Why I collect what I collect

I often don't get around to chiming in on Blog Bat Around type things. I meant to do the "best binder page" thing for Junior Junkie last year or so but never got around to it. Gcrl asked about a card you regret giving up. Nachos Grande asked about the toughest set you completed. And more recently there was the 30-Day Challenge that I still might crank out one of these days, but it's been slipping away from me so maybe not. Now there's P-town Tom's "why do you collect who you collect?" prompt and I think I'll hit on that one, though sort of in a half-assed way.

I've always been a player collector at heart, alphabetically filing cards of my favorite players together in little groups. I'm admittedly a "player collector slut" in that I like collecting lots of guys rather than focusing just on one guy or a small group of favorites. Often times all it takes for me to start collecting a guy is for him to be a good player. Sometimes pulling a nice card of a guy out of a pack is enough for me to start building a PC around it. Being a native San Diegan, Padres players are well represented in my PCs, though I definitely don't collect every Padre.

When some collectors decide to PC a guy, they go all out and try to get everything (supercollect), with spreadsheets and such, but when I PC a guy, I just sort his cards together, and sometimes buy/trade-for more. I have a soft goal of getting 100 different cards of a guy I collect, then I sort of take myself off the hook for collecting him anymore unless I really feel compelled to keep going.

Anyways, what I thought I would do instead of typing up all the players I consider to be "guys I collect" is screenshot my wantlist and annotate it explaining why I collect each guy.

(Trevor, that is, not Vida)

Good players and/or Padres fan favorites.

If I haven't annotated a guy, I just like them cuz they are/were very good or cool or whatever.

Sets I like. Except '77.. I don't really like but it's my "birth year set" so I guess that sorta means something, but whatever. 1980 was the first cards I ever had. 1982 is the first "old" packs I ever ripped as a kid in the early 90s.. probably had half the set, but dumped most of them years ago.

This one is blurry. Sorry. Just more sets I think are cool or whatever.

Can you believe how close I am with this crazy goal?! Just 2 left. Plus many to "upgrade" to refractors. See my blog's title banner.

Funny meme meant to make guys with small wantlists feel bad. lol. Give me a chance to find something for you.. ya know? Not just a few obscure sets from the 00s that I have nothing from.

So hopefully that reasonably explains why I collect what I collect somewhat.
Of course you can visit the live version of my wantlist here, and feel free to get in touch about a trade.
Thanks for reading and have a great weekend!

big fun game - post 20: Rod wraps things up; The end

Rod was raised never to steal, and so had no choice but to take the final remaining mystery prize..

It's a lot of miscellaneous certified autograph cards, with Jeff Conine being the best known name here. None of these are Padrographs, the focus of Rod's collection, but hey, perhaps a couple of them will come in handy as trade fodder in his travels.

Thanks again to everyone for playing, and also to those of you just reading along at home.

I'll plan to pack up the cards this weekend and get everything mailed out soon. To those of you who ended up with lackluster prizes, well, I'll try to throw in a surprise bonus or something to cheer you up. If any of you want to work out trades between yourselves, have at it and let me know if you agree to a deal and I can reroute the prizes in question. Otherwise, well, I hope you're able to use the unwanted cards in a trade with someone down the line, at least.

But hopefully you ended up with something that sticks in your collection. It started out slowly, but picked up steam after a while and I think it lived up to its name as a Big Fun Game. One of you should keep the games going and run one yourself if you want.

Here's the final results:

1. Wade Boggs simpsons auto (stolen twice - locked) - BILLY
2. Al Hrabosky auto - SHOEBOX SHANE
3. Jesse Orosco auto - MATT STUPIENSKI
4. vintage lot - FUJI
5. JR Richard auto - CORKY
6. Mister Fister - GCRL
7. Charlie Hayes auto - MATT PRIGGE
8. Andre Dawson auto (stolen once) - TURRDOG
9. Tony Oliva auto (stolen once) - BRIAN O'
10. misc. auto lot - ROD
11. die-cut lot - JULIE
12. customs lot (stolen once) - NICK
13. mini lot - BO
14. George Foster auto - JBF
15. Sy Berger contracts - JOHN MILLER

big fun game - post 19: Turrdog hawks Dawson; Rod returns

Turrdog was sad to see the Boggs get snagged from his clutches, but comforted himself with plucking the Andre Dawson auto away from Rod.

That brings up Rod once again, the whipping boy of the game so far, with multiple steals against him. Will he exact some revenge and pull off a steal himself (everything's available besides the Boggs and Dawson), or end things here by picking #10?

