Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Virtual Frankenset - Part 5

Roll em.


#37 - 2007 Bowman Chrome Prospects Yellow Printing Plate Brandon Roberts. I only have three printing plates, so I gots ta include em, yes?

#38 - 1992 Upper Deck Bench/Morgan Heroes Johnny Bench. Fantastic set. Fantastic photo.

#39 - 1992 Upper Deck Bench/Morgan Heroes Johnny Bench. The set is so good, it gets two spots.

#40 - 2011 Topps Marquee Joe Morgan. Not even close, Pirates guys. Not even close.

#41 - 2005 Upper Deck SP Legendary Cuts Joe Morgan. I need more of this set.

#42 - 1965 Topps Embossed Vada Pinson. Near impossible to find these in mint condition. Fine by me.

#43 - 1993 Studio Barry Larkin. Man, this set was the shit back in the day. It still is, I say.

#44 - 2002 Bowman Draft Joey Votto. Here's an 18 year old Joey Votto. Little did we realize the terror he would be releasing on the National League in nearly a decade.

#45 - 1994 Fleer All Stars Barry Larkin. MURRICA.

Go Reds.

Sunday, June 28, 2015

Swing Hard, Swing Often: A Donkey of a Collection - Part 5

Five random Adam Dunn Cards. Series explanation can be found in Part 1. Roll 'em.
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Card #21 - 2006 Fleer Ultra Home Run Kings #HRK9
Standard insertion stuff here. This was in the middle of five consecutive years of 40+ home runs, the last four of which were exactly 40. Noice.

Card #22 - 2003 Fleer Double Header #195-196
Most cards from this set are undersized. Then, for the high numbers, we have these things that unfold, exposing a second player. Of note is that the fold is such that they share a pair of legs:
It's strange. But this was Fleer's 80th set this year, so they had to get a little "creative" with a few of em.

Card #23 - 2004 Donruss Studio #56
Roebling Suspension Bridge, Carew Tower, Scripps Center. Lookin' good.

Card #24 - 2008 Upper Deck Goudey #50
Sneaky Crimson Griffey is watching you. Also, that dude in the background is totally crowding the plate.

Card #25 - 2008 Upper Deck Baseball Heroes Jersey Black /125 #48
I love 2008 UD BH. I wish I had more. If memory serves, there are red, green, brown, blue, light blue, and beige parallels. At least.

Go Reds.

Saturday, June 27, 2015

Get To Know Your Reds: Part 37 - Sean Marshall

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... Sean Marshall


Born: August 30, 1982, Richmond, Virginia
Drafted: 2003, by the Cubs
Debut: 2006, with the Cubs
Reds Debut: 2012, acquired via trade
Reds Stats: 3 seasons at RP, 104 games, 85.1 IP, 98 K's, 3.27 ERA, 5-6 record
Final Major League Season: 2014, with the Reds (currently on the DL)


His 9 season career was spent with the Cubs from 2006-2011 and with the Reds from 2012 to 2014.
Attended Virginia Commonwealth University.
Has a twin brother, Brian, also drafted in 2003.
Pitched 4 perfect innings for the Reds in the 2012 NLDS.
Ernie Banks performed his wedding ceremony. 


Number of cards: 351
Number of cards as a Red: 83
Number of cards in my collection: 13 (16%)




Go Reds.

Friday, June 26, 2015

Completely Red: 1987 Fleer/Fleer Update

It's blue. What more is there to say? Blue, blue, and blue. Some action shots. Mostly posed. But I'm too distracted by the blueness to pay any attention to that. The two redeeming cards are the Pete Rose 1B/MGR and of course the Larkin RC. Is it just me, or would it be nice if modern sets went alphabetically by team and numbered consecutively like was done here? I dig it.

