Night Owl Cards

I've heard a mention or two of this past World Series being "one of the greatest ever." I'm not 100 percent sure where I heard such a sweeping statement but if I had to guess, it would be Twitter, that all-or-nothing social media outlet that I do enjoy but also shake my head over when I read the extreme reactions that occur daily there. It was not "one of the greatest ever." I'm not sure if I'd even call it "good." Keep in mind, I've been watching World Series for more than 40 years, so I've seen a few good ones and bad ones and have a little perspective. But I'd say about the only thing this World Series had going for it is that it lasted seven games and that the road team won every game. It was fine. If you like baseball it was fine. But that's about it. You know how I can tell? I didn't panic at work over a single game this Series. Usually, the most exciting World Series games -- the ones every fan root...

Last night after dinner I was organizing some cards for packages that will go out next week. In the process of stacking and crossing things off the spreadsheet, I realized I hadn't enjoyed a post-dinner treat. So I grabbed a small bit of chocolate and a napkin and went back to the cards. Soon afterward, I noticed with disgust that I had gotten a small smudge of chocolate on the above Bowman Stephen Strasburg card. This has happened more times than you would think or that I would care to admit, but it was the inspiration for a poll I posted on Twitter. I wondered: How often do you get food on your cards? It doesn't happen a heck of a lot for me. Probably under a dozen times since I've started this blog. But it does happen, and I figured it had to happen for others. The Twitter polls are posted for a day and this particular one got some decent play because Beckett Media retweeted it. The final results are in and here they are: Yeah, I'm a slob. The...

Like it or not, the "sick hit" is the Hollywood moment of our hobby. It's not completing a set or finding that Heritage short-print or discovering a funny little fact on the back. It's this:  "SICK! NO. 1/5 DARVISH AUTO/PATCH GREEN CHROME REFRACTOR DIECUT WITH SPARKLES! BOOOM!" Even someone like me, pretty much entrenched in old card sets now, will click on a post that screams like that to see that card. It's a show-stopper. A thrill. And even a collector who doesn't live for the hit, can appreciate the glory of the moment, and even wish it was them ... a little. The pull of the pull is strong, even if it's not your main mission. My card-buying purpose is to complete sets and find Dodgers. Maybe a little trade bait. If I get a hit -- like the 2008 A&G Kosuke Fukudome gimmicked SP that I pulled in a discount pack in 2009 -- then that's a nice perk and a moment to share. It won't turn me into a Nuthin' But Da HIIIIITZ You...

I've just returned from out-of-town. Four nights away and pretty loopy from an all-day drive. So how about a smattering of oddballs since I'm feeling so odd? Each of these came from Listia. Lately, all that has interested me on that site are oddball cards. Part of the whole ebb-and-flow of the site, I think. If they keep throwing TCMA cards up for bid, I"ll keep coming back for more. This is from what seems to be the ubiquitous 1987 Greatest Teams set. I often confuse Snider and Alston on cards -- must be the silver hair -- so it's good to see both of them in the same place where I can keep them straight. On to a Pacific Legends card. I obtained this one only because I suddenly became ashamed by how few Seattle Pilots cards I have. I think this is just my second one. But it's a good one. Gary "Ding Dong" Bell will forever be remembered as Jim Bouton's roommate on the '69 Pilots as recounted in "Ball Four." "Smoke '...

I read somewhere a couple of days ago about how annoying younger people find voice mail. In an attempt to rid the world of voice mail -- a laudable mission, I agree -- they're inventing some sort of techie way to get around it. I can't explain it any further than that, I'm afraid. I zoned out somewhere around the technical part. But it made me think that each generation has its moments of intolerance with "the way things are." What an older person may think is an everyday fact of life that the younger person should get over, the younger person thinks is the most insufferable idea ever and can't believe the stupidity of the world before they came along. I'm an older person now. But I'm not old enough to forget my younger days. And I remember being very irked by things that existed prior to my birth and -- to my ever-so-ticked way of thinking -- STILL existed for some inexplicable, but positively STUPID reason. Number one on the list was black-a...

I don't have a lot of special Washington Nationals cards. Just a handful. But when I pull one, I notice it more than when I'm pulling one of another team, because I immediately think, "Geez, I'm stuck with this thing." With most teams, I can find a team collector and flip it for a Dodger. But not with the Nationals. I don't have a Nationals card connection anymore. So the Nationals cards simply accumulate like a backed-up sink. Indeed, it does get a little messy because if anyone were to stumble across my card collection, they might say, "what, are you a Nationals fan or something?" It's embarrassing. But if simply owning a semi-decent assortment of parallels of a particular team was a reason to be a fan, I would have become a diehard Oakland A's follower a long time ago. No, there's more than that to my gradual admiration for the Nationals. One is that their Triple A team is closer to where I live than any other te...

All right, everyone is all apoplectic over Ichiro suddenly becoming a Yankee. I'm just not that upset about it. If you're a Mariner fan, then, yes, I'm sorry. I understand. For you, it's awful. Just horrible, disgraceful, unthinkable, galling, gagging, repulsive, puke-inducing, nasty, crushing, hurtful, agonizing, gross, dehumanizing, shameful, inexcusable and rotten. But if you're not, then, really, things could be worse. How much worse? Well, off the top of my head, I came up with 10 or so players who I would have much more of a problem seeing in a Yankee uniform than Ichiro. Suzuki is practically an icon and very good at what he does. But, let's face it, he's 38, and he's not the player he once was. If the Yankees want to try to capture 2001 in a bottle for a half a year, then, fine, knock yourself out, New York. I hope you fail. But these guys? No, I do not want these guys to appear as Yankees. Or I might have to start watching crick...