Homeland Security is Hard at Work, Trading with the Waxaholic-Part 1 in a 2 part series

Okay, ask yourselves what the greatest potential threat to our country’s security could be. A Peruvian pan flute band perhaps? Not even close. Homeland Security works hard every day to make sure that acts of postal terrorism do not cross the border from the great white north. I receive packages from Canada quite often from my other endeavor, Bacon Towne Records. Demos from bands with the F word in their names, often followed by the words “the system” or the “the world”. These bands do not pose a threat and these packages have never been opened.
No, the answer to the question is, imaginary drum roll please… A package of baseball cards. This package wasn’t just opened to check that its contents were in fact baseball cards as the customs slip stated. No, they were opened and mutilated to ensure the safety of our country. The package, which came courtesy of Captain Canuck from the awesome Waxaholic blog, contained two previously unopened packs of cards and three small stacks of cards in team set bags. The unopened packs were opened and gone through. In fact, one of the packs (1991 Topps) was sliced open and had the majority of the piece of stale gum removed. I received a few small shards of gum. The rest, I am sure, are in some border laboratory being tested for anthrax. Our tax dollars at work. The other pack, 1991 O-Pee-Chee, was also opened, but did not contain any gum. It did contain a depiction of the great Dave Stieb, which did manage to cross the border. The teams set bags were sliced as well. Delmon Young took the worst of it. Three cuts across his card (look closely at the scan). Perhaps the border agents were Twins fans who liked to think he had never played for another team?
The damages were limited to the top cards in the bags, which was good, and it seems that the only thing missing from the package was a few bits of gum, also good. It does make me question the intellect of the inspectors who had to use a knife to open a team set bag that wasn’t sealed. Hmm. Perhaps they thought they were dealing with an intra-border drug ring and LSD was concealed in these presumably innocent baseball cards? I guess we’ll never know. They resealed the package with green tape, but destroyed the return address. I can only assume the package came from the Captain since he had said he sent one and I don’t have many trading pals in Alberta. He did leave a note, but it was signed Brian. An alias. All part of his elaborate plan I am sure. Well, it took me a day to get over the intrusion, but a few Molsons later and I was ready to re-open those old packs of cards. I hadn’t ripped a pack of 91’s since, well 1991. This was gonna be a treat. It started out great. I am very fortunate that the card featuring Yankees #1 draft pick Carl Everett was unharmed. Everett was a 1st round draft pick for the Yanks that actually made it (no Brien Tayor here!). He was an All Star twice and was the primary DH on the White Sox when they won it all in 2005. He lasted about 14 years in the big leagues and was always an informative interview. “Jurassic Carl” was one of the few athletes to speak his mind always. He shattered many historical myths for me. I had often suspected that the dinosaur fossils I had seen in museums as a kid were all man made fakes. It makes sense now; I mean, have you ever seen a dinosaur? Good old Carl Everett. He’s a star in the Atlantic League now. Last season, playing for the Long Island Ducks, he put up amazing Triple Crown numbers, .327/29/100. I hope he makes it back to the major leagues; I would like to hear his opinion on 911 or the Iran elections or whether Barack Obama is a real person or just a muppet manufactured by the media.
Next outta the pack is Jose Oquendo, one of the managers (along with the Wizard of Oz) for this years Futures Game. I also got a Don Mattingley! I guess it’s still a thrill to pull a Donny Baseball.
There is a manager card of Bobby Valentine. I’ve mentioned it before, but the small town I grew up in had a Bar B Q joint in it called “Bobby Vs”. It was really neat actually, it was like a sports bar that kids could go to with their folks. The food was horrible, but there were baseball cards varnished onto the tables-sweet!
The most interesting looking card in the pack is of pitcher, Mike Jeffcoat. Unfortunately, this is a victim of a gum stain. Still, look close at the picture. That is Julio Franco in the background with his hand on his hip, ready to take a nap. I’m guessing that was because Jeffcoat was dealing unhittable stuff that deal and the infield was just decoration.
The pack of O-Pee-Chee didn’t disappoint either. This was the OPC that I grew up with, knew and loved, complete with the French interpretations. We know that Andre “Hawk” Dawson hit a ton of homers and had a gun for an arm, but did you know his position is voltigeur? Or that Blue Jays ace Dave Stieb was a lanceur? That’s the kind of stuff that baseball cards taught me. I tried to get these terms in my everyday speech on the playground, but after the first broken nose, I stopped and called Stieb a pitcher.
Aside from the awesome 91’s, he set me off another childhood flashback with this awesome 1993 Collector’s Choice checklist of Danny “Bull” Tartabull. The Bull was my favorite and my collection did not contain this goofy card before. Way to go Captain, glad someone reads this garbage!
I have to go to work, so you’re going to have to tune in tomorrow to find about the awesome Rays cards he sent my way!

