Closing Out 2010: Is This It?

Is this it for 2010 card releases? I know it's 2011 now, but 2010 Bowman Sterling just came out and appears to be the last release of the year. Is there any baseball releases that I'm missing here?

My goal is to have galleries of all the sets done before 2011 Topps Series 1 Releases.

Topps Releases
2010 Topps (Series 1)
2010 Topps Heritage
2010 Topps Opening Day
2010 Topps Attax
2010 Topps Finest
2010 Topps Pro Debut
210 Topps National Chicle
2010 Bowman
2010 Topps (Series 2)
2010 Allen & Ginter
2010 Topps Tribute
2010 Topps T-206
2010 Topps Pro Debut (Series 2)
2010 Topps Triple Threads
2010 Topps Chrome
2010 Topps Update
2010 Bowman Chrome
2010 Topps Sterling
2010 Bowman Draft
2010 Bowman Platinum
2010 Bowman Sterling


Upper Deck Releases
2010 Upper Deck (Series 1)

Other Releases
2010 Disabled American Veterans (DAV)
2010 Tristar Obak

YIR: Five Best/Worst Cards of 2010--Autograph Edition

You've seen the regular cards, but I know what you're thinking. Where are those fancy cards with all the autographs and pieces of jerseys on them? Aren't those the best cards? Apples and Oranges, my friend. Here's the Citrus:

The Best (Autographs and Relics) There were some really nice cards this year. I'll start off with a personal favorite:

#5. 2010 Topps #LLR-KC Al Kaline/Miguel Cabrera Dual Relic (#/50)


I could have gone either way between this and the Hank Greenberg/Ryan Braun. In fact, part of me likes the latter better because of the whole Jew thing and because they are bat pieces, which I prefer to jerseys. But, this card is two Tigers, and two good ones at that. The Kaline jersey swatch is old and off-white. The pictures are about as big as you can hope for for a card with two people. The "Lineage," such as it were is pretty direct. The best Tiger of a generation paired with...the best Tiger of a generation. A very nice card from the flagship Topps product.

#4. Topps Triple Threads All Star Game Patches

That's the Granderson one (of course). There's also Inge, Jackson and Verlander.

People give Triple Threads a really hard time, and the product is deserving of some amount of grief for what it puts out. But you'll hear no grief from me on this. These cards are stunning. Big beautiful patches, a reasonably sized picture and a design that just sparkles and screams "All Star." I had to restrain myself from trying to pick these up (at surprisingly reasonable prices) on eBay.

#3. 2010 Topps Allen & Ginter #N43BA-MS Max Scherzer Autograph(#/15)


Easily the nicest 2010 autograph that I was able to acquire this year, these N43's really pop. They are big, have bold on-card autographs and leave plenty of space for imagery and pomp, but without going over the top. A similar Miguel Cabrera card could have made this list, but I actually feel like the relic swatch is poorly integrated into the card and makes it look worse than just the autograph.

#2. 2010 National Chicle #NCR-HG Hank Greenberg Bat


For all the grief I've given National Chicle, this is one of the reasons I thought that the set had a chance to be great. This card is beautiful. The Greenberg painting is excellent, the background gives the image a 1930s and 40s art deco modernity that perfectly fits Hank's era. The bat (Yay!) piece is understated and a classy "C" for Chicle is lightly overlaid on top of it. As relic cards go, this is about as good as they get.

#1. 2010 Topps Sterling #TBGAR-19 Al Kaline 4x Relic Autograph (#/10)

You haven't seen it yet, mostly because I've been busy compiling images and creating the checklist, but 2010 Topps Sterling is the type of set that makes me want to die. It is everything that I hate, with one exception. This card.


This card is stunning. Kaline? Check. On card autograph? Check. Reasonable die-cut words? Check. Correct era team logo? Appropriate picture for the caption? Oozing class from edge to edge? Check, check, check. For its looks, subject and contents, this is your card of the year.

Honorable Mention: The Greenberg/Braun Dual, the Cabrera N43, everything from A&G and T-206 (except maybe Clete Thomas), Curtis Granderson wearing his 1909 throwbacks, George Kell, RIP.

But what about...? Austin Jackson should be on this list. He should. But he has a horrible autograph. It's pathetic. Brennan Boesch too. Just chicken scratches. You kids need a lesson from Scott Sizemore. Now that's a signature!

The Worst (Autographs and Relics)

On to the worst. There's always a lot of bad in this category, which just goes to show you that signatures and relic bits do not a baseball card make. Here are your worst offenders.

