You've done too much damage.
Now get outta here!
December 31, 2007
Interview Opportunity for Readers
In early 2007 I did an interview with Marty Weil of The Ephemera Blog. I guess it went over well with his readers, because now he's coming back for more.
This time he'd like to hear from the collectors who read The Baseball Card Blog. If you'd classify your collection as 'oddball' or 'specialized'--meaning you stick to cards of players with funny names, players who wear a specific style of facial hair, etc--send Marty an email; he'd love to hear from you.
Ephemera
Email Marty Weil
This time he'd like to hear from the collectors who read The Baseball Card Blog. If you'd classify your collection as 'oddball' or 'specialized'--meaning you stick to cards of players with funny names, players who wear a specific style of facial hair, etc--send Marty an email; he'd love to hear from you.
Ephemera
Email Marty Weil
December 29, 2007
Some Notes
Some things I'm looking forward to for the coming year:
Topps Heritage '59
I've seen the sell sheets and I've watched the documentary Helvetica about the rise of the now-ubiquitous typeface (and prominent feature of the 1959 design) in preparation. But mostly I've been pining for this set for almost five years (since the release of Heritage '54 in 2003). I will go for the master set (as in 2003), and this time next year will make every argument against Topps Heritage continuing in 2009 and beyond, ransacking its cache of Sixties designs.
Card Trade Magazine
How did I get approved to receive this magazine? It's true, I applied to receive it. It's not that I'm complaining; far from it. I'm just a little shocked that I was approved. I'm also completely amazed that Kelnhofer and SCD give absolutely no mention of O'Keeffe and Thompson's The Card in any of their publications: Sports Collector's Digest, Tuff Stuff, or Card Trade. You'd think that dealers would like to know how an inflammatory text like that might affect their business. Guess not.
Eisner's Plans to Expand Topps' Footprint Overseas
In my review of Allen & Ginter earlier this year, I wrote that I thought Topps dropped the ball in not including David Beckham in the set, and proposed a Garfield Sobers World Champions card for A&G 2008. Well, it seems that Eisner kind of agreed (loosely). It looks like he wants to expand into Europe with cards for English Premier League football. Here's hoping they can get the license. Excuse me, licence. But why stop there? I think they should go for the world's largest sports audience and start sweet-talking the International Cricket Council.
Other Stuff
I plan on continuing (and finishing) the 1990s countdown. I also have a tentative plan to release a book in pdf form sometime this spring, not to mention the many other half-baked ideas on how to further expand The Baseball Card Blog empire.
Topps Heritage '59
I've seen the sell sheets and I've watched the documentary Helvetica about the rise of the now-ubiquitous typeface (and prominent feature of the 1959 design) in preparation. But mostly I've been pining for this set for almost five years (since the release of Heritage '54 in 2003). I will go for the master set (as in 2003), and this time next year will make every argument against Topps Heritage continuing in 2009 and beyond, ransacking its cache of Sixties designs.
Card Trade Magazine
How did I get approved to receive this magazine? It's true, I applied to receive it. It's not that I'm complaining; far from it. I'm just a little shocked that I was approved. I'm also completely amazed that Kelnhofer and SCD give absolutely no mention of O'Keeffe and Thompson's The Card in any of their publications: Sports Collector's Digest, Tuff Stuff, or Card Trade. You'd think that dealers would like to know how an inflammatory text like that might affect their business. Guess not.
Eisner's Plans to Expand Topps' Footprint Overseas
In my review of Allen & Ginter earlier this year, I wrote that I thought Topps dropped the ball in not including David Beckham in the set, and proposed a Garfield Sobers World Champions card for A&G 2008. Well, it seems that Eisner kind of agreed (loosely). It looks like he wants to expand into Europe with cards for English Premier League football. Here's hoping they can get the license. Excuse me, licence. But why stop there? I think they should go for the world's largest sports audience and start sweet-talking the International Cricket Council.
