Random Topps Card of the Day: 1984 Topps #332 Kevin Gross

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Monday, March 31, 2014:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1984 Topps #332.
• Player Name, position, team: Kevin Gross, pitcher, Philadelphia Phillies.
• Major League Debut: June 25, 1983.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1983 stats (Phillies): 17 G, 96 IP, 4-6, 46 R, 38 ER, 66 SO, 35 BB, 17 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 0 SV, 3.56 ERA.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Phillies #1st, January 1981 (Special). Bats: right. Throws: right.
• Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 15. This is his first Topps card.
• Blurb on the back: "His Single produced Game-Winning RBI and he earned Victory in 3-1 win vs. Expos, 6-30-83."
• Commentary: It's hard to believe that this set is now 30-years old. That means that 30 seasons ago, the Cubs made their first appearance in the postseason for the first time since 1945. That means that 30 years ago, I still knew nothing about baseball or baseball cards for that matter. The one thing I do remember is that when I finally was able to afford to buy this set from one of the many card shops in Chicago (now, not so many...what a shame), I realized I was missing one card from it. No, it wasn't the card of Kevin Frank Gross, today's subject, but of Dodgers' first baseman Greg Brock. Fortunately the card store managed to have one available (after digging through their inventory in the basement. I regret not accepting the invitation to go down there to see the place. I can only imagine tons of boxes with cards all over the place. That would have been awesome to see. Anyway. From 1983 through 1988, 2/25ths of the Phillies roster shared the name Gross, and both men were not related. Greg Gross was a veteran outfielder/first baseman who had spent time with the Astros (ROY runner up) and Cubs before joining the Phils and enjoying a successful 10 year career. Kevin was the rookie pitcher who impressed enough to earn a spot on the pitching staff, first as a swingman (reliever who could start from time to time) to a starting pitcher (an All-Star in 1988). In 1984, Gross appeared in 44 games, starting 14 of them, earn a record of 8-5, one save, strikeout 84 batters, achieve an ERA of 4.12, and a WHIP of 1.426. The following year, he earned a spot in the starting rotation, where he would stay the rest of his time in Philly. In six seasons, he would pitch in 203 games for the Phillies, achieve a 60-66 record, an ERA of 3.87, and strikeout 727 of the 4764 men he faced. He was traded to the Expos on December 6, 1988. After two seasons with the Expos, he spent time with the Dodgers (pitching a no-hitter in 1992), Rangers, and Angels before retiring as an active player. He was inducted into the Ventura County Sports Hall of Fame in 2002.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.15-$0.40.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 17 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1976 Topps #41. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Flash back with the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Pro Debut Card of the Week: 2013 Topps Pro Debut #57 Alen Hanson

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Pro Debut Card of the Week:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2013 Topps Pro Debut #57.
• Player Name, position, team: Alen Hanson, shortstop, West Virginia Power.
• Level-League, Team Affiliation: Low A-South Atlantic League, Pittsburgh Pirates.
• Minor League Stats (stats with team depicted only): 124 G, 489 AB, 99 R, 151 H, 33 2B, 13 3B, 16 HR, 62 RBI, 35 SB, 55 BB, 105 SO, .528 SLG, .909 OPS, .309 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Signed with the Pirates as a Free Agent before the 2009 season. Bats: right. Throws: right.
• Major League Debut: n/a.
• Baseball America Organizational Ranking After Season with Team: Pittsburgh Pirates #5 prospect after the 2012 season.
• Blurb on the back: "Beginning with an April batting average of .410 as a 19-year-old for West Virginia in 2012, Hanson forced his way into the discussion of the game's most prominent shortstop prospects. Naturally athletic and unabashedly energetic, his combination of totals in the three extra-base hit categories and the stolen base column was unmatched at any level."
• Official Topps Rookie Card: n/a.
• Commentary: Alen Rery Hanson's numbers in 2012 were staggering. Regardless that it was the Sally League, the combination of speed and power he possessed makes him one of the Pirates leading prospects heading into the 2014 season. He spent his 2013 campaign between the High A Bradenton Marauders and AA-Altoona Curve, combining for a .274 average, 8 home runs, 58 rbi's, 30 stolen bases, and a .755 OPS. He starts 2014 in the Bucs' minor league camp, and will probably start in AA. He's going to be 21 this season, and if the Pirates do well in 2014, Hanson could see some action come September, if not sooner.

