Second Base is the Best Base

It dawned on me recently that I never properly showed off some of my loot from Collecting Cutch's annual Breast Cancer Awareness event.

That was not intentional at all, and I wanted to make things right. Cutch is always super generous with his mailings from the event, and this is no exception.

He sent it in early December as well, so lead off the package with one of his fun painted customs of Andrew McCutchen playing the role of Santa Cutch:

So fun. The GQ card was a great choice to point given the non-glossy card stock.

The whole package was generous but to me the highlight was the Luis Severino Topps Salute Mother's Day autograph. The pink interlocking NY and the MLB logo with pink ribbon is really one of the perfect cards to honor the event that Brian runs each year. Great themed card of a great pitcher. I look forward to seeing Severino on the mound for (hopefully) a full season in 2020. It was a bit of a wasted season for him due to injury, but he showed he was healthy when he did come back, and he's still very young. He'll be just 26 for all of the 2020 campaign.

I had seen this card a few times, but never got one. It's a Fan Favorites card of Bald Vinny. I can't really say I agree with Bald Vinny being a fan favorite. Yankee fans don't really care about Bald Vinny at all. Still, must be cool for him to have a signed card in a set.

I didn't mind these Player's Weekend Manu-relic thingies at all. I really like Player's Weekend and don't mind seeing the Yankees in different uniforms for a few days. I know people (especially Yankee fans) get up in arms over any changes to the uniform (including the lovely Nike swoosh in 2020!), but I'm not one of them at all. I don't want to see a full-time change, but I have no issue with taking part in a weekend like this. Hopefully MLB starts to design some better-looking uniforms for the weekend.

I also think the nickname thing is a little played out after a few years. I'd love to see the theme continue in a different way. Maybe put the name of a charity or honor a family member. Or maybe put the name of a past player that the current player enjoyed growing up. Or auction off the spot to fans with the proceeds going to charity.

Anyhow, I was happy to get these two cards of current superstars. The Gleyber Donruss is a variation (thanks for telling me that, TCDB), and the Judge is from the ultra fun 2019 Topps Holiday set.

Last but not least, I'll bring it back with a pink Refractor of Chance Adams, who has 2,000 cards in 2019. The pink once again is a great reminder of the support Brian shows for his cause. Chance was a 40-man roster casualty earlier this offseason.

Thanks again, Brian! I really appreciate the package, and all you do for Breast Cancer Awareness.

Adding a Yankees Legend to my Topps Yankees Project

Most are likely familiar, but a few years ago I set out to collect at least one signed Topps Yankees card for each year that Topps has put out a product. I did this all via TTM autograph requests, and didn't purchase any of the autographs via a 3rd party. I also didn't repeat players. Here is the last time I posed all the cards together, in 2017.

Given current signing habits, it's gotten tougher and tougher. But it's still doable.

In 2019, this had been my entry so far. I was fine with it, but the personalization was something I was hoping to not include in my project. Just a weird quirk, even though I don't mind at all when I get personalized autographs.

Then yesterday, this 'lil beauty arrived in my mailbox.

That right there is from Yankees legend Troy Tulowitzki.

I was all for the Tulo signing last winter. People bitched and moaned, because that's what they do, without understanding that the Yankees were getting him for the league minimum at a time when their starting SS was going to miss the first half of the season with TJ surgery. I know it's a hard concept to grasp: no risk, high reward.

Tulo then had himself a great spring training, and was the Yankees opening day shortstop.

Sadly, as most likely would have predicted, he got injured after just five games, and eventually called it a career. At the age of 34, he just couldn't stay healthy enough to keep playing. It's a bummer, because he was an elite player when healthy. I'm glad he was a Yankee, albeit for a short time, because he idolized Jeter (wore #2 in Colorado and Toronto), and I know it meant a lot to him. He even hit his last career homer as a Yankee.

Tulo then latched on with the University of Texas as a coach, which is where this TTM request was sent.

So if it comes down to Chance Adams versus Troy Tulowitzki for my 2019 project entry, I might just have to give the nod to the five-time All-Star, two-time gold glover, all-time Mets killer, and all-around cool dude and Yankees legend.

Walgreens yellow parallels

A month or so ago, there was rage around 2019 Topps Walgreens yellow parallels. Collectors were driving all over and visiting various Walgreens stores in hope of finding these mysterious $9.99 hanger boxes that made no mention of yellow parallels, yet contained six of them in each box.

I think the buzz around these has cooled down considerably, but it was an exciting chase for a while. Larry from Twitter was kind enough to offer up a few extras he has pulled, and sent a couple my way:

The Chance Adams is cool, and as a great TTM signer, I may need to send his way for an autograph. Plus, any card with Judge on it is awesome!

