And He’s Not Named After Cecil Cooper

The NBA Playoffs are getting home and heavy, as the conference semifinals are
underway. Not surprisingly, many of the stars of those teams are also the stars consumers
are looking for when picking up NBA jerseys.

Not surprisingly, Kobe Bryant tops this year’s list of most popular NBA jerseys. He
overtook the Boston Celtics’ Kevin Garnett. Apparently, Boston fans bought all of
their jerseys last year, not to mention he’s hurt.  The list is based on sales
at the NBA Store in New York City and NBAStore.com from the start of the 2008-09 NBA
season through April.

Other jerseys in the Top 10 include, in order, LeBron James, Chris Paul, Kevin Garnett,
Allen Iverson, Dwyane Wade, Paul Pierce, Nate Robinson, Pau Gasol and Dwight Howard.

I would guess the James jerseys will eventually lead the pack, especially if he jumps
ship from the Cavs for a bigger market. The MVP award won’t hurt his sales either.

It’s nice to see Chris Paul’s jersey do so well. As a great point guard, he’s not
over-the-top flashy, which usually leads to decreased popularity. But fans realize
his elevated status on the court, and that has translated into sales of his jersey.

For the second straight year, I’m surprised that Nate Robinson made the list, bit
I guess N.Y. Knicks fans have to cheer for someone.

But the big question is where is Yao Ming? The China sensation should send jersey
sales through the roof in Asia. are they not buying on NBAStore.com?  I say that
tongue-in-cheek because o the big deal that was made over his arrival in the NBA and
how it would make it a global game in terms of spectators.

For now, the international list is headed by Gasol, and he can thank Bryant for that
lofty status. 

The annual industry trade conference, known as the Hawaii Trade Conference/Mainland
Edition, recently wrapped up in Palm Harbor, Fla. (is that near Hawaii?), and attendees
and manufacturers doled out plenty of opinions on what the hobby needs to do to improve
its financial picture in these struggling times.

This was after an opening presentation in which a University of Mississippi survey
on collecting trading cards showed that 54 percent of hobbyists who responded were
spending less on cards than two years ago, with only 22 percent stating they were
spending more on cards during the same time period.

The survey also revealed that the majority of those who responded that are no longer
collecting made the decision because of the higher costs associated with new products
and a belief that the quality and content of cards did not justify the purchase price.

Obviously, this is not a new problem in the hobby, but the survey also revealed that
70 percent of those who said they no longer collect would consider coming back if
the prices for new products were lower and they were fewer card products in the market.

And that brings us to the new kid on the block, which is actually mostly made up of
familiar tenants on the block – Panini, which is made up of many former Donruss employees.
The trade conference was the company’s first public appearance in front of retailers
and distributors, and it was the perfect place to clarify some of the company’s product
plans for 2009 and beyond.

Panini revealed that the product lineup for the next few months would include familiar
football offerings such as Prestige, Elite and Donruss Classics, along with the return
of the $1-per-pack Score Football product.

For basketball, Mike Anderson, Panini’s vice president of sales, said an estimated
number of releases would be 17, though that was not the official number. Prestige,
Elite, Absolute Memorabilia and Certified Materials brands were in the works.

Meanwhile, Upper Deck said set-building themes would be the rallying cry for the rest
of the 2009 product lineup. Translation: lower price points that cater to set builders.
Senior product manager Karvin Chang said Upper Deck was focused on “delivering more
products for more bang for the buck.” He cited Upper Deck’s upcoming O-Pee-Chee Baseball’s
500-card base set as an example.

Upper Deck also said it would also debut some familiar brands, such as Goodwin Champions
Baseball and Philadelphia Baseball. 

    

These strategies will be interesting to follow since manufacturers walk the line of
offering affordable sets to attract collectors while also having to supply the big
“hits” in products, such as autographs and memorabilia cards, that so many collectors
demand.

In the end, some retailers walked away with cautious optimism.

“I liked the fact that the Big Three card companies are gravitating toward set building
again instead of just the ‘hit’ mentality with most products. I feel better about
the direction we’re headed,” said Dan Fox of Fox Sports Cards & Collectibles. 

Though some might be thinking, “They say that every year,” when referring to the manufacturers,
perhaps this is the year it has to take place considering the economic climate, which
is now facing another hurdle with the swine flu concerns.

In the end, the numbers don’t lie when it comes to fewer collectors, and if things
are going to change for the better, people better start listening.

There’s something about getting NFL players in their college uniforms that is
unique – kind of like those variant jerseys teams wear, but better. That said, I think
the latest news from McFarlane Toys is kinda cool.   

