Saturday Night With The Naturals and My Boy

Despite a moderately windy evening, my boy and I decided to take in our first Naturals game of the season Saturday night.  I was a little surprised by his insistence on going, since he's not a much of baseball fan.   I suspected he just wanted to go because he wanted ice cream, so I told him if we stayed in, I would just take him to Orange Leaf and he could get as much ice cream he wanted.

"I want to go to the game so I can learn to play better by watching the Naturals."  That was a direct quote.  This is his second year of playing organized baseball, and his reasoning was very mature and compelling...  and it was a total con job and the lovely wife and I knew it the moment that lie oozed out of his little lying mouth.  He wanted snacks, he wanted to play on the giant inflatable slide and he wanted an excuse to stay up past his bedtime.  And I was thrilled to give him all of that, even though he didn't want to admit that was what he was after.  We packed up and headed for the park. 

Sure enough, before we even found our seats he asked for a hot dog.  Before the first pitch, the hot dog was gone and he wanted ice cream.  Before the bottom of the first inning, the ice cream was gone and he wanted some popcorn and his notebook and crayons. Do I know my son, or do I know my son?  

I have to give him credit though, about the 4th inning, he put his notebook down and decided to watch a little.  I wish my phone took better pictures, because this scene is priceless to me:

(An aside-  behind home plate there is a section of picnic tables that is typically reserved for big group parties.  If the section does not get reserved, they open it to anyone who wants to sit there.  They are fantastic seats and perfect if you have kids.)


Anyway, the game was fun, with the Naturals (Royals) taking on The Corpus Christie Hooks (Astros).  There was a pretty good lot of prospects playing that night:

Wil Myers was the highest rated prospect on the field, and it showed.  He smashed a 3 run homer in the first and added a couple of singles and a double and had a 5 RBI night.   I suspect he will be up to AAA by mid season and gearing to go to KC for 2013.   Carlo Testa and Christian Colon both homered as well.  I don't know much about Testa, but he looked pretty good.

Two of the Astros top prospects were playing as well.  Jonathan Singleton didn't do much (he came to the Astros in the Hunter Pence trade and is considered the Astros top prospect), but Jonathan Villar had a nice single and stolen base. 

That was a great way to kick off the season, and I can't wait for more!

Writing It In At Cleve's

My little boy's second season of baseball has gotten underway lately, and practices and games are Tuesday's and Thursdays.  Which mean, unless there is a rain out on a Tuesday, personal appearances at Cleve's auctions will be delayed a few months.  That's no big deal, as I get infinitely more enjoyment out of watching a bunch of 6 year old kids having fun playing baseball.  Besides, I can always write in my bids.  That certainly is not ideal, since you are basically starting the bidding at the highest price you are willing to pay.  When you are there in person, you might be able to get it for less than you set out as a maximum. 

This week I had several write in bids, and came away with 4 wins.  No vintage this week.  In fact, everything I won was 2011/2012 gimmick cards.  But they are very cool gimmick cards:

I'm not sure what the general opinion is on these World Series Pins, but I think they are incredible.  I'm not a big Reggie Jackson fan, but I was very happy to get this card for $6.  Had I been at the auction, I might have got it for less, but oh well.

I'm also a big fan of these di-cut cards from the Topps Diamond Giveaway site.  I am a fan of Bob Gibson too, so I was thrilled to get this for $4.  I was a little surprised to get it at this price, since NW Arkansas is mostly Cardinals country.

I like these fake leather nameplate cards.  I don't think many agree with that sentiment though.  I got the Ozzie for $5 and the Sandberg for $4.    From a cost standpoint, probably not the best bargains around, but still pretty dang good.

Grades:

2012 Topps Reggie Jackson World Series Pin  $6:  A-   I could flip this and double my money now, but I really like this card, so I'll probably keep it.

2011 Di-Cut Bob Gibson $4:  A  These cards are some of my favorites from 2011, and Bob Gibson is the boss.

2011 Leather Nameplate Ozzie Smith #99 $5:  B+  

2011 Leather Nameplate Ryne Sandberg $4: B-  I didn't need this and am ambivalent about Sandberg.  But it's a cool card nonetheless. 

