You Can't Have Too Many Great Things to Read

Aloha, everybody, 

I have to start this post off with an apology to Dennis, from Too Many Verlanders. You see, Dennis sent a package to me long, long ago, and I'm just now getting around to posting about it. 

It wasn't because I didn't like what he sent - rather, I liked it so much, that I immediately stashed it in my library to be enjoyed in my leisure time, but I forgot it was there until now. 

When Dennis' package arrived, I was still reading "Electric October". So I put it aside to be perused when I finished the book. Unfortunately, I didn't finish it until a few days ago. All the while, the package sat there waiting, while I forgot to post about it. Ugh!!

OK, self-flagellation is over. I finished the book, and I'm currently enjoying this generous package of past collecting periodicals from Dennis. 

Most were old Beckett mags, and I love 'em. I read Beckett religiously back when I started collecting, and I saved a few from back in those days. These are great additions to my collection. 
There's so much goodness and collecting nostalgia in these mags, I'm going to spread them out over a few posts. 

Let's get started with Mike Piazza, the cover boy for July 1996. 

I love reading and reminiscing over what the card collecting world was like back then. For many of us, Beckett was the cardboard bible, and it set trends as much as it reported on them. 

Here's who collectors were chasing back in '96. Frank Thomas and Piazza were at the top of my wish list back then. 

The main attraction this mag has for me is a gallery of full-page photos that were meant for autographs. I wonder of anyone ever got every autograph needed to fill out the set. 

Autographed or not, these are great photos. I'll hold commentary and let the pics speak for themselves...

Good stuff, right? THANKS for these wonderful mags, Dennis. Sorry it took so long to post up. 

Next time, we'll get into the way-back machine and pull out a real vintage Beckett with plenty of fun reading inside. 

Aloha! 

Adventures With Voting (and the Players Who Fought for that Right)

Aloha, everyone, 

I've mentioned before that it's been awhile between posts because I was off on other adventures. This here is about my latest. 

I recently worked for an organization that was registering people to vote here in California. Yup, I was that guy outside the local shopping center registering voters. 

We weren't pushing any agenda or candidates. The effort was simply to expand democracy by registering as many voters as possible. That appealed to me, as I'm a big believer in voting, so I took the gig. Here are a few experiences from that adventure. 

But first, since we're a card-collecting community, and I like to share my collection with all of you, I'm dropping in some cards from ML ballplayers who were combat vets. They're the heroes who fought for our precious right to vote. 

Leading off is Jackie in sparkle-vision (WW2) 

In this gig I interacted, for better or worse, with a couple of hundred (or more) folks a day. I asked if they were registered to vote, and their reactions ran the gambit from thanking me and encouraging me to "keep up the good work" to outright hostility. 

Tris Speaker WW1- The War to End All Wars

The work was rarely boring, and often pleasantly surprising. We came across all kinds, from yahoos dressed head to toe in camo gear (who don't want to vote), to a young man with a Bob Dylan shirt that read "This Machine Kills Fascists" (who also didn't want to vote - and failed to see the irony in it all). 

In looking up ballplayers who were combat vets, I came across Warren Spahn, who like my father, fought in the Battle of the Bulge, and who also just like my father, was awarded the bronze star in the action. Unfortunately, it turns out I don't have any Spahn cards. This is something I'll have to remedy. 

Joe D, UD Baseball Hero, and WW2  hero. 

Here were some of the pleasant surprises:

The mom who's been eligible to vote for 37 years, but never bothered to vote. Until now. 

A new citizen-mom with a baby under her arm who happily registered for her first election. 

A heavily tattooed, heavily muscled biker, wearing stomping boots, who broke into a warm smile and proudly proclaimed he's already a registered voter. 

I was particularly surprised and encouraged by the number of 20-somethings who were already registered. 

Willie Mays, Korean War, and Stan the Man, WW2,  together again in Topps Archives 

Sometimes couples registered together and completely surprised each other. One would register as a Democrat, and the other as a Republican. Eyes would open wide, and more than once I heard the shocked partner continue the spirited conversation into the store, or the parking lot. 

Lots of folks felt very comfortable giving me their political opinions. Some of the Trump supporters worried me. They took a  little too much enjoyment in staring me down and declaring their allegiance to Trump in voices laced with venom. 

Christy Mathewson, UD Origins of the Game , and WW1

A few times people tried to stuff a dollar or two into my hand, without looking at me or listening to my words. Were they exceptionally kind because they were so quick to give me a couple of bucks? I didn't know what to make of a society where people wanting money are in our face so often, that it's just assumed. 

Teddy Ballgame WW2 AND Korean War

One not-so-pleasant surprise was running into so many people that our prison system holds in its grip. Far too many people told me they couldn't vote because they're ex-felons. 

Every day I met ex-felons, men and women, who were on active parole, or just off. They stopped being invisible numbers and became visible - in numbers - all around me. 

Bear in mind I was in completely random settings, for only a few hours a day, and I kept meeting people who had been snared in the prison population nets, and couldn't vote. 

