tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62905961448282999772024-03-18T20:02:10.374-07:00Not Another Baseball Card BlogMike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.comBlogger715125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-24314347419355770142024-03-18T20:01:00.000-07:002024-03-18T20:01:18.922-07:00Canadians in the Majors: Tyler O'Neill<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">Today I'm going to make this one focus on Tyler O'Neill..</p><p style="text-align: center;">Tyler O'Naill was born June 22, 1995 in Burnaby, British Columbia</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXnv9D1SBLASXehDsSyNfQI2vBKqYM-gtk-RTG8XkFmCJTyTjAVOJBtAldfIpPFCmCzHrG8xPCo0XvbMaiKu7X1fu8BWdku-nvo88sXFRUr5TCgqq5TZOM0-IpQ-WEe5aOumvtNhrI2mCnIoACFn7H-q9UfK-w054KRiLKOqinEdQdYkJ9Wad-EqWtYtUc/s892/Screenshot%20(8).png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="612" data-original-width="892" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXnv9D1SBLASXehDsSyNfQI2vBKqYM-gtk-RTG8XkFmCJTyTjAVOJBtAldfIpPFCmCzHrG8xPCo0XvbMaiKu7X1fu8BWdku-nvo88sXFRUr5TCgqq5TZOM0-IpQ-WEe5aOumvtNhrI2mCnIoACFn7H-q9UfK-w054KRiLKOqinEdQdYkJ9Wad-EqWtYtUc/w433-h298/Screenshot%20(8).png" width="433" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">He currently lives in Maple Ridge, British Columbia</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf7bUl1EA9DgSlRSl2qVmbNOMeAZ_Fq7vvzeBAVwzwc7ZZ73aZuA977kvhYo-KLuaviwvAMh323OZwuJvhh_dsvNYQFO2IPpxEQqvDW8JESAojCoqLGrV6qFXkq2ZAQp9i8P3_SCDMr0oUcotsYEJHgciMiMbG1y3gJ77HOLi-Cq76YjI1YWeh9OQKj2xb/s863/Screenshot%20(9).png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="591" data-original-width="863" height="322" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf7bUl1EA9DgSlRSl2qVmbNOMeAZ_Fq7vvzeBAVwzwc7ZZ73aZuA977kvhYo-KLuaviwvAMh323OZwuJvhh_dsvNYQFO2IPpxEQqvDW8JESAojCoqLGrV6qFXkq2ZAQp9i8P3_SCDMr0oUcotsYEJHgciMiMbG1y3gJ77HOLi-Cq76YjI1YWeh9OQKj2xb/w471-h322/Screenshot%20(9).png" width="471" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">He was taken in the third round of the 2013 draft by the Seattle Mariners. He worked his way through the Mariners system including a season that won him the Southern League MVP in 2016. The Jackson Generals won the Southern League Championship. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">On July 21, 2017, he was traded to the Cardinals for Marco Gonzales and continued working at the Triple A Level, this time in Memphis. In 2017, the Memphis Redbirds won the Pacific Coast League Championship. The resulting win meant O'Neill was part of two consecutive championship teams, in two leagues for two different organizations. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz0OIeqvR_PeMiWsNQhyMHtYvM5YboGwcUznII960rn3DxcxzSaMMCHp4PZGcyLnwYm6Vl2OaiLk2pszsQJmK4xGMU5d04D3a28VutHCbKydDs_HwfbBXJCvQL7H5J4zcTLnmIcHM6_np7tA1vSLVIpgm_TttvJmUOPuf5QlPvAZ7-ymuqG2JFccxRu7HH/s350/169203-11540313RepFr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="248" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz0OIeqvR_PeMiWsNQhyMHtYvM5YboGwcUznII960rn3DxcxzSaMMCHp4PZGcyLnwYm6Vl2OaiLk2pszsQJmK4xGMU5d04D3a28VutHCbKydDs_HwfbBXJCvQL7H5J4zcTLnmIcHM6_np7tA1vSLVIpgm_TttvJmUOPuf5QlPvAZ7-ymuqG2JFccxRu7HH/s320/169203-11540313RepFr.jpg" width="227" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">After the 2017 season he was added to the 40 man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">His time in St Louis has been riddled with injuries, with him having one season where he accumulated more than 500 at bats. He did win two Gold Gloves for his defence. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIt_fpt9UG9K8alVWuJ84ZOPDGSx1BnnNRn-y8VqDAayPDndTqLvwA2NnmxRHLxYo1zz29EiYfAmeSo27VPAZpc0D1Bk300Fpb7wWdBXX2LN-1gCyCPea1p8ieidCm9oAkPdg6EfDerslY4uSgnUan3aCRGBHHGALGir7KW2d7_QDXN-urv69UEYWWS0LT/s350/173973-11163624RepFr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="248" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIt_fpt9UG9K8alVWuJ84ZOPDGSx1BnnNRn-y8VqDAayPDndTqLvwA2NnmxRHLxYo1zz29EiYfAmeSo27VPAZpc0D1Bk300Fpb7wWdBXX2LN-1gCyCPea1p8ieidCm9oAkPdg6EfDerslY4uSgnUan3aCRGBHHGALGir7KW2d7_QDXN-urv69UEYWWS0LT/s320/173973-11163624RepFr.jpg" width="227" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh99eq7ehdOZiz3HLMLuDPt6TsJjKYR_3r8_sOYPbcebE2ijWbyed1B7a6dgUQrq_MuiYEoU6x3Es409SC_JogaCARPWsUwx3OncppuhM26Yrjsi_UpsntdvuM5uS-RY_Keug_KVqHC4uGRxnwYKPcIwZ5omjlLbZTnCkcjNLIKcpkAy0GxxR7YcpP8bXrP/s350/174011-11161259Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="247" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh99eq7ehdOZiz3HLMLuDPt6TsJjKYR_3r8_sOYPbcebE2ijWbyed1B7a6dgUQrq_MuiYEoU6x3Es409SC_JogaCARPWsUwx3OncppuhM26Yrjsi_UpsntdvuM5uS-RY_Keug_KVqHC4uGRxnwYKPcIwZ5omjlLbZTnCkcjNLIKcpkAy0GxxR7YcpP8bXrP/s320/174011-11161259Fr.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUrDaESXFNbtXm3rT44xlDNfTCEz9Clyzfr-CV44jl_sdMlEXaZkyWjdVCUfuZWw08SYcW9tetDgUepTf7d_Tq-r6xQCvmFT5FQ-nt1GUupbRqOq_npQfWtC3VMwowrhPzO3yS8J6hkAp_u9ehYeUuY11Kgy4gWJl1lx-dvqvh4arqTQGle-eTUSTXaQfX/s350/174251-11500934Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="251" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUrDaESXFNbtXm3rT44xlDNfTCEz9Clyzfr-CV44jl_sdMlEXaZkyWjdVCUfuZWw08SYcW9tetDgUepTf7d_Tq-r6xQCvmFT5FQ-nt1GUupbRqOq_npQfWtC3VMwowrhPzO3yS8J6hkAp_u9ehYeUuY11Kgy4gWJl1lx-dvqvh4arqTQGle-eTUSTXaQfX/s320/174251-11500934Fr.jpg" width="229" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEy_hkYqMInXKPDS0uBhOSwkSKkcvGr116f6lv2K1ycwvJ51-0s2x3J59j6lkTSAiFqUFd4jkmxnrhRA9vGjl4ofI5FxPq_i8mL2q6RMPIIP8QmleYCrDJ_Mc4_SuwOEonCK-94rhwuRJTBA_z5yyqPmQL9b1kFbd37aiSQc7M0SNTqCKE6g5tyRXQTvwb/s350/189038-11964824Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="251" data-original-width="350" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEy_hkYqMInXKPDS0uBhOSwkSKkcvGr116f6lv2K1ycwvJ51-0s2x3J59j6lkTSAiFqUFd4jkmxnrhRA9vGjl4ofI5FxPq_i8mL2q6RMPIIP8QmleYCrDJ_Mc4_SuwOEonCK-94rhwuRJTBA_z5yyqPmQL9b1kFbd37aiSQc7M0SNTqCKE6g5tyRXQTvwb/s320/189038-11964824Fr.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7p7RMLePuiHcmW9AbOmeMwBRGma23Gx3yD8yc5B7ILsTPkBspEjrUEM6HuHZ7oOBU9uP2pshEflh2y-tm3kil2CqB06I0qRCtdLkrh_CVPDpOWsEpkhiNjVPGFDMjqp1rlIzO8uXfnqrcV9jnp3Z5oHq0CMS7x4r8rlz1XK0CwuszIGGZi4TN6RSf0JAK/s350/191069-12057235RepFr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="248" data-original-width="350" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7p7RMLePuiHcmW9AbOmeMwBRGma23Gx3yD8yc5B7ILsTPkBspEjrUEM6HuHZ7oOBU9uP2pshEflh2y-tm3kil2CqB06I0qRCtdLkrh_CVPDpOWsEpkhiNjVPGFDMjqp1rlIzO8uXfnqrcV9jnp3Z5oHq0CMS7x4r8rlz1XK0CwuszIGGZi4TN6RSf0JAK/s320/191069-12057235RepFr.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">On December 8, 2023, he was traded to Boston for Nick Robertson and Victor Santos. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR6b7esII3b_7GJcDDo7toRRolzV0W3TWLNtkQE6QtTpXDhodCSoio-RKYcN08lp9Th0eW7KzUY8SBdtUzAu8N0Aietc-w1Eymti-aNWvjbZ-KV6bcFjUpeNNJIlJ8TAaN_4UuFurc2_ivQZayPF7rZ2un9rdkBR_sGtAeOyZeGmS3OpuNZibicNnDNtUv/s350/209948-14198189Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQW_w5g5DM1kLhwk8CiI03T-lbUpbebt0EMWuzte9YG5OlO5Xt3j3Z15i9yYq0z-qGsVcreFzm93fvvwhFpHjFhp3lfCUmsC4aeNheY3LmaQdmRvWKF3s36a6mAeA7aNV4URfYvoxWzQca6tLKX1-GZETiz01Pw6p80lQY8xeG2fQxOou0D1mkOZ2sznOG/s350/372038-22045625Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="251" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQW_w5g5DM1kLhwk8CiI03T-lbUpbebt0EMWuzte9YG5OlO5Xt3j3Z15i9yYq0z-qGsVcreFzm93fvvwhFpHjFhp3lfCUmsC4aeNheY3LmaQdmRvWKF3s36a6mAeA7aNV4URfYvoxWzQca6tLKX1-GZETiz01Pw6p80lQY8xeG2fQxOou0D1mkOZ2sznOG/s320/372038-22045625Fr.jpg" width="229" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHjkPAxxUM07GnRw2Jtn4d9CPS4gttVSeeRPR3j_i_KwlG24662m08VcsCdx4yi80OgPblHyIUJOedjpoAFiR8cpUBImcrdaw51zFr4Q5E-uiNPYERSz7qgr_WmYIdqo-fnsNqpPSd8Wc9RVqYPORD_7RbjqGuGJQdnB7pI-B5VRdmBL1zULjWVaz3HYYy/s350/390958-23049111Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="247" data-original-width="350" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHjkPAxxUM07GnRw2Jtn4d9CPS4gttVSeeRPR3j_i_KwlG24662m08VcsCdx4yi80OgPblHyIUJOedjpoAFiR8cpUBImcrdaw51zFr4Q5E-uiNPYERSz7qgr_WmYIdqo-fnsNqpPSd8Wc9RVqYPORD_7RbjqGuGJQdnB7pI-B5VRdmBL1zULjWVaz3HYYy/s320/390958-23049111Fr.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">He's an avid weightlifter and piano player. For his weightlifting, he was given the nickname Popeye in the Southern League. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">He has played the piano to entertain his teammates from time to time. His favourite song to play is O Canada. He's also played the Lord of the Rings Theme. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">His father was named Mr Canada, an honour given to the Nation's best bodybuilder, in 1975. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I do hope he is able to stay healthy because I'd like to see him have a good career. That said, since he's on Boston... I'm of two minds on it. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-212784489127471762024-03-17T19:00:00.000-07:002024-03-17T19:00:26.366-07:002024 Topps<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Yes, I know I'm very late to the party of talking about 2024 Topps. I didn't want to say anything until I had some in my grubby little paws.. </p><p style="text-align: center;">Thanks to Cardsoncards, AKA Kerry, I have some 2024 Topps now. </p><p style="text-align: center;">It started out him having some cards he wanted to get rid of, and mentioned Tyler O'Neill. Well, being a collector of Canadian born players, I jumped at the chance to widen my collection of his considerably. It also came at a time where I'm dreading the task of going through my collection to ensure what it says I have on TCDB is actually in my collection. I also know there's a considerable amount not there.. </p><p style="text-align: center;">Anyway.. Here are the 2024s I got</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg28gea5lPJmEM4N88OxEkKTMMnn7WeQOpAG9bqVuv10NahFwUHKqqtcSq4BEWH98f-B8-LIFBWqR9kABl7DSrQU6ZPmsHbiLj8JYFI8YSXMhHIfpTJa3lcSEzANjG6OrFvQpkemOMmcL3dAX2n54fBpDUnNIRcMCIaRI1RU13Fvza8vSjUbkf697c_RuwW/s350/404413-23860911Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="246" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg28gea5lPJmEM4N88OxEkKTMMnn7WeQOpAG9bqVuv10NahFwUHKqqtcSq4BEWH98f-B8-LIFBWqR9kABl7DSrQU6ZPmsHbiLj8JYFI8YSXMhHIfpTJa3lcSEzANjG6OrFvQpkemOMmcL3dAX2n54fBpDUnNIRcMCIaRI1RU13Fvza8vSjUbkf697c_RuwW/s320/404413-23860911Fr.jpg" width="225" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Josh Naylor. One of two Naylors on the Guardians. Josh's brother Bo is a teammate of his. Their younger brother was drafted by the Oak Vegas A's </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI5CAcfiP6qgdQvAiasOpaoysMBw_XQ8fNKZ7J62mqmo1B2XC0QkPfE7MvIPAjfmUV8sQqK88qJ_e76W_IX4D21EuE6KgWMqSdMxHgIHbP-4CcnY1shSvlf3tdpe8U0NeHQ7cEe1le5Yk8Z4Rtamq-oj0PGYqLoSoweBRPX5FgVkG4dbZBuh0b2KTXDPPL/s350/404413-23860920Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="247" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI5CAcfiP6qgdQvAiasOpaoysMBw_XQ8fNKZ7J62mqmo1B2XC0QkPfE7MvIPAjfmUV8sQqK88qJ_e76W_IX4D21EuE6KgWMqSdMxHgIHbP-4CcnY1shSvlf3tdpe8U0NeHQ7cEe1le5Yk8Z4Rtamq-oj0PGYqLoSoweBRPX5FgVkG4dbZBuh0b2KTXDPPL/s320/404413-23860920Fr.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Joey Votto! In what could be one of his final Topps cards (Let's see how many sets they cram him into this year) he's currently in the Jays camp. He doesn't expect to be with the team when they go north, but does hope to make it to Toronto this season. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgupgUv0mdJHn-T0oFwIuyOfIHq37qEFnO4FmLi74JFFPWPOPHbtj1NcJ0g2rX2dG4xzjUMSRcCgoDZj873GosGEo9YTbSqMKZciUbQ58-YAstSL3FfYN7EUQANt8GQilwu_E9elFr1z-4D4dsQqmPH8NLpPnyuO01rjSL278fHTTF4Z2hj6lSDQHiKMfwO/s350/404413-23860948Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="249" data-original-width="350" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgupgUv0mdJHn-T0oFwIuyOfIHq37qEFnO4FmLi74JFFPWPOPHbtj1NcJ0g2rX2dG4xzjUMSRcCgoDZj873GosGEo9YTbSqMKZciUbQ58-YAstSL3FfYN7EUQANt8GQilwu_E9elFr1z-4D4dsQqmPH8NLpPnyuO01rjSL278fHTTF4Z2hj6lSDQHiKMfwO/s320/404413-23860948Fr.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Cavan Biggio. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So we have a horizontal card and I don't hate it. I feel that in the not so distant past, Topps would have cropped it so close that Biggio's arm and the baseball wouldn't be visible.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMmGrLBsgO-90c1ZvVcu-UAIsxt063pYmpJiskrpeR04JyYpzJzT0NWPvMAVFUo422Tm9iMuQRCwi_YlugASycoRxVpRp1L4LynPLsdplJKlJcjmWvQWanovWtjTG16jMNgBA5rif_g7IW1oZFt-GIrVgjB8-Yiuri5Xq9wFl098AXCk2LlkHdhmwLNIFo/s350/404413-23860973Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="246" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMmGrLBsgO-90c1ZvVcu-UAIsxt063pYmpJiskrpeR04JyYpzJzT0NWPvMAVFUo422Tm9iMuQRCwi_YlugASycoRxVpRp1L4LynPLsdplJKlJcjmWvQWanovWtjTG16jMNgBA5rif_g7IW1oZFt-GIrVgjB8-Yiuri5Xq9wFl098AXCk2LlkHdhmwLNIFo/s320/404413-23860973Fr.jpg" width="225" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">One sign that baseball is back.. Spring-er has sprung!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I do like the design this year. Do I like it enough to try to collect the set? I don't know. If I do I would be sacrificing some other sets I haven't really been overly enthused about. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdKc7MmpPF9xayW1OKl9I3VhKrLygw-aptfn2_G7_AvwAACBPK7Vh5G3TgHPRhyRWFkZ6yIwDHa8165sIimiHiJOdsR50KIXFPiVucCPoSKM2JLV__W0E_ATXr5htzC8BpAnqEypcZuJ7Qw-Kl59OaNofZtpDZ64E45JnBCfjN-Ae8PT471WPvNHzCQ3Hu/s350/404413-23861002Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="248" data-original-width="350" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdKc7MmpPF9xayW1OKl9I3VhKrLygw-aptfn2_G7_AvwAACBPK7Vh5G3TgHPRhyRWFkZ6yIwDHa8165sIimiHiJOdsR50KIXFPiVucCPoSKM2JLV__W0E_ATXr5htzC8BpAnqEypcZuJ7Qw-Kl59OaNofZtpDZ64E45JnBCfjN-Ae8PT471WPvNHzCQ3Hu/s320/404413-23861002Fr.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Jordan Romano! The Cheese Man. Again I think the horizontal orientation works best for this one. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJWZp5E3-MRM-YkRmkRsYVjNcsgACm0MvNONlSXID9n0nNvA7Y17PQebOmcaJVaAlqbyz4w0ZF_Y-L3niMp1bKUzwRCLWKO9C9Sx5P7HIv5_0wRYcg9D5Qj-3nG8ovF7gh47aa9B41Fu3EvrgwODo9aeSdePUrq0ZUgRMB9Npt2seOhSFuJg0BIha8PXVL/s350/404413-23861068Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="247" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJWZp5E3-MRM-YkRmkRsYVjNcsgACm0MvNONlSXID9n0nNvA7Y17PQebOmcaJVaAlqbyz4w0ZF_Y-L3niMp1bKUzwRCLWKO9C9Sx5P7HIv5_0wRYcg9D5Qj-3nG8ovF7gh47aa9B41Fu3EvrgwODo9aeSdePUrq0ZUgRMB9Npt2seOhSFuJg0BIha8PXVL/s320/404413-23861068Fr.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Bouncing Boys in Blue Jays Blue..</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh7eNuEINDNcgr2XZfZm-mjFnRK8PGPZsgo4GElDUYjSP6nzS_Dh5ZjDxXN7gKn2pn4CYA_9-q4TCL_fuZfxq_30NNPkIK_n9fqc5fUEs6yaAJYSeOhyN1FK5yQyZ5qhm27dDFwQM05uSs3dDIhtr1yjuT1LgJjNCbkVNuYB9QtH82K5FIc-xH54LaYb54/s350/404413-23861070Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="246" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh7eNuEINDNcgr2XZfZm-mjFnRK8PGPZsgo4GElDUYjSP6nzS_Dh5ZjDxXN7gKn2pn4CYA_9-q4TCL_fuZfxq_30NNPkIK_n9fqc5fUEs6yaAJYSeOhyN1FK5yQyZ5qhm27dDFwQM05uSs3dDIhtr1yjuT1LgJjNCbkVNuYB9QtH82K5FIc-xH54LaYb54/s320/404413-23861070Fr.jpg" width="225" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Hey look! It's Tyler O'Neill.