Random Topps Card of the Day: 1993 Topps #213 Candy Maldonado

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Wednesday, June 30, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1993 Topps #213.
• Player Name, position, team: Candy Maldonado, outfielder, Toronto Blue Jays.
• Major League Debut: September 7, 1981.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1992 stats (Blue Jays): 137 G, 489 AB, 64 R, 133 H, 25 2B, 4 3B, 20 HR, 66 RBI, 2 SB, .462 SLG, 59 BB, 112 SO, .272 AVG.
• Any special information about players: Signed with the Dodgers as a Free Agent 06/06/1978. Traded by the Brewers to the Blue Jays 08/09/1991. Bats: right, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: Maldonado's thirteenth regular Topps (total includes regular and traded cards only). If it wasn't for the sole fact that the 1993 Topps cards were one of the more readily available cards in the "age of overproduction", even the commons of this set would be worth more than a penny. This was the first set since 1973 that Topps split their set into 2 separate series (a practice that is still in practice today). It made sense for the 1993 set, as cards of players from the Rockies and Marlins would be part of the second series. Candy (his first name is Candido) was part of the World Series winning Blue Jays in 1992, and as their primary left fielder, contributed with 20 home runs and 66 rbi's for the cause. In the playoffs, his clutch hitting helped the Jays to the first of two WS victories. The blurb on the back says that he "became the 5th player to wallop a home run into the centerfield bleachers since Yankee Stadium was re-opened in 1976." Before the 1993 season (actually in December of 1992), Candy signed as a Free Agent with the Chicago Cubs. But, as in many years in Cubdom, the northsiders weren't going anywhere, so they sent him off to Cleveland mid-season, in exchange for Glenallen Hill. Nowadays, he can be heard as the color commentator for ESPN Deportés, covering, what else, the Sunday night broadcasts.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.02-$0.10.
• How many cards of each player do I own?: 19 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: Thursday: 2000 Topps Traded & Rookies #T19. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Hope you will be too.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1991 Topps #317 Mike Fitzgerald

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Tuesday, June 29, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1991 Topps #317.
• Player Name, position, team: Mike Fitzgerald, catcher, Montréal Expos.
• Major League Debut: September 13, 1983.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1990 stats (Expos): 111 G, 313 AB, 36 R, 76 H, 18 2B, 1 3B, 9 HR, 41 RBI, 8 SB, .393 SLG, 60 BB, 60 SO, .243 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Mets #6th, June 1978. Traded by the Mets to the Expos 12/10/1984. Bats: right, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: Fitzgerald's ninth Topps card (total includes regular and traded cards only). The 1991 Topps set saw the return of the horizontally oriented player cards since 1974. Yes, the sets between '74 and '91 had horizontal cards, but those were normally reserved for league leader cards, or MVP cards (see 1975 Topps), or Father & Son cards, or whatever else Topps would think of. But horizontal player cards? Not when I first started collecting. Horizontally oriented player cards work when the picture used is an action shot (see 1991 Topps Carlton Fisk for example). Headshots...not so much. Fitzgerald, who was part of the trade that sent HOF Gary Carter to the Mets, became lés Expos' primary catcher. And while he certainly didn't make Expos fans forget Carter completely, he was a good defensive backstop and could certainly handle a pitching staff with the best of them. Look how big the glove is that he's using.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.01-$0.05.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 12 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1993 Topps #213. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. We're looking back at a card from 1993 here on the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1983 Topps #40 Fernando Valenzuela

We reset the Topps Card Randomizer to come up with seven new cards to present for this week. Introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Monday, June 28, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1983 Topps #40.
• Player Name, position, team: Fernando Valenzuela, pitcher, Los Angeles Dodgers.
• Major League Debut: September 15. 1980.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1982 stats (Dodgers): 37 G, 285 IP, 19-13, 105 R, 91 ER, 199 SO, 83 BB, 37 GS, 18 CG, 4 SHO, 0 SV, 2.87 ERA.
• Any special information about players: Signed with the Dodgers as a Free Agent 07/06/1979. Bats: left, Throws: left.
• Any special information about this specific card: Valenzuela's fourth regular Topps (total includes regular and traded cards only, and doesn't include any highlights, team leaders, league leaders card. While the blue border color makes sense (as it is the Dodgers), I don't get the use of green on this card. But then again, grey or white wouldn't make much sense either, and a lighter shade of blue would be too much. Fernando was the phenom pitcher of the early 80's. "With an eye to the heavens" before letting the ball go, every pitch he threw was electric and he captured the attention and hearts of baseball fans everywhere. "Fernando-mania" was running wild. And why not? By the time this card came out, Valenzuela was already a ROY, a Cy Young Award winner, a two-time All-Star, and a Silver Slugger (the man could hit). If the internet and media attention was as strong in the early 80's as it is now, he would be compared to a certain Nationals pitcher. But I digress. The back of his card features three highlights from the 1982 season. Fernando: started a winning rally with a single in 2-1 CG win vs. Mets on May 4; pitched a 7-0 shutout against the Cubs at Wrigley on May 30; and he hurled a 3-0 shutout against the Braves on July 31.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.10-$0.30.
• How many cards of each player do I own?: 35 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1991 Topps #317. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. See you then.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1975 Topps #360 George Scott

It's Retro Sunday!!! Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Sunday, June 27, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1975 Topps #360.
• Player Name, position, team: George Scott, first baseman, Milwaukee Brewers.
• Major League Debut: April 12, 1966.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1974 stats (Brewers): 604 AB, 170 H, 38 2B, 2 3B, 17 HR, 82 RBI, .281 AVG* (see note below).
• Any special information about player: Signed by the Red Sox as a Free Agent 05/28/1962. Traded by the Red Sox to the Brewers 10/10/1971. Bats: right, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: Scott's tenth regular Topps card. The 1975 Topps set was voted by readers of Topps Magazine as the number 1 set of the 1970's (Topps Magazine, Summer, 1991, #7). And why not? Those two color borders were so iconic that even that other card company tried to use it on numerous occasions as a design for their sets. That, plus the fact that a number of HOF's are in this set. If I were to buy it (or at least make an attempt to start a set for my collection), it would be the first one that I'd own that was made before I was born. But I digress. George Scott's best years in the majors happened after he and five other players were involved in a ten-player deal with the Red Sox. In his five year stint as the Brewers 1st baseman, he was named to the All-Star Team (in 1976), an annual MVP candidate, and won the Gold Glove all five seasons. The 1975 season would see Scott leading the AL in both home runs and rbi's (with 36 and 109 respectively). There are not too many statistics listed on the back of the cards, probably due to the fact that Topps had not yet found the right text size to fit more columns on a vertically-oriented reverse. The blurb on the back does read that George was "the Brewers' leading slugger the past 4 seasons." There is a cartoon trivia question above the statistics, asking, "Where was Bert Blyleven born?" The answer (upside down) shows that Bert was born in Zeist, Holland.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.40-$1.00.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 8 cards.

*Please take a look at the batting average from 1974. Is it just me, or does it appear that George had a batting average of .781 in 1974? Take a look at the picture above. Uncorrected and unnoticed, this is an ERROR CARD!!!:

In case you're actually wondering, I don't own this card, but was able to get a crystal clean copy of the image from the from the Baseball Card Cyber Museum. So thank you Joe McAnally and the folks at the BCCM.

