The Sandlot baseball cards (plus supplemental customs)

Seems like The Sandlot is a big favorite among my fellow cardbloggers. Somehow I missed it when it first came out back in the 90s, and I never got the chance to see it until renting it from Netflix two or three months ago. I liked it a lot, and recently took a curious look to see if any cards were put out in conjunction with the film. I found that in fact there were! (I've since found that Fuji posted about them back in February and I even commented on that post, though I had no recollection of the cards. Man, my memory sometimes! Oh well, I'm continuing with this post anyways.)

It's a little set of 10 cards that came packaged in the 20th Anniversary Edition Blu-Ray/DVD release that came out in 2013. I rarely buy DVDs anymore (and have never owned a Blu-Ray player), but was able to pick up the unopened set of cards alone pretty cheap on eBay.

Nice simple design with the kids in the movie (plus the dog), each with a quote. Smalls, Benny, Squints, The Great Hambino.. the gang's all here.

The backs are a bit phoned in, with all 10 cards having this same generic image from the cover of the 20th Anniversary release.

But yeah, if you're a card collector who loves that movie, these cards are pretty cool to add to your collection.

BUT WAIT!

Since it turns out this post is just retreading old ground, I went ahead and created a custom 11th card for this set.

Now there's a card! Wendy Pfefferkorn, the lifeguard cutie. (If it looks familiar, it's probably because I teased it in the photo of my previous post.) Maybe I'm a sucker for a pretty face, but this might be my favorite custom I've made to date. (Let me clarify-- I am not dating this card.) After a couple tries, I got it really close to the original cards, nice & glossy, and the back is good. I think it could pass as legit if someone were casually flipping through the set.

While I was at it, I decided to bring the set up to an even dozen with one more custom...

This 1972 Topps "grown-up" Benny Rodriguez card is probably the most challenging hardcopy custom I've made so far, simply because it's hard to fake vintage, as I've found out. It's one thing to photoshop up a vintage card-- this front image file didn't take long to whip up-- but to print out a physical version that looks and feels like it could realistically pass for a decades-old card, that's tricky. Sure, I could go the "Archives" route and just not worry about an authentic feel, but I like trying to get it as close to the real thing as I possibly can. I'm still working on it.. I wouldn't say this is my final product on this one.

The back is the hardest part. Not only getting it to look right, but getting it to feel right. I don't know how counterfeiters do it! Very tough. I know it's hard to appreciate stuff like "card feel" over the internet, but I'm sure you guys all understand the tactile difference between a vintage card and a modern reprint. While this came out ok-- similar rough, grey cardboard to 72 Topps backs-- if you put it in a stack of real 72s, it would stick out like a sore thumb. I might have to give up my quest to make a passable vintage-feeling card. But I'll probably keep tinkering a little. This one is tough to read, even in hand, so as I said, this likely won't be my final draft.

I'm still somewhat of a newbie when it comes to making cards. Some of the skilled guys out there make their own authentic-looking refractors, superfractors, relics, and stuff like that. I've still got a long ways to go to be in the same league as them.


CONTEST UPDATE: Nice turnout for my 600th Post contest! Thanks for the strong response, guys! Still a few days to enter, so get on with it if you haven't yet. Let's set the deadline for the "pimp bonus" as the end of this weekend, and then we'll close the entry period probably sometime around Monday or Tuesday. Then we'll use the outcome from a World Series game to help randomly find a winner.

Another bonus entry opportunity! In the comments of this post, be the first to correctly identify a player I used as inspiration while coming up with the back of the Benny Rodriguez card above. Hint: There are two players: one was a rough guide for the batting record, and the other for some verbiage in the writeup, though I did liberally tweak both. Both players are included in the 1972 Topps set. Limit 1 guess per person, please.

Thanks for reading and have a great weekend.

I know my blog has been heavy on custom cards lately, but I assure you I've got plenty of real cards I'll be posting about soon enough. Card show tomorrow, in fact!

Big 600th Post CONTEST Spectacular!

We've reached another round number here at Baseball Card Breakdown, so let's celebrate post #600 with a contest!

