Kemp karma

Today is the last day to vote on this region's "Gems of Junk Wax" contestants!

We still have a couple of close races on our hands, so get your votes in before it's too late!

Thank you.

As you might have already noticed, I'm not a picky collector.

I could never force myself to focus on one specific area of the hobby. With the way I do things, it'd be pure torture.

I must have my Vlad cards. And my Ichiros. And my "zero-year" issues. Not to mention my "interview" cards. And don't forget the "sunsets". Oh, and my...

The list just goes on and on.

Part of the reason I collect so many things is, well, because I like a lot of different things. It's really that simple.

But, as I've recently found, some if it is due to trading as well. I want my trade partners to have freedom in putting together a trade package for me. Send me whatever you think I'd like. Chances are, I'm going to enjoy it either way.

Although I wouldn't consider myself a steadfast team collector, I was more than happy to see a few Cubs cards fall out of a recent mailer from Oscar, author of the terrific blog "All Trade Bait, All The Time".

Even three years after its release, I'm still finding cards I need from 2010 Upper Deck's "Season Biography" series. While he was quite the head case, "Big Z" is still the greatest hitting pitcher I've ever seen. (Save, perhaps, for Micah Owings.)

As a result, "pitcher at the plate" issues of his are among my personal favorites.

More Cubbies!

I personally enjoyed the Jody Davis "blast from the past". It's not everyday you see a card of his pop up around the blogosphere.

Flair as a whole is kind of in that same mold. I rarely hear that brand mentioned around collecting circles. Nevertheless, they certainly knew their way around a baseball card.

That "Ryno" is a beauty.

While the Cubs cards were great, the real reason Oscar decided to send a trade package my way comes from a post I wrote about a month ago.

In it, I officially welcomed Matt Kemp into my "player collection" club. A lot of it came from an inspiring video that made its way around the webs last month. In a lot of ways, though, that was simply the straw that broke the camel's back.

I'd long admired Kemp for his sheer and unabridged competitiveness. In an era of high-paid and ego-minded athletes, it's good to see such a big star do whatever he can for his team.

Personally, I think the Diamondbacks should be glad he wasn't around for Tuesday's big brawl. I'd bet he would've been the first one out of the dugout.

He's the kind of guy you'd want on your side of the field.

Anyways, being the Dodger collector he is, Oscar must've accumulated a fair amount of Kemp doubles along the way.

So, after my announcement, he graciously offered to send a baker's dozen of "Kemp karma" my way.

In fact, Oscar nearly doubled my Kemp collection with this awesome stack.

After all was said and done, his mailer brought me up to a tidy 28 different pieces of "Bison" cardboard. The "centerpiece" A&G issue is my very first Kemp short-print.

True, a mere 28 cards is probably pretty paltry compared to my many Dodger comrades in the blogosphere. Nevertheless, it's a number I expect to grow in the coming months.

Especially if people like Oscar keep sending me terrific arrays of cardboard like these.

That's part of the fun of starting a new player collection.

Of course, I can't wait to see how many Kemps I can save from the dime box depths. I imagine it'll be quite a few. Only time will tell.

And, if I already have what seems like a thousand player collections, well...

Matt Kemp will be a thousand and one.

The more the merrier, as I like to say.