A lost package finds The Lost Collector

Since I started this blog, I've had four different residences in six years.

In 2011, I was still living in NYC when I made my first post. In 2012, I moved to Hoboken, NJ, where I stayed for three years. In 2015, we moved further west into the burbs to a rental in my current town. And in 2016, we purchased a permanent home in that same town.

I don't blame anyone for not being able to keep up, and I'm sure I've lost some mailings and TTM returns along the way. Although I've always set up mail-forwarding, that service is not always reliable.

Just yesterday, my wife got a Facebook message from the family that currently lives in our prior residence, the one before we bought our house. She said that there was a package for me there, and that it was just delivered, although the postage said May. Weird. Whether or not that last part was true, I appreciate that she reached out. I wasn't expecting anything, but had a hunch it was a card package.

And it was.

The package was from way upstate in NY from Night Owl, someone who has been trading card packages with me from day one and has had to ensure these constant address changes of mind. Greg was only one address behind, so I don't think that's too bad.

Anyhow, I was happy to have a bonus, unexpected package! And even happier when it contained some vintage:

I love '56 Topps and love Jerry Coleman, so this card is very welcome in my collection. I don't get too many vintage cards in trade packages, so I always appreciate them. The little hop Coleman is doing as he turns two is great.

There was also a nice stack of Allen & Ginter minis. I don't know about you, but I've officially gotten to the point where I have no idea what year of A&G each card is by simply looking at them. They have officially all blended together.

The last few years of Topps Chrome have really outshined the flagship, no pun intended. The Pink Refractors are ones I always enjoy, and I believe this is my first from 2016. Greg Bird is currently about a week away from returning to the Majors in what has been another lost season. Many Yankee fans feel the team needs another bat down the stretch, but in the next few weeks should be getting back Bird, Starlin Castro, and Matt Holliday. That's like making a trade! Hopefully one or two of them will give them offense a nice boost.

I'm not the biggest Chase Headley fan, but I've really respected the way he moved from 3B to 1B without a peep to help the team. And he even started hitting! The black border looks great on the '68 Topps design.

I like the 2017 Yankees team card because it shows how much can change in a year. Gone are two players from this photo, Brian McCann and Mark Teixeira. The 2018 team card should feature younger, more exciting players.

I expect the guy above to be on that card, as he's having another great season for a catcher, at least offensively. His passed balls have been an issue, but honestly not to the point where he should sit. His three-run bombs outshine a ball or two going to the backstop every couple of games.

I don't buy much Opening Day, but I love the card of the player running onto the field during actual Opening Day. I'd be cool if the entire set featured cards like this instead of just the re-hash of flagship.

Greg, thanks for the cards. I swear I wasn't being rude by not thanking you for the package from three months ago.

And if anyone needs my latest - and most permanent - address, let me know.

SuperTraders #15: Night Owl Cards

My 15th #SuperTraders package arrived a month or so ago from Night Owl. Luckily I scanned the cards before I threw a bunch of unsorted bubble mailers in boxes while moving houses. I definitely want to thank Greg for sending some Yanks my way, as I know he likes keeping them in his collection.

NO included a note that 2016 Diamond Kings wasn't for him. I'm guessing it's because he pulled a bunch of Yanks. Seems like a fun break to me!

 

My favorite card is easily the Frank Crosetti. The Crow isn't included in many sets, so it's always special to get a new card of his. Fun fact: back in the late '90s I received a Crosetti TTM autograph. On my letter he wrote: "My memory doesn't allow me to remember much of my playing days, but I can say I was born to play baseball." Very cool. I cherish this photo very much.

Here is another 2015 Stadium Club I didn't have of Dan Mattingly. If this image is from what I think it is, then it's from the 1995 ALDS Game 2 when Mattingly went deep, providing us all with Gary Thorne's memorable "Hang onto the roof!" call. What a moment!

Love seeing Jeter on the top step celebrating, even though he wasn't officially on the roster.

Speaking of not on the roster...Robinson Cano. Man, he would look good as a Yankee. But you know what, they'd still be an average team.

This card is so freaking cool. Mr. Baseball himself, taking grounders as a Yankee. I love Frank Thomas there too. He looks good in Pinstripes! He's definitely marveling at Tom Selleck's mustache. Mr. Baseball isn't my favorite baseball movie, but I do like it. I'll probably see if I can get Magnum P.I. to sign this TTM.

