Collecting goals for the soon-to-be New Year

Well, a new year is just about upon us, so that means it is time to set new goals, reflect on the goals of the past year and aim to do better next year.

I would reflect on the goals of 2009, but, well, they sucked. I did terrible on all accounts, mainly because of a lack of funds for the first 8-9 months of the year and also because of a lack of motivation. I will admit for about 3 or 4 months, I spent a lot of extra money on excessive drinking, fast food and expensive German dining.

2010 will DEFINITELY be a complete 180 from that for two reasons.

1 - More income for the WHOLE family. I should be getting promoted to my next rank in Januaray and with that promotion comes a $300 a month raise AND the wife has a job interview tomorrow that could land her a part time job. This in turn would help with bills, savings and fun money.
2 - More focus. If i can keep up the motivation to write at least 20 blog posts a month, it will be an added boon to keep me focused on my goals. Add in the fact I will be using more sites (and blogs) at once to help me fill my needs, I should be able to have a much higher success rate this year.

Now, onto my goals for 2010. I have many, many goals for 2010, with most centering around my three primary player collections (and a few team and set centered goals) plus a new wrinkle, of a new player collection. Here they are, in grand fashion:

Richard Hidalgo

--Reach 20 autos (Have 10 already, but ones that I do not already own rarely pop up)
--Reach 400 total cards (Currently sit at 220, including incoming cards. If I can get hot on COMC and sportsbuy, should be easy)
--Reach 120 inserts (At 72, but since he hasn't been in any set since 2005, tough to locate older one that no one lists)
--Buy the Red Crusade (Own the Green and Purple, just need the seller to lower his asking price on the Red)
--Locate and purchase some sort of game used item. Be it a bat, hat, jersey, gloves, cleats, glove, whatever. And, if possible, get it signed.

Javier Vazquez

--Reach 20 autos (only saw 7 autos I didn't have this year and I won 5 of them, currently have 13)
--Reach 300 total cards (Have 152 right now and should be fairly easy since he is a current player)
--Reach 100 inserts (I am almost halfway there, so hopefully I can accomplish this)
--Get to 8 1/1 (I already have 4, just need more to pop up...at least at lower prices)
--Locate and purchase an autographed hat and baseball.

Hunter Pence

--Reach 20 autos (Kind of a pattern, eh? I currently have 8)
--Reach 150 total cards (He hasn't been in a TON of insert sets yet, so I am mainly trying to get GU, Auto and base...at 48 currently)
--Get to 30 total GU (I have 11 currently, and his GU is cheap...it will happen)
--Complete the Lettermen name "The Natural" (Not an auto'ed set and already have the A and L)
--Attempt to reach 3 1/1 (Have my first incoming, but his won't be cheap)
--Buy an autographed 8x10 or 10x16 for my son's room.

Set Related

--Complete my 2008 Topps set (and two insert sets) (This should be fairly easy...if I can locate a large amount of Series 2)
--Finish the year at 80% or higher on both the 1985 Topps and 2005 Donruss Champions sets (I focus on these two less than 08 Topps, but once the 08 is complete, I can focus on these more)

Team Collection Related

--Complete at least 12 years of the Topps Team Astros sets
--Have at least 2,000 cards (Engulfing all aspects of the hobby: game used, autos, inserts, base, parallels, etc.)
--Have at least 50 autographed cards (I do not have the exact numbers currently, but not a lot)

Through the Mail Project

--Without revealing any details on this project (I will some time in January), I would like to have a 75% or higher success rate with my TTM project

Micellaneous Goals

--Locate and acquire all 10 cards on the current Most Wanted List
--Acquire autos of the following players: Tony Gwynn, Mike Piazza, Cal Ripken, Jr., Wade Boggs, Greg Maddux
--Trade for or buy more football (My Titans collection is lacking pretty poorly, so I will try to work more on that next year)
--Enjoy the hobby more (I find myself enjoying the hobby on a more simpler level now. It's probably because I don't bust much wax, so I really only get what I want)
--Keep this blog up to date, funny, enjoyable, thoughtful, interesting and a place where maybe someone might learn something they didn't know before

Whew, that's a long list of stuff, for sure, but I like to keep many projects going at once. Makes it easier to never get bored and means there is ALWAYS something out there that I would like to add to my collection.

What are your collecting goals for 2010?

My Secret Santa Package Arrived!!!!

And boy was it a good one.

I can tell that my secret santa really did some research ;)

I feel pretty blessed by the package, as it included some stuff I really wanted.

