A Sunburn and a New Puppy: a Trade Post

So I was gone for a week or so there.  Did you miss me?  I missed you.

I was aboard this floating monument to excess:

In my entire tenure there (outside of the Mississippi River delta, at least) I was without phone and Internet - it was wonderful. 

We had some fun, got into a little trouble, and tore the roof off the sucker in general.  Two of my friends got married (to each other), and I lost a little money in poker but made it all back at the craps table.



My one good hand all week



We stopped off in Progreso and Cozumel, and we drank lots and lots of rum.

I mean lots.

Nearly there.....

Close enough.


But now I'm back on dry land.  The sunburn I picked up at Playa Mia lingers in that stage of healing between itching and peeling; my keys and cell phone once again weigh down my pockets; and I find myself having to occassionally drive a car, prepare my own food, and face the world with steadfast sobriety.

Before I left I pre-wrote five posts to be published in my absence.  All were on cards from 1991.  I wrote them, set the little date dealy on the right side toolbar, and left it.  When I got home I noticed none of them published.  Clearly I missed something.  Anyway, I started publishing those one at a time since my return to civilized society.  Now I'm fully back and raring to write snarky stuff about Griffeys again.


While I was gone I received two trade packages from a couple of Dodgers fans/all-star baseball card bloggers. 

The first is from Jim at GCRL.  The star of his package was this oversized Rusty Staub postcard:

Rusty went to my high school in New Orleans and once signed an autograph for my Dad when he was 10 (my Dad, that is).  My Staub collection is a bit rusty (humor joke!), but thanks to Jim I have this great new addition as well as these:



The technical name for a group of Kittles is a "bench."  A bench of Kittles.



I feel like Chuck Finley cards are incomplete without his trademark Chuckstache
 even though 98% of Chuck's cards are from the post-Chuckstache era.



I believe this is an Angels team set which means Chuck
is in there somewhere.  I'm no seal-breaker, though....




I love Cal Ripken - he's one of my favorite players to collect, and everybody loves the guy.  I find that sending someone Cal Ripken cards is a lot like giving someone a bag of Skittles.  Regardless of whether the recipient actively likes Skittles or not, you know they're going to eat those things at some point.  Skittles are good.



Maddux is more like Mike & Ikes.



I don't know what it is, but I really like mascot cards now.  I've been setting them aside ever since I pulled my first one from a pack of 2012 Topps.  They're all so....furry.




Just a sweet mullet.





I also collect Griffeys.  Were you aware?

Many thanks, Jim.  Everybody should go send him their double-play cards and whatever Dodgers he needs.....


I also got a trade package from Mr. Night Owl, standard-setter for card blogs everywhere.  I scoop up a fistful of '75 Topps minis for Greg at my local monthly card show whenever I can make it.  There's a kindly old gentleman there who has boxes and binders of the things and lets them go for pretty cheap (as far as I know), and you all know how much fun it is to help someone with their want list.

Anyway, here's a fun mix of cards from Night Owl:

I've been wanting one of these since I learned of their existence.  Bonkers card.

Cow, MooTown Snackers.  Coincidence?  That Flair card is sweet.

Chuck has a real "Do you think I'm sexy?" thing going on in that Triple Play card.



Classic Kittle.  This may be my Halloween costume this year.





A beautifully miscut '75 mini, and one of the silliest
names in baseball.  He coached Griffey from the bench
in Cincinnati for a short time.  Didn't do great.



In honor of Mr. Owl: Griffeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeys!!!!

That mid-90's Bowman Chrome is a beaut, but the real star of the show is this guy:

This was one of the few base cards I don't have.  I learned this because I started writing the post for that Topps set before scanning.  Then while scanning I realized I had the Opening Day issue but not the flagship base card.  Derp.  Felt pretty dumb.

Plus that picture is sa-weeeeet........

Thanks, Greg!  Go update your '75 minis want list ASAP.  I think the next card show is right around the corner, and I'm just going to end up printing that thing up before I go. 

Everybody, go send Night Owl some Dodgers.  I would tell you to read his blog, but I bet dollars to donuts most of you already do.  Keep doing that.

Oh, and we totally did get a new puppy.  More on that later.....

1991 Upper Deck Final Edition: a Little Brick of Awesome

In my collection:

Griffey looks: showing off

Is this a good Griffey card? Yes. 

