Night Owl Cards

If loving you is wrong, I don't want to be right

2012-02-14T14:13:00.000-05:00

So far, this is the baseball-related item that I have received for Valentine's Day. Yes, I'm one of those shallow types who doesn't read the book until I see the movie.

I don't know how much success I'll have with this book. Like dayf, I have reader's block. Only I've been stuck on Chapter 2 of "The Catcher Was a Spy" for two months. I also have this thing about reading books in order. So Michael Lewis will have to get in line behind Nicholas Dawidoff.

In the event that some new cards don't fall my way in the next 10 hours or so, I figured I'd recognize Valentine's Day with the illicit affair theme. I don't know why. Maybe it's just what you do when you've been happily married for 21 years.

So, quick, what is the card set that you feel totally guilty about loving with all your heart?

Time's up.

Mine is 1982 Fleer.

I know I've mentioned this at least a dozen times already. I even ranked '82 Fleer as one of the worst sets of the 1980s, with one stipulation. And that is: It's so gosh-darn lovable. I can't explain how a set can be both one of the worst and one of the most-loved. It just is.

1982 Fleer is awful because of the blurry photos, the off-center photos, the just plain terrible photos. But I also find it lovable because of this:

How can you not love a photo of a player blowing a bubble? This is 1982, folks. Long before Upper Deck was throwing candid, wacky photos at you every third card. Although it appears as if Mills is sitting in the dugout at 2 a.m., I'm pretty certain that when I pulled this card, I stopped and paused because I had never seen a picture like that before.

Another terrific dugout shot. This is how ugly dugouts were in the early '80s. And Pena's shinguards fit with the decor. Contrast that with the bright gold uniform and helmet that he's wearing and this makes for a fascinating card. By the way, is that Dave Parker up top smoking?

Gaylord Perry is 43 years old in this photo. And he's tilting back in his folding chair like a 10-year-old. But that's not the only thing that's tilted. What a great shot.

Some of the best cards in '82 Fleer are the Oakland A's cards. Much like the A's cards in '87 Topps, all of that green stands out in a sea of red and blue uniforms.

But you want action!! OK, '82 Fleer had a few action cards. Some of them goofy, too. But here's one of the better ones. Ben Oglivie has just done something good.

This is one of my all-time favorite George Brett cards. Can you imagine that? 1982 Fleer producing a classic Brett card? Nobody else will understand, but I love you, '82 Fleer.

Actually, 1982 Fleer has a lot of loving qualities. You just have to look for them. Like Jim Bibby looking dazed on a borderline night card at Dodger Stadium.

Or Lee Smith in his Cubs jammies. All of the Cubs cards I have from '82 Fleer show the players in their jammie uniforms. I don't know if they're all like that. I hope so.

And everyone's favorite: Pete Falcone ripping Fleer wax in the locker room.

I've featured many other '82 Fleer cards on this blog: Joaquin Andujar, Hal McRae, Rick Sutcliffe, Bob Sykes, Dickie Noles, the All-Star Game card, Willie Wilson, Tito Francona, etc., etc.

1982 Fleer really is more than just the John Littlefield and Al Hrabosky error cards and the Cal Ripken rookie card.

But I guess you'd have to love the set to know that.

A new favorite Hershiser card

2012-02-13T20:26:00.000-05:00

Sure, this is an attractive, fancy insert card of Orel Hershiser, numbered to 250. Brian of 30-Year-Old Cardboard was super generous to send it to me, too.

But it's not among my absolute favorite Hershiser cards. It's merely great, spectacular and fantastic.

Instead, another Hershiser card that came with this one could be one of my all-time favorites.

Isn't that over-the-top tremendous? I might have to collect the entire 1988 Revco set. Based on what I've seen from the Dodgers cards, it's an entire collection of wonderfully awful pictures.

If Hershiser was centered in the photo, as about 98 percent of the portrait pictures on baseball cards are, it would merely be a charming, late '80s, oddball card of a young Hershiser. A splendid card, but nothing outstanding.

However, I can't take my eyes off those TREES! Those awesome, leafy, city park trees! Magnificence! No wonder the photographer shoved Hershiser off to the side. Look! Trees!

(*pause, to collect myself*)

So, where does this Hershiser card rate in terms of my all-time favorites? Well, once again, I've got no time for that. So, let's compare it to some random classics.

It's definitely better than this item. My goodness, I'm sorry that I'm displaying this card again.

It's along the same lines as this card, although I'd have to give a slight edge to the Wonder Star, because of the unapologetic, insane, unlicensed nature of the whole ensemble.

This card doesn't get a lot of credit because it's from a junk wax set, but I think it's one of Hershiser's finest and the Revco card can't compare.

Yeah, Revco is totally outmatched by this card, too. I'd say maybe only Hershiser's rookie card can stack up with this psychedelic card.

So, the Revco card might not be as smashing as I thought.

The problem is that Hershiser has so many terrific cards. His career spanned the era of the baseball card explosion. Throw in his unexpected World Series success and his bookish looks that don't jive with people's concepts of a major league baseball athlete, and there are just too many memorable cards of Orel Hershiser.

But I'd say the Revco card lands somewhere in the top 25. Maybe the top 30. Or 40. Perhaps I need to compile another list.

While I'm pondering that, here are a handful more cards from Brian:

I just got finished watching the 1981 World Series highlights on the MLB Network. The Series is etched in my brain, but it was nice to relive Cey's performance and see Yankee Tommy John being taken out unexpectedly in the fourth inning of Game 6 and muttering to himself in the dugout.

Thanks for the cards, Brian.

And for helping me remember a time when, you know, the Dodgers actually made the World Series.

Shrinkage

2012-02-13T02:25:00.000-05:00

I haven't always been thrilled by miniature versions of baseball cards. Sure, the 1975 Topps minis were a first love that flourishes to this day. But there have been times when I thought I was getting cheated by smaller cards.

The example that has stayed with me all these years has to do with Kellogg's 3-D cards of the 1970s and early 1980s.

For a collector in the '70s, Kellogg's was the only real alternative to Topps, not that we thought of it in those terms. Kellogg's cards were simply cool, strangely weird cards that you could pull directly out of the box of cereal that sat on the kitchen table. No need to go to a store at all -- well, mom had to go to the store, I guess. Nobody had invented a way for cereal boxes to magically appear on the table yet.

Our only hope for accessing non-Topps cards were through buying the right kind of cereal. It was a pain-staking process. Hostess cards were already out of the question, because "that kind of junk" wasn't allowed in the house. So all our bets were on that box of Frosted Flakes. Through alternate methods of hoping and pleading, we might be fortunate to find a box of Frosted Flakes in the cupboard after a shopping trip.

Then there was the whole drama of which of us three boys would get the card. Oh, the agony.

We ended up ordering the whole set off the side of the box so we'd all get a few cards. But even then you had to wait 6-8 weeks, which we all know is about 14-16 decades in kids' years.

As you can see, we had a lot invested in these Kellogg's cards. So they better well be damn good when they arrived.

For the most part, they were. I had only seen the first six versions of Kellogg's cards (1970-76) here and there. I probably saw a couple '75s and '76s, but had never owned any until the 1977 set arrived.

This is what I knew as the ideal Kellogg's card. A 2 1/8-by-3 1/4 card featuring a color picture of the stars of the day underneath a stretch of ribbed plastic, that combined with the blurry background, gave off a slight 3-D effect.

Since we split the cards three ways among us, no one could have a complete set, but it was a thrill to have even 19 of the cards, and the tradition of ordering them off a box of cereal would continue year after year.

The 1978 set was a particular favorite of mine. And it came in the familiar 2 1/8-by-3 1/4 size. Even though I had seen only glimpses of the Kellogg's cards from '75 and '76, I knew they were also the same size as the ones I was now receiving.

Which is why this was all the more shocking:

The 1979 Kellogg's set was only 1 15/16-by-3 1/4!!! They had shaved off a whole ... a whole .... well, I'm not going to do math fractions at this hour, but they had shaved off a bunch of card!!!!!

I can remember being shocked by the narrower length. I was actually offended, like we were getting an inferior product. The cards didn't seem "cute" or charming to me. It might've been one of the first times that I had ever experienced consumer outrage.

However, a year went by and we were ready to order the cards once again.

And they were even SMALLER. The cards were now 1 7/8-by-3 1/4. The cards practically were shrinking before my eyes!

Today, I consider all Kellogg's cards as classics, and I'm happy that I hung on to the cards that were rationed off to me. But I was so disgusted at the time -- and I'm assuming my brothers were, too -- that this was the last year that we ordered Kellogg's cards off the cereal box.

So I never knew until years later that Kellogg's would move in the opposite direction in 1981 and 1982. In '81, Kellogg's put out the biggest cards it ever produced at 2 1/2-by-3 1/2. The 1982 cards were only slightly smaller at 2 1/8-by-3 1/4.

I also didn't know that Kellogg's had downsized long before, when it first started issuing cards. The 1972 Kellogg's cards were 2 1/8-by-3 1/4 after the 1970 and 1971 cards were 2 1/4-by-3 1/2. If I was a collector in 1972, I'm guessing I would have been infuriated by that move.

Kellogg's also went to a larger, non-3-D card set in 1973 before returning to 3-D and the 2 1/8-by-3 1/4 size that I knew and loved in 1974.

In 1983, the last year of the Kellogg's golden era, the cards returned to the tiny 1 7/8-by-3 1/4 size that they were in 1980. Then Kellogg's cards vanished until 1991.

In 1991 and 1992, Kellogg's put out a series of cards that were produced by Sportflics, which was basically Kellogg's 3-D cards to a younger generation. I have to admit, this Hank Aaron card is a hell of a lot cooler than this scan. I even find it much sharper than a lot of Sportflics regular-issue cards of the time. But I don't think it's 3-D.

It's also a hefty 2 1/2-by-3 5/16 in size. I'm sure it was a lot easier fishing a card that size out of a bunch of cereal than when I was collecting Kellogg's cards.

Today, I hold my late '70s/early '80s Kellogg's cards in higher esteem than any non-Topps cards of that time period. I like them better than Fleer or Donruss or Hostess. And like 1975 Topps minis, they are a true connection to my childhood, no matter what size they are. But I have no idea why Kellogg's played with the size of its cards so often.

I think I just had great expectations of cards then because cards were a bigger deal at that time and that age. You couldn't find them at every Walmart and Target. And even when you did see them at the corner market or drug store, that didn't mean you could afford them.

So when we got them, we wanted them the best that they could be.

And, you know what? They were.

Lineage. Done.

2012-02-12T12:02:00.000-05:00

Hey! I completed a set released in 2011!

So what if it's Feb. 12, 2012! A complete set is a complete set!

2011 Topps Styrofoam Peanuts ... I mean, Lineage is finished!

Those are the last four cards that I needed.

Lineage just edged out Allen & Ginter for the 2011 set that I completed first. I was really rooting for Allen & Ginter because A&G is better than Lineage in almost every way.

But Lineage vs. A&G isn't a fair fight. Lineage is 200 cards. A&G is 350. Lineage has no short-prints. A&G has 50. If I wasn't so ambivalent about the Lineage base set, I probably would've completed it long before A&G.

Instead, Kyle4KC of Jabo's Baseball Card Blog sent me the last four Lineage cards that I needed, while I'm still one card short of completing Allen & Ginter.

The last four cards sum up my attitude about Lineage. I've owned the Wainwright and Berkman cards before -- in fact I pulled them in my very first packs of Lineage -- but I have probably traded away half of the Lineage set because up until a couple of weeks ago, I had no intention of finishing it off. I think I had the Oswalt card, too -- I don't know, it's too hard to tell, all the Lineage cards look alike to me.

And speaking of looking alike, here's something to make you recoil in horror:

UNO!!!!!

Lineage will never live down its card backs. I'm convinced that's the reason why Topps isn't producing 2012 Lineage (hopefully, its announced Archive set is an improvement on this set's concept). Of course, the real reason Lineage isn't around for another year is that collectors didn't buy enough of it.

I was the rare case. In my quest to complete the '75 mini inserts in the set, I bought way more Lineage than I should have. In fact, there are a bunch of rack packs hanging in the Target a few miles down the road that will disappoint me if they don't hop in my shopping cart the next time that I'm there.

Lineage wasn't all bad. I wouldn't have completed it if it was.

It had my favorite insert set of 2011. In fact, I liked many of the inserts in Lineage. The mix of legendary players is nice, including a few players that we haven't seen a million times. Sure, they did something wacky with the Sandy Koufax cards, but there isn't a set out now that doesn't have Topps' dirty tinkering fingerprints.

And I can't argue with a set with no shortprints.

So here's a half-hearted "yay!" for Lineage and for completing it.

Hey, at least it's not "no-hearted." There are plenty of collectors who want to burn this set in front of the state courthouse. I've only called it styrofoam peanuts.

Thanks, Kyle4KC. Really.

2011 Topps Styrofoam Peanuts is complete.

Mini week: Some mini human likenesses

2012-02-11T03:50:00.004-05:00

Sadly, we've reached the end of mini week. It's been quite a ride and not at all a well-disguised series of trade posts.

Why would you even insinuate something like that?

Anyway, for my final mini post, I have some mini offerings from Rod at Padrographs, and they're not even cards.

If you remember back to this post, I mentioned that I received some miniature Dodger "figurines" from Rod, along with the very cool book that I am proud to own.

I don't know if "figurines" is a technical term. I try to avoid any conversation that includes the word "figurines." And now that I've used "figurines" four times, I'm thinking of closing down my own blog out of shame and confusion.

So without further embarrassment, here are the three mini-figuri ... er, figures that I received:

Each of these little guys is 3 1/2 inches tall and made out of your typical Made-in-China toy plastic material.

I have no idea what they are, or where they were sold, or if they were a one-time deal. But I DO know who they are supposed to represent.

The guy on the left is Chan Ho Park. The guy in the middle is Darren Dreifort. And the guy on the right is Kevin Brown. I know you're thinking that these figures don't look anything like the players that I just mentioned and that I must have terrific powers of deduction. But it's not that. It's not even that I looked up the uniform numbers that are displayed on each figure. Nope. It's just that their names are painted on the backs of their uniforms. Just like the real players!

