[zeprock]

I am always leery about jumping on the bandwagon when it comes to adding new players to my personal collection. Other than my Topps base set and Topps Update set each year, I don't worry about completing sets. I am a "player collector". I collect players that are in the Hall of Fame. I collect players that I think will eventually be enshrined in the Hall of Fame, anticipating so that I will have a decent amount of their cards when they are inevitably enshrined. I currently collect just over 350 different players (See my website for card galleries of each of them).

I'm leery because I have missed the boat on so many players in the past. I have huge collections of Juan Gonzalez, Will Clark, Jose Canseco, Manny Ramirez, Mark McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro, Sammy Sosa, Pete Rose, Bo Jackson, Nomar Garciaparra, Dale Murphy, Steve Garvey, Thurman Munson and Don Mattingly. Those are all players I thought were going to the Hall. Oops. But those players were on track and how could I have known that they would derail.

Other players that I started collections of too soon were Matt Nokes, Pedro Guerrero, Troy Glaus, Hideo Nomo, Dwight Gooden, Darryl Strawberry, Scott Rolen, Jerome Walton, Joe Carter, Alfonso Soriano and Dwight Evans. It didn't take me so long to realize that I was collecting players that were never going to come close to the Hall and I abandoned those collections.

So you see, it's difficult for me to commit now to adding a new player to my PC. When I see the bandwagon roll through with players like Puig, Trout, Harper, Jose Fernandez, Kershaw, Posey, Yadier Molina, Goldschmidt, Machado and Strasburg on board, I'm more hesitant than most to start PCing one of them. Prices are high on most of their cards right from the get-go and look, already, Harper, Fernandez, Machado, Strasburg and Posey have suffered crippling injuries and missed valuable playing time during their youth.

I have been on the fence on a number of these players and I haven't added any PC players since I added Miguel Cabrera, Ryan Howard, Longoria, Pedroia and Verlander several years ago. I still feel pretty good about committing to PC those players although I have been second guessing Howard. It's time to add somebody new. I'm going to add two players that I think are already on track for the Hall of Fame although it is very early in their careers. Will they derail and go off-track and will I abandon my collections of them? Time will tell. I may and will probably add others from this list in the future as their careers become more solidified but for now the two I am adding to my PC are . . .

Buster Posey and Mike Trout.

[DrMitchJ]

Two very good players with very high probabilities of HOF potential! Good choices.

[hi desert paul]

Trout is showing the signs of a complete 5 tool player and as long as he remains healthy and major injury free I can see him putting up numbers that should get him in the hall. Posey while he shows signs of a player with incredible skills the fact that he is a catcher most the time worries me about him staying injury free and not missing significant playing time, if the Giants make the move putting at first base that will lessen the beatings he takes behind the plate. I too am looking to add new players to collect considering the last player I began collecting retired some 5-6 years ago. I still collect a few of the players you mentioned being derailed 1. I am a fan of the game and respect the numbers certain players put up even those accused/ guilty of steroids. The way I see it they were not always on the juice and many still had really good numbers with out the juice.2. Many of those players may still make the hall in a few years just wont have the fanfare had they not been derailed and made it first eligible. Baseball is going to have to take a good hard look at the juicing era and accept it as part of the history of baseball and allow those players in once they make an example out of them by making them wait. I think the only person who doesnt have a chance is Pete Rose who was railroaded and deserves to be in the Hall based on what he did on the field not off

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I am always leery about jumping on the bandwagon when it comes to adding new players to my personal collection. Other than my Topps base set and Topps Update set each year, I don't worry about completing sets. I am a "player collector". I collect players that are in the Hall of Fame. I collect players that I think will eventually be enshrined in the Hall of Fame, anticipating so that I will have a decent amount of their cards when they are inevitably enshrined. I currently collect just over 350 different players (See my website for card galleries of each of them).

I'm leery because I have missed the boat on so many players in the past. I have huge collections of Juan Gonzalez, Will Clark, Jose Canseco, Manny Ramirez, Mark McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro, Sammy Sosa, Pete Rose, Bo Jackson, Nomar Garciaparra, Dale Murphy, Steve Garvey, Thurman Munson and Don Mattingly. Those are all players I thought were going to the Hall. Oops. But those players were on track and how could I have known that they would derail.

Other players that I started collections of too soon were Matt Nokes, Pedro Guerrero, Troy Glaus, Hideo Nomo, Dwight Gooden, Darryl Strawberry, Scott Rolen, Jerome Walton, Joe Carter, Alfonso Soriano and Dwight Evans. It didn't take me so long to realize that I was collecting players that were never going to come close to the Hall and I abandoned those collections.

So you see, it's difficult for me to commit now to adding a new player to my PC. When I see the bandwagon roll through with players like Puig, Trout, Harper, Jose Fernandez, Kershaw, Posey, Yadier Molina, Goldschmidt, Machado and Strasburg on board, I'm more hesitant than most to start PCing one of them. Prices are high on most of their cards right from the get-go and look, already, Harper, Fernandez, Machado, Strasburg and Posey have suffered crippling injuries and missed valuable playing time during their youth.

I have been on the fence on a number of these players and I haven't added any PC players since I added Miguel Cabrera, Ryan Howard, Longoria, Pedroia and Verlander several years ago. I still feel pretty good about committing to PC those players although I have been second guessing Howard. It's time to add somebody new. I'm going to add two players that I think are already on track for the Hall of Fame although it is very early in their careers. Will they derail and go off-track and will I abandon my collections of them? Time will tell. I may and will probably add others from this list in the future as their careers become more solidified but for now the two I am adding to my PC are . . .

Buster Posey and Mike Trout.

How about Kershaw ??

[mmahoney]

I believe Trout is a solid choice and agree that Posey may be a stretch only because he is a catcher (see Joe Mauer as prime example). Personally, I'd stay away from pitchers. Today it seems they have about a 6-8 year window of being great then slowly drop. Unless the Hall lowers their standards it will make it very difficult for them to make it. A really good career now will be about 225 wins. Only pitcher lock right now is probably Mariano Rivera.

Not sure I'd invest heavily in any other player right now. I'd wait a few years and see what happens with the new wave of young stars. If i were to I'd consider Andrew McCutchen.

[zeprock]

How about Kershaw ??

If I were to add three players at this time, Kershaw would most likely be the third. I'm really hesitant when it comes to pitchers. Since Mariano Rivera retired that leaves Verlander as the only active pitcher I am collecting.

[Phillies_Joe]

Great choices with Trout & Buster. Barring injury, Trout is a definite. As a catcher, Buster needs at least another WS ring and to keep hitting like he has been. Good luck! I know I have no Trout stuff except for some rookie cards, but I think I have some Posey cards not loaded in org. I'll get them together for our next trade.

(you should have picked Clayton!)

[mmahoney]

If I were to add three players at this time, Kershaw would most likely be the third. I'm really hesitant when it comes to pitchers. Since Mariano Rivera retired that leaves Verlander as the only active pitcher I am collecting.

Hesitant, I agree. See Johan Santana. If you add Kershaw I'd go slow.