tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45930742465422416672024-03-13T16:07:16.315-04:00Starting Nine.Nine players on the field, nine pockets to a page. Coincidence? Probably.jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.comBlogger383125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-47112179616315069552022-12-24T23:19:00.003-05:002022-12-30T19:54:07.534-05:00I Think That I Shall Never See.<span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;">O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree!<br />How are thy leaves so verdant!<br />O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,<br />How are thy leaves so verdant!<br /><br />Not only in the summertime,<br />But even in winter is thy prime.<br />O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,<br />How are thy leaves so verdant!</span></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHnEeMbzn0JjtveA2JLsiVMMqix7tphZ01bIct2S6qmEP1qCoygFTVl7oI77eBxpDxGc8CXhdojID8Q4cw-ayuizatuEJ55xJa1_oDCgc2Ky0bZEwJiOOBMLE1y1P0Fh0udExW94KhFYjp3Tgt8ktFRQUqXzstoMqt0mYiKhMICdPu_h3QjftnHs0qTA/s2763/20221224_062303.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2763" data-original-width="2648" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHnEeMbzn0JjtveA2JLsiVMMqix7tphZ01bIct2S6qmEP1qCoygFTVl7oI77eBxpDxGc8CXhdojID8Q4cw-ayuizatuEJ55xJa1_oDCgc2Ky0bZEwJiOOBMLE1y1P0Fh0udExW94KhFYjp3Tgt8ktFRQUqXzstoMqt0mYiKhMICdPu_h3QjftnHs0qTA/w614-h640/20221224_062303.jpg" width="614" /></a></div><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Programme, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;" /><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #073763;"><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 16px;"> O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,<br />Much pleasure doth thou bring me!<br />O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,<br />Much pleasure doth thou bring me!<br /><br />For every year the Christmas tree,<br />Brings to us all both joy and glee.<br />O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,<br />Much pleasure doth thou bring me!</span></span><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoZvuEU8pENWIbAxr3U-8bebxPL3ZEYIBG1Z4aKiCWb6-ZmVUVPkT4aWpbj-PPxl6c2f-a5_OkX445hU2dTHS8SKc_EmiM8CM4qNs_AqoFlntrDvHIsTrBMNJ_w97crHldiEiDxqM0Vwn8vS-8kUxkh-odiNXFAI3HJuIp0EeTaUMMNiXpU-p7CK0UHg/s2388/20221224_062348.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2388" data-original-width="1710" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoZvuEU8pENWIbAxr3U-8bebxPL3ZEYIBG1Z4aKiCWb6-ZmVUVPkT4aWpbj-PPxl6c2f-a5_OkX445hU2dTHS8SKc_EmiM8CM4qNs_AqoFlntrDvHIsTrBMNJ_w97crHldiEiDxqM0Vwn8vS-8kUxkh-odiNXFAI3HJuIp0EeTaUMMNiXpU-p7CK0UHg/w458-h640/20221224_062348.jpg" width="458" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: 16px;"><br /></span><div><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Programme, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;" /><primis-player style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Programme, Arial, sans-serif;"></primis-player><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;"> </span></span></div><div><span face="Programme, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="background-color: #073763;">O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,<br />Thy candles shine out brightly!<br />O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,<br />Thy candles shine out brightly!<br /><br />Each bough doth hold its tiny light,<br />That makes each toy to sparkle bright.<br />O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,<br />Thy candles shine out brightly! </span><br /></span></div></div></div>jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-59746959525015295992022-05-30T14:00:00.001-04:002022-05-31T04:19:54.940-04:00Happy Birthday To Me.<p> So Friday was my 47th birthday, a most nondescript age to turn to say the least. I took the day off to have myself a nice four-day weekend. Of course, as much as having 96 hours to do nothing would be ideal, one has to use at least some downtime for the errands one must attend to. Being a grown up is lame. But I decided while I was going to be out and about to at least also attend to some of my childish amusement which means baseball cards, of course. </p><p>Having recently finished my <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2022/04/complete-set-sunday-finish-what-you.html" target="_blank">1975 Topps</a> set, I've taken on the challenge of the 1972 set next. I know this one will take years (it took me years to build it the first time). I've gathered all the stars I have and bought myself a nice starter set at a decent price. But while I now have a good 80% of the first 653 cards, after that - the dreaded high numbers - I only had 4 of them. So I know it is a long term task ahead of me. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjEpknnAqTi0LB1Hh3QVdtFOfUqKeqb7o0-GkL6h2sbmv-xac5hICHEWorztGAZYMrogmDe3eWZ6XKuWLDAxmJnDxtp_aIKAyXwKo-hgQ3h7EY4gan9_Q1C_gnNu4u7Je4qSNodOfkEKF2LbrFxWY4S9FD-JASJUY3NxjzbysUie7bS-4NXNDUKNl0kw/s3024/20220523_191527.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="1748" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjEpknnAqTi0LB1Hh3QVdtFOfUqKeqb7o0-GkL6h2sbmv-xac5hICHEWorztGAZYMrogmDe3eWZ6XKuWLDAxmJnDxtp_aIKAyXwKo-hgQ3h7EY4gan9_Q1C_gnNu4u7Je4qSNodOfkEKF2LbrFxWY4S9FD-JASJUY3NxjzbysUie7bS-4NXNDUKNl0kw/w231-h400/20220523_191527.jpg" width="231" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Ah, but this is where some serendipity comes in, even more than my '75 set had. I was around a comic store I know has card supplies and some boxes of random sports card stuff. I have spoken of this place <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2018/02/sorting-things-out.html" target="_blank">before</a>. It is always a fun visit to a joint that has been good to me before but I doubt it will ever be better than this. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoBP52a1lOxqqHa-_B0r95nsPRK_5qRbdKJTzSGXYkNoeclN-KaN5rE3WdphsoWNZ6EqPhgWmW0L4aX_bX_VF8oXSC5HtlIposrudScM1N2szRiy9qhnCXWOcIga9EGp4q4AGA4M5qPvuewsYxsmslyOeyirJtjp3Qne2HYWmirBDPPPS7tLR0VG5s0A/s3724/20220523_191556.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1985" data-original-width="3724" height="342" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoBP52a1lOxqqHa-_B0r95nsPRK_5qRbdKJTzSGXYkNoeclN-KaN5rE3WdphsoWNZ6EqPhgWmW0L4aX_bX_VF8oXSC5HtlIposrudScM1N2szRiy9qhnCXWOcIga9EGp4q4AGA4M5qPvuewsYxsmslyOeyirJtjp3Qne2HYWmirBDPPPS7tLR0VG5s0A/w640-h342/20220523_191556.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>I decided to start my '72 set officially two weeks ago and aside from my initial gathering hadn't done anything more. Heck, I haven't even put together a want list yet. (UPDATE: Yes, I have, in my brands and sets <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/p/wantlist.html" target="_blank">wantlist tab</a>) But as I dove into the dark vintage old school cardboard section of that quarter box, it was like some kind of wild daydream. It was loaded with 1972 Topps. And not just any kind of 1972 Topps, I immediately recognized these cards as high numbers. And there was not just three or four of them, there was dozens of them. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxtXO2qS4EJuxdFZnZFnxYlJm1MtL761T-ZTSHqdFAdX47P3L_l43VAGrQSjs5KlvrNWHMKeTVgH6LrmoYfzfwWG5-IvgIX2ZuZN5Si3bzeVpi3ONukE62u5nX10XlREzZy0IJwCZPItyrnn9IQL80bcAK8fAd50qSrOSN3DMuIYOQpmBwn3jRFHxogA/s3636/20220523_191452.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1263" data-original-width="3636" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxtXO2qS4EJuxdFZnZFnxYlJm1MtL761T-ZTSHqdFAdX47P3L_l43VAGrQSjs5KlvrNWHMKeTVgH6LrmoYfzfwWG5-IvgIX2ZuZN5Si3bzeVpi3ONukE62u5nX10XlREzZy0IJwCZPItyrnn9IQL80bcAK8fAd50qSrOSN3DMuIYOQpmBwn3jRFHxogA/w640-h222/20220523_191452.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Obviously, it is clear that a comic shop might not be well versed in what they had in this vein of cards and I didn't feel it was my place to tell them. I mean, it's not like there was the Nolan Ryan or Frank Robinson traded card in here. But the Rick Wise traded card was in there. And about 60 other high numbers. I asked and made sure the unsleeved vintage was a quarter and I was told yes so I just went with it. All in all, I nabbed 90 or so total that I needed for my new set. And I got those high numbers for a quarter a piece; I couldn't have done that the first time I built this set in the late 90s. I should feel guilty but I don't. I also got a huge lot of series 5 original Star Wars cards too at the same price, but that is a different post (and they should have known better about those). There was also a bunch of other vintage stuff in there, some 1968 commons that I couldn't resist and some '70s team cards. Along with a shiny new binder and a big monster box, it was quite the trip and turned out to be a glorious, unexpected birthday present for me. I'll have a new list up soon for the '72 set soon and I even have a few high number doubles to trade. Try not to take horrible advantage of me. </p>jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-7333569525265930512022-04-10T19:45:00.009-04:002022-04-10T19:45:00.209-04:00Complete Set Sunday: Finish What You Start.<p> After <span class="ILfuVd"><span class="hgKElc"> the <a href="https://www.boston.com/news/coronavirus/2022/03/24/yale-epidemiologist-the-pandemic-is-not-over/" target="_blank">pandemic</a> struck and </span></span>we all went through several rounds of the <span class="ILfuVd"><span class="hgKElc">Kübler-Ross <a href="https://grief.com/the-five-stages-of-grief/" target="_blank">stages</a>, there was a calm when most of us decided "OK, I have all this time on my hands, I am gonna do something <i>important</i>!" and we made plans to learn a craft or go back to school or remodel the house or invent a better mouse trap or focus on our hobbies or whatever. It's always best to think big so that the actual plans can find the right size but also, reality eventually says that our plans will be big but our follow through small. At least that seems to be the way things go for me most of the time. Well, I already went back to school a while back, and my house is just fine the way it is, and my inventing skills are nil, so that left me with my hobby. I did throw myself into my collection in a lot of different ways the last couple years, pruning some parts and expanding others. I bought some cards I <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/baseballcards/comments/sevfr9/buttons_buttons_everywhere/" target="_blank">always wanted</a> and got rid of ones that did not <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2019/01/tidying-up-with-marie-kondo-netflix-show-kon-mari-review/579400/" target="_blank">spark joy</a>. In keeping with the Mary Kondo theme, one thing I really lament from my long term collecting history is that a long time ago, I sold off all my vintage Topps sets. I had built a 1969 set, a 1972 set, and as you can probably tell from the thumbnail of this post, a 1975 set. Given all this time on my hands, I decided to rebuild one of those sets and since the 1975 set is my favorite (for many reasons we'll get to) that was the one I went for.<br /></span></span></p><p>The pandemic has made it almost impossible to go out and buy cards in a store but the online offerings exploded. I had my choice of a few nice starter sets and I picked one that had a few of the key rookie cards (Rice, Yount, Hernandez) and then added my back up Gary Carter to the mix. I then made it a challenge for myself by making my set build a low budget affair. Sure, I could have just went to ebay and nabbed a few other common lots or just paid for hall of famers but instead, I built most of this set through my own collection, reddit trades, Listia listings, and a great serendipitous find: I got my Brett rookie for nothing because a friend was updating his 1975 set to PSA quality. He bought a PSA 9 and gave me his old, just fine, ungraded #228. That was nice.<br /></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvxh8mXHHK7ftfjhjAFbhSU30ipaIn-M6v3fPSqHwvcvZireBIuzkwYKX2RgJjz3Uhg5__MZ8GmlPp_Hxfovj2CeO1ALRZ-qtmlOGIBJRyf_eAF5OqWohwlaBBZFwcinDJaMvqxnm6aqw1hZNGndncKEZtg7qBFuPR8NGyM3Op77FlATVsMVPTlvwbqQ/s3804/20220323_151658.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3804" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvxh8mXHHK7ftfjhjAFbhSU30ipaIn-M6v3fPSqHwvcvZireBIuzkwYKX2RgJjz3Uhg5__MZ8GmlPp_Hxfovj2CeO1ALRZ-qtmlOGIBJRyf_eAF5OqWohwlaBBZFwcinDJaMvqxnm6aqw1hZNGndncKEZtg7qBFuPR8NGyM3Op77FlATVsMVPTlvwbqQ/w509-h640/20220323_151658.jpg" width="509" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Mantle/Campy card was the last from the MVP subset and part of the final four.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p><p>So on and off for the last 18 months or so, I have been accumulating cards. A trade here, a find there, a listia seller had a bunch of commons one week. Slowly but surely, I hammered it down to a final four: three random commons (all in the 500s, as though the 1975 set had high numbers or something) and one of the Mantle MVP cards that for some reason, everyone was hoarding. Well, I did finally get that Mantle and then I treated myself to buying the final three from ebay to finish things off. You are now looking at me triumphantly placing those cards into their spots in the binder. <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv0vn5mTSem0elc2qxldKCpMqsEXZZWauVgnxg4H-b-GzGUpVRdpFfgFagUiWtS_WSOL5BzX5SuOYcsP7LEJDIAM8n5acDNyZ8iX5JpJ3KHKxqN26OKwTR52ovPA9o7KXNWvwChhXdNSVJF7EvSjXtDWCN9oPxgR5yfoUr7s1B9EprksnLV7CztJVU9Q/s3715/20220323_151722.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3715" data-original-width="3020" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv0vn5mTSem0elc2qxldKCpMqsEXZZWauVgnxg4H-b-GzGUpVRdpFfgFagUiWtS_WSOL5BzX5SuOYcsP7LEJDIAM8n5acDNyZ8iX5JpJ3KHKxqN26OKwTR52ovPA9o7KXNWvwChhXdNSVJF7EvSjXtDWCN9oPxgR5yfoUr7s1B9EprksnLV7CztJVU9Q/w520-h640/20220323_151722.jpg" width="520" /></a></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Gary Thomasson slides in nicely next to Gaylord Perry, who has one of the nifty <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2020/07/the-all-star-orphans.html" target="_blank">All Star</a> logos from this set. You can also see on the page one of the team cards, a lot of mine have pen marks on the checklist but this does not bother me in the least. I was not very picky when it came to condition. As long as it didn't look like <a href="http://75topps.blogspot.com/2011/09/check-you-later.html" target="_blank">Night Owl</a>'s original cards, I was okay with it. <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizE9QSGoj9AaIgvzZ8t0wDA_ToMQ7Gc3Z-yagJ5ZOMUYryci993kHlCIM_xwiNQn-HPrvNGJ6DHewc6fspAWHo3yuvL3ChZ7H_sdW4uruQHK_HWLHYrWfUV7krDbylox2ocKjsxi55__Id1_THqsM2gIKESvqnOT6i6DQHb5s4P3trES_fp7Jn_LJ0Aw/s3712/20220323_151736.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3712" data-original-width="2980" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizE9QSGoj9AaIgvzZ8t0wDA_ToMQ7Gc3Z-yagJ5ZOMUYryci993kHlCIM_xwiNQn-HPrvNGJ6DHewc6fspAWHo3yuvL3ChZ7H_sdW4uruQHK_HWLHYrWfUV7krDbylox2ocKjsxi55__Id1_THqsM2gIKESvqnOT6i6DQHb5s4P3trES_fp7Jn_LJ0Aw/w514-h640/20220323_151736.jpg" width="514" /></a></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Von Joshua finds his spot here as the penultimate card. I always thought Von Joshua should be a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Van_Cliburn" target="_blank">classical pianist</a>, not an outfielder, but hey, who am I to judge. He was a major leaguer and I wasn't. You can also see on this page that Billy Williams is sadly off center and I will have to perhaps replace some of those. Maybe during the next pandemic...<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP7yPyYAouZxXXW6DCPlrxLSmozd1_Cg4O9YAfnTq_X4cLI7ZpxOeJDtWC4TtmCundqyadLW1N-6IZVU8xdeSoYYoPbxx4sSgzlGhTtoSvSI5H84Qyg_PbyPYbe7kyol-2ZXVjB-ow72PArtq6Nb9SFOwJqdtKjudf2s9u04UWM-ISUyuKvcoYawG5LA/s3871/20220323_151749.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3871" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP7yPyYAouZxXXW6DCPlrxLSmozd1_Cg4O9YAfnTq_X4cLI7ZpxOeJDtWC4TtmCundqyadLW1N-6IZVU8xdeSoYYoPbxx4sSgzlGhTtoSvSI5H84Qyg_PbyPYbe7kyol-2ZXVjB-ow72PArtq6Nb9SFOwJqdtKjudf2s9u04UWM-ISUyuKvcoYawG5LA/w500-h640/20220323_151749.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p><p>And here it is, the final card, #557 Larry Gura. There is a fun irony of him being shown as a Yankee since his reputation was that of Yankee Killer later on in his career. Of all the iconic cards in this set, this one was the last one; not epic but it will do. Al Oliver looks a little jealous over his shoulder.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPA33hnF8c-wUx19hwASd3RjYYh_9F8Og0ASA7Zk9wQnfM6ELjV3N-zEwx99kVWQ6Bf1QL_iDU3B9oMLAFJbMkWWzSP-2TfYUA555HflX3S38MuCdvF0woMmYESj_CYuIEHxHxT6hjgJjgfVEbE0yobUWTP1_lCwMSwVtHB6uKuNxIkuwgcZA0UgD6NQ/s3676/20220323_151754.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3676" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPA33hnF8c-wUx19hwASd3RjYYh_9F8Og0ASA7Zk9wQnfM6ELjV3N-zEwx99kVWQ6Bf1QL_iDU3B9oMLAFJbMkWWzSP-2TfYUA555HflX3S38MuCdvF0woMmYESj_CYuIEHxHxT6hjgJjgfVEbE0yobUWTP1_lCwMSwVtHB6uKuNxIkuwgcZA0UgD6NQ/w526-h640/20220323_151754.jpg" width="526" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p><p>So there it is, I set a goal and accomplished it. It took a year and a half and some time and patience, but I rebuilt my 1975 Topps set. I love this set because I was born that year, I love this set because it is garishly bonkers colorful. I love this set because it has the rookie card of my favorite player of all time, Gary Carter. But now I love this set even more because it will always remind me of a very trying time in my life (and all our lives) but that we made it through. It will remind me that I can set reasonable goals and follow through on them. I will be keeping this one for the rest of my life and passing it on to one of my nibblings, with the story of its acquirement (lucky too that my nieces and nephews have already shown great interest in baseball). It is not perfect by any means, but it is a perfect trophy of the last two years. And now I have to decide if I want to redo those 1969 and/or 1972 sets. If we don't all die in a nuclear war in the next few months, maybe I will choose one and get back to you. <br /></p>jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-78825246635393646902021-12-25T20:45:00.001-05:002021-12-25T20:45:00.196-05:00Happy Holidays.