Card Show Days

 Hello Friends!

After a little bit of a break to get away from the weather, the card show happened yesterday. It was probably the busiest it's been. There were even vendors in the lobby.. 

I found one of the vendors I've built a rapport with that missed last show due to the weather. He handed me a box of 80s OPC to look through. Since I'm working mainly on 88, that's what I was looking at.. I also have 87 pretty far ahead. I'll try to get those next show. 

Anyway. the box was not organized by any stretch. It was slow going to find anything, so I asked the guy if he minded if I organized it for him. (I got the 88s mostly done) 

He said sure if I could find an open table somewhere.. So I holed myself up in the coatroom and sorted, pulling needs and Expos as I went. Did that until it felt like my head was cement. 

Went back in and handed the box back, told him what I got done and the stack I wanted to get. He asked what my price was for sorting services.. My reply, "How about the cards?" So I got 70 cards for the price of an hour sorting. 

I wandered around the show, trying to not run anyone over with my chair. A task made very difficult because, and I may be wrong with this, but it seems like people's spatial awareness goes out the window at places like this.. 

Found one other vendor I've purchased from before and got a few cards that I'll be showing.. 

Also had an interesting interaction with one of the vendors while I was sorting. I told them how I was surprised the vendor I was dealing with let me take the box of cards out.. She replied "It sounds like you built a rapport with them.. Come by my booth! Build a rapport with me!" That booth was Hogtown Cards 

I didn't buy anything from them, mainly because the only thing I might have been interested in was a 1954 Bowman set for probably a month's rent for me.. 

Anyway, I guess I should stop rambling and get to showing cards, eh? 

I saw 84 Donruss and I snapped them up.. I know I didn't have most of the Jays cards from it so it was an easy pick up.. Besides, if I end up buying duplicates, I can always send them elsewhere.. 

Clancy and Gott. I just remember Gott as a journeyman reliever, if I remember correctly, as a Dodger when I started watching. I didn't know he started with the Jays. 

Upshaw and Whitt! 

Joey McLaughlin... I see his pictures and every time I think he looks more like teacher. 

78 OPC!

82 OPC Expo!

These cards I got from another vendor I've bought from previously. I got this batch for what he was charging for the Stieb auto alone. This batch, of course, meaning all the cards minus the two OPCs. 

He tagged the Stieb at $25, gave it to me for $15. 

So the rest of the cards ended up being $10 

The next show is the end of May.. And if it keeps growing both in vendors and in traffic, they will have to find a larger venue.. But they want to make sure things stay on the upswing. They don't want to expand too early and fall on their face. 

Ginter Blaster

 Hello Friends!

Today is Opening Day (Finally!) And while I've sat on showing these cards for a few days now, I wanted to show the cards I got from an A&G Blaster I picked up at EB Games. These are just the full size cards, and at that not all of them.. 

I have to say I liked seeing this card. I'm debating on whether I want to keep these cards or put them up for trade. 

Rod Carew in the old California Angels uni. Why do I feel this is a Spring Training uni or a warmup?

I'll spare the Bo Knows jokes.. 

A couple nice HOFers

Yordan Alvarez, one of the modern players I received. 

Clemente and Clemens.. 

Ty Cobb, back when the Detroit D was not ornate.. Or that really creepy drawn tiger... 

Definitely keeping this one.. 

George Sisler. Interesting seeing a St Louis Brown.. 

Denzel Clarke.. Another keeper for me. Cousin of the Naylors and fellow Canadian. 

Trying to remember the spelling for his last name is killer.. 

There were a few manias around Dodger Stadium, weren't there? Fernandomania.. NomoMania.. ShoMania... 

Now we have a Goose and a Kitty.. 
I was about to ask what Gossage's first name was then it hit me.. 

The Wicked Curves inserts are interesting. 

Nice to see Fergie!

And finally Catfish Hunter. 

I mainly picked this blaster up because I had the urge to rip packs. I also found out, in talking with the person behind the counter, that since Fanatics took over Topps, Hobby boxes are no longer a thing in Canada. It's all blasters.. 

Autos

 Hello Friends!

Today is an interesting day. I received two autographs in the mail. One from an ebay purchase, and the second from my recent TTM mailings. 

The first one is the ebay purchase. Vince Horsman. He played for the Jays, Athletics and Twins. He's a Nova Scotia boy and now in my collection. 

Disregard that weird shadow on top. That's my thumb. 

The other one I received today was from Pete LaForest. I wrote to a few players last month. Ryan Dempster, Denis Boucher, Rob Thomson, and Pete LaForest. I know Thomson and Boucher may take longer due to Spring Training and WBC committments. Especially since I send Thomson's to Philly.. 

