Eye of the Beholder

"Beauty" is definitely in the eye of the beholder.  What one person finds gorgeous... another might consider plain.  My colleagues and I recently debated whether or not Rachael Ray was attractive.  It was split pretty much down the middle with me leaning on the "cute" side.

Obviously this also applies to our hobby as well.  Some collectors love sports cards that are "simple" and "plain", while others prefer "shiny" and "extravagant".  I myself am attracted to both... it just depends on the individual set design and the particular mood I'm in.

This morning it was drizzling here in the Bay Area, but a few hours ago the sun finally broke through and its light flooded my townhouse.  It was the perfect setting for me to take out my most recent set purchases:  2000 Topps Gallery "Gallery of Heroes".

Topps produced this line of inserts for their Topps Gallery products from 1997 to 2000 and the first time I laid eyes on them, I fell in love.

They're obviously meant to resemble stained glass windows... which back in the 70's... I remember seeing hanging in peoples' houses.  Some would have it mounted on walls, while others would use them for lamp shades.  My brother actually made a bunch of stained glass decorations for friends and family members back in the day.

Then overnight they seemed to disappear.  The only time I'd see them was when I attended a church service or when I went to this little strip mall bar in my neighborhood that used them as dividers between booths.  

It's actually a shame, because I really enjoy the look of stained glass windows, which explains why I'm so attracted to these brightly colored, die-cut pieces of acetate. 

Now I understand that these aren't for everyone.  They're not old and made out of cardboard, so fans of vintage might not appreciate these.  They are also missing that classic bubblegum scent which many of us remember from our childhood.  And since they don't contain swatches of their jersey or signatures of the athletes, there will be some collectors who don't consider these "hits".

But from my point of view, cards don't have to be vintage, autographed, or contain a piece of memorabilia to be appreciated.  Sometimes all I'm looking for... is a little "eye candy" and that's exactly what these inserts are to me.

So what do you think?

Are these cards "hot"... or "not"?

Happy Thursday and sayonara!

Two Worlds Collide

When I started blogging... I had so many ideas for posts.  Six years later... the well is rapidly drying up and I'm honestly lucky if I come up with a creative, unique idea once a month.

I'm not exactly sure if today's post is completely unique... but I came up with it while listening to television theme songs with my students a few weeks ago.  Ever since I was a wee little boy watching shows like Leave it to Beaver and Gilligan's Island... I've been a fan of television theme songs.

Today... I'm going to share my Top 5... along with some baseball cards that popped into my head while creating this list.

#1:  Greatest American Hero

Hands down... this is my favorite television theme song.  Yeah... I know it's cheesy.  But just hearing the first few seconds of this song gives me goosebumps, takes me back to my childhood, and puts a smile on my face.

However... choosing a card to go with it was no easy task, because it's literally impossible to name the single greatest American hero in terms of sports.

Do you choose someone like Kirk Gibson who hit one of the greatest walkoff home runs in World Series history?  Or maybe you go with a guy like Todd Frazier who once saved a man's life by performing the Heimlich Maneuver in a Pittsburgh restaurant.  And what about all of the ball players who served in the United States armed forces and put their lives on the line for our country?

1976 Topps #251

Do you see what I mean?  It's an impossible task.  Five guys literally popped into my head within the first minute... but I decided to go with Rick Monday.

On April 25th, 1976... the Chicago Cubs and Mr. Monday were visiting the Los Angeles Dodgers.  At the start of the fourth inning the following scene took place:

A father and son jump down from the left field stands and attempt to light the United States flag on fire.  But at the very last second, Mr. Monday runs in, swoops up the flag, and saves it... just like a super hero would.


#2:  Cheers

This is one of the most recognizable television theme songs on this list.  I'm sure many of you could identify the show before the first word is sung.  The show itself is one of my favorite comedies from the 80's and was part of a family tradition.  Back in the day... every Thursday evening my family would gather around the television and watch The Cosby Show, Family Ties, and Cheers.  Good times.

In one of the episodes, Wade Boggs makes a guest appearance...

