1983 Fleer Jim Smith

1983 Fleer Jim Smith 

This is quite possibly the worst baseball card in my entire collection.  The condition of the card is horrendous and is compounded by the fact that it is a Jim (or Jimmy) Smith card.  I really don't know much about Jim Smith, but I do know that this was the first card that I ever pulled from a pack of cards during the summer of 1983.  

I lived in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania at the time and was in first grade.  My brother, three and a half years older, already had a card collection started.  My father had collected baseball cards as a kid (they got thrown away) and passed his love of baseball and baseball cards on to my brother and I.  Every week we would get a pack or two from the convenience store or grocery store.

 I didn't know too much about the game or about the players at the time.  Every week while we were driving home I would open up my packs of cards and read of the players names.  My father and brother would tell me the good cards and I would put my own two cents in over time.  I kept my eyes open for Cardinals cards and would get excited about pulling one from the pack.  Especially an Ozzie Smith or Tito Landrum.  

Over time, my collection grew and it is probably a little too big at current.  However, I would really like to thank my father for introducing me to the world of baseball cards that summer and starting my collection.  Even if it started with Jim Smith.  

I am hoping that one day my son will love baseball cards as much as I do and can enjoy building up his very own collection.  For the moment, I am putting off his collection in hopes that his early cards look a little nicer than mine.  Maybe not.  Happy Father's Day to all the dads.