Celebrating Opening Day with a scan dump (Part 2)

Given how things have gone in recent years, it's hard to believe that there was a time when I was able to post once every 2-3 days on here. These days, I feel like it's a win if I can finish 2-3 posts a month. I still haven't fully adjusted to this new normal though, and often end up scanning more stuff than I'll ever be able to get to. I need to learn how to start picking my spots a bit better. In the meantime though, I've got scan folders galore. 

I know now that I won't ever be able to get all of the themed posts that I had planned on doing, done, but do still want to show the majority of the cards in said scan folders, if only so I don't feel like I wasted my time doing all of that scanning. The easiest (for me) way that I've been able to think of to get all of these scans out there is to do a series of scan-dump posts, which is why you've already seen a couple this year, and by my calculations, will likely see four or five more by year's end. Today's edition will cover the last of the old baseball scans. All but the last card came from COMC, and all have been sitting in folders for between 2-4 years now.

I can remember thinking at the time that I probably shouldn't have gotten Bobby Shantz (despite his cheapness) because this card is in every single '61 Post lot that you find on eBay, and since I still need a bunch of cards from the set, I figured that it wouldn't be long before I got one of said lots which would've included the Shantz. Fast forward a bit, and I still haven't gotten one of those lots, so Bobby's purchase doesn't look so bad at this point.

Everything I said about the Shantz card applies to Elston here, too. I wrote 95¢ under this scan, so I guess looking back that wasn't too bad of a price.

I'm no longer actively collecting Larry Doby, but am still keeping what I have, and wouldn't hesitate to add to his inactive collection were I to come across any more cheap cards of his. And in case anyone's wondering, the only reason I stopped looking for his stuff is simply because it's gone up so much in price since the boom started.

Because of how much time has passed since purchasing most of them, I don't recall too many details about most of the cards in this post. This Kenny Holtzman (and the next card) is the exception though. This was the first card I bought during 2022 Black Friday sale. It set me back a whopping 47¢. And despite not being the biggest fan of the Kellogg's 3-D's, I couldn't pass up this uncracked copy for that price.

Kenny was the first card that I bought during the 2022 Black Friday sale, and here was the last. I don't remember why I did it, but right before requesting my shipment Monday night (the last night that one could qualify for free shipping), I decided to look and see what the cheapest Red Man (w/ tab) on the site was. Low and behold, it was somebody that I actually collect! At around $7.50 this was also the most expensive card that I had gotten that weekend. No regrets. If I wasn't already now working on half a gillion different sets again, I'd strongly consider going after all of the Red Men. And speaking of collecting Red Men, if you feel like following someone's progress on the '52 set, go check out Eric's.

Despite my interest in collecting real stamps, I don't have a lot of desire to do so with those of the Topps variety. I've never taken the time to see who's on the checklist for these various sets, but I don't see myself ever getting too many more of them.

I know that when I got this card that it was for a very specific reason, but this was during the delayed shipments era (aka the 'Rona), and by the time I finally got it in hand, I could no longer remember why I had wanted it so much. I'm hoping that it'll come back to me someday. In the meantime, it was added to my pseudo set-build.

This is just nice looking card, isn't it? The blue sleeves of Luis' warm-up jacket blend in well with the background color.

It's subtle, but I'm thinking that this card was meant to be used in some sort of promotionial capacity. 

I know why Upper Deck wouldn't have done so, but this card would've been so much more interesting if they had swapped the pictures. The Jay Buhner Fan Club T-shirt reveal is considerably better than a headshot.

I don't go out of my way to seek out Junior cards anymore, in fact these last two are probably amongst the last 3-4 that I've gotten since the Boom got going. This one was actually from one of their eBay auctions, and while the background does pop a bit more in person, overall, the card was a bit underwhelming. As an aside, I won a few more of their auctions last month (not an easy thing to do anymore) for cards from a considerably older, and more interesting, set. It'll be awhile before you, or I, see them though, as they're currently sitting in my account waiting to be shipped.

This was a bit of an impulse purchase. I saw it for the first time while looking through someone's sale, thought it was very neat looking, so I bought it. Five dollars (and some change) seems like a lot to spend on something "just because", but in this instance I think it was worth it.

Vic Raschi is a guy I collect solely because of his being a Portland Beaver. I don't add to his collection very often, but when I do...