Tradin' With the Easy Life

Well, I am finally getting around to posting the last trade I received last week. You can probably thank Jamie Moyer (collected career win #251) and the Phillies for destroying the Rays last night and leaving nothing else for me to say…
This box o goodness came courtesy of Stephen from the Good Life. Stephen filled the very same box I had filled for him a few weeks back. He hooked it up in three parts, with a ton of 2008 Heritage high numbers, a bunch of sweet Rays singles and enough big Donruss puzzle pieces to make a big ol picture of Rod Carew. Sweet!
Let’s start with the Rays cards.
2009 O Pee Chee Tony Pena, card #0PC-CP. I am assuming this is an insert, or are they just numbered like that? That would make set building a pain. I like the portrait on this card, looks classy and I’m glad to see the OPC name back in the game, but I miss the French translations.
Next is a baseball heroes card from Upper Deck of BJ Upton, card #164. A bunch of 2009 Topps Heritage Rays cards. There was a couple that I had not yet seen. Card #371 of Matt Joyce is the first time I have seen Matt in a Rays uniform. Too bad I got it after Joyce got demoted to Durham. Another Ray who isn’t a Ray right now (sounds cool in a weird way) that I didn’t have yet is the smart (graduate of Columbia University) and speedy (dude can fly) Fernando Perez, card #120. I think he’s sidelined with a dislocated thumb right now, but outfield spots on the Rays are hard to come by. Both Matt Joyce and Justin Ruggiano are proven big leaguers stuck in AAA and ahead of him. Perez did look damn good in the playoffs, though. He also dropped in ’09 Heritage cards of all three of Tampa Bay’s 2008 All Stars, Evan Longoria, Scott Kazmir and Dioner Navarro.
Next up is a sweet looking horizontal card of James Shields from the 2008 Upper Deck Diamond Collection, card #DC-10.
He included 4, count em 4, Topps Gold cards, the ones with the serial numbers on the back. First is a 2005 (1771/2005) card of former Rays starter, former NBA player and current Orioles long-reliever, Mark Hendrickson. Hendrickson’s other claim to fame is he was the first Blue Jays pitcher ever to hit a home run and for a few months he had the record as the tallest pitcher (6’9”) to ever go deep. Randy Johnson (6’10”) took that record from him.
The next batch of Goldies comes from the 2008 set. He included Dioner Navarro (1817/2008), Willy Aybar (0117/2008) and my favorite player Jason Bartlett (0912/2008). I have to call the Bartlett my favorite. This is my second gold card of JB, the first 2008 for me; this brings my collection up to 12 cards of the best shortstop in the American League. Big thanks for that one!!!
He included some more ’08 Topps, ’08 Upper Decks, ’06 Topps, all (Devil) Rays, all awesome!!!
The last one in the pack o Rays cards is from the 2008 Topps Co-Signers set, card #094 featuring Carlos Pena and BJ Upton. This card is not signed, like the title indicates, but is serial numbered 378/400. It’s dark and chromey and doesn’t scan well, but looks awesome in my Rays collection!!!
Stephen sent a big stack of 2008 Topps Heritage high numbers, too. Most of these went right into my binder, but I scanned a couple for this post.
Card #618 of former Devil Ray and current Braves outfielder slash pinch hitter, Matt Diaz. Matt has been around for 7 seasons and has put together a Manny Mota type career. He quietly holds a .305 career batting average and has never really been a full-time player. Mota hung around for 20 seasons and batted .304 over his career.
Another one from the bundle is card #593 of Twins pitcher Nick Blackburn. Blackburn was on the mound for the Twins the first game we saw this year and he mowed the Rays down with ease. He and Kevin Slowey are a formidable 1-2 punch for the Twins. It’s too bad they don’t have any depth in starting pitching; otherwise they would be on top in the AL Central. He rounded out the box with a bunch of old Donruss puzzle pieces. I will put this together one of these days. I used to love these things!!! Thanks again for the trade Stephen. Glad to know you!!!
Go Rays!!! Troll out.