Other Stuff
I plan on continuing (and finishing) the 1990s countdown. I also have a tentative plan to release a book in pdf form sometime this spring, not to mention the many other half-baked ideas on how to further expand The Baseball Card Blog empire.
December 20, 2007
Form Letter from The Baseball Card Blog
Dear Friends,
What will you think of when you think of 2007? The year you fell in love? The year you said the hell with it all? Well, for us, I mean me, here at The Baseball Card Blog, 2007 was the year baseball cards crescendoed (if that's a real word). While 2006 saw a explosion in mainstream attention towards the hobby, 2007 was a year of ups and downs, with whatever mainstream attention given focused on the public and private sides of the drawn out Topps sale...
...2007 also saw the publication of Michael O'Keeffe and Teri Thompson's The Card, a telling of the somewhat tawdry history of the former Gretzky/McNall T206 Wagner. Not surprisingly, the book didn't garner much press in hobby publications like Sports Collector's Digest, where Mastro Auctions is a large advertiser. O'Keeffe also achieved my own personal life goal this year when he became an obscure footnote in a text of importance by being quoted in The Mitchell Report...
...2007 saw me sell out to help Topps checklist an under-performing eTopps product, and branch out to Beckett.com for a few weeks there in the summer, if only to prove that writing on a schedule is harder than I thought...
...But mostly, 2007 was the year of collaboration, with the successful launch of A Pack A Day, the Cardboard Junkie/Baseball Card Blog alliance in creating The 792, and interactive projects like The Great Goudey Trade-away and Top Topps. Both proved to be unqualified successes thanks to Blog readers. And speaking of readers, 126,400 people visited The Blog (that's over 184,000 page views!), from all over the country and the world.
I got a lot of emails, answered a lot of questions, got some hate mail, made some friends, ate some bad food, went to some shows...
Not a bad year. Here's to another.
Fondly,
Ben
What will you think of when you think of 2007? The year you fell in love? The year you said the hell with it all? Well, for us, I mean me, here at The Baseball Card Blog, 2007 was the year baseball cards crescendoed (if that's a real word). While 2006 saw a explosion in mainstream attention towards the hobby, 2007 was a year of ups and downs, with whatever mainstream attention given focused on the public and private sides of the drawn out Topps sale...
...2007 also saw the publication of Michael O'Keeffe and Teri Thompson's The Card, a telling of the somewhat tawdry history of the former Gretzky/McNall T206 Wagner. Not surprisingly, the book didn't garner much press in hobby publications like Sports Collector's Digest, where Mastro Auctions is a large advertiser. O'Keeffe also achieved my own personal life goal this year when he became an obscure footnote in a text of importance by being quoted in The Mitchell Report...
...2007 saw me sell out to help Topps checklist an under-performing eTopps product, and branch out to Beckett.com for a few weeks there in the summer, if only to prove that writing on a schedule is harder than I thought...
...But mostly, 2007 was the year of collaboration, with the successful launch of A Pack A Day, the Cardboard Junkie/Baseball Card Blog alliance in creating The 792, and interactive projects like The Great Goudey Trade-away and Top Topps. Both proved to be unqualified successes thanks to Blog readers. And speaking of readers, 126,400 people visited The Blog (that's over 184,000 page views!), from all over the country and the world.
I got a lot of emails, answered a lot of questions, got some hate mail, made some friends, ate some bad food, went to some shows...
Not a bad year. Here's to another.
Fondly,
Ben
Top Topps Again!
My readers just can't stop the sending in of new card designs (not that there's anything wrong with that). Reader Adam (from Response #8) has sent in another card (albeit a while ago and I'm just now getting to it):
"Again, simplicity is the key for me."
December 19, 2007
Top Topps 15
Reader Mike thinks he can top Topps.
"Here's one that flashes back to burlap (1968) - I started to do a 'Steroid Sluggers' series, but the hypo needle didn't quite look right, so I just kept it as a basic issue. This is from Albert Belle's Disabled List days with the Orioles ..."
Want to get your card on the web where people will see it? Email me your designs and I'll post them on the blog (in a somewhat timely manner)!
