Library of Congress Shows off Vintage Collection

The Library of Congress is loaded with all sorts of historical documents, but one that isn't talked about much when thinking about Congress is baseball history.

However, the Library of Congress actually has a lot of documents pretaining to baseball history including a 2,000+ collection of baseball cards from 1887-1914.

Noted cigarette card collector Benjamin K. Edwards originally collected these cards until his death, when his daughter gave the collection to Lincoln biographer Carl Sandberg. Sandberg donated the collection to the library in 1954.

See the collection here

Card of the Day: 2005 Bowman Chrome Draft Autograph Ryan Zimmerman

Ryan Zimmerman looks country strong in his Bowman rookies and for good reason.

The young superstar and face of the Washington Nationals showed his strength again last night hitting a walk-off home run to christen Nationals Park with its first win.

In what was one of the best Opening Day games I've ever seen, Tim Hudson struggled early in the first, but he then combined with then Wil Ohman and Peter Moylan to retire 24 straight Nationals.

With a tied game in the ninth, Moylan retired the first two batters before facing Zimmerman, who as I predicted before the inning, hit a walk-off home run.

Perhaps this is the start of a special season for Zimmerman. He was hyped when he was drafted and only stayed in the minors for a few months.

I'm not telling you to, but I am looking to get some of his cardboard as soon as I can just in case this is the year of Zim.

Card of the Day: 2007 Topps Opening Day Washington Nationals

Yes I know, the Nationals have a new stadium and aren't playing the Marlins tonight. But, Topps didn't make these cards in 2008, so this will have to do.

Nevertheless, the Nationals will be opening up their season and new ballpark tonight on national TV.

But more importantly, it's baseball season. The greatest time of the year is start of the season. Warm weather. The crack of the bat. The smell of a hot dog. And the ever so famous "Beer guy" yells.

It also means the start of regularly released baseball product and up and down arrows in the Beckett. Who's the hot prospect? Who's the unknown rookie? Who's the Tom Brady of the baseball season? I don't know who's cards to buy!?!

Card of the Day: 1952 Topps Robin Roberts

The inclusion of Mickey Mantle in 1952 Topps made this set arguably the most famous set of all-time.

However there is more to this rare set than Mantle. There are countless other HOFers in this issue that can be had for far less than a Mantle will run you.

This Roberts is listed on eBay for $200 BIN and is listed in EXMT condition.

Card of the Day: 2000 Upper Deck Yankees Master Collection

In 2000, Upper introduced a new innovation, a $6,000 complete set packaged in a nice mahogany box.

These were the specs for 2000 Upper Deck Yankees Master Collection.

Both of these products included a 25 card base set, a 10-card game-used bat set, and one mystery card. There were only 500 sets produced and each is numbered.

To get more information, please visit:

http://www.geocities.com/yankee_master_collection/main.html

National Baseball Card Returns for 2008

For the past few of years, baseball card companies have tried teaming up for a National Baseball Card Day release, but they haven't been too successful.

In 1999, there was a set called National Trading Card day. In 2004, there was a National Trading Card Day release. However, licensing agreements were difficult to iron out, and the sets never gained much notoriety.

Topps and Upper Deck finally got a good set out in 2006 on National Baseball Card Day which fell the Saturday before Father's Day.

After a year off in 2007, the two companies will again merge for a set in 2008.

Saturday, participating Toys R Us stores, hobby shops, and ballparks will all be handing out promotional packs of the cards. Each pack will include five Upper Deck cards, five Topps cards, a Rookie insert from each company, and an information card.

The checklist includes the biggest names in baseball and six of the hottest rookies.

Topps Base Checklist:
Alex Rodriguez
David Ortiz
Ryan Howard
Vladimir Guerrero
David Wright

Topps Rookies Checklist:
Joey Votto
Clay Buchholz
Daric Barton

Upper Deck Base Checklist:
Prince Fielder
Albert Pujols
Derek Jeter
Ichiro Suzuki
Ken Griffey Jr.

Upper Deck Rookie Checklist:
Ian Kennedy
Chin Ling Hu
Luke Hochevar

National Baseball Card Day is a great day for new collections to start and for existing collections to get a taste of something new.

