A day late...

I think I was born too late. Just a few days, though.

I have several ideas for blog posts, some in my head, some actually started as drafts. Then, as I'm tweaking them up I see that some other blogger posted on the same topic.

Cases in point...

The REA auction. I got my catalog a few weeks ago. I scanned the cover in and started the post, never quite finding what I thought was the correct angle. I thought I did last night (in my head) and what do you know. Mr. Owl posted here. And Mario did so before him. Then Ernest did so at Blue Heaven. Oh, I've posted about auction house catalogs before. But I got scooped. No. It isn't about who posted first. "Let's not bicker and argue about who killed who." (Requisite Holy Grail reference. Or maybe this Holy Grail reference.)

And then there's the Dollar General pack break post. A year too late. Out Of The Mill posted about them in 2008.

Are all the good ideas taken? (no) Am I just being a bit harsh on myself? (yes)

Enough already. Torpedoes be darned, I'm going to post about the REA auction catalog anyhow. Look for it in the upcoming days. And yes, I'm going to say something nice about the fridge magnet they give away. Call it plagiarism.

Dollar General pack break

My folks are in town.  As one gets older in life, one tends to appreciate more what one may not have appreciated when one was younger.  I appreicate my folks a lot more now.  Not just because they bought me two packs of specially packaged Topps 2009 Baseball cards, Series 1.

I appreciate them for the way that they raised me.  For instilling a moral compass.  For teaching me about God.  For taking me to Fenway and Parc Jarry.  For encouraging me to read.  For taking me to 'cello lessons and making me practice.  For putting up with my high school pranks.  For liking my friends.   But, this is turning into a Mother's Day post.  Maybe a Father's Day post.  But I digress.

Apparently, Dollar General Stores struck a deal with Topps to package a seven card pack for sale at their stores.  The price point is right.  A buck.

And here's what we have in pack number one:

Matt Joyce (# 143)

Luis Ayala (# 284)

David Eckstein (#79)

Nick Markakis (Toppstown)

Evan Longoria - Postseason Highlights (# 16)

John Russell (#234)

Matt Antonelli (#159)

Pack number two consists of:

Juan Uribe (#149)

Johan Santana (#310)

Todd Wellemeyer (#266)

Justin Morneau (Toppstown)

Scott Lewis (#248)

Joe Torre (#131)

Brandon Moss (#104)

I'll be giving my dad the David Eckstein.  The other night I gave him a large stack of Diamondbacks.  They live in Arizona.  The team and my parents.  It was quite nice to see him grin and study the cards, telling me about the players' recent histories.

The John Russell and the Brandon Moss remind me to again encourage my mom to set pen to paper and record what she did in the 1950s.  Summary: She was the governess for the team doctor of the Pittsburgh Pirates.  I knew that she was a governess (a nanny for you youngins).  A few years ago we were talking about it and it came out... "Yes, I was a governess for Dr. ____ .  We went to Florida with the team.  I remember being at a party at their home.  The whole team was there.  Branch Rickey.  All the players."

I'm thinking... "Hmmm.... Didn't get any photos, did you?  Any autographs?"

We talked a bit more about her time doing this, and other families that she worked for.  I didn't press to hard on the Pirates' party.  I wanted to lull her into a sense of (false) confidence, being comfortable to talk and then have her write a tell-all book about it.

You never know when interesting stories will pop up.  Last week I was telling my sales manager about it.  He listened politely, with interest and as the conversation meandered he said, "Oh, my dad played semi-pro ball in Indianapolis in the 1920s and 1930s.  He had a tryout for the Tigers when Hank Greenberg did.  My dad didn't make the cut.  I guess not many players did when Hank Greenberg is your competition."

I guess not.

 

Happy Birthdays

Today is the birthday of several major league baseball players.

Noodles Hahn, Clipper Flynn, Josh Booty, Sterling Hitchcock, Shag Thompson, Amby McConnell and Luis Aparicio, among others.

