The Trading Post #21: Nachos Grande

In advance of a small flat-rate box containing my winnings from his Topps High Tek group break, Chris at Nachos Grande sent a trade package in return for some Barry Larkin cards and other Reds.

Speaking of the Reds, I ran across a fun fact about them on Reddit this morning. Once Ichiro suits up for the Marlins this spring, the Reds will be the only Major League team that hasn't fielded a Japanese player.

2000 Impact #75 Masato Yoshii

As luck would have it, Chris included a card of Masato Yoshii, who happens to be the player that took the Rockies off that list in 2000. Mac Suzuki and Kazuo Matsui have also spent some time in a Rockies uniform, and Kaz was an integral part of the 2007 Rockies, who even became the first Japanese player to hit a grand slam in the MLB postseason.

I didn't follow baseball too closely in 2000, so I can't say that I remember Yoshii's time in Denver. 2000 Fleer Impact isn't going to win any design awards, either. But given how baseball-crazed Japan is, it's surprising that it's taken this long for Miami and Cincinnati to get on board.

Another set that doesn't get much love is 2007 Topps, but I happen to like a bit more than most.

2007 Topps Chrome #99 Jeff Francis

That card is actually from 2007 Topps Chrome, but with those black borders it might win the award for the least-shiny shiny card in my collection. Jeff Francis is another international citizen that's played for the Rockies. Like Larry Walker, Francis is from British Columbia, Canada.

There was a lot of late-model Upper Deck in this package, which tends to coincide with the Rockies two most recent playoff appearances.

2007 Upper Deck #672 Garrett Atkins

Garrett Atkins was an important part of the Rockies lineup in both 2007 and 2009, and it looks like he just made contact in this Coors Field shot. That's probably former Rockies manager Clint Hurdle in the dugout, with his signature hands-on-hips stance. Neither Topps nor Upper Deck gave us their best designs in 2007, but unlike many other years, I can identify both of them at a glance.

There were a couple of mid-to-late '90s cards as well, including one from a set I had seen before...

2000 Topps Stars #13 Jeff Cirillo

...and one I hadn't.

1995 Topps D3 #54 Walt Weiss

Cirillo's Topps Stars card is actually from 2000, but it's a brand that I rarely run across. I like that shadow outline behind his photo, and the subtle raised parallel lines that frame the card. And that might be the best scan of of a foil card that my trusty flatbed Canon has been able to pull off.

Weiss's card is from a brand called Topps Dimension III, commonly called D3. I'm a bit of a video gamer, so D3 in my universe refers to Blizzard's Diablo 3 game, which has provided many hours of entertainment. It's less of a click-fest than previous versions of the franchise, and they're still releasing new patches and content years after its initial release.

But I digress. As it turns out, Topps D3 was a pretty small set at only 59 base cards. Clearly, it's meant to be a competitor to Sportflix and UC3. It uses lenticular printing to deliver a 3D effect, though without the illusion of motion that Sportflix provides. Sportflix seems to have had a lock on this type of card in the mid-90s, as the product flopped and Topps didn't even bother to release a second series.

Finally, there were a few cards from the Munnatawket mini set based on 2008 Allen & Ginter. I've noticed that many other bloggers who trade with Chris seem to end up with some.

Munnatawket Custom #3 Spider-Man

What the heck are these things anyway? They're a set of custom cards created by a guy named Ryan, who is a friend of Chris'. Topps has nothing to do with these; they're solely the creation of a devoted fan who happens to manufacture baseball bats under the name "Munnatawket Lumber Co." And they could totally pass for the real thing.

Apparently, there are close to 100 different cards out there, and there's even a market for them on eBay. Numerous bloggers have posted about these before, and to be honest I even had one filed away with the rest of my 2008 A&G cards until I took a closer look.

I'm not sure I'd ever have the devotion to make my own cards. Hiflew at Cards from the Quarry does an Archives-like custom set every year called Quarry Unlimited, though as far as I know, they're digital-only and he's never had them printed. So far, he's used designs from 1986 Topps, 1977 Topps, 1988 Score, and just announced the 2015 set, based on the 1976 Hostess design.

I have plenty of traditionally manufactured baseball cards, but these customs are really pretty cool. I have to hope that Topps' or MLB's copyright hounds won't spoil all the fun, but regardless, if collectors don't like what the "real" companies are putting out, they'll just take matters into their own hands.

