The basics: Tony Pena shows up on the first of his two cards in 1993 Upper Deck.
Card thoughts: Card companies loved to get pictures of Pena smiling, especially in catcher's gear and behind the plate. I can't argue with any of that. ... The "JRY" is in remembrance of Jean Yawkey, the wife of former Red Sox owner Tom Yawkey. She oversaw ownership of the team along with partners after his death in 1976. Jean Yawkey died in 1992.
Backs are important in '93 UD: That's nice info about how Pena paid workers on his farms above the poverty level -- although that just seems like basic decency.
More from '93: The No. 1 New York Times best seller on this date for fiction was "Bridges Of Madison County," in the middle of a 26-week run at the top.
I always liked Tony Pena. I remember he had this unusual leg out catching stance.
ReplyDeleteI remember copying that stance as a kid. He was always one of my favorite catchers as a kid b/c of it. The fact that he helped out his workers in the DR and used an endorsement to benefit his traveling youth team instead of his own wallet makes him that much cooler.
DeleteIt is a good photo, and one can see why the card companies would want such photos of him, but yeah, that write-up doesn't do as much for his image as I think they thought it would.
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