Jhoulys Chacin 2012 Topps Preview

 After just seeing some early 2012 Topps Gold Rush on Padrographs I checked to see if there was a first look at a new Rockies card. Interestingly enough there was this Jhoulys Chacin card scanned. A really interesting picture and something different from the standard trading card photos, but like the 2012 base set, I am just not sure about it. As a Chacin collector this card is somewhat disappointing for two reasons, the first being my general dislike for horizontal cards, unless the photo really demands it (see 1971 Munson). The second reason being that Chacin is a very small part of the overall card, tucked into the corner, with the focal point being a blurry batter, although I do really like the Coors Field backdrop with the trees behind his arm. I was a big fan of 2011 Topps and the Diamond parallels, but 2012 just seems like a lazy retread, with gold instead of diamond. I will wait until I see more of the product to really dismiss it, but the longer I wait, the closer it gets to something more interesting coming out.

Mailday (or what I did with my ebay bucks)

 After ordering a few things around the holidays I was left with a few ebay bucks to burn up. I ended up getting the Rockies 2003 set including the cards from the traded set. This is a period when I was moving around and didn't really have the time or money to collect and spent a few years not following baseball very closely.

Book Review "As They See 'Em"

Something a little different here, a book review, if you don't feel like reading this whole post I will sum it up here. This book exists, I enjoyed reading it, you should read it too.

This book isn't new, but if you haven't read it yet, I suggest picking up a copy. The author, Bruce Weber, starts off going to one of the two MLB umpire schools. The book then follows him around various levels of baseball, experiencing the life of an umpire. Far from glamorous with little to no recognition for doing a good job and having your mistakes pointed out by having grown men yell in your face. If you have ever watched a baseball and swore at an umpire, you should read this book. I found the book to be both interesting and entertaining, and felt like I knew more about baseball as a game and a business after finishing it.

Custom Card: 1971-72 Topps Hockey Troy Tulowitzki

Although this Blog is relatively new, I have been making custom cards for a few years now, and this was one of the most challenging. The team font at the top is not perfect compared to the original 1971-72's, but I think its pretty close, and cropping players is never a fun task, but the final product makes it worth the time. The 1971-72 set featured the iconic Ken Dryden rookie card, even as a Bruins fan, I have to admit that Dryden card is brilliant, and sticks out as the only action photo in the set (as far as I know anyway). The original set had both red/orange and yellow background, this was originally a Bobby Orr card and I think the orange looks sharper. Overall a nice design for a card that just screams 1970's with the bubble font and bright color.

1909-11 T206: The Catchers

T206 Doc Powers

 I was going though my collection and I realized that it stops completely at 1971. I never made the choice to stop at that year, but my oldest card is from 1971. Even looking back at the badly worn box of cards from my Dad's childhood collection, nothing is older than 1971. Being mainly a collector of Rockies and catcher cards nothing older really interested me. The oldest Rockies related card would probably be a Dale Murphy rookie and older than 1971 never really had a good defensive action shot, which is what I am looking for in catcher cards. I see it as the baseball equivalent of guys who collect goalie cards in hockey.

1971 Topps Variations: Jim Nash #306

Blobbed Version Above

Back to the 1971 Variation project that I have ignoring for a bit, here we have card number 306, Jim Nash. Similar to the Jim Northrup variation this card has a Blob and Blobless version, but from what I can find the Blobbed version is the original with the later versions having the Blob airbrushed out. The difference is noted on most graded versions as "Black Blob, Left Center" and "Blob Airbrushed Away", although there are graded cards with no notation at all. The Blobbed version seeming to be a little more rare and more expensive, going for around 10-20 dollars ungraded, while the unblobbed version goes for around 1-2 dollars. I have seen mention of a version with a red dot on his cap, but that seems like more of a printing error than a variation.

The Needed Nine (Want List Refined)

Update: My first wanted cards list is almost all checked off, for the current list see the box on the right sidebar.

