1998 Topps Interleague Match-Ups Mystery Finest Jim Edmonds #ILM14

I tried to microwave a UV era Topps insert card from the 1990s with a mystery peel for 10 seconds - I wanted to see if I could loosen the adhesive from the peel, so I can reveal the player shown on the card, but ended up with this catastrophe.

Maybe I should have left it as is, but I remember pulling a similar type of insert over 25 years ago that revealed Mike Piazza - after figuring out what the card was back then, the adhesive was still fresh unlike the Edmonds card I picked up recently.

Card show pickups - Angels material

Off a seller, these are [dollar] Angel cards are ones I ended up making keepers - maybe I'm content to squirrel a few Angels here and there into my card show pile depending on the player and type of card, but even if I don't have them, I get picky just adding random Angels cards left and right.

I don't think I've ever had a Erstad 1996 Upper Deck SP RC #4 [which may have been special for a little bit when he was a top prospect] - Erstad's big league totals ended up being rather modest for a No. 1 overall pick, but he fit the mold of a 100 percent player / zero percent BS type fans ate up.

Maybe my favorite non-RC Mike Trout ends up being his 2016 Topps #1 and the version I picked up looks to be a Rainbow Foil parallel - I'm not focused enough to seek out a rainbow for a specific player or from a specific year, I might be on the look out for as many versions of the Trout when available.

I ended up picking up a 1969 Topps Hoyt Wilhelm for my 'all-time team register' collection last year but the no-team airbrushed cap doesn't make the card the most attractive - this 1969 Topps Decals Wilhelm actually has the Angels logo plastered on the cap, so it ends up popping a little more [even though it's not really a traditional trading card].

Angels all-time team register collection

Team collecting like I've seen others do it [trying to collect card-by-card, set by set, year by year] is not quite a thing for me where I only care so much to really want to track everything and anything - but that doesn't mean I have local team interests where I'd like to play up cards featuring my home team Angels.

These non-Angel cards do not quite fit within the team related umbrella - but will likely be added into my all-time team register collection as guys who end up having these obscure stints with the team as bit players before moving on.

My team register collection is basically one more way for me to do something with loose cards that come my way and see how many different subjects I can add up - maybe completion isn't a realistic goal, but it might be good enough where I can add assorted cards of different players and see where I have 200-300 different subjects.

Maybe I'm spreading my interests too thin where this overlaps with my Angels all-time autograph collection - but maybe my all-time register is more of a side project.

Matt Duffy [2022] seems to have devolved from upstart big leaguer at the beginning of his career into basically being a replacement player - it probably will be the case where if I end up with an Angels Duffy card [he does have at least one in 2022 Topps Update], the non-Angels card gets bumped off somewhere else.

Austin Romine [2022] has bounced around in the big leagues, but like Duffy, ends up being a veteran who will still have cards made as long as they are in the big leagues and part of the MLBPA - however I don't think his three game stint with the Angels this past year will be immortalized on cardboard.

Elliot Soto [2020] ends up being the most obscure of the three, where he is more of a longtime infielder in the minors - who was basically rewarded with a big league call up during the 2020 pandemic season.

While Soto has some draft pick cards with the Chicago [Cubs] from 2011 - it was like a reward to do a random search off a seller's ebay store and find a team set card of his I made a keeper for a dollar.

TTM autograph received: Todd Greene

The former big league catcher signed my cards in about a month - Greene might be another scratched off my 'mythical' TTM back log where there is a never ending list of guys who have signed in the mail for others.

I'm probably not as dedicated in systematically sending out unsigned cards to see if I can get ink on them - to feel like I'm still doing something to get some cheap thrills back in the mail box, I am up for sending to random subjects here and there.

I don't know remember if Greene was ever hyped up as a top prospect, but as a catcher, he put up big slugging numbers in the Angels' minor league system through the mid 1990s - he showed some power potential as a stocky righthanded hitter, but was never really able to establish himself longterm with the Angels and ended up being backup catcher for five other teams in an 11-year big league career.

Featured autograph - Tim Salmon

I grabbed this card because it has an old-school 1975 Topps design and it's a certified autograph of 'home team' great - I'm generally content with my PC of miscellaneous Salmon cards, but I might see a newer looking card when browsing on ebay.

Because I don't pay attention to baseball card products year-to-year, where I scan checklists to see which team related guys I can look for - I might see a card like this as the newest, coolest 'must have' card, even if there have been other pack pulled Salmon autograph cards over the past 10 years that may as well be out of sight, out of mind.