From seeing this collection of these three players, I know that these were made somewhere between 1999-2001, when all three were in the starting rotation. My guess is it was probably 1999 or 2000 as all three were double-figure winners each year.

They're pretty cool, and they'll go on my shelf next to my miniature Dodgers tractor trailer and my miniature Dodgers pick-up truck. But that's about all the room I have for that kind of stuff. Baseball cards take up all the rest.

Speaking of which, Rod DID send me some cards.

Here is a '75 Lineage mini Roberto Alomar. This is a double, meaning this card will probably end up with Robert.

This is someone called Scott Schebler from last year's Topps Pro Debut. I have no desire to collect any Pro Debut cards, although I always invite Dodgers. Even guys named Scott Schebler, who may turn out to be swell. But I just don't have the patience for that.

Another guy who made his pro debut in 2011. The back says he is the grandson of "a college football player." Thanks for narrowing it down, Bowman.

A chromed-up, tatted-up Justin Sellers. I'm not supposed say stuff like this about current Dodgers, but guys who look like this just remind me of Lenny Dykstra. Is that an ideal long-term goal, to become like Lenny Dykstra?

I always appreciate 1967s in the mail. I'm also mesmerized by miscut cards that are in otherwise incredible shape. It's like someone said, "aw, it's miscut, the poor card has gone through enough. Make sure you don't crease it!"

I really appreciated the eclectic package, Rod. I got three blog posts out of it. That's pretty good!

Getting back to the mini-figures: If anyone knows where they come from, I'd appreciate the knowledge.

Meanwhile, this brings Mini Week to a close.

I really do appreciate packages with mini cards ... or mini non-cards. I'm sure I'll be showing some more in the future. But this will be the first and only mini week.

In the meantime, remember that old collectors saying:

There are no small cards, just mini cards.

Um ... or, something like that.

Unwanted Topps gold inserts? We pay top dollar

2012-02-10T09:19:00.000-05:00

ATTENTION!!!!

What would you do if someone HANDED you a LOAD OF CASH???

Are bills piling up?

Can't find the money for your next sneaker payment?

TURN YOUR UNWANTED TOPPS GOLD INSERTS INTO CASH!!!!

Gold is worth more than ever!

And we're paying TOP DOLLAR!!!

We're the ToppsGoldInserts4Cash Experts! Located at Main Street and Sycamore, next to the liquor store and across from Quiznos, we offer higher prices than ANY of our competitors!!!

We'll buy ANYTHING!!!

Unwanted Mickey Mantle gold inserts!!!

An Ernie Banks insert that you never look at anymore!!!

We'll even take your broken inserts and turn them into CASH!!!!

Come on! You've got all these gold inserts just laying around the house!!

(*Testimonial from a young woman who looks like she just got out of a dysfunctional relationship, but doesn't look like she's reading off a cue card AT ALL: "I handed in my Derek Jeter gold insert given to me by my first husband one month ago ... and I GOT CASH!!!!!!!)

That's right! We'll give you cash for your LAME JETER INSERTS!!!

We pay you the best possible prices for ALL of your lame Topps gold inserts, scrap Topps gold inserts, even those scrap gold coins that Topps is trying to pawn off on collectors! We buy it ALL!!!!

Some companies pay you only one-third of the value of your belongings. But we understand what these gold inserts are worth to you. We'll pay you for them in one business day!!!

So come on down to our convenient location. Our gold experts will meet you in one of our private, secure booths. Satisfaction guaranteed! ... Or host a gold inserts party in your home!! In front of witnesses!!!!

What are you crazy? Don't get ripped off putting your Topps gold inserts through the mail!!! You may never see your money or your inserts again!!!!

Come on down to Main Street and Sycamore! Across from Quiznos!!!!!!

It's easy.

Or go to: gold4lameToppsinsertsthisisnotarealwebsiteaddress.com

GET CASH FOR YOUR WORTHLESS INSERTS!!!!

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(Disclaimer: This is not a real commercial or a real offer. I don't want your stupid gold inserts, keep your dirty gold inserts to yourself. Yes, I really ripped up an Alex Rodriguez gold insert. I told you I'd do something nasty to the card. It's lucky that's all I did).

Mini week: an avalanche of '75 minis

2012-02-09T20:14:00.000-05:00

I go to a card show about three times a year that is billed as the biggest card show in the state.

I don't know if that's true, but the show has plenty of cards for my taste. I can find almost everything that I'm looking for -- vintage, current cards, oddballs, junk wax, mojogenic hits, you name it. Of course, I'm far from the pickiest collector, so that show will always have something I want.

But there is one thing that I have never seen at this show: 1975 Topps minis.

I'm sure there are plenty of other types of cards that never show up at this show, too. But I'm not looking for those cards. I am looking for '75 minis. And I always come up empty. I suppose if I actually inquired about whether anyone has any, I might ended up looking at some. But I always get distracted by something from '71 or '56 or something shiny.

So imagine my surprise when I received three separate packages in the mail in the last two or three weeks, each of which contained a significant stack of '75 minis. How is this possible? Where do they find these things?

I'm aware that you can find all the minis you want online, but my guess is most of the cards from these packages came from card shops. I've heard that there are card shops out there that just have '75 minis lying around like they were 2008 Topps. I can't imagine what that's like. If there was a card shop like that where I lived, the following would happen:

1) I would never patron a Walmart or Target again.
2) I'd have my meals delivered to that card shop because there is no way I'd ever leave.

However, the best I can do is experience those card shops vicariously, through the blog posts of others. And through the card packages of others.

And, damn, that's pretty good in itself.

The first group of minis are from Johngy of Johngy's Beat. I already showed the terrific Ken Reitz upgrade that he sent me. Here are the rest of the cards:

Personal favorites are the Dave Lopes card, which I need for the team collection, the Richie Zisk mini, as he was interview subject a few years back, and the John Odom card, which was one of the first cards I pulled in '75.

Each of the blue-green bordered cards, Horton, Forsch and Bell, take me back to that first year of card collecting.

I wonder how many pitchers in this set are in the exact pose as the top three cards? Close to 75 maybe? The Dave Cash was an instant favorite that year.

Johngy's cards arrived first and were amazing to view. Then dayf of Cardboard Junkie sent a card package probably a week-and-half later.

That's a Wise Old Owl he drew.

The '75 minis in this package were totally unexpected. But I've heard about the card shops in Atlanta. They're probably using Nap Lajoie cards for bookmarks in some of them.

Good stuff! The cards in the top row all have childhood connections. The Tenace card was another one of my favorites, although now I look at it -- and if you airbrushed the A's logo off his cap -- he looks like some goober in a slo-pitch softball game.

I love the David Clyde and Frank Tanana cards. But the Dick Allen card is the best by far. I don't think there is a single '75 Dick Allen card -- regular size or mini -- that is even close to being centered.

I snuck the Gypsy Queen Ethier card in here. Dayf sent that, too. But I'm more enamored with the Dock Ellis and Boomer cards. And the Darold Knowles card, which is a mini version of probably the first card I ever pulled from a pack of cards.

So, impressed with all those '75 minis yet?

Wait ... there's more.

Mr. Haverkamp has been sending me some cards for awhile now. I haven't quite gotten a handle on what he collects, although I did recently send him a couple of cards. But I should get my act together and find more because of what he sent recently:

I can tell you exactly what I was doing on the two different occasions when I pulled the Garry Maddox and Rick Monday cards out of their packs. And I now I have them in mini size!

Here we have a Fat Tub of Goo, King Kong, Hot Dog and Cookie.

Moret, Tepedino and Davis are the first cards in the set after the Highlights subset. But my favorite is Cesar Tovar, as the regular-sized card was the first card my brother pulled out of a pack of cards.

Pure '75 greatness here. Gamble is a classic. The Stottlemyre card was an instant favorite before I knew that Yankees were dirt. The Morton card reminds me of one of my lesser moments in '75.

Some of these cards are doubles just because all three of these packages arrived at once and I don't think I had my full want list in place yet. But I sure could use them in a lot of cases. At the very least I'll send them out in card packages.

Pretty cool, eh?

I received a few other non-minis from mr. haverkamp.

All are off the ol' want list. Terrific, mr. haverkamp. Many thanks.

But back to the minis.

All of those cards put a significant dent in the want list. But that want list is 660 cards strong, and I still have a long ways to go. Yount, Brett and both Aarons are still out there.

But I'm enjoying this project a lot and I don't care how long it takes.

It actually might go rather quickly if everybody's cool card shops stay open.

Awesome night card, pt. 136

2012-02-09T02:31:00.002-05:00

I picked up my 300th follower on the blog sometime Wednesday evening while I was at work.

I figured I'd acknowledge that somehow, although I have no idea what to say. I selected this Upper Deck Fun Pack Manny Ramirez card because it's the only night card I have scanned of a player who hit over .300 for his career. Commemorating a 300 milestone with players who hit .300 seems like the thing to do -- at least on this blog.

As I've often said, when I started this blog I never expected more than a handful of people to read what I wrote here, let alone 300 regulars (although some have disappeared from their blogs, sadly). I have an enthusiasm for writing and for baseball and for baseball cards, and there are some moments in the day or week or month or year when that is ALL that I want to do. So, that's what I do, whether people want to read it or not.

Still, like a lot of bloggers, I find myself getting caught up in "is this something people want to read?" I've weighed how something will go over before I write it.

But I do less of that these days. Ninety percent of the time I just write what I feel. But every time I write, there is a love for cards involved. Every time. I hope that is apparent, even when I'm bitchy.

I write this blog for myself, but others read it. And my hope for those who read it is that they'll always find the blog fun and that my interest in and love for cards is always there.

That's it.

I suppose if I was someone else and I reached 300 followers, I'd go call up Topps or Panini and request that they sponsor me and send me free product. But I'm not really built that way.

What you see is what you get here. I like cards. I like writing about them. No other motives.

Well, unless I've had a really bad day. Then you might read about something else.

Anyway, I feel like I've written all of this before, and I probably have. I've really I've run out of stuff to say for milestone posts.

So, I'll end it and say, as always, thanks for joining me.

And following.

But not too closely, please.

(P.S.: If I lose a follower and dip below 300, don't be a jerk and point it out. Thanks).

-----------------------------------------------------------

Night Card Binder Candidate: Manny Ramirez, Stars of Tomorrow, 1994 Upper Deck Fun Pack, #1
Does it make the binder?: Yes. It boots the 2003 Bowman Garret Anderson card. Sorry, Garret, Manny did a lot better for the Dodgers than you did.

Mini week: one for the cause and others just because

2012-02-08T20:49:00.000-05:00

First, a message for Shelly.

Shelly, darling, thanks for the invitation. I'm glad that you like my blog. But I bet you tell that to all the blogs. In fact, I've been looking around, and you DO tell that to all the blogs.

I'm not interested in your free collectors zone, whatever that is. I'm not good in groups and I don't like people advertising on my blog. So I will keep deleting your come-ons all day (and all night) long.

And, finally, learn how to spell "website."

OK, up above is a '75 Lineage mini from Cardboard Catastrophes. It's a card for the crazy cause of collecting all the '75 Lineage minis. I have a handful more on the way, but even with those I probably need like 85 more.

That's OK. This is a long-term project. Because I'm not collecting 2012 Heritage and 2012 Gypsy Queen and whatever else, I'll be slowly adding '75 Lineage minis. It's been a lot of fun so far. I love seeing that mini stack grow and picking it up and leafing through it ... I know part of that sounded dirty, but I don't know how else to say it.

Here's something to snap you back to reality:

Thrilling, eh? Those are three regular Lineage cards that I needed for my supposed quest to complete the base set. These also arrived from Cardboard Catastrophes, as he's the Lineage king.

I need four more cards, I think. I just don't care enough to check the list.

But I sure do appreciate these cards! Really!

OK, back to minis.

I picked up these minis from Cards From the Quarry. He was offering some tiny replicas of 2011 A&G, and I just can't resist offers like that.

I'm not even attempting to complete the mini set. I just think these cards are so cool that I have to grab them at random while I can.

My goal is to have more minis from this set than I have from any other A&G set. I accumulated the most in 2008, so I'm shooting to pass that total, whatever it is. As you can see I've mapped this out very carefully.

But that doesn't mean that any of these aren't available for 2011 Dodger A&G minis. Still looking for Broxton, Loney and Ethier. If you've got them, let me know.

I have to show one more non-mini card, also from Cards From the Quarry, before wrapping this up.

It's drunk Campy! Hugging his bottl ... er, glove.

I was hoping my new scanner would scan these as they look in person -- like you're looking at booze in a glass. Unfortunately, they still have the camouflage look that you've seen before.

At any rate, I'm very pleased by this card.

Thanks for the cards. And thanks for liking my blog.

Except you, Shelly.

2011 Allen and Ginter, an update

2012-02-08T13:42:00.001-05:00

No, I haven't received the Manny Ramirez card already. The One-Card Challenge doesn't work that quickly.

It's just that the usual has happened.

I should never announce my set progress until I put that set into a binder. The binder reveals what the want list doesn't -- what cards I am REALLY missing from the set.

After placing my 2011 Allen and Ginter cards in a binder yesterday, I discovered to my horror (I have experienced this horror about 57 times, so I really shouldn't be horrified anymore), that there were two other blank pockets besides the Ramirez card at #316.

The second blank pocket -- #101 -- I filled easily, to my relief. Peter Bourjos was sitting in my dupes stack as I suspected. I was just happy that I hadn't traded it off.

The other blank pocket houses card #77.

Of course, a Dodger card.

This card is already in my Dodger binder, which is why I'm not going to the One Card Challenge post and removing my Ramirez request. I still need only ONE card. I HAVE the Furcal card. I just don't have two of them.

As every team collector who also gets suckered into the task off collecting a set knows, you need two of every card that features your favorite team.

I know what happened in this case. I THOUGHT I had two cards already.

But it's actually one of those code cards, which is my least favorite part of Allen & Ginter easily. Will someone figure out this blasted code so we can never, ever do this again, PLEASE?