No scan right now, but here is the loot I pulled in:

Two 5 Pack Blasters of 2008 Topps (Help with my set)
One pack of Donruss Americana (My wife likes these)
One pack of Upper Deck X (Underrated set, in my opinion)
One 2008 Topps Value Pack (36 cards)

And, the biggie:

"The Card: Collectors, Con Men, and the True Story of History's Most Desired Baseball Card"

I've already read the book, but wanted a copy of my own.

Thanks so much Jack (Baseball Card Dad/All Tribe Baseball). You definitely embraced the spirit of Christmas with this package!!!

HELL ON WHEELS!!

(PS: I plan on getting scans of the breaks and the book sometime later this week).

Pre-Christmas Mailday

I know, I know, a day after Christmas, but I didn't have a chance to scan everything until last night.

Added a few more things to my budding Hunter Pence collection:





And, I also picked up some random Titans game used and an auto recentlyish (I made that word up, but I like it):



I've been getting in some Titans base cards lately and have really decided that next year I may be hopping back into the football card collecting world. I am better off financially then I was a few years ago when I really collected multiple sports (I collected baseball, basketball and football at one time, but that is expensive), so I would like to work on and expand my team collection.

Coming up later today, I will have a post of card collecting goals for 2010. The goals will only focus on my baseball collections, but I am making some lofty ones for next year and really hope to actually achieve some (I only actually hit ONE of my goals for this year...but it was a down year for me compared to 2008).

Thanks for checking out my mailday!!!

Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Hanukkah

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all you bloggers out there.

Tomorrow is Christmas, so obviously we will all be busy with family, friends, food and, a little football game at the end of the day (GO TITANS!!).

This time of year is a great time to look back on the year behind us and rememebr the good times and the bad. With the economy down, a lot of people have had some hard times. Heck, maybe YOU had some hard times. But you made. WE made it. And now we are a week away from a new year full of hope and optimism.

As you wake up tomorrow, enjoy the presents, but even moreso, enjoy the people around you. Friends, family, loved ones, be happy where you are and continue to look forward, to more prosperous days.

Out here, in Germany, I only have my wife and son wit me, but we will be seeing our parents via the internet using our webcam. Though they will not be here with us, we will still be able to share the holiday with them.

May your Christmas morning bring you joy and happiness.....and a little cardboard too ;)

Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa and Happy Hanukkah to all!!!

New York, say hello to your newest starting pitcher........Javier Vazquez?

Well, the day has come for one of my PC guys to get traded...again.

For the 5th time since 2003, Vazquez has switched teams. He has ben an Expo, a Diamondback, a Yankee, a White Sock, a Brave and now, a Yankee again.

Honestly, I hate this move from a collection standpoint. I am a fan in no way, shape or form of the Yankees. Just being traded to the Yanks will increase prices on Javy's stuff and make it tougher to land. Not to mention, we will most likely see an increase in his WHIP and ERA, though his wins should also rise as well.

I know his last go around in New York wasn't the memorable (he did make the All Star game, but it is the only season in his career that he made less then 20 starts) and his second half was pretty terrible (in his defense, he was hurt).

But, New Yorkers, welcome him with open arms. Your team gave up a below average corner outfielder, a solid minor league pitcher and a PTBNL, who may or may not end up being a decent player. As far as I am concerned, giving up two unproven talents and a crappy player for a bonafide top ten to twelve starter in the league.

Pat yourselves on the back Yanks fans. This trade opens the door for management to throw some money at an outfield or DH type player.

Paging Mr. Holliday. Mr. Holliday to the Bronx please.

Changes to Balk Four

Well, as you may have noticed, change number one has already taken place: the "theme" of the blog has changed. I was looking for something a little brighter, easier to read, with better spacing. After checking out all of the other themes, this presented itself to me to be the best of the group.

A few other changes will be taking place.

One, this will not be a blog that is 80-90% card related. I intend to bring the day to day business of baseball into the blog more, as well as the history of the game. I plan on doing my own personal research into many different aspects of the game to entertain (and to teach) you, my handful of loyal readers, about the game we love.

I also plan on having guest bloggers, about once a week, to speak on different topics surrounding the different facets of our hobby. Different topics such as Through The Mail autos, case breaks, high end products, memorabilia, player collecting, set collecting, team collecting, etc. Anyone and everyone will be encouraged to participate, to get your voice out and spread the knowledge you have. I will also be looking for guests to blog about the game of baseball in general. From the advanced statistics available today, such as OPS+, VORP, etc, etc, to the minor leagues, rules of the game and crazy feats and statistics.

