Dick Allen collection

Dick Allen is one of the worst baseball players to collect. This is due to the fact he's hard to search for online.

He went under 3 different names during his playing career:

Richie Allen
Rich Allen
Dick Allen

So if you want to be thorough, you need to search all 3 names.

And with the last name "Allen", you get lots of Allen & Ginter cards polluting your search results.

Oh, and there's a blog called Dick Allen Hall of Fame that has photoshopped up dozens of "cards that never were" of the man. Don't get me wrong, these are cool to look at-- however, it can be confusing when you're doing a Google image search to find out what cards are out there, and a bunch of fake cards show up tricking you.

On top of that, his first name is slang for male genitalia. This could lead to some unpleasant search results, especially with image searches, if you're not careful.

So yeah, it's a pain.

But dang it, he's a bad-ass.

He's not in the Hall, but was easily one of the game's best from 1964 through 1974. Stat-heads love him for putting up big offensive numbers during an era of pitching dominance, and some consider him the best eligible player not enshrined. His at-times combative personality, and the fact that leg injuries limited the length of his career, are the likely reasons he hasn't gotten the call, though hopefully the Veterans Committee puts him in one of these years.
I'm not going to type up a full bio here, but if you'd like to learn more about his career, here are the usual links:
Stats at baseball-reference
Bio at Wikipedia

Yep, a bad-ass.

Still, though, I realize he's an odd choice to be one of my top tier collecting guys. He was never a member of my hometown team (Padres), and he played his final game a few months before I was born, so it's not like I ever got to watch him play. What ignited my love for him is that he happened to be signing at a card show I went to once when I was young.

I haven't gotten a lot of in-person autographs in my life (maybe a dozen athletes, and another dozen musicians), but I got Mr. Allen to sign a baseball for me at a card show back in 1992 or so. I think it was at the '92 All-Star Fan Fest (San Diego had the All-Star game that year, and it was part of the festivities leading up to the game). I don't think I really knew anything about him then, and definitely didn't own any of his cards, but learned about him in later years, growing to be a big fan.

Sadly, I got rid of that ball when I drastically slimmed down my possessions in preparation for moving from San Diego to Portland a few years ago. Out of everything I jettisoned from my "old life," that ball is probably the item that's loss stings the most. I definitely kick myself every now and then, wishing I could go back in time and put that into the "keep" pile. *sigh*

I've sort of made up for it in recent years by obtaining many of Dick Allen's cards from his playing days, plus 3 different certified autograph cards, but they can't compete with the coolness of a baseball you got signed in-person as a kid. I guess if I were to over-analyze it, I'd look at that Dick Allen ball as a representation of my lost youth. And collecting baseball cards-- Dick Allen cards, in particular-- is me trying to recapture some of that innocence.
Oh well.

Anyways, let's break down the baseball cards of Dick Allen! Below are the cards of his I own. I've got all his standard Topps cards, and a few other cards. I'd be interested in any cards I'm missing, as well as an autographed baseball that I can use to attempt to fool myself into believing it's the ball I had the man sign for me over 20 years ago.

1964 Topps #243

Allen's rookie card. It's not bad, but of course it's got that random no-name guy on it too. John Herrnstein batted just .220 in a career that spanned from 1962 to 1966, with 1964 being the only year played more than half a season in the bigs. Despite the write up proclaiming him a power hitter, John only hit 8 yard in nearly 500 MLB plate appearances.

1965 Topps #460

 

My only graded Allen. It's also probably my favorite of his cards. Gotta love that huge All-Star Rookie trophy. And of course 1965 Topps is just a pleasing design. Cool fronts and great stylized cartoons on the back, along with a write-up and full stats.

1966 Topps #80

Another cool card. This one made a reappearance as a reprint in 2002 Archives. This card has some personal weight with me, as I got it the day I bought the engagement ring to propose to my girl, and I was also looking at it when I got the call offering me my current job. So yeah, this card is a part of my life!

