Saturday, May 31, 2014

Oscar Taveras find

In his long awaited MLB debut, the top prospect's first MLB hit was a home run - I think I got his autograph in-person on a dummy card in the Arizona Fall League in 2011, but was too busy trying to chase after Bryce Harper and Mike Trout to care about the then 'little known' prospect from the Dominican Republic.

He broke out in 2010, but had even a bigger season in 2011 - maybe it was the a lack of 'mainstream cards' that kept me from focusing on Taveras as someone to be serious about getting when I had the chance to do so.

In 2012, I was digging through an assorted dollar box and found a 2012 blue Bowman Chrome parallel to get autographed in-person - if I have the chance, I'm probably going to hold off on that now, since he's had his share of assorted prospect cards.

Friday, May 30, 2014

1995 Fleer Ultra Extra All-Rookie Team hot pack Terrell Davis insert

Whenever I lose track of a card I suddenly need for whatever reason, I start to rummage through the junk stuff I've collected over the years and get distressed - it's a pain to feel like a hoarder and forget where I put a specific card that I know I had at one point.

I get a bug up my you know what and I wonder if I might have thrown the card away or someone might have taken it - though in reality, who cares about a 20-year old trading card I know I have somewhere but can't immediately find.

I dabbled in collecting football cards in the mid 1990's and from a lone pack, I pulled a set of inserts out that featured the Davis card - he was a superstar talent for several seasons, though his career was cut short before he could make any long term impact i.e. sticking around to round out what was probably a Hall of Fame career.

After worrying about the card [it was only one missing from the other cards in the All-Rookie Team hot pack insert set I had stored in a plastic card box] - I found the card squirreled away in an old Angels ticket envelope that was stuffed in a 15 year old Upper Deck lanyard / ticket holder from the 2000 National among other cards in a plastic box of knickknacks.

I don't feel this way when I'm in the heat of the moment and I'm digging around for something, but I do kind of feel like unless something 'drastic' happened - I usually will end up misplacing trading cards and other things but I've more or else will have them secured somewhere [obscure] as opposed to being lost to oblivion.

Thursday, May 29, 2014

Featured autograph - Howie Kendrick

I wasn't planning on making the trip to BFE for a Kendrick autograph signing last Thursday, but there was a signing near Angel Stadium this past Saturday that was a more reasonable distance - I don't bother with most Angels appearances, but made a sacrifice for Kendrick, since he signs sporadically at the stadium these days.

He was polite and cordial otherwise and I got a baseball and a 2012 Topps Allen and Ginter card signed - he thanked me after I told him he was having a great season and how he should make the All-Star team.

There was some wait, but that's a given at these player appearances - maybe this ended up a 'low key' deal, but at least there didn't seem the mess of 'pros' who brought friends, family and long lost relatives to pounce on an opportunity.

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Featured autograph - Yordano Ventura

With all the pitchers getting Tommy John surgery in 2014, Ventura's last start was a cause for concern - even though the hard throwing future ace is scheduled to miss only one start.

As a fan in the stands I really do not have as much invested in the livelihood of guys playing in the game - however, I am interested in which guys are future stars who capitalize on their potential and which ones that might not live up to the hype.

Pitchers' careers like Ventura are fragile, with injury potential waiting to happen in the next pitch they throw - I would hope that as many pitchers flame out, there will be a resurgence of pitchers whose careers will stand the test of time, but it's ultimately a crapshoot for any particular MLB pitcher.

Featured autograph - George Springer

I didn't know who Springer was when I first stumbled upon his USA cards three or four years ago - as he was climbing up through the minors in the Houston Astros system, he put up some big numbers, but I thought he was still a bit raw and might only be a good prospect with some warts.

Now that he's shown a little something in his first year in the major leagues, maybe I see Springer as a poor man's Mike Trout - Springer might be little leaner, maybe a little taller but almost has the same batting stance as Trout and offers the same set of athletic skills.

Springer has shown the ability to be an impact player [like Trout], whether as a batter, base runner or defender - though at 24, Springer is a little older MLB rookie who maybe close to hitting his peak [as opposed to Trout, who still has youth on his side, even though he has already played in parts of four seasons in the major leagues].

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Featured autograph - Kurt Suzuki

Suzuki is 30 years old and now has spent parts of 10 seasons playing pro ball - it's nice to see the current Minnesota Twin start off great with the bat in 2014, though as a catcher, maybe the MLB season takes it's toll and drags his numbers down.

He's not a Buster Posey or a Yadier Molina - but I guess as long as he posts passable numbers at the plate, he'll get his opportunities to play a starring role [as opposed to someone stuck on the bench].

It seemed like just yesterday when he was a fresh faced rookie with the Oakland A's - I didn't really follow guys playing in college when Suzuki enjoyed an inspired collegiate playing career at Cal State Fullerton, but probably became aware of him, when his first-year Bowman Draft cards started to come out late in 2004.

Featured autograph - Andrew Lorraine

I waited out the current High Desert Mavericks [Seattle Mariners Cal League affiliate] pitching coach after a minor league game and got him to sign my card - Lorraine fits the description of the obscure former Angels player who may have only played in five games or less [four games for Lorraine] with the Halos before moving on.