December 15, 2007
Give Me Your Creases, Your Misspellings, Your Dinged Corners...
It's 'Best Of' season. So to get into the spirit, I thought I'd post a little something about my favorite purchases of 2007. A few caveats before I begin. I'm not counting cards I got in the wildly popular Great Goudey Trade-away, nor I am taking into account the cards I packed into storage after moving back in September. So really, my own Best Of should be called Best Purchases September through December, 2007.
Best Card of a Wizened Old Timer/Manager:
1951 Bowman Bucky Harris
On the wall of my parents' kitchen is a panoramic photograph from the 1924 World Series, with both lineups (Washington Senators and New York Giants) assembled along the third base line. Walter Johnson is in his pitcher's warmup sweater, Bill Terry looks to be maybe all of twenty-four, there's an oompah band in the right corner getting ready to strike up, and there are a few faces blurred out from moving while the camera moved. The reason I'm mentioning this is because about halfway up the photo, in the center of the packed stands, President Coolidge is flanked by John McGraw and the young Senators player/manager Bucky Harris. Flash ahead 27 years and here's Harris back helming the Senators. Another fun thing about Bucky Harris: though the guy had nine career regular-season home runs over 12 seasons, he managed two dingers in the '24 World Series.
Worst Spelling Error Left Uncorrected:
2006-07 Upper Deck Derk Fisher [sic] I bought a pack of these cards at Target thinking they were from this year. Getting this card of Fisher more than made up for my disappointment (I was trying to determine who to draft for my fantasy basketball team, currently mired in last). Not a bad design, not memorable... I'm still trying to figure out what the defender's tattoo is; it's either one of the ThunderCats or is of Justin Bateman in Teen Wolf Too.
Best Miscut: 1953 Topps Clem Labine
I love miscut cards, the older the better. I love how it accentuates the fact that it's all about cardboard––and machines that cut cardboard––image be damned. Another fun thing: it's self-reflexive. One of the ads on the outfield wall behind Labine is for Topps Gum.
Best Use of a Nickname:
1963 Topps Choo Choo Coleman
It's almost as if the Topps copywriters bet each other they could write a whole card and never once mention a player's real name.
On an unrelated note, someone should write an essay on the effectiveness of the careers of Choo Choo Coleman and Pumpsie Green on race relations within their respective cities (New York and Boston). I know very little about Coleman, but how can a grown man command respect while being referred to as 'Choo Choo'?
As for Green, I have always considered him to be the unfortunate symbol of the deep-seated racism and segregationist beliefs of the Boston Red Sox of the 1950s, from Yawkey to Higgins. It would be interesting to read about what civil leaders and thinkers from the time thought about the teams and these two men.
Best Card of a Wizened Old Timer/Manager:
1951 Bowman Bucky Harris
On the wall of my parents' kitchen is a panoramic photograph from the 1924 World Series, with both lineups (Washington Senators and New York Giants) assembled along the third base line. Walter Johnson is in his pitcher's warmup sweater, Bill Terry looks to be maybe all of twenty-four, there's an oompah band in the right corner getting ready to strike up, and there are a few faces blurred out from moving while the camera moved. The reason I'm mentioning this is because about halfway up the photo, in the center of the packed stands, President Coolidge is flanked by John McGraw and the young Senators player/manager Bucky Harris. Flash ahead 27 years and here's Harris back helming the Senators. Another fun thing about Bucky Harris: though the guy had nine career regular-season home runs over 12 seasons, he managed two dingers in the '24 World Series.
Worst Spelling Error Left Uncorrected: 2006-07 Upper Deck Derk Fisher [sic] I bought a pack of these cards at Target thinking they were from this year. Getting this card of Fisher more than made up for my disappointment (I was trying to determine who to draft for my fantasy basketball team, currently mired in last). Not a bad design, not memorable... I'm still trying to figure out what the defender's tattoo is; it's either one of the ThunderCats or is of Justin Bateman in Teen Wolf Too.
