Thoughts and questions from an old card collector

 I've been blogging a little over 8 months and I've learned a few things...

First, it's not as easy as I thought it would be. I figured I could just talk off the top of my head and I do that some of the time, like right now, but when I decided to write about my favorite sets from the '80s I actually had to do some research. Now don't get me wrong, I've enjoyed it immensely. I really liked going back through the 1980, 1983 and 1984 Topps sets as I prepared to write the post about the '80s. I still struggle with what topics to write about. I haven't found my niche yet.

Second, its hard to stick to a schedule. Life likes to interrupt the schedule. My original plan was to write at least one a week. That plan quickly changed to every two weeks. It took me over a month to get the '80s part 2 out because life decided to intervene. Work got complicated, lost a family member and moved my youngest son to another state to name a few of life's bumps in the schedule. When life is that crazy, it's hard to sit down and write. I'm not a natural writer like some of the bloggers that I read. I have to really work at it. So, when life gets messy, sitting down to write just isn't a priority.

Third, I love logging into Blogger and see how many people have read the blog and I absolutely love it when people take the time to write a response. It made me realize that I need to respond when I read the blogs that I follow. I don't always do it, but I'm trying to at least say something. So, if you're reading this, leave a message! LOL!

- I've bought cards on Ebay, BuySportsCards.com, Facebook, Online Dime Box, Walmart, Target, local card stores, but I think my favorite place to get cards are at shows. It's the people. I used to love going to the local card store because we'd talk baseball, cards, and sports. It was a place to hang out and talk sports, look at cards and get away from the daily grind. The problem now is the local card stores around me aren't like that anymore. It's all business, the people that work there aren't as friendly, don't seem to want to just talk sports while I browse and don't really make deals anymore either. The card shows are the complete opposite. I've always found deals at the shows, the dealers are friendly and love to talk sports. Give me a card show over any other venue to get cards. 

- As I've mentioned before I've started trying to catalogue my collection on TCDB. It's been a long time since I've done anything as far as adding my collection to TCDB. I have completed 36 trades and have one in transit. I think now that life has settled down a bit, I hope that I can get back to it. 

- Has Ohtani lost some of his shine since he's been hurt? I feel as if everyone has moved on. He's still a lock for AL MVP and I think he still deserves it(You could make an argument for Corey Seager, but he's just missed too many games). I know that I don't seem to see as many Ohtani cards when I'm out looking.

- Absolutely love the discussion between Acuna Jr. and Betts for NL MVP. I really like Mookie Betts, but I think he's finishing second in this race. Acuna's season is off the charts.

Questions...

-Do you think the grading of cards is growing, staying steady or declining?- 

   

I believe that grading of cards might be on the decline. I've heard enough stories of people being unsatisfied with the grades the cards receive, how long it takes to get the cards back and the expense of grading the cards. I'm seeing more and more people looking for ungraded cards at shows. I do believe that it will be around, but I think it might be losing it's luster. 

- If you could keep only one thing from your collection, what would it be?

That's a tough question. For me, it probably would be my 1953 Jackie Robinson. Not because of the monetary value because it's in pretty rough shape, but for what Jackie Robinson represents. I've tried to type this sentence several times only to delete it because it everything I've tried to write just doesn't do him justice. I can't even begin to imagine everything that he had to deal with and still be able to play the game at such a high standard. That's what a real man looks like. 

Finally, I was very blessed to have met Brooks Robinson at a card show when I was a teenager. I didn't get to spend much time with him and to be honest I really don't remember anything of our brief conversation, but I do remember him being larger than life and an extremely nice man. He took the time to recognize a teenager who was pushed to the side by a bunch of older men. Rest in peace Brooks Robinson. The world is a little worse off without you in it.

 

Peace, 

Michael

Isaiah 40:31

The 1980s Part 2

This is the second of three installments about my 3 favorite sets from the '80s. The fourth installment will be about my 3 least favorite sets. 