What struck me about this card was "25 years of Topps Baseball Cards." Now we are at 65 years in 2016. How the heck did that happen? I'll say that I like this subset a lot more than Berger's Best! Don't overthink your odes to the past, Topps.

Lastly, this is one of the action photo variants from 2016 Heritage. Didi has turned himself into a very stellar shortstop. While he doesn't have the upside of guys like Seager and Xander and Lindor and Russell, somehow he's flirting with .300 and has 11 homers. I definitely didn't expect him to be quite this good.

Great package all around. Now I need to unpack my cards in the new house, a massive chore in its own right! Thanks for the cards, Greg.

Delivered via Owl

In the Harry Potter series, it’s well-known that mail is not delivered by postmen or even electronically. It’s delivered by owls. I’d like to think that a fluffy night bird delivered this bubble mailer to my NJ address. That’s my story and I’m sticking with it.

So what did it entail? Clearly a bunch of Yanks that Night Owl had a hard time parting with.

And it wasn’t just cards. This teeny tiny Don Mattingly pin fell out. I have never seen these. They are small! And Mattingly was so young here. It’s really cool. I feel like I need to put it on my backpack or something.

I know how much NO loves Mark Teixeira, especially when he is making the puffy fish face. While he isn’t doing it here, these are two inserts that were passed along, showing that Greg not only pulls Giants cards at alarming rates, but he pulls Teixeira parallels far too frequently. Maybe after his Yankee deal is up, Tex will sign with the Giants, and Greg will pull Giants card of him. Wouldn’t that be enjoyable for everyone but Greg? 

This Cano is fancy. I’ve never seen this edition of Bowman’s Best. It’s nice, but feels like it should be Topps Tribute or Topps Supreme or something else I can't afford. It’s not quite fitting of Bowman’s Best, in my opinion. Nice card, just off-brand. 

I like this card entirely too much. 

I think this is my favorite Topps Opening Day set. I really like the gray border with blue foil. Maybe because it’s Yankees colors? I just like that it feels different than the flagship, as opposed to the same exact card with an Opening Day logo.

Some legends are next! Those are not reprints.

Ok, they are. Lastly, a Jeter from 2015 I didn’t have. I have an unofficial quest to collect 500 different Jeters. I don’t know what number I’m at just yet, but it’s pretty high. I hope to know within the next few weeks when I start to organize a bit more. 

Greg, thanks for sending this package via owl post. Hope you saved on shipping.

Drinking YooHoo at Night

I won't lie. A few days ago, I was grabbing a bagel, and I usually get a juice or a coffee to wash it down. But something else caught my eye in the beverage cooler:

No, not the card. I wish. I'm talking about YooHoo! I chugged it so damn fast I didn't even savor it. It's still that good. If it weren't so bad for me, I'd drink three a day. But I think I'll stick to the one per year. That's allowed.

That sweet YooHoo Rizzuto (which I needed for my PC) came from a Night Owl PWE over the summer sometime. I don't know when, but I have a big folder of scanned cards from trades or packages that were months ago. Not acceptable, but I'll get around to them all at some point.


Greg also shot me a few more Yanks, and a really cool Tino from Topps Magazine!

Random Listia Autos - Part 9

It's been a while, but here is another batch of random autos sent to me by a Listia seller I buy from once in awhile. The guys has amazing cards, and has been nice enough to throw in a bunch of autos for me. If you've missed previous installments, check them out below. There are a ton of autos from some great names.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4 
Part 5
Part 6

Part 7 

Part 8

First up, a 1953 Bowman reprint of Bubba Church. Bubba, or Emery Nichols, played six seasons in the Bigs from 1950-1955. His best year was 1951, when he won 15 games for the Phillies. He then played for the Reds and Cubs, but never could replicate the success of his 1950 and 1951 seasons. He passed away in 2001 at the age of 77.

Fan favorite Jose Oquendo makes an appearance! How do I know he's a fan favorite? Well, because he's always featured in Topps products as a fan favorite. He broke into the Majors with the Mets in 1983, but spent his most memorable years with the Cardinals from 1986-1995, teaming with Ozzie Smith to make a very slick-fielding DP combo. Otherwise, he was a jack of all trades and played all over the diamond. He was light-hitting, but did handle the bat fairly well, and hit in the .290s a few times. He had a good eye at the plate as well. Appropriately, he's now the Cardinals' third base coach, a position he has held since 1999. That's a long run!

