Triumvirate, Danbury Mint, Oddballs and More

Some random new cards to show off from the last two days:

1.  1998 Pinnacle Performers Peak Performers.  I remember getting a few packs of this product when it came out yet I do not remember this parallel set.

2.  2007 Danbury Mint.  I showed a previous Danbury Mint card from 2003 showing Alomar with the Rockies.  This one has the same picture minus pinstripes and has an Indians logo.  I do not know how these cards were available.  I had the 2004 and 2007 World Series champion sets but these were obviously different.

3.  1989 Broder Preview.

4.  1989 Broder Baseball's Finest Stars.

5.  1989 Broder Golden Superstars.  I got each of these Broder cards in a big lot that also included some Red Sox cards.  I have no idea at all how these were distributed.

6.  1998 Stadium Club Triumvirate Luminous.  Another card knocked off the Top 10.  I am pretty sure this is the Luminous.  They were the most common variant.  This is the kind of intricate die cut Pacific was known for.  The scan does not do it justice.  This is a terrific looking card.

Card #53: 1990 Classic Update #T3

YEAR: 1990
BRAND: Classic
SET: Update
NUMBER: T3
SUBSET: NA
TEAM: Cleveland Indians

I remember seeing for the first time that the Classic cards were part of a board game.  It surprised me because I have never seen the game that they came from.  To this day I still have not.  But I do have a lot of the cards.  I like the photo on this one but I will be honest, pink does not belong on a baseball card, even if it was the neon 90's.

Minor Mailday

The Tim Wallach collector is easily the most extreme player collector of whom I am aware.  He seems obsessed even by player collector standards.  I visit his webpage somewhat frequently and even sent cards to him on two occasions now.  But I find tips on his site for my own collection.  On one of his posts he linked to a site for buying minor league singles which he used to get cards of Wallach as a minor league manager.  I contacted the business through the site and eventually worked out a deal for the two Alomars he had that I needed.

1.  1987 Wichita Pilots Rock's Dugout.  This is my third Wichita Pilots card.  I know there are a couple of other minor league issues out there that I need.

2.  2007 New Orleans Zephyrs Multi-Ad.  This was the big one though as it was #4 on my Top 10 Most Wanted.  I was wondering if I would ever be able to find it.  This was the reason I set something up with Dave at the website.  There are no New York Mets cards of Alomar out there of which I am aware.  However, he has the New Orleans Zephyrs card that is his last card from his active playing career.  I love the shot too of the aged catcher wearing his equipment.  He played 45 games with the Zephyrs in 2007 with some decent hitting numbers.

Pacific Pickups

Well I guess they aren't all Pacific cards.  The first one is another of the 2004 Donruss Recollection autographs, but the rest were Pacific inserts and parallels.

1.  2004 Donruss Recollection Autographs 1994.  This is my third Recollection autograph.  Still a long ways to go yet.  I also have the 1996 and the 1989.  The 1989 is still my favorite because it was his rookie card.  I have a number of these in my Red Sox collection as well, including Dwight Evans, Carney Lansford, and Jason Varitek.

2.  1998 Pacific Crown Collection Team Checklists.  This actually has Manny Ramirez on the back.  But we don't really need to see Manny here.  I like the fact that Sandy is on the front.  The back is not nearly as interesting.

3.  1998 Omega Face to Face.  Another Pacific insert with another star on it, this one has Mike Piazza of the Mets.  This card was on my Top 10 Most Wanted list.  Nice to add one of those.

4.  1998 Pacific Online Winners.  The gold foil version of the massive Online set.  This is not a very exciting card, but I loved the set, particularly as a Red Sox fan.

5.  1998 Pacific Crown Collection Platinum Blue.  Another nice play at the plate shot of Alomar, this one against the Blue Jays.

Card #52: 1990 Topps Traded #2T

YEAR: 1990
BRAND: Topps
SET: Traded
NUMBER: 2T
SUBSET: NA
TEAM: Cleveland Indians

The colors on this card look a little bit better than the green borders with the Padres brown uniform.  The green corner in this one is a little off but the other colors look okay.  This is a pretty standard shot for Topps at the time.  Alomar is wearing his new Indians uniform, but otherwise there isn't much to write home about this one.  There are two different backs to this card.  I have the lighter-colored back but there is a darker colored one as well.  This is one of those variations that I won't turn down if I find it in my collection but not something to seek out.