Well, it's back to normal on Monday. Tomorrow's card will be: 1983 Topps #40. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Come on back then to see what the Topps Card Randomizer gets us to look at then.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1983 Topps #514 Rudy Law

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Saturday, June 26, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1983 Topps #514.
• Player Name, position, team: Rudy Law, outfielder, Chicago White Sox.
• Major League Debut: September 12, 1978.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1982 stats (White Sox): 121 G, 336 AB, 55 R, 107 H, 15 2B, 8 3B, 3 HR, 32 RBI, 36 SB, .438 SLG, 23 BB, 41 SO, .318 AVG.
• Any special information about players: Signed with the Dodgers as a Free Agent 09/01/1975. Traded by the Dodgers to the White Sox 03/30/1982. Bats: left, Throws: left.
• Any special information about this specific card: Law's third regular Topps (total includes regular and traded cards only). Law joins Wade Boggs and Jim Beattie as two-time subjects on the Random Card of the Day segment (I know we had Ichiro on twice too, but one was a GG card, so that doesn't necessarily count). The 1983 season, in which the White Sox won their first AL Western Division Championship, was probably Rudy's best season in the bigs. He was second in the AL in stolen bases with 77 of them, and actually was in the running for AL MVP (okay, so he finished 21st that year). In 1982, his first year with the Pale Hose, and according to the 1982 Highlights section below the stats, Rudy: belted a homer in 7-4 victory at Detroit on May 8; had 3 singles with a stolen base in a win vs. Angels June 10; and went 305 with a homer at New York on August 4.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.05-$0.15.
• How many cards of each player do I own?: 8 cards.

Tomorrow is Retro Sunday, the one day of the week that we feature a card from 1951-1975. The card we will feature tomorrow is: 1975 Topps #360. Come back at 1:00 PM CST to see who (or what) it is.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

With the arrival of the Rockies set, I now have all 30 of the 2010 Topps 17-card team sets!!

This, along with last week's delivery of my Series 2 master set, will give lots to do until U & H sell sheets go live.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 2002 Topps #623 Andy Pettitte

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Friday, June 25, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1988 Topps #735.
• Player Name, position, team: Andy Pettitte, pitcher, New York Yankees.
• Major League Debut: April 29, 1995.
• Last Line of Statistics: 2001 stats (Yankees): 31 G, 200.2 IP, 15-10, 103 R, 88 ER, 164 SO, 41 BB, 31 GS, 2 CG, 0 SHO, 0 SV, 3.99 ERA.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Yankees 22nd, June 1990. Bats: left, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: Pettitte's eighth regular Topps card (total includes regular and traded cards only). In horizontal form, the 2002 Topps design actually looks nice. Yes, they've wasted a lot of room where the Topps logo is, and the ribbon where the name is located is a lot longer than if the card was vertically oriented; but it still looks good. Pettitte's looks like he's ready to throw a 90+ mph fastball at the poor batter standing at the plate. The blurb on the back mentions that Andy "was named MVP of the 2001 ALCS...when Pettitte starts in postseason games, the Yanks are now 17-5." By this time this card was out,, Pettitte was a four-time World Series winner, a two-time All-Star, and a perennial Cy Young candidate. And his best was still to come.
• Beckett value: $0.10-$0.30.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 45 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1983 Topps #514. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Flash back with the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Preview: 2008 All-Star Game Simulation!!!

I didn't realize that it's been more than a month since I did my last bdj610's All-Star Game Simulation post. With the season underway, and real world matters taking precedence over the blog, it was bound to happen. Anyway, this past weekend, I was able to do the seven game simulations. And if you follow me on Twitter, you'll see the results of the seven game simulations.

The matchups (for those who don't want to click the link and will patiently wait for the end results):

• 2008 All-Star Game series 1 simulation: Tim Lincecum vs. Cliff Lee.
• 2008 All-Star Game series 2 simulation: Brandon Webb vs. Roy Halladay.
• 2008 All-Star Game series 3 simulation: Daisuke Matsuzaka vs. Johan Santana.
• 2008 All-Star Game series 4 simulation: Gavin Floyd vs. Ryan Dempster.
• 2008 All-Star Game series 5 simulation: Joe Saunders vs. Chad Billingsley.
• 2008 All-Star Game series 6 simulation: Edinson Volquez vs. A. J. Burnett.
• 2008 All-Star Game series 7 simulation: Anything goes.

The one-game ASG simulation will be played this evening. The starting lineups:
(beware the space)

American League Starting Lineup: CF: Ichiro Suzuki SS: Derek Jeter 3B: Alex Rodriguez LF: Josh Hamilton RF: Vladimir Guerrero 1B: Justin Morneau 2B: Dustin Pedroia C: Joe Mauer P: Cliff Lee

National League Starting Lineup: LF: Alfonso Soriano SS: Hanley Ramirez 1B: Lance Berkman RF: Matt Holliday 3B: Chipper Jones CF: Ryan Braun C: Geovany Soto 2B: Chase Utley P: Tim Lincecum

That's tonight's preview. Let's hope for good weather. To see the rest of the rosters on both teams, click here. Full results of everything to come by the end of the night.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1981 Topps #375 Dave Concepcion

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Thursday, June 24, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1981 Topps #375.
• Player Name, position, team: Dave Concepcion, shortstop, Cincinnati Reds.
• Major League Debut: April 6, 1970.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1980 stats (Reds): 156 G, 622 AB, 72 R, 162 H, 31 2B, 8 3B, 5 HR, 77 RBI, 12 SB, .360 SLG, 37 BB, 107 SO, .260 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Signed by the Reds as a Free Agent 09/12/1967. Bats: right, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: Concepcion's eleventh regular Topps card (total includes regular and traded cards only, not including the 1967 Topps Venezuelan card, which came four years before his rookie card in 1971). Is it just me, or is it because Topps couldn't use team logos that they decided on hats as an integral part of the 1981 Topps design? They couldn't even put the hat logos on the card, just the position and team name. When the 1993 Topps Archives Basketball cards came out, the 1981 design (they used the baseball designs for the "Missing Years") had the actual team logos where the hat would have been. By the time this card came out in 1981, Dave was already a 7-time All-Star, 5-time Gold Glove Winner, and as a member of the Big Red Machine in the 1970's, appeared in 4 World Series, with the Reds winning in 1975-76. His career at this point would be easily comparable to a certain NY shortstop, but I'm not going there. Based on the picture on the card, it looks like the Reds were at Shea Stadium that particular afternoon. It must be early in the ball game when this picture was shot...the players in the dugout aren't really paying attention to what's going on in the field. Look how compact Concepcion is in his batting stance. He may not have hit for power (at this time, it wasn't really a necessity for shortstops), but at least we know he could hit. Many Reds fans are still wondering why Concepcion hasn't been enshrined in Cooperstown yet? He was on the ballot for fifteen years, and didn't make it. Perhaps the newly re-formed Veteran's Committee will correct this slight. When it is done, though, is any body's guess.
• Beckett value: $0.15-$0.40.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 25 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 2002 Topps #623. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Until tomorrow everybody.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1997 Topps #133 Randy Myers