Munnatawket Custom #26 Troy Tulowitzki

And I will point out (Topps, are you listening?) that colored parallels are conspicuously absent in the Munnatawket custom mini set.

The Trading Post #20: Andrew's Baseball Cards

I have another new trading partner to blog about! This is the last of my trades from 2014, which arrived on New Year's Eve.

I reached out to Andrew at Andrew's Baseball Cards offering to fill some needs from his 2012 Bowman want list. One of the monster 5000-count boxes I got at a recent card show was loaded with them, so I had plenty to spare. I found a couple dozen cards for him (and gold parallel or two, if I recall correctly), and I got three pretty nice Rockies in return, as well as the always-appreciated handwritten note.

Todd Helton's rookie year was 1997, and this Score card from the following year documents his breakout performance in his first-ever major league game against the Pirates, where he hit a home run.

1998 Score #251 Todd Helton

That's a pretty goofy expression on Helton's face. But then again, no one ever took a picture of me mid-throw, so who am I to talk? Note that the card has a little printed tan seal in the lower right noting that it's Helton's "Official Pinnacle Rookie Card". Snazzy.

The second one that Andrew sent was a really thick serial numbered card from Topps Triple Threads. I've never purchased that product outright, but I do see it from time to time in dollar or 75-cent boxes.

2012 Topps Triple Threads Sepia #2 Carlos Gonzalez /625

Like products across Topps' whole lineup, Triple Threads has a large number of different colored parallels. The one above is the "Sepia" variety, which are numbered to 625. They continue the "triple" theme on the back with three different facts about the player, which they call the "triple take".

Finally, another thick card. But this one is thick to contain a relic, rather than just thick for the sake of feeling expensive.

2013 Topps Chasing History Relics #CHR-TT Troy Tulowitzki Series 2 (MEM)

That's my second bat relic of Tulowitzki. The first was sent to me by another blogger, Matthew at Bob Walk the Plank. Matthew's blog, by the way, is only a couple weeks younger than mine, and he is running a contest to commemorate his first anniversary. Follow that link and put your name in the hat!

But back to the card, the "Chasing History" insert set was one of my favorites of 2013, when Topps was milking the "chase" theme for all it was worth. I didn't know there were relic varieties in that insert set, but I do like the design. The back of the card mentions that Tulo is "chasing" the late Ernie Banks for the record of most 25-HR seasons by an NL shortstop. He was halfway to Banks' record of six (who did it consecutively, in fact) when this card was printed, and tacked on a fourth strong season in 2013. Tulo is quite the power hitter, but he'll need a few more healthy years to eclipse that mark.

One odd thing about this card that I haven't seen on any other relic is that the bat slice seems to be slightly misaligned. There's a tiny sliver of empty space in the lower left corner. It makes me wonder whether it was jostled in shipping somehow, or if that's just how it was manufactured.

Regardless, it will go nicely with my growing stack of Rockies relics and autographs! Thanks, Andrew, and I look forward to our next trade.

Let's Post Two!

As you've surely heard by now, Ernie Banks, nicknamed "Mr. Cub," passed away on Friday at the age of 83. To honor him and his catchphrase of "let's play two", I'm making this the first multi-post day since I started writing this blog just over a year ago.

2010 Topps The Cards Your Mom Threw Out #CMT63 Ernie Banks

The card above is a reprint from the 1956 Topps set, showing Banks touching home plate after one of his many home runs. I've seen plenty of posts about Banks in the blog community this weekend, and thought that a card showing him celebrating with his beloved teammates would be appropriate.

Banks, a two-time NL MVP and first-ballot Hall-of-Famer, was known for keeping an upbeat attitude despite many losing years on the Cubs. Before "Ironman" Cal Ripken, Jr. wrapped up his career, Banks held the record for most home runs by a shortstop. That power stroke was good enough to belt 512 home runs, though he played over 2,500 games without a postseason appearance, an unfortunate Major League record that stands to this day. And I thought Todd Zeile's record of most games played without an All-Star appearance was bad.

After a few years with the legendary Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro American League, and a short stint in the Army, Banks entered the NL in 1953, only a few years after Jackie Robinson broke the MLB's color barrier. In fact, Ernie Banks was the first African-American player to play for Chicago's NL team.