And, lastly, the big change will be continued improvement. I know we are still about 10 days away from the new year, but I can look back on my blog and see the need for improvement. From better content, posting more regularly and increasing the depth of my knowledge.

Also, I will be suspending the posting of the rest of the All Quarter Century Team. More from a lack of motivation from myself on the project, but also from a lack of interest from the readers of the blogosphere. I might bring it up in the future, but as one post with the whole team in it. We will see.
I want to thank those who have helped me with my collection so far (a few of you out there have), those who comment (even if rarely) on my random blogs and those of you who are the silent majority, who just read and the move along.

I hope, in the future, to post content that makes you want to comment, interact or email me and help further broaden the horizon of this blog.

New Collecting Goal: Houston Astros Topps Team Base Sets

Looking over a few blogs and browsing through my favorite message board, I had begun noticing team collectors who had a major focus on completing the complete run of Topps base cards for their teams.

With the sheer amount of base cards I have, I figured i would be able to get a jumpstart on most years, making it a little bit more plausible for me to finish within a decent amount of time (except I would have new cards every year to add to the collection).

The only thing I will not be doing for these cards is buying the whole sets. I am going to try and trade for every card I need, unless the card is in any type of lot I buy from here on out.

Without further ado, here are the cards I need (that I have noticed so far) from 1965 - 1999 (I haven't sorted from 2000 forward yet, that will happen later this week):

1965: All
1966: All
1967: All
1968: All
1969: All
1970: All
1971: All
1972: All
1973: All
1974: All
1975: All but 96, 301, 334, 455, 479, 541, 563, 590
1976: All but 75
1977: All
1978: All but 13, 226, 330, 358, 437, 514, 677
1979: All but 49, 107
1980: 69, 106, 205, 206, 207, 289, 437, 554, 617
1981: All but 45, 82, 129, 253, 269, 329, 350, 411, 513, 617, 642
1982: All but 305, 306, 404, 433, 441, 509, 611, 672, 683, 734, 761
1983: All but 117, 172, 221, 382, 478, 558, 639, 662, 752
1984: Need about 16 cards, just ask
1985: Working on a complete set
1986: 100, 376
1987: 24, 85, 757
1988: 6, 199, 250, 661
1989: 49, 180, 530
1990: 4, 64, 181, 196, 267, 558, 637, 648
1991: All but 32, 119, 194, 646
1992: All but 34, 69, 124, 134, 184, 288, 393, 437, 564, 614, 640
1993: 227, 506, 680, 743
1994: All but 427, 456, 484, 541, 674
1995: All
1996: All
1997: All but 22, 488
1998: All but 350, 372, 380, 426
1999: All but 441
2000: All but 163, 290, 339, 362, 365

To be continue.....

As usual, if you got something I need, just email me or leave a comment, as I am sure we can work something out.

All Quarter Century Team: Starting Pitchers

Sorting through the last 25 seasons of starting pitchign wasn't easy, but picking the first three starters was. Starters number four and number five were a bit more difficult, but I am happy with my selections.

My number one starting pitcher is the second greatest left handed pitcher in the history of the game, Randy Johnson. The Big Unit, as he was known, was probably the most dominant pitcher of the past 25 seasons as well. He has five Cy Young awards, winning four straight from 1999-2002, ten All Star game selections, a World Series ring and MVP. He is 2nd all time in strikeouts, 1st all time in strikeouts per nine innings pitched (a whopping 10+), 300+ career wins and is 1st or 2nd amongst active pitchers in many categories. Not to mention, he destroyed a seagull with one pitch.

Reason number one he is my number two starter: He was born in my hometown. Reason number two: Four consecutive Cy Youngs (from 1992 to 1995). Reason number 3: 355 (as in number of wins, 8th all time). Reason number 4: From 1990 to 2008, Greg Maddux won EVERY Gold Glove at the pitcher position except for ONE. That's EIGHTEEN Gold Gloves. He is also, suprisingly enough, 10th on the all time strike outs list.

Pedro F'n Martinez. Probably the nastiest righty of the last 25 seasons (sorry Roger, you had help). Would have won 4 straight Cy Youngs, but had to settle for 3 in 4 seasons (once again, Roger Clemens got in the way). His stretch of season from 1997 to 2003 may be the most dominant stretch of pitching in the history of the league. He had an ERA of 2.20 in that span, along with 118 wins against 36 losses (yes, EIGHTY TWO more wins than losses), a WHIP of 0.94, every year but one he finished in the top 3 of the Cy Young voting and he averaged 252 k's per season, over 201 innings.