Once again, this won't be a deep dive into the sets, but will hopefully be a little informational and a bit of  opinion. The 3 favorites are not ranked in any order, just like my 3 least favorites won't be either. I'm also sticking to Topps base sets. It's not like that's all I collected back then. I have tons of  Fleer and Donruss cards that I collected in the '80s, but my focus these days is on Topps so that's what I'm sticking to for now. 

One of my favorite sets from the 1980s is the 1984 Topps set. 

  

The 1984 Topps set was released in one series, as best as I can tell, in April of '84. This 792 card set is very similar in design to the '83 set. Like it's predecessor, the '84 set has a large action shot with an inset portrait, but differs in that the inset portrait is in a square set in the bottom left corner and the team name, in block letters, runs vertically down the left side of the card. The backs of the cards have a blue border with red and blue text. There are 93 rookies in the set. The top two rookie cards are the Don Mattingly and Darryl Strawberry rookie cards. 

    

I remember when I was opening packs and pulled both of these cards. Isn't it an awesome feeling when opening packs and you pull the card you've been looking for? I love that feeling. 

The first six cards of the '84 set are the 1983 highlights. 

Two really cool cards that honor the history of the game. First 3 pitchers in one year surpassing Walter Johnson...what a cool part of history. Second, three HOFs all retiring at the same time. Great way to honor their contribution to the game with a card.

Cards 131 to 138 are the League Leaders cards. 

I really like these cards because they show some of the history of year and as I go through the set, I'm reminded about who the league leaders of that time were.

Cards 386 to 407 are the All-Star cards. 

   

I've never been a big fan of the All-Star cards. I really like the way it was done in '79 and '80. That being said, I do like the design of the '84 cards. I think it's the team name on the left side. 

The last subset in the '84 set is the NL/AL Active Career Leaders cards numbered 701 to 718.

     

I think this is a super cool subset. I love the quick reference to those players who are moving up the ladder of career stats. These cards are great examples; 5 HOFs and one that had a huge impact on baseball. 

 
 Here's a few more of my favorite cards. 

     

     

I really think the action shots are so much better in the '84 set. The Jackson card is one of my favorites. I think its the colors, that classic Reggie swing, just a cool card. 

     

I am a big fan of the manager cards. I always liked Billy Martin as a manager. I think it was his fiery demeanor and his willingness to argue to defend his players. Frank Robinson is, in my opinion, an underrated HOF'er. I'm not saying he doesn't get recognized as great, but I believe he was better than some of the others that get more recognition. 

     

I love the action shots that have the ball in them. The ball makes the shot seem realistic to me.

This one of my favorites. Not so much because it's Rupert Jones, because of the shot of the hitter and catcher. Cool pic.

I had a hard time trying to decide between the '83 and the '84 sets. Very similar sets as far as design goes and I didn't want 2 of my 3 favorites to look so much alike that I had to choose one(spoiler alert! 1983 won't be my next pick). I went back and forth between the two. First, I was leaning to '83 set mainly because of the rookie cards of Tony Gwynn, Wade Boggs and Ryne Sandberg. 

    

The more I looked at the set, which I still really like, I kept finding things that I didn't like as much as I did of the '84 set. For instance, the All-Star cards. I don't like the star design on the card. The star is too big and the font of the All Star looks like it was a last minute add to the design. The '84 design is better.

      

    

Another thing that I noticed as I went through the sets, the '83 set seemed to have more posed "action" shots. That's not to say there aren't any "posed" action shots in the '84 set. As I was going through both sets I found that there are more than double of the posed "action" shots in the '83 set as compared to the '84 set.

       

That's enough comparing the '83 and the '84 sets. Let me know what your thoughts are on my choice!

Peace, 

Michael

Isaiah 40:31

A quick break from the 1980s...

 I had to make a quick, 3-day trip to Albuquerque. It really wasn't that quick because its a 10-hour drive. While I was there I looked up card shops on Google and found 5 shops. I was only able to visit 2 of the shops before I had to return home. It would've been 3 but the other one was closed. 

