2023 CARD SHOW - PART 8 GRAND FINALE AT THE VINTAGE TABLE

I LEFT THE BOARDROOM WITH SEVEN BUCKS IN MY POCKET AND MADE A BEELINE TOWARDS THE VINTAGE GUY AT THE FRONT WHO GAVE ME STICKER SHOCK AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SHOW. I KNEW THERE WERE SOME CHEAPSKATE BOXES I COULD RAID UNLESS THAT DUDE WAS STILL HOGGING THEM. I GOT TO THE TABLE AND... YES! I COULD HOG THE BOXES NOW! I POKED AT THE TOPPS BASE SETS FOR A MINUTE BUT THEN SAID FORGET THAT MESS AND ATTACKED THE ODDBALLS INSTEAD. THIS WAS THE MOST EXPENSIVE CARD I BOUGHT AT THE SHOW: 

THREE WHOLE DOLLARS AND FIFTY CENTS JUST BECAUSE IT HAS A GIANT BABE RUTH HEAD BUSTING OUT THROUGH THE OUTFIELD GRASS. WORTH EVERY PENNY. I'VE BEEN WORKING ON A FRANKENSET COMBINING THE 1970 AND 1971 SETS FOR A WHILE NOW AND I PUT A REAL HURTIN' ON MY NEEDS THIS TRIP. IN GENERAL I AM PICKING UP THE FIRST ONE I FIND BUT I CHOSE THE 1970 VERSION OF THE 1923 SEASON SPECIFICALLY FOR THE BABE

KELLOGGS ARE ALWAYS A MUST AT THIS TABLE AND I GOT AN EXTREMELY CRACKED 1972 BILLY WILLIAMS FOR ONLY FIFTY CENTS. AND WHEN I MEAN CRACKED, I MEAN IT. YOU CAN ACTUALLY LIFT THE PLASTIC OFF BILLY'S FACE AND MAKE THE CARD LOOK LIKE A 1973 KELLOGG'S. CRACKS ARE JUST AN OCCUPATIONAL HAZARD WITH KELLOGG COLLECTING AND IF YOU'RE GONNA HAVE A CRACKED CARD IT MAY AS WELL BE A CATASTROPHIC CRACK. THIS CARD LOOKS WORSE IN PERSON BUT I DO NOT CARE. A COUPLE YEARS AGO I HAD ZERO 1972 KELLOGGS CARDS AND NOW I HAVE SEVERAL. HOORAY FOR CRACKS!!!

USUALLY THE CARDS IN THESE BOXES ARE ALL IN PENNY SLEEVES WITH A PRICE WRITTEN ON IT IN SHARPIE. THIS TIME THERE WAS A BIG PILE OF 1980 KELLOGG'S IN DECENT SHAPE IN A TEAM BAG FOR FIFTY CENTS EACH. EVERY ONE OF THEM WAS SOME JABRONI, THEN EDDIE MURRAY POPPED UP. I WAS NOT PASSING ON EDS. I NEED ALMOST EVERY 1980 KELLOGG'S CARD SO IF THEY ARE STILL THERE NEXT TIME MAYBE I WILL TRY THE 'HOW MUCH FOR ALL THE THINGS' STRATEGY. IT PROBABLY WON'T WORK, THIS GUY WRITES "FIRM" ON HALF HIS PRICES BUT YOU NEVER KNOW!

ALONG WITH THE RUTH I PICKED UP FOUR MORE LAUGHLIN WORLD SERIES CARDS. THIS ONE FROM 1970 ALSO HAS A RUTH CAMEO BUT SINCE THE PLAYER SHOWN IS PAUL WANER IT ONLY COST A QUARTER. THIS IS A DARK SUBJECT FOR A WHIMSICAL BASEBALL CARD. PIRATE POISON? OK PAUL AND LLOYD WANER WERE NICKNAMED BIG POISON AND LITTLE POISON BUT THAT DOESN'T EXPLAIN THE SKULL AND CROSSBONES WITH A BASEBALL CAP. THEN AGAIN THE POISON VIALS LOOK A LITTLE LIKE CHRISTMAS ORNAMENTS WHICH MAKES THINGS A TAD MORE WHIMSICAL I GUESS

THE 1933 WORLD SERIES IS REPRESENTED BY THIS BEAUTIFUL DIAMOND CUT 1971 CARD WITH CARL HUBBELL TWIRLING A GOOSE EGG. WEIRDLY CUT BASE CARDS ARE HARD ENOUGH TO FIND NOWADAYS, FINDING A MISCUT ODDBALL IS A MIRACLE. I'M SURE MOST OF YOU OUT THERE KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE 1970 AND 1971 SETS BUT THE EASIEST WAY TO TELL THEM APART IS: 1970 CARDS HAVE THE YEAR INSIDE A BASEBALL, 1971 HAS THE YEAR IN A SQUARE WITH THE MLB LOGO. I KNOW MY SEVEN REGULARS ALREADY KNOW THIS BUT MAYBE A HISTORIAN FINDS THIS POST IN 2537 AND LEARNS SOMETHING. IT COULD HAPPEN!