#5. Topps National Chicle #NCA-BD Brent Dlugach Autograph

I'll reserve my commentary on this to simply say that Dlugach did not play for the Tigers at any point in 2010, has barely played for them ever, is not a top prospect, has a horrendous signature and is featured on a card that makes it look like he has the mouth of a chimpanzee and a deformed arm that is half a foot shorter than his other arm. This card should never have been made.

#4. The Topps Sterling 1-2 Punch.

2010 Topps Sterling #4CCR-41 Miguel Cabrera

2010 Topps Sterling #4CCR-42 Miguel Cabrera

Just after I go and gush over Topps Sterling you'll see why I find this set so eminently frustrating. Those two cards? Yeah, they're different. One is numbered 4CCR-41 and the other 4CCR-42. The only difference is in the caption and the stupid die-cuts which are random and, well, stupid. Oh, and I'm not picking on Miguel Cabrera. A huge number of Topps Sterling cards do this exact same contrived thing to make the cards seem rare and special when they're really not.

#3. Pants. (From 2010 Topps)




I have no problem with pants. I have no problem with pants on cards. But I do have problem with a card of pants. That's what this is, a huge piece of pant on a card, with a teeny tiny little picture of the player. For a case hit in 2010 Topps these are weak sauce (Oh, and I picked images of the ones with the stripes. Others are just plain gray).

#2. 2010 Topps Triple Threads #TTXXIV-7 Miguel Cabrera abomination


I'll simply go back to what I said when I first saw this card.

That's your future MVP Miguel Cabrera in a card that holds the tentative lead for "Worst Sentence Made Out of Jersey Pieces Ever" award. When I was zoomed out on this I thought that it was written in Chinese.

This is a shining example of the worst of Triple Threads, although there are countless cards that are similarly ridiculous.

#1. 2010 Topps Pro Debut #DC-JT Justin Turner Autograph


Kill it with Fire. This is the Tigers' top prospect, who's signature (FROM ANOTHER BASEBALL CARD) has been unceremoniously circumcised and jammed into another card the main design feature of which is an abundance of empty space. No.

Honorable Mention: About 50-75% of the painfully dull Topps Tribute and the is-what-it-is Triple Threads. Oh, and Topps Sterling, which will get a link once I'm done bashing my head against a wall trying to distinguish the minute differences between otherwise identical cards to make a checklist. And probably Bowman Platinum, which is apparently awful. Basically, if Topps has a high-end set, odds are that half of it or more will be horrible, and one or two things will be awesome.

YIR: Five Best/Worst Cards of 2010

If you've read my blog at all you know that there is really only one criteria by which I judge a card--How it looks. Super-low numbering, a hundred thousand little bat pieces, autographs, these can be factors occasionally, but if the aesthetic is bad then the card is no good.

So then, the best and worst cards of the year are judged pretty simply: quality of design, quality of the picture and feel of the card are all of utmost importance. Secondary characteristics, such as rarity, desirability, rookie-ness and collectiblilty also play a bit role.

Base cards, Inserts and basic parallels (e.g. refractors vs. regular chrome) are included. Ridiculous parallels and "Hits" are not. There will be an best of/worst of post just for Autographs and relics later.

The Best

#5. 2010 Topps Opening Day #M9 Paws


You're kidding, right? No, I'm not kidding. The design of this year's Topps Set was colorful and bright and invited motion and joy. Unfortunately, not all cards were well suited to this orientation. But this one was. Cards like this are why Opening Day exist--why it should exist. Amazing what you can do when you're not worried about adding "hits" to a product. You can have a little fun. Great photo of the Tigers mascot, hands raised for a T-shirt toss. The "Opening Day" logo on the card is a bonus (I'm a sucker for event-based logos), and the complete absence of foil on the card seals the deal.

#4. 2010 Topps Heritage #425 Marcus Thames

Heritage was a good product, and there were a lot of cards that were this close to making the list. But the Thames card stands out as being the only candid shot that conveys something deeper. Thames, perhaps best known for his wide smile here is caught in thought and we are given a brief glimpse into the life of a bench player.

Does anyone else miss Marcus Thames?

#3. 2010 Topps #1b Hank Greenberg (SP)


This is what 2010 Topps should have looked like for the Tigers. A deep blue wave on the side of the card, the classic Old English D as the logo. Instead we get bright orange and that newfangled script logo. No thank you. Add in beautiful vintage shot of Hammerin' Hank in Tiger Stadium, in a short-printed first card of the set and you've got a winner.

