A surprise find yesterday

So with all the running around I had to do on Friday, I wasn't able to hit the LSC, but did manage to hit the other store that carries, cards, comics, music, games yesterday in a driving rain storm. And boy am I glad I did!!!

For the cost of a blaster, I landed this!!!!

A 1968 Topps Johnny Bench rookie!!!! Granted, a couple of soft corners and a wrinkle at the top right, but what a surprise find! I have tried to find an off condition one on eBay, but they generally seem to go north of $50 easily. So one big money card scratched off my 1968 Topps Set needs!

As for the other guy sharing Bench's limelight, Ron Tompkins actually first appeared in the Majors in 1965 when he pitched in 5 games. Ron shares a card with a fellow A's rookie in the 1966 Topps set. He didn't see the light of day again until 1971 when he appeared in 35 games for the Chicago Cubs.

This wasn't the only surprise find that I landed, but I will save that for tomorrow. Because of that find, I have decided to start collecting another vintage Topps set, so stay tuned for that as I will have another set needs list to post.

But enough of that, here are some other cards I found that closed up some holes in my '68 binder. 

One of the other cards I was able to scoop up, was Roger Maris' last card. I can't seem to find any at a decent price on eBay, so at for the cost of a couple 2012 Topps packs, got this one. I may be able to take some of that pen ink off with an art eraser I have, we'll see. Otherwise, the Maris has some great color and the corners are still fairly decent. 

Lefebvre was the National League ROY in '65, McAuliffe was a mainstay for Tigers at second base, Rick Wise threw a no-hitter for the Phillies and then the following spring was traded to the Cardinals for Steve Carlton. Fregosi was star early on for the Los Angeles/California Angels. Bill Freehan played his entire career with the Tigers, made 11 All-Star teams and won gold gloves 5 straight seasons (1965–69).

Next batch includes another Tiger that held down the fort at third during the 1960s. This was Joe Niekro second card, having appeared in the 1967 issue, he was traded the following year to the newly formed San Diego Padres. For fifty cents, I picked up this Joe Torre and while scuffed with a marker spot, it will fill it's spot in the album just fine. Pat Dobson would go onto be a part of that famed Baltimore Orioles staff of '71 in which all four starters won 20 or more games.

Interesting story about Dick Dietz from 1968 (Wikipedia) that I did not know:

Dietz is remembered for his role in a controversial umpiring decision during the 1968 season. The Giants were facing Dodgers' pitcher Don Drysdale, who was in the midst of a scoreless inning streak that would eventually reach a record-setting 58 and two-thirds innings. The Giants had the bases loaded with no outs and Dietz at bat. Dietz was hit by a pitch, apparently ending Drysdale's scoreless innings streak. However, home plate umpire Harry Wendelstedt, citing a rarely enforced rule, refused to allow Dietz to take first base, claiming that Dietz did not attempt to avoid being struck by the ball. Drysdale then retired Dietz and the next two batters, keeping his scoreless streak alive.

And last lastly in this lot of cards I found, and had to scan ... #598, the last card in the 1968 set ... Jerry May. May led National League catchers in 1970 with a 50% base runners caught stealing percentage.

So the trip landed me twenty-two cards that I was able to cross off, including one of the set's cornerstone cards. Can't be that on a rainy day!

A bonanza of '68s

So finally got a chance to hit up the LSC for the first time since I landed that partial 1968 Topps set and boy did it pay off. The above image shows the hual; 134 cards off the want list including; thirty-eight high numbers, thirteen Red Sox, 3 checklists, and numerous Yanks and Mets cards. Most cards fall in the VG-EX to EX range but did manage to obtain a number of cards that look like they just came out of the packs.

First batch of Red Sox landed me Elston Howard's final bubble gum card appearance. After playing his entire career with the Bronx Bombers, he was traded to Boston in August of 1967 and helped Boston capture the American League pennant. The middle row of Sox are all high numbers while the Lou Brock, game #1 card finishes off my World Series subset.

Second lot of Red Sox included skipper, Dick Williams. Having finish next to last (New York was only a half game worse) in 1966, no one predicted that Boston would find itself in the 1967 World Series. Williams guided the Sox through a heart-punding, four-team pennant chase with an aggressive style that make the Sox the toasts of New England.

Favorite card is this batch has to be the Manny Sanguillen rookie card. Manny always seemed to have some cool photos on his cards. His 1969–1971 and 1974 Topps cards stand out for me for some reason.