He was a fourth round Angels draft pick in 1993, who made his MLB debut the next year - it maybe obvious, but maybe Lorraine didn't have the top flight stuff as pitcher to stick around at the highest level, so he ended up a vagabond journeyman who pitched for a bunch of teams.

Maybe in alternate universe, Lorraine turns out to have a much more significant MLB career - maybe another Mark Buehrle or Barry Zito [the good, early version of Zito I suppose] if things had worked out a little better for the lefty.

Monday, May 26, 2014

Baseball video games

I still play the occasional baseball video game, which means a used MLB 2K10 I bought three or four years ago for $3 and change - I play the game on an XBox 360 console from 2006 that I treat like a video game console from 1990, which means it's just me against the computer.

Even thought MLB 2K10 is at least five years old - the graphics are so much better than when I was really into video games 25-30 years ago.

I do get bored however, because maybe baseball doesn't really lend itself to the excitement of non-sport games [which I don't play at all] - the baseball games on the MLB 2K10 plays more like a simulation and I wish it had the following, which I swear I've seen randomly in the various low bit baseball video games of my youth:

1.) An arcade game mode - exaggerated sound effects, animation effects that are combined with whatever 'realism' is injected into the games over the last five years.

2.) More player animations - players adjusting their cups, pitchers on the mound tiring, players spitting seeds, batters admiring home runs, player close ups with seemingly realistic mannerisms.

3.) Beanball brawls, ejections - it's probably not politically correct for games licensed by Major League Baseball, but it would be a fun add to see something where the a beaned batter would get angry and charge the mound; maybe the benches empty and relievers are storming out of the bullpen in anticipation of a fight.

4.) Fully developed postseason scenarios - maybe have a celebration montage if you win the World Series, maybe have several different ones or even one for each team, so there would be something to play for as opposed to the merely season ending and rolling over to the next.

5.) Broadcast crews - they sort of add realism to the games, but they can only say so much; they probably shouldn't mention anything that can be outdated like names of the managers in the dugout.

Saturday, May 24, 2014

2014 Bowman blaster recap #5 of 5

Pack one
#78 Evan Longoria
#142 Brandon Moss
#164 David Wright
#BP 72 Matthew Bowman
#BP 81 Brandon Cumpton
#172 Adam Jones - orange border parallel serial #'d 134/250
#BCP 19 Billy Burns - Chrome
#BCP 25 Kris Bryant - Chrome
#147 C.J. Wilson
#169 Shelby Miller

Pack two
#10 Mike Leake
#32 Sonny Gray
#52 Tony Cingrani
#BP 90 Manuel Margot
#BP 96 Wuilmer Becerra
#89BIB-CB Craig Biggio - 1989 Bowman is Back insert; I want to say even though there are occasionally retired players in modern sets, it's kind of random to pull a Biggio out of a 2014 pack.
#BCP 36 Daniel Robertson - Chrome
#193 Pedro Alvarez
#83 Kevin Pillar
#22 Johnny Cueto

Pack three
#214 Yasiel Puig
#194 Tyler Skaggs
#BP 24 Pierce Johnson
#BP 16 Dylan Floro
#173 Yosmil Pinto - International parallel
#BCP 49 Isiah Kiner-Falefa - Chrome
#BCP 48 Jamie Westbrook - Chrome
#135 Michael Wacha
#157 Brad Ziegler
#2 Gerrit Cole

Pack four
#84 Xander Bogaerts
#153 Freddie Freeman
#43 James Paxton
#BP 7 Devin Williams
#BP 41 Gus Schlosser
#BCP 37 Maikel Franco - Chrome
#BCP 23 Kyle Parker - Chrome
#24 Bartolo Colon
#183 Chase Utley
#205 Shane Victorino

Pack five
#198 Julio Teheran
#88 Masahiro Tanaka
#56 Carlos Gonzalez
#BP 55 Matt McPherson
#BP 66 Ben Lively
#BM-CI5 Trevor Bauer - Bowman Mini
#BCP 12 Wendell Rijo - Chrome
#BCP 2 Trey Ball - Chrome
#101 Matt Holliday
#123 Josh Hamilton

Pack six
#138 Wade Miley
#160 Jason Kipnis
#53 Edwin Encarnacion
#BP 89 Michael Ratterree
#BP 97 Miller Diaz
#BP 61 Ryon Healy - State parallel
#BCP 69 Josh Hader - Chrome
#BCP 80 Austin Wright - Chrome
#110 Manny Machado
#220 Onelki Garcia

Pack seven
#75 Hanley Ramirez
#192 Tim Hudson
#122 Michael Cuddyer
#BP 103 Chris Kohler
#BP 51 Hunter Dozier
#BCP 91 Gabriel Rosa - Chrome
#BCP 105 Miguel Afredo Gonzalez - Chrome
#96 Anthony Rendon
#118 Koji Uehara
#94 Max Scherzer

Pack eight
#146 Justin Verlander
#168 Mike Trout
#100 Clayton Kershaw
#BP 47 Alex Reyes
#BP 33 Devon Travis
#BCP 83 Jason Rogers - Chrome
#BCP 57 Andrew Thurman - Chrome
#116 Billy Butler
#49 Josh Reddick
#71 Kendrys Morales