So go out and get yourself a couple of these packs Saturday and then try to complete your set on one of the trade sites listed in my blog roll.

Card of the Day: 2000 Greats of the Game Autographs Luis Aparicio

I consider 2000 Greats of the Game to be the landmark set to be the landmark set for legendary releases. While not the first, it far and beyond the most prominent.

The design was the first of its kind with a vintage feel and look. Fleer had used a vintage feel on 1996 and 1997 Fleer, but they didn't capture the look until Greats of the Game.

I remember when singles of this set easily sold for $1+ at a card show or flea market which gave me trouble as a 13 year old trying to get some of my favorite legends.

I had to settle on Dave Concepcion as my first GOTG card even though I wanted the Mickey Mantle that was selling for $10 at the same table.

Another key to this set was the autographs. While 1999 Sports Illustrated GOTG and 1999 Upper Deck Century Legends used autographs, they weren't chased nearly as much as the Fleer GOTG autographs were.

The autographs fit perfectly on the cards and were all done in beautiful ink right on the card. Today, you might pull a legend auto on a sticker.

Nowadays, the base cards can be found in the 10 cent box, but they will alwways be remembered for their popularity when they first came out.

1999 Upper Deck Piece of History 500 Club Harmon Killebrew

As Fleer started the legend wave of autograph sets, Upper Deck began the trend of legend game-used sets with Piece of History 500 Club bat cards.

Each card in this set is dedicated to the members of the 500 home run club including Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, and all the rest of them.

This set has been continued as more players reach the plateau. Current players like Ken Griffey Jr., Frank Thomas, and Jim Thome have all been included in the set in the past few years.

And as important as these sets are to the burst of legend card releases, they are not the most important sets to come out. Check back tomorrow to see which set it was that opened the floodgates.

Card of the Day: 1999 Sports Illustrated Greats of the Game Autographs Rollie Fingers

Sorry about not posting the past couple of days.

The 1999 Sports Illustrated Greats of the Game set was the set that put legends sets over the hump and into the mainstream baseball card market.

However, I would say that it wasn't necessarily the base cards that opened the door for other companies to mock the set. The autograph set was so successful that every company joined in on the legend set bandwagon.

The trend has continued all the way until this year. However, with just Topps and Upper Deck in the market nowadays, the multitude of sets is less, but there is still plenty of legends cards to collect.

A new concept may have emerged this year with Upper Deck's Yankee Stadium Legacy set, but we will have to wait and see.

Card of the Day: 1998 Sports Illustrated Then and Now Willie Mays

In 1998, SI T&N along with Upper Deck Retro began what would become a full-out phenonmenon.

Both of these series issues legendary players among the base set instead of as an insert set like many sets had done before.

The idea got on caught as you will see in the coming days.

Mom and Son Battle Over Collection

Boy if this ever happens to me and my mom, I would be kind of sad...

Somerville - A man was arrested for allegedly assaulting his mother during a dispute about money and baseball and hockey cards, according to police.

Michael K. Mahoney, 24, of 42 Upland Road, was charged with domestic assault and battery after police said he pushed her out of his room Friday night. According to reports, Mahoney’s mother, who was not identified, came home to find him asleep in his third-floor bedroom.

Mahoney’s mother told police her son owed her money, and had agreed to sell a collection of baseball and hockey cards to settle the debt.

Police said when his mother entered the bedroom to confront her son about the cards, which police said were missing, Mahoney allegedly became enraged and a struggle ensued between them. The woman told police she believed Mahoney might have bitten her in the breast area during the struggle, however police reported no evidence to support that claim.

From: http://www.wickedlocal.com/somerville/homepage/x1092588226

Crad of the Day: 1997 EX-2000 Star Date 2000 Alex Rodriguez

This will be the last forgotten set for awhile as I am going to move on to the next big chunk of sets: legends based sets.

SkyBox released a basic set that changed names ofr several years. Emotion (95), Emotion-XL (96), EX-2000 (97), EX-2001 (98), EX-Century (99), and EX (2000-2004) were all the names of this set.

One of the best inserts to come from this were the 1997 Star Date 2000s. These cards had such a futuristic feel to them and also had a nice design.

See more on futuristic cards at Sports Card Forum Articles.

