Random Pack of Kindness

The Night Owl dropped off a present on Monday.  Inside was an assortment of Oakland A's cards for my collection.

But there were a few that deserved extra special attention.  First up... a 1975 Topps Mini of Jim Holt:

I know what you're thinking... Who the heck is Jim Holt?  According to Wikipedia, he was a successful pinch hitter.  However he had a .271 batting average as a starter and hit .216 as a pinch hitter, so you can't always believe what you read on Wikipedia.

Next up... 

No label, no problem.  Anytime I can add a new Eck to my collection, there's no room for complaints.

Batting third...

Damn... I miss my boy Kurt.  I was bummed to see him get traded, but I think the move to Washington has helped his numbers.

Speaking of numbers...

A's fans are looking forward to another season with Cespedes in the lineup.  This guy can hit and hopefully he can lead them back to the postseason.


Last, but not least... there's this 1989 Baseball Card Magazine card of Terry Steinbach:

I'm a sucker for oddball issues... especially when they try to copy Topps vintage designs.

Thanks Greg for the awesome pack of A's cards.  I promise to give these cards a nice home.

Happy Wednesday and sayonara!

Blog Trade #30: Home of the Toddfather

Back in 2008, I reentered the hobby and it didn't take long for me to get hooked on Fathead Tradeables.

If you're not familiar with these, they're 5x7 vinyl stickers of athletes and team logos.  Fathead produced three sets that were distributed out of one product.  Packs sold in the $5 to $10 range and included 5 stickers:  1 Team Helmet sticker, 2-3 Game Time stickers, and 1-2 Authentic insert stickers.

I picked up a ton of these boxes on clearance during their Black Friday sale and have been working on this set for over four years.  I completed the 25 Authentic insert set a long time ago, but have struggled with the helmet and Game Time sets.

In fact, I haven't actively worked on this set in over a year.  The last week Tim over at The Home of the Toddfather told me he had a Jerricho Cotchery that he didn't need.

I ended up sending him some Todd Heltons and yesterday this arrived in the mail:

One down... seven stickers to go:

Actually, I just picked up the Bowe and Heap off of eBay, so I only need five more stickers to complete the 2008 set.

He also threw in a bunch of extras, including some Packers, Seahawks, and an Ed Reed for my collection.

My favorite card in the lot was this 2010 SP Authentic Aaron Rodgers that fits into my CAL Bears and Green Bay Packers PC's.

Tim... thanks for helping me get one step closer to completing my set.  I look forward to trading with you again in the future.

Happy Wednesday and sayonara!

Blog Trade #29: Unabashed Interest

Last week, Ruffin from Unabashed Interest contacted me about this sweet 2011 Topps Lineage "1975 Topps Mini Relic" of Mr. October and I immediately expressed my interest.  

A couple of emails later, we worked out a trade involving some MLB Showdown foils, an Albert Pujols (for his St. Louis PC), and a Jon Knott autograph (for his Mississippi State University PC).  Click here if you want to see what he received.

Thanks for the trade Ruffin!  Hopefully we can work out more trades in the future.  Southpaws unite!

Happy Tuesday and sayonara!

Sayonara Sucka!

I'm not going to sugar coat things.  I'm bummed.  This past week, I quietly hoped that Greg Jennings would stick around and possibly finish his career as a lifelong Packer.  Maybe even help them get back to the Super Bowl.

But I'm sure the Packers didn't offer him the same money or length of contract.  And in Minnesota there's no question, he'll be the number one wideout.

The fact is... it's a business and I can't say I blame Jennings for leaving Green Bay to play for their division rival.  However that doesn't mean, I have to like it.

Jennings... I usually try to focus on the positive things in life.  But in your honor, I'll make an exception.

I hope every time you put on your purple helmet, you regret the decision to have Christian Ponder as your QB over Aaron Rodgers.  I hope you end up missing the playoffs every year over the next five seasons.  I hope that the Green Bay Packers figure things out on the defensive side of the ball and crush you and your team every time you step onto the field.  And most of all, I hope you never live up to the Minnesota Vikings' expectations and your 47.5 million dollar contract.

Wow... it felt good to get that out of my system.  With that out of the way, I'll leave things on a positive note.

Mr. Jennings, thank you for everything you gave to the Green Bay Packers organization and the fans these past seven seasons.  Sayonara sucka!

Happy Monday and sayonara!

Awesome Athletics #4: Mark McGwire

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I figured I'd celebrate by blogging about my favorite Irish Oakland Athletic... Mark McGwire.

Now before I receive "hate" comments, let me say that I don't condone his PED usage.  Nor is this post intended to convince you that he deserves to be enshrined in Cooperstown.  It's about an Irish American ball player who put a lot of smiles on Oakland Athletics fans during the late 80's through the mid 90's.

And I'm one of those fans.

Actually, I was more of a Canseco guy but, the Bash Brothers wouldn't be complete without McGwire.   And although he's probably more famous for his home run record setting years with the St. Louis Cardinals, he constantly shows up in the A's record books.  

Take a peek for yourself:

Slugging %:  .559 (3rd All-Time)

Runs:  773 (10th All-Time)

Total Bases:  2,451 (7th All-Time)

Home Runs:  363 (Franchise Record Holder)

RBI's:  941 (4th All-Time)

Walks:  847 (4th All-Time)

Strikeouts:  1,043 (3rd All-Time)

Runs Created:  981 (5th All-Time)

Extra Base Hits:  563 (4th All-Time)

Sacrifice Flies: 59 (Franchise Record Holder)

Intentional Walks: 77 (2nd All-Time)

At Bats Per Home Run:  12.3 (Franchise Record Holder)

In addition to those records, he represented the Oakland A's in nine all-star games, won the 1987 AL ROY Award, earned a Gold Glove in 1990, and won two Silver Slugger Awards (1992 and 1996) with them.

And of course, you can't forget the fact that McGwire was part of the 1984 Olympic baseball team that won a silver medal.

So it's your turn...

When you picture McGwire, is he wearing a Cardinals or Athletics uniform?

Happy Sunday, stay green, and sayonara!