This was supposed to be the end of the set. I packed up cards of Manny Trillo, Julio Franco, Jay Baller, George Vukovich, and Jerry Willard for this one Von Hayes card*, which was supposed to be the last one I needed to put 1990 Topps to bed forever and in record time based on success from the 80’s sets that remain unfinished on my list.
I was pretty happy to finish this set that I decided to complete on a whim long ago but never do anything about. As most people have a soft spot for the first set they collect, I have a soft spot for 1990 Topps as the last set from my childhood collecting era. While most people find the set too garish unless your colorblind, there are some nice looking cards including the Von Hayes card that was supposed to finish my set.
Typically when I get the last card for a set, I pull the cards out one more time to double-check my cataloging ability. Obviously if I’m going to complete a set I want to make sure it is complete. And while leafing through my 1990 Topps set, I found I had made a mistake. And another. And four more.
Somehow I had missed six cards that weren’t in the set. Five of them I found filed away in my duplicates box, a simple matter of poor sorting. The sixth card is nowhere to be found. This means I either had it and traded it away, have put it in a completely random box, or I never had it to begin with.
So now, instead of celebrating the completion of another set, I’m feeling the lack of a Fred McGriff All Star card. It’s card #385 in the set if you sort them that way, and he’s dressed as a Blue Jay if you sort them like that. If you sort by career batting average, it’s .284.
And I hope this hasn’t happened to you, but if it has, feel free to commiserate in the comments. Maybe I even have the card you are looking for.
(*Trade did not actually happen. This came as part of a package from I don’t know who anymore. It’s a reference to the Phillies trade with the Indians back in 1982 to land Hayes in Philadelphia in the first place.)
Hand Collated 