Ian Kinsler may have retired from playing in the MLB, but he is set to participate in the next Summer Olympics for the Israeli National Team. He's Jewish, and officially obtained Israeli citizenship last year.
I recently matched up with fellow TCDB member Andrew. I sent him some Braves cards and a few 2021 doubles I had, and he graciously sent these cards my way:
Not many Red Sox cards this time around - just 3 out of the 9. I'm 5 cards closer to completing the 2016 Topps Archives set. As for Dickie Thon? Well, that'll make more sense with a post I have lined up later this week.
Favorite Card: Tough choice, it looks like Soler wins for having the best action shot.
Paul (Faraday Sports) is close to completing the 2018 Topps set. I was able to knock a few off of his list, and in return I got some great Red Sox cards!
Favorite Card: It has to be a Stadium Club card, doesn't it? I'm picking Lin's beautiful big blue sky backdrop!
I was an international art thief, known only by my alias L'Orange Youppi. I was a master cat burgler, with legendary exploits of stolen art and stolen hearts. No law official could stop me.
My greatest heist was yet to come. My next target was the famous art house, La Chauve-souris Felee, home to some of the world's most amazing artwork. It would be an easy heist, for I had an accomplice on the inside! It was none other than the proprietor of La Chauve-souris Felee herself, the always elegant Mademoiselle Julie. She would personally give me access to any art my heart desired. I scouted the inventory, and settled on five very special masterpieces...
OK, so it wasn't a dream, but I did acquire some free cards from Julie (A Cracked Bat) that were available on her Pick Pockets page. I couldn't help myself to some Upper Deck Masterpieces:
Truly these are works of art, deserving of display in any art-lover's home! Or at least in my personal collection. I also snagged a few other desirable pieces of photography:
Favorite Card: It's probably the red jersey, but Jason Varitek's portrait keeps catching my eye.
Chris (The Collector) had a recent post where he listed his favorite
bands/musicians starting with every letter of the alphabet. He then challenged
others to submit their picks, and I'm more than up for the challenge. In
addition to picking an artist, for each letter I'm also going to pick lyrics
of theirs that just sticks in my head, as well as list anyone I've heard
perform live for each letter.
A - Audioslave
Chris Cornell is one of my favorite lead singers, and when he teamed up with
Tom Morello and other members of Rage Against The Machine, I was hooked.
Each album is a solid work of rock and roll.
Lyric:"I am not your blowing wind, I am the lightning" - I Am The Highway
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: Tori Amos
B - Barenaked Ladies
I've been a fan of BNL since their first album, and they've done
nothing to dissuade my fandom. Their "Selfie Cam Jams" were some of the best
Covid-related socially distancing music out there.
Lyric:"Like Kurosawa, I make mad films, 'kay, I don't make films, But if I did they'd have a Samurai" - One Week
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: Barenaked Ladies, Blues
Traveler
C - Jonathan Coulton
I'm betting most people haven't heard of him, but I heard him open up for
another band listed later and have been a fan ever since. His songs are
often catchy with a touch of dark humor.
Lyric:"All we want to do is eat your brains, we're not unreasonable, I mean no
one's gonna eat your eyes"
- RE: Your Brains
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: Jonathan Coulton, Cheap Trick, Cavo,
Jerry Cantrell
D - Deep Purple
One of my dad's favorite bands, they became one of mine as well.
Lyric:"She's got loving like quicksand, Only took one touch of her hand" - Hush
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: Dave Matthews Band, Chris Daughtry,
Days Of The New, Gavin DeGraw
E - Electric Light Orchestra
There wasn't a clear cut answer for me here, so I went with the musical
genius of Jeff Lynne.
Lyrics:"Mr. Blue Sky please tell us why, You had to hide away for so long" - Mr. Blue Sky
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: none
F - Foo Fighters
Let's be honest people, did anyone really think the drummer would be the
most talented member of Nirvana? This band has pumped out so much catchy
rock anthems it was hard to pick a lyric.
Lyrics:"Send in your skeletons, Sing as their bones go marching in again" - The Pretender
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: none
G- Goo Goo Dolls
You may know The Goo Goo Dolls from their hits, but this Buffalo based group
had more of a harder vibe before they hit it big. Don't let songs like
"Iris" fool you, they can rock with the best of them.