He was also kind enough to send along a few Yankees that came from these boxes.

Gleyber Torres is a phenomenal player. He really is. This 35th anniversary card of him looks great!

Speaking of "great", I missed these "Greatness Returns" inserts when Topps first game out. Overall, I think they are one of the better looking insert cards found in Topps flagship this year. Stanton has sort of been forgotten this year, but I think he'll play an important part for the Yanks over the summer.

Larry, thanks for your generosity! Make sure to give him a follow here if you haven't yet.

Sports wagering, with interest

I like to bet a little. Not a lot. Just a little.

I'll never be someone to throw down massive sums of money on betting, but a little skin in the game? Sure, why not? Plus, sports wagering is now legal in the state in which I reside, and many others are on the way, and on the way quite soon. It's going to be mainstream here in the US (if it isn't already), and frankly, I'm glad to see us catch up with the rest of the world on that front.

But one does not need to bet in just cash. Cards are a solid form of wagering!

I'm not talking about buying Bowman, which is a form of gambling in its own right. I'm talking about cards as the payment for a friendly gentleman's wager.

In December, when it was announced that my alma mater, Syracuse, would be taking on the hometown squad of Bob Walk The Plank, West Virginia University, in the prestigious Camping World Bowl, we decided to make a friendly wager out of the ordeal. Loser would buy the other a $10 card of their choice, related to the school that won. I think those were the terms.

Syracuse ended up winning the game 34-18, although admittedly it wasn't a fair fight. WVU was without their stud QB, Will Grier, who decided to sit out the game to avoid the risk of injury heading into the NFL Draft. Plus, for a perennial bowl-bound team like WVU, I can't image this game felt too big for them. For Syracuse, the game was a culmination of their best season in years, with a lot of optimism for the future with a solid team and a great coach. The game felt like it meant a little more for the Orange because of the way the last two decades have gone.

Regardless, Matt is a man of his word, and this was the card I chose:

I'll always have a soft spot for Malachi Richardson due to his performance in the 2016 NCAA Tournament, so I felt like owning an autograph of him in a Syracuse jersey was the way to go.

Matt decided to charge himself some interest for a delated payment, which I wasn't expecting, and sent four additional cards my way:

The Gleyber/Adams dual relic is awesome! Matt said he actually pulled it from a pack, which makes it even cooler.

The Leyritz buyback autograph is very cool, and then Winfield jersey is great. There's even some dirt on it! I appreciate the low-numbered mini of future Hall Of Famer CC Sabathia, as well.

Thanks for the bet and following through, Matt!

Cards on Cards turned 10, so he gave us presents

Last month, Kerry from Cards on Cards celebrated his 10-year blogging anniversary. That is certainly a nice round number. Cards on Cards has been a mainstay since I've been here, and is always a great source for some great baseball and basketball cards.

To celebrate his anniversary, Kerry gave us presents. That's right. We should be showering him with cards, but instead he hosted an extremely generous group break for his readers.

I was lucky enough to snag the Yankees, and came away with some excellent cards.

I was actually most excited about the 2018 Bowman Yankees. I was unable to find any Bowman in my retail attempts, and Kerry sent a bunch of the cards I would have hoped to get had I busted some myself, including Gleyber Torres.

There were also some shiny Yankees prospects cards. Justus Sheffield is rocking JA Happ's #34. Domingo Acevedo actually spent time with the Yankees a few games ago, but didn't see any game action.

Here are two new Aaron Judge cards I didn't have yet!

And some 2017 Allen & Ginters. I can't tell what design is what with this product anymore.

Minor Leaguers were abundant, especially since some of the boxes Kerry busted were Team Best products.

Along with some newer minor league issues as well.

1999 Stadium Club was one of the main boxes as well. I've always loved this card of Paul O'Neill and Chuck Knoblauch, mostly because I want to know what Paulie said to him when they got back to the dugout. I'm sure Paul was very friendly about it. It looks like the catch was made though!

Kerry, thanks for this generous package, and congrats on the big 1-0!

Zippy Zappy's methods work!

One of the best fellow TTMers out there is good 'ol Zippy Zappy.

I can't remember where I saw it, which leads me to believe it was on Twitter, but ZZ sometimes includes a card for that player that isn't of the player himself. Just a small gift for him to keep.

Hmm, I don't think I've ever done that!

On the back of Chance Adams' 2017 Bowman Chrome, the card said he models his game after Trevor Rosenthal, and idolized Willie Mays. Interesting.

