A Little different coloring

A few weeks back, I got a very generous PCE (plain cardboard envelope) from card blogging's nicest guy, Fuji. 

I had recently done a post on a Floyd Little RC I picked up, and then sadly Little lost his battle to cancer. Fuji's envelop really hit the spot, as he was kind enough to dig out a few Little cards he had and passed them my way.

I love this shot from '74 Topps. He looks like he just completed an exhausting series, and is now enjoying a drink of Gatorade or water from a wax cup. I know the exact feeling of the wax cup hitting your lips like that, and even remember the feeling of biting the edge of the cup. It looks like it was a hot day, and Little was giving his all on the previous series of plays. I'd like to think it ended on a Little TD.

This is a cool card as well, showing off Floyd's rushing title. Even cooler is that number two is Larry Csonka, another Syracuse running back. And while he didn't don the orange, Marc Hubbard did go to Colgate, which isn't too far away. Upstate NY schools repping!

However, the cards that most stuck out to me were these dupes from 1972 Topps:

Hmmm...same card, but look at the coloring. One must've been bought at Meijer and the other at Walmart! Kidding aside, not sure if it's just inconsistent printing, if the card was exposed to sunlight, or something else. But it sure is interesting to see the stark difference in color.

Fuji also sent a really nice stack of tri-folds, a Yogi, and some 2020 A&Gs. 

Lastly, a great stack of wrappers for my card related art projects. I love the Ninja Turtles one! That'll be a fun one to use.

Thanks so much, Fuji!

Sup, JediJeff?!

It has been a few years since we had traded, but JediJeff of 2x3 Heroes dropped back into my DMs asking for my address. The last correspondence I had with him (according to gmail) was 2017, so it was awesome to hear from him this past November. 

And, let's just say Jeff brought it. Not sure if he had just been setting some cards aside or what, but what a great package it was. Two team bags full of goodies.

Where to begin? Let's start with Yankees legend Bert Campaneris. Just kidding, but I always enjoy the opportunity to show Campaneris as a Yankee because I know many find it appalling to see him in pinstripes. Hey, he hit a career high .322 with the Yankees. Like I said, legend. I have the 84 Topps, but the 83 Traded is new.

Ok, on to some more of the traditional hits if I didn't offend you too much. My favorite - easily - was an Aaron Judge rookie card. But not just any RC. Topps Chrome Refractor RC! That is so so pretty, new to my collection, and a really generous card for Jeff to send. That card immediately goes in my "good box."

There were a couple card with pieces of jersey or metal in them. The Yogi coin is really cool. I live about 10 minutes from the Yogi Berra museum and I have never been. That's pretty lame. Once this all clears up I am going to go.

Three A&G jerseys of, sadly, former Yankees. Well, I believe Tanaka will be a former Yankee, as it doesn't look like the Yanks are bringing him back. Jacoby Ellsbury is a free agent...dude doesn't even have a minor league deal anywhere. Is he done?

This is a little but of an odd one, but gladly will add it to my Jeter collection. It's a Sage Sportkings jersey. The card is...of a jersey. The limits of no MLB or MLBPA license! But of course I'll count it as another Jeter relic. It's definitely unique.

Here's a few other cards that really jumped out at me. No one pimps a homer like Aaron Hicks.

Thanks, Jeff! Appreciate reconnecting and appreciate the awesome package!

A B-Met lands me a lot more

Growing up with a Double-A team in my backyard was pretty cool.

I want to a handful of games each year. Looking back, I should have gone to more. But I certainly went to my fair share from the time the Binghamton Mets opened their doors in 1992, until I graduated high school ten years later. 

Plus, I got to play my high school baseball games in the stadium, and often snagged something left behind by the big clubs, such as lineup cards like this one:

I saw some amazing players come through the system, and the fact that the team won the title in their first year of existence was very cool. For Christmas that year, my grandma bought me and my cousins (who were all from out of town) commemorative t-shirts. I remember that well.

So when Jay of Card Hemorrhage posted a few cards he pulled in a re-pack, and one was a Binghamton Met autograph with the old "B" logo on the hat and original team logo in the lower right, I asked if it was available because it stirred up memories of the team I grew up with.

Jay was kind enough to send this along, plus a bunch of other great stuff.

My favorite of the others were these bad boys from esteemed grader Snaggle Tooth Grading. Fuji has shown these off a few times. Definitely a cool keepsake. Not to be overlooked b the hilarity, the cards are gorgeous refractors from 2001 Archives Reserve. As tired as I get of reprinting designs, they do look cool as refractors.

Jay also sent me some really cool John Antonelli collectibles as well:

There was also a handful of basketball cards, and I was psyched to get this Devin Booker rookie card!

Here is a random sampling of some others.

Jay, this was awesome stuff. Thank you!

Big. Fun. Game.

Several years ago, Napkin Doon started the Big Fun Game. Essentially, it was a White Elephant/Yankee Swap type of game where one randomly guesses what is behind closed doors, or steals a prize previously unearthed by a different participant.

It was always great fun when Napkin Doon ran the game, and I'm still bitter over losing out on a 1958 Roberto Clemente. I always liked to steal to stir the pot, and that was a bitter taste of my own medicine.

Well, the Big Fun Game antics were brought to another level recently by Wes over at Willinghammer Rising aka JBF. I believe he even sought the permission of Napkin Doon for the naming rights. Wes is more of a gentleman than the Doon, so that should surprise no one.

I picked mid-pack...not usually the best place for Big Fun Game placement. I made an early steal, snagging a Mookie Wilson signed jersey that I thought was super cool. But an item can only be stolen twice before it's frozen, and that was its first steal. I figured it wouldn't hold up, and it didn't. It was stolen from me quite quickly, bring back painful memories of that Clemente card. I gathered my composure and stole the prize I ended up winning:

Sure, I don't collect Mike Trout. But a jersey relic of the best player in the game? Pretty easy choice. It's not a card I would normally buy, and I wouldn't be lucky enough to pull it in a pack. The pick held up, and that was my prize. Success!

But like Wes would every stop there. Does he ever stop there? He padded the envelope with a team bag of Yankees. I gotta show off the Tinos first, because duh.

 

And a bunch of Jeters! I'm about to embark on a Jeter organization project to see how many I have. Most of these were new to my collection. How sweet is that Skybox Thunder?

 

Wes also threw in a cool Yogi managerial card, which will go in Joey's binder, as well as some other '90s releases.

Lastly, I'll show a very low numbered Andrew Miller refractor. Would look mighty nice with a signature on it...just sayin'.

JBF, thanks for your generosity and reviving the game.

RIP Yogi

Today is my birthday.

I woke up expecting to see a text from my Mom and maybe a few Facebook notifications from people I haven't spoken to since 4th grade.

Instead, the first thing I saw on my phone's locked screen was an ESPN alert that Yogi Berra had passed away at the age of 90.

I felt very sad reading that. It's not tragic news. Yogi lived until 90, and lived an incredible life. But sadness that a Yankee great had passed away, and that we now have one less hero roaming the earth.

I met Yogi one time, if you'd call it that. I've told this story before, but I'll mentioned it again. I was at a 2006 benefit celebrating Don Larsen's perfect game. Some past Yanks were there, including Yogi. As he was being ushered past, I was able to shake his hand. Only Yogi didn't let go. Someone else called his name, and he turned to greet and speak to that person, all while holding my hand for what felt like an uncomfortable 15 minutes. It was probably closer to 8 seconds.

As a Yankee fan, I've amassed quite a few Yogi cards, both old and new. My favorite, even more than my certified auto of him, is a TTM success from him a few years back.

RIP, Yogi.