I wrote a few posts ago about players that stayed with one franchise throughout their career. Unsurprisingly, with a nickname like "Mr. Cub", Banks was one of them. He played 19 seasons for the Cubbies, and coached for a couple years after his retirement. He was so synonymous with the Cubs franchise that he was the first player to have his uniform number (14) retired by the team.

If the Cubs finally make this their year, you can be certain that it will be dedicated to the memory of Ernie Banks.

The Trading Post #19: Foul Bunt

I wrote not long ago about the practice of pinpointing the date of the photograph that appears on baseball cards. Thanks to a small trade package from William at Foul Bunt, I'm pretty sure I was able to do so on a recent Jordan Pacheco card.

2013 Topps #186 Jordan Pacheco

While I had do to a bit more detective work than if Pacheco wasn't blocking the scores or the pitchers' uniform numbers that appear on the manually-operated scoreboard in right field at Coors Field, I was able to narrow this down to the weekend of August 31st to September 2nd, 2012, based on the four matchups.

From there, it was a matter of reading up on Pacheco's performance that weekend. As usual for a Coors Field series, it was a slugfest, so Pacheco was on base quite a bit. He scored on a couple of home runs, and made it on base numerous times. But based on the detailed scoring, I am going to say that this is from the 4th inning of the Rockies-Padres contest on Saturday, September 1st, 2012.

You'll notice that there's an entry during the bottom of the 4th that Chris Nelson hit a fly ball to deep right field, with Pacheco going to third base. Pacheco stopped at third two other times during that game, but those were both on hits to left field, and the second of those was in the 9th inning, far too late for the other AL games to still be continuing. Furthermore, the Padres' second baseman looks like he's preparing to cut off a throw from right field, so that 4th inning play is my verdict.

I mentioned that this was a smaller package. While it is fun to get flat rate boxes packed full of cards, smaller packages have their place too. They also have the added benefit of not requiring a whole lot of curation on my part to determine what to post about.

2013 Topps Mini #5 Carlos Gonzalez

William threw in a 2013 Topps Mini. Minis I've received in trade before, but not the 2013s. I did buy a box of 2013 Minis from Dave & Adam's a month or so ago, but I did miss the sale on 2014s that Topps ran late last week. 

That one of CarGo (note the card number matching his uniform number) is a nice Coors Field shot, as he's sliding into home against the San Francisco Giants. I did see the Rockies host the Giants in 2012, and Gonzalez did score in that game, so there is a slim chance that it's from the same game my dad and I attended.

That's one thing I'd really like for my collection - a card from a game I attended. It's very likely that I already have some in my collection, but not many of them can be dated so accurately.

Moving on to the oldest card that William sent, it's a shot of The Big Cat, taken during the Rockies' inaugural year.

1994 Donruss Special Edition #66 Andres Galarraga

In 1994, Donruss made these "Special Edition" cards, a partial parallel set of 100 cards. The base set was 660 cards that year, so these gold foil cards are few and far between.

Like three other cards I have from this parallel set, there seems to be some kind of "seam" in the gold foil. I'm not sure of the printing process they used, but there is a very visible shift in the gold foil's shininess about a centimeter from the right edge of the card. I'm not sure how prevalent it is across the whole print run, but it's about 20% of my collection.

Back to some newer stuff, here's a red foil parallel from 2014 Topps.

2014 Topps Red Foil #465 Justin Morneau

It's a nice looking card, one of well over a dozen colored parallels to be found. And it's no Emerald, but there are numerous teams that would look great with this ruby-red background and border.

Morneau made another appearance in this trade package, this time from 2014 Panini Prizm.

2014 Panini Prizm #55 Justin Morneau

You all know I love shiny cards, and I know for a fact that I'm not the only one in this community with that sentiment. Therefore, I am really not sure why no one seems to like Panini Prizm. Sure, the absence of logos is a bummer, but I really don't see what else is not to like. They don't even curl as much as some years of Topps Chrome. Is it because they're spelling "Prizm" with a Z?

Finally, one more of Carlos Gonzalez, which is an insert card from 2014 Topps Update.

