Zero-Year Cards, Part 9

2002 Bowman Draft #103 Mike Fontenot RC (Orioles)

Mr. Fontenot is one of my favorite players in the league right now. He's a throwback to the little guys like Freddie Patek and Luis Aparicio, as Fontenot is listed on this card as a measly 5'8" and 160 pounds. Plus, he was a Chicago Cub. Most Cubs are okay in my book (unless your name is Milton Bradley).

Fontenot was dealt to the Cubs in the Sammy Sosa deal in 2005 after originally being drafted by the O's in '01, before ever playing a game in Baltimore. He became part of the Cubs' "LSU combo" middle-infield with fellow LSU Tiger Ryan Theriot at shortstop. It saddened me when the Cubs dealt him to the Giants in 2010, but I saw it coming. He wasn't really getting consistent playing time and there wasn't much room for him. But, it's good to see that he got a ring last year in San Francisco.

I can actually remember the exact date that I first heard of Mike Fontenot. It was on June 10, 2007. Here's the box score:

http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ATL/ATL200706100.shtml

I remember that game well because Ted Lilly got tossed in the first inning after hitting Edgar Renteria, before any warnings were given. I wasn't happy about that. Then on the next pitch, Renteria stole second and slammed into Fontenot on the attempt. I remember thinking, "What the heck was that? Why the hard slide after he was already safe? Who was that little guy covering second, anyways?" 

It was Fontenot.

This post is a hoax

I thought I'd dedicate this post to my all-time favorite Allen and Ginter insert set, the 2009 A&G "World's Biggest Hoaxes, Hoodwinks, and Bamboozles" cards.

These are fascinating cards. The tale of "The Turk" (top-right in the photo) is amazing. An 18th-century "machine" was designed to play a game of chess, like a computer would do today. It apparently "bamboozled" players such as Napoleon and Benjamin Franklin, beating each of them in chess games.

In actuality, there was a human (who was evidently an amazing chess player) inside the "machine", controlling its every move.

The sheer randomness of this set is what makes it so great. You've got everything from a man who almost sold the Eiffel Tower (top row, second from left) to fictional fairies (bottom left) to cold fusion (bottom right).

The Eiffel Tower hoax is an interesting tale. In 1925, the Czech-born Victor Lustig posed as a French official, actually convincing a scrap metal company to purchase the tower from him because it was "too expensive to maintain". The Eiffel Tower almost sold for scrap metal. Wow.

I know a lot of other collectors aren't huge fans of these types of cards, especially from A&G. As a fan of historical trivia, I love them. They're a nice change of pace from the number of sets that are released during the summer.

I do hope A&G goes back to using actual historical figures on their cards in 2012. I don't need cards of Stan Lee or Jack LaLanne (although I happened to like the Wee Man card). I want to see more cards of Victor Hugo and Louis Pasteur.

I promise I'll get back to the actual baseball cards in my next post. I'm planning a cool new concept that I think a lot of my growing number of readers will like.

But for now, bask in the glory of hoaxes!

The Gems of Junk Wax, Pt. 6: 1993 Upper Deck

This is the first set I'm including in the GOJW series that doesn't include players from the past.

Upper Deck's 1993 release is without a doubt their best one. 2002, 2004, and 2006 Upper Deck are my next favorite UD sets, but none of them can come close to the sheer beauty of '93.

And they just happened to come out the same year that Derek Jeter, the newest 3,000-hits member, made his first appearances on baseball cards. I picked the Jeter RC up on the cheap at a card show a while back because of its condition. Any rookie cards of a Hall-of-Famer (or future HOFer in his case) are good to have in my book.

The set kicks off with the black-bordered "Star Rookie" cards. I don't usually like black-border cards, but I make an exception for these. The "garbage bag" workout uniform Embree is wearing on that card really takes you back to issues from the 1970's.

Even the checklist cards in this set are great. The Randy Johnson portrait you see is card #824 of the set, featuring the Mariners checklist. The logo paired with the dark background make this my favorite of the checklist cards in the set.

They've got comedic value as well. There's Guillen having a laugh for the camera, and McDowell (a.k.a "The Second Spitter) choosing his college of choice.

