TTM Success - Buck Showalter

It has been quite a while since I got one of my mailers back from a TTM request.  Honestly, I hadn't sent any off in forever, but because some good friends kept asking me if I was going to send something to Spring Training, I figured, why not?

So, I got my 69th TTM success today from the lone request I sent to Spring Training (making me 100%!), Orioles manager, Buck Showalter.  I'm a big fan of Buck's work and was very pleased that the Orioles extended him through 2018.  I remember when the Orioles were conducting their managerial search and some folks speculated that the Orioles would get Bobby Valentine.  I'm so glad they got Buck instead.

He led the O's to a 93-69 record and a playoff berth last year.  Overall, he has a career record of 1,078-1,018 over 14 seasons.  He is a 2-time manager of the year and barely missed out in 2012 to the A's Bob Melvin.

I'm so excited about this TTM success, you have no idea!  So, I sent to Buck via the Orioles spring training home (Ed Smith Stadium, Sarasota, FL) on February 19 and got the ball back today, making it a 9-day TAT.

Another Trade With Michael

One of the many perks of having this blog is that it has helped me make some friends among fellow collectors.  One person I have met recently is a guy named Michael, whom I traded with at Fan Fest in January.  Michael had his eyes on some of the signed post cards as well as a few game used baseballs I picked up while at Fan Fest.  In return for some of the post cards, Michael sent me the above Dontrelle Willis signed baseball.  I had a chance to get Willis a couple years ago off of Ebay for $0.99, but I drug my feet and missed out.  Dang.  Oh well, I have him now.  I was always a fan of Willis and I hate to see that his career has been derailed like it has.

Another ball I got from Michael was this Mark Reynolds signed ball.  I hate that Reynolds left the O's to sign with Cleveland, but I feel like losing his 200+ strikeouts paired with a returning Nolan Reimold makes his loss not as bad.  Especially if Nolan can hit the 30+ homers and drive in 100 like I feel he  is capable; All while batting 50-60 points higher than Reynolds.  Anyway, I still like Reynolds and am happy to add his auto to my collection.

Michael also threw in some signed tickets that he had, the above Darren O'Day and the below Johnny Damon.  O'Day is probably my favorite reliever on the O's right now, and Damon, well, he is just a great player, even though he isn't an Oriole.

Thanks for the trade, Michael!  I am amazed at the awesome O's stuff you have and I hope we can match up again on a trade!

Drew Comes Through - Harold Baines Signed Baseball

This counts as a completed trade.  I sent Drew a Jim Palmer signed baseball for his new HOF signed ball collection and in return, Drew sent me a signed ball of one of my favorite players, Harold Baines.  I met Palmer again this year at Fan Fest, and since I already had him on a ball, I checked with Drew to see if he would want him for his HOF collection.  He told me he was about to meet Harold Baines at a card show, so I decided that would be a good swap.

Baines was a former #1 overall pick for the White Sox in the 1977 amateur draft.  He played in the majors from 1980 to 2001 for the White Sox, Rangers, A's, Orioles and Indians.  He had 2,866 career hits, a .289 batting average and 384 home runs.

Jerry Reinsdorf, owner of the White Sox, has apologized to Baines on numerous occasions saying that he traded Baines several times into situations that cost him at bats that he would need to eclipse the 3,000-hit mark.  I do think that if Baines had 3,000+ hits, he would be in the Hall of Fame by now.  I think he might get an extended look via the veterans committee, but I doubt he will be enshrined.

Thanks for the trade, Drew!  I really appreciate it and I know we will be doing a lot more trading in the future.

COMC Pickup - 1971 Topps

I sold a decent amount of cards on COMC recently and had almost $30 in store credit.  So, I decided to use most of that to knock some pieces out of my 1959, 1969 and 1971 set needs.  A big card I still needed from 1971 was the above Tom Seaver.  I got this one for $3.50.  As you can see, it is a little rough, but for what I'm expecting from this set, I'm ok with it.