Good to see Walt Williams never had a neck to begin with. Is it me or does his head look grossly out of place on that body. The Wills is pretty beat up, but at this stage I'll take a filler card to erase a blank hole. Note sure when the A's team photo was taken, but it's the only A's card in the 1968 series that depicts the players without airbrushed hats. This card also falls within the high number series and notes the move to Oakland on the reverse side.

Always good to find some unmarked checklist cards, including the Boyer who falls in the last series.

After flipping through my pile of '68s, had to scan these guys as you can't beat some of these names. Dooley, Adolfo, Turk and who doesn't love a Bubba. Not sure I'd be wanting the name John Edwards right now for a variety of reasons and poor Dave Ricketts. Topps was not kind to him on several of his photo selections over his cardboard career.

Next time, I'll showcase some 1975 Topps I grabbed that leaves me with just 8 cards left to finish my set. Until then, please take a moment and look my 1968 Topps set and 1975 Topps set wantlists, as I am jonesin to make some trades.

1968 Topps: Joy of a (first) completed page

Beautiful day today here in New England, mostly sunny with a high in the mid 70's. Perfect! Finally had some free time over the last couple of nights to transfer the obtained, partial 1968 Topps set in a new binder and new UP sheets. After loading my '68s into the album, I have my first and only completed page. Behold ...

The card that completed this page was that ink-marked, Ernie Banks. I just picked up a little over a week ago from a game and comic book store. Besides the pen ink, it's a nice, clean card.

So who are these other guys that make up this page ...

Jackie Hernandez was a member of the 1971 World Series Pittsburgh Pirates.

Mac Jones had quite the major league debut. On July 13, 1961, Jones collected four hits, (three singles and a double). Mack the Knife also played the outfield in the first game the Montreal Expos played on April 8, 1969.


Pete Richert also had a memorable Major league debut on April 12, 1962 against the Cincinnati Reds at Dodger Stadium. Richert set a record by striking out the first six batters he faced. His Dodgers trailing 4-0, he entered the game with two outs in the top of the second inning and struck out Vada Pinson for the final out. He then recorded a four-strikeout third inning in which his victims were Frank Robinson, Gordy Coleman (who reached first base on a passed ball, Wally Post and Johnny Edwards; his record-tying sixth strikeout was of Tommy Harper leading off the fourth. To date, Richert is the only pitcher to record a four-strikeout inning in his Major League debut.

Ernie Banks .... Mr. Cub was nearing the end of his Hall of Fame career. The back of his card notes that he is "The Cubs all-time home run leader." He would finish with 512. He is now second to Sammy Sosa who hit 545 home runs as a Cub. 

Ken Holtzman (Checklist) was a 2-time All Star, and a 3-time World Series champion. He also threw two no-hitters. The first on August 19, 1969 was a 3-0 win against Phil Niekro and the Braves. One note about this game, he did not have a single strike out.

Len Gabrielson played for the Braves, Cubs, Giants, Angels, and Dodgers. He once beat out Orlando Cepeda for a starting spot in the Giants outfield. Cepeda WAS coming back from and injury. Traded to the Dodgers in May 1967, Gabrielson would spend the next four seasons with Los Angeles. He led the team in home runs with ten in 1968.

Mike Epstein was a power hitter for the Senators and won a World Series ring with the 1972 Oakland A's. He could take a walk and had a number of hit by pitches (career OBP of .358). His career ties in the aforementioned Pete Richert as well ... One story I found on "Super Jew" as he was nicknamed was the following:


He was first brought up for 6 games by the Baltimore Orioles in 1966, at the age of 23, having hit over .300 with at least 29 home runs and 100 RBI in his first two minor league seasons.
After the Orioles tried in vain to convert him to the outfield (they already had Boog Powell at first base), they demoted him to Rochester again. The outspoken Epstein refused to report, going home to California instead, and did not play again until the end of May 1967, when he was traded by the Orioles with Frank Bertaina to the Washington Senators for Pete Richert. Later that season, in first at-bat against the Orioles, Epstein hit a grand slam.


Joe Moeller is the youngest starting pitcher in Los Angeles Dodgers history at 19 years, 2 months of age. He pitched two innings in the 1966 World Series against the Baltimore Orioles.

Willie Horton is a 4-time American League All Star, and won a World Series with the 1968 Detroit Tigers. Horton posted double-digit home run totals in 12 regular seasons from 1965–76, and hit two home runs in a game on 30 occasions. In 1979 with the Seattle Mariners he was again named the AL's Outstanding Designated Hitter after hitting .279 with 29 HRs and a career-high 106 RBI, and he received the Comeback Player of the Year award as well.

