Thor

I had been eyeing up this 2012 Heritage Minors black parallel of Noah Syndergaard for at least a month, if not longer.  It sat on my eBay "watch list" for that duration of time, and each day when I went on the site I was half-expecting it to be gone, having been snatched up by someone else.

I'm not sure why I tempted fate for as long as I did, especially after being burned by the same sort of thing last year with Jose Fernandez's black parallel from the same set.  I kept waiting and putting it off and shuffling it to the back of my priority list.  And then, one day, the card sky-rocketed in price on COMC and eBay and it was no longer a viable purchase.

You think I woulda learned my lesson from that, yet I left this card of Thor (more on the nickname in a bit) to dangle in the breeze for five weeks.  Some people are just that dense, what can I say?

But, last Friday, when I struck out in my hunt for 2014 Heritage, I decided to cheer myself up by going for it.  I made a "Best Offer" on the card and *poof* the seller accepted it within the hour.

Victory at last!

For under 10 bucks, I got a numbered parallel of a future ace (crossing fingers and toes and eyes) of the New York Mets staff.

Originally a prospect in the Blue Jays system, Syndergaard was one of the pieces transferred to the Mets in the R.A. Dickey trade in December of 2012.  Standing at 6'6" with a high-90s fastball and a "hook from hell" in his repertoire, the righty has become a hot name in the Mets organization.  In fact, Baseball America tabbed Syndergaard not only as New York's top prospect, but also the No. 16 prospect in all of baseball.

But, just as they did with Matt Harvey and Zach Wheeler the past two years respectively, Mets brass will let their prized pitching prospect begin the season at Triple-A and, if all goes according to plan, will bring him up to the big club in June.

If nothing else, Syndergaard will give Mets fans something to look forward to later this season.  We fans definitely need a pick-me-up especially with Matt Harvey out for the year following Tommy John surgery.

Oh, and the whole "Thor" thing?  The New York Post has the explanation.

Here's the most vital excerpt from the story:

“The home planet of Thor is called Asgard, which is like my last name,” he said during an interview for SNY’s Mets Hot Stove. ”It just kind of stuck with me. I guess a Mets fan gave it to me, and I’m not going to say, ‘No.’ It’s not a bad name to have.”

I can't argue with the guy.

Happy to finally have this card in my collection.!

MK

Two Fer Tuesday

I had to pick up diapers on the way home from work, so naturally I used the detour as an excuse to check out the card aisle at one of my local Walmart stores.  And, wouldn't ya know there were two lonely "jumbo" packs of 2014 Heritage just hanging around waiting from someone to pluck them off the rack and take 'em home.

The highlight of the two packs was a chrome refractor of newly svelte CC Sabathia.

It's numbered 373/565 in case you can't make it out from the scan (and, in case you care, I suppose).

Other highlights from the pack break...

Of the 40 total cards, I got 24 new base cards, including my first two Mets!

I like Dillon Gee because he's his own worst critic.  On top of that, he's a pretty darn good pitcher.  Last year, he posted a 2.74 ERA in 13 starts following the All-Star break, including a sizzling August (3-1, 2.14 ERA in 6 starts).

If not for David Wright, my favorite Met would far and away be this guy.  Danny Murphy plays the game with the passion and abandon of a Pete Rose-type.  He doesn't have a lot of power and he doesn't really have a natural position in the field, but the guy is a baseball player--plain and simple.

And, yet another reason why manager cards are a good thing:

The first-ever manager card of some guy named Ryne Sandberg.  It's a shame he's skippering the hated Phillies because it means I can't root for him.

I also managed to get one of those pesky short prints:

That's almost corner-to-corner head shot action of the man they call "Country Breakfast."  FYI, this is the second consecutive year that Topps has designated Butler for the SP portion of the Heritage checklist.

I was very happy to find a blue-bordered Walmart parallel in one of my packs, as well.

I'll take a parallel or variation card of Andrew McCutchen all day, every day.  He's one of the game's true young stars.  I believe Cutch was among the red-bordered Target parallels a year ago.