Playing around with a reverse negative effect - it might be cool to have an actual double sided card that gives you this view.

Fishing for another species - Salmon

I finally had the random opportunity to rummage through loose cardboard like other bloggers at a card show - I was looking for some random cards to take home [like the 1996 Score All-Stars insert, $2] and maybe some magnetic card holders [to hold some loose PC cards], but never ever anything too serious.

1997 Score Score Goin’ Yard #494 - Artist’s Proof [$3] - as far as the late 1990s were concerned, I wasn't really aware of the glut of Score / Pinnacle inserts / parallels, so I'll take a second look if I stumble upon such cards, especially if they picture a personal favorite.

1998 Topps Gallery #PG-8 - Photo Gallery insert [$1] - maybe I'm simply dating myself, but it's nice to go back and grab these kinds of cards, 20-25 years after the fact.

Featured autograph - Tim Belcher

I was looking for a Belcher card to add to my Angels opening day collection [1999 starting pitcher] and found this signed card, likely from the 2011 season - I guess I don't have to hunt down one of his Angels era commons.

Through the early 1990s, I was familiar with Belcher as a junk wax guy with the Los Angeles Dodgers - after playing for the Dodgers, he bounced around a bit and was an innings eater when healthy.

By the time Belcher pitched in his last two MLB seasons with the Angels - his right arm was toast and was immortalized in a peculiar brawl with Chan Ho Park.

1997 Score Blast Master Tim Salmon #18

I figure there just hasn't been much to talk about with the Angels the past week or so and I'd feature this random insert I picked up - I was watching a replay of a YouTube live broadcast featuring a collector showing off his player pick-ups and spotted a card from an insert set I've never heard of.

I liked how the card popped, so off to COMC I went, where I didn't want to pick up the same card the collector did - but for a dollar, I was able to add a card from the set, featuring a regional favorite.

Tim Salmon Bowman buyback purchase

I’m over buybacks in Topps products, but even the concept is literally the same thing [stamping commons with a buyback stamp so there are a cache of cards ready to fill out unopened product with] - it maybe a novelty to find buyback cards in Bowman.

Of course, I could have just picked up an original copy of Salmon's 1997 Bowman card [#5] without the cutesy stamp - still my impulsiveness got the best of me and I put in an eventual winning bid to secure this random card featuring someone relatively notable in my book.

The 30-Day Baseball Card Challenge - Day 14

"One of your favorite cards from the 2000s."

2001 Upper Deck Darin Erstad #46 - this was one of those cards that gave a snapshot of what a player was like.

Erstad, the No. 1 overall pick in 1995, had a reputation as a gamer - his batting stats weren't overwhelming except for 2000, where he racked up 240 hits and had a .355 batting average, but I always thought he was a tough out who grinded out at-bats.

Some miscellaneous Angels finds

I picked up a small lot of Angels cards for about $3 - primarily for the 2016 Topps Stadium Club cards of Mike Trout [#280], Albert Pujols [#152], Nolan Ryan [#80], C.J. Wilson [#93], Huston Street [#2] and Garrett Richards [#80].

There was also 2016 Topps Allen and Ginter cards of Pujols [#211] and Street [#193] included - I'll probably see if I can pick up a regular set [1-350] at some point though haven't touched any loose packs or blasters.

Old Man Pujols is inking it up after a spring training workout - his numbers have dipped and while he nearly 100 RBIs on the year, the last time someone cared about that stat [which Fangraphs would say is more of a result of the players getting on-base infront of you than any particular skill attributed to a batter] was 20 years ago.

This is more of a traditional baseball image - though it shows Ryan in his mid 1970s Angels prime.

Wilson is goofing off for the photographer and I guess I appreciate the silliness - though I don't know what Wilson is doing and the image seems a little too orchestrated and unnatural.

After hearing an apparent change, I wanted to see what the card stock was like for this year's Allen and Ginter set - this year's cards are thicker and sturdier, but the card stock used before seemed a little more fancy, a little more classy.

Farewell Mark Teixeira - a pro all the way

Though Teixeira has had a fine career, it looks like his body is beat up and is apparently retiring at the end of the 2016 season - his year-to-year numbers have generally been in decline for the past five years.

A one-time Angel in 2008, Teixeira hit .358 with 13 home runs and 43 RBI in 193 at-bats in a 54-game stint after being acquired from the Atlanta Braves near the trade deadline - he provided such a boost with a bat, that it was disappointing [even if any sort of long-term deal wasn't really meant to be] not to see him back with the Angels.