As I make my way through completing this set, and as the completed pages pile up (I hope), it'll be interesting to learn more about these players. Some of these players will only have one card, while others make appearances throughout the '70s and even into the 1980s.

Stay tuned for some vintage trade bait later today/night. Again, looking to obtain any 1968 Topps that are on my needs lists. I'll be posting some nice and some off-conditioned vintage Topps. Koufax, Frank Robinson, Brooks, Robinson, multi-player cards are just some that will be available to trade. Until then, thank you for reading.

Out of hibernation

So it's been awhile since I last posted. Been so long that Blogger has dramatically changed their dashboard and I feel a little lost writing this. Hopefully I'll get the hang of it again. Life's never-ending rush has prevented me from posting since December as well as reading many of the great blogs on this blog roll. I have managed to stay in the loop as far as new releases by picking up some packs here and there as well as continue to pick up some off-condition vintage along the way. I plan on getting back to posting more as well as trading. I do miss a good trade.

I recently put my near completed, 1975 Topps Set in sheets. I really had forgot how nice of condition set this was. The colors really pop and almost all the cards have sharp corners. It's definitely my favorite set of the 1970's, if not all-time. Of course, it's probably because my childhood idol, Jim Rice's rookie card is in this set. I have always wondered what made Topps place Jim Ed on a four-player card while the likes of George Brett and Robin Yount appear all by themselves.

One newly purchased item and a partial 1968 Topps set.

With the partial set, along with about seventy-five 1968's I already had, I have a little over half the set. While not my favorite design of the 1960's, it brings back memories from about 25 years ago. Back then I had worked in a baseball card store and had almost purchased a partial set from the owner. It was missing a number of star cards, including the Mantle, Bench rookie, and the Ryan rookie. God knows what it would have run me, maybe $80-100 bucks at the time. I just couldn't do it as I think I was intimidated by the cost to obtain all the other missing cards. Long before trading, eBay, COMC I just didn't pull the trigger.

Anyhow, I made an offer on the above and the seller took it. Overall, the set runs VG-EX which is fine with me. The "burlap" pattern actually does a nice job of hiding those soft corners. The high numbers aren't too pricey and for the time being, I can pick up reprints of the Bench and Ryan to fill in those holes.

It's a great set for me to tackle as the LSC has a number of commons, high #'s and semi stars in stock for pretty cheap money. The 1968 set brought back the return of The Sporting News All-Star cards and the leader cards are stacked with some nice pairings. You also have The Mick's last card of him while he was still active; same with the great Eddie Matthews (Tigers). There are two awesome multi-player cards; #490 "Super Stars" with Mick, Mays, and Killebrew and #480 "Manager's Dream" with Oliva, Cardenas, and Clemente. Also in this great set is the Sox-Cards World Series subset. That 1967 season changed how New Englanders followed their beloved BoSox. The Nation started then and there.

So for any of those out there with some '68's to trade, drop me an email. My wantlist is on the right hand side. I have a number of vintage stars from the 60's and 70's, some pretty nice, others a little beat up. Heck, if you have an off-condition Mantle, I'll trade you an off-conditioned 1963 or 1966 Topps Koufax. If you have a nice Bird Belters (#530), I have a 1961 Topps Frank Robinson with your name on it. Whatever you have, drop me a line and I'll be sure to respond.

Nothing beats cheap vintage—Part Three

Made another run to the Target at lunch and still no Ginter. Made a call to a LSC near work I haven't been to in quite a while (they sell mostly packs, boxes, team clothing) and they won't have Ginter till tomorrow afternoon. Looks like from reading the forums on Blowout Cards, that any retail Ginter was released in the Midwest (Illinois, Missouri) or Mid-Atlantic (NJ, Delaware) states before the rest of the country.

So in the meantime, might as well catch up on another round of cheap vintage I picked up a couple of weeks ago at my LSC. Same story, on this batch—cheap as in would you rather have these cards or a 3-pack blister of 2011 Heritage.

