2008 Upper Deck Timeline pull

2008 Upper Deck Timeline - when my boxes arrived, I tore through the first nine packs from the bottom pack to the top on the left hand row.

We'll jump to pack eight - which was actually the second pack from the top
#23 Matt Kemp
#86 Jay Bruce - rookie card subset
#112 Emmanuel Burriss - 1992 Upper Deck Minors
#81 Matt Tolbert - base rookie gold parallel
Signs of History - some kind of a filler card with scratch off feature
#126 Reed Johnson - 1992 Upper Deck Minors auto; after dreading pulling a possible Brandon Boggs auto [I would step on that mine with this box], I end up pulling an auto of this veteran fourth outfielder? He is pretty good for what he is and he went to my alma mater, Cal State Fullerton, but I've gotten his autograph [in-person] several times and he isn't exactly the latest or the greatest.
#170 Ryan Howard - 1994 Upper Deck All-Time Heroes
#198 Josh Hamilton - 2005 SP Top Prospects die-cut
#237 Joey Votto - 2004 Upper Deck All-Time Heroes; like the image used which is of Votto wearing a camo jersey.

I bought two boxes for $31.95 each at Blowout Cards during a sale at the end of 2008 - which came with free holiday shipping.

Edit: I registered on the Upper Deck Web site and redeemed the card on 1/12/09.

Featured player - Koji Uehara

Didn't know or care about the guy pictured on the card as it was included in a team bag a friend gave me featuring seven Japanese baseball cards - with a small note he attached saying they are 'Future Major Leaguers.'

When I read this post on Orioles' Card "O" the Day - I checked if there was any Uehara cards among the seven my friend had given me and I actually found one. I guess my friend was right on the money and know I'll be looking to get the card inked up either through the mail or eventually in-person.

Featured autograph - Andy Hassler

I've known collectors who strictly collect autographs of a particular team [like the Los Angeles Dodgers] - I have also read up on some autograph forums and collecting blogs about collectors trying to collect as many autographs from their teams as possible.

While not quite an original idea, I'm looking to join the herd and start a team collection - I'm looking to add about 100 new Angels' autographs in 2009 with a goal of being able to count out at least 300 different by the end of the year.

Andy Hassler signed three cards I sent to him through the mail - he represents the first Angels' autograph I've gotten in 2009 and hopefully I can add 99 more.

My bread and butter is the uncertified in-person or through the mail autograph - though I'll probably be looking for certified autograph cards of Angels' players I've never gotten before or uncertified autograph cards of former Angels' players who have fallen through the cracks.

I guess the emphasis is on signed cards - but I'm open to picking up anything bearing an authentic, hand-signed autograph of an Angels' player.

A distinction I want to make is to separate signed cards - by players wearing an Angels' uniform and by players not wearing an Angels' uniform.

While it maybe nice in an ideal world, I don't think my goal is completion - but to build on a theme and at the very least, be able to say I have a certain number of autographs from my favorite Major League team.

Figuring it out in 2009 - collecting to blog

I'm a baseball card collector who has always liked cards - but collecting doesn't matter as much at times and it is hard to get into it or at least I feel inconsistent with my collecting habits. Where is the balance between liking what you collect, even if it is picking up commons at a card show or being able to talk shop about the latest cards?

I keep getting drawn back into collecting because I like the process of picking up cards, knowing it is my last link to adolescence - but in the 21st century, collecting is something I can blog about.

Collecting to blog is pretty important because it serves as a lifeline to share your interests with other like minded collectors - on the other hand, does the story get redundant trying to describe the ideal of being a collector and enjoying the process of your collecting endeavors? With so many things going on with new products and new players, it is hard to keep up with what everyone else is doing.

For the true collector in the real world - having a blog gives you currency over your typical Joe Collector. You know you can measure up [and then some] if you have your own blog. Any schmuck can post a YouTube video, but can anyone constantly rehash the same ideas, rants and thoughts over and over? Even if you aren't particularly creative about every post, it is still something that becomes a part the process involved with collecting.

2008 Tristar Prospects Plus blaster box

2008 Tristar Prospects Plus blaster box [$19.99 each] - I was looking at the trading card section the second time [I was bored and spending time at Walmart is fun] and this blaster 'popped up.' The first time I was at thr trading card section, I only saw a blaster box of 2008 Tristar Projections High Series.

Because it is a minor league product - a typical baseball card collector are not going to go out of their way to look for this product. Still Tristar products have somewhat of a following with minor league autograph collectors and baseball card collectors looking for something different.