STATS:

Cards - 35

RC's - 2 (Barry Larkin, Lloyd McClendon)

All Stars - 13 (Buddy Bell, Tom Browning, Dave Concepcion, Eric Davis, Bo Diaz, John Franco, Barry Larkin, Dave Parker, Tony Perez, Pete Rose, Mario Soto, Kurt Stillwell, Paul O'Neill)

Hall of Famers - 2 (Barry Larkin, Tony Perez)

Reds Hall of Famers - 8 (Tony Perez, Dave Concepcion, Mario Soto, Eric Davis, Tom Browning, Barry Larkin, Dave Parker, Ron Oester)

Checklist:

193 Buddy Bell
194 Tom Browning
195 Sal Butera
196 Dave Concepcion
197 Kal Daniels
198 Eric Davis
199 John Denny
200 Bo Diaz
201 Nick Esasky
202 John Franco
203 Bill Gullickson
204 Barry Larkin
205 Eddie Milner
206 Rob Murphy
207 Ron Oester
208 Dave Parker
209 Tony Perez
210 Ted Power
211 Joe Price
212 Ron Robinson
213 Pete Rose
214 Mario Soto
215 Kurt Stillwell
216 Max Venable
217 Chris Welsh
218 Carl Willis
631 Fernando Valenzuela/John Franco
639 Dave Parker/Ryne Sandberg
651 Tracy Jones/Marvin Freeman
656 Checklist Reds/Blue Jays/Indians/Giants
45U Guy Hoffman
55U Tracy Jones
74U Lloyd McClendon
94U Paul O'Neill
127U Frank Williams

Go Reds.

Thursday, June 25, 2015

Old Yeller

Feelin' the need for some yellow?
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Mmmmmmm......
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Oh yeeeeeeeeeahhhhh.....
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HNNNNNNNNNGGH!!!!!

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This is a key addition in my latest casual quest for all the sets I had huge stacks of when I started collecting. Junk wax nostalgia is a real thing. It's a strong pull on my heartstrings. And all that yellow from '91 Fleer is as if the summer sun is washing over my body as I frolic through a flower patch. So good.

Also acquired recently....


1991 Score, 1992 Donruss, 1991 Donruss. I struggled to complete these sets as a kid. Now, as an adult, it was as simple as forking over 10 bucks to the eBay gods. Such is life. Sometime soon I will knock 1990 Donruss, 1993 Topps, and 1987 Topps off the Junk Want List. And hopefully someday I can bring myself to buy pages and binder up these bad boys.

Oh, and if any of you net denizens are stumbling onto this blog curious about the value of your 90's baseball cards you've been patiently storing lo these many years, these were bought for around $10-$12 each, with free shipping. Considering shipping sets this heavy is anywhere from $9-$11, you can figure out the math yourself.

Go Reds.

Monday, June 22, 2015

Random Newness

Again with the eBay shenanigans and my quarter bids. Here's a few collecting dust in the ol' scan folder.

1997 Bowman Chrome International Refractor Aaron Boone RC. It's nice to find "old" refractors. Most are collecting dust in dealer's garages, I assume.

2007 Topps Moments and Milestones Adam Dunn 17HR and 38 HR. Both serial numbered out of 150, so that's nice. A bit of artificial scarcity though, with only the home run total changing. Forty home runs times 150 each is 6000 cards. Any Dunn is good Dunn, though.

2007 Topps Moments and Milestones Black Adam Dunn 14HR. Serial numbered out of 29, so a touch better at 1160 copies. The three of these combines cost a stamp plus eleven cents.

2014 Topps Blue Bronson Arroyo. Retail only, baby.


2013 Bowman Chrome Refractors Theo Bowe, 2014 Bowman Chrome Refractors Ben Lively. Maybe these guys will be stars in the pros. Maybe not. But they can rest easy knowing they have shiny pictures of themselves tucked away in my binders.

Go Reds.

Saturday, June 20, 2015

Swing Hard, Swing Often: A Donkey of a Collection - Part 4

Five random Adam Dunn Cards. Series explanation can be found in Part 1. Roll 'em.
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Card #16 - 2007 UD Masterpieces Captured on Canvas #CC-AD
Who here doesn't like UD Masterpieces? It's impossible not to. It's all fancy and sh*t.

Card #17 - 2003 Fleer Box Score #8
That glove looks like it's about to fall off.

Card #18 - 2007 Upper Deck Future Stars #23
I suppose this design is supposed to make us think of the future. In the future we'll have fonts that look vaguely like sci-fi tv show alien script, obviously.

