Baseball Card Blogs » Cards on Cards http://baseballcardblogs.org Posts from the Best Baseball Card Blogs on the Net Sun, 05 Feb 2012 20:45:32 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Airbrushed Fridays: 1974 Topps #287 http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/02/airbrushed-fridays-1974-topps-287.html http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/02/airbrushed-fridays-1974-topps-287.html#comments Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000 madding http://baseballcardblogs.org/?guid=90549a6a35c220e02789b63e74732705 How strange is it that a Topps baseball card featuring, kind of, a fringe member of the St. Louis Cardinals is suddenly national news. And by national news, I don't mean the front page of beckett.com. Schumaker is being brought back for the 2012 incarnation of the Cards as a backup outfielder, although I don't think any Cardinals fan believes for a second that his days at the keystone position are a thing of the past.

Clay Kirby was a right-handed starting pitcher for all eight of his big league seasons, putting up respectable numbers despite suffering through a 20-loss season as a rookie. His life was cut tragically short at the age of 43 when he died from a heart attack.

Why did Topps airbrush Clay's photo? I'm starting to feel like the entire 1974 Topps set might be airbrushed. Kudos (whatever those things are) to Topps for attempting to get everyone in this set into their current team's digs, but even today there is no great way of accomplishing this feat when a set is released before a season actually starts. Kirby was traded in the offseason by the Padres to the Reds for the legendary Bobby Tolan and Dave Tomlin.

What's wrong with this picture, anyway? There's not a ton to complain about here. It feels like Clay's hat is unusually large, but you never know what's going on behind that cap there. He might have had a slight Conehead affliction. Aside from the fact that the airbrusher may have run out of red paint a bit too soon, this one doesn't look so bad.

If you are interested in obtaining a card featured here, please send me an e-mail. If you have a card you would like to nominate for Airbrushed Fridays, please get in touch as well. I will require that I am able to see the card in person, either on loan or as a donation, so that I can examine the card and experience it in all its cruddiness.
]]> http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/feeds/4447479376504034517/comments/default 0 Airbrushed Fridays: 2011 Topps Opening Day #59 http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/airbrushed-fridays-2011-topps-opening.html http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/airbrushed-fridays-2011-topps-opening.html#comments Fri, 27 Jan 2012 16:00:00 +0000 madding http://baseballcardblogs.org/?guid=5fb40f626b73db6029c98d3d9c827117 There's only 22 days until pitchers and catchers report. 22 days! That's only three weeks until we can start talking about baseball for real instead of just checking mlbtraderumors.com periodically to find out if anyone is going to hand Edwin Jackson a big contract.

Russell Martin is a three-time All-Star catcher who does a little bit of everything, but doesn't seem to do anything extremely well. Having the benefit of playing in major markets his whole career seems to have helped him to the accolades he's received. He will enter his 7th major league season in 2012.

Why did Topps airbrush Russell's photo? Martin was a surprise free agent acquisition by the Yankees last offseason. He had a strong start last year and found his way to the All-Star team by virtue of being a Yankee, and not being as bad as end-of-career Jorge Posada. However, he had not appeared in a Yankees uniform at the time this set was released.

What's wrong with this picture, anyway? As far as Photoshop jobs go, this isn't bad. It's probably not too difficult to go from Dodger road grey and blue to Yankee road grey and navy blue. This is more of a case of knowing that the season hadn't even begun when this set was released.

If you are interested in obtaining a card featured here, please send me an e-mail. If you have a card you would like to nominate for Airbrushed Fridays, please get in touch as well. I will require that I am able to see the card in person, either on loan or as a donation, so that I can examine the card and experience it in all its cruddiness.
]]> http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/feeds/7425839144596066299/comments/default 0 But I’ll never miss Bowman http://nightowlcards.blogspot.com/2012/01/but-ill-never-miss-bowman.html http://nightowlcards.blogspot.com/2012/01/but-ill-never-miss-bowman.html#comments Fri, 27 Jan 2012 06:56:00 +0000 night owl http://baseballcardblogs.org/?guid=ea86893a4aa42f3b65b2f16ce36a2b8d
A couple of days ago, I wrote about how my decision not to collect any 2012 set would be fairly easy if it wasn't for this summer and Allen & Ginter.