McFarlane’s new 2009 College Football line will spotlight current NFL players in their
college uniforms.

 
The 2009 College Football line marks the first time college sports have been commemorated
in McFarlane Sports Picks action figures.
 
McFarlane Toys has worked through The Collegiate Licensing Company, an IMG company,
to license its 2009 College Football line, which will feature 6-inch scale figures
of six pro football superstars in their school’s home uniform:
 

• Tom Brady – Michigan
• Ray Lewis – Miami
• Peyton Manning – Tennessee
• Adrian Peterson – Oklahoma
• Hines Ward – Georgia
• JaMarcus Russell – Louisiana State

 
Todd McFarlane had this to say about the line: “Sports fans have been asking us for
years to pay tribute to the college teams of the top professional athletes by commemorating
them in their college uniforms,” said Todd McFarlane, founder of McFarlane Toys. 
“By partnering with the CLC and the colleges, we are now able to bring a new dimension
to our Sports Picks’ brand. We are designing a unique player-centric collegiate product
that is different from anything else on the market.”  
 
These are scheduled to be in stores in August.

I like this idea a lot, as I’m a fan of “retro” wear. I’m not sure the world needs
a JaMarcus Russell LSU jersey, however. Didn’t he graduate about two years ago to
a lot of fanfare with not much to show for it with the Raiders thus far?

When will Bo Jackson, Hershel Walkers and John Elway appear in their college uniforms? 

The Hawaii Trade Conference (Mainland Edition held in Palm Harbor Fla.) was held
last week, and among the speeches, seminars, etc., was a presentation by the University
of Mississippi on the sports collecting hobby.

To no one’s surprise, the survey found that collectors are spending less money on
trading cards, that’s in part to the current economic climate. But the study found
that many collectors (60 percent in each case) didn’t collect as much because of the
higher costs of packs/boxes and a belief that the quality and content of the cards
didn’t equate to the price they were being asked to pay.
 

Again, this isn’t earth-shattering, you’ll find many of these same sentiments on the Tuff
Stuff forums regarding box breaks, etc.

In the survey, of those who no longer collect cards, 70 percent of them said they
might return to the hobby for new products if prices were lowered and there were fewer
of them.

I can see manufacturers moaning about that one. You want us to produce less and lower
the price? Just looking at it from a business sense, that wouldn’t appease any bottom
line.

This is the same thing collectors have been saying for quite some time, and manufacturers
nod their head, make some tweaks, but still produce a lot of products and some real
high-end ones at that. And they have to. Some collectors want that high-end product,
and they will pay for that. You can’t take that out of the market. But make sure a
balance is attained so everyone can play in the game.

We’ll have more from this survey in the weeks ahead, but I’d be interested in your
comments on price points, quantity of product, etc.    

When I was ball-playing, driveway master of the basketball court, I used to live
for the NBA Playoffs. I didn’t have cable, yest I was still able to watch the game.
I watched the Portland Trailblazers in the playoffs for years on end with Clyde Drexler,
Kevin Duckworth and Terry Porter.

I would go out in the driveway and pretend I was playing as the Trailblazers and “pass”
the ball to my teammates in route to another layup.

The basketball playoffs were exciting, fun, found on network television and something
my friends and I all talked about the next day.

And so I’m told the NBA Playoffs began over the weekend. While I knew that, I didn’t
catch anything but highlights. I was inaccessible to cable television and no one I
was with cared who won, who dominated the scoring or anything about the NBA playoffs.

The postseason is the shining moment of any sports league, where the best of the best
come to shine and everyone is reminded why they love the sport so much.

So what gives? Perhaps it’s because the first round of the playoffs features matchups
(especially in the East) of top-tier teams playing clubs with sub-.500 records. It’s
nothing different from the regular season. It’s the deeper rounds when the real teams
are left standing and the game is elevated to another level.

Perhaps it’s that half the game are on TNT, TBS and on after 9 p.m. As a kid, I would
have missed nearly all of those games.

I’m not quite sure what it is, but the allure of the NBA postseason seems a little
less feverish these days.

A historic moment in sports took place on Friday – did you catch it? One fan
caught the historic moment quite literally – 22 year-old Mets fan Chris Matcovich
caught Gary Sheffield’s 500th career home run.

And then he did the unthinkable – he gave it back to Sheffield in exchange for some
signed jerseys and a photo with the surly slugger. How many collectors would have
done that?

“I wanted nothing but to just give it back to Gary,” Matcovich told reporters. “It
was his ball, not mine.”