What really makes the set, however, is the photography. The pictures are clean, and most of the card fronts are devoted to showcasing the photo, not the card design.

There's some beautiful in-action shots in this set. First, we've got Ken Caminiti toppling over after appearing to snag a foul pop.

Then, we've got my favorite action shot from the entire set, and one of the best action shots of all-time. Carlos Baerga attempting to hurdle over an unfortunate Angels player, possibly delivering him a concussion in the process.

Even the photos on the backs of these cards are great. Heck, they're better than the front photos of a lot of cards I've seen.

I wish card companies still used some of these double-image photos for cards today. They add a whole other level to the concept of the baseball card.

The Andre Dawson card is one of the absolute best shots I've ever seen, showing him tumbling into foul ground at Wrigley after apparently making a fantastic catch.

This set is my personal favorite non-retro set from the "junk wax" era. Geez, how could it not be?

You want (vintage) Christmas cards? Alright, here! Here's your (VINTAGE!) Christmas cards!

1956 Topps #307 Hoyt Wilhelm

As I mentioned in my last post, my dad got me an extra-special Christmas present this year.

He went on a mini-"CheckOutMyCards" shopping spree for one of my gifts, buying a stack of (mostly) vintage for me. And the way he wrapped them was great. He threw them in a gigantic box and filled it with styrofoam; I literally had to "dig" for my cards! 

Nobody knows my collection better than my dad (except me, of course!). That being said, a couple of the cards he bought were ones I already had. With my gigantic collection, can you blame him? Besides, it's the thought that counts. Unfortunately, I already had the "big one" he got for me, the '56 Wilhelm at the top of the post. I somehow forgot to put that one on my Wilhelm havelist page on my site when I got it a few months ago. (It's for trade if anyone wants it, by the way.) Oops!

Here's the full scoop on the best baseball-card present(s) I've ever received. We'll start out with the dups. Enjoy!

 1961 Topps #185 Herb Score
 

The scans of my duplicates are all for trade if anyone out there wants them!

I was surprised my dad even knew I collected Herb Score.

This is Score's second-to-last Topps issue (he'd have a 1962 Topps card). Score's story is a sad one. We might be talking about him in the same sentence as Sandy Koufax and Bob Gibson had he not had such bad luck.

Score led the league in strikeouts in each of his first two seasons ('55 and '56). He'd combine for 508 K's in those first two years, as well as 36 wins. In 1957, he took a line drive off his eye and was never quite the same pitcher. He'd suffer other injuries as well as the eye problem and be done by 1962, only winning 19 more games over his final six seasons.

 

 1963 Topps #128 Matty Alou

1964 Topps #65 Felipe Alou

The three Alou brothers (Matty, Felipe, and Jesus) are three of my favorites from the 1960's. All of them were fine players as well. 

I'm not certain, but it looks like that Matty Alou photo was taken at Wrigley Field, one of the finest backdrops for any baseball picture.

I'd bet that the Felipe Alou card is one of the first to picture a player on a different team than the card states. Cards like that were usually airbrushed to match the new team in older Topps issues, why not this one?

1963 Topps #165 Jim Kaat

1972 Topps #180 Dock Ellis IA

Two of my favorite cards of my favorite pitchers. My dad was on the right track with these.

My dad told me that the '63 Kaat cost him a mere 40 cents. My copy set be back a whole $4!

1972 Topps In-Action cards are always fun. It was the first time cards were specifically created with action photos.

2011 Panini Americana #76 Jeffrey Tambor

Now we'll begin with the best part of this post, the cards I didn't already have!

Starting with a laugh. A card of Jeffrey Tambor (the best part of "Arrested Development")! "No touching! No touching!"

Now do you see why I like those 2011 American Pie cards so much? The designs for these types of non-baseball cards usually look like throwaways for card companies. Bland and boring. Not the AP's, though!

But even that horrific design can't ruin a Jeffrey Tambor card!

1997 Kenner (?) #NNO Hoyt Wilhelm

Here's a Wilhelm card I didn't already have. I'm not sure on the specifics of this one, but my dad said they came with cereal boxes. Definitely a neat oddball addition to the ol' Wilhelm collection!

2009 UD Goodwin Champions Mini Gypsy Queen Red #15 Dick Allen

Dick Allen is one of mine and my dad's favorites. This is a mini parallel from his '09 Goodwin Champions issue.
 

