Baseball’s Forgotten Rom Com – The Slugger’s Wife

Don’t tell me you’ve never heard of Darryl Palmer.  He’s one of the most famous Atlanta Braves players of all time.  Palmer is right up there with the likes of Chipper Jones, Warren Spahn, and Greg Maddux.  Collectors stand in line for hours to get his autograph.

If you seriously have no clue who Darryl Palmer is, that’s alright.  He doesn’t actually exist.  Actor Michael O’Keefe (Danny Noonan from Caddyshack) portrayed the fictitious baseball player in the 1985 film The Slugger’s Wife.  The movie is a romantic comedy about a baseball player who falls in love with a singer (Rebecca De Mornay).  It was a box office flop, and has been long forgotten.  When you’re sitting around with your friends talking about your favorite baseball-themed movies, The Slugger’s Wife rarely comes up.

To go along with the movie, Topps printed-up a prop/promo card of the film’s main character – Darryl Palmer.  It was made using the classic 1984 Topps Baseball design, but isn’t part of the main set.  This card stands alone.  On the card’s back is a made up story about the character.

The Slugger’s Wife may have bombed, but this card sure didn’t.  You rarely see it popup.  Collectors have been known to spend crazy amounts for it.  Way more than what any standard 1984 Topps Baseball card is worth.  That’s including the Don Mattingly rookie card.  I highly doubt we’ll be seeing The Slugger’s Wife cards make their Archives debut anytime soon.