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It'll be interesting to see how he does in Boston this year. It'll also be interesting to see if he stays healthy this year.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5Oiqcz7f9BS2AbXAudB6qf28RG48Gvd3LrdeS2GIVtmsD7up6jKpCpM0ZK1deVTNHoJ2WO-bJ47QlMt_9D_4FrirWLTp8HTsjm-ywSmk8r3Yp2D55HFLf_FYXde8m2pJU-XvwpATKLkkvFwTHmoHPklUdJkIEfLYGew5ECK63yjg4Sny0Wg8LlblbLDZw/s350/404413-23861073Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="247" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5Oiqcz7f9BS2AbXAudB6qf28RG48Gvd3LrdeS2GIVtmsD7up6jKpCpM0ZK1deVTNHoJ2WO-bJ47QlMt_9D_4FrirWLTp8HTsjm-ywSmk8r3Yp2D55HFLf_FYXde8m2pJU-XvwpATKLkkvFwTHmoHPklUdJkIEfLYGew5ECK63yjg4Sny0Wg8LlblbLDZw/s320/404413-23861073Fr.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I like this card though I think I need to do some reading up on Spencer to see who he is.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I just hope his homerun celebration isn't the Barry Horowitz self-back-pat....</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNapkD3GMtg5lxS6VSeuZuTvmBlNwznJTNq1EJAaoTC02walkejs7lbmD-YTF3Ip1cw52auCTU5DLGv8rH3497FLg1REKssvcRNsujRrYQL94GmsctWyShNFte1RXJ80tMRlJIfFVbu_1pq639TjhFZbEmc5wju9tfYuPFet5Krkejl3qSEZOSgoXu6z_0/s350/404413-23861092Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="247" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNapkD3GMtg5lxS6VSeuZuTvmBlNwznJTNq1EJAaoTC02walkejs7lbmD-YTF3Ip1cw52auCTU5DLGv8rH3497FLg1REKssvcRNsujRrYQL94GmsctWyShNFte1RXJ80tMRlJIfFVbu_1pq639TjhFZbEmc5wju9tfYuPFet5Krkejl3qSEZOSgoXu6z_0/s320/404413-23861092Fr.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Ah here's Bo Naylor. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOKsD4l4r8-kotnhUIkxTSyY3uMw0pw_2s4of7fLDMuGXWkMWjji9HGHqypg-Zfsr8rT2XKArh0Y74Ssh_eq0amqF_Gef6LTiiOEktDpAw-HSczovzHq6bOYUukhjsRCwNBK06wIdQUpLAzUR0pyyFq6wmmItJVYvKZb7L6RO7mqt84Bu9SVdLiNGzFtKw/s350/404413-23861117Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="246" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOKsD4l4r8-kotnhUIkxTSyY3uMw0pw_2s4of7fLDMuGXWkMWjji9HGHqypg-Zfsr8rT2XKArh0Y74Ssh_eq0amqF_Gef6LTiiOEktDpAw-HSczovzHq6bOYUukhjsRCwNBK06wIdQUpLAzUR0pyyFq6wmmItJVYvKZb7L6RO7mqt84Bu9SVdLiNGzFtKw/s320/404413-23861117Fr.jpg" width="225" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivt61RmAqIrheTm6MwKkmz6jUHPyxNwFmKVV13tzC9aisVAHWrAp0BWUjmzQqEY3z4Z7MKGbivq_4tR5AH0Tsycv_Uzs0GUTvloHKd162q3kzbu48NCwTu5mJFbBLY5ern7LxlDmpmRbLSlGL1ghwdyoSBjtG2GvjJ3xdn_KkXFHptrpoLJUc8NpOAhAlg/s350/404413-23861250Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="248" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivt61RmAqIrheTm6MwKkmz6jUHPyxNwFmKVV13tzC9aisVAHWrAp0BWUjmzQqEY3z4Z7MKGbivq_4tR5AH0Tsycv_Uzs0GUTvloHKd162q3kzbu48NCwTu5mJFbBLY5ern7LxlDmpmRbLSlGL1ghwdyoSBjtG2GvjJ3xdn_KkXFHptrpoLJUc8NpOAhAlg/s320/404413-23861250Fr.jpg" width="227" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Finally two more Jays with Kevin Gausman and Danny Jansen. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The cards are really nice. I think tomorrow I'll be going through mt plan to set up the computer in the card room and go from there. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-52624634948084895572024-03-04T22:18:00.000-08:002024-03-04T22:18:03.094-08:00Delorimier Stadium Custom<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">Today I'm back with another custom card I made up. Ultimately, I'm looking at this ending up being a set of stadium cards</p><p style="text-align: center;">Today, as the title mentions, it's Delorimier Stadium that was in Montreal, Quebec. </p><p style="text-align: center;">So, before the Expos were in Montreal, the city had minor league teams called the Royals dating back to 1897. Starting in the Eastern League (Not the same one as current) the Royals followed along as the League changed names in 1912 to the International League. It was a Double A league until 1945 when it became the current version, Triple A..</p><p style="text-align: center;">From 1928 to 1960, the Royals played in a stadium in a residential area called DeLorimier Stadium.</p><p style="text-align: center;">It was located at 2101 Ontraio Street in Montreal</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCBfAD2F0FLHsQ6w7jAeqorOvwzewKk9NrIeZGeGh3l3J4rqCpIX3czlVmQM0nXQVMQd1NTLmn0iwIH_R8WmeF7m5tqNX0RSvlPMJEkm8tGugteB3AbI-ws-ZAHRHJNDDmnquMmuegHSrVHU3MOUuW8WDyLc448L4SyyurkpJQDD7SUZ01_bC-bOi6NqXJ/s1142/Screenshot%20(7).png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="598" data-original-width="1142" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCBfAD2F0FLHsQ6w7jAeqorOvwzewKk9NrIeZGeGh3l3J4rqCpIX3czlVmQM0nXQVMQd1NTLmn0iwIH_R8WmeF7m5tqNX0RSvlPMJEkm8tGugteB3AbI-ws-ZAHRHJNDDmnquMmuegHSrVHU3MOUuW8WDyLc448L4SyyurkpJQDD7SUZ01_bC-bOi6NqXJ/w492-h258/Screenshot%20(7).png" width="492" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The block in the middle of this map from Google shows where the park sat. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">When the park opened, the Royals were a co-op team until 1933 when the Athletics selected Montreal as a farm team for two years. (1933-1934)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">From 1937-1938, the Pirates sent prospects here. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Then.. From 1939-1960, the remainder of the lifespan of the Royals and the park, the Brooklyn Dodgers had this as one of their Triple A homes.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">From 1946-1960, the Dodgers had Two Triple A teams. The Royals, and the St. Paul Saints. 1949 and 1950 had the Hollywood Stars join them as a third Triple A team. 1958-1960, St Paul and Montreal were joined by Spokane. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">By time 1960 rolled around, the Dodgers were in Los Angeles and wanted to keep their Triple A players closer to the team, making the Royals expendable. The team ended up being sold and moved to Syracuse to become the Chiefs. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">When the Expos were being welcomed into Major League Baseball in 1969, there was talk of using Delorimier Stadium as their temporary home. However, at 20000 seats, it was too small. Its location meant it could not be renovated or expanded. Instead, the Expos moved into a hastily expanded Jarry Park, and Delorimier Downs, the place where Jackie Robinson broke the colour barrier in Organized Baseball, met the wrecking ball. A school went up on the site. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Dodgers affiliation meant that many great players, including several Hall of Famers, passed through Montreal on their way to Brooklyn.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Walter Alston, Ed Barrow, Roberto Clemente, Jackie Robinson, Roy Campanella, Jocko Conlan, Don Drysdale, Burleigh Grimes, Waite Hoyt, Rabbit Maranville (Manager) and Duke Snider. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Other great managers and eventual Hall of Fame managers that played here include Gene Mauch, Joe Altobelli, Tommy Lasorda, Sparky Anderson, and Dick Williams. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Royals won 7 Governor's Cup trophies as the Winner of the International League Playoffs and won 3 Junior World Series. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRb42ojKuGlG_BCzLzkSXvD54sWG5pjyGroevgsqJISFF8DIKQHEr9cJP5utR2tHmizdTLceGhGOMFfw7TB1Ks9Mt9OVb1VTOvEJLfv6pf05KM1w1AV35ttBb8TXfuRjLOhgY0Xa_-U93MnEJSnEGfi0SikvjnZ1x6RC5Fyz1AMWMh8loBCj4HbZ0aLPqH/s410/Delorimier%20Downs%20Front%20Mk2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="296" data-original-width="410" height="354" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRb42ojKuGlG_BCzLzkSXvD54sWG5pjyGroevgsqJISFF8DIKQHEr9cJP5utR2tHmizdTLceGhGOMFfw7TB1Ks9Mt9OVb1VTOvEJLfv6pf05KM1w1AV35ttBb8TXfuRjLOhgY0Xa_-U93MnEJSnEGfi0SikvjnZ1x6RC5Fyz1AMWMh8loBCj4HbZ0aLPqH/w490-h354/Delorimier%20Downs%20Front%20Mk2.jpg" width="490" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsc3o7mk2VK0PEsBNsiCZeD1DIf-UeyJL3R0tCwXle2GX8uigS0JUfp6PudHrCEgBXnSY0FAsozLyYbIQAQtdVtX25WlNaq5PuHxey0VgxZJhMfQf39TDpvh5A5ZcbCb0TueTLfAkH-HfEZ9YErBrDVAMJL-op9cdE1Xrl4Deh-rim11gVG4Y-0rPhEy-g/s350/Montreal%20Royals%20Back.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="252" height="459" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsc3o7mk2VK0PEsBNsiCZeD1DIf-UeyJL3R0tCwXle2GX8uigS0JUfp6PudHrCEgBXnSY0FAsozLyYbIQAQtdVtX25WlNaq5PuHxey0VgxZJhMfQf39TDpvh5A5ZcbCb0TueTLfAkH-HfEZ9YErBrDVAMJL-op9cdE1Xrl4Deh-rim11gVG4Y-0rPhEy-g/w330-h459/Montreal%20Royals%20Back.png" width="330" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So, here is the custom card I created for Delorimier Downs. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">What do you think? </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Also, did you enjoy the little stadium writeup I did with this card? It kind of combines the Stadium Series I've been working on and the custom cards I've been working on. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-20349796264062606412024-02-22T18:40:00.000-08:002024-02-22T21:49:18.814-08:00Jarry Park Front MK2<p style="text-align: center;">Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">Tonight I want to share with you another version of the Jarry Park custom I've been working on. </p><p style="text-align: center;">A couple things I didn't like about the first one was the way the logo looked. The other thing I didn't like was the lettering on the bottom. </p><p style="text-align: center;">So I tried another version.. </p><p style="text-align: center;">I may touch it up again, depending on how I feel.. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">So.. Drumroll please..</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">*drum roll* </p><p style="text-align: center;">*watches the drum roll down the hallway, hopes nobody gets in the way.. hears it bounce down the stairs... * </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">*ahem...*</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtBjwB5A1MHEFsk3h89vgHyqms7X7l3osvm0rND0xV9TfqcmdmSP9l0QoyRCcFetQ4zI6dq5mrQ3lfM7PmmFT8o4X7WTWV0kxUQUhEN-5koW9jVoXswJ7QILQQdrqZeFl_E5gtVrtMOou0nvKmhwzdEGHFkLD8UKJAsac8BSLhpuFOjHSPnhZ0wp5gmqhG/s410/Jarry%20Park%20Mk2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="299" data-original-width="410" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtBjwB5A1MHEFsk3h89vgHyqms7X7l3osvm0rND0xV9TfqcmdmSP9l0QoyRCcFetQ4zI6dq5mrQ3lfM7PmmFT8o4X7WTWV0kxUQUhEN-5koW9jVoXswJ7QILQQdrqZeFl_E5gtVrtMOou0nvKmhwzdEGHFkLD8UKJAsac8BSLhpuFOjHSPnhZ0wp5gmqhG/s320/Jarry%20Park%20Mk2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I think this version looks so much better.. About the only thing I might change would be the border on the top to blue. Otherwise, I love this version. This may actually end up turning into a template if I end up working on a set of stadium cards like I've been thinking about. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">What say you? Do you like this version? Would you change the top part to blue? Or does this work?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>EDIT:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I ended up going and trying the blue border on the top.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvDsRL598Ki05kbQ_oYoi_DOVPqEjnerpBdXLJJjIOTRRUVNXWaHzRKjXtZYTjWux-qeBzqsPeohmSpjBhZDu_rGcWaoE11FdWuLecClV__Uq85ZnMIp7i9KZXeqUhsBhgk4zx2TyDYbroT3L-XZK6rw0h-Na9pUAHTlj9Wb0ABh5fhtCx1kLJzN2el0D5/s410/Jarry%20Park%20Mk2.5%20Blue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="299" data-original-width="410" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvDsRL598Ki05kbQ_oYoi_DOVPqEjnerpBdXLJJjIOTRRUVNXWaHzRKjXtZYTjWux-qeBzqsPeohmSpjBhZDu_rGcWaoE11FdWuLecClV__Uq85ZnMIp7i9KZXeqUhsBhgk4zx2TyDYbroT3L-XZK6rw0h-Na9pUAHTlj9Wb0ABh5fhtCx1kLJzN2el0D5/s320/Jarry%20Park%20Mk2.5%20Blue.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This is what it looks like.. I think it works.. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-57128343784930659572024-02-21T20:43:00.000-08:002024-02-21T20:43:57.247-08:00Jarry Park has a Back<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">Last post was the front of the card I made for Jarry Park. I may play with it more to improve it some.. </p><p style="text-align: center;">But today I created a back for it. </p><p style="text-align: center;">I'm actually pretty happy about how this turned out..</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkWznFHsjpj05vUQkDjydbVBIfER4D4snBdjZg56E4HVqRPP0WW1oR7vEHR1ZaLwW8Kk9dZeekw2wP-e43Z1Udr0_g58f1VvNpp1l9y5ExIgdg1np_lNtUJySas1B3lN2_uYJv1CIPrm-4bcBMBF_Vom6wCUuSCHQHvHd9v0-vbdQWjWRAW2o3sHZYbrPO/s350/Jarry%20Park%20Back.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="252" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkWznFHsjpj05vUQkDjydbVBIfER4D4snBdjZg56E4HVqRPP0WW1oR7vEHR1ZaLwW8Kk9dZeekw2wP-e43Z1Udr0_g58f1VvNpp1l9y5ExIgdg1np_lNtUJySas1B3lN2_uYJv1CIPrm-4bcBMBF_Vom6wCUuSCHQHvHd9v0-vbdQWjWRAW2o3sHZYbrPO/s320/Jarry%20Park%20Back.jpg" width="230" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I think the only thing I don't like is not having that much under the line. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I will admit, I borrowed the template from this card:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEvzc6nREXarXbgs3TYm6ZdHbgu3ZYN2AZKcTuYWP0s6MmetBoBdGzJwcAZ8mYrSmtLtVGyIlNbCRwvcYxu5fZXXbPE9Y86jOJXp-cJCzUDHzyDsUiMzhpPFkg4Fw3FxDysdFOWls9cxgggOgVQ3P82giY4rn4pQGN5Hx6LFIhOYUEWBpBrUpCOrVfhLoQ/s350/60251-3559083Bk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="252" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEvzc6nREXarXbgs3TYm6ZdHbgu3ZYN2AZKcTuYWP0s6MmetBoBdGzJwcAZ8mYrSmtLtVGyIlNbCRwvcYxu5fZXXbPE9Y86jOJXp-cJCzUDHzyDsUiMzhpPFkg4Fw3FxDysdFOWls9cxgggOgVQ3P82giY4rn4pQGN5Hx6LFIhOYUEWBpBrUpCOrVfhLoQ/s320/60251-3559083Bk.jpg" width="230" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I think if I was using more robust software, I could add things like year by year record and maybe smaller font size.. Though I think some of my friends and fellow collectors may like the font they don't need a magnifying glass for.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(sorry)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So, what say you? How was my attempt at the creation? Once I get more confortable/back on a better machine, I may try doing more freehand stuff.. Until then this is wonderful for me. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-86337250868680303152024-02-15T20:29:00.000-08:002024-02-15T20:29:42.188-08:00First Attempt<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">Well, I've had ideas bouncing around in my head for a while. One of those was to create a set of Stadium custom cards. </p><p style="text-align: center;">Tonight was my first attempt. I just created the front.. I'm likely going to go back and do another try later </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">But... Here it is</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9vTC1l0JtmmvMfu_bCNUWULZJh1fcTXfRNx359p3du2pLAxG1Z991AUMsEJw0jC8EFtckvbresdJUUcRqabyMabH8odYeEDkMxgHidHaqOLnhHuThzxe0jK6nMYI17cI8OxXiQwnoCv2FDVfitZUA0ui5wR13meBJtTKmiXd8JQy301o16RmO8u__ISZD/s350/Jarry%20Park%20Try.