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Wednesday, June 23, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1997 Topps #133.
• Player Name, position, team: Randy Myers, pitcher, Baltimore Orioles.
• Major League Debut: October 6. 1985.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1996 stats (Orioles): 62 G, 58.2 IP, 4-4, 24 R, 23 ER, 74 SO, 29 BB, 0 GS, 0 CG, 0 SHO, 31 SV, 3.53 ERA.
• Any special information about players: Drafted by the Mets #1st (Special), June, 1982. Signed with the Orioles as a Free Agent 12/14/1995. Bats: left, Throws: left.
• Any special information about this specific card: Myers' fifteenth (and final) regular Topps (total includes regular and traded cards only). The 1997 set used red and green frames depending on what league the player's team is from. Why red and green? Because for many years, the annual MLB League guides were called the Red Book for the American League and Green Book for the National League (which is also why they used those colors for the trim line along the player name box from the prior year's set). Randy had just finished his tour of duty with the Chicago Cubs, where he had gained quite a cult following, and signed with the Orioles to give the team an established closer. He had a very good year in 1996, with 31 saves, helping lead the O's to second place in the AL East, and the Wild Card berth. He would play for one more year with the O's, before finishing his career with the Blue Jays and Padres in 1998.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.07-$0.20.
• How many cards of each player do I own?: 17 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: Thursday: 1981 Topps #375. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Hope you will be too.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 2000 Topps Traded & Rookies #T26 Maicer Izturis

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Tuesday, June 22, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2000 Topps Traded & Rookies #T26.
• Player Name, position, team: Maicer Izturis, shortstop, Cleveland Indians.
• Major League Debut: August 27, 2004.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1999 stats (Columbus-A): 57 G, 220 AB, 46 R, 66 H, 5 2B, 3 3B, 4 HR, 23 RBI, 14 SB, .405 SLG, 20 BB, 28SO, .300 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Signed with the Indians as a Free Agent 04/01/1998. Bats: both, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: Izturis' first Topps card (total includes regular and traded cards only). What I love about the 2000 Topps set design is that the gray borders and the nameplate that goes along the bottom of the card do not distract the observer away from the picture. Many great action shots in both the regular and traded cards. The 2000 Topps Traded & Rookies set was Topps' second since brining back the end-of-the-year update set from the year before and the last year that these cards were sold exclusively in complete set form. The rookies were featured first in this set. At this time, Maicer (I've been spelling his name Macier all this time...) was just a 20-year-old prospect with the Indians. He made his debut with the Montréal Expos in 2004 (during their final year in Canada), and would have been apart of the Nationals had he not been traded to the Angels before the end of the year. He is now the Angels full-time shortstop, but also plays any position manager Mike Scioscia puts him (2b, 3b, lf, cf, dh). The back of his card, as with many of the players' cards in this set, is vertically-oriented, something not seen since 1993. The statistics are a bit harder to read, but there is a lot of bio space in Izturis' case. He is described as a "flashy defensive shortstop...showing a quick bat to complement his good speed on the bases"
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.10-$0.30.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 5 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1997 Topps #133. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. We're looking back at a card from 1997 here on the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

And the 2010 Topps Red Hot Rookie #2 Card Goes To…‏

Those holding those Red Hot Rookie Redemption cards better get them logged in to Topps quickly as it has just been announced that card #2 belongs to none other than Jose Tabata of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Tabata made his major league debut on June 9 against the Washington Nationals. Batting leadoff for the Bucs that night, he went 2-4 with a walk, scored a run, and stole a base. That, my friends, is a productive debut. As of Tuesday, June 22, he is hitting .225 (9-40), with one home run, two RBI's, and stolen two bases.

Although it's not an autographed card, Pirates fans will want to add this card to their collections. Ladies and Gentlemen, START REDEEMING!!!

The updated checklist now includes:

• #1 Carlos Santana
• #2 Jose Tabata

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Summer Cleaning of the Sports Card Blogroll.

It's that time of the month again, where although the big Sports Card Blogroll enjoyed its largest population of blogs, there are a number that haven't been updated in six months. So unfortunately, that means they will now be removed from the active roster.

There were 308 blogs on the roll before the following were taken off. As usual, they are listed here for posterity:

• Boxes Of Cards
• Flea Market Adventures
• Michael J. Lindegarde... Online
• Big Red Card Machine
• Cheese and Beer
• HandyAndy's Vintage Orioles Cards Project

In the past month, there were eleven blogs added and with these six removed, we are now at +5 for the month. And that also means that we now are above 300 blogs heading into the next month!!!

If these blogs are yours and you plan on starting your blog up again, please send me an e-mail at bdj610@hotmail.com. If you have a new blog that you want added, let me know so I can add them to the Blogroll. It's a lot of fun reading what everyone has to say. And with more writers setting up shop in the Hobby Blogging Community, the more voices get to be heard.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 2006 Topps Updates & Highlights #UH326 Classic Duos Derek Jeter & Jose Reyes

We reset the Topps Card Randomizer to come up with seven new cards to present for this week. Introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Monday, June 21, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2006 Topps Updates & Highlights #UH326.
• Player Name, position, team: Derek Jeter, shortstop, New York Yankees; Jose Reyes, shortstop, New York Mets.
• Special: Classic Duos
• Any special information about this specific card: One of the more interesting subsets Topps brought back in the 2000's was the multi-player subset. Whether the players depicted were teammates, rivals, siblings, or managers, there was always some kind of effort to link the players on the card together. The above effort brought together the All-Star shortstops from New York, making NY, according to Topps, a "cradle of shortstops." Both were named to their respective All-Star Teams for the 2006 game, however, Reyes was injured. So this picture had to have taken place during one of the three Subway Series games played at Shea in May, 2006. Combined, you're looking at 8 all-star appearances, 3 Gold Gloves, two Silver Sluggers, and two of the best shortstops playing in the majors today.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.30-$0.75.

Tomorrow's card will be: 2000 Topps Traded & Rookies #T26. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. See you then.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1955 Topps #133 Dave Hoskins

It's Retro Sunday!!! Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Sunday, June 20, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1955 Topps #133.
• Player Name, position, team: Dave Hoskins, pitcher, Cleveland Indians.
• Major League Debut: April 18, 1953.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1954 stats (Indians): 14 G, 27 IP, 0-1, .000 PCT, 29 H, 10 R, 9 ER, 9 SO, 10 BB, 3.00 ERA.
• Any special information about player: Sent to the Indians before the 1950 season. Bats: left, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: Hoskins' second (and final) regular Topps card. The 1955 Topps design was the first of two consecutive years Topps primarily used the horizontal fronts for their cards. The difference between the two is this design uses a brightly colored background (compared to the drawn action shot the following year). The headshots were primarily the same as the ones used the year before (due to save money). Hoskins, although a pitcher in the majors, apparently could swing a mean bat, and play the outfield to boot. In the minors, according to the back of the card, showed that he hit as high as .393 in Grand Rapids (A-Central League) in 1948. With the Dallas Eagles of the AA-Texas League, not only did he record a 22-10 record, but in 62 games in the outfield, he batted a robust .328. The cartoon on the back of the card featured another double threat (pitching/batting) in a True or False question. Well, true or false: Babe Ruth was a pitcher before he was an outfielder. (True. He pitched for Boston AL before coming to New York.) Hoskins only pitched in the majors for two years, so his lifetime statistics on the back of the card were final.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $6.00-$12.00.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 0 cards.

