April 7, 2012 Card Show - 1969 Topps

At last weekend's card show, I picked up 6 cards for my 1969 set.  I got the below Hank Aaron for a mere $20.  It is SHARP!  I was amazed that the guy was wanting only $20 for it, so I had to jump all over it.

The Aaron is definitely a sweet card.  I got a few other Hall of Famers as well, such as the below Harmon Killebrew:

This Fergie Jenkins:

And This Walter Alston:

I didn't knock off near as many 1969s as I did '59s, but it was because I found all of the 1959s first and then didn't have time to look for '69s.  I plan on adding more at the May show, which will be here before you know it.

I still have a long way to go for both sets, so hopefully I will be able to get on the ball so to speak and knock them out.  I know there are some expensive cards still to come, both Mantles for sure.

April 7, 2012 Card Show - 1959 Topps Pickups

I meant to get these posted the other day, but a TTM and meeting a legend kind of pushed my blog posts back.  I sure didn't mind.  I'm pretty certain that none of you minded much either.  Anyway, as I come down from the high from yesterday, I wanted to show off some of the 16 1959 Topps cards I picked up at the Show this past weekend.

First up, is this awesome Ernie Banks.  This card is a really awesome card and is one that I have been looking forward to picking up ever since I started the 1959 set.  I love the green.  It really pops.

Here, we have Larry Doby's last Topps card from his career.  He is a Hall of Famer and was the first player to break the color barrier in the American League.

I had to get another 1959 Virgil Trucks since the one Drew got me for Christmas in 2010 is in my Virgil Trucks PC.  I didn't mind picking up another, as this one is pretty sharp, aside from being a bit off center.  My good buddy P.A. picked this one up for me while I was helping someone at my tables.  I gave him the $5 for it and I trusted his instincts as far as the type of condition I was looking for and P.A. didn't disappoint.  The 1959 Topps is also Virgil Trucks' last Topps regular issue card.

Here is a really nice Gil Hodges I got for a really good price.  The borders have grayed a bit, but in all, it is a really nice card.

I wanted to show this Harvey Kuenn, because, honestly, I can never get enough of the red '59s.  I just love them.  I'm really glad the Virgil Trucks was a red one.  Tood bad the Brooks Robinson isn't.  Oh well.

I got a bunch of the Sporting News Rookie Stars cards as well.  These are pretty cool.  I didn't get any huge names, just several to knock off the list.

Looks like I'm making some headway into the 1959 set.  Unless Frank Robinson comes to town tomorrow or a TTM arrives, stay tuned for the 1969s that I got.

Cross it Off The Bucket List, I Met Cal Ripken, Jr.

You read it right.  I met Cal Ripken, Jr. today.  I checked my email and saw a headline in the local news section that said "Ripken, Jr. Will Vivit Greenville Tuesday."  So, I checked the article and it said that he was due in town to dedicate the refurbishment of the special needs ballpark in Greenville as part of the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation.  The ballpark, Sarah Vaughn Field of Dreams is a ballfield built so that special needs kids and adults can enjoy baseball and softball games.

I called my wife and told her that we should try to go to the dedication since it is highly unlikely that Cal would be anywhere near here anytime soon.  Also, since our son Chris is out on spring break this week, I thought it would be something cool for him to attend.

We got to the dedication early with the hope of catching Cal as he got out of his car.  We did catch him getting out of his car, but he went right into the event without signing anything.  He did speak to me when I asked him to sign my ball, which was really cool.  He couldn't sign at that time because he was a little late for the event.

Finally, after the event was over and Cal signed for the VIPs inside the fence, Cal made his way back to his rental car with his handler.  He was apparently on a tight schedule, as the handler told us that Cal would not be signing.  Cal then reached down and grabbed Chris' ball to sign it.

I know this isn't the most flattering picture of Cal, but hey, I met him in person.  I'm going to take what I can get.

Chris' ball was the first thing Cal signed as he was exiting the park.  He signed 2 more items for other people.  I had my ball held out in hopes of getting him to sign it, but I wasn't as lucky as Chris.  It doesn't really matter, though, because I already have 2 signed baseballs from Cal.  My whole point of going was to hopefully meet him and I did.  I also hoped that Chris would meet him and get a ball signed, which we also did.

To me, this was a big moment.  It was also special because I could share it with my wife and son.  Chris doesn't really get the importance that Cal holds for me, but in time, it will be meaningful for him.  I'm still in awe that I was finally able to meet the player that I have idolized for the past 20+ years.  Another really cool part of it was that  was able to call my mom immediately after and tell her.  Mom, more than anyone, knows how much and how long I have loved Cal Ripken, so that was another cool moment.

