2009 Topps: Black vs. White

I had to do it. I'm a sucker. And I'm okay with that. When I saw the Black Topps cards start popping up, I knew I'd be heading over to Wal-Mart and taking the plunge. I also knew after a few cards, a comparison was needed. So which style reigns supreme? Well, let's get to the matchups.

The category: Actions Shots
The entrant: Reggie Abercrombie

Is this a collison at home plate or just two mean fumbling in the dark, slamming into one another? While I don't think the black enhances the card, it doesn't do major damage either. But you can see some odd outlines around the flying helmet apparati, so that drops it a point for me.
Advantage: White

The category: Horizontal Action Shots
The entrant: Grady Sizemore

The black didn't stand a chance on this card. It's one thing to black out a few innocent bystanders in the stands, but to black out the checkered outfield lawn, well that just ain't right.
Advantage: White

While we're already horizontal, let's look at a couple of more Sideways entries.
The category: Sideways Shots
The entrant: Alex Gordon

You can't have a Topps gimmick without thinking back to Alex. As for the battle of good vs. evil, I think evil may have picked one up here. I like how the blue colors pop against the black background and borders.
Advantage: Black

The category: The Original 2009 Topps Image
The entrant: Albert Pujols

The black makes the image pop somewhat, but there's also a loss of ambiance and perspective. Hmmm....
Advantage: There are no winners when it comes to awkward, slightly homo-erotic squat shots.

The category: Iconic Stadium Shots
The entrant: Jay Payton

Jay lost among the ivy, good. Jay with a faded out ivy backdrop, not so good.
Advantage: White

The category: Hobby Superstar In The Playoffs
The entrant: Evan Longoria

This is a tough one because the black is doing nothing wrong and may even be a cooler look, but it has one fatal flaw. The white card can be used to prove that Yes, the Rays do have at least a handful of fans who were willing to go to the Trop and watch a game.
Advantage: White

OK, White is clearly dominating at this point 4-1, time for Black to break out the big guns.

The category: Southern California Shortstops and their Eyewear
The subjects: Erick Aybar and Angel Berroa


Both are pretty decent cards in their original white incarnations, but the black takes these cards to another level. They look like ridiculous futuristic baseball players from the apocalypse in the black. Check out the glowing glasses they're wearing in the dark. Well done, Topps. Well done.
Advantage: Black x2

The category: Innocent Jogs Towards Home
The entrant: Edwin Encarnacion

In the white version, Edwin looks a bit confused, but he's making a happy jaunt home. In the black, he looks terrified and we have no idea where he's coming from or what might be chasing him.
Advantage: Black

The category: Farewell Chicago
The entrant: Ken Griffey Jr.

The white card is a bit mundane and doesn't offer much from a fading legend. However, the black card makes Griffey come alive. Suddenly he's on stage with the spotlight shining down him. Or is it the white light of his career calling Griffey towards it? Either way, this one is an easy decision.
Advantage: Black.

Just like that, it's 5-4 Black, with just a couple more entries to go.

The category: Awkward Pics in the Batter's Box
The entrant: Carl Crawford

This one's a coin flip for me. The black again makes the image pop, but it's missing one thing. Where's the flying dirt? Bad black out Topps. The dirt deserved to live.
Advantage: White

We're all tied up, with one to play.

The category: Halos
The entrant: Brandon Wood

Brandon has clearly lifted one deep. But where is he doing it? Is he on the road at any of a number of American League ballparks, or has expansion taken over Major League Baseball and Brandon is now taking one deep on the moon!! Hmmm, with gravity being what it is on the moon, Brandon would go from warning track power to an absolute beast. He'd be Dante Bichette with the Rockies. How can we deny that?
Advantage: Black

It all becomes so clear when you break it down in a structured and clearly unbiased environment. Black is the dominant and superior base card look for 2009. Congratulations Topps, you've actually come up with a gimmick that I like. And now I have to sink more money into your stupid blasters. Brilliant.