In case you're actually wondering, I don't own this card, but was able to get a crystal clean copy of the image from the from the Baseball Card Cyber Museum. So thank you Joe McAnally and the folks at the BCCM.

Well, it's back to normal on Monday. Tomorrow's card will be: 2006 Topps Updates and Highlights #326. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Come on back then to see what the Topps Card Randomizer gets us to look at then.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

How I'm Going to Spend My Father's Day in 2010...

I look at these cards now, knowing that both are no longer playing, and I think to myself, "Man am I old!!!"
So I started reading last year's Father's Day post, and I realized that this year I'll be doing the same things...somewhat. Here is what I wrote last year (what I did, or will do in 2010 is in bold):

Let's see...

• Breakfast in bed (here's hoping...) In 2010, had it, albeit cereal, a pop-tart, and toast with orange marmalade.
• Mow the lawn (it's been a few weeks since I last mowed. It hasn't helped that it rained really hard on Friday. Hopefully, Saturday's 80 degree temperature dried the ground enough.) In 2010, it rained really hard on Friday, but I got around to mowing the lawn on Saturday afternoon, so I'm done there...
• Drop my wife and daughter off at Sleeping Beauty ballet (being performed by my niece) In 2010, there is no ballet, but my family and I will be spending time with the in-laws for a graduation/Father's Day lunch.
• Hang out with my dad and my son at the bakery while waiting for girls at ballet (if not, church at night) In 2010, I'm hoping that when the party is over we can spend time at the bakery...haven't talked about that though...we'll see.
• Sort through and put into binder pages of the series 2 Topps Master set that arrived in the mail on Friday!!! In 2010, the series 2 Topps Master set arrived on Thursday!!!

How about that for a comparison.

To all dads out there, have a good one. To all those expecting to be dads soon, let me tell you that it's one of life's great joys to be a dad. There is a saying I heard that I actually agree with when it comes to fatherhood. I don't know who originally said it.

"Any man can be a father, but it takes a special kind of man to be a Dad!"

In Honor of Father's Day, I would like to include a few things on this blog that were a part of last year's Father's Day post.

First, friend of the blog Big Daddy (I've looked through your want list, I think I can help a bit...will let you know via e-mail), sent me a list from Baseball Almanac (not Baseball Reference like I erroneously typed last year) with a list of all the Fathers and Sons that played in the majors. It's such a long list that it needed a second page! And I think there are a few new additions to the list since last Father's Day.

Next is something I wrote on my first Father's Day post, and I'd like to say it again this year:

My wish to all fathers out there is to continue showing the love and caring that you do to your kids. They truly need you in their lives, even though they won't admit it. Show an interest in what they like and what they don't like. Teach them to love themselves and others around them. Teach them to behave like adults, but remember to let them still be kids. Be there for them, regardless if they want to share their problems with you or not. Because they eventually will, you will never have to force them to do it. And even if they don't, at least be a good listener, and show that you truly are concerned. Learn from your kids. They will teach you just as much as you want to teach them.

And finally, to Dads Everywhere:

Your children love you, even more than you love them. Why??? Because you've loved them for only a little while. Your children have loved you all their lives.

So be a good dad. Go out there and spend some time with your kids. You don't need to be reading anything else I have to say today. This is your time to be with them. So turn off the computer, and have fun with the kids. I'll be here on Monday when you get back.

And Happy Father's Day.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1989 Topps #289 Ernie Whitt

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Saturday, June 19, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1989 Topps #289.
• Player Name, position, team: Ernie Whitt, catcher, Toronto Blue Jays.
• Major League Debut: September 12, 1976.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1988 stats (Blue Jays): 127 G, 398 AB, 63 R, 100 H, 11 2B, 2 3B, 16 HR, 70 RBI, 4 SB, .410 SLG, 61 BB, 38 SO, .251 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Red Sox #12th, June 1972. Traded by the Red Sox to the Blue Jays 11/05/1976. Bats: left, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: Whitt's eleventh regular Topps card (total includes base and traded cards only). The long-time catcher for the Toronto Blue Jays. I've gone on and on about how much I love the 1989 set, there's no more need to explain (I mean, short of the colorful name plate at the bottom right corner and the large action shot framed by to sharp corners and two rounded corners...I don't think there's much more to say). Based on the picture, does it look like Ernie's going to hit it out or miss entirely? The ball is a complete blur, and yet, you can see Whitt clearly, probably the only thing moving is that bat. The black bordered reverse makes for easy chipping though. Ernie is so connected with the city of Toronto that he, according to the back of the card, is part-owner of a Toronto restaurant franchise. He was also the manager for Canada's 2004 Olympic team, and the country's first two World Baseball Classic teams...and this guy is from Detroit. That's shows how much he is connected to Canadian baseball. He presently serves as the manager of the Clearwater Threshers, the A-Florida State League affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.01-$0.05.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 16 cards.

Tomorrow is Retro Sunday, the one day of the week that we feature a card from 1951-1975. The card we will feature tomorrow is: 1955 Topps #133. Come back at 1:00 PM CST to see who (or what) it is.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1988 Topps #735 Kevin McReynolds

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Friday, June 18, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1988 Topps #735.
• Player Name, position, team: Kevin McReynolds, outfielder, New York Mets.
• Major League Debut: June 2, 1983.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1987 stats (Mets): 151 G, 590 AB, 86 R, 163 H, 32 2B, 5 3B, 29 HR, 95 RBI, 14 SB, .495 SLG, 39 BB, 70 SO, .276 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Padres #1st, June 1981. Traded by the Padres to the Mets 12/11/1986. Bats: right, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: McReynolds' second regular Topps card (total includes regular and traded cards only). What was it that made Kevin McReynolds so mad at Topps that he didn't sign a contract to appear on their cards until he arrived in NY??? He had cards with Donruss and Fleer (only because of the blanket deal both had with the player's association), but as you all know, Topps signs the players individually. Did something happen similar to Jason Varitek? There had to be something. Anyway, McReynolds was traded to the Mets in an eight player deal that also saw Kevin Mitchell and four others go to the Padres, only two months after their World Series win in 1986. As the Mets left fielder in 1987, he was among the team leaders in home runs and rbi's. The blurb on the back of the card highlights two dates in McReynold's career: his first MLB home run on 06/02/1983 (his MLB debut) and his MLB pinch hit home run on 08/08/1984. One last statistic shows that Kevin hit 7 game winning rbi's in 1987. Why they no longer keep track of that statistic is beyond me. Just like why we never saw a Topps card of McReynolds in a Padres uniform.
• Beckett value: $0.01-$0.05.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 17 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1989 Topps #289. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Flash back with the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Another Live Attempt at the Strasburg.

This is the goal:


I have ten Million Card Giveaway codes. Will I get the Strasburg? Or will I be stuck with ten commons? Let's find out...

