His childhood baseball cards were long gone by the time Pennsylvania resident Chuck Bogorae decided to get back into collecting.
The 1980s were a confusing time for someone who grew up with only one brand, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t an outlet.
He was a Pirates fan who had vivid recollections from age 10, when Bill Mazeroski turned the baseball world on its ear with a World Series-winning home run that beat the Yankees in Game 7.
“To him, hitting that home run was like catching a big fish, and he feels that people are still making too much of it,” Bogorae says. “I don’t know if he realizes how many hearts he touched.”
As time went on, Bogorae began focusing his Pirates collection on the man who grew up much like he did. He accumulated dozens of autographs and other items by going to sports card shows and buying online. He added pieces here and there until his collection of Mazeroski memorabilia needed a place to live.
When his college bound son moved out, the Maz collection moved in. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette offers a nice feature and a panoramic photo.
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