Night Owl Cards

I think I've come to the point in my life where I finally have a firm idea of which people have made me who I am. Sadly, I am also at the point in my life where those people are starting to leave me. It's already been a month filled with saying goodbye. My mother-in-law died about a week-and-a-half ago. She, of course, brought my wife into the world, someone who has shaped my ideas and direction in so many ways. My mother-in-law didn't have a lot to do with my hobby, although she did buy me this , which I use to this day, a lot. Today, I found out that Sy Berger died . Berger, as many know, is the father of the modern-day baseball card. He brought my hobby into the world. Responsible for turning Topps from a simple gum company to a name that has evoked images and memories of trading cards for generations, Berger is remembered for creating the iconic 1952 Topps set; setting the industry standard for many trading card fundamentals like stats on the back; crushing the c...

One of the unfortunate after-effects of the news about Topps gaining exclusive rights to make MLB -sanctioned baseball cards, was that it attracted the attention of the mainstream media, and the general blogging public. Now, normally, that would be a fine thing. Who wouldn't want a little publicity for their hobby, right? But, as is the case in too many stories today, the news item was treated by many with the hit-and-run approach -- find the most sensational angles, frame them in all-or-nothing terms, don't bother to go into depth, stereotype and generalize as much as possible. Two sports journalists who I like quite a bit -- Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon -- did one of their Pardon The Interruption snippets about the Topps exclusivity news on Thursday. Their only thought during the minute or so they addressed the topic was that the news doesn't matter because no one cares about cards anymore. Wilbon , who I have talked to in person and agree with quite oft...