The first one I visited was kind of small and really wasn't very organized. All of the sports were mixed together. It was difficult to find anything. The graded cards and the ungraded cards were in the same display cases all mixed together and in general, I thought the prices were kind of high. I did find a $1.00 box and went through about two stacks of cards, but it was difficult to find anything. Once again everything was mixed together and the cards were facing forwards, backwards, upside down...you name it. Plus, some were in penny sleeves, some in top loaders, but most weren't in anything. I'm not saying that a $1.00 box has to be divided by sport in numerical order by year, but some semblance of order would be nice. The guy working the store was pleasant enough, but all he would do was try to get me to buy the expensive stuff, even when I let him know several times that I couldn't afford it. When I get back to Albuquerque, this store will be marked off the list. 

The second store wasn't really a card store it was an autograph store that had cards. The card section wasn't very big, but had some nice cards. I was pressed for time, so I only went through a couple of rows in a $1.00 box. I got a few cards, so my trip wasn't a total loss. 

I'm starting a player collection of Jim Abbott. I'm not sure why I haven't already done that because I think his story is awesome. The Trout cards, Acuna Jr. and Witt Jr. are also for player collections. The Ryan is not a 1984 card, but a 2012 reprint. I have a friend who loves everything Nolan so I picked it up for him.

I asked the guy at the store if they had any room on the prices of the cards and he said that their margin was so low that the price is what it is. It wasn't my best purchase at card store, but it wasn't bad either. The store, All in Autographs, had some really great autographs, pictures, helmets and some baseballs. I found a nice picture of Hank Aaron in his blue Braves uniform in a follow through of his swing that was autographed, or so I thought, that I was prepared to buy, but the guy working the store pointed out that it was a reprint, so I put it back. Thought that was pretty cool that he did that though. I know that if I'm ever in the market for an autograph or have some time to kill, I'll go back for a visit.

I had some mail waiting for me when I got home...

All three of these were Ebay pick-ups for my player collections.

Well, that's all of the quick break from the 1980s. I'll get that second post on the '80s up real soon!

Peace, 

Michael

Isaiah 40:31

The 1980s

 I thought I'd write a little bit about my 3 favorite sets from the '80s and my 3 least favorite sets. 

This won't be a deep dive into the sets like my friend Night Owl does, but will hopefully be a little informational and more opinion than anything else. The 3 favorites are not ranked in any order, just like my 3 least favorites aren't either. I'm also sticking to Topps. If I included any of the other ones, there's no doubt that 1989 Upper Deck would be in the top 3 and 1981 Donruss in the bottom 3. 

The first of my favorite sets of the '80s is 1980. Now, like everything else in life there are things about this set that aren't my favorites, but overall, I really like the look of these cards.

               

The 1980 set released in April and contains 726 cards. 66 of those cards were double printed. I am a fan of the design of the card. It's a clean look with the name on the top, the position ribbon on the upper left and the team name on the ribbon in the bottom right corner of the card. The cards also have a facsimile of the player's autographs. I know there are some out there that don't like those, but I don't mind. Kind of gives you an idea of what their autograph might look like. There are 74 rookie cards led by:

This was the first "big" card that I got when I started collecting cards. They were selling for $1.00 in 1981. Should have loaded up on them for a $1.00 a piece. If I only knew then, what I know now. This is still one of my favorite cards. I was a big Rickey Henderson fan. He was a game changer leading off the game. If he walked or got a hit, it was like a double because he was swiping second. A few of my favorite cards from the set...

Of course I pick my Texas Rangers team card. The reason for this card though is the scoreboard in the background. The state of Texas scoreboard was a significant characteristic of the old stadium and it's fitting that it made it onto a baseball card. 

                

I like the All-Star designation on the cards. It's enough that it shows who was an All-Star but it's not overbearing either. I also like that it's on the player's regular card without having a separate card in the set. 