To my knowledge, there aren't a lot of locker room shots in the '54 Bowman set, or very many other sets from this era, so in my mind it makes this particular image stand out a bit more.

That's it for the COMC portion of the post, but before I call it a wrap, I'm gonna squeeze in an eBay purchase from either last year, or the year before. I just don't know, it got scanned right away, stuck in a folder, and then forgotten (the scan, not the card -- I've seen the card in it's binder many times since).

I know that a lot of collector's aren't too keen on mis-registered cards, and I'm not either when it's just a slight blur, but I absolutely love them when they're this off. This is my second 1970 Topps that's this wonked, and unlike the Tony Perez, which is even better, this one fit into a player collection; that being Mike Cuellar. Since these are listed under so many different descriptions, they're not always easy to find. In fact, I only came across this one while doing a general search for Mike Cuellar. I think it was just described as an error. At around $5, I know that I overpaid for it, but I really wanted, and had been prepared to go higher if need be. As much as I love the individual card, I can't help but wonder how awesome this whole sheet would've been to see (and potentially own).

There's a part of me that would like to just get the rest of scan dump posts done (so that I no longer have to see my folders of shame), but I have a couple of thank you posts that I really should get to, so those'll probably be what's on tap for the coming month.

White Envelope Wonders

I don't think that younger me would've ever been able to grasp the idea of collecting a set that I knew from the get-go could never be finished. Of course, younger me never collected anything from before my time. And even though the average collector didn't know how many were actually being produced at the time, cards of the late 80's and early 90's were always readily available in pack/box form, and therefor one never got the sense that any of the sets couldn't be completed. In fact, as the years progressed, sets from that era continued to feel easier and easier to complete. Heck, by the late 90's, five bucks would buy you a box of just about any product from ten years before, and said box would almost always produce a complete set. I could be misremembering, but even as a kid who didn't collect non-current cards, sets from ten years prior to my existence, or even ten years prior to the start of my collecting, never felt as easy to complete; though they never felt impossible to complete either.

These days on the other hand, unless one is flush with oodles of extra cash, many, many, sets (new and old) feel like they are near impossible to ever complete. And, unfortunately for older me, I seem to be continually drawn to such sets, especially those of the vintage variety (some of which you've seen for the last couple of Sunday's).

The 1955 Bowman baseball set is perfect example. I really like it, and have in theory begun to collect it, but I waited much too long to start; and as such, know that there's zero chance of me ever completing it. And yet, I'll still go through the motions, acquiring cards where I can. It's kind of annoying to think that I may've had a chance to complete it had I started fifteen years or so ago when I came back to cards, but not now. The boom is supposedly easing on modern cards, but I don't think I'll live long enough to see the bigger names from a set like this coming back down to Earth. People's desire to pay someone else to attach an arbitrary number to their cards has grown too much for reasonable prices to return on things like this anytime soon.

I think that as of this writing, my 1955 Bowman "set build" is made up of about 12 cards, more than half of which were once owned by noted author, and resident knower of all things 1955 Bowman, Jeff, from Wax Pack Wonders -- including this one, which he was kind enough to send earlier this year.

I'd be lying if I said I had been familiar with Joe Paparella prior to getting this card. Aside from a couple of NBA referees back in the 90's, I've never been one to notice or pay much attention to sports officials. Apparently Joe spent the entirety of his 20-year career in the American League. It's interesting to me that the back of this card notes that he was purchased from the American Association (that was AA ball) in 1945. Not hired, purchased. It makes it sound like umpires were indentured at the time.

This was my first ump card from the set, which was kind of neat, that's only part of the set that I remembered for a long time. I think I read an article in a price guide when I was younger, and the umpires were the only aspect of it that stuck with me. The card itself was slightly trimmed along the bottom edge at some point, which I would've avoided had I been purchasing it, but as a hand-me-down from a set like this, I won't complain.

I'm probably biased, but I feel like card bloggers are in a league of their own when it comes to sending PWE's, especially when speaking in terms of variety. I mean aside from being the same sport, these last two cards could not be more different from each other. Flair was a brand that was way out of my price range back when it was new, and I didn't own any until they started appearing in TRU repacks. Generally, I do like the various designs for them though. I also like their slight chunkiness. They've got beef, but not so much that you can't put them in a page.

I didn't add as many Bo's to the collection as I should've (or would've liked to) this year. I think that this was one of the better one's though.