Bazooka

This came from the same trading forum member that I got a bunch of Red Sox oddballs from.  It was one of the last food issue cards I needed.  He did not really have a lot beyond the early 1990's due to injuries that took their toll on his career.

Card #51: 1990 Upper Deck #756

YEAR: 1990
BRAND: Upper Deck
SET: Extended
NUMBER: 756
SUBSET: NA
TEAM: Cleveland Indians

This is the high-number extended card from 1990 Upper Deck.  I kind of like this shot but I am very curious about it.  Both Alomar and the umpire are smiling in the shot.  What the heck is going on that both of them are smiling so broad?

Venting

I am a little annoyed right now.  I have been having some difficulties in getting a few cards in lately.  Here are a few stories:

1.  1998 Topps Tek Pattern 1.
I ordered this card off of the Beckett Marketplace.  It was the only card that I ordered from one seller when I was going through and getting all of the Tek patterns I could find.  A few days after I paid for it, I received the notice that it had been shipped.  A couple of weeks later, I still had not received the card so I emailed the seller.  He responded by saying that he did not even realize that there was an open order and did not have any record of the sale.  He then said he would refund my money if I did not receive it within a week.

One week later I emailed him again.  No response.  I waited a little longer and then emailed again.  Still no response.  I have now filed a Paypal claim to try to recoup my money that I paid, but it frustrates me that I am out a Topps Tek pattern.

2.  1998 Topps Tek Pattern 63.
Yep, another problem with a Topps Tek pattern.  This one was purchased on Ebay along with Pattern 67, which I later mistakenly added in another transaction as well.  I received a package from the Ebay seller but it contained a football card.  I contacted the seller to report the problem.  But it took a few days to receive a response.  After that I had to email several times to get a plan of action.  The seller refunded my money, plus extra to send the card to the rightful buyer.  He did the same thing with the other buyer.  I send the football card to the other buyer but after multiple emails and a note in the package, I still have not received my Alomar.  The seller is not really at fault here, but it ticks me off that the other buyer now has three cards, two of which he should not have, and his rightful card, as well as his money back plus extra that he was supposed to use to ship the cards to me.  I was under the understanding that there was an agreement between all three parties to swap the cards but apparently not.

So now that's two Topps Tek patterns that I will not see for a long time.

3.  Other issues.
There are a few sellers on Ebay with some very rare cards that are asking for astronomical amounts.  I attempted to make a Best Offer that was not accepted.  This by itself does not bother me, but I thought my offers were very reasonable for the what other cards had sold.  I researched where the market was for these cards and attempted to point out the previous sales when making my own offer and in fact I was offering considerably more than the other cards had sold for.  Instead I received a snide and nasty remark in the denial of one of the offers and no response in the other.

Burbank Sportscards Order and Another Tek Card

Burbank Sportscards is one of my favorite online stores to buy from.  They have a massive selection and I am still finding cards there that I need.  Most of their prices are fairly reasonable, although the rarer cards are pretty pricey.  This time I was just grabbing whatever cards caught my eye:

1.  1989 Fleer Glossy.  I still need the 1989 Topps Tiffany for glossy factory set-only variations.

2.  2002 Topps Chrome.  I really wanted to pick up a bunch of his White Sox stuff, but only managed to grab a few.  I have no idea why I did not previously have this one.

3.  2003 Topps Chrome.  Same here.

4.  2004 SP Authentic All Star Moments 199/99.  I picked up both parallels of this card.

5.  2004 SP Authentic All Star Moments 499/249.  I now have all three.

6.  1995 Stadium Club 1st Day.

7.  2000 MLB Showdown Pennant Run 1st Edition.  I liked the Showdown series because of the random, unusual players in the sets.  Alomar did not quite qualify in 2000, but he certainly did in 2005 when he appeared with the Rangers.