Best Miscut: 1953 Topps Clem Labine
I love miscut cards, the older the better. I love how it accentuates the fact that it's all about cardboard––and machines that cut cardboard––image be damned. Another fun thing: it's self-reflexive. One of the ads on the outfield wall behind Labine is for Topps Gum.
Best Use of a Nickname:1963 Topps Choo Choo Coleman
It's almost as if the Topps copywriters bet each other they could write a whole card and never once mention a player's real name.
On an unrelated note, someone should write an essay on the effectiveness of the careers of Choo Choo Coleman and Pumpsie Green on race relations within their respective cities (New York and Boston). I know very little about Coleman, but how can a grown man command respect while being referred to as 'Choo Choo'?
As for Green, I have always considered him to be the unfortunate symbol of the deep-seated racism and segregationist beliefs of the Boston Red Sox of the 1950s, from Yawkey to Higgins. It would be interesting to read about what civil leaders and thinkers from the time thought about the teams and these two men.
December 14, 2007
The 792: #201 - #250
Time to retreat back under my rock. May I present the next fifty numbers of The 792, starting with card #201.
201. Vince Coleman, Record Breaker, 1986
You want a memorable baseball scandal? Vince Coleman, a crowd of fans and a handful of firecrackers.
202. Steve Carlton, Record Breaker, 1981
I believe this is the Carlton record breaker with him in a batting helmet. I always thought that Carlton in a helmet looked like Miss Finch, the villain from Follow That Bird. If you're not familiar with Follow That Bird, it was part of a trilogy of Sesame Street movies (though the only one that had a theatrical release). OK, there was no trilogy, but the other two are: Big Bird Goes to China and Don't Eat the Pictures.
203. Blue Jays Future Stars, 1982 (RC)
How do you argue with Jesse Barfield's rookie card? Especially when one of the other guys on the card is named Boomer Wells? You don't.
204. Ron LeFlore/Rodney Scott, Record Breaker, 1981
205. Tony Perez, Record Breaker, 1986
206. Andy Van Slyke, 1984 (RC)
207. Ozzie Smith, Record Breaker, 1981
208. Champ Summers, 1985
209. Dickie Thon, 1981
210. Steve Carlton, 1980
211. Mike Pagliarulo, 1989
212. Broderick Perkins, 1984
213. Dave Stewart, 1982 (RC)
214. Angels Team, 1980
215. Mark Langston, 1987
216. Tony LaRussa, 1983
There is no way you can pass up a shot of a dazed LaRussa.
217. Chris Codiroli, 1987
I always thought that in the off-season Codiroli was a Statler Brother.
218. Doyle Alexander, 1985
219. Cecilio Guante, 1987
Guante was always a favorite of mine. Mostly because he looked like he had led a hard life, like he escaped a De Beers diamond mine or was an actual pirate.
220. Tom Seaver, 1981
221. Joe Cannon, 1980
222. Ron Hassey, 1980 (RC)
Only one catcher has caught two perfect games. Can you name him?
223. Lloyd Moseby, 1982
224. Wayne Tolleson, 1987
225. Ramon Martinez, 1989 (RC)
Yeah, Ramon Martinez! Who knew you'd be the brother with less talent? This card was unstoppable in 1989.
226. Manny Sanguillen, 1981
Another of my favorite cards from a great, underrated set.
227. Jamie Moyer, 1987 (RC)
228. Tom Lawless, 1986
229. Phillies Leaders, 1983
230. Dave Winfield, 1980
231. Pirates Leaders, 1988
232. Alan Trammell, 1980
233. Gregg Jefferies, 1989 (RC)
The Top 5 Cards of 1989
1. Ken Griffey, Jr., Upper Deck
2. Billy Ripken, Fleer
3. Dale Murphy Reverse Negative, Upper Deck
4. Gregg Jefferies, Topps
5. Ken Griffey, Jr. Fleer & Donruss (tie)
234. Lou Whitaker, 1981
235. Andre Dawson, 1980
236. Frank Eufemia, 1986
237. Rusty Kuntz, 1982
If you're not familiar with this card, head over to Cardboard Junkie in the next few days and check it out. It features a photo of Rusty signing an autograph. Who wouldn't want a ball signed 'Rusty Kuntz'?