I also got card numbers 117 (Ted Simmons), 154 (Cesar Gutierrez), 175 (Jim Hickman) and 200 (1970 NLCS Game 2).  Not bad.  I now need 120 cards to complete the set, but a lot of them are high numbers, so who knows how long that will take.

Trading With GCRL

Another trade package was received yesterday when a mailer arrived from Jim over at GCRL.  I will be sending him the 2013 Topps black parallel Andre Ethier and 2013 Topps Matt Kemp SP on Monday.  In return, he sent me one 1959 Topps (above), the below O's Win the 1966 World Series from 1967 Topps, 7 1969 Topps and a few 2013 Topps Emeralds.

I really like this 1967 Topps 1966 World Series Highlights.  This will count in my Brooks Robinson PC as you can see him to the left leaping in the air.  He looks like he is flying!

I like this 1969 Topps Manny Mota due to it being awesomely airbrushed, as you can see the logo in his hat has been airbrushed out, but he is clearly wearing a Pirates jersey.

I can take a few more Emeralds off of my wishlist.  I need to count them again and see how much closer I am to completing Series One.  I know I'm not doing too bad.  I need to keep it up, as far as trades go, though.

Finally, another Brooks Robinson to add to my PC.  This is a 2001 Topps Tribute, which, surprisingly, I did not have in my collection.

Thanks for the trade, Jim.  I hope to get by the Post Office tomorrow and send your stuff on its way.

Another Trade With Kalib

I completed another trade with my new friend Kalib over at "Cubs Cardboard" recently.  I sent him some random Cubs cards, including a couple vintage ones.  He recently posted some trade bait on his blog, so I had to ask for the above Tim Lincecum relic for my son, Chris, and the below Andrew McCutchen 2013 Topps Blue parallel for my own PC.

I think the blue and yellow on the McCutchen really pop off of the card as you may be able to see in the scan.  I think they go really well together.  I definitely need to get more parallels from 2013 Topps!

Finally, Kalib also included some random Orioles cards that he found in a few shoeboxes and one of which was the above 1992 Score No Hit Club featuring the combined no hitter that was thrown on July 13, 1991 (21 years ago!!!).  Bob Milacki, Mike Flanagan, Mark Williamson and Gregg Olson combined to no hit the A's that night.  I really like this card because it features Mike Flanagan.  Flanny is still sorely missed by all Orioles fans, since he took his own life in August of 2011.  To me, that was probably the darkest of days for any Oriole fan in recent memory and it still is tough to think about.  I always feel bad for him and his family whenever I see his cards.  I plan on creating a PC of him sometime soon.

So, thanks again for the trade, Kalib!  I enjoy kalib's blog and I, again, recommend you all to follow it!

Trade With Roy

I completed another trade today when I opened my mailbox and saw a mailer from Roy from Plain Gray Swatch.  I sent him several Blue Jays cards in exchange for several (11) 2013 Topps Emerald parallels.  The above Adam Jones is especially sweet.  I think it scanned really well, don't you?  Roy recently posted a Desert Camo parallel of Adam Jones that I must add to my collection, so it appears that he and I should be matching up on a trade again really soon... unless he sold the card already.  We'll see.

Thanks for the trade Roy!

Recent Card Shop Pickup - 1981 Topps Perconte-Scioscia-Valenzuela RC

Ok, I'm guilty of something.  I bought this card several weeks ago and completely forgot about it.  I found it when I cleaned off my desk on Sunday.  That's not the only thing I'm guilty of.  I bought this card several weeks ago because I saw it as a Fernando Valenzuela RC.  I just realized not even a minute ago that this was also a Mike Scioscia RC.  It took me that long to even notice the other guys on the card.  Weird.  Anyway, yes, the real reason I bought this card was because it is a Fernando Valenzuela RC.

I got it at the Kinston card shop for a deal (the price sticker on the back says 2/$5 but I think he had a $1.00 each deal on those).  I feel like I got a steal on it.  I hardly ever hear anything about the 1981 set.  I mean, really.  When I was putting together the sets from the late 70s/early 80s, I flat out bought the 1981 set for $25.  It came in a binder and is still the only set (aside from my 52 card set of 1951 Topps Red Back) that resides in a binder.