1967 Topps #450

Topps showed Richie some respect with a nice 450 "hero number". Great looking card. Got this card from a guy I traded music bootlegs with. I wasn't expecting it, so it was a very pleasant surprise. Another great, yet simple design by Topps. It's the first facsimile autograph seen on an Allen card. Notice he signs it "Rich" even though the media and Topps insist on calling him Richie, a name he thought was childish and never actually went by. My one complaint with this year's design is the cartoons on the back are pretty small and often hard to read. Note the somewhat offensive first cartoon here.. That would never fly today, even though it's not mean-spirited or anything.

1968 Topps #225

Not a bad card, but Allen suddenly looks like an old man. 1967 must've taken its toll on him. A lot of collectors aren't crazy about 1968 Topps, but it's one of my favorite sets. Sure, it may be dated now, but it's a nice throwback to days gone by. I could use an upgrade of this card, as it's a little creased at his left shoulder and the corners aren't very sharp. I actually did get another copy of this card, but the corners were just too round to usurp this one.

1969 Topps #350

I've always liked 1969 Topps, even though yes, it's very reminiscent of the previous two year's designs, and many of the photos are old or recycled. Looks like this photo is likely from the same shoot as his 1968 Topps photo. This card isn't my favorite of his, but it's ok. You'll notice my card has a stain dot in the upper left corner. Like 1968, I have another of these cards, but it's got a crease. Stain dot beats crease, so this is my top card for now.

1970 Topps #40

This might be the first "bad" Allen card, as Topps attempts to trick us into thinking he's in a Cardinals uniform, but it's just a sneaky shot of him as a Phillie. Notice since how he's now free of the Philadelphia press who insisted on calling him Richie, he's now listed as Rich. 1970 Topps might be my least-favorite vintage set. It's not terrible, just sort of drab. The backs are good, though, as we still get the trifecta of a cartoon, write-up, and full stats.

1971 Topps #650

Great card (photographer's knee in the lower left notwithstanding). And though he wasn't a Dodger the season prior, it seems to be a real (not airbrushed) photo, but hard to say. It's a late-series card, which means it's a short print, and as such, it's one of Dick's pricier cards, typically priced even higher than his rookie card. He's still going by Rich here, and the facsimile autograph makes a reappearance. It's kind of a bummer that we didn't get any cards featuring a real photo of DA as a Cardinal (besides his 1971 Kellogg's card, which I need). My card is a bit worn, but that's to be expected from the black-bordered 1971 Topps. I like the set's alternate photo on the back, though I miss the full stats.

1972 Topps #240

Look familiar? Yep, it's the same photo from 1970, only now instead of pretending to be a Cardinals uniform, it's pretending to be a White Sox uniform. It's a cool set on the whole, but this particular card kinda sucks since it's an old, recycled photo. By then, Dick had big glasses, big sideburns, and a big mustache; all missing from this photo. I wish Topps would have just used a Dodgers photo from the previous year rather than try to fudge it for the sake of appearing to be current, team-wise. Dick was MVP in 1972, so this unfortunate card would make reappearances in commemorative MVP sets such as the 1975 Topps subset and the Kmart set of 1982.

1973 Topps #310

Here's the first "Dick" Allen card, and his first action shot card (and sadly, the only batting photo used on a card during his playing career, I believe). Sweet card. I've always liked 1973 Topps a lot. Great fronts with many in-game photos, plus the trifecta back (cartoon, write-up, full stats). Fresh off an MVP season. Yep, one of his coolest cards, for sure.

1974 Topps #70

Not one of my favorite cards of his. Boring close-up photo of Dick sitting on the bench. His big 70s glasses look pretty dorky by today's standards. The back is decent, and we get a full name facsimile signature, along with a strange cartoon ("Dick likes to listen to stereo music"?? I guess stereo was a somewhat new thing in 1974. Does this imply he doesn't like listening to mono music?)