ANOTHER 1971 CARD WITH SOME UNFORTUNATE SUBJECT MATTER. LAUGHLIN DID A PARODY SET IN 1975 CALLED BATTY BASEBALL SO WE'LL JUST REFER TO THIS CARD AS THE SERIES BETWEEN THE ENGINES AND THE BRIEFS. I FEEL LIKE I HAVE THIS CARD ALREADY BUT IT'S NOT IN MY FLEER VINTAGE BINDER SO IF I DO I HAVE TWO NOW I GUESS

LAST ONE IS A 1970 CARD FEATURING GIL MCDOUGALD BEING THE CABOOSE ON A CONGA LINE. THESE WERE ALL A QUARTER EACH AND ALONG WITH THE RUTH THIS KNOCKS THE FRANKENSET DOWN TO EIGHT CARDS NOT COUNTING THE EXTREMELY SHORT PRINTED 1970S CARDS. I HAVE NEVER ACTUALLY SEEN THOSE CARDS BEFORE THOUGH AND THE ONES ONLINE COST LIKE A HUNDRED BUCKS SO I MIGHT JUST FORGET THOSE EXIST. MAYBE THEY'RE EASIER TO FIND ON THE BACK OF A STICKER? FOR THOSE OF YOU FURIOUS I AM MIXING AND MATCHING BETWEEN THE TWO SETS REST ASSURED THAT ONCE I FINISH THE FRANKENSET I'LL LIKELY GO HUNT DOWN THE REST OF THEM AS WELL

AFTER THE KELLOGG'S AND LAUGHLINS I TRIED VERY HARD TO FIND SOME 1960S OR 70S INSERT CARDS LIKE SOME DECKLE EDGE OR GAME CARDS BUT I COMPLETELY STRUCK OUT. I SWITCHED GEARS AND HIT THE HOCKEY AND BASKETBALL BOX INSTEAD.

I HAVE HARDLY ANY HOCKEY CARDS OLDER THAN ABOUT 1972 OR SO IF I FIND ANY FROM THE 60S CHEAP I TRY TO GRAB EM. THIS CARD IS FROM THE 1968-69 SET. ALL YOU HORIZONTAL CARD AFICIONADOS GET A LOAD OF THIS DESIGN. A TINY PHOTO CRAMMED OVER TO THE SIDE WITH A MONOCHROME GENERIC HOCKEY ILLUSTRATION IN THE BACKGROUND. IT'S SO BIZARRE IT'S ALMOST GENIUS. IT WOULD BE ALMOST TWENTY-FIVE YEARS BEFORE DONRUSS WOULD USE THIS SAME DESIGN STRATEGY TO  LEAVE OPEN A WIDE OPEN SPACE FOR A RELIC OR AUTOGRAPH. SAY WHAT YOU WILL ABOUT THIS DESIGN, THERE'S NOTHING ELSE QUITE LIKE IT

ONE YEAR LATER THEY WENT THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION AND SWITCHED TO AN EXTREMELY BLAND DESIGN FOR THE 1969-70 SET. BIG PICTURE, BOLD TEXT, HOCKEY STICK. DONE. IT'S A LITTLE ODD I GOT RANGERS FOR BOTH SETS BUT THERE WERE ONLY TWELVE TEAMS AT THE TIME. THESE DIDN'T ACTUALLY ADD TO MY 60S TOPPS HOCKEY COLLECTION AS THEY BOTH ENDED UP BEING O-PEE-CHEE CARDS. I HAVE EVEN LESS OF THEM SO IT'S ALL GOOD

ALONG WITH THE OLD CARDS I ALSO LOOKED FOR SOME WANTLIST CARDS. I DON'T HAVE A LOT OF WANTLISTS FOR HOCKEY BUT I'VE BEEN WORKING ON THE 1974-75 TOPPS SET FOR OVER A DECADE NOW. I HAVEN'T FOUND A CARD I NEEDED IN ABOUT FIVE YEARS, BUT I GOT THE WANTLIST, I'M WORKING ON IT. THERE WERE QUITE A FEW CARDS FROM THE SET IN THE BOX BUT JEAN PRONOVOST WAS THE ONLY ONE I NEEDED. ONE'S BETTER THAN NONE! JEAN PLAYED FOR THE ATLANTA FLAMES LATER IN HIS CAREER BUT HE'S WITH THE PENGUINS HERE. THAT CHUBBY PENGUIN LOGO IS THE BEST, THE LOGOS ON THESE CARDS IS A BIG REASON WHY I LOVE IT SO MUCH

I ALSO FOUND A TONY ESPOSITO CARD FROM THE 1981-82 SET I NEEDED. WITH THIS ONE I AM ONLY MISSING TWO CARDS FROM THE BASE SET! UNFORTUNATELY HOCKEY DID THE SAME THING AS BASKETBALL AND ADDED ADDITIONAL HIGH NUMBER CARDS FOR EACH CONFERENCE TO BLOAT THINGS OUT. STILL! I ONLY NEED RAY BOURQUE AND THE JARI KURRI ROOKIE NOW. GRETZKY? GOT. LAFLEUR? GOT. BOSSY? GOT. I DON'T CARE IF IT'S A SHORT SET, COMPLETING ANY SET FROM THE 80S IS AN ACHIEVEMENT

I DIDN'T GO SET BUILDING WITH THE BASKETBALL BECAUSE 1) I DON'T KNOW WHAT SET I'M WORKING ON AT THE MOMENT AND 2) THERE WERE HARDLY ANY BASKETBALL CARDS ANYWAY. IN THOSE SITUATIONS I LOOK FOR OLD AND COOL. THIS 1971-72 CARD IS THE DEFINITION OF COOL. THAT FUNKY TEAM NAME RULES, THE SHOCKING PICK BACKGROUND IS DAZZLING, THE RED AICHES IN HAPPY HAIRSTON PLEASES MY EYES AND HAIRSTON IS INDEED VERY HAPPY ON THIS CARD. WHO CARES IF IT'S DINGED UP AND CREASED, THIS CARD IS GREAT

THE LAST CARD OF THE SHOW IS WENDELL HERE FROM THE 1973-74 SET. I HAD A HARD TIME PICKING THIS ONE BUT THE KENTUCKY COLONELS ARE MY FAVORITE ABA TEAM SO THIS ONE GOT CHOSEN. ALL THESE HOCKEY AND HOOPS CARDS WERE A QUARTER EACH AND I DID INDEED MANAGE TO SPEND ALL SEVEN BUCKS AND LEAVE THE SHOW FLAT BROKE

\AND WE'RE DONE! I REALLY WANT TO GO BACK AND RAID THIS TABLE AGAIN AS SOON AS I CAN. UP NEXT: IT'S TIME FOR THE 2023 COMC BLACK FRIDAY BINGE EXTRAVAGANZA!!!

