Reviews (1)

The fearsome sight of "Pops" Stargell at the plate
In his prime there was no more fearsome sight in the National League than Willie Stargell looping his bat around and around while waiting for a pitch.Willie McCovey was a close second and certainly the two of them could hit the ball as far as anybody from that side of the plate, but the building energy of Stargell's preparation added a dimension that nobody else had.I can remember the Pirates third base coach moving down the line to have a chance of surviving if Willie ripped one foul.The other half of the story is that Stargell was as popular as he was powerful, not only in Pittsburgh but around baseball.

Stargell saved the best for what proved to be pretty much his last when he led the Pirates to the 1979 World Series. That was the year when the Sister Sledge hit "We Are Family" became the Pirates theme song and "Pops," as Willie was then affectionately known, was named World Series MVP as he batted .400 and tied Reggie Jackson's record of 25 total bases as the Pirates came back from a 3-1 deficit to win their third World Series. Stargell was named co-MVP of the National League, along with Keith Hernandez of the St. Louis Cardinals. Hernandez batted .344 with 11 homer runs and 105 runs batted in, while Willie only batted .281 with 32 home runs and 82 runs batted in. The difference was Willie's leadership as he awarded "Stargell Stars" to his teammates for outstanding performances on the field.

A knee injury during the 1980 season cut short Stargell's career and he ended up with 475 career home runs, one more healthy season short of the 500 mark and within reach of what was then Willie McCovey's NL record for homers by a left-handed batter (Barry Bonds has taken care of that well over a hundred times since then). Leading the National League with 48 home runs in 1971 and 44 in 1973 Stargell would hit more homers in the decade of the 1970s than any other player.As a former teammate of Stargell as a rookie and then later briefly his manager Bill Virdon said when Stargell died in 2001 from kidney failure: "He was sleek and slender and fast then, and his power came more as he got bigger. But the leadership, that was always there."

This 6-inch figure of Willie Stargell from McFarlane Toys shows "Pops" focusing on the coming pitch that he is about to crush deep to right field at Three Rivers Stadium.Notice that his front foot is just off the ground, which is an indication that he is at the moment of descison and given the look in his eyes I think it is clear Willie is going to go for it.The beautifully detailed figure is dressed in a period-specific Pittsburgh Pirates uniform and the base includes the home plate Willie will touch when he finishes circling the bases.

The rest of the MLB Cooperstown Series 2 figures are for "Catfish" Hunter of the Oakland A's, Cal Ripken, Jr. of the Baltimore Orioles, Mike Schmidt of the Philadelphia Phillies,Willie Mays playing for the San Francisco Giants, and Babe Ruth of the New York Yankees.I think it would be interesting if McFarlane did for the Cooperstown Series what they do for the current stars, which is to usher out a new version of a figure with a different uniform when the player changes teams.If they can do Roger Clemens as a Red Sox, Blue Jay, Yankee and Astro then why not do Willie Mays as a New York Giant or a New York Met?I think we can live without Babe Ruth as a Boston Brave, but if they did him as a Boston Red Sox it should be an entirely different figure of him as a pitcher.Such a "before and after" set would be nice.Of course, with Stragell, we are waiting for the companion Roberto Clemente figure. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

EXCELLENT for the price!!!!
I bought this set and I gotta tell you, this is an AWESOME set!! Just by looking at it, it would seem to be a set that would cost anywhere from $30-$50, but guess what, IT ISN'T!!! Although the way they are positioned, it isn't a "play" toy, but the type of an eye-candy toy that you would put on display. It is so detalied, that it almost looks like a model for the actual movie itself!!! The weapons are beautifully detailed, and Neo's action figure is amazing! I love how that captured Neo kicking in mid-air and the other figure is flying backwards!!! It's great!!! If you are a fan of the Matrix, McFarlane toys, or even just great action figures, you REALLY, REALLY gotta pick up this set!!!! It will NOT disappoint!!!

Best Action Figures...Period!
I have the entire Mcfarlane Matrix Series 1 collection and they are by far the most detailed, precisely crafted action figures I have ever seen. They also increase in value very rapidly. You can't lose with Mcfarlane Matrix. Bring on Series 2!

Resembles a more expensive statue
When you see this item in person, you'll see that it looks like a very expensive statue. Like something that would cost over a hundred dollars.

The price is great for such a highly delailed set. If you liked the movie then you should get this item.

