Mike Young

Seriously?

Why we like him: Mike Young actually had a couple of respectable seasons in the bigs before mysteriously vanishing in 1989 at the age of 29 (Relax. He went to Japan.). In 1984, his first full season, Young batted .252 and belted 17 homers to finish fifth in AL Rookie of the Year voting, and he followed that up with a 1985 campaign which saw him bat .273 with 28 dingers. For the time, those were serious numbers.

What's really great about Mike Young is whatever is going on in that photo in the card above. Is he running hard? Is he stumbling? Is he even in the baseline? Did some invisible entity steal his helmet and put it on to chase him around the ballpark? Could Score not find a photo with his face in it? What's the red, glowing thing in the background? Awesome.

Ladies and gentlemen, Mike Young, ballplayer.

Throwback Thursday: Ted Kluszewski

"This ain't the California penal league..."

Why we like him: His nickname was "Big Klu" and he was just 6-foot-2. If he played today, his nickname would've been "Klu." Or maybe just "Ted." Either way, this sleeveless wonder (He said the sleeves inhibited the movement from his bulging biceps. Why doesn't Prince Fielder just run around shirtless since the shirt would inhibit movement from his entire body?) was somewhat of an offensive dynamo for a short stretch in the middle of the 1950s. His impressive 1954 campaign (.326, 49 HR, 141 RBI) even saw him finish second in MVP voting behind some guy named Willie Mays. Even more impressive is that even with all that power, Kluszewski wasn't that much of a strikeout threat. He finished his 15-year career with 492 walks and just 365 Ks. Not too shabby.

Though his career was cut short by a seemingly constant stream of injuries, he still managed to put together a pretty nice career. Based solely on his '54 and '55 seasons, he also probably deserves to find a way into the discussion regarding the most feared hitters of that decade.

Ladies and gentlemen, Ted Kluszewski, ballplayer.

Kevin Belcher

Nothing about this photo is anything less than absolutely awesome.

Why we like him: Let's just take a look at what made Kevin Belcher awesome:

• His last name, Belcher, is awesome.
• He's so awesome that just one color of wristbands is not enough. 
• That giant pendant around his neck just oozes awesome.
• The only way you can see the true amount of sheer awesome he emits is through those glasses.
• That tiny trace of a mustache is just utterly awesome.
• My old Little League stirrups.
• Only someone who is amazingly awesome could ever be photographed in an athletic position like the one on display here.
• Tight breeches.

Ladies and gentlemen, Kevin Belcher, ballplayer.

Throwback Thursday: Rockey Bridges

Rocky Bridges just ate the entire infield turf at Tiger Stadium.

Why we like him: I don't even know if Rocky Bridges was good or not. I guess he was. Maybe. He was an All Star one time during a season in which he batted .268 with 5 homers. But the reason why he's a classic in my mind is because every picture I've ever seen of the guy, he's got an entire 6-acre tobacco crop in his cheek. Rocky played for 7 different teams over the course of his 11-year career, presumably because he would eat all the ruffage on the playing field and subsequently force an irate general manager to trade him someplace else instead of keep him around to enhance the desertification of the infield. Or something.

Ladies and gentlemen, Rocky Bridges, ballplayer.

Sunday Double Header: Brad Pounders & Jerald Clark

Double the talent. Double the fun.

Why we like them: There are are some exciting little known facts about these two forgettable and laughably bad excuses for major league "prospects." See how you do on this little quiz:

1. Which one of these guys is actually albino?
2. Every time one of these guys got into his batting stance, he'd experience a slight fannyburp, and he'd always smell it. Which one is it?
3. Which one of these guys was a lousy major leaguer?
4. Which one of these guys was a lousy minor leaguer?
5. Which one of these guys always had dumb all over their face?
6. Which one of these guys' mothers misspelled "Gerald" on his birth certificate?

Answers: 1. It doesn't matter. 2. It doesn't matter. 3. It doesn't matter. 4. It doesn't matter. 5. It doesn't matter. 6. It doesn't matter.

Ladies and gentlemen, Brad Pounders and Jerald Clark, ballplayers. Sort of.

Bill Pecota

I guess this was the best photo Fleer could find in 1991. What is he looking at?

Why we like him: Bill Pecota defined what it means to be a Kansas City Royal (as you can clearly see in the photo above). He couldn't hit. He couldn't hit for power. He couldn't play defense. He couldn't settle in a single position. He couldn't even be photographed doing anything successful. He was even included as an afterthought with Bret Saberhagen that brought the great Gregg Jefferies to KC from the Mets.

No, but seriously. He was a career .249 hitter with 22 home runs who pocketed almost $800,000 for his 1992 performance in New York that saw him bat .227 and slug .297. Shrewd bit of business by the Mets.

Ladies and gentlemen, Bill Pecota, ballplayer.

Throwback Thursday: Mike Garcia

The Indians logo is even staring at this dreamy stud muffin.

Why we like him: Mike Garcia was a three-time All Star, and he won 20 games twice in his career. That coupled with his 142-97 career record over 14 years tells me he had a pretty decent go at it in the big league. However, the best part about Garcia is that his nickname was "The Big Bear." He was a hard-throwing righty who was named one of the Top 100 Greatest Indians in 2001 (which is an honor, I guess), and was even voted into the team's hall of fame in 2007. Good for you, Big Bear.

Ladies and gentlemen, Mike Garcia, ballplayer.