It's funny.  My memory seems to get worse by the minute.  But I can still remember all of those television episodes from my childhood where athletes make special appearances.


#3:  Perfect Strangers

Another catchy tune that I memorized from my childhood.  Although I don't remember much about this show... I do remember thinking one of the blondes was really attractive.

About the same time this show was getting popular... two guys in Oakland were gaining in popularity too:

1990 U.S. Playing Cards All-Stars #WCO

Canseco and McGwire have little in common with Balki and Larry.  However... once upon a time, The Bash Brothers were a powerful pair of teammates with their own version of the High Five known as the Monster Bash.

These days, they don't speak to each other, aren't friends, and in a sense are... Perfect Strangers.


#4:  Growing Pains

With Growing Pains being the name of the show, I immediately thought of height.  And when you think of height and baseball, Eddie Gardel is the first person that comes to mind:

1961 Nu-Card Scoops #426

On August 19th, 1951... Gaedel became the shortest player in MLB history and at 3'7" tall... it's a record that will probably never be broken.

#5:  The Courtship of Eddie's Father

Originally... I had thought about going with the father/son duo of Ken Griffey Jr. and his father, since the show is about a father and his son.  But then I watched this video... which actually includes the theme song... and the selection of Elvis Andrus and Adrian Beltre became an instant no-brainer:

These guys are awesome!  Kinda makes me want to start a Beltre/Andrus PC.  Unfortunately I could only find one card featuring just the two of them:

2011 Topps Diamond Duos #DD9

There are a bunch of memorabilia cards featuring these two, but they all include at least one other player.

Alright, you know the routine...

What are some of your favorite television theme songs?

Looking forward to reading your responses.  If you're really bored... try to list the first card that comes to mind when you hear that song.

Happy Tuesday and sayonara!

Blaster Box Buffoonery

There's an old saying that goes something like this...

Bottom line... if you keep getting suckered by the same trick... then you've got nobody to blame except yourself.

And that's exactly why my new nickname should be the "Blaster Box Buffoon".  Why?  Well... each and every year, I tell myself not to get lured into buying blaster boxes.  But guess what?  Each and every year, I still do.

Now before I get into yesterday's huge blaster box shopping spree at Target, I'd like to preface things by stating the following:

I respect the fact that plenty of you guys enjoy your blasters... and that's your Cardboard God given right.

But after busting these four boxes, I was quickly reminded of why I always walk away shaking my head.  See for yourself:

The two boxes of Stadium Club were the lone bright spot in this purchase.  I only pulled seven inserts/parallels, but at least I walked away with over 50 new singles for my set.  Everything else including the inserts and parallels will go towards the Super Traders group that Wes and Brian put together.

The third box I busted was 2015 Topps Allen & Ginter.  Overall this box produced the most inserts and parallels.  Although five of them were non-sports related.

My favorite card out of this box was the Aoki mini... which will be heading over to Adam at ARPSmith's Sportscard Obsession.

The last box was a blaster of 2014 Topps Heritage that was actually purchased awhile back, but I figured I might as well include it with the rest of these blasters.

Compared to my Target blaster from two years ago... this box was a straight up bust.  Last time, I pulled 16 inserts, short prints, or parallels.  This time there were only five.  Now I accept that not every box is going to have eight purple refractors, but this box lacked 1st Draft and New Age Performers inserts, plus had one less SP.  I guess you get what you pay for.

These blasters weren't a total waste of money.  I relished in about fifteen minutes of entertainment while opening the packs.  Plus... now I have some cards to send out to fellow Super Traders.  Unfortunately... there wasn't nearly enough value in these boxes to justify this purchase.

That's why... I will use this experience as a reminder to avoid retail boxes from this day forward.  And if by chance I slip... the do me a favor and remind me to watch that video again... because like President Bush said... I just "can't get fooled again."

Happy Sunday and sayonara!

A Pair of Trades

Back in the mid to late 80's, I was a huge fan of professional wrestling.  But like my love of Michael Jackson and Madonna, my fanfare faded into the 90's.