2014 Bowman blaster recap #4 of 5

Pack one
#128 Jonathan Schoop
#197 Carlos Santana
#87 Jake Marisnick
#BP 9 Eric Jagielo
#BP 4 Rosell Herrera
#BM-DT 1 Nick Castellanos - Bowman mini

#BCP 17 Jose Abreu - Chrome
#BCP 62 Chase Anderson - Chrome
#156 Nick Swisher
#133 Homer Bailey

Pack two
#108 Alex Cobb
#218 David Holmberg
#63 Jean Segura
#BP 59 Tucker Neuhaus
#BP 68 Melvin Mercedes
#BCP 75 Robert Gsellman - Chrome
#BCP 84 Ryne Stanek - Chrome
#155 A.J. Burnett
#144 Elvis Andrus
#166 Matt Carpenter

Pack three
#150 Andrew McCutchen
#180 Roy Halladay
#BP 81 Brandon Cumpton
#BP 90 Manuel Margot
#BP 10 Zack Borenstein - State parallel
#BCP 22 Chris Flexen - Chrome
#BCP 14 Chris Taylor - Chrome
#131 Andre Rienzo
#154 Martin Prado
#44 Abraham Almonte

Pack four
#202 Jason Heyward
#7 Ian Kennedy
#BP 96 Wuilmer Becerra
#BP 102 Steven Ramos

#BP 35 Tyler Wade - blue parallel serial #'d 006/500
MLB PrePlay code card
#BCP 6 Julio Urias - Chrome
#BCP 35 Tyler Wade - Chrome
#55 Ian Desmond
#77 Carlos Beltran
#185 Marco Scutaro

Pack five
#29 Matt Cain
#97 Adam Lind
#119 Jorge De La Rosa
#BP 110 Joe Wendle
#BP 52 Hunter Renfroe
#BTP-28 Clint Frazier - Bowman 100 insert
#BCP 63 Daniel Palka - Chrome
#BCP 74 John Gant - Chrome
#207 Hyun-Jin Ryu
#51 C.C. Sabathia

Pack six
#137 Mike Minor
#159 Wil Myers
#45 Avisail Garcia
#BP 66 Ben Lively
#BP 72 Matthew Bowman

#89BIB-BB Byron Buxton - 1989 Bowman is Back insert
#BCP 28 Preston Tucker - Chrome
#195 Nick Franklin
#85 Yordano Ventura
#21 Jordan Zimmerman

Pack seven
#143 Jonny Gomes
#165 Cliff Lee
#BP 45 Michael Feliz
#BP 32 Lewis Thorpe
#127 Nick Castellanos - State parallel
#BCP 86 Victor Payano - Chrome
#BCP 107 Jose Herrera - Chrome
#73 Tim Lincecum
#46 Francisco Liriano
#72 Anthony Rizzo

Pack eight
#15 Coco Crisp
#37 Will Middlebrooks
#18 Austin Jackson
#BP 27 Raimel Tapia
#BP 18 Luke Jackson
#BCP 104 Seth Mejias-Brean - Chrome
#BCP 11 Jake Barrett - Chrome
#92 Jed Lowrie
#114 Joey Votto
#134 Yadier Molina

Friday, May 23, 2014

2014 Bowman blaster recap #3 of 5

Pack one
#136 Prince Fielder
#158 Mike Zunino
#BP 18 Luke Jackson
#BP 9 Eric Jagielo

#BP 19 Billy Burns - State parallel
#BCP 2 Trey Ball - Chrome
#BCP Billy Burns - Chrome
#79 Jose Fernandez
#191 Mark Trumbo
#213 Stephen Strasburg

Pack two
#181 Ian Kinsler
#203 Brandon Phillips
#8 Joe Nathan
#BP 4 Rosell Herrera
#BP 59 Tucker Neuhaus
MLB PrePlay info card
#BCP 25 Kris Bryant - Chrome
#BCP 36 Daniel Robertson - Chrome
#105 Yoenis Cespedes 
#215 Tim Beckham
#104 J.J. Hardy

Pack three
#30 Yu Darvish 
#141 Gio Gonzalez
#163 Zack Greinke
#BP 68 Melvin Mercedes
#BP 70 Gabriel Ynoa
#BTP 13 Dylan Bundy - Bowman 100 insert
#BCP 44 Tim Cooney - Chrome
#BCP 56 Gosuke Katoh - Chrome
#126 Josh Donaldson
#186 Ryan Zimmerman

Pack four
#20 Nolan Arenado
#130 Matt Davidson
#65 Domonic Brown
#BP 21 Billy McKinney
#BP 13 Armando Rivero
#BCP 47 Alex Reyes - Chrome
#BCP 33 Devon Travis - Chrome
#9 Chris Johnson
#31 Adrian Beltre
#187 Jose Iglesias

Pack five
#175 Erik Johnson
#11 Andrelton Simmons

#BP 5 Mark Appel
#BP 60 Dillon Overton

#PA-TCO Thomas Coyle - Prospect autograph insert
#BCP 24 Pierce Johnson - Chrome
#BCP 16 Dylan Floro - Chrome
#209 David Price
#14 Starling Marte
#36 Matt Harvey

Pack six
#12 Trevor Rosenthal
#34 Paul Goldschmidt
#BP 88 Santiago Nessy
#BP 95 Pat Stover
#121 Chris Sale - State parallel
#BCP 70 Yimi Garcia - Chrome
#BCP 79 Drew Granier - Chrome
#208 David Ortiz
#145 Buster Posey
#167 Justin Upton