Since I've been on a hardcopy custom card making binge lately, I thought I'd incorporate that. So in addition to some real cards from the winner's team of choice, the prize is I'll make a custom card for you. Whatever you want, I'll give my best shot at making it a pseudo reality, and then mail it to you. It can be anything. ANYTHING! (within reason, of course.) Limitations here are it's gotta use photos I can find (or reasonably fake in Photoshop), and the card will use standard, no frills printing/cardstock (so no refractors, foil, relics, lenticular effects, or anything fancy like that). Ideally, you'll tell me, "Here's a cool photo of one of my favorite players (attached or linked); please turn it into a card for me.. perhaps in a 1986 Topps design." Something along those lines, but definitely not limited to that. Could be your favorite TV character, band, your dog, whatever.

[While I'm at it, I should take this opportunity to offer my custom card freelancing for hire. So even if you don't win this contest but really want a custom-made card, you can still get in touch with me about hammering something out. I happily accept money or cards from my wantlist in exchange.]

And like I said, I'll include some decent real cards from the winner's favorite team as well, so even if you're not too excited about fake cards, it's still worth throwing your name in the hat. The bonus cards will be a surprise (depending on what I've got on hand), but you might end up with something nice.

International residents are welcome to enter this contest, though in the event the winner doesn't have a US address, less bonus cards may be included since the prize will likely be mailed via PWE.

Entry period will last a few days, then we'll shake out a winner.

Pimp bonus: If you're so kind as to promote this contest with a link elsewhere such as on your blog and/or other social media (and then leave a comment here to let me know), you'll be eligible for a special "second chance" drawing with an identical prize offering.

Ok, here we go..
Just leave a comment below to enter.
Optional question, if you feel like sharing: Anything in mind for a custom if you win?
Thanks and good luck!

UPDATE 10/26/15: The entry period is now closed! Thanks to all who entered.

Kris Bryant 1989 Upper Deck

I think I'm starting to get the hang of custom card making. Here's my latest creation:

Here we've got Kris Bryant doing his best Ken Griffey Jr impression. His NLCS didn't go as well as Cubs fans would have liked, but he's just a kid and you gotta figure he'll be back playing in October many times before it's all said and done. I think the card came out really nice! You can't tell in the photos, but it's on glossy cardstock that really feels like it could have come from a pack of 1989 Upper Deck in some time-traveling alternate universe.

And yep, I don't half-ass my customs-- full backside! It looks a lot clearer in hand than in the photo. I don't have the capability to make holograms, but wanted my own unique "security mark" like Upper Deck, so I've included a glow-in-the-dark circle that I've initialed. I thought that was a pretty clever idea to deter unauthorized copies while giving it my own personal touch.

I'll admit I wanted to think up something with "commercial appeal" so that I could possibly sell a few to recoup some of the funds I've sunk into my newfound card-making sub-hobby (hey, different kinds of fancy paper and other necessary accoutrement ain't cheap). I figure there are already a bunch of jagoffs trying to make a buck on eBay selling customs, might as well give it a shot myself. Granted it would have been better had I put this card out during the height of Bryant-mania earlier in the season, though I think he's still pretty hot with collectors.

If you're interested in getting one of these cards for yourself (either buying or in trade for cards), drop me an email. Thanks!

The Rocket rages and Big Dog becomes a pup (More Auto Overlays)

Last week, I showed off custom auto overlays I made for cards of Adam Jones and Dave Winfield. Here are a couple more I've whipped up since then.

Ha, this is a good one! I'd be kinda surprised to see a real card manufacturer come out with a Roger Clemens card featuring that notorious incident chucking the piece of Mike Piazza's broken bat in Game 2 of the 2000 World Series. But thanks to some creative custom-making, I've got myself a nice unique auto with an image from that perplexing moment.

That's the original card on the left. Not a horrible card exactly, but not very interesting.

Looks good in action!

Next up...
Another instance of me wanting to have an autographed Padres card of a well-known player who doesn't seem to have any autograph cards featuring a photo from his time in San Diego.

Yep, Tony Pérez starred for the PCL Padres before being called up by the Reds to begin his HOF career.
This overlay represents my first ever attempt at photo colorization. Definitely won't be fooling anyone, but I'm happy enough with it.

The original photo. I think this is some super-rare minor league food issue oddball. Would love to score an original someday. It's the only photo I've ever come across of Perez on the Padres.

The original card. #'d 21/25. Didn't cost me much. Again, not a horrible card, but pictures of retired players in street clothes are just about always yawners. You'll notice I also turned the boring square swatch into a "PCL" cutout.

Fits right in among my other HOF Padres autos!