The card design isn't pretty and looks like a Fleer/Skybox design from the late 1990s - I don't think baseball cards should be boring, but they shouldn't look garish either, particularly for a 'niche' product like minor league cards.

As listed, each blaster box is guaranteed one autograph - five packs per blaster with six cards inside. Hopefully it didn't mean anything but basically the packs are crammed inside the box, with a crumbled up paper [I think similar to what you'd find stuffed in shoes at a shoe store] to support the blaster. It isn't like the packs are enclosed in a cardboard 'tray' inside like other blasters i.e. Topps/Bowman I've busted.

I got 29 out 150 base cards - with no doubles or triples.

Pack one - no suspense here, I already hit the auto
#26 Christian Friedrich - the No. 25 overall pick in 2008 [Colorado Rockies].
#14 Ethan Martin - the No. 15 overall pick in 2008 [Los Angeles Dodgers] and also possibly the year's Ben Christensen/Delmon Young Award winner.
#85 Jason Knapp



#FH JJ Jay Jackson - the 2008 Tristar Farmhands autograph inserts look better than last year's version.
#87 Boston Top Pick Pitchers; Bryan Price, Stephen Fife and Kyle Weiland - I think the multiplayer cards in this year's product is a distraction to collectors who probably want as many single cards to get signed either in the mail or in-person. If can get all the players' autographs at one time, then it is okay, but Tristar should have stuck with one player per card.
#149 Chicago Future Pitching Stars; James Leverton [Levitrol?], Justin Bristow and Toby Matchulat - it seems like these multiplayer cards are Tristar's way of getting more players in Prospects Plus.

Pack two
#4 Brian Matusz - the No. 4 overall pick in 2008 [Baltimore Orioles]
#36 Jake Odorizzi
#84 Rashun Dixon - the Oakland Athletics sees some value in this guy, so he must be good [as in better than your average toolsy athlete from high school that the organization has not typically drafted]. According to the back of his card, Dixon had eight home runs, 42 RBIs and a .525 slugging percentage in the Arizona League [rookie level]. He could be an intriguing speed/power guy if his Moneyball skills develop [having patience at the plate and taking walks].
#73 Tyler Ladendorf
#104 Ryan Lavarnway
#135 Staten Island Yankees Teammates; Ray Kruml and Addison Maruszak

Pack three
#41 Pete Hissey
#58 Dan Brewer
#49 Xavier Avery
#37 Brad Holt
#123 College Teammates; Yonder Alonzo and Jemile Weeks [Miami] - Alonzo was the No. 7 overall pick in 2008 [Cincinnati Reds] and Weeks was the No. 12 overall pick [Oakland Athletics].
#109 Mike Lee

Pack four
#95 Steven Fife
#92 Kyle Higashioka - local Orange County, California kid drafted by the New York Yankees
#23 Ryan Perry - the No. 21 overall pick [Detroit Tigers]
#6 Kyle Skipworth - the No. 6 overall pick in 2008 [Florida Marlins]
#141 Lowell Spinners Teammates; Lance McLain and Kyle Weiland
#103 David Adams

Pack five
#69 Tyson Ross
#52 Jaff Decker
#13 Aaron Hicks - the No. 13 overall pick in 2008 [Minnesota Twins]
#21 Andrew Cashner - the No. 19 overall pick in 2008 [Chicago Cubs]
#148 Boston Future Stars; Bryan Peterson, Tyler Yockey and Jonathan Hee
#119 Matt LaPorta - seems like from playing the Milwaukee Brewers' system to being traded as part of the C.C. Sabathia trade to playing in the Futures Game and also being a member of the U.S. Olympic baseball team [and being beaned during competition in the Olympics], LaPorta has gone through a lot in 2008. He is 24 years old and as far as a top prospect is concerned, 2009 is probably his make or break year to see if he can stick in the Major Leagues for good.

I tried to scan these cards, but the foil used on the cards do not scan well - for images, go to the official Tristar Web site.

The star of the first day of the MLB Network - Don Larsen

Don Larsen signed my card [on the back] for $7 - he also responded to my letter asking about his off-season conditioning with a note of his own.

His 1956 World Series perfect game is the showcase of the MLB Network's first day broadcast - I was sort of worried I would not be able to get the MLB Network, much like I don't get the NFL Network [on Time Warner Cable]. However, that is not a case with the MLB Network and it is all explained here.

