junkwaxjunkie,
First off, welcome to the forum. I think you will greatly enjoy this place, and as I often tell people, you will get out of it what you put into it. The people here are friendly, and knowledgeable. If you want to learn about vintage, or pre-war, especially, this is a great place to frequent.
Your story about your friend, Matt, is touching. It never ceases to amaze me how so many of our lives, and friendships, have revolved around baseball, and baseball cards. I have a similar story of my own. One of my best friends growing up in Waukesha, WI was Carl Zach. We'd sit up in his room as kids, and trade cards. We'd watch games on tv during the weekend. We played on WPR (Waukesha Park and Rec) teams together. I will never forget the time I helped Carl, who was a fierce hitter at age 13 with a killer arm, warm up to pitch during a practice. I squatted down at the field's home plate, with my second baseman's glove (I played second and right field), and waited for Carl's first pitch. Zip. A perfect strike, right down the pipe. My had stung like mad! Next pitch, Carl decided to try a curveball that he'd been working on. The ball hit the plate, and then skipped past my glove, nailing me in a place where I most certainly did not have a cup. I crumbled on the ground, looked up, and saw Carl, with a facial expression that was equal parts "I'm sorry" and "wow, did you see that ball dip?" I ended up moving to Texas in 1989, right after my junior year of high school. Again, this was before Facebook, and the internet had not really gotten going yet. We lost touch for the most part, though I did make it back up to Wisconsin a few times to visit with friends. On July 4th, 2000, Carl lost his life in a biking accident. He was leading the race, in the home stretch closing on the finish line with his head down, pushing the peddles as fast as he could. He never saw the ambulance that had inexplicably backed out into the oncoming racers. When my parents told me the news, I was devastated. Carl has one of the biggest hearts I've ever known. He would give you the shirt off his back without hesitation. Now, these years later, I've reconnected with his mom, and his two sisters. Now, the Carl Zach Classic is held in Waukesha every year. Ten races in total, ending with a professional-level 90 minute race, showcase the best riders in the Midwest. I think about him all the time, and he was one of the main reasons I started collecting again. I'd collected passionately as a teen, but within a few years of moving to Texas, I'd stopped. College, working, dating, and spending time with my friends took up all my time. One day not long ago, I decided to pull out an old baseball card binder on a whim, and I felt the urge to collect again. I remembered how much fun I'd had as a kid collecting and trading with Carl and my other friends. Where was it written that I couldn't do the same as an adult?
So, there it is. Like you, I remember wanting a few cards in particular back then, only I wasn't able to work out a trade, because I wasn't going to take a card from a friend if they only had the one. I wanted Carl's late 70s Robin Younts so badly. The 1980 Topps Yount was my favorite card for the longest of time. So, when I began collecting again, I made it a priority to get those cards that I didn't have as a kid. And, of course, I have my 1980 Topps Robin Yount.
It's funny that you mention Ruben Sierra. When I moved to Texas, he became my favorite Ranger. Yount and Roberto Clemente have long been my favorite two players, and I read that Ruben Sierra was a big Clemente fan. He wore the same #21 Roberto had, played right field, and he could drive the ball all over the field. And Sierra grew up a few blocks from the Clemente home in Puerto Rico, and knew Vera Clemente and Roberto's sons well. The first card I bought when I moved to Texas was Sierra's 1988 Mothers Cookies card. Seeing your post made me break out my card binder. I flipped through a few pages of Packers to my baseball cards, and there it was.
It's not often that I'm inspired to scan a card from that binder, but here it is.
It goes without saying, though, that I wasn't too upset when Robin beat Ruben Sierra out for the 1989 AL MVP.
Anyway, again, welcome aboard. If there's anything I can do to help you get settled in, please don't hesitate to ask. Send me a private message whenever you like.
Have fun!
Bill