Losing Teixeira through free agency meant the Angels were compensated with a 2009 first-round draft pick - the team used the pick to select Mike Trout, who at 25, continues to build on a monumental career.

The circumstances that gifted the Angels with Trout was something that happened because Teixeira bolted for New York - so there maybe indifference but no real ill will towards 'Tex' after the fact.

After leaving the Angels, I probably hoped Teixeira would be more of an albatross as the years passed by - but in his first season with the Yankees, Teixeira got what he came for when he had another big season and helped the team win a World Series championship in 2009.

Teixeira was a polished college player when the Texas Rangers drafted him in 2001 and was a ready made big leaguer when he made his big league debut in 2003 - he really had some big seasons with the Texas Rangers and I thought he was going to be a superstar for years to come.

$2 vendor 'pile of' repacks - Angels

One of the vendors at MLB Fan Fest was selling team repacks and while I want to stay away from repacks because I 'generate' my own 'repack content' through the loose cards that come into my collection - for a couple of bucks, I like going through various assortments of cards even if it's junk wax era [gasp] and/or cards that have been obscured through the years.

It seemed like only A's? / Dodgers $3 / Angels / Padres $$ / Giants were represented - I grabbed an Angels and a couple of Giants ones to see what type of mix I could get [even if it's just one team represented per repack, I figure there might be some cards of interest].

The players with the most cards in this repack - Troy Glaus x9, Tim Salmon x4, Garret Anderson x3, Torii Hunter x3, Francisco Rodriguez x3, Joe Saunders x3, Jered Weaver x3, Darin Erstad x2, Chone Figgins x2, John Lackey x2, Troy Percival x2 and Luis Sanchez x2.

2012 Topps Update Series Mark Trumbo #US10
2003 Topps Garret Anderson #600
2003 Topps Brendan Donnelly #535
2003 Topps Darin Erstad #515
1984 Topps Luis Sanchez #258
1984 Topps Juan Beniquez #53
2009 Bowman Howie Kendrick #151
2009 Bowman Chone Figgins #168
2002 Topps Gallery Tim Salmon #102
2002 Topps Gallery Troy Percival #84
2002 Upper Deck Troy Glaus #51
2002 Upper Deck Diamond Collection Troy Glaus #1
2002 Donruss John Lackey #4
1997 Leaf Eddie Murray #124

2002 Fleer Ultra Garret Anderson #16
2002 Topps Traded Brian Hunter #T8 - not an Angels card but these are repacks so who knows what card (s) I might find besides the general stated contents.
2002 Fleer Tradition Troy Glaus #189
2002 Fleer Tradition Benji Gil #102
2002 Fleer Tradition Jarrod Washburn #327
2002 Bowman Chrome Troy Glaus #58
2002 Upper Deck Honor Roll Troy Glaus #83
2002 Upper Deck Honor Roll Troy Glaus #81
2009 Topps Heritage Chone Figgins #382
1999 Topps Gallery Troy Glaus #98
1999 Topps Gallery Darin Erstad #17
1999 Bowman Scott Schoeneweis #150
2003 Fleer Platinum Troy Percival #170
2003 Fleer Focus Jersey Ed. Tim Salmon #6
2003 Fleer Mystique Troy Glaus #20
2002 Donruss Troy Glaus #147
2002 Donruss Garret Anderson #54
1983 Topps Bobby Grich #790
1983 Topps Bruce Kison #712
1983 Topps Tommy John #735
1983 Fleer Home Run Threats #640 - feat. Oglivie and Jackson
1983 Fleer Luis Sanchez #100
1983 Fleer Fred Lynn #97

1996 Topps D-III Tim Salmon #16
2009 Topps Chrome Joe Saunders #85
2009 Topps 206 Erick Aybar #2
2009 Topps 206 Joe Saunders #283
2009 Topps Allen and Ginter Jered Weaver #134
2009 Updates and Highlights Torii Hunter #UH325
2011 Topps Lineage Vernon Wells #128