Today, with the help of some cards from madding at Cards on Cards, I am going in the opposite direction.

There is a card brand that I am positively giddy about avoiding. I can't wait to avoid it. I do a good job of avoiding it now. But now I get to COMPLETELY avoid it. Forever. Yeah, I think it might be forever. I may never buy another pack of Bowman ever again.


The only reason I've picked up packs of Bowman in the past was to see what the hysteria was about. Every year there was some prospect everyone was going bat-poo over. I figured I'd check it out. But with the exception of Strasmania, I always struck out.

Bowman packs left me cold. Card after card of players I had never heard of and probably would never hear of again. This was no way to collect.


The designs rarely impressed (yikes, I didn't know Sellers had all those tattoos), and a pack of Bowman seemed more like a waste of money than any other pack that I purchased.

But still I'd get the urge to pick up something new. And Bowman always had something new on the shelves. Bowman. Bowman Chrome. Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects. Bowman Platinum. Bowman Now With Players Who Haven't Even Been Born Yet.


The worst part of Bowman, for me, besides not knowing the players that I am looking at, is the complete confusion I feel when trying to separate their sets. For example, these cards -- which I totally appreciate and which feature players I actually know (this is my first card of Nathan Eovaldi) -- are a complete mystery to me. I don't know which set they're from. I have a guess. But I'm not confident enough in airing my guess here. A million prospect-junkies will descend upon the comments and tell my why I'm an idiot because I can't figure it out.

But I can't, and that's the reason why out of all the sets that I am avoiding this year, this is the one that has the best shot of me completely bypassing it. Not one single pack. I just don't need the hassle. Or the guilt. Or the feeling that I'm a dumb-ass.


I'm kind of surprised I received these cards from madding. I don't think he's the prospector type. But he does understand that team collectors need every card, even from sets that are a complete mystery.


These might be the most baffling of all. Apparently there are black-border Bowman prospect cards? They're not numbered at all. Please don't make me figure it out, there's already so much that makes my head hurt about Bowman.

Even when I read blog posts from good-hearted people who attempt to remedy the Bowman confusion with their marketing plans, I zone out like the dumb chick when the topic switches from purses. And those are from people who are trying to help me.

If you look at my want list, you may notice that I have Bowman cards listed. I confess, I have no idea if they are accurate. Anytime I update my want list, I dread when it's time to update the Bowman category. It's like muddling through calculus class again. Fortunately, no one is grading my want list.

As usual, I'll take all your Bowman Dodgers.

I'm going to need your help. Because I'm done with Bowman.


Now, if Fleer was still around?

Then, I'd be in trouble.


(P.S.: Another One-Card Challenge success story!)
]]> http://nightowlcards.blogspot.com/feeds/1815902376858965015/comments/default 0 I’m Officially Old http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/im-officially-old.html http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/im-officially-old.html#comments Wed, 25 Jan 2012 08:45:00 +0000 madding http://baseballcardblogs.org/?guid=8abe3497a1ccc2e8f5f2eaf693e40cce Sometimes discussion of one card leads to a big box in the mail, which is exactly what happened last month when I received a huge haul of Cardinal cards from GCRL. I was trying to think of a Cardinal equivalent for the Garvey, Cey, Russell, Lopes arrangement and all I could come up with was Ozzie, McGee, Hernandez, Porter. I don't think a '70s foursome would quite work as the Cardinals by all accounts were pretty awful during that decade.

J.D. Drew is apparently retiring. That makes me feel extremely old. He's officially the first megaprospect from the days where I started to regain a little bit of interest in sports for the first time since I was in college to actually hang it up. Even though I never liked J.D. Drew, this makes me sad.

Tino Martinez is looking like a middle infielder here. Weird.

I'm not entirely sure what this set it is, but it curiously has some airbrushed logos. It was produced in 1995 and has a Coke logo and an unfamiliar Sonic logo on the back.