2014 Topps Update Power Players #PPA-CGN Carlos Gonzalez

That's a great bat barrel shot of CarGo, but the background of this card is a little unusual. It looks like the wormhole from Doctor Who.

Anyway, I'm pretty sure that I've obtained a near-complete Rockies team set from 2014 Update by now, as well as a few inserts. And it's all been via trades. Thanks, William, and I hope you like the Orioles I sent your way!

Winner Winner, Chicken Dinner!

Last week, this blog reached its one-year anniversary! In honor of that milestone, I announced a giveaway to anyone who commented on this post by last night. The entry period is over after receiving fourteen entries.

And the winner is...

Tim B!

Tim writes the new blog "I Love The Smell of Cardboard in the Morning" and is now the proud owner of a complete 90-card set of 2013 Panini Triple Play! Tim, please get in touch with me via email or @adamk0310 on Twitter to claim your prize.

Here are the results, in case you want to see where you fell in the random drawing.

The Drawing

In other news, I got three more trade packages in the mail yesterday, so keep an eye out for lots more posts in "The Trading Post" theme.

Thanks to everyone who commented, and congratulations to Tim!

The Trading Post #18: Cards on Cards

Another trade package that showed up late in 2014 was from the Cardinals blog Cards on Cards. There was a nice variety of stuff in here, all sorts of Upper Deck and Topps Update, even a relic or two.

He also threw in a card from one of my favorite brands as a child: Sportflix.

1995 SportFlix #96 Andres Galarraga

These cards look great in person, but I've seen lots of bloggers have trouble scanning them, myself included. I really just wanted to give it a try. But there is definitely something lost in translation when you can't see all the visual shifts that happen when you tilt the card back and forth.

One thing that certainly does scan well is one of the oldest ballparks in the game: Wrigley Field.

1996 Bazooka #96 Vinny Castilla

I've never been the biggest fan of the Bazooka brand, a Topps product. The designs don't really wow me, but I'm sure that it's a nostalgic product for plenty of collectors. This posed shot of Vinny Castilla isn't anything special, and it's painfully obvious that the photographer used a flash, but no baseball fan could mistake that iconic center field scoreboard at the Cubs' home park.

I've mentioned before that I think the insert sets found in Opening Day are pretty awesome, from the Mascot series, to Fired Up, and let's not forget Stadium Lights.

2012 Topps Opening Day Elite Skills #ES-23 Carlos Gonzalez

This is from 2012, the only Opening Day set from the last four years that I didn't buy a box of. Thus, I don't know the 2012 inserts too well, but I'm not at all surprised to see great insert sets from that year as well. The one is called "Elite Skills", and each card focuses on an advanced topic of baseball, such as "fielding a grounder", "catching a foul ball", "hitting the cut off" and other skills that a ballplayer of almost any age can use to improve their game.

This one of CarGo "Playing The Ivy" really only applies to those that have already reached the majors. Any little leaguer ought to know how to execute a rundown, but knowing the outfield ground rules at Wrigley is valuable knowledge to just a hundred or so guys. But I see their point; knowing the ground rules or how to play the quirks of a particular field (since only the diamond's dimensions are set in stone) can give you a valuable advantage in any setting.

2008 Stadium Club #4 Todd Helton

Even those who possess elite skills need to practice, practice, practice. Todd Helton, the only Rockie to have his number retired, takes batting practice like any Major Leaguer. I took golf lessons once, and we were told that golf superstar Phil Mickelson won't leave the practice green until he sinks one hundred consecutive three-foot putts.

Cue the putting drill, and a fellow student's comment of "I wish I could make one in a row!"

Back to Helton, that BP card is from 2008 Stadium Club, which didn't earn nearly as much love as the recent 2014 release, but still featured some pretty great photography regardless.

And a guy who practices that much ends up getting rewarded with nice, shiny cards like this:

2004 SP Prospects #35 Todd Helton

Todd Helton was well past the "Prospect" stage by 2004, but that didn't stop Upper Deck from including him in the 2004 SP Prospects set, along with three other Rockies (including Luis A. Gonzalez) that Cards on Cards shipped in this package.

Todd Helton progressed through all the developmental stages of a Major Leaguer with the Rockies, going from a prospect, to a rookie, to a star, to a team legend, who was given a "fond farewell" as he neared retirement.