2023 CARD SHOW - PART 5 THE DEALER WHO COLLECTS - ODDBALL JACKPOT

REMEMBER A COUPLE POSTS AGO WHEN I MENTIONED THAT THE DUDE WAS SELLING CARDS FROM RANDOM SETS GROUPED UP IN TEAM BAGS? WELL THESE WERE THE THREE MOST RANDOM SETS OUT OF THE BUNCH:

LEFT TO RIGHT: 1973 FLEER PATCHES BASEBALL'S WILDEST DAYS AND PLAYS, 1972 FLEER PATCHES FAMOUS FEATS, AND 1975 FLEER PATCHES PIONEERS OF BASEBALL. THESE CARDS WERE INSERTS IN FLEER PATCHES PACKS AS A BONUS TO STABLIZE THE PACKS FROM FLOPPING AROUND TOO MUCH. EARLY LAST YEAR I MADE IT A GOAL TO GET A TYPE CARD FROM EACH SET I COULD FIND AND NOW HERE WAS A TREASURE TROVE OF 1970'S FLEER. THE WILDEST DAYS AND PIONEERS CARDS WERE FIFTY CENTS APIECE WHILE THE FAMOUS FEATS WERE CONFUSED WITH THE 1980 REPRINT SET AND WERE A QUARTER. THE FAMOUS FEATS PILE WAS WAY THINNER THAN THE OTHER TWO SO I'M GUESSING THE GUY WHO RAIDED THE ARCHIVES BOX BEFORE ME HIT THOSE PRETTY HARD AS WELL. I SWITCHED GEARS REAL QUICK WHEN I SAW THESE AND WENT FROM "HOW MUCH FOR ONE ROW" TO HOW MUCH FOR ALL OF EM. AND ALL OF EM I GOT. WHEN I FINALLY WALKED AWAY FROM THE TABLE I HAD ALL THREE OF THESE PACKS IN MY BAG ALONG WITH EVERYTHING ELSE AFTER HANDING THE GUY THIRTY BUCKS. THAT'S $7.50 PER POST, ABOUT THE PRICE OF ONE OF THOSE CHRONICLES PACKS I KEEP POSTING. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT SOME OF THESE CARDS

1972 FLEER PATCHES LAUGHLIN BASEBALL'S FAMOUS FEATS

THESE SHOULD BE FAMILIAR TO A LOT OF YOU ALREADY FROM THE 1980 REPRINT SET OR THE BACKS OF 1980 AND 1986 FLEER STICKERS. THIS WALTER JOHNSON CARD IS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF LAUGHLIN'S GENIUS, HE EXPRESSED SO MUCH HERE IN A VERY SMALL NUMBER OF LINES. THIS ONE WAS ALWAYS MY FAVORITE ON THE BACK OF THE STICKERS. THERE WERE EIGHT CARDS FROM THE 40 CARD SET IN THE TEAM BAG WHICH IS NOT A BAD STARTER PACK 

ONE THING ABOUT THE STICKER BACKS IS THAT THEY ONLY REPRINTED 22 OUT OF THE 40 CARDS IN THE SET. SOMEHOW LOU GEHRIG MISSED THE CUT WHICH SEEMS INCREDIBLE. HOW DID RED ROLFE AND JOE OESCHGER BEAT OUT THE THE IRON HORSE?? I THOUGHT MAYBE IT WAS A LICENSING THING SO LAUGHLIN COULD HAVE SOME GOOD PLAYERS TO HIMSELF IN HIS 1980 SECOND SERIES BUT THOSE HAVE DIFFERENT ARTWORK. IN ANY CASE, THIS IS THE ONLY VERSION OF LOU'S FAMOUS FEATS CARD I CAN FIND. THE CARD'S A LITTLE BEAT UP BUT THIS DRAWING OF GEHRIG MASHING SALAMIS IS MY NEW FAVORITE FAMOUS FEATS

XX IS ANOTHER FAVORITE FROM THE STICKERS. I FEEL LIKE I PULLED AT LEAST FIVE OF THESE FROM PACKS AND I WAS NEVER DISAPPOINTED. SINCE THESE CARDS' PURPOSE IN LIFE WAS TO KEEP THE PACKS FROM BEING FLOPPY AND MAYBE PROTECT THE PATCHES FROM THE GUM YOU CAN SEE A LOT OF DINGS AND SPLOTCHES ON THESE CARDS. JIMMY GOT IT ESPECIALLY BAD WITH A VERY NOTICABLE GLOP STAIN DOWN BY HIS SHOE AND SOME UNIDENTIFIED SCHMUTZ IN THE BACK. IT'S ALL JUST ADDED VALUE, BABY

THE BACKS OF THE CARDS ARE VERY SIMILAR TO THE 1970 LAUGHLIN WORLD SERIES CARDS WITH THIS BLUE TEXT. I HAD A LITTLE CONFUSION TRYING TO SORT OUT WHEN THESE CARDS WERE RELEASED AS TCDB HAS IT AS AN INSERT IN THE 1973 PATCHES SET BUT THE BACK HAS A 1972 COPYRIGHT DATE. I PULLED OUT THE BOB LEMKE STANDARD CATALOG AND HE SAYS 1972 SO I'M STICKING WITH 1972. I FORCED MYSELF TO ONLY SHOW THREE CARDS FROM EACH SET SO THIS POST WOULDN'T TAKE EIGHT HOURS TO WRITE BUT I CHEATED AND ADDED A FOURTH PIC FOR THE BACKS. GOTTA SHOW OFF BIG ED DELAHANTY'S MISHAP AT NIAGRA FALLS

