One of Baseball's Biggest Kids Has Left the Field..

Hey guys, Drew back here. Watching baseball players ain't what it used to be, as Yogi Berra would say. In fact, I find it great to be able to have the opportunity to see what the game was like, say, prior to when I was born, on the MLB Network. I watched a show today called "Prime 9", which I'm sure many of you have watched before, and it was about the top 9 greatest characters in baseball history. Then, fittingly after I finished watching the countdown, I received a text from William. On occasion, he tends to sporadically inform me of news around sports, such as the passings of many former legends like Bob Feller, Duke Snider, Harmon Killebrew, Ron Santo, and many others. I was a little scared to check this one, unless it was a simple "Hey", or "How are you?" for example. Unfortunately, I had a reason to be scared, and that was because the message read "Gary Carter died."

I have to say, as sad as the news was to hear the first time, I wasn't necessarily surprised. Mr. Carter has suffered an enormous amount of pain in the past year, and it was almost assumed he wouldn't be able to survive brain cancer. However, there were moments of hope the Carter family had that relieved me. My family went through a tough time late last fall, and hearing news of a 57 year old man suffering from one of the worst cancer diseases out there was just a true tragedy. But, coming from someone who has now seen the effects of cancer, in a way I'm glad his suffering is now officially over. Maybe he could have recovered, but he would never fully feel the same way after battling a disease that takes people down a rollercoaster that endlessly continues to go straight down.

Fortunately, he lived a short, but great life. Gary loved the game of baseball, which is noticeable the moment you go to his Baseball Reference page, where besides his name is his nickname, "The Kid". I didn't have to go there to tell you how great of a player he was, for 4 teams, over 19 seasons behind the plate. Coming from a Yankee fan who is embarrassed to share the New York baseball love with the Mets, I will admit that 1986 season was a classic to look back on. Who knows how history would've unfolded had Carter not smacked a single to spark the late inning rally in the 10th inning of the 6th game of the World Series. Had the Red Sox wound up winning, the alleged "Curse of the Bambino" garbage from 2004 never would've been mentioned. Instead, the Mets took home the trophy to many bright stars and great people among the game. Carter was undoubtedly one of those great people.

He was elected into Cooperstown in 2003 on his 6th year on the ballot, where he continued to carry his famous smile. "The Kid" proved to fans that baseball is everything but about the money, which is why it hurts me to watch current players go out there and perform every day. A majority of current players love the game dearly, but that love for America's Pastime often gets pushed aside for a nice fat contract that will earn them cars and houses and all sorts of other expensive items. We need more Gary Carter's in baseball today, for sure. He set an excellent example for how to play the game the right way, without needles, syringes, PED's, and everything else that gives advantages to players. Baseball is changing into a business more and more every day, so it certainly is sad to see Gary go. It is just a game, afterall.

Rest in peace, Kid. I'd like to give my condolences to his family, friends, and fans, who lost a great of the game today, as well as a great of our world.

Mail from "The Angels, in Order"!

Hey guys, Drew back here. This post has been long overdue, as I received some nice cards a couple of weeks ago from my buddy Tom, of the blog The Angels in Order. Tom inquired to me about some 1961 Topps cards I needed, and we were able to work out a pretty good deal! Take a look at some of what he had to send my way:

As extras, Tom threw in a lot of mixed 1990's-2000's Yankees cards, including quite a few I didn't have already. One card that I got a good kick out of was the Mariano Rivera card in the top left corner of the scan above, from 1998 Upper Deck. Mo's looking quite sexy in those short shorts! Also, he sent a Don Mattingly card I didn't have, which is always a great accomplishment. 

Continuing the trend, here are a few more mixed Yankees cards. The Rivera (3rd from left, top row) is an insert from 2011 Topps, which was by far one of the worst insert set Topps has already done. In my opinion, once you make a card, there is really no need to honor it by making it again. However, I do really like the Matsui cards, he was certainly a very good Yankee and I enjoyed watching him a lot. 

Another insert set collectors aren't necessarily fans of was without a doubt the 2007 A-Rod Home Run History cards. They certainly were pollutants to the set that year, and I've managed to acquire about 20-30 of them, mainly through trades. There couldn't have been much of a thought process going into that set, and in my opinion it would've been much cooler if they used 1) a different design and 2) photos of each of his home run swings. They have to have at least one picture of each of his home runs. 