2009 Topps Heritage Needs List

So, many people have e-mailed me, wanting to help me finish off my 2009 Topps Heritage set. Asking if I was ever gonna post a needs list. Well, honestly, the list is so long, it's kind of embarrassing, but here it is:
http://collectivetroll.webs.com/2009.htm

I have ripped exactly 35 packs of this so far. No money, can't even find them anywhere. I bought the lone box at my local hobby shop and got one retail blaster at Target and a couple of packs at K-Mart and I can't find it anywhere locally. So, embarrassing or not, here is my list. Help is welcome, I suppose I can't get upset if you choose to point and laugh or mock or whatever...

Troll out.

Its a 2009 Topps Series 2 Pack Break!!!!

I haven’t posted a pack break in a while, so here goes…
I normally get so excited that I end up ripping it in the car, then forgetting it. This one I saved till I got home.
I had got off work at midnight, was paid in cash and although I had many bills to pay, I thought it wouldn’t hurt to hit the Wal Mart (which is not even close to being on my way home) in search of 2009 Heritage blaster boxes. They had none. In fact I haven’t been able to find retail boxes anywhere. Sucks. Well, I couldn’t allow the power to be shut off for anything but Heritage, but since I had driven all the way out there, I couldn’t leave empty handed. I settled on a pack of 2009 Topps Series 2. I couldn’t remember how to tell the difference between regular and retro packs. I was hoping for a retro. The primary reason I picked these was the price tag and the amount of cards in the pack. $1.99 for 12 cards is right in my range, so I grabbed one. I have self control on occasion. So, here is what I got.

Card #476 Edinson Volquez. He was an All Star last year, and ended up winning 17 games for the Redlegs. He is 4-2 so far this year. Probably not good enough for another appearance in the mid summer classic, but it’s a cool looking card. I love the up close and personal view. I just can’t believe that he doesn’t snag his chain on his glove. I’ll be looking out for that.
Card #531 Frank Francisco. He’s a former teammate of Volquez’ with the Rangers. This year he may be the one to get the All Star call. He has 12 saves and a 0.44 ERA. Wow.
Next outta the pack is another ’08 All Star, Rays catcher, (card #519)Dioner Navarro. It’s a neat shot of Navy calling 2 outs, or giving the stingray sign or encouraging people to worship the devil, but it looks good. The “niche in history” on the back of his card tells me he is the 9th switch hitting catcher to be an All Star in either league. It also tells me he has a .429 career batting average with a 2-0 count. Cool.
Next is John Smoltz with card #355. Topps decided to go with the glamour shot for Smoltzy on this one. He hasn’t pitched a game yet this year, but is scheduled to return to the Sox next Thursday on a tight pitch count. He does eight All Star selections to his credit to go along with over 3,000 Ks. Too bad he’s chosen to end his career with the Sox. I used to like him.
Next we have Edgar Renteria on card #558. The coloring on this card is kinda neat, but I don’t like not seeing a players face, unless they’re doing something cool. Renteria is off to a sub-par performance this year and his .245 BA probably won’t make him an All Star. He has been picked 5 times previous.
Now, we are in insert land. The first one is a “Career Best” card of Ty Cobb, card #LGCB-TC. If you flip the card and read this guys career bests you will see he highest average was .420. He had 127 RBIs with his highest homerun count being 12. He hit 47 doubles, 24 triples and stole 96 bases in one year. Pretty good numbers for someone who never made an All Star team.
Speaking of legends…Next outta the pack is a “Legends of the Game”, #LLG-12, card of Bob Gibson. It’s a nice portrait of Gibson, muttonchops and all, looking off into the distance, likely prior to a game. Gibson appeared in 8 All Star games.
Next we have a Topps Town dot com card of Ian Kinsler. I go online to write this blog, that’s about it. I have never visited that site or entered a redemption code. Just not into it. I do like Ian Kinsler, though. His 18 homers leads second baseman and could give him his second All Star appearance.
We are back to base cards and the first one is Chicago White Sox manager, Ozzie Guillen, card #488. The back of the card ads a stat from his playing days. I didn’t realize he hit .533 off of Mark Knudson…Ozzie was a three-time All Star as a player and once as a manager. He also finished his playing career in 2000 with the Rays.
Next up is Giants outfielder, Randy Winn and card #549. I really like the orangey-ness of this one. Winn was an All Star with the Rays in 2002. He has very quietly put together a nice career with over 1600 hits in 12 seasons.
Next we have Brewers pitch Braden Looper on card #419. This card is not good or bad. Kind of like Looper’s career. He has been the perpetual “even Steven”. His career record is 63-62 and I am sure his next outing will be a loss just to even things up. I did learn that Brad Ausmus only hit .126 off of him, career.
The 12th and final card in the pack is Rays centerfielder, BJ Upton, card #640. The picture is awesome, BJ in post-power-swing. The back of the card gives me info I already knew, but bears repeating. He tied a postseason record last year with 7 home runs. He was also the AL player of the week this week, but that isn’t on this card. BJ has yet to play in an All Star game, but he’s still only 25. He’s already swiped more than 100 bases, got over 400 hits and scored over 250 runs at age when most are still in the minors.
Okay, that was my pack; I think I got my two bucks worth, don’t you? I was just happy to get 2 Rays in one pack, that never happens. I think that the Volzuez and Upton cards tie for the star for best base card, with the Gibson being the coolest insert. I will probably pick these up at a once a week pace and probably build the set someday, too. So between the 12 guys on the 12 cards, we ended up with a total of 29 All Star appearances. More amazing, there were 8 different cards of All Stars. Can you tell I am getting anxious about that game they’re playing in St. Louis in a couple weeks? The Gibson card is going in the stack for my next trade with Cards on Cards, everything else is available. Still fighting to finish my Heritage sets and looking for new trading partners. I have stacks upon stacks of the following teams if ya want em (to trade, nothings free) please let me know. The teams are the Astros, Giants, Padres, Pirates, Mariners, Blue Jays, Tigers, Expos, A’s, Yankees, Red Sox, Nationals,Phillies, Indians, Marlins, Royals, Reds, Rangers and the Mets. Basically, I have homes for my Rays, Braves, Cardinals, Dodgers, Brewers, Orioles, White Sox and Blue Jays. All other teams are lying in wait. Let me know.
Go Rays! Troll out.

