TCDB Trade Recap: Cards From Bonney Lake, WA

I recently completed a trade with a brand new father and TCDB member named Chris. I'm only going to show you half of the trade though. Why? Because the other half will show up on next month's Time Travel Trading update! (Spoiler Alert: That post is going to be huge!) What I am going to show you is an ennead of Red Sox cards.

 

 

I stopped collecting around my senior year of high school (1993). As such, I have a bit of a gap when it comes to Red Sox cards from that decade. This helps close that gap a little.

 

Favorite Card: Nate Minchey's high leg kick get the nod today!

Thanks for the trade Chris!

Repack Haiku #193 (Tom Candiotti)

Played as Hoyt Wilhelm

In the movie  "61*"

Hall of Fame bowler

1990 Bowman #324 Tom Candiotti

Who else but another knuckler could play Hall of Famer Hoyt Wilhelm? Candiotti was also inducted into the celebrity bowler wing of the International Bowling Hall Of Fame in 2007.

TCDB Trade Recap: Cards From Niantic, CT

Today's trade comes from TCDB member Kevin. Thanks to him, I was able to send off some some unwanted extra cards and get some new Red Sox in my collection!

 

Favorite Card: None of these really stand out, so I'll go with Brunansky's outfield throw.

 

Thanks for the trade Kevin!

First Impressions: 2021 Topps

It's official - I'm old. At least that's the impression Topps seems to be giving me. I was fortunate enough to find the latest offering from Topps, and my real first impression was I might need bifocals. Let look at a pack, shall we?

#5 Julio Urias

 

 

The honor of the first card goes to Mr. Urias. As far as the design goes, I really like the 70th Anniversary stamp, and the parallelograms aren't nearly as obnoxious as I first thought they would be. But Dear Lord those names are insanely hard to read! It's bad enough that they're so small, but slanted too! This really bothers me, and torpedoes any positives I have to say about the look. 

 

#11 Max Kepler

#186 Luke Voit

#268 Johnny Cueto

#67 Clayton Kershaw

#231 Dane Dunning (RC)

 

 

Let's look at the back. Or I guess I should say, let's squint at the back.The use of the parallelograms behind the team logo is better utilized than they are on the front. Other than that, it's a standard Topps back. I'm sure there is something interesting written on this card, but I can't find my magnifying glass.

 

#270 Mitch White (RC)

#249 Trent Grisham (FS)

#182 Eduardo Rodriguez

 

 

At least I got a Red Sox card for my troubles! I find it amusing that Topps chose to omit 2020 from his statistics. Rodriguez didn't pitch at all last year due to Covid related heart issues, so hopefully he will  be good and healthy for the upcoming season!

#233 Dansby Swanson

#T52-2 Miguel Cabrera (1952 Topps Redux insert)

 

 

In a completely new and innovative concept, Topps is  making an insert set based off of the classic 1952 set design! I will say I prefer this than last year's Turkey Red set, but I am curious why Topps wouldn't celebrate their 70th Anniversary with the 1951 red and blue backed cards.

#25 Sixto Sanchez (RC)

#271 Luis Castillo

#241 Anthony Rizzo

#22 Pedro Severino

#9 Max Fried

I'll be honest, if the world was normal and cards were plentiful at our retail outlets, I would probably skip buying any more of this set and just hold off until Heritage comes out. As it were, this will likely be my only choice for awhile should I have "The Itch" so maybe a few more packs may be forthcoming.

Repack Haiku #192 (Rick Cerone)

The starting catcher

For very first Blue Jays game

Then replaced Munson 

1987 Topps Traded #21T Rick Cerone

 

Rick Cerone only spent three seasons with Toronto, but history bookended his stay there. He was traded to the expansion Blue Jays in December 1976, where he became the starting catcher of their inaugural game in 1977. Then, after the 1979 season, he was traded to the Yankees months after the tragic death of their captain Thurman Munson.

Time Travel Trading Update #50

This month marks the 3rd anniversary of the Time Travel Trading Project. It started out with a single pack of 2018 Topps, and every February I've added a pack of the Topps base set as a way to inject a little life into the project and get some more traders. I was genuinely concerned I might not be able to do that this year. Stock of baseball cards at my local Wally World has been barren, and the handful of trips I made to Target have been fruitless as well. Fortunately, I was able to buy some this past Friday, so look for some new cards next month!

Even it I wasn't able to find Topps 2021, It would not have been the end of the world. The Time Travel Trading stack is huge, and it sees a regular turnover of cards. This past month has been no different, with lots of new cards coming in. Let's see what goodies I have for you today!