Sadly, the one I one is Neifi Perez. Remember when he was a highly touted player?

Card of the Day: 2000 Topps Tek Carlos Beltran

Topps Tek was most of the most intriguing and one of the most complicated sets of all time.

With multitudes of background designs for every card in the set, Topps Tek is a chore to complete for set builders, team collectors, and player collectors.

Nevertheless, the die-cuts, refractiveness, and other quality aspects of Topps Tek make these sets worth building.

Card of the Day: 1999 UD Choice Mini Bobble Heads Tony Gwynn

Before the rush on bobbleheads as stadium giveaways, Upper Deck released a mini version in 1998 Collector's Choice and 1999 UD Choice.

These mini bobbers were great for display purposes, but they didn't really catch on with collectors.

The cards came in two parts: a body and a head. When punched out, the remander of the card became a base for the bobblehead to stand on.

I enjoyed them very much, but I am also a bobblehead collector so I probably have a small bias.

Card of the Day: 1997 Flair Showcase Row 0 Brett Butler

Flair Showcase was an innovator back in the day. They released the first one of ones, were a three-tier set, and had a fancy, high dollar parallel that gave collectors an incentive to buy the product.

In the late 90s, high dollar parallels weren't very prevalent, but with Row 0, Flair basically started the trend. The cards also introduced some neat technology with their rainbow, sparkly design.

However, Row 0 Legacy Collection was really where the high dollars came in. Numbered to just 100, Legacy Collection was one of the toughest pulls of the era and one of the hardest sets to master.

Today a set numbered to 100 is chump change to finish as some of these sets can have a common of $5 or less.

Tiger Woods Dual Swatch & Auto

See it on eBay

Beckett's Limerick Blunder

As I said yesterday, I thought I had a shot of winning Beckett's poem contest on their blog. I didn't win. But that isn't the point. I don't mind that I didn't win, but what bothers me is what did win.

--

Those Peterson prices are spiking,
which you’d think would be much to my liking,
but looking again
I have found with chagrin
that my card’s of the Bear — not the Viking

That is a funny piece. I actually like this choice as a winner.

--

So I pull what I think’s a great card
Of a guy who hits the ball hard
I wanted to check it
So I looked in the Beckett
@*&$, he’s an unlisted star.

Beckett plans to publish these yet they pick a winner that has an expletive? I'm confused.

--

His rookie cards were so hot
So all of my money they got
Then he juiced like a horse
I’ve got buyers remorse
And now my investment is not!

Why is Beckett so obsessed with knocking the guys caught doing steroids?

--

I by no means thought my poem was the best of the bunch, but I feel several other poems were far better than the last two winners.

Here are some that I thought were very good pieces.

--

Long ago, baseball cards were a joy
I collected them very much as a boy
I still do today
But not in the same way
$5 packs with wrinkled cards really annoy!

Whatever happened to Donruss and Fleer
Those fabulous baseball cards from yesteryear?
Fleer is gone
Donruss moved on
But I really wish that they were still here!

What of the gum that dried in the packs?
Or wrappers that were sealed with wax?
One ruined card each package would hold
But for a quarter, no complaint was told
And to the bulletin board they went with thumb tacks!

What is happening to all the good shows?
One this month?-Hardly anyone knows!
Local card shops getting rarer each day
Making up for that, I turn to ebay!
I certainly hope that doesn’t close!

Problems we have
and problems will be
I still love this hobby for all that it’s given me

30 years later and still I relate
Uncle Ed started it all when I was eight
Buying 10 packs of whatever was in season
For he saw the joy in my eyes-to him the only reason!
I’d rush in the house for our monthly trip
Into the brown paper bag I would rip
No bigger concern than completing my team during the season!