238. Jose Rijo, 1985 (RC)
This might be the only card of Rijo where he's standing still and not holding a SuperSoaker.
239. Rick Miller, 1981
240. Nolan Ryan, 1981
241. Danny Heep, 1987
242. Rick Mahler, 1987
243. Bob Boone, 1989
244. Cardinals Team, 1980
245. Jim Rice, 1989
This guy was so strong that he snapped a bat in two on a checked swing.
246. Mets Leaders, 1984
247. Terry Harper, 1986
248. Storm Davis, 1988
249. Larry Cox, 1981
This is probably one of the ugliest cards in existence. The yellow border. The powder blue Mariners uniform. And Frank Zappa, er, Larry Cox looking tired and bored in his catcher's crouch.
250. Dwight Gooden, 1986
If #249 shall be remembered for its ugliness, #250 shall forever be one of the most beautiful. Like a tornado about to strike, this is Gooden in his glory.
For the complete 792 experience, view card scans in numerical order at Cardboard Junkie.
201. Vince Coleman, Record Breaker, 1986
You want a memorable baseball scandal? Vince Coleman, a crowd of fans and a handful of firecrackers.
202. Steve Carlton, Record Breaker, 1981
I believe this is the Carlton record breaker with him in a batting helmet. I always thought that Carlton in a helmet looked like Miss Finch, the villain from Follow That Bird. If you're not familiar with Follow That Bird, it was part of a trilogy of Sesame Street movies (though the only one that had a theatrical release). OK, there was no trilogy, but the other two are: Big Bird Goes to China and Don't Eat the Pictures.
203. Blue Jays Future Stars, 1982 (RC)
How do you argue with Jesse Barfield's rookie card? Especially when one of the other guys on the card is named Boomer Wells? You don't.
204. Ron LeFlore/Rodney Scott, Record Breaker, 1981
205. Tony Perez, Record Breaker, 1986
206. Andy Van Slyke, 1984 (RC)
207. Ozzie Smith, Record Breaker, 1981
208. Champ Summers, 1985
209. Dickie Thon, 1981
210. Steve Carlton, 1980
211. Mike Pagliarulo, 1989
212. Broderick Perkins, 1984
213. Dave Stewart, 1982 (RC)
214. Angels Team, 1980
215. Mark Langston, 1987
216. Tony LaRussa, 1983
There is no way you can pass up a shot of a dazed LaRussa.
217. Chris Codiroli, 1987
I always thought that in the off-season Codiroli was a Statler Brother.
218. Doyle Alexander, 1985
219. Cecilio Guante, 1987
Guante was always a favorite of mine. Mostly because he looked like he had led a hard life, like he escaped a De Beers diamond mine or was an actual pirate.
220. Tom Seaver, 1981
221. Joe Cannon, 1980
222. Ron Hassey, 1980 (RC)
Only one catcher has caught two perfect games. Can you name him?
223. Lloyd Moseby, 1982
224. Wayne Tolleson, 1987
225. Ramon Martinez, 1989 (RC)
Yeah, Ramon Martinez! Who knew you'd be the brother with less talent? This card was unstoppable in 1989.
226. Manny Sanguillen, 1981
Another of my favorite cards from a great, underrated set.