Friday!!

Finally, it's Friday, a day to be appreciated and savored for all it has to offer.

It's a time for relaxation...


A time to let loose and have a good time...


A time when it's okay to be jolly and fat (not unlike Christmas)...


A time for happiness...


Actually, a time for outright joy...


So thank you Friday, for arriving once again and allowing to be a part of all these emotions.

Go Halos!

I Have A Confession

I Heart a non-Halo and his name is Brandon Phillips. I'm not sure what first drew me to Brandon, but I was hooked almost immediately. Thanks to the wonderful people who created MLB Extra Innings, I found myself tuning into Reds games at 4:00 out here on the West Coast, while I awaited my Halos playing at night.

Brandon has had a bit of roller coaster ride on his way to semi-stardom and maybe that's what I like about him so much. A guy who was expected to be so amazing, was part of a huge deal for Bartolo Colon and then was eventually traded for a player to be named later. There it is, the ultimate insult. We're gonna trade you to another team and we don't even know what we're going to get in return.

After a decent 2006, Brandon had a very strong and very overlooked 2007. S008 was another decent year, but I've been hooked for a while so it didn't even matter. I just love the way the guy plays the game. He's got style without being lazy or showboating. He plays second base and won a Gold Glove, but the guy can hit 30 bombs.

So after a couple of years, I've got a pretty sizable BP collection and it is easily my largest non-Halo collection. Budget tightening has led to me slowing in my pursuit of any non-Angels cards, but I still look for Phillips cards whenever I get the chance. However, it was much easier when Brandon was lesser known and thus lesser valued out on the interweb.

At times I feel guilty about collecting a player who doesn't have the A on his cap, but it reminds me of my youth as well. A time when I collected the cards of the players who fascinated me. In this day and age of the internet, cable TV juggernauts and MLB Extra Innings, you can follow any player or any team and it almost feels natural, like a hometown team. So while Brandon Phillips doesn't play for my Angels, I'll still watch him throughout the season and collect him whenever possible.



Go Halos! Go BP! Go Secret Shame!

Luis Polonia: Seeing Double

Not a lot to say today, so I figured I'd post a couple of Polonias that have been added to my attempt at a master set of all things Polonia. Going through the stack, a couple of oddities stood out and I had to share with the world, because you can never get enough Polonia.




'93 Donruss and Upper Deck

I realize that Luis probably dropped a few hundred bunts in an Angels uniform at home, but it just feels like these two cards are pictures of the same at bat, just fractions of a second apart. The Donruss card is more zoomed in and not nearly as sharp, but shows Luis just as he is dropping one down. Same batting gloves and sweatband placement, same background look and notice the ball on its way down in the first picture and on the ground in picture two. Same year, different companies, perhaps the same moment.




'89 Upper Deck and Fleer

Now these two cards are obviously not the same picture, but you have to think these pictures were taken on the same day. Notice the background, the one and only Big A in Anaheim, California. In one he has the right field stands for a backdrop, while it's the field level seats in the other. Everything else about these photos is identical. Hat laying on top of jhullet, gray undershirt with green BP jersey on top, green wristbands with A's logo inside white triangle. His smiles even suggest a slight evolution. The Upper Deck picture was probably first, Luis is pleased to be posing and has a bit of joy. The Fleer photo however, shows Luis after a few minutes of photos, slightly annoyed, but still willing to offer up a smile.

So there you have it, a little seeing double with my man Luis Polonia. It's not as cutting edge as black Topps cards or discovering Heritage out on the market, but that's what I got for you.

Big 12-3 victory for the Halos today against the White Sox. Clearly this is a sign of dominance for the Angels in 2009. The future, Hank Conger was 2-3 with a couple driven in, so I was excited by that.

Go Halos!