You see, 1979 had the big RC of Ozzie Smith; 1980 had Rickey Henderson and 1982 had Cal Ripken.  1981 had Kirk Gibson and Valenzuela.  Great players in their time, but not Hall of Famers.  The 1981 design was actually really nice.  The hat with the team name and matching color.  I once bought a pack of 1981 Topps at a LCS in Winston-Salem in the mid 1990s because to me, it was an 'old' pack.  Inside that pack, I pulled a Kirk Gibson RC.  That card was lost over the years, but I replaced it not too long ago from another bargain bin.  However, I always had a soft spot for 1981 Topps.  I have even considered building that set, even though I already own a complete set.  Just for the thrill of piecing it together.  I don't know.  Maybe one day I will.

Valenzuela burst onto the scene in 1981 after appearing in 10 games in 1980.  He went 13-7 with a 2.48 ERA in '81 capturing the Rookie of the Year and NL Cy Young Awards.  Somehow, he also won the Silver Slugger award that year.  He wound up finishing 5th in the NL MVP balloting that year, too.  He won 21 games in 1986 (and also had 20 complete games!) and finished second in the NL Cy Young voting to Mike Scott.  Valenzuela finished his career in 1997 after playing 17 seasons in the majors.  He retired with a record of 173-153 with a 3.54 ERA and 2,074 strikeouts.  He was a member of the World Series Champion Dodgers in 1981 and 1988 (although he did not pitch in the 1988 postseason).

Speaking of postseason, Fernando went 5-1 with a 1.98 ERA in 9 postseason games (6 series).  That's pretty good!

RIP Sophie Kurys

I found out that former AAGPBL player, Sophie Kurys, passed away yesterday at the age of 87.  She was one of the greatest female players to ever play the game of baseball.  She stole 201 bases in 1946 as a member of the Racine Belles.

More and more players from the AAGPBL, and Negro Leagues as well, are leaving us.  It is greatly important that we remember these folks and their contributions to the game because, soon, they will only live on in our stories and photos, etc.

I got a signed ball TTM from Ms. Kurys back in June and I sure am glad that I took the time to write her a letter and request that I have my ball signed.  I remember being really excited when I got the ball back and it still stands as one of my top 5 TTM successes.

Rest in peace, Ms. Kurys.  You will definitely be missed!

Random Notes and Thoughts

Sundays can be kind of tough for me, at least concerning the blog.  Since mail doesn't come in, I typically don't have much to type about.  Lately, I have completed a number of trades and have knocked down my want list of 2013 Topps Emerald parallels.  I still need more, so if any of you want to make a trade, please let me know.

I have added a few cards to my trade bait page.  I plan on cycling some in and out of there, so it might be helpful if I could get some feedback on that front.  I know some folks asked about some of the hits I pulled out of 2012 Topps Series 2, so if you all are still interested in those, please shoot me an email.

I have sold a couple things recently on my COMC profile.  Here is a link to my profile, maybe you can find something you want on there...  I used that store credit to get some stuff that should be coming in soon.  That'll give me a couple posts. 

I'm also waiting on my 2013 Topps Series One wrapper redemption.

I have pending trades almost ready to mail to:  TJ (several Griffeys), Dutch Card Guy (several Blylevens), Roy (some Jays and 2013 inserts), GCRL (Dodgers, Hough, etc).  Am I forgetting anyone?  I have blown away my new years resolution of finding more trade partners.  That has helped me thin out several boxes that I got from a co-worker.  I've actually had a fun time going through the boxes and looking for the different things people look for.  I had no idea how tough it was to find a 'night card.'  I have found a new appreciation of the 'play at the plate' or the 'turning of a double play.'

I had several folks ask about Yankee cards.  I already had 3 people who I split those among, so if I haven't responded to you, I apologize.  If there is something else I could find for you, please let me know and I will try to oblige.

Also, don't forget, sometimes when I get comments, I can't respond via email.  Please shoot me an email, in addition to your comment and I will respond.  Also, I see that some folks have the option to 'reply' to a comment on their post(s)... I seem to not have that button on my comment form.  Kind of weird, but I haven't been able to find it in my blog settings.  So, if I don't respond to a comment, it isn't because I'm being anti social.