<p> </p><div><div class="ujudUb"><span>Happy holiday (happy holiday)</span><br /><span>Happy holiday (happy holiday)</span><br /><span>While the merry bells keep ringing</span><br /><span>Happy holiday to you (happy holiday)</span><br /><span>(Happy holiday)</span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span>It's the holiday season</span><br /><span>And Santa Claus is coming 'round</span><br /><span>The Christmas snow is white on the ground</span><br /><span>When old Santa gets into town</span><br /><span>He'll be coming down the chimney, down</span><br /><span>(He'll be coming down the chimney, down)</span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgli3r3vS0Z-qBICbg06m_lF0KXvTbAMkE-geJziDsHCGjtcPXoVRl4ZYeNaAfs4QSpXuScs5k8vQ1yxlvnzRWYxjf5newlVZzW_tvtgH8LBUWqUzjL08OZFALixg-ojmU9Pf0yDelIFIVQMbie0YPwx7jrIRHEYcHelChJ5qMnHE8Iu5w-m_aiCz6-8Q=s2000" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="1484" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgli3r3vS0Z-qBICbg06m_lF0KXvTbAMkE-geJziDsHCGjtcPXoVRl4ZYeNaAfs4QSpXuScs5k8vQ1yxlvnzRWYxjf5newlVZzW_tvtgH8LBUWqUzjL08OZFALixg-ojmU9Pf0yDelIFIVQMbie0YPwx7jrIRHEYcHelChJ5qMnHE8Iu5w-m_aiCz6-8Q=w474-h640" width="474" /></a></div><br /></span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> It's the holiday season </span><br /><span>And Santa Claus has got a toy</span><br /><span>For every good girl and good little boy</span><br /><span>Santa's a great big bundle of joy</span><br /><span>When he's coming down the chimney, down</span><br /><span>(When he's coming down the chimney, down)</span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span>He'll have a big fat pack upon his back</span><br /><span>And lots of goodies for you and for me</span><br /><span>So leave a peppermint stick for old St. Nick</span><br /><span>Hanging on the Christmas tree</span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjgn3G_2IQhDJ2hbccVGkM6VspFI8KOSDN4XzlDg8RQPRpJtaq1tKmCpLkRPb2t5aFaznTD9u5O3IuzlZgISV9sd5RKo1r8kaKow7gJIuDr_TE7wHc7XuwqKdlvGjIra_Mz8J9U_ju0F3GRgNv5OdEt8pH5lT48lSWw0lCV8iEAqE5t6y1GOerrLqbB1A=s1944" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1944" data-original-width="1472" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjgn3G_2IQhDJ2hbccVGkM6VspFI8KOSDN4XzlDg8RQPRpJtaq1tKmCpLkRPb2t5aFaznTD9u5O3IuzlZgISV9sd5RKo1r8kaKow7gJIuDr_TE7wHc7XuwqKdlvGjIra_Mz8J9U_ju0F3GRgNv5OdEt8pH5lT48lSWw0lCV8iEAqE5t6y1GOerrLqbB1A=w484-h640" width="484" /></a></div><br /><span><br /></span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span>It's the holiday season (the holiday season)</span><br /><span>So hoop-de-do and dickory dock</span><br /><span>And don't forget to hang up your sock</span><br /><span>'Cause just exactly at twelve o'clock</span></div><div class="ujudUb WRZytc"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb WRZytc"><span>Happy holiday</span><br /><span>(Happy holiday) Happy holiday</span><br /><span>While the merry bells keep ringing</span><br /><span>Happy holiday to you.</span></div><div class="ujudUb WRZytc"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb WRZytc"><span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZ5cmrz-mrU" target="_blank">- </a>Irving Berlin, 1942 <br /></span></div></div>jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-68852349874296571472021-08-08T20:21:00.002-04:002021-08-09T20:37:48.676-04:00Sort 'em If You Got 'em.<p> Yesterday was <a href="https://www.topps.com/nationalbaseballcardday" target="_blank">National Baseball Card Day</a> and no, I couldn't get to the <a href="https://nsccshow.com/home" target="_blank">National</a> this year (or any year, yet) and no, I didn't get out to my local card shop. But if you saw my last <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2021/08/do-you-believe-in-miracles.html" target="_blank">post</a>, you know that I had plenty to do - I had 925 cards sent from COMC to sort through and revel in. And that's exactly what I did:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpvBe95J3Y190UwAN5AoprqxottX2IK0fbLfeZ0OMsSXtZJIONsywEuJGP6nk52dD07D1nNgneyUWUkucKnJOfxznvbvSHPK-_qH7Aozl4axkWsQpcGCENArnHWCv7oJ1MwomSZVSIzJd2/s2048/sort.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1348" data-original-width="2048" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpvBe95J3Y190UwAN5AoprqxottX2IK0fbLfeZ0OMsSXtZJIONsywEuJGP6nk52dD07D1nNgneyUWUkucKnJOfxznvbvSHPK-_qH7Aozl4axkWsQpcGCENArnHWCv7oJ1MwomSZVSIzJd2/w640-h422/sort.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>These piles all make sense, to me anyway. The majority are baseball cards but there are also football, hockey, basketball, bowling, tennis, golf, softball, gaming, movie (James Bond, Batman, and Star Wars among others), music (Beatles and <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2020/05/pollard-throws-no-hitter-may-11-1978.html" target="_blank">Guided By Voices</a>), and all sorts of Goodwin Champions which include all those things and more. There are three separate piles of Mets cards alone, and also one each for the Saints and the Devils and the Knicks, and a couple of players even got their own piles, Tom Seaver and Todd Hundley (no, really, I am a Hundley super-collector at this point). After that there are Hall of Famers and current stars and retired stars and birthday boys and all-star rookie trophy cards. It was a fun few hours to go through all these.<br /></p><p>I obviously can't highlight and scan 925 cards (103 scans! That would more than double my <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2020/09/terrific.html" target="_blank">Seaver</a> memorial post) so I will semi-randomly grab some cards that are either fun or fun to look at or just interesting, to me anyway. Plus there were a few surprises even for me because after two-plus years, I had forgotten I'd bought them.</p><p>The top three here are some multi-player game used cards, one with Gary
Carter and Mike Piazza - basically my two favorite players of all time -
one with a "Bat Rack" of Mets with the aforementioned Carter and Piazza
plus Jose Reyes and Kaz Matsui (remember when he was a thing?) and the
third is a glorious mix of 1973 World Series adversaries from the UD
Decades set, that one has Tom Seaver and Bud Harrelson along with Reggie
Jackson and Bert Campaneris. THAT is the best card I completely forgot I
bought and I was giddy when I saw it. But it also begs the question, how
could I<i> ever</i> forget that card? </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHhVwKkt46RCULAyXSvnrqmSZeVarRWVtyFKHiSUIz0KGjpOWhq23fbs98z6xj352MV2t4qK2hq_Q92ASvYhyEJPGVkTlWhVBskhH5yCkMRyE7wfdFunhL5yZlEfCnxNVfxl7pNKxdt2C6/s1734/Untitled1_11.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1734" data-original-width="1259" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHhVwKkt46RCULAyXSvnrqmSZeVarRWVtyFKHiSUIz0KGjpOWhq23fbs98z6xj352MV2t4qK2hq_Q92ASvYhyEJPGVkTlWhVBskhH5yCkMRyE7wfdFunhL5yZlEfCnxNVfxl7pNKxdt2C6/w464-h640/Untitled1_11.jpg" width="464" /></a></div><br /> <br /><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>There is also a Ralph Kiner announcer card, a rarity of him with Mets colors, a great Lee Mazzilli from 1979 Hostess (I have the panel with Steve Garvey and Mike Schmidt but I needed it solo), a 1970 OPC Mets World Champions #1 card, a low numbered Frank Thomas jersey card (with pinstripes!) and a pair of one of my favorite unusual uniform subjects - Pete Rose on the Montreal Expos - I now have a complete page of him in French red, white, and blue. </p><p>Let's do a second nine, shall we, I can't just show you less than 1% of these, can I?<br /></p><p>First off is the other side of that Carter/Piazza tandem jersey card. Now I have to decide if it goes with the Carter collection or the Piazza. Maybe Carter because he's technically the 'front' of the card? Then you have two modern Topps Hall of Fame short prints. I am not a big fan of these but sometimes Topps picks really cool photos for them and these two definitely fit that category. The Koufax is a magnificent shot of him admiring the scoreboard from his <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandy_Koufax%27s_perfect_game">perfect game</a> and the Nolan Ryan is a brilliant candid shot that should/could have been one of his 70s cards. Topps should <i><b>only</b></i> pick pictures of this quality when doing these short prints (alas, they often do not).<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHQsSvf8ehoRfhEWrymT5uyUak1guys1OBcDIeR-Z1OnBSips925XvtZFzDQVRFYW-zzag9fgdx13JUm2F3jATJOGbq2Je5fKjsX5vv6hXp0ghfLJEtKPpmuT20R6pNrlsm9J0PMm4enuL/s1733/Untitled2_14.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1733" data-original-width="1254" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHQsSvf8ehoRfhEWrymT5uyUak1guys1OBcDIeR-Z1OnBSips925XvtZFzDQVRFYW-zzag9fgdx13JUm2F3jATJOGbq2Je5fKjsX5vv6hXp0ghfLJEtKPpmuT20R6pNrlsm9J0PMm4enuL/w464-h640/Untitled2_14.jpg" width="464" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>There's also a few fun vintage cards here, a 1974 Tony Oliva with its proud position designation of Des(ignated) Hitter, and a late 70s run of Tom Seaver O-Pee-Chee cards. That last one in the left corner is a 1998 Fleer Tradition Todd Hundley '63 Classic card numbered to /63. I told you I was becoming a Hundley super-collector. I also had my eye on a Piazza version of this card but alas did not pull the trigger on it and now it is gone and I might never see another. I have put that card in my Needed Nine, you can find that list on the right side margin of the blog. </p><p>I teased it in the <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2021/08/do-you-believe-in-miracles.html" target="_blank">post</a> from the other day so here is a much better view of the 1952 Andy Pafko #1 I acquired:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7eNnE5AmbqHXDbGZoz5JjkRqlwJy19MjEp4gEmUP6nbzOeCHX6bGa8APPX10E3uFKp_zHfVXDhXpBxQz9E4RGpyB0hDyjGqOHnidBlu8rIlUqvT3oSEimY815oQO9evyseUzqgXg6t2vA/s918/pafko1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="918" height="440" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7eNnE5AmbqHXDbGZoz5JjkRqlwJy19MjEp4gEmUP6nbzOeCHX6bGa8APPX10E3uFKp_zHfVXDhXpBxQz9E4RGpyB0hDyjGqOHnidBlu8rIlUqvT3oSEimY815oQO9evyseUzqgXg6t2vA/w640-h440/pafko1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>I am not certain why I ever bought into the hype of this card but somehow over the years I did and I just decided I must own this stupid thing. I ended up getting it during the COMC Black Friday sales and the price was right for this condition. I think what I really like most is the randomness of someone like Andy Pafko being the first card in their first big set. He was a good ballplayer but nothing anyone would ever consider a superstar. Donruss went with Ozzie Smith, Fleer went with Pete Rose, Score went with Don Mattingly, Upper Deck lucked out and chose Ken Griffey Jr. over Gregg Jefferies and Gary Sheffield for their lead off but somehow Topps went with Andy Pafko as card number one. If anyone knows the solid reason why they chose him (I don't recall ever seeing one) please enlighten me. For now, Andy has a hot date with the other two 1952 star cards I keep protected: my Gus Zernial and my Bob Feller. </p><p>I have gotten to the point in my Gary Carter collection where the only cards I don't have are either strange local oddball issues, low numbered monstrosities, or (somewhere in between) just plain old stuff I don't think is worth the money. I did pull the trigger on a solid gold Gary that I just couldn't pass up during that black Friday sale. I must say, it is shiny!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzVt_TNNWJUIZ9LkfN9WiQuA4qd3ib3AzXPXbHFAMEvWn9di5QLzNIoqBfj7eFFVCH6WkFBsypXjgY8BKKfGWEOjYC3rzYEQMHIzlrTSus3X8QgptIYRBc6AVZimue2l8Yk-A4Xhx25Q31/s858/carterg.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="583" data-original-width="858" height="434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzVt_TNNWJUIZ9LkfN9WiQuA4qd3ib3AzXPXbHFAMEvWn9di5QLzNIoqBfj7eFFVCH6WkFBsypXjgY8BKKfGWEOjYC3rzYEQMHIzlrTSus3X8QgptIYRBc6AVZimue2l8Yk-A4Xhx25Q31/w640-h434/carterg.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>I doubt these Danbury Mint cards will ever be worth much (I also bought a Jerry Koosman one in this batch) but I suppose if times are tough I could melt them down and make fillings out of them or something. </p><p>Lastly is a card that probably only means something to me but I am so happy that I got it, the nerd in me is still glowing. It is a 2019 Goodwin Champions Robert Pollard printing plate, a yellow 1/1. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmwDBSVWg_ZxWgxXEb2M1UFSnCONC_rsFugagVyII5PMl6WBpt5a97FWpos7-GyEXlWzd3PDwwTFr5nOHidXgzG2iBrVbx9kqCunp3T_CeTPODydDGPFe2hNmmdTgD7us_6nyWbmrYrchv/s826/pollard1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="574" data-original-width="826" height="444" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmwDBSVWg_ZxWgxXEb2M1UFSnCONC_rsFugagVyII5PMl6WBpt5a97FWpos7-GyEXlWzd3PDwwTFr5nOHidXgzG2iBrVbx9kqCunp3T_CeTPODydDGPFe2hNmmdTgD7us_6nyWbmrYrchv/w640-h444/pollard1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /> <p></p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The pandemic left me a lot of time at home to sit and listen to music and <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2020/05/pollard-throws-no-hitter-may-11-1978.html" target="_blank">Uncle Bob</a> here cranked out something like seven albums (and counting) during 2020 and 2021. Maybe it is the old man in me, but I don't listen to a lot of music the way I did when I was a younger man but the pandemic did a lot of strange things to all of us so it was nice to have new <a href="https://www.guidedbyvoices.com/" target="_blank">Guided By Voices</a> albums flying out at the rate they used to in the 1990s. This card will now be the centerpiece of my Bob Pollard <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhibzRViIM7ET4m2cMxMdsFFBCNI9qM-NNUR9_741YEynEFmNyFm5w8p-usTnL2EdRhs21ntHpqVd7NGPZb0OMhGmuAX_3oo4X27d6TELmRdHO5IlQYyf9zyuOquvxkbn-aiV-5Ky1bv-G2/s1600/pollard10.jpg" target="_blank">collection</a> from that Goodwin set and I have to trust in myself that I don't become that lunatic who needs to hoard the one-of-one cards. It helps that I haven't seen any of the others for sale...you know, not that I've checked or anything. Now excuse me, I have 905 other cards to put in their proper place in my collection. <br /></p>jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-50491275463969922332021-08-06T12:34:00.002-04:002021-08-06T12:34:00.180-04:00Do You Believe in Miracles?<p> Kind of.</p><p>This package was waiting for me on my doorstep yesterday:</p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPeLcowCgIUkYJ1LbXh_JItA7qjY8chNnAcH1V2R42WhFyXkIoisCFXqvJHNWPa6C7Gw0K7t7SBU1_X_pkXSnY2XpsSFkprdrB9X4fv4Pm83eW9Sga1ASB-IBGSKnrr1eaX3FS_rlci9Gc/s2048/comc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1478" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPeLcowCgIUkYJ1LbXh_JItA7qjY8chNnAcH1V2R42WhFyXkIoisCFXqvJHNWPa6C7Gw0K7t7SBU1_X_pkXSnY2XpsSFkprdrB9X4fv4Pm83eW9Sga1ASB-IBGSKnrr1eaX3FS_rlci9Gc/w462-h640/comc.jpg" width="462" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">yes, <a href="https://www.beckett.com/news/cop-outs-collecting-ties-might-make-some-cry/" target="_blank">that is</a> a 1952 Topps #1 Andy Pafko along with 1989 LJN Baseball Talk. Fun Times! </td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>If you cannot read that tiny little print on the label, it came from the glorious Seattle suburb of Redmond WA from a company you might know, <a href="https://www.comc.com" target="_blank">COMC</a>. Remember them? Well, I requested this package in February and it was scheduled for a May delivery - I doubt you need a calendar to see what <a href="https://www.wincalendar.com/Calendar/Date/August-6-2021" target="_blank">today</a> is but I can assure you, it is not May. I am not saying I completely gave up on ever seeing it but their pandemic combination of horrible customer service and empty promises made me wonder if 2022 was out of the question. But it did arrive. They have answered emails faster of late and it was very well packaged when I got it. You can see a nice tease of the stuff that was on top and I am going to spend the weekend sorting and enjoying the 900+ cards that are inside. I am not here to praise COMC or bury them right now since the world is still knee deep in <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/us/new-jersey-covid-cases.html" target="_blank">madness</a> but I will say to anyone reading this wondering if they will ever see their package: miracles do happen. <br /></p>jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-18541132135979354142021-04-01T16:01:00.060-04:002021-04-01T16:01:00.467-04:00The White Whale.<p> Sometimes in life you spend too much time and energy to acquire a card. You search high and low to find it and have to work a series of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_red_paperclip" target="_blank">paper clip trades</a> and ancient <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/4522031?seq=1" target="_blank">ritual dances</a> to track down that cardboard wonder. For some, it is a rare 1/1 <a href="https://sportscollectorsdigest.com/cards/mike-trout-superfractor-highest-selling-sports-card-ever" target="_blank">superfractor</a>, for others, it is a <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidseideman/2018/04/29/forget-the-2-9-million-mickey-mantle-card-there-are-three-worth-10-million/?sh=3f016ced3a99" target="_blank">PSA 10</a> vintage beauty. And then there is the saga of the 1984 Topps Rack Pack Glossy All Star #20:<br /></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii8w8ROYqB0ApLrMpUp5qm73eKK0WcVFnOyS_2e1spyHAAUnm0DqR7HCf45Pj9dmqFtIFdR8cgLbViNrARVdI6W9JSqMTz09dWu7_NSeP_Pfy2hq55rDMh_haGsuF2AgveANKL6i7Pk8_U/s1746/gc.