Welcome back Kendrys Morales

I don't think the comeback of Kendrys Morales has been entirely fascinating for me - I think it's just another guy who caught the unluckiest of breaks and has been stuck in limbo for the last two years.

Now he's actually played in a game [a spring training one] for the first time in a while, it maybe time to welcome him back from his long journey - I keep thinking whether or not he can still do some good things as a player for the Angels and if his time in Anaheim has sort of run out.

I still like Morales' power potential from both sides of the plate but I just haven't been counting on him to contribute - he looked relatively healthy in his 2012 debut, though he will probably always be considered 'day-to-day' and maybe any expectations for him to be an every day player should be scaled down.

While he is only 28, is he ever going to be able build upon his once promising Major League career and also stick with the Angels - hopefully he is still at a point of his career where there is some upside.

Cards for trade - updated 10/2/11

2011 Topps Martin Prado #MGL-MP - Personalized Leather Nameplate card

It is just a lone card but I'm hoping to put together a list of cards I'm hoping to showcase - in order to possiblly trade for cards I'm interested in...Angels anybody?

2011 Topps Target $9.99 break

2011 Topps 72-card Target box [$9.99 each at Target] - I tried to look for any 2011 Topps Allen and Ginter retail this past Sunday but no luck, so I picked this up along with the $4.99 repack blister already posted.

Target Ruby Red insert
#THP-22 Ian Kinsler

#439 Ervin Santana
#400 Troy Tulowitzki
#476 Matt LaPorta
#628 Blake DeWitt
#410 Prince Fielder
#653 J.D. Drew
#448 Colby Rasmus
#399 Adam Moore
#599 Travis Ishikawa
#585 Dan Johnson
#425 Adrian Gonzalez
#482 Eric Hinske
#617 Joel Zumaya
#512 Octavio Dotel
#491 Fernando Abad
#488 Brayan Villarreal
#554 Cedric Hunter
#387 Danny Valencia
The Kinsler Ruby Red
#372 Jarrod Saltalamacchia
#409 Vin Mazzaro
#500 Kevin Youkilis
#539 Brandon Lyon
#362 Doug Fister
#520 Jorge Posada
#435 Elvis Andrus
#494 Drew Storen
#556 B.J. Upton
#433 Curtis Granderson
#375 Matt Kemp
#620 Luke Hochevar
#411 Josh Bell
#659 Clint Barmes
#355 Justin Verlander
#454 Alberto Callaspo
#341 Kyle Kendrick
#373 Trever Miller
#348 Landon Powell
#365 Adam Lind
#339 Alexei Casilla
#517 Fred Lewis
#523 Mike Nickeas
#343 Mason Tobin
#618 Josh Lueke
#635 Jason Heyward
#557 Wes Helms - gold parallel serial #'d 1271/2011
#526 Jason Donald - Platinum Diamond parallel
#DD-1 Roy Halladay / Roy Oswalt - Diamond Duos insert
#T60-87 Clayton Kershaw - Topps 60 insert
#480 Roberto Alomar - SP

#TDG-15 Jason Heyward - Topps Diamond Giveaway code card; unlocked a 1977 Topps Doc Ellis
#KC-89 Duke Snider - Kimball Champions insert
#TT2-11 Kendrys Morales - ToppsTown insert
#DS-4 Adrian Gonzalez - Diamond Stars insert
#60YOT-105 Tony Gwynn - 60 Years of Topps insert
#513 Adam LaRoche
#497 Alex Avila
#632 Scott Kazmir
#342 Jorge De La Rosa
#537 Jake Peavy
#430 Trevor Crowe
#462 Daric Barton
#371 Taylor Teagarden
#456 Ryan Doumit
#601 J.J. Putz
#590 Tim Lincecum
#478 Mike Minor
#451 Livan Hernandez
#490 Matt Holliday
#656 Raul Ibanez
#528 Bobby Abreu
#424 New York Yankees team card

2011 Topps Factory Team Set - Atlanta Braves

I received a 2011 Atlanta Braves factory team set from a blog contest by being closest to guess Atlanta Braves pitcher Julio Teheran's pitching line in his Major League Debut - I don't usually pay attention to these factory team sets because even with the minor modifications made to make the cards different from the flagship versions, these team sets seem redundant.

However, with a rookie like Freddie Freeman [who does have a card in Topps Series I] - a different image used means a new variation of his official MLBPA rookie logo card to chase, even though these team sets are not that too difficult to find.

Topps should do its part to slip in a rookie or two in these team sets - to make them just a little bit more than just another baseball card souvenir to pick up at a retail outlet or stadium.

2011 Topps Glove Manufactured Glove Leather cards

I got three of these insert cards in the mail Thursday and I really like the look of them even though they really are just figment of someone's imagination - I probably wouldn't be able to pull or even consider purchasing one if they were actually game-used.