1975 Topps #400

Another hero number for Dick, with Topps bestowing the vaunted #400 to our man. Little did anyone know this would be his penultimate card and 1974 would be his last great year. This is the only defensive action shot from his Topps cards. I like 1975 Topps, but the backs aren't great. Hard to read, and the cartoons rarely have anything to do with the player whose card it is. The short write-up here notes Dick was traded to Atlanta at the end of 1974. However, he actually returned to Philadelphia for the 1975 season. I could use an upgrade of this card, because as you can see, mine has a random green dot on Dick's neck, looking like he's been hit by a tranquilizer dart by the opposing team.

1976 Topps #455

And here's the final card of Dick Allen's playing career. He played 85 games in 1976 with the Phillies, then 54 games in 1977 with Oakland before packing it up in June. Unfortunately, Topps wouldn't give him a card in their 1977 or 1978 sets, so we never got a card of him in an A's uniform. 1976 Topps is an ok set, but a little underwhelming. The photo of Dick seems to be saying "I'm too old for this shit," so I guess it's fitting this is his final card. Still, though, us DA fans rightfully hold a grudge against Topps for ignoring the final 2 years of his career.

Now that we've covered all his Topps flagship player cards, let's hit his other appearances I've got.

1967 Topps #242 NL RBI Leaders 

Love this card, though it's not in great shape. But a vintage card of 3 of my all-time favorites together.. gotta love it. Looks like Topps got lazy and reused the same photo of Dick from his 1966 card, just cropped tighter.

1969 Topps Deckle Edge Insert #26

This photo is so much better than his 1969 base card. Topps was dumb for not using it there. These deckle inserts always seem like they're trying to trick people into thinking the auto is legit, but of course it's just a facsimile. And the back is super boring with little info or anything. Still, nice addition to the collection. This is an upgrade for me. I also have one with a fold crease in the middle of it.

1970 O-Pee-Chee #40

The front looks identical to the 1970 Topps version, while the back has an altered write-up (2nd half is in French), altered cartoon, and is on different card stock.

1974 Topps #332 All-Star First Basemen

Another card shared with greatness; here Mr. Hank Aaron again. The back is apparently the lower-right piece of a puzzle of somebody. I wouldn't mind upgrading this card, though I'm not crazy about All-Star cards.

1982 Kmart 20th Anniversary #21

Here's that disappointing 1972 lie card again. Topps put out this 44-card set in conjunction with Kmart to commemorate MVPs in each league, 1962-1982, plus a few "highlight" cards to round it out. I don't care much for these Kmart cards (nobody does), but got the complete set with worn original box on Listia for a handful of credits a while back. Decent write-up on the back, at least. Unfortunately, this card has a gum stain. An upgrade would be nice.

2000 Fleer Greats of the Game #103

Now we get into the modern-era post-career cards. I like this card because it's the only Dick Allen card I have that features full career stats on the back.

2000 Topps Golden Anniversary Great certified autograph #GAA-DA

The first certified auto of this post. Nice card, though in both pictures, Dick looks kinda like a wax figure.

2001 Topps Archives certified autograph (1964 Reprint #243) #TAA85

This is the most recent addition to my collection, picking it up from eBay last week for under $15 (there's one on COMC for $50, so I think I got a good deal). These "updated" rookie reprints are weird, though, with Topps removing the other guy who originally shared the card (though keeping his info on the backside). But yeah, I like this card a lot.

2001 Fleer Greats of the Game

This was the first certified Dick Allen auto I ever got, so I like it for that reason (again, trying to make up for letting my autographed ball slip away), though yeah, it's a bit boring and the "Congrats!" back is lame (I'd much rather get career stats and/or a write-up). These are frequently on eBay for $10-15.