Next week's featured card will be: 2011 Topps Pro Debut #142. Post will arrive at 9:00 AM CST. Hope you enjoyed this week's installment of Minor League Monday.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1972 Topps #94 1971 AL Pitching Leaders

It's Retro Sunday!!! Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Sunday, March 30, 2014:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1972 Topps #94.
• Player Name, position, team: Mickey Lolich, pitcher, Detroit Tigers; Vida Blue, pitcher, Oakland A's; Wilbur Wood, pitcher, Chicago White Sox.
• Special: 1971 AL Pitching Leaders
• Commentary: Nothing too fancy about the card above other than it features three All-Stars from the 1971 season who led the American League in wins. This was before the Sabermetrics, the WAR, and all of those other new-era statistics. This was when your best pitchers were judged by their won-loss record. And in their defense, the three gentlemen featured here wouldn't need those kinds of numbers to tell how good they were in '71. Combined, Lolich, Blue, and Wood started 126 games, completed 75 of them, 19 were shutouts. They were a combined 71-35, had a combined ERA of 2.25, a combined WHIP of 1.036 (with Wood having an even 1.000 WHIP - 334 hits and walks in 334 innings of work), and struck out a combined 819 batters. The back of the card just lists the top 10 players in the AL in wins, even though it doesn't mention that specifically. Rounding out the top 10 in wins are Jim Hunter (21) of the A's, Dave McNally of the Orioles (21), Joe Coleman of the Tigers (20), Andy Messersmith of the Angels (20), and three more Orioles, Mike Cuellar, Pat Dobson, and Jim Palmer, each with 20 wins. You have to remember that in 1971, the Orioles featured four starters who would wind up with 20 or more wins, propelling the O's to the AL pennant and their third straight World Series appearance..
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $1.00-$2.50.

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: 1984 Topps #332. 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 Team Set of the Week: 2009 Cincinnati Reds

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Team Set of the Week:

• Team: 2009 Cincinnati Reds
• Record: 78-84, fourth place, NL Central Division.
• Managers: Dusty Baker
• Card on the Top: Jay Bruce

The checklist consists of the following players:

• CIN1 Jay Bruce
• CIN2 Edinson Volquez
• CIN3 Joey Votto
• CIN4 Bronson Arroyo
• CIN5 Brandon Phillips
• CIN6 Aaron Harang
• CIN7 Edwin Encarnacion
• CIN8 Johnny Cueto
• CIN9 Chris Dickerson
• CIN10 Francisco Cordero
• CIN11 Willy Taveras
• CIN12 Ramon Hernandez
• CIN13 Jeff Keppinger
• CIN14 Micah Owings
• CIN15 Mr. Redlegs

The cards in order from the set (the checklist at the end was cut from the back of the package. What, you don't do that?):

Key differences between the team set and 2009 Topps eponymous set:

• Jeff Keppinger appeared in 121 games for the Reds last year at second, short, third, and even in left field. In 2009, he was traded to the Astros just before the season started, and then moved on to San Francisco after the All-Star break. You won't find a regular Topps card of Jeff in either the base or traded sets. The only place you can get a Jeff Keppinger card with the 2009 Topps design...is in the retail set.

• While you get to see all of Edison Volquez on the retail card, his base card cuts him off at the top:
  
  

• Joey Votto...with ASRT Trophy, vertically-oriented base card...bunting???:
  
  

• Bronson Arroyo's base card shows him in spring training action:
  
  

• Brandon Phillips, having fun on his base card...:
  
  

• The picture is the same, but Aaron Harang's base card gets the same treatment as Volquez...:
  
  

• The picture is different for Francisco Cordero, but once again...you get the idea:
  
  

• Not only did they use a different picture on the base card for Willy Taveras, but it seems that the retail card spells his name T-E-V-A-R-A-S. Whoops!!!:
  
  

• Retail set owners can see Ramon Hernandez from head to toe. His base card...not so much:
  
  

• While his eponymous 2009 Topps card shows Micah Owings pitching, isn't it refreshing to see baseball cards of pitchers batting, as he was on his retail card?:
  
  

Of the 14 players included in this set, 8 players have different pictures on the retail set compared to the base set, one more shows a different cropping of the same picture, and one player is a retail exclusive. Fans of the Reds should have loved all of the variations that can only be found in the retail set.

Next week's featured set will be the 2010 Florida Marlins. Hope you'll be here when we compare the cards from the retail set to their counterparts found in Topps and Topps Update Series sets.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1998 Topps #468 Rich Butler