These 3 are from the 1991 Topps Micro set, of Kevin Maas, Steve Sax, and Roberto Kelly, 3 of the most overproduced Yankee players of the 90's without question. These are certainly a neat concept, but they can be a pain because they tend to always spill all over the floor whenever they're in stacks of cards I'm holding. Storing these can be a pain too, but for the most part they're pretty cool. 

These three cards were the cake of the trade, all of which from the 1961 Topps set. All of the cards are of Angels players: Tom Morgan, Ken McBride (RC), and Ken Hamlin. I hope these weren't important in your team set building Tom, if so you really didn't have to offer them up. But nonetheless they are all in very good condition and they push me to a 35.7% completion rate. Still a ways to go, including the relentless high numbers. It'll certainly be a while before I'm close to capping this one off. 

But wait, there's more! Tom also decided it would be nice of him to throw in this 2008 Allen & Ginter bat card of Johnny Damon! I really was never a fan of Damon during his Red Sox days, but when he went to the Yankees and shaved his Caveman beard off, I instantly started to like him. By watching him play, besides his near-horrid throwing arm, he was a very solid player throughout his prime, and in his four seasons as a Yankee! This card is very nice all around, and I'm glad you threw it in Tom!

On a similar note, I'm very curious to see where Damon will end up signing by Opening Day, if he is signed at all. The Yankees have had discussions with him to fill in the DH role, which in my opinion would be a pretty solid signing. He can't provide a whole lot in the field, but he's a good clubhouse guy and one of our generation's better players, and it would be nice to see him have a shot at 3000 hits as a Bronx Bomber. I guess we'll have to wait and see where he lands.

So, thanks a lot again Tom for all the help, and I hope you're looking forward to your package back, which was mailed this morning! Everyone be sure to subscribe to Angels in Order if you haven't already!

See Ya!

Lin-Sanity!

Hey guys, Drew back here. All my life, I've never been an enormous basketball fan. I played it between 2nd grade and 7th grade, and while I didn't really dominate the court, it was a lot of fun. Draining a three pointer at the Izod Center will be a moment I will never forget, but my basketball knowledge isn't close to as impressive as my baseball knowledge. Going into this season, however, I decided to start following the Knicks again. I mean, they looked excellent on paper, with Amare Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler, and Baron Davis when healthy. Davis still hasn't played a game yet, but it looks like he isn't as needed as one may have thought.

Last Monday was a tragic day for Amare Stoudemire, as his brother was killed in a car accident. Along with his absence, All Star Carmelo Anthony has dealt with a groin injury that has kept him sidelined all week. Nobody thought there was any way the Knicks could play effectively and win games during this time, but things changed when point guard Jeremy Lin stepped on the floor. The Knicks claimed him on December 12th, after he had been waived by the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets. He was considered their 3rd string point guard, behind Toney Douglas and Mike Bibby, and he didn't expect much playing time or attention in the Big Apple.

On January 4th, Lin scored 25 points with 5 rebounds and 7 assists in a big Knicks win over the New Jersey Nets. The next day he was named to the starting lineup, and he continued to impress, scoring 28 points with 8 assists against the Utah Jazz. His quickness, agility, and overall ability has taken the world by storm. In fact, he even scored a career high 38 points against Kobe Bryant and the LA Lakers en route to beating the powerhouse  92-85. His 109 points in his first four NBA starts is more than NBA Greats Allen Iverson, Shaquille O'Neal, and Michael Jordan, who each had just a few points less than Lin.

Knicks fans are embracing the young star, starting phrases such as "Linning" and "Lin-sanity", and in less than a week he went from a struggling young player to the King of Madison Square Garden. I've never watched anyone dominate a sport in such a short period of time, and while the future is uncertain for him, I will always consider myself a fan. In fact, the night of his first appearance almost got me to buy an autograph of his for about $20. I definitely should've done that, as his autographs are now selling in the $100-200 dollar range! It is truly Lin-Sane!

On a different note, I just want to wish my thoughts and prayers to the family of Whitney Houston. Rest in peace.

See Ya!

Getting to Meet a Current Yankee!