Card 1: s59JhCZPm = 1978 Topps #326 Mike Lum
Card 2: P3SgZnmGw = 1977 Topps #613 Reggie Cleveland
Card 3: Xx8L5f2Zh = 1975 Topps #392 Bruce Bochte
Card 4: S2LsL89kF = 1973 Topps #339 Dick Tidrow
Card 5: SsMZ5z3fZ = 2000 Topps #039 Warren Morris
Card 6: qdNhxnC42 = 1961 Topps #147 Ed Rakow
Card 7: JwT5rbbFR = 1975 Topps #343 Danny Frisella
Card 8: RgkGzXf2Z = 1973 Topps #273 Chris Speier
Card 9: S2SbzX5SJ = 1982 Topps #592 Craig Swan
Card 10: x7NrwXB4f = 2001 Topps #091 Mike Lamb

Drat...AGAIN!!!

Oh well, so far more than 180 Strasburg cards have been unlocked. Some have already shown up on eBay, even though the people who redeemed the cards don't actually have the cards. So keep trying. And save me one will you???

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1985 Topps #574 Joe Altobelli

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Thursday, June 17, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1985 Topps #574.
• Player Name, position, team: Joe Altobelli, manager, Baltimore Orioles.
• Major League Debut: April 14, 1955. Managerial Debut: April 7, 1977.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1984 stats (Orioles): 85-77 managerial record.
• Any special information about manager: Hired as Manager before the 1983 season.
• Any special information about this specific card: Altobelli's sixth regular Topps card, sixth as a manager (total includes both Topps and Topps Traded cards). The pressure this guy must have felt going into the 1983 season. Having to replace a legendary manager in Earl Weaver, and managing future HOF's in Eddie Murray, Jim Palmer, and some young kid named Ripken. What does he do? Only manages the team to a World Series title! As manager for the O's in the mid 80's, he had a 212-167 record. In 1984, even though the Orioles went 85-77, that was only good enough for fifth place in the seven-team AL East. After a 29-26 start to the 1985 campaign, Altobelli was replaced by Cal Ripken, Sr (for one game), then Earl Weaver, the man Altobelli replaced when he got the job. The back of the manager cards included a team checklist (which helped if you were a team collector in the 80's). The checklist was sorted in alphabetical order by the player's last name, and included the card number, a square to "check off" the players you had (which by the time I started collecting people never EVER did...), the player name, and the player's uniform number.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.05-$0.15.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 7 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1988 Topps #735. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Until tomorrow everybody.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1986 Topps #637 Rudy Law

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Wednesday, June 16, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1986 Topps #637.
• Player Name, position, team: Rudy Law, outfielder, Chicago White Sox.
• Major League Debut: September 12, 1978.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1985 stats (White Sox): 125 G, 390AB, 62 R, 101 H, 21 2B, 6 3B, 4 HR, 35 RBI, 29 SB, .374 SLG, 27 BB, 40 SO, .259 AVG.
• Any special information about players: Signed with the Dodgers as a Free Agent 09/01/1975. Traded by the Dodgers to the White Sox 03/30/1982. Bats: left, Throws: left.
• Any special information about this specific card: Law's sixth regular Topps (total includes regular and traded cards only). The 1986 set was chosen by the readers of Topps Magazine as the best set of the 1980's (Topps Magazine, Fall, 1991, #8). And why not? The black and white borders, the unique lettering used for the team names, the red-dominated card backs. This is truly a set that screams 1980's. Rudy Law was one of the cogs that helped lead the White Sox to the 1983 AL Western Division crown, thanks to his 77 stolen bases and an OPS of .709. And for his efforts, Law was 21st in the MVP balloting that year. Law was actually released by the Sox before the 1986 season, but he quickly landed on his feet to play one year with the Royals. It would also be his last big league season. Baseball cards were our Baseball-Reference website before Baseball-Reference even had a website...before we had access to the internet. These cards are a wealth of information, and they come in 2½ x 3½ pieces of cardboard. I still try to take the time and read the backs of the cards, not only for the blurbs and other things on them, but for the numbers. Those with the highlighted stats (or appear in red) meant that they led the league in that category. And while 77 was a rather high number for stolen bases, and in this day and age would be heads and shoulders above the league leaders in that category, but in 1983, 77 was good enough for second (do I even need to tell you who took first that year???)
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.02-$0.10.
• How many cards of each player do I own?: 8 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1985 Topps #574. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Hope you will be too.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

And the 2010 Topps Red Hot Rookie #1 Card Goes To...

Those holding those Red Hot Rookie Redemption cards better get them logged in to Topps quickly as it has just been announced that card #1 belongs to none other than Carlos Santana of the Cleveland Indians.

Carlos was just recently called up to the Indians and made his major league debut on June 11 against the Washington Nationals. So far, he is 3-17, but has a home run and 3 rbi's for the Tribe (four games as of June 16, 2010).

Although it's not an autographed card, Indians fans will want to add this card to their collections. Ladies and Gentlemen, START REDEEMING!!!

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1995 Topps #542 Brian Anderson

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Tuesday, June 15, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1995 Topps #542.
• Player Name, position, team: Brian Anderson, pitcher, California Angels.
• Major League Debut: September 10, 1993.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1994 stats (Lake Elsinore-A): 2 G, 12 IP, 0-1, 4 R, 4 ER, 9 SO, 0 BB, 2 GS, 0 CG, 0 SHO, 0 SV, 3.00 ERA.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Angels #1st, June 1993. Bats: both, Throws: left.
• Any special information about this specific card: Anderson's second Topps card (total includes regular and traded cards only). The 1995 Topps set, what I like to call the torn pages set because of the edges of the picture (and the shadow behind it) was so popular, that Topps' football and basketball cards shared the same design. While Anderson (Brian James Anderson) did play for the Angels in 1994, he did have to spend a couple of days doing what looks like rehab work with the team's California League affiliate in Lake Elsinore. Because his stats with the Storm were the last line of statistics (his major league stats were above them), that's what I listed above. Either it was a really poor year for rookies in 1994 or Anderson had a great year as he was 6th in the ROY Voting, and as you can see by the big trophy on the card (bigger than usual, it seems), he was named as the LHP for Topps All-Star Rookie team in 1994. His stats for that year? In 18 games, he compiled a 7-5 record, an ERA of 5.22, and struck out 47 batters. The blurb on the back of the card, which includes the Mitsubishi Diamond Vision portrait...think scoreboard in the 1990's, an action shot, and the MLB Players and MLB Properties logo, suggests that the Angels "pace their rotation so Brian pitches on his birthday this year." The story is that on April 26, 1993, he pitched a shutout for his alma mater, Wright State. Exactly one year later, he pitched 8.2 innings to lead the Halos to a 3-0 shutout of the Yankees. In 1995, thanks to the strike and how the Angels set their rotation, Anderson didn't get to pitch until April 30. He is one of the rare players to be drafted and reach the majors in the same year. He continues his career in Cleveland, then is drafted by the Diamondbacks in the 1997 Expansion draft (their first pick, second overall), and later on goes on to play for the Indians and Royals before ending his career in 2005. He now works for the Tampa Bay Rays as an assistant to the pitching coach, in the Rays' front office, and fills in occasionally as a broadcaster for the Rays.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.05-$0.15.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 10 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1986 Topps #637. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. We're looking back at a card from 1986 here on the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1977 Topps #596 Jerry Martin