Jeff seems to have the inside track on cards from this set as well. He already provided the Bo I needed from it last year, and then this year he provided this nifty Edgar, which had been a Top 10 want of mine. I watched a good portion of Edgar's career growing up, and have been a fan of his (as an athlete and a person) for decades now. This is a set that I wish I would've collected back when it was new. If I had, I might've actually tried to collect the silver and gold parallels too. It would've looked really good having three rainbows per page. And I hadn't noticed it until just now, but with the foil muted by the scan, the 'Special Edition' box where it is makes it look like Edgar's swinging an axe. Talk about slicing the ball!

This envelope did contain a fourth card, but it was another one for the Beavers collection, and therefor, will, hopefully, be appearing on that blog at some later date. There was other thing of note in here, and even though I don't think that was meant to be anything more than a packaging material, I was still enamoured by it enough to throw it on the old scanner...

Joe Paparella arrived in this sleeve (it's clear by the way, not black). Most folks who have collected during the internet age are familiar with Dean's Cards, at least in passing. I for one however, had never heard or seen anyone say that they had actually purchased something from Dean. I've been his site a few times, and remember when he used to list on COMC, but have never come across anything of his that I thought was affordable. Hopefully Jeff won't think that I'm "outing" him here, I just really thought that this sleeve was kind of neat... and did keep it. To me, it was almost as good as a fifth card.

It's been long enough now that I can remember if there was any impetus behind this envelope, or if it was just because Jeff is good people and likes to send folks cards when he can. Either way though, I'm grateful. The four cards were dispersed amongst four different collections. That's the sort of envelope I like. And if that wasn't enough, I also got an interesting penny sleeve for my non-existent penny sleeve collection 😏.

Better late than never

Is there a record, amongst bloggers who actively exchange cards with other bloggers, of who's gone the longest before trading with the Night Owl? If there is, I think I now own it.

I started this blog almost 7 1/2 years ago, and have been fortunate enough to receive, and send out cards to quite a few different bloggers, and blog readers, during that time. However, it wasn't until just this past December that I partook in my first bit of extra-curricular activity with the ever popular winged wordsmith behind Night Owl Cards (and now 1993 UPPER DECK as well).

Some of you might be wondering what took so long, and honestly, I don't really know. I don't think that there's any reason why, it just, for whatever reason, took us a while to swap some cards. For blog purposes, it would've probably been more exciting if their was some great backstory involving murder and betrayal, but there isn't, sorry. 

 

I think I could count on half a hand that number of times that 1987 Topps has appeared on this blog. At this point in time, most collectors seem to either really love the set, or really hate it. Haven't you heard, it's 2023, the internet demands that you pick a side! Me though, well, I guess you could say that I'm indifferent to it. Thanks to my brain slowly turning to mush, I can't say for certain anymore, but it's possible that the very first pack of cards I ever got were 1987 Topps, and if it wasn't the first, it was certainly one of the earlier sets that I collected. With that in mind, there should be at least some nostalgia attached to the set for me, but it's hard to be nostalgic for something that's never gone away -- and from what I've been able to gather, is never gonna go away. I may be neutral on the set, but after all of the blog posts that I've seen in recent years, I'm very glad that I'm not collecting anything current, because I'd probably have a very different take on it, what with it's design constantly being rehashed and all.

These two cards stem back to last year when, much to Mr. Owl's chagrin, he was "gifted" a vending box of 1987 Topps from somebody at work. The resulting blog post was equal parts "Look what someone had the gall to give me!" and "Please take these off of my hands!!!". I knew that I couldn't help him move very many, but I did rattle off a couple of names of guys that I seem to be in need of, and Jamie and Joe were the two that he was able to take care of (please don't ask who the other names were, because I cannot remember anymore). I have a blank backed copy of Jamie's rookie, but somehow did not already have a regular one. And Joe is one of a handful guys that I'm trying not to collect, but still am sort of anyway.

As nice as it was to get them, I'm not sure that these two would've been enough to justify the cost of a stamp. However, they had company...

I suspect that this, and the next card, are copies that have both been upgraded, thus rendering their slightly off-condition counterparts expendable. I too will undoubtedly upgrade this one at some point, but for now, it's just fine for my set. And given current prices, it'll probably continue to be fine for at least the next couple of years.

