Pack Rip: 2019-20 Upper Deck MVP

It's not uncommon in this scene for a post like this to start "So I was at Target today..." And that's where this post starts.

Went to the Target in Dedham, MA today with my partner.  We were there to pick up some stuff off our brother/sister-in-law's baby shower registry.  I shot over to where the cards are usually located (on the peg board wall at the end of check out) and I was actually confused.  There was nothing.  I saw an end cap with a gaunt selection of Magic, Pokemon and Yugioh.  And honestly, it may have only been Pokemon and Yugioh.  I did eventually find a small selection of Topps 2019 baseball (series 1 and 2), some repack boxes of football and basketball, and some blaster boxes of 2019-20 Upper Deck MVP hockey.

TTM Success #29: 1963 Gold Glove Winner Bobby Wine

Player: Bobby Wine
Sent: 7/6/19
Return: 8/2/19 (44 days)
Ratio: 2/2
Address Source: Norristown, PA address listed on SCF.

This is the longest I've waited for a return at 111 days. But for an 80 year old, Bobby Wine is still returning autographs for fans and still has a great, fluid, sharp signature.

Fantasy Football Content: What Do You Do When Mahomes Goes Two?

My fantasy league drafted last night.  It's a 12-team half-point PPR.  We missed last year, because I was just too busy to get it organized.  But this year we're running full barrel.  Up 4 teams from 2017, and this year we're adding keepers.

The draft started predictably, Saquon Barkley went number 1.  Then my girlfriend's brother decided to screw up everyone's plan and took Patrick Mahomes second.  I had a long wait, having drawn the 12 slot.  By the time it got down to me, I was kind of where I expected to be and went JuJu Smith-Schuster and Joe Mixon with the 12 & 13 picks.  Then I went Ertz and Woods.  Josh Jacobs was probably my steal of the draft.  He came in at the end of round 5, about 30 slots lower than where I had him predicted.  I picked up Matt Ryan in round 6 and Lamar Jackson in round 9 was my backup.  Jackson has a week 8 bye and Ryan has a week 9 bye.  So Jackson coming off the bye week seemed like a good spot for him.

Week 9 is going to be my hell week.  I've got 6 players with a week 9 bye, so I'm hoping for some depth magic for that week.

My week 1 match-up has me as a point and a half dog with losing match-ups at every position except for TE, FLEX, K & DST.  My opponent has Odell Beckham starting WR1.  So I'm hoping either Odell is a game time scratch, or gets limited snaps.

How did your drafts go?

TTM Success #28: Dale Sveum & New SCF.com Site Seems to Be Rolling Out

Player: Dale Sveum
Sent: 7/6/19
Return: 8/2/19 (44 days)
Ratio: 2/2
Address Source: Scottsdale, AZ address listed on SCF.

Dale Sveum is definitely a first ballot Baseball Name Hall of Fame entry.  Sveum played for the Phillies in 1992.  Philly was the first stop on a seven team tour that started after he spent the first six years of his career in Milwaukee (way back when that meant playing in the American League.

Stadium Visit: McCoy Stadium (Pawtucket, RI) Red Sox vs Mudhens and the Greatest Fireworks Show Ever

The PawSox were hosting the Toledo Mudhens, which are Maxwell Klinger's favorite team (if you've never watched M*A*S*H, then we can't be friends).  So my partner and I met up with a couple of our friends to catch a game (my partner would like you all to know that the seats are too narrow and lead to many people invading her personal space, by the way).

Set Review: 1990 ProCards Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons

Grades
Quality: B
Design: B
Star Power: C
Collectiblity: B
Intangibles: B
Overall: C
Value: $5

This is the standard bearer set for peak-hobby minor league card design.  The 1990 ProCards set is full of stars and the design hints at some of the classic Topps designs (none the least of which being the '87 woodgrain set).

The full set is littered with stars, including Frank Thomas, Jeff Bagwell and Bernie Williams.  Of course, none of those big names called Lackawanna County Stadium home...

Mail Day And Also The Time I Did Play By Play for Shonie Carter's Pro Wrestling Debut (With a Tony Atlas Cameo)

I've been on a team set splurge lately.  I'm working on collecting all the Phillies AAA team sets.  It started when I refound my '88 Maine Phillies team set and saw a good deal on the '87 Maine Guides set.  Then I got a really good deal on this lot of 7 Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons sets from 1990 thru '94.  There are 3 ProCards sets, and a SkyBox set as well as 3 team issued sets.

I was really excited to get the 1990 ProCards set.  That packaging and design is one of the most iconic minor league set designs ever.  The '92 SkyBox design was also very good.

Unfortunately, the eBay seller decided to dry load the '92, '93 & '94 team issued sets just wrapped in some news paper and put in the box.  Total clown show move.

Since this is an incredibly dry and boring post, I'll tell you the story about the time I did play by play for "Mr International" Shonie Carter's pro wrestling debut.