Hopefully the MLB Network will be able to satisfy all my hardball cravings 24/7, 12 months a year - I've always wondered why everything on ESPN, on the sports radio shows are focused on the NFL [in particulary] and other sports. Hopefully now, I've got a place to go to on the television that is all baseball, all the time.

Featured autograph: Garret Anderson

I really haven't blogged about anything autograph related, though I see myself as more of an autograph hound - rather than merely just a baseball card collector.

One of my ideas was to do a dayf style blog about autographs - however, I feel like I wanted to focus on baseball cards more because I can talk about them freely. With autographs, you have questions coming up about authenticity and where you got the item, particularly if isn't a pack pulled autograph. Maybe for 2009, one of my goals is to showcase more of my autographs I've picked up through the mail and in-person [or at least talk about them more in general].

This autograph of the former Halos batting star - was acquired by mailing Anderson an 2008 spring training autograph request through the mail.

I watched an in-depth interview show by Fox Sports West [In Their Own Words], featuring GA - on the show [Nomar Garciaparra, Luis Gonzalez, Jeff Kent, Juan Pierre of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Gary Matthews Jr. and Scot Shields of the Angels are other baseball subjects I remember], home town stars are interviewed by host Bill MacDonald to talk about their lives in a candid one-on-one way.

They reveal their personalities and talk about their careers [besides the usual locker-room speak cliches] - for Angels fans, 'GA' has come across as aloof and not someone you can snag an autograph from in-person [he's virtually automatic TTM however].

In the show, Anderson came across as a pretty humble, low-key guy without the ego of a 'me-first' athlete - or a guy whose been affected by much of the criticism he's endured for being lazy, not showing the right hustle, et al.

Here is a Cliff Notes version of what he spoke about:
1.) By his definition, he is gamer - citing guys who've tried to beg out the lineup one way or the other. For all the critics, GA said to check out his numbers - they speak for themselves.
2.) He can't change the way he plays the game - his body language isn't going to allow him to be like Darin Erstad. He isn't going to show much emotion, because he is going to disrespect the other team.
3.) At one point when he was younger, he didn't know how to play 162 games a year - his body language did show it. At times he said a veteran [Tony Phillips] would get on him for it.
4.) If you are in the media and expecting a sound byte - you've gotta get to know him or else you probably won't be getting it. He said the 'Page Two' guy [T.J. Simers of the Los Angeles Times] is one guy who gets it since Simers might talk to GA for 30 minutes without even having a purpose.
5.) On the 1995 Anaheim Angels, which collapsed after an 11-game lead - GA said it just wasn't a good enough team and he implied these days there is so much pitching depth available, compared to the 1995 team, where you had guys [filling in] and making [too many] spot starts [to be a serious contender], when the they faced teams like the New York Yankees and Baltimore Orioles.

Hopefully GA can continue his career - to build upon an opportunity to reach or get close to 3,000 hits before he decides to hang them up for good.

Featured card: 2007 Topps Heritage All-Star subset Brian Fuentes #494

The Angels have signed Brian Fuentes and it obviously gives the end of the bullpen a different look - with a decidedly different type of guy. To be honest, the typical Angels' fans are likely thinking Fuentes still isn't Troy Percival, but at least he isn't Frankie [who they've had enough of]. For the Angels, it is a shorter commitment with less money for a pitcher who would seem to be as good as former closer K-Rod was in 2008 [except for the number of saves]. Less money and less years probably allows like Jose Arredondo or Kevin Jepsen to step in at some point in their careers to make a play for the eventual closer's job.

As much as he is a departure from K-Rod - Angels fans are expecting this guy to be a hammer out of the bullpen and that may not be realistic.

Fuentes was a three-time all-star [2005, 2006 and 2007], but Fuentes also lost his job midway through the 2007 season - I still remember questions about his all-star credentials during the time he struggled that season and was demoted in the Colorado Rockies' bullpen. Hopefully it was just a bump in the road and he doesn't do something like implode [blows 10-12 saves/gives up 10-15 home runs] and/or miss the rest of the season doing something stupid.

Featured cards: 1992 Topps Stadium Club

Topps' sophomore effort may have as impressive and/or better images than their first release in 1991 - the problem for me was Topps turned Stadium Club into a bloated 900 card set, issued in three series of 300 cards. It was the first Stadium Club product I remember picking up with some sort of regularity, but it also became this monster, clusterF of a set littered with unproven players and players who'd be the 25th man on a roster. It should have remained a 600 card set like the initial release in 1991, but Topps thought they could capitalize on the initial popularity of the 1991 set.