Anyway, it was nice to get this sweet bastard back today. Another one closer to my goal of as many Canadian born player autographs as possible. 

Welland Stadium

 Hello Friends!

Today I'm resurrecting a semi-dormant feature on my blog. Today I'm continuing the Ballparks series. This time with another from the Canadian Baseball League, Welland Stadium

Welland Stadium is part of the Welland Sports Complex in Welland, Ontario. 

Welland is a city near Niagara Falls, Ontario, home to 55000 people. The area has hosted baseball off and on since the 90s, and maybe earlier, but the longest lasting has been the IBL, which is now the Canadian Baseball League. 

The stadium opened in 1989 and has a capacity of 3248. 

Normally, this would be where I show a map of where Welland is, mind you, Google has made it incredibly difficult to do what I want it to do..

Instead, here's an external popup to show Welland.

As with the other ballparks used in the New-York Penn League in the late 80s, Welland Stadium was built to be utilitarian. Nothing overly special about it. The seating was all bench. The stadium was maintained well and when the NYP teams all left Ontario, it was used by the North Atlantic League and the first Canadian Baseball League until going back to community use. 

In 2018, it was announced the Burlington Herd were going to relocate to Welland and become the Jackfish for 2019. 

The Jackfish have won the Dominico Cup twice. 2023 and 2025. 

Down the Right Field Line. It does look like a nice place to watch a game. Honestly, I'd love to be able to do a tour of the CBL stadiums.. 

Obviously, since the team's name is the Jackfish, we have to have water references, right? 

So as I mentioned, the stadium was built in 1989. Who used this place? 

Welland Pirates (NYPL) 1989-1994

Welland Aqua-Ducks (NAL) 1995-1996

Niagara Stars (CBL) 2003

Welland Jackfish (IBL/CBL) 2019-

I do plan on doing more of these again. Tell me, dear reader, if there's a stadium you'd like me to look into. 

Another Autograph

 Hello Friends!

I have another autograph that came in the mail from ebay today. I've been wanting to get this one for a few years, but I didn't have the card when I was talking to the player on Twitter. Once I had the card, there was radio silence. Mind you, I think part of that could be the cesspool that Twitter became. 

ANYWAY.. I found a Scott Richmond autograph for sale on eBay and I had to buy it. 

Honestly, it's hard to believe how difficult it was to find this card to begin with in order to get it to possibly send. Now that I have it from ebay I don't have to worry. 

Anyway, what do you think, dear reader? 

SSPC and a Derp

 Hello Friends!

Today I wanted to show the Expos team set I bought from Fritsch at the same time as the AAGPBL set. I did find out that a couple of the cards are missing, only because of am OPC style thing where the player is shown with one team, but the info on the back says Expos. 

Now, I'm not going to show all of them, but a few I found interesting.. 

Oh yeah, in the package I received from Stuart that had the Fritsch stuff in it, was a Ron Taylor I didn't have. 

So just by the quality of the photos, you can tell they're 70s.. I'm not sure where they found the areas of pitch black to shoot these in or what, but it's both facinating and (I hate to say it) kind of boring at the same time. 

We have daylight! In my original draft I made a joke about the Big O, then I remembered, it wasn't in use for baseball until 77.. This has to be a road game because Jarry Park wasn't that tall.. Or covered.. 

Here's what I was talking about with the team info on the back being different. Bob Bailey is in this set in an Expos uniform, but is listed as a Red. 

Gary Carter! Again, trying to figure out where these were taken is almost impossible. 

The utility cart! 

Steve Rogers in the classic pitcher pose. 

One of two Duke Snider cards showing him in an Expos uniform. He was a coach and a broadcaster for the team in their early years. I'm guessing this is either a Spring Training game, or a Shea game.. Maybe one of my readers with more knowledge of Shea would help out? 

I also mentioned a Derp in the title. 

I derped. 

I do from time to time. Shocking, I know.. 

But I did.. 

You see, I was helping Stuart get a couple things off eBay. One of the things I thought I heard him say was he needed a Pete Rose Expos autograph. What he did say is he got one for free from someone. So I paid close to $80CDN for a card as a surprise that turned out to be a "Hey dumbass, I have this card.. Did you want to return it, or because it's Expos, keep it?" 

As you can see, I kept it. And the price was for the 10 card set plus the autographed card, so that wasn't as horrible. In the end, I have two Expos Roses, one autographed, one normal.. And 9 other cards that will just sit in collection purgatory.. 

I will admit I'm very ill-informed on the SSPC set.. Take my takes on the photography with a grain of salt..