This is actually from the 2008 Topps Cardinals team set and stood out to me because I don't think Spiezio ever got a regular issue 2008 Topps card.

I'm actually less interested/disturbed by Looper's presence here than I am by John Patterson and this Aqua Diamondbacks look. Yikes.

This is a busy design, but it still looks nice. A lot of the current Topps cards with old timey players just look lazy.

Token Edmonds Card.

Token Ankiel As A Pitcher Card

Tino Martinez doesn't get a ton of mention here at Cards on Cards, as his role with St. Louis was effectively to bridge the gap between superstar Mark McGwire and Super Scrooge. I really like the look of this card, though.

Somewhere among the chaos of this huge box was a Bob Gibson fold-out poster from some sort of Fleer / SI set. It's a nice thing to have.

I received no less than three of the "My Name Is Not Jeff" Pendleton rookie cards in this box, but sadly I am still on the quest for the corrected "Terry" version of this card.

Always nice to get a Willie rookie card! If there's anyone I'd like to see the Cardinals break their "we don't retire numbers if they're not in the Hall" policy for, it would be Jim Edmonds. Willie would be a close second, though! I do believe that, unofficially, #51 is retired since no one seems to ever wear it. Unfortunately, there's been a fair amount of #15s since Edmonds left, including the current holder Rafael Furcal.

Man, I miss '80s Donruss artwork.

So here is the real impetus of the trade. At long last, I finally get to put a Jamie Moyer card in one of my Cardinals binders. This is a big moment for this blog, considering that it was (and continues to be) one of my collecting goals to actually get Moyer in a Cardinals uniform. I don't remember Moyer ever being a Cardinal even though his time with the team coincided with my high school years and days when I kept up with baseball cards pretty closely. I still don't actually have Moyer in a Cards uniform, but I'm close now. I didn't know this card actually existed (as far as a Cardinals team collector would care) until I read about it on GCRL's most excellent O-Pee-Chee blog. I highly recommend it.
]]> http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/feeds/7771095413706070350/comments/default 0 Missing Allen & Ginter already http://nightowlcards.blogspot.com/2012/01/missing-allen-ginter-already.html http://nightowlcards.blogspot.com/2012/01/missing-allen-ginter-already.html#comments Wed, 25 Jan 2012 01:27:00 +0000 night owl http://baseballcardblogs.org/?guid=bd3d2bf05216e762f80233b6ce872287
When I say I'm not collecting any 2012 Topps, that means I'm not collecting ANY 2012 Topps, in all its forms. Heritage, Opening Day, Attax, Update, Allen & Ginter (gulp), none of it.

I'm reasonably confident that I will be able to stick to this. Even if I grab a few packs every so often, there's nothing there that's going to make me chase the set. However, Allen & Ginter is the one that could give me some hesitation.

It's not for the reasons you might think. I'm beyond the design (two straight years of disappointing designs will do that). I'm beyond the non-ballplayer subjects. I'm even beyond the quirkiness (there wasn't much quirkiness in last year's set).

No, the problem I'm going to have is next summer when everyone gets their boxes of A&G and the latest edition of Gint-a-Cuffs commences.

As a three-time Gint-a-Cuffs participant, I know that GAC is a heck of a lot of fun. It's even fun for a loser like me who never wins and always gets dud boxes. So how am I going to sit on the sidelines and watch people win without me? You need a loser to have a winner, right?

But the worst part will be knowing that I won't have those Gint-a-Cuffs posts to fill up blog space in the middle of July. That's like 6 automatic posts right there! I'm going to have to get even more creative -- which isn't good because I think I lost my creative chip somewhere in November and I have been cruising off of trade posts ever since.

The easy solution would be to collect just A&G and only A&G. One set from 2012 isn't going to kill me, right?

Well ... maybe not kill me. But I don't want to go through what I did in 2011 with A&G. I'm still trying to complete it and I'm sick to death of it. I really don't like the idea of trying to finish off a set I don't even like.