2004 Upper Deck Timeless Teams Dan Ford #164
2004 Fleer Ultra David Eckstein #169
2004 Playoff Prestige Jose Guillen #135
2004 Topps All-Time Fan Favorites Mickey Rivers #18
2009 Topps Heritage Juan Rivera #615
2009 Topps Heritage John Lackey #268
2009 Topps Heritage Torii Hunter #307
2007 Topps 52 Nathan Haynes #19
2010 Topps Heritage Joe Saunders #412
2010 Topps Heritage Scott Kazmir #384
2010 Topps Heritage Brian Fuentes #263
2007 Topps Turkey Red Francisco Rodriguez #111
2007 Topps Turkey Red Gary Matthews #114
2007 Topps Updates and Highlights Francisco Rodriguez #UH234
2007 Topps Updates and Highlights Scot Shields #UH132
2007 Topps Updates and Highlights Reggie Willits #UH134
2006 Upper Deck Artifacts Francisco Rodriguez #43
1988 Donruss Gus Polidor #356
1988 Donruss Gary Lucas #579
1991 Upper Deck Scott Lewis #594
1992 Donruss Triple Play Lance Parrish #169
1988 O-Pee-Chee Mark McLemore #162
1988 Score Brian Downing #44
1991 Score Luis Polonia #587
1996 Score Gary DiSarcina #64
1996 Score Tony Phillips #165

1989 Swell Dean Chance #89
1989 Donruss Greg Minton #490
1989 Donruss Wally Joyner #BC-21 - MVP insert
1989 Donruss Terry Clark #607
1989 Donruss Willie Fraser #567
1993 Donruss Junior Felix #197
1993 Donruss Chuck Finley #225
1993 Upper Deck Rene Gonzalez #188

1993 Upper Deck Tim Salmon #25
1993 Donruss Lee Stevens #65
1993 Donruss Chad Curtis #93
2012 Topps Chrome Jered Weaver #52
2011 Bowman Platinum Torii Hunter #45
2011 Bowman Platinum Jered Weaver #56
1993 Pacific Nolan Ryan Angels' Number 30 Retired #242

Featured autographs - obscure Angels

Picking up these autographs gives me a reason to go dumpster diving where I can fill random holes in my Angels all-time autograph collection - O’Brien or Olivares' Angels careers weren't particularly memorable though I'd guess I was vaguely aware of their existence when they were on the team in the late 1990s.

TTM autographs received: Ron Gant

Former MLB slugger Ron Gant signed my cards in about two weeks using the address of the TV station he works for in Georgia - though he returned several of the cards unsigned, I'm glad he was able sign the lone Angels card.

The Angels, In Order mail call

I want to say thank you to Tom at The Angels, In Order blog for a 16-card 'boost' to my frankenset - maybe the project has actually slowed down as I figure out where I'm at, so it's nice to knock out some of the miscellaneous cards I didn't want try too hard to seek out at the moment.

196 1972 Topps Mel Queen

238 2003 Topps Heritage Orlando Palmeiro

304 1985 Fleer Tommy John
316 1985 Fleer Mike Witt
376 1970 Topps Lefty Phillips

378 2009 Upper Deck O-Pee-Chee Brian Fuentes

399 1993 Leaf Luis Polonia 
419 1972 Topps Jim Spencer 
424 1979 Topps Angels team card 
449 1974 Topps Tommy McCraw
459 1976 Topps Jim Brewer 
461 2009 Topps Mike Scioscia
465 1985 Topps Bobby Grich 

466 1982 Fleer Jesse Jefferson 

494 2009 Topps Gary Matthews 
500 1988 Fleer Donnie Moore 

Two other cards were not actually frankenset needs - I'll find a spot for them though.

1995 Score Chili Davis #14
1976 Topps Ed Figueroa #27 - I had a 1976 Topps Figueroa card marked as a 'need,' but looking through my wantlist, the card I needed was a 1975 Topps.

2001 Donruss Elite Bengie Molina #119

I was looking up cards for my frankenset and this die-cut Aspirations parallel caught my eye - Molina wasn't quite a franchise star, but he was a homegrown catcher who established himself as an every day player and was part of the Angels 2002 World Series champion team.

On building a team frankenset - the Angels

I really need something to sink my teeth into as far as dealing with my cards - a collecting project I'm trying off the ground somehow is a frankenset of sorts [basically an assortment of cards from different brands sorted in numerical order to represent one set of cards].

Since I've gotten a bunch of loose cards over the last 10 years or so, I'd do a frankenset featuring the Angels - at first, I thought the idea of doing a frankenset was stupid because I was worried that for the number of cards [500] I'm going for, there might not be a particular card to represent each number.

I'm checking things up on eBay and it's been kind of fun to type in random numbers [search term - number Angels -dodgers] and seeing if any Angels cards pop up - I was pleasantly surprised to see there is at least one Angels card to represent 1-500 in one way or the other.

