Dustin Pedroia - 2013 Topps Gypsy Queen mini - Boston Red Sox
Thursday, November 16, 2017
Throwback Thursday - 11.16.2017
Every Thursday, I post a card showing a ballplayer wearing a throwback uniform from my collection. Hopefully, he will be wearing it well, with proper pants blousing. The picture may be from the front of the card, or the back. Enjoy the uniforms from years past.
Tuesday, November 14, 2017
EXTRA! EXTRA!
In today's world of everything being instant, thanks to the web, Twitter, Facebook and a hundred other sites, the idea of a special edition of the newspaper is something my kids never experienced. Hell - I think I was far too young to even know what a special edition was. I remember the morning paper, afternoon paper and the one they would put out around the time folks left work. But the whole idea of a kid on the corner, shouting about a special print with the latest breaking reports is gone from today's fake news (or "news", as I like to call everything NOT owned by Rupert Murdoch).
A while back, I picked up a blaster of Diamond Kings. I find too many of Panini's baseball releases poor, and that's mostly because of the lack of license. But Diamond Kings does a nice job of improving on what would be really bad images. Some day, I might build the last few releases, but it's low on my list.
But back to the blaster. Perfect shape on the outside. but two of the packs looked liked someone used one of those metal forming machines to bend thick steel into a 90 degree angle.
So I filled out the form at Panini for replacements and it took a few months, but I just received an envelope with the significantly flatter cards. Here's a few of them
How pretty is that Kelly? See - smoke and fog can work, Topps. Just in the right context. Now, in my mailer were 8 cards. In a blaster, it's 5 cards to a pack, so I was two cards short. It's possible those will come at a later date, or maybe they won't come at all. But there were 10 total cards in the mailer. It's just that the other two cards from Panini were in top loaders.
Granted, they are neither teams nor players I collect, but still - hell of a nice gesture from Panini if these are the replacements for the two base cards they could not fill. I can find use for them.
And this songs fits perfectly with this post - trust me on this. In fact, instant contest. Identify WHY this song fits this post and you can pick which of the two bonus cards you want. I read once why it would match up, but good luck finding that answer on the web.
 |
| Shown: standard Word template |
But back to the blaster. Perfect shape on the outside. but two of the packs looked liked someone used one of those metal forming machines to bend thick steel into a 90 degree angle.
So I filled out the form at Panini for replacements and it took a few months, but I just received an envelope with the significantly flatter cards. Here's a few of them
How pretty is that Kelly? See - smoke and fog can work, Topps. Just in the right context. Now, in my mailer were 8 cards. In a blaster, it's 5 cards to a pack, so I was two cards short. It's possible those will come at a later date, or maybe they won't come at all. But there were 10 total cards in the mailer. It's just that the other two cards from Panini were in top loaders.
Granted, they are neither teams nor players I collect, but still - hell of a nice gesture from Panini if these are the replacements for the two base cards they could not fill. I can find use for them.
And this songs fits perfectly with this post - trust me on this. In fact, instant contest. Identify WHY this song fits this post and you can pick which of the two bonus cards you want. I read once why it would match up, but good luck finding that answer on the web.
Sunday, November 12, 2017
Forecast: cloudy with a chance of Paulies
For some reason, I am still using Zistle. Which is dumb of me because at any moment, Beckett will just pull the plug and all my hard work will be done. But with the 5k+ cards I have entered, scanned and cataloged, it's hard to just stop. I export data to be ready, but I can't just run my collection with a spread sheet. It's so much easier to see an image of a card to know if I own it or not. And yes - there are other sites I can move to, but I need to tighten my belt and just shift all my cards there.
The process will not be simple.
But from my currently entered collection, I can see I recently broke the 400 card amount on my Paul Konerko collection. Zistle lists it at 399, but I know there are a few autos that are not in the database, and as such, not tracked. In the past couple months, the Paulies have been coming in fast and furious.
First up is this super sweet duo of autographs from Matt over at Bob Walk The Plank. A while back, I went crazy, bought a pack of Topps Museum and pulled a 1/1 laundry tag of Gerrit Cole. Over the years, Matt has sent me some really amazing cards, so I was more than happy to return the favor with that pull. Now Matt thinks he owes me. I have two Abreu autos in my collection - both sent to my by Matt - along with TONS of other hits, and some how a single 1/1 makes the guy think he is in debt to me. I question his sanity.
But seriously, the generosity of so many bloggers just blows me away. Thanks a ton, Matt.
Two really cool things happen from group breaks. One, you get great cards and two, you are reminded to check the want lists of the breakers and end up pulling a stack of cards for the blogger. That is true for a recent group break run by Colby at Cardboard Collections. He ran an affordable group break on a couple older products, and being as those mid 2000s are shy in my Sox box, I jumped at my team. After the random, I ended up with the Sox and Mets. Then the boxes broke in my favor.
Recent Topps releases are way too heavy with a certain other Chicago team, so it's nice that we are better represented in the older products. This nice pull came out of a box of 2005 Fleer Showcase. I like that Konerko added his number. He really should always sign it as it will never been worn again on the south side. I did really well with the boxes.