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1746" data-original-width="1275" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii8w8ROYqB0ApLrMpUp5qm73eKK0WcVFnOyS_2e1spyHAAUnm0DqR7HCf45Pj9dmqFtIFdR8cgLbViNrARVdI6W9JSqMTz09dWu7_NSeP_Pfy2hq55rDMh_haGsuF2AgveANKL6i7Pk8_U/w468-h640/gc.jpg" width="468" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here in its place of honor among other lesser moral 1984 cards<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p>The card you see in the center of that page is more than just a glossy insert from a long ago time, it was a quest, a pursuit beyond all others. Oh sure you say, you could just go on sportslots or <a href="https://www.comc.com/Cards/Baseball/1984/Topps_-_Rack_Pack_Glossy_All-Stars/20/Gary_Carter/1896505" target="_blank">COMC</a> and pay 85 cents for it, but that would defeat the purpose. No, this card taunts me, it tells me I am not worthy. It tasks me beyond what is right or righteous. There is no way to convey the proper magnitude of what that card put me through. The smile on Gary Carter's face hides a vicious streak of cruelty I will take to the grave and never share with another soul. This is not some simple <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2020/04/foolish.html" target="_blank">1988 Phil Niekro</a> card or a pile of <a href="http://nightowlcards.blogspot.com/2010/02/bipping-has-jumped-shark.html" target="_blank">Bip Roberts</a> cards. My family will never recover from the efforts and resources it took to track down and tame this horrible beast. Heavens <a href="://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YddL8T97qK4" target="_blank">to</a> Betsy, what on earth possessed me to ever get involved with a cursed card? What fools these mortals be.<br /></p><p><br /></p>jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-72809263729614519512020-12-27T14:45:00.015-05:002020-12-27T14:46:36.641-05:00Retro Fun.<p> It is safe to say most of us reached retro card saturation sometime in the early to mid-aughts. The Topps <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2014/06/archivist.html" target="_blank">Archives</a> and Topps <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2020/03/love-in-time-of-corona.html" target="_blank">Heritage</a> sets in 2001 begat Upper Deck's Vintage and <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2012/03/genesis.html" target="_blank">Decade</a>s series and opened up a floodgate of reprints, design reuse, and pseudo-retro sets. Sometimes it is refreshing and neat but most of the time it is gratuitous and poorly executed. And since Topps keeps pumping out their Heritage and revamped Archives sets over and and over, year after year, we get very little variation in the presentation of our nostalgia. </p><p>Enter Topps Super 70s Sports Baseball. If you recognize the name and follow this <a href="https://twitter.com/Super70sSports" target="_blank">dude on twitter</a>, you know the whole tongue-in-cheek schtick this feed has. It posts multiple retro photos a day with an amusing over-the-top <a href="https://twitter.com/Super70sSports/status/1343054287304323072" target="_blank">caption</a> to it to inflict an emotional response: sometimes <a href="https://twitter.com/Super70sSports/status/1343230144148869121" target="_blank">good</a>, sometimes <a href="https://twitter.com/Super70sSports/status/1342695420586299392" target="_blank">bad</a>, sometimes <a href="https://twitter.com/Super70sSports/status/1343264821282807809" target="_blank">ridiculous</a>. When I saw they had teamed up with Topps to put out a card set, I couldn't resist. Lemme tell you, they had me at the graphic on the box:<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1Vv1cKdrL94mC3ha-RMQ6p8Xdr2XDsdYEzICgvNJ2rDHOZUwb3zwhltZpamMF46d-LBs_pIylfaYLqB7MpIvqOSoLjlXim_B47UTX6aSBVWKkqUWvrRgK6HlHnb4Y7C5l5Ofa2UEi9_R_/s692/super70s1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="650" data-original-width="692" height="602" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1Vv1cKdrL94mC3ha-RMQ6p8Xdr2XDsdYEzICgvNJ2rDHOZUwb3zwhltZpamMF46d-LBs_pIylfaYLqB7MpIvqOSoLjlXim_B47UTX6aSBVWKkqUWvrRgK6HlHnb4Y7C5l5Ofa2UEi9_R_/w640-h602/super70s1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>When I saw the design of the cards, I knew immediately that they were going for someone like me who wants the vibe of old school cards but not the horrible repetition the whole parade has become. If you are as much of a card nerd as I am (and if you are reading this blog, I assume you are) you recognized the elements right away: The script team logo from 1978, the pennant flag from 1977, and the ribbon from 1979 (or 1974 perhaps?) all remixed and reorganized into something organic and new. It's like hearing a perfect cover version of a popular overplayed song that makes the whole thing come alive again.<br /></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_4ZFrn1XVrxNJqFNoZ8ROGD44XvLFMxPfC8cu2G3hBDYbBDHSCmEAXqjZ5OSTvHPfkkGTihE7O7h1IhWvRJuXvExEk5FSrMn-ndzi4rqPnjLDNH6COiUOjGLqdbGM1EziLnsil3Ni5J8s/s632/super70s2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="632" data-original-width="494" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_4ZFrn1XVrxNJqFNoZ8ROGD44XvLFMxPfC8cu2G3hBDYbBDHSCmEAXqjZ5OSTvHPfkkGTihE7O7h1IhWvRJuXvExEk5FSrMn-ndzi4rqPnjLDNH6COiUOjGLqdbGM1EziLnsil3Ni5J8s/w500-h640/super70s2.jpg" width="500" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The "pack" was actually a plastic box sealed with tamper tape. Very interesting indeed.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p><p>I pre-ordered this stuff, which I NEVER do even for Ginter or Heritage, back in early November. I got a late Christmas present when they arrived on Boxing Day. And yup, I love them as much as I thought I would.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguLrkFqvKp79d0Faucux3fzGTbpv0kpTZZZjpIHmhy96eTkKlhc4fzdxiEw47AePjma-kxadqVOJz9sSvvgZZDWCDZaAC71Hw0m1ZWxKpgQIM0mbYO3g_MJx0qe_8nnz_zbJpp4IfG2VmG/s1722/super70s3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1722" data-original-width="1260" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguLrkFqvKp79d0Faucux3fzGTbpv0kpTZZZjpIHmhy96eTkKlhc4fzdxiEw47AePjma-kxadqVOJz9sSvvgZZDWCDZaAC71Hw0m1ZWxKpgQIM0mbYO3g_MJx0qe_8nnz_zbJpp4IfG2VmG/w468-h640/super70s3.jpg" width="468" /></a></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p>First and foremost, new photos! One of the huge complains I and so many other collectors is when they put old guys on new cards, they use the same pictures over and over and over and over again. I know I have written about it and I know other bloggers have too so when I see new shots from the no doubt bottomless pile Topps should have, it makes me very happy indeed. The other thing I noticed right away is that they feel right. The vintage cardboard is always a plus on these sets. I know shiny white glossy paper looks better but when you are doing this sort of thing, it really should be thick and pulpy and dull. It makes the backs look right too:<br /></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9xlxGV1be6PpQ9H06o77BDV9ta6iIJweQpr0fD6BeQnJchT4s1hpZjwLiqaNrJTwIJtmGPBNvgOxzpbePg9Mo04nXXnB9dgit79Vi9Mi-JKR2bvVlP0UZu63PWkfj8ouCn4lF-eWl3rqL/s628/super70s6.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="628" height="490" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9xlxGV1be6PpQ9H06o77BDV9ta6iIJweQpr0fD6BeQnJchT4s1hpZjwLiqaNrJTwIJtmGPBNvgOxzpbePg9Mo04nXXnB9dgit79Vi9Mi-JKR2bvVlP0UZu63PWkfj8ouCn4lF-eWl3rqL/w640-h490/super70s6.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p>I probably should have scanned more backs but the cartoons are wonderful and they look new though someone with more knowledge than me could probably figure out if they are reused. Either way, they let a third of the back be the comic and I am more than okay with that. The backs themselves are in the color scheme of 1977 or 1979 with the ribbon from '79 featured. I was kind of expecting the humorous tone of the S70sS Twitter feed in the write-up but they are pretty straight forward. I doubt Topps would want to alienate anyone with a Kevin Costner joke on the back of a Cal Ripken card (google it). <br /></p><p>Lets look at all of these beauties. I even got a nice little hit:<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEjrM49ynziTQ-xM9N3u64NnQ6dTaUm3E2nwCQ8GEKF7Os2832yCub3N-hyl_MKBGF442vIRBMam7Ot4UjbzBG_iVcVEV34BBjVdHI_qeJKqmFWAkdAPkrDqYlb5bpNv4eAN89Id__eo3F/s1730/super70s4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1730" data-original-width="1258" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEjrM49ynziTQ-xM9N3u64NnQ6dTaUm3E2nwCQ8GEKF7Os2832yCub3N-hyl_MKBGF442vIRBMam7Ot4UjbzBG_iVcVEV34BBjVdHI_qeJKqmFWAkdAPkrDqYlb5bpNv4eAN89Id__eo3F/w466-h640/super70s4.jpg" width="466" /></a></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p><p>That's a Dave Parker autograph in the middle there. I didn't have a Cobra signature in my collection so that one is going to stay. The last two cards are themed parallels that add the colorful banners of 1975 to the mix. I think it might have been too much to ask for the whole set to look like that so that is a nice addition and kinda what parallels should do in the first place. I might need to look into making an entire page of the Magnificent Mustaches. <br /></p><p>They did modern players in the set too, which is fine I guess but certainly not what I came to see. Scherzer and Turner certainly fit in with a 70s theme, Cole and Soto, not so much. Full disclosure: I am easily old enough to be Juan Soto's dad. <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD45t5TEbXwOebnT9imSdE0ZVGDU75RnKc3EntQ3urCWRrD7VeDEoZ3kl_AxVddKy1WZIFHs5lUqFY_8bMrCn1a5wdqhTac5QNmODZy8hBGOa3c-18LI1iTq6OFGEyhvQzLdNVhYa8oiFU/s1720/super70s5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1720" data-original-width="1275" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD45t5TEbXwOebnT9imSdE0ZVGDU75RnKc3EntQ3urCWRrD7VeDEoZ3kl_AxVddKy1WZIFHs5lUqFY_8bMrCn1a5wdqhTac5QNmODZy8hBGOa3c-18LI1iTq6OFGEyhvQzLdNVhYa8oiFU/w474-h640/super70s5.jpg" width="474" /></a></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p><p>You may count more than 20 cards, that's because I also pre-ordered my favorite players, the Gary Carter, the Frank Thomas, the Mike Piazza (amusingly shown in his Marlins uniform), and of course the Mets players there on the bottom. A wise decision since I didn't get any of them in my 20-card box. These cards are easily the collecting highlight of the dumpster fire that has been 2020. If you were on the fence about getting any of this stuff because you don't like all the faux-vintage that gets churned out, I suggest it highly. I hope Topps learns from this and does more fun sets like this rather than just reprinting all their old cards. <br /></p>jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-85239012037974566572020-12-24T19:30:00.001-05:002020-12-24T19:30:14.484-05:00If Only In My Dreams.I'll be home for Christmas <br />You can plan on me<br />Please have snow and mistletoe<br />And presents by the tree.<p><span></span></p><div class="ujudUb"><span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIUZinmay5upwLM3uPmLmxyiRy7IrmwuYYavSpIbHe5RNPQuodIte37DQsF80QOWLANOKMsg7wLONu9yhyqSNJaeczCl_JcK136lt0pf9QliNgeo34SDYq-BPTQf3OMuGvAv6WhpQc703h/s1721/Untitled1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1721" data-original-width="1275" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIUZinmay5upwLM3uPmLmxyiRy7IrmwuYYavSpIbHe5RNPQuodIte37DQsF80QOWLANOKMsg7wLONu9yhyqSNJaeczCl_JcK136lt0pf9QliNgeo34SDYq-BPTQf3OMuGvAv6WhpQc703h/w474-h640/Untitled1.jpg" width="474" /></a></div><br /></span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span>Christmas eve will find me</span><br /><span>Where the love light gleams</span><br /><span>I'll be home for Christmas</span><br /><span>If only in my dreams.</span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCDj2Y1sZ6WtJV79Y-j3VimU81NX_BizpP8Tg3AbpfWqlTrXKzAFygxIEIATA95Zon4jae9JmTcxeS2eofxa79YI_ZtXlnUPo5-kHFoQ4s1qP7_OavqEiKhkoKLLjrMG6xMVz-1kiBMKpG/s1725/Untitled2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1725" data-original-width="1275" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCDj2Y1sZ6WtJV79Y-j3VimU81NX_BizpP8Tg3AbpfWqlTrXKzAFygxIEIATA95Zon4jae9JmTcxeS2eofxa79YI_ZtXlnUPo5-kHFoQ4s1qP7_OavqEiKhkoKLLjrMG6xMVz-1kiBMKpG/w474-h640/Untitled2.jpg" width="474" /></a></div><br /><span><br /></span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span>I'll be home for Christmas</span><br /><span>You can plan on me</span><br /><span>Please have some snow and mistletoe</span><br /><span>And presents by the tree.</span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span>Christmas eve will find me</span><br /><span>Where the love light gleams...</span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYiHhB7r4qsVZMY-LWkdfHoNfPnzMZgJQ2wOW0hqXUtS9qy4EZ7X65MW54xOciVb8n1PB2fMZN0JwCkDvI6rQbxfLEUdwygtS-tH_YBcC-2QqGynhJa5dQua1eNyBjl1-WDy_VFeH6vbMI/s1734/Untitled3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1734" data-original-width="1275" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYiHhB7r4qsVZMY-LWkdfHoNfPnzMZgJQ2wOW0hqXUtS9qy4EZ7X65MW54xOciVb8n1PB2fMZN0JwCkDvI6rQbxfLEUdwygtS-tH_YBcC-2QqGynhJa5dQua1eNyBjl1-WDy_VFeH6vbMI/w470-h640/Untitled3.jpg" width="470" /></a></div><br /><span><br /></span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span><br /><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span>I'll be home for Christmas</span></div><div class="ujudUb"><span>If only in my dreams.</span></div><div class="ujudUb WRZytc"><span>I'll be home for Christmas</span><br /><span>If only in my dreams.</span></div><div class="ujudUb WRZytc"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb WRZytc"><span>- </span><span>Kim Gannon and Walter Kent 1943.</span></div><div class="ujudUb WRZytc"><span> </span></div><div class="ujudUb WRZytc"><span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dL71eMc1blw" width="320" youtube-src-id="dL71eMc1blw"></iframe></div><br /> </span></div><p></p>jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-70827842350157011722020-09-02T22:15:00.000-04:002020-09-02T22:15:25.064-04:00Terrific. <p> Oddly enough, I was all prepared this evening to write yet another post about me not posting; a silly little tongue and cheek thing with a couple fun pages and some harsh words on the terrible play of the Mets during this pandemic-shortened season. But now tragedy has struck as one of the greats, THE great for the Mets, The Franchise has passed on. I hope he is now at peace. </p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">RIP George Thomas Seaver 1944-2020</span></p><p>I am at a loss for words so I will let these 41 scans from my collection speak for me. Look at the amazing stats, look at the perfect form and drive. There was no one better. No one. </p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnVEDlzu0hpmTnGi2P4Uey4OfsYdXhyphenhyphenMR9Q0NgShoBWh61vcuT2XsQgflNPPORjs9yXd3oD5Y-fLd9HKNYsuIOwB8u8D4ZG7UkVWx6RVSPq6ou3a_j-EbsWrG6r41iERayq-M9_gUjWY0D/s1730/ts01.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1730" data-original-width="1275" height="800" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnVEDlzu0hpmTnGi2P4Uey4OfsYdXhyphenhyphenMR9Q0NgShoBWh61vcuT2XsQgflNPPORjs9yXd3oD5Y-fLd9HKNYsuIOwB8u8D4ZG7UkVWx6RVSPq6ou3a_j-EbsWrG6r41iERayq-M9_gUjWY0D/w590-h800/ts01.JPG" width="590" /></a> <br /></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPQT-hPOVqVniTdEMAGmuc_q9by1P_dbRC5PzTr212CPgZhlK8plrvEiwd4LzalT1ptdAlXMGqmhKSyoEbqhJ7hsczbCgJygcCOmnYo66CJaqmOjOv4TGaSW9s_9v1QYydk5L5SqTGmNgr/s1741/ts02.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1741" data-original-width="1275" height="800" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPQT-hPOVqVniTdEMAGmuc_q9by1P_dbRC5PzTr212CPgZhlK8plrvEiwd4LzalT1ptdAlXMGqmhKSyoEbqhJ7hsczbCgJygcCOmnYo66CJaqmOjOv4TGaSW9s_9v1QYydk5L5SqTGmNgr/w586-h800/ts02.JPG" width="586" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtq3OJv4kQkpJC3Ij5612kvyD-VBjSXIKHUGSux-XxMKRkMyzsX0fd97a3dx2f0l5U-Izs3TeN3Nyk2oYIiaNzlZWoEMqFY6ZH9cF3zqF1Wd9i1ls2WYHreeFrP12X8eJhI7C_1o5dIDYu/s1735/ts03.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1735" data-original-width="1275" height="800" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtq3OJv4kQkpJC3Ij5612kvyD-VBjSXIKHUGSux-XxMKRkMyzsX0fd97a3dx2f0l5U-Izs3TeN3Nyk2oYIiaNzlZWoEMqFY6ZH9cF3zqF1Wd9i1ls2WYHreeFrP12X8eJhI7C_1o5dIDYu/w588-h800/ts03.JPG" width="588" /></a></div><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; 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text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxLIw5_cBgedaO_eamp1aUjzDLqX3J8OpaGeNEK3bYHuDq2OYpFB1LfhQE_fSwyE1L4KUI1SotQXEa6iQO48HH8WlP9VbCAmF0zSCadRh4wl7poz_hWmlvbopbi7LsNYrfCV5n4tRBjd4P/s1377/ts30.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1377" data-original-width="1216" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxLIw5_cBgedaO_eamp1aUjzDLqX3J8OpaGeNEK3bYHuDq2OYpFB1LfhQE_fSwyE1L4KUI1SotQXEa6iQO48HH8WlP9VbCAmF0zSCadRh4wl7poz_hWmlvbopbi7LsNYrfCV5n4tRBjd4P/w565-h640/ts30.JPG" width="565" /></a></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Just to make sure you are still with me here, this next scan features an autograph with an awesome story, it's one of my favorite things that I have ever written not just on this blog but ever. <a href="http://startingnine.blogspot.com/2014/03/story-time.html" target="_blank">Click here</a> in case you've never read it, I recommend highly that you do. <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; 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text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNKLioolcNGPyvna5VX0HxH7pMb-N02tMjDTy44aXdD88afw-9KhQierZHVktsGZrMCsTy0VoZk02BNrAM497TOyrMR7JmHBDXzqe4PQO7reVDPZZHD8qgxSYQYnj4D8gufx9naUb3pQxX/s1360/ts40.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1198" data-original-width="1360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNKLioolcNGPyvna5VX0HxH7pMb-N02tMjDTy44aXdD88afw-9KhQierZHVktsGZrMCsTy0VoZk02BNrAM497TOyrMR7JmHBDXzqe4PQO7reVDPZZHD8qgxSYQYnj4D8gufx9naUb3pQxX/s640/ts40.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2jENT_shgcaE-fnZMQ2fFz0FDzEH-PPenriIqDF8GuIPyG-w-Eaq4wPLjqA3F71DEn6E4pB25j32wVZl_VhYJmc4hdjANvT9U8CX0tYOMlJ4_bEp8-ckfwLkVTrV23Ry5HvYtdIijTwTa/s1363/ts41.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; 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text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRjBcjuKe6tFvQ_eZGCrbK4FoeedXeDnXKeV8dWqYgu4NGmZh316nXYSNf9Oc1M0Zp5xDOJuomWcYCDkWSV52U-KXRaOeG1x9mtKTxZ2xSz6BMIqOARhQ7o7dIamdFC0UVxu4O7VVF6qzf/s1361/ts43.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1201" data-original-width="1361" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRjBcjuKe6tFvQ_eZGCrbK4FoeedXeDnXKeV8dWqYgu4NGmZh316nXYSNf9Oc1M0Zp5xDOJuomWcYCDkWSV52U-KXRaOeG1x9mtKTxZ2xSz6BMIqOARhQ7o7dIamdFC0UVxu4O7VVF6qzf/s640/ts43.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDceeJHssyo3qqsIBLK1nJ3XH8G0Yh24wrLAbj02FHKB-Gi_6xgbEBG010hV33wVTjrOND11I82DkT1pzOBQ0x2rlBAv-krs0ZUIDV-8Dum0vLiUek8pp-GhG9VPas2KAFpUkalcz3oK9K/s1359/ts44.