But even though I realized that I needed a second non-code Furcal card, I didn't sweat it. I figured it was in my large stack of Dodger dupes from the past year that I haven't organized yet.

But I leafed through them all, and it's very apparent that bloggers did not collect Allen & Ginter like they did in previous years. I found just one 2011 Allen & Ginter Dodger dupe. And it wasn't Furcal.

So, Rafael Furcal is back on my want list. Oh goody.

I'll probably take the one I have now and move it to my Allen & Ginter binder, just so I can keep the charade ... er, fact that I need only one card to complete the set going.

Me and my stupid completion fixations.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

I have created a temporary (maybe) list on the sidebar of new card blogs, with links to those blogs.

Since I can't update my blogroll with new blogs, this list will remain until Blogger can fix whatever it broke.

If you have a card blog that isn't on either list, let me know, and I'll get it on the temporary list.

Mini week: Some mini Jackies, but first a rant about Blogger

2012-02-07T19:32:00.000-05:00

I've heard the complaints from Wordpress users who say they aren't able to comment on Blogger blogs anymore, or are only able to through a great deal of effort.

That's tough to hear. I like comments. But even a Blogger user like me has noticed the comment set-up isn't the way it used to be -- Blogger is tinkering with something for some unknown reason.

But I have a different complaint about Blogger and it has to do with following blogs.

I follow many, many card blogs. Blogger lets you officially only follow 300 (why, I don't know), but if I could follow more I would. I have been at the maximum for probably a couple of years now.

Not being able to follow as many blogs as you want is a minor inconvenience, but for a long time it wasn't too difficult to handle. If a new blog came along, I would merely search out a blog that hadn't posted in like a year, delete that blog from my following list, and add the new blog. That way I'd still be at the 300 number that Blogger thinks is so important.

Then Blogger changed its dashboard layout. I've got the basics figured out, but the reading list is irritating to me. It seems there is a function to add blogs but there is no function to delete blogs. If I want to delete a blog, I have to go to the old layout, and even that is crapshoot, because most of the time when I try to delete the blog there, Blogger defiantly spits back a bunch of nonsensical letters and numbers. It never seems to be in the mood to delete blogs.

But I HAVE to delete blogs if I want to add blogs, because of the idiotic 300 limit.

If there is something I'm missing here, please fill me in.

So, I've basically given up adding and deleting blogs through this format. It's deflating because I like to appear on other blog's followers lists, but I can't if I can't add or delete blogs on my readers list. (So if you don't see me as a follower on your blog, don't be offended).

Instead, I moved on to adding blogs to my blogroll. That always seemed to work. I just had to remember to check my blogroll when I was reading because I'm more in the habit of looking at the dashboard.

I would also delete off the blogroll blogs that hadn't updated in like 6 months, just as a courtesy to the bloggers who regularly put out content.

Well, Blogger has gone and messed that up, too. I have tried to add new blogs to the blogroll and Blogger does let me add it to the list. But then it enters into some eternal saving mode that NEVER ends and eventually I give up and the blog never gets saved.

This is very frustrating. I just want Ryan's Pitch and Get That Bat Off Your Shoulder and The Dutch Card Guy and St. Louis Cardinals Cards to know that I have tried to save your blogs to the blogroll repeatedly and have failed every time.

Blogger doesn't even let me delete any blogs off the list either. It's apparently still thinking about saving my choices.

Then there are the blogs that have changed their names, especially Wordpress blogs. Blogger doesn't like that either. The Cardboard Don changed his blog name to "The Cardboard Don" a month or more ago. I've changed the name repeatedly, too. But Blogger continues to insist that the blog is still called "My Past Time ... I Love It"

Arrrrrrrrrrrgghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!

Fortunately, the Cardboard Don doesn't let the fact that my blog keeps listing his old blog name bother him. Or else he wouldn't have sent me these cool cards!

Here is one of the mini Jackies I referred to long ago in the post title. It's from Topps 206 a couple years ago.

I can say it's a version I don't have yet because it's an American Caramel back. And I hate myself every time I differentiate between a card just because of the stupid ad on the back.

Here's a Jackie mini that brightens my mood considerably. This is an exclusive promo card from the 2008 National card show. The Cardboard Don even wrote on the penny sleeve "It's a promo! Yay!"

Yay indeed! How awesome!

It's a card from the Yankee Stadium Tribute A&G set that was issued in conjunction with the National. I'm pretty certain this is the coolest card in the whole set. The rest is probably filled with Yankeeness.

I figured you'd want to see other cool cards from The Cardboard Don, even if they weren't minis. It doesn't get much cooler than the Walmart black cards. I think this particular Casey Blake card -- and all its parallels -- will be Blake's lasting legacy in a Dodger uniform.

Ten years from now, Dodger fans will be going "remember Casey Blake?" And the ones who aren't bitterly spouting about Carlos Santana will say, "hey, yeah, wasn't he the guy sliding into home head-first on that card?"

More coolness. An xrefractor of the Dodgers' starting left fielder in 2012. I don't care what Colletti says, it will happen.

This card is also cool, although a bit sad considering where Kuroda has ended up. I'm pretty sure I can blame Russell Martin for this, too. Which makes him all the more evil.

I thought I'd move onto older times. Writing about current Dodgers gets me cranky. The shiny Don Zimmer card is amazing to me, not because of the shininess, but because my new scanner has already picked up so much dust.

I love an Eric Gagne relic card. I sure have enough of them. One day I will find out if Shawn Green or Eric Gagne had more relic cards for the Dodgers. Of course, you have to keep sending those cards to me for me to get my answer.

Oooooooh! Aaaaaaaah!

That is an amazing card. There are a lot things to potentially hate about my new scanner, but one of them is definitely NOT how it scans refractors. That is SO cool.

Allen Webster is a pitching prospect that is expected to end up in the Dodgers starting rotation in two or three years. It could be sooner, given some of the duds that are filling spots now.

As always, The Cardboard Don has an unlimited supply of cool cards and it's very nice of him to share with fellow bloggers.

I wish I could get his blog's proper name on my blog. I realize that Blogger is free of charge and everything (well, except for me who has to pay 5 bucks every year so I can upload as many pretty pictures as I like). But I just want it to do what it used to do -- allow me to add and delete blogs and to change blog names if needed.

But if Blogger really wants to make me happy, it will figure out a way that I can follow as many blogs as I like.

That would be as awesome as that Allen Webster autograph card.

The one-card challenge: my turn

2012-02-07T02:42:00.001-05:00

I received this card in the mail on Monday. It came from hiflew who runs Cards From the Quarry. It's the 349th card that I have obtained in the 350-card 2011 Allen & Ginter set.

Ever since I declared my frustration with the set, that I have had a more difficult time completing the set than in past years and that I didn't know whether I would try to complete it for a fifth straight year when 2012 A&G came out, I have received what can only be described as an outpouring of assistance in helping me finish off the 2011 set.

Most of the credit can go to Brian at Play at the Plate.

In one quickly sent package, he knocked off 17 of my needs from the set.

There's the first group of them. I have a new scanner and there are infinite things that I don't know about it, including how to get nine cards on a scanner bed. So you're going to have to live with things like borders being cut off.

There's the other group.

Whoops ... that card on the bottom left is definitely not Allen & Ginter. Brian slipped in an xrefractor of James Loney. It kind of stands out.

I believe seven of the A&G cards that he sent are short-prints. That's a whole lot of short-prints to have on hand -- I hope Brian's got the set completed.

Of course, he had an ulterior motive. Like a few bloggers, he would appreciate it if I do attempt to collect 2012 Allen & Ginter. He even mentioned in a note that the cards were a little incentive in that area.

But I'm still not sure that I'll go that far. Something else is going to have to convince me. And they already put Hope Solo in last year's set, so it can't be that.

A couple of other guys sent A&G cards, too.

The Cardboard Junkie sent both of these cards. Robert from $30 A Week Habit also sent a Sabathia card, so now I've got a second short-print if anyone needs it.

Throw in the Justin Morneau card at the top, and I am now down to needing just one card to complete 2011 Allen & Ginter.

You know what that means.

I'm putting in a plea to the One Card Challenge.

In fact, I've already written my request in the comments on the One Card Challenge post.

This is the first time I'm calling on the OCC myself. And I'm hoping to have the success that some other collectors have had.

It's really not a difficult card to find. Sure, it's a short-print, but it's not like I'm looking for a mini from a rip card or something super obscure.

This is the card that I need:

Yep. It's Manny. Card No. 316.

I know if Manny was still a Dodger, I'd already have this card. I'd probably have two or three of them.

But now I'm asking someone to send me a Tampa Bay Ray. An ex-Tampa Bay Ray. Or a soon-to-be Oakland A. Or a guy loafing around his mansion.

Anyway, I NEED THIS CARD.

Come on, One Card Challenge! Do your thing!

Mini week: How a group break led to '75 miiiiinnnniiiiiiiiiiiissssssss!!!!

2012-02-06T19:07:00.000-05:00

More than ever, I am cautious about entering group breaks. Sometimes it's for money reasons, but just as often it's because the sets being broken will yield a bunch of dupes for my collection.

As a team collector I've accumulated quite a few Dodgers cards. I tried to figure out how many about a year go and came up with a guess-timate. I'd say I've added a few hundred more since then. And I've probably added about the same number of doubles.

So I'm wary when another group break is announced. Nachos Grande, which holds a lot of group breaks, held one a month or two ago and the sets featured were ones where I didn't need many Dodger cards. I was going to skip it. But then Chris said that he'd be opening a box of 2001 Upper Deck '70s Decade.

Goodness gracious, I love that set.

Even though I had all the base Dodgers from the set, I was hoping for a hit or an insert of the Dodger variety. Even one of those would be worth the price.

So, against my best judgement, I entered. And I didn't get much. No insert from the UD '70s set that I didn't already have (just one that I did).

Fortunately there were a few cards that met a need:

1999 Flair Showcase will always turn up some team set needs, since every player in the set has like three different (or probably more) versions of his card.

Whoops, there's another Flair Showcase Todd Hundley now!

I know you're asking, "how is it possible that the Hundley here and the Hundley above it are from the same set?"

And I say, "you're asking me to explain '90s cards to you? I can't do that."

More Fleer stuff from the close of last century. This was the only Fleer Gamers Dodger that I needed out of the group break. By the way, I hate that phrase. "He's a gamer." Ugh, yuck. Stop it.

Fortunately, I was able to finish off the 2000 Fleer Tradition Dodgers set with this card here.

And this card was a total surprise because Terry Adams is shown as a Cub. For some reason I didn't have this on my want list. Probably because I could smell the Cub-ness of the card even though I didn't have it. Losing stinks. Literally.

But as good as these cards were for filling some holes, the best part of the break were the White Sox I received.

Yes, I just said "the best part of the break were the White Sox I received." You'll never read that sentence from me again, so enjoy it.

Each group break participant received another team and my team was the White Sox. That allowed me to get this card:

Yay! An Upper Deck '70s card that I needed for the set. Will this get me off my comfy computer chair and compile a want list for this set? Probably not.

But I didn't hang on to any of the other White Sox. Instead I packaged them up to send to Jeff at My Sports Obsession. The package is still sitting on my desk because it's patiently waiting until I have $1.95 to go to the post office.

But the cards from Jeff already arrived and I sure do like them.

Jeff had to re-open the package and throw this card in after I asked for it. I enjoy the Manny side of the card mostly. But the right side of the card is good for a hoot because Holliday is pictured as a Rockie but listed as an Oakland Athletic. And the caption says "cut from the same cloth." Which cloth would that be? Rockies cloth? Athletics cloth? Upper Deck, you make it too easy.

But this is the point of the post right here. I was able to transform those unwanted White Sox into 1975 Topps minis!!!!! WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here is a double of one such mini, which until a few months ago would be absolutely mind-blowing. Mini doubles? WoWoWoWoah!!!! A Cardinals or Reds or Indians or Twins fan can probably expect one of these some day.

Speaking of mini dupes:

Two minis of one of the most iconic cards of the '70s!!!! Wow. And, I already have a mini Herb Washington. So that means, with three versions of this card, I seriously, seriously need to find a working address for Herb Washington to get a signature because I have a few of his card to spare!

Anyone know an updated address?

There were a couple more minis needs in the package. Jeff said he found them cheap at his LCS, which staggers my mind because:

1) The only card shop near me seems to be repulsed by anything that wasn't created in the last decade.
2) Forget about that because I'm distracted by something else ...

Is that a 1963 Post Don Drysdale????

Sweet Big D, it is!!!!

This is the first early '60s Post Cereal card that I have ever owned. I keep hearing about how cheap they are in relation to other vintage star cards. But every time I see these at a card show, I can't afford them.

Wow I love this card.

So, that is how I turned White Sox into '75 minis and a Post Cereal Drysdale.

And that's how you make a group break work for you.

Cards will be sent out this week, Jeff!

(P.S.: Of course, I decided not to enter Nachos Grande's latest break, and he goes and pulls a Dodger hit).

C.A.: 1990 Upper Deck Bill Buckner

2012-02-06T03:16:00.002-05:00

(There is nothing that will make me happier to see an NFL season end than the Giants winning the Super Bowl. I've suffered through this fate four times now, and it doesn't get any easier. Bring on the pitchers and catchers! Time for Cardboard Appreciation. This is the 133rd in a series):

Upper Deck is known for making some vaguely snarky cards on the sly during their early days. The book "Card Sharks" documents some of it.

I haven't read the book so I don't know if this Bill Buckner card is mentioned. But Upper Deck seems to be making a rather obvious comment on this card that came out four years after Buckner famously let a ground ball go through his legs in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series.

Was Upper Deck yucking it up because they found a photo featuring a giant black hole between Buckner's legs?

If so, UD had a lot of company. Buckner jokes filled the airwaves back then. He was the subject of late-night jokes and the target of hecklers in the stands. After his career ended, he moved his family to Idaho and didn't make many public appearances. Death threats will do that to a person.

Then 25 years went by, and the mood changed.

Buckner has received a hero's welcome in Boston. The Red Sox have won two World Series since his error.