In the stands, where anything goes, that’s quite the statement in a “what can I get
for it?” world.

Sheffield still didn’t know what artifacts he wanted to donate to the HOF after the
feat, though I’d guess he’s going to keep the ball for himself in a personal museum.

Now if that had been me in the standx, I would have asked the world from Sheffield,
like perhaps some signed David Wright jerseys or something. Nah, I’m just kidding.
I’m not the type to hoard something for myself just for the almighty dollar. Anyone
who enjoys a journalism career knows that’s not where the money is, so you can see
where our priorities are. And since I’m not a big Sheffield fan in particular, it
wouldn’t have done much for me (I did like the hands in the air routine like he just
hit a walk-off homer in the World Series).

Heck, I’d be happy to just catch a ball in the stands. The closest I got to catching
a home run ball was during batting practice and I had to put down my burger first
and reach over a railing – to no avail, it bounced off my palm. So I can appreciate
those who nab one in the stands, and I appreciate Matcovich’s gesture even more.  
 
 

Bill Russell once said something to the effect of, regarding autographs, that those
get these autographs now think they know you or have a piece of you when they get
the autograph. He felt it was quite impersonal, which probably led to his stance against
autographs for so many years.

I’m not of the opinion that getting an autograph means you own a piece of the person
or “know” them. I think it’s a memento from them and nothing more. It’s different
if you can have a lengthy conversation with an athlete to get a true sense of the
person – then you might be able to say you know of them based on your experience.

Russell said he’d prefer a handshake and to look in someone’s eye than scribble a
signature and hand it over. Heck, I think collectors would like that, too. Too often
you hear about athletes who don’t look up when signing, refuse to sign or are surly
when doing anything with the public. If people had the choice, I think they’d prefer
to have a conversation with a favorite athlete than simply be shuffled through a line
like cattle.

Of course, the problem is that you rarely get that opportunity, and that is why people
go the autograph route instead.

If I had the chance to talk to an athlete for a length of time, I’d choose Hank Aaron
first. He trials on and off the field and experiences playing the game would be a
true treat to listen.

Anyone else have a favorite athlete they’d just like to talk to?   
 

It’s amazing how the baseball season just started and already people are writing
off certain players or teams. Did I mention the season is barely a week old?

Here in Wisconsin, where the Brewers usually only have a window from April until July
to impress the faithful because of the lore of the Green Bay Packers, some radio announcers
are already saying something to the effect of, “When does football start?” This, of
course, after the Crew has started out with a 2-6 record and looking pretty poor in
those outings.

I am curious if this is happening in other cities where the hometown nine has started
on fire. Where is the patience in a 162-game season?

And then there are some teams pushing the panic buttons themselves on certain players.
The Washington Nationals, for instance, have demoted their leadoff hitter, Lastings
Milledge, to the minors. Now I perhaps could see that with a young prospect who is
clearly over his head, but Milledge has played on the big stage and has proven he
belongs.

I know everyone wants to start out doing well, but this early in the season, some
guys are still finding their way around the clubhouse. For those in the Tuff Stuff
Fantasy Baseball League, I hope you’re not making extreme moves like dumping Ryan
Braun to tossing Dice-K to the waiver-wire wolves.

It’s a long and beautiful season folks. No need to get too high or too low after one
week.

if anyone has any other examples of someone you know getting all jacked up or way
too depressed this early, share with the rest of us.   

I managed to attend my first MLB game of the year last night, a poorly pitched
affair between the Cincinnati Reds and the Milwaukee Brewers. It was cold, rainy –
but that’s why there is a roof in Wisconsin. There’s a game played no matter what
it’s doing outside.

While I walked around some of the new features, which included a new fan store, I
was struck by how much I was seeing Topps and Upper Deck in and around the stadium.
It started with racks of packs in the team store, and another box of Topps Attax by
the checkout counter.

Before the game started, there was an announcement that if a certain player got a
hit or home run (I don’t remember which) a section in the stands would receive a pack
of cards from Upper Deck.

When the lineup was introduced, it was “brought to you by Topps.” Each time a player
came to bat during the game, a digital card was displayed on the outfield wall with
the Topps name prominently displayed.

Perhaps I’m more aware of the names and the trading card angle in this profession,
but if anyone says the card companies are non-existent at ballparks, they’re wrong
– at least in Milwaukee.

Now did this translate into sales? I can’t say for certain, and I didn’t see any kids
flashing the cards around in the stands or the concourses, but the option is there,
which is a good thing.

I remember going to Single-A games as a kid and visiting the “fan shop,” which consisted
if a small booth with glass taller than me so that I would smudge the glass with my
nose. I would get some mini helmets and a few packs of cards, which were always right
in front to entice me.