227. Jamie Moyer, 1987 (RC)
228. Tom Lawless, 1986
229. Phillies Leaders, 1983
230. Dave Winfield, 1980
231. Pirates Leaders, 1988
232. Alan Trammell, 1980
233. Gregg Jefferies, 1989 (RC)
The Top 5 Cards of 1989
1. Ken Griffey, Jr., Upper Deck
2. Billy Ripken, Fleer
3. Dale Murphy Reverse Negative, Upper Deck
4. Gregg Jefferies, Topps
5. Ken Griffey, Jr. Fleer & Donruss (tie)
234. Lou Whitaker, 1981
235. Andre Dawson, 1980
236. Frank Eufemia, 1986
237. Rusty Kuntz, 1982
If you're not familiar with this card, head over to Cardboard Junkie in the next few days and check it out. It features a photo of Rusty signing an autograph. Who wouldn't want a ball signed 'Rusty Kuntz'?
238. Jose Rijo, 1985 (RC)
This might be the only card of Rijo where he's standing still and not holding a SuperSoaker.
239. Rick Miller, 1981
240. Nolan Ryan, 1981
241. Danny Heep, 1987
242. Rick Mahler, 1987
243. Bob Boone, 1989
244. Cardinals Team, 1980
245. Jim Rice, 1989
This guy was so strong that he snapped a bat in two on a checked swing.
246. Mets Leaders, 1984
247. Terry Harper, 1986
248. Storm Davis, 1988
249. Larry Cox, 1981
This is probably one of the ugliest cards in existence. The yellow border. The powder blue Mariners uniform. And Frank Zappa, er, Larry Cox looking tired and bored in his catcher's crouch.
250. Dwight Gooden, 1986
If #249 shall be remembered for its ugliness, #250 shall forever be one of the most beautiful. Like a tornado about to strike, this is Gooden in his glory.
For the complete 792 experience, view card scans in numerical order at Cardboard Junkie.
December 13, 2007
Life Sucks for Topps PR
What's funnier: the fact that Clemens needed help injecting himself with steroids, or that Clemens is the face of Topps Series 3? As much fun as a Saturday night spent shooting a washed-up Roger Clemens full of steroids sounds, I'm going to have to go with the fact that Topps is now connected with the two most high-profile users in the Mitchell Report.
Compound that with the fact that the level of bad luck handed down to Topps spokesmen has to rank up there with the Sports Illustrated and Madden cover curses. First David Wright's Mets put together a collapse that puts the 1964 Phillies to shame. Then Father Time, excuse me, Greg Oden, shuffles into the operating room and misses the entire season. Follow that by golden boy Alex Rodriguez bitch-slapping the Red Sox on the eve of their World Series sweep with news that he'd burn a stack of $100 dollar bills in front of a group of needy children––I'm sorry, I can't read my own handwriting––I mean opt out of his already mammoth contract for one even more mammoth-er. Now Roger Clemens, Topps' cover boy for Series 3, is about to enter panic mode (if he wasn't already there). Oh, and I totally forgot about Dwyane Wade and his Magic Shoulder. And I guess you could add Barry Bonds to this list, since technically he is still under contract with Topps, though what's the point? In case you haven't noticed, that guy's a ticking time bomb.
Seriously, it must suck for Topps PR right now.
December 12, 2007
User Friendly
In less than 24 hours, the entire American media will be consumed with Roid Rage. Columnists and bloggers will never have had it so easy, with myriad angles to cover, so-called big names to out and moralizing to be done. But the question that probably won't be raised (because it doesn't sell papers) is: Does anybody actually care? Seriously. Do you really want to know if your favorite sports star has injected himself with more hormones than a Perdue chicken?
I mean, read any anecdotal baseball book and you'll see that ballplayers have been popping greenies since the Seventies. It's one of the things that ballplayers are all about: getting an edge, acting batshit crazy on the road, and winning the World Series. But you still like those players from the Good Ol' Days, right? You still collect their cards. Even if they were users.
And what about the Pittsburgh Drug Trials? Players were buying cocaine from the Pittsburgh Parrot, for chrissakes. Sure, it may have ruined Tim Raines's and Dave Parker's chances at making the Hall of Fame, but Keith Hernandez figured into that stuff as well, and well, he's still a well-liked baseball celebrity.
Baseball has probably weathered more vice charges than any other sport in America, and may rank second to soccer on the world stage in terms of public relations nightmare scandals and fuck ups.