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1204" data-original-width="1359" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDceeJHssyo3qqsIBLK1nJ3XH8G0Yh24wrLAbj02FHKB-Gi_6xgbEBG010hV33wVTjrOND11I82DkT1pzOBQ0x2rlBAv-krs0ZUIDV-8Dum0vLiUek8pp-GhG9VPas2KAFpUkalcz3oK9K/s640/ts44.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrkvu-Wz5Q8Bfo8IcMO2hRRPHDn5VLZjGmaK5NaF76iiG6Eqv9TNMdL75N1N3BHsk5dKbro9mnDM9zshFTnY6rPQI8JByezWYG_MlZ9WKUEtOn1RdPRxKm6EyrOQLkDm-p0kjugv0VsKjM/s1200/ts45.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="912" data-original-width="1200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrkvu-Wz5Q8Bfo8IcMO2hRRPHDn5VLZjGmaK5NaF76iiG6Eqv9TNMdL75N1N3BHsk5dKbro9mnDM9zshFTnY6rPQI8JByezWYG_MlZ9WKUEtOn1RdPRxKm6EyrOQLkDm-p0kjugv0VsKjM/s640/ts45.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrXRMRGHCQKtd4hsUTayMEVpwJXYDn27mP0IdgWxtod9Z_POrr98Uk_XoLA06H8als1oBRll6mFbn9gTEr7T-1KaTlkkeF48YzLKHXkTDznKuti5yQfuT6zcNsrnjRIkQjuxmyLurdfc1f/s1375/ts46.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1195" data-original-width="1375" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrXRMRGHCQKtd4hsUTayMEVpwJXYDn27mP0IdgWxtod9Z_POrr98Uk_XoLA06H8als1oBRll6mFbn9gTEr7T-1KaTlkkeF48YzLKHXkTDznKuti5yQfuT6zcNsrnjRIkQjuxmyLurdfc1f/s640/ts46.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf4t7TumFm16VMHK2MVoqwMA4TCUp8Wp5v5sJQJ40ZV6AR_-RGFPt6SHhqxUO78dIjXBU7edTXiy8EX8BgDG8MpFw1HMDQnT50oKBowjDEBD0K1FBZ-8kQjThTI4I-XPBnjW2An93KF4Z5/s1344/ts47.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1198" data-original-width="1344" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf4t7TumFm16VMHK2MVoqwMA4TCUp8Wp5v5sJQJ40ZV6AR_-RGFPt6SHhqxUO78dIjXBU7edTXiy8EX8BgDG8MpFw1HMDQnT50oKBowjDEBD0K1FBZ-8kQjThTI4I-XPBnjW2An93KF4Z5/s640/ts47.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPHUfTVkzwVJ0VraDK9EHqBIWVw-GT8yFSADjkYRgfLG1Kx4tra7d5w5fBmI93HYy2_07zaC9GfmqrNCZcUSBmDFLDabLpwVKm1b5gsyBRk9zTsxVTh70e7gtNPNf_BNeQUhTJcmi5Ou13/s1358/ts48.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1194" data-original-width="1358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPHUfTVkzwVJ0VraDK9EHqBIWVw-GT8yFSADjkYRgfLG1Kx4tra7d5w5fBmI93HYy2_07zaC9GfmqrNCZcUSBmDFLDabLpwVKm1b5gsyBRk9zTsxVTh70e7gtNPNf_BNeQUhTJcmi5Ou13/s640/ts48.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6fT4dhJijbDoaPRW35MP4SqIf-SZ0qbOtnZu-tvM7brY8OIYuFbLBtmJA-zK6IbtbQXw2j7P8pjOXerUjIDq5c88xOS2nG7Ohf0pGSIror1NnuxUcpdz91qS8PZFK8jqLkOjiTVVoX_3o/s1353/ts49.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1195" data-original-width="1353" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6fT4dhJijbDoaPRW35MP4SqIf-SZ0qbOtnZu-tvM7brY8OIYuFbLBtmJA-zK6IbtbQXw2j7P8pjOXerUjIDq5c88xOS2nG7Ohf0pGSIror1NnuxUcpdz91qS8PZFK8jqLkOjiTVVoX_3o/s640/ts49.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Maybe someday I will revisit these cards under happier circumstances. <br /></p>jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-49355565515809321392020-07-24T15:51:00.004-04:002020-07-26T19:18:09.823-04:00The New Normal: Opening Day. Today is opening day! *looks at calendar* Holy shit! It's July 24th. Like most things these days, things are a <a href="https://www.mlb.com/news/mets-to-use-cutout-fans-in-citi-field-stands" target="_blank">little different</a>. They are going to start playing baseball today amidst this pandemic and they are going to do it with slightly <a href="https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-rule-changes-for-2020" target="_blank">different rules</a> and a very different atmosphere. Since we can't go out the the old ballgame today (but we can watch on TV) let's breakdown what you might see and what you definitely won't see. <br />
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Famous people throwing out the first pitch:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHIHKoNI7ncfpMLsIhPVF2zZLuqw6iM4OzaNbwBb16pmp9SRmAQCnw4fCqdmFLqdvsiAyTKPxguKplFoeve-8qQoqwPwAO0LGsK-ArrHGDT7gwrc64he3IUzDvJINNaN8qFrlAAjpRucb5/s1745/firstpitch16.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1745" data-original-width="1271" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHIHKoNI7ncfpMLsIhPVF2zZLuqw6iM4OzaNbwBb16pmp9SRmAQCnw4fCqdmFLqdvsiAyTKPxguKplFoeve-8qQoqwPwAO0LGsK-ArrHGDT7gwrc64he3IUzDvJINNaN8qFrlAAjpRucb5/w466-h640/firstpitch16.jpg" width="466" /></a></div>
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Yes! Last night during the Nationals opener, Dr. Anthony Fauci threw out the <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2020/07/24/dr-anthony-fauci-first-pitch-topps-selling-card-24-hours/5503001002/" target="_blank">first pitch</a>, and while it wasn't exactly a <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/dr-anthony-fauci-jokes-about-wild-first-pitch-safety-mlb-nfl-college-football-163634754.html" target="_blank">strike</a>, I like to think he has more important things to be focusing on right now. With any luck, the people <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/ny-donald-trump-first-pitch-yankee-stadium-august-20200723-mcix7nmf6zgsdk5m26fte2xm44-story.html" target="_blank">in charge</a> might even start listening.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Topps needs to bring these back, I always liked these cards.</td></tr>
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Mascots: Nope.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS0eK-lxbDP4XmZs2uzylPBhDEZHXGXy2vZ1GiwIR7B4FGGzyvTaxjm0JymPYUtWnVWaUTpBBEMR1PiKgWRrX6DOGO1S8jCu0t6e6EyeyVwUQYhOR1IOGm5MMaMB_4UQKXyCqz4mJGmlJG/s1745/mascots.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1745" data-original-width="1275" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS0eK-lxbDP4XmZs2uzylPBhDEZHXGXy2vZ1GiwIR7B4FGGzyvTaxjm0JymPYUtWnVWaUTpBBEMR1PiKgWRrX6DOGO1S8jCu0t6e6EyeyVwUQYhOR1IOGm5MMaMB_4UQKXyCqz4mJGmlJG/w468-h640/mascots.jpg" width="468" /></a></div>
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The stadiums will be empty and the large costumed buffoonery will have to be on hold for a while. If you want to <a href="https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=furry" target="_blank">dress up</a> in the privacy of your own home, I am certainly not going to judge. UPDATE: I may have <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/davidmack/baseball-mascots-empty-stadiums-photos" target="_blank">been misinformed</a> about this one...<br /></div>
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Cardboard cut-out fans: </div>
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Yes! Real fans will not be in the ballpark but most teams (including <a href="https://scontent-ort2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/p720x720/109879650_10223865477444078_2363992741020998422_o.jpg?_nc_cat=104&_nc_sid=1480c5&_nc_ohc=mkV0ec_1eCEAX9-3t70&_nc_oc=AQnw8SYHDWbLTfk8eMWuEOXMocechDFFvjCXMUwYQNvjQ-YWlDEh_oDH2wbfj4S_iRU&_nc_ht=scontent-ort2-1.xx&_nc_tp=6&oh=a2930bafd14810bf4fc744ca4daf8473&oe=5F3F10E4" target="_blank">my Mets</a>) have put up <a href="https://www.masslive.com/redsox/2020/07/boston-red-sox-fan-cutouts-team-selling-spots-atop-green-monster-for-500-donation-fans-win-prizes-if-likeness-hit-by-home-run-ball.html" target="_blank">cardboard</a> <a href="https://ktla.com/news/local-news/cardboard-cut-outs-of-fans-fill-dodger-stadium-seats-on-opening-day/" target="_blank">cutout</a> <a href="https://www.houstonchronicle.com/texas-sports-nation/astros/article/Faces-in-the-crowd-Cutouts-will-stand-in-for-15429528.php" target="_blank">fans</a> behind home plate and around the <a href="https://nypost.com/2020/07/17/mets-will-have-5000-fan-cutouts-in-citi-field-stands-for-opener/" target="_blank">stadium</a>. On TV, it looks like an old computer game with the graphics turned to simple - I can only imagine what it looks like to the players. They also pipe in crowd noise, which is strange to say the least. Whoever has been on the button for the cheers and boos needs to be a little faster on the draw, at least from what I saw on SNY last weekend. Maybe they'll have the bugs worked out by tonight. </div>
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Exuberant celebrations: No way. </div>
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The players are under orders to socially distance as much as possible. This means they sit wide in the dugout and the reserves have been sitting in the stands. Also, no spitting, no high fives, and definitely no walk-off dog pile insanity. I went to a baseball game and a golf match broke out!</div>
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Overpriced delicious fatty foods:</div>
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Only if you make them at home. I am ordering the old ballpark staple Chinese food this afternoon to watch the Mets. Like I said, this is a very different world we live in. "Buy me some peanuts and crab rangoon!"</div>
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Players going all out to win:</div>
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Absolutely. This 60 game season is, antithetical to baseball history for 150+ years, a sprint and not a marathon. Also, 16 teams will make the <a href="https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-announces-expanded-playoffs-for-2020" target="_blank">playoffs</a> with some very short opening round series. I like to think the players are rested and the ones who have chosen to play are coming to win. This season is going to count, these games are for real; the world is all asunder but better late than never, it's time to Play Ball!</div>
jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-21399754266074636502020-07-14T19:00:00.000-04:002020-07-15T15:41:26.514-04:00The All Star Orphans.<div>
Tonight would have been the 91st <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_Major_League_Baseball_All-Star_Game" target="_blank">All Star Game</a>, to have been played in Dodgers Stadium. Not only does this one not <a href="https://www.sportingnews.com/us/mlb/news/mlb-all-star-game-2017-world-series-home-field-advantage-bud-selig-tie-milwaukee/oenh41ffa3y314q73c2dn4mrm" target="_blank">count</a>, it isn't being played at all because we currently live in the worst of all possible scenarios where nothing good will ever happen again. Rather than wallowing in our pain, let's instead look at some old school Topps cards. </div>
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Some of the best design quirks in Topps sets are in the All Star cards. For most years from 1958 until 1992, they gave some sort of shout out to the best players in the league - though not always to the all star starters or even all stars at all (but we'll get to that). For the most part, they did either subsets or on-card graphics to the previous year's all stars and I decided to create some pages to illustrate those designs. And instead of picking the best player in the set or even the best photo, I decided to pick the absolute worst player. I mean, they can't be that terrible, they did get an all star card after all, but not every collection needs to be the best of the best of the best, it adds a little variety to the pages. While I was accumulating these cards, I dubbed the list "The All Star Orphans" and the name stuck; my thinking was most of these players were only all stars once or only got the one all star card in their career. </div>
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So that was my basis for these choices, they had to be either one time all stars or if that didn't apply, just the worst player among the usual superstars who make the All Star squad. It worked out nicely that there were 27 different designs for my nine-card criteria. There were multi-player All Star cards in 1993-1995 and the last dozen years or so, the Update Series has had all the All Star selections (and certainly could have given me some truly oddball choices) but I have to draw the line somewhere and it made sense to go 1958 (the first year of all star cards) and 1992 (the last year of a run of a separate all star subset that started in 1982). Let's break them all down:</div>
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<b>1992</b>: <b>Bryan Harvey</b> (2x All Star) Led the league in saves in 1991, ended up on the expansion Marlins and kind of faded away. He has kids in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunter_Harvey" target="_blank">Orioles</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kris_Harvey" target="_blank">Pirates</a> organizations.</div>
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<b>1991</b>: <b>Bobby Thigpen </b>(1x All Star) His one big claim to fame was saving a record 57 games that year - which was 11 more than the record - though the <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/SV_season.shtml" target="_blank">record</a> is now 62 by <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/rodrifr03.shtml" target="_blank">K-Rod</a> in 2008. He never saved more than 34 in any other season. </div>
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<b>1990</b>: <b>Joe Magrane</b> (never made an All Star team) Here we have our first non-All Star all star card. He did go 18-9 in 1989 and <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/magrajo01.shtml" target="_blank">led the league</a> in 1988 with a 2.18 ERA (with a 5-9 record!) but after 1990 his arm fell off and he was never effective again. Why did Topps go with Joe here? Who the hell knows. </div>
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<b>1989</b>: <b>Kirk Gibson</b> (never made an All Star team) Ah, 1988 Kirk Gibson, how I hate you. The designation on the card is PH and this is obviously a nod to his famous game one homer in the World Series. He is the only <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/g/gibsoki01.shtml" target="_blank">league MVP</a> to never make an all star team (and he played 17 seasons). Why not just make a card for his series heroics? God, I hate this card almost as much as I hate Gibson. </div>
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<b>1988</b>: <b>Shane Rawley</b> (1x All Star...in 1986) Rawley made the All Star team the year before. This card is for I guess the brilliant 2/3 of a season he had in 1987. He won 17 games by August and finished the year with...17 wins. He was out of the league by 1989. </div>
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<b>1987</b>: <b>Tony Bernazard </b>(never made an All Star team) The only explanation I can come up with for why they gave <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Bernazard" target="_blank">Tony</a> this card is because they were tired of making a card for Damaso Garcia. Why not <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/w/whitalo01.shtml" target="_blank">Lou Whitaker</a>, who actually was the all star second baseman in 1986? Plus, the less said about Tony's front office career, the better.</div>
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<b>1986</b>: <b>Tom Herr</b> (1x All Star) This page has two of my most hated players. I don't know why, but my brother and I took all of our anger at the mid-80s Cardinals out on Tom Herr. Not Vince Coleman, not Willie McGee, not even Jack Clark...we hated Tommy Herr. It also figures he eventually found his way to the early 90s Mets, where we could hate him every night. He also drove in 100 runs while hitting less than 10 homers <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/herrto01.shtml" target="_blank">in 1985</a>, which is pretty neat regardless of my opinion of him.</div>
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<b>1985</b>: <b>Jeff Leonard</b> (1x All Star...in 1987) He has one of the great nicknames of all time: Old Penitentiary Face. He has two other cool nicknames as well, One Flap Down and Hac-Man (or Hack-Man). He had a pretty decent 1984 <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/l/leonaje01.shtml" target="_blank">season</a> (21/86/.302) but I am at a loss as to why his happy mug is on this card. </div>
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<b>1984</b>: <b>LaMarr Hoyt </b>(2x All Star) Hoyt won the 1983 Cy Young award and was also an all star in 1982. He also loved cocaine and ended up out of the league by 1986. I am shocked he never played for the Yankees <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Howe_(baseball)" target="_blank">during</a> this time.</div>
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Best design on the page: 1988 (might be my favorite subset design of all) runner up: 1987 (the league logos and red, white, and blue stars pop)</div>
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Worst design on the page: 1985 (they just threw a star where the team logo is on the base card, the tan color is also a loser) runner up 1986 (zzzzzzzzz I'm sorry, I fell asleep looking at this)</div>
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<b>1983</b>: <b>Pete Vuckovich</b> (never made an All Star team) Pete did win the Cy Young award in 1982 and led the league in wins in 1981, so it is not egregious that he's here. Alas, his shoulder turned to mush and he was out of the league by 1986. Also, he <a href="https://www.tiebreaker.com/major-league/" target="_blank">later</a> led the league in nose hair and won the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsftzZS_QHA" target="_blank">triple crown</a>. </div>
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<b>1982</b>: <b>Ken Singleton</b> (3x All Star) Ken might be the best player of all on any these pages. He was a good steady bat for a decade for the Orioles. But the first subset in the expanded 1980s Topps sets was just loaded so he "won" the honor of being here. </div>
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<b>1981</b>: <b>Jim Bibby</b> (1x All Star) Jim is exactly the kind of player I wanted for these pages. He had a <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/bibbyji01.shtml" target="_blank">pretty decent</a> career and he made exactly one All Star game. Of course, he didn't start the <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/allstar/1980-allstar-game.shtml" target="_blank">1980</a> All Star game, J.R. Richard did. Why didn't Richard get the designation instead? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ </div>
