Card of the Month - November 2009

I haven't been doing very well with posting a "Card of the Month" this year, in fact I've managed to post only 4 in the first 10 months. With all the hoopla surrounding the Yankees winning the World Series last night, I figured a Yankees card was appropriate for November. I could've written a long rant about my dislike for many of the current Yankees players, but I doubt I could do a better job than this. I briefly debated presenting a few of my many arguments regarding the need for a salary cap and floor (yeah I'm talking about you Pittsburgh Pirates) in baseball, and I guess I will in a sense, but who really wants to hear my whining. I decided instead, and yes this is coming from a Red Sox fan, to focus on the positive.

My anger and disappointment over the Yankees winning the Fall Classic isn't directed at the Yankees, it's directed at the sport of baseball, the players union, the commissioner, greedy players, agents like Scott Boras, and anyone else who is responsible for the lack of a salary cap and floor in baseball. While I firmly believe that the sport will be somewhat tainted and unfair until a cap and floor system is put in place, it's not the Yankees' fault that it isn't. In fact, I'll go one step further and say that the Steinbrenner's would be bad owners if they didn't use their extra capital to their advantage year in and year out. Any good owner, general manager, or coach will use absolutely everything at their disposal to put themselves in a position to win, and large bundles of cash are certainly no exception. In fact, I would argue that owners of teams like the Pittsburgh Pirates are as much a problem for the sport. If you don't know why, read this. On the other hand, you'll see why the sport needs a cap when you look at the Yankees' numbers.

I know it's not all about money, but to me it's like a poker game where one player starts with $1,000 in chips, another starts with $500, and a third starts with $100. Sure, it's not completely inconceivable that the guy with $100 could win, but the odds sure as hell aren't in his favor. Teams like the Royals and the Marlins are the guy with $100. Anyway, enough is enough, this is supposed to be a positive post and the point is the Yankees are actually a pretty great franchise. When you think about the history of the team, the records, the World Series titles, the Hall of Fame greats, and even the heartache they've caused so many other teams (Bucky F'ing Dent), it's hard to argue that any other franchise holds a more important place in baseball history. Isn't a large part of what we love about baseball its history, maybe more so than any other sport? Imagine baseball history without the Yankees. That being said, here's November's card of the month, from a time before inflated salaries, instant replay debates, and steroids...

1952 Bowman - Casey Stengel

Casey Stengel is without a doubt one of the past Yankees who is most entwined in baseball's great history. Stengel devoted his life to the sport, from his playing days in the early part of the 20th century, to his 7 World Championships with the New York Yankees, to his stint as manager of the "Amazin" Mets teams of the early 60's. I mean this guy had to be told to step down as Yankees manager at age 70, that's a love for the game!

When I was watching those final outs last night I wasn't happy for Mark Teixeira or Alex Rodriguez. I was thinking about Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio, Whitey Ford, Yogi Berra and Casey Stengel. If baseball is America's pastime, then the Yankees must be one of America's greatest teams. If you're not sick of this debate yet, I'd love to hear any comments, especially from Yankees and Pirates fans (are there any?)...

Filling in Gaps - 1967-68 Topps Hockey

Recently I posted a couple of 1965-66 Topps hockey cards I had picked up only because I had none in my collection. About a month or so ago I did the same thing with 1967-68 Topps hockey, a set that was not represented in my collection either. I got two cards for a pretty reasonable price, especially given that they are in absolute mint condition with sharp corners, good centering and no creases...
#36 - Fred Stanfield - Best known for winning two Stanley Cups with the Bruins in the early 70's, Fred actually opened up a successful office furniture business after retiring from hockey. I couldn't pass this card up at $1.99. I like the design of this set much better than the 65-66 set, the cartoon backgrounds vaguely remind me of the Topps Kids baseball releases from the 90's.

#38 - Glen Sather (RC) - The other card I grabbed was Glen Sather's rookie card. This one cost me a bit more, but it was still less than $4. Not a bad price for a rookie card from the 60's of one of hockey's biggest names (albeit as a coach rather than a player). Yes, that is the same Glen Sather who coahed the Oilers to all those Stanley Cup championships in the 1980's and is the current GM of the New York Rangers. Didn't know he played for the Bruins? Don't feel bad, neither did I!

