1984 Donruss Ryne Sandberg #311

I don't know if it's worth what I paid for it, but I relented to pick up a second year Sandberg card for my 1984 Donruss pseudo set build - where I'm basically trying to see if I can as many cards in-hand, to get inked up at some point.

I got the card in the mail and the first thing that struck me was the irriated toploader used from Chernobyl - I cringed and chuckled at the same time, as I freed the card and tried to take some pictures.

I was relieved that the card itself hadn't yellowed out, like the toploader - if it wasn't such a 'safety hazard,' I would be inclined to keep the top loader as a memento.

TTM autograph received: Ralph Terry

Off this card show trip, I found a 1963 Topps World Series subset card and sent it off to Terry - I got a response within a week with my card signed in blue ballpoint pen for his fee of $20.

When I stumbled upon the card, I don't think my intention to get the card signed as TTM ammo - when I'm going through loose cards that I say, 'oh I can send to that guy or that guy,' I worry about having more money into my a loose, scrap card, when there are fees involved to actually get the card inked up through the mail [besides an actual, paid signing].

However, I got inspired when I saw Terry's fee wasn't as much as I'd first assumed, notably for someone who has a lifetime of experiences at 85 - I put together a request, paid up and eventually got a vintage return to tally in my book, no complaints here.

Card show recap #2 - more minutia, more commentary

I spent $10 for 16 quarter cards and a trio of individually priced singles digging through boxes off one guy who may have been sharing the table space with his buddy - I think of all the loose 'here and now' i.e. 2021 cards I could have picked up instead of these and for $10 total, I just hope I don't lose sleep over the choices I made.

I don't know why I picked up random Chan Ho Park and J.T. Snow cards from the mid 1990s - but the Action Packed minor league cards were unique with rounded corners and raised, embossed surfaces.

Park was a rising star who peaked in Los Angeles, went to Texas 20 years ago as coveted free agent and promptly bombed - ended up as a journeyman who was kind of decent, but never really was able to replicate the success he had pitching his home games at Dodger Stadium.

Snow was a fan favorite as Angel for a little bit when he might have formed a 1-2 punch with Tim Salmon as rookies in 1993 - he was a bit inconsistent with the bat during his time as an Angel and while he broke out past his early struggles, I want to say he was eventually exiled to the San Francisco Giants, where he generally became a more dependable all-around player.

I grabbed a Bronson Arroyo rookie card to squirrel away somewhere - while he was more of a rank-and-file guy in my book, I'll give him his due as a Boston Red Sox cult favorite back in the day and a pitcher who continued to be a solid innings eater for the Cincinnati Reds until all the mileage took its toll on his right arm.

A random pack pulled minor league card of Ryan Klesko takes me back just a bit - where I remember him being hyped as a prospect all the way back in 1991.

I grabbed the Matt Stairs just to have a random card of a fan favorite - who had a significant 19-year playing career.

I guess I'll look it up but I didn't know what the Todd Helton card was so I grabbed it - since I collect him on the down low.

The Walker is a rookie card reprint and while it looks better in hand - the 'registration' on the back is really bad quality.

I don't like grabbing cards of players labeled as part of a rookie subset, when the actual card is not - however the image of a young Scott Rolen juggling makes the 1997 Collector's Choice #15 a keeper for my 'fun' collection.

I figured to grab another copy of Hugh Quattlebaum's rookie card after the other I've had for the past 20 years is loose somewhere I cannot recall - I guess the dual player card is more notable for one-time Texas Rangers prospect Edwin Encarnacion, but Quattlebaum was hired just 3 weeks ago as the New York Mets' hitting coach after Chili Davis was fired.

I'm at a blank as to why I picked up a Skal Labissière card - looking closer, I think this is the Prizm cougar parallel.

I don't know if I consider these unique finds, but I grabbed them anyway - a 1988 Topps Mark McGwire Record Breakers subset #3 stamped buyback, a pack pulled minor league card of Austin Romine serial #'d / 25 and a Billy Hamilton refractor for my awesome outfield collection.

