Fleer Autograph Project - Parts 18 and 44

 I suppose the title is a bit confusing if you have been following my long term, but infrequent series on the players featured in my signed 1960 and 1961 Fleer collection.  To the extent that your interest rises to that level, allow me to clear it up.  This post will feature my 18th signed 1960 Fleer card and my 44th signed 1961 Fleer card since they are both the same player: Hall of Famer Sam Rice

What is interesting about Sam Rice:

1. Over the course of a 20 season major league career, he tallied up 2,987 hits.
2. He actually broke in as a pitcher. He appeared in 9 games over his first two seasons compiling a 1-1 record with a 2.52 ERA. In his first ML season, he only appeared as a pitcher, but hit .375.
3. He didn't appear in professional baseball until the age of 22 in 1912. Prior to that, he did play semi-pro ball in Watseka, IL where he worked on his family farm.  At the time of his pro debut, Sam had already been married for 4 years and had two children.
4. Unfortunately, his wife, both children, mother and two sisters were killed by a tornado. The storm was part of a multi-day tornado outbreak which was significant enough to merit it's own Wikipedia page.
5. Following the 1912 season, he ended up in the Navy and stationed on the battleship USS New Hampshire. He and his shipmates were part of a landing force that took the port city of Veracruz  after tensions between the US and Mexico escalated.
6. In 1914, after his furlough from the Navy, he resumed is baseball career with the Petersburg Goobers of the Virginia League. The following year, the Goobers struggled financially (as well as on the field) and the owner of the team gave Rice's contract to the major league Washington Nationals in repayment for a loan.
7. In 1916, after several successful appearances as a pinch hitter, he became a full time outfielder.
8. Rice didn't have much power, stroking only 34 home runs over the course of his career. He did have speed and had 351 stolen bases over his 20 years and hit over 30 doubles in 10 of those seasons.
9. During spring training in 1918, he was drafted into the military and deployed to France.  However, WW1 ended before he saw any combat and he found himself back at Spring Training in 1919.
10. He and teammate Joe Judge held the record for longevity as teammates after 18 seasons together with Washington.  The record has been broken twice in recent decades, first by George Brett and Frank White, then by Alan Trammel and Lou Whitaker.
11. In Game 3 of the 1925 World Series, Rice made a catch on a long drive by Pirates catcher Earl Smith that saw him fall over the outfield wall and not return to sight until after a short delay.  Controversy ensued whether he really successfully caught the ball. It waw ruled he did and, well into his retirement when asked if he truly caught that ball he always responded, "the umpires said I did."
12. He continued to play well through is age 42 season, after which his decline was notable.  After the 1933 season he was released and signed with Cleveland to play for his former teammate and Nationals manager Walter Johnson.  He struggled as the season wore on and finally retired in September.
13. In retirement, he had a chicken farm for a while, bred racing pigeons, and invested in real estate.
14. Sam Rice was elected to the Hall of Fame by the Veteran's Committee in 1963 and was a regular at the induction ceremonies through 1974, after which he passed away.
15. In 1965, at the request of a HOF historian he wrote a letter documenting the definitive story of that controversial catch in the '25 World Series with the stipulation that it not be opened until after his death.  Once the letter was subsequently found and opened, it was revealed that Sam had made the catch and never lost possession of the ball. The delay in returning to the field was due to being dazed by the fall on the opposite side of the outfield wall.  However, the controversy was never resolved as there were witnesses who continued to clean the opposite.

What I am listening to: Something We Regret by Willow Avalon

New Blair Item

 After my little hissy fit about cut signatures a few months ago, my player collections went into early hibernation and I resigned myself to only adding new cards once a year or so.  In particular, with my Paul Blair collection.there isn't much left. It breaks down mostly like this:

Topps Flagship (unsigned)     3
Topps Flagship (signed)       13
OPC                                        1
TCMA                                    1
Various Buybacks                 11

That actually looks like a lot, but the two flagship categories are, to a certain extent, filler. I have the complete run of Topps flagship Blair cards, but thought I would put together both signed and unsigned versions just to have something to do with this PC.  However, since making that decision, I have done exactly nothing to make it happen.  So, was it really decision?  Trees, forests, etc.

There actually is two other categories not mentioned above. The first is regional and team issues from the late 1960s that I have never seen in the wild and (enjoy the contrast) 2004 Upper Deck Timeless Team parallels.  

