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.
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:
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
He never got along with Dizzy Dean and their mutual dislike led to a fistfight in 1939.
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.
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
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:
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.
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.
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.
In 1924, he took over the starting shortstop position from Hall of Famer Dave Bancroft.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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)
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
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
Okay, a little bit. A while back the consensus from my Quandary post is that cards prominently featuring a player, even if the card doesn't name them and isn't even about them, belong in the player collection.
So, I had this in mind as I updated my list of known Paul Blair cards. I used TCDB to help with that process. I found new entries on TCDB for Paul Blair items. I decided to use the opportunity to reorganize my two player collections. Previously, my player cards were loosely organized by issuing company and year. However, I also tried to maximize the use of sheets, so everything was mushed together. And when something new came in, it got added to a sheet at the back and not necessarily with it's rightful grouping. This time through I am using the same organizing principle, but I am leaving open pockets on the sheets for missing cards.
While going through the TCDB entries, I had to revisit not only what counts as a Paul Blair card, but what is card generally.
So, here is a summary of the decisions I made:
1971 Topps #329 World Series Game 3 - Paul Blair is on the card, congratulating Frank Robinson at home plate after Robinson's 3rd inning home run. Even though he is featured prominently on the card, he is decidedly not the subject. TCDB lists this as a Paul Blair card. This is a Frank Robinson card and not a Paul Blair card. It was not added to the want list.
1970 Topps #202 Orioles Celebrate - This is the card that kicked this off last September. For some reason, TCDB only has the OPC version. But, based on that previous feedback I've added that and, of course, the Topps cards to my want list.
1969 MLBPA Photostamps unseparated sheet - I have the individual stamp which is also listed on TCDB. But, I don't see the point of acquiring the same item a second time in a sheet with other stamps I have no interest in. This was not added to the want list. By the same rationale, the following other TCDB entries were also not added to my want list: 1974 Topps photo stamp unseparated sheet, 1975 Hostess panels (both the Hooten and Hooton versions), 1978 SSPC Yankees team sheet, and the 1991 Crown Cola Orioles panel.
1978 Burlington Free Press Baseball Cards - these aren't cards, in my opinion. They are just small feature section of a normal newspaper. Don't believe me? Above are the front and back of the Carlton Fisk cards in the "set." That back is just an everyday clipping from a newspaper sport section. The same holds true for the 1963 Baltimore News-Post Baltimore Orioles Scrapbook Cards and the 1970-71 Dayton Daily News. These don't get added to the want list. The fact that some wisenheimer gave the Dayton Daily News clippings an actual hobby designation (M137) does not change anything.
2001 Topps Archive Reserve Signed baseball - It's a baseball, not a card. Not on the want list.
Now here are some things that annoy me, but are definitely cards.
Print variations: With Paul Blair, the only print variation I have found is the 1971 Kellogg's card, with three versions: 385 runs, 386 Runs with copyright year, and 386 Runs without copyright year. I have two and the third is on the want list.
Buybacks: I have previously stated my annoyance at buybacks. I don't think that taking a vintage card, slapping a foil stamp on it creates a new card. But, I have made my peace with it and have been picking up a few Topps buybacks here and there. But, the above card (2005 Fleer National Pastime Buyback) is really something. The card itself is from 2001 Fleer Greats of the Game. So, Fleer either bought it back or took it out of its unsold inventory, wrote 3/9 on it and called it something new. A foil stamp ain't much effort, but this handwritten serial number raises (or lowers) lazy to a whole new level.
Unlicensed Cut Autos - Tristar is famous for these, but they aren't the only ones. There is in excess of 20 unique cut auto cards listed for Blair on TCDB. I am not a fan, particularly of those that cut up an actual trading card, but I will pick them up from time to time if the price is right.
2016Historic AutographsFriends 'n Foes with Mike Flanagan - While this is really a version of the above cut auto card, it also strains at creating a coherent theme. Paul Blair were teammates briefly during Flanagan's late season 1975 cup of coffee and in 1976. Were they friends? Perhaps, but this card is a bit of stretch. If it was Paul Blair and Brooks Robinso, who played together for many years, I could accept that. But, one season? It doesn't really inspire. I couldn't find an image of it, so I included an image of a comparable card above. Interestingly, I don't believe there is any friend/foe link between Colbert and Musial either, though there is a record book linkage between the two. Read this article.
2006 Upper Deck Epic Four Barrel (Jackson/Munson/Chambliss/Blair) - This is a 1/1 and given the the inclusion of Munson, I will never be able to afford it. I did actually see it pop up on eBay a few years back, but the asking price was around $5,000 if memory serves. I would never pay that even if I could afford it.
2013 Topps Archive Printing Plates - I normally wouldn't add these, but I do have two film positives from the Topps Vault for Blair's 1978 card and a print proof from 1968, so these will be on the want list even though I have no expectation I will ever see them.
So that is about it, Updating my collection is taking time and has to pause since I need to order some four pocket pages for the team issued photo packs and postcards. I'm out of town on business later this week, so I probably won't be done until next weekend. After that, I'll go through the same process for my Johnny Antonelli collection, though it promises to be less frustrating with only a handful of new entries.
What I am listening to: Pump it Up by Elvis Costello
I was updating my TCDB collection today. I have been keeping up with my set builds, but not my Paul Blair and Johnny Antonelli player collections. As I mentioned in yesterday's post, there were new entries on TCDB for Blair that I hadn't seen previously. Alas, the same holds true for Antonelli. So, I've been trying to get my master spreadsheet updated with these new entries. You might ask why I am keeping a spreadsheet in addition to TCDB as they should be performing the same function. You might, but it would be a bit rude of you. However, since the question is on the table, let me answer.
Two reasons: first, I have seen a number previously essential websites disappear (Yahoo Groups and JPGMag are but two) and I will always have my spreadsheet. Additionally, I have a number of independently produced art cards that are not cataloged on TCDB. So, with that out of the way, let me get back on track.
While looking at my Antonelli collection versus TCDB, there are three main categories of "wants:'
Rarities like 1958 Packard Bell and 1971 House of Jazz.
Armour Coins (14 variations from 1955 and 3 from 1959)
Jay Publishing pictures.
I am not going to pursue the coins since they are not cards, or any type of paper product, for that matter. But the Jay Publishing's are bit of an issue since images get reused year to year. Note:
This is an animated GIF I created that cycles between the 1955, 1956 Past and Present 10, and 1956 Past and Present 12 Jay issues. The thing is that I cannot be 100% sure the variations you see (image exposure and image position) are attributable to the actual production or are just modern artifacts of image cropping and scanning differences. I will probably crop off the borders in my starting images and redo the animated GIF to see what that shows. But, holy moly, I really didn't want to go down a rabbit hole on this.
Added in edit: The cropped animation. The slight shifts may very well be my cropping.