Pack seven
#190 Jedd Gyorko
#212 Wilin Rosario
#148 Pablo Sandoval
#BP 101 Victor De Leon
#BP 65 Carlos Contreras

#2 Gerrit Cole - green border parallel serial #'d 069/150
#BCP 89 Michael Ratteree - Chrome
#BCP 97 Miller Diaz - Chrome
#4 Brandon Beachy
#26 Jason Grilli

Pack eight
#170 Jurickson Profar
#106 Christian Yelich
#216 Travis D'Arnaud
#BP 39 Sam Moll
#BP 30 Ty Buttrey
#BM-SM 5 Chris Taylor - Bowman mini
#BCP 103 Chris Kohler - Chrome
#BCP 51 Hunter Dozier - Chrome
#50 Miguel Cabrera
#68 Jarrod Parker

Featured autograph - Joe Torre

I jumped on a chance to get Torre's autograph when the New York Yankees played the Angels several weeks ago - I don't think he'd bother to go to Anaheim unless it was to visit with his old team and soon to be retiring shortstop Derek Jeter.

Thursday, May 22, 2014

2014 Bowman blaster recap #2 of 5

I pulled a 1989 Bowman is Back insert of Cal Ripken Jr., which probably looks marginally better [and in regular size!] - than the original 1989 Bowman cards they are modeled after.

Pack one
#89 Alex Rios
#111 Wei-Yin Chen
#98 Jon Lester
#BP 16 Dylan Floro
#BP 7 Devin Williams
#BCP 45 Michael Feliz - Chrome
#BCP 32 Lewis Thorpe - Chrome
#196 Chris Archer
#86 Taijuan Walker
#189 Joe Mauer

Pack two
#120 Alfonso Soriano
#19 Giancarlo Stanton
#129 Jimmy Nelson
#BP 41 Gus Schlosser
#BP 55 Matt McPherson
#89BIB-CR Cal Ripken Jr. - 1989 Bowman is Back insert
#BCP 27 Raimel Tapia - Chrome
#211 Madison Bumgarner
#140 Chris Davis
#162 Trevor Bauer

Pack three
#184 Patrick Corbin
#206 Jonathan Lucroy
#BP 97 Miller Diaz
#BP 103 Chris Kohler
#188 Eric Hosmer - State parallel
#BCP 81 Brandon Cumpton - Chrome
#BCP 90 Manuel Margot - Chrome
#102 Felix Hernandez
#124 Mike Napoli
#16 Starlin Castro

Pack four
#139 Carl Crawford
#161 Jered Weaver
#6 Oswaldo Arcia
#BP 51 Hunter Dozier
#BP 47 Alex Reyes
#BCP 96 Wuilmer Becerra - Chrome
#BCP 102 Steven Ramos - Chrome
#38 Torii Hunter
#200 Bryce Harper
#172 J.R. Murphy

Pack five
#28 Salvador Perez
#178 Brett Lawrie
#62 Aroldis Chapman
#BP 33 Devon Travis
#BP 24 Pierce Johnson
#BM-TBJ2 Marcus Stroman - Bowman Mini
#BCP 110 Joe Wendle - Chrome
#BCP 52 Hunter Renfroe - Chrome
#151 Andre Ethier
#41 Wilmer Flores

Pack six
#37 Will Middlebrooks
#18 Austin Jackson
#128 Jonathan Schoop
#BP 36 Daniel Robertson
#BP 44 Tim Cooney
#BP 72 Matthew Bowman - State parallel
#BCP 16 Dylan Floro - Chrome
#BCP 7 Devin Williams - Chrome
#114 Joey Votto
#134 Yadier Molina

Pack seven
#197 Carlos Santana
#87 Jake Marisnick
#108 Alex Cobb
#BP 56 Gosuke Katoh
#BP 70 Yimi Garcia
#156 Nick Swisher - green bordered parallel serial #'d 139/150
#BCP 41 Gus Schlosser - Chrome
#BCP 55 Matt McPherson - Chrome
#156 Nick Swisher
#133 Homer Bailey

Pack eight
#218 Davis Holmberg
#63 Jean Segura
#173 Yosmil Pinto
#BP 79 Drew Granier
#BP 89 Michael Ratterree
#BCP 66 Ben Lively - Chrome
#BCP 72 Matthew Bowman - Chrome
#155 A.J. Burnett
#144 Elvis Andrus
#166 Matt Carpenter

2014 Bowman blaster recap #1 of 5

I got an e-mail with 50% off to Topps.com and picked up five blasters, which came to $57.33 shipped after the discount - it's not like blaster boxes are teeming with hits but I maybe able to pull cards of assorted prospects, maybe a random parallel/insert or even an autograph.

It's probably not a good thing to copy what others are doing, but I read about discount blaster breaks all the time and at least 2014 Bowman is somewhat new - as opposed to some 'oddball' blaster boxes sitting on retail shelves of a big box store's trading card section for the better part of a year.