First on the docket, some vintage BoSox including "The Monster," Dick Radatz. This guy was absolutely dominating over the coarse of 3-4 years but sadly his career puttered out after over use. His last team was Montreal in 1969. Radatz cards always seem to be in demand in these parts of New England, he was a very personable guy and prior to his passing years ago, was a pretty good sports talk show co-host for WEEI. Love the Schilling card, such a great pose that is missing in today's cards and gotta loved the striped socks!!! Luis' last card was this 1974 Topps example. He had a couple of good years for the Sox in the early seventies and while most people remember Carlton Fisk's waived-homer, it was Bernie's bomb that tied the game up so that Fisk could reaped the praise.

Next to bat, a couple of 1964 Topps. Nellie's second to last card as he appears in the '65 set with an airbrush hat since the Colt 45's became the Astros. His 1965 Topps also carried the designation of "2B-Coach." Nice shot of Bill Freehan with the hulking old Yankee Stadium in the background. Nice clean photo. And while most people know that AL Downing gave up Hank Aaron's 715th home run, he was a pretty decent pitcher during the 1960's.

And speaking of Yankees, Elston Howard's last card in pinstripes. On August 3, 1967, he was traded by New York to the Boston Red Sox for a player to be named later and Pete Magrini. The Sox sent Ron Klimkowski (August 8, 1967) to the Yanks to complete the trade. That '68 Jenkins is a beautiful card. Corners are sharp as is the color but there is a tiny little wrinkle along the right edge of the card, just above the orange circle. This one only cost one buck!

And to close out this round of cheap vintage, we have three Hall of Famers: Kaline, Killebrew, and Wilhelm. Kaline's career was nearing a close as was Hoyt's while Killebrew went on to have his last big year in '71. He would league the AL in RBI and walks. And doesn't the "Toy Cannon" looked thrilled to have his mug taken in the 1974 Topps Traded.

All of these cards, now reside in my ongoing, All-Decades Team project, which I hope to start writing about later this month.

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HELP ME!!!! With the 2011 Ginter now LIVE, I will be attempting to collect the mini set and any mini inserts from this new edition. I do have a hobby box with me name on it for Wednesday, so that will get me a little bit of a head start. As for the base cards, SPs, hits, and any other cards in that come out of that box, they will be available for trade. If you can help, please, please drop me a line. For those of you still looking for 2011 Topps sparklies, I have a few from series 2, maybe I can grab a couple of minis for these???

Anyhow, drop me a line if you're not into the minis, and I'm sure I can find something to trade you.

Filling up on vintage before Ginter release and looking for HELP

So with the kids away at the in-laws this past week, I was looking forward to heading back to my LSC to go through a small pile of vintage cards I had looked at a couple of weeks ago.  I still have to post these scans but was too excited about what I landed this weekend that these scans needed to go first. 

What I didn't realize was that there will be many, many boxes to go through in the weeks and months ahead.

While looking at some off-condition vintage in the case, I noticed a boxed behind the counter. The owner said it was a mish-mash of stuff and more than happy to let me go through it. I went through that (and will go through again I'm sure of it) and then a good sized box of 1966–68 Topps cards.

So without further ado, let's dig in and see what I pulled ...

First to bat, a 1960 Topps Vic Power and some 1961 Topps. "Dr. Strangeglove" is the most beat of this bunch which is quite appropriate for his nickname.

Next up, some '62 woodies! Been trying for a while to pick up a cheap Ken Boyer and Mike McCormick will be forever know for getting "blown off" the mound in at the 1961 All-Star game at Canndlestick.

Some 1963 Topps ... Dick Groat almost won the 1963 NL MVP award after being trade by the Pirates to the Cardinals. He would be moved a couple of years later to the Phillies in a pack with Bob Uecker and Bill White.

Moving into the mid-60's ... 1964 Topps ... wonder who had the bigger unibrow; Wally Moon or the O's Andy Etcheberran?

Onto one of my favorite 1960's Topps designs, the 1965 release. In this batch is O's great, Mike Cuellar ... imagine if the Cards hadn't traded him to the 'Stros. Gibson, Carlton, Cuellar ... love the specks on Bob Veale

Mving down the line, 1966 Topps. Still need to read Jim Bouton's Ball Four.

Another of my favorite designs from the 1960's, the 1967 Topps set.

The first batch of many '68 Topps. When I was younger I actually really liked this burlap design ... of course, I then grew up and still don't know why Topps thought this was a good look. I finally landed a Drysdale to go along with my Koufax. Don is a little beat up but with serve well in my All-Decade's project. The Bunning had some massive wax residue but with a little rubbing of some nylon, all clean!

You like the long-ball???? These sluggers could do the trick!