Lyrics:"We had a mountain, But took it for granted, We had a spaceship, But we couldn't land it"
- Long Way Down
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: Goo Goo Dolls, Lee Greenwood, Grant
Lee Buffalo
H - Harvey Danger
These one-hit wonders created one of my all-time favorite songs of the 90's.
Lyrics:"Hear the voices in my head, I swear to God it sounds like they're snoring" - Flagpole Sitta
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: none
I - Incubus
A very underrated band, I can't help but sing along to "Drive" when it comes
on the radio.
Lyrics:"If I were your appendages, I'd hold open your eyes so you would see,
That all of us are heaven-sent, And there was never meant to be only
one"
- Meglomaniac
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: Indigo Girls, Billy Idol
J - Jet
Another underrated rock band.
Lyrics:"Well it's one, two, three, take my hand and come with me, Because you look so fine that I really wanna make you mine" -
Are You Gonna Be My Girl
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: Tom Jones
K - B.B. King
I have an appreciation of blues music, and B.B. is a big reason why.
Lyrics:"I gave you seven children, And now you wanna give them back" - How Blue Can You Get
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: Lenny Kravitz, King Crimson
L - Led Zeplin
There's an unofficial rule in our house: When Led Zeplin is on, you don't
change the station.
Lyrics:"It was in the darkest depths of Mordor, I met a girl so fair, But Gollum, and the evil one, Crept up and slipped away with her" - Ramble On
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: Letters to Cleo, Lisa Loeb
M - Metallica
I have a confession: I prefer the band's more polished work from the Black
album onward to their early thrash days.
Lyrics:"So close, no matter how far, It couldn't be much more from the heart, Forever trusting who we are, And nothing else matters" - Nothing
Else Matters
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: Metallica, The Mighty Mighty
Bosstones, Sarah McLaughlin
N - No Doubt
When I was in college, I played music at the college's local radio station.
I remember playing No Doubt before they hit it big, and I always felt lucky
to claim I was a fan before "Tragic Kingdom".
Lyrics:"Now it's gone too deep, You wake me in my sleep, My dreams become nightmares,
'Cause you're ringing in my ears." - Spiderwebs
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: none
O - Oasis
"(What's The Story) Morning Glory" is one of those albums I can play
on repeat and listen to multiple times in succession.
Lyrics:"All your dreams are made, When you're chained to the mirror like the razor blade" -
What's the Story Morning Glory
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: none
P - Tom Petty
From the Heartbreakers to his solo work and even including the Traveling
Wilburys, Petty has been a constant source of great tracks.
Lyrics:"And I'll keep this world from draggin' me down, Gonna stand my ground" - Won't Back Down
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: none
Q - Queensryche
I was determined not to default to the super-group Queen for this one.
Lyrics:"Wide awake you face the day, Your dream is over, Or has it just begun?" - Silent Lucidity
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: none
R - Rusted Root
This band had a huge following in Western NY during my college days, and
I've seen them multiple times.
Lyrics:"All I want is food and creative love." - Food And
Creative Love
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: Rusted Root
S - Stone Temple Pilots
This letter was the hardest to narrow down, as there were just too many
great groups out there. In the end I went with the always enjoyable STP.
Lyrics:"Does anybody know how the story really goes? Or do we all just hum along?" - Big Bang Baby
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: Smashing Pumpkins, Saigon Kick,
Southern Culture On the Skids, Sponge
T - They Might be Giants
My favorite band, this was the easiest choice. I've seen them in concert 5
times.
Lyrics:"Everybody dies frustrated and sad, and that is beautiful" - Don't
Let's Start
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: They Might Be Giants, Theory of A
Deadman
U - Ugly Kid Joe
I don't really care for U2 - they're ok, they just don't do it for me. That
left me with another one hit wonder from back in the day.
Lyrics:"Surprise, Surprise, I'm comin' at ya' live, I sure as hell ain't Mickey
Mouse, I'm a killer in disguise"
- Madman
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: none
V - Veruca Salt
Nina Gordon and Louise Post are rock goddesses, and hearing them sing
in person was the closest I'll ever get to two hot women fighting over
me.
Lyrics:"Way to go, way to flip off everyone, I steal your thunder then I try to bolt" - Volcano Girls
Artist I've Heard Perform Live: Veruca Salt, Violent Femmes
W - Weezer
I'm excited to hear their latest album when it comes out next month.