Some more cards I found that may not mean much, but may serve their purpose somewhere - a David Fletcher prospect card and a pair of 2019 Bowman Platinum cards of Corbin Burnes, who has turned into a dominant starting pitcher.

Even though it isn't the rookie card, I like the Burnes insert better - it pops a bit more that just the base card.

I don't know if this Randy Johnson is considered a true oddball, but maybe it is classified as such - I grabbed it for $2 because I think rookie year cards from junk wax era boxed sets may have a little novelty compared to the actual rookie cards that were released the same year or rookie year cards that were released in traded / extended sets.

I grabbed these poverty Jordans cards for the prices listed in the back - maybe I paid too much but the hologram caught my eye and I can make believe these are a little different because they are international versions of their U.S. counterparts.

The text on the back of the hologram card is translated in German and the text on the back of the base card is translated in Spanish - I wonder if these were distributed by language / country.

Card show recap #1 - mission incomplete

I want to normalize being able to go to card shows and inspired by some other bloggers, I was hoping to make a card show stop and end up with glut of cards that was both overwhelming and intriguing to eventually break down - I'd even set things up where I brought at least a 330-count box to store my goodies and some other bags in case there was an opportunities to buy up miscellaneous cards in quantity for cheap.

I was kind of ‘gung-ho’ about jumping into things, but maybe I needed a Snickers as I hadn’t eaten through the morning - it actually made me less patient, where I didn’t really want to nickel and dime myself picking out scrap cards at random tables.

At this card show, the tables start to get redundant after going meandering through the rows a few times without seeing an obvious spot to camp out at - this was the same show, where I discovered the seller with the 'vintage treasures’ guy, but it looked like he didn’t have as much stuff like last time, certainly nothing scattered and loose to rummage through.

To lead off, I spent $5 for 22 cards at the table of a father and his teenage son - the boxes that had baseball were nice and neat, one box loosely organized by set, but sharing space with other sports and the other box, strictly baseball separated by with player labeled tabs / dividers; however, maybe it was only a couple of 3,200 count boxes hanging off to the side of the table.

I probably should have stuck here because I probably could have found 50 cards for $10, even if it was less 'quirky' and mostly basic star cards and strictly commons from the early 1990s - the goal was to find a table that was more comprehensive but that never quite came to fruition and what I was looking at may have been as good as it got.

I ended up with a quartet of Shohei Ohtani cards, that probably made me stick around the table - I found some Panini branded Mookie Betts cards from a few years ago, which has him listed as a Boston [Red Sox] player, but I'll relent to picking up any non-MLB licensed Panini stuff of superstars as misfit cards out of the 'cheapo' bins.

Gary Carter really starred through a time when baseball wasn't even a thing for me - but I acknowledge the Hall of Famer as a legend in his position and two late career keepers in my book is a 1993 Score Select #55 and a 1992 Bowman #385.

I like the Select because it captures him blocking the plate against an incoming baserunner [Mike Scioscia] - with the reputation for being a tough minded catcher who was involved in his fair share of collisions.

I like the Bowman because it shows him in a photo op moment, signing autographs - from what I've read and assumed, he was always a guy who was concerned about his image.

The 1995 Score Jose Canseco #4 is a fun card, showing on the mound - the write up on the back is more like a eulogy however, talking about how his career might have come to an end because he hurt his arm while trying to pitch and needed surgery.

The 1997 Topps Stadium Club Stadium Sluggers Chipper Jones #376 - is apparently a short printed subset card.

2016 Topps Now Highlights & Happy Holidays promo features Kris Bryant, Gary Sanchez, Ichiro and David Ortiz - I was hoping it was a 'real' Topps Now card, but I assume these were mailed out as a bonus for people who bought Topps Now cards that year.

Don Mattingly may have symbolized 1980s baseball and a guy who I heard about when I was getting into collecting - even though he isn't a Hall of Famer, his cards will always be considered keepers in my book.