2004 UD Timeless Teams is a confounding set.  It covers the significant team or teams from between 1964 and 1995. Great concept and I love the design. It is a set I would want to collect. Except that the execution is horrible.  You would think they would have the one dominant team for each year and perhaps the dominant team from each league for each year. Makes sense right?  However, there are no teams represented from 1971, 1989, 1990, 1993 and 1994.  But, there are three teams for 1969, 1975, 1979, 1980, 1981, and 1986.  There are 11 players each representing the 1969 and 1970 Orioles (the same 11 players mind you,) but only 3 players representing the 1987 and 1991 Twins, and the 1992 Blue Jays. 1977 and 1981 had both the Dodgers and the Yankees, but 1978 was the Yankees only.  

See what I mean?  A complete mess.

Anyways, there are 6 versions of each card:

1. Base
2. Bronze (# to 50)
3. Gold (# to 5)
4. Signed
5. Signed Gold (# to 5)
6. Signed Platinum (# to 1)

I have a saved search on eBay that I scan daily for new items, but I have probably failed to find Blair cards I needed from this set because I scan quickly.  However, at this point, I have 8 of the 12 Blair cards. Of the 4 that I am missing two are, not surprisingly, the 1/1s.  I will need to do a better job of looking for the other two (1 Bronze and 1 Gold).

I am starting to wake up out of 4 month hobby slumber.  I have a new (to me) signed 1960 Fleer card being delivered tomorrow. Hopefully, I will be able to whip up a post about it on Tuesday.

What I am listening to:  Outlaws and Mustangs by Cody Jinks

Alternate Collection Update

 For any of you who were around for the golden age of baseball card blogging (peace be unto you) you may remember San Jose Fuji asking a question:

My response was to show the various pets my wife and I have.  Over the years, there have been additions and, such as life is, losses.  The most recent loss was the death of my Great Pyrenees- Akbash mix Buddy.  Buddy was actually in that first post where I introduced all my pets.

Since then I have been fine with only having two dogs to wrangle. However, a few weeks ago I came across a Facebook post from a local rescue about a Pyrenees they had up for adoption. The post was over 2 months old, so I messaged them to ask if the dog was still available.  He was but get this: he was being fostered in Buffalo, NY.  Apparently, it is easier to adopt Pyrenees in the Northeast, since most folks down this way only want them to be livestock guardian dogs.  

Anyways, as I mentioned a few posts ago, my wife and I were heading to Ohio on vacation. So, instead of accompanying my wife to West Virginia for the Glass Gathering, I took a quick trip up to Buffalo to officially adopt him.  

Meet Beauregard:

1960 Fleer Autograph Project - Part 18

I decided to knock this one out before I head out for vacation at the end of the week.  It is the 18th signed 1960 Fleer card in my collection, out of 43 possible. This card is the sole thing I have bought for my collection in nearly 2 months.  

This card, which came with a JSA certificate, is somewhat rare. I am led to understand from a friend that exclusively collects autographed cards that many of the signed Derringer cards floating around were ghost signed by his wife.  So, despite having lived until 1987, his autograph is not particularly common.

The research for this post wasn't nearly as enjoyable as others.  Derringer was not necessarily a sympathetic character, having anger management issues that plagued him through out his career and may have contributed to having been thrice married.  To be fair though, his last marriage lasted 27 years.

Anyways:

1. Derringer had a 15-year major league career, starting with the Cardinals for 2 full and 1 partial season.  This was followed by 10 years with the Redlegs and concluded with 3 years with the Cubs.
2. In 1933, he started three games for St Louis and put up a 0-2 record. On May 7, he was dealt to Cincinnati in a six-player deal that saw Leo Durocher head in the opposite direction.  In the Queen City, he put up an anemic 7-25 record across 31 starts and 2 relief appearances.  Interestingly, modern sabermetrics rate his '33 season better, giving him a roughly league average 103 ERA+ and credit for 2.0 WAR.
3. In that season, he was being upbraided by Reds GM Lee McPhail for a baserunning error.  He picked up an ink well off of the desk and threw it at McPhail, thankfully missing.
4. On June 27, 1936 his temper got the better of him and he attacked one Robert Condon (a highly decorated soldier who had enlisted as a private and retired as a Brigadier General) in Philadelphia. Condon, at that time a member of the executive committee of the American Legion, Derringer lost the resulting lawsuit and had to pay (with help from the team) the sum of $8,000. The equivalent sum in 2024 is $181,000.
5. He put up four 20-win seasons with the Reds in 1935 and 1938 through 1940, with 1939 being hte best with a 25-7 record and a third-place finish in NL MVP voting.
6. He appeared in four World Series, 2 with Cincy and one each with the Cards and Cubs.  He pitched to a 2-4 record and a 3.42 in those series that saw his teams win 2 and lose 2.
7. He never got along with Dizzy Dean and their mutual dislike led to a fistfight in 1939.
8. After his MLB career was over, he put in one last minor league season with the 1946 Indianapolis Indians.  In a game against the Montreal Royals, he decided to throw at Jackie Robinson to see "what he was made of."  After being dusted in his first at bat, Robinson hit a line drive single. Repeating his challenge in the next face off, Derringer saw Jackie hit a triple. Paul commented afterward to Royals manager Clay Hopper that "he will do."  This led Hopper to let Branch Rickey know that Robinson was ready to move up.
9. After his career, he worked as a plastics salesman and a troubleshooter for the American Automobile Association (AAA)