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Saturday, March 29, 2014:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1998 Topps #468.
• Player Name, position, team: Rich Butler, outfielder, Tampa Bay Devil Rays.
• Major League Debut: September 6, 1997.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1997 stats (Blue Jays): 7 G, 14 AB, 3 R, 4 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 0 SB, .357 SLG, 2 BB, 3 SO, .286 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Signed with the Blue Jays as a Free Agent 09/24/1990. Drafted by the Devil Rays #5th, 1997 Expansion Draft. Bats: left. Throws: right.
• Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 1. This is his first and only Topps card.
• Blurb on the back: "The clue was in the hands. Butler showed little power, but astute scouts could see his bat speed through the zone would soon produce HRs. Last year, it did, and a prospect was born."
• Commentary: The second series of 1998 Topps series 2 not only featured Topps' first card of Topps-holdout Alex Rodriguez, but also in somewhat of an order, the draft picks and free agents of both the Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Devil Rays. A life-long Blue Jays minor leaguer (signed with the team when he was seventeen), the Canadian born Richard Dwight Butler finally made it to the big club after a long tour of duty within the Jays' minor league system. But his career with his hometown team was short lived as the expansion Devil Rays made him their fifth pick (tenth player overall chosen). Butler would appear in 98 games for the D-Rays, hitting .226 with 7 home runs, 20 rbi's, and percentages of .278/.364/.643 in 72 games. With the Rays signing big-name free agents for the 1999 season, Butler spent most of the year in Durham, only appearing in seven games that year. Those would also be the last games Butler would play in the majors. He signed with the Mariners as a minor league free agent in 2000, and after spending time in both the Mariners and Rangers' farm systems, Butler ended his playing career, save for a 25-game comeback in the independents.
• Beckett value: $0.07-$0.20.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 1 card.

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: 1972 Topps #94. Come back at 1:00 PM CST to see who (or what) it is.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 2000 Topps #13 Magglio Ordóñez

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Friday, March 28, 2014:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2000 Topps #13.
• Player Name, position, team: Magglio Ordóñez, outfielder, Chicago White Sox
• Major League Debut: August 29, 1997.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1999 stats (White Sox): 157 G, 624 AB, 100 R, 188 H, 34 2B, 3 3B, 30 HR, 117 RBI, 13 SB, .510 SLG, 47 BB, 64 SO, .301 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Signed with the White Sox as a Free Agent 05/18/1991. Bats: right. Throws: right.
• Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 14. This is his second and card.
• Blurb on the back: "Two years into his professional career, Magglio was a .206 hitter. And six years into it, he still hadn't appeared on one of those top-10 team prospects lists in Baseball America. In 1999, however, Ordóñez was an All-Star. Combining contact and power, he has become a White Sox building block"
• Commentary: I purchased and received the sell sheets for 2000 Topps. This was the set that featured Mark McGwire and Hank Aaron during Topps' "compare-a-legend-to-a-current superstar" stage. The sell sheets actually came in a folder, looks really nice, and the sell sheet discusses what Topps plans were for the coming year, including the incorporation of a "Topps 2000" logo on every player card. Magglio Ordóñez was such a great young ball player that the fans started chanting his name during every plate appearance. I don't think I can spell it, but it sounded like "O-E-O...Maaaaaaag-lio." And with the Sox, he was one of the key figures in bringing the White Sox their first divisional championship since 1993. Maggs hit .315 with 32 home runs, drove in 126 rbi's, stole 18 bases, and had percentages of .371/.546/.917. He was named to his second All-Star team, and won his first Silver Slugger Award. He was among the Sox' offensive leaders every season through 2003. In 2004, injuries took a toll and he missed most of the season. Willing to prove that he still had it, he signed with the divisional rival Tigers. And while he missed out on being part of that World Series team, he found his offensive stroke in Detroit, and led the Tigers, who had wallowed in inferiority for most of the decade, back to relevance and by 2006, back to the World Series.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.07-$0.20.
• How many cards of each player do I own?: 68 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1998 Topps #468. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Flash back with the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1980 Topps #456 Frank Taveras

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Thursday, March 27, 2014:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1980 Topps #456.
• Player Name, position, team: Frank Taveras, shortstop, New York Mets.
• Major League Debut: September 25, 1971.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1979 stats (Mets): 153 G, 635 AB, 89 R, 167 H, 26 2B, 9 3B, 1 HR, 33 RBI, .263 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Signed with the Pirates as a Free Agent 01/0/1968. Traded by the Pirates to the Mets 04/19/1979. Bats: right, Throws: right.
• Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 10. This is his seventh Topps card.
• Blurb on the back: "Set Pirates' club record by grounding into 4 double plays in 702 Plate Appearances, 1978. Had three 4-hit games in 1978."
• Commentary: I have to wonder how well the Randomizer works. Because it turns out that this card was already picked by as a subject back in 2010 (September 10, in fact). I know my Frank Taveras collection hasn't grown much, so it's safe to say I still own the nine cards that have him on it. What did I write back then? "Taveras was the shortstop of the fun-loving Pirates during the 1970's. He played in both the 1974 and 1975 NLCS (so says the cartoon caption on the left side of the back of the card). Traded to the Mets early in the 1979 season, he managed to lead the majors in games played with 164. Yes, that's right. He played 11 games with the Pirates before being traded to the Mets where he participated in 153 games. I thought that was a mistake too. He was very fast on the base paths, stealing 70 bases in 1977. He played for the Mets for two more seasons before ending his big league career with the Expos in 1982." With the Mets in 1980, Taveras hit for a career high .279 average with 25 runs driven in, stole 32 bases, and achieved percentages of .308/.327/.635. Defensively, he committed 25 errors in 609 total chances for a .959 fielding percentage and was part of 63 double plays.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.08-$0.25.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 9.