#2. 2010 Topps T-206 #166 Austin Jackson RC


In a year in which he should have been the AL Rookie of the Year, can you really have a best-of list without Austin Jackson on there somewhere? Personally, his 2010 Topps Chrome card should really be on this list, but the abysmal quality control in that set has left the card warped beyond recognition. As you go through the rest of the year, he has some very nice cards--2010 Topps comes to mind. But there is something about this card. The off-center image of a hatless Jackson. A wry smile that, in this early season set seems to say "I'm going to dominate you. Watch."

This may be a little high on the list because of the T-206 effects that wash the photo out a touch, but I think it still stands on its own.

#1. 2010 Topps Opening Day #WBJ3 Miguel Cabrera


Another Opening Day card? Seriously? Are you allergic to fun? Don't you wish that every set had fun inserts, and cards that were full of color and life? Aren't you sick of looking at re-hashed designs or crappy cards slathered in reflective chrome board or any number of uninspired inserts like Peak Performance or Topps Attax or everything that has ever been produced under the Bowman label?

Well here you go. This card is freaking awesome. It is everything an insert is supposed to be. I mean, it's Miguel Cabrera on top of a freaking Where's Waldo?! Winner.

Honorable Mention: A handful of heritage cards, Maggs throwing his helmet, Papa Grande being himself, Austin Jackson's refractors (Chrome and Redemption), Boesch the once red-hot rookie, Ty Cobb if it were 1956 and The Bird, RIP.

The Worst You know, it's not often that I have a list of potential cards that weighs more heavily towards the "best" list than it does the worst. Maybe that's because more cards were unimpressive leaning towards good than they were bad outright. Well, except for these. These were just bad.

#5. Topps T-206 #88 Jeremy Bonderman


Should this be higher on the list? I mean, it is just so horrible looking. Jeremy Bonderman looks soused, like his blood vessels are in a race to see which one can exit his face soonest. And what's going on with his eyes? T-206 was full of train wrecks like this--in fact I was this close to putting Justin Verlander and his cardboard cut-out devil horns hair on this list--but looking at the Bonderman I just couldn't resist. This is a horrible looking card.

#4. 2010 Topps National Chicle #40 Johnny Damon


I hate this card with the fire of a thousand suns. If I had my way I would make this Number 1 on my list. What? Oh. Let me rephrase. If I didn't have to justify it based on the actual aesthetics of the card and not the personal insult that I feel every time I see the wrong "D" grotesquely contorted on his stupid hat, then it would be Number 1. As it is, it's at the end of the list. Oh, and don't think that this is just about the hat, the actual picture of Damon is pretty miserable too. Nice arm, popeye.

#3. 2010 Topps Heritage #448 Carlos Guillen


I'm pretty sure that Carlos Guillen takes the worst baseball card photos of anybody ever. I hereby make a new year's resolution to explore this in a future post. He is not photogenic. I had originally rated this picture higher because, well, look at it. He's just a little bit of makeup away from being an orc in Lord of the Rings, or some other brainless sci-fi creature*. The fact that there are two cards worse than this is sad commentary indeed.

#2. 2010 Topps National Chicle #71 Miguel Cabrera


This should be the worst card of the year. I put it there and then moved it down, then back, then down. The person who green-lighted the use of this painting has no taste. None. This is one of the worst baseball cards ever produced. Don't make me keep writing or I will but it back to Number 1.

#1. 2010 Topps Updates #US-24 Miguel Cabrera and Vladimir Guerrero

Poor Miguel, owner of the top two spots. Why is the Chicle abomonation not Number 1? Because this card just plain sucks. There is literally nothing good, interesting or enjoyable about it. It shows two completely unrelated players standing around watching the grass grow. It is not a close up of the two engaged in conversation. I can't see Vlad Guerrero's huge smile in response to something Miguel has said. No. Miguel Cabrera is literally standing around with his hands down his pants. Vlad Guerrero looks miserable. They both look miserable. AT THE ALL STAR GAME!

This card is the worst card of the year, because it is one of the most depressing things I have ever seen.

Honorable Mention: Just about all of National Chicle, Verlander's T-206 Card, Hank Greenberg's face., and a convoluted dreary image of the franchise's history.

*Please note, that this is not commentary on Carlos Guillen in general, who I like very much, or even on how Carlos Guillen looks normally. Just how he looks in this particular picture.