1973 FLEER PATCHES LAUGHLIN BASEBALL'S WILDEST DAYS AND PLAYS

ONCE AGAIN, TCDB SAYS 1974 WHEN LEMKE SAYS 1973 FOR THE DATE. LEMKE MATCHES THE COPYRIGHT SO UNLESS A FLEER HISTORIAN TELLS ME DIFFERENT I'M SIDING WITH LEMKE. THERE WERE 32 CARDS IN THE TEAM BAG AND I GOT 27 OUT OF THE 42 CARDS IN THE SET. YET, I GOT NO DOUBLES. I'LL EXPLAIN THAT LATER. IT WAS VERY DIFFICULT DECIDING WHICH THREE CARDS TO SHOW OFF AND I'M ALREADY REGRETTING NOT CHOOSING THE EDDIE GAEDEL CARD EVEN THOUGH YOU CAN ALSO SEE IT UP AT THE TOP OF THE POST. GABBY STREET CATCHING A BALL CHUCKED OFF THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT WAS NOT A DIFFUCULT CHOICE. THAT STORY IS RIDICULOUS AND THIS IS A GREAT LOOKING PICTURE

THIS CARD MADE ME LAUGH OUT LOUD WHEN I SAW IT. THANKFULLY THE SINGING UMP IS LORD BILL BYRON AND NOT JOE WEST. UMPIRE CARDS ARE FAIRLY SCARCE (FOR GOOD REASON) AND THIS IS PROBABLY A TOP 10 UMP CARD OF ALL TIME. IF YOU THINK UMPSHOWS ARE BAD NOW YOU AIN'T SEEN NOTHIN. BILL USED TO SING DITTIES AT PLAYERS WHO COMPLAINED ABOUT HIS CALLS SUCH AS 🎵 "YOU'LL HAVE TO LEARN BEFORE YOU'RE OLDER, YOU CAN'T HIT THE BALL WITH THE BAT ON YOUR SHOULDER" 🎵 CHECK THE LETTERING IN THE WORD STRIKE, THAT'S THE GOOD STUFF THERE

THE WORLD NEEDS MORE BASEBRAWL CARDS. THIS ONE COMMEMORATES THE 1912 OPENER IN BROOKLYN WHERE EIGHT THOUSAND FANS TOO MANY CROWDED WASHINGTON PARK FOR THE OPENER BETWEEN THE DODGERS AND GIANTS. FIGHTS BROKE OUT, FANS FLOODED THE OUTFIELD AND THE GAME WAS A MESS, EVENTUALLY BEING CALLED IN THE SIXTH INNING WITH A GIANTS VICTORY 18-3. LAUGHLIN ILLUSTRATES HOW THE PLAYERS TRIED IN VAIN TO PUSH BACK THE FANS OFF THE FIELD WITH THEIR BATS ON THE CARD. NOTE ALSO THE ORANGE PIECE OF TRASH FLYING WITH A VERY SUBTLE ORANGE G. I LOVE THESE LITTLE DETAILS

I CHOSE THIS BACK BECAUSE FIVE HOMERS IN AN INNING IS FRANKLY ABSURD AND EVERYONE SHOULD READ ABOUT THAT AND IT ALSO EXPLAINS THE REASON WHY I ENDED UP WITH FIVE DUPLICATES AND NO DOUBLES. APPARENTLY THERE ARE DIFFERENT CARD STOCK VARIATIONS IN THIS SET. IN TOTAL I GOT 24 GRAY BACKS AND EIGHT WHITE BACKS. I REALLY DO NOT CARE ABOUT A MASTER VARIATION SET SO I'M GOING TO FEIGN POOR EYESIGHT WHILE LOOKING AT THE BACKS. THIS SET IS SO FUN IT'S A REAL TEMPTATION TO TRY TO COMPLETE IT NOW THAT I HAVE SO MANY CARDS

1975 FLEER PATCHES PIONEERS OF BASEBALL

AFTER ONE MORE LAUGHLIN SET IN 1974, FLEER SWITCHED GEARS IN 1975 WITH THIS SET OF PRE-WAR STARS. AND BY PRE-WAR I MEAN WORLD WAR ONE. ONLY NINE OUT OF THE TWENTY-EIGHT PLAYERS IN THE SET WERE ACTIVE AFTER 1918. THIS WAS THE FIRST OF THE STABILIZER INSERTS I WAS FAMILIAR WITH AS I REMEMBER SEEING THEM AS A KID AND WONDERING WHAT THESE WEIRD OLD CARDS WERE. THE CARDS WERE TOO BIG TO BE BASEBALL CARDS SO I FILED THEM AWAY WITH THE ODDBALL TCMA CARDS AND EXHIBITS REPRINTS I PICKED UP IN COLLECTOR'S KITS. BY THE TIME I FIGURED OUT WHAT THEY WERE THEY WERE HARD TO FIND AND I ONLY HAD ONE IN MY COLLECTION BEFORE THIS WINDFALL. THERE WERE TEN CARDS IN THE TEAM BAG AND I GOT NINE I NEEDED WITH A HAL CHASE DUPLICATE. ONE DUPE OUT OF FIFTY CARDS (VARIATIONS NOTWITHSTANDING) IS PRETTY DANG GOOD! SPEAKING OF GOOD, WILL ANY PITCHER EVER REACH EVEN HALF OF CY'S WIN TOTAL EVER AGAIN? I KNOW VERLANDER REACHED IT BUT WHO DOES IT AFTER HIM? SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT

THE REALLY NICE THING ABOUT THIS PILE OF CARDS IS IT CONTAINED THE TWO MOST EXPENSIVE CARDS FROM THE SET IN CY YOUNG AND TY COBB. COBB IS A JERKASS THOUGH SO I'M SHOWING OFF NAP LAJOIE INSTEAD. LAJOIE ISN'T JUST THE GUY GOUDEY PRINTED UP SOME CARDS FOR AT THE LAST MINUTE WHEN THEY GOT CAUGHT DOING THE SHENANIGANS WITH THEIR 1933 RELEASE, THE DUDE TORE UP THE LEAGUE A THOUSAND YEARS AGO AND ENDED UP WITH OVER 3000 HITS AND 380 STEALS. IN 1901 HE HIT .426! THAT'S ABSURD! EVEN MORE ABSURD A HUNDRED YEARS LATER BARRY BONDS DEMOLISHED NAP'S .463 .643 1.106 OBP/SLG/OPS LINE WITH .515 .863 1.379 EVEN THOUGH HIS BATTING AVERAGE WAS ALMOST A HUNDRED POINTS LESS. EVEN MORE MORE ABSURD IS BARRY ISN'T I-

NO- THIS IS A HAPPY POST. I'LL SAVE DISCOURSE FOR LATER

IT WAS A TOUGH CHOICE FOR THE LAST PHOTO BETWEEN HOME RUN BAKER AND THREE FINGER BROWN. IN THE END, BAKER DIDN'T REALLY HAVE ALL THAT MANY HOME RUNS AND BROWN DID, IN FACT, HAVE THREE FINGERS. PLUS THE WORLD NEEDS MORE LOVE FOR MORDECAIS

THIS IS STILL TECHNICALLY A LAUGHLIN SET AS THAT FAMILIAR LOOKING HEADER IS ON THE TOP OF EVERY CARD BACK. I WAS VERY HAPPY TO GET A MIKE KELLY CARD AS HE IS THE BEST OF THE 19TH CENTURY BRAVES/RED STOCKING/BEANEATER/WHATEVER CARDS. AS YOU CAN SEE ON THE BACK KELLY PLAYED FOR WHOEVER WOULD GIVE HIM THE MOST MONEY BUT THE PHOTO ON THE FRONT HAS HIM IN A BOSTON UNI SO I GET TO CLAIM HIM FOR THE BRAVOS. OR STOCKOS. BEANOS? WHATEVER. THESE CARDS FIT GREAT INTO 6-POCKET PAGES AND I'M CURRENTLY EVICTING AN OLD PARKHURST TALLBOYS RETRO SET TO HOLD ALL THESE THINGS. THIS WAS ONE OF MY TOP THREE FINDS OF 2023 AND EVEN WITH ALL THESE CARDS MY TYPE SET GOAL HAS A LONG WAY TO GO AS I HAVE NOT TRACKED DOWN ONE OF THE 1974 LAUGHLIN BASEBALL FIRST CARDS AND THERE ARE ALSO FOUR YEARS OF BASEBALL QUIZ CARDS AND AN OBSCURE SET OF BASEBALL STADIUMS FROM 1968 INSERTED INTO PATCH PACKS THAT AREN'T EVEN IN LEMKE'S CATALOG. THOSE ARE FINDS FOR ANOTHER DAY

UP NEXT: IT'S QUARTER BOX TIME!!!!!

SURPRISES IN THE 1971 BOX

I HAVE A ROUTINE AT MY LOCAL CARD SHOP. COME IN THE STORE. SAY HI TO THE OWNER. DIG THRU THE 50 CENT BRAVES CARDS. CHECK OUT THE BASEBALL DIME BOX. REPEAT FOR BASKETBALL, SOCCER AND NON-SPORTS. LOOK AT THE CASES. STUMBLE AROUND FOR A BIT LOOKING FOR ANY NEW BOXES OR BINDERS THAT CAME IN. COMPLETELY FORGET TO BUY ANY SUPPLIES. IF I HAVEN'T SPENT ALL MY MONEY AND/OR GOTTEN TOO HUNGRY FOR LUNCH TO SCREW AROUND ANYMORE I'LL TRY TO LOOK AT THE VINTAGE BOXES FOR SOME CHEAP THRILLS. ON ONE SUCH TRIP THIS SUMMER I ASKED FOR THE 1971 BOX. I'M NOT SURE WHY AS THE SETS I'M TRYING TO FOCUS ON AT THE MOMENT ARE 1976 AND 1972 TOPPS. I'M GLAD I DID TRY MY LUCK WITH THE 1971 BOX THOUGH, AS MY LUCK WAS GREAT

THERE WERE, IN FACT, 1971 TOPPS BASE CARDS IN THE 1971 BOX. THIS WAS EXPECTED. I PICKED OUT A FEW I NEEDED OFF THE WANTLIST. THIS CARD WAS NOT ONE OF THEM. AS YOU MAY HAVE NOTICED, I FRIGGIN LOVE THIS CARD TO DEATH AND AM STARTING TO HOARD THEM A BIT. BY A BIT, I MEAN I HAVE MAYBE FOUR OF THEM TOTAL BUT IF I SEE ONE IN A QUARTER BIN IT'S MINE, NO COOKIE FOR YOU. THE REST OF THE CARDS IN THE POST ARE ACTUAL CARDS OFF THE WANTLIST, BUT AS USUAL I HAD TO PICK THE STRANGE ONES