If you are on the Twitter, you can follow me @foulbuntWilliam I definitely appreciate follows on there.

Anyway, I ended up writing a whole lot more than I anticipated today.  Please feel free to email me, follow me on Twitter or facebook.  Thanks for reading and I appreciate the trades, comments and emails.

Getting Some Nachos - A Trade Post

I recently did a small trade with Chris over at the wonderful blog 'Nachos Grande' in which I sent an assortment of Barry Larkin cards to him.  In return, he sent me a few Orioles.  I had several of them already, but that's ok, it will give me some stuff to trade with other Oriole fans that I know, so it is all good.  I don't think I blogged the above 2009 Topps Legends of the Game Brooks Robinson before.  I might have, but I don't remember, so there it is.  I liked that insert set when it came out and I still like it today.  I really enjoy seeing past starts on today's products, so I'm hoping Topps will continue on with that (and hey, its another avenue for me to increase my Brooks/Cal/Feller/Foxx PCs.

One thing I like about sending people stuff is seeing which cards I sent them that actually make it onto their blogs.  I bet Chris didn't think the above John Mitchell 1991 Donruss would make the cut.  Well, it made it because I had no clue who Mitchell was.  I looked him up on Baseball-Reference.com (one of my favorite sites, by the way) and it appears that this 1991 Donruss came at the end of Mitchell's brief career.  He went 6-6 with a 4.64 ERA for the O's in 1990, but did not pitch in the majors in 1991.  It looks like he went to the Seattle organization and pitched for their AAA team in 1991.  He wound up in Independent ball later on in his career before calling it quits in 1998.

Always interesting looking up some of these 'unknowns.'  Thanks for the trade, Chris!

Trade With Blog Reader Zach, Again

I completed another trade with blog reader Zach the other over Facebook.  He was looking for some BJ Upton stuff and I really wanted the above Eddie Murray Silver Slugger Award card.  As you can see, I now own the card, so it looks like we were able to reach a deal.  I have had 2 different BJ Upton Topps autos (2003 and 2004 Topps) for some time now, so I was ok with parting with those to get the cards that Zach included.  I love the above Murray, so I'm really glad I was able to get it and not have to use my COMC credit.

Zach included 8 Emeralds in the trade, so I need to mark them off of my Wishlist and see how much closer I am to completion.  Ok, I just checked (turns out I already had the above Kenley Jansen - Trade Dodger Fans?) and I have 55 of the 330 cards, 17%.

Something else Zach threw in was this 2012 Bowman Chrome Franchise All Stars - Dylan Bundy/Adam Jones.  I didn't even know this card existed, so I was really glad to be able to get it.  Maybe I should have opened more 2012 Bowman Chrome?

So, thanks for the trade, Zach!  Let's do it again, soon!

By the way, I updated my trade page, please check it out!

Trade With Blogger - Paul

I got 3 more 2013 Topps Emerald parallels yesterday after completing a trade with blogger Paul from Paul's Random Stuff.  Paul sent me the 3 Emeralds in exchange for 3 2013 Topps '72 minis and 2 base cards for his set.  I now have 49 different Emerald parallels, which accounts to 15% of the set.

I did go through the Emeralds that I have gathered so far and removed the duplicates that I had.  There were 7, so I will post the names on my trade page in case anyone wants to trade for those and send me more Emeralds!

Thanks for the trade, Paul!  I hope we can match up again!

Also, guys, I will be adding my Emerald set needs to my want list shortly, so please check it out and see if you can help me make a dent.  Furthermore, I added a few cards to my trade page and I intend to add more in the coming days/weeks.  it all depends on how successful I am at moving stuff through that page, but I have to tell you, I've really enjoyed all the trades I've made in the past week.  I want to keep that up.  I definitely blew away one of my card resolutions!