 

I've already told you about a TCDB trade I made with a trader named Brad. I had sent him some eighties goodies in exchange for a 6-pack of 1981 Topps, all of which I needed for my almost complete set. I took those cards and swapped them out with some extras from my personal collection:

 

I tried to pick a few cards that might interest people - a couple of All-Stars, a postseason card, even a card that made Nite Owl's list of the greatest cards from the 80's!

Our second trade appeared magically! Well, maybe not magically, but it did arrive out of the pure kindness of the USPS:

 

I have to say, that's a first! We were expecting this to bounce back to Bo (Baseball Cards Come To Life!) for some proper postage! Inside this stampless PWe was a trio of unique cards:

With this trade, I reached a couple of milestones. The 1953 Topps Irv Noren I sent Bo becomes the oldest card I've ever traded out. (Anyone want to try and beat that?). Plus the hockey card I received becomes the oldest sports card in the collection, with a couple of Church and Dwight birds being the only two that are older.

I do need to point out a a couple of things with these however. First of all, the hockey matchbook card is glued to some cardboard. I'm not sure if there is a relatively safe way to remove it, but I didn't want to try. Also that Ray Scarborough was subjected to one of the earliest attempts at an update series - someone glued a Tigers logo over the Yankee one in the corner! This makes this a rare and special card for someone's collection!

Finally, we have a sizable lot of cards courtesy of Brendan (The View From The Third Floor). He picked a few great cards, and sent me a nice selection in return:

Thanks for the trades Bo and Brendan! I've got a few more trades in the works, so stay tuned for even more cards in next month's post! As always, anything below is available for trade, all you have to do is give up an older card!

 

The Time Travel Trade Stack:

2018 Topps
#502 Xander Bogaerts

2017-1018 Pocket Schedule
Carolina Hurricanes

2017 Bowman
#12 Trea Turner

1998 Score
#68 Scott Rolen
#74 Mark McLemore

1994 Sportflics
#113 Pete Harnisch

1993 Leaf
#271 Jay Buhner

1993 Classic Draft Picks (basketball)
#33 Will Flemons
#67 Bennie Seltzer

1992 Fleer Ultra
#594 Dave Righetti

1991 Upper Deck
#778 Dave Righetti

1990 Fleer
#629 Jose Canseco (POD)

1990 Upper Deck
#626 Frank Viola

1990 Pro Set - Theme Art (football)
#10 Super Bowl X Pittsburgh Steelers / Dallas Cowboys

1989 Score
#495 Larry Parrish

1987 Donruss
#34 Terry Steinbach (RC, RR)

1987 Topps
#313 Roberto Clemente (TBTC)

1986 Topps
#5 Rose Special '75-'78
#6 Rose Special '79-'82
#401 Fernando Valenzuela (Turn Back The Clock)
#510 Wade Boggs

1986 Topps Major League Leaders Minis
#65 Tony Gwynn

1985 Topps
#694 Joe Carter

1983 Topps
#70 Steve Carlton

1982 Donruss
#NNO Checklist 545-653

1982 O-Pee-Chee E.T. The Extraterrestrial (non-sport)
#15 Among Elliott's Toys

1982 Topps
#3 Tim Raines (HL)
#34 Joe Sambito
#70 Tim Raines
#74 Bob Clark
#303 Bill Caudill
#399 Pat Zachry
#401 Johnny Bench (IA)
#462 Dave Chalk
#480 Steve Carlton
#651 Carl Yastrzemski (IA)
#754 Joe Morgan

1981 Donruss 
#374 John Candelaria
#383 Jose Cruz
#409 Carney Lansford
#420 Tommy Lasorda (MGR)
#421 Charlie Leibrandt (RC)
#427 Leon Durham (RC)
#496 Mickey Rivers
#531 Jerry Koosman
#565 Ken Landreaux

1981 Fleer
#27 Tim McCarver
#268 Rod Carew

1981 Topps
#82 Astros Future Stars (RC)
#98 Clint Hurdle
#121 Larry Harlow
#151 Claudell Washington
#182 Bob Grich
#194 Rod Scurry
#226 Manny Sanguillen
#250 Ron Guidry
#259 Mets Future Stars
#277 Alfredo Griffin (RC)
#350 J.R. Richard
#363 Geoff Zahn
#365 Graig Nettles
#402 NL Championships
#414 John Pacella
#450 Dave Kingman (AS)
#465 Bill Russell
#477 Luis Gomez
#494 Bob Walk
#530 Steve Garvey
#560 Joe Morgan
#569 Al Williams
#632 Alan Bannister
#650 Buccky Dent (AS)
#695 Kent Tekulve
#726 Rick Monday