This puts me up to date on 1960. But I am still woefully behind with 1961. 28 cards behind to be exact.  With the holidays coming up, I really don't expect much hobby spending until after New Year.  So, maybe I can post more of my signed 1961 Fleer cards. 

What I am listening to: Will It Go Round in Circles by Billy Preston

1961 Fleer Autograph Project - Part 43

 It has been nearly five months since my last post in this series.  I am going to try to pick it back up again, but I've said that before.  As it is hobby life has been quiet and will continue to be so for a while.  Adult life has a way of causing that.  There haven't been any great personal struggles or tragic events. Just adult stuff  You all deal with the same from time to time, so no need to bore you with details.

Additionally, we have scheduled a fall trip back to Ohio.  The first weekend we will be going to Halloweekends at Cedar Point for the first time since 2020. And the second weekend we will be attending the Annual Glass Gathering at the Museum of American Glass in West Virginia. I think I have mentioned that my wife collects midcentury barware, with a few smaller side collections of swung vases and midcentury ashtrays (oddly neither of us are, nor have been, smokers.)  Over the course of this year, she has really gotten involved with the barware collecting community and it has been fun to watch her collecting really take off.  I don't even mind that it has made me more intentional about how I collect.  With all that on my plate, I don't expect to do much card collecting until the new year.  

Anyways, let's get back to it. I haven't added any new signed 1961 Fleer cards in a while. I am still sitting at 72 cards (out of 96 possible) for 1961. Of the 29 cards between here and there, we will be seeing 21 Hall of Fame members. There will be familiar names, but really only one that is considered among the best of the best. I have added one additional 1960 card, but more about that in the future. 

So, next up is Travis Jackson.  

What caught my attention:

1. He had a 15-year MLB career, all with the NY Giants. He was discovered as a 14-year-old by dead ball era player, and then minor league manager, Kid Elberfeld.   Elberfeld gave him his first pro gig several years later with the Little Rock Travelers of the Southern Association.
2. After two years at Little Rock, he made his major league debut at the end of the 1922 season, appearing in 3 games and going hitless in 8 plate appearances.
3. The following season he stuck with the big club and became the first teenager to ever appear in the World Series.  He appeared in only one game, Game 2, pinch hitting for pitcher Jack Bentley against Yankee HOFer Herb Pennock. Jackson flew out to left field to end the game that saw the Bombers beat the Giants 4-2.
4. In 1924, he took over the starting shortstop position from Hall of Famer Dave Bancroft.
5. After concluding his MLB playing career, Jackson managed the Jersey City Giants for a year and a half (1937-1938) and was a coach for the New York Giants in 1939-1940. After which he retired due to contracting tuberculosis, which he fought for 5 years.
6. In 1946, he returned to baseball and managed the Jackson Senators in 1946 and coached for the Giants again in 1947 and 1948 under manager Mel Ott. When Ott was replaced by Leo Durocher, Jackson was let go and then embarked on a 13 year run as a minor league manager in the Boston/Milwaukee Braves organization. This included leading the 1954 and 1955 Lawton Braves to Sooner State League championships. He retired again, this time permanently, in 1961.
7. His admission to the Hall was championed by former teammate and Veterans Committee member, Bill Terry.  While Terry never succeeded in getting Jackson enshrined during his tenure, his advocacy was ultimately successful, as Jackson was elected by the Vet's Committee in 1982.
8. His enshrinement paved the way for other middle infielders who, while not putting up flashy offensive numbers, contributed significantly on the defensive side of the game. Edward Stack, president of the Hall of Fame, would lead to more serious consideration for players like Pee Wee Reese and Phil Rizzuto.  Both were elected by the Veterans Committee in subsequent years.
9. In something I always look at with these old timers, Travis was alive and able to attend his induction ceremony. (I'll never forgive MLB for denying Ron Santo that honor)

What I am listening to: Heavy Load by Cody Jinks

1972-73 Basketball Backs

As near as I can tell, I started building the 1972-73 Topps Basketball set in November of 2018.  It has been a stop and start process. My local show only has limited vintage sellers and they rarely have vintage basketball, so progress has been slow.  Glacially slow.  Earlier this year, I made a decision to collect non-baseball sets, since they tend to be much more affordable.  After finishing 1973 Topps football, I set my sights on 1972-73 basketball.  Recently, I finally received from COMC the last cards to finish this set.  It was my first COMC order in over 10 years, as the sellers there tend to overprice vintage (at least in regard to my willingness to pay.)  