Box one

Pack one
#1 Derek Jeter
#67 Cole Hamels
#136 Prince Fielder
#BP 12 Wendell Rijo
#BP 2 Trey Ball
#BM-KCR 2  Kyle Zimmer - Bowman Mini
#BCP 59 Tucker Neuhaus - Chrome
#BCP 68 Melvin Mercedes - Chrome
#191 Mark Trumbo
#213 Stephen Strasburg

Pack two
#158 Mike Zunino
#181 Ian Kinsler
#BP 19 Billy Burns
#BP 25 Kris Bryant
#BTP-40 Joc Pederson - Bowman 100 insert
#BCP-76 Gabriel Ynoa - Chrome
#BCP-88 Santiago Nessy - Chrome
#105 Yoenis Cespedes
#215 Tim Beckham
#104 J.J. Hardy

Pack three
#56 Carlos Gonzalez
#78 Evan Longoria
#BP 69 Josh Hader
#BP 80 Austin Wright
#BP 34 Cesar Puello - International parallel
#BcP 96 Wuilmer Becerra - Chrome
#BCP 102 Steven Ramos - Chrome
#147 C.J. Wilson
#169 Shelby Miller
#193 Pedro Alvarez

Pack four
#142 Brandon Moss
#164 David Wright
#BP 91 Gabriel Rosa
#BP 105 Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez
#BP 75 Robert Gsellman - black bordered parallel serial #'d 27/99
Bowman Chrome / Bloomberg Sports info card
#BCP 110 Joe Wendle - Chrome
#BCP 52 Hunter Renfroe - Chrome
#83 Kevin Pillar
#22 Johnny Cueto
#132 Billy Hamilton

Pack five
#10 Mike Leake
#32 Sonny Gray
#52 Tony Cingrani
#BP 83 Jason Rogers
#BP 57 Andrew Thurman
#101 Matt Holliday - Silver Ice parallel
#BCP 45 Michael Feliz - Chrome
#BCP 32 Lewis Thorpe - Chrome
#109 Aaron Hill
#219 Chris Owings

Pack six
#43 James Paxton
#198 Julio Teheran
#88 Masahiro Tanaka
#BP 42 Levon Washington
#BP 58 Jordan Paroubeck 
#PA-MT Michael Taylor - Prospect autograph blue bordered parallel serial #'d 334/500
#BCP 81 Brandon Cumpton - Chrome
#BCP 90 Manuel Margot - Chrome
#101 Matt Holliday
#123 Josh Hamilton

Pack seven
#74 David Freese
#93 Adam Wainwright
#BP 49 Isiah Kiner-Falefa
#BP 46 Jamie Westbrook
#81 Jared Cosart - International parallel
#BCP 27 Raimel Tapia - Chrome
#BCP 18 Luke Jackson - Chrome
#3 Derek Holland
#25 Carlos Gomez
#48 James Shields

Pack eight
#115 Troy Tulowitzki
#47 Jayson Werth
#69 John Lackey
#BP 37 Maikel Franco
#BP 23 Kyle Parker
#BCP 9 Eric Jagielo - Chrome
#BCP 4 Rosell Herrera - Chrome
#70 Hiroki Kuroda
#57 Mat Latos
#79 Jose Fernandez

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Braving the heat - mining the quarter boxes

I stopped at the LCS to see if I could find cards in the quarter bins though someone was waiting on me and who'd want to be stuck digging through cardboard in a stuffy little card shop - especially when it was a particularly hot afternoon [101°F] in So. Cal last Thursday.

2011 Topps football Indianapolis Colts team card #328
2013 Panini Elite Extra Edition Anthony DeSclafani #62
2014 Topps Heritage Jose Molina #261
2014 Topps Heritage Grant Balfour #271
2014 Topps Museum Collection Mike Zunino #19
2014 Topps Museum Collection Lou Brock #CCR-48 - Canvas Collection Reproduction insert
2014 Topps Heritage Joey Butler / Jim Adduci #104
2014 Topps Gypsy Queen Wil Myers #49
2014 Topps Gypsy Queen Asdrubal Cabrera #96 
2014 Topps Gypsy Queen Eric Hosmer #99 

2014 Topps Gypsy Queen Jose Iglesias #131 - I thought this might have been a retro uniform card, but it's actually a reimagined version of a Tigers uniform worn in 1960 for a promotion to honor the contributions of Spanish and Latino players.
2014 Topps Gypsy Queen Chris Johnson #247 
2014 Upper Deck football Tim Brown #2
2014 Upper Deck football Terrell Davis #4
2014 Upper Deck football Eric Dickerson #7
2014 Upper Deck football Carl Bradford #75 - I don't collect football cards, but the image grabs you and puts you into the action.

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Featured autograph - C.J. Cron

Besides Mike Trout, the reputation of the Angels farm system hasn't been great in the last five years - but maybe the Angels can promote a player like Cron to the major leagues and show the organization still has some talent.

At 24, Cron is an older MLB rookie and his minor league stats don't seem to be all that special - hopefully he can stay healthy and establish himself as a first baseman / DH who is going to stick around for a while.

Cron definitely has some pop in his bat, though given 500 at-bats, he maybe more of a Billy Butler type of hitter - as opposed to a Mark Trumbo all-or-nothing slugger.

Since this post is about Cron, I took a picture of an Angels Weekly rerun on TV when host Alex Curry is asking him about possible nicknames he has gotten - he says it's usually C.J., since that is a nickname of sorts.