Ol' Smoltzie. Probably the most versatile pitcher this side of Dennis Eckersley. The only player in history with a 20 win season and a 50 save season under his belt. He only has one Cy Young, but eight all star game appearances, has over 3,000 strikeouts (even though seven of his 21 seasons he had less than 100 strikeouts) and has a career ERA and WHIP of 3.33 and 1.17, respectively. Just an absolutely dominant force who, along with Maddux and Tom Glavine, helped carry the Braves to all those division wins.

The second lefty (and third Brave) on my list is none other than little Tommy Glavine. Maybe some won't agree with me here, but 300+ wins, 2 Cy Youngs, 10 All Star games, 4 Silver Sluggers and a World Series ring tell me he is one of the greats. A sure ballot Hall of Famer, though he did scorn Braves fans the world over when he signed with the Mets. Probably the most underrated (and least feared) of the Braves big three, he quietly hung out in the shadows of the two big stars to amass some great stats.

Took me a few extra days, but it was worth it, in my opinion. Next up this weekend: Relief Pitchers.

Great Sports Name Hall of Fame: Ballot Six of the Great Sports Name Hall of Fame - IT'S HERE! Vote Please!

Great Sports Name Hall of Fame: Ballot Six of the Great Sports Name Hall of Fame - IT'S HERE! Vote Please!

This is the 6th ballot for the GSNHOF.

Head over and vote.

He wants to hit 100 voters this time, so let's Rock the Vote!

Yes! We! Can!

(Yep, two terrible voting phrases used over the last two years, wrapped up in one post. Your welcome.)

The GBFCBC Prize Thread

After this paragraph, nothing but pictures. This is not ALL of the prizes, just some of them (the better ones in my opinion):















80% of the cards pictured are a part of the different prizes. If I can wrangle up some more paypal, I plan on buying one or two more big cards, for the 1st and 2nd place guys.

Oh, where have you gone 1996 SPx?

Anyone remember '96 SPx? That great set of odd shaped base cards, easy to distinguish parallels and holographic goodness?

While searchign through some cards recently, I cam across this gem:

Barry Lamar Bonds. Back when I was younger, I was a huge Bonds fan, but really only had commons and base cards of his to show for it (his stuff was pretty damn expensive then) and this had to easily be my favorite base card of his.

Rarely, if ever, would you catch Bonds with a smile on his face anymore, but as a child, the smile on Bonds' face on this card brought a smile to my face. As THE player of the 90's, I lived and died on his every swing, throw and stolen base. I remember wanting a gold cross earring, just like Barry had. I even had a little swagger and arrogance about me as well (which i saying a lot, I didn't even cross the 5 foot threshold until my sophomore year of High School). Sadly, I never did learn to hit left handed though, if I had, I would have had his swing down pat.

Why do I bring this up?

I realize that the mid 90's may be the high point of the hobby we partake of. From the introduction to serial numbered cards, to lower print runs, auto's, game used and stunning technology, we may never see the hobby change in such a way that we will reminisce on the cards we bought again.

I may soon be attempting to complete this set, as there are only 60 cards in the set. So, if you happen to stumble across any '96 SPx cards, keep me in mind ;)

All Quarter Century Team: Middle Infielders

The middle infield of the All Quarter Century Team was relatively easy to pick......for the first two slots. The last slot, though, wasn't as much of a no-brainer as the first two. And, since my first two slots are filled by shortstops, this meant that the final slot had to be a second baseman. So, I will lead off with the second baseman and end with the best player from the middle infield of the last twenty-five seasons.

Over the last 25 seasons, Craig Biggio has more hits, more home runs, more at bats and more games than any other second baseman. He was the epitome of a team player, moving from catcher to second base to the outfield and back again. He hustled, played with grit and enjoyed the ol' hit by pitch. He is also a bonafide surefire Hall of Famer and one of the nicest men to ever step on a baseball diamond.

Predictable, I know, but can you argue? Career .317 hitter, career hits leader for the Yankees on on pace to retire with well over 3,500 hits. Not to mention his clutch defense, World Series rings, 10 All Star games, Rookie Of the Year, World Series MVP, All Star Game MVP and his penchant for clutch hits in the playoffs. Just a part of the long line of New York bred Hall of Famers, when his career is all said and done.