Trade With Fellow Blogger Roger

I received two trade packages today, one of which will be featured tonight.  I got a package from fellow blogger, Roger, from I Don't Know...3rd Base, today after discussing a trade with him for one card that he had that I was looking for.  I was elated when I opened his mailer and found TWO team bags full of goodies that I needed for some various PCs and a couple sets that I have kind of neglected lately.  Roger sent me 21 1969 Topps and 8 1971 Topps for my sets.  SWEET!  I like the above card from 1971 Topps, but it should read underneath the Reds Stay Alive - Not For Long.  You know, because Brooks Robinson was lights out when anything was hit toward him during that series.

I liked this 1969 Topps Royals Rookies, but I had no idea that Billy Butler has been with them that long!

This Bob Chance is seriously airbrushed, don't you think?  Looks it to me.

My first comment when I saw this 2004 Sweet Spot Classic Ripken was "Ooh, pretty!"  I mean, it is, don't laugh at me!  I might seriously consider finding a box of these at some point.  Really nice design.

I opened something like 5 boxes of 2010 Topps Chrome and didn't pull a single parallel.  Weird, right?  Well, I was happy to get this Orange Refractor Brian Matusz in the trade.

Mike Cuellar has to be one of the more underrated pitchers ever.  He won a Cy Young Award (he shared one, I meant to say...), won 20 or more games 4 times and was on 3 World Series teams (winning in 1970 with the Orioles).  I really need to make a PC of him; I probably already have a ton of his cards as well as a signed baseball.

Looking remarkably like the aforementioned 1972 Topps Cuellar, the above Cal Ripken was a welcome addition.  I didn't have it yet, so that was good.  I have always been a fan of the 1972 Topps design and look forward to putting the 1972 set together at some point in time (once 1969 and 1971 are done for sure).

Finally, I present the card that our trade was centered around, this 2013 Topps Emerald Chris Davis.  I am well on my way to putting this thing together and I sincerely appreciate all the folks who have emailed me with trade proposals to assist me in completing the set.  It'll be a long road, but I really look forward to completing it.

Thanks so much for the trade, Roger.  I saw on Roger's blog that he hasn't posted since 2011, so maybe we all can coax him into writing again (unless I missed an updated blog during my search...).

Trade With Kalib From Cubs Cardboard

My 'Help Me Out' post really worked.  I got several emails from folks who were wanting in on some of the excess stuff that I have been trying to clear out.  One such person who contacted me was Kalib from the new blog 'Cubs Cardboard.'  Kalib sent me a nice package that included all sorts of Orioles and some 2013 Topps Emerald parallels that I am suddenly amassing.  He sent me 8 of them, so by my math, I now have 43.  I need to go through them and start making sure I am not duplicating anything.  Also, I know I owe a couple folks some inserts in exchange for their emails.  I haven't forgotten, so I will be getting back into the swing of things after finally putting my family issue behind me.

The coolest card in Kalib's package by far was the above Adam Jones All Star relic from 2012 Topps.  It is a golden parallel, so it is numbered to 50.  It looks awesome in person, just so you know.  I really love this card and can't wait to get it top loaded and inserted into my Jones PC.

Surprisingly, I did not yet own this Cal Ripken 2012 Topps '87 mini (at least that I know of).  It looks really cool, even though the mini concept is wearing on me.

Also, it was nice getting a new Brian Roberts for the PC.  I sure hope he can bounce back from the last few disappointing seasons he has had.  When healthy, Roberts is a catalyst at the top of the order.  We'll see, though, if he can remain healthy.

Finally, I got this awesome Adam Jones Cut to the Chase card.  I think I have a pending trade with someone for another of these, which, if I do, don't worry, that trade is still on.  I love these cards and won't mind duplicating my efforts there.

So, thanks for the trade Kalib!  If you all haven't already, head over to his blog and follow him.  He seems like a really good guy and I am definitely happy to have someone to send my Cubs stuff to now.

Another Trade With Weston

I got home yesterday and discovered a mailer in my mailbox from my buddy Weston.  In it was a multitude of cards of Orioles and a couple others for my player collections.  Above is a really nice 2012 Topps Heritage Chrome Mark Reynolds.  I really like it and it is unfortunate that Reynolds won't be with the O's this year, but I won't be missing his strikeouts and I think Nolan Reimold can stay healthy and contribute as big a bat as Reynolds with a higher average and less Ks.

