Trade with Kevin @ St. Louis Cardinals Cards

Kevin and I made a small trade, he needed some 2012 Topps Cardinals and I needed a few 2012 Topps as I inch closer to a complete set!

At first I thought that Hagadone's uniform was a throwback, but apparently I missed the memo where the Indians changed their road uniform last year.

That Chacin card reminds me of photo composition from the '73 set. Well, to be fair, if it were a '73 card, the pitcher would be 2/3 blocked out by the batter.

Kevin, thanks for the trade! 18 more cards to finish 2012 Series 1. Anyone want to trade?

Trade with Matt @ Card Anathema

I received a big pile of 2011 Topps from Matt at Card Anathema today. I was sitting there talking with my youngest daughter, and talking her through building the solar system with styrofoam balls. I've done this at least 6 or 7 times, but I was enjoying this one because it may be the last one. And it made me a little sad, in thinking on that. With the last of the four oldest kids finishing high school this year and the oldest off to medical school, that just leaves the two little girls at home. It really gets you to thinking of your own mortality. And doing this project reminds me *again* about how Pluto has been demoted to dwarf. I told her to just add that 9th styrofoam ball. She rolled her eyes, "Dad, it isn't a planet! Ms. so-and-so says it isn't a planet anymore!"

Anyhow, I was so distracted thinking on this, that while checking off the 2011 cards Matt sent in my database, I preceded to put them in the binder and I am embarrassed to say I didn't scan any of them! But Matt made a big dent in that set, and I am appreciative. I made myself a challenge to complete 2011 set, all 990 of them, completely in trades. We'll see if I can do it!

The Updates and Highlights cards he sent along, I did get to scan those. 

 Love this action shot with Ankiel diving, and the throwback uniform on Haren.

Some great pitching shots, I hope the one of Thompson is a warm up toss, because he's not going to intimidate any batter with that cheery countenance!

Always a fan of cards with dirty uniforms. Great shot of Napoli and with an Angel batting! I think that's Callaspo, but truthfully I am not positive. I don't recall Callaspo being that tall and stocky. I'll have to figure it out.

Big thank you to Matt, appreciate the trade!


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First, and probably last Check Out My Cards purchase

For some reason, I was looking through my 1970 Topps and realizing I had only a single Angel from that year. Just one! I went online and started looking through Check Out My Cards and realized there were tons of that set in the $0.20 to $0.25 range. Granted, these are all low numbers, but still, '83 Donruss commons seem to go for that much.

  I picked up a few Dodgers, a few Angels and I even grabbed a few Astros. Nobody hugely famous, but plenty of guys I know and remember fondly from my childhood.

  The back of Foster's card says that he signed for a reported $100,000 in 1965. Seems like a pittance compared to what guys sign for nowadays, hell Bryce Harper probably made that much last week just from Topps alone. But to put 100,000 1965 dollars in perspective for you, consider that my parents bought a new house in 1965 for just under 10,000. Disgusting, isn't it? I think I bought a '94 Honda for that much.

The 1970 set is, I think, the last set to not feature a single action shot, not counting the World Series subset. Nothing but foul zone, batting cage and dugout posing here. In a way it's comforting.

Here's a trio of hurlers, Rooker, Torrez and enjoy the awesomeness that is Gene Brabender here. All time leader in Wins for the Seattle Pilots. Gene looks like someone's uncle here, or put some Dickies on him and he could be the guy who fixed your brakes last week.

Bob Moose has a big old wad of chew there. You just don't see guys chewing tobacco anymore. I tried it once. I saw some guy wrap bubble gum around wad of leaves once, and stick it in his cheek. One day in little league, I figured I would try the same thing. I had that sucker in my cheek for all of about 3 pitches and my whole world started spinning. The coach came out and I told him I was about to toss up that Big Del Burrito I had for lunch right there on the mound, and that if it was OK by him, could I please go do it over behind the backstop, away from everyone else. That was my last time trying tobacco. Momma definitely did not raise no fool.

Speaking of my last time, I don't figure I'll buy more cards from Check Out My Cards either. The initial thrill of finding cards for 0.20 went away when I ended up paying more than that per card for "packing". Forget that. $25.00 in cards was $3.65 to ship, and another $24.75 in penny sleeves. Give me a break. I'll probably stick to eBay and SportLots from here on out.