Are slick fielders more to your liking? Can't go wrong with any of these guys. Looking at this photo selection makes me wish Topps would shoot/choose more of these looks in their design selection.

And to round haul, more burlapped beauties.

All of this for less than two, 2011 Topps Value boxes and all with find there respective places in my All-Decades Team project. And with more boxes to go through, they'll be more vintage posts to follow!

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HELP ME!!!! With the 2011 Ginter release just days away, I will be attempting to collect the mini set and any mini inserts from this new edition. I do have a hobby box with me name on it for Wednesday, so that will get me a little bit of a head start. As for the base cards, SPs, hits, and any other cards in that come out of that box, they will be available for trade. If you can help, please, please drop me a line. For those of you still looking for 2011 Topps sparklies, I have a few from series 2, maybe a can grab a couple of minis for these???

LCS visit brings in vintage and retro vintage (PART TWO)

So many times I look at the boxes and boxes of cards and wonder, how can I organize my collection better. How can I make it truly mine? How can I keep this "fun" for me? What's a good way to pull out a binder and explore the history of the game? The players, the uniforms, the crazy hair of the 70's, odd nicknames, etc. ... I know other blogs have "built" All-Time team binders and the like, but how can I do this for myself in a way that encompasses the stars and not so stars of America's pastime and showcase Topps' design through the years?

I have thought about just doing a page of each Topps baseball card design, but there is no way I would be able to limit myself to say, nine cards from any given year. Hhhmmm, what if I did that and didn't limit myself?  Well then I might have nine pages of 1971 Topps but only one page of 1988 Topps. That won't work.

I went back and thought about doing the All-Time teams bit again and again ... a project that would be easier to tackle and more attractive thanks to all the recent reto set products. However, I am a bit anal and wouldn't want a 2011 Gypsy Queen Honus Wagner next to a nice 1964 Topps Bill Mazeroski. So what to do, what to do, how can I pull this together? I needed to answer the question of "what is it about baseball and baseball cards that I love the most? What always draws me back to looking at these pieces of cardboard?" The answer was easy and stems from one of my favorite baseball books in my library, Rob Neyer's Big Book of Baseball Lineups.

So with a little bit of fine tuning on my end, I am starting a new collecting project that will be one of All-Decade teams for each Major League ball club from the 1960's till present in Topps baseball card form. Each ball club for each decade will have; one, 9-pocket page for the starting line up that will include a pinch hitter/utility/DH, one, 9-pocket page of a starting rotation of five, a couple of bullpen saviors, a closer, and one, 9-pocket page of bench guys and/or highlight cards such as post-season or record breaking performances.

I will begin posting these teams little by little and would love to hear feedback even if it's in the form of "What the hell are you thinking putting player A over player B????"

So with this project in mind, how could I not pass up this Roger Maris for only $3.00!!  I mean, would you rather have this 1964 Topps card or a $3.00, crap pack of 2011 Bowman????

Sure, there's a lot of wear on this baby, but all the stats are there to peruse and the card really has some nice color. It's my first and only Yankee so far for my 60's Yanks, All-Decade team and what a way to kick this collection off.

Next up, a high number ... all for the price of a 2011 Topps Rack Pack ...

Your starting second baseman of your 1960's Pittsburgh Pirates, BILL MAZEROSKI!!! The 1964 Topps design is a little underrated I feel. The set has some great color, the color photos spilling over onto the white borders, and the game/quiz on the back of the cards is a cool touch. Seems like the 1960, 1962, and 1967 Topps designs get all the love but this, I think, will be the next Heritage set I'll collect. It's a just a classic and clean set.

Next up for the cost of a couple of new packs, more guys to help fill out the rosters for my '60s teams for the Braves, Cardinals, Cubs, and Phillies to name a few ...

Love, love this shot of Callison!!  I mean, look at that color and the classic wool uniform against a backdrop of an old school ballpark.

Here's a bunch of 1968 Topps with Shannon probably being my pinch hitter as Ken Boyer will be the starting third baseman for the this '60s Cards team. At one point when I was a teen, actually had a chance to buy a partial set from this year and for whatever reason, I decided not to. Still kicking myself on that one. I think would have been maybe $80 for about three quarters of the set. For some reason, I still like this design over the '69 ... Oh well.

And speaking of 1969, here's the last three vintage pulls from the LCS. Maxvill fills out my Cards infield alongside the '68 Javier, above, and Veale was a pretty good lefty in his day.