Fleer Focus was the other box ripped. These Paulies are dupes, but the Crede was a new add, as is the DP card of Alomar. In fact, the Mets did well in the break too.
Because of the luck of the team randomizer, and the box, I ended up with both hits from the Showcase, snagging a black swatch of Piazza. When I got the Mets, I decided to keep them for the fact that I know a certain Canadian hoser I can ship the cards to. And those should go out when I ship the stack to Colby.
Which at my rate, will be after the change of a few seasons.
The process will not be simple.
 |
| Who's got a hammer handy? |
First up is this super sweet duo of autographs from Matt over at Bob Walk The Plank. A while back, I went crazy, bought a pack of Topps Museum and pulled a 1/1 laundry tag of Gerrit Cole. Over the years, Matt has sent me some really amazing cards, so I was more than happy to return the favor with that pull. Now Matt thinks he owes me. I have two Abreu autos in my collection - both sent to my by Matt - along with TONS of other hits, and some how a single 1/1 makes the guy think he is in debt to me. I question his sanity.
 |
| <photo courtesy: hacked webcam on Matt's PC> |
Two really cool things happen from group breaks. One, you get great cards and two, you are reminded to check the want lists of the breakers and end up pulling a stack of cards for the blogger. That is true for a recent group break run by Colby at Cardboard Collections. He ran an affordable group break on a couple older products, and being as those mid 2000s are shy in my Sox box, I jumped at my team. After the random, I ended up with the Sox and Mets. Then the boxes broke in my favor.
Recent Topps releases are way too heavy with a certain other Chicago team, so it's nice that we are better represented in the older products. This nice pull came out of a box of 2005 Fleer Showcase. I like that Konerko added his number. He really should always sign it as it will never been worn again on the south side. I did really well with the boxes.
Fleer Focus was the other box ripped. These Paulies are dupes, but the Crede was a new add, as is the DP card of Alomar. In fact, the Mets did well in the break too.
Because of the luck of the team randomizer, and the box, I ended up with both hits from the Showcase, snagging a black swatch of Piazza. When I got the Mets, I decided to keep them for the fact that I know a certain Canadian hoser I can ship the cards to. And those should go out when I ship the stack to Colby.
Which at my rate, will be after the change of a few seasons.
Thursday, November 9, 2017
Throwback Thursday - 11.09.2017
Every Thursday, I post a card showing a ballplayer wearing a throwback uniform from my collection. Hopefully, he will be wearing it well, with proper pants blousing. The picture may be from the front of the card, or the back. Enjoy the uniforms from years past.
Fernando Valenzuela - 1994 Score - Baltimore Orioles
Tuesday, November 7, 2017
Blog Bat Around: Mmmmmm....bacon
Let's take a small little break from the scans I am far behind on, cuz really, what's another day - am I right? I decided to have a little fun with a recently blog bat around presented from Collecting Cutch. He spent a month bringing awareness to cancer, which was the most horrible month in the history of blogroll ever.
But a recent blog post talked about linking your favorite baseball player to Kevin Bacon. I have seen a few fun ones, so I decided to have a spin at it, but in my own unique way. As we know, Bacon is 2nd to appearing in the most films ever (to Nicolas Cage), so I decided to select a player that appeared in just a single ball game. The infamous Archibald "Moonlight" Graham. Let's see if I can connect Mr. Graham to Mr. Bacon without using Field Of Dreams. I am talking the actual Moonlight Graham. Here goes:
Moonlight Graham appeared in a single game: June 29, 1905. The pitcher that day:
Christy Mathewson, who was a member of the 1916 Reds with:
Hal Chase. Hal was a player on the 1936 Cardinals with:
Frankie Frisch, who later in his career was on the 1952 Yankees with:
Billy Martin. Eight years later, Billy was on the 1960 Reds with:
Vada Pinson. Vada finished his career with the 1975 Royals, joining a rookie named:
George Brett. George also got to play with a special rookie on the 1986 Royals:
Bo knows he was a member of the 1993 Central Division Champion White Sox with:
Frank broke into acting with a small part in the 1992 film Mr. Baseball starring:
Prior to his big break in Magnum PI, Tom had a very small role in the 1996 film Midway with:
CHIPs star Erik Estrada, who have a role in the 2000 film We Married Margo with the one and only:
Eleven steps. Maybe it can be shorter, but who cares - it was fun to figure out.
 |
| You know what I am talking about. |
Moonlight Graham appeared in a single game: June 29, 1905. The pitcher that day:
Christy Mathewson, who was a member of the 1916 Reds with:
Hal Chase. Hal was a player on the 1936 Cardinals with:
Frankie Frisch, who later in his career was on the 1952 Yankees with:
Billy Martin. Eight years later, Billy was on the 1960 Reds with:
Vada Pinson. Vada finished his career with the 1975 Royals, joining a rookie named:
George Brett. George also got to play with a special rookie on the 1986 Royals:
Bo knows he was a member of the 1993 Central Division Champion White Sox with:
Frank broke into acting with a small part in the 1992 film Mr. Baseball starring:
Prior to his big break in Magnum PI, Tom had a very small role in the 1996 film Midway with:
CHIPs star Erik Estrada, who have a role in the 2000 film We Married Margo with the one and only:
Eleven steps. Maybe it can be shorter, but who cares - it was fun to figure out.