The Van Slyke [card #232] features a very nice horizontal shot of Van Slyke diving with a head first slide at third base - you can see Pittsburgh Pirates' then third base coach Gene Lamont kneeling to see what will happen as third baseman Tim Wallach of the Montreal Expos presumably awaits the throw from the cutoff man. The only reservation is the photographer is able to catch Lamont and Wallach's butts lined up with the image of Van Slyke's impending slide.

The Hoiles [card #161] features a play at the play - we don't know if the runner is safe or out as he crashes home, kicking up dirt as Hoiles is looking for the baseball.

Surhoff [card #117] looks like he is making the throw on a pickoff as Ken Griffey Jr. tries to get out of the way - I can eat up 'bonus babies' or common cards featuring cameos by stars all day long.

Featured card: 1983 Fleer Rick Rhoden #318

I like this card because the subject looks like an inmate in some jail [or a super fan] showing off his cell [or a 'man room'] - with an unhealthy fascination for a Major League pitcher [look at the multiple jerseys, look the subject wearing a pinstriped jacket, pants and socks]. I wonder how many letters has he written to his favorite Major League player?

Just think - never mind the person in question is Rhoden himself...

Dinged Corners new year's baseball card questions

I haven't gotten involved in one of these blog question and answer posts - but I'm trying to do something in involve myself in the hobby. One of those ways is answering questions to give you a chance to reflect and share a little about what makes you a collector.

ROUND ONE:

1-If I didn't collect baseball cards, I'd collect - books about baseball, its players and its history.

2-My baseball heroes include one you probably wouldn't know from my blog or comments, and that person is - Ichiro

I don't know if I consider baseball players heroes, but then I guess I like the idea of this Ichiro fellow - I kind of got swept up in the bandwagon in 2001, wondering if this 'cat' was going to stick and through 2008, it doesn't look like he is slowing down.

I still put this guy up on a pedestal because of a number of reasons - he is one 200-hit season from cracking the 2,000 hit mark [he already has over 3,000 hits if you combine his Japan totals and his Major League Baseball totals] and has an outside chance of getting 3,000 hits. He plays for an organization that has crumbled over the last four or five years but for better or for worse, he continues to put up some decent numbers.

3-Every New Years I resolve to - organize my collection since it is my Achilles' heel.

Over a given year, cards get piled on top of each other and while there is some organization in place - cards are sorted out for a number of reasons and I get lazy to put them back where they came from.

4-If I could spend a day with one person from baseball history, it would be - Babe Ruth; you want to know everything about living large, then you have to spend a day with the Babe.

ROUND TWO: Here are Lucy's questions for you:

1-What is your favorite kind of dog? Any kind of dog.

2-Who is your favorite baseball player? Tim Salmon, because he was the first Halos' top prospect who came up through the early 1990s and established himself as a franchise star.

One of my baseball card collecting 'games' back in the day was trying to pick out players' cards who were going to be future stars - I wasn't Billy Beane or nothing with Moneyball, but I'd pick out some cards out of the commons box of a friend perhaps [I thought most cards I found were rookies, but they could have been second year cards of young players with minimal stats lines on the back] and see if there was a player who was going to star when given a chance [I remember Paul Sorrento and Ed Sprague].

As Salmon started to put it together as an elite prospect back in the early 1990s, I traded for his 1991 Bowman rookie card - it was only worth a quarter [and probably is still only worth a quarter today], but I figured he was in an Angels' uniform.

Salmon made his Major League debut in 1992 for a cup of coffee and won the American League Rookie of the Year the next season - he was the face of the team through the late 1990s and despite battling injuries and down seasons, had a prominent role in helping the Angels win a championship in 2002. He is held in highest regards by Angels' fans.

3-What is your favorite team? Los Angeles, California, Anaheim, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Angels; my two Little League teams were the Angels and the A's. The Angels are the 'hometown' team to this day, though back in the early 1990s, there was some 'team envy' when you had Dave Stewart, Jose Canseco, Dennis Eckersley, Mark McGwire, Dave Henderson, Rickey Henderson among others flexing their muscles for the A's in the American League West. The Angels of the early 1990s seemed like 'pretenders' compared to the A's.

4-What is your favorite baseball movie? Bad News Bears or Mr. Baseball; there was something authentic about Bad News Bears and it wasn't really just a sappy,feel good baseball movie for kids. Mr. Baseball dwells on the fictionalized experiences of the 'Gaijin' [or foreigner] ballplayer thrown into a different culture and it is kind of a poor man's Bull Durham as far as the nuts-and-bolts baseball action is concerned.