I found it utterly fascinating how people have mispronounced his last name - if I heard it right, it's supposed to be like said like 'Krone' and not 'KRON.'

Featured autograph - Mike Morin

I'm not too excited about a relief pitcher whose upside maybe an okay MLB closer or a guy who ends up bouncing around for the next 10-15 years - still Morin is only 23 and with a fresh arm out of the Angels bullpen, he may find himself in more prominent situations as the season wears on.

Monday, May 12, 2014

Featured autograph - Darryl Scott

I'm working on my all-time Angels autograph collection though I'm not exactly banging down doors to see if I can add new autographs - I'd like to account for active players who become an Angel within a particular season, someone who earns a roster spot and plays in a game, players who gets called up from the minors or someone acquired from another team, etc.

For retired players, I'd like to stumble upon former Angels if they are coaching somewhere - Scott was a pitching coach for the Salt River Rafters in the Arizona Fall League team in 2013 and is currently the Tulsa Drillers' [Colorado Rockies AA affiliate] pitching coach.

As far as any progress towards the all-time autograph collection, I'd like to complete a run from the 1990 through present - I figure I have a good number of players' autographs from the last 25 years and it might be easier to account for the players autographs I still need.

As focused as I maybe in tracking down players from the last three decades - I'll fill in the blanks 'as is' with former Angels that I still need from the 1980's and before.

As much as I'd like to have a complete collection, it might be one of those situations where it's not realistic and I'm not some rich collector - I'm probably not going to end up with the 'hard to find' former Angels i.e. ones who might have passed prematurely, ones that might be notorious recluse types who don't sign or ones that may be on the run for whatever reason.

Friday, May 09, 2014

2014 Bowman jumbo pack recap

For $12, there wasn't a a good mix of cards here - can't say all that much but swallow my pride and list the carnage.

#111 Wei-Yin Chen
#98 Jon Lester
#120 Alfonso Soriano
#19 Giancarlo Stanton
#129 Jimmy Nelson
#61 Ubaldo Jimenez
#171 Christian Betancourt
#58 Curtis Granderson
#BP 79 Drew Granier
#BP 89 Michael Ratterree
#BP 97 Miller Diaz
#BP 103 Chris Kohler
#BP 51 Hunter Dozier
#BP 47 Alex Reyes
#BP 33 Devon Travis
#BP 24 Pierce Johnson
#179 Kevin Gausman - Green border parallel serial #'d 140/150
#BM-MT 3 Alex Meyer - Bowman mini
#BCP 87 Franklin Barreto - Chrome
#BCP 106 Alexander Guerrero - Chrome
#BCP 99 Kenny Giles - Chrome
#BCP 93 Yency Almonte - Chrome
#BCP 40 Logan Vick - Chrome
#BCP 34 Cesar Puello - Chrome
#77 Carlos Beltran
#185 Marco Scutaro
#207 Hyun-Jin Ryu
#51 C.C. Sabathia
#73 Tim Lincecum
#46 Francisco Liriano
#72 Anthony Rizzo
#92 Jed Lowrie

Thursday, May 08, 2014

2014 Topps Heritage retail blister recap

I picked up a three pack blister for $9.49 at Target - I like how the cards look, though I fancy myself more of a poor man's prospector looking for random 'first year' guys on cardboard as opposed to established major leaguers I've seen on cards for a number of years.

I don't think these blisters are harder to find than any other 'pack types,' though the lure of the black border parallel cards got me - once these blister packs are gone off the shelves, at least I can say I got one.

Black border pack
#447 Dustin Pedroia
#494 Carlos Gonzalez
#269 Albert Pujols

Pack one
#181 Nick Christiani / Tuffy Gosewisch - 2014 Rookie Stars
#204 Jonathan Papelbon
#15 Asdrubal Cabrera
#198 Eric Hosmer

#497 Curtis Granderson - SP
#63 Jacob Turner
#40 Carl Crawford
#206 John Lackey
#70 Paul Konerko

Pack two
#145 Edwin Encarnacion
#9 Max Scherzer / Bartolo Colon / Matt Moore / C.J. Wilson / Chris Tillman - 2013 AL Wins Leaders
#186 Jon Niese
#255 Darin Ruf
#489 Jean Segura - SP
#284 David Wright
#226 J.R. Murphy / Cesar Cabreal - 2014 Rookie Stars
#7 Anibal Sanchez / Bartolo Colon - 2013 AL ERA Leaders
#83 Justin Smoak

Pack three
#136 Jon Lester
#288 Jhonny Peralta
#305 Garrett Jones
#309 Brandon Barnes
#Topps 65MLB-JB 2 Johnny Bench - First Draft insert
#405 Danny Salazar
#66 Joe Maddon
#336 Andy Dirks
#38 Brett Lawrie 

Brooks Raley - latest Angels AAA fodder

I've found these three cards in my Chicago Cubs team box - the Angels just picked him up on waivers from the Minnesota Twins who picked him up [on waivers from the Cubs in February].

The 25-year old may not ever reach Anaheim, but with the Angels pitching up-and-down - Raley may get an opportunity to get back to the major leagues as a Halo at some point this season.

