Cliff Floyd vs Willie McCovey

April 4-17, 1994 - Baseball America

We like this comparison so much we put it on the cover. It works on several levels : physical ability, force of swing, surprising speed for big men and competitiveness.

For analysis, we turn the floor over to Hughes, who drafted Floyd for the Expos in 1991 out of a South Chicago High School.

''During his senior year, everybody was saying Cliff Floyd's another Darryl Strawberry." Hughes says, "I was the first to come up with Willie McCovey for Cliff. It's the whole package. In my mind, he's a McCovey that runs better.

"Of course, it might help that I'm from the Bay Area and grew up whatching McCovey on those great Giants teams. Even so, I tink it works, don't you?"

As a matter of fact, Gary, we do. Both men stand 6-foot-4, have ferocious swings and use leather as a (very) secondary weapon. Not that eitther man's defense is horrible. Before knee surgery in the mid-1960's, old Stretch would swing back and forth between first base and the outfield.

Floyd, just breaking in as Montreal's starting first baseman, figures to endure the same tour the positions. Cripes, the man teammates call "Money' played center field in Class A and says, quite modestly he '' could become a superstar" in left field, where defense would occupy less of his time and thoughts.

"I'm not sure Clifford might not end up back in the outfield at some point," Expos director of player personnel Kevin Malone says. "he could utilize his speed better out there. He has a chance to steal some bags and beat you in that regard, too."

Even those who didn't draft Floyd feel comfortable comparing him to McCovey.

"He does reming you of Willie, "Orioles general manager Roland Hemond says.

"They're both massive, huge. They have so much presence. And they look big. Some guys are big but when you see them in person, they don't appear that immense. Floyd and McCovey are both immense.
(go to list)


Off The Bench - A winning Shot
by Jay Johnson

May 1994 Issue #110 - Beckett Baseball Card Monthly

Tom DiPace's big-time photography combines with Cliff Floyd's big-time bat to make this month's cover a true power hit.

This month marks Cliff Floyd's first cover appearance on Beckett Baseball Card Monthly. With Floyd's talent and bat speed, we don't expect it to be his last.

Also this month, Tom DiPace notches his 22nd cover appearance on BBCM. Who, you might ask, is Tom DiPace? Only one of the finest baseball photographers in the business. If you've ever oogled a photo on an Upper Deck card, the chances are good that you were admiring DiPace's work. So we thought you might enjoy a behind-the-scenes peek at what went into this month's cover photo.

DiPace contacted the Expos' publicity department and requested that it contact Floyd and set up a photo shoot. But when Tom arrived at West Palm Beach Municipal Stadium as scheduled, he caught everyone unprepared, Montreal's PR people had somehow gotten the message that DiPace had already taken his photos, so they had not talked to Floyd. DiPace solved that with a quick conversation with Floyd, who was willing to set aside some time for the session.

A more difficult problem was the weather. "It was just gross," DiPace says. "The day was really overcast, and the field was muddy. There was no blue sky. There was just nothing pretty outside, so I decided to move everything into the visitors locker room and set up there."

Despite the complications, DiPace found Floyd an agreeable subject. "Cliff was real excited about getting the cover," Tom says. "He knew the magazine, and he wanted to know what issue it would be on."

The two of them spent more than half an hour together, trying to find the right combination of lighting, pose and angle to let Floyd's personality come through in the photo.

"Personalities really come into play in setups," DiPace says. "I really wanted to make him look big. He's a big guy, and he's known for his power. So in a lot of the shots, I tried lowering the camera and looking up at him to give him that 'majestic' kind of look."

While we ultimately didn't choose one of those shots for this month's cover, we did find one that we thought really brought out Cliff's personality. We hope you agree that it was worth all the work Tom and Cliff put into it. We trust it won't be the last you see of either of them on a Beckett cover. (go to list)

Cliff Floyd Eyes His Future in the Big Leagues
View from a Cliff
by Andrew Linker

May 1994 Issue #110 - Beckett Baseball Card Monthly

Cliff Floyd enjoyed minor league success in this first five months of the 1993 season. In the final month, however, the hot Montreal Expos product encountered major league reality.

The scene: Floyd's first at-bat for the Expos following his September call-up. Pinch hitting against the Philadelphia Phillies. Batting against Tommy Greene. Swinging at fastballs above his hands. Strike out.

Four more strikeouts followed.

"it seemed like every time I stepped into the box, it was an 0-2 count," Floyd recalls.