The Angst of Baseball Card Trades

I used to loathe trading baseball cards. My friends and I would spend hours hammering out deals and negotiating these trades and in the end I'd end up with a new Mark Grace or Kirby Puckett and have to give up a Don Mattingly and Hensley Meulens. I'd spend hours afterwards trying to convince myself that I got the better end of the deal. We'd all spend hours studying our Becketts adding up book value and trying not to get ripped off. I had no need for a Kevin Maas card, but I felt like I needed to own it, so it was so hard for me to give one up, even if it meant a stack of Ruben Sierra cards that I really wanted.

Nowadays, trading has become a much more pleasant and freeing experience. I love it. I ship off some cards from teams I don't collect and players that aren't a part of my everyday baseball life and in return I get cards of players that hold a spot in my heart...and occasionally have broken that same heart.

I also love getting cards from sets I never collected and often have never even bought a pack or a single from. The best part however, no more angst. I used to worry about if what I was getting back was worth what I was sending out. Now, my favorite part is putting together a package that I hope my recepient will really enjoy. No more trying to win the trade, instead it's just collectors helping out other collectors. A truly cool experience.

Adam from Thoughts and Sox recently sent me a stack of Angels cards and I in turn sent him a stack of Red Sox cards. He sent me a great and varied stack of Halos and the best part of it was the variety. A few of the highlights follow, but it was all pretty sweet. Thanks again Adam.

VLADDY

The Gold Rare Version. Sweeeeet! Gotta love inserts.


Brick Wall...Check. Wild Hair...Check. Miniature Card...Check.


Heritage New Age Performers. Like the photo, love the set.

Old School Bowman

16 Games as an Angel in 2001. Cards like these only come from trades and they are gems. How else would I come across a Larry Barnes rookie card.


Ahh, Ramon. What could have been? I remember when we deluded ourselves into thinking you were the next Pedro Martinez. Hmmm, not so much.

*sniff* GA *sniff*

Adam sent more than a few Opening Day cards and I love it. This one is obviously my favorite, but it goes back to the idea that I've never opened a pack of this stuff, so it's great to get a bunch of Halos from the set.

And some more Heritage

2004 Bowman Heritage. The black and white photographs is a great throwback. Will the Angels ever replace Glaus?


Bart. I love this set. It's my favorite Topps design of all time and my favorite Heritage set as well. 2005 marks the Cy Young year of Bart...of course he was 7-13 after 2005 for the Angels, but that was still one hell of a year.

Thank you Adam for some great Halos.

Where Do I Go From Here?

In the comments to my last post about my love for a now Atlanta Brave Garret Anderson, Spiff from Texas Rangers Cards asked how this would effect my rooting for GA. Truth be told, I'm really not sure. I figure the best way to tackle this issue for me is to look at it from 3 different perspectives. Me as Halo fan, Me as Garret Anderson fan and Me as Garret Anderson collector.

1. How will Garret Anderson's departure effect me as an Angels fan?
While I hated to hear the rumblings all season and the actions of the off-season, I knew that last season was likely Garret's last as an Angel for quite some time. As the season went on, I began to prepare myself somewhat mentally, although it never seemed real. My loyalty to the Halos started well before Garret and it will continue well after Garret. But, he was a large part of my rooting over the years. He was the one constant that I could rely on in the outfield. The one guy I knew I'd be cheering for everytime I went to the ballpark.

In the end, his departure won't effect my Angels fan status much at all. Sure, I'll probably have some bitter feelings towards Bobby Abreu and Juan Rivera for a while, but if they begin to produce, all will be forgotten. Although some Angel fans seem to be rooting for GA to fail in Atlanta so they can prove that the team was right for dropping him, I will definitely not be in that camp. I've come to peace with their decision and hope that in the end it works out for both player and team.

2. How will Garret Anderson's departure effect me as a Garret Anderson fan?
This is probably the area where I am most unsure. I just don't know what to do about Garret in a Braves uniform. I'll still always root for the guy on a personal level and I definitely hope for a big year or at least a solid year out of him. But that being said, I can't see myself spending time watching a number of Braves games this year and rooting for their success. I know that I can root for GA independent of rooting for the Braves, but they just seem to be somewhat tied together to me.