Set Review: 1988 CMC Maine Phillies Team Set Review

Grades
Quality: B
Design: A-
Star Power: D
Collectiblity: D
Intangibles: C
Overall: C
Value: $3

A subtitle for this review could have been "A Great Design Thoroughly Wasted".  

TCMA/CMC released minor league sets in the 80's.  1987 appeared to be the last year under the TCMA banner and starting here with '88 they're considered CMC releases.  As with previous years, TCMA/CMC (or in this case, just CMC) came up with a base design that was applied with minor color changes across all their team set releases.  

Cape Cod League: Cotuit Kettleers Roll to Championship

The Cotuit Kettleers won the 2019 Cape Cod Baseball League championship yesterday with a 10-3 win to take a 2-0 series win over the Harwich Mariners.  Cotuit lost just 1 game in a three round march to the club's 17th Cape title.  Cotuit won the opening game of the championship round in a 15-inning 7-6 affair

Set Review: 1987 TCMA Maine Guides Set Review (Update)

Grades
Quality: B-
Design: B
Star Power: C
Collectiblity: C
Intangibles: B
Overall: B-
Value: $7

At some point this week I decided that I was going to take a run at collecting a full set of Phillies' Triple-A team sets.  I've been sitting on the '88 Maine Phillies team set since 1988, and found this '87 Maine Guides set on eBay for about $10 shipped.  So, good news, I already have a complete Maine Guides/Phillies set.  I also have 2 Lehigh Valley Ironpigs sets, which just leaves every Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons, the Ottawa Rapidz and the rest of Ironpigs sets for the complete set.

So, this is the 1987 TCMA Maine Guides team set.

Now Here's a Dumb Idea: Start a Trading Card Company

We can do better than this.

If you're around me long enough, you'll hear at least one of what I call "Awesome or Awful Ideas".  Yesterday was a very slow day at work, so I was watching Jack of All Trades on Netflix.  The movie, plus a lot of free time "on the clock" yesterday triggered one of these ideas.

Start a Trading Card Company

What would it take to start a card company?

1. Team or league licensing agreements
2. Photographer or photo licensing
3. Designer
4. Manufacturer for printing & packaging
5. Distribution

1. One of the things about baseball up here in New England, is that there are a lot of teams and leagues operating outside of Major/Minor League Baseball.  Three summer college leagues, a couple Atlantic and Can-Am League teams just south of Connecticut.  So while the dream scenario is to be the mega millionaire to crack Topps' MLB/MiLB stranglehold, the real deal is to jump in at a smaller level.  Be a big, lonely fish, in a small pond.

TTM Failure #2 & Ben Franklin Having a Heat Stroke at the All-Star Game

Writing about failures is a drag.  If you have any doubt, ask Bill Conklin.

On second thought, don't do that.

Either way, instead of dedicating a post to a TTM failure, I've decided to use failures as a chance to share some stories.

Today's story comes by way of a return to sender sticker that came on the request I sent out to former Phillies' manager John Felske.  I sent the request to Huntley, IL.  Looks like the postal service attempted to forward to Blue Eye, MO and the forward timer expired.

Now, on to a story about Ben Franklin, heat stroke, and the 2014 Single-A All-Star Game in Wilmington, DE.

Set Review: 1988 Ballpark Cape Cod League Prospects

Grades
Quality: B
Design: B
Star Power: A
Collectiblity: B
Intangibles: A+
Overall: B
Value: $20

The 2019 Cape Cod League playoffs started last night with all 8 teams playing first round games.  For the historical record; Harwich, Yarmouth-Dennis, Wareham and Falmouth won yesterday.  But today, as the summer college season begins to wane, I wanted to revisit one of the incredibly few baseball card sets to feature the Cape Cod League.

Back in April I reviewed the 1988 P&L set, which earned low marks.  In contrast, today we are looking at the 1988 Ballpark Cape Cod League Prospects set.

TTM Success #27: Gary Varsho

Player: Gary Varsho
Sent: 7/6/19
Return: 8/2/19 (27 days)
Ratio: 2/2
Address Source: Chilli, WI address listed on SCF.

Gary Varsho had a short Major League career, spending his 8 years as corners outfielder playing mostly off the bench, and only twice playing in more than half a season's games twice.  He finished out his career with the Phillies in '95, he retired after the season.

TTM Success #26: Ron Roenicke

Player: Ron Roenicke
Sent: 7/6/19
Return: 8/1/19 (26 days)
Ratio: 2/2
Address Source: Fenway Park, listed on SCF.

Ron Roenicke made an impression on me as a member of the first Phillies team I was functionally aware of as a utility piece of the '86 & '87 teams.  I was eight and nine for those teams and that was when I was truly becoming aware as a sentient  person.  It was not a great time to be "coming of age" as a baseball fan in Philadelphia. 

The '86 Phils finished 2nd in the East a mere 21 some games out of the pennant, and the '87 team finished 2 games under .500 before the bottom fell out of the whole operation in '88.  But I can still name some of those cardboard legends that patrolled the thinly covered concrete of The Vet.  That era of the Phillies is a real "Who's Who?"