I've seen his 1989 Upper Deck #200 for the longest time and I wanted ownership of the card. - maybe it's just another base star card, but it came from a premium set that ushered in a new era of trading cards.

I was going through other loose Mattingly cards and found the 1994 Upper Deck #90 - the front shows a horizontal image of Mattingly diving to field a ball, which may be a unique enough action on its own merit.

However, the back really made the card a keeper, where the Yankees great is pictured as batting righty - maybe playing in a game of pepper with his teammates.

I'm the most casual fan of the NBA and I don't really bother collecting the cards, notably when 'here and now' unopened hard to find out in the wild - however I might be open to seeing if I can grab a few loose cards of notable players when I can, probably to add some diversity to some mini-collections topics as needed.

I don't know why I picked up the Richmond card - he was a pretty good player, but not a 'here and now' guy.

TTM autograph received: Bill Virdon

Off this card show trip, I found a 1961 Topps World Series subset card and sent it off to Virdon - I got a response within a week with my card signed.

I like the idea of 'salvaging' a lesser condition vintage card to a still living signer - though I saw the card itself as a mini-collection add featuring guys making plays in the outfield.

2002 Donruss Elite Extra Edition Alex Rios #252

I was searching for some random cards on eBay and this popped up - if nothing else I bought this card for some early 2000s nostalgia and the idea it's still a pretty card, regardless of player.

I want to say the card stood out in one of those late season releases as Rios’ only rookie card when he was breaking out as a toolsy top prospect - this may have been in-demand for just a little bit, something that maybe pictured on a hot list of cards.

As is, while Rios never became that all-around superstar, he was a 2-time All-Star - who was part of a World Series championship team with the Kansas City Royals in 2015.

Maybe it’s odd but I can probably point to a little run of Toronto Blue Jays purchases over the past year - I've picked up a Bo Bichette rookie card parallel, a Vladimir Guerrero Jr. rookie SP, a Tom Henke uncertified autograph card, a Derek Bell uncertified autograph card, a Duane Ward uncertified autograph card [for the set], a Dave Stieb uncertified autographed rookie card and now this card.

There was also a Joe Carter TTM success but that was for the set - on a 1984 Donruss rookie card that pictured him with the Chicago Cubs.

TTM autographs received: Johnny Edwards

Off this card show trip, I found a 1962 Topps World Series subset card and while the players were not identified - I did some research and saw that it was Johnny Blanchard of the New York Yankees sliding in with Johnny Edwards of the Cincinnati Reds catching for a little play at the plate action.

Of the two players, Edwards was still living and I thought to take a chance and send him the card to be signed - it took about a week for Edwards to respond with my card signed.

He also added three smaller photo prints and returned my letter with a couple of responses to what I'd written him - when I can do it and have success, I like when I am able to send to old school players on their vintage cards.

TTM autographs received: Ron Reed

The former big league pitcher signed my cards in about a week for a $20 donation - Reed was a multi-sport athlete, playing in the NBA for 2 seasons, before focusing on sticking in the major leagues for good.

It wasn't surprising, but there was a sense of finality

From a guy I dreamed on posting big numbers after the signed with the Angels to this moment - I had to do double take when I saw that Angels Facebook post where all time great Albert Pujols was being designated for assignment.

Reading bits and pieces, he might still be with the team but perhaps being unhappy about his playing time sealed his fate - in what was supposed to be his last year [as a player] as part of the mega contract he inked up during the 2011 offseason.

Through games this season, there was talk about how much healthier Pujols was and how much harder he was hitting the ball according to all that exit velocity data - I told myself, guy is hitting .195 and while batting average maybe outdated, go wake me up when he's hitting .250.

At this point, my sentimentally towards Pujols is a little muted - I won't ever question his intensity, work ethic or his intentions, but he's the No. 1 example where getting old and modern day shifts really accelerate the deterioriation of a superstar player's ability to perform on a year-to-year basis past a certain point.