We reset the Topps Card Randomizer to come up with seven new cards to present for this week. Introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Monday, June 14, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1977 Topps #596.
• Player Name, position, team: Jerry Martin, outfielder, Philadelphia Phillies.
• Major League Debut: September 7, 1974.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1976 stats (Phillies): 130 G, 121 AB, 30 R, 30 H, 7 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 15 RBI, .248 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Signed with the Phillies as a Free Agent 07/17/1971. Bats Right, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: Martin's first regular Topps card (his rookie card. Total includes regular and traded cards only). The 1977 Topps design utilized many design elements used in the past: the facsimile autograph, the large team letters, a flag (this time with the position of the player depicted), and a decent sized picture. A good mix of action and posed shots...this one being in the latter category. The previous year marked Martin's first full year in the majors, playing all three outfield spots for the Phils. The back of the card looks like a camp bulletin board (you can tell by the posts at the bottom of the card and the grass that's growing alongside of the posts). Along with his name and stats is a comic commemorating historic events in baseball's past. In this case, it's of Jimmy PIersall, "who ran backwards to commemorate his 100th homer." The blurb below the stats talks about Martin's "only Grand Slammer of 1975" against the Dodgers at Los Angeles on June 13. Martin would go on to play for the Cubs, Giants, and Royals before calling it a career for good with the New York Mets.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.12-$0.30.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 12 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1995 Topps #542. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. See you then.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Twenty-Seven World Championships...Twenty-Seven Yankees Cards.

So I know I've recently been on a tear about too many Yankees cards in every set...including the fact that as long as that person plays for the Bronx Bombers, even if he is the third string catcher or that mop up relief pitcher, he gets a Topps card even though other players on other teams playing those same roles don't even get a whiff of Topps card stock. But there are times where having too many Yankees cards makes sense. This is one of those times.


I found this set at Target the other week called the New York Yankees World Championship Set. It is a boxed set containing 27 cards featuring, obviously, one player from each of the Yankees' championship teams. Based on the front of the box, the cards would reflect the same design as that year's Topps set, and in 14 cases, it does. For the Yankee's championships prior to 1951 (there were thirteen of those), the players featured grace the iconic 1952 card design.

The checklist, with the cards numbered #YC1-#YC27, include:

• 1923 Babe Ruth
• 1927 Lou Gehrig
• 1928 Leo Durocher
• 1932 Lefty Gomez
• 1936 Tony Lazzeri
• 1937 Bill Dickey
• 1938 Tommy Henrich
• 1939 Red Rolle
• 1941 Phil Rizzuto
• 1943 Charlie Keller
• 1947 Yogi Berra
• 1949 Johnny Mize
• 1950 Hank Bauer
• 1951 Mickey Mantle
• 1952 Mickey Mantle
• 1953 Mickey Mantle
• 1956 Don Larsen
• 1958 Enos Slaughter
• 1961 Roger Maris
• 1962 Elston Howard
• 1977 Thurman Munson
• 1978 Reggie Jackson
• 1996 Andy Pettitte
• 1998 Derek Jeter
• 1999 Jorge Posada
• 2000 Mariano Rivera
• 2009 Alex Rodriguez

Even though players like Berra, Mize, and Bauer all have cards in the 1952 set, the cards included here are not reprints from that year's set. The Mick did not actually appear in the 1951 set (although he does have a few cards created recently thanks to this year's Target/Walmart exclusive insert set. All cards honoring the Yank's World Series win after 1951 do feature that year's Topps design and a reprint of the featured player's card from that year's set. The backs of the cards include a picture of the World Series logo of that year, the NL team the Yankees faced that year and the result, and a brief synopsis about what the player on the front of the card that year.

So Yankees collectors, rejoice. There's another product out there made exclusively for you. For those who collect Hall of Famers, here's another card set for you. For set collectors who like products using older Topps designs, have at it. For fans of the other 29 teams...you might want to avoid this set.

Me, I'm adding the set I bought to the 2010 Topps binder.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1959 Topps #470 Stan Musial Baseball Thrills

It's Retro Sunday!!! Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Sunday, June 13, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1959 Topps #470.
• Player Name, position, team: Stan Musial, first baseman, St. Louis Cardinals.
• Special: Baseball Thrills "Musial Raps Out 3,000th hit."
• Any special information about this specific card: The back of this card looks like it was taken from a newspaper. Baseball Thrills it's called, with a dateline of May 13, 1958. While it would be repetitive to read the headline, I can tell you that Musial, on this day, was "not even in the starting lineup against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. But with the Cards trailing, Stan got off the bench to pinch hit. He received a fine ovation...and connected for a double...his 3,000th hit. He joined seven other players who reached that milestone." The Cardinals, it turns out, came back to win the game by the score of 5-3. His double turned the game around, as the Cards scored four more times in that inning, to turn a 3-1 deficit to a 5-3 lead.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $15.00-$30.00.

In case you're actually wondering, I don't own this card, but was able to get a crystal clean copy of the image from the from the Baseball Card Cyber Museum. So thank you Joe McAnally and the folks at the BCCM.

Well, it's back to normal on Monday. Tomorrow's card will be: 1977 Topps #596. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Come on back then to see what the Topps Card Randomizer gets us to look at then.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1981 Topps #415 Ben Oglivie

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Saturday, June 12, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1981 Topps #415.
• Player Name, position, team: Ben Oglivie, outfielder, Milwaukee Brewers.
• Major League Debut: September 4, 1971.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1980 stats (Brewers): 156 G, 592 AB, 94 R, 180 H, 26 2B, 2 3B, 41 HR, 118 RBI, 11 SB, .563 SLG, 54 BB, 71 SO, .295 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Red Sox #11th, June 1971. Traded by the Tigers to the Brewers 12/09/1977. Bats: left, Throws: left.
• Any special information about this specific card: Oglivie's ninth regular Topps card (total includes base and traded cards only). After looking at a card from the 1981 Traded set, we come today to pay homage to one of Harvey's Wallbangers, one of the main players of a team that brought postseason glory to the baseball hungry fans of Milwaukee, WI. Ben Oglivie had the best years of his career playing for the Brew Crew. In 1980, he made his first All-Star team, and finished the year among the leaders in home runs (actually, he and Reggie Jackson shared the AL home run crown with 41) and rbi's (a career high 118). He was an MVP candidate, and in 1982, helped send the Brewers to the World Series. In nine years with the Brewers, Oglivie hit for an .277 average, blasted 176 home runs, and drove in 685. In 2002, he was one of six players honored with his own Topps Reprint baseball card day. However, it was a reprint of his 1980 Topps card that was given away. There is a part of me that still believes that the Brewers belong in the American League.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.15-$0.40.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 15 cards.