2014 Topps Update Fond Farewells #FF-TH Todd Helton

One-team guys like Helton and Derek Jeter are a rare breed in today's sports world. People point to many older players like Mickey Mantle, Al Kaline, or even Ted Williams who "remained loyal" to one team throughout their careers, but that's a bit of a misconception. Yes, all those Hall-of-Famers played for only one franchise, but that isn't taking into account the legal situation of the day. Not all that long ago, the Reserve Clause was the law of the land, and the concept of free agency wasn't around to allow even the legends to earn what they were worth.

Not that free agency doesn't have plenty of its own problems ($9 ballpark beers being the least of them), but one has to admit that sports is a much more lucrative business than it used to be once the owners were dragged kicking and screaming into a world with a fair labor market.

Helton chose to stick around even in that labor market, and as the back of the above card points out, he was gifted with a horse shortly after he announced his retirement.

Yes, we still have a bit of the Wild West out here in Colorado. The National Western Stock Show is going on right now, in fact.

One player that will be going to his third team in 2015 is Michael Cuddyer. He got his start as a Twin, then spent three years in Denver. He'll stay in the National League next year as a Met.

2014 Topps Heritage Chrome #THC-33 Michael Cuddyer /999

Next year's Topps Heritage set will feature the 1966 design. They sure didn't have shiny, serial numbered cards like the above in the mid-'60s, although the Gemini space program was wrapping up by then, leading into Apollo shortly thereafter.

Not sure how I feel about that. I think I'd take an inspiring American space program over shiny cardboard with a gold serial number.

Think anyone in Congress would take that trade?

Perhaps not.

In that case, I'll just have to enjoy this Brad Hawpe relic instead.

2008 Topps Allen & Ginter Relics #AGR-BH Brad Hawpe (MEM)

These Allen & Ginter relics have two-piece construction. The inner card, which contains the relic, is the same size as an A&G mini, but is contained within a standard 2.5" x 3.5" outer frame. There's a thin plastic coating on both sides of the frame that holds the inner card in place, and there's even a little window cut out of the front side of the frame so you can feel the relic within. It's quite elaborate; way beyond 1966 technology. And bonus points for the sliver of purple pinstripe.

This was a fun post to write while I had the NFL playoffs turned on in the background. Thanks to Cards on Cards for all the, uh, cards!

One Year In (and a Giveaway!)

Today's a big day in Infield Fly Rule history. It's the one-year anniversary of this blog! Yes, January 15th, 2014 was the date of my first-ever post, which I put up shortly after winning a contest at Nick's Dime Boxes blog. It's been a good year, too! I didn't put up too many posts during the season itself, but after a few local card shows and well over a dozen trades, I've been getting a bit more into it! 

What else has happened this year?

I debuted the "Eight Men Out" page to list some of my top wants, and The Angels, In Order has already filled two of them!

I finally got a foul ball at a Rockies game in August!

I found a few new sets to enjoy.

I selected a Wallet Card for 2015.

My girlfriend opened up a Bret Saberhagen portal.

And, coincidentally, my guest post at Nachos Grande went up today for his "Better Know A Blogger" series!

So, in honor of all that, I think it's time for another Infield Fly Rule First; a giveaway!

What's the prize, you ask?

2013 Panini Triple Play #49 Aramis Ramirez

A complete short set (90 cards) of 2013 Panini Triple Play!

2013 Panini Triple Play Stickers Red #18 Yoenis Cespedes

I'll throw in a few inserts, too.

I ordered a box of this from Dave and Adam's Card World a month or so ago along with my Stadium Club hobby box, and the collation was pretty good! I was able to assemble two complete sets, so I figured I'd save one for a giveaway on the blog anniversary or whenever my Better Know A Blogger guest post went up, whichever happened first. Of course, those both occurred today!

This blog might not exist if I hadn't won Nick's giveaway a year ago. Perhaps a reader will win and be inspired to start his or her own blog, or perhaps it'll go to a fellow blogger who wasn't smiled on by the collation gods.

To enter, just leave a comment answering the following question:

How long have you been blogging?

That's all! The entry period will close on Tuesday, January 20th, 2015 at 11:59pm MST. Leave a comment before then and be entered to win! I'll randomly select a winner and post the results on Wednesday, January 21st.

Thanks for reading, and here's to another great year!