Ty Cobb WW1

I've never had a gig like that before, and I'm not sure how much I'd like to do it again. That said, I got to work outside, which I love, and I was able to use the gig to put in lots of walking exercise, logging miles a day. 

And in a small way, I did my part for democracy by registering a couple of hundred new voters. 

Aloha! 

On One Hand The Card Show Was Disappointing. On The Other - SUCCESS!

Aloha, everybody, 

I headed out to the world famous Frank and Sons Collectibles show in order to find a nice prize for Al, the winner of my recent 100,000 views contest - and hopefully some other cool stuff for my regular trade partners.

Back in the day, Frank and Sons was a card collector's paradise, with rows upon rows of tables stacked high with cards, packs, and boxes of cardboard, from the shiniest new stuff opened there before your eyes, to the most vintage and obscure cardboard from just about every sport and endeavor they made cardboard for. 

It had been a couple of years since I set foot in there, and I was absolutely looking forward to slowly sauntering the aisles, enjoying all of the wonderful cards (that weren't under glass), as I used to. 

Of course, the day I planned to go was twice as busy as I wanted it to be, so I ended up screeching into the parking lot one hour before the show closed, which I knew meant a good 20% of the tables would already be closed and covered. 

And then I walked in. The show is in the same industrial-sized building occupying the same huge floor space, but at least 70% of the tables were devoted to comics, figurines, super hero memorabilia, stuffed mini-figures and who knows what, that wasn't related to sports cards. 

*Imagine me with a huge frown at this point.*

 That said, I still had a mission to accomplish, so I dove in to what sportscard dealers were still open for business. Time and choice factors were working against me, so my purchases were extremely limited.

I ended up buying just a few cards from a quarter box. Sorry Nick, there's pretty much no such thing as dime boxes out here in the LA area. Here they are...

  
One can't go wrong picking up a card from the greatest catcher ever. Anybody need/want this one? 

The next are from  a couple of subsets that I collect, so I was already partial to the designs. The players weren't too shabby either. Any takers? 

Finally, a little something I figgered Tony might like, but then again, he may already have five copies of this one...

 

Tony gets first dibs on the Yount, but if he passes, it's open to anybody else who may need it. 

Oh yeah, I also found something related to the Toronto Maple Leafs that I hope Al will dig. But I'm keeping that a secret. Here's a hint, Al - it aint cardboard. 

All in all, I found something for my primary objective, so the trip was successful. 

Even though the choices are fewer these days, I'll head back to the show in a couple of weeks for a deeper foraging. I just gotta get there early!

A note for Jeff from I Wish They Still Came With Bubblegum: I saw you wanted the Chipper from my GQ packs. All yours. My email is in my profile. Just shoot a mail to me with your address, and we'll get our (believe it or not) first trade going. 

Aloha!

Binder Page Heroes - Baseball Thrills Edition

Hey everybody !

How's it going out there?  I haven't posted for a while, but once a week or so, I've been checking in and reading everyone's blogs.  Tonight I was reading and I noticed ATBATT listed in someone's blog roll.  Then I noticed I haven't posted in 3 weeks !!! YIKES !  That's the longest I've gone without a post since launching ATBATT, so it's definitely time to stop that slide....

Reviving the Binder Page Heroes series, here comes a page featuring a subset I've been chasing since I started collecting.  It's the Baseball Thrills subset from 1959 Topps.  These cards are beauties and they commemorate some big moments in MLB history.  They cost a pretty penny when they're in good condition, so I'm far from completing the set.  That means there are a couple of modern reprints, and a lurker on the binder page, who certainly hold their own.  Let's check 'em out....

How about these cards?  Beautiful colorization, action-packed photos, and simple but powerful designs.  I feel those thrills just looking at the cards!

Leading off is Hammerin' Hank, the Home Run King, hitting exactly as you would expect from him in the Fall Classic.  Aaron helped lead the Braves to a 7-game win over the Yankees.  Along the way, he batted nearly .400 and punched 3 homers.

BOOOOOOOOOO !!!

Reprint Alert - This comes from 2001 Topps.  This will have to do until I get my hands on the real mccoy.

Reprints or not, I just can't resist these cards.  They just scream Old Time Baseball.

Leave it to the Dodgers to play 26 innings and only score one run.  Luckily, they held the Red Sox to one run also, and played the longest game ever in baseball history.  Why didn't they finish?  No, bud selig's grandfather was not the commish, the game was stopped on account of...darkness.

I picked this one up from a trade with a fellow blogger.  One step closer to completion!  THANKS, trading partners!

The Duke brings in the next highlight.  I love this one because of the early use of consecutive action shots on one card.  It really captures the THRILL of the play.   How about that guy in the stands ? I've often wondered if that was his strange posturing to try and catch the ball if it went up into the seats. 

This set just drips baseball history.  Tiger Kaline finds his way into the set, and we get a bonus view of old time umpire gear. 

Another Tiger and another consecutive photo action shot. COOOOOL !

Finally, one of my vintage faves.  '52 Bowman rocking an absolute work of baseball art on cardboard.

THANKS for reading, everybody ~