Trade with Robert @ $30 a week habit

I received a package from Robert at $30 a week habit! This is my second trade with Robert, he was a big help whittling down 2011 Heritage last fall.

Robert sent me a handful of 2012 Topps, including many inserts. Pictured here, Kemp and Braun - the Alpha and the Omega of the 2012 Topps Series 1 set, cards 1 and 330. Also this lovely Dee Gordon. The quality of the photos in 2012 is outstanding. In this one, could just be the angle, but Chipper is sure taking a wide slide!

Also in the pack are some 2011 Lineage, which I'm getting closer to finishing off that set. I know I could just go buy the rest, but I'm enjoying trading to get them. If you're in the same position and want to trade, check out my 2011 Topps Lineage wants/have list.

Among the many awesome 2012 inserts Robert sent is this great shot of Andre Dawson in a Sox uniform. Something that would make these Gold Standard inserts better is toss the gold embossed coin, move the achievement text up and put the player's signature.
Also received a Lineage Kyle Drabek.
I have high hopes for him. I have this thing about tracking the minor league nobodies that get traded for a big name. First time I heard of Kyle Drabek with the Blue Jays, there was something about him that sounded so familiar, but of course I just figured it was because of that last name, and that he was son of former Pirate Doug Drabek.  But after looking at his biography and seeing that he went to Woodlands High (The Woodlands is a city just north of Houston and a hop and a jump from me) I realized I'd actually seen him pitch in a high school game vs. (I think) Spring High.
Drabek seems he was roughed up a bit last year throwing for Toronto, but hopefully he gets his cup on straight this year and shows 'em what a Texan can do.

Thanks for the trade, Robert, looking forward to the next one!

Thank You, Gary

I always enjoyed watching Gary Carter play baseball. He clearly loved every minute of it.

In 1986, when not only did the Angels win the AL West, but Houston took the NL West, I could not be happier. And when Game 5 was on TV, ex-Angel Nolan Ryan on the mound, I felt on top of the world and confident it would be an Angels-Astros World Series. 

Nolan Ryan was almost perfect that afternoon,but so was Doc Gooden. When they pulled Ryan in the top of the 10th for a pinch hitter, I couldn't really blame Lanier. Even with 2 outs and bases empty, I still thought, if this works, I'll forgive it. Terry Puhl did get a hit, heck he even stole second off you! But nothing came of it and that was the last hit the Astros managed.

A couple more 1-2-3 innings, and bottom of the 12th sees Wally Backman reach base, a failed pickoff and he's down at second... oh the shame. Then you come up, you slap that single out there, clean beautiful stroke of a single, scoring Backman, winning the game and basically putting the nail in the Houston balloon.
I know everyone loves a walk-off home run, but that single that afternoon was so perfect I could only admire you for it.

I will miss you Gary, thanks for the great memories! 

I finally did it...

I finally pulled the plastic cover off of a Topps Finest! Boy, it felt good!

I have a handful of these Topps Finest. I can't say I have any memory of buying them, but I have them. Back in the good old days when card shops were plentiful, I used to buy a lot of cards of sets I never intended to complete. Twelve years later, I find them in a box, a pack of Topps Finest, still in the their clear protective wrappers.
I looked carefully at it, at that plastic skin on it that reads "Peel and Remove Coating".
And I did. I peeled it and I removed it! Damn, now this $0.50 card is worth $0.45. Oh well. 

Thinking back, the short period of time Mo spent with the Angels is a blur. It was a quick couple years, he hit really well, beat the crap out of the ball. But I think I most remember him for hurting himself. In fact, it's because of him, that every time we get some new player for the Angels, I have this little voice in the back of my head saying, "he's gonna fall, he's gonna fall." If you don't know, on Mo's first game as an Angel, he tripped down dugout stairs and sprained his ankle. Eventually that injury forced him to sit out the entire 2001 season, with the Angels eventually dumping him to the Mets for Kevin Appier.

