the fifth dementia

When the fifty-two is signed in blue
It rises above all other cards
As Alberto takes the mound
six-four-three’s fill scorecards
This is the blogging of the card of A. Arias
The card of A. Arias
A. Arias!
A. Arias!

Alberto Arias (2007 Topps 52 Rookies – no. 82)
– Kris
Posted in off the wall, what I collect Tagged: autographs, Kris, Topps, [...]

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One of the neatest aspects of immersing oneself in minor league baseball is that doing so affords the opportunity to follow your favorite players for a longer period of time than if you had waited to “discover” them once they become an everyday player in the majors. Of course, this argument makes the assumption that [...]

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Mitch Jones autographed his 2006 Topps 52 Rookie card for my collection during the first few days of his only season with the Albuquerque Isotopes. Over the course of the 2009 season, Jones launched 35 homers to capture the coveted Joe Baughman award and earned a $7,000 bonus in the process. You can bet that [...]

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As the shortened days of this decade wind down, I am reminded that one of my goals of 2009 was to work at least one quote by Horace into this humble but lovable baseball card blog. With unofficial rumors swirling about a potential trade of two Brandons between the Seattle Mariners and the Toronto Blue [...]

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Although I probably owe all readers who have spent any amount of time in New Mexico an apology for the title of this posting, I just don’t see that happening. Instead, let’s check out some kool baseball cards. These are all 1975 Topps cards that I got autographed in person during the 2009 season.

Gene Clines [...]

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The 2009 baseball season proved to be rather productive in my efforts to get more 1975 Topps baseball cards autographed. This post features two cards from that outstanding set that a fellow grapher offered to get inked for me when he attended a Toros game in Tucson, Arizona. Incidentally, this guy has his very own [...]

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There have been a great number of innovations in the trading card industry since I began collecting baseball cards back in the early 1970s. These changes have not only impacted cards, but also have noticeably shaped what we choose to store our treasures in.
In “my day,” we didn’t have penny sleeves, top loaders, or fancy [...]

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Try as I might, I find it difficult to believe that approximately 1.37 lunar cycles have passed since I last posted any scans of Topps Allen & Ginter baseball cards that I have gotten autographed in person. Obviously the biggest thing that has happened during that time frame was the release of their 2009 product [...]

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Though fraught with risk, freelance work often offers serious advantages over the ol’ nine to five grind. Besides being able to complete the work around your schedule, contracting out your skills also allows for a creative compensation plan. For instance, I recently designed a website for a client in exchange for a healthy stack of [...]

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I want to begin this brief blog posting by stating that I have absolutely zero problems with Upper Deck’s 2009 O-Pee-Chee baseball cards. I like the design, the card stock and the size of the set. Since I have no intention of attempting to build the entire set, I don’t even mind the short prints [...]

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2009 Quad Cities River Bandits team set
Official Score –  base-clearing DOUBLE
Manufacturer: Grandstand
Sponsors: Names Around Town Photography and Plaza Physical Therapy
Retail price: $ 8.00
What’s the name of that place in Iowa where the players walk out of a cornfield to play baseball and entertain adoring fans night after night? No, not THAT one. I’m talking about [...]

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How do I prepare for the release of the 2009 Topps Allen & Ginter baseball cards? Well, for starters, I like to look back at the previous sets and marvel at what a fantastic product it is. Tired and in need of being retired? I think NOT. These cards are smokin’!
Of course, we’ve all seen [...]

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I’ve finally created and posted my want list for the 2009 Topps Heritage baseball card set I am working towards completing. In celebration of that milestone, I thought I would post scans of a few of the cards in the set that I have gotten autographed in person so far this season. I’m not overly [...]

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Quick… what is more fun than purchasing a whole mess of 2008 Topps Stadium Club baseball cards at drastically discounted prices?
CORRECT- getting some of those cards autographed in person!
A handful of pages have been ripped from the calendar since I last discussed these cards. As I suspected, the cards look pretty sharp after the [...]

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SPOILER ALERT !!!!
If you already have tickets or otherwise plan to attend the Omaha Royals – Albuquerque Isotopes game on Thursday, June 18, 2009 and do not want to see images of the 2009 Albuquerque Isotopes team set before you have one in hand, DO NOT continue reading. Instead, you should revisit this post after [...]

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Well crime fighters, I believe the last time we met I was discussing 1965 Topps baseball cards and sharing scans of the cards I have gotten autographed through the mail (TTM). Obviously excited by the prospect of having their mugs posted on Cards in the Attic, a number of retired players have been taking the [...]

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Like many of you, I was born in 1965. I don’t remember the first time that I saw a baseball card that was issued in my birth year, but I can tell you that many years passed before I owned one. And that is really interesting considering what a great looking set of cards the [...]

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Don’t get me wrong… I’m glad that the Dodgers decided to send Blake DeWitt down to Triple-A in order to get some at bats rather than predominately riding the bench in LA. However, if they don’t call him back up soon, I’m simply going to run out of cards for him to sign.

Blake DeWitt – [...]