Be on the lookout for Allen in a later "Glory of Their Time" post!

2006 Artifacts "MLB Apparel Gold Limited" #MLB-CO Coco Crisp JSY /150

2004 Bazooka "One-Liners" #BOL-DA Dick Allen BAT

These are the first game-used cards I've gotten in a while.

I was surprised to see that I didn't already have a jersey card of Coco Crisp. And now I do!

Staying with the Dick Allen theme, here's an awesome bat card of his with one of his most well-known quotes. I've got the Jerry Koosman memorabilia card from the "One-Liners" set as well, it's a fantastic game-used set.

1970 Topps #205 Bert Campaneris
 

But enough of that recent stuff, let's get on with the vintage!

This is one of the few "Campy" cards I don't have from his playing days. One of his finest, I must say, with the beautiful background of Yankee Stadium.

I seem to find cards of his in every vintage box I go through. This one managed to slip through the cracks. Until now, that is. 

1972 Topps #440 Billy Williams IA

Another of the fun '72 Topps In-Action cards, showing Billy Williams gearing up for a pitch in what looks like a largely empty stadium judging from all the empty seats in the backdrop.

On a side note, 1972 was the only year Williams led the league in batting average, hitting at a .333 clip. It was also his last 30+ HR season (he'd hit 37).

1972 Topps #313 Luis Aparicio

This just doesn't look right to me. Aparicio looks wrong in any non-White Sox uniform. He looks a little uneasy about it too in that photo.
 

I never realized how small Aparicio was until I looked at the back of this card. It's got him listed at 5'8" and 160 pounds. That's about what I am, and a good number of the guys my age sky over me at school. 

That's part of why baseball is the best sport. You don't have to be freakishly tall or freakishly strong to excel at it. Just look at Luis Aparicio.

1961 Nu-Card Scoops #476 Dizzy/Daffy Dean

It was tough to decide which was my favorite card of my dad's gift. It was tough, but I decided it wasn't this one. Don't get me wrong though, this is an absolutely great card, commemorating the Cardinals' Game 7 victory to clinch the 1934 World Series, an outcome which Dizzy Dean correctly predicted at the beginning of the '34 season. "It ain't bragging if you can do it." Well said, Diz.

I try not to put to much faith in Beckett pricing, but I was really surprised when I saw that this one only booked at $2.50. I'll give you $2.50 all day for this one. Even less because it's in worse condition, of course.

1959 Topps #440 "Lou" Burdette

I decided that this was my favorite of the cards my dad got me for Christmas.

I've wanted this one ever since I saw it in one of my old "Hall of Shame" books. This card features not one, not two, but three mistakes on it. Can you spot them? (Cue "Jeopardy" music.) Here's the answers.

1) Burdette's first name is spelled "Lew", not "Lou".

2) He's a righty, not a lefty as pictured. He borrowed Warren Spahn's glove to try and pull one over on Topps for this photo. And he did.

3) There's no baseball in his hand!

Topps featured this one in their "Cards Your Mother Threw Out" insert set in 2010. And now I've got an actual copy. That's a great feeling.

I've just got one last thing to say before I go.

Thanks for the "Christmas cards", Mom and Dad! It's great to have a family that helps support my often-pricey hobby (or addiction, depending on who you talk to). I appreciate the support every time I look through my cards.

The (baseball card) joys of Christmas

Christmas was fantastic this year. Is it ever not?

The only thing that would've made it a little better is if there was some snow on the ground. Maybe I'm just thinking that because I don't drive very often, otherwise I'd be on my hands and knees thanking the weather gods for keeping the snow away from Chicago.

It's been so abnormally warm here so far this winter that we actually grilled some of our Christmas dinner outside. Grilling on Christmas. Definitely a first.

You know what else Christmas means! Baseball cards! I was lucky enough to rip open quite a few packs this Christmas. It's always a blast to open free packs, I could care less what set they're from. 

My dad also got me a special baseball card gift, but I'll be saving that one for a later post this evening as this one is already jam-packed with goodies.

