The 1st sport card, you remember seeing?

[Cozumeleno]

Easy for me - a John McNamara 1986 Topps card. That was the year I started collecting after my grandmother bought me a rack pack of cards.

I made my first trip to the local card shop that year and they had a penny box. The owner, who I would get to know over the years, pretty much knew I had no idea what I was doing when I stepped into the shop and introduced me to the box. You could trade any two of your cards for any one in the box. It was his way of keeping young kids entertained and out of their hair.

For some unknown reason, finding a well-used 1986 Topps John McNamara card sitting on the top is the very first memory I have when it comes to collecting. By 1987 I became a little more seasoned and made my first 'real' purchase when I bought a Dwight Gooden 1987 Topps card for $2.25.

In hindsight, that was a bad deal. But as a Mets fan growing up, you couldn't pry that thing out of my hands.