If the Post was unexpected, which it was, I don't know how to describe this one. I mean, it's not everyday that someone sends me a playing days Erskine. Sure, there's a vertical crease going down the middle, but it doesn't detract from the overall image very much. I've come to realize that if I want to pursue this set in any sort of serious fashion, I will have to be more tolerant towards acquiring cards that are in a similar state. If not, I'll have to be content to sit on the sidelines until the moneyed crowd moves on to something else.

Many thanks to our resident avian author for the envelope, hopefully it won't be another 7+ years before we can do this again.

On an unrelated note, I noticed yet another new blog on the block, and as usual, thought it was worth mentioning. So, if you have a few spare minutes, and are inclined to want to do something nice for someone else, go show Dillard's Dugout some love. One of the best ways to prevent a new blogger from getting discouraged is to let them know that they aren't typing into a void.

Christmas Catch-Up: Part 2

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I was contemplating the crazy idea of trying to build the 1955 Bowman set, and ever since then, it seems like the universe has been trying to steer me in that direction. And by "universe", I mean fellow bloggers. And by "trying to steer me in that direction", I mean that two different people have sent me cards from the set in as many weeks. Granted, it's only been three cards, but still, that's three more 1955 Bowman's than I've received over the course of the previous 7+ years of this blogs existence.

Our resident 1955 Bowman collector, Jeff, who also helms Wax Pack Wonders in his spare time, sent me two of my three recently received Bowman's for Christmas. 

I can't remember who it was, but somebody else on the blogs used be actively pursuing this set, but they either stopped blogging altogether, or stopped posting about the set, because the only person I ever see mention it now is Jeff. [Out of curiosity, does anyone know who the other person is/was?]

As for myself, despite the not so subtle nudge that I've been getting, I haven't fully committed to pursuing the set yet. I'm not sure if it's still because of the boom, or if the set is really just that popular right now, but either way, I'm amazed at how much the starter lots on eBay keep selling for. I don't remember commons from the set selling for so much a few years ago, but of course a lot has changed since then, so maybe the prices that I've been seeing are the new normal. I'm thinking that I might have to wait a little longer, maybe until after the current buyers get what they want, before I can even think about trying to get mine.

Dave Pope is in the better condition of the two, but I like the Preston Ward, if only because it looks like two people are beaming up (or down) behind him. I'll definitely be hanging onto this copy even if I am ever able to replace it with a better one.

As Bo can attest, my Portland Beavers collection is a bit of a hot mess right now, but I do have a couple of wants posted on the TCDB for it, Stan here, being one of them. In theory, this card will be getting it's own post on the my Beavers blog at some point, so I'll wait until then to talk about Stan, but in the meantime, it was nice to be able cross off a modern want from the list, as I've been pretty focused on getting players from the teams earlier days in recent months. [Note: I'm trying to clear a bit of a backlog on this blog right now, but for those that care, I should have two new posts up on the Beavers blog by the end of the month]

David Robinson is the only basketball player, who was never a Blazer, that I've currently got catalogued on the TCDB. I added his collection to the site well over a year ago, and foolishly thought at the time that he was gonna be the start of me getting them all logged. Obviously that plan didn't work out so well. I haven't looked yet, so I can't remember if I added this card to a wantlist, or if Jeff just noticed that I didn't have it. Either way, I just moved David to a different binder a couple of weeks ago, and know for a fact that I don't have this card, nor did I have any of his other SI for Kids cards before this arrived. I really dig this card too, the border color for this particular set works really well for the Spurs.

Many thanks to Jeff, not only for thinking of me during the holidays, but also for sending this wonderfully diverse quartet.

The Gods Must be Crazy II

Does anyone remember the 'Gods Must be Crazy' film series? The first two, the sequel more so than the original, were staples of pretty much every single video store for years and years. I haven't seen any of them in decades, and even though this post has nothing to do with the franchise, the title just seemed appropriate when thinking about today's post. And since it's sort of a sequel to last weeks Post Cereal cards post, I had to go with part "II".

I don't know when it was exactly, nor do I know why it was, but sometime in the last year or so, I've really started to appreciate the 1955 Bowman baseball set. Not that I previously disliked it mind you, I just hadn't paid it a ton of attention. Now all of sudden, I am paying it a lot of attention. So much so in fact, that I've even begun to entertain the hair-brained notion of trying to build the set. [Is this one of the signs of an impending mental breakdown?]