Hey guys, Drew back here! After another week of school has concluded, again without a single snowflake hitting the ground, I'm back here to show off my experiences from last weekend's "Man Show", a show dedicated to men, men, and well... men. At this packed show, there were all sorts of manly games, merchandise, beer, and what not. The reason Dad and I went there was because a company called Dream Team Promotions was holding an autograph signing! The Dream Team company has held many local signings of current New York Giants football players lately, with an occasional Jet or baseball star mixed in. They had two signers at this show- David Robertson of the Yankees, and Chase Blackburn of the Super Bowl Champion New York Giants! If you guys know me well enough by now you'd know who I was going to meet!

It was absolutely mobbed with men (and a few women here and there, along with my younger sister) at the show, and the lines were really long for the most part. I got into the Robertson line as soon as I could, and while we soon found out we were in the wrong line, we still didn't have to wait all that long for our opportunity to meet him. I forgot my digital camera at home, so I put my Dad and my sister in charge of taking pictures with my iPod touch and my dad's Droid. The pictures came out better than I thought, so I was happy about that.

The Yankees' "Houdini" was sporting his 2009 World Series ring, and the picture above is of him showing that thing off. I would too if I ever got a World Series ring! After about a 45 minute wait, I finally got my chance to have my meet and greet session. 

For the first time in a long time, I actually felt comfortable talking to an athlete. Normally, I tense up and get really nervous, and I have a loss for words by the time it's my chance. But, Robertson was really down to Earth and friendly as can be, so I was able to ask him about this upcoming season and if he's ready to take him another World Series trophy. He told me he would love to get a matching ring for his opposite hand, and that he's going to try to help the team bring home number 28!

I wasn't allowed a photo opportunity with him, as you had to pay extra money, which I find ridiculous, but oh well. I bought a photo at the show for him to sign, although my original intention was to have him sign my Mantle photo. I thought about it on the ride there though, and I thought he wouldn't really fit on a photo filled with former Yankee autographs. By the way, thank you to everyone who helped me identify all of the autographs, especially you Anonymous, who helped me identify the final auto, of Ron Davis. Anyway, Robby inscribed everything I wanted him to inscribe and more, which is just beyond awesome! I was worried with all of the steep autograph prices the company had that inscriptions would cost extra, but even if they did, he didn't seem to care one bit. He was a class act, for sure. 

I've always liked Robertson a lot, but after this signing my appreciation for him grew even more. Sure, he got paid good money to sign autographs, but it's really a rarity to see any young players doing signings nowadays in my area. I hope the Dream Team Promos company continues to succeed with these signings, because I would love to meet some more Yankee players who aren't locked up to contracts with Steiner yet. Robertson was well worth the money, as you can see from the autograph and the overall experience. Even though I didn't necessarily get a picture with him, he was just a super cool guy. 

Thanks again Dream Team, and David Robertson! You guys are awesome! Also thanks to Dad as always for taking me to the show, it was definitely worth it for me! 

See Ya!

Mail from William... Orioles Fanfest Pickup!

Hey guys, Drew back here. You may be a bit puzzled as to why the title contains "Orioles Fanfest Pickup", following "Mail from William", who is an Orioles fan. However, William recently went with his son to this year's Orioles Fanfest to meet many O's stars, past and present. One of the stars there was one I wanted pretty badly for my custom set. I didn't get the custom done in time, but William was still awesome enough to get a card signed for me. He sent it over my way a week or so ago, and it came out awesome! Before we get to that, first here are a few extras he threw in:

First are just a few mixed Yankees. Besides the Matsui, I don't think I had any of the others. But who knows. My basement is such a mess.

I thought this was pretty sweet. It's a Don Mattingly card from 1992 Upper Deck, part of the "Iooss Collection". Walter Iooss Jr. was a photographer who apparently took all of the photographs for this set. This card is numbered 5673 of 10,000, and features an awesome picture of Donnie Baseball. Definitely needed that one, for sure.

While those were cool, the main piece of the package was this signed 1973 Topps card of Jim Palmer! Like I said, I didn't get my card to him in time to get it signed, but this looks really awesome. He signed it in thick black sharpie, and the card is in pretty decent shape. Palmer was considered one of the, perhaps the best pitcher of the 1970's, winning 3 Cy Young awards and making 6 All Star teams. I already own one autograph of his, from one of those early 90's Nabisco products, but this one is my favorite of the two.

Thanks again William for doing this for me, it really means a lot!

See Ya!