people. But one thing stands out in my mind's eye more than anything else. It was a gift from my uncle. At the time, he was a college baseball player at Hardin-Simmons University (a small school in Abilene, TX) and I thought he was damn near Dale Murphy in my eyes. His gift was simple and might have cost less than any of the other gifts I received. He gave me two packs of 1986 Topps baseball cards.

From that moment, it was on.

1986 Topps Wax Pack

Today, I have no recollection of who was in that pack of 1986 Topps. Was there a Jim Gantner in there?

1986 Topps Jim Gantner #582

Or did I hit gold and just simply not remember it as a 6 year old birthday boy at the skating rink? Could I have pulled a Nolan Ryan? I'm sure the little boy from Texas would have remembered such a pull on his first pack, right? 

1986 Topps Nolan Ryan #100

There were many interesting things about that day that led to a lifetime love and addiction to baseball cards. If you will, there were certain elements to a storm that was building. The first is that by August 1986, the baseball season was coming to a close. A little boy can learn a lot from April to August. My knowledge of the game had grown and so too had my knowledge of MLB, teams, and players. 

Because it was the end of the season, those two packs of cards were my only cards from 1986. But the 1986 postseason was one for the ages! And at 6 years old, I had a front seat with my newspaper and box scores. 

It was a devastating year to be a Houston Astros fan, no matter what your age was. The 1986 season ended in a crushing loss to the New York Mets. Everyone knows the story of the ball through Buckner's legs in the '86 series....

However, in Houston. We remember 1986 a little differently. In the first game of the NLCS, Mike Scott jumped all over the New York Mets and threw a complete game shutout against Dwight Gooden!

1986 Topps Mike Scott #268

Then came a truly crushing blow in Game 2 when Nolan Ryan was defeated by Bob Ojeda. This evened the series at 2 and sent the teams back to New York City...

1986 Topps Traded Bob Ojeda 

With the Mets leading the series 3-2, the showdown came back to Houston. Game 6 was the longest playoff game in history (until 2005) and lasted 16 innings! I was too little, and I don't remember watching the actual game itself. 

This is the game where Keith Hernandez threatened to kick Jesse Orosco's ass in the 16th inning with a 7-6 lead if he threw Kevin Bass a fastball.  

Yeah...Orosco struck out Bass with all curveballs to end the Astros chances at the World Series and the dreams of a 6 year old boy. The Astros would not return to the NLCS again until 2005.

1986 Topps Jesse Orosco #465

From those two packs of 1986 Topps baseball cards, my uncle opened up a world of hobby, passion, love, excitement, investment, hopes, and dreams. He made my connection with baseball more real. Through the gift of these two packs of baseball cards, a boy was able to be close to his heroes. It also taught me valuable lessons in how to be organized, to take care of important things, and to clean up after myself in a house with four siblings. 

When the 1987 baseball season began, my real foray into the hobby of baseball card collecting began as well. At 35 cents a pack, I began to accrue nearly half a million 1987 Topps cards. But, the 1987 season and the 1987 Topps set are another blog for another day.

Join me for more history of baseball, baseball cards, and all things related to this amazing hobby!!! I am looking forward to interacting with you as we remember the good old junk wax era...

I hope you enjoyed my first blog here on Wax Pack Whispers. Do you remember your first pack of baseball cards? What year was it? What's your story?