Tomorrow's card will be: 2000 Topps #13. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Until tomorrow everybody.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1997 Topps #308 Stan Javier

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Wednesday, March 26, 2014:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1997 Topps #308.
• Player Name, position, team: Stan Javier, outfielder, San Francisco Giants.
• Major League Debut: April 15, 1984.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1996 stats (Giants): 71 G, 274 AB, 44 R, 74 H, 25 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 22 RBI, 14 SB, .383 SLG, 25 BB, 51 SO, .270 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Signed with the Cardinals as a Free Agent 03/26/1981. Signed with the Giants as a Free Agent 12/08/1995. Bats: both. Throws: right.
• Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 13. This is his tenth Topps card.
• Blurb on the back: "Stan had no desire to play 2B like ex-ML star Julian, his father. Why? "I was afraid of the ball," he confesses."
• Commentary: It seems that Topps may have forgotten to change the Acq(uired) information on the back of Stanley Julian Antonio Javier's 1997 Topps card because Javier signed with the Athletics, the team he played for two stints, recently 1994-1995, on December 7, 1993. He signed with the Giants two years and one day later, on December 8, 1995. That makes this card...AN ERROR CARD!!! With the exception of a cup of coffee with the Yankees in 1984 and half a season with the Phillies, Javier's career up to this point has seen him play for California teams (all except the Padres). In his second season with the Giants, Stan appeared in 142 gams, hit for a good .286 with 8 homers, 50 rbi's, and percentages of .368/.395/.764. He would stay on with the Giants until August 31, 1999, when he was traded to the Astros, keeping the team in the pennant race and helping them into the playoffs as the franchise was decimated by injuries. After finishing the 1999 season with Houston, he signed with the Mariners, where he finished his career two years later. He was named the GM for the Dominican Republic team for the World Baseball Classic in 2006 and again in 2009 and spent some time working for the MLB Players Association as a special assistant.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.07-$0.20.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 17.

Tomorrow's card will be 1980 Topps #456. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Hope you will be too.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1986 Topps #54 John Franco

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Tuesday, March 25, 2014:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1986 Topps #54.
• Player Name, position, team: John Franco, pitcher, Cincinnati Reds.
• Major League Debut: April 24, 1984.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1985 stats (Reds): 67 G, 99 IP, 12-3, 27 R, 24 ER, 61 SO, 40 BB, 0 GS, 0 CG, 0 SHO, 12 SV, 2.18 ERA.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Dodgers #5th, June 1981. Traded by the Dodgers to the Reds 05/09/1983. Bats: left. Throws: left.
• Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 20. This is his second Topps card.
• Blurb on the back: n/a.
• Commentary: The 1986 set is iconic. I've said this before. The font used for the team name that is framed neatly within the black portion of the card (which is also very susceptible to dings) is extremely unique, and is probably the best design element of the card itself. John Anthony Franco was a very successful reliever for the Reds. Although he didn't pitch for either the Cubs or the White Sox, I remember the Chicago sportscasters announcing the trade that sent him to the Mets for fellow All-Star closer Randy Myers after the 1989 season. But in 1985, Franco was the closer-in-training, finishing games when called upon (which probably explains the high win total for a reliever...even in 1980's standards). In 1986, Franco took over the closers' role for the Reds, appearing in 76 games, finishing 52 of them. He finished with a 6-6 record, a 2.94 ERA, 29 saves, 84 strikeouts, and a WHIP of 1.327 in 101 innings of work. He would even be named to his first All-Star Team that season. During his six years with Cincinnati, he would go on to save 148 of the 286 that he finished, earning a 42-30 record, a 2.49 ERA, strike out 367 of the 2196 batters he faced, and be named to three All-Star Teams. After the trade to the Mets, a team he would stay with for 14 very productive seasons and be named a team captain, he would end his career with the Astros in 2005, and retire second only to Lee Smith in All-Time Saves with 424. He is the all-time leader in this category for left-handed pitchers. He was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame in 2012.
• Beckett value: $0.05-$0.15.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 33 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1997 Topps #308. 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

Making Your MLB Debut in Australia...Welcome to the Majors Alex Guerrero and Bo Schultz!!!

It seems that the MLB season has already started. While the other 28 teams are still trying to trim rosters to a final 25-man team, the Diamondbacks and Dodgers took a flight to Australia, spent a week to get acclimated to the time change, and then played official MLB games at the Sydney Cricket Grounds. For the record, the Diamondbacks were the "home team" for the series. Personally, it would have been more fair for each team to switch "sides." But that's just my opinion...what do I know?