Wednesday, May 07, 2014

2014 Bowman blaster recap #2

Pack one
#112 Allen Craig
#179 Kevin Gausman
#BP 20 Leonardo Molina
#BP 8 Ryan Eades
#BTP-88 Jackie Bradley Jr. - Bowman 100 insert
#BCP 79 Drew Granier - Chrome
#BCP 89 Michael Ratterree - Chrome
#103 Hisashi Iwakuma
#125 Miguel Bautista
#60 Anibal Sanchez

Pack two 
#201 Matt Kemp
#138 Wade Miley
#160 Jason Kipnis
#BP 15 Edwin Diaz
#BP 24 Pierce Johnson
#BCP 97 Miller Diaz - Chrome
#BCP 103 Chris Kohler - Chrome
#82 Hunter Pence
#107 Robinson Cano
#217 Enny Romero

Pack three
#53 Edwin Encarnacion
#75 Hanley Ramirez
#BP 16 Dylan Floro
#BP 109 Mookie Betts
#BP 70 Yimi Garcia - International parallel
#BCP 51 Hunter Dozier - Chrome
#BCP 47 Alex Reyes - Chrome
#152 Kris Medlen
#42 Kolten Wong
#110 Manny Machado

Pack four
#192 Tim Hudson
#122 Michael Cuddyer
#146 Justin Verlander
#BP 86 Victor Payano
#BP 83 Jason Rogers
#BCP 72 Matthew Bowman - Chrome Blue refractor serial #'d 025/250
#BCP 33 Devon Travis - Chrome
#220 Onelki Garcia
#96 Anthony Rendon
#118 Koji Uehara

Pack five
#168 Mike Trout
#100 Clayton Kershaw
#BP 105 Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez
#BP 3 Jacob May
#108 Alex Cobb - Blue border parallel serial #'d 495/500; UER, image is probably Jake McGee
#BCP 24 Pierce Johnson - Chrome
#BCP 16 Dylan Floro - Chrome
#94 Max Scherzer
#116 Billy Butler
#49 Josh Reddick

Pack six
#214 Yasiel Puig
#194 Tyler Skaggs
#BP 10 Zach Borenstein
#BP 70 Yimi Garcia
#13 Evan Gattis - State parallel
#BCP 7 Devin Williams - Chrome
#BCP 41 Gus Schlosser - Chrome
#71 Kendrys Morales
#135 Michael Wacha
#157 Brad Ziegler

Pack seven
#174 Michael Choice
#66 Dustin Pedroia
#BP 42 Levon Washington
#BP 44 Tim Cooney
#BM-SM 2 D.J. Peterson - Bowman mini Purple refractor serial #'d 20/99
#BCP 36 Daniel Robertson - Chrome
#BCP 44 Tim Cooney - Chrome
#91 Jeff Samardzija
#113 Joe Kelly
#177 Adam Jones

Pack eight
#176 Jose Ramirez
#90 Jose Reyes
#BP 56 Gosuke Katoh
#BP 1 Jason Hursh
#BM-DT 3 Jonathon Crawford - Bowman mini
#BCP 56 Gosuke Katoh - Chrome
#BCP 70 Yimi Garcia - Chrome
#199 Fernando Rodney
#188 Eric Hosmer
#210 Jacoby Ellsbury

Tuesday, May 06, 2014

2014 Bowman blaster recap #1

I picked up a couple of blasters so I could see what 2014 Bowman looks like - I'm kind of conflicted because for the $40 and tax I spent at a Target, I could have gotten a complete set [even though they aren't worth much, cards Kris Bryant, Jose Abreu and Masahiro Tanaka are in the base sets].

I don't want to miss out on first-year type guys who maybe appearing on their first Bowman card even though I don't tend to focus on grabbing players' cards - especially if the players' cards are there to fill out a checklist and if I'm not going to see the players immediately to get any random cards inked up in-person.

On the other hand, strictly picking up a hand collated set seems so boring at times - I'd still have to sort them out all the base cards, but the lure of pulling assorted inserts / parallels that may turn out to be decent hits are taken out of the equation.

Pack one
#66 Dustin Pedroia
#176 Jose Ramirez
#BP 52 Hunter Renfroe
#BP 45 Michael Feliz
#BTP-29 Maikel Franco - Bowman 100 insert
#BCP-10 Zach Borenstein - Chrome
#BCP-3 Jacob May - Chrome
#51 C.C. Sabathia
#73 Tim Lincecum
#46 Francisco Liriano

Pack two
#90 Jose Reyes
#112 Allen Craig
#179 Kevin Gausman
#BP 32 Lewis Thorpe
#BP 27 Raimel Tapia
#BCP 48 Trevor Gretzky - Chrome
#BCP 92 Nelson Rodriguez - Chrome
#72 Anthony Rizzo
#92 Jed Lowrie
#114 Joey Votto

Pack three
#201 Matt Kemp
#138 Wade Miley
#BP 18 Luke Jackson
#BP 9 Eric Jagielo
#BP 66 Ben Lively - State parallel
#BCP 82 Kendry Flores - Chrome
#BCP 67 Anthony Santander - Chrome
#134 Yadier Molina
#156 Nick Swisher
#133 Homer Bailey

Pack four
#160 Jason Kipnis
#53 Edwin Encarnacion
#75 Hanley Ramirez
#BP 4 Rosell Herrera
#BP 59 Tucker Neuhaus
#BCP 61 Ryon Healy - Chrome
#BCP 53 Ryder Jones - Chrome
#155 A.J. Burnett
#144 Elvis Andrus
#166 Matt Carpenter

