I admit, my first reaction when I hear a collector say they don't know about baseball card blogs is HOW CAN YOU NOT KNOW ABOUT BASEBALL CARD BLOGS?!
But when I pull back the lens a bit, I'm able to ask myself: how popular are card blogs, really, in relation to, say, a big breaker site, or other congregations of rich hobby bigwig people? Sure, I know the blogs are awesome, but I've been here for over eight years now. It's the world to me. And it's hard to step outside my world and see how the universe as a whole operates with unbiased eyes. I'd be interested to know how many social-mediaish collectors read blogs, or even know they exist. I'd bet it's not many.
More than anything, I guess I feel sorry for these people, especially when so many of them seem to long for a place to discuss baseball cards. Um, we're right here, and I like to think we're not all that difficult to find. I'm not very blog-savvy -- I didn't even really know what a blog was for a long time -- but even I managed to discover card blogs all those years ago.
And I'd like to think if I can do it, then pretty much anyone can.
I don't seem to interact with the tech-heavy collectors enough to hear all the "blogging is dying" remarks supposedly going around, but either way they couldn't be more wrong.
I mean, I've discovered quite a few people starting new card blogs in the last few months, and I've even traded with some of them already. A reader named Jeff has been sending me cards for a while now, and I'm happy to report he's finally decided to start a blog of his own recently, so go follow "Wax Pack Wonders" as soon as possible.
These two player collection hits came in a recent envelope with the '87 Hough at the top of the post -- a painfully common overproduction era card that triggered a near panic attack when I discovered I somehow didn't have it, and thus became a big sigh of relief when Jeff knocked it off my Dime Box Dozen list.
A reminder that I really need to clean my scanner (the cards look a million times better in person, believe me).
Jeff sent me a different package of cards even before that most recent one, a group that included a bunch of stuff off my want lists.
Good luck getting someone to send you a free Mike Trout insert anywhere but the blogs.
GQ inserts > GQ base.
It's not even close.
I love when new card bloggers somehow find me in the galaxy of blogs and reach out to let me know they've joined us and wonder if I can impart any advice (it's mind-boggling to think I'm a grizzled veteran around here).
I received one such email from Jay of the new "Card Hemorrhage" blog, which you should also go follow right now. Often I offer to put together a little "welcome to the blogs" package together for new bloggers, because what better way to convince someone of how great this place can be than with free cards? I put together a few things for Jay, and while I didn't ask for anything in return, he graciously ignored those wishes and sent a few things from my want lists.
It's always a treat to get Heritage SPs since they seem to fall off the face of the earth the moment they wind up in packs.
Here's something I never thought I'd say: I now have a baseball card of Louis Armstrong!
As is my yearly tradition, and the impatience that comes with it, I've since completed the 2020 Heritage "News Flashbacks" inserts, most of them coming through a couple online orders. But this one from Jay was the first (and only) need I received via trade, and I love it. All in all, it's a great honor to be able to help introduce new bloggers like Jeff and Jay to this wonderful place called the cardsphere. And if you're new to us and reading this right now, I welcome you, too.
Now go read Jeff's blog and Jay's blog and all the other wonderful card blogs out there -- you've got a whole universe waiting for you.
Satchmo!!..love the Fortune Tellers,too!
ReplyDeleteNick, honestly, it was reading blogs like yours that made me want to do it in the first place. It's where I learned about "frankensets"; the simplicity of collecting just your team or your player; and how so many bloggers were trading amongst themselves....which I've certainly found to be true in a few short months.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the post, the cards, the advice and so on...!
Jay, you took the words right out of my mouth. It's been fun reading this blog and others and now writing too. Thanks Nick!
DeleteThe whole virus thing really sucks... but I think it's pretty awesome that we have new blogs to read... and old bloggers returning to the keyboard.
ReplyDeleteLove the Gwynn card. I don't feel that sports cards blogs have died per se. In fact, while I used to write "Bleedin' Brown and Gold," about my beloved Padres and sent a few cards your way. I now write a more expansive sports card blog entitled, "Comatoad on Cards." Check it out sometime.
ReplyDeleteI don't read many baseball card blogs, but I check up on yours at least weekly. Mostly because I also collect cards of players in Throwback jerseys. I spent a week or so going through and seeing the ones you have posted. I just need to get them added to my spreadsheet that is pushing over 3600 different cards, and I still don't have all the parallels covered. I'm sure there will be many more I need to add once I get through all those you posted. Also a big thanks for turning me on to Cardbarrel. I was able to get a huge influx of cards (147) I didn't have of players in Throwbacks for just over the $25 free shipping threshold.
ReplyDeleteI don't blog about cards so much as post up some stuff every once in a while on my website. I've started a YouTube channel that I eventually aim to post videos of Throwback games, and feature the cards from them prominently.