Fortunately, I'm a little bit closer to completing the 2011 set, thanks to some recent card packages. I'm only 21 cards away (I was 21 cards away in OCTOBER three years ago. What HAPPENED to me?).

Here is one needed card -- and one card only because I'm sick of looking at them -- from each of four packages:


Card: Carlos Lee
Number: 333
From: Section 36

Ron sent me a whole mess of A&G. In fact, if it wasn't for his package, I might've given up on finishing this set like I've given up on '08 Stadium Club and a couple others. I'm showing the Carlos Lee card because I didn't think it was constitutionally possible for Carlos Lee to be a short-print. It's everyone's God-given right to accumulate as many Carlos Lee cards as possible. In fact, I think they're going to be tax-deductible some day. So look for that. I'll be able to help you out when the time comes. A lot.


Card: George W. Bush
Number: 147
From: Smed's Baseball Card Blog

All right, settle down. This card isn't here for any reason other than it's a card I needed. ... Or maybe it ISN'T. Maybe it's here to counter a certain Democrat President's State of the Union speech! Or maybe it's here to remind voters what they could get if they vote for a Republican this November! Or maybe it's here because my father's father's uncle's cousin's daughter was once double-crossed by a Republican turned Democrat turned Libertarian turned Independent turned Modern Whig who promised her a chicken in every pot and instead gave her a rubber chicken swimming in a pool of watered down pork stock! The outrage! Where's that petition? Where's my picket sign? Oh my blood pressure ...

Politics.

Smed sent me a bunch of other cool cards -- not political at all -- that I'll show at a more festive time.


Card: Juan Pierre
Number: 229
From: Cards on Cards

I also received some other non-A&G cards from madding that I'll feature elsewhere. I almost posted the Josh Beckett card that he sent so I could talk about how much madding loves Mr. Beckett. But that's mean -- and even though fans of the World Series champions are fair game -- it's still just mean. So, instead, I'm showing the Juan Pierre card. Now, I know it looks cool to you all scanned here, all back-lit and snazzy. But in person I have to hold the card a foot from my face to know what's going on. That's why I don't like the horizontal A&G cards. They're too fuzzy and they're difficult to register at first glance.


Card: Mike Pelfrey
Number: 342
From: Cardboard Heaven

This was part of my collection of cards that I received in Cam's card draft at the end of last month. I'll show some of the other cards I received on another day -- at least the ones I have left. Some have already made their way into card packages.

I was reduced to drafting A&G cards in an effort to finish off my set -- which sort of backfired on me because then I received some of the cards from other bloggers. But, no worries, because I nabbed some minis out of the deal, and those are always fun. Plus, Pelf means I need only 10 more short-prints. Weeeee! (I better be able to get to this card show this weekend).

When I finally complete this set, I'm going to need another binder to house it. I'm starting to get to a stage where I'm running out of room for binders. Either I'm going to have to come up with a creative (ouch, there's that word again) solution, or the mass accumulations have got to stop.

Another reason for avoiding 2012 Topps. There are so many.

]]> http://nightowlcards.blogspot.com/feeds/7337399586789617180/comments/default 0 Airbrushed Fridays: 1974 Topps #208 http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/airbrushed-fridays-1974-topps-208.html http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/airbrushed-fridays-1974-topps-208.html#comments Sat, 21 Jan 2012 02:37:00 +0000 madding http://baseballcardblogs.org/?guid=0f0bb5121a04e73ac56d3d314b3e453a It was a big week for me, as I actually managed to successfully get three packages out the door. Little successes!

Mike Marshall was a former All-Star screwball-tossing reliever who played for an impressive 9 major league teams over the course of 14 seasons. He has previously appeared in this feature here. Also pictured is John Hiller, as this card highlight's the top firemen of the 1973 season, based on a ranking system that gives equal weight to a pitching win as it does a save. Marshall led the NL in saves, but he also had 14 wins (and 11 losses) over the course of a 179 IP season in which he started no games at all in some sort of bizarro version of pre-Tony La Russa managed baseball.