EXPOS IN 3-D. POOR JIM GOSGER LOOKS EXTRA SINISTER IN THIS PICTURE AND THE CRAZY REGISTRATION IS NOT HELPING. THAT EXPOS LOGO LOOKS TRIPPY AS HELL. THEY DON'T MAKE CARDS LIKE THEY USED TO

I COULD STARE AT THIS DAVE MCNALLY CARD ALL DAY LONG, IT'S HYPNOTIZING. WHY IS DAVE LOOMING? WHAT'S HE STARING AT? WHY IS THE ENTIRE BACKGROUND A LONE FLAGPOLE? THAT BLACK BORDER JUST ACCENTUATES THE WEIRD VIBES ON THIS CARD, I LOVE IT

JERRY JOHNSON LOOKS LIKE THAT HANDSOME SQUIDWARD MEME AND IT CRACKS ME UP EVERY TIME I LOOK AT IT. I'M GIGGLING LIKE AN IDIOT AS I TYPE. IF YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT AND ENJOY YOUR SANITY. BUT IF YOU KNOW YOU KNOW

IT'S GOOD TO FIND OLD TEAM CARDS BECAUSE IN ANY SET BUILD THERE'S ALWAYS THAT ONE GODDAMN TEAM CARD THAT YOU CAN'T FIND ANYWHERE AND WHEN IT FINALLY DOES TURN UP IT COSTS LIKE FIVE BUCKS. OR FIFTY IF THE SET IS OLD ENOUGH. THIS SEMI-HIGH NUMBERED PADRES CARD WAS CHEAP AS DIRT BECAUSE IT HAS A BIG NOTCH GOUGED OUT OF THE TOP. I'LL TAKE IT!

ALONG WITH THE THE BASE CARDS, THE BOX HAD SOME SCRATCH OFF INSERTS. TOPPS GOT LAZY AS HELL AND PUT IN THE EXACT SAME SCRATCH-OFF INSERTS IN 1970 AND 1971 PACKS. SAME PLAYERS AND EVERYTHING, THE ONLY DIFFERENCE IS THE COLOR OF THE SCRATCH-OFF BOARD. THIS SORT OF WORKS FOR ME BECAUSE I AM BUILDING A SET OF THEM BUT AM MIXING AND MATCHING THE 70S AND 71S

THE BACK OF THE CARD HAS INSTRUCTIONS AND A SCOREBOARD. MOST OF THE CARDS I SEE HAVE BEEN SCRATCHED BUT I HARDLY EVER SEE THE SCOREBOARD FILLED IN

HERE'S AN EXAMPLE OF A SCRATCHED OFF INSIDE OF A RED 1971 VARIATION. THE 1970S ARE WHITE INSIDE. IT'S COOL TO SEE ALL THE OPTIONS YOU COULD HAVE SCRATCHED OFF BACK IN THE DAY. ONLY TWO DINGERS ON THE WHOLE CARD, THEY'D NEED AT LEAST EIGHT TODAY WITH THIRTY STRIKEOUTS

ONE OF MY 2022 COLLECTING GOALS WAS TO COMPLETE A VINTAGE TOPPS INSERT SET FROM THE 60S OR 70S, A GOAL I FAILED MISERABLY. I REALLY SHOULD HAVE TRIED TO DO THIS TEN OR TWENTY YEARS AGO WHEN THEY WERE ALL DIRT CHEAP BECAUSE THE STARS HAVE GOTTEN SUPER SPENDY LATELY IF YOU CAN EVEN FIND THEM. I KNOCKED THREE OFF MY LIST AND AM DOWN TO ONLY NEEDING FOUR TO FINISH, FIVE IF I UPGRADE MY NATE COLBERT CARD WHICH IS CURRENTLY RIPPED IN HALF AND MISSING THE BACK

THIS WAS THE REAL SUPRISE IN THE BOX. A BIG PILE OF 1971 FLEER LAUGHLIN WORLD SERIES CARDS. FLEER PUT THESE OUT IN 1970 AND 1971 WITH DIFFERENT ILLUSTRATIONS. YOU CAN TELL THE TWO APART BECAUSE THE 1971S HAVE THE MLB LOGO ON THEM. THIS IS ANOTHER ODDBALL SET I'M TRYING TO FRANKENSTEIN INTO COMPLETION AND I KNOCKED OUT A HUGE CHUNK RAIDING THESE BOXES THIS YEAR. FIRST ONE IS THE THE 1929 CARD WHERE A'S PITCHER EHMKE STRUCK OUT A BUNCHA LOTTA CUBS

NEXT UP IS 1937 WITH AN ILLUSTRATION OF TONY LAZZERI LOOKING VERY SHY. ANOTHER BIG DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE 70 AND 71 SETS IS THERE ARE MORE ACTUAL PLAYERS IN THE 1971 SET INSTEAD OF GENERIC SCENES. THIS IS NOT ALWAYS THE CASE AND YOU'LL SEE PLAYERS IN THE 1970 SET, BUT THERE'S A LOT MORE IN 71 AND YOU'LL SEE SOME DIFFERENT PLAYERS EACH YEAR SOMETIMES. THE 1937 CARD SHOWED CARL HUBBELL IN THE PREVIOUS YEAR'S SET

HERE'S ANOTHER DAMN YANKEE WIN. I PREFER THE 1970 VERSION WITH KING KONG KELLER

THAT'S BETTER, LET ANOTHER TEAM WIN FOR ONCE. I WAS VERY SURPRISED TO SEE A DUKE SNIDER BROOKLYN DODGER CARD WITH A 35 CENT PRICE TAG ON IT. SURE IT'S FROM FIFTEEN YEARS AFTER THE DODGERS MOVED TO LA, BUT 35 CENTS SEEMS A LITTLE DISRESPECTFUL