1980 Topps
#29 Mark Wagner
#88 Ken Landreaux
#90 Manny Trillo
#143 Bruce Bochte
#145 Darrell Evans
#157 Willie Wilson
#325 Dan Driessen
#362 Danny Goodwin
#406 Paul Molitor
#572 Jerry Morales
#642 Ken Forsch
#655 Tug McGraw
#671 A's Future Stars

1979 Topps
#25 Steve Carlton
#130 Bob Watson
#214 Boston Red Sox (TC)
#388 Jack Billingham
#465 Reggie Smith

1978-79 Topps (basketball)
#37 Mike Gale
#46 John Shumate
#55 George Johnson
#62 Anthony Roberts
#66 Lonnie Shelton
#76 Brian Winters
#129 Ray Williams (RC)

1978 Topps
#148 Andre Thorton
#373 Jim Willoughby
#385 Tito Fuentes
#424 Boston Red Sox (TC)
#482 Rick Miller
#706 Rookie 1st Baseman (Cage/Cox/Putnam/Revering)

1976 Funky Sales Corp Funky Facts Baseball
#2 In A Trance
#3 Fans Vs Players
#5 Baseballeese

1976 Topps
#70 Roy Smalley/Roy Smalley Jr. (FS)
#196 1975 AL RBI Leaders (Scott/Mayberry/Lynn)

1975 Topps
#66 Willie Horton
#310 '74 Victory Leaders
#378 Derrel Thomas
#402 Bob Tolan

1974 Topps
#38 Don Kessinger
#67 Tommy Helms
#107 Alex Johnson
#141 Pat Bourque
#158 Jack Billingham
#158 Jack Billingham
#227 Mike Lum
#248 Tom Hull
#349 John Vukovich
#534 Eddie Watt
#572 Enzo Hernandez
#638 Ken Sanders
#660 Larry Dierker

1974 Topps - Team Checklists
#NNO Montreal Expos

1974 Topps - Traded
#270T Ron Santo
#458T Jim Ray
#496T Tom Murphy

1973-74 O-Pee-Chee (hockey)
#53 Richard Lemieux

1973 Topps
#102 Rudy May

#215 Dusty Baker

1972 Topps
#33 Billy Martin (MGR)
#43 Rick Wise
#163 Tug McGraw
#197 Johnny Briggs
#225 World Series Game 3 - Manny Sanguillen
#231 Casey Cox
#239 Tom Timmermann
#266 Bobby Bolin
#363 Ron Klimkowski
#373 John Mayberry
#438 Maury Wills (IA)

1971 Topps
#16 Ken Singleton (RC)
#63 AL 1970 RBI Leaders (Howard/Conigliaro/Powell)
#63 AL 1970 RBI Leaders (Howard/Conigliaro/Powell)
#69 AL 1970 Pitching Leaders (Cuellar/McNally/Perry)
#71 AL 1970 Strikeout Leaders (McDowell/Lolich/Johnson)
#80 Bill Melton
#90 Joe Pepitone
#95 Luis Tiant
#105 Tony Conigliaro
#123 2nd Series Checklist #133-263 (CL, VAR)
#146 Ralph Houk (MGR)
#195 AL Playoffs Game 1 - Powell Muscles Twins!
#208 Billy Martin (MGR)
#270 Rico Carty
#328 World Series Game 2 - Buford Goes 2-4 (WS)
#374 Clete Boyer
#374 Clete Boyer
#388 Al Oliver

1970 Brooke Bond North American Wildlife In Danger (non-sport)
#32 Polar Bear

1970 Topps
#16 Charlie Metro (MGR)
#18 Carlos May
#18 Carlos May 
#38 Mack Jones
#47 Bob Miller
#105 Tony Gonzalez
#115 Alex Johnson 
#206 Clete Boyer
#238 Jose Laboy (ASR)
#324 Tony Taylor 
#390 Willie Davis
#457 Rico Petrocelli (AS)

1969 Topps
#66 Orioles Rookies
#75 Luis Aparicio
#80 Norm Cash
#131 Chris Cannizarro
#139 Andy Kosco
#182 Bill Rigney (MGR)
#484 Joe Gordon (MGR)

1969 Topps - Deckle Edge
#13 Mel Stottlemyer

1968 Topps
#4 1967 AL RBI Leaders (Yastrzemski/Killebrew/Robinson)
#7 1967 NL ERA Leaders (Niekro/Bunning/Short)
#39 Cookie Rojas
#44 Frank Kostro
#46 Dave Ricketts
#53 Gene Alley
#90 Vada Pinson
#181 Jerry Zimmerman
#208 Willie Davis
#257 Phil Niekro
#260 Jim Wynn
#309 Ken Henderson
#320 Frank Howard
#348 Larry Colton/Dick Thoenen
#449 Gene Oliver
#519 Jerry Stephenson