2001 Topps American Pie #22

Here's the last card of the post. Nothing too special. I think I threw this in with a COMC order I did a while back because it was just like 50 cents. Features a couple nice young photos of Mr. Allen from his first stint with the Phillies. The back photo seems to be an in-color version of the one used for his 1969 deckle edge we saw a few cards above.


Dups!
I've upgraded these below cards (only slight upgrades, but still), so I've got lesser-condition ones available for trade:
1968 Topps
1969 Topps
1974 Topps
1976 Topps
1969 Topps deckle

Wants!
Some specific Dick Allen needs (certified autograph cards I know about and don't have):
2009 Upper Deck Goodwin Champions auto
2004 Topps Fan Favorites auto (1965 design)
2007 Upper Deck Sweet Spot auto(s)
2002 Topps Archives auto (1966 reprint)

There are also some vintage League Leaders featuring DA I'm missing, but they can sometimes be pricey since they are often shared by the likes of Hank Aaron and Willie Mays. And there are many oddballs missing from my collection (cards by Kellogg's, SSPC, etc). And I probably wouldn't turn away upgrades, either. He's also got an autobiography called Crash that I hope to get someday soon. It's supposed to be a good read.
As always, let me know if you're interested in trading. Thanks!

UPDATE 1/5/2014: I've posted an update with additions to my DA collection

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P.S. Don't forget it's Pull-Tab Awareness Week! If you haven't already, please read the post and share the message!

Pull-Tab Awareness Week (Spread the word, guys!)

This is a very important public service announcement regarding the shipment of baseball cards.

It's one of the biggest plights for the sportscard collecting enthusiast of today:

Scotch tape.

Specifically, irresponsible usage of tape to protect cards.

Don't get me wrong, tape is a must-have item for anyone who ever ships cards. A piece of tape over the opening of a top loader prevents the card from slipping out and potentially being damaged in shipment. A few cards secured between a couple pieces of protective cardboard by some tape is also a good way to keep them safe from the rigors of interstate travel.

But too often, the person mailing the cards doesn't take a moment to think about the recipient. If you're reading this, I'm sure you've been in the frustrating situation many times: spending what seems like several minutes chipping away at a piece of tape with your fingernail, trying to free your newly obtained card(s). Such a pain! You could also use a knife or scissors-half to cut the tape, but you run the risk of cutting in too far, potentially damaging the cards, and either way, if it's a top loader, now you've got a trashy-looking top loader with a cut-up piece of tape on it.. time to get your fingernails involved again. Depending on the tape, it could take just a moment, or it could be on there so badly (chipping off in tiny brittle bits, or not coming off at all), that the card holder is essentially ruined. Even in the best-case scenario, some Goo Gone is usually needed to remove the sticky tape residue.

This disheartening scene could easily be avoided!

All the sender needs to do is spend 2 seconds to fold over a tiny piece of tape, creating a handy pull-tab. This pull-tab makes it super easy for the recipient to grab hold of the tape and peel it off in one efficient motion. No dangerous blades or fingernail frustration needed!

CREATING A PULL-TAB

Step 1: Apply tape to one side.

Step 2: At the end of the remaining tape, fold over a piece about a centimeter long, with the sticky part being stuck against itself, creating a non-sticky pull-tab roughly the shape of a square.

Step 3: Apply the remaining tape to the other side.

Tips:

• You can also double up on the pull-tabs to make opening cards later even easier. Just follow the above process for each side of the tape you apply.
• It's also nice to write "pull" on either the tab itself or on the protective cardboard with an arrow pointing to the tab. This is helpful for individuals who might not immediately recognize the tab you've thoughtfully created for them.

Warnings:

• Don't make the tab so big that there's not enough sticky part of the tape left to get a secure seal. You want at least a half-inch of sticky part remaining to ensure that the tape holds during transit. If you've got limited tape length to work with, it's better to have a "too small" pull-tab, than "too big". Even if it's too small, at least the recipient can have a good start for his fingernails.
• If you write "pull" to identify the tab, be sure to write gently. Writing too hard could damage the card.

