30 Day Baseball Card Challenge

Sunday, April 23, 2017

A Not-So-New New Card

I have a few Target gift cards burning a hole in my wallet and have been trying to find a 2017 Gypsy Queen blaster box to no avail.  There's always at least one box of 2017 Topps Series One, but it's not really my cup of tea.

Anyways... since I haven't opened any 2017 baseball products, I haven't been able to complete Tony's Day #1 Challenge, which is to write about a card from the current year with a photo you like.

My solution?  Cheat.

Last Thursday, I picked up a team bag filled with 2017 Rediscover Topps buybacks and found this card:

1993 Topps #465

I realize that it's technically a twenty-four year old piece of cardboard.  However since it was included in packs of 2017 Topps, I figured it was fair game.

Anyways... this photo is fantastic for a few reasons:

#1:  It's a great action shot with Fernandez looking to turn two.
#2:  Fernandez has all of his limbs and is wearing flip-up glasses.
#3:  I looks like the MLB Home Run King is making a guest appearance.

I also like this card because it features him with the San Diego Padres.  Most of my Fernandez cards show him with Toronto.

By the way... did you know that he spent a season in Japan playing for the Seibu Lions?

I'm just threw that into this post, so I can show off some cool stuff I saw at the 2017 Nikkei Matsuri, which is a festival/bazaar that takes place in San Jose's Japantown each year.

My entire life, I've been fascinated by bonsai trees.  I have owned a few over the years, but I always seem to kill them.  There were a bunch on display today.  Here are two of my favorites:


My friend's mom and sister are part of a Japanese doll making club and three of their dolls were on display as well:



Being a forty-four year old guy, I'm normally not into dolls, but I've got to admit the detail on these are truly amazing.

Well that's it for today.  I'm still in the process of building care packages.  Should have them shipped out on Wednesday or Thursday.  I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend.

Happy Sunday and sayonara!

6 comments:

Kin said...

Pic definitely taken at Three Rivers Stadium. I remember getting to go out on the field in front of the crowd for Little League Day when I was ten years old.

The Lost Collector said...

I'll always have a soft spot for him since he is closely linked to Jeter and the Yankees, as his injury really opened up the door for Jeter. He's a guy I'm happy played for the Yanks, even if it was just for a season. I went and looked up his stats after reading this post, and he had a heck of a career.

SumoMenkoMan said...

Any mention of Japanese culture in a blog post is okay with me, even if they are dolls. I love the bonsai trees. When I was living in Japan I was part of the town's flower arranging club. I love to look at art, but creating is not my strong point. When I finally settle down in one place someday, I am going to buy a bonsai tree for sure!

Chris said...

That is a great card, no matter what year it was originally released. But if Topps wants to stamp 'em and pack 'em out in 2017, it counts!

Mike Matson said...

Ahh Tony Fernandez.. Spent four different stints with the Jays.

Fuji said...

kin - that's awesome! last year was the first time i had the opportunity to go onto the field at the oakland coliseum. it was after the game for the fireworks show. we left before i could appreciate it though, because it was a little crazy.

the lost collector - yeah. he's definitely a hall of very good member.

sumomenkoman - i'm not very artistic either... but like you i definitely can appreciate it. one day i'll probably take a bonsai tree class offered in japantown.

chris - thanks for the support. great minds think alike

cardboard jones - i threw that out wondering if anyone would bite.

mike matson - fernandez is to toronto as henderson is to oakland