Tomorrow is Retro Sunday, the one day of the week that we feature a card from 1951-1975. The card we will feature tomorrow is: 1959 Topps #470. Come back at 1:00 PM CST to see who (or what) it is.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 2007 Topps Updates & Highlights #UH252 Brian McCann All-Star

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Friday, June 11, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2007 Topps Updates & Highlights #UH252.
• Player Name, position, team: Brian McCann, All-Star Catcher, National League.
• Any special information about this specific card: When Topps expanded their end-of-the-year updates set to 330 cards, they reserved 60 cards for players who participated in that year's All-Star Game. Not everybody who made the rosters had a card (and that's a big What??! for me). Before, the manager, with the help of the League President (now the Commissioner since Selig abolished the presidents), used to select all the reserves, making sure that all teams gets a representative. Nowadays, after the fan voting, the players vote on the reserves. If the first player they pick was already selected by the fans, the second place finisher gets selected onto the team. As Martin was selected by the fans, thus starting the game, McCann was the players choice, hence Martin's back-up. The 2007 All-Star Game in San Francisco was McCann's second ASG appearance, and McCann took over the NL catching duties in the seventh inning. At the plate, (the above picture) he went o-1, popping out to SS Carlos Guillen in the 9th inning.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.12-$0.30.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1981 Topps #415. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Flash back with the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1987 Topps #117 Jim Beattie

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Thursday, June 10, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1987 Topps #117.
• Player Name, position, team: Jim Beattie, pitcher, Seattle Mariners.
• Major League Debut: April 25, 1978.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1986 stats (Mariners): 9 G, 40.1 IP , 0-6, 28 R, 27 ER, 24 SO, 14 BB, 7 GS, 0 CG, 0 SHO, 0 SV, 6.02 ERA.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by Yankees #4th June 1975. Traded by the Yankees to the Mariners 11/01/1979. Bats: right, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: Beattie's ninth (and final) regular Topps card (total includes both Topps and Topps Traded cards). The Randomizer once again chose a player that we've spotlighted previously. This time, Mariners pitcher Jim Beattie makes his second appearance on the Random Card of the Day (his first was back on 01/16/2010). It's now seven seasons later, and Beattie, injured for a majority of the 1986 season, appeared in nine games in what would be his final season in the majors. The career stats on the back are final. He finishes his career with a 52-87 record, an ERA of 4.17, 660 K's, 461 walks, in 203 career games. The wood paneled 1987 set shows Beattie watching the action on the field from the comfort of the dugout. The old Mariners logo (the star and the trident M) is used in this set for the final time as the Mariners would use a new team logo for the 1987 season (the yellow S on the caps). The back of the card includes a random "On This Date" segment. On 09/20/1969, Bob Moose pitched a no-hitter for the Pirates vs. the Mets. Bob's 1969 Topps card was #409.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.01-$0.05.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 10 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 2007 Topps Updates and Highlights #UH252. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Until tomorrow everybody.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 2002 Topps #17 Bobby Jones

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Wednesday, June 9, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2002 Topps #17.
• Player Name, position, team: Bobby Jones, pitcher, San Diego Padres.
• Major League Debut: August 14, 1993.
• Last Line of Statistics: 2001 stats (Padres): 33 G, 195 IP, 8-19, 137 R, 111 ER, 113 SO, 38 BB, 33 GS, 1 CG, 0 SHO, 0 SV, 5.12 ERA.
• Any special information about players: Drafted by the Mets #1st, June 1991. Signed with the Padres as a Free Agent 02/15/2001. Bats: right, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: Jones' eleventh regular Topps (total includes regular and traded cards only). I'm not going to go into specifics again about how much I'm not a fan of the 2002 set, so let's forget that. And for once, I'll try and look at the positives of this set. Let's see, nice use of ribbons, lots of picture space here, nice shot of Jones in spring training. It has to be. You can't look this relaxed when you're leading the league in losses (which he did with 19 in 2001). I had to make sure that the link to Baseball Reference had the correct Bobby Jones. Because there are at least four of them who played MLB, including Robert Joseph Jones (our subject for today), and Bobby Jones (Robert Mitchell Jones) who also happened to play around the same time (I think they even pitched a game against each other if I recall). There are also two other players named Bob Jones, but they played either in the early part of the century or in the mid 70's to early 80's, so it's not them. The back of the card reads that Bobby "was one of only eight pitchers to post a .500 or better record each year from 1994 to 2000." Which is great. But then you see his statistics for 2001 and find that it probably wasn't his best season ever. He did become an All-Star in 1997, something that I didn't even remember. And I like the All-Star Game.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.07-$0.20.
• How many cards of each player do I own?: 12 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1987 Topps #117. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Hope you will be too.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Now That He Won His Debut, Do I Get A Strasburg Card???

This is the goal:


Topps already has this card on the Million Card Giveaway. The ID# is 39117. Did I successfully redeem it? Or, just like 14 Pittsburgh Pirates batters, strike out in three pitches (or MCG cards as the case may be)? Stay tuned.


As you can see, this is card #661. I don't think this is going to show up in your factory set, and just like the Johan Santana #661 card from 2008, that means this is going to be one insanely expensive card...even more so than the Santana.

Okay...so did I get lucky???

Card #1: DbZxHcxS2:


1971 Topps Marcel Lacheman. Nope. Strike 1.

Card #2: MKtQT2NLmn:


1996 Topps Tim Crabtree. Nice, but I already have this card. Strike 2.

Card #3 (final chance for the night): JNXB4XjJJ:


2005 Topps Rodrigo Lopez. Strike 3. I'm out!!!

NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

Oh well...

Some lucky collector is going to get that Strasburg card...and if he or she keeps it...great. If he or she decides to put it on the Bay however...

Let the Bidding Wars Begin!!!

Let's just hope merkle923 doesn't turn this into a bidding war the likes we haven't seen since Alex Gordon.

Good luck to all. Please save one for me will you???

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1981 Topps Traded #826 Joe Rudi

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Tuesday, June 8, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1981 Topps Traded #826.
• Player Name, position, team: Joe Rudi, outfielder, Boston Red Sox.
• Major League Debut: April 11, 1967.
• 191t Line of Statistics: 1980 stats (Angels): 104 G, 372 AB, 42 R, 88 H, 17 2B, 1 3B, 16 HR, 53 RBI, 1 SB, .417 SLG, 17 BB, 84 K, .237 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Signed with the A's as a Free Agent 06/13/1964. Traded by the Angels to the Red Sox 01/23/1981. Bats: right, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: Rudi's fourteenth regular Topps card (total includes regular and traded cards only). The 1981 Topps Traded set was the first set Topps produced since 1976. The reason? Competition. Donruss and Fleer both won the rights to produce baseball cards, ending Topps' monopoly on the Hobby since 1956 when the Topps Company bought out its rival Bowman. So now Topps needed something to stand out from the newly formed crowd. It did so by producing an end of the year update set that was to be sold only in hobby shops. Enter the 1981 Topps Traded set. Now, believe it or not, the 1981 Topps set, mostly remembered for its use of baseball caps in the design, does use the Topps logo last seen in 1979 (albeit on the back of the card...incidentally, this would be the last time that the old Topps logo would be used). And instead of differentiating the Traded set from the regular set, the cards started numerically after the last card from the 1981 Topps set, so it started with 727 and so forth. As the randomizer originally selected 1981 Topps Traded #110, that really meant #826, which is what we're here to discuss today. Joe Rudi, after many successful years with both the Oakland A's (not Athletics...A's) and California Angels (not the Anaheim Angels, not the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim...California Angels), was sent off to Boston as part of a five player deal that saw Fred Lynn, the first player to become ROY and MVP in the same season, to California. It did appear though, that he was starting to wind his career down as he only played sparingly with the Red Sox in the 1981 season. He returned to the A's after the 1981 season, but injuries caught up with him and by that time, he saw limited action. He was released by the team by the end of the 1983 season. He was a 3-time All Star, a three time Gold Glove winner, and a three-time World Series Champion. Who said good things didn't come in threes?
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.40-$1.00.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 14 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 2002 Topps #17. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. We're looking back at a card from 2002 here on the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

The Checklists for the Exclusive Target Red Backs and Wal-Mart Blue Back Cards in Series 2!