When I want to whine and complain
I think back to how it began
A smile on my lips and a gleam in my eye

--

Sean Burroughs did me in
And with him, he took my hobby
His keen hand eye coordination
His robust plate discipline
His sweety lefty swing
Hitting and driving his rookie cards above the ten dollar plane
Only to watch your lack of power
Suffocate them all
In the San Diego atmosphere,
Into the warning track of semi-star singles

--

Is it too soon, to mention the over production boom?…
The sawdust smell of sweet card board slats
The engaging photos and the intriguing stats (lets take a trip down memory lane…)
Walter Ioss Jr. photo shoots, Team USA,
Skybox and NBA Hoops
Upper Deck Locker Collection,
1990 leaf / and error cards with no correction
The hottest cards of the year!
Brought to you by Donruss and Fleer!
The cards that would bring Fortune and Fame!
Griffey’s Smiling mug, Mutumbo had Game,
Eric Lindros UD (not his body) What a shame -
Teemu Selanne would save Hockey!
Jason Isringhausen, now there’s a jockey!
Giants and the A’s / ‘89 Battle of the Bay!
Jim Kelly, Barry Sanders and Emmit Smith
Joe Montana and Dan Marino along with…
…some foresight, future planning and Knowledge
With these Rookie Cards I’ll put the kids through college!
Juan Gonzalez 1990 Rev Neg, Mark McGuire’s white triangle
Under his leg!
Billy Ripkens famous Bat - Rickey Henderson Destroys Lou Brocks stat
~Dennis Eckersley was king of the mound
Jeff Bagwells Sitting stance seemed unsound
The Black and white Bo Jackson was the coolest card around
PHIL NEVIN Rookie! He was surely Hall of Fame Bound!!~
Ahhh, the sundry sunny days, of home runs and pop fouls in play
In stark contrast to the highlights on the hard court
The Nike Empire and Air Jordan’s Flying Sport
Or the true grit of the Buffalo Bills
The Giants win! Oh, the football thrills!
Sadly though…
The greats are gone, and so seems the collecting phenomenon…
$100.00 a box, for a game used card of frank Thomas’ Socks?
No thanks…
Could you send me a beckett subscription?
No big deal, pick me as one off the three, it’s not too hard,
I just need to look up all my worthless crappy cards

--

Just my two cents about Beckett's contest. I usually don't have a beef with them, but this time I think they messed up a little bit.

Crad of the Day: 1997 Topps Screenshots Tins Nomar Garciaparra

When Pinnacle and Donruss came out with collectible packages in 1997, Topps didn't want to be left out so they came out with Topps Screenshots.

Screenshots were a card and a tin of one player. The card was a thick motion-vision card and packaged inside a collectible tin.

The set was a one-year wonder and another of the forgotten collectibles.

Hobby Poems

Beckett is currently running a contest on thier blog asking readers to write a hobby poem. Here is my entry from the contest:

In a time long ago that I can not remember
Topps ran the market from New Year to December
With one set a year of 600 plus
Pulling an autographed relic wasn’t a must
There were fun cartoons and bubble gum
The thought of gloss and foil was simply dumb
After almost 30 years, Fleer and Donruss stepped in
With stickers and puzzles, expansion begins
The company that would change everything came in 1989
A hologram on card backs gave the hobby a shine

A Reggie Jackson auto
A Griffey Jr. jersey

Upper Deck changed the hobby landscape forever with their new sets
Other jumped on in hopes of the best
There was a time there was one set
There was a time there was almost 100
Nowadays, Topps and UD have simplified the market

With George Bush, Rudy Giuilani, and Hillary Clinton around
I say they’re fun, others would rather drown
Today, it’s certainly a different place
But I wouldn’t argue if we went back to a 1950s pace

--

I feel this is much better than some of the other entries that I have seen for the contest.

--

there was a young man named roger
a red sox, a yankee, now a dodger!
a dodger you see from questions that he
will never now or ever be free!!!!

--

beckett has stepped up the plate
to drop price bombs on yours
moms like cd roms
word to your mutha
we out peace…..

--

buying cards for a hundred a pack my wife thinks that im on crack hoping to pull the most sweetest card (at the same time) being called a stupid retard six cards down and one more to go i can honestly say expensive cards blow but ill buy them again to see what i get cause i havent pulled the sweetest card yet

--

There are some good ones in the mix, but I feel I have a good shot. There are three winners that will be annoucned tomorrow. I will post the winners regardless if I am one or not because I am a writer and appreciate this type of stuff.

Card of the Day: 2000 Fleer Club 3000 George Brett

In 2000, Fleer created a tribute set to 14 of those in the 3,000 hit club and 3,000 strikeout club and released it along several of their products.

