For He is Nate, Master of the Oddball: a Trade Post

 

Nate, a reader from Minnesota, sent me two trade packages loaded with amazing oddballs.

It's no secret that I'm crazy about oddballs. At the family reunion that is Griffey cardboard, oddballs are the weird cousins you never talk to but who always bring excellent dip you just can't stop eating. Sure, you make plans to hang out next week without the rest of the family, but you secretly know they're not going to happen. Then you see each other again at Uncle Jim's funeral and end up hanging out at a bar afterwards, getting drunk and bashing cousin Andy and his hairlip (which would be mean if he wasn't such a jerk). And you're just laughing your ass off all night thinking, "Man, oddballs are pretty freakin' cool."

There's minimalism and then there's stark empty space. At least the color fade breaks it up a little.

Some very simple oddballs on the ends here, but that one in the middle has a lot going on. Look at all the sciency physics stuff on there. And is that a pun on Junior's first (middle, actually) name? And that dramatic lighting? What a great oddball!

These gold-bordered beauties from Sports Card Monthly have serious production value. The photo on the right was recently used on the cover of Beckett Sports Cards Monthly (the non-baseball-specific one). You hardly ever get to see Junior's Mom. The resemblance is definitely there.

There are a bunch of these Stadium News oddballs out there. They're glossy and pretty high-quality for early oddballs.

I collect Griffey on old Topps designs, so the one on the left here was a treat. And check out Mr. Blue Foil over here. You normally only get that on the rarest of the rare parallels.

 

The card on the right is interesting in that it was made to celebrate the fact that both Griffeys were playing at the same time, but it puts them in juxtaposed lockers which was not a thing...yet. A year after this card was made, they really would be in the same locker room; but there were no cards made. A missed cardboard opportunity...

 





Gold borders with purple lettering? Swoon.

They weren't all oddballs, of course. There's the first ever short-printed Griffey base card on the left. The Pit Crew card from Upper Deck was some kind of multi-sport set that I've never been able to pin down. I consider it the closest thing to an oddball Upper Deck ever made.

 

Oops - an oddball snuck in with these Topps and Fleer cards. How'd that happen?

You can't say Upper Deck wasn't consistent design-wise. That is my favorite National Trading Card Day issue Upper Deck ever made. Excellent photo.

And the rest. This was an awesomely massive haul of Griffeys, but that's not all:

 

 

Here are a few set needs for my 1992 Donruss set build. I'm very close to having all the Diamond Kings...

 

 

And a pair of branded oddballs of PC Will Clark. I'd never even seen these Jiffy Pop cards before - very cool. And those Toys R US cards were always super-glossy and colorful, let aone the fact that it's a rookie card. This thing was probably worth a few bucks back in the day.

 

 

Finally, here are a bunch more PC cards and great water gun shot. That Marquis card was one of the biggest surprises I've ever seen from Bowman. Great to see Expos Grissom on Chromium in 2015.

 

These packages were a real treat - thanks a ton, Nate! I sent you a PWE a few weeks (months?) ago with a bunch of other Griffey oddballs. I'll be sending out another one soon because I most definitely owe you.





Take Five: a Multi-Dude Trade Post

I came up with a new system for streamlining trade posts, and I did such a great job that I lost all my scans for a while there. Luckily I found the folder I'd hidden them in (which I'd named "trade posts" - duh) just last week. To celebrate, here are FIVE of those trades packages/PWE's I've received over the past God-knows-how-long:

Ever since I first listened to Pet Sounds in March of 2000 I've been a Beach Boys nut, and Corky of Pack Wars knows this. He bought the same box I did, and he took the time to send me a bunch of the inserts including this great Brian Wilson Etchings card.

You've probably heard "Little Saint Nick," but the 'Boys actually had a whole album full of solid, harmony-driven Christmas music. I didn't even realize "The Man With All the Toys" was a Top 10 hit. I'm a bad Beach Boys fan.

I am crazy about these "On the Record" inserts featuring all their albums. I have every one of these on vinyl, and I can tell you that Surf's Up on the right there is among my favorites. They're not all hits, but there are some killer songs on that album including the title track, which was the Beach Boys' answer to the Beatles' "A Day in the Life" (and originally slated to end the doomed Smile album).

Thanks for the great cards, Corky! I may have to buy another box of these babies.

One of my oldest trading partners, Jim from garvey cey russell lopes hit a bunch of player collections with his trade package. I'm a little embarassed to admit I think that Archetypes insert may have been relatively new when I received this package.