USING A PULL-TAB

Step 1: Pull tab.

Step 2: There is no step 2; you're done, bro! Throw away the tape that easily came off, and enjoy your new card(s)!


It's just that easy! How has this not caught on? I only really re-delved back into card collecting like a year and a half ago, after collecting as a kid, pre-internet. I've been amazed at the lack of convenient pull-tabs. I've gotten over a hundred shipments of cards from dudes on eBay, Listia, or other online trades & sales, and only maybe 5% of them had pull-tabs. Why?! It's so easy to do and so handy for the person getting the cards!


YOU CAN HELP

Please, everyone, spread the word. Mention Pull-Tab Awareness Week on your blog, Twitter, Facebook, and to your trade buddies, frequented sellers, whatever! Let's get everyone on the pull-tab bandwagon and make all our lives just a bit better.

Even if it's not a big deal to you personally and you don't mind fighting with stubborn pieces of tape around your cards, chances are it bugs somebody you trade with. Be kind, make pull-tabs!

My tiny blog hasn't been around very long, so I need help from you guys, my modest readership, to disseminate this message. However, please note this is not a stunt to drive traffic to my blog. If/when you make a stand and share this information and/or pictures, I don't need a link back or to be given any credit or anything. Copy & Paste freely with no stings attached. I'm just trying to do my part to spread pull-tab awareness across the globe. It's very important to me and hopefully important to you, too. I'll make a follow-up post soon thanking and linking to anybody who helps spread the word, so please give me a heads-up if/when you do, if you want to be included in that.

Yes, it's a "first world problem", but such a senseless thing that shouldn't even be an issue. Let's eradicate this and move forward as a species. It'll save people a lot of time.. and time is money.. money that could be used for feeding the homeless or medical treatment for children. Remember, the week after "shark week" is "pull-tab awareness week" from now on.

Here are some copy-and-paste-ready text and pictures for you to use (feel free to create your own, too, of course):

It's Pull-Tab Awareness Week! When you use tape around baseball cards, fold a piece near the end as a handy pull-tab! Please share/RT! 

Be Cool, be Fab, make a Pull-Tab! Fold over the end of the tape when packaging your sportscards for shipping.

We're here. We want pull-tabs. Get used to it. #pulltabweek

What do we want? Pull Tabs! When do we want it? When people send us cards!

Hey everybody, please make handy pull tabs by folding the tape ends when taping up cards to ship. Thanks! #pulltabweek

There you go. Tweet it, put it on Facebook, let everybody know. Please. Fight the good fight! And remember, it all starts with you. Pull tabs: it's the right thing to do.

Mystery Binder from Listia (pt 4)

Here we are with the thrilling conclusion to the binder containing 200+ cards I got cheap from a local Listian over the weekend. First, we got a nice Pablo Sandoval card. Then, a shred of a CC Sabathia jersey. After that, a guy named like my name.

Now we come to the final few pages. Let's take a look, won't we?

Page 19
Round Up: Lots of Donruss. Fun Fact: Did you know that Gary Redus and Gary Pettis were different guys? I always assumed they were the same player. I stand corrected. They are 2 different men named Gary.
Winner: David Murphy rookie? He's had some good years.
Loser: Chip Hale rookie? He never had any good years. Nah, he did ok in '93 (.333 in 69 games).

Page 20
Round Up: Hey, 3 HOFers and a couple also-very-good's.
Winner: That's a nice looking Kirby.
Loser: Tim Layana. 1991 Score never did much for me.

Page 21
Round Up: I think the '07 Topps Phil Nevin is the only duplicate of the binder (also popped up in Part 3).
Winner: Hell, let's give it to Kirby twice in a row. I love Paul Molitor, but that looks more like a photo of your uncle in a Boy Scouts outfit.
Loser: Pat Clements.. no love for '89 Topps. None.