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="247" data-original-width="350" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9vTC1l0JtmmvMfu_bCNUWULZJh1fcTXfRNx359p3du2pLAxG1Z991AUMsEJw0jC8EFtckvbresdJUUcRqabyMabH8odYeEDkMxgHidHaqOLnhHuThzxe0jK6nMYI17cI8OxXiQwnoCv2FDVfitZUA0ui5wR13meBJtTKmiXd8JQy301o16RmO8u__ISZD/s320/Jarry%20Park%20Try.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I borrowed the bottom design from a Stuart Bakery Expos set. Since it was vertical, I had to rearrange the lines and logo to a horizontal configuration. I'm not 100% sold on the font and debating on if I take another kick at the can, to actually put the logo on, rather than have it as part of the background. And maybe have a bit of a border around the picture.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So, dear readers.. What say you? I'm also thinking about what to create for the back of the card. </div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-160912364616277602024-02-08T22:03:00.000-08:002024-02-08T22:03:16.874-08:00Canadian Minor League Baseball <p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">I just finished the book Canadian Minor League Baseball: A History Since WWII</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFbI4SgY7qC_C4YMaO3bhyphenhyphen6l9x-UgCsXyuvqvb33U_VSOtnfrGkT0Sx4RQNqbSr0RAD64pmSAE19NhNCI4gzQUj_Q_KLfy3cjvgFiqUTE4UY7w0cp0GGgTKIPSXdsKKVA1zxt-Hv-92K4rzhNc6OPmTOUOi60z_cwXp4TxsrbHNkjs_w1mU4NaXLA0vDv7/s425/71qBMaQ1LUL._SY425_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="425" data-original-width="298" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFbI4SgY7qC_C4YMaO3bhyphenhyphen6l9x-UgCsXyuvqvb33U_VSOtnfrGkT0Sx4RQNqbSr0RAD64pmSAE19NhNCI4gzQUj_Q_KLfy3cjvgFiqUTE4UY7w0cp0GGgTKIPSXdsKKVA1zxt-Hv-92K4rzhNc6OPmTOUOi60z_cwXp4TxsrbHNkjs_w1mU4NaXLA0vDv7/s320/71qBMaQ1LUL._SY425_.jpg" width="224" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It details the year by year results and happenings for the Canadian based teams in the different minor leagues. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The start documents the International League's teams in Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa. (Toronto and Montreal lasted much longer than Ottawa)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Obviously we know Jackie Robinson got his start in "Organized Baseball" in Montreal. There were many Brooklyn Dodgers stars that went through Montreal, really too many to mention, though it is interesting to see names like Gene Mauch, Roland Gladu, Al Campanis, Roy Campanella, Don Newcombe, Duke Snider, Tommy Lasorda, and Roy Hartsfield.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Really there seems to be a number of managers that played for the Royals. Hartsfield, Mauch, Lasorda, and Sparky Anderson. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Royals were affiliated with the Dodgers until the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles, putting their affiliation in Spokane. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Toronto Maple Leafs were the complete opposite. They had affiliations with the Phillies, Athletics, Browns, Indians, and stints as an unaffiliated team. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Leon Day played for the Leafs. As did Elston Howard, Sparky Anderson (who also started his managing career here) Chuck Tanner, Mack Jones, Bobby Knoop, Dennis Menke, Rico Carty and Phil Roof. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Interesting that Carty and Roof played for both the Maple Leafs and the Blue Jays) </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">By time 1967 rolled around, attendance and stadium issues caused the team to be sold and moved to Louisville.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Other Leagues mentioned were the ManDak, Western International League, Northern League, PONY, The Provincial League (run in Quebec) Eastern League, NYP, the Independent Northern League, American Association (current), Frontier League, Northeast/Can-Am League, Northwest League, Pioneer League, and Pacific Coast League. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Things I found out through the book:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Canadians were very hospitable to black players</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Canadian Baseball League maybe needed more time to plan and get things together before trying to run.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Booms and lulls boiled down to the economy, people having options for entertainment, and weather. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Edmonton and Calgary will probably never see another minor league team</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Nation capitals seem to not be very great at hosting teams.. (Ottawa had a number of minor league teams both in Organized and Independent ball that never really got off the ground) </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">One team in London was going to be called the Rippers.. Until backlash hit. Then they became the Werewolves. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">If you enjoy reading about minor league teams and want to learn more about it in a Canadian angle, this book can be insightful. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Until next time!</div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-89149233992534901812024-01-30T19:07:00.000-08:002024-01-30T19:07:36.734-08:00Canadians in the Majors: Jack Graney<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">I'm back today with another installment of Canadians in the Major Leagues, this time focusing on former Cleveland Naps/Indians player Jack Graney (Not calling it Guardians, since he wasn't around under that name) </p><p style="text-align: center;">Jack Graney was born June 10, 1886 in St. Thomas Ontario. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqUhkp1J_aka0NoK91QrSwZt59eMGQMd17kHReykIIvwwIXWlnBGZC2CHLONl8nuWfPLzFqGiwn3pQxemTkkNXhgV46XFUc5Kx3S8bi8LL7ekk3_RbfTP7-IyXcAYLOsQhXn4buuTbZwAmuTPooSdOp0zTId0D3t00VFvYehPoWIToy1BD2jF1KEdxYcgN/s1273/St%20Thomas%20Map.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="604" data-original-width="1273" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqUhkp1J_aka0NoK91QrSwZt59eMGQMd17kHReykIIvwwIXWlnBGZC2CHLONl8nuWfPLzFqGiwn3pQxemTkkNXhgV46XFUc5Kx3S8bi8LL7ekk3_RbfTP7-IyXcAYLOsQhXn4buuTbZwAmuTPooSdOp0zTId0D3t00VFvYehPoWIToy1BD2jF1KEdxYcgN/w494-h235/St%20Thomas%20Map.png" width="494" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Here is a visual of where St. Thomas is. It's west of Hamilton, south of London. There black square is the location. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">He was recommended to the Cubs by another Canadian, Bob Emslie. He spent one year in the Cubs organization, then was sold to Cleveland. He started his Major League career as a pitcher, but was sent to Portland for more seasoning. When he returned to Cleveland, he was an outfielder, based on the distrust of the front office of Graney being able to control his pitches enough for Major League hitting. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">He was the first batter to face Babe Ruth in a MLB game. He also was the roommate of Ray Chapman, the shortstop who died as a result of a bean ball by Carl Mays. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjTDwGIPRYXnn03D_jSEHEkdtRoso24ZxyD8QkZXpwb6f-JMTzzhaoC068ZRPptSwQkUytD1oPlZ3EufmP1HInkSZ_hB1XtxqOyXjsUXvbTnrWmaZ_vRDz7q1jLwc75nD8R6ps8R2VbZkBz3uterDve9K43Oe6zn01e_9hayjt_jVufmVKSPZA4un1OD18/s485/Jack_Graney_1920.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="485" data-original-width="132" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjTDwGIPRYXnn03D_jSEHEkdtRoso24ZxyD8QkZXpwb6f-JMTzzhaoC068ZRPptSwQkUytD1oPlZ3EufmP1HInkSZ_hB1XtxqOyXjsUXvbTnrWmaZ_vRDz7q1jLwc75nD8R6ps8R2VbZkBz3uterDve9K43Oe6zn01e_9hayjt_jVufmVKSPZA4un1OD18/s320/Jack_Graney_1920.jpg" width="87" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">He spent his entire Major League Baseball career with the Indians, retiring in 1922. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Overall, he hit .250, with 18 home runs and 420 RBI</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">After retiring, he moved to the broadcast booth, calling games for the Indians on the radio. He was the first to do so. (So I guess we can thank/curse him for the trend....) He also did the national broadcast of the 1935 World Series and called games for the Cleveland Barons of the American Hockey League.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSmBqHl889wbsuYDj6r971xRPqNI1-TdlH0K2HklQvCMBWDGF9f6MJvwN4FkqCkyBkOZWcZPbtZaEGAYEF_PmmVpEhlQR_YuP0A6zRhK4QHoToBnSK_Hc9ulMwW0Hb2_yWnzgEDuXH8Gcqr21bz5QTgvq1fQ6Z8BLu293bu9gVnvI_IVgqA2UFAmCg7A_a/s693/344749-10006533Bk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="693" data-original-width="496" height="736" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSmBqHl889wbsuYDj6r971xRPqNI1-TdlH0K2HklQvCMBWDGF9f6MJvwN4FkqCkyBkOZWcZPbtZaEGAYEF_PmmVpEhlQR_YuP0A6zRhK4QHoToBnSK_Hc9ulMwW0Hb2_yWnzgEDuXH8Gcqr21bz5QTgvq1fQ6Z8BLu293bu9gVnvI_IVgqA2UFAmCg7A_a/w527-h736/344749-10006533Bk.jpg" width="527" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOq3Kx_9ZaT38xyOKKEg1Rx5y9urJik51C-DTm2AKvxfoq-vvgdK_j7toJ8t735Vij8GDLqKWSJoCt-WQYZnnZPZmvIuea3n0cKoZfTyn1Ms-SapOP4NKvczp3_8QJZ6Bj-gqk-JcQOlBonw4co9Kr4LNjiVSYvzcz7RV01KK14Jj7_GspzpXGskjXum9x/s350/344749-10006533RepFr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="251" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOq3Kx_9ZaT38xyOKKEg1Rx5y9urJik51C-DTm2AKvxfoq-vvgdK_j7toJ8t735Vij8GDLqKWSJoCt-WQYZnnZPZmvIuea3n0cKoZfTyn1Ms-SapOP4NKvczp3_8QJZ6Bj-gqk-JcQOlBonw4co9Kr4LNjiVSYvzcz7RV01KK14Jj7_GspzpXGskjXum9x/s320/344749-10006533RepFr.jpg" width="229" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So..</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Jack Graney was the first to face Babe Ruth when he was a pitcher</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The first to wear a uniform number to bat. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The first to transition from playing to broadcasting.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Led the league in walks twice</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Led the league in doubles</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Inducted to the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Inducted into the Cleveland Indians Distinguished Hall of Fame for non-uniformed Personnel</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Won the 2021 Ford C Frick award. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">In 1987 the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame created an award to celebrate journalists who made a significant contribution to spreading baseball in Canada. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Jack Graney passed away in 1978 at the age of 91 in Louisiana, Missouri. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-66014334405623626532024-01-17T14:08:00.000-08:002024-01-17T14:08:37.702-08:00Stadium Series: Robison Field<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">I don't know why this one came to mind but it's been rattling around for a couple weeks. </p><p style="text-align: center;">I want to talk about one of the early homes for the St. Louis Cardinals, Robison Field. Now, this one doesn't have cards manufactured of it, so I'll be using some old photos only.. </p><p style="text-align: center;">Now.. Robison Field was just one of several names given to the park. It was known as "New" Sportsman's Park (1893-1899) League Park (1899-1911) and Cardinal Park (1917-1920)</p><p style="text-align: center;">Prior to Robison field, the American Association Browns played at Sportsman's Park at the corner of Grand and Dodier. Once absorbed into the National League, Chris von der Ahe moved the team to the corner of Natural Bridge Ave and Vandeventer Ave. This move was part of a deal made with a trolley company that operated nearby. </p><p style="text-align: center;">Along with the grandstands, an amusement park and beer garden were built alongside the ballpark. The teams were generally not good, as von der Ahe would sell his best players to keep the team afloat. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQEGXoXQJHqWfPM5420NxYYiF9WqbNOmZ_06MiudJzbv0ASRZf6M7Wn-8Ac2lnPZ-3Hq9FPl1thLKq8o8akfe_6IMuCH7-z4d00f6Q-1ZZLVyHB7uC5BZN6aaE6WSdzlM9Pr8hg26AxcMqWC_r6avzeD5TaBh1priKLwd14nmBzOLQD6XnbMNv9cHHBG7_/s784/robinson950.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="561" data-original-width="784" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQEGXoXQJHqWfPM5420NxYYiF9WqbNOmZ_06MiudJzbv0ASRZf6M7Wn-8Ac2lnPZ-3Hq9FPl1thLKq8o8akfe_6IMuCH7-z4d00f6Q-1ZZLVyHB7uC5BZN6aaE6WSdzlM9Pr8hg26AxcMqWC_r6avzeD5TaBh1priKLwd14nmBzOLQD6XnbMNv9cHHBG7_/w461-h330/robinson950.jpg" width="461" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">In 1898, a fire started from a lit cigar and burned the structure. Overnight repairs allowed the game the next day to take place. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">In 1899, von der Ahe sold the team to Frank and Stanley Robison. They changed the identity of the team, first by dropping the Browns name, and changing the solour scheme to cardinal red. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Part of what allowed the Cardinals to improve as a result of the Robison ownership was they also owned the Cleveland Spiders. They moved the best players from Cleveland to St. Louis. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The early days being what they were, when the league contracted, the Perfectos as they were known, fell to the bottom of the league again. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Fires also played a heavy role in the history of the time. In 1901, a fire underneath the stands consumed the park in 30 minutes. After finding the "Old" Sportsman's Park inadequate, the team spent a month on the road while a new stadium was built. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">When the Robisons passed, Frank's daughter Helene inherited the team. She sold her interest in 1917. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg36FlAPq4ofl4JZrFrCfM1cZIDdkNpdmCjHtX5a9xn0DqjvGq2Ad5dBqyn-74tb7yek74ycuiBGk_oQBlc7JIw32KMdRY-8NraqCh4uVeOWS7pLIJN5y8o1E953B16Xsk5E2eOuNCenrIeL72U6p1M3XIz1EwS_ajk0TE4oD0wWYC5YxCjFISdDxltferZ/s290/Robison%202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="174" data-original-width="290" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg36FlAPq4ofl4JZrFrCfM1cZIDdkNpdmCjHtX5a9xn0DqjvGq2Ad5dBqyn-74tb7yek74ycuiBGk_oQBlc7JIw32KMdRY-8NraqCh4uVeOWS7pLIJN5y8o1E953B16Xsk5E2eOuNCenrIeL72U6p1M3XIz1EwS_ajk0TE4oD0wWYC5YxCjFISdDxltferZ/w473-h284/Robison%202.jpg" width="473" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">By 1920, the owners of the Cardinals were tired of the wooden park, finding it inadequate for Major League Baseball purposes. They ended up moving the Cardinals into a rebuilt "Old" Sportsman's Park, owned by the AL Browns. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Robison Field was the last park in MLB that was primarily constructed of wood. The grounds of Robison Field became Beaumont High School in 1926, and educated citizend of St Louis until 2014. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmniEJjvAAVXjaP8TAZXQ1xiHvgSBsjIpitmEBIFOEg9Ffwo-5remdZT9ZktosPiYY14TPUDZEUEnklGYm2hw2LxIdB8GQ0qKjW3eq2YWoPtJrc71bwn95yG2iiyd78f0NwScWMNdyMCnkKdBLA5fAY0B4tHUI0JfIeF0D2i4g5bF838ZCdMSwGMhQD3wV/s784/robison951.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="784" height="373" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmniEJjvAAVXjaP8TAZXQ1xiHvgSBsjIpitmEBIFOEg9Ffwo-5remdZT9ZktosPiYY14TPUDZEUEnklGYm2hw2LxIdB8GQ0qKjW3eq2YWoPtJrc71bwn95yG2iiyd78f0NwScWMNdyMCnkKdBLA5fAY0B4tHUI0JfIeF0D2i4g5bF838ZCdMSwGMhQD3wV/w521-h373/robison951.jpg" width="521" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So Who used this Park??</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The St Louis Cardinals from 1893-1920</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Columbus Club (St Louis Soccer League) 1913-1915</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I find it interesting that St Louis has really used what amounts to three names for their stadia.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sportsman's Park for multiple parks.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Busch Stadium for multiple. (The naming of Busch is interesting)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Robison Field.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The next one I do might just be staying in St Louis, looking at Sportsman's Park. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-55889502514806435022024-01-08T21:55:00.000-08:002024-01-08T21:55:08.946-08:00A Couple Cards from Johnny<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">I realize I haven't written anything so far this year. I've been still up and down mentally and a few days physically. </p><p style="text-align: center;">However.. I want to show a couple cards I received from Johnny at Johnny's Trading Spot.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy58SwpYcd9XjtojTOBWLdXfpDAUi6jV5hR3y44v4Ztl_MDBiqLy8bJSpSKBEwjYYkOXTxO5YjVXWEzoFwqJNHVfoxkVvRzO9RMsRSxwOvKgaOut5fk1eMjXpBBxgWu338az-l8syBp0QDJMzOmDAvFCtBfDBUCW80bNO0MuWnBcCLVlPafiTDGzS0odaZ/s3295/1704779156298-0db5d77b-5c06-4c44-97db-401b2e93d4a7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3295" data-original-width="2236" height="447" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy58SwpYcd9XjtojTOBWLdXfpDAUi6jV5hR3y44v4Ztl_MDBiqLy8bJSpSKBEwjYYkOXTxO5YjVXWEzoFwqJNHVfoxkVvRzO9RMsRSxwOvKgaOut5fk1eMjXpBBxgWu338az-l8syBp0QDJMzOmDAvFCtBfDBUCW80bNO0MuWnBcCLVlPafiTDGzS0odaZ/w303-h447/1704779156298-0db5d77b-5c06-4c44-97db-401b2e93d4a7.jpg" width="303" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">First is a card I claimed in his giveaways. Tristan is Dalton Pompey's brother. Unlike Dalton, Tristan never got a taste of the Majors. According to Baseball Reference, he last played in 2022, splitting between Quebec of the Frontier League and Winnipeg of the American Association. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">He played last season in the Intercounty Baseball League. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6BEZA6D-omiEDaCdH_mjhMyLzrR2zuv95_B2SQdQ2uqzQbBDzOvKCkg8-7DIvalwXzfji83Ji_12O9CsJ1BPii_L2tbiILzWiWr6zzsgumPEsxBFTIJUBr7Y4wFzvR6V8Trhb1uTfPszE8-HMfXjHemYIfgcAI4O0xPetXiqZ-CqZJQW0kQeX7rgvfij0/s3312/1704779215174-a3f897ed-9b86-44a3-b055-170cb70e592b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3312" data-original-width="2362" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6BEZA6D-omiEDaCdH_mjhMyLzrR2zuv95_B2SQdQ2uqzQbBDzOvKCkg8-7DIvalwXzfji83Ji_12O9CsJ1BPii_L2tbiILzWiWr6zzsgumPEsxBFTIJUBr7Y4wFzvR6V8Trhb1uTfPszE8-HMfXjHemYIfgcAI4O0xPetXiqZ-CqZJQW0kQeX7rgvfij0/s320/1704779215174-a3f897ed-9b86-44a3-b055-170cb70e592b.jpg" width="228" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">There was also this very shiny Vlad Jr. Of course, being a Chrome/Prizm/whatever, it's got a little bend to it, but oh well.. Still a card I didn't have. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I haven't forgotten, Johnny.. I will have those 90 OPCs out for you. </div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-80083786144295358392023-12-30T16:59:00.000-08:002023-12-30T16:59:51.220-08:002023<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">Well, it's the end of another year. I may or may not have mentioned, I generally loathe this time of year because it just reminds me I'm getting older, things I loved are further away, and we're all marching toward the inevitable end.. </p><p style="text-align: center;">Now that I've bummed everyone out... </p><p style="text-align: center;">I can't really do a 2023 retrospective on favourite sets/cards/pickups/etc.. Partially because this year has been both a blur and a struggle. </p><p style="text-align: center;">A blur because I really don't remember what came in this year.. A struggle because this year has been the most disconnected I've felt from collecting in a long time. I know part of it was time spent in hospital and dealing with illness/injury.. I know part of it is the crippling poverty I'm faced with due to the government not giving a crap about people with disabilities. </p><p style="text-align: center;">I will however, share a couple things I liked about 2023 on my blog.. </p><p style="text-align: center;">1. I love doing the Stadium posts. I've gotten positive feedback from you dear readers, so I will continue it. </p><p style="text-align: center;">2. I still enjoy doing the Canadians in the Majors posts.. I'll pick up doing them again..</p><p style="text-align: center;">3. I have some books I'll mention on here after reading..</p><p style="text-align: center;">Now, to finally tie in with cards:</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">My three favourite gets this year:</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXY95XgHc_2BClClPE-IrgGb5fnzw0y_zCBU12OVgm152qEowAk9EupklP_dQZNxMXmDcoGoy8a2mUE3IcGa016CDZVXSOhIdPIlsk46sdXs-grGzFTBdEJY308mBjooL-lSRtpsV_1YgjoF_JS3E_qMYsfgNt6jEnkst8-pzlf59dBt7UFkElD2fkCQlz/s500/mrenJ9z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="357" data-original-width="500" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXY95XgHc_2BClClPE-IrgGb5fnzw0y_zCBU12OVgm152qEowAk9EupklP_dQZNxMXmDcoGoy8a2mUE3IcGa016CDZVXSOhIdPIlsk46sdXs-grGzFTBdEJY308mBjooL-lSRtpsV_1YgjoF_JS3E_qMYsfgNt6jEnkst8-pzlf59dBt7UFkElD2fkCQlz/s320/mrenJ9z.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I'd love this to be a physical card. This was done digitally for me by a member of the Team Collectors Community. If I had a say, I'd add on the back a little write up on the happenings of the day..</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Anne Murray singing O Canada in the snow. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Jays borrowing the Leafs' zamboni to clear the field.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Doug Ault's two homeruns. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Jays winning!</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVltbxe7Cnseo8S8feHXMcVgUnJ4H3w-FJbVKl2w2KYE3ypMpe4j7dkFv4eYOf-A196qy81ODkAZqjO7NJ0VWOEYOpr6lywJ_f8uIYys47i_fxDT69OOkprQItiY55JP0ttbchZAW-rSMW0pdhZWFezjup9Bg9v5-36dSL-VR1PXZW5auZnWSuJYZ2huYQ/s2048/PXL_20231117_223804828_exported_984_1702356324730.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVltbxe7Cnseo8S8feHXMcVgUnJ4H3w-FJbVKl2w2KYE3ypMpe4j7dkFv4eYOf-A196qy81ODkAZqjO7NJ0VWOEYOpr6lywJ_f8uIYys47i_fxDT69OOkprQItiY55JP0ttbchZAW-rSMW0pdhZWFezjup9Bg9v5-36dSL-VR1PXZW5auZnWSuJYZ2huYQ/s320/PXL_20231117_223804828_exported_984_1702356324730.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This one, as mentioned in a post earler this month/late last month, came from Kevin Glew from the wonderful Blog Cooperstowners in Canada. Jesse Barfield entered the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame this year and, ever the kind man, was doing up autographed copies of the plaque and some other things for fans. Kevin saw my post about being hospitalized and that I wanted a Barfield auto sometime, so he sent me one. Also said that, had Jesse not been inundated with notifications, he would have noticed and likely sent it himself. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid39zBgKc0hXgordNR0TkoN0oTAZIri4qResEcnHsTtxJLsPEloQKPkd8JV8-w-PXOXpAgH2MYu8xuI-g_7X8cTtKVuvhEbmsVzMGQGx0htZHg1GrgVMgAeokWYAR-9cbGRYNPZTUvrMIieyayeYZRNQbBwgl-XFVvHc5RNJbE5OGobtKgySFGkYWUUrpt/s2560/Scan%20-%202023-04-15%2014_08_57.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2560" data-original-width="1848" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid39zBgKc0hXgordNR0TkoN0oTAZIri4qResEcnHsTtxJLsPEloQKPkd8JV8-w-PXOXpAgH2MYu8xuI-g_7X8cTtKVuvhEbmsVzMGQGx0htZHg1GrgVMgAeokWYAR-9cbGRYNPZTUvrMIieyayeYZRNQbBwgl-XFVvHc5RNJbE5OGobtKgySFGkYWUUrpt/s320/Scan%20-%202023-04-15%2014_08_57.jpeg" width="231" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Finally.. A John Hiller autograph. He was friends with my best friend's father in high school in Toronto. Added to the fact that I wanted to start a Canadians autograph collection, this was kind of a necessary add.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Anyway, that's my quick and dirty look at the year past. I hope 2024 is less of a dumpster fire, but I'm not holding my breath. </div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-22133988907882345642023-12-21T18:45:00.000-08:002023-12-21T18:45:10.757-08:00A COMC Order<div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Hello Friends! </div><div style="text-align: center;">I want to show off an order I got in from COMC. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUHrEtwYnyDch0KQ9qQp5EuB462StIipTmzDZYZict6k2aKjrzq1E_M0AWRX5MnT1NN5bDf8avVSxIwOjbUSZisgEg50lEgU6AffIzBPlMUEORUmZg__0WuKj52NnO0aZoipf-8gZX2578zGB4KjY8_ct0yOMNJ1YAq6eHM7BYLTliMLzbVOgoCor7kHbn/s2892/PXL_20231222_021016382.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2892" data-original-width="2675" height="436" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUHrEtwYnyDch0KQ9qQp5EuB462StIipTmzDZYZict6k2aKjrzq1E_M0AWRX5MnT1NN5bDf8avVSxIwOjbUSZisgEg50lEgU6AffIzBPlMUEORUmZg__0WuKj52NnO0aZoipf-8gZX2578zGB4KjY8_ct0yOMNJ1YAq6eHM7BYLTliMLzbVOgoCor7kHbn/w403-h436/PXL_20231222_021016382.jpg" width="403" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">First we have some Stadium cards. A couple Yankee Stadium. A couple Wrigley Field.. And one Pilot Field, which is now Sahlen Field. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhumW160Z3HmTH4Dg3eBvwBap08ZmsuGA8-uhS5L0pGmlv9QeIzYMQ7KKTYO4Fl1ABqVXAKH7RbmNSdVsvtWAm877mNE06Ssf0uF9HYTb0Z-x5KlgzUP85GvBlUrmQKNYzP5m5VfUnIh8ED3rQoyJF97bPuRk7XmAxy8tnu-UuMfh61PrafaIiUXN1SloCv/s3024/PXL_20231222_021210082.MP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2858" data-original-width="3024" height="367" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhumW160Z3HmTH4Dg3eBvwBap08ZmsuGA8-uhS5L0pGmlv9QeIzYMQ7KKTYO4Fl1ABqVXAKH7RbmNSdVsvtWAm877mNE06Ssf0uF9HYTb0Z-x5KlgzUP85GvBlUrmQKNYzP5m5VfUnIh8ED3rQoyJF97bPuRk7XmAxy8tnu-UuMfh61PrafaIiUXN1SloCv/w389-h367/PXL_20231222_021210082.MP.jpg" width="389" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Next is a few autographed cards. I don't know how Gorbous got in with the autos.. But anyway.. Yes, that Lawrie/Saunders has been featured on here before.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmPSr70iX5ACTTw2zsz5X8eyOLmBcZ9r6b63jsnObs-vZ_UL-PyAsQIFLAE1szpgqcSl7FmTrpHg-8PyAi0ysnCeKCSpLXeKdhcSZMx11Vr00hLni8sEeyYF-a1ryMff6CDo0eG9USJnA4qh0Dz_JjLz5y25Xc1DqfO6rxXfZioDXL1N95r8NkEATDOQ9X/s2984/PXL_20231222_020810362.MP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2750" data-original-width="2984" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmPSr70iX5ACTTw2zsz5X8eyOLmBcZ9r6b63jsnObs-vZ_UL-PyAsQIFLAE1szpgqcSl7FmTrpHg-8PyAi0ysnCeKCSpLXeKdhcSZMx11Vr00hLni8sEeyYF-a1ryMff6CDo0eG9USJnA4qh0Dz_JjLz5y25Xc1DqfO6rxXfZioDXL1N95r8NkEATDOQ9X/s320/PXL_20231222_020810362.MP.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Finally, some World Baseball Classic cards. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">A nice little early Christmas present to myself that I've been slowly building over the course of the year. Of course, some of those autographed cards will get their own feature.. As will those Stadium cards. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-69858059648278187852023-12-17T07:49:00.000-08:002023-12-17T07:49:35.268-08:00Postcards and Things<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">Today I'm going to show another envelope I received recently. It's from Tom at Angels In Order. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhut0oZTIt9XVETXxiDEefKgPpcAzk9vjPGBjihIiWhoYuNuw-rLl-pgIIZ2n-zjE5UJAP_erXH-mIc_vVoqHLnKnpTAy4rkPi9aWW7yNNXGeemQyhqfC3BjI2Ax5rgFpGe914lFMdu6MCU2VYPhj5n8RZKj4sBYuPI3g9XFyUgxO4KzzAtjt0Cv-L00fv1/s3094/1702684917687-b3debf18-c663-430f-8763-9a94a84761f2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2153" data-original-width="3094" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhut0oZTIt9XVETXxiDEefKgPpcAzk9vjPGBjihIiWhoYuNuw-rLl-pgIIZ2n-zjE5UJAP_erXH-mIc_vVoqHLnKnpTAy4rkPi9aWW7yNNXGeemQyhqfC3BjI2Ax5rgFpGe914lFMdu6MCU2VYPhj5n8RZKj4sBYuPI3g9XFyUgxO4KzzAtjt0Cv-L00fv1/s320/1702684917687-b3debf18-c663-430f-8763-9a94a84761f2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Old Comiskey Park. I never really got to see anything at this park, as I was coming into my baseball fandom when the new park opened. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOvVgkjtZun4WHRczHoGoMEEUbWvuPyv2XlorqcScSR_2MMmjVSnWwF2TJspTg9wAKqP7oBjDHk7Ovz9qsXG8geGui3_QiBJb2EMAfkFGClEi6CGVbDGX6Rolr1GZ_w5BULDuk7ZR9l0IW9oW9UPHmFvWQ2cNGUQ8ASWBThsBkzm6y8HnXDQ11beo6daHP/s3100/1702684975538-aaa8d2e2-9b5d-447f-9723-756ce5d3dd2c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2277" data-original-width="3100" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOvVgkjtZun4WHRczHoGoMEEUbWvuPyv2XlorqcScSR_2MMmjVSnWwF2TJspTg9wAKqP7oBjDHk7Ovz9qsXG8geGui3_QiBJb2EMAfkFGClEi6CGVbDGX6Rolr1GZ_w5BULDuk7ZR9l0IW9oW9UPHmFvWQ2cNGUQ8ASWBThsBkzm6y8HnXDQ11beo6daHP/s320/1702684975538-aaa8d2e2-9b5d-447f-9723-756ce5d3dd2c.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I believe this is the Rose Bowl. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIFnnEhskt14UvdhQhsKOhfFkJqYMma95_PTO9KfJYi9PxBZ3lV2aWQHnpXHhuJ3jC41DWqXwndTbH86azpIk8fGW16_ENgIL7tk2nzgkKgVgb5hCYzcugBIaCM2c_9xLpLc5E6xSIhg6Qr43zh6iAFrGn6OLdN7hA5nKwXYhANfVd7iTHbZLm6MI0K7FZ/s3112/1702685785575-bf9ec3b6-f74c-4b44-8a30-a96adc3b08d1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2562" data-original-width="3112" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIFnnEhskt14UvdhQhsKOhfFkJqYMma95_PTO9KfJYi9PxBZ3lV2aWQHnpXHhuJ3jC41DWqXwndTbH86azpIk8fGW16_ENgIL7tk2nzgkKgVgb5hCYzcugBIaCM2c_9xLpLc5E6xSIhg6Qr43zh6iAFrGn6OLdN7hA5nKwXYhANfVd7iTHbZLm6MI0K7FZ/s320/1702685785575-bf9ec3b6-f74c-4b44-8a30-a96adc3b08d1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmjyrU3iHyTlNrqDZcnGJORv_GnAJ7Tbe8ibPaF7E85aBcCCJJY7Gps-dh2ux-lvKiRaDaZDzrwMA3TJ-qwhMtGUGVFK8DDAPUUP8SyZULpaRjTEzEhJEdo2wMgv3BaUUIRpon49irTwzg5Sc05ebKYbGID0VGAK8qe_JozftgPLw_J-7OTY749z2a9XUk/s3100/1702685921247-6b656943-cd86-49a3-85e0-1946f38e38f8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2277" data-original-width="3100" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmjyrU3iHyTlNrqDZcnGJORv_GnAJ7Tbe8ibPaF7E85aBcCCJJY7Gps-dh2ux-lvKiRaDaZDzrwMA3TJ-qwhMtGUGVFK8DDAPUUP8SyZULpaRjTEzEhJEdo2wMgv3BaUUIRpon49irTwzg5Sc05ebKYbGID0VGAK8qe_JozftgPLw_J-7OTY749z2a9XUk/s320/1702685921247-6b656943-cd86-49a3-85e0-1946f38e38f8.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We have two of the Metrodome. It was an interesting place. I actually got to see a series between the Jays and Twins here.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPkYO0gV7LiPqZ5sc4DcRRY8ab4CF_NWkPg-B68jotG5GU1q9dO1gna3F1PRTKnZHVd4tcurLxZienuWEWwBBohapveb8khoA9THITYzZLX-pkgKWg2GhLtosMV6R8bx4oPLx87qe-2g0gOUIsSMelIJiGTOt2YGMitK2ECWXDsbbAkF-ItvQ5lq1imW6f/s3100/1702685986969-26e44402-76dd-486c-b9cc-ff92c3293372.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2277" data-original-width="3100" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPkYO0gV7LiPqZ5sc4DcRRY8ab4CF_NWkPg-B68jotG5GU1q9dO1gna3F1PRTKnZHVd4tcurLxZienuWEWwBBohapveb8khoA9THITYzZLX-pkgKWg2GhLtosMV6R8bx4oPLx87qe-2g0gOUIsSMelIJiGTOt2YGMitK2ECWXDsbbAkF-ItvQ5lq1imW6f/s320/1702685986969-26e44402-76dd-486c-b9cc-ff92c3293372.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Jack Murphy/Qualcomm Park. Looks like it's in the football configuration. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJu4POE0TVgrqaKCaWUfwBpSQ9ES0-mI0YeObvbYkLy4K7Z3PBu51p6ST8pbTyBjD60IhCdNhPPEw5yyH-6bV7F8HNXNc1JmxfM5IYffrd_vH1RELbQGIQoqgvHdO9H-dEM5utaCUvkJ6Bp05gpNcstB47OPyTE9PtzHhf7hoFY5wPDbITg9WfmLXesuU9/s3106/1702686028524-227a1612-b645-426f-bfde-1147da6b3d21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2398" data-original-width="3106" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJu4POE0TVgrqaKCaWUfwBpSQ9ES0-mI0YeObvbYkLy4K7Z3PBu51p6ST8pbTyBjD60IhCdNhPPEw5yyH-6bV7F8HNXNc1JmxfM5IYffrd_vH1RELbQGIQoqgvHdO9H-dEM5utaCUvkJ6Bp05gpNcstB47OPyTE9PtzHhf7hoFY5wPDbITg9WfmLXesuU9/s320/1702686028524-227a1612-b645-426f-bfde-1147da6b3d21.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5zYpZrZkDIEkJ_arOnpmADqBIWibCU1MWB34RnBWwFFrwEqqNBJe3FeWEEV9gUhOdQzJYhWhjFRhyphenhyphen5QLAsAsWYfQfrqXm6FWLvkAo4gMOWBXyAKFcvN83FulMIkiIfEXpi1iB6CcqomU9AflOmHJQwHyyhXrrdqC2ue8Zpid35BNb94qgCSNcDS6rQry1/s3277/1702686071243-859eb55c-ba7c-4266-8c75-1982fd92a4d1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3277" data-original-width="2100" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5zYpZrZkDIEkJ_arOnpmADqBIWibCU1MWB34RnBWwFFrwEqqNBJe3FeWEEV9gUhOdQzJYhWhjFRhyphenhyphen5QLAsAsWYfQfrqXm6FWLvkAo4gMOWBXyAKFcvN83FulMIkiIfEXpi1iB6CcqomU9AflOmHJQwHyyhXrrdqC2ue8Zpid35BNb94qgCSNcDS6rQry1/s320/1702686071243-859eb55c-ba7c-4266-8c75-1982fd92a4d1.jpg" width="205" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Here we have New Comiskey Park</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJCKCk_-uq7_OJTEJWunINEwHoR3SfJGwSURIO9jRahk4oMpWThfbhQ9hwdNKyYuhoVIBnH4QVLktMhO_mouQHzNJDHFQhqyYKAKYLEef4HuRzMjw-9iztv9PAIai0heGV7ceFmFHjVdUaK13RX90Vf4t5kNN-1peHFpJ2Nhi85lHFf9QjcCK__PK55MoV/s3112/1702686112601-c80dd8f1-7ad1-40d8-aced-b34766a77f7b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2562" data-original-width="3112" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJCKCk_-uq7_OJTEJWunINEwHoR3SfJGwSURIO9jRahk4oMpWThfbhQ9hwdNKyYuhoVIBnH4QVLktMhO_mouQHzNJDHFQhqyYKAKYLEef4HuRzMjw-9iztv9PAIai0heGV7ceFmFHjVdUaK13RX90Vf4t5kNN-1peHFpJ2Nhi85lHFf9QjcCK__PK55MoV/s320/1702686112601-c80dd8f1-7ad1-40d8-aced-b34766a77f7b.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Wrigley Field all lit up and looking beautiful. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4MENCASluO7XfRB7-1CaPtLx2OUox4YAeq8u5vFJvY8rgcEmqjCQ47ZlrdRnXth-_8-fk9i-JMsfF0qgBYPh2YabJ86H8EpcSKLDv8tVkKbSWvkask14GnVz_aP8e2P0RUuOI3oTRlJyWqORmb8j8Men6MXo4uNkgu8y79lFPBGFwadCnnYk5Xhyu2eZd/s3277/1702686148910-6edb61fa-6837-4017-9bc7-64c990c6068b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3277" data-original-width="2100" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4MENCASluO7XfRB7-1CaPtLx2OUox4YAeq8u5vFJvY8rgcEmqjCQ47ZlrdRnXth-_8-fk9i-JMsfF0qgBYPh2YabJ86H8EpcSKLDv8tVkKbSWvkask14GnVz_aP8e2P0RUuOI3oTRlJyWqORmb8j8Men6MXo4uNkgu8y79lFPBGFwadCnnYk5Xhyu2eZd/s320/1702686148910-6edb61fa-6837-4017-9bc7-64c990c6068b.jpg" width="205" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeBD3zdObBCCC4D6yXhcOQ2sRatf7pX6xryTsvB9qJSZCxUAaSZDnUmvlaqedZHM9H_ZUmayIORQxpGjZ4K5B7XRvtPVHOPvSVy6lV-cOSRF7cgxP9hN5WKT0_gsZ8hOX8Ojn4agfH4zDOyEz5YXodHyz5ZCLewJ72doUIwGjVH8GmYj4kFSi_3xiFmxjo/s3312/1702686196735-bb3c5648-4351-4077-81f0-aab2e523407e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3312" data-original-width="2362" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeBD3zdObBCCC4D6yXhcOQ2sRatf7pX6xryTsvB9qJSZCxUAaSZDnUmvlaqedZHM9H_ZUmayIORQxpGjZ4K5B7XRvtPVHOPvSVy6lV-cOSRF7cgxP9hN5WKT0_gsZ8hOX8Ojn4agfH4zDOyEz5YXodHyz5ZCLewJ72doUIwGjVH8GmYj4kFSi_3xiFmxjo/s320/1702686196735-bb3c5648-4351-4077-81f0-aab2e523407e.jpg" width="228" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3G3NU0Boa1a7yrzE3nd-mwkKpiEqrD3kHmbJJyHrnrM-51d9qSmSfLSgZNUcsfcxDIPah2D94yWWvD2YMR9ucH55FgWqXt9FuuJC8JBCak1zePGo0mhcqJoRh1xgHTB5iyPlotwwkZERHmBoid27uckC4H74LIVJrLNTs02WhYzPISLs_OUQjZGwH-Fcq/s3277/1702686237030-26f6f05d-9679-4ecc-8324-dfe4ccc8d4bc%20(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3277" data-original-width="2100" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3G3NU0Boa1a7yrzE3nd-mwkKpiEqrD3kHmbJJyHrnrM-51d9qSmSfLSgZNUcsfcxDIPah2D94yWWvD2YMR9ucH55FgWqXt9FuuJC8JBCak1zePGo0mhcqJoRh1xgHTB5iyPlotwwkZERHmBoid27uckC4H74LIVJrLNTs02WhYzPISLs_OUQjZGwH-Fcq/s320/1702686237030-26f6f05d-9679-4ecc-8324-dfe4ccc8d4bc%20(1).jpg" width="205" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGtoPOthE9TSBJlMVvYr9HievVdD8ApqO4lxI1UItC9jcRs3v-MnTyYh4H9YFtuVbObmi-hGmq8bR2fa5lnSiu-AyWEr8vxL2aWp7MYtbfUczCPn53QeFr063kT3HQmY_N8in3SqBzk63xjH-1ZqpQu-QPfxTJ3wAzNZf_-nsrrsIKUIE4_yY5Xp3PfOCg/s3264/1702686269895-d547bbee-1d5a-4f0a-8df1-8c799a8fa46f.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="2000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGtoPOthE9TSBJlMVvYr9HievVdD8ApqO4lxI1UItC9jcRs3v-MnTyYh4H9YFtuVbObmi-hGmq8bR2fa5lnSiu-AyWEr8vxL2aWp7MYtbfUczCPn53QeFr063kT3HQmY_N8in3SqBzk63xjH-1ZqpQu-QPfxTJ3wAzNZf_-nsrrsIKUIE4_yY5Xp3PfOCg/s320/1702686269895-d547bbee-1d5a-4f0a-8df1-8c799a8fa46f.jpg" width="196" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHgaBkRzh76Yr9-ErFOKXr8qgxsc_uOICkDj1FaijiZVYBjdXLatd2HK_08bJpTBjjO056jrKl5S7jcFjBFRy4SuMh63cw_MFZnTyYWpljyaiXddOnxlEUu2AUUmIrvB7HjPoqiP4Ix8Oe71rIoUC3GZ5ojYQxEJcRlEY5ltiqyXqpoPZhccQ05rZTLZdQ/s3312/1702686302139-ec914f60-efa1-4c0f-bdec-cd5ce979f2aa%20(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3312" data-original-width="2362" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHgaBkRzh76Yr9-ErFOKXr8qgxsc_uOICkDj1FaijiZVYBjdXLatd2HK_08bJpTBjjO056jrKl5S7jcFjBFRy4SuMh63cw_MFZnTyYWpljyaiXddOnxlEUu2AUUmIrvB7HjPoqiP4Ix8Oe71rIoUC3GZ5ojYQxEJcRlEY5ltiqyXqpoPZhccQ05rZTLZdQ/s320/1702686302139-ec914f60-efa1-4c0f-bdec-cd5ce979f2aa%20(2).jpg" width="228" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Finally we have some Larry Parrish Expos pieces. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Thank you Tom!!</div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-80555854148438127802023-12-13T11:39:00.000-08:002023-12-13T11:39:52.792-08:00A Nice Surprise<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">As you know, I spent a while in the hospital. While hospitalized, former Blue Jay and Yankee outfielder Jesse Barfield was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in St. Mary's Ontario.</p><p style="text-align: center;">It was a double induction, since there was cancellations and all that for Covid, but I digress.. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">One of the things Jesse started doing on Twitter is offering signed copies of the Induction plaque, much like Cooperstown sells. </p><p style="text-align: center;">I had made a comment that I would like to get a Barfield auto sometime but funds weren't there..</p><p style="text-align: center;">Step in the wonderful Kevin Glew, author of the Cooperstowners in Canada blog. </p><p style="text-align: center;">He saw I was recovering and my wish to get a Barfield sometime. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUkO8HuWZhpzPTgZiXC-2JPAldBPGrgXHwDz7i-6wMw_QtUXvRYQXNDQxNwxPlql25poSdjPdsR-Eszl5fY7NaTALdcRkeun7wW1mK-KfiaZNxoRmB7XriwC2ehljxcs1O2fedBb5e9b1_h0Lw6-sMqscuuhdKOiZShwzbpeRItj4qLBOBCsxrnhpPnuKm/s2048/PXL_20231117_223804828_exported_984_1702356324730.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="457" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUkO8HuWZhpzPTgZiXC-2JPAldBPGrgXHwDz7i-6wMw_QtUXvRYQXNDQxNwxPlql25poSdjPdsR-Eszl5fY7NaTALdcRkeun7wW1mK-KfiaZNxoRmB7XriwC2ehljxcs1O2fedBb5e9b1_h0Lw6-sMqscuuhdKOiZShwzbpeRItj4qLBOBCsxrnhpPnuKm/w343-h457/PXL_20231117_223804828_exported_984_1702356324730.jpg" width="343" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I received this. The note stated that he (Kevin) saw my post and sent it to me.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Talking more afterward, he said that had Jesse come across my note, he likely would have sent something himself. So I have a nice 83 Topps Jesse Barfield autographed card. </div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-4829273566300882112023-12-11T20:39:00.000-08:002023-12-11T20:39:45.317-08:00A December Update<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">As I mentioned in my last post, I needed a break.. I was stressed out from multiple angles and generally not having fun doing anything. Plus there was a couple months I spent in hospital because of infections and then a rather gnarly wound on my knee that's still closing up as I type. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">I do have some ideas for future posts. I am going to get back into the Stadium posts. I enjoy doing them and I believe people like reading them.. I do have some other ideas coming up. I do have a book I want to start soon.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJQrBC9deNpKDfBLUP7R-YblTbACkLdoNS9HIUdMH_Arz60lgGNs135dStQtDbkYSf0vFmUmesHobgvi1TxnhGx5g5icir3rRBH0enlCGMIpI9lFjkvO5GSCkVITD9BvcViHM4sG8CevNPjLwESSTWk0rGxwLs_M_8zVyIeeoPSKg4s5MGLE11jooR_AOn/s425/71CRbuFvbqL._SY425_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="425" data-original-width="328" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJQrBC9deNpKDfBLUP7R-YblTbACkLdoNS9HIUdMH_Arz60lgGNs135dStQtDbkYSf0vFmUmesHobgvi1TxnhGx5g5icir3rRBH0enlCGMIpI9lFjkvO5GSCkVITD9BvcViHM4sG8CevNPjLwESSTWk0rGxwLs_M_8zVyIeeoPSKg4s5MGLE11jooR_AOn/s320/71CRbuFvbqL._SY425_.jpg" width="247" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I had some gift cards from last Christmas for Chapters/Indigo, so I decided to buy this.. There is another book I'd love to get, but oddly enough it's not really available in Canada....</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGHQdZKk2MZcTGOs42HC5KydjhteL6TJX_iXMqh2RE5E9miSww5kkr6EZ-rEh0TkhFRqbPMTNfJcx6hfoKQyamL9uU0oUxFyAalaUTCZwD73Rs2AIS-2scNmYuWjhOzzSZi6PJd9HKT__ljKGT4NigAFbdng0qGlfZ8XqIIWiAi3EZxqDCZ7HqbdkLils-/s425/71qBMaQ1LUL._SY425_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="425" data-original-width="298" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGHQdZKk2MZcTGOs42HC5KydjhteL6TJX_iXMqh2RE5E9miSww5kkr6EZ-rEh0TkhFRqbPMTNfJcx6hfoKQyamL9uU0oUxFyAalaUTCZwD73Rs2AIS-2scNmYuWjhOzzSZi6PJd9HKT__ljKGT4NigAFbdng0qGlfZ8XqIIWiAi3EZxqDCZ7HqbdkLils-/s320/71qBMaQ1LUL._SY425_.jpg" width="224" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Now... You'd think a book with this title would have more of a presence in Canadian stores/online retailers than just ebook... Copies I found on book selling sites came from the US and Australia.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Amazon does seem to have it for not too insane, but I can't afford it right now. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Anyway..</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I want to start blogging again regularly soon. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I also have a few cards and other things I want to show off. That will come next post. I just wanted to let my blogging friends know that I'm still alive and well. I took a complete break. Not even reading the blogs too much. For that, I apologize. It will be returning to my rotation again.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-48823265608691313962023-08-12T13:37:00.002-07:002023-08-12T13:37:41.530-07:00Update<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">I'm writing this to let everyone know I'm going on a short hiatus from writing here. Between my physical health and my mental health, I just don't have it in me to do the quality of posts I expect from myself. </p><p style="text-align: center;">My other blog will have some life updates in the meantime. </p><p style="text-align: center;">I'll just say I'm fed up with my body and am really teetering on the edge</p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-20585816969567058802023-08-01T18:58:00.002-07:002023-08-01T18:58:26.009-07:00A Mattsplosion of Cards<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">I almost feel ok today. Mind you, I did just wake up from a nap, so that may have something to do with it.. </p><p style="text-align: center;">Anyway, I wanted to show off some cards I received from two different Matts. One is a Brewers collector, one is a Royals collector. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">First, the Royals Matt:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioMNQtaS7eRKLBw7wFoSrAyk8RVenDpDVdIqqC3ahA286Tb22QvGSR80KT3F1T8JIA2Gl0SL_ydxqDFR-aBFTkCa8odF9y_o_ms49UakgYMoy51w1-dbQJA2c_eO6OGVkuykBzNfM3wmaerVBwz1PuMC7qI6ENdUZqEC3tHr6PfHHKgRI0AFtwsldyEJij/s2160/Scan%20-%202023-08-01%2021_30_20.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1524" data-original-width="2160" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioMNQtaS7eRKLBw7wFoSrAyk8RVenDpDVdIqqC3ahA286Tb22QvGSR80KT3F1T8JIA2Gl0SL_ydxqDFR-aBFTkCa8odF9y_o_ms49UakgYMoy51w1-dbQJA2c_eO6OGVkuykBzNfM3wmaerVBwz1PuMC7qI6ENdUZqEC3tHr6PfHHKgRI0AFtwsldyEJij/s320/Scan%20-%202023-08-01%2021_30_20.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Glen Gorbous. I can honestly say I hadn't heard of him until Matt offered duplicates to people in our card Discord group. I asked if any Canadians were in it, and he mentioned Gorbous. So I now have one. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSQ1PExzSAIpGnrX8C1CsBPQCP_QwR6HfLAYaytMpAn7u0bVQDMB_kdXFdrL_Zog2ATVzpJeoYtbXs-sBGElzCkJfN8IVQyH0ogF-eldGJfWsNtZ2riytOLXJ4WbL_I6zyjZTtiOa-1PwC6BbHaaDF5RlrOwd04Kh9R-BFYBlpsTDM8R9-8HUIX5ePnh_f/s2742/Scan%20-%202023-08-01%2021_31_36.