Kids can’t smudge their faces staring at cards at Miller Park, but at least they can
get some cards.  

The NFL Draft is approaching next weekend, and all of the mock drafts are running
in full swing prior to the big event. Card manufacturers are starting to gear up,
as well. After all, I contend the NFL Draft is the most important draft of all of
the major sports for sports card manufacturers and collectors.

The baseball draft might be the biggest in the long run, in terms of possible future
stars and their long-term collectibility, but it takes a few years before you see
them play, which except for a select few, means they have dropped from the public’s
eye in that time – if they even make it to the bigs.

The NBA Draft is a pretty big deal because a lot of those players make an immediate
impact, but then then you’re only talking about maybe 10 immediate impact guys. And
the draft itself is only 60 players or so.

But the NFL draft offers the best of all worlds – plenty of talent in terms of sheer
quantity and the fact that a good number can make immediate impacts with their respective
teams. Just look at the players last year off the top of your head – Forte, Chris
Johnson, Eddie Royal, Matt Ryan, Joe Flacco, DeSean Jackson, Darren McFadden – and
those are just some of the offensive players.

All of those players had an immediate impact on the football card market, which also
happens to be the second most popular card segment in the hobby, for those who want
to argue that the basketball draft has a bigger impact on the sports hobby as a whole.

So it will be fun to see the tops picks in next weekend’s draft and then watch as
the card companies announce how those picks will be presented in upcoming products.

Let the countdown begin.  

  

As I sit here in the afternoon on Good Friday, while also checking in on the
tailgate festivities at the Brewers’ Miller Park for Opening Day that I am missing,
we decided to open a box of Topps T-51 Murad Basketball.

When it comes to trading cards, I think there are some basics that should be followed.
One of those is having the player’s name who is featured on the card mentioned somewhere
on the front. With a classic style of card that is more art than a photo, you can’t
always tell who the player is, especially when the uniform number is obscured.

My second rule is when showcasing statistics on the backside, have numbers that are
easy to read (and in my opinion, they should have career stats, not just the last
year).

Needless to say by that intro, Murad falls flat on both of those. There is no mention
of the player on the front. The Middle Eastern art influence is fine, but it doesn’t
work if I don’t know who the player is.



And the stats on the back look like they were printed with a 1985 word processors
and all of the “numbers” are spelled out. As in, if the player had 933 assists in
his career, it reads, “nine hundred thirty-three assists.” Please.

We also received a fancy mini card that is clearly a special insert, as it’s housed
in a plastic sleeve, but we still don’t know who the player is because it doesn’t
say anywhere on the card.

Again, the look of the cards is great, but to the average collector, the omissions
mentioned above will immediately turn them off. This set is for a select group, that’s
for sure.   

I’m thinking of doing what I consider to be something evil. I’m considering canceling
my subscription to my daily newspaper. Now, that’s a tough call to make when you work
for a publishing company that has been ravaged by people who have gone online to do,
well, everything. It’s one of the reasons why the magazines you read aren’t the 200
pages they used to be. But back to the newspaper. the baseball season kicked off,
and I like to read the box scores in the morning while I eat breakfast. Except, my
newspaper has decided to run about two box scores and give summaries for the rest.
What?! I like to see who is doing well, and not just the guys on my fantasy team.
So now I have to log onto my computer and get the results. Perhaps this is only natural,
since that’s where I get most of my news, too. It seems that whatever I read in the
newspaper, I’ve already read it online. Perhaps it’s because I sit in front of a computer
all day long as part of my job and then I log in at night to see how those fantasy
teams are doing, among other things. Am I addicted? Probably not, but it seems after
a weekend of being away from the computer, I want to log on and see my mail and anything
exciting going on. And I’m not even of the generation that can’t be connected to something
electronically 24 hours a day.

I’m not one of those collectors who is into set building. I think it takes up
too much time and money to accomplish. If they has everything in one single box, then
I’d buy it. All of those doubles and other “advertising” cards for websites and special
offers would drive me crazy.

And if collecting a full set of a particular card series would be too much for me,
then trying to secure one of the Legacy Sets from Upper Deck might send me over the
top of the crazy hill. It started with the Yankee Stadium set, which consisted of
more than 6,600 cards. Thus far, two people have accomplished that feat (kudos – that
couldn’t have been easy).



And then there was the Documentary series, which chronicled each MLB team’s 2008 season
– that’s 162 cards for each team.