The set: I complain sometimes about small factory sets, usually accusing them of being pointless money-grabs by the manufacturer.  '91 Upper Deck Final Edition is the exception.  This set is positively loaded with great cards including a stack of excellent rookie cards as well as some great All-Star cards.  Oh, and two Griffeys, but who's counting? (me, I am)

I'm lucky enough to have won two of these sets on the last day of my high school baseball card collector's club's existence.  One was sealed and the other was not.  The sealed one remains so to this day:

Here's a few rookies that appear in this set - let me know if any of these ring a bell:  Rondell White, Ryan Klesko, Pedro Martinez, Brian Hunter, Kenny Lofton, Dan Wilson, Rondell White. Jim Thome, Ivan Rodriguez.

Impressive list, no? 

Dan Wilson is totally my boy.

 

And how about that Will Clark All-Star card showing him being interviewed at the big game in Toronto?  Another awesome card.

Let's take a close look at that Griffey:



OK, so we're at the All-Star Game.  This is obviously an exposition/batting practice thing.  Griffey is showing off his naturally perfect, freak-of-nature Griffey swing, as he should be.  Looks like the Upper Deck photographer got primo access, being officially-licensed back then. 

There are a couple of people, a lady in a khaki skirt on the left and a man in a light blue polo on the right, standing in the background with their backs to the camera and their feet spread a little too far apart to appear comfortable.  These are probably native Toronto residents who volunteered for this event to keep a perimeter around the talent so they can have an effective practice.  There are a couple of guys, probably with special passes, who appear to have broken that perimeter and are standing all up in Griffey's net business, wondering how such a swing could exist in creation.  There's also another player in this picture standing in front of the girl volunteer.  Is that a Padres uniform?  Does anyone recognize that guy?

Sorry to dwell on this, but there's so much going on in this picture, and I'm an inquisitive fellow who enjoys the process of deduction.  Any suggestions as to who all these folks are in the comments below would be helpful.

Overall I love this card because it feels very real - my only complaint is a sentence on the back that reads "The youngest A.L. player to win a Gold Glove, Griffey Jr. is errorless in four All-Star fielding chances."  I get that they're trying to tie his Gold Glove to the All-Star Game, but this is a fluff sentence.  If you can't go 4-for-4 on catches in the outfield, you probably shouldn't play outfield let alone play in the All-Star Game at all.  It might as well have stated "A state of Washington Driver's License recipient, Griffey Jr. is 2-for-2 in successfully driving a car to the stadium for an All-Star Game."  Maybe I'm being overly-critical, but that was the closest thing to a flaw I could find in this whole set.

Another excellent card.  No frills, just a tiny logo and a big ol' picture of Junior and the great Ryne Sandberg holding their All-Star MVP trophies.  These are two of my favorites of all time, so it's remarkable to see them on a card together.

I've seen these going on eBay for pretty cheap, so it's definitely worth picking up.  You should also go see the new Star Trek movie - that is unrelated but equally true.

1991 Panini Stickers: One Spicy Oddball

In my collection: 2

Griffey looks: molto bene

Is this a good Griffey card? Yes.  It's from Italy which cannot be said for many baseball cards anythings.

The set: There's not very much to this set.  It's a very nice color photograph for a sticker.  It's printed on extremely thin stock - thinner than most computer paper I use.  There is an abbreviated stat line on the front and some basic information about the player - Griffey's card notes that he is a "1990 All-Star."  With all that, the front of this card resembles a generic card back.

The back of this card tells us that "Trading double stickers with your friends is fun."  I agree, unless we're talking about Griffeys in which case I jealously hoard all the stickers and strike like a cobra at anyone trying get their grubby little paws on them.  The back also tells us to "bend and peel."  Ha ha ha NO.

So is this an oddball card?  After much deliberation I decided it was not (despite the cute title) and gave it its own post.  Here's why:

First, Panini had already been making baseball stickers for several years when this came out, and they would continue for years after.

Second, Panini made sports-related memorabilia exclusively.  This is not a maker of frozen pizzas or soft drinks putting out a promotional item.  Sports memorabilia is all they do.

Third, the design is unique.  This isn't a co-opted design such as Coca-Cola did with Topps (and Donruss in 1992).  Basic as it may be, it is 100% original to Panini.

Fourth, they are still around today.  They even have the same logo they had back then. 