I know that the first week of the season I'll be tuned into MLB Extra Innings and watching the Braves to see how Garret is doing, but beyond that, I'm just not sure. I'll of course be curious, but I just don't see myself following GA as a Brave as faithfully as I once did. Of course, I've never been a Braves fan, in fact I suffered from a real Braves backlash during the '90s, so that could me clouding my thoughts at this time.

3. Lastly, how will Garret Anderson's departure effect me as a Garret Anderson baseball card collector?
When I got back into collecting again a few years ago, it was my pursuit of Garret Anderson cards that hooked me in the most. I can't tell you how many thousands of GA cards I've looked at and bid on over the past few years. When money got tighter over the last year I had to scale back my collection and the search for all things GA started to slow down. As this year goes on, I'll be curious to see what Garret's Braves cards look like, but I won't go out of my way to collect them...I think. Part of the charm of collecting Garret was that he was always in an Angels uniform, whether it was California, Anaheim, or Los Angeles of Anaheim by way of the 57 freeway. Garret as a Brave just doesn't quite fit my collection.

I'll probably still look to pick up autographs and patches from his Angels days and I'll definitely be on the look out for base cards, etc. More than anything though, I think this will give me a chance to finally get caught up. So much of my GA collection has been put into binders or shoeboxes with a promise to get to them later. I think that later may be now. Without a glut of new product to chase after, I can finally start scanning my collection, posting it and discussing it. As of today, my goal over the next couple of weeks is to gather it all together and start the process of at least counting it all up. With any luck, I'll post the stats here soon.

For now, I'll leave you with a tiny peak at the collection.

Something old,


Something rare,


Something to remind me of simpler days,


Something ripped from the jersey,


And something signed by GA and the future.


Go Halos!

So This Is What It Feels Like...When Doves Cry

For me, it started in 1995. I was a junior in high school and baseball was my life. I had been idolizing baseball players since as far back as I could remember. I bought a Twins hat so I could be Kirby Puckett rounding the bases in the World Series, a Cubs batting practice jersey so I could be Mark Grace hitting doubles into the ivy, and everything Ken Griffey Jr. related so I could be the greatest player around. All of those players meant the world to me and I still look back at them with a great amount of fondness, but none of them played for my team. As I grew up in Texas, I never really had a team, it wasn't until I finally moved to California that I made it official and pledged my allegiance to the Halos.

They were awful. Dreadful. Worse than bad. But they were my team. I've chronicled my love for Luis Polonia and how much I appreciate him getting me through those tough years. Players like Mark Langston, Damian Easley and Tim Salmon kept me interested during lean times, but none of them were MY guy. That all changed in 1995, the year that Garret Anderson came into my life. I was a baseball obsessed teenager with a vehicle and a few dollars in my pocket that came from sweeping up sawdust in 95 degree weather for 9 hours a day. Almost all of that money went to the California Angels and their outfield seats.

While my Dodger friends were suffering from Nomo-mania, I was forging a relationship with an outfielder who made everything looked so easy. I never saw him strain, I never saw him look stressed, instead he was always calm and always smooth. For some Angel fans, that was his downfall over the years. He didn't hustle enough, he was too lazy, but I never thought that. To me, I saw a guy give 100% of himself, without having to bring attention to himself by diving needlessly, knocking off his helmet as he rounded first, or slamming his bat into a wall after a strikeout. Those qualities made other players fiery or intense and I'd argue that GA was just as intense, he just didn't need to prove it.


It wasn't until June of 1995 that Garret found a permanent home in the Angel outfield, which coincidentally coincided with my being out of school and spending every moment immersed in the Angels. By mid-July Garret was becoming a force and I had a new favorite player. Jim Edmonds, Tim Salmon and JT Snow were gaining popularity at the Big A, but none of them had what I wanted in a favorite player. Garret had an edge without ever trying. He did it all and he did it without seeking attention or self-promotion. And he did it all in my first summer of real freedom. I spent as many nights at the stadium as I did at home, every night with my Angel hat on my eyes fixed on number sixteen.