In any event, the games actually count towards the standings. And if you didn't know it by now, the Dodgers swept the series in Sydney, taking the first game 3-1 and the second by a score of 7-5. Now, like last year, I congratulated the first player to make his MLB debut. And it seems that in the two game set Down Under, two players, one from each side, made their debuts in a Major League game.

• Full Name: Alexander Guerrero
• Position: Shortstop
• Bats: Left, Throws: Left
• Height: 5' 10", Weight: 205 lb.
• Major League Debut: March 22, 2014 vs. Arizona Diamondbacks

On March 22, 2014, shortstop Alex Guerrero was called in to pinch-hit for Brian Wilson in the ninth inning, the Dodgers already up 3-1, ready to face D-Backs pitcher Oliver Perez. However, manager Kirk Gibson took Perez out of the game, inserting veteran closer J. J. Putz. Dodgers manager Don Mattingly promptly replaced the right-handed batter Guerrero with left-handed hitter Mike Baxter. Regardless of the situation, Guerrero's name does appear on the box score. Fear not for a "Moonlight Graham" type career for Alex though, he did get an at-bat as a pinch hitter the following day.

• Full Name: Patrick Bowen Schultz
• Position: Pitcher
• Bats: Right, Throws: Left
• Height: 6' 3", Weight: 220 lb.
• Major League Debut: March 23, 2014 vs. Los Angeles Dodgers

On March 23, 2014 (belated Happy Birthday to my sister Patricia Bell), Gibson called upon right-handed pitcher Bo Schultz to pitch in the eighth inning, replacing Randall Delgado, who pitched the previous inning. Schultz was welcomed to the big leagues by Dodgers' shortstop Hanley Ramirez, who singled up the middle. Schultz, settling down after the first-batter jitters, proceeded to induce Adrian Gonzalez to ground out to second, Andre Ethier to fly out to left, and A. J. Ellis to ground out to short. Schultz was penciled into the ninth slot in the batting lineup heading into the bottom of the eighth, but when the D-Backs started to rally, and his spot was coming up, Gibson took him out of the game, inserting pinch-hitter Tuffy Gosewisch in his place.

So welcome to the majors Alex Guerrero and Bo Schultz. We will be looking forward to your MLB Rookie cards in either Series 2 or the Update Series this year.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Yazter...Yaster...Yastrzemski!!! Bless You!!!

I have made mention many times on this humble, little blog, that I have tons of cards that I have on boxes that I would be more than happy to trade or sell, with the hope of whittling down my want list. Charlie Mowry, the man who runs the Lifetime Topps project blog, sent an email offering a 2010 Topps Blue Back Ty Cobb card if I could help with his want lists. Last week I mailed out a decent package of cards, a number of 2014 inserts, the last card he needed for his 2013 Topps Update Series set, a few 2013 inserts that I could find immediately. On Friday, I received an email saying that the Cobb card he had was the wrong number (the one I didn't need), but he would send something better as a thank you for the package.

This is what he sent:

2011 Topps #25B Carl Yastrzemski SP

Jim Murray, a sports writer for the Los Angeles Times, said of Red Sox Hall of Famer, "You don't pronounce the name Yastrzemski, you sneeze it." And for a generation of Boston Red Sox fans, left field will always be Yaz' spot.

I have made no secret that I've been actively searching for the retired SP cards variation from 2009 through 2012 Topps. While I have all of the SP cards from 2009 cards and the five legend variations from 2012, I'm still on the hunt for 2010 and 2011 cards.

Ebay has been a great place to bring the number of cards I need from these sets down, but after going after (and succeeding in purchasing) whatever cards I needed that were under $10.00, I find that the supply has dried up, and now the lowest any of these cards I need start at $12.99.

I still have Mr. Mowry's want lists, and if and when I can get to the boxes, I will try and find more cards to send over to help him. If you want to send me your want lists, drop me a line at bdj610@hotmail.com and I will see what I can find in my boxes of cards and send them your way.

Thanks Charlie for Yaz.

Now if I could get my hands on the Carl Crawford Red Sox variation...