Finally, this bad boy is officially sanctioned.  It's got the logos and pedigree of a real, honest-to-goodness baseball card.

I mention these guidelines here because Griffey has an absurd number of oddballs out there and I'm going to start posting them soon a few at a time.  Rules must be in place for proper oddball classification.  Input is welcome in the comments below.

In the meantime, let's get another look at that Griffey:

This must be an early afternoon game as the sun is hitting the field just right.  As the guys who printed this card would say, Griffey looks molto bene.

I love shots that show a lot of faces in the crowd.  This one is a little too small to get the full benefit, but I still find myself hunting for the inevitable one guy picking his nose (bottom-right corner in the hat - unconfirmed).

I hardly ever do this but......

1991 Bowman the Purple Dinosaur

In my collection: 1 regular

Griffey looks: gazing Northwest

Is this a good Griffey card? Yes.

The set: When it comes to innovation, Bowman was still lagging when this set was made.  Bowman made some big changes to their cards in 1992, making this the last year before most of those changes took place.  The result is that apart from the stat box and the lack of a Tiffany set this set isn't very different from any other.  '91 was Bowman's stepping stone to greatness, but not its arrival.

The design itself is an improvement over the "Rasta" set of the previous year, but it wasn't quite at the level of aesthetic subtlety they would produce in '92.  First, it's still on cardboard.  The green back looks great despite having nothing in common with the front.  I think they got the bar across the bottom right, but the borders feel a bit confining.  Then again, I am a sucker for purple split-fades.  Anyone else on that trolley?

Besides its drawbacks, Chipper Jones, Jeff Bagwell, Jim Thome and Pudge Rod all had rookies in this set.  I think I have one of them:



Yep, here it is.


There's also this bad boy:

 

This is probably my favorite card in the set outside of my Griffey fandom.  Bobby Thompson knocking Ralph Branca's fastball out of the park to win the pennant for the Giants - a great moment in Baseball history.

There's not much else worth mentioning in the base set beside the fact that there are a few gold foil-stamped subsets. The above card is one of these.

Here's Mr. Griffey:

A great candid shot of the Kid gazing Northwest.  Perhaps it's a nod to all that Seattle has given him, perhaps there was an attractive redhead waving to him from the stands - we may never know.

One great thing about this card is that it demonstrates perfectly the function of a baseball cap on the guy renowned for wearing it backwards.  Isn't it ironic, dontcha think?

This is a relatively overlooked set despite the great rookies, but it is still one of my personal favorites of that year which isn't saying very much.  Topps was the only real standout set of '91 with Bowman, in my opinion, at a distant second.

This has been another one of those "one-Griffey sets," meaning a nice, short post.  I suggest you use the extra time you had set aside today for reading The Junior Junkie to better yourself in some way.  Read a book, do some pushups, or go hug a loved one.

The Junior Junkie: we care.

Mo' Cardboard, Mo' Problems: 1990 Topps Big

In my collection: 1

Griffey looks: young

Is this a good Griffey card? Yes, despite the fact that the gimmick of slightly-larger-than-normal cards makes collectors insane with rage.

The set: I have never seen a completed set of Topps Big.  I have to wonder if anyone out there is masochistic enough to try.

Small cards are huge right now (ironic, no?), and no one is going to complain because they fit into cases and sleeves and pages and boxes and pretty much everywhere you can put regular cards.  Sure they rattle around in there, but at least you're not getting finger grease on them.  At least they're not sticking out of the top of the case getting all bent and soft-cornered along the top edge only - looking at you '89 Bowman.

Then again, '89 Bowman could still fit into an irregularly tall top loader.  They would get precariously close to the top edge, but they were in there.

Cut to Topps Big, which at 2 5/8" by 3 3/4" is too tall and too wide to fit into whatever cases you already own because top loaders size-discriminate worse than Ambercrombie and Fitch.  Hey, kid - you want to keep that Jim Abbott card from getting all dinged up by the world?  Get your Mom to drive you to the card shop for some irregularly-sized cases.  Oh, and by the way, the next size up is way too big for that card, so you're going to have to find a spot to store those cases as well. 

Or you can just throw the stupid card away and move on with your life, an idea that seems plausible until you remember that the promise of future baseball card values has made you into a pre-teen hoarder and you can't bring yourself to throw it away, so you just keep it sideways in a white box with all the other oddball-sized and shaped cards that have no justifiable storage space in your collection.