Probably my favorite non-Oriole, Weston hooked me up with this 2012 TOpps Golden McCutchen.  McCutchen is a great player who I really hope can sustain his recent success.  He had a good year last year, but looked like he was gassed after the All Star break.

Weston's known me long enough to know that it is a special day when I can get a new Cal for my PC.  This one is the retail exclusive foil version of the Chasing History.  This was probably my favorite card from the package, but all of the cards were sweet.

Because Weston is a really nice guy, he hooked me up with 5 Emerald parallels.  Now I have 35 total of the 330 from Series One.  Over 10% complete.  Wooo!

Also, because Weston is a nice guy, he hooked me up with a parallel of Dylan Bundy, so I now have his base card, Emerald and Target Red Parallel.  Nice.

Did I mention that Weston was a nice guy?  He also included the Target Red parallel of Manny Machado.  I now have Machado's base, Gold parallel and Red.  Awesome.

Thanks for the trade Weston.  I hope you like the package I sent in return!

Visiting a New Card Shop

Due to an unfortunate event in my family, I had to travel on Monday evening to my parents' house.  The whole whole family was due to get together Tuesday afternoon, so I had some time to kill that morning.  My mom gave me a coupon for the new card shop that had opened in Clemmons, NC, so we all rode there to get our minds off of things.  The new shop was nice; it had more football related items than anything, mostly license plates, shirts, wall art, etc, but they did have a small assortment of vintage cards in their display case.  One of the cards I picked up (and the only one i picked up for myself) was the above 1975 Topps Jim Rice RC.  I got it for $1.00 and as you can see, it's pretty beat up.  I thought a buck was a good enough deal for a HOF RC, so I didn't mind paying it.  I also picked up some cards for a couple trade partners to go out in some of my 'random mailers.'

Something else I got was the above 'pennant' for $5.00.  It is a round pennant, but made of felt, nonetheless.  I didn't have it, so I will hang it on the wall with my other Orioles pennants.  I really can't complain for $5.00.

So, I was pretty pleased with the new shop.  They are called Lucky Dog Collectables and they are located on Lewisville-Clemmons Road in Clemmons, NC.  If you are in the area, I suggest you check them out.  It is quite hard to find new shops opening, so I am glad to see it.

Finally, those of you who do know me closely, I would like to thank you for the well wishes while I was off dealing with these family issues.  I appreciate the thoughts, sincerely.  I'm not one who tries to draw attention to himself, but I really appreciated the messages I got.

2013 Topps Series One - The Orioles

I would have posted this entry yesterday, but I had to attend to family matters, sadly.  I don't want to go into detail, but I do want to say that we all should take the time and tell our loved ones how we feel about them because we might not get the chance tomorrow.

So, back to the blog.  2013 Topps Series One has a good many Orioles represented in the checklist.  The above Adam Jones shows a good show of the Orioles Center Fielder in the process of making a catch (what, no bubble?).  After building the set, I had duplicates of Jones, Endy Chavez (no longer with the team), Manny Machado, Robert Andino (no longer with the team), L. J. Hoes, Jim Johnson, Jake Arrieta, Chris Davis, Mark Reynolds (no longer with the team), Dylan Bundy and Tommy Hunter.  Brian Matusz is also represented in the set, but I didn't have any of his cards left over after completing my set.

There is also a highlights card of the O's winning the one game playoff against Texas.  I'm really glad this card was made as it represents a key moment in recent Orioles history.  I definitely plan on making a rainbow of this card.

Speaking of rainbows, I want to do one of the Chris Davis card as well, so this will give me plenty to search for as the season progresses.

I can also look forward to Series Two, when Nick Markakis, Nolan Reimold, Miguel Gonzalez and Brian Roberts will hopefully get cards.  Yet again, Matt Wieters is left out of the set due to licensing issues.  I wish Matt would get on board and get a freaking Topps card already, JEEZ!