Over the next couple of years my love for GA continued and he was officially my guy. Ken Griffey Jr. had been my favorite player for years and to this day I remain a huge fan, but for the first time in years when I was asked who my favorite player was, I would respond Garret Anderson. He wasn't the sexy choice and my less ardent baseball fan family would often say, "Who's he play for?", but it meant something to me that my favorite player wasn't everyone else's favorite player.

In the fall of 1996 I left for college down the freeway at San Diego State. This meant I was an hour and a half away from my Angels and it wasn't easy on me. The first semester was okay because the Halos were out of it in the fall and I was too focused on the new world of college, but by the spring of '97 I was already sick of hearing about the Padres. On a number of weekends I would drive home to see my girlfriend, who is now my wife, and every time the Angels had a home game on Monday, I'd stay behind and take her to the games, gladly paying five dollars per ticket. As we sat up in the Upper View section, I'd make her watch Garret Anderson and did everything in my power to convince my girlfriend to love him too. Eventually I hooked her not by his skills or his play, but by his number. 16 was her favorite number so it only made sense that Garret should be her favorite player.

After that year I came back to Orange County and wouldn't return to San Diego until 2000 with my wife in tow and our love for the Angels brought along. I would follow the Angels on the internet, through the newspaper and whenever I could catch a game on Fox Sports West, until they eventually started blacking the games out. Any weekend that I could convince my wife to get in the truck, I'd force her up to Anaheim to watch Garret. It wasn't always about the Angels during those years. They were my team, but I missed my favorite player. It's a relationship that you build over the years. He was always there for me, in left field and hitting in the middle of the lineup. Probably the hardest part of living in San Diego during those years was not seeing my team and not seeing my player.

Everything changed for Angel fans in 2002. The Angels finished 2nd to a 103 win A's team, but they won the wild card and were finally in the playoffs again. I had my new red Angels hat and I wore it for every single out during those playoffs, along with my Garret Anderson jersey t-shirt. Garret hit .389 against the Yankees in the Divisional Round, he homered and doubled against the Twins in the Championship round and then it was the World Series. Suddenly, I wasn't that weird for wearing an Angels hat and telling people that Garret Anderson was a stud. I had no chance of getting World Series tickets, so I experienced it all on my couch with my wife. I can only imagine what the neighbors thought as they heard me screaming for joy one day and blubbering with tears the next. My love for Garret and the Angels was in full effect, but all of us were on life support during Game 6.

Game 6 was like nothing an Angel fan had ever experienced before and my guy was right in the middle of it. I went from curled up in a ball cursing the team and all of the depression they were bringing me, to huggging my wife so hard, my arms are still imprinted on her back.

Then it was Game 7, it's still a blur to me, but one play will forever be etched into my memory. Bottom of the thrid, Eckstein on third, Erstad on second, and Salmon on first. Garret's double that scored three was the biggest moment of my baseball fan life. My favorite player had come through on the biggest stage, to win the deciding game of the World Series. This hit brought a championship to my team for the first and only time in our existence.


All of a sudden, liking Garret Anderson didn't make me weird, instead I had company. During the All-Star break in 2003, Garret continued on his magical big stage run by winning the home run derby and then All-Star game MVP after going 3-4 and driving in 2 runs. Being a Garret Anderson fan was cool and I hated it. I hated having to share my favorite player with casual fans. I was okay with other Angel fans liking GA, it made me feel validated when others would agree with me about his awesomeness, but this was different. These were bandwagon fans who didn't really appreciate GA. They weren't in a 2/3 empty stadium in 1995 watching him get his start.