Acquired October 2013 Aaron Ledesma 2000 1st Edition Pennant Run #49 Showdown cards are proving hard to find, I am not really a fan of these cards, but they provide the only team cards for a few players and show up twice on my most needed list. Ledesma only played in 32 games with Colorado, starting only 3, but the completionist in me is searching for this card. There is a "first edition" and "unlimited" version of this, I am looking for either one.
Acquired November 2012 Dennys Reyes 2002 Upper Deck 40-Man #1003 Loogys don't get very many cards, but the Topps Total and Upper Deck 40-man series gave cards to a lot of player that would not normally get one. Reyes spent 4 months of 2002 with the Rockies before being traded to Texas with Todd Hollandsworth for Gabe Kapler, Jason Romano and cash. Reyes pitched a few games in 2011 proving if you are left handed and have a pulse you have a chance to stick in pro ball for years.
Acquired March 2012 Bubba Carpenter 2000 Bowman Draft Picks #48 I have no idea why Bowman gave Bubba Carpenter a card in this set. For one thing Bubba Carpenter in no way sounds like a real name, more like a unimaginative alias, or a redneck woodworker. Upon further research Bubba Carpenter was never drafted, making his only card being in a set called Bowman Draft Picks a little odd. Considering he made his MLB debut in 2000 at age 31 after reaching AAA in 1993, I would hardly have called him a prospect. Looking at his minor league numbers he had surprisingly low power for a guy called Bubba. Anyway, Rockie I don't have, need it.
Acquired March 2012 Roberto Ramirez 1999 Fleer Mystique #102  This one was hard enough to find out it even existed, let alone find the actual card as Beckett doesn't list the team for this card. I found the scan on the wonderful Zistle after someone swiped it from Check Out My Cards and uploaded it. The card is no longer on COMC or else I would have snagged it up right away. I have no recollection of Mr. Ramirez or his 1-5 record and 8.26 ERA in his only Rockies season, but again, completionism. This card is limited to 2999 making it annoyingly harder to find than most commons.
Acquired March 2012 Craig Counsell 1996 Bowman #194 Breaking the trend of no name obscure players, here we have the ageless wonder, Craig Counsell. There can't be to many players from this set still playing. I actually remember hearing about Counsell coming up through the Rockies system, but he was traded to Florida for Mark Hutton after exactly 2 plate appearances with the Rockies. I guess to open the door for Neifi Perez. Counsell went on to score the World Series winning run for the Marlins in 1997, win another World Series with the D-Backs in 2001 and play in 1,624 MLB games, and counting. Mark Hutton went 0-1 with a 7.11 ERA over 12 2/3 innings with the Rockies.
Acquired March 2012 Kirt Manwaring 1998 Upper Deck #353 This is the best scan I could find of this card, but it seriously looks like it is snowing in the photo. There can not be a lot of baseball cards that feature snow, if there are more I want them, I'm Canadian, we freakin love snow, plus Manwaring was a catcher and I collect catchers. Also reminds me of one of Chris Berman's better nicknames, Kirt What is that Manwaring. I miss Baseball tonight, baseball highlights in Canada are few and far between.
Acquired March 2012 Garvin Alston 1997 Fleer #582 I have the 1993 Topps card with Alston and Michael Case, but I don't count multi-player cards and his 1993 Bowman has an ugly spring training practice jersey so I am after this specific card, yes I am being picky, but I am picky about baseball cards, and for card poses, this one is pretty decent.
Acquired July 2012 Kurt Abbott 2000 MLB Showdown 1st Edition  #142  Another Showdown card, Abbott played in 138 games over one and half seasons with the Rockies, but this is his only Rockies card. Beckett lists his 1998 Pacific card and his 2000 Topps Subway Series as Rockies cards, but Abbott is pictured and listed with the Marlins and Mets, respectively. This is always the first card alphabetically in my want list, so knocking this off would bring me down to Benny Agbayani.
Acquired January 2013 Sandy Alomar, Jr. 2002 Topps Traded T68 The first 100 cards of 2002 Topps Traded were seeded one per pack, and the one card I want out of the whole set falls into this group. I need the Kent Mercker as well, but Alomar takes priority as a catcher and Mercker has a Rockies card in one of the Upper Deck 40-Man sets. There is a chrome version, but I prefer regular cards to chrome. Alomar also has a Rockies card in the 2003 Topps Heritage set and really either one would do as neither photo's show him geared up.

So there they are, my 9 most needed, I will have to add a sidebar like Night Owl and Cards from the Quarry have and pursue trades a little harder, if anyone has these for trade hit me up and hopefully we can work a deal out, I have lots of baseball, football and some basketball for trade

Trade Time

My first trade since starting this blog has been completed, thanks to hiflew from Cards from the Quarry for the trade. Basically a Rockies for Rockies trade as we are both working on "one of every Rockies" collections. The whole package was great, here are a few highlights after the jump.

 
2009 O-Pee-Chee Black, I love the black border on these with the purple and the powder blue, sharp looking cards. The Corpas looks like a 1970's card with the far away action photo, one of my favorite cards from 2009.