The design of the set is arguably one of the finest in trading card history. The cards feature a die-cut number 3,000 as the background and a photo of the player along with the date they hit the milestone on the 3,000.

These cards used to command far more than they do now. Brett and Ripken are the most expensive cards at $8 each and players like Bob Gibson and Tony Gwynn book for just $3.

The 3,000 Club set is an easy way to complete a nicely designed set, get several historical players for not too much money, and appreciate one of the forgotten sets that used to be at the forefront of the baseball hobby.

Card of the Day: 1998 Fractal Matrix X Die-Cut Darryl Kile

Fractal Matrix is yet another of the forgotten parallel sets of the late 1990s era.

With many variations, they could be a bit confusing at times. The bronze, silver, and gold was never an issue, but all the different die-cuts could be a hassle. They were the first time Donruss flexed their parallel muscles.

Card of the Day: 1996 Metal Universe Derek Jeter

While no one knows the motivation behind the backgrounds in 1996 and 1997 Metal Universe, you can't tell me that it wouldn't be fun to go back through a binder of them.

The background varied in colors and design from card to card in what usually tlooked like the inside of a volcano or a futuristic city.

In 1998, Metal Universe changed to real pictures for the background. many crads featured animals or city skylines.

They again changed the design in 1999 by making a silver background on each card. That was the last year for the set.

Card of the Day: 1997 UD3 Cal Ripken Jr.

Right before the boom to include legends in new products hit, card companies were producing sets with a futuristic feel to them. Upper Deck's UD3 was one of the best examples.

UD3 only had a two year run, but they made some cards that should never be forgotten. UD3 utilized srial-numbering and die cuts in the base set more than any set had before. They also brought in different tiers to make the set chase a more difficult process.

Because of these challenges, I wonder how UD3 would have done had it been started in 1995 or so rather than 1997. That is because in 1999 and 2000 the rush to go back in time rather than forward started and sets like UD3 became completely irrelevant.

Upper Deck attempted to continue UD3 idea under two new names in 1999 and 2000, but UD Ionix and Upper Deck HoloGrFX just couldn't compete with the demand for Babe Ruth and Mickey Mantle cards that were then being produced.

So here's to Upper Deck for a great four year run of futristic cards back in fun days of collecting.

1997 Bowman Chrome International Roy Halladay

1997 was a good year for Bowman. They introduced Bowman Chrome and Bowman International parallels.

The International parallel was the the one that died off though.

Running from 1997-1999, the Internationals had a different look each year. In 1997, they backgriound was replaced by the flag of the player's birth country. 1998 featured backgrounds with a map of the player's birth area. My personal favorites are the 1999 version. In 1999, Bowman replaced the background with skylines of the birth state or country.

Card of the Day: 1999 Topps Stars N Steel Vladimir Guerrero

A short-lived off brand of Topps, Stars N Steel were some of the coolest cards from the late 1990s era.

From the years 1993-1999 card companies imployed many new technologies in hopes of producing the next big thing. The closest they got was Finest in 1993. Many issues were folded after just a year or two and Stars N Steel is a good example of that.

Stars N Steel enjoyed a two year run from 1998-99 and actually were valued in the upper tier of base cards at that time, though they were more like inserts than base.

Nevertheless, these heavy metal beauties are forgotten about nowadays only to be remembered when someone picks up a small box and wonders why it is so heavy,

Card of the Day: 1997 Upper Deck Game Jerseys Rey Ordonez

While set singlehandedly made the hobby what it is today, the Rey Ordonez 1997 Upper Deck Game Jerseys card will always be my favorite game-used card of all-time.

Why you ask. Easy. Ordonez was one of the slickest fielding shortstops of all-time and Upper Deck thought he was going to be a big star so they out him in a set with Ken Griffey Jr. and Tony Gwynn.

As it turned out, this and his consistent string of Web Gems, were his only two claims to fame.

20 Years of Upper Deck

When Upper Deck producing its first set in 1989, it changed the hobby forever. 20 years and many innovations later, Upper Deck is celebrating.

Starting in March, Upper Deck Certified Diamond Dealers will be releasing an 80-card set 20th anniversary set month by month.