However, there is one Legacy Collection that I know collectors will eat up – and it
will be a lot of collectors, not just one or two die-hards. Upper Deck announced that
longtime company spokesman Michael Jordan is being honored with a 1,170-card tribute
insert set chronicling every single Chicago Bulls game he played in from his NBA debut
on October 26, 1984 through his game-clinching heroics in Game 6 of the NBA Finals
on June 14, 1998.

The 1,170-card set will pack out inside four Upper Deck basketball products during
the course of 2009: Lineage (April 1); Radiance (April 29); Upper Deck (Sept. 22);
and First Edition (Sept. 29). Each of the cards includes MJ’s specific box score stats
from the game in question, giving every card some historical significance as the overall
set captures every game Jordan ever played with the Bulls, regular-season and playoff
battles included. The cards will be at a ratio of 1:4 packs.

Plus, there will be another 100 gaem-used memorabilia cards in the set.

While this is still a LOT of cards, you must admit that when it comes to collecting,
Jordan, like on the basketball court, is way above the others. To have a complete
sets of these cards is not only a unique Jordan set, but it relives his career that
would be hard to do otherwise.

With his announcement into the HOF today, this will just add to the momentum that
is Jordan, even if we were all just waiting got this day anyway.   

This blog entry is going to be short and sweet, as I saw this in one of the sports
headlines for the day. It went something like this: Reds Look at Sheffield for Limited
Role.

Huh? First, Gary Sheffield is like Allen Iverson – he wants to play whenever he can.
He’s too proud to sit the bench. He needs to be on the field so he can be seen on
camera and still be a star.



My distaste for Sheffield goes all the way back to his first few seasons with the
Milwaukee Brewers – a place he didn’t want to be. You see, he freely admitted that
he purposely booted ground balls at third base so the team would trade him. What a
great teammate, eh?

But the Reds looking at Sheffield has me even more perplexed. This is a team that
is now ready for the youngsters to take control of the team and call it theirs. With
the departure of Ken Griffey Jr. and Adam Dunn, this is now a club led by Jay Bruce,
Joey Votto and Brandon Phillips. Why would you want a malcontent like Sheffield on
your team with those stars ready to take center stage? And there is no DH in the National
League.

Don’t let Sheffield come in, get his 500 HRs (unless the club wants him just for that
reason to draw more fans?) and then piss away the rest of the year. It’s a bad move
and the Reds should look at other options (aside from ridding themselves of Dusty
Baker).

Can you tell baseball season starts this weekend?

When it comes to Bernie Madoff, one of the last things I would have associated
him with is baseball cards. Unless, of course, he managed to steal those, too and
sell them for his own gain.

But then comes this subject line in my e-mail: “Topps Issues a Trading Card of the
Swindler as Part of the New 2009 Topps Allen & Ginter Product Out in June”

I
get the whole social scene inclusion in Allen & Ginter but the only thing I want
to do with a Madoff card is burn it.

       
The Madoff card will be a part of Topps’ Allen & Ginter inserts of cards that
feature the “world’s biggest hoaxes, hoodwinks and bamboozles,” including disgraced
ponzi schemer Madoff. The cards feature 20 perpetrators of some of the most notorious
pranks, dubious claims and outright frauds of the last two centuries. Other notables
in the set will include: Charles Ponzi, Enron, D.B. Cooper and The Run Away Bride,
found in 1:12 packs.

 
According to the release, Topps originally developed the idea of “world’s biggest
hoaxes, hoodwinks and bamboozles,” inserts earlier this year prior to the Madoff scandal.

And I suppose he’s the icing on that cake.

2009 Topps Allen & Ginter includes a 350-card set featuring Major League Baseball
players and champions from other sports. Along with the “Hoaxes, Hoodwinks and Bamboozles”
insert set, collectors can also find subsets featuring “Creatures of Legend, Myth
and Terror” and “National Heroes” from around the world.
 
So who do you want in your first pack of Allen & Ginter – Madoff or David Ortiz?

I talked will Billy Bahnsen at Steiner Sports yesterday about a big singing they
are conducting and the related collectibles that go along with it.

Steiner has an exclusive signing with goaltender Martin Brodeur, who just set the
victories mark for a goalie with 552 wins. Brodeur’s 552nd win on March 17 came in
the 987th game of his career, 42 games less than it took former record holder Patrick
Roy.  Along with the all-time wins record and three Stanley Cups, Brodeur is
at or near the top of most major goalie career statistics.
 