8.  1999 Ultra Gold Medallion.  I absolutely love this picture.  Alomar has some great play at the plate shots and this is definitely a good one.

9.  2001 Topps Chrome Traded Retrofractor.  These are different because of the thick cardboard stock on the back, and the shininess on the front.  My third White Sox card of the package.

10.  2001 Fleer Futures Black Gold.  And my fourth and final White Sox card of the package.

11.  2000 Pacific Ruby.

12.  1999 Invincible.  I got the red version in a pack.  I finally added the base version.

13.  1998 Finest Refractor.  I always liked the Finest refractors.

14.  1995 Stadium Club Members Only.

15.  1995 Stadium Club Best Seat in the House Members Only.

16.  1998 Topps Tek Pattern 32.  This one was actually sent to me for free from a member on a trading forum.  It pulled me to within 35 patterns of completing the set.  I still need all 90 of the Diffractors though.

Card #50: 1992 Score #510

YEAR: 1992
BRAND: Score
SET: Score
NUMBER: 510
SUBSET: NA
TEAM: Cleveland Indians

I liked the 1991 Score design, but the 1992 design left something to be desired.  I don't know how to describe it any more than to say that it was definitely a 1990's design.  It was brightly colored and odd.  Although there was a lot of great photography, as usual for Score.  Alomar's card features him reacting to something behind the plate with his mask flying off behind him.  Extra points for getting the flying mask in the shot.

Card #49: 1991 SCD Baseball Card Price Guide Monthly #10

YEAR: 1990
BRAND: SCD
SET: Price Guide Monthly Series
NUMBER: 10
SUBSET: NA
TEAM: Cleveland Indians

In the late 1980's/early 1990's, some price guides had their own baseball cards attached that you had to separate.  The designs were typically based on classic Topps designs.  This Alomar is designed to resemble the terrific 1971 set from 20 years prior and actually looks like the kind of photo that would have been used in the 1971 set.  Sandy's dad was actually in that set with the Angels.

Another Star Set

I don't think there are any more of these sets devoted entirely to Sandy Alomar Jr. left.  I am aware of some promos and a set featuring Roberto and Sandy, but this is my fourth and, I think, final set for just Sandy.  This one is from 1988 and features Sandy with the Padres:

All of these pictures are clearly from Spring Training, but there are some nice shots of him in his catchers' gear.  That's pretty good stuff.  There are not enough cards of him with the Padres in his catching equipment.

Card #48: 1990 Bowman #337

YEAR: 1990
BRAND: Bowman
SET: Bowman
NUMBER: 337
SUBSET: NA
TEAM: Cleveland Indians

Bowman was pretty boring for a few years from 1989 through 1991.  Now Bowman is known as the Home of the Rookie Card.  While it did have a number of rookie cards in those early years, it was never to the same extent and the sets were often boring-looking.  It barely changed in those years.  Obviously 1990 Bowman was a normal-sized set, but that was basically the only change.  Much of the photography was boring as well.

Card #47: 1990 Topps #353

YEAR: 1990
BRAND: Topps
SET: Topps
NUMBER: 353
SUBSET: NA
TEAM: San Diego Padres

1990 Topps was kind of ugly.  It wasn't so bad all the time.  The blue and red borders were okay.  But this green border is pretty ugly.  Especially when compared to the brown Padres uniform Alomar is wearing on this card.  Add that to the fact that this is a really boring picture and you have kind of a boring and ugly card.  Not good.  Nevertheless, an Alomar card is an Alomar card.

A Package from the Topps Vault

I recently went a little outside the box and made my first purchase from the Topps Vault.  Three Sandy Alomar Jr. original color transparencies showed up on Ebay.  I decided I would attempt to get just one.  These pictures were rejected photos for his cards in 1989 and 1990.  

This is mine.  It is a posed shot of Alomar in his batting stance.  It was the only one available with even a hint of action and was the one I preferred.  This is not a card, so it will be listed along with my miscellaneous items.