I remember after the trade, and Mo was no longer an Angel, that was when the trash talk started up. Troy Percival made some statement about "Mo's bat will be missed, but not his leadership. Erstad is our leader now". To which Mo replied, "[Expletive Deleted] Angels haven't done [Expletive Deleted] in this game! They ain't got no flags hanging at [Expletive Deleted] Edison Field, so the [Expletive Deleted] with them."

That fall, the Angels indeed added their first and only flag to hang at [Expletive Deleted] Edison Field! And where was I? In the Philippines, a 16 hour flight, a 12 hour boat ride and a 4 hour bus ride away from Anaheim Stadium... I missed every single game of the playoffs that year. Oh well. Maybe this year.

Opening Day - 1997

Looking for some Diamondback cards for a trade, I started looking through a box of cards labeled "Misc." The "Misc" boxes are for cards like Pacific, Sportflics, Denny's Holograms, or Burger King cards. I guess any cards that don't have enough of them to warrant their own 800-count box. I pulled a inch-thick group of them from the middle and the first card I see is this one.

Todd Greene.

I had not thought about Greene in years, but as soon as I saw this card, memories of  Spring Training 1997 came rolling in like the first wave of patrons at Golden Corral. 1997 marked the end of the California Angels and the first season as the Anaheim Angels. I hated the name change, and especially the new uniform. There's nothing wrong with pinstripes, per se, but if you're not used to seeing your team in them, it's just really disconcerting. And the winged "A" and the periwinkle blue! That's a color you see at a paint store, or on a box of lady's shoes, or even on some pikey's caravan, but not on a baseball team! 

But in '97 I was focused not on the uniform but on who was to be the next big thing. Todd Greene was him, he was going to be the next big thing! Everything I'd read about him in the LA Times sounded like he was going to sock the cover off the ball and nail anyone trying to even think of stealing second. Even though during the off-season, the Angels picked up Jim Leyeritz from the Yankees, I could not be dissuaded from my belief that the stocky power-punching catcher from Georgia would be wearing the glove and set up behind the plate come opening day.

I wanted to be there to see this, so I got my tickets, which for first time in years were actually tough to get... oooh, because we were playing Boston! Lineup cards are handed to the umps, and shortly they're displayed on the scoreboard.

Let's see, Greene isn't batting 3rd, not 4th, not 5th, 6th... I don't see him on there at all. The "C" is next to Jim Leyeritz's name. Huh? This can't be. Where's my catcher of the future? Oh, he's over on the bench.

Mark Langston pitches well, and the Angels take a 5-2 lead in to the top of the 9th inning. Out to the mound comes psycho closer Troy Percival. To most people, the game is wrapped up. As Anaheim Stadium has never been a hotbed of diehard fandom, the stands start to empty... The exodus had quietly begin with the 3rd out of the bottom of the 8th, but now it's really in full swing and things are starting to clear out.

Percival starts off the 9th by dropping Darren Bragg with a weak "oops" swing for strike three.
More fans start to get up, gather their stuff.
Nomar Garciaparra goes down swinging.
Now even actual long-time fans are standing up and getting their stuff together.
John Valentin comes up and slaps a double somewhere, seriously, I wasn't even looking at that point, I was picking up and getting ready to leave.
No problem, Mo Vaughn comes up, Percival very intelligently walks him.
Reggie Jefferson comes up, I'm watching out the corner of my eye, waiting to see that strikeout or weak ground ball so I can start heading out.
Jefferson hits a grounder and DiSarcina just can't do anything with it, so Jefferson is safe at first.
Bases loaded.
But 2 outs and a 3 run lead... Just get a ground ball and throw it anywhere!

Next batter... walk! in comes a run.
Next batter... another walk! another run comes in!

I'm being brief with the descriptions, but my stomach is in knots at this point.
Next batter... Percival plunks him and forces in the tying run!

I scream so loudly that I wake up sleeping babies as far away as Brea and Yorba Linda.

Finally Percival gets the hook and manager Terry Collins bring in... hell, I don't remember because I was leaving!
Yes, me, the one who throws empty paper cups at "fans" who bail from the game before the last out, I'm leaving.
I could not watch another minute of it.
I'm almost down the ramp to the main floor, when I can hear the moaning and groaning coming from the field.
Some guy near me with his radio says, "they got a hit! They just took the lead!", like it was exciting news. I wanted to punch him.
It was a quiet drive home.