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2742" data-original-width="1962" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSQ1PExzSAIpGnrX8C1CsBPQCP_QwR6HfLAYaytMpAn7u0bVQDMB_kdXFdrL_Zog2ATVzpJeoYtbXs-sBGElzCkJfN8IVQyH0ogF-eldGJfWsNtZ2riytOLXJ4WbL_I6zyjZTtiOa-1PwC6BbHaaDF5RlrOwd04Kh9R-BFYBlpsTDM8R9-8HUIX5ePnh_f/w286-h400/Scan%20-%202023-08-01%2021_31_36.jpeg" width="286" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">All Time Team cards from TCMA. Kind of funny that they made these in the early 80s for the Jays. There were 12 cards.. Bob Bailor, John Mayberry, Bobby Cox, Luis Gomez, Roy Howell, Otto Velez, Al Woods, Rick Cerone, Dave Lemanczyk, Tom Underwood, and Joey McLaughlin. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">If this was made now, it would look MUCH different. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Expos has Ron Fairly, Dave Cash, Tim Foli, Bob Bailey, Ken Singleton, Ellis Valentine, Rusty Staub, John Bateman, Steve Rogers, Woodie Fryman, Mike Marshall, and Jim Fanning. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Honestly, the three cards shown are the only three I ever see from these sets.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Now, the other Matt sent me a bunch of cards. Some Expos and Jays, but I'm focusing on the Canadians he sent. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSBMKkz0qFROTI5_G1yeXnRAVcLeuYCGIwoe6y1o2wD2K3JwCpM0nh5b2OQDzEU04ceWF0zGw9lcMt01aCK7bM38rv_LGnYcACI-MK5ronDWZ-toKAquHWYsVqPijkPODgq8z0zfTxgvUYCLxjKlGUpKRuzgclJ36wCC0_SwNT5jIRNlAojkOVH8iw3W4h/s2787/Scan%20-%202023-08-01%2021_34_12.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2787" data-original-width="1988" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSBMKkz0qFROTI5_G1yeXnRAVcLeuYCGIwoe6y1o2wD2K3JwCpM0nh5b2OQDzEU04ceWF0zGw9lcMt01aCK7bM38rv_LGnYcACI-MK5ronDWZ-toKAquHWYsVqPijkPODgq8z0zfTxgvUYCLxjKlGUpKRuzgclJ36wCC0_SwNT5jIRNlAojkOVH8iw3W4h/w285-h400/Scan%20-%202023-08-01%2021_34_12.jpeg" width="285" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It's the Ax Man! John Axford, Brett Lawrie, and Larry Walker </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I think Lawrie was a decent player, but his... Shall we say.... Intensity? and attitude were too much to overcome. He definitely got fewer chances than hotheads like Milton Bradley and Carl Everett. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJylWYxK025DN3dyFWFJt0jm4uSF4C1rDHrgXxxfrlTb2xLkQO9PVBMbndnPi5TjKtx3RPxwjm2Ed2DkHz5QAXdA51hhVhjiYsAxqCpgkMQGfsn43M1Zncx9xelXDZEVyP0MWxabJgIim39CV58FHwIFqDqfB6a-PgkSq-rrw5Zzc298IACmcOj5unXHQJ/s2830/Scan%20-%202023-08-01%2021_36_00.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2830" data-original-width="1996" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJylWYxK025DN3dyFWFJt0jm4uSF4C1rDHrgXxxfrlTb2xLkQO9PVBMbndnPi5TjKtx3RPxwjm2Ed2DkHz5QAXdA51hhVhjiYsAxqCpgkMQGfsn43M1Zncx9xelXDZEVyP0MWxabJgIim39CV58FHwIFqDqfB6a-PgkSq-rrw5Zzc298IACmcOj5unXHQJ/w283-h400/Scan%20-%202023-08-01%2021_36_00.jpeg" width="283" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Another Walker and Axford, this time joined by Korey Koskie. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieQ5yIs42IEq6wOcKdyGALZTmOT-69NEYouit1dwV5QI4ldgoku9BwMRd22HUH0hJEuvqwT64xhqiRVuznslXvqvFrEADYfOFy1BcYIJaQMQO8RnPOAbN5n8Ffk2rigdQ7fsAk2hCLlFPeZIkbNIer1ZUY-v-d-mOnvuA3pjPkY-t5Dwsbl7AaK-a7CEgA/s2160/Scan%20-%202023-08-01%2021_37_20.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1502" data-original-width="2160" height="279" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieQ5yIs42IEq6wOcKdyGALZTmOT-69NEYouit1dwV5QI4ldgoku9BwMRd22HUH0hJEuvqwT64xhqiRVuznslXvqvFrEADYfOFy1BcYIJaQMQO8RnPOAbN5n8Ffk2rigdQ7fsAk2hCLlFPeZIkbNIer1ZUY-v-d-mOnvuA3pjPkY-t5Dwsbl7AaK-a7CEgA/w400-h279/Scan%20-%202023-08-01%2021_37_20.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I also wanted to show a couple cards from the book he wrote. He wrote a book called Opening Day in Milwaukee. I may have to see about an ebook rental from the library, since physical copies are non-existent here. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRLxa27eaj5vU5LDHZY8-bnneOoXQBJazlddRtadV6cJ6B1tIceP3iJos07et8RYjkVyl22ME56PwCm09xl0wlruQ9piaqCVUdHHJutePmk0DD3hbcxgrTsojnCBZLSD05wNSGj_pYvcQtW5VlDXnJytEXoM1OAE4_luAflWeQB2Y77_aTD6-jWhoVrbK8/s2574/Scan%20-%202023-08-01%2021_38_27.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2574" data-original-width="1789" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRLxa27eaj5vU5LDHZY8-bnneOoXQBJazlddRtadV6cJ6B1tIceP3iJos07et8RYjkVyl22ME56PwCm09xl0wlruQ9piaqCVUdHHJutePmk0DD3hbcxgrTsojnCBZLSD05wNSGj_pYvcQtW5VlDXnJytEXoM1OAE4_luAflWeQB2Y77_aTD6-jWhoVrbK8/s320/Scan%20-%202023-08-01%2021_38_27.jpeg" width="222" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Finally, a card of the author. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It strikes me.. We have seen all sorts of cards for all sorts of topics. TV shows, movies, Bands, Gross Out humour... Why have we never seen a set of Author Trading Cards? </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">"Author Trading Cards! You've read their work.. Now, collect their card!" </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Thank you very much to both Matts for the cards!</div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-18643700172147190032023-07-30T12:59:00.001-07:002023-07-30T12:59:06.964-07:00Signature Sundays - July 30<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">Well, as you may have seen, yesterday there was no Stadium Saturday. I've mentioned before I've been struggling with my mental health lately and I was just overwhelmed trying to even decide on a topic yesterday. Between that and being social for a while, I ended up sleeping most of yesterday evening and just woke up at almost 4PM EDT today to do this post. </p><p style="text-align: center;">So again, I decided to postpone my Stadium post rather than put out a subpar effort. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Anyway, onto Signature Sunday Matters!</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Today I do have a post. I have a nice card to show. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcyRFxkBMWpRk21a3xzImkBV1B07zNSqEEDdWoL9CEteBtbytDpAX0KNKkcgBxTXigqFWxY_uhmD_6klilz3Uwvd44TAnFjwL3bDFI2TirPhIuZg9LyZyQlWzo8Z93p5SlHlDeIIt_A-BGez_7QQ_2HxI55CSypM1wR3juzpVxAJRrqYYnsLEwj1ZbQoB-/s2533/Scan%20-%202023-07-30%2015_47_26.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2533" data-original-width="1800" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcyRFxkBMWpRk21a3xzImkBV1B07zNSqEEDdWoL9CEteBtbytDpAX0KNKkcgBxTXigqFWxY_uhmD_6klilz3Uwvd44TAnFjwL3bDFI2TirPhIuZg9LyZyQlWzo8Z93p5SlHlDeIIt_A-BGez_7QQ_2HxI55CSypM1wR3juzpVxAJRrqYYnsLEwj1ZbQoB-/w284-h400/Scan%20-%202023-07-30%2015_47_26.jpeg" width="284" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Hall of Famer Fergie Jenkins!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I have a couple of his autographs. There are a few players I ended up getting a couple cards of, but since they're different cards, I'm of course going to keep them. (I do, however, have an Ernie Whitt 86T duplicate that's autographed that I'm willing to trade) </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">On one hand, I'm upset with myself for not getting the post out yesterday. On the other, I'm realizing sometimes I need to take care of myself.. </div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-86421843386934286982023-07-23T16:27:00.000-07:002023-07-23T16:27:02.787-07:00Signature Sundays - July 23<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello friends! </p><p style="text-align: center;">Here's part two of the blog doubleheader!</p><p style="text-align: center;">Of course, this is the easier post, since it's a pic and a post lol</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0fZLlcqI5vx94qpkd2Pt91q8j-QAJ9Inb2K8iUxCKsNzHyACroldp9kN2wzBNxMGx6mRccMz_Tr5mSxQDkXLv3TZ9-Z4LkCAcsI5wCOA0hOQ-l-D_6jZF6lGeEdY-cbzwH7FE8RERx0Xkjz3YfIM2ByQocQBsLDcFHO8MAJZ1DHVC4PQ6bD8uRt1y6-D/s2163/Scan%20-%202023-07-23%2019_21_40.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2163" data-original-width="1541" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0fZLlcqI5vx94qpkd2Pt91q8j-QAJ9Inb2K8iUxCKsNzHyACroldp9kN2wzBNxMGx6mRccMz_Tr5mSxQDkXLv3TZ9-Z4LkCAcsI5wCOA0hOQ-l-D_6jZF6lGeEdY-cbzwH7FE8RERx0Xkjz3YfIM2ByQocQBsLDcFHO8MAJZ1DHVC4PQ6bD8uRt1y6-D/w456-h640/Scan%20-%202023-07-23%2019_21_40.jpeg" width="456" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It's Bo Naylor!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">His brother Josh is also on the Guardians and their brother Myles was drafted 39th by the Oakland A's. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Just so you know, for those who may be wondering Bo also used the name Noah for the first couple years of his pro career. Noah is his real name. </div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-29334706403534324452023-07-23T16:17:00.001-07:002023-07-23T16:17:09.069-07:00Stadium Saturdays - Shea Stadium <p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">Today I'm doing a Sunday doubleheader of sorts.. I wanted to get both the Saturday and Sunday posts out, but yesterday I was so beat after going out for a bit I ended up sleeping and then getting up way too late to really do this justice. So today I'm doing both the Stadium Saturday and Signature Sunday posts..</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Today's stadium, as you can gather from the title, is Shea Stadium. The formal name was William A. Shea Municipal Stadium. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmw3ue20CyM2hReeY3kFgVL2WmsZ61Pa0S_PelHe-sET2Ofvr-IdS_i5CiddwlG2B2Lq3btCFIhrwqAer5LHAzfYsnsF4fk-Pe_FQw4D5mm5vnoT4VOHQn_gP1Rn6NVej-rO4D-DUfvweO3F7f9wbaL1QRh8GOupcS3in2nTIaLixj6yTgqp4eZzBnRJ8u/s350/96155-9934334Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="253" data-original-width="350" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmw3ue20CyM2hReeY3kFgVL2WmsZ61Pa0S_PelHe-sET2Ofvr-IdS_i5CiddwlG2B2Lq3btCFIhrwqAer5LHAzfYsnsF4fk-Pe_FQw4D5mm5vnoT4VOHQn_gP1Rn6NVej-rO4D-DUfvweO3F7f9wbaL1QRh8GOupcS3in2nTIaLixj6yTgqp4eZzBnRJ8u/s320/96155-9934334Fr.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">The stadium was built in 1964 for the Mets, who spent their first two seasons in the Polo Grounds. </p><p style="text-align: center;">The Flushing site was pitched to the Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley in 1957, but he refused because he couldn't agree to terms with the city. The city was going to have a hand in the construction and operations of the stadium, but O'Malley wanted to build it himself to have control over the operations and parking. Or shall I say, the revenue from said?</p><p style="text-align: center;">The other sticking point was O'Malley wanting the new stadium in Brooklyn. The city was insistent on the Flushing site. When Los Angeles offered O'Malley what he wanted, he decided to pack up and move to the west coast. </p><p style="text-align: center;">The Mets came into existence when Shea was trying to help begin a third Major League, called the Continental League. The league disbanded when MLB agreed to expand, adding 8 teams. </p><p style="text-align: center;">In order to get the stadium built, the team agreed to a substantial rent in order to pay the construction bonds. At the time, the State didn't allow public money to be used to build a stadium. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijpQA8W493apDKbMT1yOqU8xe9ZI28cDiZPSVUz4eKpj6fKTvHWwvR7UPXb2BWpNYtY2JESmBTvp_UGV4ElvImfJqM-_rj3Yp6RRGZ3m9PQVnZerRY7knHCCC7l4hYyOtuQk9C4blwF6NsuxWo9ekVfmjfR-DfgTmTj5jcVwvvNu6BRh-CeWpuwfy-q1kf/s350/70926-5122191RepBk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="249" data-original-width="350" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijpQA8W493apDKbMT1yOqU8xe9ZI28cDiZPSVUz4eKpj6fKTvHWwvR7UPXb2BWpNYtY2JESmBTvp_UGV4ElvImfJqM-_rj3Yp6RRGZ3m9PQVnZerRY7knHCCC7l4hYyOtuQk9C4blwF6NsuxWo9ekVfmjfR-DfgTmTj5jcVwvvNu6BRh-CeWpuwfy-q1kf/w400-h285/70926-5122191RepBk.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The stadium opened five days before the World's Fair in New York. The Fair site was across the street from the stadium. For the Fair, the stadium had blue and orange steel panels on the outside. They remained on the stadium until 1980. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">At one time the foul territory was the largest in the Majors. As retrofits occurred (it was retrofitted after the Jets moved out) the foul territory was lessened. At one time there were plans to have this stadium fully enclosed, but that never came to pass. In the card above, you can kind of see the outline where the outfield enclosure would have gone. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjbZWY7zpBs1Ou2QxvHtcRY_Imcrg8qtHIFBTg9QY5PfcqaOt4kpxT3BgDypwIgJkfG9IWstTX7fvUXZJNhHGtG-2EVQVr2e5S0bRHnvTqxVcKaGtAJtB5FwfojK3lPiq4V7MzHyTSVytebvycDB_jLatgjxdP1lTMs_HS3A5Ci1LP8o3JgMNSopyWlBeo/s349/389-655Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="249" data-original-width="349" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjbZWY7zpBs1Ou2QxvHtcRY_Imcrg8qtHIFBTg9QY5PfcqaOt4kpxT3BgDypwIgJkfG9IWstTX7fvUXZJNhHGtG-2EVQVr2e5S0bRHnvTqxVcKaGtAJtB5FwfojK3lPiq4V7MzHyTSVytebvycDB_jLatgjxdP1lTMs_HS3A5Ci1LP8o3JgMNSopyWlBeo/w400-h285/389-655Fr.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Shea hosted one All Star Game, in 1964. It hosted the Postseason in 1969, 1973, 1986, 1988, 1999, 2000, and 2006.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Tommy Agee was the only person to hit a fair ball into the upper deck in left field. In 1971 Dave Kingman hit a ball out of the stadium and hit the Giants' team bus parked behind the bullpen.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Shea Stadium also hosted the first and last games in Montreal Expos history. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-Pyd5hHWd3uonbhsavNJkc_924yS2jgMPDHDnFld7VHolZdWT7j_VGId_2iUHAEE6Y2kebAJAvUhGL0i1fbT33qQy9JHJposKlA4EeQBpBx0aHCkl8WVsvLTPkWL4x_xJzdNzikTUcOu8hj0rObqUoEyw4Bl0Rn4vFe5RTopWyn80-pgWl8CXvoq-kUPn/s600/shea16_top%20(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="600" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-Pyd5hHWd3uonbhsavNJkc_924yS2jgMPDHDnFld7VHolZdWT7j_VGId_2iUHAEE6Y2kebAJAvUhGL0i1fbT33qQy9JHJposKlA4EeQBpBx0aHCkl8WVsvLTPkWL4x_xJzdNzikTUcOu8hj0rObqUoEyw4Bl0Rn4vFe5RTopWyn80-pgWl8CXvoq-kUPn/w640-h426/shea16_top%20(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Here we see Shea in the football configuration. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">1975 was a busy year for the Stadium. The Mets, Yankees, NFL Giants, and Jets all shared the venue. The Yankees were here due to Yankee Stadium being renovated. The two NFL teams were waiting for Giants Stadium to be completed. Neither the Jets and Giants could play home games until after the baseball season was over. Since neither MLB team made the playoffs, the NFL had the park from October on.. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPbCEXCUjKI-JLLZp8TQK38X9vZv7XMR4MsGXwMnx7zOf_K1Ow6uOHZNeIvsUpzoCDu8pUDgYj32fyXKJeu8-RzN-vfGs1Fa0Qr3UQn9OcoZCCyBcWun_34NczFjuwqA3nvG7D7mEbETs1xLZ0UqG2UQ0ogh5x4wZaj-vtfmrJsSkNGw61zDA4gGw_yFYs/s720/shea16_top.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="452" data-original-width="720" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPbCEXCUjKI-JLLZp8TQK38X9vZv7XMR4MsGXwMnx7zOf_K1Ow6uOHZNeIvsUpzoCDu8pUDgYj32fyXKJeu8-RzN-vfGs1Fa0Qr3UQn9OcoZCCyBcWun_34NczFjuwqA3nvG7D7mEbETs1xLZ0UqG2UQ0ogh5x4wZaj-vtfmrJsSkNGw61zDA4gGw_yFYs/w400-h251/shea16_top.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Here we see Citi Field rising in the background.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Bd64-6HnHPpBedHtGiZvvdGTzNx9k2EnsLszd3heHc8t_OxUp_HhAP87EygoL9peQtLOYxkEsDSyhRFVqh_7c1bVkHaGaD946KJKSGMfF0ivzACRkqAtkvTojIaa-EnQHKDc7vTDmCIKF5x8MR1Wljbl8-f7zRaIlpgCD8vMD4rm9fdX-NrVd3UagCQY/s452/SheaStadium3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="330" data-original-width="452" height="468" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Bd64-6HnHPpBedHtGiZvvdGTzNx9k2EnsLszd3heHc8t_OxUp_HhAP87EygoL9peQtLOYxkEsDSyhRFVqh_7c1bVkHaGaD946KJKSGMfF0ivzACRkqAtkvTojIaa-EnQHKDc7vTDmCIKF5x8MR1Wljbl8-f7zRaIlpgCD8vMD4rm9fdX-NrVd3UagCQY/w640-h468/SheaStadium3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">You can see the orange panels in this photo.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">In 1965, there were plans to add a glass dome and 15000 seats, but the Mets opposed the plan. The idea was scrapped altogether when engineers determined that the foundation wouldn't be able to support the additional weight.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">When it came time to remove Shea Stadium, they needed to dismantle it rather than implode it, as NYC regulations don't allow implosion in city limits. After any salvageable memorabilia was taken, demolition began. Pairs of seats were sold for $869.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So who used this place??</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The New York Mets (MLB) 1964-2008</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">New York Jets (AFL/NFL) 1964-1983</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">New York Yankees (MLB) 1974-1975</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">New York Giants (NFL) 1975</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">St. John's Red Storm (NCAA) 2000</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Two personal things I'd like to add.. I did a painting of Shea Stadium based on a picture from Topps Magazine while I was in high school. I still have it. Maybe once I excavate it from my closet I'll take a pic and show people. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The other thing I remember is hating playing games in this place on any baseball video game. I don't know what it was but I found it impossible to focus playing games. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">What say you? Any memories of Shea? Let me know!</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-84524476100459613222023-07-16T11:37:00.001-07:002023-07-16T11:37:10.819-07:00Signature Sundays - July 16<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">As you can see, there was no Stadium Saturday post. Honestly the past few weeks I've been feeling low emotionally, mentally, and physically. I've had zero energy. As I put it to my CMHA worker, I just feel done with everything. And that includes being done with everything. </p><p style="text-align: center;">Yesterday I didn't have the energy or the motivation to do a post that you, the awesome readers of this blog, deserve. I feel it's better to not do it than quarter-ass it.. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">ANYWAY...</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">It's Sunday! That means it's time to show another autographed card from my collection..</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiTLY28HdXgr90USP6qvjQ74nnD0ypIUHRzLFoph8ePsGQ2u8oHEZMCKFGr-IA6wPkFibWkU8LLt6-hXLEdxrq_65vtHWfrIvjOsfI3iCKtwgWuFo66d5w8wolEZmku89MghcLRf7i-Y_nLSRq6BTUNHBnO47vB4FUXhfmX37ecgxSTqK8_0Fo3pQwPkvm/s2678/Scan%20-%202023-07-16%2013_38_35.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2678" data-original-width="1884" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiTLY28HdXgr90USP6qvjQ74nnD0ypIUHRzLFoph8ePsGQ2u8oHEZMCKFGr-IA6wPkFibWkU8LLt6-hXLEdxrq_65vtHWfrIvjOsfI3iCKtwgWuFo66d5w8wolEZmku89MghcLRf7i-Y_nLSRq6BTUNHBnO47vB4FUXhfmX37ecgxSTqK8_0Fo3pQwPkvm/w281-h400/Scan%20-%202023-07-16%2013_38_35.jpeg" width="281" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Today's card is Paul Quantrill. It's from that Leaf Signature Series they did where every card was autographed. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Now, I just need to get an autograph of his son.. </div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-15430013356110571972023-07-09T12:10:00.000-07:002023-07-09T12:10:50.742-07:00Signature Sundays - July 9 <p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">It's Sunday. Technically this is the second post I've done today since my stadium post launched after midnight.. (oops) but I digress..</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Today's card puts another check in my "Canadian Player Autograph Card" collection/project.. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNoGwf9OYLYvcrabQVUR-mqYW2s9ZZ0DqddhAu6Wu2LklTonfSudDDC0fF69yVJoaGGXiNdgtcB01rDp79SWfq2maMfoCzQr-rv3X0OcN83xbY0cgWtCg0S51QioTAfswN_hsPUhGsA2hXY603vViIa5vX9VdVF9XZxyUq7EiMAgnxN-Y3lIiRtStF-jo2/s2551/Scan%20-%202023-07-09%2014_23_02.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2551" data-original-width="1815" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNoGwf9OYLYvcrabQVUR-mqYW2s9ZZ0DqddhAu6Wu2LklTonfSudDDC0fF69yVJoaGGXiNdgtcB01rDp79SWfq2maMfoCzQr-rv3X0OcN83xbY0cgWtCg0S51QioTAfswN_hsPUhGsA2hXY603vViIa5vX9VdVF9XZxyUq7EiMAgnxN-Y3lIiRtStF-jo2/w456-h640/Scan%20-%202023-07-09%2014_23_02.jpeg" width="456" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Love those Marlins uniforms, though I love the original teal even more. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">He played for the Marlins, Reds, Rangers, Cubs, and Red Sox.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">After retiring, he went into the Cubs' front office, pitched for Canada in the 2017 WBC, and started broadcasting Cubs games. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Fun fact.. He was originally drafted by the Rangers, but was traded with Rick Helling to the Marlins for John Burkett.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">He was born in Gibsons BC, which was also the setting of a long running Canadian series, The Beachcombers. </div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-23587228638038104752023-07-08T22:17:00.002-07:002023-07-08T22:17:43.221-07:00Stadium Saturdays - Tropicana Field<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">I was honestly debating on skipping today because I haven't been feeling the best, but I've already been down on myself and didn't want to give myself more ammo...</p><p style="text-align: center;">ANYWAY...</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Today's topic is a field that seems to be one of the more.... Hated? fields around... Tropicana Field. The Juice Carton... </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgScK0HBaMERpleuqawG8Bt54LLiC2bXK4Vmx9PeMeLLTtpWozH3GmoGXXw9FhqUTDiXFRKj6r4NsRSZz8fB3KCoy9KtHyCG1WROjIqnDR33VrkB-kI0tPsC4S0530GDy7CWPo8cfMuQ29vHFuk7zi6lPNzattRbsQQVQN_vL-PUj3mYPZCOYQElDRsVZiO/s350/9853-567Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="252" data-original-width="350" height="460" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgScK0HBaMERpleuqawG8Bt54LLiC2bXK4Vmx9PeMeLLTtpWozH3GmoGXXw9FhqUTDiXFRKj6r4NsRSZz8fB3KCoy9KtHyCG1WROjIqnDR33VrkB-kI0tPsC4S0530GDy7CWPo8cfMuQ29vHFuk7zi6lPNzattRbsQQVQN_vL-PUj3mYPZCOYQElDRsVZiO/w640-h460/9853-567Fr.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Located in St Petersburg Florida. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So, The Trop came into being because after Tampa got the Buccaneers and the Rowdies in the 70s, St Petersburg said "Us too!!" and started designs on a stadium to attract MLB to the area. Original designs were to be an open-air stadium with design cues from Kauffman Stadium. There was going to be a circus-tent like covering as well. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtTjolAdmvQt3kQ4NEHMoB7wmtw5Nz9c0vO67DAcRFTyDCGMAoy12en_C-Kqjkl-EoLGc5iX2FiR3jaBD_rq7-Ce3MVQAcyFJYhxtRd_9DEUSQWvFeeV0a_7zhMmm8CKIimH_QHYkQCgTAxwz6q6XdgMlstrd6cnD_v2Zjnf_gJxpnuPSNA9EC6YOgqspu/s455/trop_51308_medium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="341" data-original-width="455" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtTjolAdmvQt3kQ4NEHMoB7wmtw5Nz9c0vO67DAcRFTyDCGMAoy12en_C-Kqjkl-EoLGc5iX2FiR3jaBD_rq7-Ce3MVQAcyFJYhxtRd_9DEUSQWvFeeV0a_7zhMmm8CKIimH_QHYkQCgTAxwz6q6XdgMlstrd6cnD_v2Zjnf_gJxpnuPSNA9EC6YOgqspu/w640-h480/trop_51308_medium.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This design was rejected due to the weather in Florida in the summer. Humidity and Thunderstorms. With the odd Hurricane knocking on the door.. They decided on a fixed dome design for this reason and started working on it in 1986. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The first team it targeted was the Chicago White Sox, who were in a battle with Illinois government officials to get funding to replace Comiskey Park. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">In the early 90s, the Mariners and Giants were both rumoured to be moving to the Dome. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It received its first tenant in 1991, with the Arena Football League's Tampa Storm. In 1993, the Lightning of the NHL used the facility for its home games for three seasons. During this time, the stadium went from being called the Florida Suncoast Dome to The ThunderDome....</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">In 1996 the Rays came into (future) existence. The Lightning and Storm moved to a new arena, and Tropicana Field underwent retrofitting to complete its intended purpose. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Ebbets field was the inspiration for some of the upgrades. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy8L-9LZliDO8m7ofWsO0Ok5GskrxHJt2B5rMkNRrIsjdk1HixiL1KcvJfEyRewT5lS8XkpXWbf_G8I35Sc8lm3xlKAY9ojEMxkzuQB5RZ6hwMvw1FO7jeR6hRrdQdX789xI2s8j8HExDYC4AxqokoF2LGUQAtFPJmxTBPolcDRnQ2P1I05P_vrLE57Mx0/s350/168463-11463464Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="254" data-original-width="350" height="464" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy8L-9LZliDO8m7ofWsO0Ok5GskrxHJt2B5rMkNRrIsjdk1HixiL1KcvJfEyRewT5lS8XkpXWbf_G8I35Sc8lm3xlKAY9ojEMxkzuQB5RZ6hwMvw1FO7jeR6hRrdQdX789xI2s8j8HExDYC4AxqokoF2LGUQAtFPJmxTBPolcDRnQ2P1I05P_vrLE57Mx0/w640-h464/168463-11463464Fr.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Of the upgrades, the turf was done a couple times. In 2007 the Ray tank was added where people could touch a ray. (I'm honestly surprised PETA doesn't have their knickers in a knot about this) </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Tropicana Field has also served as the "home" stadium for a couple other teams for a series. In 2015 due to rioting in Baltimore, the series that was supposed to be at Camden Yards was moved to Tampa. Baltimore served as the home team.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">In 2017 due to flooding in Houston due to a hurricane, a Houston/Texas series was moved to the Trop. Oddly enough, two weeks later, a Rays home series against the Yankees was moved to Citi Field due to another hurricane. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8Aq61gPgAnhuBNCoKOKS84k6vq9rAGxXM_1nI6_cCGIKtyRwVG5tXcgdnEOojUlhxE667pjrSoU6yZTUS-ngHrCbx5bClTyaIVdys42JYmRf5AKEq_U5lsBjrxK7TeZUCiCBiUaBJVbOjdDmaxmeM2zr8JXkaJ1qL7mugn7UEVqGe8ol-bVoSkEMN7rjw/s350/182808-13161199Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="249" data-original-width="350" height="456" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8Aq61gPgAnhuBNCoKOKS84k6vq9rAGxXM_1nI6_cCGIKtyRwVG5tXcgdnEOojUlhxE667pjrSoU6yZTUS-ngHrCbx5bClTyaIVdys42JYmRf5AKEq_U5lsBjrxK7TeZUCiCBiUaBJVbOjdDmaxmeM2zr8JXkaJ1qL7mugn7UEVqGe8ol-bVoSkEMN7rjw/w640-h456/182808-13161199Fr.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">During the pandemic, World Wrestling Entertainment took over Tropicana Field and (re) renamed it The ThunderDome. They used the facility for all tapings and shows until the 2021 baseball season was ready to start, where they moved to another arena. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Of course, this place has had a lot of criticism.. I'm not going to go over too much of it, mainly because we all know the big points.. The catwalks.. The fact it's far away from Tampa and hard to get to.. The fact it looks like a giant warehouse inside.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">But there were issues before the place was even built. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Where Tropicana Field sits was site of the Gas Plant district from the late 1800s to 1986. In the 1800s, St Petersburg started a recruitment drive to get people to settle in the area. A large community of African Americans moved to the area looking for work and a place to live and well.. Have a life like everyone else. The Gas Plant district housed 800 people. Business and churches sprung up and the area did well. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">In 1979, city council decided they needed to refurbish the area, as it "has seen better days" </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The original plan called for new affordable housing and industry in order to revitalize the area. By 1982, no plans had been submitted. A group finally submitted a plan that included the stadium. Council agreed. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The residents of the area felt betrayed by council. They were given relocation and reparation packages with the understanding the area would be refurbished and be made a functioning community again. The result was a fracture in the relationship between the city and the African American community. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzZcD2McG58s2gwE9PjVSFt3aEeV8DajwvsnFd_mnb34JPkkaWz4-31OPTpM9iHLi3smsngEQaPsCEJrnkdB_E5V_oJzBYThzQzNq5qKZBQgl5q7LVeJZuJUnPFKvw1T-poM8jkXSRC2MmL0EcJXLoXFz9kOHtLIp7O3Rfyivvv8dec-qcIw5zei72T8Fx/s300/download.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzZcD2McG58s2gwE9PjVSFt3aEeV8DajwvsnFd_mnb34JPkkaWz4-31OPTpM9iHLi3smsngEQaPsCEJrnkdB_E5V_oJzBYThzQzNq5qKZBQgl5q7LVeJZuJUnPFKvw1T-poM8jkXSRC2MmL0EcJXLoXFz9kOHtLIp7O3Rfyivvv8dec-qcIw5zei72T8Fx/w400-h224/download.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq3Hr1OwuRbAcPfNFSWGEUjDQK5mNinsBWMorqSbuQJt1A6ci384iUEOeU9_313mF46op-C1Z4CjIPlq9VCIKTO29mMZgaMQGYrmRq1sm4wF5qZIEuCtvbEHRgFpoN7UGeGkWyC9xFYtV_GJZvg_R9DH33heeXRFIBI-LUJ4xX-kY7g18cJnYvD9S2AdHD/s640/EGSscSRX0AAbI91.