Night Owl Cards

OK, class, when we last left off we were talking about Manny Ramirez and the case of the disappearing umpire. Remember the 2008 Topps Stadium Club card? Manny Ramirez was photoshopped into a Dodgers uniform and the entire stadium was transformed into Dodger Stadium (it's actually Fenway Park). And the poor umpire was erased from the photo altogether, because of licensing issues. And you remember why that was wrong, right? In photojournalism circles this is a No.1 no-no. A good way to earn your pink slip. But even for a card company, it's bad news because it's deceptive. And we all know that card companies have trust issues when it comes to their customer base these days. (Not to mention, when have you ever seen a photo of a hitter at the plate during a game without the umpire in the shot?) All right, for those of you who remember all that, I apologize for the rehash. That was for the benefit of the rest of the class that may be a little, um, slow, or were in the princip...

Today is a day of completion, as well as a day of freakish coincidence. First, the completion. The card here arrived in the mail today from Max, more commonly known on the interwebs as jacob mrley. He sent a whole heap of amazing cards, probably one of the most pleasant card packages I have ever received. But I'll save those for another post. This card of Joe Orsulak is the last card I needed to complete the 1986 Topps set. It has eluded me for quite awhile. I even whined about it on this post . It must have struck a chord because two other bloggers have said they would send this card to me, as well. In fact, I believe one of them has already sent it (Sorry, Johngy! ). I am happy that I don't have to whine any longer. Orsulak has been rooted out and captured. And that brings me to the freakish coincidence. On the same day that I received this Orsulak card, Jeff of Card Junkie riffed on my Orsulak post on his blog. He needs the Jeff Francoeur card to complete his 2009 ...

I'm featuring a night card of Hong-Chih Kuo today because he could be the difference between the Dodgers owning a steady bullpen and a bullpen in which they're constantly rotating pitchers in and out in an attempt to find something that works. I thought of Kuo yesterday after viewing the boxscore of the Dodgers' first spring training game, a 5-3 loss to the Cubs. Reliever Ramon Troncoso got lit up for a homer and four runs in 1-plus innings. The Dodgers don't really know whether Troncoso is a starter or a reliever so maybe he's working some things out. I'm still recuperating from the events of yesterday. There was a lot to absorb. Aside from the first spring training game, the Dodgers made another offer to Manny Ramirez. It's a lot like the old offer back in November with some slight adjustments. It really seems like Ramirez is about to sign. If not, than Boras is even more evil than I think he is. Also, on the card front, aside from the first blaster of 2...

I've got the day off tomorrow, which will be spent catching up with my trade transactions. I'll be packaging some, organizing others and tracking down cards for yet a few more. I'm not seriously behind, but I am behind, which is something I know I have in common with a number of bloggers. That's why I admire certain other bloggers who always seem to have their trade act together. The Manny card was sent to me by Jeff of Card Junkie , not more than two weeks after he sent me some other Dodgers cards. It's greatly appreciated because it completes the Dodgers 2008 Updates and Highlights set for me (except for some blasted insert, I'm sure), and means I don't have to waste any more money on U&H until next fall comes around. Then there's John of the U.K., who falls into a whole other category. I received what I believe is my fourth package in five months from the proprietor of The Pursuit of 80sness . That's downright prolific! He had warned me some...

Sometimes I feel like I'm neglecting my duties as a Dodger fan on this blog. I often drift off into other card collecting topics or baseball in general. But that's not because writing about the Dodgers bores me. It's because I have such an interest in baseball and collecting that I can't help but write about that, too. In fact, being a Dodger fan is kind of a byproduct of my passion for baseball. Because I enjoy baseball history so much, it's only natural I am a Dodger fan, with the great history the franchise owns. And I greatly respect fans of teams like the Yankees, Cubs, Cardinals, Red Sox, Indians, Reds, White Sox, Pirates, etc. -- teams whose histories go way back. So sometimes I need someone to steer me back to the Dodgers. Receiving card packages is a good way for me to regain my focus. Recently, I received Dodgers from reader Steve, and Jeffrey of Card Junkie . Steve sent me about 25 Dodgers. I believe I needed about half. Here are some of the highli...