My baseball-card Christmas day started out with my mom's gifts. (It actually started yesterday, as I got a $15 gift card to my local mall from my mom's side of my family, which will no doubt be going to baseball cards of some sort.) I found a couple packs of 2011 Topps Heritage and 2011 A&G in my stocking. She also bought me an awesome Roberto Clemente plaque that's going to look amazing on the wall in my room.

Not much in the handful of packs from my mom. I did pull a Heritage SP need for one of my player collections with the Keppinger.

Plus, what says "Christmas" more than a card of an axe murder?

Me and my dad's side of the family spent Christmas afternoon at my uncle's house (where I had one of the most unbelievably good meals of my life). I'm not sure how I did it, but I managed to watch almost an entire NBA game over there, the first I've seen in about five years.

One of the gifts I received from my uncle was a $30 gift card to Target. Hopefully I can save it until 2012 Topps come out in February, but you never know when you're gonna get a sudden pack-ripping itch.

My uncle also got me a rack pack of 2011 Topps Lineage. Again, not much luck. The Cabrera sparkle and Mantle were the two best cards in the thing.

At night, I went back to my dad's house where we watched the Bears get devoured by the Packers (I can stand watching football games).

My dad got me an absolute smorgasbord of cards this year. (The best of his gifts will be featured in my next post.)

He put a couple random packs into my stocking. One of them was from 2008 UD Documentary. Not a huge fan of this set; this was the first pack of it I'd ever opened. It's tough to tell who's on the fronts of some of these cards, but the two shown above are of local hero Tom Gorzelanny and comeback-kid Jacoby Ellsbury.

Among the "stocking packs" were a few packs of 2010 Upper Deck. Considering they couldn't use the team logos, I think this is a rather fine set.

I managed to pull a gold parallel (the stadium shots are nice) and a base Pujols, who's appearing to be admiring one of his many home runs.

The "hits" from the 2011 Bowman Draft rack pack I received. I'm not much into prospects, but hey, it's free cards! A purple refractor of someone named Travis Harrison and a base Mike Moustakas.

It's always fun to open one of those 100 card rack-pack things that they sell at Target. If nothing else, I've found that those types of deals are great for blog material.

Featured above are some minor league cards I pulled from the pack. The Roa one is surprisingly neat. You don't usually see anything like that with minor league cards.

The card on the right is apparently the Richmond Braves trainer. So now I'm the proud owner of a trainer card. Not only that, but a minor league trainer card. Yeah, awesome.

I just wanted to see what these looked like when I scanned them. Not bad, eh?

Ron Robinson looks vaguely like how I imagine Santa Claus would've looked in his thirties.

There's Ernie Young, praying to improve upon his .200 batting average in 1995. I don't think he did, because I've never heard of him.

These 100-card rack packs guarantee three "vintage" cards. I was guessing that they'd all be no-namers from a '70s Topps set. Two of them were precisely that.

To my surprise, the 1959 Topps card you see above fell out of the pack. I've never heard of Billy Klaus (his last name is kind of Christmas-y), but he's reportedly a "fine amateur golfer", according to the back of his card. A 52 year-old card from a $1.50 rack pack? It's a Christmas miracle!

Finally, I received a 2011 Topps American Pie blaster.

Does anyone want this card? Anybody? I don't. This guy apparently appeared on "The Sopranos" (look up his character's nickname on that show if you don't know it already for a laugh). Seriously, what am I supposed to do with this card?

Memorabilia cards aside, I've mentioned how excited I was to get my hands on packs of these before. I already ordered the complete base set online a few days ago, but I was excited to get a look at these cards before my set arrived! I love these history-based sets, and 2011 American Pie is one of the finest released in a long time. I'll feature more of the better base cards from AP once my set comes in the mail.

The memorabilia card I got was actually my least favorite from the blaster (mainly because I didn't pull the Jersey Shore or Kanye West cards).

These two are from the "Fads and Fashions" insert set. I was gonna buy the telephone booth card separately after my base set came, but no need to now! How did something like that start? The record for one booth is 25 people, according to the back.

How exciting. A card featuring some guy with sideburns. I can hardly contain myself. (Okay, maybe the memorabilia card was my second least-favorite from the box.)

The Jaws 3-D card, on the other hand, is awesome. It's a buyback from one of the gaggle of entertainment card sets they released in the '70s.