Buckner appeared in my town three days ago. With Mookie Wilson, the man who hit that ground ball in 1986. The two make a lot of appearances together now. They sign autographs at the same table together. They sign the same items together -- Bill Buckner's signature on one side of a jersey and Mookie Wilson's signature on the other side. They give speeches at the same dinners. They get paid from the same company.

Buckner seems to have come to terms with his place in history. He even appeared in an episode of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" last September, an episode that poked fun at his misfortune.

At the appearance in my town, Buckner wasn't all giggles and jokes. Not quite grim-faced, but all business. He signed a few items, he answered a few questions (he said the play was a bit overblown "if I had caught the ball, would the Red Sox have won the World Series? You can't even say that."). He said everyone in life must deal with setbacks. It's how you handle them.

But most of us don't have our setbacks aired repeatedly on television. Or indirectly referred to on baseball cards -- if that indeed was the case.

Which is probably why, at this signing, that Buckner opened up a beer before he started signing, and that bottle didn't leave his side.

If I was Billy Buck, I'd probably do the same.

At least he's making a little money off of the whole thing.

Mini week begins

2012-02-05T13:52:00.000-05:00

This week on the blog is going to feature several posts with mini cards.

I've received a bunch of card packages lately -- I am farther behind than I've been in at least a year -- and many of them contained cards that are mini in stature. That's not a coincidence as I've mentioned, oh, a couple of times, that I love mini cards.

But not all mini cards, and fortunately my fellow traders know this.

My favorite minis are 1975 Topps minis. After that are the Lineage minis that pay tribute to the '75 minis (on the card front anyway). After that are Allen & Ginter minis. I collect these even though I know right from the start that there is no chance that I will ever complete a set of them. Then there are a few other random mini sets that I like that I can't recall right now.

Minis that don't do anything for me fall smack in the era of overproduction. Those Topps minis from the late '80s with the "dream sequence" look are just OK. The wood-bordered minis from '87 are sort of cute, but definitely meh. The Fleer minis? Nice try, but you can't do what Topps did in '75. And those micro minis from the early '90s are just destined to get lost.

But the first minis of the week that I am showing are from Captain Canuck at Waxaholic, and they are minis that I didn't even know existed.

These are from 2009 Upper Deck. These are the cards that got UD in trouble because they resemble 1975 Topps, even though UD says they're OPC cards.

I remember the regular-sized cards that were inserts in '09 Upper Deck. But I had no idea there were mini versions, too. The minis are the exact same size as '75 Topps minis. Given their similarities to '75 Topps, I'm already hooked.

Once I get the massive '75 Topps and '75 Lineage mini completion quests out of the way, maybe I'll start on this one.

Look, the Captain wants me to collect it, too. He sent a random Cub from the set also. ... Oh, this is very dangerous.

Let's back away slowly and move on to some other non-mini cards he sent.

Perfect. Triple Threads. I have no intention of ever collecting anything related to Triple Threads. But I do appreciate a Pee Wee Reese card. This card isn't too bad. It doesn't have the horrid design patterns that I see on most Triple Threads cards.

There's the horrid design pattern now. But Clayton overwhelms any frame that surrounds him with his greatness. This is the "sepia" parallel. But between you and me it's actually "brown."

The most unfortunate part of this card is that it mentions on the back that Kershaw's uniform number choice is related to Will Clark. But that's OK. Clayton is forgiven.

Sparkly Kemp! Sparkly Kemp! Sparkly Kemp!

Did you all just do your Sparkly Kemp dance around the living room like I just did?

You should have. Try it when the Super Bowl gets boring later. It'll be the most interesting thing that happens tonight.

I was so excited to see this card. It's probably the most notable Dodger diamond parallel from last year that I still needed.

There are still others out there that I need though: Blake, Barrajas, Broxton, DeJesus, Thames and the Ethier/Kemp card.

OK, that's it for the first post of Mini Week.

Not all the posts will be about mini cards. I have to mix it up to keep things interesting.

Although I can't possibly see how mini cards would not be interesting.

Great moments in "birds on baseball cards"

2012-02-05T00:15:00.000-05:00

As the baseball card blog world's night owl, I feel obligated to keep tabs on things like this.

I haven't come across very many birds on baseball cards. Granted, I haven't looked through my entire collection. I don't have time for stuff like that. But you'd think there would be a stray bird here or there walking on the field during spring training drills or even soaring through the sky in the distance in the background.

There doesn't seem to be much of that.

Personally, I think it's because birds are freaked out by baseball players. They have their reasons, as you'll see in a moment.

But despite their absence, I am going to chronicle instances of birds on baseball cards, whether they're real birds or not. I will update this post as I find more. Also, if you find some, let me know. I'll include scans if you'd like to email them, or I'll fetch the card in my collection if I have it.

I know there are birds on old-timey tobacco cards, but I'm trying to keep this to baseball card sets if possible.

What I have so far:

1975: In the mid-1970s, the Royals feature a relief pitcher named Doug Bird. He probably faked out a few of our flying feathered friends who thought there was a real bird on the team and flew over to the stadium to check it out. Sorry birds, just a guy dressed in a powder blue outfit.

1981: Mark "The Bird" Fidrych is the best-known "bird" in baseball at this time (no offense, Rick "The Rooster" Burleson). Fidrych isn't a real bird either, but the bird community is happy there's a player willing to take up their cause.

1982-84: The Famous Chicken appears in Donruss card for three straight years. The Chicken is just a dude dressed up like a bird. But fans seem to like the cartoon characterization, giving birds more confidence around the ballpark after the Dave Winfield-seagull incident of Aug. 4, 1983.

1993: Vernon Wells Jr., father of Blue Jays and Angels outfielder Vernon Wells III, paints a portrait of Andre Dawson on an Upper Deck team checklist card. The portrait includes a painting of a hawk, Dawson's nickname. We birds could not be more proud.

2010: Allen & Ginter ends a dark period for birds and baseball (see: Randy Johnson, dove, March 2001) by including a mini insert set of national animals. Featured in the set is the Ashy-Faced Owl. This night owl insists on owning this card and receives it from two different collectors.

2012: Some call them a nuisance. Some say they're mean and aggressive. Some say they're fast-food junkies. But seagulls make history in the 2012 Topps set as they are featured prominently on card #172. Not even Reed Johnson seems to mind. But if he had any hot dog wrappers in his back pocket he might.

Aware of any other Birds on Baseball Cards?

Let the night owl know!

Hanging out with 2012 Topps

2012-02-04T01:31:00.002-05:00

This will probably be my last 2012 Topps analysis post. I'm running out of things to say about the cards, and I know how quickly people get bored these days. The cards have been out for -- what, four days? -- I could have tweeted about 7,000 different subjects in that amount of time.

But I've already purchased the hanger box, so I've got to show you what was in that. It's my obligation.

The key thing about hanger boxes is that you buy one. Only one. If you buy more, you're going to enter collation hell. Collation can be an issue no matter what packaging you prefer, but for some reason it seems much more condensed and apparent in hanger boxes. I almost live in fear of when the series of horizontal cards pops up because I know I'm going to get duped in the head.

Fortunately, I kept it to one box and I avoided doubles. Except one. One that you wouldn't expect.

But you'll have to wait on that. We must go in order. This here is exactly how I pulled the cards while just hanging out in the recliner watching some Netflix-provided '80s comedy. Good times.

Cards:

#1 - Ryan Braun, Brewers

If Topps would use Matt Kemp for -- I don't know -- SOMETHING -- maybe it wouldn't have to deal with the uncomfortable PR problems it gets into when Braun/Clemens/A-Rod/Bonds end up on the front of their wrappers and card No. 1 in their sets.

#161 - Dee Gordon, Dodgers

One of two Gordon cards in Series 1. Nice card, but not as nice as Gordon's 2011 Update card. And, no, I don't care that Chipper is in the photo.

#93 - Skip Schumaker, Cardinals (stop thinking about the stupid squirrel)
#197 - Brendan Ryan, Mariners
#20 - Craig Kimbrel, Braves
#12 - Wilson Ramos, Nationals

#269 - Jason Vargas, Mariners

Great old-school uni, although I don't know why Seattle would want to remember those days.

#56 - Geovany Soto, Cubs

#143 - George Kottaras, Brewers

I should know who the Dodger is in this photo, but I don't. My tattoo identification system is on the fritz.

#104 - Brett Anderson, A's

#324 - Active A.L. RBI Leaders (Rodriguez, Thome, Giambi)

I'm not thrilled with these as I already am bored by the league leader layout and Topps goes and adds more cards that look just like the cards that bore me.

But I'm also confused. Thome is shown as an Indian and listed as an Indian on the back. But he also has played for A.L. teams in the White Sox and Twins. Are his RBI totals with those teams included in the list? The blurb at the bottom says "stats of active MLB Players while playing in the American League" so I think they are included. So why list him only with Cleveland? Why does Topps do nonsensical things?

#136 - Casey McGehee, Brewers

This appears to be everyone's favorite, along with the Reed Johnson seagulls card. But this card is only my favorite if punk-ass Gerardo Parra is OUT.

#130 - Asdrubal Cabrera, Indians
#239 - 2011 A.L. Batting Average Leaders (M. Cabrera, M. Young, A. Gonzalez)
#159 - Active N.L. RBI Leaders (Chipper Jones, Pujols, Helton)
#200 - Miguel Cabrera, Tigers
#246 - Bud Norris, Astros
#85 - Jason Heyward, Braves

#144 - Marlon Byrd, Cubs

#163 - Justin Turner, Mets

#152 - Chad Billingsley, Dodgers

I like this hanger box.

#270 - Starlin Castro, Cubs
#227 - Mike Minor, Braves
#321 - Jason Bourgeois, Astros
#96 - Grady Sizemore, Indians

#192 - Active N.L. Home Run Leaders (Chipper Jones, Pujols, Andruw Jones)

OK, I've been asked about this card on more than one occasion. How do I feel about Topps showing Andruw Jones as a Dodger on this card?

Well, I'm not ecstatic about it. But I'm not saying anything more than that, because I know that Topps just did this to get a rise out of Dodger and/or Brave fans, because why else would you do something like this? And I won't dignify this with any outrage. Good day, sir.

#108 - Albert Pujols, Game 3 of World Series

Kind of an odd photo with all the people featured here -- both on the field and in the stands -- but if there is a card of every game in last year's World Series, I'm a happy camper.

#220 - Jay Bruce, Reds

#5 - Desmond Jennings, Rays

That's a photo you don't see everyday. Pretty cool.

#225 - Michael Pineda, Mariners

#296 - Brayan Pena, Royals, Walmart blue parallel

I can't think of a better card to get the blue border treatment. And this is a Dodger fan talking.

#31 - Brent Morel, White Sox, Walmart blue parallel

Step aside, Carlos Lee. I think I pull more cards of this guy.

#13 - Vernon Wells, Angels
#155 - Matt Cain, Giants
#301 - Alexi Ogando, Rangers
#226 - Ryan Hanigan, Reds
#47 - Luke Hochevar, Royals
#126 - Eduardo Nunez, Yankees

#222 - Chris Coghlan, Marlins

I like the Marlins' new colors. I'm not ashamed to admit it.

#110 - Mark Teixeira, Yankees (fish face)
#48 - Wade Davis, Rays
#317 - Tyler Chatwood, Angels
#258 - Jon Jay, Cardinals

#39 - James Loney, Dodgers

50 doubles this year, James. Or you get sent to Seattle.

#323 - Jason Isringhausen, Mets
#212 - Active A.L. Wins Leaders (Wakefield, Sabathia, Buehrle)
#274 - Alex Liddi, Mariners (my first rookie I've never heard of -- I like this hanger box much better than yesterday's packs)
#33 - 2011 A.L. RBI Leaders (Granderson, Cano, A. Gonzalez)

#58 - Tim Hudson, Braves

Great card. I believe this is from Hudson's two-run home run on June 20 last year against the Blue Jays. He produced the only runs in a 2-0 win for the Braves. Hudson also pitched eight shutout innings.

#59 - Rangers, ALDS, Game 4

Small quibble. The ALDS is not the World Series. There is such a thing as an ALDS logo. Use it.

#263 - Steve Delabar, Mariners

#297 - 2011 N.L. Earned Run Average Leaders (Kershaw, Halladay, Lee)

Bam! My first Kershaw card of 2012. I love that he's above -- or to the left of -- Halladay and Lee.

#77 - 2011 N.L. Home Run Leaders

BAM! And Kemp is to the left of Fielder and Pujols. Life is sweet.

#85 - Jason Heyward, Braves (gold)

Uh ...

If you remember yesterday's post, I pulled the gold version of Heyward THEN, too.

See?

What are the odds of that? What are the odds of picking up two random packs and then a random hanger box and getting the exact same gold parallel?

Or maybe the Heyward gold parallel is double-printed.

That would be ugly.

#GM-47 Carlton Fisk Golden Moments

Totally cool that it's Fisk and not a Yankee or a Giant. But still these inserts suck.

#TM-32 Tommy Hanson, Braves, '87 mini

These are sort of nice because I like minis -- even though the Topps minis from 1987 did not look like this. But '87 was a year of ignoring cards for me, so I have no attachment to these at all.

#GG-34 Mickey Mantle, Golden Greats

There's the Yankee now.

#GS-9 Willie McCovey, Gold Standard

And there's the Giant.

I can't get over how poor the inserts are. It reminds me of the inserts you used to get in 2007.

#GF-16 - Mike Trout, Gold Futures

I agree with everyone who says this looks like an Upper Deck card. Which means I don't like it.

#TT-22 Aparicio-Castro, Timeless Talents

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

#GGC-3 Miguel Cabrera Golden Giveaway code card

The back says this card "will allow (me) to unlock a unique online experience."

I'm scared.

#307 - Vance Worley, Phillies

#203 - Jeff Niemann, Rays
#140 - Troy Tulowitzki, Rockies
#316 - Nick Blackburn, Twins
#18 - Colby Lewis, Rangers
#328 - John Lackey, Red Sox
#148 - Chris Getz, Royals
#327 - Mark Kotsay, Brewers
#78 - Erick Aybar, Angels
#217 - Rangers, ALCS, Game 6
#183 - Addison Reed, White Sox

Sorry, I got bored at the end there.