Page 22
Round Up: Here are 9 more baseball cards. Yep, there they are.
Winner: 3-way tie: Carpenter, Konerko, Buehrle. If I was more stat-minded, I'd look up which of these guys has the most career WAR+ or whatever to find out which is the best player on paper and then crown him the winner of the page.
Loser: Sorry, '89 Ed Whitson, but you've got a crease, dropping your value from 1 cent down to 0.1 cent.

Page 23
Round Up: I'm not gonna run the exact numbers, but I can confidently say that the most populous set of the binder is 2007 Topps. I guess it's a fine set. The black border is cool. The firework pixels in the corners are kinda weird, but ok.
Winner: Chipper Jones cracking a smile in the batter's box.
Loser: That Lance McCullers is a seriously damaged piece of cardboard. Time to be flicked into the recycle bin.

Page 24
Round Up: Last page. Yet more '07 Topps to close it out. Shawn Riggans there in the middle seriously looks like a Little League photo.. maybe JV high school.
Winner: Geez, it's a weak field. I guess I'll go with Mark Loretta, as I remember him fondly for his days as a Padre.
Loser: Scioscia has seen better days.

Well, there ya have it. Not really any "hits" here in the last quarter of the binder. I guess the David Murphy RC is the top card of these few pages.. his average is down this year, but he seems to be a decent player. (UPDATE: Upon taking the David Murphy out of the page, the tragic sight of a very damaged back was revealed. Dang. trash)

To wrap up the binder.. I'd definitely get it again, were I thrown back through time to the moment before I bid on it. Some decent cards in it. And my collection is pretty light on cards from the past 20 years, so it was cool to get some relatively-recent stuff. But lots of junk wax I don't have any use for, really. And many of the cards are in rough condition. Probably wouldn't be worth the postage cost to ship it all, including the binder itself and all the junk. But yeah, for just 75 Listia credits and a drive a few zip codes over, it was worth it.

Oh, and I guess there's also the binder itself. It's a nice binder. Puffy front cover. D-ring. Quality craftsmanship. But honestly, I'm not really a "binder guy." I prefer penny sleeves and top loaders. I like to hold a card in my hands and flip it over and then back again. Plus I get frustrated trying to organize my cards in multiples of 9.

Again, if you need any of these cards, I'm probably up for a trade, so let me know. As always, thanks for reading and taking this adventure with me!

Mystery Binder from Listia (pt 3)

To catch up anyone who hasn't been reading this week, I (locally) picked up a cheap binder with 200+ cards off Listia this past weekend. I've been breaking it into quarters to go through it and find out what it's got. Part 1 featured a Pablo Sandoval 1st Bowman Chrome Card. The highlight of Part 2 was a CC Sabathia relic from 2005. Now it's on to Part 3:

Page 13
Round Up: This page is dominated by '07 Topps. That's an oddly poor picture of Mike Scioscia that Topps chose for this card.
Winner: I like the Nevin and Barfield since I remember them from their Padres days.
Loser: The Joe Hesketh is pretty creased up.

Page 14
Round Up: 2007 Topps continues its recent dominance of the binder. Nice early cards of Cole Hamels and Justin Verlander.
Winner: I like Frank Thomas, but the Blue Jays uniform is weird on him (plus I think it's photoshopped on him, so it looks even weirder).
Loser: None! They're all winners! Yippee!!

Page 15
Round Up: 2007 Topps is loosening its grip on the binder, but slowly.
Winner: I guess I like the early Carlos Quentin card, since he's currently one of the least-bad Padres and this is the first card I've gotten of him.
Loser: The Rick Aguilera card is not only a so-so airbrushing job, but this particular one is also pretty creased.

Page 16
Round Up: More 2007 Topps n' friends.
Winner: Gavin Floyd.. probably the all-time most successful baseball player that shares my first name (just a .500 pitcher, so I guess that's not saying much). But yeah, cool to have his rookie card (Maybe it's his rookie card? Who can tell these days.)
Loser: I love Chris Young, but looking at this picture, I just want to punch him (and then run away very fast).