Some great mid-90's Marquis, including one of my favorite cards of his: the autograph shot featuring Grissom's rarely-seen smile from 1995 Upper Deck (of course). It's still strange to see him in a Brewers uni, but I'm coming around.

Bam - secret Griffey!

Javy had some excellent rookie cards, didn't he? And the border color for that Topps issue could not have been more perfect for a Mariner. His swing covers his face a little in the photo, but the border color is most definitely on fleek. Fleek, I say!

It seems Tom from The Angels, in Order came upon a trove of Toys'R'Us (or "TRU" as we former employees call it) cards because I remember seeing them in multiple trade posts a few weeks (months?) back. These are the regular-sized cards from the retail set...

...and these puppies are the oversized "Master Photo" versions. These came in blister packs of three with COA's like commemorative plates from the Franklin Mint, only cool. These large cards are not terribly uncommon, but they are very hard to find in mint condition which Tom's were. Thanks for thinking of me, Tom!



Kerry of Cards on Cards fame is an active trader who reads want lists. He hit a bunch of my set needs across the spectrum - from 1981 to 2015, Kerry is on the case! Check out that great Fergie Jenkins from '82 Donruss. That red, massively-serifed font across his chest is just one reason this was the greatest the Rangers' uniforms ever looked.

Here's one of my favorite cards Kerry sent, a colorful and sharp-looking late-issue for the greatest-hitting catcher. Ear flaps be damned.

Finally, a great, old Topps issue of one of my newest PC's, the infamous Dock Ellis who is famous for that thing. It was exciting crossing off so many set needs from this package - thanks again, Kerry!

To close this post out, here's a card pulled by Mark Kaz of This Way to the Clubhouse... earlier in the year. It' still my intention to complete the Will Ferrell insert set, but somehow they're really holding their value. This may take a while, but at least I've got that Mariners card covered! I'm currently at 20% complete. Thanks a bunch, Mark! I think Seattle got one of the funnier cards in the set.

Thanks again, everybody! And to everyone else who has sent me cards, I have at least a dozen more trade posts coming out over the next few weeks. Keep me honest!

The Great Griffey Frankenset: Page 4

Welcome to The Great Griffey Frankenset!

 

If you're not familiar with the idea of a Frankenset, it is a customized set of cards properly sequenced by card number that all tie into a connecting theme. Some Frankenset themes include whole teams, mini-collections, and even just generally great cards or photos. This is the first Frankenset I'm aware of that is made up of just one player: Ken Griffey, Jr., the man of a million cards. I took the liberty of including things like inserts, parallels, cameos, and oddballs for the sake of variety and because it's just more fun that way. Enjoy!

Here is page 4 of the Great Griffey Frankenset:
 

Completeness of page: 9/9

Completeness of the Frankenset so far: 100% (36/36)

Team distribution so far: Mariners: 31/36 (86%), Reds: 4/36 (11%), White Sox: 1/36 (3%)

Cards not listed in Beckett Magazine: 5/9 (17/36 total, 47%)

Approximate Retail Value of this page: $198.50 ($1230.50 running total)

Page 4 notes: A lot of firsts on this page. Here we get the first relic, the first autograph, the first card with Ken, Sr., and the first page with more than one Reds card. Heck, you even get a White Sox card on this page (I tried to include White Sox cards as often as I could - there just aren't that many). This page also runs the length of Griffey's career with a card from way back in 1988 and another from as recent as 2012. But best of all, I feel like this is the first page that gives you a real sense of the fun variety of Griffey cardboard that was my goal for this set. Who would have imagined that these cards would ever appear together in the same binder page. And that they would be in perfect order when they did?

Page 4:

28. 1991 Country Hearth #28 (w/ Ken, Sr.)

Here is a regional branded oddball from Country Hearth who I believe make bread products. Maybe they make the buns for Kahn's quality meat hot dogs? Anyhoo, it's a very different shot of Junior and Senior on the same field in the same uniform. I love how we can see both names and numbers on the jerseys and the team standing in a row in the background. Clearly Senior just returned home from a round-tripper, and Junior is stepping up to the plate. Could this be the night of the legendary back-to-back home runs? Even if it isn't, this photo shows us a great moment symbolic of Ken, Sr. wrapping up a long, successful career as Junior stepping up to start his own.