Card #19 - 2008 SP Authentic #25
Celebratory forearm bump incoming. Boom.

Card #20 - 2004 Bowman Gold #121
Remember when Bowman made their gold parallels super thick? But they made them badly so they chip all over the place? I do. Well I don't, really, I wasn't collecting then. But after they bounced around in dime boxes for a decade they definitely started to chip. Oh, and way to slice up the American flag, Bowman.

Go Reds.

Friday, June 19, 2015

1941 Double Play #5 Linus Frey


This blank-back set was issued by Gum Products in 1941 as a 150-player set of 75 cards (each card featured two teammates). Frey here was teamed with Johnny Vander Meer, but some kid nearly 70 years ago decided to free the two from each other. Made this one more affordable for yours truly.

As for the player, "Lonny" Frey spent 14 years in the majors (1933-1943, 1946-1948), half of which were played in Cincy the other half split among the Cubs, Giants, Dodgers, and Yankees. All three of his All Star appearances came as a Red and he received MVP votes three time as well. He led the NL in stolen bases once, double plays twice, and dWAR once. He was inducted into the Reds Hall of Fame in 1961. With all that praise, I feel it's ok to mention that in 21 World Series plate appearances, Frey went 0 for 20 with a walk including 0-17 in the 1939 Series alone. Yeesh. No matter. Another curious tidbit, he was the last major leaguer alive to play for all three classic New York teams.

Go Reds.

Thursday, June 18, 2015

Starting a Second Blog

Why start a second blog, you ask? Fair question. It's because I'm touched in the head. Need proof? Well here it is.

I'm starting a blog on 1991 Score.

CAN YOU DIG IT?!?!??

Why 1991 Score? Because it's the greatest set of all time, numbskull. 893 cards. Tons of crazy subsets (Big Head All Stars, anyone?). 1991 was the year I started collecting. 1991 Score was the first complete set I owned. So this is mainly a blog for me to reminisce. A masturbatory homage to the beast that is '91 Score.

Will I get sick of it before I finish all 893 cards? Most definitely. But until then, I'll enjoy neglecting my work even more than I already am. So join me on this stupid little journey.



Go Reds.

Wednesday, June 17, 2015

Get To Know Your Reds: Part 36 - George Foster

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... George Foster


Born: December 1, 1948, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Debut: 1969, with the Giants
Reds Debut: 1971, acquired via trade
Reds Stats: 11 seasons at OF, 1253 games, 5010 PA, 244 HR, 861 RBI, .286 BA
Final Major League Season: 1986, with the White Sox


His 18 season career was spent mostly with the Reds, but also saw time with the Giants, Mets, and White Sox.
NL MVP in 1977 with 52 home runs, 149 RBI, and a .310/.382/.631 line while leading the league in HR, RBI, SLG, OPS, R, TB.
Lead the NL in home runs again in 1978.
Also lead the NL in RBI the year before and the year after his MVP season.
5-time All Star (1976-1979, 1981).
6-time Player of the Month, 5-time Player of the Week.
1976 All Star Game MVP.
Only player in the 1970's to hit 50+ home runs in a season.
348 career home runs and 1239 career RBI.
Reds Hall of Fame inductee, 2003.
Integrated the bat rack in Cincy.


Number of cards: 685
Number of cards as a Red: 539
Number of cards in my collection: 91 (17%)




Go Reds.

Tuesday, June 16, 2015

Virtual Frankenset - Page 4

Do it to it.


#28 - 1990 Collect-A-Books Eric Davis. These need to make a comeback.

#29 - 1952 Topps Ted Kluszewski. My favorite card from this set by a mile. Of the ones I own, anyway.

#30 - 1993 Stadium Club Bip Roberts. Fantastic photo. Major Bippage.

#31 - 2000 Fleer Ultra Dmitri Young. That is one big boy with a lot of momentum crashing down.

#32 - 1960 Topps Sophomore Stalwarts Jim O'Toole/Vada Pinson. Vintage goodness.

