2005 Upper Deck Trilogy Signature Materials Jack Clark Bat/Jersey/Autograph

I am a huge fan of the 80s Cardinals, but can find collecting the majority of the players on the team a little bit tricky.  There are plenty of Ozzie Smith cards to go around, but there were few other star players on a team that made three World Series appearances during the decade.  Every once in awhile a new autograph of one of the key players turns up, like my Terry Pendleton autograph last week, but that is a rare occurrence.

2005 Upper Deck Trilogy Jack Clark Bat/Jersey/Autograph

Often when I do find good players from the 1980s Cardinals teams they aren't pictured in a Cardinals uniform.  Players like Terry Pendleton, Jose Oquendo, Andy Van Slyke, Keith Hernandez, Vince Coleman, and Willie McGee all have autographed cards in a Cardinals uniform their signatures are often more commonly found on another team.  Some players like George Hendrick and Tony Pena played important roles on 80s Cardinals teams, but don't appear in a Cardinals uniform on a certified autograph.  

Jack Clark played on the Cardinals for three seasons between 1985 and 1987.  He was the only real home run threat on the team those years and performed well during the 1985 and 1987 seasons.  Clark was injured for much of the 1986 season.  His most important moment as a Cardinal came during the 1985 National League Championship Series when he hit this series clinching home run against the Dodgers.  

Clark left the Cardinals for the Yankees after the 1987 season and did not leave on great terms.  He's moved back into the St. Louis area after his playing career and mended the fences around town.  I enjoy picking up Clark cards and am often on the look out for them regardless of what uniform he's wearing on the card.  I really liked the looks of this card and was actually trying to scout out a Tim Raines version of this card when I stumbled upon this for dirt cheap.  I couldn't pass up an on-card autograph of the former Cardinals slugger.  It's hard to tell from the scan, but the background behind Clark is actually translucent.  Really cool card.