Cliff, then a 20-year-old megaprospect, certainly didn't expect to start his much-anticipated major league career in such fashion. Not after ripping through the Class A South Atlantic League in 1992 and pulverizing the Double-A Eastern League in '93.

But success eventually followed those five strikeouts: his first hit (off the Mets' Bobby Jones) and his first homer (off David Telgheder, Jones' teammate).

Floyd the wunderkind was on his way. Floyd the pragmatist already was there.

"The first hit is something I'll never forget," Cliff says. "And the five strikeouts are something I won't forget, either."

Collectors consider Cliff's Rookie Cards equally unforgettable. Floyd's 1992 Bowman RC (#678) pictures him in midair dunking a baseball through a basketball hoop - a reference to his fame as a two-sport high school star.

His inclusion in that low-production Bowman set helped make his card a highly sought commodity, despite the fact Cliff had yet to record a major league at-bat.

Among Floyd's early season 1992 issues in his Stadium Club Dome Special (#51). The Dome set design is 1991, but Topps delayed the release until after the 1992 Topps basic set was issued. So the Dome card shared RC status with Floyd issues from Score (#801) and Topps (#186), instead of claiming the status a production year earlier.

A few of Floyd's more prominent 1993 cards are his bowman and Bowman Foil (#354), and Fleer Flair Wave of the Future insert (#5). So many card companies have issued regular Floyd cards that the youngster's dad, Cornelius, has stopped counting.

"I've given up trying to keep up," Cornelius says. "All I'm doing now is telling Cliff when he goes to a card show to bring me back a card."

Minor Success

Collector interest in Cliff rose late in the 1992 season when Baseball America selected him as the top prospect in the Class A South Atlantic League. Cliff led the league with 97 RBI, while hitting .304 with 16 homers and 16 triples for Albany.

The 6-4, 220-pound lefthanded batter garnered similar accolades in 1993. He belted 29 homers with 121 RBI, 33 stolen bases and a .302 average in 143 games spread throughout three levels. Those numbers earned Floyd Baseball America's Minor League Player of the Year honor, as well as the Eastern League ROY Award.

"Besides all the ability, he has the quality that the more pressure is on, the better he likes it," says Jim Tracy, who managed Cliff at Double-A Harrisburg. "I think what we're talking about here is a superstar, aren't we?"

Floyd's achievements take on greater significance considering his competition in '93: Harrisburg teammates Rondell White and Kirk Rueter, as well as stars-in-waiting such as Manny Ramirez of Cleveland and Brien Taylor of the Yankees.

"I think he progressed a little quicker than we had anticipated," says Kent Qualls, Montreal's minor league director. "At the same time, our major league people saw him in spring training, and they were very impressed and thought Cliff would be a force in the future."

Floyd's past carries an equally upbeat theme. He avoided the gangs of his south Chicago neighborhood to develop into a two-sport star in suburban South Holland, III. His promising ability earned Cliff basketball scholarship offers from Notre Dame and Michigan. Stanford and Arizona State, meanwhile, wanted him for their baseball teams.

In the end, Floyd chose vocation over education.

Instead of finishing his junior year in college, Floyd completed his second major league spring training with one goal in mind: to become Montreal's every-day first basebman.

"I think I'm on the right pace," Floyd says of his baseball career. Whenever you get into a profession, you want to move quick. You don't want to drag your feet."

Major Goals

The Expos won't let that happen. The club acquired journeyman first baseman Randy Milligan during the off-season in case Floyd starts slow.

"That motivated me, but at the same time, made me think," Cliff replies when asked his perspective of the trade. "I thought maybe they got him to help me out and give me some tips on first base. I wanted to think anything other than he was going to take my job."

The Expos' front office doesn't think so, especially since Floyd's reminds many collectors of a young Dave Parker.

"I guess it all comes with my success," Floyd says of his hobby prominence. "But I think a lot of it comes from being drafted in the first round." Despite the bright spotlight, Cliff enjoys a reputation as a levelheaded young man. His Montreal teammates noticed it during Floyd's 10-game major league ride last season.

"For a kid to get all that acclaim, you would think he would have a little cockiness, but Cliff doesn't show that at all," Rueter says. "He's just like one of the guys. You'd never know he was a No. 1 pick and that good of a talent."

Floyd plans to maintain his humility even is he becomes a superstar.

"You watch guys like Michael Jordan and Larry Bird, and see what they've had to do," Floyd says. "You want to be the same person you were at 10 or 20 years old. You want to be the same person, but maybe just a little older and a little more mature."

Sounds like the kind of perspective most collectors expect from future stars. (go to list)