The boys and girls at the number one source of the hobby have in their "My Organize" database the players who comprise the second series of Blue and Red Backed cards found exclusively at Target (red) and WalMart (blue).

At Walmart, the following fifteen Blue Back cards can be found:

• #16 Mickey Mantle
• #17 Cal Ripken Jr.
• #18 Cy Young
• #19 Jackie Robinson
• #20 Jimmie Foxx
• #21 Lou Gehrig
• #22 Rogers Hornsby
• #23 Ty Cobb
• #24 Dizzy Dean
• #25 Reggie Jackson
• #26 Warren Spahn
• #27 Albert Pujols
• #28 Chipper Jones
• #29 Mariano Rivera
• #30 David Wright

And at Target, keep your eyes out for the following fifteen Red Backs:

• #16 Babe Ruth
• #17 Honus Wagner
• #18 Ichiro Suzuki
• #19 Nolan Ryan
• #20 Stan Musial
• #21 Tom Seaver
• #22 Derek Jeter
• #23 Roy Halladay
• #24 Mel Ott
• #25 George Sisler
• #26 Roger Maris
• #27 Walter Johnson
• #28 Vladimir Guerrero
• #29 Tim Lincecum
• #30 Hanley Ramirez

One thing to note is that the players in the red back set in series 1 now find themselves in the blue back set in series 2 and vice versa.

I have not seen any at either store yet, but when they do, and if you're not looking for them, please drop me a line and let me know what it would take to get these cards from you.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

And Suddenly Those Million Card Giveaway Code Cards Are Worth A Heck of a Lot More!!!

If you haven't heard yet, the Million Card Giveaway, that wildly popular and successful promotion Topps put out this year, has now entered levels of extreme proportions. Why? Because it's just been announced that somebody with codes from either series 1 or 2 can possibly unlock the first ever RC of soon to be debuting Stephen Strasburg of the Washington Nationals!!!
And the card will be made available exclusively online during his First MLB Game!!! As in IMMEDIATELY AFTER HIS FIRST PITCH!!!

You know the Nationals, the team formerly known as the Montréal Expos, have had a pretty good run so far this year, and are not too far off the pace in the very tight National League East. Strasburg's start has been one of the most anticipated events of the year, and it's finally happening tomorrow night (June 8, 2010) at Nationals Park, against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Game time is 7:05 EST.

More information can be found here.

I've you've been holding off entering codes, tomorrow night would be a good time to start redeeming as somebody (or a number of somebody's) will be rewarded with the first "OFFICIAL" rookie card of the next pitching sensation, Stephen Strasburg. Good luck to all. Let's hope the system doesn't crash!!!

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1996 Topps Traded #323 Wade Boggs

We reset the Topps Card Randomizer to come up with seven new cards to present for this week. Introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Monday, June 7, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1993 Topps Traded #47T.
• Player Name, position, team: Wade Boggs, third baseman, New York Yankees.
• Major League Debut: April 10, 1982.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1995 stats (Yankees): 126 G, 460 AB, 76 R, 149 H, 22 2B, 4 3B, 5 HR, 63 RBI, 1 SB, ..422 SLG, 74 BB, 50 SO, .324 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Red Sox #7th, June 1976. Signed with the Yankees as a Free Agent 12/15/1992. Bats Left, Throws: right.443/1386
• Any special information about this specific card: Boggs' fifteenth regular Topps card (total includes regular and traded cards only, not any combo, all-star, league leader cards). In what looks to be a Topps Card Randomizer first, it has chosen a second card of a player already featured on the CotD. And what makes it even better was that he was featured just last week!!! That saves time on typing out the specifics. So it's three seasons since joining the Yankees, and Boggs is doing rather well for himself. In fact, since signing with the "Bronx Bombers," he has been an hitting machine, with a .320 clip (443/1386) in this three seasons thus far, to go along with 18 home runs and 177 runs driven in. He ends the 1995 season and begins the next helping a young shortstop get accustomed to playing in Yankee Stadium (I think we all know who that is...right?). On the card, you can't see his eyes, but you know he's focused on his swing. The back of the card simply mentions that Boggs "owns the all-time record for third basemen with 10 straight All-Star Game starts. In fact, his back up for the first couple of years representing NY at the ASG was the player who replaced him in Boston.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.10-$0.30.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 88 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1981 Topps Traded #826. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. See you then.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

I Finally Have Some Series 2 Cards!!!

No, I don't have the complete set (yet). I was able to, however, get to the local card shop on Saturday, and purchased two jumbo packs, and five regular packs, of 2010 Topps Series 2.

The cards look great, and I still have one more pack of each (jumbo and regular) to open . Since I'm away from home at the moment, and have the packs here, let's see what I have. But before I begin, let me say that as a collector, not only do I collect the cards and stuff them in a binder (okay, stuff probably isn't the right word, let's change that to insert), I also try and keep a clean wrapper to include with the binder. That means I try my best not to tear into the pack like there's no tomorrow. I slowly and carefully open the pack from the top, being careful not to tear into the foil. Okay, I know the packs aren't worth much, but it's still nice to have a clean wrapper to show how the cards were packaged.

Anyway, onto the regular pack of ten cards. Mickey Mantle pack:

• #541 Jason Motte, Cardinals
• #617 Luis Valbuena, Indians
• #503 Austin Jackson, Tigers, Rookie Card
• #555 B. J. Upton, Rays
• #HWS10 Whitey Ford
• #LL51 Juan Marichal/Tim Lincecum
• #450 Omir Santos, Mets (where's that ASRT Trophy???)
• #386 Dan Haren, Diamondbacks
• #608 Pittsburgh Pirates Team Card
• Topps Attax Joey Votto code card

Okay, not the best in the world, seven cards plus three inserts. I don't have a lot of time left, so I'll spare you the regular cards in the jumbo pack, and only mention the inserts/highlights. Dustin Pedroia pack:

• Topps Gold Justin Verlander #615 (#1109/2010)
• Topps CYMTO Whitey Ford 1957 #CMT64
• Topps History of the WS Derek Jeter #HWS21
• Topps Million Card Giveaway Thurman Munson 1976 #TMC18
• Topps 20/20 Justin Upton #T5
• Topps CYMTO George Brett 1975 Original Back!!!!
• Topps Peak Performance #Phil Rizzuto #PP88
• Topps Vintage Legends Thurman Munson #1959
• Topps Turkey Red Joey Votto #TR58
• Topps Legendary Lineage Bo Jackson/Justin Upton #LL44
• Topps Attax Stephen Drew

Got an Original Back in the pack!!! That's one down, 57 to go for series 2. I'll show off the highlights from the rest of the packs soon.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama