Saturday, February 28, 2015

Dual Autos (No, Not Those Kind) - Part 2/2

As I mentioned in the last post, this ain't about super-sick mojo hitz with two autos on one card. I don't actually have any of those. This is about comparing in-person autos to 'official' autos. I suppose that over many years one gets tired of signing his name and just scribbles whatever he pleases. There are 17 players in my collection represented by both an in-person and an 'official' auto. They should be the same, right? Right? Well, not so much. Let's roll.


George Foster. Similarity Grade: A- (since this is a Kmart reprint of a '77 Topps that included a facsimile signature, is it a facsimile facsimile?)


Corky Miller. Similarity Grade: D+


Paul Bako. Similarity Grade: D (extra credit given to the fact that these signatures were 19 years apart - the Old Judge is a 1995 release and the Heritage was a TTM from 2014)


Gookie Dawkins. Similarity Grade: A


Chris Dickerson. Similarity  Grade: C (Points deduced for smudging. Towel off before signing, bro)


Devin Lohman. Similarity Grade: A-


Chris Piersoll. Similarity Grade F 


Pokey Reese. Similarity Score: B (squashed A)

Go Reds.

Friday, February 27, 2015

Dual Autos (No, Not Those Kind) - Part 1/2

Yeah, this ain't about super-sick mojo hitz with two autos on one card. I don't actually have any of those. This is about comparing in-person autos to 'official' autos. I suppose that over many years one gets tired of signing his name and just scribbles whatever he pleases. There are 17 players in my collection represented by both an in-person and an 'official' auto. They should be the same, right? Right? Well, not so much. Let's roll.

Kyle Lotzkar. Similarity Grade: A

Brett Tomko. Similarity Grade: C- (you even had a facsimile to reference, Brett!)

Sean Watson. Similarity Grade: A

Aaron Boone. Similarity Grade: D (points deducted for smudging)

Bill Bray. Similarity Grade: C+ (side note - these two cards together make me feel weird)

Jeff Shaw: Similarity Grade: A deducted to C (due to using lipstick)

Juan Carlos Sulbaran. Similarity Grade: D+

B.J. Szymanski. Similarity Grade: D

Ryan Wagner. Similarity Grade: C (bonus for signing a card of yourself signing a hat)

Part 2 tomorrow. Go Reds.

Thursday, February 26, 2015

Get To Know Your Reds: Part 11 - Tom Lawless

According to Baseball Reference there have been 1,891 different players who got into a major league game as a Cincinnati Red/Red Stocking/Redleg as of the end of the 2014 season. So I threw them all into a randomizer and off we go.

Get To Know... Tom Lawless






Born: December 19, 1956, Erie, PA
Drafted: 1978 by the Reds
Debut: 1982 with the Reds
Reds Stats: 2 seasons at OF, 92 games, 265 PA, 1 HR, 6 RBI, .224/.275/.269
Last Major League Season: 1990 with the Blue Jays


Hit a game-winning home run in the 1987 World Series
Was traded to the Expos for Pete Rose.

Played in the majors for the Reds, Expos, Cardinals, and Blue Jays.
After his playing career he managed in the minor leagues for the Angels, Cardinals, Padres, Orioles, and Astros organizations.
Was named interim manager for the Houston Astros in 2014 for 24 games.


Number of cards: 49
Number of cards as a Red: 7
Number of cards in my collection: 2 (28%)


Go Reds.

Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Completely Red: 1980 Topps

Topps' last set without competition. And it's a nice set. The banner theme is good lookin. I only wish the color scheme for the Reds wasn't fuchsia and blue. They could have went with, oh, I don't know... RED. And there are too many posed shots. This ain't the 60's anymore, Topps. Let's see some movement. 

We've got a lot of the Big Red Machine lineup still plugging away. Bench, Foster, Concepcion, Griffey, Geronimo, and Morgan were still around. Rose and Perez were gone, but both would come back in a few years. In their stead was an OK pitcher named Tom Seaver. Decent. 

STATS:

Cards - 26

RC's - 2 (Art DeFreites, Frank Pastore)

All Stars - 11 (Johnny Bench, Tom Hume, Ray Knight, Mike LaCoss, Dave Concepcion, Paul Blair, George Foster, Tom Seaver, Ken Griffey, Mario Soto, Joe Morgan)

Hall of Fame - 3 (Johnny Bench, Tom Seaver, Joe Morgan)

Reds Hall of Famers - 9 (Johnny Bench, Joe Morgan, Dave Concepcion, Mario Soto, George Foster, Ken Griffey, Tom Seaver, Cesar Geronimo, Dan Driessen)

Checklist:

 21 Manny Sarmiento 
 47 Bill Bonham 
 73 Dave Collins 
 100 Johnny Bench 
 126 Dave Tomlin 
 149 Tom Hume 
 174 Ray Knight 
 199 Mike LaCoss 
 220 Dave Concepcion 
 258 Paul Moskau 
 281 Paul Blair 
 325 Dan Driessen 
 354 Rick Auerbach 
 377 Junior Kennedy 
 400 George Foster 
 419 Vic Correll 
 449 Doug Bair 
 475 Cesar Geronimo 
 500 Tom Seaver 
 516 Hector Cruz 
 550 Ken Griffey 
 606 John McNamara MGR 
 622 Mario Soto 
 650 Joe Morgan 
 677 Future Stars - Art DeFreites, Frank Pastore & Harry Spillman
 714 Fred Norman 

Go Reds.

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Get To Know Your Reds: Part 10 - John Powers

According to Baseball Reference there have been 1,891 different players who got into a major league game as a Cincinnati Red/Red Stocking/Redleg as of the end of the 2014 season. So I threw them all into a randomizer and off we go.

Get To Know... John Powers


 

Born: July 8, 1929, Birmingham, Alabama
Signed: 1949 by the Red Sox
Debut: 1955 with the Pirates
Reds Debut: 1959,  acquired via trade
Reds Stats: 1 season at OF, 43 games, 47 PA, 2 HR, 4 RBI, .256/.319/.488
Last Major League Season: 1960 with the Indians


Hit 298 minor league home runs.
Played in the majors for the Pirates, Reds, Orioles, and Indians.
Also played in the minors for the Red Sox, Mets, and Giants.
Card lists him as 'First Base-Outfield' though he never played first base in his 6-year career.

Number of cards: 10
Number of cards as a Red: 3
Number of cards in my collection: 1 (33%)

Monday, February 23, 2015

Dibs


"Hey, Griffey. You may be cool, but you'll never be Rob Dibble cool."

"..."

"Fuggin' deal with it."

Go Reds.

Friday, February 20, 2015

Get To Know Your Reds: Part 9 - Josias Manzanillo

According to Baseball Reference there have been 1,891 different players who got into a major league game as a Cincinnati Red/Red Stocking/Redleg as of the end of the 2014 season. So I threw them all into a randomizer and off we go.

Get To Know... Josias Manzanillo



Born: October 16, 1967, San Pedro de Marcoris, Dominican Republic
Signed: 1983 by the Red Sox
Debut: 1991 with the Red Sox
Reds Debut: 2003,  acquired via free agency
Reds Stats: 1 season at RP, 9 games, 10.2 IP, 12 K, 12.56 ERA, 0-2 record
Last Major League Season: 2004 with the Marlins


Signed first MLB contract at age 16.
Played for the Red Sox, Brewers, Mets, Yankees, Mariners, Pirates, Reds, and Marlins.
Also played minor league ball for the Royals, Astros, and Devil Rays, as well as in Taiwan and Mexico.
Manny Ramirez ruptured his testicles.

Number of cards: 45
Number of cards as a Red: 3
Number of cards in my collection: 1 (33%)

Thursday, February 19, 2015

TTM Goodness: Seth Mejias-Brean


Seth Mejias-Brean was drafted by the Reds in 2012 out of the University of Arizona. He spent 2012 with the Rookie League Billings Mustangs and hit .313 over 46 games. In 2013 He was promoted to the Single-A Dayton Dragons, where he again hit over .300 over the full season. 2014 was split between the High-A Bakersfield Blaze and the AA Pensacola Blue Wahoos. Signed is a 2014 Bowman Prospects #BP104.

Go Reds.

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Completely Red: 1995 Fleer Emotion

Nice 200 card set, full-bleed, on double-thick stock, The vibrant photography is nice, but I feel there was a missed opportunity with the cropping. Everything is a bit too close. Still quality, though.

And I don't quite know what's the deal with the large-font descriptors on which they decided. I mean, obviously Reggie Sanders was known for his PLANNING. And Ron Gant for his THUNDER. And when I think of a devastating HEATER, I immediately think of Pete Schourek, I guess in the 90's minimalism wasn't quite a popular consideration, so they needed to fill some space with something XTREME. But these cards would definitely be a lot better without them.

STATS:

Cards - 7

RC's - 0

All Stars - 5 (Bret Boone, Ron Gant, Barry Larkin, Reggie Sanders, John Smiley)

Hall of Famers - 1 (Barry Larkin)

Reds Hall of Famers - 1 (Barry Larkin)

The Gamut of Emotions - Complete


Checklist:

115  Bret Boone
116  Ron Gant
117  Barry Larkin
118  Deion Sanders
119  Reggie Sanders
120  Pete Schourek
121  John Smiley

Go Reds.

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Get To Know Your Reds: Part 8 - Lew Riggs

According to Baseball Reference there have been 1,891 different players who got into a major league game as a Cincinnati Red/Red Stocking/Redleg as of the end of the 2014 season. So I threw them all into a randomizer and off we go.

Get To Know... Lew Riggs



Born: April 22, 1910, Mebane, North Carolina
Signed: 1932 by the Cardinals
Debut: 1934 with the Cardinals
Reds Debut: 1935, acquired via purchase
Reds Stats: 6 seasons at 3B, 610 games, 2287 PA, 20 HR, 213 RBI, .258/.313/.368
Last Major League Season: 1946, with Brooklyn

NL All Star in 1936.
Played in the majors for the Cardinals, Reds, and Dodgers.
Appeared on 4 World Series rosters, including wins in 1934 and 1940.
Led NL in assists as a third baseman twice.
Served in the Air Force during World War II.

Number of cards: 21
Number of cards as a Red: 13
Number of cards in my collection: 1 (8%)


Go Reds.

Monday, February 16, 2015

Get To Know Your Reds: Part 7 - Miguel Cairo

According to Baseball Reference there have been 1,891 different players who got into a major league game as a Cincinnati Red/Red Stocking/Redleg as of the end of the 2014 season. So I threw them all into a randomizer and off we go.

Get To Know... Miguel Cairo

Born: May 4, 1974, Anaco, Venezuela
Signed: 1990 by the Dodgers out of Venezuela
Debut: 1996 with the Blue Jays
Reds Debut: 2010, acquired via free agency
Reds Stats: 3 seasons as IF, 263 games, 659 PA, 13 HR, 74 RBI, .254/.309/.378
Last Major League Season: 2012, with Cincinnati


Signed his first MLB contract at age 16.
Played in the majors for 9 teams over 17 seasons (Blue Jays, Cubs, Rays, Cardinals, Yankees, Mets, Mariners, Phillies, and Reds).
Currently a special assistant to the GM for the Reds organization.
Filled in as the Reds' bench coach for part of the 2013 season.


Number of cards: 393
Number of cards as a Red: 40
Number of cards in my collection: 11 (28%)

Go Reds.

Friday, February 13, 2015

Vintage Air Brushing

Hey, you know what? Deadlines are rough. I get it. You send photographers out to get some photos of a thousand players, then a hundred of em get shipped to another team. You can't keep up. Someone  at Topps eventually said, "Hey let's just air brush the correct colors on the uniform! I'm so smart!" This was soon followed by, "Well ok, but let's make sure whoever does it doesn't really have any artisanal experience with the medium. It'll save us like fifty bucks I think." The back and forth continued with, "Ok, I'll do it, but can I sometimes choose a random hat color that is not related to the team in question?" "Well duh."

So here we be. I dug out some of my favorite vintage Reds 'brushes. Enjoy. The Jim Qualls at the end is an all-timer, by the way.

Go Reds.

Thursday, February 12, 2015

Get To Know Your Reds: Part 6 - Jeff Keppinger

According to Baseball Reference there have been 1,891 different players who got into a major league game as a Cincinnati Red/Red Stocking/Redleg as of the end of the 2014 season. So I threw them all into a randomizer and off we go.

Get To Know... Jeff Keppinger



Born: April 21, 1980
Drafted: 2001 by the Pirates
Debut: 2004 with the Mets

Reds Debut: 2007, acquired via trade from the Royals
Reds Stats: 2 season at 6 positions, 188 games, 778 PA, 8 HR, 75 RBI, .266/.310/.346
Last Major League Season: 2013, with the White Sox



Spent 2014 in the White Sox farm system; current free agent.
Played college ball at the University of Georgia.
Led NL in strikeout ratio twice.
Has played for the Pirates, Mets, Royals, Reds, Astros, Giants, Rays, and White Sox


Number of cards: 241
Number of cards as a Red: 23
Number of cards in my collection: 6 (26%)


Go Reds.

Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Get To Know Your Reds: Part 5 - John Courtright

According to Baseball Reference there have been 1,891 different players who got into a major league game as a Cincinnati Red/Red Stocking/Redleg as of the end of the 2014 season. So I threw them all into a randomizer and off we go.

Get To Know... John Courtright




Born: May 30, 1970
Signed: 1991 by the Reds
Debut: 1995 with the Reds
Reds Stats: 1 season as RP, 1 game, 1 IP, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 K, 9.00 ERA
Last Major League Season: 1995, with Cincinnati

Pitched his only major league inning in 1995, giving up a run.
Spent time in the Twins and Orioles farm systems as well as the Reds'.
Played college ball at Duke.
Currently an MLB player rep.



Number of cards: 9
Number of cards as a Red: 9
Number of cards in my collection: 2 (22%)

Go Reds.

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Get To Know Your Reds: Part 4 - Ron Gant

According to Baseball Reference there have been 1,891 different players who got into a major league game as a Cincinnati Red/Red Stocking/Redleg as of the end of the 2014 season. So I threw them all into a randomizer and off we go.

Get To Know... Ron Gant


Born: March 2, 1965
Drafted: 1983 by the Braves
Debut: 1987 with the Braves
Reds Debut: 1995 (acquired via free agency)
Reds Stats: 1 season as LF, 119 games, 493 PA, 29 HR, 88 RBI, .276/.386/.554, All Star
Last Major League Season: 2003, with the A's


Became the 13th member of the 30-30 club in 1990 and only the second player ever to do it in back-to-back seasons.
Accolades include 2x All Star (including his year in Cincy), Silver Slugger winner, NL Comeback Player of the Year (1995, after a broken leg in an ATV accident).
Hit 321 home runs, had 1,008 RBI, and stole 243 bases in his career.
Played with the Braves, Reds, Cardinals, Phillies, Angels, Rockies, A's, and Padres.
Currently a color commentator for the Braves and an Atlanta morning news anchor.


Number of cards: 849
Number of cards as a Red: 99 (I think)
Number of cards in my collection: 47 (47%)




Go Reds.

Monday, February 9, 2015

Completely Red: 2009 Topps 206

I enjoy this set. I'm probably in the minority, but that just means I picked these up for mere pennies. Topps wanted to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the original T206 set, and this is pretty much all they could do with it. I think the original design fits nicely on those old cards because it gives the cards a ghost-like feel, which works very well, considering they are from over a century ago. The design will not translate to modern players, who we can see 24/7 on all of our computin' devices. But it remains a nice homage, so I stand by my fandom.

And of course, Topps had to throw in 50 variations in addition to the 300 base cards, which is way too many. Fortunately, though, no Reds variations. Woot.

STATS:

Cards - 10

RC's - 0

All Stars - 7 (Joey Votto, Francisco Cordero, Bronson Arroyo, Johnny Cueto, Brandon Phillips, Jay Bruce, Scott Rolen)

Future Reds Hall of Fame Hopefuls - (Joey Votto, Brandon Phillips, Johnny Cueto, Jay Bruce)

Taking BP on the Grass - Chris Dickerson

Taking Hits of the Grass - Jonny Gomes


Checklist:

  14 Scott Rolen 
  16 Jonny Gomes 
  33 Jay Bruce 
  63 Bronson Arroyo 
  110 Chris Dickerson 
  157 Brandon Phillips 
  204 Johnny Cueto 
  221 Joey Votto 
  251 Francisco Cordero 
  297 Micah Owings 

Go Reds,

Saturday, February 7, 2015

Get To Know Your Reds: Part 3 - Luis Quinones

According to Baseball Reference there have been 1,891 different players who got into a major league game as a Cincinnati Red/Red Stocking/Redleg as of the end of the 2014 season. So I threw them all into a randomizer and off we go.

Get to know... Luis Quinones.

Born: April 28, 1962 Ponce, Puerto Rico
Signed: 1980 by the Padres
Debut: 1983 with the Athletics
Reds Debut: 1988, acquired via trade from Cubs
Reds Stats: 4 seasons as 2B/3B/SS/1B, 300 games, 366 PA, 19 HR, 82 RBI, .236/.296/.367
Last Major League Season: 1992, with the Twins



Went 2 for 3 in the 1990 NLCS for the Reds against the Pirates, including the game-winning RBI in Game 6.
Managed the 2000 Reds Gulf Coast Rookie League team.
Has been a hitting coach in the Tigers farm system since 2009.
Has played pro ball in the US, Canada, and Mexico


Number of cards: 55
Number of cards as a Red: 27
Number of cards in my collection: 22 (81%)

Go Reds.