The bandwagoners quickly dropped off after an injury plagued season in 2004. That along with the arrival of Vladdy to southern California made Garret a forgotten man once again. By 2008, I was once again felt like I was alone in my admiration of Garret. I'd pick up his autographs on eBay for no more than a few dollars, I'd wear my GA shirt to the stadium and be overrun by Vlad shirts and Rally Monkeys. As 2008 came to an end, the writing was on the wall, but I didn't want to face it. The Angels were going to buy out Garret's contract and with that move he would no longer be an Angel. I held out hope that the team would come to its senses and bring back the team's all-time greatest player, but I knew it wouldn't happen. There was never going to be a groundswell of support for this guy because he wasn't Tim Salmon. He wasn't the golden boy, instead he was the lazy leftfielder who never showed the intensity of other players.

Now on February 22nd, I sit in my office surrounded by baseball cards of Garret and I don't know what I'll do when I show up to the stadium on April 6th. For the first time in 14 years, my favorite player won't be out there and I feel lost. I like Howie Kendrick a lot, I'm looking forward to seeing how Kendry Morales does on the big stage, and I really hope that we'll see a return of a healthy Vlad the Impaler, but in the end, none of them can replace my guy.

I'm sure it will get easier over time, but it'll never be the same for me again. I'll never be that 17 year old sitting in the outfield seats rooting for the new guy who makes it all look so easy.

Goodbye GA, I wish you all the luck in Atlanta and I hope you prove so many people wrong. As for me, Angel games will have a new flavor and I'll have new players to root for and lament about, but none of them will ever replace my guy, Garret Anderson.

Go GA! Go Halos!

Goodbye G.A., Hello Depression

It's official. My favorite Halo is a Halo no more.

Depression has officially set in. Hopefully, he'll have a great season for the Braves, although it'll be hard to see him in another uniform. The GA tribute/funeral wake will begin soon. I'll miss you #16.

I Think I'm The World's #1 Ronny Paulino Super Collector

Pretty sweet right? I know you're already wondering what it takes to become the world's preeminent Ronny Paulino Super Collector. Well here are exhibits A and B:



Yup, not one, but two Ronny Paulino Autographs. Exhibit C, a Ronny Paulino jersey card is somewhere in the midst of my cardboard ruins. 2 Autos, 1 Jersey and countless cards has to put me at least in the top 5 right?

And that's not all. I think I may be the world's Supreme Miguel Montero Super Collector as well. I have 5, you read that right, 5 Miguel Montero Autographs. 3 of the autos are from Topps "Finest", ironic quotes intended. 2 are pictured here, the third is currently being used as a coaster.


I'm a magnet for junk hits, but then again I think everyone is. Thank God for ye ol' interweb. I can't imagine pulling these cards from packs and not being able to go on other blogs and message boards and seeing similar stuff pulled by fellow collectors. I'm also fully aware that my junk hits may be a treasure to a fan of crappy backup catchers, likewise someone else's junk hits (Jeff Mathis, Sean Rodriguez, etc.) would be a sweet find for me.

So in celebration of the junk hit, I've decided to post some of my favorites. Of course, the sterling examples of Ronny and Miggy are above, but I figured today's edition of Junk Hit-O-Rama should feature one of my favorite products. Allen and Ginter. Clearly, you buy this product for the base set, but you'd like to think you might pull a decent autograph here or there, instead you normally end up with...well, this. Enjoy. More to come.

Jerseys of Nick Swisher, Paul Lo Duca, and Eric Gagne...with the Rangers


Bat of Coco Crisp, Jersey of Mark Mulder, Bat of Scott Podsednik


Bats of Chad Tracy, Scott Rolen, and Jason Bay

I'd like to tell you that those are the only junk hits I've received from Allen and Ginter products, but I'd be lying. Tiny wood ships and pieces of fabric, encased in purple palm trees, it gets no better for the junk hit collector.

I promise the hits keep on comin' over the next few days. So please sit back and wallow in my mediocrity.

Go Halos!