1967 Topps
#1 The Champs (F. Robinson/Bauer/B. Robinson)
#60 Luis Aparicio
#348 Tug McGraw
#366 Andy Kosco

1966 Topps
#46 Howie Koplitz
#104 Alex Johnson
#154 Chuck Hiller
#575 Earl Wilson

1965 Topps
#17 Johnny Romano
#27 Dick Bertell
#86 Les Narum
#87 Nelson Mathews
#108 Don Mincher
#111 Lee Thomas
#178 Dalton Jones
#307 Barry Latman
#352 Alex Johnson (RC)

1965 Philadelphia (football)
#193 John Paluck

1964 Philadelphia (football)
#172 Ken Gray (RC)

1964 Topps
#18 Billy O'Dell
#45 Milt Pappas
#92 Steve Ridzik 
#95 George Altman
#341 Jim Roland

1964 Topps - Coins
#7 Frank Malzone

1963 Topps
#155 Bill Stafford

1961 Fleer Baseball Greats
#56 Dolf Luque

1961 Topps
#32 Ray Sadecki
#38 Bob Lillis
#83 Bob Bruce
#96 Billy O'Dell
#98 2nd Series Checklist 89-176 (CL, VAR)
#111 Jack Meyer
#114 Hobie Landrith
#258 Jack Sanford
#267 Norm Siebern
#399 Cliff Cook (RC)

1960 Topps
#289 Willie Jones

1959 Topps
#298 Tex Clevenger
#424 Ken Aspromonte
#424 Ken Aspromonte

1959 Topps (football)
#80 Joe Perry

1958 Topps
#273 Hal Smith

1958 Topps Zorro (non-sport)
#83 Rude Awakening

1957 Topps
#138 Minnie Minoso
#212 Rocky Colavito (RC)
#249 Dave Pope
#406 Bob Hale

1956 Topps
#80 Cincinati Redlegs (TC, VAR)
#103 Willie Miranda (white back)
#156 Johnny Antonelli
#211 Murray Dickson
#284 Ike Delock

1956 Topps Flags of the World (non-sport)
#70 Jordan

1955 Topps
#45 Hank Sauer

1954 Bowman
#73 Don Mueller

1954 Bowman Power For Peace (non-sport)
#91 USS Coral Sea (CVB43)

1953 Topps
#213 Ray Scarborough

1952 Bowman
#57 Clyde Vollmer

1938 Church & Dwight Useful Birds Of America Tenth Series (J9-6) (non-sport)
#2 Black-throated Green Warbler

1937-38  Diamond Matchbooks Tan 6 (hockey)
#NNO Glenn Brydson

1922 Church & Dwight Useful Birds Of America Third Series (J7) (non-sport)
#7 Prothonotary Warbler

1915 Church & Dwight Useful Birds Of America First Series(J5) (non-sport)
#1 Quail

The Time Travel Trading Project is simple in concept. I started out with a random pack of 2018 Topps Series 1 baseball cards. My aim was to trade every card in that pack for something older. Each card I receive in turn is then made available for trade, with the goal to get the oldest card I can get.

Number of trades completed: 81 (3 Pending!)
Unique trading partners: 43

Number of cards mailed out: 283
Year of oldest card mailed out: 1953

Number of cards received: 507
Year of oldest card received: 1915

Repack Haiku #191 (Eddie Murray)

In nineteen-ninety

Led Major Leagues in batting

But didn't lead league

 

1990 Fleer #404 Eddie Murray

 

Murray hit .330 for the Dodgers in 1990, losing the NL batting title to Willie McGee by .005 points. However, McGee was traded during the season to the American League, where he only hit .274 for Oakland. That dropped McGee season average to .324, but because he had enough plate appearances with the Cardinals, he took home the NL crown.

TCDB Trade Recap - Cards From North Fort Myers, FL

Time for another confession. This trade recap should technically go in the next Time Travel Trading post. Brad offered up some needs to my 1981 set collection in exchange for a few 1982 and 1983 cards in the stack. I couldn't say no...

 

 

With these 6 cards, I'm down to only 12 more cards until I complete the set. This year is the 40th anniversary of this set's release, and I think I have a realistic shot of having it completed before Opening Day!

Obviously, I'm not putting these in the Time Travel stack. Fortunately, I have a good selection of doubles from this very same set I can swap out. I'll show those off soon, I promise!