Each month, collectors will be able to get the next segment of the set by purchasing qualifying sets of Upper Deck or Fleer products.

The set has many similarities to the 2002-03 UD Superstars set in that it is a four-sport set, but there is more to this set than just getting all the big names in sports.

Each card will have a code on the back that can be entered at an Upper Deck website for a chance to win a a trip to four major sporting events. All entires must be entered by Dec. 31 and collectors must enter all 80 to be eligible to win.

The prizes are two tickets to the Super Bowl and one game from the World Series, NBA Finals, and Stanley Cup Finals.

Card of the Day: 1998 Donruss Press Proofs Kevin Elster

I don't know which is crazier: the fact that Press Proofs used to be rare or that someone is selling a Kevin Elster card on eBay.

Either way, Press Proofs are definitely a thing of the past in the baseball card world. However, they thrived back in their hey-day.

In the late 1990s, Press Proofs were the number one parallel set, followed closely by Artist's Proofs and Museum Collection. Back then collectors actually thought a card numbered to 1500 was actually rare. Today, they can probably be found in the $0.10 bin at a card show.

Press Proofs are just another of the old-school sets that were ruined by game-used and autographs.

Card of the Day: 2000 Upper Deck Power Deck Ken Griffey Jr.

In the late 1990s, Upper Deck tried to incorporate the computer and trading cards for the first time. However, the Power Deck concept was a short-lived series.

The small disks sometimes would cause problems, especially when they would get trapped in the CD drive of a computer. They also didn't provide that much information. They did enhance the card business, but they never left that lasting impression.

Now, these CD-ROMS are forgotten pieces of whatever CDs are made of and nearly impossible to find outside of eBay or trading card forums.

Nevertheless, these disks are unique collectibles of the players that were featured in 1999 and 2000.

Card of the Day: 2008 Topps Heritage Jon Smoltz

I'm taking a break from the forgotten collectibles of the late 1990s for a day to showcase the newest Topps variation that has collectors up in arms.

A Jon Smoltz card has been discovered in 2008 Topps Heritage as a very short printed variation. That being said, Heritage master set builders aren't happy. Many are frustrated that Topps puts in these rare variations to make their lives more difficult.

However, I don't follow their logic. The point of building sets is the chase last time I checked. The point of rare cards is to chase them. So why the uproar?

Card of the Day: 1998 Pinnacle Mint Tony Gwynn w/ Coin

Another of the uinque collectibles Pinnacle put out during the late 1990s was Pinnacle Mint.

Each card in the set had several things included: a die-cut card, a coin (several variations), and a filled in card with the team logo over the die-cut (bronze, silver, or gold).

These cards look beautiful when put in pages with the coins inside the die-cut cards. The coins can also get valuable if you have a pure silver or gold plated version simply because this set is chocked full of superstars.

So if you never got any of these, I would strongly suggest going to some of the tradesites listed in my blogroll and try to acquire some, especially the coins.

New Beckett Further Revealed

A brief summary of the new magazines:

http://www.beckett.com/contentviewer/default3.osi?cid=1938

A YouTube Video showing the first magazine:

Card of the Day: 1998 Pinnacle Inside Can Cal Ripken Jr.

Keeping up with the tradition of featuring unique items from the late 1990s, today we have a 1998 Pinnacle Inside "pack."

Pinnacle Inside used cans as packs just like Donruss Preferred used tins to package their cards.

I discovered my small collection of these cans today and decided why not share these unique items with my readers today.

I will have several more of these items coming in the next few days.

Card of the Day: 1997 Donruss Preferred Tins Brett Favre

With Brett Favre's announcement of retirement today, the market for his cards went up again.

While I could feature his rookie cards or a nice autographed game-used card, I decided to go with a unique collectible.

Donruss Preferred had and Pinnacle Inside both had unique packaging in 1997 and 1998. Donruss Preferred used tins and Pinnacle Inside used cans as packaging. And while these were interesting collectibles, they were somewhat difficult to display due to their size.

Not Beckett's Next Cover

As they explicitally stated on their blog, this is not Beckett's new cover. It will be in the magazine as a joke but not the front cover.

Now I don't know about you, but I think this cover is good stuff. I think it's funny and reflects several things collectors talk about. That being said I don't understand the following: why are people in an uproar about this?