So with that, I have begun putting these guys in sheets as well as begun putting together a wantlist for other cards I will need for the 1960s and 1970s teams. I hope you'll help me along the journey and hope it sparks some pretty good debate in the comments section.

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CONTEST, CONTEST, CONTEST!!!!
And finally before I forget, I'd like to pimp This Card Is Cool's blog contest over here. Ryan's always has some good reads and he steps it up a notch in celebrating his 200th post. Congrats Ryan, keep up the great work and thanks for the cool contest!

Hmm, what's in this box ...

looks like some 1993 Upper Deck, some Pinnacle cards, oh boy 1992 Topps ... wait, hey I need that and that!

So I was recently back at my Mom's for the day and even though I have long moved out, there still is the occasional small box of cards I forgot to bring along with me. So at first, I thought this was pretty much just junk, and for the most part is was, but then I remember a couple of 1992 Topps cards that I needed for my No-Hitters Club, a Kent Mercker and Mike Flanagan — both guys who were involved in combined No-hitters in 1991. Mercker went six innings against San Diego on September 11, 1991, before Mark Wohlers and Alejandro Pena finished off the No-No. 

Mike Flanagan and the O's decided to go one better with four pitchers involved in their No-no on July 13, 1991 against the Oakland A's. Bob Milacki pitched 6 innings and struck out three batters before giving ball to the bullpen. He was taken out of the game when he was hit by a line drive in the seventh inning. Flanagan normally a starter pitched the seventh inning walking one batter. Mark Williamson pitched the eight innings and retired the side in order. Gregg Olson pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning striking out two batters to record the save.

But wait, what else do we have here?

A 1968 Topps Carl Yastrzemski, hey, I can use him for cycle collection too, and how about some 1975 Topps!!!! We've got a Bob Gibson Highlight, a Lou Brock, and Thurman Munson too!!!! Sweet!!! Now it's too bad I couldn't use any of these three towards my 1975 set, but maybe someone out there can and have a couple of '75's I need. Shoot me an email if you need these and maybe we can cross a couple of cards off one another's list. I also snatched the 1982 Kelloggs Neil Allen just because I have always loved the Kelloggs cards and who knows, maybe I'll come across some others here and there. So not too bad for a "junk" box. Gotta love days when you come across some cards you completely forgot about! Now, I can honestly say, thank you Mom for nothing throwing out my baseball cards!

Trade with Plaschke Thy Sweater is Argyle

So Greg over at Plaschke Thy Sweater is Argyle hit me up in the comments field for the Trade Bait Utley patch from the 2011 Topps. While these retro logo patch cards are cool, I just have never been into collecting them. So instead of sitting in a box, I decided to throw it out as my first Trade Bait.

Taking a ride across country were some Ginter minis and a well-loved Reggie Smith.

First up, Reggie, pictured here as a Red Sox on his second year, 1968 Topps card. Greg, you were right, it's got a lot of character, but I like it. Wouldn't you like to be able to trace this card's path over the years. Think of how different life has changed in only 43 years. In 1973, Smith was limited to only 115 games, but still hit .303 with 21 home runs and 69 RBI and ended a streak of four straight years in which he had received votes in the MVP balloting.

Smith became expendable after the '73 season, as Boston had a slew of rookie outfielders coming up and needed starting pitching. Dwight Evans, Rick Miller, Fred Lynn, and Jim Rice had already reached the majors or were just on the cusp. Rise Wise and '75 World Series (game 6) hero Bernie Carbo came to Boston for Smith. It would mark the second time in 3 years that Wise had been traded.

For his 17-year career, Smith’s numbers were very impressive. He finished with a .287 batting average, 314 home runs, 1,092 RBI and 1,123 runs scored. Since retirement, Smith has served as a hitting coach. He was the hitting coach for Team USA at the 1988 Olympics and the World Baseball Classic in 2006 and 2009.

Next in the package were a handful of Allen & Ginter minis and mini inserts. It's nice to be able to add some National Animals as I only had a few in hand. With all the minis I have landed lately, I need more tobacco sized sheets in a big way. I currently have been using these 20 pocket sheets (not UltraPro) but don't like how the don't quite cover the whole card, but they'll do for now. I also realize that with my budget, collecting the entire run of mini sets is really not feasible right now, but want more minis than what the "Frankenstein set" would limit me to at a 350 card set.

Thanks for dropping me a line Greg, I'm sure we'll trade again. With my first Trade Bait being a success, I will definitely throw another up this week. Stay tuned.