Kazmir is Unbeaten in Rehab Starts!!!!

Well, the Rays had an off day last night, but there were a few games of interest to keep me busy. I spent the night mostly glued to my computer, watching the Durham Bulls entertain the Pawtucket Red Sox. I do admit that I strayed on occasion to watch the Mets versus Cardinals game and when both were over; I watch the College World Series matchup between LSU and Texas, which lasted 11 innings of nail biting baseball. Mikie Mahtook hit a single in the top of the 11th which scored D.J. LeMahieu to give LSU a 7-6 lead. They shut Texas down in the bottom half of the inning to take the first game. I still have that PING sound of the aluminum bat in my head…
So, back to Durham. There were 8,666 fans packed into the Durham Bulls Athletic Park (they set an attendance record this week) to watch the epic battle between two lefties, both of whom are undefeated in International League (AAA) play this year.
I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that these two may face off again when their Major League ball clubs play in September, so I was looking at this a sneak preview. I’m gonna spoil the surprise right now and tell you that Bucholz (now 5-1) took his first loss of the year last night. He was a victim of bad defense behind him, little offense, but mainly he just wasn’t hitting his spots. He lasted only 3-2/3 innings, striking out 4, but walking 5. He threw 82 pitches, only 43 (52%) for strikes. He only gave up 1 earned run before leaving the game, but was down 2-1 when he was yanked, courtesy of a throwing error by (rehabbing) shortstop Jed Lowrie which allowed the second run to score... Incidentally, in his rehab start, Lowrie was 0-3 with a throwing error and was replaced by Travis Denker in the field in the seventh inning. I don’t think he’s quite ready to return.
The Bulls struck first, scoring a run in the 2nd inning when Ray Olmedo singled home Ray Sadler, who had hit a two-out double. That was about it for the Bulls bats with men on. Leadoff hitter, second baseman Henry Mateo (.330 BA) did his job setting the table for the Bulls. He was 0-2 officially, but reached base on three walks. He did not score a run because Durham was pathetic (2-12) with runners in scoring position. Ten Bulls were left on base in the game.
Kazmir looked sharp on the mound all game. His pitches had good movement and he was throwing strikes. His velocity didn’t look as good as it did last week in Port Charlotte, but I was watching on a tiny computer screen. He went a full 6 innings, earning the win and striking out 5 Paw Sox. He allowed 1 earned run and did not walk a batter. He threw 79 pitches on the day, 55 (70%) for strikes. He was aided by his defense, which not only didn’t commit an error, both Jon Weber and Justin Ruggiano gunned down base runners trying to stretch a hit to a double. The lone Sox run came when Angel Chavez singled home Bubba Bell, who had doubled, in the second inning. Kazmir faced the minimum 3 batters from the 3 inning on. I don’t know if his strength is there yet to join the big team, but his composure, mechanics and location are right on. Joe Maddon has not yet announced if Kaz will rejoin the Rays in St. Pete for this home stand.
Bucholz was pulled in the bottom of the 4th. After Lowrie’s error allowed a run to score, he walked the next batter (John Jaso) he faced. He was lifted in favor of Randor Bierd. Bierd did not look too impressive. He allowed a double to Justin Ruggiano, walked 3 batters and served up a home run to John Jaso before being yanked after 2 innings. Javier Lopez replaced him and went 1-1/3 scoreless. Billy Traber pitched the bottom of the 8th for the Sox and sent the Bulls down in order.
Jason Cromer, the originally scheduled starter for Durham, started the 7th for the Bulls. He pitched 2-1/3 innings of shut out ball. He didn’t look on his game; he walked 2, but didn’t allow any runs. Dale Thayer got two ground ball outs in the top of the ninth to record his 9th save.
I don’t know if the matchup lived up to its hype, but Kazmir got the better of Bucholz last night. Time will tell if he is ready for the Majors yet. Bucholz, who was in the running to replace the injured and poor pitching Dice K, did not make a good case for himself. He will still likely start the International League All Star Game.
In other “rehab” news, Phillies closer, Brad “Lights Out” Lidge will likely see action with the Florida State League’s (A) Clearwater Phillies tonight.
Just a few miles away, in St. Pete, the Rays will play the big league Phillies. 46-year-old lefty Jamie Moyer (4-6 6.32 ERA) will be going for his 251st career win. He will be facing 24-year-old lefty, David Price, going for his 2nd career victory. Game time is 7:08 at the Trop.
In other news, Rays center fielder BJ Upton was named the American League Player of the Week. He hit .429 with 3 doubles, 2 homers, 2 steals and 9 RBIs. Way to go BJ!!
Go Rays!!!

