Underappreciated Cardboard Legend

I've harped on this several times since I started BWTP, but I figured I would throw out some more visual proof that Jason Kendall has some of the greatest cards. It is rare for a modern player to have so many cool shots in era focused more on the auto/relic.

The cards featured came as part of my runner up contest winnings from Collecting Cutch.

 Kendall was not afraid to get dirty as you will soon find out.

 Stadium Club rarely disappoints.

 Cool Wrigley Field Shot made even cooler that a pitcher is about to have a play at the plate.

 Some of the 90's and early 2000's Fleer sets were underrated. Quality interleague shot here.

 This would be tough to prove, but I feel Kendall has more shots of a catcher camping under or catching a flyball in cardboard history.

 When you have a cool card and like to take acid this is what you get.

 This card always reminded me of Jake Taylor running out the called shot bunt at the end of Major League.

 This looks to be the beginning of a PICKLE

 catcher face

 Side note story.  I took my daughter to her first baseball last year.  When she noticed the catching squatting she said at the top of her lungs that he was pooping.  Our entire section got a kick out of that.

 More camping under pop ups.

 Looks to be a close play at first.

 Kendall looks to be running towards the Pearly Gates

 Very unique Pinnacle shot.

 I think Geoff Blum is out.

 Appropriate set name.

 A personal favorite.

 More camping under and catching.

 Point of impact from a long forgotten Topps set.

Here is a picture of all the cards Brian from Collecting Cutch sent.

I still have plenty more from Brian to showoff, but this ends the Jason Kendall portion of the winnings.

Thanks for reading.  Now go find all your cool Kendall cards.

Rediscover Greatness

What I'm about to show you will boggle your mind. These may send my daughter to college one day. You want to see what a recession proof investment looks like....

It is good that the background is distorted because Lord Walk deserves your full attention. 

 I see your ESPN body issue and raise you 87 Topps Bob Walk.

 Bryce Harper wishes he had Bob Walk hair.

Glad the 90 Topps captures the picturesque background of Three Rivers Stadium.

You've probably refreshed the page several times thinking all these cards can't be on one post. Well my friends it is true, these rediscover Topps cards are as real as real can get.  These came courtesy of Brian of Collecting Cutch fame as a runner up prize for his contest last month in which you showcased your favorite cards of your favorite player.  He sent me a mega box full of all kinds of Pirate goodness that will take me some time to scan.  It was definitely WOW worthy.

I was aware of the Rediscover Topps cards but really hadn't paid attention to the different tiers. From most common to rarest here are the levels.
Bronze
Silver
Gold
Blue
Red
Any Bob Walk card

As you can all Bob Walk cards supersede whatever checklist you follow.

Thanks again for all the cards Brian.  A more formal showing off of the entire loot will follow soon. The Walk's were soooooo awesome!!!!

Thanks for reading!

In Honor of the Homerun Derby

I'm going to show this card featuring the Black Bears hitting coach.

I should try and get an actual Aaron Judge card

That was a fun performance by the Yankees slugger. I think people must like to bitch because he deserves all the praise in the world. Baseball is fun, Aaron Judge is fun, maybe lighten up and enjoy the ride.  The guy looks like a superhero. Hey Yankees, the Pirates will trade you some relief help for him.  Sound good?

Thanks for reading.

Performance Enhanced Blog Posts

Starling Marte was busted for PED's a couple weeks into the season. His suspension has had quite the trickle down effect for the Buccos.  Coming into the season you could make the argument that Marte was the Pirates best all around player and maybe the hardest guy to replace. His suspension, plus some other key absences has put the Pirates behind the eight ball at what has turned out to be a wide open division. Who knows where the Pirates would have been having a non cheating Marte plus a sober Jung Ho Kang. That is about 8 War worth of players right there.

While I'm angry at Marte's greediness I still like to collect his cards. Maybe that is a bit hypocrytical of me, but hey....it is my collection.

Marte has a good following on eBay.  His new releases sell for good money.  The deals can be found on older releases.  It also help that some people have soured on him after the suspension. The below lot cost me about $10.

 While Prizm lacks a license you do get a nice on card auto.

This is a sepia auto parallel /75 form 2016 Triple Threads. 

The seller had several Pirate cards, but the only other one I could win was this Brock Holt Chrome rookie auto.  Holt made his major league debut as a Pirate, but was traded the following offseason to the Red Sox in the Mark Melancon deal.  The trade was odd in that Melancon and Holt were secondary pieces at the time, but turned into the centerpieces almost immediately. 

As a fan of the Pirates I'm upset that Marte knowingly cheated the system. Ultimately he has to answer to his teammates and the fans. I'm just not one of those holier than now people that shun a guy after the suspension.  Once he serves his time I will continue to root for Marte. I have better things to do than boo athletes.  

Thanks for reading. 

Nacho Break

It had been a while since I joined one of Chris's group breaks. The desire is always there, but sometimes the checklists don't warrant the purchase. A few weeks back I noticed a plea from Chris to fill the last few spots of an upcoming break, one of which happened to be the Pirates.  The main events this time were Diamond Kings and Archives.  DK is full of Pirates so I took the plunge.

We were also randomly assigned a bonus team in which I received the Twins.  This was a nice get for me as I frequently trade with Brian from HSCA. I'll be forwarding all those to him so he can show them off at some point.

 My best card of the break was this Cutch framed parallel from Diamond Kings that is numbered /99. It may not seem like much, but Cutch parallels can be sneaky expensive.

 Chris threw in a bonus relic which happened to be a really cool Mad Dog bat relic.

 Some of the notable pre war players in the DK set.  I love that Panini produces a lot of cards for players during this era.

 The Bell rookie was my best present day Bucco.

 Most of the big names are represented in the Bunt portion of the break.  Glasnow is the big rookie for the Buccos in the 2017 sets so it was nice to get a couple variations.

 My two favorite cards from the Archives break.

 Of course Chris threw in a bunch of extras.  The priority box he sent me was stuffed full of Pirate (and Twins) goodness.

 Cutch is playing like a superstar again.  All is right in the world.

 This Bell is actually a fold out booklet.

 I love the UD checklist card. The Kendall is a nice reminder of how fun Sportscenter use to be. I think the only thing I watch on ESPN anymore is actual games. The programming minus the great 30 for 30 documentaries are just hot take specials.

 Jay Bell needs some modern cards.  Come on Archives, put him in the Fan Favorites set....just as a Bucco, not a Dback.

Have to end with this card!

Thanks for all the cards Chris. Really appreciate you holding the breaks. I know hosting those are a lot of work.

Thanks for reading.

Baseball is Fun Again

This is a nondescript card celebrating a walkoff win by the Buccos back at the end of May.  Not a whole lot to talk about in terms of the card.  Topps NOW loves their walkoffs.  I do like the cameo of Clint Hurdle in the background.

What is worth talking about is the major resurgence from Cutch! It was so depressing watching him struggle for the better part of last year and going into April this year.  While the Pirates have been treading water much of the season, it has been a joy having Cutch remind baseball that he isn't quite dead yet.

Obviously the negative side of things is that Cutch has made himself a more desirable trade target. While this seems likely to happen I'll still be depressed to see the face of the franchise on another team.  The only thing I hope is that the Pirates don't trade him within the division.  Cutch as a Cub or Cardinal would make me throw up.

Thanks for reading!