Why did Topps airbrush Mike's photo? It's rare that I can say this, but I honestly have zero idea. Marshall had spent the last 3+ seasons in an Expos uniform before an offseason trade to the Dodgers as noted in the previous Mike Marshall post. Can anyone explain this? He is actually airbrushed into his former uniform.

What's wrong with this picture, anyway? That Expos logo is awful. It's like two different people handled each side of it or something. Also, Marshall appears to be wearing a ghostly baseball equivalent of a hospital gown instead of a proper uniform. Maybe I'm just letting my imagination run wild tonight.

If you are interested in obtaining a card featured here, please send me an e-mail. If you have a card you would like to nominate for Airbrushed Fridays, please get in touch as well. I will require that I am able to see the card in person, either on loan or as a donation, so that I can examine the card and experience it in all its cruddiness.
]]> http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/feeds/4289109211090531169/comments/default 0 JABO Break Results http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/jabo-break-results.html http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/jabo-break-results.html#comments Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:28:00 +0000 madding http://baseballcardblogs.org/?guid=195ecb2b4b8249584c0999a8e1d31046 If it seems like my only card purchases lately are through group breaks, well... then... you've probably noticed that it's the truth. I am certain that I'll get back in the swing of things with new 2012 stuff on the horizon, but I'm definitely in a serious collecting rut at the moment. Fortunately, there have been a few of these group break type of things to keep the embers going. JABO has had a number of such events already in its relatively short time of existence. If you get an opportunity, you should consider participating.

I got three teams in the break, plus some extras. Of course, the Cardinals were represented and included players I'd never heard of! Awesome! I think? Kenneth Peoples-Walls was apparently a 4th round pick in the most recent draft. Let's hope that I get to hear announcers say his name at some point down the road.

There were also some kids in the package. When I say "kids", I actually mean people that were born in 1995. 1995! That's crazy. People shouldn't be allowed to own these. They may as well make Little League World Series cards. (They probably do, sadly.) I am guessing that the cards for players who were not affiliated yet with a major league team ended up getting randomly distributed among the participants. I will hang on to these in hopes that they all become supermegastars someday.

White Sox! This was a team that was randomly assigned and one that I do not often find trading partners for, so of course most of the "hits" in the package were White Sox cards. This here is one of those refractor type thingies.

Dodgers! I selected this team purposefully after taking the Cardinals, because I never have a problem getting rid of Dodgers cards. In fact, I am so going to get rid of some Dodgers cards tomorrow... provided that the Postal Service still exists by then.
]]> http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/feeds/1867295538265653758/comments/default 0 Airbrushed Fridays: 2008 Topps #532 http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/airbrushed-fridays-2008-topps-532.html http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/airbrushed-fridays-2008-topps-532.html#comments Sat, 14 Jan 2012 04:34:00 +0000 madding http://baseballcardblogs.org/?guid=eac6fd04af043113439ef75fff9c6bb7 Welcome to another edition of Late Night Airbrushed Fridays: Tebow Free since 2009!

Tim Lahey is a minor league pitcher who found his way onto a Topps MLB rookie card under dubious circumstances. He's never appeared in a major league game, yet has spent time on a roster. I'm not certain that he technically qualifies for a Topps card in this day and age, but he didn't come into the league with the fanfare of, say, Alex Gordon.

Why did Topps airbrush Tim's photo? Lahey was drafted by the Twins, and then made his way to the Rays via the Rule V draft. He was cut before the season started, claimed by the Cubs before ultimately landing with the Phillies - who also cut him a week into the season. He was returned to Minnesota before this set even came out. It appears that he's actually out of baseball completely at this point, with no stats available for the 2011 season.

What's wrong with this picture, anyway? The colors... the logos... they are just not right looking.