It's tough to tell from the scan, but the card on the left is one of the "spotlight" parallels, which are numbered to 76. (It's ironic that a card of a bar code didn't scan too well.) They're cool to look at in-person, but of course I had to get one of the dullest cards in the base set.

The foil parallels make any card look good. "Thrilling", in fact. (Buh-doomp-boom.)

Two of the greatest entertainers ever.

These come from the "Hollywood Walk of Fame" insert set, and are among the finest cards I got from the blaster. Like the telephone booth card, I was going to buy these two anyways after I saw them on the checklist.

If I didn't collect baseball cards, I'd probably collect records. I'm glad that music makes a few appearances throughout the 200-card base set. Although I wish they would've had a Nirvana card rather than a card documenting the death of Kurt Cobain.

Two of the greatest musicians. Ever. That's probably the best picture I've ever seen of Hendrix.

There was one more baseball card-related gift, but I'll be posting about that one later tonight. It's one of the best gifts I've ever received!

I hope Santa was good to all the other baseball card collectors out there! I know he was to me.

Card Shop Fun, Pt. 4

It saddens me that this is my final of the four "Card Shop Fun" posts.

I've really enjoyed my first blogging experience of writing about a large group of cards I just received. It's fun to go through and look at cards that I might've just tossed to the side the first time around and decide which are cool or interesting or funny enough to scan for my posts.

I'm already looking forward to my first card show blog post! I've got no idea when that's going to be, though.

For now, enjoy the fourth and final part of my "Card Shop Fun"!

Pack #13

Pack #13 was a dud. This pack was filled with cards from the 1991 Leaf set. These two were neat additions to my "Short Term Stops" collection, but there was absolutely nothing else in the pack that warranted scanning.

Pack #14

This pack had a bunch of Braves from the zany 1993 Upper Deck Fun Packs set. These cards look like they belong in a "Saved By the Bell" episode with those backgrounds.

I've got this card already, but I figured I'd show it anyway. This picture shows J.T. Snow (his rookie card, by the way) stretching with what appears to be Reggie Jackson, from my guess. The guy looks older and is wearing #44. Who else could it be?

Two more great 1993 Upper Deck cards. I'm telling you, these card shop packs I opened made me love the set even more.

The front of that Benito Santiago card is a fantastic shot. It's like he's marketing Upper Deck by pointing to the company name at the top. But the picture on the back is intriguing as well.

Look at his number. He's wearing #09. Why not just #9? This must be one of those wacky spring training numbers they give out when they've got more than 100 guys in camp. That's the only reason I could think of.

Pack #15

MORE 1993 Upper Deck! Lenny Webster doesn't look too happy in that picture. Looks like one of the many LONG days a major league catcher goes through.

And there's current Mariners manager Eric Wedge in his playing days. Still rockin' the mustache, but it doesn't even come close to his 'stache nowadays.

 

 

These shots are another of the finer qualities of '93 UD. Although someone needs to tell those four Marlins to lighten up. You don't have to look so tough; it's your baseball card for cryin' out loud!

Pack #16

The last pack contained mostly post-junk wax cards. (Nothing like the Reyes RC, though.)

A couple fine action shots shown here. I wish I collected Darren Oliver so this beauty could go in the binder. Oh well.

I wish the picture on the Fryman card was centered a little better, but it's still quite the shot as is. A large number of fans in the background make any card better, especially this one.

 

I've always liked those Yankees Classics cards, and it was even better to pull one that I didn't already have (isn't it always?). 

 

The Ionix line that Upper Deck released in the late '90s are certainly different. I can't decide if I like them or not. This Beltre is from 1999, which I'd guess was my first year collecting cards, although I'm not 100 percent sure.

Well, that's the best of the best from my card shop packs. Hope you enjoyed them!

This will probably be my last post until after Christmas, so I'd like to wish everyone a safe and happy holiday! (And hopefully Santa brought some cards for you this year. I'm betting he did for me!)

The Glory of Their Time, Chapter 3: Mark Grace

2005 Zenith Artist's Proofs Silver #243 Mark Grace

Mark Grace is a true "fan favorite". He is one of the most beloved players in Cubs history and one of the best to ever occupy the first-base bag as a Cubbie. He's also one of the rare first baseman to establish a long and successful career without hitting a lot of homers.