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 2003 Topps Traded and Rookies #T71 Jeff Kent

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Monday, March 24, 2014:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2003 Topps Traded and Rookies #T71.
• Player Name, position, team: Jeff Kent, second baseman, Houston Astros.
• Major League Debut: April 12, 1992.
• Last Line of Statistics: 2002 stats (Giants): 152 G, 623 AB, 102 R, 195 H, 42 2B, 2 3B, 37 HR, 108 RBI, 5 SB, .565 SLG, 52 BB, 101 SO, .313 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Blue Jays #20th, June 1989. Signed with the Astros as a Free Agent 12/18/2002. Bats: right. Throws: right.
• Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 18. This is his twelfth Topps card.
• Blurb on the back: "Signing as a free agent with Houston for 2003, Jeff quickly proved he didn't need Barry Bonds in thelineup to produce, homering on Opening Day."
• Commentary: One of the disadvantages of the cards having blue borders is that any dings and dents can be seen and although scans well, you can see blemishes on other scratches that the scanner could have. Trust me the card I have looks a lot better than the scan. Jeffrey Franklin Kent found a lot of success with the San Francisco Giants. He was a 3-time All-Star, a 3-time Silver Slugger winner, he won the NL MVP award in 2000, and had just helped lead San Francisco to their first World Series since 1989. But he did have a rocky relationship with certain players on the team, and once the season ended, and the Hot Stove started to churn, Kent, the best second baseman on the free agency market, took his talents to Houston. Yes, the move would supplant long-time second baseman Craig Biggio and send him to the outfield, but now the 'Stros had extra power to support Jeff Bagwell. He did not disappoint. In the first of his two seasons in Houston, Kent hit .297 with 22 home runs, 93 rbi's, and percentages of .348/.531/.880. The following year, he was named to his fourth All-Star team (representing the host Astros) and finished the campaign with a .289 average, 29 homers, and 105 rbi's. After the 2004 playoffs, in which the Astros lost to the Cardinals in the NLCS, Kent signed on with the Dodgers, a team he would ply his services for three seasons before calling it a career.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.10-$0.30.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 43 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1986 Topps #54. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Flash back with the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Pro Debut Card of the Week: 2011 Topps Pro Debut #325 Dixon Machado

After being two full schedules behind for the Random Cards of the Day (I run them in five-week segments), I have decided that instead of creating a list of all new cards to discuss, I thought that I'd use the cards that were on schedule beginning in January 13, 2013 and just begin from there. It was either that, or try and do two cards per day, one flashback and one for right now. So let's do this all over again. What would have been the Random Topps Pro Debut Card of the Week for January 13 is now this week's subject. Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Pro Debut Card of the Week:

 

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2011 Topps Pro Debut #325.
• Player Name, position, team: Dixon Machado, shortstop, GCL Tigers.
• Level-League, Team Affiliation: Rookie-Gulf Coast League, Detroit Tigers.
• Minor League Stats (stats with team depicted only): 43 G, 165 AB, 22 R, 43 H, 4 2B, 3 3B, 0 HR, 11 RBI, 12 SB, 14 BB, 27 SO, .321 SLG, .636 OPS, .261 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Signed with the Tigers as a Free Agent before the 2008 season. Bats: right. Throws: right.
• Major League Debut: n/a.
• Baseball America Organizational Ranking After Season with Team: n/a.
• Blurb on the back: "Machado's silky defense in the Venezuelan Summer League earned him a trip to the U.S. as an 18-year-old in 2010. The shortstop made his stateside debut with 43 games in the Gulf Coast League, stealing 12 bags in 15 attempts. He joined Connecticut in August."
• Official Topps Rookie Card: n/a.
• Commentary: Dixon Javier Machado's is going on 22 this year. He is still very young and the Tigers are taking their time to make sure he progresses and becomes their shortstop of the near future. He did move up to the Tigers' NYPL team (Short Season-A) Connecticut Tigers at the end of August, 2010, and appeared in 7 games (.292, 1 rbi, 1 stolen base). He spent his 2011 season with the Tiger's Low-A West Michigan Whitecaps (Midwest), and 2012 with Lakeland Flying Tigers (Florida State). So he was climbing the ladders as all good prospects should. But a hamstring injury kept him off the field for most of 2013. And when he did play, it was to rehab with the GCL Tigers and then back with Lakeland. In 2014, Machado was assigned to the Toledo Mud Hens (International), the Tigers' Triple-A team, beginning the season one step closer to the majors. With Jose Iglesias out for the year, he might be in Detroit sooner than later.

Next week's featured card will be: 2013 Topps Pro Debut #57. Post will arrive at 9:00 AM CST. Hope you enjoyed this week's installment of Minor League Monday.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Please Stand By!!!

We were hit by some kind of virus a few weeks back. Then, thanks to the gout flareup, I haven't been able to touch the home computer in the basement. Now that we have the proper anti-virus software so we don't get hit again (and again), I have to re-install the software for my scanner (so that I can put images onto this humble, little blog).

One problem, I seem to have lost the original software.

Problem solved: Hewlett Packard has all the software to download on its website.

It will take a bit, but this site will be up and running soon...

Sooner than I thought.

Here is a test image. See if it works. And for the record, yes, I do have this card in my possession.