These Topps Turkey cards look really nice signed! This one just happens to be former Royal Mark Teahan. He officially retired from baseball this past year, but had a decent little career. His best season came as a 24-year-old with the Royals, where he hit .290 with 18 HRs. He seemed destined for bigger things, and followed that up with a .288 average in 144 games, but his power disappeared. He put up two more decent seasons with the Royals, then was dealt to the White Sox. Overall, in seven seasons between KC, Chicago, and Toronto, he hit .264 with 67 HRs and 332 RBIs.

The Crime Dog! This is certainly one of the best autos to appear in the generous package. McGriff had an incredible career, and really should get more HOF consideration than he does. He lead both leagues in HRs over the course of his career (1989 with Toronto and 1992 with San Diego), and finished his career with 493 bombs. You have to wonder if he'd be in by now had he gotten to 500 HRs (keep in mind the strike-shortened 1994 and 1995 seasons). He wasn't just a power hitter, as he owns a career .284 BA and a .377 OBP. He has an impressive career OPS+ of 134 as well. Sadly, he was always overshadowed by other 1B, but I can't imagine Braves faves would have wanted anyone else during their dominant 1990s teams. He was as steady as they came. It felt like he was a Brave for a lot longer than he was from 1993-1997. He might not be a HOFer, but he's better than the 12.9% of votes he got last season. It's surprising he doesn't have more support, as the numbers back it up.

All-Star catcher Russell Martin is a nice addition on an early Dodgers card. I loved Russ on the Yanks, and wish he was brought back a few years ago when the Yanks wouldn't offer the contract he deserved. He then went on to help Pittsburgh get back to the post-season, and this season is returning home to Canada as a member of the Blue Jays, inking a new 5-year, $82-million dollar deal. Yikes! He's a very good hitter and is widely considered one of the best defensive catchers in the game. His pitch-framing skills are always spoken very highly of as well. I really admire the way he plays the game. He's a very hard-nosed type of player, and I loved when he said he didn't like the Red Sox while he was on the Yanks. It'll be interesting to see how he does in Toronto.

I think Night Owl threw up in his mouth a little when he saw this card. Kevin Brown in the middle of a Don Drysdale/Sandy Koufax sandwich? Is this wrong, Dodger fans? There's no denying that at the height of his game, Kevin Brown was as good as anyone. He just never could stay healthy. He had several very notable seasons, including 1998 with San Diego, when he was the ace of the NL Champs. He put up an 8+ WAR in three different seasons, which is impressive, and his 1.89 ERA led the NL in 1996. After an All-Star 2003 season (his final in LA), he was acquired by the Yanks for Jeff Weaver...and just wasn't very good. He started the darkest day in my baseball life...Game 7 of the 2004 ALCS. Sigh.

Owls aren't scary, bud.

For some reason, my three-year-old son is going through a phase of being scared of owls. I’m not sure why. I can’t trace it back to a book or a cartoon he might have seen. Perhaps there is a book at daycare that his teacher reads that’s in his head.

When the lights are off in a room in our place, he always says, “It’s dark, now the owl gonna get me?” I always reassure him that there’s no owl in there, and he doesn’t hold his line too tough. He’s not afraid to go to sleep in his room with his light off or anything. He’s not terrified. But he does make the “owl gonna get me?” comment about five times per week.

So I’ll continue to tell him that owls aren’t so bad. In fact, there are some out there that send me baseball cards! Now, I don’t think I’ll read him any Night Owl blog posts before bed or anything (especially about Heritage SPs), but see bud, owls not only aren’t scary, but they send some nice things.

Like this:

A 2014 Topps Heritage Target Red Jeter. I didn’t see any of these colored-parallels from retail last year, but I have to say, I do like the red ones. They stand out nicely. It’s a nice card of Jeter in his last (I’d imagine) Heritage set. Even though 1965 isn’t one of my favorite designs, I really enjoy this card. 

One of the best developments I’ve heard all spring is that CC came to camp fatter than the last couple of years. I don’t think there is any question that the lighter Sabathia partly struggled because he lost weight. I applaud the guy for wanting to be healthier, but pitchers are so in synch with their bodies, and when one loses (or gains) a bunch of weight, it shifts around differently. Some guys can be big and pitch. David Wells is a great example. I’m hoping that CC is more comfortable this year and finds some better form. He won’t be 2009 Sabathia, but I still think he’s got something left in the tank. 