The Grace card shown above is one of the "zeniths" of my 150+ card collection of him, a true masterpiece (my scanner manages to make shiny cards even shinier!).

Grace is my mom's favorite baseball player, so I figured I'd dedicate a GOTT post in his honor. 

1988 Donruss #40 Mark Grace RC

Mark Grace wasn't drafted until the 24th round of the 1985 rookie draft, when the Cubs nabbed him. In his rookie season of 1988, he'd smash 144 hits (with 23 doubles among them) and post a .371 on-base percentage, quite a feat for a rookie. He'd finish second in the NL Rookie of the Year voting to Chris Sabo of the Reds.

1989 Topps #465 Mark Grace

1990 Fleer "League Standouts" #6 Mark Grace
 

In 1989, Grace would smack 160 hits. He wouldn't post a lower total until 2000. Grace would hit .314 with a .405 OBP in '89 (80 walks next to just 42 K's), amazing stats for just a second-year player. He'd also hit an amazing .647 in the 1989 NLCS, although the Cubs (obviously) came out on the losing end of the series. All in all, it was a true "Topps Rookie Cup" season.

He wouldn't have to wear that #53 as shown in his '89 Topps issue for long; he'd made it clear that he was a Windy City mainstay, receiving the more "major league" number of 17 for the 1990 season, which he'd wear for the rest of his career.

1990 would be the first of ten seasons where Grace would hit more than 30 doubles, with 32. Opposing pitchers must have felt like they were pitching to six reincarnations of Mark Grace in the years to come, he refused to strike out and always seemed to be in the batter's box. He'd average 71 walks a year from 1991 to 1993 while not striking out more than 53 times in any of those years. He also hit for the cycle in '93, the last player to do that for the Cubs to date.

1995 Fleer #415 Mark Grace

1996 Topps #55 Mark Grace
 

After an off year in 1994, Grace came back to post two of his finest seasons in '95 and '96. 

He'd lead the league with an amazing 51 doubles in 1995, a career high. Perhaps Fleer caught him legging out one of those many doubles for their '95 issue. 1995 would also be the first of six straight years where Grace would post an OBP greater than .390, with a .395 total in '95.

Grace has reason to smile for his 1996 Topps card. He'd post a career-best .331 batting average and win his fourth (and final) Gold Glove award. 

2000 Topps #30 Mark Grace

In researching for this post, I was surprised to find that Grace was only elected to three All-Star teams, his final one coming in 1997. He'd also post a career-best .409 OBP in '97 and would hit 17 homers in 1998, also a personal best.

2000 would be his final season as a Cub. He'd score 107 runs in '99 (the most of his career), one of which likely "graces" the front of his 2000 Topps issue. Possibly his most amazing stat is that he walked 95 times in 2000 (a career-high), while striking out just 28 times (a full season career-low).

2001 Topps Traded #T17 Mark Grace

My mom refuses to acknowledge my Diamondback cards of Grace as part of my collection of his. It's true; he just doesn't look right in the purple-ish D-Backs uniforms.

He'd sign with the Diamondbacks as a free agent in December of 2000. It proved to be a fine choice, as he'd win his first (and only) World Series with the Diamondbacks in their '01 triumph over the Yankees. 2001 would be Grace's last good year, posting a .386 OBP to go along with 15 homers.

2004 Donruss #220 Mark Grace

This card perfectly captures my favorite quality of Mark Grace. I've got a soft spot for anyone nowadays who doesn't wear batting gloves, and Grace never wore them at any point in his career to my knowledge.
 

2003 would be Grace's final year in the big leagues. He'd play in just 66 games for the Diamondbacks, posting a dreary .200 BA and a career-low .279 OBP.

Grace now announces games on TV for the D-Backs, and he's a darn good announcer from what I've heard. He's got the makings of a baseball-lifer, as he should be spending many more years in the booth and has always shown a deep passion for the game of baseball.

1997 Leaf Fractal Matrix Die-Cuts #13 Mark Grace

2002 Topps Total #566 Mark Grace

I'll leave you with two of my favorites from my Grace collection. As long as he's my mom's favorite player, he'll always have a special spot in my collection.