Frank "Noodles" Hahn played for the Cincinnati Reds from 1899 to 1905 and then for the New York Highlanders in 1906. Of the 231 games he started, he completed 212 of them.

"Closers? We don't need no stinking closers."

It is also the birthday of my daughter, Caroline. She turns five today. Tonight we will go out for dinner where she will feast on "chicken and fry-fries" and then to the Build-a-Bear workshop where she will get to make a puppy. Both sets of grandparents are in town. A bigger family celebration will happen on Saturday.

Caroline and Baby Sophie

Happy Birthday, beautiful one.

Answer to "Is This Anything"

The girls over at Dinged Corners recently asked:

Is This Anything...

I immediately thought that it was a play at the plate involving a Met. Then I thought, "No, those girls are crafty. Surely they must be referring to this..."

Yes, the Weekly World News is on Google Books. You can relive all of those tedious moments standing in the grocery store checkout line waiting behind the lady with all those coupons for little Fifi's dog food, only to find out that they expired seven months ago. What will Fifi do without his Kibbles and Bits? Not Snausages. No. Not for her Fifi. Then your eyes would wander to the right and left, bypassing the Juicy Fruit gum and Chunky candy bars finally landing on the printed word. It must be true, because about every other issue dealt with something Biblical, either finding Noah's ark in Pennsylvania, or the amazing Bible Prayers to flush out body fat .

But the WWN also carried some real news, untainted by maniacal editors looking for a quick sale...
On occasion they even offered a glimpse into the freakish, like the still from the movie, "Leatherface goes to LA"...

But, alas, it was a 1987 Topps Kevin Mitchell card.

I'm wrong again.

Memory Jogged

Mr. Owl reminded me that 30-year old Cardboard hosted and has announced the winners of the contest.

Even though I selected the Dodgers, I didn't win.  In my fraggled memory, I don't remember seeing anyone else select them before I did.  But I'm not contesting the contest.  The comments clearly show that others selected that team before I did.  And clearly Brian did give me (by name, even) the chance to select another team.

I didn't follow up.  Either I need to follow his blog closer or write down when and where I enter contests.  Maybe both.

Congrats to the winners.  I would have picked the Bob Doerr card as well.

 

Mr. Short-Term Memory

I can't remember many things.

I don't remember batting averages or ERAs.  I don't remember which card design goes with which set and year.  I don't remember which contests I've entered in the card blogoshpere.  Sort of.

I remember that I entered the Dodgers to be first team to win 12 games this year on someone's blog.  I don't think that the Dodgers were the first, but I don't know that the Blue Jays were selected by anyone.

So dear readers, I come to you asking for help.  Where was that contest hosted?  Am I the winner?  And if so, what did I win?

Mr. Short-Term Memory: Excuse me.. Miss? You're welcome to sit here and everything.. but I think introductions are in order.
Date: Jeff. It's me. Caroline. Your date.
Mr. Short-Term Memory: [ checks her out ] Ohhh, hey, alright! So, what's your name?

Cards-R-Fun

I'm in the Nashville area, attending a conference. I did my homework before I got here and found a sportscard shop about three miles from the hotel. It is just of I-65, on Trousdale Rd.

This is John Dunphy. He owns the shop. He's owned it for about 20 years. He's been at this location for about the last eleven years or so. According to him, he's the only card dealer currently in Nashville. Some have come and they have gone. Business is slow for him right now. He was glad to talk about life, to help me look for some Hershisers, to talk about the business and to show me any item I asked to see.

When I walked in, U2 was blaring on a cd boombox. It was never turned down and I got to hear John sing along with Bono. You don't hear that everyday. The shop is small and crowded. He carries mostly stuff from the early 1950s to the present. Baseball. Golf. Racing. Basketball. Hockey. Football, both American and English. He also has some Magic, Pokemon and YuGiOh cards. Some books, DVDs and videocassettes. A bit of everything.

Cards. Floor to ceiling. Boxes on boxes. Eight foot ceilings. Probably 20 or more feet on the walls. Stuff you couldn't get to because it would take you ten minutes to unload all the cards on top of them. Most of it was organized, but some of it... well, not so much.

John doesn't have a web presence. You can find him at:

Cards-R-Fun

4825 Trousdale

Nashville, TN 37220

615-832-3216

Updated: February 7, 2012
Cards-R-Fun
16125 Old Hickory Blvd.
Nashville, TN 37211

615-832-3216

I picked up a few cards...

1990 Baseball Major League All-Stars Playing Card, Rickey Henderson (King of Clubs)

1990 Baseball Major League All-Stars Playing Card, Andre Dawson (9 of Hearts)

2001 Topps Archive, Orel Hershiser (# 268)

2007 Upper Deck Masterpieces, Yogi Berra / Jackie Robinson (# 54)

2008 Donruss Threads, Carl Erskine (# 14)

a pack of Fleer 1991 baseball cards

a pack of 1988 Score baseball cards

a pack of 1992 Donruss baseball cards (Series II)

All for a few pennies over $5. And that includes tax.

And John made a few phone calls and I'll be picking up some T206 card holders on Saturday. He's a good shop owner. I'd like to thank him for his time and his generosity of letting me snap some photos. When asked if I could blog about his shop his reply was; "Blog the h*ll out of it."

Remember, Cards-R-Fun. Now go and enjoy them.

Name those ball parks

These images have been lifted from Google Maps.  Just for fun, can you identify them?  Hint: none of them are west coast.

Ball park #1

Ball park #2

Ball park #3

Ball park #4

Ball park #5

Authentic Ink

David, over at Indian Baseball Cards, and then some posted a few days ago about a Denton Young card that he picked up on ebay. He had some questions about the origins of the cards. I volunteered to see what I could find.

Authenticated Ink (or Auth/Ink) cards are standard sized, very thick photo cards, generally commemorating the birth year of the card subject with a penny from that year. The cards have a blank back. The cards are not numbered. Card subjects are generally sports related, but do include religious, political, and other historical figures. Other sports include golf, tennis, cricket, football, boxing and racing.

Below are listed the known baseball related cards with the year of the coin included.

Denton "Cy" Young - 1867

Honus Wagner - 1874

Ty Cobb - 1886

Mike King Kelly - 1887

Walter Johnson - 1887

Dan Brouthers - 1888

Kid Nichols - 1890

Cap Anson - 1892

Abner Doubleday - 1893

George Babe Ruth - 1895

Roger Hornsby - 1896

Jack Chesbro - 1904

Leroy Satchel Paige - 1906

Cy Young (Boston) - 1908

Joshua "Josh" Gibson - 1911

Ty Cobb & Joe Jackson - 1911

Babe Ruth (Red Sox) - 1914

Jim Thorpe (NY Giants) - 1917

Stanislaw Musial - 1920

Lou Gehrig (Columbia University) - 1923

Hank Greenberg - 1930

Josh Gibson (Negro Grays) - 1931

Joe DiMaggio (San Francisco Seals) - 1932

Carl Hubbell - 1933

Dizzy Dean - 1934

Henry Hank Aaron - 1934

Pack "Bob" Gibson - 1935

Lou Gehrig (New York) - 1936

Christy Mathewson - 1936

Bob Feller (Rookie Strikeout) - 1936

Ted Williams (San Diego Padres) - 1937
Lou Gehrig (Day) - 1939

Bob Feller (Indians) - 1940
Peter "Pete" Rose - 1941

Stan Musial (Cardinals) - 1941
Ted Williams & Joe DiMaggio - 1941
Mel Ott - 1945

Duke Snider (Brooklyn) - 1950

Monte Irvin - 1952

Ernie Banks - 1953

Hank Aaron (Milwaukee) - 1954
Tommy Lasorda (Brooklyn) - 1954

Duke Snider & Roy Campanella - 1955

Mickey Mantle - 1956

A few days ago I wrote to Don Fluckinger, editor of the Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards to see what he knows about them. They are not included in my 2008 edition. I'm still waiting for his reply.

This evening I emailed the owner of pujols-sports-emporium on ebay. He's selling about 300 of the Auth/Ink cards. I haven't heard from him, but it has only been a few hours.

I'll update this post if I find out more about these cards.

40 percent thicker

That's what the 2008 Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards says about the 1996 Ultra cardboard stock (then the previous year).  It was released in two 300-card series, with all sorts of subsets.  The cheap dupe of the day was the 'Gold Medallion' parallel set.  You can tell if you have one because there is gold foil featuring a large emossed Fleer Ultra Gold Medallion seal at center instead of the blurry background.  One Gold Medallion card was featured in each pack.

The back of the cards are a bit busy for me.  I didn't really follow Orel while he was with Cleveland (1995-1997).  I should have because he had three of his top six years (W/L) with The Tribe.  It was nice to see him play in the 1997 World Series even though he lost both of his starts.  I wonder how many pitchers have pitched in the Series for both leagues?  (Not a contest, I just haven't looked it up.)

One thing that I've noticed this year is that it seems that anytime a ball hits the dirt, the catcher will automatically hand it to the plate umpire who will give him a new ball.  Have they been doing that for a while or is that new this seaon?

Another thing that I noticed in last night's Cincy - Houston game Friday night was the pre-delivery of pitcher Mike Lincoln.  He would place the ball in his glove and hold it out, single handed.  After about two seconds, he'd bring his right hand up to take the ball and in one motion would wind up and pitch.  Normally one sees the pitcher present the ball in his glove while handling it with his pitching hand, presumably to find the seams and finger placement.  It isn't bad, just different.  I kind of liked it.  And Mike Lincoln played for UT in the 1990's.  Go Vols.

Sportscaster Les Keiter dies

Les Keiter, famed sports broadcaster, died at age 89, in Hawaii.

I wasn't familiar with Mr. Keiter, but I heard a story on NPR's All Things Considered about him. He would 'broadcast' completed games from boxscores, using sound effects.

There was an episode of M*A*S*H that incorporated this method of 'broadcasting'.

Philly.com has a more complete obituary.

I should turn off the television and find a radio station that has a game on and close my eyes.

Mail day from the north

Beth, a friend of mine, well, actually more a friend of my wife, was kind enough to send me a collectible that she got in Canada. It is a McDonald's 2009 mini helmet of Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals.

And in local hockey news, the Knoxville Icebears won the President's Cup for the Southern Professional Hockey League's championship. Second year in a row and three out of the last four years. The league has only been around five years, so that's one good team.

Ryno caught signing on film

There's hope for me.

Photo lifted from KnoxNews.com

Luke Goes to Bat

It was Brooklyn.
It was summer.
It was baseball.

This is how Rachel Isadora's children's book, Luke Goes to Bat, opens.

This delightful book tells the story of Luke and how he wants to play baseball with his brother's friends, but is often told that he is too small and not good enough. With the encouragement of his grandmother and a visit from his hero, Jackie Robinson, he learns that he should never give up.

The game in this story is based on the September 30, 1951 match-up between the visiting Dodgers and the hosting Phillies.

This is Caroline's book. We are fortunate to live in Sevier county, Tennessee. One of the notable people that call this county home is Dolly Parton. She is a big supporter of education and literacy in particular. Through her Imagination Library she provides books for each child that lives in Sevier county. One each month until they reach the age of five. Both of my kids have benifitted from her generosity.

The artwork is very pleasing and it is the book that I read to Caroline this evening before putting her down for bed. I asked her if that was the book that she wanted to read and she said yes. We also watched a bit of the Mets / San Diego game. Then we sang Rudolph, the Red Nose Reindeer, Take Me Out to the Ballgame and then Daisy Bell.

One of the books that is on my to read list is Carl Erskine's What I Learned From Jackie Robinson. I'll let you know when I do.

Jackie Robinson, thank you for standing strong. Branch Rickey, thanks for believing in Jackie.

Disco Era Dandies

I wasn't aware of this 2001 Upper Deck Decade subset.  It is a small group, numbered DE1 through DE6.

Mike Schmidt

Johnny Bench

Lou Brock

Reggie Jackson

Willie Stargell

Tom Seaver

I really don't think of Johnny Bench listening to disco.  Yes, he was of the Disco Era, but I also don't see him as a Dandy.

If I had to match musical tastes with these six players I would do it this way:

Mike Schmidt - BTO, Kansas, Paul McCartney and Wings

Johnny Bench - Elton John, Hall & Oates, John Denver

Lou Brock - Diana Ross, Lou Rawls, Commodores

Reggie Jackson - Rick James, Chic, Rose Royce

Willie Stargell - Booker T and the MGs, Earth, Wind and Fire

Tom Seaver - Eagles, Bee Gees, Abba

East Coast slant

A week or so ago I posted a review of the Memory Lane, Inc. auction catalog that I received in the mail. Steve (of the wonderful Wait 'Til Next Year blog) asked if they have an East Coast slant (ESC). I noticed it a bit in that they had four pages in a row of Yankees (38 lots) and then a smattering of Red Sox. The Yankees were mostly from the 1959 Topps set.

Does that make them have an ECS? I don't know for sure, but I don't think so.

Since most auction houses that produce a catalog (as opposed to eBay) tend to deal with tobacco cards, vintage (pre-WWII), 1950's and then some of the 1960's and 1970's, one has to look at the cards that were produced.

Professional Baseball was East Coast centric for the first 58 years of the 20th century.

Note: I'm painting with a broad brush here. This post is not meant to authoritative, just some general observations.

The Dodgers moved from Brooklyn to LA in the late 1950s. The expansion boom of the early 1960's pushed more teams west of the Mississippi. But I don't think that they really took hold in the hearts of most baseball fans that were card collectors.

I'm guessing that the majority of the population centers for the US were mostly on the East Coast. Yes, the West Coast teams grew in popularity, but the East Coast had a foothold.

Think of the great ball players of the 1950's and 1960's. Name them out loud. Who did they play for? Boston, New York. Brooklyn.

This is not to leave out the Midwest. The Cubs, Cards, Browns, Tigers, White Sox have had a great history, with some wonderful players, but they don't have the sparkle of East Coast players.

Let us look at the World Series Winners. From 1903 to 1970 there were about 20 winners from the Midwest (Chicago, St. Louis, Detroit, Cincinnati and Cleveland). Three winners from the West Coast (LA Dodgers). The remaining (approximately 45) series were won by East Coast teams.

I think that the auction houses cater towards older collectors. And who do they collect? Their boyhood heroes.

The players that played for their favorite teams.

The teams that are based on the East Coast.

So, yes, there is an ECS. But not by design. By history.

Moses at the Bat

Last year, Smithsonian magazine published an article that used Old Testament scripture to frame a baseball game.

It was originally posted on the Israel Baseball League website.

Here are some cards from the Jewish Major Leaguers site ...

May you have a Blessed Easter.

What's a boy to do?

 

Back in the heyday of card collecting I would often pick up a magazine to guide me through the various issues.  One of my favorite was Baseball Cards, published by Krause Publications of Wisconsin.

For a while they issued several baseball cards with the magazine.  I have both the August 1989 and January 1990 issues that feature Orel Hershiser cards.  I have left the cards alone, in their strips, still stapled to the magazines.

Now, what I am to do?  Do I remove the cards from their original 'packaging' and cut them out?  Do I get a magazine holder for 'packaging' and leave the cards in place?

One of the nice things about the magazine was that it had a lot of reader questions.  The answers were generally very tongue in cheek.

Dear Ed,

  I am 12 years old, and I like baseball and collect baseball cards.  I have a few questions, and was wondering if you have the answers.

  1)  Is it okay not to cheer for the home team?  I live near Cleveland, but I cheer for Oakland.  I like the Indians, but I have more fun watching Jose Canseco get a home run than watching Cory Snyder strike out.

Answer:

  1)  No.  It is not okay to cheer for the home team.  Every home team has a secret police force, and if you don't cheer for the home team they break into your house and draw mustaches on all your Jose Canseco cards.

 

Smokies stumble out of the gate

The Tennessee Smokies, the Cubs' AA minor league team, has their home field about 10 miles from my house. I was very excited a few months ago to learn that Ryne Sandberg was their new coach.

This last Tuesday was supposed to be their preseason exhibition game. Generally they play a local college for a 7 inning game. Loosens the players up and give the fans a quick look see.

The weather forecast was grim. They even called off my daughter's school. They didn't play.

That means I didn't attend to get this signed...

2008 Upper Deck Masterpieces, Ryne Sandberg (card #19)

There will be more games this season. I intend to get it signed by year's end.

The Smokies started their season off with a loss at Jacksonville, where the Suns beat them 7-4. They return to Tennessee for a stand against the Birmingham Barons starting on April 15th.

As I look at this post's title, I wonder why I (and many others) mix sports metaphors.

Out of the gate is a horse racing term. As you watch or listen to baseball this season, keep your ears tuned to different sports-isms. You will hear them.

Nick Adenhart - RIP

At the urging of Greg over at the Night Owl Cards blog, I'm adding my own tribute to an athlete that died way too young, at the hands of another young man who apparently had too much to drink and didn't understand that he was driving a lethal weapon.

Late last night or early this morning, Nick Adenhart was involved in a traffic accident that left him and two of his passengers dead. His vehicle was apparently rammed by a van that was driven by someone who was drunk.

Like Greg, I didn't know of Nick Adenhart. I don't really follow the Angels. It is too early in the season for me to get past the Cubs and the Dodgers. I barely know who is on my fantasy team.

When one hears of a tragedy like this, a young man, in his prime, killed for no apparent reason (other than stupidity on the part of the other driver), it makes baseball card blogging seem so minuscule. Unimportant. Flippant, almost.

Let us not forget that it wasn't only Nick that lost his life. Two other people involved in the accident have died.

And for what reason? Because someone got toasted and didn't remember to call for help. I don't know why.

My guess is that the driver of the van that killed Nick and the others didn't say to himself, "Hmm, I've just killed a young pitcher. I'd better split."

No, he realized that he did something wrong and then split. He shouldn't have split. He shouldn't have been driving in that condition.

It doesn't matter whether the victim is a pitcher, an actor, a doctor, a produce manager, a speech therapist, a veteran, a grandmother, a hairdresser, a student.

Don't drink and drive.

Just don't.

My thoughts and prayers go out to the family of Nick and his passengers.

What's behind the beard?

I've often wondered what is on the cardboard beneath the various sticker cards. Is it blank? Advertising? The same image as the sticker? Only Creswell knows.

Our subject today is a 1981 Fleer Star Sticker, Gorman Thomas (card # 77). Standard size (2-1/2" x 3-1/2"). This set has 125 player cards and 3 checklist cards and was issued with bubblegum at fine retailers everywhere.

James Gorman Thomas, III, was drafted in the first round by the Seattle Pilots in the 1969 amateur draft. In 1973 he played his first major league game with the Milwaukee Brewers. Mostly he played in the outfield, sometimes he was the designated hitter. 1981 proved to be a good year, as he was selected to play in the All-Star game. In both 1979 and 1982 he led the American League in Home Runs (45 and 39, respectively). In the early-mid 1980's he bounced to Cleveland then to Seattle and then signed as a free agent with Milwaukee. He ended his career in 1986 with a .225 Batting Average.

Now, like an onion, we shall peel it.

Ta da...

Glossy, waxy white. Now, to figure out where I'm going to stick Gorman.

White Sox ticket stub

May 24, 1994.  Yep, last century.  26,677 other fans went to see the White Sox beat the Twins.  I don't remember much about the game, except that Frank Thomas lifted one in the first inning and I walked to the top of the new Comiskey Park.  I only needed one oxygen bottle after I left the base camp.

 

Video breaks in the news

My brother sent me a link to the New York Times story about the surging tide of video pack/box breaks.  Thanks, bro.

I've never wanted to do that and probably never will.

Here's my favorite pack break video, by one of my favorite baseball card bloggers, Ben Henry.

Ben's blog, The Baseball Card Blog, has been retired.  His insight is missed by me and probably dozens of others.

A walk down Memory Lane

Memory Lane, Inc., that is.  MLI is an auction house of fine sports cards and memorabilia.  I received the catalog for their current acution in the middle of this week.  I'm just now getting around to posting about it.  The auction ends today, Saturday, at 8pm, EST.  I know that doesn't give you much time to register and bid.  Sorry.

The catalog has 162 pages, mostly baseball, but other sports and non-sports are represented.  Want signed checks from the Beatles?  They've got them.  Want that 1914 Baltimore News Ruth?  They've got it.  A 1971 Willie Mays Game Used Bat?  They've got it.  You'll find something that you'll like in at least one of the 1,022 lots they're offering.  Presidential signature to gangster signatures.  1964 Leaf the Munsters  Unopened Wax Box.  Many tobacco cards.  A 1965 Gilligan's Island #49 (PSA 9 Mint).  They've got it all.

Now, for nit-picky time.  Their editing was a tad sloppy.  A hard retun in the middle of the two digits of a two digit number.  Example:

56, 7

1, 89.

are cards #56, 71 and 89.

Quite a few missing apostrophes.  Many "Wow! You've got to bid on this one" type of copy.  No, this isn't the end of the world, but I feel that I have to give my honest opinion.  Both of my readers would expect no less.

In comparing this catalog to REA or a Huggins & Scott catalog, I'd have to say that MLI might be catering to a slightly different audience.  My first impression of the MLI catalog is "Sham-Wow!".  Giving it another look over, I'd say that I was wrong on my first impression.  They do a very nice job presenting what they have.  I won't be bidding, as many of the items are currently well over my monthly mortgage payment.

I'd invite you to look at MLI's website, request a catalog for their next auction.  It costs nothing and is a joy to peruse.

More Baseball Boss

 

This quick post is for Greg over at Night Owl Cards.  And for dayf over at Cardboard Junkie.

Baseball Boss is running a gimmick/contest where they have a special team, the Springfield Nukes, as a give away.

My team beat them (on the second try) so I got a random card...

April Fools 2009, Mike Scioscia (card # 7)

Dodgers and the Simpsons.

And then another milestone, so I got a pack of 2008 National....

Baseball Boss Pack Break

 

So, after reading about Baseball Boss on the Cards in the Attic blog, I decided I should look at the site.

Very fun, very addicting. Yes, you get cards. As you play matches, you get tickets which you can use to buy cards in an auction or directly from their in house store. No, I can't describe it all without spending lots of time. It isn't complicated, but I'd just start rambling.

Anyhow, I collected enough tickets today to purchase a pack of cards. It was from the 1907 National set. Five cards. 2,000 tickets.

Here's what I got...

Frank Corridon (card # 88)

John Eubank (card # 128)

Pete Lamer (card # 220)

Tex Neuer (card # 283)

Irv Young (card # 416)

I don't know if there are checklists.  Other card sets are Spire and Spire Legends.  You can buy a pack, a box or a case.  The years for the sets are 1907, 1957, 2007 and 2008.  And there are the team sets.  In terms of game play, the Spire cards seem to be of more value.  I don't have any, yet, but I'm bidding on one in the auction area. 

Yes, the game can cost you some real world cash, if you want to.  I'm choosing to keep the coin in my pocket.  Until I can get to my local card shop.

The game is very addicting and could easily become a time sink if you let it.  Don't let it.  But do have some fun.

Yes, I know that I blogged about Baseball Boss seven weeks ago.  I just hadn't tried it out.