GCRL to COC

Here are some pictures of baseball cards for you to enjoy.

As we continue on with the packages I received as a result of December's mini group break, long time trade partner and friend of the blog Garvey Cey Russell Lopes (or GCRL if that's too many players to memorize) sent over a nice stack of Cardinals needs, set needs, and player collection needs. That's a lot of needs. I am needy.

Jose Altuve is probably a popular player to collect these days, but I swear that Erin was an early adopter. I had to convince her to add Altuve to her official list after it was determined that Tim Lincecum had worn out his welcome, so a new collection begins. I think this is like Altuve #8. She likes athletes that are short, and Altuve definitely fits the bill.

I am always excited to add to my large (yet miniscule in the grand scheme of things) Jimmy Edmonds collection. This is the first time I've ever laid eyes on a 2003 Donruss Super Estrellas card, and I can certainly say without question that these look better than the 2002 set. I bought a box of those once and it was easy to see why they were heavily discounted.

I MUST HAVE ALL OF THE RETAIL PARALLELS.

I believe they are going to make a dreaded reality show out of the saga of Cole Hamels and whether he will or won't be traded.

The Topps Glossy All-Stars and Rookies inserts that showed up in the '80s were some early examples of insert cards before inserts really blew up. I don't remember these or their All-Star counterparts in 1991 packs at all, and I bought a ton of cards in 1991. I guess this means that the rack packs and jumbo packs didn't make it out to my corner of the world, but I have also noticed that the so-called Beckett value of these cards is significantly higher than those of previous years. I've also noticed that these things have been showing up in repacks a lot lately.

Airbrushed Fridays: 2013 Topps Stickers #42

It's Friday the 13th. Do you know where your baseball cards are at?

Who is he? Josh Johnson is a generically named lefty hurler who was one of the most talented pitchers in the game during his career with the Florida Marlins. The fact that he pitched for the Marlins also mired him in relative obscurity, even as he led the league in ERA and made two consecutive All-Star teams.

How did he get here? Johnson was part of the Marlins dramatic on-field restructuring which coincided with its on-and-off-field rebranding as the Miami Marlins. Johnson was swept up in the blockbuster trade that saw the likes of Mark Buehrle and Jose Reyes switch teams, and wound up in Toronto where he was doomed by serious injuries. The Padres took a flyer on him last season and lost as he didn't pitch a single game, but have brought him back for the upcoming season in hopes that maybe he'll appear in someone's scorecard in San Diego someday. Somehow.

Repeat offender? No

Other versions of this card: None, but the same photo was Photoshopped for his Gypsy Queen card in 2013 as well. You can probably find the original photo on Getty images.

Airbrushed Score: 5

Comments: Maybe he shouldn't have thrown like he did in the photo? That elbow takes a lot of stress.

March Radness VII: The Contest Returns

Fill out a bracket, get free cards... soon you'll be profiting off The Internet!

For the seventh straight year, I am holding a NCAA bracket contest. Invites have been sent out via an automated ESPN form to every patient person who participated last season while we determined we can no longer trust Yahoo. (I still use Yahoo for the bowl game contest because the stakes are lower and they don't demand your blood samples for it, I guess?) If you're new, curious or just didn't get an invite for some reason, this is just another reminder that the contest is open to all Cards on Cards readers, passers-by and lookie-loos. Read further on for instructions.

One thing I should clarify up front if you don't follow college basketball (and as anyone who might be familiar with my own bracket-picking history should know, I really don't)... the field hasn't been selected yet. Conference tournament games are still happening. Everything will be set by this Sunday evening, at which time I will send out some more reminders. You'll have a few days to make your picks at that point.

One of the requirements is having an ESPN account. ESPN should not ask you for any creepy information as part of the conditions for signing up. If they do, please tell me immediately and I'll consider other options. If you absolutely, positively refuse to sign up for one of those things, go ahead and send me your bracket before the deadline in some sort of legible form and I'll send you a prize if you manage to pick a lot of winners. 

ESPN's default scoring rules apply. Play-in games do not count because they are still incredibly stupid. Should you choose one of the play-in winners to advance in the real part of the tournament, not only do you do so at your own peril but you also have the advantage of showing success no matter which play-in team makes it in. Please, please, PLEASE make sure you fill out the entire bracket, including the tie-breaking final score of the final game. (There are actually 8 total tiebreakers in ESPN's official rules.) I hate to disqualify people for not filling everything out, but it always seems to happen.

What's the incentive here? Other than bragging rights, the first prize winner will receive a 2015 Topps Heritage or Gypsy Queen baseball blaster (your choice!) Three runners-up (runner-ups?) will receive prize packs for their MLB or NBA team of their choice including no less than one certified autograph or memorabilia card (or both?!). Worst place will receive something truly terrible. You will be scared to check your mailbox for weeks.