Sunday Vintage

I'm not big on dressing up for Halloween, but my fiance and most of her friends are, so I reluctantly attended a "costume required" party last night dressed as a fully functional keg. Needless to say I'm nursing a severe hangover this morning. The Patriots also have their bye week, so it's shaping up to be a nice lazy Sunday.

I'm a little low on energy, but I kind of mailed it in this week (one 3-word post, come on!) and wanted to get a post in to start November right. So, here are the results of a recent hobby shop run. A few weeks ago I found myself with a free weekday, which doesn't happen very often. I'd been wanting to check out a hobby shop in Connecticut that I remembered going to when I was a kid with my Dad and brothers. It turns out the place was still open but had moved to a different location one town over. I found the shop pretty easily and walked in with $20 in my pocket to see what I could find.

The store was pretty disappointing to be honest. There was virtually no hockey (not that I expected much). A lot of what the guy was selling were modern baseball and football wax boxes, but at about 20 - 30% more than you would pay online. These shop owners don't do themselves a lot of favors. I go out of my way to try to support local hobby shops, but it's very difficult to justify the added expense. Let me see, should I buy a pack of Goodwin Champions for $5.50 or maybe an Allen & Ginter pack for $6? No thanks.

There was one thing that caught my eye though, a 1600 count box full of 70's cards in penny sleeves. There were some commons, but actually a lot of stars as well, and most of the cards were in decent shape. Here's what I got. The first 5 cards were $1 each...
1974 Topps #306 - Earl Weaver (Manager) - OK, so maybe you think $1 is too much to pay for this card, but pickings were slim at this shop. Besides, Weaver's managerial skills got him a spot in Cooperstown, his number is retired by the Baltimore Orioles, and this is only the second Weaver card in my collection.

1972 Topps #169 - Vida Blue - You'd think Vida would look happier here, coming off of a 1971 season in which he went 24-8 and won Cy Young and MVP awards at age 22. Although his career numbers will never get him into the Hall of Fame, he had some of the most dominant stuff in his era, and his 2,175 career strikeouts are good for 53rd all-time.

1975 Topps #530 - Gaylord Perry - "Spitball" Perry was a no-brainer for $1. I'm ashamed to admit that this is only the 7th 1975 Topps card in my collection. If anyone's got any doubles or extras looking for a home I'd love to trade!

1972 Topps #250 - Boog Powell - Another Baltimore favorite and another 1972 Topps card I needed. The pose makes Boog's bat look incredibly small doesn't it?

1974 Topps #634 - Eddie Mathews (Manager) - I know it's a manager card, but to grab an older card of a member of the 500 home run club for a buck seemed like a good deal. Eddie still looks like he could pick up a bat and step into the box. This was the final $1 card, I paid $2 for the next 4...

1972 Topps #241 - Rollie Fingers - This is before Rollie took the hair from between his eyebrows and planted it below his nose where it would eventually become one of the most fabulous mustaches in baseball.

1974 Topps #201 - Carew/Rose - Batting Leaders - You can't go wrong with Rod Carew and Pete Rose on the same card. These guys each had over 200 hits in 1973, with Rose coming in at 230!

1974 Topps #212 - Rollie Fingers - Another Fingers card. This is one of those players I don't actively collect, but will always pick up when I stumble across them.

1972 Topps #93 - Jenkins/Carlton/Downing/Seaver - NL Pitching Leaders - This is probably my favorite card out of the bunch. Three Hall-of-Fame Cy Young winners and the guy who surrendered Aaron's 715th home run all on one card! It goes nicely with the AL Home Run Leaders card I got a while back.

1972 Topps #38 - Carl Yastrzemski - This is one of two cards I ponied up and paid $3 for. This one was a definite as I'm a huge fan of the In Action cards, and I already have Yaz's regular card from the set. Here's the other $3 card...

1971 Topps #65 - Howard/Killebrew/Yastrzemski - AL Home Run Leaders - I'm a sucker for league leader cards. I would've purchased this one based on Yaz alone, but having Hondo and Killebrew on there just put it over the top.

Not a bad haul for $19 in my opinion. OK, I'm going back to bed...

Pedro Mojo

Let's go Phillies!