#33 - 1986 Donruss Highlights Ernie Lombardi. Lombardi really shouldn't have had to wait til the Veteran's Committee voted him in to get to the Hall.

#34 - 1997 Pinnacle Zenith Deion Sanders. I really enjoy this photo.

#35 - 2012 Bowman Silver Ice Aroldis Chapman. Love the cracked-ice parallels. I desire more.

#36 - 2000 Pacific Crown Royale Ken Griffey Jr. Pacific sure did try their darndest, didn't they?

Go Reds.

Monday, June 15, 2015

Get To Know Your Reds: Part 35 - Hank Edwards

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... Hank Edwards


Born: January 29, 1919, Elmwood Place, Ohio
Debut: 1941, with the Indians
Reds Debut: 1951, acquired via waivers
Reds Stats: 2 seasons at OF. 115 games, 343 PA, 9 HR, 48 RBI, .296 BA
Final Major League Season: 1953, with the Browns

His 11-season career included 7 seasons with the Indians and short stints with the Reds, Cubs, Dodgers, Browns, and White Sox. Also had contracts with the Orioles and Braves.
Led AL in triples in 1946 with 16, a year he hit .301 over 124 games.
Received two Hall of Fame votes in 1960.


Number of cards: 20
Number of cards as a Red: 5
Number of cards in my collection: 2 (40%)


Go Reds.

Sunday, June 14, 2015

Swing Hard, Swing Often: A Donkey of a Collection - Part 3

Five random Adam Dunn Cards. Series explanation can be found in Part 1. Roll 'em.
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Card #11 - 2005 Upper Deck Update #2
This update set is wildly different than the base set. Also, I don't know what is being updated, as Dunn was with the reds 2001-2008.

Card #12 - 2002 Upper Deck Diamond Connection #86
This was from a jersey-heavy set. The base cards were wholly ignored, I'm sure.

Card #13 - 2007 Bowman Heritage #40
One of my favorite cards. Field of Dreams, yo.

Card #14 - 2004 Playoff Prestige #52
Another swatch-based set with a few base cards that got thrown away. Whatever. I'll take em. High-end is for suckers.

Card #15 - 2003 Upper Deck MVP #52
Ah, now we're talking. Cheap set, meant to be collected. Junk era needs to make a comeback.

Go Reds.

Saturday, June 13, 2015

TTM Goodness: Justice French, Sean Henry

Justice French was a late-round pick by the Reds in 2011. He pitched 11 games in the Rookie League, 6 games for Single-A Dayton, and 22 games for Advanced-A Bakersfield, all stints with a sub-4 ERA. The Reds released him after 2012, then he spent a year in an independent league before exiting baseball. Signed is a 2012 Topps Pro Debut #150.

Sean Hnery was drafted by the Tigers in 2003, but didn't sign. He did sign with the Mets, who drafted him the following year, spending 3 years in their farm. He then signed with the Reds and spent 2007-2010 in our farm, reaching as high as AAA Louisville. This was followed by a partial year with Atlanta's farm and a couple years of independent ball before retiring in 2012. Signed is a 2008 Bowman Prospects Gold #84.

Go Reds.

Friday, June 12, 2015

JCCTHBIMSFWTL - Part 2/2

JustCommons Cards That Have Been In My Scan Folder Way Too Long. Part 2. Roll em out.

1993 Classic Best Gold. A little minor league lovin'. John Roper andPokey Reese made the Reds' roster. Tucker Hammargren, John Hrusovsky, Elliott Quinones, and Dan Frye, well, not quite.

1994 Classic Chad Mottola, Tim Belk, John Roper, Poley Reese. All eventual Reds. All members of the Chattanooga Lookouts with their creepy logo.

What's that? I finished off the 1992 Leaf Black Gold Team Set? Shibby.

2015 Donruss. Meh.

2015 Topps Opening Day. Somehow neglected to pick up Brandon Phillips, so this set is a card short. Bollocks, man.

Closing out with a replacement 1977 Topps Dan Driessen. I normally don't care about condition for older cards, but there's really no excuse for such hideousness from a '77 common that can be (and was) replaced for fifteen cents. I'm happy now.

Go Reds.