FORMER MAJOR LEAGUER IS BACK COLLECTING CARDS

Jeff Keppinger kicks himself that he didn’t get back into card collecting until after he retired from playing Major League Baseball. That’s because he could see immense talent from a young, opposing player named Mike Trout.

Keppinger, who played nine seasons in the big leagues for seven teams, was on the Tampa Bay Rays when they took on Trout and the Los Angeles Angels.

“I was playing third base, and their scouting report against him was take the bunt away,” Keppinger said. “And I was like, ‘Man, do you guys see how hard the ball comes off the bat when this guy hits? We’d probably be better off giving him the bunt and letting him have this than playing up and getting killed.’

“I would have been all over him Day 1. Probably could have got a bunch of his stuff really cheap back then, I’m sure…It’s pretty cool collecting guys that I played against that are in the game.”

Keppinger got back into collecting cards after taking a 25-year hiatus. Now, he’s collecting some of the legends of baseball, football and