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Ron Darling reminisces about the '86 Mets on 'Old Baseball Cards'

It’s always nice when the baseball cards are on your side. And they were in this week’s installment of “Old Baseball Cards,” Yahoo Sports’ baseball-card driven nostalgia show, with our guest Ron Darling.

Darling pitched 13 years in the big leagues, mostly for the New York Mets, but also for the A’s and Expos. Nowadays, he’s still baseball all the time, an analyst for MLB Network and covering Mets games for SNY.

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We opened packs of 1986 and 1988 Topps — and wouldn’t you know it, we found some players from that famous 1986 Mets team. You’ll get the scoop on Ray Knight’s ability to throw a punch and see Darling’s reaction when we pull his old manager Davey Johnson. They didn’t always quite get along, you know.

Darling has plenty of stories and memories about other players we find too, which is why he’s great on TV. His mind is full of great baseball memories.

Ron Darling of MLB Network opens baseball cards from 1986 and 1988 and shares stories and memories. (Yahoo Sports)
Ron Darling of MLB Network opens baseball cards from 1986 and 1988 and shares stories and memories. (Yahoo Sports)

If you’re new to show, welcome aboard. Every week, we open old packs of cards with baseball players, coaches and famous fans. We’re not chasing valuable cards necessarily, we’re using the cards to trigger stories and memories from our guests. We have almost 100 episodes below for you to check out if you dig the show. This week, if you liked the episode, I’ll specifically direct you to our episodes with MLB Network personalities Harold Reynolds, Dan Plesac and John Smoltz if you haven’t seen those.

Previously on Old Baseball Cards
RECENT EPISODES:
Don Mattingly | Tom Gordon & Nick Gordon

OTHER MUST-SEE EPISODES:Randy Johnson | George Brett | Dave Winfield | Gary Vee | Jerry Dipoto | Mike Krukow | HQ’s Scott Rogowsky | Felipe Alou| Torey Lovullo | Nick Swisher | David Ross | Tim Raines | Thomas Ian Nicholas aka Henry Rowengartner | Pedro Martinez | Bronson Arroyo | Eric Davis | Dusty Baker | Hank Azaria | Alex Rodriguez | Scott Boras | A.J. Ellis | Bernie Williams | Chase Utley | John Smoltz

COMPILATIONS: Best trades of 2017 | Best finds of 2017 | Best Guests of 2017 (Part 1) | Best Guests of 2017 (Part 2) | The Best of People Eating 30-Year-Old Gum | The Best Finds of 2018 | Favorite Guests of 2018

CROSSOVER EPISODES: The Miz | Metta World Peace | Jazzy Jeff

STARS FROM BACK IN THE DAY: Fred Lynn | Eduardo Perez | J.J. Putz | Luis Gonzalez | Duane Kuiper | Edgar Martinez | Ryne Sandberg | Frank Thomas | Sandy Alomar Jr. | Delino DeShields | Cliff Floyd | Dan Plesac | Aaron Boone | Bobby Bonilla | Andre Dawson | Ivan Rodriguez | Jack Morris | Jeff Nelson | Mark Teixeira | Rick Ankiel | Kevin Millar

MANAGERS/COACHES: Terry Francona | Joe Maddon | Bruce Bochy | Clint Hurdle | Buck Showalter | Brad Mills | Bob Melvin | Dave Roberts | Gabe Kapler | Alex Cora | Dave Martinez | Ron Gardenhire | Scott Servais

CURRENT PLAYERS: Alex Bregman | CC Sabathia | Curtis Granderson | Noah Syndergaard | Kyle Hendricks | Clayton Kershaw | Todd Coffey | John Axford | Dee Gordon | Adam Eaton | Rajai Davis | Brad Ziegler & Tyler Clippard | Buster Posey, David Price & Anthony Rizzo

CELEBS: Kurt Busch | Bill Nye | Mr. Belding | Alyssa Milano | Josh Duhamel | Joel McHale

ETC: Chris “Mad Dog” Russo | Josh Kusnick | Jeff Passan | Ken Kendrick

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Mike Oz is a writer at Yahoo Sports. Contact him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!