Then 12 years later you open said box and see that Jim Abbott card and all you can think is, "Oh, God.  Those stupid things.  This card used to stress me out like crazy.  Baseball cards are evil."  After that you go to the backyard to burn the card in an attempt to cleanse yourself of all the organizational dysfunction it has caused in your adult life, but you still can't do it because you underestimated the deep-seated psychological trauma that is now rooted firmly in your psyche from this card not having a place in the world, so you clutch the card firmly to your chest and rock back and forth on the lawn, crying into the night "I must protect you, cardboard orphan, until your Beckett hi-value grows strong.  You're gonna make papa proud someday," and back into the white box it goes.  Then decades later you die of a sudden brain aneurysm and your family finds the box stuffed into a closet, opens it up, recognizes the contents as worthless, and chucks the entire thing into the trash.

Possessions are fleeting.

All that being said, this set has a cool classic design that I really like.  Both the front and back are bold and colorful; and like the 1988 set of the same name and dimensions, all the cards were printed horizontally which works well with the size.  And you've gotta love the inclusion of both an action shot and a portait on the card front.

With all that great space, I would like to have seen more stats or a nice, big blurb full of cool information.  Topps decided to go with a cartoon, which is cool.  I'd prefer it showed Griffey instead of some white guy, but whatevs.

Speaking of the Kid:

Griffey looks so young here.  If someone showed me this picture without the M's cap, I wouldn't have guessed it was Griffey at all.

After graining it up for a vintage look, Topps re-used this picture in their 2007 Topps '52 Debut Flashbacks set.  Here it is:

Topps Big would have made more sense if the cards were, say, 4" x 6" or 5" x 7".  Then at least you could put them into a picture frame or something.  As it is, that couple of extra millimeters made the set a cruel joke, and I hate it to this day.

And I still don't know who the white guy on the back is.  Paul O'Neill?  A.C. Slater?

1991 Upper Deck: the Baseball Diamond Comes Home

In my collection: 20+ regular, 2 Ken Griffey, Sr

Griffey looks: zeroed in

Is this a good Griffey Card? Yes.  The last in a series of inter-related Upper Deck designs with some great shots of the Kid and his Dad.

The set: Upper Deck was still riding the crest of the wave they made in '89.  While a lot of other brands were playing catch up, Upper Deck was moving on with their great photography, quality card stock, and dual-sided full-color printing.

Nothing signifies Upper Deck's momentum more than the baseball diamond theme of their first three sets. In '89 you had the first base line, then the run to second in 1990.  Here the go-ahead run rounds third and goes home.

In other words: we're moving on - expect big things from us.

Here's a terrible visualization of the "Upper Deck baseball diamond" I put together:

Some elements carry over to the next year.  The position is always printed on the bags, the dirt tracks at the 1st and 3rd base lines, and we always start at the Upper Deck logo assuming the logo is the on-deck circle on the '89 card (is that pushing it?).

Check these out:

 

That's a Jordan card three years early (pre-rookie?), and an unbelievably young Chipper. 

Now let's take another look at that Griffey:

Junior is zeroed in on that pitcher something fierce.  The blurb on the back tells us that Griffey had had two pinch-hit opportunities in his career up to that point, and both were game-winning home runs.  That's a pretty amazing stat; but with the level of focus demonstrated on this card, it seems as plausible as ever.

And did I mention the tongue/flipped-up shades combo on the back?

Griffey also has a surprise card in '91 Upper Deck:





I suppose it's less surprising to see Junior make a cameo on his Dad's card than that of anyone else in the set, but the definition still applies. 

Looks like Junior may have done something gold glove-worthy on the field, and his dad is giving him a "good hustle" tap.  We also see Senior in what would eventually become Junior's number when he moves to his hometown Reds a decade later.  And not to sound weird, but Ken, Sr. has some nice eyelashes in this picture.  Overall, this is a great photo of the father-son pair in the short time they wore the same uniform.

There is a disparity among holograms in the 1991 Upper Deck base set.  I don't appear to have any of the variations to show you, but you can read about them here.  As a completist I would list them as collection needs, but that is a level of anal I just don't want to touch.

There were few really great sets in 1991, but Upper Deck made it happen.  The cherry on top was their 100-card Final Edition set.  Tune in tomorrow for that bit of tightness.