Then when I started teaching in 1998, I discovered that a lot of my students watched it.  And in an effort to connect with their interests... I started watching it again.  Guys like The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, and Mankind... along with entertaining story lines held my interest for a few years until I eventually stopped watching altogether.

These days... I'll pick up cards here and there, but to be honest it's not one of my main collections.  However... thanks to Kerwin over CCW... I recently added the 2001 Fleer WWE Championship Clash set to my collection:

Back in January, I wrote about a Stacy Keibler autograph redemption card I pulled out of a wax box I busted.  Kerwin inquired about it and asked about some of the other cards I pulled in the box break.  To make a long story short, he needed one of the inserts, so I sent it to him.

A week or two later he sent me the set above and a bunch of singles:

Thanks Kerwin for the very lopsided trade.  You really didn't have to send me anything... but I'm really glad you did.  You inspired me to hunt down an autograph of Chae.  Have no idea who she is... but she's hot!

Next up is a trade package I received from JayP, who runs the blog:  Cards My Mother Didn't Throw Out.  He also contacted me back in January about making a trade and sent me a PWE packed with some A's and Tony Gwynn cards:

The trade package is highlighted by a Kurt Suzuki card I needed for my binder and a sweet 2013 Topps '72 Mini of Josh Reddick.  Thanks for the trade JayP!   I'm off this week, so I promise to get some Arizona Diamondbacks out to you in the next few days.

Happy Saturday and sayonara!

Flea Market Finds #101: Better Than A Blaster?

Droughts lead to desperation... which basically explains my one and only flea market purchase this past weekend.

January was rough in terms of flea market finds.  There was a five week span where I came home empty-handed and I came pretty close to making it six weeks.  But one of my friends who sets up every month made me an offer I couldn't refuse.  He sold me this box of 2015 Bowman Draft for two bucks:

Obviously it had already been opened and sifted through.  But there were a few cards that caught my eye.

Let's start of with this awesome "into the sunset" card of Mr. November:

2015 Topps Chrome #1

I've always enjoyed reading Nick's "Into the Sunset" posts, because they're always well written with tons of interesting information.  I don't have any plans to follow in Nick's footsteps, but this card definitely sealed the deal for me.  It has an awesome photo from his final game at Yankee Stadium on September 25, 2014... when he drove in the game winning run in the bottom of the 9th against the Baltimore Orioles.

Kudos to Topps for not chopping off any hands or feet.

The backside?  Well... it's just as impressive.  Jeter's entire twenty year MLB career statistics are on display.  Nick's selection of Roberto Clemente's 1973 Topps "Into the Sunset" card as his favorite is legit and hard to argue with.  But Jeter's is pretty cool too.

Another card that drew my attention was this insert:

2015 Bowman Draft "Teams of Tomorrow" #TDC18

It's shiny.  The team's colors pop off of the card.  And the Athletics logo is front and center.  It's a cool looking insert.

Unfortunately... it features two guys I've never heard of.  But that's exactly what happens when you hand me a box of Bowman Draft.  Here are all of the other inserts and parallels from the box:

I have no clue who any of these guys are.  To be honest... I have no business buying any Bowman Draft products.  But I can use a lot of these in "care packages" and the price was right.

The final baseball card in the box was this Jose Fernandez:

2015 Topps Chrome "Purple Refractor" #141

I can't wait to see him pitch this upcoming season.  It's a shame his past two seasons were cut short... but his numbers have been very impressive nonetheless.

Wrapping up the box were a handful of basketball inserts and parallels...

Not really into basketball anymore... but I'm not going to turn away new additions to my insert binder collection.

At the end of the day, I walked away with a bunch of cheap cards... which is exactly what I've been trying to avoid.  On the other hand... for two bucks, I added a few cards to my collection... and picked up some cards for some of yours.

Yeah... I could have put the two dollars towards a blaster box of 2016 Topps baseball.  However... I'm hoping my buddy busts a few boxes of the stuff between now and next month.  With a little luck... maybe he'll sell me his scraps for another two bucks.

Happy Thursday and sayonara!