I have had an idea for a post on this set for a while.  As I was looking over the set a few months ago,  I noticed some oddities with the cartoons on the back.  The cartoons are much like you would see in any of the Topps baseball sets from the 1970s.  The cartoons are intended to share a factoid about the cards subject. Some are about their NBA career, but most are about their life prior to, or outside of, the NBA. I was going to do a whole post grouping those factoids together, like the players musical interests or off-season activities.  However, that involved a lot of time and I procrastinated. In the mean time, Night Owl did a post along these same lines and, lets be honest here, he did a much better job than I could ever dream of.  I looked for his post and for the life of me, I couldn't find it.  So, Greg, drop a link in the commetns and I'll update this post with a link to it.  (Not that you need me to promote it, but I would like to have it for my own reference.)

Anyways, I reset my goals just to share the weird cartoons I found that really defy explanation. So, let's start with Topps weird obsession with the players weights.

For context, here is the front of Roland Taylor's card:

Fatty, indeed.  Anyways, Topps is also apparently concerned about the players relationship status:

Apparently, other health related facts are considered interesting:

Of course, there were other cartoons that defy classification:

One of my base hobby beliefs is that Topps is generally hapless when it comes to putting out a high quality product. So, credit where it is due, they did display one piece of prescience in the 1972-73 basketball set.

Bil Bradley was certainly one of the most significant individuals of the late 20th century. A Princeton graduate, and a Rhodes scholar, he entered politics after his playing career was over.  That isn't really quite accurate as he was politically active during his playing career, but I think you get the point. Elected in 1979, he spent 18 years serving the state of New Jersey as one of their US Senators. He made an ill-fated run for President in 2000 (and I would note was my preferred candidate) but lost the Democratic primary to the more centrist Al Gore.  

So, tip of the hat to Topps.

What I am listening to: Pissed Off and Mad About It by Texas Hippie Coalition

Getting Something Off My Chest

By nature, I am a pessimist.  But, over the years I have done my best fight that tendency and work too see the positive.  I try, in this blog, to keep things light. I don't always succeed, but I do try.  Today, I am not even going to try.  This effort to update my player collection have and need lists has brought me to a point of reckoning.  And recognition.

TCDB is a great tool in that it has helped me identify cards that I need for me player collections.  And I have discovered that I am the top collector on TCDB for both Paul Blair and Johnny Antonelli.  But, somewhere along the line I began to measure those player collections by the percent completion.  And that was at the root of my recent annoyance at the new entries I found.  To be sure, anything I said about those new entries in recent posts was true but, in the end, it was about more than what was considered a card and what wasn't. It was about what those "non-cards" represented in terms of my percent completion of Paul Blair items. When I realized that was my unstated goal,, it caused a sea change in my thinking.  It had been less about the fun of collecting and more about the percentage.  

Here is what made me realize this.

This is one of the new entries I found for Paul Blair on TCDB.  It is a 2012 Historic Autographs Champions 1978 Yankees cut auto of Paul Blair.  Take a look at it and take a look at the back:

It probably isn't obvious what caught my eye, so let me cut right to the chase:

The PSA label indicates that this is serialized as #20 of 20. However, there is nowhere on the card itself that shows this serial designation.  That tells me that it was slabbed by PSA right when it was created.  Maybe not at the end of the production line, but it was created to be entombing it in plastic before distribution.

Take a look at the upper corners of the back.  Do you see something?  Here is a close-up.

See it now?  This isn't a card.  It is an envelope.  I was ambivalent enough about cut autos when they were inserted into card stock. But, in a paper envelope? Ambivalence becomes loathing.  And with that, my interest in maximizing my Paul Blair percent completion died. I won't be pursuing any more of these Historic Autograph items. And any other card that doesn't catch my interest.

But, in an attempt to cleanse this blog of that negativity, let me share a recent auction win. 

It is the packaging from a 1956 Big League Statue of Johnny Antonelli.  Just the packaging, but I am tickled beyond belief to have won this. I might even try to find one of the statues. Note that it isn't on TCDB. Certainly not the packaging, but not even the statue itself. Yet another reason to not put any thought to TCDB rankings. If you want to see what the original packaging and statues look like read here.

What I am listening to: Animal I Have Become by Three Days Grace