Not sure if any of this is for trade.  The Gibson is not, and the Jackson would take some persuasion, but the Smith and Sandberg probably are.

Contest Winnings From Play at the Plate

Not only does Brian from the HOF level blog "Play at the Plate" have exquisite tastes in favorite teams, he is a very generous contest generator.  I was the lucky winner of a recent contest, (1 in 72 odds of winning- how about that!) and my prize came in the mail this week.  I had no idea what I won, and I was thrilled when I opened the padded envelope:

First was this very cool Ian Kinsler relic card that I did not yet have:

 I've seen this card before online and have been tempted to get it, but now I don't have to.  He also sent a very cool T205 mini of Ichiro that I thought I scanned but I guess I didn't.

As if that wasn't enough, he also sent a rack pack of 2012 Heritage!  Here were my favorite cards in the pack:

I'm most excited about the Perez card, simply because I saw him play a lot last year here in NW Arkansas.  This is my first card of him.  The Wash card is awesome and I'm tempted to try to get it auto'd TTM.

Thanks for the generous prize Brian, enjoy your time off, and go Rangers!

There's A New Blogger In Town

And I just made a trade with him.  Adam Smith, of ARPSmith's Sportscard Obsession now has the Napkin Doon Seal of Approval, the lucky bastard.  He wanted a Willie Mays chrome card I got in a value box, and sent me a whole bunch of 2011 Bowman I needed in return:

 Two more down on my Bowman's Brightest list!

 This was the last Chrome Prospect I needed.  I guess you could say I've been playing "Where's Oswaldo?"  HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH.  But seriously folks, this part of the master set is now 100% done.

Adam also sent a bunch of the non-chrome prospects cards, and now I only need 9 more.  Thanks for the help Adam!

Go check out Adam's new blog, ARPSmith's Sportscard Obsession.  I am a little surprised he doesn't post more about his famous book on economics, but he's probably trying to show there is more to him than that.

Baseball Card Sausage

As a steak and potatoes Caucasian,  let me tell you one of the many bonus features of marrying into an Asian family is partaking in the cuisine.  I'm not talking about Benny Hanna/ Panda Express fare you get at the mall.  I'm talking about the stuff that the lovely wife's family serves up that is authentic comfort food from their homeland.  I fancy myself a fairly adventurous eater, and am usually up for what the in-laws are serving when we visit.   We went down for Easter Sunday.  As an appetizer (to some incredible grilled meat) they offered up a plate of this:

Yummy

The terrifying image above is an Asian sausage (already cooked)  involving a lot of different parts of a lot of different animals.  And guess what?  I tried it.  And guess what?  I liked it.  And guess what?  I ate a bunch of it.   The lovely wife is pretty grossed out by this stuff (she is by no means an adventurous eater) and for some reason kept at arm's length from me all weekend after watching me shovel this delicacy down.

Not only did I enjoy eating it, I was inspired by it.  If you can take all of the unwanted parts of dead animals and make something delicious out of it, why can't you do the same for baseball cards?  Naturally, I decided to make my own baseball card sausage. 

This was not as easy as I thought it would be.  I couldn't quite get the idea fully baked in my head.    I narrowed my initial project down to a player who is kind of a sausage/meathead himself:  Jose Canseco.  

Like many of my blog ideas, I quickly realized this was pretty stupid.  However, after going to all the trouble of gluing this mess together, I couldn't bring myself to scrap this post.  

They say that the process of making sausage is something you don't want to see.  Same for the process of me cutting up my junk cards.  Here are the remnants:

It was actually I little liberating, taking scissors to some of my unwanted cards.  I may try to come up with some other uses for them. Or I may try my hand at baseball card sausage one more time. 

Stealing From The Topps Museum

I think this is a steal at least:

I got this Topps Museum relic of Torii Hunter off eBay for about $5 shipped.  It’s a huge jersey swatch and numbered to 10.    I’ve seen this exact sames card with print runs of 35 and 50 go for more, so I guess that’s good for me.  Frankly, the multiple print runs of the same card befuddles me a little.  The differences in the runs on this particular card are pretty subtle.  I think the frames around the swatch are different colors and that's about it.   Seems kind of silly to me.  Whatever, I’m just happy to have this!

Trade With The Dime Box Master

Nick from the prolific blog “Dime Boxes- the Low End Baseball Card Collector’s Journey” will heretofore have his blog referred to as the “Dime Box Master” for short on this post.  Or I guess I could just say "Nick's Blog" for shorter.  Or "Nick's" for shortest.

Anyway, I completed my first trade with him recently, and was able to help knock out some of his Heritage needs.  I was certainly happy with what he sent in return.  The best card wasn’t even one that I was expecting.  I was expecting this Nelson Cruz sticker:

Poor Nelson Cruz.  He will have that misplay of what should have been the final out in the World Series follow him the rest of his career.   If life were fair, people would also remember the walk off grand slam he hit against the Tigers in the LCS.  But life isn’t fair I guess.  I’m still a fan though, and I still remember the LCS grand slam, and my guess is that he will be just fine this year.

Nick also sent a nice group of other players I collect.

 

But the best part was this:

A 1984 Fleer Darryl Strawberry rookie.  I would ask if he found this in a dime box, but I probably don't want to know the answer.  About 20 years ago, I would have gone to great lengths to get this card.  I still love it, and as an unexpected add-in to the trade, it’s an incredible bonus!  That would have been worth the trade on its own.  Very excited about this, and I’m very appreciative of the Dime Box Master.    Keep up the great work on your blog Nick. 

But, I still can’t believe you passed on that 1971 rookie Concepcion for a dime.  That pains me every time I think about it.

Falling In Like With Adrian Beltre

Yes, "like" not "love".  Let's not get carried away.

But I am in "love" with this Tribute card I got this week.

I really had no opinion on Adrian Beltre before he joined the Rangers.  I thought he was a good player, and found it interesting that he didn't like people touching his head.  The lovely wife is the same way, so I don't find that all that odd.

Then the Rangers signed him last year and I was able to watch him play every day.  I've come to realize and appreciate not only how good he is, but how hard he plays every day.  His defense is downright sultry and his hitting is superb, and he by all accounts is a respected leader in the clubhouse.  One of the Rangers said the other day that ," Adrian doesn't come out every game to play, he comes out every day to beat the other team."    

Alright, alright... it's "love."

Opening Day....

was yesterday! And the day before yesterday!  And a week ago!  But, you know me, I like to go against the grain and rebel against society, so I'm posting my obligatory opening day post today.  You know, when the topic is no longer relevant.

From a sports perspective, yesterday was a mixed bag for me.  On the positive side, the Rangers looked strong, getting a solid win against the White Sox with very good starting pitching, filthy relief pitching and a few timely hits, including a home run from Ian Kinsler. 

 Speaking of the Rangers- I got these Tribute cards this week.

Things are not so rosy in Razorback-land though.  The Diamond Hogs lost their 4th straight game and are officially in a slump.  I don't even want to get into the Bobby Petrino mess, other than to say I don't see how the U of A doesn't fire him.  They really have no choice.  Again, I don't want to get into it because it aggravates me too much and it's no fun to write about.

But back to baseball and opening day.  Here is a look into the Napkin Doon crystal ball:

NL East:  Braves
NL Central: Cardinals
NL West: Diamondbacks
NL WCards: Marlins and Giants

Oh, and here are some other Tribute cards I got along with the Rangers above.  They are lovely.

AL East: Yankees
AL Central: Tigers
AL West:  I decline to pick this division.  Not because I'm superstitious, but because I feel that my making a prediction will have a direct impact on how the season plays out.  

AL WCards:  Rays and a respectful decline to answer on the 2nd team since they may or may not come out of the AL West.

World Series:  Marlins vs. an AL Team from the Western Division who shall remain nameless but have been to the World Series a lot lately.

