Night Owl Cards

Before I get into this post, just take a moment to stare at this John Buck card. Have you ever stared at a word or a letter for so long that it doesn't make sense anymore? Sure you have. If you stare long enough at this Buck card, particularly his space-age catcher's mask, it doesn't even appear as if he's playing baseball anymore, or that's he's even human. OK, maybe it's me. Anyway, to continue the silliness, I've compiled a countdown of my favorite 2011 cards so far. I say it's silly because I'm not trying to complete any 2011 sets right now. That means I have just a starter's set worth of 2011 cards, and am probably missing some dandy ones. But tradition is tradition and this blog is nothing without traditions and old, moldy cardboard that the app-loving junkies just can't understand. In recognition of my relatively scant number of 2011 cards, I've trimmed the list to a mere top 10. I'll keep the commenting to a min...

Two times a year, baseball fans prognosticate. Once at the start of the season and once at the start of the postseason. It's a fun activity. People seem to like it. I think some take it far too seriously, but if done in the spirit in which it is intended, as folks shooting the shit during a barroom conversation, it's good, clean, mindless entertainment. I've participated in the Prognosticating Games many times. And it's taken those many times for me to realize: I suck at it. I can't predict. I've lost my crystal ball. In fact I don't think I ever had one. My inner soothsayer is on permanent vacation. For years, even though I knew this, I'd still pretend that I could predict the outcome of games. I'd participate in weekly NFL pools. Didn't win squat. Because of my job, people would ask me to predict the score of the local college football game. That's a funny thing to ask someone who finds the squirrels scurrying around the backyard more i...