Busting a box of 2003 Bowman

You know the deal.. I pick up an old hobby box or blaster every once in a while (usually something cheap) so I have packs on hand to rip on days when I otherwise don't get any cards. A day without any new cards is liable to cause me to spiral into a deep and violent depression. Ok, maybe it's not that bad, but I've found it comforting to have packs around to prevent cardless days.

The box I most recently got through was 2003 Bowman Baseball. It's a reasonably cheap product these days, as with most Bowman sets of the era, full of never-was minor leaguers among an occasional guy who went on to a decent career, plus the expected major league stars here and there. That year's product promised two hits per box.. chances are they'd be relics, but you might get lucky and pull an auto.

Let's start right off with the best card I pulled (don't want to bury the lead in this post or it'd probably not even break a dozen page views).

This David Wright "Future Fiber" jersey bat relic was definitely a nice hit for me. (Did somebody say "Fiber"? Obligatory plug for my band. New mp3 uploaded every Friday.) It doesn't "pay for the box" or anything, but seeing as most of the players on the relic checklist are "who?" career minor leaguers, to pull a big name like this was beating the odds.

By the way, congrats to the Mets on advancing. When the series began, I didn't think I had a favorite, but as the games progressed, I definitely found myself rooting against the Dodgers (even if the sad owl picture Night Owl posted on Twitter after the last out was heartbreaking). From here on out my rooting interests are decidedly NL over AL. The Royals were a great story last year, now it feels like they've outstayed their welcome. And screw the Blue Jays and their fans who throw beer on babies over a correct call that went against them. Also dick move leaving Mark Buehrle off the postseason roster. But the only team in the postseason this year I really hated was the Cardinals, and they lost so everything else is just gravy.

My second hit wasn't quite as impressive as the Wright bat, but could be worse. I especially like the fact you don't often see baseball jersey swatches in that color (or with the little breather holes like that). Anybody want it in a trade? Hee-Seop Choi hit 15 major league home runs in both 2004 and 2005, but after a down year in 2006, returned to his native Korea to mixed success where he's apparently still active. His best year in the KBO was 2009 when he hit .308 with 33 HR and 100 RBI.

Seems each box comes with one "uncirculated" encased card. The bad news is I pulled a player I don't care about and isn't worth much today. But the good news is one of my most frequent trading partners is a Brewers collector, so this will find a home with Tony L. before too long.

Before we get to the monotonous base cards, here are a couple more insert-type things. I assume the sticker was meant to be a handy label for collectors who actually put the set together, with the sticker going on the end of the box or binder for easy identification. That was thoughtful.. too bad that practice apparently didn't catch on with card companies. And cool that I pulled a redemption for an uncirculated first year card.. but of course it expired over a decade ago. :(

Here're some dudes I kinda collect. The black borders on these cards occasionally showed minor damage from sticking together or whatnot. The right edges of the Larry Walker and the Gary Sheffield-- that's not glare from the flash, it's paper loss. Like with pulling expired redemptions, it's a common risk when ripping old packs. Thankfully there wasn't anything too heartbreaking in there, such as an otherwise great pull that took damage. Most of the cards were fine, and nothing was so bad to where I felt obligated to throw it away. But yeah, you'll notice plenty of white specks in the black borders if you look closely.

More PC guys of mine. Sorry if the foil names aren't too easy to read, but these players should all be obvious to you guys on sight.

More notable cards, including RCs of Youkilis and Victorino. With the exception of the 2 hits, the cards all have the same drab design, with prospects having a blue inner border and veterans red. Even the 1-per-pack parallel gold signature cards (which we'll see in a moment) look nearly identical except they're thicker and the facsimile signature is in gold (which is not too noticeable, really).

A few more guys I kinda-sorta collect.

A fun game to play when ripping Bowman cards is "Find the Zaniest Name" with all the guys you've never heard of. These are all strong contenders. If I didn't know any better, I'd think Bowman was just making this shit up. Nathan Panther? Nook Logan? Terry Tiffee? Obviously all fake names, right? :P

Here are some unfamous guys with famous last names.
Dustin Yount? Son of Robin.
Michael Garciaparra? Brother of Nomar.
Jon Schuerholz? Son of Braves GM at the time, John Schuerholz.
Dwaine Bacon? Great-grandson of Sir Benjamin F. Bacon, inventor of bacon. (ok, I made this one up.)