I hope you all enjoyed this, because I am definitely excited.  I doubt it will hit me until much later that I finally was able to meet Cal.  Oh man.  So awesome.

TTM Success - Minnie Minoso

I am interrupting my card show recap so that I can show off the TTM success I got today - Minnie Minoso.

My 52nd TTM success, I sent to Minoso on March 24 and got the ball back today.  He charges a fee of $15 and you have to go to his website:  www.minoso.com and print out an order form.  You can request any inscription you want, so I chose the below "5 Decades 40/50/60/70/80."  I sent to him on March 24, 2012 and got the ball back today (April 9, 2012) making him a 16-day TAT.

Minnie Minoso (b. 1925) played in the majors in 1949, 1951-1964, 1976 and 1980 for the Indians, White Sox, Cardinals and Senators amassing 1,963 hits, 186 home runs and a .298 batting average.  He is the only '5-decade' player to have played in MLB.

April 7 Card Show Recap - The Miscellaneous Stuff

One of the things I love about going to a card show or even a memorabilia shop is that you never know what kinds of random stuff that you'll find.  I took a break from my tables with about an hour to go in the show and walked around with Christopher.  He had $13 bucks to spend, so he bought an 8x10 of WWE Superstar, The Big Show.  We also found a table that had some wrestling cards for $1.00, so he picked up one of Mach Man Randy Savage.  At the same table, on the same dollar rack was the below Press Pass Legends card of my favorite Drag Racer, Shirley Muldowney.

Finding a card of Shirley is a bit of a rare feat in itself, since not too many cards are made for drag racing.  One would think that they would give it a shot, since NASCAR cards seem to have some popularity.  I'd rather see drag racing cards than NASCAR ones anyway because with all the different types of cars out there, there would be a bit of a variety.

I know I have blogged in the past about meeting Shirley in person back in 1995.  She is an awesome person and I love this card.  Press Pass Legends has some relic and autos of her that I think I'm going to pursue.  Might as well, since they are out there and I definitely will appreciate them.

Another cool thing I got was this 1979 AL Champion Orioles pennant.  It will look really good on my wall with my other pennants.  They guy was a friend of my brother's, so he made me a deal on the pennant.  I got it for $15, which is the same price I paid (I think) for my Camden Yards All Star Game one I got in Cooperstown last year.

Stay tuned to see some of the cards I picked up.  I got some sweet deals on those, so I'm really pleased with what I picked up.

Also, I hope everyone has a Happy Easter with their families and remembers that today isn't about eggs and rabbits, but for the ultimate sacrifice.  I don't normally get on the religion soapbox, but I feel like the meaning of this holiday is lost sometimes.  So, take a little time out, be thankful for the things that you have and, if nothing else, try to spend a little quality time with your family.

April 7, 2012 Raleigh Card Show Thoughts

I set up my tables today at the April 7 Raleigh card show hoping to sell enough cards to at least break even for the cost of the tables.  The show went from 10-5 and I didn't break even until 4:00.  I was scared.  It ended up being ok, though, because after I broke even, I sold another $60 worth of stuff, so I did alright.

Here is my set-up with my assistant manning the tables.

The best part was, I got to hang out with P.A. for a little bit, which was nice.  I hadn't seen him in a while, so it was real nice being able to catch up.  I also knocked a bunch of Hall of Famers off of my set needs for 1959 and 1969.  I even was lucky enough to find a nice drag racing card.

In all, here is what I got:

16 1959 Topps (including 3 Hall of Famers)

6 1969 Topps (including 4 Hall of Famers)

2 1971 Topps

1 Press Pass Legends (Drag Racing Legend)

You'll see pictures of these starting tomorrow.

Orioles Win on Opening Day

A Nick Markakis 2-run homer in the first inning followed by his RBI triple in the sixth that extended the lead led to a 4-2 win over the Minnesota Twins on Opening Day in Baltimore.  Watching my first regular season game on MASN for the first time since 2009 was a blast as I was able to see what an Orioles win should look like.

Seven strong innings by Jake Arrieta paced the Orioles today.  Arrieta got 4 strikeouts, 2 hits and 2 walks in those seven shutout innings.  Troy Patton would allow a 2-run home run to Josh Willingham in the 9th before Jim Johnson would come on to nail down the save.

The Orioles will go as far as their starting pitching will take them, and today, Arrieta looked sharp.  He was able to cut down on walks and helped his case with 3 great defensive plays.  I really hope that the Orioles continue to play like this. If so, it will be a fun season.