It maybe obvious, but I assume these leather nameplate cards are supposed to mimic the stitching done on baseball gloves - to personalize them for particular players.

Besides Angels fan favorite Torii Hunter - the other two I got were Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Martin Prado of the Atlanta Braves.

2011 Topps Walmart $9.98 break

2011 Topps 72-card Walmart box [$9.98 each] - I wanted to these even though it is your basic 2011 Topps with packaging that looks a little different; I guess this really replaces the $9.99 blasters from four or five years ago and the cereal boxes from the last couple of years.

Was 0-for-6 in my attempt to find Sparkle variations - I've decided to break all sorts of 2011 Topps packs/blasters/etc until I actually pull one.

Walmart Blue Sapphire insert
#WHP-10 Jackie Robinson

#311 James Shields
#224 Milton Bradley
#69 Brett Gardner - any card of a player with 'game used' dirt on his uniform is a keeper.
#182 Jeremy Bonderman
#3 Jon Lester
#72 Jair Jurrjens
#43 Brendan Ryan
#74 Tyler Clippard
#227 Nate McLouth
#297 Jason Jaramillo
#168 Felix Hernandez
#222 Matt Lindstrom
#274 Michael Brantley - could care less about the player but I like the image of Brantley diving back to the bag.

#303 Emilio Bonifacio - making a headfirst slide into third base.
#161 Chicago White Sox
#75 Jered Weaver
#253 Jim Thome
#205 Ty Wigginton
#151 Fausto Carmona
#9 Gil Meche
#176 Dan Hudson
#242 Brad Lidge
#194 Andres Torres
#149 David Aardsma
#76 Tom Gorzelanny
#175 Brennan Boesch
#169 Chipper Jones
#53 Arizona Diamondbacks
#283 Colorado Rockies
#314 Ryan Kalish
#54 Brian Fuentes
#321 Jeremy Guthrie
#215 Edwin Encarnacion
#37 Vicente Padilla

#21 Michael Cuddyer - I like how Cuddyer is caught in the air as he looks to get the ball back into the infield.
#118 Howie Kendrick
#312 Gaby Sanchez
#40 Justin Upton
#119 Jason Bay
#220 Todd Helton
#245 Neil Walker
#277 Trevor Hoffman
#73 James McDonald
#299 Chris Carpenter
#185 Peter Bourjos - making a highlight reel catch in the outfield.
#159 Chris Perez
#11 League Leaders [NL Wins] - Halladay, Wainwright and Jimenez
#138 League Leaders [NL RBI] - Pujols, Gonzalez and Votto

#63 Edinson Volquez Topps - gold parallel serial #'d 0393/2011
#313 Chris Coghlan - Platinum Diamond Anniversary parallel
#TDG-5 Derek Jeter Diamond Giveaway code card - redeemed for a 1977 Topps common of Glenn Abbott and a dig that resulted in a Houston Astros ring.
#KG-36 Hanley Ramirez - Kimball Champions insert
#CMGR-6 Christy Matthewson
#DD-US Justin Upton / Mike Stanton - Diamond Duos insert
The Walmart Jackie Robinson insert
#60YOT-51 Vladimir Guerrero - 60 Years of Topps reprint insert
#T60-44 Duke Snider - Topps 60 insert
#94 Ryan Raburn
#177 Brian Matusz
#201 Mike Napoli
#17 Mark Ellis
#62 Jonathan Papelbon
#32 Chris Johnson
#105 Jonathan Lucroy
#113 Arthur Rhodes
#191 Jay Bruce
#217 Yunel Escobar
#134 League Leaders [NL Batting Average] - Gonzalez, Votto and Infante
#7 Mickey Mantle
#91 Lucas May
#243 Omar Vizquel
#TT-27 Andre Ethier ToppsTown

A dozen cards out of the quarter box - my story

Before going to work last Saturday, I stopped at a card shop and looked through the quarter bins - I was looking through the most recent 5,000 card boxes within reach, particularly the row with 2011 Topps.

I picked up the following cards for $3 and change [tax] - I went mostly for cards of younger players instead of interesting cards I can add to my collecting topics collections.

2010 Bowman Draft Chance Ruffin #BDPP 64
2011 Topps Joey Votto #5 - too bad this was regular version...
2011 Topps Rick Ankiel #34 - the image is just great as Ankiel tries to slide headfirst into third base without getting tagged by the third baseman. I could just imagine the Atlanta Braves' third base coach barking at Ankiel to get down. This maybe my most favorite 2011 Topps card.
2011 Topps Chris Sale #65 (x2)

2011 Topps Pedro Alvarez #95 - I believe this is his first Major League card after some USA, Razor and minor league cards issued over the last five years.
2011 Topps Albert Pujols #100
2011 Topps Josh Tomlin #160
2011 Topps Jeremy Hellickson #165
2011 Topps Jay Bruce #191 - probably my second most favorite card out of 2011 Topps; looks like Topps got this notable image from Getty too.
2011 Topps Dillon Gee #203
2011 Topps Yonder Alonso #317

My first 2011 Topps Diamond Giveaway card - 1967 Topps John Buzzhardt

After reading this, I unlocked my first code card on the new 2011 Topps Diamond Giveaway Web site - for a 1967 Topps John Buzzhardt.

