1951 Bowman #255 Milo Candini

Over the past four or five years, my Dad had been tracking down Phillies cards from the wonderful 1951 Bowman set for my collection.  He wanted me to have a complete set, because these are the first baseball cards he ever remembered seeing as a kid growing up on Oak Street in Millville.  Dad got sick last year and he passed away six months ago today.  I've thought about him every single day and there's no way to put into words how much I miss him.

My Mom recently finished what my Dad had started.  She checks in on this blog occasionally, and she knew I was just a few cards away from a complete 1951 Bowman Phillies team set.  Last fall, she tracked down two of the cards I needed and coordinated with Santa to make sure these cards were under the Christmas tree.  A few weeks ago, she presented me with this card of Milo Candini, a right-handed reliever who spent the last two years of his eight-year career in the Phillies bullpen.

With this Candini card, my 1951 Bowman Phillies team set is complete, and it now stands as one of the most treasured parts of my entire baseball card collection.  In celebration of this feat, I've set up a new stand-alone page on the blog, which features images of each of the Phillies cards from the 1951 Bowman set.

Thank you Mom and Dad.  I can never say it enough.