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<b>1980</b>: <b>Roy Smalley</b> (1x All Star) He was a second generation player who made his first and only all star game in 1979. He had a pretty unspectacular career and 1979 was maybe his 3rd or 4th best year but he started the All Star game mostly because of the "one player from every team" rule. His <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/smallro01.shtml" target="_blank">dad</a> never made an all star team. </div>
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<b>1979</b>: <b>Richie Zisk</b> (2x All Star) Zisk is a <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/z/ziskri01.shtml" target="_blank">forgotten</a> player but he had a pretty good run in the 1970s. He got his all star card in 1979 for 1978 though his 1977 year was better. If he had his big years for the Dodgers or the Red Sox, rather than the Rangers and the Mariners, he'd be much better remembered.</div>
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<b>1978</b>: <b>Rick Burleson</b> (4x All Star) The 1978 All Star cards were
just loaded with hall of famers and superstars, so I had to go with our
first time four timer. Rooster was known as a bit of a red ass in his day and he
hurt his arm and was done as a useful player after 1981. </div>
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<b>1977</b>: <b>Randy Jones</b> (2x All Star) Jones got lost in Fidrych-<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Fidrych" target="_blank">mania</a> in 1976 and even though he had a <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/j/jonesra01.shtml" target="_blank">great year</a> and won the Cy Young, but no one remembers that at all. Much like Fidrych, he was never very good after his big year in 1976 either. Since Jones and <a href="https://images.psacard.com/s3/cu-psa/cardfacts/1977-topps-265-mark-fidrych-42297.jpg?h=1000&format=png&s.roundcorners=10" target="_blank">Fidrych</a> both made two All Star teams, I went with Jones because he deserves some recognition somewhere. </div>
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<b>1976</b>: <b>Joe Rudi </b>(3x All Star) Rudi was a cog in the A's green machine in the 1970s but he was also one of the players Charlie Finley tried to sell off in 1976, deals the commissioner <a href="https://vault.si.com/vault/1976/06/28/bowie-stops-charlies-checks" target="_blank">all killed</a>. So he gets to be mentioned with players like Rollie Fingers and Vida Blue in that respect. </div>
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<b>1975</b>: <b>Jeff Burroughs </b>(2x All Star) Jeff famously won the 1974 AL MVP because the A's had three players who all split the vote, including the aforementioned Joe Rudi. He's not the worst player to win an MVP award but he's easily one of the most forgettable.</div>
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Best design on the page: 1976 (I love the chubby star designation, '76 had the best icons) runner up: 1978 (that badge is great and reminds me of the US Interstate signs)</div>
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Worst design on the page: 1981 (just for the very boring little drop down) runner up: 1980 (same reason)</div>
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<b>1974</b>: <b>Rick Wise</b> (2x All Star) The only multi-player subset in the vintage era, Wise finds himself among a <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2012/04/manic-monday.html" target="_blank">bunch</a> of iconic players - including Catfish Hunter on his own card. He also made the huge mistake of being traded straight up for Steve Carlton. Not very wise at all. </div>
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<b>1970</b>: <b>Rico Petrocelli</b> (2x All Star) Topps took three years off for All Star cards, which is a shame since they all could have used them, 1971 and 1972 because they were so good looking, 1973 because the set is so boring. If Rico had <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/p/petrori01.shtml" target="_blank">the years</a> he had in 1969-1971 in the 1990s, people would have said he was on steroids.</div>
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<b>1969</b>: <b>Ken Harrelson</b> (1x All Star) Known more for a bunch of things other than his playing days (announcer, golfer, protruding proboscis) The Hawk had his career year in 1968 during the Year of the Pitcher and made the All Star team. He was then out of the league by 1971 and eventually tortured White Sox fans with his homerism and annoying calls for decades. </div>
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<b>1968</b>: <b>Joe Horlen</b> (1x All Star) Joe is another great example of All Star Orphan-ness. He led the league in ERA and shutouts in 1967 but was fiercely mediocre most of the other dozen years of his career. Dean Chance started the game and Catfish Hunter <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/allstar/1967-allstar-game.shtml" target="_blank">lost it</a>, but somehow, Joe Horlen got the card in the set. Topps made no All Star cards from 1963-1967. </div>
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<b>1962</b>: <b>Chuck Schilling</b> (never made an All Star team) Here in the early days of all star cards, Topps went with the Sporting News or Sport Magazine selections, which is why Chuck got on the card even though he never did make an All Star team on the field. Chuck finished 3rd in the ROY voting and yet was out of the league in <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/schilch01.shtml" target="_blank">5 years</a>. </div>
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<b>1961</b>: <b>Frank Herrera</b> (never made an All Star team) Pancho is probably my favorite Orphan. He qualifies for One Year Wonder status as he won the IL MVP in 1959, had a <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/herrepa01.shtml" target="_blank">pretty decent</a> 1960 year (finishing second for ROY even), and then was back to the minors for good by 1962. Heck, he never had a regular 'base' Topps card, he had two rookie card designs (<a href="https://images.psacard.com/s3/cu-psa/cardfacts/1959-topps-129-frank-herrera-29087.jpg?h=1000&format=png&s.roundcorners=10" target="_blank">1959</a> and <a href="https://images.psacard.com/s3/cu-psa/cardfacts/1960-topps-130-frank-herrera-rookie-star-29664.jpg?h=1000&format=png&s.roundcorners=10" target="_blank">1960</a>) and this high numbered all star beauty. Alas, Topps also went all Bob Clemente on him by anglicizing his name. </div>
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<b>1960</b>: <b>Joe Cunningham </b>(1x All Star) Joe finds himself in a high number series among a lot of hall of famers, but he had his <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/c/cunnijo01.shtml" target="_blank">career year</a> in 1959 and wandered onto the All Star roster. Willie Mays! Hank Aaron! Joe Cunningham! </div>
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<b>1959</b>: <b>Wes Covington</b> (never made an All Star team) I am kind of at a loss to say something about Wes, he was that average a ballplayer. He had good 90 game runs in 1957 and 1958 but never got more than 400 PA in <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/c/covinwe01.shtml" target="_blank">any season</a>. He helped the Braves win the Series in '57 but then bounced around the league afterward. Hey, he was once traded for Don Larson...just like dozens of other players. Wow, he really is bland. Um, his <a href="https://images.psacard.com/s3/cu-psa/cardfacts/1961-topps-296-wes-covington-40666.jpg?h=1000&format=png&s.roundcorners=10" target="_blank">1961 Topps card</a> is pretty sweet, so he's got that going for him, which is nice. </div>
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<b>1958</b>: <b>Frank Malzone </b>(6x All Star) Topps first foray into All Star cards finds us with the player here with the most selections. But so stacked was this subset, I had to go with <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/malzofr01.shtml" target="_blank">Malzone</a> over Johnny Temple simply because, well, I owned the Malzone and not the Temple. This subset famously includes the first Topps Stan Musial card and Bob Costas' <a href="https://sportscollectorsdigest.com/memorabilia/bob-costas-hall-fame" target="_blank">favorite</a> Mickey Mantle card. I should probably get the Temple card to better fit in with the spirit of the project, but hey, these are my pages. </div>
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Best design on the page: 1961 (it was so good, they basically copied it in 1970) runner up: 1960 (very of its time)</div>
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Worst design on the page: 1974 (it fits the set, but man is it boring) runner up: 1968 (half the card is the year and an advertisement for The Sporting News)<br />
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Never made an All Star team: 7<br />1x All Star: 9<br />2x All Star: 7<br />3+ All Star: 4 </div>
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I hope this little rundown will help fill the void of no baseball tonight. I know the league is suppose to <a href="https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-announces-60-game-season-for-2020-opening-day-will-be-july-23-or-24/" target="_blank">start up again</a> on the 23rd, but I will believe it when I see it. So much stuff is going on so rapidly and so many players seem to not be into putting their lives literally on the line, I wouldn't want anyone to become a real orphan just so we can watch sports. </div>
jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-79727181768483416482020-05-11T17:27:00.001-04:002020-05-11T18:33:28.578-04:00Pollard Throws No-Hitter May 11, 1978. There are a few of you raising your eyebrows right now trying to remember a major league pitcher named Pollard who threw a no-no 42 years ago today. Well, that's not quite the headline I am angling toward here. The Pollard in question here is Robert, the ultimate lo-fi pioneer, lead singer of <a href="https://www.guidedbyvoices.com/" target="_blank">Guided By Voices</a> (along with a <a href="http://www.gbvdb.com/artists.asp?side=true" target="_blank">couple dozen</a> other off-shoots), Uncle Bob to a bunch of us music nerds. One of the things that made me want to start blogging again is that Goodwin Champions included him in their set last year and I went a little crazy...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhibzRViIM7ET4m2cMxMdsFFBCNI9qM-NNUR9_741YEynEFmNyFm5w8p-usTnL2EdRhs21ntHpqVd7NGPZb0OMhGmuAX_3oo4X27d6TELmRdHO5IlQYyf9zyuOquvxkbn-aiV-5Ky1bv-G2/s1600/pollard10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1156" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhibzRViIM7ET4m2cMxMdsFFBCNI9qM-NNUR9_741YEynEFmNyFm5w8p-usTnL2EdRhs21ntHpqVd7NGPZb0OMhGmuAX_3oo4X27d6TELmRdHO5IlQYyf9zyuOquvxkbn-aiV-5Ky1bv-G2/s640/pollard10.jpg" width="462" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I have a 1/1 printing plate waiting for me in COMC to join these colorful wonders.</td></tr>
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Okay, how do I explain Robert Pollard and GBV in baseball terms? Well, if the Beatles are Mickey Mantle (or Willie Mays?) and Nirvana is Bo Jackson (or Sandy Koufax?), then Bob would be Rocky Colavito (or Eddie Yost?) - the under the radar, out of the ordinary but similarly brilliant superstar for which there is a small but intensely devoted following. Maybe Tim Raines would also work here or perhaps Tony Mullane (or even Ichiro?). You get the idea. His music is classic rock but somewhat alien. It is timeless yet also fixed permanently in the British Invasion vibe and the DIY punk ethic of the early 80s. Bob once defined his vision for the band as if the Beatles never stopped making music and what it would sound like. He knocks out dense melodic songs by the score and most of them are under 2 minutes (though they have gotten a little longer as he's gotten older). He puts out 2-3 albums a year with GbV and half a dozen EPs and side efforts and it is dizzying to keep up with but ultimately very rewarding. The fans are also insanely <a href="https://www.guidedbyvoices.com/heedfest2020" target="_blank">devoted</a> and <a href="http://www.gbvdb.com/" target="_blank">encyclopedic</a> in their knowledge. Baseball fans and music fans are a mostly round Venn diagram that way when you think about it. To me, these cards are the wonderful overlap of those two classic obsessions of mine. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLbK4cHU19J4t3d9dZZ8cQSokIeLgdLFAvwCXP7fc5zGRiwP5aJ4Lxnngv0DKkvCK6eeoYmxqHNTYIW1CfnKjAGG77dnMq-gPvSI7iGWBcuPVE3GmnXU0gHjXzeezJdMOKGnMWO7ktEde8/s1600/pollard9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1163" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLbK4cHU19J4t3d9dZZ8cQSokIeLgdLFAvwCXP7fc5zGRiwP5aJ4Lxnngv0DKkvCK6eeoYmxqHNTYIW1CfnKjAGG77dnMq-gPvSI7iGWBcuPVE3GmnXU0gHjXzeezJdMOKGnMWO7ktEde8/s640/pollard9.jpg" width="464" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Last year I bought a huge lot of the base card, made a page, and then sent the rest to the fans.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Pollard" target="_blank">Bob Pollard</a> is a fascinating dude with an outrageous story. He was a regular guy who went to college, played baseball and basketball, became a teacher, and seemed like your normal law-abiding citizen from Dayton OH. But he always loved music and one day in the early 80s he just decided he was going to be in a band and make rock music and he didn't care what anyone thought of him. So he and his buddies started recording songs in his garage on a boombox and they just kept doing it. They would play local shows and they became this eclectic local oddity but when people listened to the songs, they realized this guy was actually pretty good. They were the underest of underground the indiest of indie. But word spread and legends grew and by the mid-90s when this dude was going to college, he discovered their music through a friend who saw I loved the Beatles and thought I should give them a listen. I have been a fanatic ever since. And even with a retirement 15 years ago (like most premature sports retirements, it didn't stick), they have come back and are still going very strong. I was looking forward to seeing them for the seventh time this year, but, well, you know. GbV usually does epic 3 hour shows with a 40+ song <a href="http://www.gbvdb.com/images/guided_by_voices_gig_160623_setlist.jpg" target="_blank">set list</a> (they do <a href="https://i1.wp.com/s3.amazonaws.com/buzzbands/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/01132623/guidedbyvoices5set-teragram-BM-1.jpg?fit=1280%2C720&ssl=1" target="_blank">100 songs</a> on New Years) but mind you, Bob also comes out
with a cooler of beer and drinks and sings until he can't the
lyrics so it's usually a glorious train wreck.<br />
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My favorite legend of the man, though, is the <a href="https://www.espn.com/blog/music/post/_/id/6648/robert-pollard-talks-college-no-hitter" target="_blank">no-hitter</a> he threw in college - 42 years ago today. It is just a strange wrench thrown in the machine of a quirky rock and roll story. If you go to one of their shows, you will see plenty of <a href="https://www.lowimm.com/upload/thumb/360x360/goods/d/9a/027e2c05a6c9f42c2983f7278f0d0113d7.jpg" target="_blank">t-shirts</a> that commemorate this perfectly non-historic but wonderfully odd phenomenon. <br />
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Did Bono or Sting ever throw a no hitter (or the UK equivalent?) I doubt it. Jon Bon Jovi never scored four touchdowns in a game and I am certain Bob Dylan never scored 100 points in a basketball game. But my ultimate rock hero once pitched a no-hitter in college. <br />
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So here are not the five "best" songs but the most indicative. If you like any or all of these, you have a fighting chance to join the <a href="http://www.unm.edu/~zurn/bob/bob3.htm" target="_blank">club</a> and be a Guided By Voices covert. One of these songs is even responsible for my <a href="https://www.ebay.com/usr/19somethingand5" target="_blank">eBay</a> screen name. Give them a shot, go on, I'll wait. Or don't, I'm not a cop.<br />
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If any of you took the time to listen, let me know what you think. And even if you didn't, I know the crazed nature we all collect cards with and for me it definitely is similar with music and I figure if anyone can understand the excitement when two of those worlds collide, it's you guys. Seeing trading cards of the front man of your favorite band (when 98% of folks have never even heard of your your favorite band) was the absolute highlight of my 2019 collecting. Plus the man is a sports legend, he threw a no-hitter!jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-3317569537179283332020-05-07T22:01:00.000-04:002020-05-08T00:37:17.240-04:00We All Could Use A Reason To Smile. In a small adjoiner to my <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2020/05/i-have-bad-feeling-about-this.html" target="_blank">rambling post</a> the other day about Julio Franco and his ancient record-setting home run, today is the four year anniversary of another old man home run mark set by one of the great elderly pitchers of recent time, Bartolo Colon. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhdl7qEwUZ2MIPJDxhnlGY0au2mBz9T7aEdD9xZwfUxBgErPIJqOoo9iMbg799szIs_5uzTauYRuQRmQ17C3fkGrl-D15G0MA-z8udAhJTgQ8SlLPKFrAqogVhCu9KzyScraPMjrFxwTOy/s1600/Untitled2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1163" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhdl7qEwUZ2MIPJDxhnlGY0au2mBz9T7aEdD9xZwfUxBgErPIJqOoo9iMbg799szIs_5uzTauYRuQRmQ17C3fkGrl-D15G0MA-z8udAhJTgQ8SlLPKFrAqogVhCu9KzyScraPMjrFxwTOy/s640/Untitled2.jpg" width="464" /></a></div>
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<span id="goog_638809557"></span><span id="goog_638809558"></span>Big Sexy put all his weight into this swing and became the oldest player to ever hit his first home run. It is also one of the most joyous and unbelievable things I have ever seen. It's like watching Santa Claus win the lottery and give all the money away to orphans. If you have never seen it - or listened to Gary Cohen's amazing call - please do so now...<br />
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Wherever <a href="http://startingnine.blogspot.com/2014/06/sho-nuff.html" target="_blank">Bart</a> may be right now, I hope he is laughing and enjoying a nice meal knowing he put a smile on my face today remembering that <a href="https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1258578868677431298" target="_blank">day</a>. <br />
<span id="goog_638809557"><span id="goog_638809567"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a><span id="goog_638809568"></span></span><span id="goog_638809558"></span><br />jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-62786708145299285022020-05-05T22:13:00.002-04:002020-05-05T22:13:20.867-04:00Drunk Post: Who Wants It? As promised in my last post, I have been drinking. A lot. So it's time for a drunk post!!! And I am going to ask a question I haven't asked in a while...who wants it? <br />
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No, not my tacos, they are already in my belly...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkRfFPMOP0vFU5uLisUQ3CdZVMn84GhV9TsSp5269ReiOYMY7PxWbsEtCgeOWmEGyke5AGrHEH2_UK9DwmG4oIculMIA8Vd2EwOEmU8dpzYK6Kk1zOOadAHMcalj0LV60P0FI2lTe1k1R_/s1600/20190704_122337.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkRfFPMOP0vFU5uLisUQ3CdZVMn84GhV9TsSp5269ReiOYMY7PxWbsEtCgeOWmEGyke5AGrHEH2_UK9DwmG4oIculMIA8Vd2EwOEmU8dpzYK6Kk1zOOadAHMcalj0LV60P0FI2lTe1k1R_/s640/20190704_122337.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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...and they we're fucking delicious. No. I am giving away some really great cards here. Like, how about a 1952 Mickey Mantle!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRzJYxsQ07ICwU336mF7zMJzZU5Bs8pjILpS1xia_zoSqort1ODfbcKQExI-VKKxCBqVcOamBEN80T4n9XC4wSvrTlRBw2_R4sxtWHl1Nezm3nvhjaXUOeXCWB8l_vQug6m85_piCnS45O/s1600/mantle52.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="595" data-original-width="899" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRzJYxsQ07ICwU336mF7zMJzZU5Bs8pjILpS1xia_zoSqort1ODfbcKQExI-VKKxCBqVcOamBEN80T4n9XC4wSvrTlRBw2_R4sxtWHl1Nezm3nvhjaXUOeXCWB8l_vQug6m85_piCnS45O/s640/mantle52.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Okay, not really. This is actually a hilarious card. This is a bootleg copy of the 1983 Topps reprint of the 1952 Topps set. I bought two of these thinking they were the actual 1983 versions, which were 100% issued by Topps and were pretty much the first faux-vintage they ever made. But on first glance of the back, I knew things were a tad wonky. The front looks pretty good but the back looks like it was done on a Canon copier in 1983. It is even clipped on the bottom by the bit that reads "1952 Reprint Series" One of these is in my Mantle pages as a great example of a copy of a copy of a copy (think the Michael Keaton movie Multiplicity). But if you appreciate such horrors of ineptitude, all you have to do is say you want it. I don't run contests or ask you to follow me or wax my car or anything. But you might want to wait a moment because I am also giving away...<br />
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A 1979-80 Topps Wayne Gretzky rookie card!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You miss 100% of the shots you don't make and this card missed 100%</td></tr>
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In the toploader in low light after your third or fourth margarita, this card actually looks kinda good. The colors of the front are on target and then you turn it over and quickly notice that the texture of the back is all wrong because this was printed on the photographic paperboard they used to include with digital cameras back in 1998. Unauthorized reprint is a really nifty term for counterfeit but this card has all the presentation of a $100 bill with Benny Hill on it instead of Ben Franklin. But it is still worth owning if you aren't going to try and fool your blind neighbor into buying it along with your dead parrot. It can be yours for the asking price of nothing because it is worth less than nothing - but is still a cool copy of one of the cornerstone cards of any hockey collection. So who wants it? Just drop a comment or an email or a smoke signal and which card you want (you can only have one) and I will send you a fantastic (copy of a copy of a copy of a) 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle or a (painfully fake) 1979-80 Topps Wayne Gretzky rookie. Like any good bar, first come, first served. Now, who dares me to eat the worm!?!?jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-33634839312383436652020-05-04T22:05:00.000-04:002020-05-04T22:05:20.861-04:00I Have a Bad Feeling About This. A quick look at the date means I should be saying "May the Fourth be with you" and <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2014/05/may-fourth-be-with-you.html" target="_blank">post</a> some Star Wars cards but I just can't do it. I know you all feel the same way but it has hit me hard this week:<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Dear god, I miss baseball so fucking much!!!</span></b><br />
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Yes, I am shouting and I don't care who hears me. I rode out April in quarantine just kind of imagining it was a second February. February is long painful month most years - it's cold, the holidays and football are over, baseball only begins to emerge from the winter - let's face it, February sucks. This April was February part 2, just an awful fate for what is usually a wonderful month. And now it seems we are all dug in and the virus is going to stick around all summer and it is seriously beginning to look like we are going to get little to no baseball at all this year. There is only so much radio replays of world series broadcasts and twitter posts about what happened on this day I can take. Even during times when I was trapped inside due to depression or unemployment or sickness or some combination of those things, there was baseball to look forward to in the evenings to pass the time and distract the mind. But the weight of our collective situation is hitting hard: we might not have baseball to get us through this. And for any foreseeable future, the next couple months definitely won't have baseball. Just writing this rambling paragraph is driving me crazy and pissing me off. I am going through the entire Kübler-Ross in 250 words or less. *<i>sigh</i>*<br />
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I have been dealing with my lockdown by spring cleaning. And I mean capital-C Cleaning. The whole house has never looked better. So many things have been organized, thrown out, or scrubbed. But I am running out of things. I am doing the big parts of the baseball collection and saving the actual sorting of cards for last. After that, well, I don't want to think about that. I do a lot of reading in general, both online nonsense and actual books, and I have been diving into more baseball history than any of the virtual seasons that some websites have been running. Today, on what is usually a Star Wars-centric day, I read a fun TDIH baseball thing and I will now bring everything together and focus on that. This month is my birthday month, I will be 45 on the 27th. On May 4, 2007 Julio Franco hit a home run (what would be his last) at the age of 48 years and 254 days. This is the record for the oldest player ever to hit a home run.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This home run is on the card in the lower left; rare that I have the exact moment on hand.</td></tr>
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Even more fun? That home run was hit off of Randy Johnson, who was 43 years old at the time (and 239 days). That is 92+ years of pitch and homer! This is obviously the record for that obscure mark and I imagine it is one that will stand for quite a while. This little fact has made me feel both very old and surprisingly young at the same time.<br />
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In fact, this is as good a time as ever to start a series called Players I Like For No Reason. PILFNR - it just rolls off the tongue, doesn't it? Julio Franco is a great example of a PILFNR.<br />
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Actually, we are off to a bad start because there is a very clear reason I have liked Julio Franco for basically his entire 400 year career - he has the coolest batting stance ever. Like a lot of kids on the playground and in the batting cage, I liked to copy major leaguers and their stances. Hell, there is a lovable doofus who turned this into an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrJAimVdAG9MzIrhuBzkYiA" target="_blank">entire shtick</a>. Alas, I was just an amateur and never saw the future in mimicking the likes of Eric Davis, Gary Sheffield, Don Mattingly, Howard Johnson, Darryl Strawberry, Mickey Tettleton and the like. But my favorite by far was definitely Julio Franco. In case you are unaware, you can clearly see his stance on four cards on this next page...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxhVwz1AOTU23B52nXCr0dICM3j0pjP5SKl6vM4ttaatAjWMk7Uic0P9Lg8Td5j_b59yMQ9DM1xkpjfa4qYc5K8-sDW6OhHOtuSMAhh3ug1jOE5Xo-nWOMA3ly0nT4mwXsiuM2urIKJWpk/s1600/f3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1172" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxhVwz1AOTU23B52nXCr0dICM3j0pjP5SKl6vM4ttaatAjWMk7Uic0P9Lg8Td5j_b59yMQ9DM1xkpjfa4qYc5K8-sDW6OhHOtuSMAhh3ug1jOE5Xo-nWOMA3ly0nT4mwXsiuM2urIKJWpk/s640/f3.jpg" width="468" /></a></div>
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The man stood up basically straight, turned his hip inward, and held the bat over his head back at a 270 degree angle pointing to the pitcher. And it was actually weirder than I just described. And somehow it worked! He used the fastest wrists I ever saw to turn the bat, whip it though the hitting zone, and terrorize pitchers until he was 50 years old. He was amazing and unlike anyone before or since. I enjoyed the hell out of watching him at the very end of his career on the Mets but he will always be one of those players I always dug way before his association with the blue and orange.<br />
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Okay, that bit of giddiness over Julio Franco has made me feel a little bit better, sorry if this post was a little all over the place. I am going to go watch the despecialized version of the original Star Wars and plan on my tacos and margaritas for tomorrow. Stay safe and sane everyone.jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-85082562935428967982020-04-20T14:23:00.000-04:002020-04-30T00:11:59.965-04:00Well D.A.M. Looking at today's date, I knew it would be pretty easy to do a post today. And sure, anyone could throw up a Brandon Puffer <a href="https://twitter.com/agold2121/status/1252257908663992323" target="_blank">or</a> Jung Bong (or Tobi Stoner or Josh Smoker) and call it a day, but I decided to go in a direction few would expect from me, I am going to praise a <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2012/04/yankees.html" target="_blank">Yankees</a> player as today is the 59th <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Hitler" target="_blank">birthday</a> of Donald Arthur Mattingly.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPQqxdBL6-lf-4yvNJ0J-xyMyNZTU3Mcyz2BgrKlkY6dJnHmEmAQJ82sDosnmbb-ji-tmCwwT9Uj-jdd9K6zUKmmP5_wYFL60gfUTcpwxfRdoiRKxruDDJc42GhY0POS5vVImLdDher2tc/s1600/m1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1172" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPQqxdBL6-lf-4yvNJ0J-xyMyNZTU3Mcyz2BgrKlkY6dJnHmEmAQJ82sDosnmbb-ji-tmCwwT9Uj-jdd9K6zUKmmP5_wYFL60gfUTcpwxfRdoiRKxruDDJc42GhY0POS5vVImLdDher2tc/s640/m1.jpg" width="468" /></a></div>
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Mattingly takes up five pages in my retired player books, which is pretty much the most of anyone I can think of who doesn't have a dedicated player collection. I think I might also have five pages of Mark McGwire and Nomar Garciaparra but I'd have to check on that. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB5bu8QWGpe1Izshoc-OLz194FXX0pCADLHIDiduQMDRx-EfGrcDOPLf4h5MdOam_XZ8ngxYjaNSmkuU1U3Y0c48wlpdC90Ub6JSQA7gLMCXLSVeZTGUK1NXOls19AqfMRjahjvy_xWFwS/s1600/m2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1171" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB5bu8QWGpe1Izshoc-OLz194FXX0pCADLHIDiduQMDRx-EfGrcDOPLf4h5MdOam_XZ8ngxYjaNSmkuU1U3Y0c48wlpdC90Ub6JSQA7gLMCXLSVeZTGUK1NXOls19AqfMRjahjvy_xWFwS/s640/m2.jpg" width="468" /></a></div>
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I respected the hell out of Mattingly as a player when I was a kid, his prime years were right in the middle of my childhood obsession with all things baseball plus I was living in New Jersey surrounded by Yankees fans so it was impossible not to know all about him. From everything I could see, he was a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvSmfyRc3pM" target="_blank">good dude</a> with a sweet swing who made the most of his chance with the team since he was one of the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1990/05/23/sports/unhappy-yankee-tradition-pitching-deals-of-the-1980-s-were-disappointing.html" target="_blank">few</a> young <a href="http://www.80sbaseball.com/the-1980s-were-a-rough-decade-for-the-yankees/" target="_blank">players</a> the Yankees didn't <a href="https://yanksgoyard.com/2014/11/26/turn-back-clock-november-26th-1986-yankees-give-away-future/" target="_blank">trade</a> away in the early 80s for washed up veterans. So seeing his cards is like a time capsule of all those great designs and oddball issues; he was one of the big hits you got when opening a pack. Plus Donnie "looked" like a ballplayer. I mean, you don't get a name like Donnie Baseball for nothing. The <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/164919-steinbrenners-facial-hair-policy-those-famous-staches" target="_blank">mustache</a>, the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjHOtxCRhnw" target="_blank">flowing hair</a>, the pinstripes, it all adds up to a perfect mystique. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2R5DfLseyy1ZbFrxMMZppb7iwyHiN09-23Kawt-vg2GP6yhyphenhyphenCrDlrvrWn4zRIFqY-W7Sj_18bWeppEStiLuAF29FsICOErNUClI3afGyKFQRDC8vhYuNn3xV944D51wCzCRYX-nLcJ9q8/s1600/m3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1171" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2R5DfLseyy1ZbFrxMMZppb7iwyHiN09-23Kawt-vg2GP6yhyphenhyphenCrDlrvrWn4zRIFqY-W7Sj_18bWeppEStiLuAF29FsICOErNUClI3afGyKFQRDC8vhYuNn3xV944D51wCzCRYX-nLcJ9q8/s640/m3.jpg" width="468" /></a></div>
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I always refer to Mattingly as The Reverse Koufax in that he had five or six amazing <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/mattido01.shtml" target="_blank">seasons</a> followed by five or six mediocre seasons punctuated by a career shortening injury. Koufax was exactly the opposite. His first seven years were mediocre at best and then he had five or six of the most amazing seasons you ever saw and sadly had to retire due to injury. Koufax's career numbers aren't that much different than say Johan Santana or Ron Guidry's and yet the only way they will ever get to Cooperstown is by buying a ticket. If Koufax hadn't built his legend and left us wanting more, he would never have had the unbelievable awe around his name. Mattingly's numbers are similar to another player, <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/p/puckeki01.shtml" target="_blank">Kirby Puckett</a>, who also left early due to injury. Puckett is in the Hall of Fame, first ballot no less, and Mattingly isn't. It is one of the rare times a Yankees player has gotten shafted by the system and by our memories. If you reverse his career trajectory and have him build that amazing resume peaking at his 1985 or 1986 season and then leave at 34 with a back injury, he's in the hall no doubt. This isn't me arguing that he <i>should</i> be in Cooperstown, mind you, but it is a major part of his legacy that isn't always talked about. It is one of the more undeniable examples that perception is reality. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg067mF37up4M8YdjrgbAkhyNkAuND2A3n0Yd5Cz81rPI84EbHd8_ExH5tm33CTX6bSLmoBvw26wknghp2yiPxUBH5HOU08O_KbPUIdKsAA8u3gbuLxWByr4aOpUSNPN6ykF-CpuCLiILWx/s1600/m4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1170" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg067mF37up4M8YdjrgbAkhyNkAuND2A3n0Yd5Cz81rPI84EbHd8_ExH5tm33CTX6bSLmoBvw26wknghp2yiPxUBH5HOU08O_KbPUIdKsAA8u3gbuLxWByr4aOpUSNPN6ykF-CpuCLiILWx/s640/m4.jpg" width="468" /></a></div>
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Alas, the one place Don has not acquitted himself is as a <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/managers/mattido01.shtml" target="_blank">manager</a>.
The Yankees passed over him for Joe Girardi so he went to Los Angeles
and there, he made less out of more for five seasons and after they got
tired of him, he's gone to Miami where most old people go to rot and
done less with less. The less said about all this, the better. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC11Fi0lCX-gTP3-mic3akMFO-KiItRqe3X8snpZGuRSmTfCcGuOkDUMRPcgJsi2IkVIYSfAwuQiwFBPpbgOziiXnKobj0moJmvc6EuzuLBaGqkPeMA8yN9E-6ibOZNa0euGQWR00aUkJc/s1600/m5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1175" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC11Fi0lCX-gTP3-mic3akMFO-KiItRqe3X8snpZGuRSmTfCcGuOkDUMRPcgJsi2IkVIYSfAwuQiwFBPpbgOziiXnKobj0moJmvc6EuzuLBaGqkPeMA8yN9E-6ibOZNa0euGQWR00aUkJc/s640/m5.jpg" width="468" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If you care to notice, this page is nothing but fielding photos of Donnie Baseball. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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The other important thing about Don Mattingly that always gets talked
about was his defense. He won nine gold gloves and I can recall more
than a few big arguments, both in my childhood years and adulthood,
about who was better, <a href="http://startingnine.blogspot.com/2013/06/fathers-day.html" target="_blank">Keith Hernandez</a> or Don Mattingly. There is no
denying that Mattingly could pick it at first base about as good as
anyone and I am not going to disparage his play. But Keith redefined
defensive play at first and Mattingly then fit into that definition.
There is something to be said about setting defensive standards; it is
why Ozzie Smith is in the Hall (and Bill Mazeroski for that matter).