Thus ends the hanger box, and any other long blog posts about 2012 Topps.

From here on out if I talk about 2012 Topps, it'll probably be about some quirky little thing I've noticed, or news that I've completed the Dodger team set, or just because I've posted vintage for 18 consecutive days and I'm losing my 18-34 demographic.

But you guys continue to keep on posting 2012 Topps.

I'll be reading.

Really, I will.

You haven't seen 2012 Topps quite like this

2012-02-03T00:28:00.000-05:00

I refuse to apologize for being the 58th blogger to feature a 2012 Topps post. It's the high holy week of collecting! What am I supposed to do -- dig in the dirt until I find a tobacco card that somebody buried in 1898? THE FIRST CARDS OF THE SEASON ARE OUT, PEOPLE!!!!!

This is what we do!

Even if you're not collecting the set (*ahem* me). Even if you don't like the design (*ahem* me). Even if you hate going to Walmart and overhearing conversations like this -- "the doctor didn't find nothin'" (*ahem* ME!). You still buy a few of the first freakin' cards of the season! They're a $1.98 a pack! Is this going to kill me?

No.

And it's not going to kill you to look at them again. I promise I'll have something different to say. At the very least, I'll scan every card that I got in these two packs. If I had to stand in line behind some girl sucking on her boyfriend's neck, then you're sitting through every card.

Besides, you might learn something. Besides the fact that girls do this.

Cards:

PACK 1

#168 - Blake Beavan, Mariners

The first card of the year is -- a guy I've never heard of before.

I think that might be the first time that has happened since I was 10 and I knew exactly 34 major leaguers. This is not good.

#266 - Carlos Corporan, Astros

I've never heard of this guy either. And Topps is mocking me with the alliterative names of their supposed "major league baseball players."

By the way, if it was 1981 and you came from the future of 2012 and handed me this card with your robotic arm, I would be officially freaked out. Not by the robot arm, but by "what in the world is this space dude wearing?"

#281 - Mark Trumbo, Angels

OK, I've heard of him. But so far with the first three cards, we have a collective four years and one at-bat of major league experience. Is this really 2012 Bowman?

#GG-55 - Hank Aaron, Braves

My first experience with a 2012 insert and Topps' obsession with gold. I'm instantly bored.

#GGC-5 - Golden Giveaway code card, Matt Kemp

Remember two years ago when the Million Dollar Giveaway was a new thing and we were beating on the door of the website all frothy-mouthed, screaming "THE SITE'S UP! THE SITE'S UP! OH, SWEET HEAVEN, IT'S UP!!!!! BUT IT'S TAKING 45 MINUTES AND I STILL HAVEN'T REDEEMED MY CODE! HAVE YOU REDEEMED YOUR CODE? HAVE YOU????? OH NO!!! THE SITE'S DOWN! OMG! THE SITE'S DOWN! WHAT'S WRONG WITH TOPPS!! WHAT'S WRONG WITH THEM? I'LL KILL EVERY MONKEY THEY'VE GOT WORKING ON THIS THING!!! WHERE IS MY CARD! OH WHERE, OH WHERE? I'M GOING ON A HUNGER STRIKE UNTIL THE SITE COMES BACK UP!"

Flash forward two years. I could wait until June to redeem this card without breaking a sweat.

#219 - Jordan Pacheco, Rockies

Back to 2012 Bowman. No idea who he is. Got his first call-up in September. Geez, Topps, wait until Series 2, please.

#41 - Devin Mesoraco, Reds

Another September call-up. Yeah, this is a set I want to complete.

#31 - Brent Morel, White Sox

I only know who he is because I pulled like 47 different cards of him last year. Still has barely two years of major league experience.

#83 - Bobby Parnell, Mets

Holy crap! Someone who has played for 4 years!

Parnell gets rewarded by being the first back subject:

I applaud Topps for continuing the front design theme to the back. It's done that the last few years, and I like it.

Aside from that and the giant card number, it's a pretty dull back. I'll call it "workmanlike." That's a stereotypical editor word.

#73 - Brandon McCarthy, A's

I found out that McCarthy was on the A's only last week. But I blame my American League West ignorance for that.

#52 - A.L. Earned Run Average Leaders (Verlander, Weaver, Shields)

Zzzzzzzzzzz. It's about three years past time to retire these. I like league leader cards and I think they should stay, but the presentation has GOT to change. I look at these and my mind glazes over.

#291 - David Freese, World Series, Game 6

This is the card of the pack. That stupid surf board is obscuring the image, but I love that there is a card commemorating this game.

Even the back is cool.

Unfortunately a corner of the card is dinged. It might be because I opened the first pack in the car in the parking lot, and then I dropped a french fry on the cards, and I panicked trying to flip the cards out of the way of the french fry.

Yes, I was opening cards in the car while eating french fries. I swear I am not 450 pounds.

PACK 2

#311 - Jon Danks, White Sox

OK, let's talk about the design, shall we?

I don't like it. In fact, I don't like it so much that I don't want to call it The Surfboard Set, even though the graphic element on the bottom does look like a surfboard. But the design doesn't deserve a title as cool as The Surfboard Set. Because the whole design element looks like it was created by a high school art student who had three months to come up with a design and waited until the final night and came up with ... this. In a complete panic.

You know what it really looks like? It looks a late '80s/early '90s Score set that has grown a tumor. That's the image I get in my head. Early Score. With a tumor. Score didn't go to the doctor in time. And now it's got a tumor. It's the Tumor Set.

Is that negative? Gee, sorry. Hate to be negative.

#290 - Curtis Granderson, Yankees

Remember when he used to be cool?

#37 - Mike Napoli, Rangers

The postseason stud. I bet he had a hell of an offseason.

#85 - Jason Heyward, Braves, gold

JAY-HEY is GILDED UP! That's a pretty snazzy card. A certain Braves fan was nice to me with a card package recently. I'll be sending this off to him.

#GS-13 - Alex Rodriguez, Yankees, Gold Standard

Yuck. Bad insert. Bad man. Bad team. Come and get this card because I'm a day away from hurling it in the parking lot next to where I work. The crows sleep in the trees by the thousands there and just paint the lot with poop all night long. Yeah, that's an appropriate fate for this card.

#202 - Andrew Carignan, A's

One guess as to who this is. ... September Call-Up? September Call-Up. Has anyone done a September Call-Up set? I mean besides 2012 Topps.

#97 - Jim Thome, Twins, checklist

Saved by Jim. Here is a look at the checklist:

Click on it if you want to read it. Dodger fans, there are three Dodgers in the first 70 cards (#11-Hong-Chih Kuo, #39 - James Loney, #69 - Dee Gordon)

#74 - Kevin Correia, Pirates

Cubbie in the background. I don't feel like figuring out who he is.

#289 - Casey Kotchman, Rays

It looks like the ball slipped out of his hands.

#72 - Rex Brothers, Rockies

I blame myself for not knowing a guy who appeared in 48 games last year AND is named Rex Brothers.

#88 - Javy Guerra, Dodgers

Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh!!!! First Dodger of the year. The reigning closer.

#284 - Tony Gwynn, Dodgers

Wow. Back-to-back Dodgers. Now THAT'S the way to end a pack.

That'll boost my spirits.

So, my initial reactions to 2012 Topps?

About the same as my reactions before I had the cards in my hands. Not as good as the last three years. Disappointing design. Uninspired inserts. Good-looking photos. Glad I'm not trying to complete it. Way too many players who haven't done a damn thing in the majors.

And there you are, the first 2012 cards on this here blog.

I told you I'd buy some.

In fact ...

Part 2 is coming tomorrow.

I bought a hanger box, too.

Come on. ...

At least I didn't pick up any of those blasters.

You complete me, O-Pee-Chee, Part 2

2012-02-02T13:16:00.002-05:00

Now that I've completed the 2009 O-Pee-Chee set, I could explore the other possibilities with this set. I could try for the master set. I could get really insane and collect all the black borders.

But I am neither that devoted nor that insane. So until I am that will be it for me.

Especially since recently I also finished off the black-border Dodgers team set.

The last card came from Robert of $30 A Week Habit. It was the O-Dog card pictured here. No doubt he is fielding a weak pop-up from a San Diego Padre.

The black border cards are one of the best things about '09 OPC. Hell, they were one of the best things about 2009, period. Name something else. And if you mention a certain something about the Yankees, we're not on speaking terms.

Anyway, I am very happy to show all of the Dodgers right here. Twenty-two cards is certain easier to handle than the 600 cards I scanned the other day.

Here you go:

Thank goodness I finished it off before everyone pictured here ditched the Dodgers. There's only seven players left playing for them!

I suppose I'm not truly done with this set if I want to complete the whole mini Dodger set, too. I've got a long way to go there (for someone who enjoys mini cards so much, I'm not too fond of these ones).

Robert also sent some other cards. I keep undermining his Serial Numbered Insanity quest by finding cards there that I want. He's so good to send them to me.

So I've got:

Another black-bordered card, a black refractor of Odalis Perez from 2006. Numbered 100/549.

A 2011 Triple Threads Sandy Koufax, numbered 1499/1500. I just don't understand why Topps has to make Triple Threads look so ugly.

And the flatest Chrome card I have seen in three years (honestly, not a curve to be found). A purple refractor from 2011 of Dee Gordon. Numbered 376/499.

Again, I hope Robert doesn't end up with these three numbers as the last ones he needs.

And on another note: Hey! Looks like I got in two posts within a 24 hour period! Night Owl is ba ...

Ah, crap, the rest of the day is booked solid.

Mets collectors have the best Nomo cards

2012-02-01T19:14:00.000-05:00

The other day I saw that Spiegel received a record number of Hideo Nomo cards in one package. It was like 70 cards or something.

I don't ever get that many Nomo cards at once. But then I don't have the guy's name in my blog title. Just imagine if there's ever a player named "Night Owl." I'll set the record for having the most cards of that guy.

Fortunately, I do know some Mets collectors. And they always seem to have great Nomo cards. I'm not sure why. Possibly because Nomo spent a stray year in New York. That 4.82 ERA got all of New York fired up and there was a run on Nomo cards.

Anyway, I was contacted by ... Joe at The Sandlot about a fancy Nomo insert that he pulled, which you see here. Isn't it great? I have to figure out how to store this card with a light shining behind it at all times.

I also received these other two cards from Topps Gallery. The first one is Nomo's regular base card from the set -- I think, one never knows with '90s cards.

The second card is some sort of ad card. On the back there is all kinds of information about auction points, and how these points can go toward bidding for fancy artwork, and after getting only a quarter of the way through the write-up, my only question is -- did any card collector in the '90s have a job? What was with all the contests and hoops every collector had to jump through during this decade? Can we just enjoy the card, please?

Moving on to a couple of Nomo cards from Max.

Max has sent many Nomo cards to my address, all very appreciated. Here, I'm displaying a Marquee Matchups card from '96 SP. I have the diecut version of this card already. I imagine you are supposed to pair it up with some player from another team that I don't care about in one big superstar clash bonanza. But I'd rather just have the half of card with Nomo. It's easier to display and I don't have to see whatever ugly player is on the other side.

The second card is one of Nomo's many rookie cards. Look! It's a baseball card! See? There's a bat and a ball and a glove! That means baseball!

Come on, UD3.

Of course, Max had to send me some other cards. You know the type.

This is not just any 1975 Ron Cey card. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

It's a '75 O-Pee-Chee! This is very, very exciting.

I have known only one back to the '75 Ron Cey card since I was 9. This particular card back looks so freaky. If I had received this card in '75, I would have memorized all the French on the back in a matter of days. Now? Give me a couple months. But I'm already intrigued that they printed "derriere" on the back of a baseball card.

Hee, hee! Remember when we cared about back variations? I have three different backs for this one card. Who cares about this? Anyone?

I'm told there are no gold parallels in 2012 Topps. No big loss. I would like just one Topps base card set without any mention of gold. No gold and no foil. One year. But they'll never do it. Because Topps is ADDICTED.

Probably the only 2011 American Pie card that I really need. The shelf-life of that set sure was short.

Jackie represents a segue into the Bums portion of the cards Max sent. I'm sure he's got a lot of Gil Hodges cards, given his Mets ties.

Don't get excited. These are not actual, incredibly well-kept, early '50s Bowman cards. These are reprints from the mid-1980s. I didn't even know they were reprinting stuff like this in the '80s.

Some Ted Williams Company goodies. The Joe Black card means I merely need the Tommy Davis to finish off the TWC set. Who knows how many inserts are left as I had never seen that Duke Snider card before.

OK, the next image will either amuse you or make you cry:

If these look familiar, it's probably because you know them respectively as a 1954 Topps Johnny Podres card, a 1957 Topps Don Zimmer card and a 1957 Topps Jim Gilliam card.

Only these are a little more focused on the subject.

Each of those cards were cut down to little rectangles by some derranged kid, apparently. Although I shouldn't place blame, as I did the same to 1977 Topps 4-player rookie cards.

I have the actual Podres and Zimmer cards already. The Gilliam makes me a little queasy, though.

I guess I'll end it there. I don't want any other cards to get hurt.

Many thanks to the Mets collectors. They always come through.

By the way, you may have noticed I've been posting just once a day lately. That hasn't been a planned scheduling thing. I just haven't had the time with all the life seriousness going on. I'll try to get back to regular posting, but the life pattern hasn't been promising the last several months.

We'll see.

You complete me, O-Pee-Chee

2012-01-31T19:43:00.000-05:00

I've found another perk of not collecting 2012 Topps. No cards with squirrels!

While I was off driving hours through the snow last night (why? well, for my job, of course), the blogs and those things I don't pay attention to (re: forums/Beckett) were flipping out about 2012 Topps and squirrel cards.

It was enough to make me stop at Walmart at 3:15 a.m. on the way home to see if there was any 2012 Squirrel to sample. But there wasn't, and I made it home alive and without a squirrel post. I was never so relieved on both fronts.