2010 Bowman Draft Value Pack recap and personal retail report

2010 Bowman Draft Value Pack [$4.99 x1 at a Walmart] - I really wanted to get a 2011 Topps blaster box, but went to Walmart first and got a Value Pack of 2010 Bowman Draft.

There were 2011 Topps blasters at Walmart for $19.98, but I prefer the Target Throwback variations - since the Walmart cards are mostly 'blacked out' except for the image, which makes any particular card worthless to be autographed in-person / through the mail.

There was a 72-card box of 2011 Topps for around $10 - which I was tempted to get since I hadn't seen the packaging [it kind of resembles a box used for gaming cards and it isn't the 'cereal boxes' used in previous years] used in baseball before.

It maybe just random, but the two Targets I went to didn't have any 2011 Topps blaster boxes - all I found at the Target closest to my home was a pack molester doing the deed with some Upper Deck hockey packs; guy was focused on getting to second base with multiple packs and was otherwise oblivious by my presence. I was actually more uncomfortable seeing what he was doing than he was in seeing me.

There was a Toys R'Us next door to the Target which had Jumbo Packs and blaster boxes of 2011 Topps - but I don't think the Toys R'Us blasters have either the Walmart black variation or the Target Throwback variation. Also for some reason, their rack packs are priced a dollar higher at $5.99 and their blaster boxes are actually priced at $23.99.

My one Value Pack of 2010 Bowman Draft - I picked up a complete set, but perhaps having extra cards from some of the players from this set will give me an opportunity to get those players on multiple cards.

Bottom
#BDP 91 Mitch Moreland Chrome
#BDP 28 Vance Worley Chrome
#BDPP 92 Chris Sale Chrome - though a lefty, he's been compared to Tim Lincecum because he is a rather smallish guy with a rocket for an arm.
#BDP 33 Travis Wood Gold parallel

Top
#BDP 94 Sergio Santos
#BDP 31 Drew Storen
#BDP 43 Josh Donaldson
#BDPP 74 Aaron Sanchez
#BDPP 96 Ryan Burr
#BDPP 80 Manny Machado
#BDPP 62 Zack Cox
#BPA-GH Graham Hicks autograph - he's a minor leaguer who was traded to the Chicago Cubs from the Washington Nationals with Michael Burgess and A.J. Morris in exchange for Tom Gorzelanny.

Random 2011 Topps thoughts

I picked up three $4.99 jumbo packs of 2011 Topps at Target - flagship Topps is always refreshing to rip when they first come out.

I like the white bordered base cards on this Topps' fare for the masses and it seems like the images on this year's cards really sharp - the images are bright and clear, instead of being dull, uninspiring and gloppy.

I was keeping my eyes peeled for any Diamond Sparkle variation, thinking I was going to find at least one out of my racks - but these short print parallels maybe harder to find than I had hoped.

I think like everyone else, the Platinum Diamond variations are pretty sweet looking - collecting them all is not realistic, but they are 'prettier' and much easier to pull than the cards with a doctored sparkle on them. I normally wouldn't care about the 2010 NL Wins Leaders card [#11] I pulled, but the Platinum Diamond treatment makes enhances the card's aesthetics.
I pulled an Kimball Champions Albert Pujols insert, which was nice - but these mini cards look sort of homemade.

I pulled other inserts, which I didn't really find all that interesting I guess - all I know is I probably don't need a reprint of a 2004 Topps Mark Teixeira [#60YOT-53] or a reprint of a 1999 Topps card of Mike Piazza, Ivan Rodriguez and Jason Kendall [#60YOT-48].

Autograph request sent - Bill Buckner

Perhaps consider these as a 'preview' of things I'm probably going to blog about, but when I finally got hold of a loose $10 I deemed I could spend - I finally decided to fire off an autograph request to Bill Buckner c/o his home address, hoping he will sign the 1970 Topps rookie card and a 1984 Fleer I enclosed.

Usually when someone requests a fee to sign something through the mail, though not really as part of a bigger, organized signing - perhaps there is a risk even though I assume some care will be taken as far as the cards being autographed and returned safely in the self-addressed stamped envelope I enclosed.

I was looking forward to perhaps meandering to my local retail Target store to pick off a couple of $4.99 Value Packs / rack of 2011 Topps - though I'm trying to not be a lemming, especially when I know I'll end up busting some 2011 Topps one way or the other.

Besides, the novelty of new base Topps wears off [for me] pretty quickly - when these cards will be everywhere.