Favorite Card: Not much to choose from - lots of head shots. I have to go with the small battalion the Mets squeezed into their team photo.

Thanks for the trade, Brad!

Top 5 Tribute: Hank Aaron

This one hurts. Not that any of the others didn't, each spectacular life was one worth celebrating. But none of the recent string of deaths among the legends of baseball had the sheer impact as the immortal Henry Aaron. He was one of the true giants of the game, an automatic inclusion on the Mount Rushmore of the greatest of the great. His story transcended the game itself, captivating even non-baseball fans. There will never be another Hank Aaron.

As it were, today is also his birthday. In honor of his passing, I once again present the top 5 favorite cards in my collection:

 

1973 Topps #1 

All-Time Home Run Leaders

 

I was born in 1975, years after Aaron became the all-time home run king. Growing up, he was always the #1 name, and it was weird to think of a time when he wasn't. Did kids in 1973 look at this card and realize that "Hamerrin' Hank"  still had 82 more home runs in him?

 

1973 Topps #100

 

The only playing days card of just Aaron in my collection. Few people mention that he was a pretty good fielder too, winning 3 Gold Gloves as an outfielder.
 

 

1985 Topps Woolworth 

All-Time Record Holders #1

We all know of the home run record, and many still view him as the legitimate home run king, but Aaron holds many other MLB records as well, with 2,297 RBI and 6,856 Total Bases (over 700 bases more than the next player, Stan Musial!)

 

2016 Topps - Berger's Best (Series 2)

#BB2-1964 Tops In N.L.

Maybe someday I might possess this beauty from 1964, but for now this reprint will do just fine, featuring two iconic ballplayers. I read somewhere that with all these recent deaths, Mays is now the oldest living Hall of Famer. I hope he's doing well, I don't think anyone can handle it if something happened to him too.

 

2019 Topps Archives #78 

We'll finish with this simple but wonderful offering from a recent Archives set. This is likely a posed shot, but I can't shake that determined look in his eyes. He's looking to hit a ball, and hit it far.

Rest In Peace, Mr. Aaron, and thank you.

Repack Haiku #190 (Steve Yeager)

Starred as Duke Temple

And technical advisor

For "Major League" films 

 

1982 Fleer #29 Steve Yeager

 

In addition to this classic baseball movie and its sequels, Yeager and his family also appeared on Family Feud.

Good Luck, Pedey!

 

 

It's a sad day for us Red Sox fans, although one we've had three years to prepare for. Dustin Pedroia officially announced his retirement yesterday. Like many others, he was a favorite of mine. He didn't let his size or ability keep him from playing his very best, and he took all of it and willed his way to a near Hall of Fame career. He was always fun to watch, able to make you jump out of your seat with a key laser past the infield or an amazing defensive play. He's also easily one of the most quotable players around.

Those last few years were hard to watch. He only made it into 9 games in the past 3 years, which is nothing short of amazing when you consider the doctors told him he'd never play again. Deep down, we all hoped he'd at least give the Fenway Faithful one game to give him a proper farewell. 

I'm obviously biased, but I think he has a strong case for the Hall. Yeah, the stats don't paint the picture, he didn't hit any milestones or pass that all to easy to accept JAWS line. But when you factor in all the hardware he's won, throw in 3 World Series rings, and think about how he carried himself on the field every day - I think it might be enough to put him over the top. 

Thanks for an amazing career, Dustin. There will never be a Laser Show as spectacular as yours!

Kindness From Tom and Chris

Between my Covid-produced backlog of posts and my unexplainable need to pay tribute to every departed Hall of Famer, I'm really falling behind when it comes to showing off cards I've received. Case in point: before the holidays I received two separate unexpected PWEs from some of my fellow bloggers.

Tom from The Angels In Order recently found a 1987 Glossy All-Star he had set aside for me, and sent that off along with a few needs from my 1981 Topps build. Unfortunately, I have completed the Glossy All-Stars insert set, so the Gooden is a double. I'll have to keep my eyes open for an opportunity to pay it forward! Thanks again Tom!

 

 

I mentioned in my last Time Travel Trading post that Chris from The Collector had sent some extra trade fodder for the project. He also included a couple of Red Sox cards for my personal collection.

 

 

I have a gap in my collection from the late 90's to the early 2010's when I wasn't collecting, so that 2006 Manny helps me inch closer to at least obtaining the Red Sox from that era. Plus you can never go wrong with a Pedey! (I'm already trying to formulate the eventual retirement post for him..) Thanks again Chris!

Favorite Card: Manny being Manny. Even though he didn't last long, I'm hoping Australian League cards of him surface somewhere..