Of course, the best part of partially ignoring this year's cards is focusing on all of those past collecting goals that collected dust while I collected cards that I didn't even want in my collection. (That's what new cards are good for -- sweeping under the rug all those sets that you haven't finished).

One of those goals was finishing off the 2009 Upper Deck O-Pee-Chee set.

For those who weren't collecting in 2009, OPC was a strange set. It appealed to traditional set collectors because it is a 600-card set on traditional cardboard stock with an old-school design and a mix of portrait photos and action shots that reminded people of collecting in the '70s or early '80s.

But it was a bit quirky, too, with some strange photos and oddball decisions that made me both love it and ostracize it. I went from criticizing it (P.S.: I still hate studio shots), to ripping it, to ridiculing it, to declaring my undying love for it and my final declaration to collect the whole darn goofy thing.

And I did.

The final three cards that I needed for the set arrived in the mail over the last few days.

The Cardboard Don supplied Justin No I'm Not Going to Pronounce It, along with several other fine cards that you'll see another time.

GCA supplied the other two cards. A much-loathed studio shot and a guy who did very little for the Dodgers last year.

And with that, '09 OPC is the 24th base set I've completed (I am excluding teams sets and insert sets). In fact, I've already added OPC to the "sets I've completed" list that I wrote up last June. Yup, I haven't finished off a set in that long -- longer in fact.

However, there are a few sets on the horizon that I expect to finish off in the next month or few months. So, look for those.

But before you do that, look at this:

All 600 cards.

I did this because I like to share.

And because I'm the Mad Scanner.

Anyway, a big, big thanks to anyone who sent me a card for the completion of this set.

You may now return to your regularly scheduled squirrel programming.

teamconfusion4u.com

2012-01-30T19:23:00.000-05:00

All right, I'm already regretting the title to this post, and I'm still not happy that I'm going through with writing this at all.

But my job on this blog is to document my collecting journey, and this is a part of that. Just know that this is a small, small, small inconvenience in what is a wonderful asset to the hobby.

Teamsets4u.com made my want lists what they are today. I haven't even accessed the site fully -- I know there are many other sets listed there that I need to add to my want lists. But if you scroll through the entire page of my want lists, it will take you a little while anyway. I owe that to teamsets4u.

It is an invaluable resource for team collectors. Every set painstakingly separated by team.

It's an amazing undertaking. All that patience, all that time.

I find periodic errors, which are perfectly understandable given the massive number of sets issued through the years, especially since the early 1990s. There is no way you couldn't screw up with all the ways sets confused collectors throughout the last two decades.

While going through teamsets4u, I've come across Expos listed as Dodgers and other obvious mistakes that haven't been an issue. I know that Steve Rogers never pitched for the Dodgers.

But there's one error that has tripped me up periodically. It's when a player is listed with the Dodgers, but he actually had recently left the Dodgers and appears in the set with another team. A couple days ago I was looking through last year's Heritage team set on teamsets4u and saw that Russell Martin was listed under the Dodgers. But he's obviously featured with the Yankees on his card.

I've often taken teamsets4u's word for it, listed the card as one that I needed on my want list, then much later realized that it was not a Dodger card and quickly erased it thinking "phew, glad no one sent me that card."

This time I wasn't so lucky.

This wasn't a case of a player recently leaving the Dodgers and being listed incorrectly with the Dodgers. This was the case of a player with the same name as a well-known Dodger.

Quite some time ago, I acquired the Ramon Martinez card that you see at the top of the post to complete my 1993 Topps Stadium Club Dodger set. Or so I thought.

Several months ago, I realized that there was a second Ramon Martinez listed under '93 Stadium Club in teamsets4u. This one was numbered 322. The one that I had was numbered 71.

"Crap," I thought. "There are two Ramon Martinezes in this set."

I assumed that's what it must be. In '93, we were well into the era of players receiving multiple cards in one set. I didn't necessarily like it and think it adds to confusion like this, but I shrugged it off as the game that I have to play if I want to collect modern era cards. Besides, Stadium Club had those Member's Choice cards. Probably one of those.

I dutifully listed "1993 Stadium Club Ramon Martinez (#322)" on my Nebulous 9 because I wanted to be done with the set once and for all.

Then months of blissful ignorance went by until a package from Johngy's Beat arrived and one of the cards to fall out was this:

Wha? Ramon Martinez -- a MARLIN?

I flipped over the card and, sure enough, it was card No. 322.

I'd been duped by teamsets4u.

This particular Ramon Martinez never made it to the major leagues. He never even made it above Double A. Shame on Stadium Club for creating a card for him in its set.

I'm sure Johngy was wondering why I had posted a Marlins card on my Nebulous 9 list.

Fortunately, another Nebulous 9 need was met in the same package:

This is 2006 Upper Deck J.D. Drew #243. There are two J.D. Drew cards in '06 Upper Deck. But I knew for a fact that both featured him as a Dodger, so there was no surprise here.

See? I get these things right some of the time.

Also, Johngy sent every last remaining 1993 Topps gold Dodger card that I needed:

I think this is the first gold team set that I've ever completed. Cool!

I'm still reserving the '75 minis that Johngy sent for another post.

Meanwhile, I'll remain firmly dedicated to teamsets4u. And if you're a team collector, I recommend that you use it, too. You'll come across a few glitches, but really they're minor. So what if you end up with a Marlins card from the early '90s? Small price to pay.

There is a contact email on the site for questions, and I've considered emailing to point out these small issues. But for some reason I've hesitated. I guess I just don't want to be THAT GUY who says, "Hey great site. You've got mistakes here and here and here."

Of course, maybe that's what I just did.

The opposite of going to a card show

2012-01-29T14:53:00.000-05:00

I was supposed to be at a card show today. But for this show the weather likes to play tricks on me. Throw in a cash shortage, and I'm home instead with nothing exciting going on at all.

So I thought it'd be appropriate to open a pack of 1991 Donruss Series 2, supplied by Padrographs. It's the opposite of going to a card show.

Well ... the real opposite of going to a card show is probably sitting in a dentist's chair, or getting mauled by a rabid possum. But staying within the hobby realm, I think opening an obscenely overproduced pack of unattractive cards is a long way from visiting table after table of vintage.

In terms of Donruss from the junk wax era, 1991 sits near the bottom for me. I've dubbed it the "Fisher Price set" more than once (although it hasn't officially received a Define the Design name yet). It just looks like something that would come with little kids' plastic/wooden toys. I can see one card of '91 Donruss encased in bubble plastic, along with one of those little people -- maybe the bald guy with the green body -- and a yellow tractor, hanging on a display in the toy department.

I hate it when I see cards in the toy department.

Anyway, before I get to the cards everyone has seen before, here is my ranking of junk wax Donruss. For posterity.

1. 1989 - Already confessed that I have a grudging admiration for this set. (No, I'm not collecting it)
2. 1988 - Growing to like the Tron set more and more (No, I'm not collecting this either)
3. 1993 - Merely meh. But during this era, that's a good thing.
4. 1987 - Don't get why people get so excited over this set. Rookies, probably. Whoopee.
5. 1990 - The red borders drown out the photos.
6. 1991 - I'm sure if I was 6, I'd love these cards.
7. 1992 - I have an irrational hatred for '92 Donruss. It almost makes me ill. One day I will explore this in-depth.

OK, on with the cards.

Willie Stargell puzzle piece. Already, I've been ripped off. Each pack is supposed to contain three puzzle pieces. I got one. Of Stargell's knees.

#634 - Jerry Willard, White Sox

Nice catcher photo. Willard gets a card despite all of 3 major league at-bats in the preceding three years.

#628 - Ron Oester, Reds

Key card a year after the Reds won the World Series.

#622 - Johnny Ray, Angels

Steve Sax is still better, Pirates fans.

#616 - Dave Clark, Cubs

#663 - Rance Mulliniks, Blue Jays

Real first name is Steve.

#657 - Dennis Cook, Dodgers

Dodger alert! Obviously, I have several of this card. It's also a future night card. Cook is quite zombie-esque.

#651 - Gene Harris, Mariners

#645 - Bob Welch, A's

Nice pull for '91, coming off his 27-6 Cy Young season. I'm still in denial about Welch doing so well after leaving the Dodgers.

#422 - Scott Aldred, Tigers

More evidence that Rated Rookies were often hype without substance. A little bit of Bowman inside Donruss.

#636 - Bob MacDonald, Blue Jays

#630 - Kevin Bass, Giants

I think Kevin Bass was the Carlos Lee of the junk wax era for me. A Bass in every other pack.

#624 - Joe Bitker, Rangers

#618 - Jack Clark, Padres

Second Clark in the pack. This one much more hated.

#400 - Roberto Kelly, Yankees, MVP

Yankees finished last in 1990. That sounds like the kind of team in which Kelly would be the best player.

#BC18 - Eddie Murray, Dodgers, Highlights

If this was 1991, I'd be very happy with this pack, as this was an insert and a Dodger. A much-loved Dodger at this particular time. But, alas, I probably have 5 or 6 of this card.

That's all 15 cards. Wasn't that .... uh ... funnish?

Did anyone ever pull a Ryne Sandberg autographed card that was advertised on the wrappers?

Anyway, if anyone needs any of these cards ... you are sad, sad, people.

Just kidding.

It's just that I missed a card show today.

Priceless

2012-01-28T17:10:00.000-05:00

I go to the post office about once a week. It's a small office in an almost vacant business building that houses everything from a bridal store to an outpatient chemical dependency clinic.

I've mentioned before that, except for Christmas time, hardly anyone knows the post office is there. So, at most, there is a line of three, and I'm in and out.

It's a familiar routine. I know the two guys that work there. One, Charles, is an older, pleasant type of few words. He walks with a bit of limp and usually prefers sweat shirts and sweat pants. The other, Dave, is flashier. He wears open Hawaiian shirts and lifts weights. Sometimes the portable radio blares behind him with a strange mix of AC/DC, Lady Gaga and Britney Spears (it's a bit uncomfortable waiting in a longer line when Britney is moaning "Gimme More," let me tell ya).

But both are efficient and friendly. I put my envelopes on the counter, and they plop it on the scale, and the amount pops up on the electronic screen to the right of me.

For the smaller packages, I have the price memorized. $1.71. Always. $1.71. Makes it easy to budget.

That was the routine earlier this week when, after a long bout of sickness, I returned to the post office. I placed my stack of envelopes, all of the small variety, on the counter. Charles put the first one on the scale. And the screen flashed the price ...

One-seventy ...

Wait, what?

$1.95?

"Everything's gone up. Everything," Charles says. He proceeds to tell me the CDs that he sends out cost more, too. But I'm too busy calculating what that's going to do to my budget.

Eventually, I shrug it off. Twenty-four cents more per package isn't going to kill me. No big deal. In fact, I bundle up a few more packages and am back at the post office for a rare second time in a week. This time Dave is there. No music though.

He puts my first package on the scale. It's going to Canada. I brace for the $1.95 to flash on the screen, although I should know better.

$3.15

"Overseas packages have almost doubled," Dave says cheerily but in an understanding tone.

I wanted to crack that there is no sea between here and Canada, but I'm sure he's heard this one before. Even though I was ready to make a joke, I was pretty shaken by the news. It hasn't been an easy month monetarily.

When I got home, I clicked on the weather forecast. I was supposed to go to a card show this weekend. But the weather was looking iffy. I didn't have a lot of money for the show either. Then the weather guy said the dreaded words "heavy accumulation in persistent snow bands." I would be driving through a persistent snow band to get to the show.

I checked the weather a few more times. Same reports. I took the money set aside for the card show and put it in the bank. We needed groceries.

This was on Friday, and I was beginning to wonder whether I could send packages out with the same frequency that I've done in the past. I'm not one to focus on the money aspect of things in almost anything. I budget stuff, but I'm not super vigilant about it. It's too much worry. But this? This kind of got me.

Then today, I received a big package from Rod at Padrographs.

I looked at the postage on the front.

$8.68.

"Not bothering Rod," I thought.

Inside were some cards, and an unopened junk wax pack, and some cool Dodger figurines that I have to identify later.

And there was this:

It's a children's book called "You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?!" It features a holographic front and some absolutely terrific illustrations by Andre Carrilho.

On each inside cover is Carrilho's rendering of a famous Topps Koufax card:

Over lunch, I leafed through the book -- which is the story of Koufax's career -- mesmerized. What a terrific item, combining my favorite things, the Dodgers, Koufax, baseball, books, writing and illustrations. How thoughtful of Rod.

And all that for just $8.68.

Then I thought back a couple weeks ago to another large package that I received. It arrived in the middle of my sickness and I could barely look through it. I knew it was wonderful, but I just couldn't focus on anything.

The box came from Smed. He's sent me generous packages before. I don't remember how much it cost to ship this box, but I know some of his other boxes have hit double figures.

The box contained a few Dodger cards, like the Bowman purple refractor of Dee Gordon at the top. But the major part of the package was a whole mess of 1977 Topps:

Isn't that something?

I really need to get a list of wants for '77 Topps after I catalog these cards.

This is the last of the sets from the major Childhood Nostalgia Era that I need to complete. 1974, 75, 76 and 78 are already done. Once I finish with '77, I'll decide whether I want to tackle '79, which is kind of on the edge of the whole kiddie era.

But how much did it cost to send that package of nostalgia to me? Six bucks? Seven bucks? Ten?

Whatever it was, it was incidental (at least I hope it was for Smed). The enjoyment I received from these packages can not be measured in cash.

So, I'll continue to send out packages as often as I can. When the money runs out, it runs out.

This hobby is too important.

Joy of an upgraded card, #5

2012-01-27T19:38:00.000-05:00

Haven't done one of these for awhile.

1975 Topps mini Ken Reitz:

Obviously, I have held on to the rabidly creased Reitz for a long, long, long time. The card came into my possession the first year I started collecting, the very year the card was issued, in 1975.

I don't know how it came to be folded 10 times. I'm pretty certain that I didn't do the folding. I'm guessing I acquired the card from a friend in a desperate bid to accumulate every '75 mini that I could find.

Condition wasn't a deal-breaker then. If you had the card, you had the card. Appearance was incidental, for the most part.