If you are interested in obtaining a card featured here, please send me an e-mail. If you have a card you would like to nominate for Airbrushed Fridays, please get in touch as well. I will require that I am able to see the card in person, either on loan or as a donation, so that I can examine the card and experience it in all its cruddiness.
]]> http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/feeds/2126032551521129994/comments/default 0 Let’s Put A Bow On This 1993 Upper Deck Thing http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/lets-put-bow-on-this-1993-upper-deck.html http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/lets-put-bow-on-this-1993-upper-deck.html#comments Thu, 12 Jan 2012 05:27:00 +0000 madding http://baseballcardblogs.org/?guid=9f1b7c070e703254873b55abf410d8cc Here is my one final plea to help me finally finish off my first substantial set since I've started this blog. I am down to needing just two cards from the main set along with two "SP" cards, which I honestly know nothing about, from the 1993 Upper Deck set. Here's the want list, officially:

  • 21 Melvin Nieves
  • 66 Tim Wakefield
  • SP5 G.Brett/R.Yount
  • SP6 Nolan Ryan
I know I've had a copy of the Wakefield card before, but it was in rough shape. Considering that, no matter how much I like the design and quality, this is still at its core a junk wax set, I am making sure that each card in the set is in better than acceptable shape. Can anyone help? I will just go ahead and look online for the two SP cards if I can get the Nieves and Wakefield.


I also want to show off these portfolios that Erin found for me and included with my Christmas haul. I had never seen or heard of these before. They instantly reminded me of the 1988 Topps portfolios that were gaining popularity back when I was still in middle school. The design on these particular folders contains representations of actual cards from the set, but as seen on the reverse, they are merely empty place holders for actual cards. The inner flap also gives an interesting guideline to card conditions, or "rating your cards", something you probably don't actually care about if you're about to slip something into these pockets.

Strangely, the back pocket shows off what the cards on the front would look like in reverse as if they were real cards, which they aren't.

A second portfolio that I received has a different color and shows off some of the Triple Crown inserts from this set. I wonder how many different portfolios were made. I finally found an auction that purports the existence of at least 6 different designs and 4 colors.

Any information about this stuff would be greatly appreciated. If I end up finishing up a few more sets, I may go ahead and pursue some or all of the insert sets as well. For now, I need to get the base set knocked out.
]]> http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/feeds/5842999873853206905/comments/default 0 Contest Winners and Group Break Results http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/contest-winners-and-group-break-results.html http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/2012/01/contest-winners-and-group-break-results.html#comments Wed, 11 Jan 2012 07:42:00 +0000 madding http://baseballcardblogs.org/?guid=1ab68b54ee2fc24091e04b238f05a777 All the college football games are over for the year, which means the Bowl Pick 'Em Contest has also drawn to a conclusion. Congrats to AJ of The Lost Collector for taking top honors, while last year's champ - Stats on the Back - came up just short and took second place this time around. Third place goes to hiflew of Cards from the Quarry, while Joseph's GRAVITRON entry managed to be the least successful. Winners (and "winner"), please email me your mailing addresses so I can get your prizes out to you soon. I am aiming for getting these packaged up this weekend and dropped in the mail on Monday in order to avoid 2011-style procrastination.

Meanwhile, the cards featured in this post are from a group break hosted by My Cardboard Mistress. A bunch of random products were opened which led to me getting quite a variety of Cardinals cards, many of which I didn't own already. I kind of like this group break thing.

I completely missed out on the whole 2011 Topps sticker craze. I need some more of these in Cardinal form.

I did like the Legends of the Game inserts and wasn't so pleased with some of the other things Topps tried in 2010 and 2011. One issue was photo selection, however. It would be really great to see Topps sign up with some other third party with access to a lot of archives for some of these retired/Hall of Fame cards.

There are so many shiny and sparkly J.D. Drew cards made of all sorts of interesting materials. It's just too bad that the Cardinals go-to marketable young player at the time was J.D. Drew.

This is a great card and a great get for me. I am glad that Ozzie played in an era where there were plenty of photo ops.

Finally, here's another "manupatch" that goes straight in my collection. I wonder if Topps will still be doing this for this year's set. I can't even remember what this year's set looks like, but I'm pretty sure I was not very impressed.
]]> http://cardsoncards.blogspot.com/feeds/781499969972300774/comments/default 0