5-What is your favorite baseball book? Ball Four by Jim Bouton; it was a radical book and something frowned upon by the baseball establishment. Despite being blackballed for putting out the book, Bouton gave readers an opportunity to see what ballplayers were really like as opposed to sugarcoated accounts written up by ghostwriters or reporters who still believed they could enjoy relationships with the superstars they lavished glowing praise on.

6-What is your favorite card? 1985 Topps Mark McGwire #401; I don't know if I have a definitive card to talk about but I picked up a card like the one pictured for $5 at the 1996 National in Anaheim. Fast forward to 1998 and a professionally graded version [maybe a PSA 10 or BGS 9.5] of this card was going to pay for part of someone's college education at a community or state college perhaps. The Tiffany version may have paid for someone's college education at decidedly better schools.

Having this card back in 1998 sort of made me feel like I had a little piece of the home run chase between McGwire and Sammy Sosa - this card is only a $5 card once again, but for a while it was the key rookie card of MLB's premier steroid taking Paul Bunyan-esque home run hitter and I was riding the wave like everyone else. People were either talking about McGwire or Sosa's daily performance and/or saying they had their rookie cards.

For the questionnaire, go to Dinged Corners

Featured cards: rookie cards of three 1980s minor stars

1984 Fleer Kevin McReynolds #307 - when I started following baseball through baseball cards in the early 1990s, McReynolds always struck me as a very pedestrian, mediocre player. He was winding down his career and there was nothing impressive about his numbers. I guess he was supposed to be a 'future star' with the San Diego Padres [an outfield of McReynolds, Carmelo Martinez and a young batting star named Tony Gwynn was going to be the Padres' outfield for years to come] but a player who blossomed for several years in New York instead.

1983 Fleer Howard Johnson #332 - I have memories of owning this card for about two or three weeks, dating back to my very formative years of collecting 20 years ago. The memory isn't something to revisit and however ironic, I'll quote great Mark McGwire and say, "I'm not here to talk about the past." Johnson was one of those 'late bloomers' who was a platoon player early in his career, but he became a slugging star for the New York Mets through the late 1980s. This was probably his key card at one time and it took a year or two more before Donruss and Topps printed up their first HoJo cards.

1983 Fleer Gary Gaetti #613 - he was star third baseman for the Minnesota Twins during the mid 1990s and California Angels' veteran free agent signing 'bust' in the early 1990s. Somehow he found the juice to re-energize his lagging career after leaving the Halos. He is in the Minnesota Twins Hall of Fame.

Fairfield repack break

15 count repack box from Fairfield [$9.99 each at a Target] - I'm not going to be suckered into a repack box of any kind, but a clear 150 count plastic box labeled 'Fire Sale - 15 baseball packs' caught my eye. I could probably get the box for a buck, but it looked there seemed to be a handful of packs crammed inside.

Most of the packs were assorted Topps brands from the last several years - they were the cheap retail $0.99 packs with six cards inside instead of full retail [or hobby packs].

One random pack was a 1989 Topps pack and no picture of this dreck is needed - the cards inside were bent [warped] in a weird way. The bottom card had slight wax stains, but the stick of gum was nowhere to be found and cards in the pack are off-center.

My philosophy on wax packs is people have probably searched packs, even from ridiculously crappy years of cards - my guess is so they can find cards to grade since a PSA 10 of a base star card maybe worth $15, $25 or $100 in some cases. There is no 'safe' product to bust. I don't care about value when there is none, but I kind of wish the packs I choose to open are 'clean,' unlike this one.

Unscientific guide - consult an 'pack expert' as far as seals are concerned.

1.) Pulling a star or rookie of value - may seem an odd assertion, but pack searchers with some nefarious plans are cherry picking packs, while putting 'key' cards of lesser condition in the packs they search and reseal.

2.) Off-center cards or generally cards in shabby condition - packs are likely searched if there is a string of cards featuring miscuts, off-center cards and various imperfections.

Another random pack was a 1992 The Baseball Enquirer 'mystery interview' cards - I kind of like these cards, though the company can't associate the parody images/interviews with any of the real Major League Baseball team and/or players it may [or may not have] chosen to depict. It is pretty simple to figure out the 'stars' from the set, though there is really no ID on the cards, not even a make believe name.