2013 Topps Update Series #US313 Mariano Rivera SP card.

Thank you for your patience. We will be back with our regular programming soon.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

A Quick St. Patrick's Day Toast

Today is St. Patrick's Day. It is the day that honors St. Patrick, who is the patron saint of Ireland. It also commemorates the arrival of Christianity to the Emerald Isle. In fact, it is said (thanks Wikipedia) that he used shamrocks to explain the Holy Trinity.

My family will be enjoying a slow-cooked corned beef brisket with all the veggies (potatoes, carrots, cabbage) tonight. I would like to apologize publicly to my sister because she is hosting St. Patrick's night dinner as well and I only found out about it three hours after I put the meat in the slow cooker. I have already sent a text saying that we will not make it tonight. Meanwhile, I've been playing Irish music on the computer all afternoon, just to get into the mood.


If anybody says, "Top of the morning to you," to you today, make sure to respond in kind, "And the rest of the day to yourself."

Public Service Announcement (as my wife just said that she found the Bailey's): As you celebrate St. Patrick's Day, please remember to celebrate responsibly.




Now for the baseball portion of the program. If you're wondering, while there are many players of Irish descent in both the Major Leagues and the Minor Leagues, the last native born Irish player was Joe Cleary. Born in County Cork, Cleary only appeared in one game (08/04/1945) in 0.1 inning of work for the Washington Senators. But in that eventful inning, he struck out one batter (the good news), but allowed five hits, three walks, and seven earned runs to score. Saving time for the math, but seven runs in 1/3 innings equals an ERA of 189.

So now, a quick toast to everyone, Irish or just-for-the-day:

May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind be at your back.
May your cards collections grow to unmeasurable heights in both volume and value.
May the quest for new cards be swift.
May the journey of life treat you well today and always.
And may a certain North Side baseball team win it all this year (just have a decent season...please).
If you catch my drift.

Sláinte!

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

It's Pie Day!!! Wait. Did I Spell That Correctly??!

It's Pie Day!

If you're in the Chicago area, may I recommend a certain family bakery to get your cake, cupcake, and pie fix?

Wait, it's not that kind of "pie day???"

But I had all this stuff I wanted to talk about.

Like what better time to honor Hall of Famer Harold Joseph Traynor who was honored by Topps and The Sporting News in 1976 as one of baseball's All-Time All-Stars.

No?

I also wanted to talk about former Cub outfielder Felix Pie...

Oh, his last name is pronounced \pee-yay\

So what can I talk about today???

It's 3/14...ohh...


Happy "Pi" Day!!!

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

P.S. Just think, next year, I can run this post again on 3/14/15 9:26:53...jba

Today Is My Birthday!!! Happy Birthday to Me!!!

My Birthday Breakfast. Thanks to Zeb and the kids for making it for me.

My facebook feed has been exploding all day, and I couldn't figure out why.

Then I looked at the date.

I'm kidding of course. I know why I've been getting phone calls and comments on my FB timeline.

It's my birthday today. I am now 38 years old.

Let's put that into perspective. In 2013, there were 43 MLB players who played at least one game during the season who were older than me. That number has decreased as a number of them announced that last year would be their last active season. Guys like Mariano Rivera, Ted Lilly, Andy Pettitte are now among the list of retirees. The "youngest" player who is older than me now is Paul Konerko (born March 5, 1976). And it could happen this year that a guy born after I graduated from high school (in 1994) might make it to the bigs (for the record, Jurickson Profar was born in 1993, when my brother graduated high school).

Feel old yet?

I have every eponymous Topps and Traded/Update set since 1976, including the set from 2014 that I just completed and put into sheets last weekend, I have 39 Topps of the 64 Topps sets. As of right now, every player who has appeared on a Topps card from 1951 through 1990 are no longer in baseball. In 1991-1992 Jason Giambi made his first appearances in the Topps Traded set as a member of Team USA. He would then again as a prospect in 1994. His first "solo" Topps card can be found in 1996. Darren Oliver's first Topps card can be found in 1995. And of course, Derek Jeter made his first Topps appearance in 1993.

Today, I'll be working (thank goodness for this...last year at this time, I was still trying to find work). I am blessed to have the ability to work from home. With the winter we've had (and yes, it snowed again in Chicago even after we had two days of 50+ temps), I've been fortunate to be productive at my new job.

For my birthday, I have five packs of unsearched 2014 Topps cards, and a blister pack that contains four more. I am getting more and more disgusted with the pack searchers. It's been more than a month since this stuff came out, and last night, I see packs that have these tiny tears on the bottom from people trying to find that "hot pack." I have never seen it so blatant as I did last night. It's a shame.

Let's open one of those packs now...

