Sports Cards Ate My Brain

 I'm at the point that I am not feeling the trading card hobby anymore.  It is too much.  The ridiculousness of people fighting over cards at Target or Walmart even when the stores have jacked the prices up and the insane focus on spending money to have everything "slabbed" just has completely turned me off.  I have tried to focus on the vintage cards I've collected the last couple of years and the autographs and memorabilia pieces I have from some of my favorite shows and movies but I no longer have the desire to open a pack of new cards. Maybe someday if I become independently rich I will continue collecting vintage cards to add to my Tigers and Braves collections or buy rare autographs from Star Wars or Games of Thrones or some other pop culture sets but that time is not right now as living paycheck to paycheck does not make that possible. I have away the huge stack of boxes that I had full of cards, probably 200,000 cards, over the summer by putting them out by t...

 I'll get back to my 1965-1969 Baseball Card favorites next time but today I want to explore all of the other places in my collection.  When I say that I have bought a pack of everything in my life I mean every type of sport I could get my hands on. Here are a few examples: Basketball: 1952 Wheaties Jim Pollard - This set had a portrait and action shot of each player,  No idea where I picked it up but I think it is cool. CCGs: 1 995 Lord of the Rings.  I have the One Ring.  I am a nerd. Football: I have 5 Autographed Joe Montana cards from the mid-1990's.  Someday I will get them authenticated and if they are legit I will give a big thank you to the person that gave them to me at no cost. Golf: I bought a lot of base Upper Deck Golf in the early 2000's.  This is the only Gold Parallel I have from the 2002 set. Hockey: I bought a full sets of 197-79 and 80-81 Topps Hockey in the mid-80's (instead of opting for the 1979-80) .  The 80-81 had this stu...

 I'm trying hard to understand why it has been since June 19th since I posted anything.  Laziness? Work stress? Laziness? Scanning cards? Laziness? I think I'm voting laziness, even though the other things have contributed.  I was going year by year showing my favorite cards but decided that for the 1960's I would just do two posts.  Since I posted all of my Spahn and Kaline pickups earlier this year I am excluding them from this post because they would fill it up. Here are the candidates for my favorite cards from this era: 1960 Fleer Ty Cobb - This is a set I would complete if I ever won the lottery.  A great way to collect cards of all-time greats that I could not afford playing era cards of. 1960 Leaf Rocky Nelson - I love the pure design of this set.  Another I might eventually try and complete.  This is a high number cards so was tougher to get originally.  Big crease and a pen number on the front don't take anything away from it for me. 196...

 I sometimes find it difficult deciding if I like 1959 Topps better than 1958 or vice versa.  The are both two of my favorite base designs. It is also hard to figure out which is my favorite card from this year but I will give it a try. I'm sure you are noticing a trend among the variety of players I am nominating for each year.  Spahn is one of the players I am actively pursuing a collection of.  This card gives us the standard 1959 yellow border for the Braves players.  This card is in rough shape but still stands out. Fathers' Day weekend reminds me of why I decided to collect Al Kaline cards.  My dad grew up outside of Detroit and was a Tigers fan.  He took me to a game in Tiger Stadium in 1980  when we were on a family trip up in Michigan.  This is my only Tigers card from 1959. Another example of the standard yellow border for Braves cards, this card is from the third player I am actively pursuing cards of. My lone AL All-Star cards fro...

 Our next stop in reviewing my collection is 1958.  I have a good chunk of the Braves team set from this year.  Here are my top 5 cards from 1958 Topps: Another of my recent Kaline pick ups is a nice portrait.  The red background pops. The pink background stands out on this card.  It is my only Bunning card and I need to get more for my Tigers PC. The trade of Red from St. Louis to Milwaukee helped the Braves reach and win the 1957 World Series. This card features the color scheme of most of the Braves cards from this set.  I like the dark green background with the red stripe at the bottom. This card differs slightly from most of the Braves cards with the lighter green background. I have five nice Hall of Famers from this set. Tune in tomorrow for my favorite. ======================================== This is such a great set the choice is a tough one but I have to go with the Spahn.  It was my first card of him from his playing days and is in that grea...

 1957 Topps is one of my favorite designs and, if I am ever a millionaire, I would put a set together. Here are the candidates for my favorite card: This is the earliest card in my small Spahn PC.  At some point I am going to start looking for Bowman cards of Warren. Joe Adcock was a potent bat in the middle of the Braves order. My Kaline collecting has been well-documented this past year and this is a nice start to it. Another good start to a small PC.  A truly great player.  Considering he and Adcock and Aaron were in the lineup is there any wonder the Braves went to two consecutive World Series? Until I got this card I hadn't realized that Tanner played for the Braves.  I just knew him as the manager of some terrible Braves teams in the 1980's. I also have several other Braves cards from 1957 that did not make this list. So who do you like from these five? ====================================== All of these cards are great but I love the Adcock the most....

 I'm not a huge fan of the 1952 - 1956 Topps cards but I have collected a few of the Braves cards: My top 5, in chronological order, are below: One of only two 1952 Topps cards that I have and my only Brave. Another nice card of Del Crandall.  This may be my favorite set from this era of Topps. I like this card even though I don't like the cluttered nature of the design. We end with two from 1956. Sorry 1955, you got left out. So who am I picking? Not in consideration, but from this era, we have this bonus. Joe Cunningham turns into Wally Moon when unfolded. ================================ While 1953 is my favorite design my favorite card is the Ernie Johnson.  I grew up listening to him on the radio or on Braves games on TBS.  I'm sure he would be proud that his son was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame as a broadcaster.

 We move on to my Bowman collection, with the exception of two Tiger cards it is all Braves. I've seleted one card from each of the years I have one from and then will narrow it down to my favorite. This is here by default as my only 1949 Bowman.  I just picked this card up recently. 1950 gives us Buddy Kerr.  I chose this because the other 1950's I have are all boring portrait shots. I have to go with Del Crandall for 1951.  I have a nice collection of the Braves All-Star catcher and this is an error card also, though the name was never corrected. This 1952 Bob Chipman is a little rough but I like the stadium background. I got this lovely Johnny Pesky earlier this year along with another 1953 Bowman Color Tiger card. My only 1954 so it is here by default but I still do like this card even if it does look like someone hand cut the signature and glued it on the card. I do not have a 1955 because I hate the fake TV design.  I'm sure I will eventually pick up somet...

 I've decided to go year by year (or Era by Era) and decide which card is my favorite. We start with my pre-Bowman collection. I've posted my T206 card a few times.  It's not a Boston Brave or Detroit Tiger so someday I will probably replace it to fit better in my PC. I've gathered three lovely Goudey cards that fit nicely in the PC and hope to get more. And these three Play Ball cards are a great, inexpensive option for pre-war cards. Before I reveal my favorite which one do you like? ========================================= We had two guesses for the Fred Marberry. Close but I like the Joe Mowry the best.  The blue and yellow color combo with that "Lou Gehrig Says..." puts it over the top.