29. 2012 Playoff Prime Cuts Timeline Triple Game-Used Jersey Relic #29 #/10

I like jersey relics - I don't really love them. But I will admit that sometimes the design and layout with the relics is just right, and that relic card really pops. That's the case with this triple relic from 2012 Playoff Prime Cuts. I'm into it. The fact that there are only ten is just icing.

 

30. 2003 Playoff Portraits #30

It was between this and another older but rarer 90's Mariners card. I enlisted my wife to help me choose one, and this is the one she went with. Didn't even take her long. The other card was really sweet, but I think she picked right. This is one of the great Griffey "art cards" with its tangible simulated brush strokes.

31. 2000 Upper Deck Ovation #31

I love this base design. It reminds me of one of the big inserts from when I was a lil' collector, 1995 Leaf Statistical Standouts, a card I only recently acquired undamaged. The big black box behind Junior is clunky, but it's still a looker. There's also a Reds version from this very same set.

32. 2005 Upper Deck UD Portraits Game-Used Jersey Relic #32 Emerald #/99

Another relic, this one also very limited in run. I'll admit that the relic and low number did enter into this one getting picked, but so did that excellent portrait. What else should we expect from a brand called "Portraits?"

33. 1989 Donruss #33

The card that got me into Griffey, the first card that I ever busted packs to get, the first Griffey I ever owned, and the orangest-backed card probably ever-ever. All politics aside, if Griffey rookies were Democratic candidates, the Upper Deck #1 would be Hilary Clinton. Old #33 here would be Bernie Sanders - never going to win, but still somehow super popular with the regular folks.

 

34. 1988 San Bernardino Spirit #34

There are two versions of this card, and this is the real one. The one featuring an out-of-focus action shot in a white jersey is a Broder. I'll level with you here: I think this card is ugly as sin, but I really dig the photo. And it was still better than every other #34 I had to choose from.

35. 2008 Stadium Club #35 1st Day Issue #/599

From the failed 2008 reboot of Stadium Club comes what may be my favorite White Sox card ever made. I'm a big fan of this set's design, and I like how the First Day Issue holofoil interacts with the black nameplate. And check out how fit Junior looks. Some of these late-issue Griffeys prominently feature the Kid's success gut, but here he looks like a spring chicken.

 

36. 2003 Upper Deck Ultimate Collection Sweet Spot #36 Buyback Autograph #/75

This card is both my first buyback and my first hand-numbered auto. I've always been a fan of this set's base card design, and when the buyback came up for sale on eBay a few weeks ago for way too cheap, I was quick to pounce. The only thing I'm not sure about is what set this card was included in. Was it a buyback that was inserted into Ultimate Collection packs from later years? Or did Upper Deck have a bunch of base cards signed before putting them into 2003 packs? Whatever - it's #36. That's all I'm worried about for our purposes.

Here's the back of Page 4:

 

Thanks for reading, and look for page 5 next Friday!

Ken Griffey, Jr. Baseball Card Cameos: the Canonical List

I've been working on this list for a few years now, and it's finally ready to post. Welcome to the online database of Ken Griffey, Jr. baseball card cameos!

A cameo is just what it sounds like, a player appearing on another player's card whether purposefully or by happy accident. Some look intentional and some don't, as you will see.

Cards that I do not consider cameos include team photos, non-player cards, multi-player cards, and non-player-specific checklists. I am also not including any small sets made specifically for Ken, Jr. and/or Ken, Sr. such as those from Star, Mother's Cookies, Pepsi, and the excellent 1995 Pacific Mariners Memories set. I still count all of these cards as Griffeys, but cameos they are not.

While cameos are a great excuse to collect some exciting parallels you may not otherwise be able to afford for the player you love, I am not including any parallels of the cards listed below for brevity's sake, though those most certainly count. Also, please feel free to comment here with any Griffey cameos I may be missing, and I will see to it that they are added. You can find a list of possible but unconfirmed Griffey cameos below the main list, so feel free to weigh in on those as well.

Enjoy!

Ken Griffey, Jr.'s Baseball Card Cameos:

1989 Bowman Ken Griffey #259 (cameo)

While this is certainly in the spirit of a multi-player card, it is actually Ken, Sr.'s base card in the set which make Junior's appearance a cameo.

1991 Fleer Jeffrey Leonard #456 (cameo)

The first of many Griffey-on-deck cameos. You have to wonder what kind of effect being number double-zero has on your self-esteem. Thanks to Bo for bringing this one to my attention.