2007 Topps Heritage Short Prints, Courtesy of the Night Owl!

I got so excited posting all the cool Rays cards that the Night Owl sent me, I nearly forgot about the 5 2007 Topps Heritage short prints he had sent my way. I’ve been trying to finish this set, since, well 2007. It’s a toughy. The collation in the retail boxes was horrible. Hobby boxes weren't too much better. I can remember opening a box and getting 4 copies of several different cards. Hell, we had triplicates of short prints while still missing base cards. Anyway, its been rough getting people to send anything from this set. I think a lot of people packed these up a while back, but I am still fighting to finish this one. It felt great to brush the dust off of the binder and put these 5 cards in there, bringing me that much closer to completion.
He sent card #231 of John Nelson. John had a cup of coffee with the Cards in ’06, he is now playing Indy league ball.
Next is card #437 of Blue Jays Gold Glove, All Star, Silver Slugging centerfielder, Vernon Wells. It’s a nice classic batting pose with the solid red background. Of all the Heritage sets, 2007 may be favorite for aesthetics.
Then we have card #365 of Tigers closer Fernando Rodney. The fireballer is off to a great start this year, saving 14 games for the AL central leading Tigers.
He also sent card #158, team card of the Cleveland Indians. I had every team card but this one back in ’07. Every pack I’ve ripped, every team card I’ve pulled, I had hoped would be an Indians. Glad to have this spot full.
The last SP in the bundle is card #455 of struggling Yankees pitcher Chien Ming Wang, I think his record is somewhere around 0-5 right and I’m shedding no tears for him. I do remember back in ’07, this card was selling for around 10 bucks on ebay. Again, glad to have this hole filled.
Thanks again to Greg at the Night Owl for hooking it up big time. 70+ Rays cards and a stack of Heritage SPs will make my day anytime.
You can find my needs list for 2007 Topps Heritage cards at www.collectivetroll.webs/2007.html
By the way, look out for the Rays taking 2 outta 3 from the Mets in New York, bring on the Phillies! Also, look for Scott Kazmir to make his final rehab start in Durham tonight taking on Clay Bucholz and the Pawtucket Red Sox. If all goes well, he will join the Rays in St. Pete on their homestand against the Phillies. Also, expect a full report on the awesome roller derby action from last night very soon...Go Rays! Troll out!!!