But as the years went on, wrinkly Reitz began to stand out for all the wrong reasons. My other '75 minis from '75 were respectably worn. Rounded corners. Scuffed surfaces. Some minor writing on the back. But they weren't viciously worn like Kenneth.

Today, I received a Reitz more in keeping with my collection. It came with a bunch of other '75 minis from Johngy. Wow, what a cool package, which I will dissect in another post.

Meanwhile, obsessively creased Kenneth will remain, but be transferred to another binder -- the "I remember when I was 9" binder. I enjoy looking through that one quite a bit.

Thanks for the upgrade, Johngy.

But I'll never miss Bowman

2012-01-27T01:56:00.000-05:00

A couple of days ago, I wrote about how my decision not to collect any 2012 set would be fairly easy if it wasn't for this summer and Allen & Ginter.

Today, with the help of some cards from madding at Cards on Cards, I am going in the opposite direction.

There is a card brand that I am positively giddy about avoiding. I can't wait to avoid it. I do a good job of avoiding it now. But now I get to COMPLETELY avoid it. Forever. Yeah, I think it might be forever. I may never buy another pack of Bowman ever again.

The only reason I've picked up packs of Bowman in the past was to see what the hysteria was about. Every year there was some prospect everyone was going bat-poo over. I figured I'd check it out. But with the exception of Strasmania, I always struck out.

Bowman packs left me cold. Card after card of players I had never heard of and probably would never hear of again. This was no way to collect.

The designs rarely impressed (yikes, I didn't know Sellers had all those tattoos), and a pack of Bowman seemed more like a waste of money than any other pack that I purchased.

But still I'd get the urge to pick up something new. And Bowman always had something new on the shelves. Bowman. Bowman Chrome. Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects. Bowman Platinum. Bowman Now With Players Who Haven't Even Been Born Yet.

The worst part of Bowman, for me, besides not knowing the players that I am looking at, is the complete confusion I feel when trying to separate their sets. For example, these cards -- which I totally appreciate and which feature players I actually know (this is my first card of Nathan Eovaldi) -- are a complete mystery to me. I don't know which set they're from. I have a guess. But I'm not confident enough in airing my guess here. A million prospect-junkies will descend upon the comments and tell my why I'm an idiot because I can't figure it out.

But I can't, and that's the reason why out of all the sets that I am avoiding this year, this is the one that has the best shot of me completely bypassing it. Not one single pack. I just don't need the hassle. Or the guilt. Or the feeling that I'm a dumb-ass.

I'm kind of surprised I received these cards from madding. I don't think he's the prospector type. But he does understand that team collectors need every card, even from sets that are a complete mystery.

These might be the most baffling of all. Apparently there are black-border Bowman prospect cards? They're not numbered at all. Please don't make me figure it out, there's already so much that makes my head hurt about Bowman.

Even when I read blog posts from good-hearted people who attempt to remedy the Bowman confusion with their marketing plans, I zone out like the dumb chick when the topic switches from purses. And those are from people who are trying to help me.

If you look at my want list, you may notice that I have Bowman cards listed. I confess, I have no idea if they are accurate. Anytime I update my want list, I dread when it's time to update the Bowman category. It's like muddling through calculus class again. Fortunately, no one is grading my want list.

As usual, I'll take all your Bowman Dodgers.

I'm going to need your help. Because I'm done with Bowman.

Now, if Fleer was still around?

Then, I'd be in trouble.

(P.S.: Another One-Card Challenge success story!)

This is me being busy

2012-01-26T18:15:00.000-05:00

Imagine close to your ugliest day at work. I'm having it today. Throw in a sleep-robbing cough and there is no time for nothing today.

So here is a simple showing of cards from Baseball Dad at All Tribe Baseball:

Baseball Dad sent the stamps, too. He and I both used to collect stamps during our younger days.

Both of us also remember when stamps were 15 cents apiece.

Here's another thing we both remember:

The prices of baseball cards in 1979. Yeah, I think I'll pick up a mint-condition 1966 Mantle for $5, please.

Baseball Dad's a little older than me. Maybe he was able to jump on some of those card prices back then.

He also might remember collecting cards in '66. I don't.

Anyway ...

...

(*sigh*)

Is this day over yet? ...

Well, that didn't go as planned

2012-01-25T03:19:00.000-05:00

I was involved in Cardboard Heaven's Rose Bowl draft a few weeks ago. It my first card draft and a lot of fun. I quickly figured out that the objective, after finding a few cards you want, was to get cards that could be used in future trades.

And that's what I did. Some of the cards are already in packages waiting for All Work And No Play to get his dull ass to the post office. Some of the other cards you'll see here are posted in a pathetic effort to jump-start some trades -- not that I have any time for that.

The Prince Fielder bat card was obtained to work out a deal with a Brewers fan. Heh. That worked out spectacularly. Fielder will be making his imprint in Detroit for the next nine years. I don't even know if a Tigers fan wants a relic card of a guy in a Brewer uniform. I know, personally, I wouldn't. It's not like I'm clamoring for Angels cards of Juan Rivera. ... OK, bad example. But you know what I mean.

So, Prince may or may not stay with me, if I can accommodate his grocery bill.

Here are a few more cards from the draft that aren't going anywhere:

Dodgers, of course. I wish I had a lot of great things to say about these cards, but Victor Diaz never went anywhere, and the Zach Lee card -- which I made my No. 1 draft choice -- is honestly a lousy looking card. It's a minor league photo to begin with, and then there's the green tint thing, which just makes it look like there was a problem with the camera.

I'm so grateful, aren't I?

Other cards staying with me:

I didn't draft this card until round #23. "What the heck," I thought. "I'll nab it for a Ranger fan." Then I realized, "Crap! I need that card for the set (only 14 cards away). Please nobody pick it. PLEASE nobody pick it!" Nobody picked it.

I don't like Topps 206 at all. But this card? In mini form? A Polar Bear mini? Mine, mine, miney, mine. Forever.

More minis. I have this sudden, irrational attraction to last year's A&G minis. It means I'll always have something to buy in the card aisle. And that's a dangerous thing.

(P.S.: If you have a mini of Kershaw, Loney, Broxton or Ethier, find me).

OK, now for stuff that's up for grabs. The best things about these cards is I'd be happy to keep them if I can't find a deal. Or, if I get lazy and decide not to trade ever again.

Drafted round 7: I can't resist a vintage card. Even for a set that couldn't possibly be more boring.

Drafted round 25: I have no idea what Rockies fans think of Jimenez anymore. It seems weird that an Indians fan would want this card.

Drafted round 5: This card is so shiny and cool, I don't want to give it up. But I probably will.

Drafted 10th, 12th, 6th and 14th, respectively: Obviously, I had trading with an Orioles fan in mind. I don't know why. I probably owe somebody somewhere.

Drafted 9th, 24th and 15th: Same deal with a Red Sox fan. Although they all seem to have disappeared.

Last card, which I picked up in the bonus round. It's pretty nifty. It's been awhile since I sent something to The Troll. (Been awhile since I pulled any Rays). Maybe this can appear in a "howdy" package some day soon.

That's all of it, I think.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to rest up for that post office trip. It truly may be the most fun I have all day. Yes, it's been that kind of week.

Missing Allen & Ginter already

2012-01-24T20:27:00.000-05:00

When I say I'm not collecting any 2012 Topps, that means I'm not collecting ANY 2012 Topps, in all its forms. Heritage, Opening Day, Attax, Update, Allen & Ginter (gulp), none of it.

I'm reasonably confident that I will be able to stick to this. Even if I grab a few packs every so often, there's nothing there that's going to make me chase the set. However, Allen & Ginter is the one that could give me some hesitation.

It's not for the reasons you might think. I'm beyond the design (two straight years of disappointing designs will do that). I'm beyond the non-ballplayer subjects. I'm even beyond the quirkiness (there wasn't much quirkiness in last year's set).

No, the problem I'm going to have is next summer when everyone gets their boxes of A&G and the latest edition of Gint-a-Cuffs commences.

As a three-time Gint-a-Cuffs participant, I know that GAC is a heck of a lot of fun. It's even fun for a loser like me who never wins and always gets dud boxes. So how am I going to sit on the sidelines and watch people win without me? You need a loser to have a winner, right?

But the worst part will be knowing that I won't have those Gint-a-Cuffs posts to fill up blog space in the middle of July. That's like 6 automatic posts right there! I'm going to have to get even more creative -- which isn't good because I think I lost my creative chip somewhere in November and I have been cruising off of trade posts ever since.

The easy solution would be to collect just A&G and only A&G. One set from 2012 isn't going to kill me, right?

Well ... maybe not kill me. But I don't want to go through what I did in 2011 with A&G. I'm still trying to complete it and I'm sick to death of it. I really don't like the idea of trying to finish off a set I don't even like.

Fortunately, I'm a little bit closer to completing the 2011 set, thanks to some recent card packages. I'm only 21 cards away (I was 21 cards away in OCTOBER three years ago. What HAPPENED to me?).

Here is one needed card -- and one card only because I'm sick of looking at them -- from each of four packages:

Card: Carlos Lee
Number: 333
From: Section 36

Ron sent me a whole mess of A&G. In fact, if it wasn't for his package, I might've given up on finishing this set like I've given up on '08 Stadium Club and a couple others. I'm showing the Carlos Lee card because I didn't think it was constitutionally possible for Carlos Lee to be a short-print. It's everyone's God-given right to accumulate as many Carlos Lee cards as possible. In fact, I think they're going to be tax-deductible some day. So look for that. I'll be able to help you out when the time comes. A lot.

Card: George W. Bush
Number: 147
From: Smed's Baseball Card Blog

All right, settle down. This card isn't here for any reason other than it's a card I needed. ... Or maybe it ISN'T. Maybe it's here to counter a certain Democrat President's State of the Union speech! Or maybe it's here to remind voters what they could get if they vote for a Republican this November! Or maybe it's here because my father's father's uncle's cousin's daughter was once double-crossed by a Republican turned Democrat turned Libertarian turned Independent turned Modern Whig who promised her a chicken in every pot and instead gave her a rubber chicken swimming in a pool of watered down pork stock! The outrage! Where's that petition? Where's my picket sign? Oh my blood pressure ...

Politics.

Smed sent me a bunch of other cool cards -- not political at all -- that I'll show at a more festive time.

Card: Juan Pierre
Number: 229
From: Cards on Cards

I also received some other non-A&G cards from madding that I'll feature elsewhere. I almost posted the Josh Beckett card that he sent so I could talk about how much madding loves Mr. Beckett. But that's mean -- and even though fans of the World Series champions are fair game -- it's still just mean. So, instead, I'm showing the Juan Pierre card. Now, I know it looks cool to you all scanned here, all back-lit and snazzy. But in person I have to hold the card a foot from my face to know what's going on. That's why I don't like the horizontal A&G cards. They're too fuzzy and they're difficult to register at first glance.

Card: Mike Pelfrey
Number: 342
From: Cardboard Heaven

This was part of my collection of cards that I received in Cam's card draft at the end of last month. I'll show some of the other cards I received on another day -- at least the ones I have left. Some have already made their way into card packages.

I was reduced to drafting A&G cards in an effort to finish off my set -- which sort of backfired on me because then I received some of the cards from other bloggers. But, no worries, because I nabbed some minis out of the deal, and those are always fun. Plus, Pelf means I need only 10 more short-prints. Weeeee! (I better be able to get to this card show this weekend).

When I finally complete this set, I'm going to need another binder to house it. I'm starting to get to a stage where I'm running out of room for binders. Either I'm going to have to come up with a creative (ouch, there's that word again) solution, or the mass accumulations have got to stop.

Another reason for avoiding 2012 Topps. There are so many.

C.A.: 1967 Topps Arnold Earley

2012-01-24T03:23:00.000-05:00

(The best thing I can say about January this year is I've had to shovel snow once. Suddenly all the illness crap and work garbage doesn't seem that bad. No wonder people are so cheery in the south. Here's to freakishly warm weather. And Cardboard Appreciation. This is the 132nd in a series):

Veteran readers of this blog know that I once did a countdown of the best glasses to be ever featured on Topps baseball cards. Then I did a sequel to that, featuring the best glasses on non-Topps cards.

But even though those countdowns were well-received, I felt that they were lacking. I felt like I had only scratched the surface of the best glasses ever to appear on baseball cards.

Then I saw this card of Arnold Earley on Jim From Downington's 1967 Topps blog, and I KNEW I had a long, long way to go before determining the all-time best glasses ever to be featured on baseball cards.

I have taken the first step to achieving that goal, by obtaining this very card of Arnold Earley. What a magnificent card it is. It will make the countdown, guaranteed.

But that's not all. This card is on its way to me one way or another:

This is easily a top 10 or probably top 5 candidate. I can't wait to study those pink Cat Woman frames while cradling the card in my hands.

But even that's not all.

Weather-permitting, I will have a card show to go to this weekend. One of my objectives at this card show, will be to hunt down cards like this:

I am not messing around, people. This is going to be the Best Damn Countdown of the Best Glasses in the History of Baseball Cards.

It's going to take awhile to get them all organized. But I'm already looking forward to making the list.

Stay tuned.

Coming in April ...

(Yes, I said "April")

... THE BEST GLASSES IN THE HISTORY OF BASEBALL CARDS.

Period.

Arnold Earley says so.

Instead of 2012 Topps

2012-01-23T20:10:00.000-05:00

That's what I will be calling these posts that document my collecting path this year.

"Instead of 2012 Topps."

Maybe, I'll mix it up a little bit and sometimes call them "Instead of Pulling Cards of Lucas Duda," or "Instead of Another Crappy Insert of a Bald Topps Executive."

Oh, I'll still grab some packs periodically. You know me. But I hope to be doing more of what I did a couple weeks ago -- tracking down cards I truly want.

This "Instead of 2012 Topps" package was achieved with cash I received from Christmas. You've already seen some of the Lineage minis. Now it's time to see everything else. With assigned rankings and commentary, of course.