I dug through some cards and couldn't find a Rosenthal, but I did find a Mays Turn Back The Clock from the mid-80s. So I included it in my TTM request to Adams.

My card came back signed, along with a post-it:

Cool! What a great idea, ZZ. Hope you don't mind me ripping you off.

Prospects will break your heart

Yesterday, Baseball America released their pre-season Top 100 prospect list. Despite graduating guys like Clint Frazier to the Big Leagues and trading away James Kaprielian, Dustin Fowler, Jorge Guzman, and Jorge Mateo, the Yankees still landed six prospects in the top 100:

6. SS Gleyber Torres
38. OF Estevan Florial
41. LHP Justus Sheffield
59. 3B Miguel Andujar
77. RHP Albert Abreu
81. RHP Chance Adams

What’s interesting here is that at least four of them could help the Yankees in 2018 (Torres, Sheffield, Andujar, and Adams), while Florial and Abreu are a little further off.

As exciting as that is, it’s hard not to be reminded that prospects will, without fail, break your heart. I’d love for each of the six guys mentioned above to be All-Stars, but that’s just now how life in baseball works. If the Yankees get one All-Star (Torres?) and a few solid major league contributors from this list, it’s successful. Heck, one All-Star alone is successful.

That’s not to poo poo on these guys or rain on their parades. I hope they all develop into something. But looking back over the course of this blog from its start in 2011, I can count handfuls of guys I was excited about. Looking back, it’s hard to image that excitement now.

Each of these guys were highly regarded at one point or another, especially through the early stages of this blog. Some were probably built up a little too much as a result of a poor farm system for a few years.

That’s not to say any of these guys are bad players. They just didn’t make it (or haven’t yet), like many others who came before them. Montero was huge prospect ranked right alongside Bryce Harper and Mike Trout. Banuelos was the little lefty that could that ran into injury problems. Mason Williams had a few cups of coffee. Bichette came out of the gates strong but never could replicate that early success. Refsnyder hit in the minors but never got regular opportunities in the Majors.

It seems like forever ago that these guys were the next big thing, and I’m curious what I’ll be writing about the six guys on this year's Top 100 list in another six years.

Chistmas in July from Jolly Johnny

You guys make me wonder sometimes.

Where on earth do you get all of your cards?

Guys like Wes and Johnny have a seemingly endless supply of what I collect. I know that can’t be true, but there are definitely some bloggers out there who swirl in a sea of cardboard mystery.

John of Johnny’s Trading Spot hits me up about once a month these days…definitely faster than I can return packages to him. This one was labeled “Christmas in July” in a note he included. Indeed it was!

The first half of the package was nothing but Tinos. Like I mentioned, where does one stumble upon so many cards of the guy I collect? There were some neat ones too, like some old school Fleer Ultra inserts.

The second half of the team bag – prospects!

These ones made me a little sad. I didn’t load up on Blake Rutherford cards yet, so his trade to the White Sox didn’t break my heart from a collecting standpoint. Still, I liked him a lot, but do think it was a fair trade.

Chance Adams is a guy I don’t understand what the Yankees have planned for him. He’s really good, and comes in at #63 on MLB.com’s top prospects. Yet, the Yankees keeps saying he needs more development time. I get it. They know a lot more about baseball and their prospects than I ever coyld. But from afar, I don’t understand why they are running our Caleb Smith or Luis Cessa every fifth day. Surely a still-developing Adams is better than those guys. I suppose they want to set him up for success down the road, but it’s hard for me to accept that he can’t give a better effort than the current #5 starters.

Wilkerman! I’m officially going to stop sending him TTM requests. I think I’m 0 for 3 on him. Time to just sit on cards of his now instead of sending them into the abyss.

 

Zippy Zappy favorite Thairo Estrada! He’s so overlooked, but just keeps producing. He’s hitting .308 as a 21-year-old in AA. He’s got a shot.

Nick Solak is a solid prospect too. He produced in college at Louisville and has carried it right into the pro’s. It feels like he should be ticketed for Trenton at some point, although there is a bit of a log jam there.

Lastly, new cards of Gleyber and Frazier! I didn’t have either of these.  Frazier is a lot of fun to watch every night. Jokes were made about his “legendary bat speed”, but he seriously does have impressive bat skills, even to my untrained eye. And it’s crazy to think of the trickle-down effect that Gleyber’s injury had on the Yankees. If everything went according to plan, there is a very real chance he would be the Yankees starting 3B right now. But things never go according to plan, especially with prospects.

Johnny, thanks for the early Christmas present!