Half Man Half Amazing

Every now and then I'll attend a Golden State Warriors game.  Be that as it may... my NBA fandom is pretty much six feet under the NHL, NFL, or MLB.  However you don't need to be an NBA fan to know that the 2015 NBA All-Star Weekend has arrived... which means another slam dunk competition.

Rest assured... I won't be watching it... but after strolling across a video on ESPN earlier today, I was reminded that this is the 15th Anniversary of the dunk contest that ended all other dunk contests.

1998 Collector's Edge Impulse Pro Signatures #8

In fact... it was fifteen years ago... to the day when Vince Carter set the bar so high it crushed the souls of all future NBA dunk contest participants.

If you don't believe me, see for yourself:

Is that video clip too long for you?  Then let's go straight to my personal favorite:

Insane, right?  And for those who prefer dunks in actual game situations... then feast your eyes on epic Olympic Vinsanity:

Fifteen years later, I couldn't tell you whether or not if VC is still in the league.  But one thing is for certain... he's the greatest dunker I've ever witnessed and it's not even close.

Who's got your vote?

Who do you think is the best dunker of all-time?

Happy Thursday and sayonara!

He's a HOFer in My Book!

I'm a huge fan of Baseball Digest.  It seems like each time I pick up an issue... I walk away looking for a new person to collect.  I recently finished an article written about Tony Oliva's 1964 rookie season that opened my eyes to this amazing ballplayer.

Before the article, I knew Oliva had very respectable career numbers that would sometimes lead to his name being entered into HOF discussions.  However I had no idea just how impressive his rookie numbers were... nor did I understand just how mentally tough this guy was.

The article actually motivated me to add an autograph of his to my wish list.  It took a little longer than expected, but I finally won this card off of eBay:

2004 Sweet Spot Classic Signatures #63

To be honest, I was a little shocked at how much his signature sells for.  There are plenty of hall of famers whose autographs sell for less than Oliva.  And although I spent a little more than originally anticipated ($22.83 + $2.75 shipping)... at the end of the day, I'm happy to add this to my collection.

Okay... it's your turn.  I was born one decade too late to truly appreciate Mr. Oliva. 

Any of you have fond memories of him?

Happy Tuesday and sayonara!

Domo Arigato: ucffans @ CCW

A couple of weeks ago a generous mystery package arrived in my mailbox, but I had no idea who sent it.  It contained a Augusta GreenJackets minor league baseball cap, an autographed baseball, and some baseball cards for my collection:

I checked my email and did a few searches to see if I could figure out the mystery shipper, but came up empty-handed.  Then this past weekend, I was contacted over on Card Collector's World by my buddy... ucffans.

He asked if I had received the box he shipped and the mystery was solved.

Ucffans mentioned in a prior message that he coached with Oakland A's prospect Josh Whitaker and asked if I was interested in his autograph.  Unfortunately... Yahoo sometimes confuses CCW messages with SPAM and I didn't read his message until this Saturday.  But at least it gave me a clue to who signed and personalized the baseball:

Pretty sweet, right?  99.9% of the autographs in my collection aren't personalized... but the ones that are tend to be that much more special.

But wait... another mystery reveals itself.  Is this actually Josh Whitaker's autograph?  Go ahead... look at the signature again.  I've stared at it several times now and still struggle to see it.

However... if you said "yes", you're correct.  I kinda see the "J", but can't really make out the "osh".  However... I just received confirmation from ucffans himself and it is indeed the future Athletics outfielder.

According to Athleticsfarm.com, it looks like Whitaker will start the year off in Nashville.  However who knows what will happen at Spring Training.  Best of luck Mr. Whitaker!

In addition to the ball, ucffans also send me a handful of new cards for my collection:

I'm always excited to add a new Ichiro to the binder.  My newly established A's/Padres/Expos vintage binder also found a few new tenants.  Last... but certainly not least... who doesn't like finding a Chicken in their stack of cards?

Thanks Brett for this awesome package!  I'm not usually into prospecting... but I'll definitely follow Mr. Whitaker this spring.

Happy Monday and sayonara!

Another Cool Oddball Set

My 20th Anniversary copy of The Sandlot finally arrived on Monday, so last night I popped it in and started watching it.

Of course... Tony wanted to pop in and take a photo with the gang as they were heading over to the sandlot.

It's been years since I've seen this movie, but I remember enjoying it back in the day.  However the movie was only a bonus.  I actually bought it for these:

Yup.  Each specially marked movie set comes with a special 10 card set featuring all of the big names including:  The Beast, Ham, Squints, and of course Smalls.

The cards have a decent design that includes some of the more memorable lines from the film.  Unfortunately there aren't any statistics or information on the back.  Instead each card back features The Sandlot logo:

The set was tightly shrink wrapped.  It was so tight, I almost damaged the cards attempting to open it up.  If you end up buying yourself a set... try not to shake the package too much.  The pack of cards isn't secured and floats around the case.

Overall, it's hard to complain about this set since most people are probably buying it for the movie and the cards are just a bonus.

Which brings us to today's question...

If you had a choice... would your rather own the movie or the card set?

Happy Wednesday and sayonara!

Sufferin' Succotash

Confused.  Frustrated.  Discombobulated.  That's how I felt after the Russell Wilson decided to throw the ball instead of hand it off to Mr. Lynch.

Nineteen hours later, I'm feeling a little better... but I can't help but shake my head every time I think about that play.  So since today is kind of a SMH Monday... I figured I'd re-share some cards that have left me confused, frustrated, or discombobulated in the past:

Confusing!

It's been over two decades... and I'm still wondering why Score decided to use this photograph of Canseco.

Frustrating!

With Bruce Jenner back in the headlines this week, I figured it's perfect time to bring this card out of the vault.  I understand why companies have athletes sign stickers.  I even understand the lack of team logos on some cards.  But cards without a photograph?  That's completely ridiculous!

And according to Merriam-Webster... if you take "confused" and you combine it with "frustrated", you get "discombobulated"... which is how I feel every time I look see cards like this:

Discombobulating!

Take five seconds to stare at this card.  Finished?  This card is horrible on so many levels.  Since when does a white label attached to an index card constitute a "cut signature"?  Thankfully I have the perfect place in my collection for this atrocity:  my Damaged Card PC (see upper right corner).

I'll wrap this post up with two more cards that left me shaking my head:

Who thought it was a good idea to create cards of Panini employees?  And if you forgot... Topps did something similar a few years earlier:

Sadly, the more appropriate question is... why did I buy these cards?

How about you?

Are there any cards that leave you feeling confused, frustrated, or discombobulated?

By the way... congratulations New England Patriots and Katy Perry fans!  I'm glad some of you walked away from yesterday's Super Bowl without shaking your heads.

Happy Monday and sayonara!