THIS CARD BUGS ME. NOT THAT I DISLIKE MOOSE SKOWRON, HEAVENS NO. WHAT BUGS ME IS THAT THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO MENTION OF BILL MAZEROSKI ON THE FRONT OR BACK OF EITHER THE 1970 OR 1971 VERSION OF THIS CARD. THEY JUST MENTION A LEAD OFF HOMER IN THE BOTTOM OF THE NINTH DECIDING IT. THEN AGAIN ANY DISCUSSION OF THE 1960 WORLD SERIES TODAY BEGINS AND ENDS WITH MAZ SO IT'S GOOD BOBBY RICHARDSON GOT SOME RECOGNITION

LASTLY WE HAVE TWINS VS. DODGERS. LAUGHLIN COULD NOT RESIST DRAWING TWINS ON BOTH CARDS EVEN THOUGH THEY LOST AND WHO CAN BLAME HIM

AFTER ALL THAT THERE WAS ONE LAST SUPER MEGA SURPRISE IN THE BOX

1971 KELLOGG'S TONY HORTON. TONY HAD A SADLY SHORT CAREER THAT ENDED PREMATURELY AND FOR SOME REASON NEVER APPEARED ON A TOPPS CARD. AS A RESULT THIS KELLOGG'S CARD IS THE MOST MAINSTREAM RELEASE YOU'RE GOING TO FIND FROM HIS PLAYING DAYS. I HAD KNOWN ABOUT THE SCARCITY OF HIS CARDS FOR A WHILE AND WAS STUNNED TO FIND KELLOGG'S CARDS AT ALL IN THE VINTAGE BOX, LET ALONE ONE I HAD BEEN LOOKING FOR

IT'S GOT A LITTLE GOOP GROWING ON IT BUT THAT JUST GIVES THE CARD THAT MUCH MORE PERSONALITY. ALL THESE CARDS TOGETHER COST LESS THAN MOST OF THE NEW PACKS THEY HAVE AT THE SHOP. I TRIED CHECKING THE OTHER 70S VINTAGE BOXES TO SEE IF I COULD SCORE MORE KELLOGG'S BUT NONE OF THEM HAD THE BOUNTY OF ODDBALLS THAT I FOUND HERE. IT PAYS TO DIG SOMETIMES, EVEN IF YOU'RE NOT SURE WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR

Card Show part 2 - The Weird

When I left off I had just descended the stairs and gotten to the floor with all the dealers. the set up was a ring of dealers by the wall and 5 rows (or 4, I forget) of tables in the middle of the floor. Like I said before, I went to a card show in this very building in the '80s and the whole thing seemed massive to me. Today, it looked a lot smaller. I think I was just in a foul mood to start off with. Work has been grinding on me, I haven't been getting enough sleep and I was generally cranky right at the moment. When I hit the floor I was really not into the whole thing at all and I was wondering if I had wasted the entrance fee.

I sucked it up and chose to circle the outer ring clockwise. This was either a dumb move or a lucky break. The first table I hit had a lot of high priced memorabilia on it. Pins, jerseys, programs, lots of stuff in cases. The high prices got me in a more sour moodand I looked but didn't touch. There was a table full of shoeboxes (card storage, not loafer storage) filled with top loaders, but I didn't see any price clearly marked on any of them and I didn't feel like tracking down the dealer. I looked though a box briefly, found a lot of mid '90s stars and moved on.

The next guy had more high end stuff, but over on the side there was some cheapo stuff. The boxes of $10 auto balls (with no Bobby, *sob*) a couple of baskets fulled with weird oddball magazines and pins and tchotchkies for 5 and 10 each and some just plain random stuff. There was some interesting things there like an old magazine on Hank Aaron, but nothing striking enough to get me to buy right away. About halfway through I recognized a dealer from last year's Braves Fan Fest from his box of Braves autographs ranging from $2-$8 each. That's the guy I got my Terry Pendleton auto from. I was still not in a buying in a mood though and didn't really go through the box that much.

The entire outer ring seemed to be filled with really high roller stuff. Signed everything - jerseys, shoes, hats, prints, etc. 0ne guy had a wall of autographed balls built about 8 or 10 high with seemingly nothing backing them up to keep them from toppling. These were all in the $40 and up range so I briefly looked before getting scared off by the ricketyness of the structure. One bump and the whole shebang go boom! This same guy had books and books of autographed vintage cards, all with no prices to be seen anywhere. That was a killer for me at this show and at shows in general. I don't like dealing with sales people. Card dealers are ALL sales people. Even though we share a common interest it doesn't make a high pressure sale any more appealing to me. If I have to pester one of these guys for a proce, I just don't bother. I figure it's too expensive and walk on. Keep that in mind, future card dealers of America...

About this time I was sick of seeing really expensive crap with no prices and decided to treat the experience like a museum trip. Get a good eyeball full of the cool stuff and find some discards to bottom feed off of. There was a ton of cool stuf there, I'll admit. I lingered for a while over an original Turkey Red Cabinet card. I stared longingly at a 1969 Braves-Mets NL Championship Program with a $50 pricet tag. I checked out some prints and jerseys. As I rounded third, or first actually since I went clockwise around the room, There were a ton of bats ans I got sick of the museum experience and wanted some damn cards. Then I hit the jackpot.

Some guy named Uncle... somebody had about 6 or 7 tables piled with vintage stuff. A few cases for high end, a big pile of binders for commons and a row of shoeboxes filled with bargain cards. Dang I wish I could remember the guy's name now. Uncle Phil? Uncle Pete? Was it even Uncle somebody? I don't know but the guy had a crapload of vintage stuff and he's the guy I gave the most money to that day. I scrounged the bargain bins mostly, although I looked through his '53 Topps binder very carefully. I think I could have spent a grand there easy if I had a grand. This is why I said going around to the left was lucky, if i had gone there first I might not have gone anywhere else. While I'll go over by '53 cards soon enough, I also got some oddball stuff from him.