Lyrics:"What's with these homies dissin' my girl? Why do they gotta front?" - Buddy Holly
Artists I've Heard Perform Live:
none
X - XTC
Everyone seems to be having trouble with this one. I'll admit, I'm not
familiar with the band. They only earn favorite status because They
Might Be Giants wrote a song called "XTC Vs. Adam Ant". If XTC is good
enough for them, they're good enough for me.
Lyrics:"XTC versus Adam Ant, I can't tell you why, Even the singer from Bow Wow Wow, Can't make up her mind" - XTC
Vs Adam Ant (They Might Be Giants)
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: none
Y - Weird Al Yankovic
I remember staying up late as a kid hoping to catch "Eat It" on a show called Friday Night Videos. He was the last artist I got
to see in concert before Covid-19 shut everything down.
Lyrics:"Mashed potatoes can be your friend" - Dare To Be
Stupid
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: Weird Al Yankovic
Z - Frank Zappa
Another artist I can attribute my fandom from my father, Zappa is
on his own level of musical genius.
Lyrics:"The beat goes on and I'm so wrong" - Dancing Fool
Artists I've Heard Perform Live: none
So there you have it. I hope you enjoyed my choices, and we'll be back next
time with our regularly scheduled sports card related content!
To be honest, I had resigned myself to the idea that I wouldn't see any Topps Heritage on my store shelves. They've been barren for so long, with only the occasional scrap left behind. Imagine my surprise when I recently went and found more packs than I've seen in years! Both Series One and Topps Heritage were available. I must have hit that sweet spot after restock but before the demons who have been buying up packs arrived. In my giddiness I bought a box and two packs of Heritage, knowing full well that if I returned the next day they would be gone. With cards in hand, I opened the box and mentally notated my first thoughts and impressions:
#311 Miguel Castro
The first card honor goes to Miguel Castro and the single dread that cascades from under his cap. I've said before, when it comes to these tribute sets, I'm not a stickler for details like font size and color scheme. It does a decent job of giving us the overall feel of the original.
#244 Tim Anderson (IA)
Recreating the 1973 Topps set means recreating the In Action subset. We take action shots for granted now, but I can only imagine how the original subset stood out from a set full of poses and head shots.
#272 Miles Straw
#50 Joey Bart (IA)
#293 Bo Bichette
#170 Mike Trout (IA)
#76 Alec Mills
#312 Jesus Sanchez (IA)
One of the best things about this set is the recreation of all the different card backs the original set had. Your basic stats are fine, but it's nice to see other stuff too. Puzzles (I see you Hank Aaron!), So You're A Baseball Expert trivia, League Leaders through history, and Topps News headlines give us plenty of reason to flip our cards over.
#399 Kolten Wong
#41 Willson Contreras
#396 Yasmani Grandal
#222 Blake Treinen
#43 Jose Altuve
#328 Jonathan Schoop
Speaking of the backs, here's a traditional stat based one. Cartoons are always welcome, even if I can barely read anything
#317 Mike Minor
#119 Max Kepler
#273 Sandy Alcantara
#473 Colten Brewer (SP)
My first Red Sox card, and it's a short print! The baseball card gods smile upon me! (Seriously though Topps - Colten Brewer? You're short printing a run of the mill middle reliever?)
#GO-25 Roberto Clemente (The Great One insert)
Heritage honors the legacy of the great Roberto Clemente with his a whole insert set dedicated to him. I much prefer these single player inserts of legends rather than repeating the same handful of current players. This is a very cool card utilizing the statue, too.
#247 Justin Verlander
#329 Gregory Soto
#223 Adam Haseley
#171 Jackie Bradley Jr
Another Red Sox card, but something seems off...wait a minute! Where's the hedge? This isn't a proper card for a Red Sox player! It's almost like Topps knew he wouldn't be back. You knew, didn't you Topps?
#326 Jon Lester
#257 Jakob Junis
#299 Ronald Acuna Jr
#62 Martin Perez
#268 Kris Bubic (BPOTS)
Another popular insert from the original, I question who decided which players got the childhood photo treatment. Bubic hardly qualifies as a star, right? Was his mom one of the only few to read the letter Topps sent out and actually submit a photo?
#275 Aaron Nola
#166 Jorge Soler (IA)
#177 Keston Hiura
#124 Matt Chapman (IA)
#286 Ian Happ
#126 NickCastellanos (IA)
#88 2020 AL RBI Leaders (LL)
Overall, not a bad set. The abundance of short prints prevents me from getting overly excited about Heritage, but given the choice between this and Series 1, I'll buy this every time. (At least until I see something new shows up.)