Trade With Pirates Treasure Room

A while back, Brian from the beautiful looking blog Pirates Treasure Room offered up a 2012 Topps SP of Eric Hosmer that I thought would be cool to have, so I claimed it.  I sent him a package of Pirates and he sent me a round-up of Rangers.  I was more than thrilled with my end of the deal.  First, the Hosmer card that started it all:

Here is the standard Hosmer 2012 card, next to the "Gatorade Bath" SP variation.  I've never been lucky enough to hit one of these SPs, so I'm glad to finally get one.  Brian sent a lot more than that though:

All three of these Kinslers would have been enough to trade for on their own.  They all came as part of the trade!  The blue tribute card is very, very shiny.

There were a whole bunch of other Rangers too.  I picked a few of my favorites to show. 

Thanks for the trade Brian, I appreciate it!

Value Boxes Called Me Back

I mentioned last week that Value Boxes were back in stores, and while I liked them ok, I was likely not going to buy anymore.  That vow didn't last long.  Here is what I got in the second value box I bought.

This Griffey chrome card was by far the coolest thing in the box.  I only got one code card, and once again, I just came away with a stupid virtual coin.

The two Heritage hobby packs gave me a couple of cards I liked, but nothing huge.

Same for the 5 Topps flagship packs.

Everything is for trade, but that Griffey will be hard to part with even though I'm sure I could pick it up cheap off eBay.

Card Show Finds Part 2

Yesterday, I covered the cheap vintage stuff I picked up at the local card show this past weekend.  Today I'll quickly cover the modern stuff.

 I got this Larry Walker card for $.50.  It has a little patch of "netting" in it that I thought was pretty cool.  It reminded me of an incredible Tony Gwynn card I got in a trade from "This Card Is Cool.." a while back.

 As great as dime boxes are, nickel boxes are fun too, especially when you find cool cards like these from the Fleer "Greats of the Game" set.  I got about 12, but I should have just grabbed them all (there were about 30) at $.05 each.

These tri-fold T205 cards were $.05 each as well, so I grabbed what I could.  This is about the time my daughter spotted the car rides and started getting jittery.

I managed to shuffle through the boxes a little longer and found a few misc things I didn't need but liked:

The 3D slugger and Eddie Mathews Chrome card were $.25 each and the tiny Cracker Jack and Reggie Jackson mini were dime box finds.

Card Show Finds Part 1

I've mentioned the puny card show that is held in NW Arkansas monthly before.  Sometimes I find some good stuff, most times I don't.  The show is either Fayetteville or Rogers (about 30 miles apart) and the shows in Fayetteville are usually better, but the show in Rogers is closer to my home.  The show this weekend was in Rogers.  Here is the show in all of its glory:

This poor little mall is not exactly a happening place. You can't see it but I took this picture standing in a little kids area with 4 of those $.50 car rides that go up and down for about 2 minutes.  I had my two year old daughter with me.  Guess where we spent most of our time that Saturday morning?

To be fair, she was pretty patient while I looked over some of the tables.  The lovely wife was smart enough to send some fruit snacks with me and that kept her content while a browsed.  And, I'm happy to say that I found a few goodies.

First, some cheap vintage for my sampler album:

 All of these came out of $.10, $.20 and $.50 boxes.  Actually, only the 1975 Killebrew and Madlock were $.50 the rest were $.10 and $.20, so I was pretty pleased with this haul.

Here are a few other dime box finds I was proud of:

 That's not a mistake.  The Gil Hodges 1967 Card was in a dime box.  There is a little smudge on the top corner, but otherwise the card is in great shape.  I think I might be able to scrape off the smudge too.

And finally, I found this in a dollar box, but the seller gave me half off without asking and I got this 1959 Larry Doby for $.50:

Overall, I spent about $7 total, which ain't too shabby.  I spent almost that much on my daughter's kiddie rides.   I'll show the modern cards I got tomorrow.

A Long Time Ago...

A very nice fellow, Jeff,  from the fantastic, witty, and  well written blog Cardboard Catastrophes sent my little boy a package out of the blue.  As much as I enjoy getting yellow mailers for myself, it was pretty fun seeing a package addressed to "Doon Son" and seeing my little boy get excited when he found out is was for him and got past the confusion of seeing "Doon Son" on the mailer. 

