To 200, and beyond!

Somehow, some way, I've managed to keep this thing going long enough to write 200 posts. I certainly have enough material for a lifetime of posts, but the variable is finding enough time to write them. Darn near half of these 200 have been trade posts, which is a testament to how awesome this community is. I know I still owe a few of you cards (Trevor and Johnny are on my list), and I will get shipments out soon.

The Rockies have been doing amazingly well the first two or so months of the season, which has been a joy to watch, at least until their recent 8-game losing streak that dropped them into third place. And I've been on a pretty steady pace of about three posts a month, but I only managed one lone entry in the entire month of June. Not quite as much as I'd like, especially since I still have stacks from long-ago card shows sitting around waiting for their turn at Infield Fly Rule.

Most of all, I'm thankful for my readers and everyone who comes by this little corner of the internet. I put a lot of time into these posts, so I appreciate anyone who lends me even a few minutes of their attention.

I do have a little contest planned, related to the awesome Lego set of the Saturn V I just finished. As a prize, I'm offering up a 1991 Space Shots Moon Mars set. You can see a few of my favorite cards from the 36-card set here.

1991 Space Shots Moon Mars #7 Buzz Aldrin - Moonwalk

As Anthony Bourdain put it in his recent Antarctica episode of Parts Unknown, we are living in "a time when science is held in open contempt". I thought a little reminder of how cool science can be, and more importantly, what America can do when there is a common goal, is a good thing to spread around. And I know it's not exactly baseball-related, so I'm happy to throw in a few cards from your preferred team, too.

All you need to do is comment on this post, but I'm happy to give you an extra entry if you'd care to mention this on your blog as well.

Thanks for reading, and I hope to keep watching all your milestones roll by as well.

Edit: Entries are now closed.

Post #100 and a giveaway!

Hard to believe that this is the one hundredth post of Infield Fly Rule. When I started this just under two years ago, I had no idea it would be so successful, and no idea that I'd have found so many awesome trading partners all over the country.

That averages out to about a post a week over that time, although if you look at my archives, it's a lot streakier than that. I have plenty of post ideas, and a couple stacks of trade posts and card show pickups from months ago. Ideas are there, but time, of course, is always at a premium. How Matt at Bob Walk The Plank has done six times as many posts in two fewer weeks is beyond me.

Anyway, since the human mind really enjoys nice, round numbers, I've been saving up some cards for an appropriately-themed giveaway.

1990 Upper Deck #100 Checklist 1-100

Checklists!

These could be found in most sets during the overproduction era, but they became few and far between as the years progressed. They evolved into insert cards rather than actual base cards, then to the back panel of factory set boxes, then disappeared altogether. Topps resurrected checklists a few years ago by combining them with highlight cards, but they're pretty tough to spot at a glance.

With websites like Beckett and BaseballCardPedia out there, printed checklists are less a necessity and more of a legacy item. Sort of like cabooses. But I know of more than a few collectors that love the things, and even more that lament their relative absence in today's collecting world.

But what could be better for a 100th-post contest than the once-crucial checklist? Upper Deck and Donruss both reserved their hundredth card numbers for checklists (as you can see above), while Topps just stuck them any old place. But Topps reserved those special card numbers for superstars, clearly showing us that the 100, 200, 300, etc... card number was an important spot.

So if you want to win a team bag full of checklists, just leave a comment below! I'll close the entry period at 11:59pm MST on Friday, November 27th and randomize to determine the winner.

I'm not the only one doing a giveaway right now, so if you're in the mood for some free cards (or if mine doesn't interest you), head over to Brad's Blog and help take some of his collection off his hands before his move. You also have a few hours left to enter Matt's contest at Bob Walk The Plank.

Good luck!