Mattingly played like Keith and in most ways as well as Keith at first
base but Keith was the first and best one to play the way he did at
first. That is why I always say Keith Hernandez deserves to be in the
Hall even more so than Mattingly despite his offensive numbers being
lesser. There is something to being the <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2015/07/a-life-lesson-from-larry-doby.html" target="_blank">first</a> one to do something.<br />
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Some further reading on the subject <a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29043681/cracking-birthday-mystery-don-mattingly-1987-topps-baseball-card" target="_blank">here</a>. jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-21780374269927581602020-04-10T15:45:00.000-04:002020-04-10T15:45:06.346-04:00Old and New Business on a Pretty Good Good Friday. First things first, you will have noticed that the header has changed, I figured the blog could use a spruce and little more color plus the other photo was not a good example of social distancing. While I am not sure if the new one has the guys 6 feet apart, it is still a better graphic for this day and age. <br />
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A couple packages have come to Starting Nine central recently, one was from a new reader eager to share; Tom from <a href="http://angelsinorder.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">The Angels in Order</a> looked at one of my my <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/p/wantlist.html" target="_blank">wantlists</a> and satisfied some missing base Mets, especially from series 2 of 2018 Topps, from which I purchased exactly zero packs:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheUYA9IT8-i2doSPjmbG0DNUnAqKWRTQHT1ScydzDE5E9KR7ij8p3LYhOyrS2_GYusEJc41j6JA04UrqASSDm4qVvw24zcIQhBZARfMWA23dRJfhavNbl4TLKLdySN4rw3scN0UsOXb8hy/s1600/Tom-Angels.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1163" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheUYA9IT8-i2doSPjmbG0DNUnAqKWRTQHT1ScydzDE5E9KR7ij8p3LYhOyrS2_GYusEJc41j6JA04UrqASSDm4qVvw24zcIQhBZARfMWA23dRJfhavNbl4TLKLdySN4rw3scN0UsOXb8hy/s640/Tom-Angels.jpg" width="464" /></a></div>
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One of the last posts I did before I disappeared was a <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2018/02/ride-waterslide.html" target="_blank">harsh</a> yet fair critique of the 2018 Topps design (and what they could have done <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2018/02/sorting-things-out.html" target="_blank">about it</a>). I stand by my thoughts 1000% though I must say, those vertical photos of d'Arnaud and Thor looks great regardless of their borderless nature. I never did get to say what I thought of the 2019 look, but I liked it more than most; 1982 Topps is one of the first sets I remember and it definitely invokes that look. Anyway, I have a bunch of Angels stuff to go out to reciprocate these so thanks Tom!<br />
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The other came from Nate of <a href="https://thebucsstophere.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">The Bucs Stop Here</a>, who read about my glut of <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2020/03/love-in-time-of-corona.html" target="_blank">2020 Heritage</a> and wanted to trade. I sent him the Alvarez/Aquino rookie I had and he sent me some Mets that will be far more appreciated around here:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGFoBEyEXMV9zulz56I2sMD2xZ-75jP3AF6Zd1Mo8toaWDCiMSf1t9MSmFeNljb7iPo0B99Q8vVQhBt25YW2j_FNorsCJ2OWgDlrTWCs51759zBXwT3JwzyWHhbrmyR2bRn2QksKrwwGEp/s1600/Untitled01_4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1163" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGFoBEyEXMV9zulz56I2sMD2xZ-75jP3AF6Zd1Mo8toaWDCiMSf1t9MSmFeNljb7iPo0B99Q8vVQhBt25YW2j_FNorsCJ2OWgDlrTWCs51759zBXwT3JwzyWHhbrmyR2bRn2QksKrwwGEp/s640/Untitled01_4.jpg" width="464" /></a></div>
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It may not look it, but that Granderson is shiny foil and <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/p/wantlist-topps-all-star-rookies.html" target="_blank">rookie cup</a> cards are always appreciated especially when needed. My completed trades column to the right has been updated. Thanks Nate! Also in the right column, you will see the "followers" and "blog roll" - if you aren't following me, you may as well click on the button now and rectify that. Also, if you want to be on the blog roll, just let me know and we'll do the old quid pro quo (and not even get in <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump-impeachment-hearings-quid-pro-quo-trumps-defense/story?id=66944239" target="_blank">trouble</a> for it). I usually don't worry about such things much, but with the blog being dormant for so long, I figure I'd like to see more readers and know who they are, especially if they're new. Hell, I have now posted more in the last month or so than in any of the last four years. I am also pleased to see that one of the few bright spots of this current lockdown situation we all find ourselves in is that a few blogs that had gone down have started up <a href="http://oriolescards.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">again</a>. Let's hear it for the blogosphere!!!<br />
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A few belated thanks need to also be delivered to some altruistic displays of cardboard giving. Last November, Jeff from <a href="http://www.2x3heroes.com/" target="_blank">2 by 3 Heroes</a> sent a random email to me verifying my address. This email had no other information whatsoever but I told him I hadn't budged, address-wise. A few days later, a package arrived full of goodies:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY-ja3ncXESzx3-ok-zDvsemZLqT9qNq6WP3dNcbABEy0LVCTkewy-x5BIS4qA0jESDsbkeHvmtJb_U4VZB4UUdfXi0o8v1BXrrH5LVnHOsGYmfEkv05YeMFWUtWucSmjRSy780H14r_gv/s1600/Untitled00.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1163" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY-ja3ncXESzx3-ok-zDvsemZLqT9qNq6WP3dNcbABEy0LVCTkewy-x5BIS4qA0jESDsbkeHvmtJb_U4VZB4UUdfXi0o8v1BXrrH5LVnHOsGYmfEkv05YeMFWUtWucSmjRSy780H14r_gv/s640/Untitled00.jpg" width="464" /></a></div>
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I am pretty sure it was this long forgotten <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2013/11/mail-call-nerd.html" target="_blank">post</a> that inspired his delivery, but full of Firefly cards it was. He even gave it an international header card. There was also a bunch of Mets cards in there too and it is rare that they are relegated to second tier in a scan, yet here we are. Firefly is streaming on Hulu right now and we all have nothing but time on our hands, so I suggest highly that if you have never seen it to go watch it. And hell, now is as good a time as any to watch it again if you have seen it. (belated) Thanks Jeff!<br />
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While I was irregularly (then not) blogging, one person I kept trading with was venerable veteran <a href="http://nightowlcards.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Night Owl Cards</a>. We have probably sent 40-50 packages to each other in the last 10 years or so and because we know what each other collect so well, we just kept doing it regardless of online status. At one point last year I scanned this batch:<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZBN4oODYwQrryhI2Kmkt2zCFsnz26vW5-HR01lkskQ2C_eMZ4Gy3IT1XqokhLF2z-wGDEzIo0xYahrmKL1lt5_xaU9xTUy9TbssDqyfenwDgKNYwAfmVuJPjgGLvwZ3dUUeWQGlSBDIHG/s1600/no4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1275" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZBN4oODYwQrryhI2Kmkt2zCFsnz26vW5-HR01lkskQ2C_eMZ4Gy3IT1XqokhLF2z-wGDEzIo0xYahrmKL1lt5_xaU9xTUy9TbssDqyfenwDgKNYwAfmVuJPjgGLvwZ3dUUeWQGlSBDIHG/s640/no4.JPG" width="636" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Matt Harvey? Sheesh, this is old. Remember that guy?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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These are some fabulous Mets cards and inserts, then there was this vein of oddities (from NO at least):<br />
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The note answered my questions when it said "I didn't suddenly become a Bo-Chro collector, the cards just kind of landed in my lap." It is probably the strangeness of the rookies in there and the gloriously dismissive abbreviation that made me scan them for future use in the first place. Well, thanks as always Night Owl, I already have plenty in my pile for your next package. I even looked at your wantlists for a change.<br />
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And speaking of piles, lastly I need to clear up a few unresolved trades. I keep the outgoing cards on my bookshelf close to my mailing stuff and right now there is a bunch of things I need to figure out. <br />
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A few, like those Orioles and Blue Jays, I just need to verify addresses before I send them out. But I also have a rare Barry Larkin insert that I can't recall whom I was going to swap with. I also have a bunch of blue parallels, do you collect blue parallels? Let me know, I think those are for you. I also have a couple of 1990 UD Marquis Grissom rookies that I know there is a blogger who wants to collect 1000 of them or something but I can't remember who it is. Is it you? Do you know who it is and if he's done collecting his grand of Grissom? Please leave a comment or drop me a line. <br />
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So now it's back to the grand Spring Cleaning, in between playing with stuff I find of course...<br />
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<br />jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-28043342696111613752020-04-06T17:20:00.000-04:002020-04-06T19:40:57.091-04:00RIP Mr. Tiger.Al Kaline 1934-2020<br />
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I was having a very good day, since I have very little to do right now I decided to get high and sort baseball cards this afternoon (who said the lockdown is all bad?) But my good mood is ruined with the word that Al Kaline has <a href="https://www.freep.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2020/04/06/al-kaline-dies-detroit-tigers/505371001/" target="_blank">died</a>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCnqomp7D0Bq9J2DqMcOj9-p9Eq_U2w8JWogEXwEAfPhYDB3dr0-Mi0c0aWx4aeNibLe1qyS24m-z8zQMhtk6kvY-66gqYOedptWIaj06OOLajllXW-YCZqlkybv7F3rX8XHt1Hp_nNrOh/s1600/kaline.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1177" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCnqomp7D0Bq9J2DqMcOj9-p9Eq_U2w8JWogEXwEAfPhYDB3dr0-Mi0c0aWx4aeNibLe1qyS24m-z8zQMhtk6kvY-66gqYOedptWIaj06OOLajllXW-YCZqlkybv7F3rX8XHt1Hp_nNrOh/s640/kaline.jpg" width="470" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is one of my favorite hall of famer pages; I love the symmetry. </td></tr>
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You have to be pretty good to be Mr. *team here* and Kaline <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/k/kalinal01.shtml" target="_blank">earned</a> his Mister moniker with a great career spent all in Detroit. He was the youngest batting champ in history, hit 399 homers (so close!), collected 3007 hits and went into the Hall of Fame on the first ballot. More than that, not only did he lead the Tigers to a World Series win in 1968 I literally have never heard anyone say a bad word <a href="https://baseballhall.org/discover/inside-pitch/kalines-jersey-first-to-be-retired-by-tigers" target="_blank">about</a> him as a man or a player. My real issue is why he wasn't known as "Battery" or "Basic" to everyone? Godspeed Al. jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-9064573547822017472020-04-01T16:10:00.000-04:002020-04-01T21:24:25.554-04:00Foolish. I think we all could use a genuine laugh these days, so I think you should all see this 50th Anniversary box topper from this year's Heritage. It is my new favorite card:<br />
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I'm pretty sure everyone except Denny Riddleberger will think this is funny.<br />
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You might be wondering what my old favorite card was? Well, that's easy...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpObmh6ZGtwPwnWukvRy_VAz8sCDUFXdmXYxL7HgZUjXK2iJjb8Mqoer21U4BcDtxA7oZTSMrfLYmJMbL3P8vKPaFzGnAfVM-PABuX5I92RoLDaDEl3qAG1n9fcGVJHVvXkbef2PzHKIYG/s1600/Untitled.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1176" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpObmh6ZGtwPwnWukvRy_VAz8sCDUFXdmXYxL7HgZUjXK2iJjb8Mqoer21U4BcDtxA7oZTSMrfLYmJMbL3P8vKPaFzGnAfVM-PABuX5I92RoLDaDEl3qAG1n9fcGVJHVvXkbef2PzHKIYG/s640/Untitled.jpg" width="470" /></a></div>
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It's right there in the middle of that page. <a href="http://diamond-jesters.blogspot.com/2020/04/repack-haiku-146-phil-niekro.html" target="_blank">Happy birthday</a> Phil Niekro!jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-85926992042810305112020-03-27T13:24:00.000-04:002020-03-27T13:24:06.448-04:00RIP Toy Cannon <span>James Sherman Wynn 1942-2020</span><br />
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<span>I recently wrote of my decades-long dislike for the <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2020/03/pain-in-astro.html" target="_blank">Houston Astros</a> but I will always make an exception for a great nickname and they don't come much better than The Toy Cannon. A vastly underrated <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/w/wynnji01.shtml" target="_blank">ballplayer</a> way ahead of his time in terms of on base percentage and power, he routinely cracked 20-30 homers out of the Astrodome at a time when most of his teammates had trouble hitting double digits. He only hit .250 but walked 100 or more times a year six times (sound familiar? told you he was ahead of his time). He bounced around the league in his 30s to the Dodgers, Braves, Yankees, and Brewers but he was so good for the Astros in the 1960s that they retired his #24 in 2005. Godspeed Jim. </span>jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-24660137765064433272020-03-25T20:00:00.000-04:002020-03-25T20:00:19.350-04:00Dilemma. Well, I have been home from work for the last 8 days. I spent the first two exactly how one would expect when they have been furloughed from work indefinitely: I sat around in my pajamas and watched movies and did little to nothing. And while that certainly sounds ideal, after a while, it gets a bit boring. So I then dove into my collection and really started working on things; a full spring cleaning. I did a little documentation of it and it will no doubt show up on a later blog post, but right now I have a specific situation that I was hoping to get some advice on. <br />
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I found in a pile of cards with these two autographed beauties. A 1972 Carlton Fisk rookie done in ball point pen at a card show in the 1980s and a 1983 Fleer Superstar Special of Fisk and Gary Carter with the Carter signed in blue sharpie. I am not a big autograph collector but I am a huge Carter guy and a big Fisk fan so it makes sense that I own these two cards. So what's the issue?<br />
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I put that 1983 Fleer aside a long time ago to send to Fisk to hopefully get his autograph on it. I believe this was right after Carter had died. I decided not to for two reasons: I don't want to lose the Carter card and Fisk asks for a $40 donation to a cancer charity for him to sign through the mail. I am not keen on either thing. This is not to say I am a fan of cancer (I mean, who is?) but I am not big on paying for autographs, even if it is a donation to charity (I did check on the charity and it is legit and highly rated). And obviously, the Carter card is not easy to replace since he is dead. Carter was a prolific signer so I have seen it before but this is one of my favorites and it is a very tight and clear signature. I can mail the card certified or insured or whatever to make sure it gets to Florida at Fisk's address but things do get lost. Plus, sometimes when you mail something to a famous person, it gets misplaced or you get a different card back, or it gets lost on their pile of things never to be seen again. I have seen my stacks of mail so I can only imagine what a hall of famer's looks like. <br />
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I mean, I own a Fisk autograph (above) so it's not like I <i>need</i> to have one. I own several other Carter autographs on cards, balls, photos, etc. so it's not like I will be losing the only one I have. But it is a risk and a charitable investment. I can afford $40 (for now) so cost is not the biggest problem, only principle. So, what do I do? Do I take the chance and mail the Carter card to Fisk and hope it gets there and hope he signs and returns this card to me. Or do I forget the whole thing and enjoy my collection as is and do nothing. This is not a binding poll or anything, but if you have an opinion or any advice, please leave a comment or drop me an email. And I hope you are staying safe and sane if you are stuck in the house for a while or worse, if you are out in the world dealing with people.jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-64925252839394223062020-03-15T16:00:00.000-04:002020-03-15T16:00:04.786-04:00Love In The Time of Corona. Last Monday morning, I went to Costco and Target and it was a very quiet, uneventful trip. Little did I know that in the next few days, going to the store would become something like a cross between old Woody Woodpecker cartoons where the women kill each other, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7NkQx8WOS4" target="_blank">bridal day</a> at Filene's Basement, and the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3P4LUt0qcX8" target="_blank">Road Warrior</a>. Lucky for me, I am a slight hoarder at all times and don't need soap, sanitizer, or toilet paper any time soon. Also, I did stop in the card aisle in Target and grabbed some Heritage packs (they had no blasters) and impulsively grabbed a blaster of Star Wars Skywalker Saga cards while looking in vain for Heritage blasters. This would prove very fortunate and unfortunate but not in the way I thought. Kind of like how most of our weeks went.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIqrMP0Hp_LrFVb1PVM_qSgxxqXhfgED_DWu1ldE5hYSF-X2yFrt2B4bgEAp9ojyS_Aqx7-8fNSKjygne9VEk0vDegSOnXW5woK4935LolJUrm1V1638Mgw5uaLI1t0aCkHeXgTnOGcU-8/s1600/h01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1081" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIqrMP0Hp_LrFVb1PVM_qSgxxqXhfgED_DWu1ldE5hYSF-X2yFrt2B4bgEAp9ojyS_Aqx7-8fNSKjygne9VEk0vDegSOnXW5woK4935LolJUrm1V1638Mgw5uaLI1t0aCkHeXgTnOGcU-8/s640/h01.jpg" width="432" /></a></div>
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I rarely buy single retail packs of baseball cards because I find all you ever get are base cards and maybe an odd parallel but very rarely do you ever get something of substance. I figured since all I wanted was some examples of the Heritage, I would just grab 6 packs and go about my business. These might have been the luckiest six packs of retail cards I ever bought.<br />
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One thing I collect in totality is Topps <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/p/wantlist-topps-all-star-rookies.html" target="_blank">rookie all stars</a>. I love me some fancy trophies on my baseball cards and I got five of them in these six packs, including two short prints. The two short prints I got were Pete Alonso and Vlad Guerrero Jr., the two cards I figured I'd have to pay through the nose for on eBay if I ever wanted them, and here I got them in back to back retail packs. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJKIXr70JGOTp-VQo1i17rqHtyOI99D7vu0m_-1GBMpzi7gpGGeRtAaIojBaUtSGOKb6l3in9cjUJZ9nvUPjoOngmGUHmZ8XjLimCqp0JYjv9DYGMB-zQRTfMLfeQipLdxT7wfF3ESlAS7/s1600/h02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1159" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJKIXr70JGOTp-VQo1i17rqHtyOI99D7vu0m_-1GBMpzi7gpGGeRtAaIojBaUtSGOKb6l3in9cjUJZ9nvUPjoOngmGUHmZ8XjLimCqp0JYjv9DYGMB-zQRTfMLfeQipLdxT7wfF3ESlAS7/s640/h02.jpg" width="463" /></a></div>
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I even got one of the two Alonso league leader cards and three of the postseason cards. And we are just getting started.<br />
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I got five inserts. That's practically one per pack but it didn't quite come out that way because I got two Tom Seaver Flashbacks stuck together in one pack. I also got another Flashbacks insert, Rod Carew, and two Then and Now cards - one of them also with Tom Seaver. Look him up, kids, he was pretty good. I did get one other base double in the five packs - it was Michael Conforto, a Mets player. This never happens. I always get doubles of San Diego Padres or Milwaukee Brewers.<br />
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There was one other Met and one other league leader card. Not too shabby. <br />
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I am pretty sure the 1971 set is in my top five all time designs and the Topps people really nailed the look of it. The colors, the lower case ee cummings style names, and the random action photos - which were new in '71 - are all here. Even the random rookie cards and odd position designations are here. I didn't scan the backs but the backs all look right with the head photos and esoteric write ups. They even have SSPs of the <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2012/03/o-canada.html" target="_blank">OPC</a> backs, which are some of my favorite OPC variations. Alas, I did not get one of those. <br />
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I also love poses where the hitters are swinging and pointing the bat at your face, I got three of them in three different styles. I saw that the Alvarez/Aquino rookie card is hot. I am not one for hot rookies, so if anyone wants to trade for this thing, let me know.<br />
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This is the page I ended up piecing together from the five packs, I think it looks great. <br />
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I went with just about all posed shots but got a variety and the one action shot is decidedly inactive (I picked a Luke Voit action shot for the vertical example, that's on the back, the back I didn't scan). I chose a few teams that didn't exist in 1971 just for a little timely juxtaposition. I was thrilled with my choice to lower myself to retail packs. I know it will never turn out this good again. If anyone is putting the set together and has a wantlist, drop me a line and I'll see what I can fill before these go to ebay or Listia.<br />
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On the other hand, the Star Wars cards were...underwhelming. The blaster had 10 packs and 60 cards but no indication on the outside what they looked like; this seems to be on purpose. The design is very staid. I prefer a little color and whimsy in my <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2014/05/may-fourth-be-with-you.html" target="_blank">Star Wars</a> cards and all I got here is some stars from a NASA chart or something off of a Battlestar Galactica poster. <br />
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The photos and subjects seem to cover all eight movies, I assume this set was leading into the ninth. All the cards are vertical and none of the captions are puns or anything. I am falling asleep just looking at them.<br />
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I scanned a second group to continue the monotony. Not even Natalie Portman can make these more exciting.<br />
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Though I gotta say, I do love that middle card, it is a great shot from the climax of
the Force Awakens. Lightsabers and snow, more of that please. One out of 60 is a very bad ratio. <br />
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Each pack had a parallel base card where, oooo pinch me, they changed the color of the thrilling border to a rusty orange or a royal blue. I suppose the blue is a slight improvement but I got two of those and eight of the rusty orange. <br />
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Seriously, the write ups on the front and backs of these cards is more boring than my write up here. <br />
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Each pack also had an insert. These were at least a little more interesting, if slightly repetitive. <br />
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Five of them were from the Path of the Jedi set, which were almost