1991 Upper Deck Greg Briley #479 (cameo)

Yeah, I'm counting back-of-the-card cameos. They're just as rare if not rarer than your average cameo. The first of two Griffey cameos from '91 Upper Deck, this one features a great letterbox photo of the Kid congratulating Mr. Briley on his super sweet dad frames.

1991 Upper Deck Ken Griffey, Sr. #572 (cameo)

These two got on more than a few cards together during their short-lived simultaneous stint with the Mariners, but of all those, this is the only one we can call a cameo because it is Senior's true base card.

1992 Stadium Club #117 B.J. Surhoff (cameo)

Here is the earliest example of my favorite kind of cameo, the canded action shot. With cards like these we can only wonder if Junior's presence in the shot influenced this photo getting chosen for the set. The biggest argument to that fact is that the photo used here could have been cropped vertically and all we'd have seen of the batter is a leg and a left butt cheek. Instead they went with the horizontal layout so we can all see exactly who was at the plate. Well done, Stadium Club. I like how Junior looks like he's about to smash the ground in anger with his trademark black bat when in reality he's probably avoiding the put-out throw to second.

1993 SP Jay Buhner #128 (cameo on back)

Another great cameo back. I like how Griffey is focused on the camera with a tough-guy non-smile and probably assuming Jay is doing the same thing while he is, in fact, doing the complete opposite: the platonic man-friend near-kiss. Classic buddy move. It usually takes a few beers before guys get to this level of clowning around.

1993 Upper Deck #224 Jay Buhner (cameo)

By the way, you're going to see a lot of Jay Buhner cards in this list. These guys were joined at the hip in Seattle.

1994 Score Rookie & Traded Jody Reed #RT49 (cameo)

Double-play shots have given us some of the greatest cameos in cardboard history. Jody Reed is actually on this list twice as you will see, and both times he is putting Junior out at second. I suspect both photos are from the same play.

1995 Pinnacle Sandy Alomar, Jr. #39 (cameo)

Another candid action shot, this one may be the first truly non-intentional Griffey cameo on this list. While that is unmistakeably Griffey on the ground there, he is hidden behind Alomar's mitt and obscured by dust following what must have been one heck of a collision at the plate.

1995 Stadium Club #38 Jody Reed (cameo)

This is the first Griffey cameo I ever saw, and it was almost 20 years between when I discovered this card and when I finally owned one. Now, if you told me there was a second-baseman with two Griffey cameos in his cardboard history, I would expect it to be either Joey Cora or someone else in the AL West; but Mr. Reed is a Brewer, and he's not Joey Cora, either. That combined with the fact that every aspect of their uniforms is identical leads me to believe this is the same double play from the '94 Score Rookie & Traded card. If not, it's a hell of a coincidence.

1996 Score #323 Jay Buhner (cameo)

Again, probably intentional by Score - any excuse to get Junior on cards in the mid-90's - but this is a personal favorite among Junior/Buhner buddy shots.

1996 Upper Deck V.J. Lovero Showcase #VJ4 Barry Bonds (cameo)

Inserts count all day long, and they're even pretty darn rare. Usually inserts are heavily focused on the one player, often going so far as to incorporate only the player silhouette with no photo background. This one, though, which focuses on great baseball photography from Upper Deck's first-string photographer, gave us a fun behind-the-scenes look at the pair of second-generation All-Stars. Check out the double backwards caps.

1997 Collector's Choice Derek Jeter #180 (cameo on back)

Another one from eagle-eye Bo, here is the Kid with next generation All-Star Derek Jeter. Nice to see everyone getting along, though the Mariners would be knocking the Yankees out of AL Chamionship contention only a short while after this was taken. Tough luck, Derek!

1997 Collector's Choice #333 Jay Buhner Ken Griffey, Jr.'s Hot List (cameo)

Are you sick of these two yet? Ugh, just get an apartment together already. I'm kidding, of course. I'm a huge fan of both these guys, and thanks to Wayne's World I understand that platonic love can exist between two grown men.

1997 Collector's Choice Jay Buhner #480 (cameo on back)

It's the same photo as the Hot List card above, but you can see the stadium lights a lot better here.

1997 Donruss Jay Buhner #58 (cameo)

Gettin' it done on the field as they often did. This is the final Buhner card on this list though there are probably more I just haven't come across yet. The exact same photo was used on the 1997 Donruss Jay Buhner Team Set card #138 which I'm mentioning here because it is an entirely different set and not a parallel.