Card #46: 1991 O-Pee-Chee Premier #2

YEAR: 1991
BRAND: O-Pee-Chee
SET: Premier
NUMBER: 2
SUBSET: NA
TEAM: Cleveland Indians

In 1991, O-Pee-Chee released a set separate and distinct from its usual French-language version of Topps.  This was the first year O-Pee-Chee did this and they would keep it going for a few more years.  O-Pee-Chee still retained the French language information and also still released the typical version of Topps's base set as well.  I like the action in this picture but the shadows are a little much.

Autograph Mailday

With the addition of this red version, I now have all three versions of this card.  Odd that the most common version was the last one I received though.

Card #45: 1992 Upper Deck #156

YEAR: 1992
BRAND: Upper Deck
SET: Upper Deck
NUMBER: 156
SUBSET: NA
TEAM: Cleveland Indians

I'm not really sure who that Angels player in the background is, and I am really not sure how he is levitating back there.  I do like the shot of Alomar though.  It appears that he is getting ready to apply the tag on a runner trying to score.  It is a pretty impressive action shot, a pre-plate at the plate.  Alomar has a lot of play at the plate cards, this just barely precedes one.

Card #44: 1991 Leaf #189

YEAR: 1991
BRAND: Leaf
SET: Leaf
NUMBER: 189
SUBSET: NA
TEAM: Cleveland Indians

We have seen this same exact picture already on a U.S. Playing Card Co. card.  Nevertheless, I will not argue with a picture showing Alomar in full catchers' gear.  He is not really doing anything in the shot but all of the equipment is on.  I am not sure which card came first or why the same picture is present on a supposedly premium brand like Leaf as well as an oddball card from a playing card deck.  Oh well.

A Trade with Another Alomar Collector

Recently another Sandy Alomar Jr. collector contacted me.  I know, weird right?  Well he offered a couple of cards that I needed.  Matt also started a blog with his collection here.  And these are the cards he sent me:

These cards and the first two in the second scan are all from another Star player set.  This is an all-Padres set like my first one.  I still love getting Padres cards of Alomar even though he only had eight games with them.

We have the remaining cards from the Star set, a couple of parallels, two base cards I surprisingly did not have, and another buyback here.  All in all this was a terrific influx of cards that I needed.  Thanks a lot Matt!  Your cards are on their way.

Card #43: 1992 Upper Deck Fanfest #12

YEAR: 1992
BRAND: Upper Deck
SET: Fanfest
NUMBER: 12
SUBSET: All Star Heroes
TEAM: Cleveland Indians

This was the first card of Alomar I had gotten that I felt was truly a premium card.  Available in boxed set form and ultra-glossy, this was the rare oddball that was also a premium card.  I do remember getting the card.  My friend, who collected Jose Canseco, and I went to the baseball card store and saw these cards.  They were selling for a couple of bucks each, and I decided to splurge for it.  Hey, I was 11 and it was rare for me to spend more than 50 cents on a single card.  This was a favorite card of mine for awhile.

Card #42: 1989 Donruss Rookies #21

YEAR: 1989
BRAND: Donruss
SET: Rookies
NUMBER: 21
SUBSET: NA
TEAM: San Diego Padres

I showed the 1990 Donruss Rookies card recently.  This is the 1989 card from the same year as his actual rookie card.  I like this one better than the base set card though because it is actually an interesting picture.  As much as I like the Rated Rookie logo, this is just a better-looking card.  The green borders also match well with the brown stripes and logo of the Padres uniform.  This is one of my favorite cards of Alomar from 1989.

Card #41: 1989 Score #630

YEAR: 1989

BRAND: Score

SET: Score

NUMBER: 630

SUBSET: 1989 Rookie

TEAM: San Diego Padres

This was my fourth of Sandy Alomar, Jr.'s rookie cards.  1989 Score was a set that I really enjoyed for some reason.  The photography was always very impressive.  Score was in its second year at this point and had made a name for themselves with an impressive debut in 1988.  This card is a little strange because most cards had the closeup of the face on the back of the card.  The back of this card shows Sandy in a catching pose without any equipment.  I suspect that was meant for the front and this profile picture was meant for the back.