Monday, November 6, 2017
What I need
We all have needs - physical, emotional, financial, spiritual (for some), vocational, and on and on. I physically need relief for some lower back pain, but fortunately my acupuncture meets that. My wife does well with my emotional needs. I have WAY too many financial needs that barely make it each week, but we survive. I could use a new job, many because the stress of it keeps feeding all the other needs on this list. But for the most part, my needs are meet.
But mostly what I need is rest and distraction, which I am taking today by staying home, playing a bit with my cards and writing a post. I also need to give some thanks to probably the people that I most need to send a mailer back, since I am easily two behind to each of them. I need to package up what I have and need to get to the mailbox. But until then, I need to post some scans.
Doug at Sportscards From The Dollar Store sent another package a while back. For as box as my Sox box(s) is, I need these cards in one way or another. I need to buy a box of this year's GQ, but I'll take your Sox if you need to get rid of them. I need ALL your Cracker Jack cards. The originals would be awesome, but the recent set is just fine. And Eaton cards are always needed, as most of my player collections has stalled with a need of money.
I need my Hawks to play a little better, though they had a nice 2 game shutout streak going. Then technically had a third in that streak, just that they were on the zero end of it. But Doug dropped what I think is a complete team set from this year's OPC release. I usually just grab a pack or two, but dang the design is really nice. I might need to build it.
One guy I really need to send cards to is GCRL Jim at Cards As I See Them. And he made sure to remind me with the note inside stating I owe him two. Jim is good people, as you see with the nice range of ChiSox, from a green border of Robinson, and bust in Valentine and a funky chrome of old Comiskey, which was names South Side Park at the time of the photo.
Specialty binder needs? Jim covered all, with multiple bunts, double plays and throwbacks.
Player collection needs too, though technically, I have all three of these. But the Post card was an upgrabe, the Diamond King goes into the Sox Box and the Pierce is a rescue that needed a loving home.
Real quick - a previous owner of that Fox Post card had his own needs, expressed on the back of the card.
Someone needed Spring Break. And spell check.
Last were over a dozen miscuts, including these sweet, sweet cards. I find humor that even though the Hall is miscut, it's accurate. He is on Cincinnati and does have the position of pitcher. I didn't think about the 75s, but is makes obvious sense the bottom of one color would be the top of another team's card. Super vintage miscuts?? Oh, do I need those.
Well, I'll stop here. Now I need to go to YouTube and find an appropriate video for the bottom of this post. I need to think...
 |
| Didn't need this to happen, though... |
Doug at Sportscards From The Dollar Store sent another package a while back. For as box as my Sox box(s) is, I need these cards in one way or another. I need to buy a box of this year's GQ, but I'll take your Sox if you need to get rid of them. I need ALL your Cracker Jack cards. The originals would be awesome, but the recent set is just fine. And Eaton cards are always needed, as most of my player collections has stalled with a need of money.
I need my Hawks to play a little better, though they had a nice 2 game shutout streak going. Then technically had a third in that streak, just that they were on the zero end of it. But Doug dropped what I think is a complete team set from this year's OPC release. I usually just grab a pack or two, but dang the design is really nice. I might need to build it.
One guy I really need to send cards to is GCRL Jim at Cards As I See Them. And he made sure to remind me with the note inside stating I owe him two. Jim is good people, as you see with the nice range of ChiSox, from a green border of Robinson, and bust in Valentine and a funky chrome of old Comiskey, which was names South Side Park at the time of the photo.
Specialty binder needs? Jim covered all, with multiple bunts, double plays and throwbacks.
Player collection needs too, though technically, I have all three of these. But the Post card was an upgrabe, the Diamond King goes into the Sox Box and the Pierce is a rescue that needed a loving home.
Real quick - a previous owner of that Fox Post card had his own needs, expressed on the back of the card.
Someone needed Spring Break. And spell check.
Last were over a dozen miscuts, including these sweet, sweet cards. I find humor that even though the Hall is miscut, it's accurate. He is on Cincinnati and does have the position of pitcher. I didn't think about the 75s, but is makes obvious sense the bottom of one color would be the top of another team's card. Super vintage miscuts?? Oh, do I need those.
Well, I'll stop here. Now I need to go to YouTube and find an appropriate video for the bottom of this post. I need to think...
Thursday, November 2, 2017
Throwback Thrusday - 11.02.2017
Every Thursday, I post a card showing a ballplayer wearing a throwback uniform from my collection. Hopefully, he will be wearing it well, with proper pants blousing. The picture may be from the front of the card, or the back. Enjoy the uniforms from years past.
George Springer - 2014 Topps Stadium Club - Houston Astros
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)