TOM SEAVER: COLLECTING ‘THE FRANCHISE’

Death of Seaver, aka Tom Terrific, brings back fond memories of the Hall of Famer; an unforgettable face of baseball, he also became a collector favorite

Tom Seaver sat at a table in the Virginia State Fairgrounds on July 23, 1994, a long line of fans waiting for their moment with the Hall of Famer. At the time, he was a fairly recent addition to the Hall, having been inducted in 1992. So on this warm mid-summer day, he was a main attraction at an autograph show hosted by magazine in Richmond, Va. As the publication’s editor, I loved having access to those events, coordinated by our show department twice a year in the 1980s and ‘90s. I always picked up interesting stories and insights, and sometimes, the experiences were touching. A perfect example involves Seaver. As the story floated around the show all those years ago, those of us on staff found it moving, and I’ve never forgotten it. That