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Score yourself bonus points if you were aware of the fact that The Outfield formed under the name “The Baseball Boys.” Judging from the outpouring of comments, I would have to classify this three-part serial post about autographed 2007 Topps Heritage baseball cards a smashing success. Outfielders with cards in the set that I have [...]

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I knew you couldn’t resist checking out more of my autographed 2007 Topps Heritage baseball cards. Your reward for coming back is a quick trip around the infield.

Eliezer Alfonzo – 2007 Topps Heritage no. 364
——–

Mitch Maier – 2007 Topps Heritage no. 39
——–

Vinny Rottino – 2007 Topps Heritage no. 164
——–

Chris Stewart – 2007 Topps Heritage no. [...]

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How do you pass the time while the home team is on the road? I usually get tangled up in all sorts of strange activities, but things that must be done include watching the Isotopes play on MiLB.TV (where available) and pulling cards to be autographed during the next homestand(s). This week I also managed [...]

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If my memory serves me correctly, the only legitimate complaint I’ve ever had with 2002 Upper Deck Vintage baseball cards is that the 300-card base set was WAY too small. If ever a card design, be it original or rehashed, screamed “Use me to create a card for every player in Major League Baseball,” it [...]

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You either love 2008 Topps Heritage baseball cards, or you haven’t seen them. In spite of the oft-reported short print issues surrounding this set, I believe this is an absolutely fabulous product. Perhaps setting themselves up for the strangest copyright lawsuit of all time, Topps lifted the design for these cards directly from their own [...]

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I have been a fan of 2000 Fleer Tradition baseball cards since I purchased my first pack at the unlikeliest of places- (then) Bank One Ballpark in downtown Phoenix, Arizona. I do not recall how much they charged for packs of cards at the ballpark, but I would hazard a guess that they were priced [...]

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If your understanding of what exactly constitutes a “baseball card” is anywhere close to mine, you may often find yourself trying to wrap your brain around the concept of “virtual baseball cards.” Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love reading other blogs that feature other collectors’ original trading card designs and retooled retro tribute artwork. [...]

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…and Vance Law signed.
The BYU Cougars baseball team traveled to Albuquerque this past weekend, seemingly on a mission to drop two of three hard fought games to the UNM Lobos. I managed to catch up with their head coach, Vance Law, after he had completed a post game radio interview. Vance was nice enough to [...]

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I recently received a few autographed Al Bumbry baseball cards in the mail from the man himself. Interestingly, they arrived just in time for his Aardvark Attic of Appreciation induction ceremony. I figured that since I was going to go to the effort of scanning these cards for the blog, I might was well mix [...]

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The first in-person autograph of spring helps take the sting out of winter better than a mug of hot chocolate. Former Major Leaguer Tim Stoddard rolled into the Duke City this past weekend with the Northwestern Wildcats to take on the University of New Mexico Lobos in a four-game series over a 45-hour period. Having [...]

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The newest inductee to the Aardvark Attic of Appreciation is none other than Quincy, Illinois native Rick “Big Daddy” Reuschel. While pitching for the Chicago Cubs, Rick and his older brother Paul once combined to shut out the Los Angeles Dodgers 7 to 0, and remain the only siblings to have pulled off such a [...]

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2007 Ogden Raptors
Official Score – DOUBLE
Manufacturer: Grandstand
Retail price: $ tough luck
The Ogden Raptors were the 2007 Pioneer League affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Raptors finished the 2007 season in third place of the South Division with a record of 34 wins against 41 losses. The Rookie League players included on the Raptors roster [...]

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The relatively quiet walls of the Aardvark Attic of Appreciation will no longer be the same with the addition of the newest inductee… Paul “Motormouth” Blair. Given that Blair was one of my favorite Orioles when I began following professional baseball during the mid 70s, it was a bitter pill to swallow when he was [...]

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I actually met Cookie Rojas once in the mid 70s while attending a large sporting goods convention with my father. I had no idea that Cookie was going to be there, so I wasn’t carrying any of his cards with me for autographing. Luckily, he had a supply of photographs with him, and signed one [...]

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The patch sewn onto his work shirt read “Marion,” but he was always “Mr. Burcham” to me. Marion P. Burcham earned the distinction of becoming the first non-baseball player inducted into the Aardvark Attic of Appreciation, predominately for the role he played during the formative years of my baseball card collecting. Unfortunately, the honor must [...]

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2007 Jacksonville Suns
Official Score – leadoff SINGLE
Manufacturer: Grandstand
Sponsor: Jacksonville Sports Cards, Comcast, 102.9 the point
Retail price: That ship has sailed.
Again, the Jacksonville Suns served as the Double-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers during the 2007 season. Of course if you are searching for individual players, that shouldn’t matter in the slightest. The 2007 Jacksonville [...]

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Making a list of the most colorful baseball players of all time? Don’t you dare forget Al Hrabosky! Sure, there have been a number of “better” closers in the history of baseball, but if I had been in charge of fielding a professional baseball team to entertain a stadium filled with fans, I would have [...]

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