David Krejci Collection - Card 7

Last night David Krejci scored his first goal of the year for the Boston Bruins. It may have taken him 10 games to light the lamp, but he couldn't have scored his first in much more dramatic fashion. The Bruins trailed 3 - 1 on the road in Ottawa with less than 2 minutes remaining in the game. Tim Thomas was pulled for an extra attacker and the Bruins managed two goals, including Krejci's redirect from a shot at the point which tied the game with just over 20 seconds remaining. They went on to win in the shootout, grabbing a much needed two points on the road.

Since Krejci's goal was such a big one, I've chosen one of the last couple of autographs I haven't yet featured, from 2007-08 SP Authentic. We'll see if the team can carry the momentum into Thursday's showdown with Martin Brodeur and the New Jersey Devils...

#1 - 2007-08 Upper Deck SPX (Auto/Dual Relic/#'d to 999)
#2 - 2007-08 O-Pee-Chee Premier (Auto/Quad Relic/#'d to 299)
#3 - 2007-08 Upper Deck Ice Fresh Threads (Dual Relic)
#4 - 2008-09 Upper Deck Champs Mini
#5 - 2007-08 In the Game Heroes & Prospects
#6 - 2009-10 Fleer Ultra

Filling in Gaps - 1965-66 Topps Hockey

While I'll likely never have the time or money to complete every vintage set I want, I do think every good collection should at least have some sampling of cards from each of the major vintage releases. Sometimes when I have a few extra bucks I'll identify a set that is completely absent from my collection and pick up a couple of cards. I don't look for anything special, any commons will do and condition isn't important.

Most recently I did this with 1965-66 Topps hockey. O-Pee-Chee and Parkhurst weren't releasing sets at the time, so Topps was the only major release this particular year. The Topps set was only 128 cards, so it's possible that this is one I may be able to complete someday. For now I'm going to enjoy the two cards I purchased. I picked up card #30, Billy Hicke, for $1.04. Billy's in fairly rough shape, with a couple of creases and a mysterious blue stain covering a large part of the card back. I also picked up card #33, Al Langlois of the Boston Bruins for less than $2. Al's card is in better shape, with no creases or stains, just a bit off-center:

The card fronts are kind of boring. The plain, single-colored backgrounds kind of remind me of 1958 Topps baseball. The backs on the other hand, are pretty cool:

You get stats for the 1964-65 season, along with a brief paragraph about the player (in both English and French). The bottoms are the best part, as each card features a large puck with a trivia question related to the player. You're supposed to rub a coin over the blank space to reveal the answer. In this case I learned that Al was acquired in a straight swap for Ron Ingram. I'm not sure if someone scratched this off a long time ago, or if the passage of time has started to bring the answer to the limelight.

I may never get the other 126 cards, but for now Al and Billy are a welcome part of my collection.

The GREATEST "Coffee Table" Book Ever!

Yesterday I received a package that I've been anxiously waiting over a week for. A large box was dropped at my desk containing a book that I've wanted for a long, long time. Some of you may recognize this book, some of you may not. Do you know what it is? Here's a close up of the logo from the front...

A nice emblem featuring a bald eagle holding a banner with the years 1951 - 1985 inscribed. Know what it is yet? The year 1951 should be a big hint, in case the fact that this blog is about sports cards wasn't enough of one...

This is a hardcover volume that is basically the ultimate reference book for baseball card collectors and baseball fans. Let me start by saying that this thing is absolutely massive. It measures around 10" x 14", is probably 2" thick and weighs over 10 pounds! I took another pic with a card on top so you can see just how large this thing is.

The book starts with a forward by Willie Mays, which is pretty cool. Only 2 pages but it's interesting to read his take on baseball cards. After that comes the good stuff, full color pictures of the front of every single Topps card released from their very first cards in 1951 through the 1985 Topps set!!! Each year begins with a 2 page summary of what transpired during that particular baseball season, everything from league expansion and team moves to highlight records, etc.

This makes the book not only an awesome reference for collectors, but a good resource for fans of the game in general. One of the reasons I enjoy vintage cards so much is because they are like a historical record of the game, and having a summary of each season before the pictures of the cards is a nice touch. OK, here's a shot of the good stuff from the 1965 Topps section, check it out!