I thought it was funny on the back of the Jon Schuerholz card, it quoted the scouting director as saying, "We would have signed him even if his name was Smith or Jones." Yeah right, maybe if he was the son of Lonnie Smith or Chipper Jones!

Let's close it out today with highlights of the aforementioned 1-per-pack gold signature parallels. You probably can't even really tell from the photo that these are any different than the base versions. Probably would have been more interesting if the border was turned gold (brown) like most other years of Bowman did during that era. But oh well. If Hanley can rebound from his down year, that rookie card parallel could possibly be a decent card.

Speaking of the Red Sox, I recently grabbed them in Nachos Grande's upcoming Final Group Break of the Year. He's got a nice mix of products lined up for it. I thought it'd be a good way for me to build up my Boston trade bait that's pretty thin these days, and plus I collect a few Sox players so they were the most appealing to me of the teams that were unclaimed. Hopefully I end up with some nice additions to my collection and my tradeables box. This'll be my 3rd group break with Chris, and they're always fun and he's a good, trustworthy dude. Check out the remaining teams and consider signing up!

So that's it for my box of 2003 Bowman. Not amazing, but a sweet relic hit plus several keepers to add to many of my PCs. Thanks for reading. My current "Cardless Day Breaks" box is Topps Gold Label.. which is a little more expensive and a lot more interesting. So look for that post probably in December.

Ridic Relics - not your grandfather's relic cards!

Here's an exciting new minicollection for me. Ridic Relics will include relic cards featuring materials besides just boring old jersey swatches and bat chips. We're more concerned with out-of-the-norm relics here.. the more ridiculous the better! (or as the kids say, "So ridic I can't even. Chaaa! [rolls eyes, resumes texting]") Keeping with my Hundred Card Club method of collecting, my longterm goal will be to gather up 100 different things embedded in cards, one of each thing. I suppose I'll count manufactured things (ie, stuff like commemorative patches, pins, and coins made by card companies), though I'm definitely more interested in things that were actually used out in the world at one point.

Expect this to be a recurring feature with posts covering a few such cards. Sound good? Let's kick it off...

2001 Donruss Studio Warning Track Scott Rolen Stadium Wall Card #WT-27 Phillies

The Thing: outfield wall

The Specifics: "The enclosed piece of outfield wall was cut from an Authentic Outfield Wall from Three Rivers Stadium used in an official Major League Baseball Game."

My Observations: Every card in this post cost me a buck-something each in a couple bulk eBay wins from one seller.. same guy I got the Adam Jones auto and a several other cards from. This is one I was pretty excited to win. It's the first outfield wall relic I've come across. Funny how it's from the Pirates' stadium, yet features a Phillies player. I guess this was during Pittsburgh's dark years. I'd love to trick myself into thinking I have a relic from where greats like Clemente and Stargell called home, but in reality I'm sure they replace this tarp-like wall covering at least once a year, so there's no way this was around back in the 70s. Donruss at least tries to tie it to the guy on the card, Scott Rolen, by mentioning he hit a homerun over the wall on 7/1/99. I'm sure lots of guys went deep in Pittsburgh in 1999. Maybe I should look it up and make a custom overlay for my favorite. I don't really collect Scott Rolen, but he's fine, I guess. I remember him being a bit of a Padre-killer in his prime, and I hated him for it. His name always gets a Soul Coughing song stuck in my head.

2001-02 Topps Heritage Articles of the Arena Charles Oakley Arena Court Card #17

The Thing: basketball court

The Specifics: "(A)n authentic piece of the Boston Garden parquet floor [...] acquired directly from the Boston Celtics."

My Observations: Yep, my Ridic Relics minicollection will not be limited only to baseball-- or even just sports, for that matter. Again, we've got a venue/team missmash: Charles Oakley of the Chicago Bulls is the featured player, though the relic is a piece of the Boston Celtics' hardwood. Like with the Rolen card, the card attempts to tie the player to the item by mentioning he played on it, though no specific dates are given. I don't collect Oakley, but at 99¢ I'm happy with this card.

2003 Donruss Studio Big League Challenge Barry Bonds Base Card #BLC-41 Giants

The Thing: base (event-used)

The Specifics: "The enclosed piece of base was cut from an Authentic Base personally used at the Big League Home Run Challenge on February 9, 2002."