exactly the same as the style and substance of the base cards. I do like that Han Solo card because the highlight of the seventh movie to me was the fact that Harrison Ford didn't mail in his performance as he has in a few of the other movies he's done in his old age (I'm looking at you, Indiana Jones 4 and Blade Runner 2049). So that's 2 out of 60.<br />
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The blaster's special insert was a manu-patch and I got A Princess Leia. I actually have a use for that card so it is staying in my collection. I might cobble a page of these together but it will hardly find a place of honor in my Star Wars book. <br />
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That was the other Path of the Jedi card, which looks like the other one on the other page. The best looking card in the whole blaster was the advertisement card with that borderless shot from the first movie. If anyone wants to use that 10% off code, be my guest. It really had been an odd week indeed.jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-46721869858485220042020-03-14T15:14:00.000-04:002020-03-14T15:40:19.418-04:00Life of Pie. Things have gotten a little, um, weird, this week for most of us. But really, is there anything going on that can't be solved with a hot cup of coffee and a beautiful slice of <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2015/03/easy-as-pi.html" target="_blank">pie</a>? Alas, my love of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12QQV3lyYj0" target="_blank">Twin Peaks</a> will have to wait for another time (my best friend got me <a href="https://i.imgur.com/Rb0wKOl.jpg" target="_blank">this</a> for Christmas and all that will show up here eventually). I also was going to post my <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2012/03/complete-set-sunday-topps-american-pie.html" target="_blank">American Pie</a> sets but I checked and saw that I did already. That left me with the very obvious choice of Hall of Famer Pie Traynor. <br />
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Long ago I made a <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2015/07/mail-call-shiny.html" target="_blank">threat</a> to put together a page of ol' Pie here and in the subsequent five years, look, I actually did. Pie Traynor, despite his wonderful nickname, is one of those hall of famers that I don't know much about. I know he was considered the best third baseman in history until Eddie Mathews and then Mike Schmidt and George Brett came along...and that's about it. I couldn't even tell you his real name (Harold Joseph Traynor). So a little bit of card back <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/t/traynpi01.shtml" target="_blank">reading</a> and <a href="https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/85500ab5" target="_blank">SABR</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pie_Traynor" target="_blank">wiki</a> research has made a ten minute expert in the life and times of Pie. He was considered a wizard with the glove. He only hit double digits in homers once and hit just 58 in his career. He did, however, hit 164 triples and while that is a ton, it doesn't crack the top three in Pirates history - Honus Wagner, Paul Waner, and Roberto Clemente all have more. In fact, those 164 would lead all but five teams in MLB history, including some very old ones (The Yankees and the Giants to name two - I also learned that Lou Gehrig leads the Yanks with 163, a number I wouldn't have come close to guess for him). He is the only player to steal home in an <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/allstar/1934-allstar-game.shtml" target="_blank">All-Star Game</a>. He was a player manager for a time and resigned as manager after the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homer_in_the_Gloamin%27" target="_blank">Homer in the Gloamin</a>' (one of my favorite event nicknames in all of sport) ruined his confidence in himself and the team. I also learned that he grew up in Somerville MA (<a href="http://startingnine.blogspot.com/2012/03/hometown.html" target="_blank">a town I know well</a>) and his nickname came from a grocer who called him Pie Face due to his...love of pie. I am not sure what I was expecting from a nickname like that, but hey, that'll do. <br />
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Happy Pi Day everyone!jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4593074246542241667.post-24966984819418190182020-03-08T15:24:00.001-04:002020-03-27T21:40:54.486-04:00Pain in the Astro. My glorious lazy Sunday will consist of me (still) in my pajamas, a huge <a href="https://kenarah.files.wordpress.com/2017/07/blondie031_dagwood.jpg?w=584" target="_blank">Dagwood</a> sandwich, and the Mets spring training game. And, oh look, they are playing the Houston Astros this afternoon. I wonder what's been going on with them <a href="https://www.12up.com/posts/complete-timeline-of-houston-astros-cheating-scandal-01dyt3m3wwee" target="_blank">lately</a>?<br />
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Obviously, that is a bit of shade and sarcasm since this off season saw some major shit hit the fan with a scandal over sign stealing and <a href="https://larrybrownsports.com/baseball/astros-alleged-cheating-setup-trash-can-monitor/524338" target="_blank">trash can</a> banging and video taping and maybe <a href="https://www.bardown.com/polopoly_fs/1.1428535!/fileimage/httpImage/image.png_gen/derivatives/landscape_620/twitter.png" target="_blank">buzzers</a>? It is all a bunch of nonsense that if you have listened or watched anything about sports in the last two months you have heard about it ad nauseum. Now, full disclosure. I am not an Astros fan. I have never liked nor will ever like the Astros. In fact, if I were to do the <a href="http://nightowlcards.blogspot.com/2020/03/30-teams-2020-edition.html" target="_blank">30 Teams</a> lineup that is a wonderful tradition of Night Owl, you would no doubt find the Astros in the bottom ten and maybe in the bottom five. I am still mad and bitter about that <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1986_National_League_Championship_Series" target="_blank">1986 NLCS</a> (more on that later) which explains my historical animosity towards the Houston nine but also just scratches the surface over why I cannot remotely get worked up at all over this latest bit of endless overreaction and pearl clutching by the media and fans. <br />
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Let's start by making sure we have a common ground of understanding, so let's jump into the WABAC and go to the turn of the century when the Patriots started winning Super Bowls. Remember that? Remember when there was a time when they <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Bowl_XX" target="_blank">didn't win</a> anything at all? <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Vo6ekWDdCtykq8XRba7jLh1o7_BUSwITspbrFLJRi3uL7xUbkKiY6pBHo6hcLCGRfaesTUIzbIq0scDbCF98Sq4NJiN7PDwsY4T9ct21IO0O5ceyC_NHY8ZwaFYhretFX0cQP8EoTwUA/s1600/brady.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1172" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Vo6ekWDdCtykq8XRba7jLh1o7_BUSwITspbrFLJRi3uL7xUbkKiY6pBHo6hcLCGRfaesTUIzbIq0scDbCF98Sq4NJiN7PDwsY4T9ct21IO0O5ceyC_NHY8ZwaFYhretFX0cQP8EoTwUA/s640/brady.jpg" width="468" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Forget ice cold nerves of steel, the only reason Tom Brady won six times is cheating.</td></tr>
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A lot of folks will try to tell you that the reason the Pats started winning is that they are a bunch of <a href="https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nfl/news/patriots-spygate-deflategate-bill-belichick-timeline/ovkdjh8ny5qb1fnns9grat5mk" target="_blank">dirty cheaters</a>. That they were filming the signals of the Rams on the sidelines during practice. You know, something every other team in the league did at the time in one way or the other. And then the commissioner's office told everyone to stop filming the sidelines of opponents practices. Some teams did and some teams didn't and the Pats, well, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spygate_(NFL)" target="_blank">they didn't</a>. And somehow millions of fans and hundreds of media idiots decided that this is the reason for the Pats sustained two decades of success. Not having a brilliant <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Belichick" target="_blank">coach</a>, not having a hall of fame <a href="https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/B/BradTo00.htm" target="_blank">quarterback</a>, nope, it's because they <a href="https://www.nbcsports.com/boston/new-england-patriots/mangini-regrets-turning-patriots-over-spygate" target="_blank">cheated</a> (there is also something about <a href="https://the-hollywood-gossip-res.cloudinary.com/iu/s--kTxPV9Pj--/c_scale,f_auto,h_694,q_auto,w_696/v1431527491/tom-brady-defends-balls" target="_blank">deflated balls</a>, but the less said about that, the better). Do you want to know what everyone harps on the Pats and their cheating? Because they win, that's why. Off the top of my head, the <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/2017/2/4/14474438/what-was-falcons-noisegate-scandal-nfl-penalties-deflategate" target="_blank">Falcons</a>, <a href="https://boston.cbslocal.com/2017/07/04/former-colts-lineman-admits-to-salacious-cheating-scheme-to-help-peyton-manning/" target="_blank">Colts</a>, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cheating-Encouraged-Hard-Nosed-History-Raiders/dp/1683580621" target="_blank">Raiders</a>, and <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maurybrown/2015/03/30/cleveland-browns-and-atlanta-falcons-have-been-caught-cheating-and-with-it-nfl-penalizes-them/#186417c654f1" target="_blank">Browns</a> also were fined for various infractions of rule breaking but no one ever constantly beats you over the head with that. Do you know why, because the Falcons, Browns, and Colts never win anything! Okay, the Colts won a Super Bowl recently, only after their quarterback complained about everyone and everything and had all sorts of <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/19/sports/football/19colts.html" target="_blank">rules changed</a> in his favor - including one where the quarterbacks were allowed to <a href="https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2015/05/07/issue-of-manipulating-game-balls-in-the-nfl-started-well-before-deflategate-in-2006/" target="_blank">handle</a> the game balls before games. Hmmmm.... Anyway, the point is, everyone looks for an edge, every team pushes the envelope, and yes, <a href="https://yourteamcheats.com/" target="_blank">your football team cheats</a>. A lot. <br />
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That brings us back to the Astros. The Astros sin here is that they were stealing signs. Okay, I am going to assume that if you are reading a baseball card blog that you follow baseball. Chances are you even played baseball. I seem to remember that once we got out of the tee ball and little leagues and into the pony and travel leagues and high school and such, one of the first things the coaches taught us is to look for the other teams signs. And steal them. When you were on second base, you better be looking at the catcher and you better be relaying to the batter where he was lining up or if he was calling for a fastball or a curve. You did this with your own signals, where you put your hands on your knees, etc. Baseball and signs and sign stealing is an elegant dance. Heck, there's a reason why there are <a href="https://www.baseballmonkey.com/catcher-signals" target="_blank">signs</a> in the first place. So you don't let on what you are doing. And it is your job to figure out what the other team is doing. And if you get caught, you might get a fastball in the ribs. But that is the (in)famous <a href="https://www.baseball-almanac.com/legendary/liunwrit.shtml" target="_blank">unwritten rules</a> of baseball. And it is one of the things that make the game wonderful to play and watch. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jose Altuve is one of the few Astros players I have ever liked and rooted for. </td></tr>
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I played no higher that division III college (and I was terrible) but once you get to the big leagues, you can not imagine how high the stakes are. You need to find every advantage you possibly can. I don't blame any team for looking for some corner to cut or some rule to bend. The Astros used live video to try to gain such an advantage. So did a lot of other teams and (and this will sound familiar) eventually the commissioners office told teams to knock it off. Most teams did and some teams didn't. The Astros didn't. They had a glorious system in place that included the height of technology (live HD TV feeds in the clubhouse) and the lowest of low tech (banging on freaking <a href="https://twitter.com/CoryChen32/status/1243711081240866816" target="_blank">garbage cans</a>). They also won the World Series doing it in 2017. And that is why everyone lost their minds. Remember a few years ago when the Cardinals hacked the entire Astros <a href="https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/we-now-know-extent-of-cardinals-hack-and-the-unprecedented-penalties-from-mlb/" target="_blank">scouting computer system</a>? You vaguely do, and do you know why? Because the Cardinals didn't win anything when they did it. Everyone got fined and folks lost their jobs but it all got quickly forgotten. Yet here the Astros have become the poster boys for baseball malfeasance and for one reason and one reason alone. They won the damn series. And every single media member has seemingly tried to outdo themselves with what should happen to them. Even though they were fined the maximum amount of money ($5 million) and the manager and GM both got suspended and lost their jobs, that's just not good enough for some people. In the grand tradition of the Patriots and turning a speeding ticket into first degree murder, I have heard everything from the players should be banned for life, the Astros should give back their trophy, they should lose their charter in the league, if Jose Altuve was wearing a buzzer, he should be brought up on fraud charges. I swear, sports media people fall all over themselves trying to one up the morality chain, completely forgetting that sign stealing in baseball is not just done, it is expected. It doesn't even fall under "if you ain't cheating, you ain't trying" it is literally part of your job as a player. That the Astros crossed an imaginary line seems to be besides the point of everyone trying to out opinion everyone else. Perspective, both historical and current, is completely lost. So let's try to put some of this into better perspective than we already have. <br />
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Scene: October 3, 1951. Not only was Mrs. <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/w/winfida01.shtml" target="_blank">Winfield</a> in labor, great things were afoot at Coogan's Bluff. The Dodgers and Giants were playing for the NL Pennant and with the Dodgers winning in the bottom of the ninth, up came Bobby Thomson and hit what I am sure you know, is The Shot Heard 'round The World. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWIGfBQghJs" target="_blank">The Giants won the pennant</a> (though eventually lost the <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/1951_WS.shtml" target="_blank">series</a>). <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I hate having to use this page for this shit and not on October 3rd.</td></tr>
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What time eventually told us and most of us seem to have completely overlooked is the Giants at the time had an elaborate <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2020/02/13/giants-cheating-home-run-1951/" target="_blank">sign stealing system</a> in place in the Polo Grounds. They had spotters in centerfield with binoculars who then used buzzers to relay the information in real time to the dugout. This was 70 freaking years ago. And there is little to no doubt that Thomson knew exactly what Ralph Branca was throwing and where when he took that mighty hack that won the Giants the pennant. Why aren't these same people demanding the Giants give back their National League pennant from 1951? Why aren't they demanding Willie Mays and Leo Durocher and Monte Irvin be removed from the Hall of Fame? Or maybe such sign stealing has been <a href="https://www.espn.com/classic/s/2001/0204/1063096.html" target="_blank">romanticized</a> over the years as just one of those things teams did to get an edge. Maybe this kind of scandal and cheating has always happened. Maybe on the very first pitch in 1869 someone signaled what they were throwing and on the second one, someone was trying to steal that sign. <br />
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I am not one to Judge...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipbnskOUfnvhNVdBKyjtB2sSb3iecxdUIN6-gdyVB3EBfI4vf58BEw_gGJODY8d13-L86bV4GQJljX__oByg4UU9bk9mdxgxa_em9WSAh75MTc8EU42a5nUZfWcrBc8h_Nfo2J-iKzD5Zb/s1600/judge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1172" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipbnskOUfnvhNVdBKyjtB2sSb3iecxdUIN6-gdyVB3EBfI4vf58BEw_gGJODY8d13-L86bV4GQJljX__oByg4UU9bk9mdxgxa_em9WSAh75MTc8EU42a5nUZfWcrBc8h_Nfo2J-iKzD5Zb/s640/judge.jpg" width="468" /></a></div>
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...pun intended, but the most horrible and egregious reaction to all the Astros hullabaloo was by Yankees fans and players. Somehow, as usual, they felt very offended that some other team won besides them in 2017. And, lordy lordy, they might have cheated to do it?!?!? How dare they?!?! How dare some other team cheat the great and mighty Yankees out of their birthright, which is winning the World Series every single year. I cannot think of a group of people with worse perspective or short term memory than <a href="https://startingnine.blogspot.com/2012/04/yankees.html" target="_blank">Yankees</a> fans.<br />
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Somehow, they can't seem to recall, all the way back 11 long years ago, to the last time they won the Series that the major star of the team was this man. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj31FQr1NT0Fk_BNM51dH1LxkczLVoi2wqnw4M-ywyhPqIne0lREGrp-k3QXbPGenQ13GHtrEhUwJ2hbFPA-4gOrf9oi5UTAKAFxAoP7XUJM8STWpqPZvdFxPpucnDt_muQqscuJdzDV46i/s1600/arod3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1174" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj31FQr1NT0Fk_BNM51dH1LxkczLVoi2wqnw4M-ywyhPqIne0lREGrp-k3QXbPGenQ13GHtrEhUwJ2hbFPA-4gOrf9oi5UTAKAFxAoP7XUJM8STWpqPZvdFxPpucnDt_muQqscuJdzDV46i/s640/arod3.jpg" width="468" /></a></div>
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Gee, I think I want to list the players who have lied about using PEDs and then gotten busted for it twice after that. But really, that list would be very short because it <a href="https://nypost.com/2016/08/07/the-complete-a-rod-timeline-in-all-its-power-and-absurdity/" target="_blank">begins and ends</a> with Alex Rodriguez. Say anything you want about the use of steroids and their effect on the game but by 2009, there were some very set and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doping_in_baseball" target="_blank">strict rules</a> in place about them and Arod eventually ran afoul of them to the tune of losing his entire 2014 season. If the Astros have to give back the 2017 title, then we should only start with giving back the 2009 title for the Yankees. <br />
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Let's also think about giving back those 1996, 1998, 1999, and 2000 titles too. Remember who was the star pitcher on two of those teams? This guy:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZLkzlwKd_WRCKC42eihptowZmITj0hx8J7sZSx7IZZPjDd3zH2Ay0_Tykdtn-HBU_w9aGXP7MQhm0zJbSZm4PD8VUV5__es6N9okTlk-ppVC1XaUwbC_CepwlIWsRyzv9UtoVOVAo0UmN/s1600/rc9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1182" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZLkzlwKd_WRCKC42eihptowZmITj0hx8J7sZSx7IZZPjDd3zH2Ay0_Tykdtn-HBU_w9aGXP7MQhm0zJbSZm4PD8VUV5__es6N9okTlk-ppVC1XaUwbC_CepwlIWsRyzv9UtoVOVAo0UmN/s640/rc9.jpg" width="472" /></a></div>
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Not only was Roger Clemens on the 1999 and 2000 Yankees teams, but Andy Pettitte was on all five of the most recent Yankees World Series winners and he's one of the few guys who has <a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/news/story?id=3156305" target="_blank">admitted</a> to using PEDs and apologized for it. Being contrite, however, does not remove responsibility for your actions. Pettitte at the time might have just been trying to heal or he might have been trying to get an edge. Either way, his guilt is unquestionable and it is only fair that if the Astros need an <a href="https://preview.redd.it/s7ayqshh7ta41.png?width=974&format=png&auto=webp&s=cd60ce8378c4154265c8d2b772404e7dc6aaa7ed" target="_blank">asterisk</a>, then all five Yankees winners need one too. You can even give it elegant <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0l7RFsde2M" target="_blank">pinstripes</a> if you like.<br />
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One other moronic argument I have heard, and you hear this usually when any baseball scandal happens, is What About Pete Rose? Isn't it time to forgive him? The answer to this, as always, is no. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I get 3-1 odds that Rose defenders will always chime in when you talk baseball scandals.</td></tr>
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Say what you want about steroid cheats, or sign stealers, or baseball scuffers (such as <a href="https://mlb.nbcsports.com/2011/11/04/knock-me-over-with-a-feather-mike-scott-admits-to-scuffing-baseballs/" target="_blank">Mike Scott</a> of those aforementioned 1986 Astros, who basically cheated his way to the Cy Young and the 6th game of the NLCS, why aren't people demanding <i>he</i> give back <i>his</i> award?!?) or cocaine users, or computer hackers or any other of the myriad of ways there is to cheat in baseball: at least they were trying to improve themselves and help the team win. Pete Rose bet on baseball, which is the one absolute no-no deal breaker rule baseball has. Even though he has said that he always bet on the Reds to win, it is also a <a href="https://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/mlb/reds/2014/03/10/timeline-pete-rose-investigation/6247593/" target="_blank">fact</a> that he didn't bet every day. That means every day he didn't bet on the Reds to win, he was betting on them to lose. His betting no doubt affected the way he managed the team both on days he bet as well as on the days he didn't. He ruined the integrity of the game in the worst way imaginable. Gambling is the only one of those sins that has a negative outcome to the sport - which is why it is <i>the </i>cardinal sin. So every time I hear someone bring up Pete Rose during any of these baseball kerfuffles, I roll my eyes and shake my head at the complete lack of understanding. And say what you will about Roger Clemens (and my tag says it all) but he was a hell of a pitcher when he was <a href="https://www.foxsports.com/mlb/story/roger-clemens-trial-timeline-070511" target="_blank">juiced</a> up. <br />
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Okay, so is there anyone here who does have a beef? I will sort of reluctantly say the Los Angeles Dodgers. They lost that game seven of the 2017 series to those Astros although they did it at home, which means the Astros weren't using their magical sign stealing system at the time. And lord knows what the Dodgers were or weren't doing to steal signs. After all, no one is going to investigate them because they didn't win the series. <br />
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Plus, if Clayton Kershaw had started that <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/LAN/LAN201711010.shtml" target="_blank">game</a>, the Dodgers might have won, given his four scoreless innings after Yu Darvish blew up earlier in the game. The 2017 postseason was the best one he's had (which isn't saying much considering his overall record in the playoffs is, well, <a href="https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=kershaw+playoff+stats" target="_blank">not good</a>). The point here is, as with all things in sports, you can't go back and change what happened, only put it into perspective what did for both the present and the future. The present is not being very kind to the Astros and I hope future baseball fans will be able to get their heads on straight and understand that they weren't cheating, they were just cheating better than anyone else at the time. Now that I have spent an hour and a half ranting all this, I am going to finish my beer and watch the rest of this baseball game and hope to never have to bring up this sad, sorry subject again. jacobmrleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13991748868368917576noreply@blogger.com2