March Pickups

[seanofjapan]

I got this in the mail a couple of days ago. I have been trying to find it for months, its card #416 from the Japanese 1974 Calbee set.

It is the most captivating photo I have ever seen on a baseball card. The guy crouching in the on-deck circle (#3) is Shigeo Nagashima, the most popular player in Japanese baseball history. The guy taking a swing at the plate is Sadaharu Oh of 868 career home run fame. They were a long time 3-4 combination in the Giants lineup in the 1960s to early 70s. This photo was taken during the last game of Nagashima's career. So this photo captures on of the last moments of them on the playing field together.

The photo is kind of perfect - the balance between the blue sky and the packed stands, with the colorful advertising billboards in between, is flawless. Also you have both player's backs to the camera, which (intentional or not) adds to the sense of finality about it, like they are getting ready to walk off into the sunset or something (at least for Nagashima, Oh played several more seasons after this).