                

I've always been a fan of the action shots on cards. I love the Gary Carter card. I wasn't a huge fan of Gary Carter, but I think that's a cool card. As far as Nolan Ryan goes, 60 feet 6 inches drops down to about 55 feet with that stride and then the ball is coming a 100 mph. Wow!

   

I think the Joe Niekro card is a great picture of him showing his knuckle ball grip. I included the victory leaders card because I thought it was pretty cool that both Joe and Phil led the National League with 21 wins that season. Obviously, it was a good year for the knuckle ball. Does anyone still throw the knuckle ball? The last one that I can think of was R.A. Dickey who reinvented himself throwing it.

My last card is Ozzie Smith's 2nd year card. Known for his glove I think this card of him swinging the bat is pretty cool. Ozzie has a career .262 average to go with that glove.

That's it for this one. I'll have the next one out soon!

Leave me a comment about your thoughts on the 1980 Topps set.

Peace, 

Michael

Isaiah 40:31

Ramblings of an old collector

 It's been a long time since I've posted. It's been a long time since I've read any of the blogs I follow too. I've got some catching up to do. Here's just some random thoughts...

National Sports Card Convention

Another National has come and gone without me attending. I'm pretty sure there will be many others that share the same fate. I really would like to go at least once. Watching the Youtube videos from the convention makes it look really fun. I was going to say cool, but from what I understand it definitely wasn't cool!

Autographs

I really don't collect autographs. I have several autographs, but its not something that I'm hunting down and really chase after. I will pick one up when I find one for the right price and of the right player. I'm always a little leery if the autograph is real or not. The majority of the autographs I have I got myself. That being said, I have bought some from some very reputable people that I trust. I did pick up an autographed card the other day on Ebay. 

I have really become a Marcus Semien fan. I just love the way he plays the game. 

TCDB Inventorying

I haven't gotten real far since my last post. I have added a couple of sets and some insert subsets, but other than that not much else. I just haven't been in the mood. I'm more interested in doing other things, like acquiring more cards!

TCDB Trades

When I started putting this post together I had just completed my 20th trade on TCDB. It was nothing earth-shattering, but moved me closer to completing a couple of sets. 

I'm already up to 24 completed trades with 3 more in transition. I finally initiated a trade. I messed up though because it ended up being an international deal to the UK. It cost me more to ship the cards than what they were worth. It's nothing against the guy I'm trading with, its just not worth it because of the shipping. Lesson learned...check where the trader is from before initiating a trade!

Buysportscards.com

In my last post I talked about maybe shutting down my "store", because there just wasn't enough movement. I'm not looking to make a ton of money(though it would be nice!), but would like to recoup a little bit to help fund the collecting. Well, in the last 3 weeks I've more than doubled what I had made in the first 5 months. 

I will put it out there again; here's the link to my "store". If you go out and give it a look and find something that you'd like to trade for instead of buy, let me know and we'll see what we can work out.

Semien and Seager

     

Is there a better one-two punch in baseball right now? Seager is unbelievable. Sprains his thumb, comes back and his first at-bat hits a home run. 

Grading cards

I've been following, reading, watching videos, etc...about grading and I have to say that my stance has not changed. Grading is good for one thing and one thing only...authenticating that the card is real, the auto is real and if the card has been altered. By the way, from all that I've seen its not even a for sure thing either. 

2023 Topps

I've finished my set and my grandsons' sets of Series 1 and 2. Trying to decide if I'm going to do the update series too. I have a ton of doubles if anyone is in need of anything. 

Random Act of Kindness

I've continued to send out at least one RAK a month. There is no system or plan on how I do it. I just find a card that I've got and that someone needs and off it goes. I'm trying to build a pretty good address book so I don't have to ask for addresses and the cards can just show up. Now let's be real here, it's not like I'm sending anyone a 1953 Mantle, Aaron or Mays, but if I've got something that's not too pricey then why not do something nice for someone. We need a little more nice in the world.  I'm not making any promises, but let me know what you're looking for and I'll see if there's anything I can do!

Peace,

Michael 

Isaiah 40:31