WOW! McFarlane does it again!
The Matrix Series 1 by McFarlane is easily one of his best works, and finally anfter weeks of waiting the Neo in Chateau Box Set comes out. Judgeing from the contents you may think the weapons or break apart statue may not last long, but I assure you these are VERY durable. I love how they captured Neo in mid-air and the opponent falling back but still in the air as well. This is however not ment so much as a play toy but as eye candy (as many McFarlane fans would know). Though due to its durability it can take a little wear and tear but not too much. I have two of these, one MIB and one out on display. If you are a fan of the Matrix, McFarlane, or both and want to add on or continue your collection buy this NOW!!! You won't be dissapointed ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Cardinal Jim Edmonds make a routine catch in the outfield
I was sort of surprise that McFarlane Toys did not decide to recall the most celebrated catch that Jim Edmonds ever made, but of course he was playing for the California Angels and not the St. Louis Cardinals at the time. On June 10, 1997 the Angels were in Kansas City. In the fifth inning, with two men on and the score tied, David Howard of the Royals was at bat with Edmonds playing his usually shallow center field. Howard lined a shot to straightway center. Edmonds turned his back and took off running, then dove, fully extending his body horizontal to the ground, and caught the ball over his shoulder, landing on the warning track a few feet from the centerfield wall. We are talking Willie Mays in the 1953 World Series catching Vic Wertz's blast at the Polo Ground, but instead of the catch and throw we have the dive and a catch. When "Baseball Weekly" named its 10 Most Amazing Plays of all time, the Edmonds catch was #3 (Mays was #2 and Ozzie Smith was #1).

So what we have here for the MLB Series 6 figure is Jim Edmonds in the Cardinals home uniform stretching out to make what would be an ordinary, routine, run-of-the-mill catch for the perennial Gold Glove outfielder. I think he seems to be higher off the ground than he would be in the real world, but then this is an action figure. As always, the fun is in the details with this McFarlane figure: notice that the ball is just about nestled in the glove, the black painted under his eyes, and that the fingers on Edmond's left hand are splayed. Along with the figure of the Minnesota Twins' Torii Hunter leaping over the outfield fence to rob someone of a home run and the New York Yankees' Bernie Williams gliding along to make a catch, this Jim Edmonds figure is one of the few showing a major leaguer on defense in something of a signature pose. Apparently you have to be a Gold Glove winning center fielder to get this special treatment.

awesome
Awesome toys, Toys R Us needs to carry larger varities of each player in the Mcfarlane Sports figures. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Mo Rivera, the greatest all time postseason relief pitcher
Mariano Rivera of the New York Yankees is, by acclamation, the greatest postseason relief pitcher in the history of baseball. At this point in his career Rivera has played in 21 postseason series, including six World Series. In 61 games he has a record of 7-1 record with 30 saves, an E.R.A. of 0.75, and 77 strikeouts against only 12 walks in 96 innings pitched. That one loss comes against the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001, when to the surprise of just about everybody in America he actually blew the save in the bottom of the ninth of Game 7. Not that Rivera has been a slouch during the regular season where he has been an All-Star reliever for seven seasons, having been the game's premier set-up pitcher during the 1996 season, when the current Yankee dynasty won its first World Championship. Rivera had 283 career saves going into the 2004 season and is currently leading the American League in that category. His career E.R.A. is 2.49 and he has not had more than a dozen walks at any time in the last three seasons. The only question now is how many more seasons does Rivera need at this level to make the Hall of Fame, if he is not already at that level. All that post season exposure certainly does not hurt.

This 6" figure from McFarlane Toys has Rivera in the Yankees gray road jersey about to release his patented cut fastball and probably break somebody's bat. Of course since this is the road warrior version of this Rivera figure there would not be the playing of Metallica's "Enter Sandman" when he enters the game like there is at Yankee Stadium, but there is a pinstripe version of the figure as well. Since Major League Baseball retired #42 in 1997 to honor the 50th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier, Rivera is the last player in the majors to still be wearing that number. The only points of articulation on the figure are River's neck and his throwing arm. I like the way River's right toe is barely touching the pitching rubber while the toes on his left foot are actually hanging over the end of the pitcher's mound base.

The MLB Series 9 is the second of at least three series of baseball figures that McFarlane Toys is putting out in 2004. Also included in this series are Dontrelle Willis of the Florida Marlins, Todd Helton of the Colorado Rockies, Magglio Ordonez of the Chicago White Sox, Nomar Garciaparra of the Boston Red Sox, and Andruw Jones of the Atlanta Braves. Yankee fans can look forward to a new Derek Jeter figure with Series 10, but also have to endure seeing both Andy Pettite and Roger Clemens as Houston Astros. There is also a MLB Two-Pack of Jeter trying to turn a double play over a sliding Garciaparra coming out in 2004 as well. ... Read more