Anyone who hasn't received an ESPN invite should click here and click on the "Get Started" button (password = marchradness). The deadline is the morning prior to the first real (non play-in) tournament game on Thursday, March 19th, though I would suggest getting your bracket done by the night before just to be safe. Leave a comment here or send me an email if the invite link doesn't work or if you are otherwise having trouble joining up so I can send you a direct invitation.

Trading With Steve H

No new Topps Heritage here. Nothing to see here, folks. Move it along...

Continuing on with the return packages from my Mini Group Break, here's a few cards that reader Steve H sent me. Steve snagged the Bay Area teams as well as the Astros, and was kind enough to send some nice Cardinals cards my way as well as some 2014 Ginter set needs.

I like these cards, but I still don't feel like they belong with the Allen & Ginter product line. I hate to say it, but I'm starting to think that this brand should have ended a long time ago. I have the most affection for the 2008 set and am vastly more interested in the first few years of its revival than any of the more recent offerings.

Topps dramatically scaled back the number of colors in their rainbow of parallels this year, but we'll always have 2014. Green, blue, red, purple, yellow, whatever that weird color that yellow turned into for Series 2... and that's not even considering the serial numbered stuff. They were headed down the path towards an actual vomit color scheme before pulling out of the tailspin and getting things somewhat back on track this year.

Mini Ozzie! But look how busy this design is! There's barely enough room to fit the actual player on it.

Airbrushed Fridays: 2008 Topps #432

Spring Training continues!

Who is he? Jason Kendall was a three-time All-Star catcher who spent 15 years in the big leagues, most of which were spent with teams in the NL Central. Kendall was a bit more offensive minded than most catchers, but you don't get to last as long as he did behind the plate without knowing how to call a game. He is still the all-time Pirates leader in games caught.

How did he get here? Kendall was traded to Oakland as his peak years were ending, and struggled mightily towards the end of his time there. The A's sent him to the Cubs for Chicago's playoff run in 2007, but he through free agency he found his was to another NL Central team when he signed with the Brewers in the offseason.

Repeat offender? No

Other versions of this card: None

Airbrushed Score: 7

Comments: It's just not very good.

Feel The Pain

It was a rough night, with one of my favorite NBA players going down with a serious injury. Let's look at cards to try and cope.

This has nothing to do with this post, really, but Wesley Matthews tore his Achilles on national TV tonight during the second half of TNT's famed doubleheader. It sucks. I just bought the guy's jersey (doubling my sports jersey collection) so I am taking full responsibility. This made it really hard to enjoy the decisive Blazers win over Dallas.

Anyway, this is neither here nor there, but I thought I'd take a look at some cards I got awhile back from RAZ. He's a participant in my free-ish Basketball Card Club (still plenty of teams left!) and also claimed a spot in last December's group break.

In addition to taking down cards from my Top 10 Most Wanted (I still see you, Bowman Jaime Moyer), RAZ also sent along a pile of Clydes for my troubles. I should probably stick to retired players when choosing jerseys to buy. Incidentally, my only other jersey is an '80s Ozzie Smith batting practice jersey.

I really love these customs. 2008 Ginter is the best Ginter.

RAZ also sent a big pile of 2010 Turkey Red inserts. At one point the Strasburg was a tough card to come by as it came during his MLB-sanctioned RC year. I'm down to needing just 4 of these inserts from the 150 card set, although I still have a ton of work to do on the 2009 set.

Speaking of that batting practice jersey...

Old School Like That

Old stuff.

I don't show off vintage cards here nearly enough, so I thought I'd focus this post on the elder statesmen of the cards that Night Owl Cards most recently sent me. I have slowly been working on my want list behind the scenes here over the past several months, and I think the vintage years are worth tackling soon as I really have no idea what I actually need. (I'm going to go with "anything expensive" as the answer to that.) Here are a few flawed beauties that I received from what is widely accepted as the best of all of the blogs out there, or at least one of the best.

Mike Shannon is still the radio voice of the Cardinals, the resident drunken uncle that tells the story of the St. Louis Nine night after night with reckless abandon. He just seems like a guy you'd want to watch a game and have a beer with. He was a hell of a ball player in his days as I've read and heard, so I'm excited about adding any Shannon card to my collection.

I never seem to remember that Roger Craig was ever a Cardinal, on the other hand. This would certainly be a prime candidate for an Airbrushed Friday, but it's too late for that now. Craig actually pitched for the 1964 championship Cardinals team but is probably best known for his time with the Giants as manager in the '80s and early '90s. Someone decided to write on this card, too, for reasons unknown.

Even more interestingly, one Bill Wetmore felt it necessary to stamp his name on the back. Either that, or someone who wasn't Bill Wetmore stamped it. I'm going to guess it was Bill. I wonder what ol' Bill is up to these days.