So let's get to reverse counting:

12. 2006 TriStar Prospects Plus Clayton Kershaw, ProTential

I went a little Kershaw crazy with this package. I did that even though the prices on Kershaw cards are annoying. I love the double-mark-up. Capitalism at its finest. And a real good way to not get me to buy your cards. Anyway, I wanted this card because Clayton looks like the saddest baseball player ever. Buck up, young man, you have a Cy Young Award in your future!

11. 2011 Topps Marquee Clayton Kershaw

I'm not clear on the numbering on Marquee cards. Something to do with the color of the foil, I guess. But everything seems hazy after seeing those cool '40s Dodger uniforms on a baseball card. I nabbed the Kemp Marquee card a little while ago. So it's only natural that Kershaw arrived soon afterward.

10. 2010 Topps Chrome Clayton Kershaw, blue refractor

This would've been ranked higher if not for the dastardly curly-cue disease that affects all 2010 Chrome. It's disappointing because this would be a fantastic card without the curl. It's also, I believe, my 11th version of this particular card, what with all the parallels, etc. But, of course, blue refractors are the king of all parallels.

9. 1975 Hostess Dave Lopes

Have you ever seen a more accurately cut Hostess card than this one? Someone had some superior scissor skills. Hostess and Kellogg's cards are at the top of my Git List this year, although Hostess cards often suffer from the dreaded Twinkie stain, which I can't seem to get past.

8. 2011 Topps Lineage Andre Ethier mini relic

Still not a fan of these Lineage relics, but I need to have all the Dodgers. Some of them seem like they'll be difficult to obtain. Duke Snider bat. Some relic from Campanella and Koufax. Good thing I got that tricky Ethier swatch out of the way! (Heh).

7. 2011 Lineage Clayton Kershaw mini; 2010 Allen & Ginter Clayton Kershaw mini

Two common-variety minis, but two cards that have avoided me so long that it drove me to distraction. The A&G mini resided on my Nebulous 9 for awhile. Now, both are in my clutches and will never haunt my dreams again.

6. 1972 Topps N.L. Pitching Leaders (matching pair)

Yes, you are seeing double. I obtained both of these cards in a sudden realization that I did not have this card for my 1972 set, and -- yikes -- there's a Dodger on this card, too! You see three Hall of Famers. I see Al Downing.

5. 2011 Topps Tribute Sandy Koufax

I have wanted this card since the moment I saw it on a blog. The numbers don't gleam behind Koufax as much as I remember seeing the first time. But it's still a pretty cool card. One of the best -- possibly the best -- of the many new Koufax cards that arrived last year. (I'm not including autographed cards in that list, because there's no way a lowly collecting surf like me will get his hands on one of those).

4. 1971 Kellogg's Willie Davis

Oh, man, what a great card. I've determined that the greatest cards are the ones that feature a player in a batting pose with the largest amount of bat showing. The more bat featured while in his stance, the greater the card. And this one has that going for it, plus it's in 3-D. I bow to its power and ingenuity.

3. 2011 Topps Chrome Clayton Kershaw, sepia refractor

Curiosity got the best of me on this card. What was a sepia refractor? Now, I know. It's a shiny, brown-colored card. It's a shade better than a "black-and-white" refractor, which I don't think we need to see. But there's a certain amount of classiness to this card that makes me glad I took a shot.

2. 2011 Topps Triple Threads, Matt Kemp, emerald

Yes, night owl bought himself a Triple Threads card. As you know, Triple Threads is not my thing. It's over-the-top, ignores the photo, presents weird combinations of players with weird sayings, and makes people say stuff like "sick!" when they see it. But I found this card much to my liking. It's simple. The photo is large enough. It features Kemp's nickname. And I love the green. It's well-presented. And it's pretty.

1. 1963 Topps Dodgers' Big Three

Scoring a vintage Koufax, Drysdale or Podres is always a priority. Getting all three on one card is as necessary as the air that I breathe. Of course, this year's Heritage will mimic the 1963 set, and Heritage often likes to use combo cards of the past with current players. I shudder to think of the Dodgers' current pitching staff with a "Big Three" label. But maybe Topps knows something about Ted Lilly that I don't.

So, that's the haul this time around.

I still have some Christmas cash left over, which likely will go to another "Instead of 2012" Topps package. You can expect to see that probably right around the time everyone is going loopy over 2012 hitting store shelves.

I may or may not be suffering from withdrawal by then. But all I'll have to do is fan myself with my Ian Desmond doubles from last year and I'll be OK.

Boston vs. New York

2012-01-23T00:57:00.001-05:00

Whenever anyone screams about the media's love affair with Boston vs. New York, I nod in acknowledgement. I agree. It's true. It's all true.

But I don't feel their angst. I like Boston. I've enjoyed my visits there. My brother used to live there. I have family from there. My family has an allegiance to a sports team from there that goes all the way back to before World War II.

So, no, when Boston vs. New York pops up on the TV again, I don't foam at the mouth. It gets a little tired, but before I know it, I'm rooting for the Red Sox to give those Yankees exactly what they deserve.

It will always be that way. The Red Sox will have a place in my heart. The Yankees (and to a lesser extent, the Mets) never will.

For me to experience what everyone else outside of Boston and New York is experiencing when the media fawns all over those two markets, I have to go to football.

Back when I really followed football, there were a select few teams that must be despised. Every Bills fan knew the ritual:

1. The Dolphins, without question, were slime.
2. The Jets, when they were good, were vile and disgusting.
3. The Patriots and Giants were just mean, full of mean people and simply unlikable.
4. The Cowboys needed to go away for a long time.

As the years went on, and I cared less and less about the NFL, I didn't care that much about the Bills or their enemies. I'll always hate the Dolphins, and Dan Marino will always be an object of derision. The Jets? I just can't get myself worked up. Same with the Cowboys.

But the Patriots and the Giants? I never want them to do well.

I'll never forgive the Giants for Super Bowl XXV, the only Super Bowl the Bills had a real chance of winning. And the Patriots have delivered numerous humiliating losses on the Bills over the years. Plus, the Patriots wear silver, which really needs to be eliminated as a team color choice. I can't stand what they wear or Bill Belichick's Old Mother Hubbard get-up on the sidelines. Also, Tom Brady's alien grin is unbearable.

If the Patriots brought back Steve Grogan and started wearing those red jerseys, maybe I'd reconsider.

But now we have the Patriots vs. the Giants in the Super Bowl, just like we did four years ago. And I am just as thrilled now as I was then.

Boston vs. New York.

Whoopee.

If it wasn't my job, I wouldn't tune in on Feb. 5th. And don't say "what about the commercials?" I can't take that stuff either.

I'll say one thing about this Super Bowl matchup. It's making me look forward to the first Red Sox-Yankees game this year.

(P.S.: Why, yes, that IS the only Patriot card and the only Giant card in my collection. So nice of you to ask).

Minis morph into much more

2012-01-22T15:10:00.001-05:00

When I was executing my big card purchase a couple of weeks ago, I actually wrote out a plan of attack, much like I do at a card show. Normally, I don't do that for shopping online -- which gets me into trouble periodically. But I just have this attitude about online shopping. I want it to be just like how I shop in stores -- go, get item, pay, leave. Unfortunately, with the online route, there's too much oh-let-me-compare-this-with-that-and-how-much-is-that-and-what-about-this-and-oh-there's-something-about-this-here-and-if-I-combine-this-with-AHHHAAAHHHH-STOP IT!!

But I made my list anyway and it worked out fairly well.

One item right up there with my card goals for the year are 1975 Topps minis. But I left it off this shopping list. That's because so many good people have said they think they have some minis to send me. I'm not going to order minis and then wait for dupes to arrive in the mailbox. I'll just wait until my collecting buddies ship something and then I'll get to work on filling in blanks.

Some of the minis have started to arrive. The first one was from Paul at Wrigley Wax. He had the one card of Glenn Abbott, future expansion Mariner. I gratefully accepted and now #591 has been scribbled off the list.

The next group of minis came from Paul at Phungo headquarters.

They're so, so, pretty.

A few have creases and markings, but all of them are just right for my mini collection. I'm not anywhere close to upgrading mode with this set. The John D'Acquisto -- even though he's a Giant -- is especially appreciated as his regular-sized card is one of the cards that I pulled from the first packs I ever purchased. Those minis get top priority.

But Phungo's package, of course, contained much more than minis. It's that time of year for Phungo cards, which always beat Topps to store shelves. Let's see what I got in my pack:

I like the design this year. Here is a very '70s/'80s-type card photo of Cliff Lee. Smart move taking a picture without his cap. The guy sure moves around a lot.

The scanner cut off the left edge of Billingsley here. The Dodgers really need Bills this season, because I don't like the looks of their rotation.

Oh, dear, is this what the Dodgers have become? Using 68-year-old pinch-hitters? Actually, it's nice of Phungo to reference the fact that the Phillies manager was a pinch-hitter with the Dodgers during the mid-1970s.

I really like this card, except for the question mark there. I'll have to photoshop that into an exclamation point.

Ooooh! It's instant redemption time! I love these things! Let's see what I got.

Hey, I've got a retired number Washington Nationals Jackie monument to go with the Phillies' Jackie number I pulled last year! I'll get the whole series yet!

Here comes the traditional cards in the pack. There are so many Heritage variations that I thought I had this card of Blake already. Turns out it's a shiny that I need. Wee for me.

Another awesome card. This is one of the cards from the Heritage short-print Jackie Robinson series. I believe this is my third one. I like this card because Robinson's complete regular season and World Series career stats are on the back.

What's this? Another instant redemption code? What number should I use?

I'll go with 42 again ... nah, I'll try 55 instead -- Hershiser's number.

Whoa!!!! It's the sleeve for Sammy Hagar's "I Can't Drive 55"! It looks like it suffered some water damage while trying to avoid the cops.

And there's the 45. I still love me some 45s. I now have dupes of this record -- I don't think I've ever had a double of a record before.

Well, that's an unexpected perk of a Phungo pack! But as usual there's more ...

Tobacco-mini card sheets! These will come in handy as I've accumulated a fair amount of A&G minis again this year. Not as many as 2008, but I'll probably surpass 2010 in a few days, and I need a place to store those suckers because I've already dinged up the corners on a couple.

Like with most great packages, Phungo included some newspaper reading material:

Read your newspaper, kiddies. You don't even have to turn to the sports section first, although I'll look at you weirdly if you don't.

So, that's how a post about minis turned into a post about other kinds of minis/newspapers/rock n' roll from the '80s/homemade cards and cool Heritage cards. Thanks, Phungo!

And now I can make some room on my desk. That package was a space-hogger!

Awesome night card, pt. 135

2012-01-21T16:03:00.000-05:00

Today is the first day that I have felt like my normal self since getting sprayed with demon disease spores, or whatever the heck happened to me, a week ago Tuesday.

I'm still coughing like a coal miner in an iron lung, but I think I'm even improving there. At least I'm not freaking out the dog anymore.

So it's time to get back into the rituals of the blog that I've ignored for a few weeks, starting with the Awesome Night Card.

Today's night card comes from my Christmas cash goodies that arrived a couple days ago. You'll see the rest of them next week, but I want to show the mmmiiinnnnnnnnnnniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiissssssss now.

I ordered up 16 of the Lineage '75 minis. But three of them turned out to be dupes, including Mr. Beachy here. That's a result of both having a fever when I did the ordering, and being overconfident with my knowledge of which minis I have and which I don't.

But I have now crossed the 50-percent mark with the set at 110 cards total. Finishing off this set is a primary goal for this year and will be pursued while everyone is discussing 2012 Topps, so I don't expect any obstacles. Of course, I have to take care of that tiny matter of me ordering dupes.

Anyway, here is the loot:

The Latos is a dupe for anyone that cares. The Campanella has been the most vexing card in the set for me, aside from the Clayton Kershaw card.

There's Clayton now! About time you joined all your buds, Clay! Make yourself at home.

The Sisler mini is one I have already, too. So I've built a very, very modest smattering of dupes if anyone else is wacky enough to collect this set.

I still have a little bit of Christmas cash left over, and I plan to do some more card hunting next week some time. Some minis may be in the mix yet again. I'll try to be a little less sloppy this time.

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Night Card Binder candidate: Brandon Beachy, 2011 Topps Lineage '75 mini, #164
Does it make the binder?: Nah. I'll probably just throw it in Captain Canuck's pile. It could use some padding.

I'm not collecting this set, I don't really like this set, please help me complete it

2012-01-20T19:53:00.000-05:00

There is currently a race going on between two sets that are near completion in my collection.

One is 2009 OPC. I need three cards. I should have completed it months ago. But the cards always slip my mind. Marcus Thames, Scott Feldman and Justin Duchscherer are not guys around which anyone is basing their collection.

The other set is 2011 Lineage.

Good god, you're saying, why would I be collecting THAT? Yes, I know.

I'm not really collecting it. I just happen to have a lot of the cards because I like the minis so much. That results in a bunch of extra, uh, packing material left over. It's like when you order something and you have to dig through all the styrofoam peanuts to get to what you ordered. After you've found it, you're left with a box and a whole mess of styrofoam peanuts.

I figured -- hey, I might as well collect the styrofoam peanuts. I sure have enough of them.

Then there are people like Chris from Nachos Grande, who has even more styrofoam peanuts than me, who wants to help me out with this collection that I never intended to have. So he sent me a whole bunch of styrofoam:

I don't have anything more to say about these cards. They're dull, unmemorable, and the backs are worse. It's an obvious insert-based set.

But at 200 base cards, with no shortprints, you're not going to find an easier set to complete. Which is why, without even attempting to complete it for one second, I find myself just seven short of wrapping up an entire set of 2011 Topps Styrofoam Peanuts ... er, I mean, Lineage.

If you have one or more of the following:

#47, #70, #83, #93, #165, #171, #186

I'll take them, I guess.

Might as well say I completed something from 2011. Allen & Ginter is sure taking its sweet, darling time.

Just don't expect to see a big, old announcement when I finish off the thing. And certainly don't expect me to show off the cards. Nobody needs to see that.

In fact, you'll probably know I'm done with the set when you see this pop up on the blog:

It'll mean the 2011 Topps Styrofoam Peanuts set is fini.