Inside was a generous helping of vintage Star Wars cards that completely delighted my boy:

 The Tusken Raider card is his favorite (mine too).

I actually am embarrassed that I'm just now posting about it since Jeff sent it a few months ago.  This was a totally unexpected and terrific surprise from him, and further evidence of the type of person he is.  Thanks Jeff!

It's Time For A Change

I've done a lot of soul searching since the Ranger's heartbreaking loss in the World Series last fall.  For months I've lived with the agony of that defeat and I just can't seem to get over it.  One thing that keeps re-opening the wound is the hobby that I've loved for so long now.  It seems like every pack I open is a reminder of that horrible loss last October. 

It's taken me a while to come to the conclusion that I just can't collect baseball cards any more, and I sure can't blog about baseball cards anymore.  I still need an outlet for my collecting/hoarding tendencies though, so I've been seeking a worthy substitute.  The other day I had my two year old with me on the card aisle and together, we found something that will now be my collecting focus:

Yes, Yo Gabba Gabba cards are my collecting focus and now will be the center of my blogging point of view!

Yo Gabba Gabba (from here on referred to as YGG cards) are available at Walmart as rack packs for $4.98.  I will need to look into this further and see if Hobby Boxes are also available.  We brought our first rack pack this weekend and opened it up.  We were both thrilled to see our favorite character, Brobee, leading off the pack.  "There he is!" my daughter squealed when his card appeared.  I'm more of a fan of Plex the robot, but Brobee is pretty dope too.  This is going to be an incredibly fun ride, and I'm glad to be done with baseball cards.  In fact, I already loaded up my truck with my entire baseball card collection and made a much appreciated donation to the local Goodwill.

Of course, I would like to add:  "April Fool's" to this post.  You should have seen the looks on your faces!  I really had you going.  Suckers.

I did buy one of these ridiculous rack packs for my daughter, and she seemed to enjoy opening it, and she really was thrilled to see Brobee, of whom she has a stuffed... animal? or whatever the hell he is.

I'm actually a little concerned about Brobee.  As I was scanning these cards, I took a few minutes to actually pay attention to the content.  Check this card out:

Is it just me, or is Brobee imagining a monkey taking a dump in the grass and stating it's his favorite color?  It looks like the monkey had some stomach problems too based on what he left in the grass.

Yes, Brobee, I knew the color you were thinking of was brown.  Your choice of objects to relay this statement was a little odd though.
Speaking of odd, how about this sad sack of a character:

This guy doesn't look well at all.  I also noticed that he is not apart of any of the group pics from the rest of the pack (see the above scan).  I wonder why:

Poor Gooble.  The card explains, "He is always crying for some reason or another..." and asks, "Why do you think he's so sad?"  I think I know.

He hasn't got over the World Series yet either.

Topps Value Packs Are Back In Stores

I had some good luck with “value packs” last year, so I was  happy to see them make a return for 2012.   This year’s value pack is basically the same as the first value pack that came out last year:  5 packs of Topps Flagship, 2 Hobby Packs of Heritage, a code card and a special chrome card (either Willie Mays, Ken Griffey Jr. or Mickey Mantle).  I saw some today at my local Walmart and couldn’t help myself, even though I’m not especially interested in building either set.    He are the highlights:

 I love this Hamilton card, and I'm glad to get the gold sparkle parallel.

 Nothing too interesting.  The Golden Moments set is sort of interesting to me.

Here was the Chrome card- Willie Mays

Other than these two cards, my Heritage packs didn't provide squat.  The Vogelsong is the Chrome parallel.

So, nothing earth shattering.  I got 2 total code cards which yielded 2 ridiculous coins.  I’m really due for a big hit in wax.  I’m also due for a Die-Cut card from the code redemption program.  I am 0-9 so far this year, with only a bunch of fictional worthless coins to show for my efforts.

Everything is for trade except the Hamilton Gold parallel.