Page 17
Round Up: If you like oil paintings of baseball players, this is the page for you, with 3 Diamond Kings. Unfortunately for me, I don't.
Winner: Will Clark was pretty hot back in 1990. I remember that year, in middle school, I briefly had a '87 Fleer Will Clark rookie and promptly traded it away for a few vintage cards including a couple old Reggie's. People thought I was crazy, but I think time has vindicated me.
Loser: Buckner. Always Buckner. Every time.

Page 18
Round Up: Part 3 ends with a whimper; Not much notable here.
Winner: Gotta give it to the Ryan DK
Loser: Don't make me choooose!

So there you have Part 3 of the mystery binder. What do you think was the best card? Nothing really jumping out at me from these few pages. I guess I'm most happy to get the Gavin Floyd, my namesake. (btw, "Gavin Floyd" is also the name of an alter-ego of mine that comes out when I listen to Dark Side of the Moon on headphones.)

Oh, mystery binder! What other secrets do you hold in store?? Stay tuned for the 4th and final exciting chapter-- coming your way shortly.

Mystery Binder from Listia (pt 2)

The other day, I talked about a local pick-up of a binder of baseball cards I got off Listia for a pocketful of credits and a Sunday drive cross town.

I'm in the middle of going through the binder and finding out what-all's in there (in "real time" along with you, the reader!! lol). The highlight so far has been a Pablo Sandoval "1st Bowman Chrome Card". Let's see if anything can top it.

Here's part 2 of our 4-part saga.

Page 7
Round Up: Some '07 Heritage and junk on the bottom.
Winner: I guess the Ortiz AS.
Loser: Hard to not beat a Diamond King; sorry Ruben.

Page 8
Round Up: Here's a random lot, somewhat heavy on '90 Donruss.
Winner: I'll go with the horizontal Mattingly, even with a crease.
Loser: The Easley is pretty damaged.. will probably trash it.

Page 9
Round Up: Lots of '07 Topps. Nothing too interesting here. A random hockey card; too bad it's a bit warped.
Winner: none of the above
Loser: all of the above

Page 10
Round Up: Cool, a couple Marcus Giles cards.. I went to school with the guy, so kinda collect his cards.
Winner: I'll say the Fleer Giles.. I think I needed that one. His '07 Topps card there is great, though.
Loser: Tie between the two '89 Topps.

Page 11
Round Up: We might have a new champion for "best card of the binder" in the form of that CC Sabathia jersey relic. The Nolan Ryan card is kinda cool, but the corners are beat up.
Winner: CC with the tiny piece of fabric that was allegedly part of a garment he wore once.
Loser: The Clemens caricature is kinda creepy. Ironically, by the end of his career, that's an accurate representation of his head size. Zing!

Page 12
Round Up: More '07 Topps among others.
Winner: I like/semi-collect Frank Thomas and Carlos Delgado, and have never seen these cards before, so I'm happy to have 'em.
Loser: The '91 John Smiley has some pretty rough corners, squeaking by the '89 Topps card for worst of the page.


Well, that's it for Part 2. Some good stuff, some garbage. The CC relic is obviously the top card of these few pages. Any other good cards here I didn't give proper love to?

Check back soon for the next installment and we'll see what else is in there. Again, most of this stuff is available for trades, so let me know if you wanna work out a deal for anything.

Mystery Binder from Listia (pt 1)

Late Saturday night I was taking a quick peruse of Listia, and a recommend auction on the right sidebar caught my eye: "baseball cards with binder". It was ending soon and had an opening bid of just 75 credits (which in dollar terms is like less than a quarter; hardly anything). The catch was it was Local Pick-Up Only. But in a "small world" circumstance, the location was my home of Portland, OR. So I bid, and ended up the only bidder, winning it for the 75 credits.