The pack features a shaggy haired caricature of a ballplayer - saying "I'll bet my card's going to be worth a fortune."

#28 - Bill Buckner

#44 - my best guess is Jeff Reed - as the unknown Reds' player [Edit: The image depicted is actually former Reds' manager Lou Piniella].

#20 - Mackey Sasser

#52 - Harry Caray [Edit: The image depicted is actually former New York Yankees' announcing great Phil Rizzuto].

#12 - Kent Hrbek

#60 - Dale Murphy
#4 - Billy Ripken 'black box' version

#30 - Randy Johnson

#38 - George Steinbrenner

#22 - Barry Bonds

Featured card: 1982 Topps Mike Witt #744

Witt was the workhorse ace for the California Angels in the 1980s until all the innings he pitched took a toll - and his arm was burnt out right as he hit 30.

Witt finished his career with the New York Yankees in 1993 after being traded for eventual Hall of Famer Dave Winfield in 1990 - he threw a perfect game in 1984 and was part of a combined no-hitter in 1990 with then Angels' big free agent signee Mark Langston.

Thanks for the memories

Too bad your ugly mug won't be playing in Anaheim for the next eight years - for half a season, you gave the Angels a shot in the arm. Besides your offensive contributions in the second half of the 2008 season, one thing that impressed me was your athleticism at first base.

Can't really say 'good luck' to you in New York - but maybe you are following in your childhood idol's footsteps [Don Mattingly, as I have read]. You'll probably put up similar numbers as you have in your Major League career and as professional as any modern day ballplayer can be, you won't be the type to crumble under the New York spotlight.

To everyone else - Merry Christmas, happy holidays and may the new year, bring a new hope.

Featured card: 2006 Upper Deck Lance Berkman #213

'Fat Elvis' does his best Jumpman logo impression - while trying to make the catch at the wall. This card just reaffirms my belief 2006 Upper Deck as probably the most attractive, no-frills, no cards worth $$, base set in this decade. I'd like to display this card 50 different ways as a centerpiece of my collection, even though I don't actively collect Berkman and I'm not a fan of the Houston Astros. It maybe hyperbole, but 2006 Upper Deck card #213 is what the modern baseball card is all about in its simplistic, most basic form.

Featured cards: Andre Dawson trio

I found this card in a nickel box at a place where I get random cards - unlike many other Dawson baseball cards, where he is grimacing and/or is seemingly in a serious mood, he is actually looking at someone and smiling. Dawson is in the prime of his career and while playing on Astroturf will have consquences for his later health, Dawson is just beaming.

Is this a nickel card of a player soon to be enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame [?] - who knows really, but Dawson put together a impressive resume that showcased his ability to hit for power and for speed.

Dawson's 1987 Classic Yellow card #124 probably captures his worst moment as he hits the ground - Classic, which produced trading cards revolving around a baseball themed board game, used the same image as a 7/20/87 issue of Sports Illustrated titled, 'Beanbrawls' with Dawson on the cover.

Dawson's 1984 Donruss card #97 - is a favorite because the focus is squarely right on Dawson. His eyes are focused on the incoming pitch and it looks like he is ready to hit one square up the middle.

Featured card: 2000 Topps Brian Giles #62

I don't pass judgement on anyone [like athletes in a sport I'm a fan of] other than the fact - San Diego Padres outfielder Brian Giles was caught on tape [grabbing his girlfriend and throwing her to the ground] and it looks like 'it is what it is.'

Now his ex-girlfriend's lawyer is suing him and had just released the tape - since this happened in 2006, it had already been swept under the rug or people were just oblivious to it.

Giles seems like a 'wild and crazy' guy [I've seen a clip of him running naked into Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux and John Smoltz interview] - but since he is generally is considered a model citizen on the field, I don't know if he can 'cross over,' like only a few athletes can where there is some genuine scorn whether or not he fits the stereotypical athletes, the mainstream media really likes to make examples of [and I'm not talking about a crackhead like Matt Jones in the NFL who we have not heard one peep about].

The typical response from the peanut gallery [not that I consider myself above the fray] would probably consider the ex-girlfriend a gold digger - and feel like let's not all just jump on Giles because all the facts have not come out yet.

However, it seems no amount of evidence would convince the fan base otherwise - certain athletes like Giles are capable of such committing such disturbing behavior.

If we are not talking about someone we personally know, but someone we admire or watch like a professional athlete - that maybe the most disturbing aspect when things like this come out for public consumption.