As I said in corner infielders, I consider Rodriguez a shortstop, since he has spent about 65% of his career there. 3 MVP's (5 top 5 finishes), 12 All Star Game nods, 2 gold gloves, 583 home runs (and counting), 10 silver sluggers and the highest paid athlete in ANY sport. Sound like a shoe in for greatest of the last quarter century? It does to me. Until Pujols has 16 seasons under his belt, A-Rod is the greatest right handed hitter of my lifetime.

I will jump to the starting pitchers next, as I want to end on the outfielders (so SP, RP, and then DH, before settling on the OF). As usual, feel free to leave praise, hate, love or complaints via email or the comments below.

The Want List Post

I have noticed that plenty of people have a Want List, not a "I Collect This and This, That Is All", post, so why not me?

I have already made a few trades with bloggers (and many more on message boards), so why not get the word out on some cards (and players) I am looking for?

1959 Topps Bob Gibson RC

1980 Topps Rickey Henderson RC

1982 Topps Cal Ripken Jr. RC

1992 Bowman Mike Piazza RC

2004 Topps Fan Favorites Auto Mike Scott

1989 Upper Deck Ken Griffey Jr. RC

2001 Topps Ichiro Suzuki RC

2001 Upper Deck Albert Pujols RC

On top of those 8 cards (my Top Ten Most Coveted, outside of my player collections), I also need cards from these sets and of these players/teams:

1985 Topps

2008 Topps

Hunter Pence

Richard Hidalgo

Javier Vazquez

Bob Gibson

If you have anything on this list, feel free to drop me an email or leave a comment here, as I check both daily.

Thanks!!

Edited: Knocked two of the cards off, so they have been removed :D

Just a little bit of mail.....

Had a pretty decent mail week this week. Only 5 cards for my personal collection, but 7 cards for trade bait (and some of them are cards for the contest).

Will start with the trade bait and move on to the PC at the end (the tradebait is going to be pictures only, the PC stuff I will describe).











And now, for some PC stuff.

Javier Vazquez:

07 Topps Co-Signers "Something, Something Gold" 040/125....I mean seriously, I hardly know TWO of the different parallels, but there are like THREE gold parallels in this set. Ugh.

Hunter Pence:

I know, I know, Moments & Milestones....but, it IS a 1/1 and my first one of Pence. Since I didn't have any money to throw at the Superfractor on eBay this week, this isn't too bad as a hold over.

Richard Hidalgo:

1998 Donruss Studio "Gold Studio Proof" 204/300. I love most all 90's inserts and parallels and this is definitely one of my favorites. It looks a lot better in person.

This is a parallel I knew nothing about, but it is another low numbered card for my Hidalgo collection: 2005 Upper Deck "UD Exclusives" 2/5.

Finally, a new Hidalgo auto. And this came from the far east (it came from somewhere deep in Asia...the envelop looked really cool with all the writing on it). It is a 1999 Fleer Ultra Fresh Ink Auto 374/500.

Thanks for looking.

All Quarter Century Team: Corner Infielders

Well, the two corner infield spots were tougher to fill then the catcher spot. I had to look past a few guys I really enjoyed watching growing up (Jeff Bagwell, Matt Williams, Rafael Palmeiro), one of the best power hitters of the 90's (Mark McGwire) and a guy with 3,000 hits and 500 home runs (Rafael Palmeiro).

In the end, it comes down to the greatest offensive player of the now (Albert Pujols), one of the most powerful players of the 90's (Frank Thomas) and the greatest 3B of the last 25 years (Chipper Jones).

(Note: For all intents and purposes, I consider Alex Rodriguez a SS, not a 3B, for this team).

Albert Pujols. 3 MVP's, 8 All Star selections, 8 times in the top 5 of MVP voting, Rookie of the Year, 5 Silver Sluggers, 1 Gold Glove, 1 World Series ring. With that kind of a resume, there's really no need for stats.But, the stats, the STATS, tell the true story. In only 9 years in the big leagues (no less than 143 games in any season) Pujols has 366 home runs, 1717 hits and an OPS of 1.055. Those are RIDICULOUS stats for a guy who was a relative unheard of when he started the 2001 season. He could end up the greatest hitter of all time. I know I won't disagree should he keep this up.

Frank Thomas was one of the premier power hitters of the 1990's. Winning back to back MVP's in the '93 and '94 seasons, he showed his true presence as a force to be reckoned with. Thomas was built like an ox and had the power (and speed) to prove it. Though others may have more home runs or more hits, Thomas was a career .301 hitter who had plenty of power into his late 30's. It could be argued he is one of the greatest right handed hitters of all time (just ask those sabremetrics guys).