If you click the image you'll get a nice large picture to get a better idea. A nice simple layout with just pictures of the card fronts with the card number underneath. I like this minimal approach where the attention is not on the formatting or layout but on the cards themselves. Not only do you get pictures of every Topps card issued during their first 35 years, but there is also an index in the back with full career stats (or stats through '85 if the player was still active) of every player featured on so much as a single card. In addition to the career stat lines you also get a breakdown of card numbers for that player by year so that you can easily locate a players card from any year within a matter of seconds.

This has instantly become one of my favorite books, I'm sure I will spend countless hours pouring over the pages in the months and years to come. This will definitely be a part of my library as long as I'm collecting. If you collect baseball cards and don't have this book, you owe it to yourself to pick up a copy. The book is out of print so you won't find it at your local bookstore. Used copies on Amazon are listed at pretty outrageous prices, but there are usually one or two copies listed on eBay and you can get one at a decent price if you look around. My copy is in great shape, with all pages and binding in pristine condition and only some very slight wear along the bottom of the cover where it was probably slid in and out of a bookshelf. With shipping I paid around $30.

Well...what are you waiting for?

1953 Topps Project - Post #37

#156 - Jim Rivera - Chicago White Sox

I haven't posted one of my 1953 Topps cards since way back in June, and I haven't purchased one since long before that even. Ultimately I'm not sure if I'll continue my quest for a complete '53 Topps set or not, but I've decided that I'll at least make an effort to post some more of the cards that I already have before I make a decision. The 37th card in my set is Jim Rivera of the Chicago White Sox...

Jim played a total of 10 seasons in the bigs for the St. Louis Browns, Chicago White Sox and Kansas City Athletics, although the bulk of his career was spent with Chicago. Jim's birthname is actually Manuel Joseph Rivera, but he was better known as Jungle Jim due to his aggresive playing style. Jim was a speedster on the base paths who led the league in triples in 1953 and in stolen bases in 1955. He finished second in stolen bases 6 times! I guess it was hard to surpass teammate Luis Aparicio for a while there.

If you're wondering why someone so successful only lasted for 10 seasons, it's because Jim was 29 when he finally broke into the league. According to Baseball Reference, there are some sources that say his late start can be attributed to a stint in prison while serving in the Army. I can't find anything to confirm this though, does anybody know for sure?

Set Status: 37/274 (14%)

Red Sox Collection - 1971 Topps George Scott

How Did I Acquire the Card? eBay

How Much Did I Pay for the Card? $.80

Why is This One of My Favorite Red Sox Cards? When I started collecting cards again in 2007 I basically began with a clean slate. While I did recover most of my childhood collection, I only collected from 1989 to 1994, which was the height of overproduction. Not only that, but I really enjoyed the cards and they're in "gently used" condition at best in most cases. Finally, I only owned 3 cards made before 1980. As a result, I've had to build up my vintage collection from scratch.

One of the sets I like most is 1971 Topps. With some of the Hall-of-Famers in this set and the tough-to-find high numbers I doubt I will ever complete the whole set, so I take the approach of picking up a few cards here and there as I run across them (which doesn't happen frequently). My modest collection stands at 33 cards, and this George Scott is one of my favorites. While I may never complete the '71 set, I recently made a pick-up that's about the next best thing. Post coming soon...

Box Break - 1991 Topps Stadium Club Series 1 Baseball

I picked up this box about a month ago when I made a run to the local hobby shop on a Friday night. I remember this set vividly from when I was a kid, it was released when I was just 8 years old. From what I recall this was a "higher end" product, which in 8-year-old terms was around $2.50 - $3 per pack. Needless to say I didn't end up with very much of it at the time. Thanks to overproduction and a waning interest as the years have passed, the cards can now be found for much cheaper, as is the case with most sets from this era. The only really viable hobby shop left in my area almost never has anything but new packs and vintage singles, so when I saw this box for $15 I was more than happy to pay that price. Before I even picked it up though, the owner saw me eyeing the box and said he'd part with it for $8. Sold!!!