1998 Fleer Sports Illustrated Randy Johnson #66 (cameo)

See that guy sitting next to Randy in the Nike turtleneck? That's our guy. There's no smoking gun I can point out here that removes all doubt, but come on. I mean, come on.

1998 Fleer Sports Illustrated Then & Now Alex Rodriguez Great Shots Mini-poster (cameo)

These mini-posters came one per pack in '98 SI Then & Now, so I have no qualms including this one on the official list. This poster also gives us two bonus cameos: Edgar Martinez and Joey Cora.

1998 Fleer Sports Illustrated Then & Now Edgar Martinez #109 (cameo)

We can't see his face here, but that's Junior being hugged by Edgar Martinez. I like to think I've seen enough Griffey ears on baseball cards to recognize them in a man-hug situation.

1998 Upper Deck Mark McGwire Chase for 62 #4 (cameo)

In 1998 McGwire got his own set of cards called "Chase for 62." Pictured here are both top vote-getters for the 1998 All-Star game. Can you guess which one is going to be inducted to the Hall of Fame first?



1998 Upper Deck UD3 Jay Buhner #213 (cameo)

See the guy sitting down outside the dugout to the left? That's Junior. See the backwards cap? The shape of the face? The concern for his friend's performance at the plate? It's definitely him. I'll be honest - I had this one listed below in the "unconfirmed" list for a while. Now, after multiple viewings, I have very little doubt.

2000 Stadium Club #184 Damion Easley (cameo)

Another excellent double play shot. I would call this one unconfirmed were it not for the handy numbering on the brim of Junior's helmet. Stadium Club knows their action shots.

2000 Topps Alex Rodriguez #100 (cameo)

This very well may be the last Griffey cameo on a Mariners card. We can see Junior on deck in the background. He's a little blurry, but that's definitely him, holding his bat like a lefty. Unfortunately, blue tank top in the crowd there has a better view of Griffey than we do.

2007 Upper Deck Scott Hatteberg #289 (cameo)

One of the stars of Moneyball, first baseman Scott Hatteberg, ended up playing in Cincy for a stint after his historic time with Oakland. Whatever is going on in his picture, I want in. I like to think the Reds are up by like 20 runs and it's all a big joke at this point, hence the smiles, backwards cap, and general wilding out. He frickin' SAFE, ump! C'mon we're up by 20 - does it really matter? Just let it go!

2013 Topps Update Tony Gwynn #US140 SP (cameo)

One of the pricier Griffey cameos you can get (if you can find one), this *S*SP from 2013 Topps Update is offically a Tony Gwynn card; but I really think it could go either way. A stirring candid shot of a young star hanging out with a seasoned veteran. I wish all SP's were this cool.

______________________________________________________________________

Unconfirmed Griffey Cameos:

1996 Fleer Joey Cora #234 (cameo?)

Based on what I know about the mid-90's Mariners batting order, it is entirely plausible that that blurry silhouette in the background is another on-deck Junior. A-Rod would eventually take Cora's spot as second in the order; but this picture was likely taken in 1995, well before A-Rod had proven himself. Then again I don't remember Junior in white batting gloves, so I could be totally wrong here. The unconfirmed-iest.

1997 Pinnacle All-Star Fan Fest Alex Rodriguez #5 (cameo?)

The blurry guy in the background might be Junior, assuming A-rod is in his regular place near second base. This one is pretty much impossible to prove, but I think it's way more likely than the '96 Fleer Joey Cora shown above. Way unconfirmed.

1999 Fleer Tradition Update Alex Rodriguez #U-148 (cameo?)

The on-deck batter in the background here is probably Junior. If you look at the typical batting order of the late-90's Mariners, it was usually A-rod second and Junior third. No, I can't quite prove this one, so here it sits in the unconfirmed section.

2004 Ultra Barry Larkin #13 (cameo?)

I spot a Griffey run in the background here. I can;t be sure because there were a few injuries here and there in Cincy for the Kid, but that looks like his run. Still, not 100% on this one.

2006 Topps Pack Wars Sean Casey #47 (cameo?)

Yes, Junior hit after Casey in the batting order more than a few times. Your boy on deck is shouldering his bat like a lefty, and that really looks like a 3 on his uniform. I feel pretty good about this one, but the doubt is there. Unconfirmed-alicious.

Bonus Cameo:

Hey, a Griffey cameo is a Griffey cameo.

Thanks for reading, and keep your eyes open...