And, wrapping up the review, let's take a look at the lone insert card that I netted...

This is the third Baseball Flashbacks card I've pulled through six rack packs, and all three were different.  I previously pulled the Banks and the Marichal.

So, to sum things up:

Base Cards Added: 24
Base Cards That are Dupes: 12
Short Prints Added: 1
Inserts: 1
Blue Border: 1
Chrome Refractor: 1

MK

Actual Heritage

Many of us in this little card-collecting corner of the universe have been taken--dare I say smitten--with the recently released 2014 Heritage cards.  I am certainly among those who have been completely engulfed in hysteria over the new stuff.

But, let's take a timeout from going batty for the pretty new neo-vintage cards and actually show some well deserved appreciation for, well, the real heritage cards.  Honest to goodness vintage, that is.

Helping to bring me back to earth in this vain was a good man and a gifted writer.  Dean, who operates the handsome blog by the name of The Cardboard Examiner, was kind enough to float me a hearty helping of cards towards my pursuit of the '77 Topps complete set.

Dean, like me and countless others, is planning on chasing this year's Heritage set.  But, more impressive than that, is his quest to polish off the set that the newest Heritage product pays homage to: 1965 Topps.  One of the most colorful and overall stunning sets Topps ever produced, it's a labor of love for Dean, who is quite the connoisseur of vintage cardboard.

He also happens to be one of the best damn writers of all the bloggers I follow, and I respect the hell out of him. He runs a tight ship over there at the Examiner, and it's truly a pleasure to read his stuff.

That's why it was such a happy occasion when Dean took the time to scan my want list and plunk down some nice, crisp '77s for my collection.  Certainly, I'm honored.

In case you haven't been a long-time reader of my silly blog site, you should know that I didn't pick the '77 set; rather it chose me.  I came to possess a rather sizable box of cards from the mid-to-late '70s from my uncle, with the bulk of the lot consisting of '77s.

Like any other set collecting fanatic, once you get to a certain point of accumulation, it becomes a slam dunk that you should soldier forth and make a go of it.  I already had a few of the higher profile cards, like Yount, Bench and the Raines rookie, so why not?  Yes it's a vintage card set, but it's not the most daunting one out there.

And, unlike many of the more recent sets, I'm not planning on being a stickler for card condition.  As long as they haven't been ripped in half and taped back to together, I think I can put aside my normally maddening OCD tendencies and just enjoy the cards for what they are--pieces of someone else's childhood.

But, as you can see from the scans, most of the '77s I got from Dean are very minty and sharp.  I think it's a cause for jubilation any time you can acquire cards that have more years than you do yet still retain a pack-fresh quality.  It kinda lets your imagination wander, thinking about actually opening a 37-year-old pack and being the first human hands to touch those cards.

A little corny, I know, but for someone whose collecting days began as a six-year-old kid in 1987, amassing all these cards from the '70s is a pretty big deal.

I'm still a ways away from putting this particular pursuit to bed, and there are still some pretty significant cards that will serve as stubborn roadblocks along the road.  But that's the journey that we all sign up for when we commit to building a set the old-fashioned way.

And, always, we endure the task happily because the end of the line, while terrific, also delivers a certain sadness.  Because, well, when it's over, it's over.  So, in a sense, we fall in love with the thing that keeps us captive for so long.

Dean, thanks a bunch for thinking of me, and also for reminding me that true "heritage" can't be replicated and slapped into sleek hobby boxes with umpteen inserts and image variations and and color variations and chrome variations, etc.

Sure, I'm still gaga for the 2014 cards, and I look forward to swapping dupes with Dean and others as we strive to reach the finish line.

But, at the end of the day, nothing looks and feels like actual heritage.

MK

2014 Heritage...At Last!

I have four Walmart stores within reasonable driving distance of me.  The first three were all duds, but my trip to the fourth on Sunday afternoon was not in vain.  There were four rack packs left in an otherwise depleted card section, and I swiped them up lickety split.