Forbes Tries (and fails) to Explain Economics Through Baseball Cards

An interesting article today on Forbes.com entitled "Baseball Cards and the Current Economy" in which our author tries to explain how the baseball card industry can explain various bits of the real economy. (h/t to The Sports Economist) The problem is that in so doing, he reveals a shocking lack of insight on how the baseball industry currently operates and even a false impression of things that went on during the 80s/90s heyday.

To wit:

Inflation is the process by which monetary authorities devalue their currency, and as Zimbabwe is teaching us now, one way to devalue is to overissue the currency in question. When too much money is printed, it loses value, and inflation is the result. Much the same has occurred with baseball cards. With a growing number of companies issuing baseball cards, there's nothing particularly unique or rare about them. Lacking the rarity that attached itself to Wagner's card in the '30s, and Griffey's rookie card today, their value has plummeted.

Were baseball cards, at the core, victims of the inflation that accompanied overproduction? Why yes, yes the were. Yet the use of present tense in the article is rather disturbing, seeing how only two companies (essentially) have produced baseball cards since 2007 and that only one will be operating with MLB's blessing in 2010. And let's not forget that little tidbit about the rarity of Griffey's rookie card today. Oh John, that card is not rare. Nothing from the early 90's is rare. And although the Griffey card retains value because it is iconic and is the only true Griffey Rookie, it isn't worth anything close to what it was 15 years ago.

The article also, somewhat confusingly, makes comments about anti-trust law and competitive markets:

Politicians frequently wring their hands over businesses being too profitable on the backs of allegedly hapless consumers, but their worries are overdone. As evidenced by the market for baseball cards, new entrants did as they've always done when it comes to lowering profit margins in pursuit of, yes, profits.

Anti-trust law is of course based on the idea that some companies can grow too large, and in doing so, might be able to exert economy-sapping control over markets for certain goods. Anti-trust lawyers have built careers around placing roadblocks in front of companies they deem too powerful, but the baseball-card industry reveals how difficult it is to predict the future of anything.

Uh, ok? So, in the late 80's, baseball cards enjoyed a competitive market. With extremely high profits and relatively low barriers to entry, Topps (the former monopolist) was joined by Fleer, Score, Upper Deck, Donruss, ad infinitum until Marginal Revenue equaled Marginal Cost and profits disappeared. Mind if I throw a Relevancy FAIL on this one? The market is a regulated monopoly once again--Topps is the sole producer after MLB determined that a competitive market essentially doomed the industry (they're right, mind you--as marginal producers systematically fell by the wayside as they became unprofitable), yet the article, which specifically mentions monopolies and anti-trust, makes no mention of this impact whatsoever. What gives?

All in all, this little piece does not really have anything to do with anything and uses general information about the downfall of the baseball card industry to make unnecessary comparisons to economic concepts. In fact, the only valuable bit of insight comes from the Sports Economist post that led me to the Forbes article:

Tamny points out that the card market was undone by entry. What were once collectibles became commonplace. No matter what marketing spin the card companies could put on a Derek Jeter or Greg Jefferies card, ultimately the flood of cards undermined the essential element -- scarcity -- on which a market for collectibles is based. The card market could come back in a couple of decades, but I'm not betting on it

Bingo! Cards lost their value because they became commoditized. Everybody thought that their cards would be worth something so they saved everything and the companies produced a ton and we were all left with piles and piles of cards, which is a problem considering that the only historical value of cards has been their scarcity as a collectible.

In the market today we are now 10 years+ removed from the collapse of the industry, and I think we all realize that things are never going to be the way they once were (for better or worse). Certainly though, there have been enough fundamental changes in the market (number of producers, eBay as a substitute for card shops, catering to the cards as memorabilia crowd, price discrimination via product differentiation, competitive market vs duopoly/monopoly etc.) to make a number of extremely interesting economic arguments that can draw relevant parallels to the economy as a whole.

Instead, we get an article that states that "the rise and ultimate decline of the baseball-card market serves as a micro example of what happens in the economy every day," while utterly failing to show us how.

Trading Philosophy

So it turns out that all this “blog” stuff can be useful for trading cards with other people. Who knew? In the interest of making life easier for prospective traders, I thought that I would post my Trading Philosophy and keep it available for easy reference.

I collect Detroit Tigers. I collect Curtis Granderson. If you have cards that fall into these categories, I will likely be interested. On occasion, I may also collect other cards. For example, Rookie Cards of Hall of Famers, 2007 and 2008 UD Masterpieces have also fallen under my collecting radar.

My philosophy is simple: I am willing to trade anything for cards that I need for my collections. I don’t care about the value of the cards. That said, I’m not going to make trades that are patently unfair, but I’m certainly not going to be splitting hairs.

My primary collections are this:

Topps Detroit Tigers—Base, Inserts, GU, Auto etc.
Curtis Granderson—All Brands/Cards

Secondary collections may include:
Upper Deck Detroit Tigers—Base Only
Hall of Fame RCs
Detroit Tigers in Topps Chrome, Heritage, Goudey, A&G, All Time Fan Favorites, Topps Retired
Zach Putnam—All Brands/Cards

Tertiary collections may include: Other Tigers Cards, other interesting cards

All of my Detroit Tigers wants are available (in checklist form) in the Wantlist in the sidebar. If you have a card that isn’t on the checklist, it means that I don’t know of its existence and likely need it. The wantlist is a spreadsheet. There are tabs on the bottom for different categories, and little arrows to make the tabs scroll. My Granderson wants are part of my Ultimate Checklist series, which is ongoing. If in doubt, ALL of my Granderson cards (except '08 M&M) can be seen in my Curtis Granderson Collection (also in the sidebar).

My tradelist is also in the sidebar. Every single card that I’ve acquired since 2007 is in that spreadsheet. Tabs across the bottom also help categorize things. Cards may be cross referenced into different categories. You can also organize these cards, the way you would a spreadsheet, by player, team, brand, card number etc. I constantly upgrade my Wantlist and my Tradelist to reflect the most accurate information available.

If you are interested in trading with me, just send me an email.

That’s it…Happy Trading!

The Collection So Far

Well, it is now the first day of 2009 and I have taken a complete inventory of my Granderson Collection up to this point. I have uploaded all of my cards here for your viewing pleasure*. It can also be accessed from the "Curtis Granderson Collection" link in the sidebar. Sure, there are pretty pictures

2007 Upper Deck #692 Curtis Granderson

and shiny cards

2008 Triple Threads #TTRC-12 Ordonez/Kaline/Granderson

but it's kind of hard to quantify things when everything is in thumbnail form. So, in the spirit of the cards themselves, I've got some stats to share.

232 Total Unique Cards (75 Topps Moments & Milestones #/150)

157 Non-M&M Cards
26 Total Certified Autographs
35 Total Game Used Cards
55 Total Serial Numbered Cards

Ahh, a perfect way to lie with statistics to make my collection sound larger and more prestigious than it is. Let's break it down further for clarification:

11 Serial Numbered Autographs
18 Serial Numbered Game Used
11 Serial Numbered Game Used Autographs
15 Serial Numbered Non-AutoGamer
6 Non-Numbered Game Used
5 Non-Numbered Auto

Not too shabby! So, that is the state of the collection for the start of 2009. I'll keep the pictures and "stats" updated as new cards come in and if you find yourself in possession of something that's not in the gallery, feel free to send it my way!

*All of my cards except my 2008 Moments & Milestones, which all look about the same and would be ridiculous to photograph individually. You'll just have to use your imagination.

Grand Cards: A History

I had been batting around the idea of starting a blog that focuses on my Curtis Granderson baseball card collection for some time now.  I know that there are a lot of baseball card blogs out there and that there are many people who are far more involved with "The Hobby" than I will ever be.  Still, as my collection has grown over the past few months, I thought that it might be fun to chronicle my exploits in collecting.  

 

With that, I introduce "Grand Cards," a site primarily devoted to my Curtis Granderson collection, but with significant space devoted to my Detroit Tigers card collection as well.

My story could probably be repeated by millions of people across the country--I am a baseball nut who collected everything as a kid, but just grew out of it as I got older.  I had new interests, the Tigers were mired in a decade of obsolescence, none of my friends collected etc.  Then, after the 2006 season, I thought that it would be fun to buy a Tigers team set to commemorate the season.  I was hooked.  I needed to have the 2007 set too--it acknowledged some of last year's success!  I should probably get 2005, because those young players really set the table.  Plus, I already had the 1984 set from when I was younger--I needed to be prepared for another championship.  Before I knew it I was back in the thick of things.

 

With the "Who's Your Tiger" campaign in full swing prior to the 2006 season, I became a Granderson devotee too and in the last year or so have decided to add a player collection to my overall Tigers sets.  With that, the idea of Grand Cards (it sounds so much better than Grandy Cards doesn't it?  And so much more flexibility!) was born and we are off and running.

So there you go, an abbreviated history of this blog.  I look forward to sharing my collection with you.