Here's a handful of other good times: Hal Chase gambling on games while still on the field playing in them, Tris Speaker and Ty Cobb fixing a game in 1927, legends Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays banned for life for appearing at a casino, and who could forget Sammy Sosa losing his grasp on English before the Senate Committee? Yes, it's easy to make it through a whole post on baseball's storied scandals without even mentioning Pete Rose or the Black Sox. (Well, almost.)
So let's face facts. There will be hundreds if not thousands of articles written on the Mitchell Report. ESPN will launch special coverage and Pedro Gomez will go without sleep for six weeks as Barry Bonds will most certainly be named in the report.
Will card prices suffer? Cards of The Asterisk have had plenty o'time to have the bottom fall out, and if anything, it's been a slow decline. But what about others? I just don't see it happening. Well, unless Clemens is named...
I mean, read any anecdotal baseball book and you'll see that ballplayers have been popping greenies since the Seventies. It's one of the things that ballplayers are all about: getting an edge, acting batshit crazy on the road, and winning the World Series. But you still like those players from the Good Ol' Days, right? You still collect their cards. Even if they were users.
And what about the Pittsburgh Drug Trials? Players were buying cocaine from the Pittsburgh Parrot, for chrissakes. Sure, it may have ruined Tim Raines's and Dave Parker's chances at making the Hall of Fame, but Keith Hernandez figured into that stuff as well, and well, he's still a well-liked baseball celebrity.
Baseball has probably weathered more vice charges than any other sport in America, and may rank second to soccer on the world stage in terms of public relations nightmare scandals and fuck ups.
Here's a handful of other good times: Hal Chase gambling on games while still on the field playing in them, Tris Speaker and Ty Cobb fixing a game in 1927, legends Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays banned for life for appearing at a casino, and who could forget Sammy Sosa losing his grasp on English before the Senate Committee? Yes, it's easy to make it through a whole post on baseball's storied scandals without even mentioning Pete Rose or the Black Sox. (Well, almost.)
So let's face facts. There will be hundreds if not thousands of articles written on the Mitchell Report. ESPN will launch special coverage and Pedro Gomez will go without sleep for six weeks as Barry Bonds will most certainly be named in the report.
Will card prices suffer? Cards of The Asterisk have had plenty o'time to have the bottom fall out, and if anything, it's been a slow decline. But what about others? I just don't see it happening. Well, unless Clemens is named...
December 11, 2007
Just When I Thought I Was Out– Top Topps Pulled Me Back In!
Reader Jason thinks he can top Topps. It's nice, though reminiscent of Fleer Excel circa 1992.
"I've been playing around with ideas for baseball card designs for a while now. I would have to say that my inspiration for these comes from the Topps cards of the 70's and 80's, before computers brought about the endless gradients, drop shadows, layers, and other distractions. I would love to see Topps get back to where they once were, design-wise, without having to resort to another 'heritage' set."
Hey you! Send me your baseball card designs. I'm not picky.
December 08, 2007
Top Topps: Lucky 13
Different Reader Christopher thinks he can top Topps. His formula?
"You can never get enough woodgrain, right?"
Want to show the world your design chops? Send me your designs for a baseball card and I'll post it on the blog!
December 06, 2007
Top Topps: XII
Reader Wes thinks he can top Topps.
"I drew from the 1984 Topps card for my inspiration."
Think you've got what it takes to design a baseball card? Send me your design and I'll post it on the blog!
Top Topps: This One Goes to 11
Reader Christopher thinks he can top Topps.
" I like white borders, and I'm actually a fan of the 'foil' as I guess it's known. In these designs, the team name, player name, and position can all be done in foil. I'm still pushing for the great announcers' cards or subset."
For the past 57 years, Topps has sated our previously-unknown desire for obsessively collecting cardboard things. But perhaps more important than that generosity, the company has provided us with a continuous crash-course in creating accessible modern art for the masses. So you want to get in on the act? Send me your design for a 2008 card and I'll post it on the blog!
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