Birthday Package From Drew - Something off of the Top Ten Wishlist

I got a couple birthday packages in the mail today, which helps extend my birthday for a few more days (not complaining about that!).  One of the packages was from my good friend, Drew.  Drew has been easing himself back into the blog world since he returned from an awesome study abroad program earlier this year.  Unfortunately, the trip exhausted Drew and his funds, so he wasn't able to attend this year's National.  Drew was sorely missed, especially since the National was relatively in his back yard.

Drew surprised me by crossing a card off of my Top Ten Wishlist.  This 1948-49 Leaf "John" Wagner is a card that I have kept an eye on for a while.  I almost picked one up at the National, but the guy wanted way too much for it.  This one has awesome edges and corners, but some paper loss on the corners; likely due to someone having it taped into an album.

The back of the card looks flawless, and is a nice read.  I especially like the ad for the All Star Baseball Gum Big Pictures "for hanging in your room or club".  How many kids these days build club houses?  This is an awesome card.

Drew also included this really cool Frank Robinson relic from 2005 Donruss Champions.  This was a nice set that came out back when I had just gotten back into the hobby.  I always liked these cards, but didn't pull any hits.  This Frank will look nice with my other Robinson cards (of which there are few, since Frank eludes me most of the time).

Finally, we have this Adam Jones framed relic from 2016 Ginter.  The framed relics seem to be tougher to find, since they now have the full card relics.  I made a trade with Drew to pick this one up.

Other than Mom or Andrew, Drew may be someone I have talked about the most on this blog.  He and I have been trading since he first broke into the hobby.  He was just about 12 at the time, I believe, and now he is almost done with college.  We have been close friends for well over 7 years now, and have even taken a trip to the Hall of Fame (Chris still says he didn't break your dad's car door).

Thank you so much for the awesome cards, and most of all, your friendship, Drew!  I greatly appreciate it, and can't wait to see you at next year's National!

Baseball Cards in the Hall of Fame

One of the coolest moments I had when visiting the Hall of Fame was when I got to the exhibit that showed the two below baseball cards...

The first being the T-206 'Gretzky' Honus Wagner. WOW. I hit my knees when I saw this card. My heart literally skipped a beat. Normally, I could imagine someone laughing at me when seeing how I reacted to a simple piece of cardboard. Yet, this is certainly not just a piece of cardboard. This card is the reason people collect cards in the first place. The Holy Grail, if you will. $2.9 million at its last auction. Unbelievable. I was ON MY KNEES! It was so amazing to be able to see this card in person. To be mere feet from it. This was such a great feeling.

Another card that I was breath taken by was this beauty. A Gem Mint 10 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle. Holy WOW. Gem Mint 10. Is that even possible? This card is the reason why Topps is around. My dad distinctly remembers putting this card in his bicycle spokes as a kid. Countless grandmothers have thrown them away. Topps, themselves, dumped a load of them in the Hudson River. Let's dump it in the river!!! Wise idea, guys. Of course, had they not done that, the card would be everywhere.

This was an amazing part of the Hall of Fame. There was so much more, too, but these cards were so amazing! I hope you all enjoy looking at them, too.

Foul Bunt on Location - WELCOME TO COOPERSTOWN

I realized a lifelong dream today when I made the pilgrimage to Cooperstown, New York in order to visit the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. I took 293 pictures in Cooperstown and over the course of time, I'll try to share them all with you. Right now, though, I'm really tired from all of this driving and I have a big day planned tomorrow (where I can finally meet another blogger in person) and see another minor league game (weather permitting).

The drive to Cooperstown from Rochester (where my younger brother had lined us up a hotel room) was beautiful. The weather on the drive down was just about perfect. The New York countryside was amazing!



Downtown Cooperstown was as picturesque as I had imagined it. I was so excited when we walked along the street and realized that right in fromt of us was one of the most hallowed halls in all of sports.


I'm going to skip right to when we entered the plaque room, even though this is the place we visited last in the building. I was so overcome with emotion when I entered the room, my mouth was wide open. I probably looked goofy, but I didn't realize, that's for sure. I made sure to remove my hat when entering, because, I don't know about you, but to me it was almost as sacred as a church. No sacrilege intended, but that's just how I feel about the place.

I stood in the entrance, tears welling up in my eyes, as I wrestled with the decision - You can only enter the room for the first time once in your life... whose plaque do you go to first. I thought long and hard and came to the determination that as an Oriole fan (I was wearing my Nolan Reimold shirt, afterall) it had to be...Brooks. I made my way to his plaque, touched it and took this picture. I made sure to read it, of course.


Then, as a baseball fan, next, I went to the 'First Class' wall and read each plaque for Ruth, Cobb, Mathewson, Johnson and Wagner. I made sure to touch the bust of Babe Ruth, as countless others had done. (Pictures of those plaques will be posted in a future entry).


Finally, the kid in me went to the plaque that I had waited all of my 'fandom' to see in person. Cal Ripken, Jr. I seriously had to fight back tears when I walked up and saw the plaque of the player who I idolized growing up. I could have gone to the Hall many years ago, but always told myself that I wouldn't go until Cal was enshrined. I know that anyone who knows me knows how important it was for me to be able to see Cal's plaque.

If you look closely, you might see a tear in my eye, but I did my best to wipe them away before this picture was shot. I can't put into words how awesome it was to be able to finally get to the Hall of Fame. I hope you guys enjoyed this brief look at what I accomplished today. I fully intend to post a lot more about the trip in future entries. I have plenty of pictures to be able to do it justice, that's for sure.

Foul Bunt on Location - August 1, 2011 Pirates vs. Cubs

I decided this year that instead of going to Baltimore (like I have since 2005) I would check out another team in another city. I settled on Pittsburgh since I had heard that the city was pretty nice and PNC Park was a great place to catch a game. I was definitely pleased with my decision.

PNC Park, which opened in 2001, is finally able to house a competitive team. Outside the park are statues of former Pirate greats Honus Wagner (seen above)...Roberto Clemente (this was amazing to see in person, by the way)

Willie Stargell and Bill Mazeroski. I really liked the Stargell statue. I think he is pretty underrated in the history of the game. He was definitely a thorn in the side of some great Oriole teams, especially in 1979 when he helped the Pirates beat the O's in 7 games in an epic World Series.
I got to see Pirate superstar Andrew McCutchen go 1 for 4 on the night. He was very impressive in his at bats and the crowd was solidly behind him.


I was pleasantly surprised at the ovation that Derrek Lee received each time his name was called. It looks like Pirate fans are very happy that he was added at the trade deadline. Lee was the source of all of the Pirates' offense tonight when he belted 2 home runs (both to standing ovations) and got 3 RBI.
Sadly, the Pirates lost their 4th in a row to a score of 5-3. Derrek Lee went 2-4 with 3 RBI. His second homer measured 410 feet.


I got a signed ball from the 1992 AL Rookie of the Year Pat Listach. He played his entire career with the Milwaukee Brewers (1992 to 1997) and had a career batting average of .251 with 444 hits, 5 home runs and 116 stolen bases.

I also got a ball signed by Cubs' rookie outfielder Tony Campana. He is batting .256 on the year with 22 hits, no home runs and 12 stolen bases in 52 games. He appeared as a pinch hitter and bunt grounded out.

I had a really good time in Pittsburgh. Everything I have heard about the city was true, it looks awesome. The city deserves a lot of credit, all of the soot from the steel industry has been cleaned up and now the city looks amazing. I definitely would consider coming back any time to catch a game.