This was the first year that Stadium Club was produced. Hockey and baseball sets were released as well with basically the same exact design, I'm not sure about football though. The fact that this is the first full Stadium Club baseball release, combined with the great photography and a solid design make this an essential set for my collection. I've finally got all the cards busted and sorted. 12 cards per pack, 36 packs in the box for 432 cards. There is only a 300 card base set, no inserts or parallels (those were the days!) so I figured I'd end up with most of the set and a good pile of doubles to trade away. All said and done I got 285 out of the 300 base cards, 95% of the set. I have 184 doubles and triples, and 12 cards were damaged and discarded. There are so many good cards in this set, but here are a few choice favorites...

#5 - Will Clark - San Francisco Giants - This is one of the cards I did have from this set when I was a kid. Will Clark and Nolan Ryan were the two players I collected, and this was always one of my favorite Clark cards.

#8 - Marquis Grissom - Montreal Expos - Whole lotta blue on this card...

#26 - Dave Justice - Atlanta Braves - I think this was one of the better cards to get from this set back in the day. Definitely one of the cards I remembered before opening the box.

#42 - Lee Smith - St. Louis Cardinals - Great portrait shot of one of the game's all time best closers. Will Lee ever make the Hall of Fame? It doesn't seem likely but I'd love to see him get in personally.

#48 - Steve Avery - Atlanta Braves - I picked this card just because I really liked the sharp contrast between the red uniform and blue wall behind Steve.

#49 - Walt Weiss - Oakland Athletics - Great action shot featuring B.J. Surhoff, who will make an appearance a little further down the page.

#70 - Ozzie Guillen - Chicago White Sox - Nice shot of Ozzie Guillen in a retro uniform. Most if not all of the Chicago White Sox in this set are featured in these same uniforms. Good stuff...

#95 - Gary Sheffield - Milwaukee Brewers - This is back when I actually liked Gary Sheffield.

#108 - Ellis Burks - Boston Red Sox - I think I like horizontal cards better because you get so much more of the background captured in the shot, like this great scene at Fenway Park.

#120 - Rickey Henderson - Oakland Athletics - Rickey looks like he's about to be tagged out by Sandy Alomar.

#138 - Eric Show - ? - I don't know what to say about this one. Of course, there were some cards in the hockey set that were just as bad.

#200 - Nolan Ryan - Texas Rangers - Probably the most iconic card from the set, Nolan featured in pitching stance with cleats and Rangers hat, but in a suit against a photo studio backdrop. Say what you want about the card, but I like it. At least it wasn't short printed, and I recall it bringing a lot of attention to the set at the time. Card #1, Dave Stewart is very similar, with Stewart in a suit against the same backdrop.

#206 - B.J. Surhoff - Milwaukee Brewers - I can't explain why I like this one, I think it's just the horizontal layout with Surhoff off-center to the right. Makes him look like he's really flying around the base-paths.

#220 - Barry Bonds - Pittsburgh Pirates - I absolutely detest this man (although I do admit he takes the brunt of a problem that corroded the entire sport), and I've basically banned his cards from my blog and collection. In this case he looks so foolish that I'll make an exception.

#224 - Bo Jackson - Kansas City Royals - Bo really looks like a football player here. If you replaced that glove with a football, photoshopped a helmet on Bo and some hulking offensive lineman in the foreground, you could fool a few people...

#230 - Ryne Sandberg - Chicago Cubs - Great action shot with the Wrigley ivy in the background, like many of the Cubs cards in this set.

#244 - Orel Hershiser - Los Angeles Child Molesters - I've seen this one on other blogs, maybe Night Owl Cards, can't remember. Anyway, I'll leave it alone because I always liked Orel.

#255 - Todd Zeile - St. Louis Cardinals - The moment before impact...

#259 - Shane Mack - Minnesota Twins - I have no idea where Mack is, but I like the card.

#263 - Dave Winfield - California Angels - Another great posed shot here. Look at all those great California Angels batting helmets in the background.

#270 - Ken Griffey Jr. - Seattle Mariners - One of my favorite Ken Griffey Jr. cards...

#292 - Frank Viola - New York Mets - Killer glasses Frank. You can really see the dugout and sidelines in the reflection of the lenses, more interesting than your average card.

Well, that was a great experience for around the same price as eating out at McDonald's. I've got a whole bunch of doubles, so if anyone else is going for this set let me know. As always, I've updated the Zistle library will quality scans of every single card. If you still haven't checked out Zistle what are you waiting for?