Here are actually comments from users on the Beckett Blog:

are you kidding me? i really hope you’re joking about this cover. i want legit sports and sportscard news, not some wannabe clowns making up idiotic pointless spoofs that belong in MAD magazine. Tracey Hackler, you will lose many subscribers, including myself, if you put out this crap on the newsstands. here’s the next headline for your cover, “beckett goes bankrupt, card collectors celebrate”

---

Hmmmm…not very original, not particularly funny, slapped together at a moment’s notice. In a word: typical. When there’s places like Cardboard Junkie, A Pack a Day, The Baseball Card Blog, Stale Gum, my own site (Thorzul Will Rule), and countless others that you can read for free that have much better content and are written by people who care about the fun that cards are supposed to provide, I really don’t see any point in this magazine any more. “Comprehensive” was one of the last words that came to mind the last time in purchased a Beckett this summer.

New blood…that’s the answer.

---

Very lame. Why not move an ad to where this non-sense will be and have a column on UD’s alleged upgrading of their redemption process when in fact they haven’t changed?

---

Please people, take a step outside of the business side of things and enjoy something to do with collecting because it's fun for a change.

Card of the Day: 2007 Topps Triple Threads David Ortiz

Topps Triple Threads has probably been the most sought after product the past two years...that is if you can spend that kind of money.

Triple Threads have taken the overdone memorabilia cards and autograph cards to a whole new level by combining several relics and autographs and virtually every card. Most of them are also serial numbered to 100 or less. However, the gluttony of them drops the value of all game-used cards.

I remember back when a single jersey piece was worth $20. Now, that same card might book for $8 or less. You can even find dual autograph cards that are worth just $10.

Ever wish you could have the good old days of collecting back? I sure do because I was only a kid back then and never fully appreciated the non-business oriented era of card collecting.

Card of the Day: 1996-97 Topps Kobe Bryant

With all the MVP attention focused on LeBron James, Kobe Bryant has somewhat quietly been putting up a great year. Today was a great example of the season he has been having.

Kobe went for 52 points against Dallas including 30 in the fourth quarter and overtime. 20 of those points came from his 27 free throw attempts.

This was the 22nd time Kobe has scored 50 in a game.

That being said, it may be the time to start buying some Kobe rookies for investment. The Lakers have a good chance of making it to the NBA Finals, Kobe will shine, and his cards will go up in value for at least a month around Finals time.

More Economical Trading Card News

Anyone who deals in sports cards with any regularity knows that basketball cards are not the best sellers in the world. I passed up a $60 box of Topps Luxury Box with an autograph and four relics for that exact reason.

However, it isn't just the dealers who are cutting back their inventory of basketball cards.

Upper Deck has announced that it will cut production on the rest of the 2007-08 basketball products.

The move comes in an effort to stimulate the basketball trading card economy as well as adding value to the cards they produce this year. UD officially declared it a move to "to further stimulate the NBA trading card market."

UD is disappointed that they will be losing money on cases sold, but they think that in the end it will be worth it.

The first cuts came in 2008 SP Authentic, and hobbyists will see further cuts in 2007-08 UD Premier Basketball and 2007-08 NBA SP Rookie Threads.

Premier is scheduled to be released on April 2nd and will be limited to 499 cases. Rookie Threads is scheduled to be released on April 18th will be limited to 599 cases. Each case will be serial-numbered.

UD is also hoping that the cuts will inspire collectors to invest in this year's rookie class which is the finest one since 2003.

Card of the Day: 2000 UD Ionix Shockwave Mark McGwire

I saw a pack of 2000 UD Ionix in Wal-Mart today and I couldn't help but think back to how cool these cards were. I didn't buy the pack, but I did look through my cards to look at the Shockwave inserts for the first time in years.

The Shockwaves had so many interesting elements. First they had a refractive finish which added to all the color that was already included on the cards. Secondly, these cards (including the base and other inserts) looked very futuristic which was a popular way to produce cards at that time. And lastly, I enjoyed how Shockwave was spelled. It was "5HO[KW(backwards 6)(upside down A)(backwards 3)." Only Upper Deck could pull off that feat.