One of my goals, if you remember was to find Something Weird. Weird has a very loose definition. Basically something you wouldn't normally expect to find in a baseball card blog. You guys know what I like though and I found three things I Really Like from Uncle Whozit (someone who went to the show tell me the guy's name, it's starting to bug me), I'll start with the oddest thing first:

1933 Indian Gum No. 133 Flying In A Circle

Indian Chewing Gum... Hmmm... Does that sound familiar to any of you out there? Does the card look familiar at all? Here, let me give you some help:

Look more familiar now? Check out the copyright at the bottom. Goudey Gum Co. Boston. That's right, this is the same Goudey that produced baseball cards in the '30 which Upper Deck ripped off in the '00s! If you look on the back of a Goudey baseball card it says "By the Originators of Indian Gum". This is that Indian Gum! I've always wanted one of these to stick in my Goudey collection (he is a Brave you know) but I never pulled the trigger on an eBay sale. This card at $2.50 cost me about what shipping would cost on eBay and I didn't have to deal with Paypal. I'm very happy with my cruel, desperate Sioux Brave and he'll probably be a subject of a future Card of the Week (which is getting postponed today so I can catch up with stuff). That's not the only non-sport card I got, but it's the only one in this particular post. Can you guess what others I got?

1955 Topps All American#72 Endicott Peabody

If you've tuned in on Saturdays at all in the past few months you'll know that '55 Topps is my favorite vintage football set so I had to get at least one. This one was not only the cheapest in the box, but the guy's name is Chub. He looks like he's trying to take flight in the picture there. A big chubby red bird. Sqwawk! The best part about the card is that he plays for Harvard. Now I have an excuse to link to Tom Lehrer's Fight Fiercely Harvard! Fight! Fight! Fight!

20 Different Basketball Cards for $4.00

I like grab bags. they're like packs, except without any chance at something good. Well, good is in the eye of the beholder I guess and as far as I'm concerned old Topps basketball is great. I was torn between this pack and a pack of 12 '74-75 Topps hockey cards for $6. I picked the hoops for three reasons: 1) two bucks cheaper (what can I say, I'm a scrounge) 2) '74-75 is my favorite hockey set but I already have a ton and I didn't want to pay for doubles. 3) Dr. J. This is getting ripped on A Pack A Day later this week so look out for it if you like old basketball cards.

Those are the three oddballs I got from Uncle ??? (big green sign right on the right when you came down the stairs, help me out people) and they're not really that oddbally. I did get something neat and strange from that first table I passed when I came in because I was grouchy, the one with the seemingly unmarked boxes. I found this in one of those boxes:

1980 R. G. Laughlin Famous Feats Complete Set

R.G. Laughlin was an artist who worked closely with Fleer in producing cartoony cards to sell along with their stickers (FleerFan can tell you all about him). He did a few one off sets too and this was one of them. It's a 40 card set and I had to hand collate it out of the piles of cards in those boxes. It was worth it though, as I got a cool oddball set for $4. I chose Casey to represent the set because he's a favorite of mine and I love the nonchalant look on his face as he says "Yeah, I got 5 championship rings... and I'm gonna get some more." This is another set that will get it's own writeup after I'm done going over the show.


That's all for tonight folks, up next is the not-so bargain cards, then the vintage Bravos. Vote in the comments on what order to do the last three posts:

Awful Autos
'53 Topps
El cheapo cards

Sticky Saturday - Recycling Edition

I would have done this earlier, but I got caught up watching my Venture Brothers DVDs. Dr. Girlfriend makes me all tingly. Tonight we have a 1980 Fleer sticker of the Oakland A's. From this sticker we can tell that Fleer's centering was just as bad on the stickers as on their regular cards, that they didn't cut the sticker all the way to the edge on the sheet and that the 1979 Swingin' A's were absolutely terrible. 54 and 108? Oy gevalt! The sad thing is they weren't even the worst team in the league - the Blue Jays went 53-109.

The back of the card doesn't feature a loser though, it has a smiling doodle of Lew Burdette fresh off of pwning the Yankees in 1957. Lew is best known for pulling pranks on Topps photographers and completely dominating the Yanks in the '57 World Series. Lew won the MVP for the series by only giving up two runs in three complete games, including shutouts in game 5 and 7. If this card design looks familiar you would be right.


While Topps had the monopoly on baseball cards with current players, Fleer still kept busy in the 70's with a bunch of oddball legends including a few series of World Series cards. The cards had a cartoon by Robert Laughlin on the front and a recap of the series on the back. Here's the '57 card from the first series done in 1970:

Lew's throwing the baffled batters some rotten eggs in the original cartoon. Fleer and Laughlin had a long collaboration together. They first put out a World Series set in 1967 that was a true oddball at 2 3/4" by 3 1/2" in size and printed in black and white. Those cartoons were reused for this 1970 set that was made standard size and printed in color. For 1971 Laughlin created new drawings for the set that were reprinted and updated with the past year's World Series until 1979. Then in 1980, the World Series got stuck on the pack of the sticker cards. You can tell the 1970 series from the later versions by the blue backs and lack of a MLB logo on the front.

These cards are fun and reasonably cheap if you can find them out there. They are especially cool for team collectors as putting together a set of World Series appearances for your favorite franchise isn't too difficult unless you're a Yankee fan. As long as we're on the subject of Lew, here's a cool old newspaper clipping sent to me by reader Billy featuring Lew and his wife Mary on the team bus before they head off to New York to take the title. Awesome find by Billy!