Larry Wayne "Chipper" Jones was one of my FAVORITE players growing up, as well as much of the children in the Southern part of the United States' favorite players as well. Outside of Mickey Mantle, Chipper was the only other legit switch hitter I had ever heard of, so I naturally latched onto him growing up (I was a budding switch hitter who can now only hit right handed). He is quite possibly the greatest 3B of not just the last 25 seasons, but possibly the greatest since, well, I would say George Brett (Wade Boggs was more of singles hitter). With an outside shot at 3,000 hits and 500 home runs, he has a ton to be, uh, chipper about.

Feel free to chime in on my selections for the All Quarter Century Team so far by leaving a comment or emailing me.

Next up: Middle Infielders.

Have the Houston Astros already settled their closer's spot?

According to MLBTradeRumors.com (and Ken Rosenthal, via Twitter) the Astros and Marlins have agreed to a deal sending Matt Lindstrom from the Marlins to the Astros. Who's going back to the Marlins? No word yet. Really, the only word is that medicals are being swapped (though Lindstrom's agent did tell him to hold tight).

Not sure how I feel about this YET, but he has closing experience (he had 13 saves in 15 opportunities last year before injury) and he is cheaper and younger than both Valverde and Hawkins (either of whom could have come back and closed again this next season).

Will have more insight once it is 100% completed and I know the other parts involved.

All Quarter Century Team: Catchers

Well, starting with the catcher position is not only natural, but also the easiest position for me to select. Two catchers from 1985 on were easily head and shoulders above the rest: Mike Piazza and Ivan Rodriguez.

Piazza is easily the greatest hitting catcher of all time. If injuries wouldn't have taken their toll late in his career, he had a great shot at 500 home runs, instead ending with only 427. A sure fire Hall of Famer, Piazza was the 1993 NL Rookie of the Year. He was a 12 time All Star, grabbing the '96 AS Game MVP, and finished in the top five for MVP voting four times. Though pretty terrible on defense, his ability to get on base at a .377 clip and have a career OPS over .900 made him one of the best offensive players of the last 25 seasons.

Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez may well be the greatest defensive catcher of all time. He has a career caught stealing percentage of FORTY-SIX PERCENT. That means nearly half of all would be base stealers get are throw out by Pudge. Not to mention he has had eight seaons where he has thrown out over half of would be base stealers. Add to that his career .299 batting average, 14 All Star games, 1999 MVP, 2003 NLCS MVP, durability, longevity and outside reach at 3,000 hits (he is currently sitting at 2,711) and you have a surefire Hall of Famer.

So, the All Quarter Century team starts out strong, with two extremely talented offensive catchers and one of them a defensive wizard behind the plate. Next up: Corner Infielders.

The All Quarter Century Team

So, I have decided to turn my idea of the greatest 25 players of the last 25 seasons into the All Quarter Century Team. It will still consist of 25 players, but it will be spread out a little differently.

Instead of a random 25 players, they will be laid out by position:

 C x2

CI x3

MI x3

OF x5

UTIL x2

SP x5

RP x5

I will break the team down into 7 posts and then a final, 8th post, with the complete team and how I feel about the overall composition of the team.

The only REAL rule for a player to be eligible for the team, is that their FIRST season must have been the 1985 season (my first season of life). Most of the players will have had a TON of success (7+ years, most with 10+ and HOF credentials), but there are some guys from the Aughts years that will make a spot on the team.

In other news, since I went on my little eBay and trading spree, I have received a card package in the mail every mail day for the last 5 weekdays....and it is GREAT. Got two more in today, along with SEVEN yesterday, meaning I will have a large mail post this weekend with a ton of scans.

If anyoen has any suggestions for the All Quarter Century Team, feel free to drop an email or leave a message here, pleading your case for individual players.

Huge Mail Week, Part Zwei

Well, the first part of my huge mail week came from Ed over at Roll Out The Barrel. The second part of my huge mail week comes from eBay and a few trades. I got cards for all three of my player collections (Vazquez, Hidalgo and Pence) and I will just let the scans do the talking:

09 Ballpark 6 Game Used

04 Just Auto

09 A&G NNO Mini /50

07 Exquisite Auto /25

08 Spectrum 50/50

09 Topps Silk /50

09 Topps Chrome Blue Ref /199

09 Topps U&H Black /58

Green Crusade

And, the finale:

Thanks for looking guys!!