Off Topic: Wicked Cards (part 1)

A little bit ago I posted this post in which I mentioned a 2009 auto I got of a sheep sheerer. Wicked Ortega from "My Past Time……. I Love It!!" mentioned that he would take it off my hands. I have always been leery of trading anything that I thought might be of some value, but my time in the blog-o-sphere has shown me a couple of things.

One, the value of a trade is that all involved receive cards that they treasure for their collections.

Two, the value of the card has a whole lot more to do with intangibles than Beckett.

Three, "Hey we are all friends here, send the darn card where it is most appreciated."

So I did what most do, I put the card in the mail and sent it out. Wicked will take care of me. Never met the man but if the web can be trusted, he seems like a stand-up guy. I sent it with the understanding that he values the card more than I do, and we can talk the rest at a later date. Well he maintains the "Good Man" status, and he did take care of me.

Mr. Ortega sent a couple of Will Clark cards, and a Gaggle of Diamondback cards. When I say gaggle, let me just say that they more than enough made up for the "John Hancock" of a man that I never heard of.

With out further ado, here are a couple of cards that he sent. I will stretch this out a couple of posts if you don't mind, if not I won't have much to blog about. I haven't been pulling in cards lately, neither for set completions or TTM.

Orlando Hudson - 142 - Allen and Ginter 2007

I was very pleased to see this card. I love the 2007 Ginter set, I actually like it better than the 2008 set but I got back into collecting a couple months too late to pick up any packs. The 2007's (and '06 for that matter) just look cleaner for some reason. This is my first card of this set, and I love the O' Dawg.

Stephen Drew - 94 - O-Pee-Chee 2009 (Black Border)

Another set that I like from 2009. This year, in my humble opinion, was a good year for set design. I don't have many of these cards, as I don't have the time or money to invest in too many set collections (1 or 2 tops me out). Its nice to at least get D-back team cards of sets I like.

"Desert Heat" Webb & Haren - 157 - Topps 2009 (base)

"Desert Heat" Webb & Haren - 157 - Topps 2009 (retail black)

I didn't know this card existed. The two "Ace's" on one card. BEAUTIFUL. Not much else to say, this has got to be one of my favorite cards. To top it off, Mr. Ortega sent me a black variant that looks absolutely sick. (there where quite a few of these 2009 Topps variants in the package).

"Diamond Stars" Stephen Drew - DS24 - Topps Opening Day 2007

If you are wondering why this is here you are not alone. When I was touching up the scan to post online I was shaking my head. Why did I scan this? Don't get me wrong I love the card. First of all it is shiney, that is always a point. It's of Stephen Drew, I like Drew. It's an insert set that I don't have. But, why did I scan a card that even on first glance I should have known would not scan well?

David Eckstein - 12 - Upper Deck First Edition 2009

I don't know if it's the steroid era, or just the fact that I have changed my tastes as I have gotten older; but I really like scrappy hard working players now, much more than home run hitting super stars. When I moved from the Phoenix area to the Los Angeles area in 2002 to work at Disney's California Adventure park (among other reasons), I needed to find a local team to follow. The Dodgers were not an option, I didn't have the hatred for them that I do now, but I still couldn't pick a team that would put me in situations where my two favorite teams where always playing against each other. Being employed in Anaheim for the company that owns the Angels made my decision pretty easy. Discounted tickets and a very user friendly ballpark really sold me. My only other hard choice was; who on this team will I claim as my "favorite". Mr Eckstein quickly won the title. Now years later he is no longer with the Halos, but I do want to report that I am happy that he has put in hours in for both of my teams.

Will Clark - 300 - Score 1990

This was one of the best looking sets for 1990. I love the team logo medallion like thing-a-ma-bob. I believe I have "The Thrill" in this set, but I love having more.

Chad Tracy Bat Relic Card - AGR-CT - Topps Allen & Ginter 2007

I was thrilled to see this card. My second 2007 A&G card is a relic. (Well second only because I saw the O-Dawg card first). I have seen these white bordered beauties before but I have never held one.

Thanks Wicked!