Doing my research, the only number I thought that did not have an Angels card was '408,' but with the help of my friend Google - it turns out there is a Vladimir Guerrero Sports Illustrated for Kids insert card from September 2004 to track down.

Things have come together fast as I've started off collecting cards in-hand as well as typing up a list of sorts - to note cards I have and cards I can possibly add.

There has to be rules of course:

1.) Cards must refer to a player on the Angels or the city name - no minor league cards, but draft pick and prospect cards of players are OK even if they picture a player who never actually played with the parent team.

2.) Cards be inserts and/or parallels - I want to showcase cards that pop.

3.) Cards can be ones I've gotten autographed TTM / in-person - if I was doing a set of cards for themselves, I think I prefer all the cards be unsigned, but it's fun to see cards autographed as long as it doesn't detract from the actual card.

4.) Duplication of players is fine - though a limit of three of the same player per page.

5.) Duplication of sets is fine - though a limit of four of the same set per page.

6.) I figure I'm not going to worry about filling holes where there is no card for that number - in general, if I can't fill certain holes, then it's going to make my head hurt.

7.) The accumulation of cards will actually be sleeved and boxed - until the time where I feel I can showcase the cards into a binder.

8.) I want to say I'm stuck with cards I already have in my collection - though in doing my 'research,' it's kind of fun to see a card somewhere and realize I suddenly 'need it,' even if it might turn out where I already have a card to represent a particular number.

9.) Manager / coaches cards OK

10.) The first 20 cards in this set - maybe to give me an idea of how random things get.

1 2014 Topps Mike Trout
2 2013 Bowman Platinum Mike Trout
3 2000 Black Diamond Rookie Edition Darin Erstad
4 2005 Donruss Studio Vladimir Guerrero S-4 - Studio Stars insert
5 1996 Mother's Cookies Jim Abbott
6 1996 Mother's Cookies Jim Edmonds
7 2003 Donruss Champions Jarrod Washburn - Sample
8 1996 Mother's Cookies J.T. Snow
9 1996 Mother's Cookies Chuck Finley
10 1990 Score Young Superstar Dante Bichette
11 1991 Fleer Update Luis Polonia U-11
12 2013 Bowman Mark Trumbo
13 1996 Mother's Cookies Troy Percival
14 1996 Mother's Cookies Randy Velarde
15 1996 Mother's Cookies Garret Anderson
16 2008 Topps Torii Hunter #WMDP 16 - Walmart Dick Perez insert
17 1984 Topps Ralston / Purina Rod Carew
18 2009 Ticket to Stardom Erick Aybar - deckle edge
19 1972 Topps Billy Cowan
20 1974 Topps Nolan Ryan - incoming

Featured autograph - Clay Bellinger

I got Bellinger to sign a card for me after the California / Carolina League All-Star game - his son Cody is a Los Angeles Dodgers minor leaguer and was on the winning Cal League All-Star team.

The elder Bellinger played in all of two games for the Angels back in 2002 - the first thought that came to my head when the Angels signed him was the team wasn't trying hard enough.

There was no way the Angels were going to the World Series just because they sign some New York Yankees castoff - as is, while Bellinger struck out in his only at-bat as a Halo, the Angels had a roster of talent that got to the World Series and won it all.

Assorted former Angels players' cards

A collection of cards I have stuffed in a box somewhere are cards of Angels players whose autographs I still need for my all-time Angels collection - I want to keep cards handy of guys whose autographs I still need in case there is an opportunity to get them signed in-person and/or to have cards set aside for possible through the mail requests.

However, the collection is sort of vague because how many players in Angels history have I not accounted for - it's not quite a comprehensive collection, so I wonder why don't I just have an an wantlist of players I need, without the guise of having a pile of unsigned cards?

The collection consist of cards featuring players who have played with the Angels at some point in their MLB careers - but maybe they've moved on or retired.

If I have multiple cards of individual players, I hope to get them all signed, but then again I only need one - it's a plus if the player is pictured in an Angels' uniform, though I'll deal with the cards picturing players in other uniforms as well.

Ideally I'd like to get cards in the box signed sooner than never, though the collection has become sort of a cardboard morgue - the push to put together TTM requests has really slowed down and maybe I'm lazier to try and track down autographs of former Angels that way.

If I end up purchasing a certified autograph card or an in-person / TTM autograph - then the cards in the box are pushed back into 'general population' within my main A-Z archives.