Bob Gibson and Tom Seaver are forever linked in the history of baseball. Dominating right-handed starters who consistently mowed down all who dare stand against them. They are linked not only by their Hall of Fame careers, but also by a penchant for mischief. Both of these superstars tried to pass themselves off as left-handers on their Topps cards.
They almost got away with it too.
Back in 1967, both Seaver and Gibson posed for their photos wearing a left-handed pitcher's glove. Both of these photos made it as far as the proof sheet before they were discovered and ultimately removed. They were replaced with head shots on what would become the 1968 Topps set. This story was the basis for a couple of cards created by Cards That Never Were.
These lost proofs were recreated for CTNW's latest set. To celebrate, he held a giveaway where commenters could win one of the two cards, if not both. In the end, he decided to generously give everyone a copy of both cards, and mine arrived this week!
I have to say, left handed or not, these shots are much better than the bland head shots they eventually used. I prefer these hands down! As always, the quality of these cards are fantastic, and the backs are equally impressive! Love that QR code!
You can purchase his latest set these cards and more through the web site, with individual cards available at eBay (Look for seller ctnwblog_8). You really should check out his work - especially his "Barrier Breakers" series featuring the first African American ballplayer for each club.
He abruptly left the Red Sox when manager Jimy Williams told him he wasn't going to play. He explains what happened in this interesting interview on FanGraphs.
This is an exciting update. History has been made - not once, but twice! I've got 5 trades to show off this month, and two of them are guaranteed to make you do a double-take. Let's dive in!
Our first trade comes courtesy from a blog reader named Ken. I showed off his first Time Travel Trade last month, and it didn't take him long to come back for a second trade. Thanks to him, there's more vintage (and a couple of vintage-inspired modern cards too).
Even after all this time, it still amazes me that I am trading for cards from the 50's and 60's on a regular basis. Before this project began, I don't think I ever traded away a card older than me. Now I'm sending out old cardboard every month. Unreal.
Over the past year, Brendan (The View From The Third Floor) has become one of my most frequent trading partners. This latest package from him was one that I'll never forget:
Your eyes do not deceive you - for the first time in Time Travel Trading history, there is a certified autograph in the stack. It's even serial numbered to just 800 copies! This opens up a potential Pandora's Box of possibilities. What kind of return can I possible expect for this card? Do I hold out for another auto? Do I expect a big return even though the player isn't a big name? I really don't know. We'll see when an offer comes in I guess. The other cards are welcome additions too. That grey blotch is actually an oddball Chuck Knoblauch. Here's a better look at it:
US History enthusiasts, rejoice! Thanks to Jon (A Penny Sleeve For Your Thoughts), the first card of a former president has graced its way into our stack. I personally don't know much about these cards, although I remember seeing them before, a long time ago.
That sweet Robin Yount card found a new home with TCDB member Abraham, who passed along another 2021 card along with one of my favorite players:
It wouldn't be an update without a trade with Bo (Baseball Cards Come To Life!). He just keeps trading and trading - 14 Time Travel Trades so far by my count! This batch of cards includes some Bowman:
Some junk wax era goodness:
Football cards (Shout out to the original Goonie John Matuszak!):
Plus some vintage baseball of course!
I had an idea to wring some extra posts out the Time Travel Trading project. Last month I gave a detailed look at the trades that netted me the oldest card in the stack - a nice Hurricane Warning card. Shortly after, Billy (Cardboard History) commented that he could trade me an older card for it. True to his blog name, Billy made history as well in the annals of Time Travel Trading with a card that hails from the 1800's!
Billy didn't have much info on this card, and it doesn't even show up in the TCDB! Fortunately, a little research led to a graded copy on eBay, letting me know this is a 1890 Sweet Caporal Actors & Actresses card of young silent film actress Frankie Raymond. I know I've said this before, only to be proven wrong time and again, but this card will probably reign as the oldest card in the stack forever. I can't fathom seeing an older card in my mailbox ever.
Thanks again Ken, Jon, Abraham, Bo and Billy! I'm so excited to be able to offer all these new cards. As always, this project is fueled by trades, so if you see something you like, all it takes is a card older than what I'm sending out! There's over 300 cards here - something for everyone!
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: 94 Unique trading partners: 48 Number of cards mailed out: 364 Year of oldest card mailed out: 1910-11 Number of cards received: 573 Year of oldest card received: 1890!