Finally, 2014 Heritage is in hand!

And let me say, I couldn't be more pleased with the cards.  Other than the fact that four rack packs only netted me on lousy short print--ugh!--the cards are really beautiful.  Beyond the visual appeal that the '65 design offers, the most exciting thing about this year's product is the fact that Topps has allowed the Heritage brand to return to the nice thick card stock--a Heritage hallmark--after a one year hiatus in 2013.  These things are not flimsy, and that's how we collectors like 'em!

The first card I set my eyes on was actually one of those split-player rookies, but I can't begin the 2014 Heritage season with one of those.  So, my first solo player card was the 2012 NL Cy Young winner, R.A. Dickey.  A pretty great way to start!  The former Met was a short print last year, but he's among the regular 425-card base set this time around.

Other cards from the base set that caught my eye:

I was originally excited when I saw each of these guys because I assumed--wrongly--that they were SPs.  I guess I forgot that Topps actually put a few star players in the regular checklist this time around.

Some airbrushed players.  It's kinda funny that Marlon Byrd cracks the checklist this year when he didn't even get a sniff in the 100-card High Numbers box in 2013.  Well, good for him; I have nothing against Marlon. Moreover, I became a fan of his from his half-season in Queens last year.

There aren't enough "sitting in the dugout with bat slung over the shoulder...oh yeah, did we mention the batting donut?" cards these days.  So, I definitely like Chris Carter's card.  Also, you may number me among those who prefer to bring back manager cards.  I mean, why not?  When has an extra Don Mattingly card ever hurt anybody?

Plenty of blue sky and old-school posed photos with the bat.  Such an old formula, but it still looks as good today as it did all those years ago.

I'm happy to see that the personality and sense of humor that Topps allowed to seep into '13 Heritage has carried over into some of the photo choices for this year's edition.  Why can't we still have cards like this in the flagship set?

Whether it's a grown man making a monster movie face or a totally '80s throwback jersey, you're bound to find something in this year's Heritage that'll make you smile.

My only All-Star Rookie card from this pack break.  The old-style trophy looks ever snazzier on the '65 design. Man, these cards are great!

World Series recap cards remain a part of the base checklist, just as they were in 1965.  This is photographic perfection from Game 3 of last year's Fall Classic.  One of the strangest endings to a ballgame, for sure.

Oh, and this was my only Mets card, if you wanna call it that.  A shame that Wilfredo Tovar's rookie is littered with some Phillies-colored smudge on the right half of the card.  Blech!

My only short print over four packs was this one, Rafael Soriano.  The stated odds indicated I should have gotten two, but what are ya gonna do?  I should have the luck of this guy, who made out like a bandit on the SP front.

But, considering I was a Grumpy Gus over the past two days without any Heritage, I'm not going to spend a moment bemoaning my luck with odds and inserts and such.  Just happy to have the stuff at last!

Speaking of inserts...

My lone blue parallel.  Right on the odds with this one, as they are seeded one in four packs.  Kind of a kooky picture of the ChiSox ace.  And that is certainly not a bad thing!

I also managed one of those "1st Draft" cards.  I probably won't spend a lot of time chasing after these, but it's still a pretty neat concept.

My packs also netted me a pair of Baseball Flashbacks, which have a nice horizontal look to them this year. And they even retain of the lil' pennant that the base cards boast.  Gotta like that!

I didn't score any New Age Performers inserts which was a minor bummer.  I was really looking forward to getting a first-hand look at one of those bad boys.  From what I've seen 'round the blogs and on various other sites, this year's NAP cards are pretty awesome.

But, on the flip side, four rack packs yielded only three dupes.  Considering the poor track record of collation Topps has carried for some time, that's no feat to be taken lightly.

So, we're off and running with the '14 Heritage marathon.  And I'm not the least bit disappointed in the quality of the cards, from their appearance to the way they feel.  It's a home run all around.