The record-breaking collection from Steiner will feature autographed hockey pucks,
goalie sticks, a 16-by-20 signed commemorative collage as well as an 11-by-14 unsigned
version and 8-by-10 and 16-by-20 photos that capture the historic nature of Tuesday
night.  Fans can visit www.steinersports.com for
further detail and a complete list of the record-breaking collection.

So this got me thinking – of all the record sporting achievements, which one would
you like to obtain collectibles based on? Would you want Hank Aaron’s bat from the
home run that broke Ruth’s record? Barry Bonds bat that beat Aaron? How about the
goggles from Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s scoring record night?

I know I’m missing a lot of important events in a lot of sports, but that’s where
you come in when sharing your ultimate collectibles prizes.

 

Fresh back from the Windy City after a three-day Fantasy Baseball bender. No,
I wasn’t taking part in the drafts, just monitoring those in attendance from around
the Midwest. I placed a lot of stickers on boards and watched some interesting draft
strategy.

In one baseball draft of 15 teams (and 30 rounds!), Miguel Cabrera lasted until the
12th pick. Needless to say, that guys was really happy. I also realized that no matter
how bad a player does (Rickie Weeks) the year before, people still believe in potential,
even three years later.

Also, a lot of the possible rookies studs we hear about (with the exception of catcher
Matt Wieters) were not taken for a long time in the draft. Participants selected the
known production numbers versus the unknown. And I guess if I was paying $650 or more,
I would, too.

Finally, this is a short one blog because missing work means more work, if you ever
want to kill about 6-7 hours in a day, participate in a baseball draft that uses an
auction format. Imagine the bidding process for 450 players, most starting at $1.

And when does the baseball season actually start?

Well, I made it through day one of the NCAA tournament and managed to not spend
so much time checking scores as to jeopardize my job. However, being in the sports
department, I can just say I’m doing research on the next big basketball star and
projecting the value of his future collectibles. Or something like that.

The tournament is just fun to watch – just like the College Baseball World Series.
There’s something about college athletics that seems so much more fun. There isn’t
the me-first attitude that exists in pro sports – at least not as much. That makes
me wonder why there’s isn’t more collegiate material in the collectibles market. This
is when the “stars” are first coming on the scene. These would be even better than
minor league collectibles in baseball.

If the NCAA is concerned about money – and the NCAA tournament is a perfect example
of yes, indeed, they are – then why not? While some college stuff is available, why
couldn’t the NCAA control the content and offer it through its own store. Wouldn’t
it be nice to have a Blake Griffin game-used jersey or some autographed shoes?

It’s an option – something I was thinking about while “working” this afternoon.   

I’m off to a fantasy baseball event run by our company this weekend to run draft
boards and other duties. If you think you’re into fantasy sports, then why not join
sometime? The average entry fee, I believe, is $650, with some drafts $1,250. Of course
the rewards (up to $100,000) are pretty nice, too.

I don’t know about anyone else, but if I’m paying that kind of scratch, I don’t think
I could watch baseball during the season. Baseball is one fantasy sport where you
can be out in a hurry, so the first few months would be brutal. It would ruin the
great game of baseball for me.

What would be better is a fantasy league based on the World Baseball Classic. The
games don’t count if you’re a fan of a particular MLB team and then you can enjoy
the rest of the season when the real games start. Plus, it lasts only three weeks,
so it’s quick and easy.

Taking some of the major league studs who are batting .500 right now with four home
runs would be fun as they hit against some of these countries that are trotting out
Double AA pitchers or those who haven’ even made it that far. One team had a 19-year-old
that played with Ivan Rodiguez’s kid in a Miami high school game last year. He was
pretty good, but he’s no Johan Santana.

And even though I can’t stand how Japanese players hit (bailing out of the box with
every pitch), when they do make contact, it usually works out. I’d have a few of those
players on my team.

Pitching would be difficult with the pitch count limits, but you could just expand
the rosters a bit.

It’s a perfect way to get the fantasy juices rolling before the MLB season begins.
Now would I pay $1,250 for a WBC fantasy season? Nah….  

I know this is a sports card focused website, but I did some writing about Americana
last week for the sister magazine, Sports Collectors Digest. I spoke with Larry Rosenbaum
at EAC Gallery about presidential collectibles and other historic and political items
that have been popping up with more frequency in sports auctions. And I’m not talking
about the 1-of-1 cut sig presidential cards or the other inserts found in packs today.

I’m talking about real documents with the presidents’ signatures. Can you guess who
the top three are in the category. Good ahead and think about it.

Got it?

It’s Washington, Lincoln and Jefferson.

OK, now how about the rarest signatures as president? Think it’s the top three mentioned
above? Nope.