The guy was new to Listia and didn't have any feedback yet. I knew it was a risk, since newbies often flake out, but Listia is good about refunding credits in such situations (and again, it was only 75 credits), so I figured it was worth the risk. (I've been burned on Listia a few times before but always got my credits refunded eventually, and once I got a Rickey Henderson rookie off a newbie for 2000 credits; so yeah, it pays to take a chance.) The guy didn't type out any cards, just a couple pics of the binder's outside, and one shot of it open (not quite clear enough to identify the cards, but enough to tell junk wax and later.) He claimed to have spent about $50 on collecting it, but was giving it up.

After my recent great experience doing an eBay local pickup, I figured a Listia pickup would be cool too. And guess what?,,,, yeah, it was fine (though no free hot sauce this time, sorry to say). And I had to drive out almost 7 miles to the place he wanted to meet up, but that wasn't too bad for a hot Sunday afternoon without really anything else going on. He got there just moments before I did, so I didn't have to wait around at all. He was a kid, literally like middle school age, but seemed nice enough. His age takes some wind out of my "I got a great deal!" sails, because nobody wants to rip off a decent kid, but I doubt there's anything really valuable here, so no need for me to be guilt-ridden over it at all.

So anyways, let's break into this binder and see if there's anything cool in here!

Page 1
Round up: The only guy I've heard of here is Jeff Ballard (yeah, I love baseball cards, but haven't followed baseball very closely for the past few years; I'm more into the "good ol' days"). Well, I think I've heard of Jason Marquis, too. Wow, that Eric Hurley card is thick! Probably the thickest non-relic card I own. Too bad he hasn't done much in the majors. Boof Bonser is a great name! But again, too bad he's not a very notable player.
Winner: Points for girth: Eric Hurley. Runner-up: Da' Boof.
Loser: Sorry, Mr. Ballard, '88 Donruss is always a loser unless maybe it's Roberto Alomar.

Page 2
Round up: Hey, I've actually heard of most of these guys! Josh Johnson and Jon Lester rookies? Nice.
Winner: Great looking Ian Kinsler card.
Loser: Pierzynski. Sorry, looks kinda like a douche.

Page 3
Round up: Not much here. An Eck, but '88 Donruss again. Oh hey, hiding behind that Chase Fontaine in the middle was a gold parallel (another of those super thick ones) of the same card. Cool.
Winner: Chin-lung Hu.. nice looking card.
Loser: Jeff Brantley just edges out the 2 Donruss cards.

Page 4
Round up: An '07 Upper Deck lot. Not one of my favorite sets (the sides make it feel like each card is being squeezed in a vice).
Winner: Moises Alou.. a player I always kinda liked.
Loser: Derrick Turnbow.. why you got dat hat down so far, bro?

Page 5
Round up: Just a partially-full page here, but a good one. That's reigning WS MVP Pablo Sandoval in the middle there.. RC, cool (At least, I think so.. "1st Bowman Card" = "Rookie Card", right?). Also a Russell Martin RC (but not "1st Bowman Card"?? So complicated!).. he was good for a while. I remember hating him for getting lots of key hits against the Padres whilst he was a Dodger.
Winner: Kung Fu Panda
Loser: Gaetti DK

Page 6
Round up: Some junk and 3 team cards from 2007.
Winner: Hmm.. the '07 Cardinals were the reigning WS Champs, so I'll give it to them.
Loser: Creased Mike Davis has a date with the trash can. Sorry, Mr. Davis.

Ok, we're just a quarter-way through the binder, but I think that's enough for today's post. Check back soon for the continuation to see what other mysteries will be revealed.

What do you think of the lot so far? Any hidden treasures that I should screw down in a hard case ASAP? Not gonna blow anybody away, but I think it was worth the tiny few Listia credits and the time/gas to pick it up, with the Pablo Sandoval RC being the top card so far. I should mention pretty much all of these cards are open for trades, so if anything is catching your eye, check out my wants.