 

Here’s are a few more from the spooky Owl. Thanks again, Greg. Now stop scaring my kid.

PWE in the Night

I got an unexpected PWE from Watertown, NY, home of the Night Owl. I always appreciate a good PWE, and this had five goodies in it.

First off, a 2013 Opening Day blue parallel of CC Sabathia. For the past two years, Opening Day is dominating the flagship with it's blue parallels. These ones were gorgeous and sparkly, while this year's are less sparkly, but still a fantastic looking blue. Sure beats the pea green and yellow parallels from 2014 Topps. I'm assuming this came from the treasure trove of $2.98 Opening Day blasters Greg found.

You may think I'm joking, but I think Topps actually used a nice photo of CC that doesn't make him look massively obese. He's a big dude, we all know that. But Topps keeps using such unflattering images. Check out a few of these recent ones:

 

Next up, not just one, but three minis! I believe all but one of the 1975 Topps minis I own are from Greg. I love the Betances and needed it for my PC. How good has this guy been?!

Lastly, Greg Bird. Kind of funny. Greg...he's Night Owl...owl is a bird...Greg Bird. Anyone? No? No? No.

 

Greg, thanks for the cards. Much appreciated.

A list of the top cards Night Owl sent me

Last week, Night Owl sent me a bubble mailer full of Yanks. It was most appreciated and unexpected, especially because I bashed the formation of lists on one of my posts around the New Year. Hey, countdown lists still aren't my personal preference, but if it results in free Yankees cards, I'll keep it to myself.

So to humor us both, here are the Top 9 cards Night Owl sent me, because Top 10 would be too cliche:

9. Brett Gardner 1987 Topps Mini

I'm pretty sure this is a night card. And a mini. Greg, are you slipping? Is this a dupe? Or do you hate the Yankees so much that you don't even care it's a night time mini card?

8. 2010 A&G Jorge Posada

This is one of my least favorite A&G sets. Sometime I should list my favorite to least favorite ones. Heh. Bad joke.

But truthfully, I didn't love the white border around these 2010 A&G's, and wish it was all one color. I like the red splash though. And the cool managerial pose.

7. 1981 Topps Ruppert Jones

Because Ruppert. And stirrups.

6. Andy Pettitte 2013 A&G

I didn't get too many Allen & Ginter's in 2013, but I don't mind these at all. I like them more in person than I thought I would. The border is a little overdone, but still feels pretty classy. The thin lines helps. I love the ecto-cooler green behind Pettitte. It's a great color.

5. Derek Jeter 2013 A&G Across the Years

This is a cool card. I like the shield, and love seeing Jeter spray a ball the other way. The back lists some cool fact for Jeter's birthday, like it was the first time the UPC code was scanned. No kidding.

Also born the same day: Abner Doubleday, Babe Herman, Babe Didrikson Zaharias, Shannon Sharpe, Michael Vick, and Deron Williams. Cool. Seems like it would be a good concept for an Opening Day insert too.

4. Mike Wallace 1975 Topps Mini

I love 1975 minis. They are cool as hell. Greg is collecting the set, so I'm assuming this was a dupe. What is with Mike Wallace's hat? It looks like a cartoon hat, like the one the guy on the Big League Chew packet wears. Honestly, is it painted on a picture of Wallace?

Night Owl sent me Bobby Bonds from this set in the last package, so I'm hoping he'll eventually just send me the team set.

3. Jim Hunter 1979 Topps

What a great card. A few things stick out to me. I know 1979 wasn't THAT long ago, but the gloves look pretty similar to the way they do today. I would have expected them to look a little different. Not weird Phil Rizzuto giant Hamburger Helper hand gloves, but just a little less advanced.

Two, I realized this was probably taken at spring training, but I swear, that's an airport runway behind him. Spring Training complexes have come a lot farther than baseball mitts since 1979.

2. 1982 TCMA Yankees - Mantle, Berra, Ford, DiMaggio

I've really come to appreciate TCMA. I used to see them as "no man's land" cards...not quite vintage, but not new. But I like them more and more every time I receive them. The write-ups are always pretty good, and the designs are always simple yet elegant.

1. Thurman Munson 1977 Topps

Munson was a bad ass. Even when he smiles, he's still cooler than you. I actually didn't have this Munson, and now just need one or two more to complete my Topps set of him. Ever notice how similar this background color is to a 1952 Topps Mantle?

And that's the list. That wasn't so bad! Greg, thanks for the cards.