Obviously, the design is a big part of the appeal. I like too how a lot of the images look like they would've been completely at home during an early broadcast. Granted, they're in color, and they wouldn't have been seen that way by probably 99% of the population back in 1955, but that's a minor nit-pick. There's lots of wonderful shots that feature glimpses of long gone stadiums in the background as well. The overall effect is just awfully appealing.

After thinking about it some, I decided to round up all of the cards that I had from the set, and see where I stood. The above photo is where I stand. It's no Alamo, that's for sure.

I've had the Nellie Fox for a bunch of years now. That was from a fire sale on COMC. Bobby Thomson was taken from my collection of his. I got the the Brooks Lawrence from COMC as well, although it was gotten during the Rona stretch where my stuff didn't get shipped for two years, and by the time I got it, I could no longer remember why I bought it in the first place. Since I never did get to the majority of that shipment on here, I still have a better looking scan sitting in a folder, so you may see it again at some point. Gene Baker was an card show purchase. he was bought strictly because of that bandage over his right eye. And the Joe Bowman came from Jeff. I pulled that out of my Portland Beavers collection. I figure that since I've added 6 older cards to that collection in the last month, that I could take one out for another (possible) collection.

Even though I know that it would never be completed, I am seriously thinking about giving the set a go. I'll probably need to pick up starter lot of some sort before I fully commit myself to the idea though. It looked like I was gonna have a pretty good chance at one on eBay a few weeks ago, but as is often the case these days, the big money crowd made their presence known in the final minute, and that was the end of that (I'm really beginning to hate those people, with a passion). After looking around some more, it might be awhile before it's possible for me to get decent lot for a relatively decent price. In the meantime though, I think I'll keep these five together in a page and tuck it in the back of my Post/Jell-O binder, just in case. And speaking of the Post/Jell-O binder, I don't know how much good it'll do, but since there's always at least one person who will ask about such things, I've added a page to the top of the blog for them. They're also on the TCDB (pennysleeves) too.

Unrelated note #1: In case anyone missed it, Rod, from Padrographs, is trying to put together a gift for a friends upcoming birthday, and is seeking help in doing so. If anyone has various years of unwanted Topps laying around, you may be able to help. Rod has also put up a page of trade bait for those who might want something in return, so if you need some incentive to check out the link, that should do it.

Unrelated note #2: I sent out the mass email with my new mailing address a few days ago, so if you're one of the people that I thought would want it, or who asked for it, and you didn't get the email, check your promotions and spam folders as it may have slid into one of those.

Nellie on the Tele

Part of my recently arrived COMC stockpile contained around twenty or so vintage cards that weren't acquired because they were needed for sets, no, they were gotten merely because I liked them.

As primarily a set collector, this kind of buying isn't part of my genetic makeup. There have been exceptions over the years of course, autographs and inserts have been bought without any need to collect the whole set, but a base card... even just one base card, usually means I'm stuck working on the set even if I know there is absolutely no chance of ever completing it.

I think reading everyone else's blog posts and seeing all the different ways people collect has started to have a negative positive influence on me, as it seems like more and more, especially when it comes to vintage baseball, I'm just buying what I like, and honestly, it feels kind of freeing. In the last six months I have been able to stop working on multiple sets altogether, and just while working on want lists here on the blog (still a ways to go) this past week, I have started rethinking a few more. That being said, I'm by no means done with sets altogether, it's just from now on I don't have to be stretched so thin from working on so many at a time

So today's card fits right in with my new found collecting freedom, as I certainly have no plans to ever attempt a 1955 Bowman set build, but that doesn't mean I can't purchase hall of famers from time to time, right?

COMC had this card listed in poor to fair condition, which judging from the picture on the site I didn't understand, and now that I have it in hand, I really can't figure it out. Granted, no one's in any danger of having an eye put out from those corners, but I wouldn't say that they were atrociously bad either. There aren't any creases and the card hasn't been trimmed, so I would love to know how this particular card earned it's poor to fair classification. Oh well, whatever the reason, I still think it was definitely worth $4 of my earned credit.

One has to wonder if Bowman sent out questionnaires in order to obtain the answers featured on the backs, as some of them (including this one) seem to be more personal and well thought out, than to just have been written by some Bowman intern. And if there were questionnaires, how great would it be to be able to see one? Provided of course, that any were to have actually survived.


Thanks for taking a moment to look at my page.