My Observations: I had be wanting a base card for a while (no, not a base card, a base card). I'll have to keep on looking for a game-used base card, as this one wasn't used in a MLB game, but rather the Big League Home Run Challenge. It's my understanding this was an exhibition similar to the All-Star Home Run Derby that occurred annually for a few years at Cashman Field in Las Vegas. Proceeds from the event, organized by the players' union, benefited the Players Trust for Children. Again, I landed this card at its 99¢ opening bid plus very reasonable combined shipping. Bonds is a "guilty pleasure" PC of mine.. a guy I used to hate but eventually came around on.
Speaking of such players...

2011 Leaf Limited Limited Gamers Alex Rodriguez GU Glove Card #2 #'d 01/70 NYY

The Thing: fielding glove

The Specifics: "Game-used glove"

My Observations: Highlight blurb on the back, but no further details about the glove in question. Being numbered 01/70 is a nice little bonus. While I still don't love A-Rod, I've reluctantly started a PC for him (after ending up with like 50 cards in one of the discount bins I bought a while back-- figured I'd try to get him in the HCC). One of the very few pre-season predictions that I was right about was saying he'd bounce back and have a productive year, when most people were saying he'd be a benchwarming bust all year. Me and Zippy were the true believers!
Anyways.. my first glove relic. Cool.

2002 Topps Gold Label MLB Awards Ceremony Tony Gwynn Jersey Card #ACR-TG2 Padres

The Thing: jersey (baseball)

The Specifics: "An MLB Awards Ceremony authentic game-worn jersey"

My Observations: Ok, this is a "boring" one, but I've got to have a jersey relic among my list of 100 things, right? This one is cool because you can see the entire thing (including the sides and back), something kinda rare for a full-size relic card, though A&G mini relics are usually like this. The downside is you can't feel it because it's built into the card with no "touch window" or whatever. But it's fine. Tony Gwynn is of course a big PC guy for me, and I really like Topps Gold Label, so this was a sweet card to add to my collection. It's a little confusing-- are they saying this was worn in a MLB game or to an award ceremony. But I'm thinking "MLB Awards Ceremony" is just the dumb name they gave to this relic insert set, not actually implying it was worn at some ceremony where baseball players attended in their playing jerseys, as that would be weird.

2001-02 Upper Deck Sweet Spot Rookie Jersey Jason Collins #98 #'d 0741/1200 Nets

The Thing: jersey (basketball)

The Specifics: "An authentic piece of a jersey worn by Jason Collins at the Nets' 2001-02 Team Media Day."

My Observations: Yeah, while this is also a jersey, I'm counting it as a separate thing as the Gwynn jersey. To me, solid fabric is significantly different than fabric with a bunch of breather holes in it (Sorry, I forget the formal name of this type of porous fabric). Plus this Jason Collins card is a double minicollection hit for me, as it also works in my Pride PC. The back of the card admits it's not game-used but rather was worn at media day, meaning he probably just got some photos taken in it and did a few interviews and whatnot. That's not awfully exciting, though it is nice to tie the relic to a specific moment.

That's it for this time. More stuff soon enough.

Optional question for you all in the comments:
What's the most ridiculous relic card you own?

Thanks.

A very special TTM

A few weeks ago I showed off a custom card I created for Sean Conroy. He's the pitcher who made history earlier this year by becoming the first openly gay active professional baseball player. I thought it was a cool story so I created the card as my own little tribute. After I tweeted about it, his team, the Sonoma Stompers, were nice enough to retweet it. A week or so later, I got an email from Sean's mom. She thanked me for doing it and asked if I'd be ok with them including it in the photo gallery of the website seanconroybaseball.com. Of course I said I'd be honored. While I was in touch with her, I mentioned I was hoping to give Sean a few copies of the card (and hopefully get one or two signed and returned). His mom kindly facilitated this and I mailed several of them off on 10/5 to New York State. Just 8 days later, my return SASE showed up.

Nice! I'm very grateful to Mr. Conroy (and his awesome mother) for this! He actually signed 3 out of the bunch I gave them, so I've got a couple extras. Very nice of him.

This is the first custom I've ever gotten signed through the mail, though I did make some customs a couple months ago that I got signed in person. Those were more like "photo cards" that I had printed out at the photo kiosk at the grocery store. For this batch of Sean Conroy cards, I printed them myself on matte photo paper. Like I mentioned the other day, I've caught the hardcopy customs bug and continue to create cards and am still experimenting with printing them.. trying different types of paper and techniques. I even made a back for this one:

Thank you again, Mr. Conroy, for signing for me. Best of luck with your career!