I rarely get around to posting my pick-ups, but this time I just have to. Not only will it likely be the last thing I buy in January (which is over in about 2 1/2 hours), but it's a Grail item for me - something I've been looking for for over 11 years.
Not something that takes page after page to show off...not even a Major League item, per se. Just something I've wanted for a long time. A little background:
Back in 2000, the independent Western Baseball League established a franchise here in Scottsdale, Arizona - the Valley Vipers. They played at Scottsdale Stadium, charged four bucks admission, and folded after a single season. Bob Welch (who would be the Diamondbacks' PC the following year) was the Manager, former Major Leaguer and local favorite Guy Sularz his bench coach. The only other names on the roster with which anyone would likely be familair were Steve Ontiveros and Lee Tinsley.
Once I learned the team had folded - under huge legal and financial clouds, it turned out - I started asking around about uniforms and equipment. I heard a lot of things, from various people - among them, that the team's assets, including gear, was being hidden from its creditors. Anyone I contacted who'd had any official connection with the team was very cagey, vague and uncommunicative.
I fantasized (as we frequently do) of stumbling across a huge cache of Vipers uniforms...or at least the one uniform I really coveted - the one wore by Bob Welch...#9.
So, last night, I'm just about to go to bed and I do one more eBay search of GU stuff, with a sub-search on "Arizona", and these pop up.
Both jerseys came with a pair of matching pants, but the waist sizes didn't jibe with the jersey sizes (or with each other), and one had a name written in it that I know wasn't the name of the man who wore the jerseys.
I'm very happy.
Not something that takes page after page to show off...not even a Major League item, per se. Just something I've wanted for a long time. A little background:
Back in 2000, the independent Western Baseball League established a franchise here in Scottsdale, Arizona - the Valley Vipers. They played at Scottsdale Stadium, charged four bucks admission, and folded after a single season. Bob Welch (who would be the Diamondbacks' PC the following year) was the Manager, former Major Leaguer and local favorite Guy Sularz his bench coach. The only other names on the roster with which anyone would likely be familair were Steve Ontiveros and Lee Tinsley.
Once I learned the team had folded - under huge legal and financial clouds, it turned out - I started asking around about uniforms and equipment. I heard a lot of things, from various people - among them, that the team's assets, including gear, was being hidden from its creditors. Anyone I contacted who'd had any official connection with the team was very cagey, vague and uncommunicative.
I fantasized (as we frequently do) of stumbling across a huge cache of Vipers uniforms...or at least the one uniform I really coveted - the one wore by Bob Welch...#9.
So, last night, I'm just about to go to bed and I do one more eBay search of GU stuff, with a sub-search on "Arizona", and these pop up.
Both jerseys came with a pair of matching pants, but the waist sizes didn't jibe with the jersey sizes (or with each other), and one had a name written in it that I know wasn't the name of the man who wore the jerseys.
I'm very happy.
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