Pack five
#192 Tim Hudson
#122 Michael Cuddyer
#BP 68 Melvin Mercedes
#BP 76 Gabriel Ynoa
#PA-SP Shawn Pleffner - Prospect autograph serial #'d 385/500; it's always a moral victory when I pull a certified autograph, regardless of who it is.
#BCP-85 Nomar Mazara - Chrome
#BCP-98 Akeel Morris - Chrome
#102 Felix Hernandez
#124 Mike Napoli
#16 Starlin Castro

Pack six
#146 Justin Verlander
#168 Mike Trout
#BP 88 Santiago Nessy
#BP 95 Pat Stover
#179 Kevin Gausman - State parallel
#BCP-108 Tyler Marlette - Chrome
#BCP-8 Ryan Eades - Chrome
#38 Torii Hunter
#200 Bryce Harper
#172 J.R. Murphy

Pack seven
#149 Asdrubal Cabrera
#39 Andrew Lambo
#BP 90 Manuel Margot
#BP 96 Wuilmer Becerra
#BP 60 Dillon Overton - Blue border parallel serial #'d 143/500
#BCP 93 Yency Almonte - Chrome
#BCP 40 Logan Vick - Chrome
#154 Martin Prado
#44 Abraham Almonte
#55 Ian Desmond

Pack eight
#64 Yovani Gallardo
#174 Michael Choice
#BP 102 Steven Ramos
#BP 110 Joe Wendle
#BM-SM 5 Chris Taylor - Bowman Mini
#BCP 34 Cesar Puello - Chrome
#BCP 26 Micah Johnson - Chrome
#77 Carlos Beltran
#185 Marco Scutaro - pictures Gregor Blanco / UER
#207 Hyun-Jin Ryu

Ted Bundy?

A 'part time' coach / special assistant on the Texas Rangers was signing autographs recently and a yahoo out of nowhere - was wondering why people were trying to get this guy's autograph.

"Are you famous or something," the guy asked in a clueless sort of way.

It's funny how 15-20 people [including myself] clamored to get autographs from this particular coach - yet an average Joe at the ballpark may not be so inclined to pay attention to the players or coaches, particularly out of uniform.

It probably makes me feel like the weirdo for trying to track down these random professional baseball players for their autographs - spending way too much time trying to track down scribbles.

"Yeah, I'm Ted Bundy," the former player said.

We're talking about referencing a serial killer, but the response the former player made got a few chuckles [even if people weren't actually sure why] - it came out of nowhere and I think it showed how the former player was having fun; hopefully the random yahoo got a clue, but as long as the subject kept signing, so be it.

Saturday, May 03, 2014

My new hobby coming soon - basket weaving

Out of the bad things that can happen when out at the ballpark trying to get autographs, I lost my book with my visiting players' cards inside - I guess I’m not cut out to graph in-person and with my up-and-down interest baseball cards, I might be doing something else.

I don't even know where I lost it, all I knew is after a game I realized I didn't have the book - it could have ended up in anybody's hands and I'm kind of bummed out about it.

I probably have enough extras to have something to get signed, though I’ve lost some set cards and other cards that may have been priorities - it’s an eye opener because I tend to be on auto pilot [when it comes to graphing in-person] and when I make a rookie mistake, I’m reminded I’m not so flipping perfect, things aren’t so seamless and I really have to be focused.

I go through a mental checklist since I’ve messed up and lost my autograph book before - though 'it' happens, I try to keep things simple beforehand and alert to make sure I don’t leave things behind.

I try not to run around like an airhead when I’m graphing, so I try to exercise some 'quality control,' even if it seems all kind of random and unorganized - making sure I’m not getting a bunch of imperfect autographs [streaking, beading, etc] by using crappy pens, making sure the autograph is dry on the cards and making sure signed cards are tucked away from cards I’m still trying to get inked up.

It’s kind of ironic, this latest mess up comes at a time, when I’m trying to bring less cards - maybe the good thing is that I had whatever signed cards I had put away in my binder for the home team and in the plastic box I was carrying around in my tote bag.

I have to ‘rebuild’ what I lost, but I think I can basically account for many of the cards - most of the unsigned cards lost are feature players that either are tough or won’t sign; if the players had signed those cards already, maybe I wouldn’t have to worry about lugging those pieces of cardboard I lost.

Thursday, May 01, 2014

Went to a game, picked up a baseball

I went to an Angels game on Tuesday and spotted a coach tossing a stray baseball that was 'lost' in the camera well to a fan before the start of the visiting team's batting practice - I don't care about baseballs as much as I do about autographs, just because the on game used balls given to fans tend to be 'beaters.'

When the coach was walking down the right field line with another ball, I finally realized he was Cleveland Indians pitching coach and former Angel Mickey Callaway - I called out to him and he actually tossed me the ball, which bounced towards me, but landed in an exclusive section of seats 'on the field.'

I had to get the attention of a woman - so she could come over and pick up the ball for me.

"He's got butterfingers," quipped the father of a collecting acquaintance.

The ball turned out to be clean and almost looked like it was something I'd just purchased brand new - I'm probably going to get the ball autographed at some point, I just have to stumble upon a favorable opportunity and maybe the right player.