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="384" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq3Hr1OwuRbAcPfNFSWGEUjDQK5mNinsBWMorqSbuQJt1A6ci384iUEOeU9_313mF46op-C1Z4CjIPlq9VCIKTO29mMZgaMQGYrmRq1sm4wF5qZIEuCtvbEHRgFpoN7UGeGkWyC9xFYtV_GJZvg_R9DH33heeXRFIBI-LUJ4xX-kY7g18cJnYvD9S2AdHD/w400-h240/EGSscSRX0AAbI91.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The two ThunderDomes... </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So.. Speaking of ThunderDomes... Who used this place?????</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Tampa Bay Storm (AFL) 1991-1996</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Tampa Bay Lightning (NHL) 1993-1996</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Tampa Bay Rays (MLB) 1998-now</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">St Petersburg Bowl (NCAA) 2008-2017</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">WWE ThunderDome (WWE) 2020-2021</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">There were some common knowledge things I intentionally left out like this being one of the barriers to future MLB expansion and the whole Montreal Bay ExRays....</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">But what say you? What are your impressions of the place?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-30615050874111958402023-07-02T15:44:00.002-07:002023-07-02T15:44:36.037-07:00Signature Sundays - July 2<p style="text-align: center;"> Hello Friends!</p><p style="text-align: center;">It's Sunday! Meaning it's another day I pull an autographed care out of my collection.. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Rounding out the Canadian weekend that is Canada Day weekend, we have an autograph of a Canadian player who stuck around for a number of years and had a pretty good career..</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbMenELyAGAR1sGcYs4eQBf0RwMkM87JY8qN3PftkQCLFyQc7OwctWI6aR7BgabvBrxrVFzCKeQh_9mXbfujeU3tlmcXBpQh4QS88z7FliVeNEdizgI9pc0eRCjpr0oC1926MiB-4gobaZCCRwV-eNvsSLTWYoJpJWKdeTTt1Cff67NDpDauGVZidj0fwB/s2507/Scan%20-%202023-07-02%2018_35_34.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2507" data-original-width="1791" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbMenELyAGAR1sGcYs4eQBf0RwMkM87JY8qN3PftkQCLFyQc7OwctWI6aR7BgabvBrxrVFzCKeQh_9mXbfujeU3tlmcXBpQh4QS88z7FliVeNEdizgI9pc0eRCjpr0oC1926MiB-4gobaZCCRwV-eNvsSLTWYoJpJWKdeTTt1Cff67NDpDauGVZidj0fwB/w458-h640/Scan%20-%202023-07-02%2018_35_34.jpeg" width="458" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Matt Stairs! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">In his 19 year career, he played for 13 teams. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Montreal, Oakland, Boston, Cubs, Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, Kansas City, Toronto, Texas, Detroit, Philadelphia, San Diego, and Washington.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(Montreal and Washington are different!) </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It's funny.. His Nicknames according to Baseball Reference are Wonder Hamster and Newf.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The problem of course is.... Newf is used for those from Newfoundland. Stairs is from New Brunswick.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Anyway.. I know the Star Spangled Spectacle of July 4 is coming up soon.. As many of my American friends wished me a Happy Canada Day, I wish you all a happy and safe Independence Day..</div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6290596144828299977.post-75842233632524170952023-07-01T11:37:00.013-07:002023-07-01T11:42:21.122-07:00It's Canada Day <p style="text-align: center;"> Today is July 1. That's Canada Day here in the Great White North. </p><p style="text-align: center;">Of course, the first thing that everyone thinks of when they think of Canada is hockey. And yes, we have had a number of excellent players. I think of baseball. </p><p style="text-align: center;">There have been Canadians in baseball since the beginning, really. One of the first big names from Canada was Tip O'Neill</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrGHUyw5bMpJOFwx1lZlcgYSQAiviPXWefK0Syixtgii3rul_ZtiHF1hWHwrzmIVR7PPaYjlzkysRaTp3WaKiyvc4yEDQfu9PI7OMUntKoA_mVPCKjt147iqbHHLdzXsLQ-fgD72ruZoZFhnscXdJwN9ape-XIacPkgIB-ua6cB3pL7xqnZKBPWRdGXWGy/s350/92145-6722670Fr.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="247" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrGHUyw5bMpJOFwx1lZlcgYSQAiviPXWefK0Syixtgii3rul_ZtiHF1hWHwrzmIVR7PPaYjlzkysRaTp3WaKiyvc4yEDQfu9PI7OMUntKoA_mVPCKjt147iqbHHLdzXsLQ-fgD72ruZoZFhnscXdJwN9ape-XIacPkgIB-ua6cB3pL7xqnZKBPWRdGXWGy/s320/92145-6722670Fr.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVcvDtlmupHiH6Z6MUthjXKkEVkdu7w4Cn3fZtf-hoRQtqp5w_dBCnNJcfV7nE38k0T5vUCU8-VlVqLEtv52SqCQH475ra1oDVd9aQiOgz3STFWfADE9Vc4-9orciPS4m__jzB550n8BjUDSqZZOXMrXxkV6A4tL_7uLnMoYp1WK3R0X0bjl8Zzc3bCqPe/s350/344749-10006389Fr.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="249" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVcvDtlmupHiH6Z6MUthjXKkEVkdu7w4Cn3fZtf-hoRQtqp5w_dBCnNJcfV7nE38k0T5vUCU8-VlVqLEtv52SqCQH475ra1oDVd9aQiOgz3STFWfADE9Vc4-9orciPS4m__jzB550n8BjUDSqZZOXMrXxkV6A4tL_7uLnMoYp1WK3R0X0bjl8Zzc3bCqPe/s320/344749-10006389Fr.jpg" width="228" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">There is an award named after him. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">An interesting fact.. Former US Speaker of the House Thomas O'Neill was given the nickname "Tip" as a child after the ballplayer.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face=""Google Sans", arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #202124; font-size: 20px; text-align: left;">The Tip O'Neill Award is an annual award given out by the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame to the Canadian baseball player "judged to have excelled in individual achievement and team contribution while adhering to the highest ideals of the game of baseball."</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The next big milestone for a Canadian was becoming a manager. That was done by George Gibson in Pittsburgh</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnqX8xJeovNAUFWEv1bqP3NkDNV6TeXy6yRlwNHXuc9GYGRMxsraJLIlt4-1LEYPrwsLQNJW0jcMttnSEN-gGsxQpy7Qu9kpsb57J8u-4Ab7ueM7xnySfNNXUdaZyc-CcnNmceDLFOqTMFFaxcHEo249xFBUF-aIkGJ9HfpWSiQma92ob2vRTs8dFXfS5b/s350/108613-24755997Fr.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="250" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnqX8xJeovNAUFWEv1bqP3NkDNV6TeXy6yRlwNHXuc9GYGRMxsraJLIlt4-1LEYPrwsLQNJW0jcMttnSEN-gGsxQpy7Qu9kpsb57J8u-4Ab7ueM7xnySfNNXUdaZyc-CcnNmceDLFOqTMFFaxcHEo249xFBUF-aIkGJ9HfpWSiQma92ob2vRTs8dFXfS5b/s320/108613-24755997Fr.jpg" width="229" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">George Gibson was the first Canadian born manager in the Major Leagues. It took until Rob Thomson to become manager of the Phillies to get our second. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We also had, between the 1910s and 1940s, players just as Russ Ford, Phil Marchildon, Dick Fowler, George Selkirk and Jeff Heath all making names for themselves in the Majors. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihPEj9aCyKiIlcDTOZoratxkepJhTqj2rjvtVonjZ3X2PghHbcOlPC-LUuD4YHvJFM-Ncgdm6GNWZ7em-qAJVxinwxA2DCRSSt15NRLCIMujy8Ei75nikbaoGmmVC18ltMFuo1CAs2q3_U9E3Ffc2BUtozuLUIeligFq8KKStUGt_LC8iESM2pZqKxhGQr/s312/13-22695Fr.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="312" data-original-width="246" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihPEj9aCyKiIlcDTOZoratxkepJhTqj2rjvtVonjZ3X2PghHbcOlPC-LUuD4YHvJFM-Ncgdm6GNWZ7em-qAJVxinwxA2DCRSSt15NRLCIMujy8Ei75nikbaoGmmVC18ltMFuo1CAs2q3_U9E3Ffc2BUtozuLUIeligFq8KKStUGt_LC8iESM2pZqKxhGQr/s1600/13-22695Fr.jpg" width="246" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">George Selkirk not only took over Babe Ruth's position for the Yankees.. He also wore #3</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Zm5TDrxa03pYnlbyXABKPcc34W0zAYsxvkfNZk9q0lGLDxNxUDvcISskwmKDMu3nQaHfwTuk9KWuJg4H5XQRLAtObWk1bg2C-7K6XCd2Sb9fZuLwJ9WtJwKz0s2L1voD9_I_iFM0fBFik6QueLU_nOSrUrKYIM3MgRHytfqlkRrSLoQOz3vYnmqAgu1r/s250/19-214Fr.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="250" data-original-width="207" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Zm5TDrxa03pYnlbyXABKPcc34W0zAYsxvkfNZk9q0lGLDxNxUDvcISskwmKDMu3nQaHfwTuk9KWuJg4H5XQRLAtObWk1bg2C-7K6XCd2Sb9fZuLwJ9WtJwKz0s2L1voD9_I_iFM0fBFik6QueLU_nOSrUrKYIM3MgRHytfqlkRrSLoQOz3vYnmqAgu1r/s1600/19-214Fr.jpg" width="207" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Dick Fowler was the first Canadian to throw a no-hitter. The only other to do so is James Paxton. And that was in Toronto. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUKZX2THb5s9qjC-mKOLwNeJEaGqLvHtpfiXfe1qlPWJd9mjZXwx1dQbDSHPIY_90skvWqt93hdi5dsh2LhZzppRTraqKg6tclog4jiasomkGbTpGSGWPZrDEN1ZrghMuT2cUdteInGRkYzeQpNsWSqoP3KM36wk1LON8m2R5_s2avhxIx8q1jrW-KYTko/s350/344749-10006550Fr.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="248" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUKZX2THb5s9qjC-mKOLwNeJEaGqLvHtpfiXfe1qlPWJd9mjZXwx1dQbDSHPIY_90skvWqt93hdi5dsh2LhZzppRTraqKg6tclog4jiasomkGbTpGSGWPZrDEN1ZrghMuT2cUdteInGRkYzeQpNsWSqoP3KM36wk1LON8m2R5_s2avhxIx8q1jrW-KYTko/s320/344749-10006550Fr.jpg" width="227" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The 50s 60s and 70s had guys like Ron Piche, Ron Taylor, Pete Ward, Claude Raymond, Fergie Jenkins, and Terry Puhl all showing up in the Majors. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We also had some politicians show up in sports in the way of awards.. Lester B Pearson has an award named after him in the NHL and, in the 80s, there was the Pearson Cup, a cup that was contested between the Jays and Expos.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOpztCXIqB5w1Av7HUl477Zhc3ZTEVJqFaEx7s0wsoZUd_6STy2CnxRL0_s4kFrSCmWxF7Mv7SDxJ9Q3rhAEMjc29oKmfEHRbwTu0zR9EDWjx9f6nOy-CX_8PqtH7Xk6oN9SM04pHglhHOyKISO1qpIZUvQIYyugikbvZ_lotLad9CYLqAg8M2yt_BVjPh/s350/57628-2988829Bk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="241" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOpztCXIqB5w1Av7HUl477Zhc3ZTEVJqFaEx7s0wsoZUd_6STy2CnxRL0_s4kFrSCmWxF7Mv7SDxJ9Q3rhAEMjc29oKmfEHRbwTu0zR9EDWjx9f6nOy-CX_8PqtH7Xk6oN9SM04pHglhHOyKISO1qpIZUvQIYyugikbvZ_lotLad9CYLqAg8M2yt_BVjPh/w275-h400/57628-2988829Bk.jpg" width="275" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNhWg8Qq6aXITUIDPSauPKOvHCk-Eq3MJA-4puzmIY2EfFb60twOVrlLQ4pAXMsrLHy2zfg2YSNIKzoJgbh5TCW7okfd8xBOuXaW1H0UeiYX0M3m2be66IBby337l18c0fObl-euhL0iqknAVZ585FkOOIhgTRK-cy5OzMcR7iKRiRZz_CcmR2asgAEh1U/s313/108316-24749523Fr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="313" data-original-width="222" height="313" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNhWg8Qq6aXITUIDPSauPKOvHCk-Eq3MJA-4puzmIY2EfFb60twOVrlLQ4pAXMsrLHy2zfg2YSNIKzoJgbh5TCW7okfd8xBOuXaW1H0UeiYX0M3m2be66IBby337l18c0fObl-euhL0iqknAVZ585FkOOIhgTRK-cy5OzMcR7iKRiRZz_CcmR2asgAEh1U/s1600/108316-24749523Fr.jpg" width="222" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidDmdqqA5g_yxgVMR5n4Z3h_BBQMVQ74GQeO_TpOAS-wpxgDS3Q4z8p5sMKy6yaZrd8BK8m3a5fF93d1xozKxCzapxwAqTFAOpDCWIFeH5LWU6oNjBaUH_Fwtw0nKhAAwWIZUuGOOpe8TW7UeLyv23HYVxmTAx3VBTOLRDZM7mNlwuGtKOamJ-Gad-6_f2/s350/344749-10006390Bk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="246" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidDmdqqA5g_yxgVMR5n4Z3h_BBQMVQ74GQeO_TpOAS-wpxgDS3Q4z8p5sMKy6yaZrd8BK8m3a5fF93d1xozKxCzapxwAqTFAOpDCWIFeH5LWU6oNjBaUH_Fwtw0nKhAAwWIZUuGOOpe8TW7UeLyv23HYVxmTAx3VBTOLRDZM7mNlwuGtKOamJ-Gad-6_f2/w450-h640/344749-10006390Bk.jpg" width="450" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHm-xu1x-iVoBtoTk2HZQqq5OmW2Dt2iZJaZD7Yu2DQjiJofbe3ENrgMOKL1MnMFUx0aevo8HxIsDIqGL4jKp4guiJzhFyYW4Elzl1OGEnDycI9-_RddGj3gvO2WihBxXlf636CtXDQ1XtpQWRvP7HEblR7jF8uF85Oja6-edSwPrFuzh4mDV1zlh5rer1/s350/66-333Fr.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="250" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHm-xu1x-iVoBtoTk2HZQqq5OmW2Dt2iZJaZD7Yu2DQjiJofbe3ENrgMOKL1MnMFUx0aevo8HxIsDIqGL4jKp4guiJzhFyYW4Elzl1OGEnDycI9-_RddGj3gvO2WihBxXlf636CtXDQ1XtpQWRvP7HEblR7jF8uF85Oja6-edSwPrFuzh4mDV1zlh5rer1/s320/66-333Fr.jpg" width="229" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Fergie, of course, is the first Canadian born player to be elected to Cooperstown. Canadian players in general were still few and far between, but the floodgates would soon be opening. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The 80s, 90s and 00s up to today have seen a number of Canadian born players</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Rob Ducey, Jeff Francis, Jason Bay, Denis Boucher, Paul Quantrill, Cal Quantrill, Bo Naylor, Josh Naylor, Jordan Romano, Tyler O'Neill, Larry Walker, Mike Soroka, Eric Gagne, Russell Martin, Justin Morneau, Joey Votto and more have plied their trade in the Majors. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Larry Walker is of course, the second Canadian in the Hall.. I'd like to think Joey Votto will be joining them.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8Sxs_h7cMZ-LUsK-WbP9yhiScu6qvyzLv2x0ZxO_tPx4EeVE4veyskn0-c58sDsyhAzj7J6ycnu7hWHqawD0POEwmOndNfVIQNRnxLPZRNl8RcsbJi6sxhi0R3KWPXwSYzeSKzJRyP4PNwvzhg9WU9Nv_ewbGddit1KWCeS40k_dIy45oWoEMDnNn8Y_/s350/206-94281Fr.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="248" data-original-width="350" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8Sxs_h7cMZ-LUsK-WbP9yhiScu6qvyzLv2x0ZxO_tPx4EeVE4veyskn0-c58sDsyhAzj7J6ycnu7hWHqawD0POEwmOndNfVIQNRnxLPZRNl8RcsbJi6sxhi0R3KWPXwSYzeSKzJRyP4PNwvzhg9WU9Nv_ewbGddit1KWCeS40k_dIy45oWoEMDnNn8Y_/s320/206-94281Fr.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Of course, in the history we can't forget about the teams.. Montreal and Toronto both started out as minor league cities with the Royals being in Montreal and the Maple Leafs being in Toronto. Over the years there have been teams in London, Hamilton, St Catherine's, Niagara Falls, Ottawa, Quebec, Trois-Rivieres, Thetford Mines, Sherbrooke, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Victoria, and Vancouver. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Expos moved to Washington to give them the third kick at the Major league can.. Just imagine if the 1994 season didn't end in a strike.. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Toronto is still around, making a push for the playoffs each year lately. Hopefully we'll see a World Series win again soon..</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/m-aWErZAxMU" width="320" youtube-src-id="m-aWErZAxMU"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/_Y7fHQiGkH0" width="320" youtube-src-id="_Y7fHQiGkH0"></iframe></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pASE_TgeVg8" width="320" youtube-src-id="pASE_TgeVg8"></iframe></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="color: red;"><b>Happy Canada Day, eh?<br /> </b></span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face=""Google Sans", arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #202124; font-size: 20px; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div>Mike Matsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07423029196949506523noreply@blogger.com9