The two rarest signatures as president are William Harrison and James Garfield. Why
you ask? Well, Harrison caught pneumonia at his inauguration (hey, someone get him
a coat!)  and he died 30 days later. That doesn’t leave a lot of time to have
documents signed by Harrison as president, much less have enough available today in
decent condition.

Garfield was assassinated while in office, not long after he took the oath, so the
same scenario exists for him as to the rarity of documents with his signature as president.

I had never thought of it in this fashion. I just assumed that the holy trinity of
presidents were the most coveted and that was that. If you take a step back and realize
the facts behind the history, it makes sense. Rosenbaum said a Garfield signature
as president can run into $15,000. That’s quite the jump from a Garfield signature
while he was in the Army that brings $500-$600.

Just some food for thought before all my attention turns to my bracket this week.
Happy selecting everyone.      

I’ll kick this blog off with a note from Topps regarding its eTopps cards:

With the start of the 2009 World Baseball Classic, eTopps is
excited to offer cards featuring players taking part in this year’s WBC tournament. 
eTopps is issuing a special limited 12-card collection of cards featuring the biggest
stars from some of the participating countries.  
 
Collectors
who acquire the complete 12-card set of eTopps 2009 World Baseball Classic cards will
receive a free patch card. This card will highlight a patch commemorating the winning
country, and will be featured in eTopps technology.  For each 12-card eTopps
2009 WBC set in your online portfolio as of 10:59 PM (EDT) on Monday, March 30, you
will be guaranteed one free patch card in your portfolio as well (at $0 value).
 
The first eTopps World Baseball Classic cards are available for purchase via online
offering. Each card will be available for seven days, and will be sequentially numbered
to limited quantities.

Next Monday (March 16), additional eTopps World Baseball Classic cards will be offered
as the tournament kicks into high gear. Like the first one, this IPO will begin at
1:00 PM (EDT) on Monday, and will remain open for one week, closing at 3:00 AM (EDT)
on the following Monday.

That’s not a bad deal for folks into the eTopps line. But I’m curious – is this appealing
to collectors or is this mostly geared toward younger collectors?

I never really caught on to this branding of collecting or trading, but I guess it’s
another option, especially in this online world.

The world of trading cards is becoming a little more three-dimensional. In case
you missed the articles in the “NEWS” portion of the Tuff
Stuff site, Topps is offering a unique feature on its Topps
Town site – something is calls 3-D Live virtual reality baseball cards.

The idea goes something like this. You know the Topps Town cards that are in packs
of Series 1 Baseball? Well, you need to actually keep those cards. Oh, and buy a Web
cam, if you don’t already have one.

The next step is to visit the Topps Town site, enter the code on the card and then
hold up the card to your Web cam. And then, according to Topps and this
pretty cool video, the player on the card will come to life as a 3-D hologram
from the card.

Think Princess Leia’s message via R2-D2 in the Star Wars movies.

Now if this works as advertised, it would be pretty darn cool. Especially when you
consider that you can then play 3-D games with this card.

This sounds fun, and something that would get kids into cards more. While it’s like
a video game, kids have to buy the cards to get the cards that allow access to the
games.

I think the only thing better would be to have a virtual reality helmet where you
swipe the card and then you can either bat or pitch against said player in a virtual
world. Now that would be fun!  

If anyone has the tools as their disposal to give this 3-D Live technology a whirl,
I’d love to hear about the results. 

A recent blog
post by Sports Collectors Digest Editor T.S. O’Connell made me chuckle.
In it, he decided a good way to pass the time if he were to ever end up in prison.
He didn’t name the offense that would land him in such a predicament, but it he were
there, he would pass the time by rattling off the stats on the Strat-O-Matic cards.
He knew them from heart since he was a teen growing up.

While
I didn’t play Strat-O-Matic, I did play RBI Baseball on the first generation
Nintendo, a practice I am proud to say I still enjoy from time to time. The copyright
date on the “start” screen says 1987, which sounds about right. I had to play Nintendo
at other people’s home since I didn’t get a Nintendo until some other systems were
already in vogue, like the Sega Gensis and others.

A few years ago, I purchased a used Nintendo to replace the one I sold just after
high school. And I bought RBI Baseball off of eBay. Last weekend, I challenged a friend
of mine to a friendly game and we dove into an two-hour-long marathon. While we played,
my friend kept asking me who the players were and I rattled them off like nothing.
He said, “How do you remember that.”

Part of that answer is easy – these were the guys I watched in my formative years
and the ones whose cards I pored over nearly every day. (Who would keep Tony Armas
on the bench with that home run total?) The second part of that answer was I played
this game until my fingers bled and the book that came with it included the rosters
with full names. Recalling this information was like riding a bike. I can tell you
almost the entire roster of that game if I tried hard enough.

So now I ask you, are there any sports games that you can replay in your head easily
and spit out “facts” from that game until you’re blue in the face? I know there are
a lot of other people out there like me and T.S.

I’m off to a Milwaukee Braves reunion in the next few months, attending as a
fan, though I might slip some work into the mix by sharing the doings of the event
in Sports Collectors Digest.

The guest list includes Bob Uecker and Andy Pafko, among others. And, yes, there is
an opportunity to get some autographs. So I’m toying with the idea of having them
sign some of the Milwaukee Braves yearbooks I have or have them sign a baseball. I
like the look of autographs on a clean baseball, and they display well.

If I had them sign the yearbooks, I would have them sign their photos inside and then
the only people who would know it’s there is me. And maybe that’s all that maters.
After all, I’m not in the game of seeing how much I can get for my collectibles. I’ll
keep them forever and pass them along to my son. I don’t acquire real high-end stuff
anyway, so it’s more sentimental value.

I display the yearbooks on a wall, in a sleeve that allows for easy removal. In one
of the yearbooks, I found a scorecard someone filled out and I might enjoy that scorecard
more than the yearbook. You don’t see many people filling out the scorecard any more.
So if you’re yearbook hunting, make sure to flip through the pages, because you just
might find some more goodies hidden inside than just the photos.

 

It’s Friday, and that means a wrap-up of the week’s events. Actually, it’s been
a pretty quiet week.

A gentleman from Pensacola, Fla., became the second member to accumulate the entire
UD Yankee Stadium Legacy set. I do admire such determination. I don’t think I could
accumulate 6,661 pennies, much less a card set of that size. To do that would mean
buying a lot of packs of cards and trading and keeping track of what you need and
don’t need. But after a while, I suppose you say what the heck and go for it. Maybe
– I stress maybe – someday the set itself will be a cool, niche collectible.

A report on CNN.com said that autographed memorabilia is a $4 billion-a-year industry.
I think to the average person, that would seem ridiculous, but it’s probably pretty
accurate, especially when you consider presidential stuff, celebrities and even musicians
and other politicians. Would I would be interested in is how that market is doing.
Is it going up with more emphasis on autographed stuff, or is it suffering with everything
else in the world right now?

Grey Flannel is offering Roger Clemens’ items that reportedly come from Roger Clemens’
trainer, Brian McNamee, as part of its April sale. Hmm, I know that might get your
attention, but is that really what you want as your spotlighted items going into the
sale? Most people will immediately say, “I don’t want that” and move on to another
auction. It’s been made abundantly clear by the public and sports that he’s trial
has already taken place and he’s in the pen with Bonds and the rest of the gang. My
guess is that these collectibles are worth a fraction of what they were a few years
ago.

And finally, spring training took off this week, and Kerry Wood is already complaining
about some injury. One healthy year turned in to get another decent contract and he’s
hurt again. And to think he had all the promise in the world nine years ago. That
probably happens a lot, but he’s a celebrated case.      

A comment was made in the office today, and it went something like this: “They
(the PGA) have the ‘Jordan’ problem – when one guy gets bigger than the sport.”

Of course, this was in reference to Tiger Woods and how his play in tournaments (such
as this week’s match-play tournament) has a direct impact on the revenue for the sport.
If Tiger makes a tournament’s weekend, it means an extra tens of millions of dollars
for the port through TV viewers, fans making the trek to the course to watch and other
factors. When Tiger is not around, even somewhat loyal golf viewers don’t make the
extra effort to tune in.

With Tiger’s layoff since last June, how many tournament winners can you name? How
many did you watch? I can count on one hand how many minutes I watched golf after
Tiger was done, much less watching more than one event.

Now the comparison to Michael Jordan and the state of basketball when Jordan left
might be stretching it a little. Yes, Jordan was clearly the best player in the league,
but the NBA get a little more attention than golf, and there are other players who
can capture an audience on a given night. I say that, but does the average person
remember the other big names on the court when Jordan retired? Think about it.

Tennis might have been close to this situation when Andre Agassi was flashing his
Nikes and long hair around, but he was never the undisputed top player in the world
– he just played rock ‘n roll tennis, if there is such a thing.

Of course, if you’re talking hobby lore with Woods, it’s no question he carries the
sport and will for a long, long time. Jordan pretty much reigns the basketball hobby,
though there are some worthy contenders.

And tennis? Well, they have a bit of catching up to do in the collecting world.