Now if only we can get all these freakin' stores fully stocked with stuff!

MK

Can't Beat the Real Thing

Two more Walmarts visited on Saturday, and still no Heritage satisfaction.  Still annoyed.  Also, I'm reading that the only retail product that has been available has been in the form of the rack packs.  No blasters and no single packs.  Also, unless I'm wrong, Target is barren completely.  What in the Sam Hill is going on?!

Anyways, I'm over it (not really) and I'm moving on (I'm trying to).

Onto more positive news...  Mail!  Not just any mail, but mail from Marcus of Backstop Cards!

My good buddy continues to come through with some truly awesome cards for my Horizontal Heroes collection. How serious is he?  He's sending me Tony Gwynns.  I know this is a duplicate, but still.  Getting any Gwynns from Marcus is like getting a Coca-Cola Classic straight from the Atlanta, GA bottling plant.

In other words: You can't beat the real thing!

This Gwynn, however, will go right into my smattering of cards that make up my Tony Gwynn collection.

This Gwynn, on the other hand...

Yes, I do believe this will work out just fine, since I don't have a collection of this Tony Gwynn.

Other fantastic landscape-oriented cards for my frankenset:

I was just thinking about this card the other day, so it's a nice coincidence to now have a copy for my newest pet project.  Who cares that poor Josh Thole is about to get blown up by Carlos Quentin?

Goodness gracious, that's some vivid color, especially on Kelsko's jersey.  This card is yet another example of the superiority of the Stadium Club brand.  As if we needed another.

I've sent Marcus a small nation of Benito Santiago cards over the past year or so.  I've probably sent him a copy of this one at some point.  I'm extremely happy to now have one of my own.

Arms and legs flying everywhere, and we even get a glimpse of the baseball in mid-flight.  A really beautiful card. Plus, lots of "orange line" in the background, right Marcus?

Mark Kotsay, in case you don't have HD glasses to see through the murkiness of the scan.  Slowly but surely, Marcus is converting my horizontal frankenset into a Padres playground.  But, do I care?  As long as the cards are landscape in nature and have a cool photo, the answer is a resounding NO!

In his last package, I got this same card from Marcus.  But, I had to slide it right into my Mariano collection, thus keeping this perfect card out of the horizontal collection.  And, now, I've got another.  Problem solved!  By the way, Pepsi and Gatorade.  [Ed. Note:  I gave up soda for Lent, and here I am droning on about Coke and Pepsi...  Sheesh!]

Speaking of the Great Mariano, a nice blue parallel of Mo's checklist card from Series 1.  Going into the aforementioned Mariano section of my player collection box.

This is one of the finest take out slides captured on a baseball card, yet Lance Blankenship's 1992 Upper Deck card has a card number of 749.  I guess he'll go into the "high numbers" section of the frankenset that has yet to be defined.  This card is too brilliant to hide, so I'll figure something out!

This card is No. 55 in the 1998 Score checklist.  I've already got a pretty great card at No. 55 for the project.  I may have to revisit that decision, however.  The Swining' Padre on the sleeve might be the tie-breaker.

Have I mentioned Coca-Cola yet in this post?  Well, let me restate it...

Another Gwynn from the Gwynn collector!  And a Rickey, as well.  Two more from the '89 die cut mini insert set from this year's Topps release.  These '89 style minis are my favorite yet, since the set they pay homage to is my Number 1 poison when it comes to Topps sets.  Pretty excited to acquire these two!

On the topic of minis...

A mini Robbie Cano from last year's 2013 Update.  Essentially, if it's a mini and it's paying tribute to a past Topps design, I'm collecting it.  I'm a sap; I know this.

And the final bit of insert goodness from this recent robust delivery of cardboard:

I make no apologies for liking this insert set.  I just wish the blasted things would scan a little better.  No matter, these Upper Class cards are pretty attractive.  Great player selection with this foursome, to boot.  I especially dig the Griffey.

Thanks, as always, for the generous loot, Marcus!  I owe you a Coke...

MK