1. Wade Boggs simpsons auto (stolen twice - locked)
2. Al Hrabosky auto
3. Jesse Orosco auto
4. vintage lot
5. JR Richard auto
6. Mister Fister
7. Charlie Hayes auto
8. Andre Dawson auto (stolen once)
9. Tony Oliva auto (stolen once)
10. ?
11. die-cut lot
12. customs lot (stolen once)
13. mini lot
14. George Foster auto
15. Sy Berger contracts

big fun game - post 18: Billy locks down Boggs; Turrdog gets another turn, dog

I saw this one coming. Billy bided his time and then pounced on the Wade Boggs Simpsons auto.

How 'bout that! Nice that somebody who doesn't really collect baseball stuff still ended up with something that's a good fit for their collection (Billy is a big Simpsons fan).

That brings back The Turrdog, who had recently stolen the Boggs and nearly gotten away with it, to make another selection. Everything besides the Boggs is available to swipe, or if nothing is calling out to you, picking #10 would wrap up the game here and now.

1. Wade Boggs simpsons auto (stolen twice - locked)
2. Al Hrabosky auto
3. Jesse Orosco auto
4. vintage lot
5. JR Richard auto
6. Mister Fister
7. Charlie Hayes auto
8. Andre Dawson auto
9. Tony Oliva auto (stolen once)
10. ?
11. die-cut lot
12. customs lot (stolen once)
13. mini lot
14. George Foster auto
15. Sy Berger contracts

big fun game - post 17: Julie cuts it up; now Billy's in the catbird seat

Julie pondered pulling off a steal, but ultimately took a chance unveiling door 11..

It's the die-cut lot. Yep, if you like funky-shaped baseball cards, this is the lot for you! The highlight here is probably the Carlos Gomez autograph #'d 25/25. Also a couple of Julie's Tigers, fittingly enough.

That brings up Billy in the cleanup spot, two outs in the bottom of the ninth. What's it gonna be, Billy? A daring theft, or will we close out the game right here with number ten? All down to you!

1. Wade Boggs simpsons auto (stolen once)
2. Al Hrabosky auto
3. Jesse Orosco auto
4. vintage lot
5. JR Richard auto
6. Mister Fister
7. Charlie Hayes auto
8. Andre Dawson auto
9. Tony Oliva auto (stolen once)
10. ?
11. die-cut lot
12. customs lot (stolen once)
13. mini lot
14. George Foster auto
15. Sy Berger contracts

big fun game - post 16: Turrdog bites Boggs; Rod rides Hawk; Julie up

In a flurry of activity in the game, Turrdog balked at taking mystery door 8, and instead decided to steal the Wade Boggs Simpsons auto from Rod. Rod in turn went ahead and took 8.

It's a sweet Andre Dawson auto from 2003 Topps Retired.

All eyes turn to Julie now as the game comes to a head. What will she choose?! All prizes are still available to steal, three of which could be locked by such a move. Still two unknown numbers out there. Barring a steal, the only player waiting in the wings is Billy. Exciting!

1. Wade Boggs simpsons auto (stolen once)
2. Al Hrabosky auto
3. Jesse Orosco auto
4. vintage lot
5. JR Richard auto
6. Mister Fister
7. Charlie Hayes auto
8. Andre Dawson auto
9. Tony Oliva auto (stolen once)
10. ?
11. ?
12. customs lot (stolen once)
13. mini lot
14. George Foster auto
15. Sy Berger contracts

big fun game - post 15: big red Foster for Wes; Turrdog, it's your turn, dog

Wes, still reeling from the theft of his customs lot, took a chance on #14...

It's a 2003 Topps Retired auto of George Foster, the only player to hit 50 home runs in a season between 1966 and 1989.

Bad news is there's a price sticker on the back of the case ($50?! No way!), but it could probably be removed with some work. Bonus cards included in this prize are autos from a couple cooks (David Cook and Chris Cook.. no relation, I assume), as well as a couple shiny Gold Label cards and a couple customs.

Next up to pick is a mysterious contestant from parts unknown: The Turrdog. I think he's the only player of the game I haven't traded with before. (It also means I don't have his email address, so I can't send him a heads-up that it's his turn. Hopefully he sees this post soon!)
What's it gonna be, dog? Steal something or pick 8, 10, or 11.

1. Wade Boggs simpsons auto
2. Al Hrabosky auto
3. Jesse Orosco auto
4. vintage lot
5. JR Richard auto
6. Mister Fister
7. Charlie Hayes auto
8. ?
9. Tony Oliva auto (stolen once)
10. ?
11. ?
12. customs lot (stolen once)
13. mini lot
14. George Foster auto
15. Sy Berger contracts