More news from the baseball front includes a visit to the Play Ball! exhibit at History Colorado Center, a showcase of the best of the Marshall Fogel Collection. On display were jerseys, gloves, hats, and more from the most memorable Hall-of-Famers from Babe Ruth to Sandy Koufax. Nearby, there was a large clear plastic case filled with about fifty bats spanning the history of Major League Baseball, all the way from Ty Cobb and Tris Speaker, up to Ichiro and Ken Griffey, Jr. Off to the side was a small case with memorabilia of some of baseball's more infamous figures: Joe Jackson, Pete Rose, and Mark McGwire. And, since this is Denver, plenty of Rockies memorabilia, such as a ticket stub from the first-ever Rockies game on April 5th, 1993 at Shea Stadium, three bottles of champagne and a ring from the Rockies' historic 2007 playoff run on loan from pitcher Jason Hirsh, and signed jerseys from current All-Stars Nolan Arenado and Charlie Blackmon.
Don't think for a moment that there were no cards. There were. One item was a box (likely empty) of 1954 Bowman, a gumball vending machine that also once distributed 1956 Topps cards for a penny, and a serious highlight that was on display for only three days during the All-Star Break, a PSA 10 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle, estimated to be worth $10 million. My visit was a day too early to see that (it was there between a Monday and a Wednesday, and I had All-Star Game parties to host), but there was plenty of news coverage about it in the Denver area.
Finally, as you might have gathered from the post title, my Wallet Card had a chance to come out and play with the greats, occupying a small space in a 1975 Topps frame, one of those wooden platforms you could pose behind.
If you happen to find yourself in Denver before the MLB season wraps up, be sure to check it out. I've never been to Cooperstown, but I assume this exhibit offers a small taste of the full experience.
Also, now that the Wallet Card has some serious travels under its belt, I decided to give it its very own blog tab. Because travel seems to be way more fun when you can look back on the good parts.