• #157 Matt Adams, Cardinals
• #051 Kyle Lohse, Brewers
• #105 Ryan Howard, Phillies
• #320 Hector Santiago, White Sox
• #174 Bobby Parnell, Mets
• #149 Miguel Cabrera 2013 Season Highlights
• #SV-2 Miguel Cabrera Super Veterans (Retail Exclusive)
• #089 Jarred Cosart, Astros
• #127 Yusmeiro Petit, Giants
• #326 Khris Davis, Brewers
• #120 Kevin Correia, Twins
• #325 Trevor Plouffe, Twins

Overall, a pretty typical pack, although the odds of getting a SV card does come 1:8 packs.

So Happy Birthday to Me!!!

And Happy Birthday to Bryan Hebson.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Images for the 2014 Topps Retail Team Sets are Live!!!

With the baseball season already underway, and because I've already secured my S1 Master set, the next set of products my attention goes to (unless Gypsy Queen comes out) is the team retail sets. Hey, some people go ga-ga over Heritage, I feel the same way towards the team sets.

Readers who have stuck with this humble, little blog, even as I have withered to obscurity, know that I absolutely LOVE the retail sets. Since 2006, I have made it my mission to include these awesome supplements to the eponymous Topps set into my collection. And I have succeeded in getting all 30 team sets (plus the All-Star Team sets since 2011) since then. That's 246 total team sets.

Well, in searching for any info on these beauties, I found this on the MLB shop website:

All 30 team sets (not counting the possible AL and NL All-Star sets) are listed, with pre-sales for just under $20.00 before shipping charges...and they come with binders and pocket pages.

For the first time, Topps will be including coupons within the team sets? I know in recent years that coupons for Topps products have been inserted in retail boxes. A $0.50 coupon might not sound like much, but if it means a price break on packs, it could be worth it.

If I can find better images, and possibly preliminary checklists, I'll get them posted onto the blog. Until then, here is the list of the "cover players" for each team (subject to change):

• Arizona Diamondbacks: Paul Goldschmidt
• Atlanta Braves: Justin Upton
• Baltimore Orioles: Manny Machado
• Boston Red Sox: Dustin Pedroia (note that the logo on the prelim package is the 2013 WS Champions)
• Chicago Cubs: Anthony Rizzo (note that the logo on the prelim packages honors Wrigley Field's 100th anniversary)
• Chicago White Sox: Chris Sale
• Cincinnati Reds: Joey Votto
• Cleveland Indians: Nick Swisher
• Colorado Rockies: Troy Tulowitzki
• Detroit Tigers: Justin Verlander
• Houston Astros: Jarred Cosart (looks like the Future Star theme will carry over here...will every team set have one?)
• Kansas City Royals: Alex Gordon
• Los Angeles Angels: Mike Trout
• Los Angeles Dodgers: Clayton Kershaw
• Miami Marlins: Jose Fernandez
• Milwaukee Brewers: Carlos Gomez
• Minnesota Twins: Joe Mauer
• New York Mets: David Wright
• New York Yankees: Derek Jeter
• Oakland Athletics: Josh Donaldson
• Philadelphia Phillies: Chase Utley
• Pittsburgh Pirates: Andrew McCutchen
• St. Louis Cardinals: Yadier Molina
• San Diego Padres: Andrew Cashner
• San Francisco Giants: Buster Posey
• Seattle Mariners: Felix Hernandez
• Tampa Bay Rays: Wil Myers
• Texas Rangers: Yu Darvish
• Toronto Blue Jays: Jose Reyes
• Washington Nationals: Bryce Harper

Maybe I should hound @toppscards about the team sets the way some collectors ask about Heritage...nah.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Oh My God...Has it Really Been More than a Month??!

Where has the time gone? Here I am thinking that I was just about to catch up and then...

Silence...

No, I'm still here...

In fact, a lot has happened to me Hobby-wise since I last wrote here on this humble, little blog...including:

• Getting a package of cards that didn't belong to me, and it turns out that there is a really bad plot afoot that included me having to change my eBay and PayPal passwords...not that my info was compromised, but I'm not going to take any chances.
• After opening my packs of cards, I was able to help a collector on Facebook complete his basic set. Although I did not request anything in return, he did send some cards my way regardless.
• Yes, I have the master set of 2014 Series 1 Topps, including the retail-exclusive Super Veterans set.

But between dance competitions, gout flareups, and finally figuring out how to accomplish my new job responsibilities in a more timely fashion, I can't believe it's been a month since I last wrote anything...

And spring training games have already started...and the Dodgers and Diamondbacks will begin the 2014 season in Australia in just under two weeks.

Well, just to let you know now that we're getting back into the swing of things...

Does anybody want any cards from 2014 Topps Series 1? How about from previous years? Have any want lists that need to be filled? Send them my way. I need to try and liquidate the extra cards that are taking up space in the basement. Just saying.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama