Tuesday, January 31, 2023

Burgers & Baseball Cards

Hope you weren't expecting a post about late 70's Burger King cards... although I'll try to dig one up at the end of this post if you did.

Today's post is about a recent blogger meetup.  A few weeks ago, Jim over at cards as i see them reached out to me and let me know that he was headed out to California.  We've discussed grabbing IN-N-OUT burgers at least a couple of times in the past.  Well we finally made it happen.  One day after work, I picked him up and took him to Stevens Creek Sports Cards.  I didn't buy anything, but he made a pretty cool purchase.  Don't want to spoil things for his readers, so I'll keep my lips zipped.

Before we left the shop, he made a cool suggestion to take a photo of our wallet cards to document our meetup:


Gwynn and Garvey were teammates for five seasons in San Diego from 1983 to 1987.  It was nice that this was an opportunity for them to get together on a cardboard level.  That 1974 Topps card has been in Jim's wallet on two separate occasions.  At the shop he told me about the first time he slid the card into his wallet.  It was back in the mid 90's when Mickey Mantle passed away.  He had seen Bob Costas talk about Mickey being his wallet card.

At some point, he gave Garvey a breather.  But in 2015, Gavin @ Baseball Card Breakdown introduced his wallet card idea to his readers and Jim put him back in the billfold.

My wallet card hasn't been around quite as long.  I picked Gwynn's 1995 Skybox Emotion card as my inaugural wallet card back in January of 2015.  Two years later, I swapped it out for the 1986 Topps card you see above.

It's been six years and while we're still in January (which is the month I've chosen my wallet cards in the past), I figured it's time to show off my new wallet card:

1992 Topps Kids #53

There were four potential replacement cards.  The 1985 Topps Gwynn that I received from Johnny last week was one option.  There was also Gwynn's 1987 Topps base card which I considered back in 2015.  And there was this little curve ball:

1981 Fleer #574

There's a story behind this card that's worthy of its own post.  I'm thinking that it'll be the fourth and final wallet card... in the sense that when I swap out the latest Gwynn... Rickey will be carried with me until I enter the ground.


However for now... the cartoonish Topps Kid card will be keeping me company.  I ultimately decided to go with this card, because collecting cards keeps me in touch with my childhood... and this card is as childish as it gets.  It's not often I can track down the source of a specific card, but I know with 100% certainty that I pulled this card out of a pack in 2017.

Sorry I got a little sidetracked.  Let's get back to Jim.  After hanging out at the card shop we drove to IN-N-OUT where we ate dinner and talked about cards and the community.  Regardless of whether it's a fellow blogger or just another collector, it's always fun to hang out and talk about the hobby.

We also exchanged care packages.  Half of the stuff he gave me I'm going to hold off on writing about until this weekend or next week.  But I will share the other half of the items which were donations to the Oakland A's and Damaged Card PC's.

Let's start off with some pins from the late 80's (and possibly early 90's):

UNOCAL 76 Oakland A's Pins

Based on an internet search, I think the two pins on the left were produced in 1989.  I couldn't find any information on the last pin, but one eBay vendor has it listed as a 1991 pin.  Regardless these are very cool.  I have a sandwich sized bag full of pins representing several different Bay Area teams.  One of these days I'll have to go through and organize them.

He also added these three A's cards:

1994 Upper Deck All-Time Heroes #214

I've debated on putting together a Bert Campaneris collection, but just haven't gotten around to it.  Maybe one day.  Maybe not.  Either way... this card has a home in my collection.

2005 Leaf 4 Star Staffs #FSS12

Not familiar with this set, but gotta admit it's pretty cool.  This card celebrates the pretty famous (at least in the Bay Area) 2002 Oakland A's pitching staff.

2022 Topps International Trading Card Day #NTCD-20

Pache was one of the only things I really looked forward to in regards to the A's in 2022.  His .166 batting average kinda summed up how that went.  Based on his facial expression... even he knows things got ugly last year.

Let's move on to something a little more positive.  Here are two potential candidates for the Damaged Card PC:

2017 Topps Update #US50
2020 Topps Gallery #107

The reason I say "potential" is because there's limited space in that collection and I'm probably only five 9-pocket pages away from filling the binder.  That's why I'm pretty selective about which cards I add to the collection.  Back in 2019, the Bellinger would automatically get slid into it.  As for Lux, he's going to be the Dodgers starting shortstop this season.  If he has a big year, I'll put him in.  Until then... Cody is in... Gavin is out.

Thank you Jim for the cards.  It was fun meeting you and hanging out.  Hit me up the next time you're in the Bay Area and maybe we can check out a flea market or card show.

By the way... Jim is the 6th blogger I've had the opportunity to meet.  Here are the other five:






I've been talking to my friend in Portland about visiting her and her family.  If I'm lucky, I'll be able to finally meet Gavin @ Baseball Card Breakdown, Kerry @ Cards on Cards, Kevin @ The Diamond King, and Cardboard Hogs and add four more to the list in the next year or so.

Nick over at NJWV is another blogger I'd like to meet as he sometimes comes out with his family to the Bay Area.

If there are any other bloggers out there who plan on taking a trip to Northern California and are interesting in getting together, hit me up and I'll buy you some IN-N-OUT.

Happy Tuesday and sayonara!

Extra Innings

Oops.  Almost forgot.  Here's that Burger King card I promised...

1979 Topps Burger King #16

I've always had a soft spot for cheap slabs of vintage cards featuring hall of famers.  I picked this up before the pandemic off of 4 Sharp Corners for less than the price of a Whopper with cheese.

21 comments:

The Diamond King said...

Get on up here, that would be a blast!!

The Angels In Order said...

Mmmmm...In-N-Out. I was so happy when they finally came here to Texas several years ago. Sounds like a really nice hang time with Jim, and I like the new Gwynn wallet card, good choice.

Chris said...

Great looking Schmidt! It sure was fun finding high-grade vintage-ish HOFers for such a low price, wasn't it?

Always nice to hear about a blogger meetup, too!

night owl said...

My brother lives in California but I've never been out there. If it happens, I'll let you know.

Johnnys Trading Spot said...

If I'm ever out in Calif. again, I will certainly call dibs on a burger!

Nick said...

That sounds like a wonderful blogger meetup! Jim is definitely a good guy and I'm sure it was great to meet him in person.

gcrl said...

it was great to meet you and talk about the hobby over a double double. sorry it took so long but glad we finally were able to make it happen. thanks for the convo and the food (and the cards - post coming soon)!

Nick Vossbrink said...

Definitely need to meet up sometime when I'm in CA. In-n-Out. Mexico Bakery. Lee's. Lot's of options on things I can't get in NJ. I should be around next July.

I've only met 4 card peeps so far and that's pretty embarrassing given how many live so close to me.

defgav said...

The dual wallet card photo is awesome! That's a great idea and one I'll have to remember to borrow next time I meet up with a card-carrying wallet-carder. The Topps Kids Gwynn is a fantastic choice for a fresh one.

bbcardz said...

What a coincidence the gf and I had an In-and-Out late-night dinner just last night. My brother lives in the Bay area but I've never been there. If I'm ever up there, I'll definitely reach out.

Anonymous said...

Wallets went out with powdered wigs.

The Snorting Bull said...

I was hoping for big things out of Pache last year. He was a fun player to watch in the Minors with the Braves. Tremendous outfielder, just can't hit anything. That's cool that you are actually meeting up with other bloggers. I have met people off of instagram and Facebook groups, never a blogger though.

The Lost Collector said...

Love the wallet card meet up photo! You've done well meeting bloggers!

Daniel Wilson said...

Very cool that you got to meet up! I was in Northern California last week, but not quite in your neck of the woods. I was in Chico for my great uncle's funeral. We drove up one day, was there for the funeral the next day, and then drove home the next day. 14 hour drive each way.

Nachos Grande said...

Wow, that's a whole lot of awesome in this post. I love how many bloggers you've been able to meet up with. If you ever find yourself in PA/NY, let me know!

GCA said...

Campaneris collection? I'm on it!

SumoMenkoMan said...

Whoop, blogger meet ups are the best!! Cool!

Fuji said...

the diamond king - i'm heading up to ashland this summer, but will eventually make it up to portland the following summer. i'll keep you guys posted

the angels in order - their burgers are legit, but i like mcd fries better

chris - those were the glory days. it wasn't vintage, but i bought my first graded card in nearly two years yesterday.

night owl - please do. i'd love to hang out and talk cards

johnnys trading spot - i'll buy you two... and some fries!

nick - he's very chill... and he knows his cards. sounds like he makes his way out to california every now and then, so this might only be the beginning

gcrl - it was a lot of fun. hit me up when you're back in the bay area. and if i ever make it out to minnesota, you'll be the first to know

nick vossbrink - i love mexican bakeries. do you have one in mind? hit me up when you come out here. i'd love to hang out.

defgav - hopefully one day our wallet gwynns will get a chance to hang out together.

bbcardz - i might go down to southern california this summer. if i do, maybe we can meet up at frank and sons or something

anonymous - then where do you carry your wallet card?

the snorting bull - doubt i'll ever meet any card collectors from instagram or fb, so you got me beat there. if you're ever in the bay area, hit me up. as for pache, hope he figures things out at the plate in 2023

the lost collector - the crazy thing is... i'm really not a very social person. but if i get a chance to hang out in a small group with other collectors, i'm definitely down.

daniel wilson - sorry to hear about your great uncle. 14 hours each way is very tiring. i do the drive down to vegas a few times each year. it's only 9 hours and it's a killer.

nachos grande - i'll definitely reach out if i'm ever out on the east coast. seems like there are tons of bloggers in the ny area.

gca - lol. i'm scared. btw... coming out again to the bay area?

sumomenkoman - heck yeah. i know you and i will be getting together for some cards and food sooner or later.

Nick Vossbrink said...

Oh it's literally called Mexico Bakery. I'd recommend the Alum Rock location. https://mexicobakery.us/alumrock/index.php/locations/

Jon said...

Meeting Jim had to be pretty neat. He's one of the first bloggers that I interacted with away from the blogs, and also one of the first people that I ever traded with.

Fuji said...

nick vossbrink - just looked it up and i'm gonna try it out during my february break. totally excited.

jon - he's a really nice guy. hope to hang out with him again.