TTM autograph received: Jose Cruz

I got the former big league outfielder to sign my card in about a couple of weeks for $5 - he started to charge to sign TTM in 2020 and while I've probably gotten him to sign something years ago, I wasn't worried sending a particular card signed.

Scratch that Shohei Ohtani day

I grabbed this card at the beginning of the season and got it delivered in-hand about a couple of weeks ago - today was supposed to Ohtani's scheduled start against the Tampa Bay Rays' ace Tyler Glasnow, but Ohtani was scratched after getting hit by a pitch on his elbow on Sunday.

It's been refreshing to see Ohtani be in the lineup as a DH for much of the season - though I'm still concerned what he does as a batter and baserunner will lead to possible injury or fatigue, affecting his ability to pitch on a regular basis and at full strength through the rest of the year.

I guess I can flip things around to make this into a Glasnow post, who has been that stud pitching talent with a big arm peaking at the right time - several weeks ago, I put together a page with his cards as an addition to my decade / binder stars collection just to acknowledge his ascencion to stardom.

1990 Palm Springs Angels set pick up

I picked up a minor league team set featuring Angels all-time great Tim Salmon - besides any harder to find inserts / parallels from the late 1990s that may command a premium regardless of player type, there are more common 25-30 year old 'scratch the itch' cards of Salmon I want to pick up.

For nostalgia I still cling onto parts of the 1990s and where there might have been uncertainty as far finding some future stars to build on early in the decade - Salmon was that first Angels prospect to break out as a big league star

TTM autographs received: Steve Garvey

The longtime star first baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres signed my cards in about a couple of weeks for $10 - I've gotten him to sign 4 or 5 times in-person over the past 20 years, but I needed a 1984 Donruss and saw he signed TTM.

The 1984 Donruss was my priority regardless, but I also sent a 2021 Donruss to see what the card would look like autographed - I wish I had an old school Garvey from the 1970s handy to send as a second card, but the straggler might have been ideal to throw in because it was a recent 2021 pull.

Go figure one of the Garvey autographs I got in-person years ago was on the plastic slab of a graded 1984 Donruss - it was likely at the 2000 National where some wannabe non PSA and/or BGS grading company had samples at their booth for the taking and I ended up with the Garvey.

I didn't have anything better to do with the slab, so I must have taken it where Garvey was making an appearance - after 20 years, I think the card is loose somewhere collecting dust with the autograph probably not as bold due to the cirumstances of time passing.

My first card show in a while

I saw a flier posted on an Instagram account for a card show and since it was otherwise local, thought it might be worth my time to check things out - there is always a fear I might get stuck in some kind of weird swap meet atmosphere where the are only a limited number of tables with mostly vendors who might not actually be selling cards.

There is still the COVID-19 pandemic to worry about, so I haven't really entertained thoughts of going to any card show in the past year or so - maybe I shouldn't make a big deal about stopping at a place where there might be like minded vendors selling their wares.

As I got to the spot, I was afraid there was an entrance fee but it was only a lady checking temperatures - it looks like everything was outside.

There might have been 30-35 tables and with at least several customers crowding around many of the tables, where it was hard to squeeze into looking into the loose non-showcase cards put out - I was probably looking for more of an old school baseball vendor with dated material I can dwell on, maybe some junk wax / mid 1990s uv-coated era repacks just to see if I can get a bunch of cards as a ‘teaser’ purchase for not much money.

I ended up at some random booth to dig into and started leafing through $1 cards just left out on the table - nothing in card holders, probably off-condition scraps from at least the 1950s through the mid 1980s.

For the most part I ended up grabbing many of the assorted vintage Topps World Series subset cards I could find - as opposed to the regular cards of the related years / players, the WS subsets actually pictured actual action and various cards can be funneled as 'awesome action' adds.

I grabbed these rookie cards and/or XRCs [by 1980s Beckett definition] to my stash - a Hall of Famer in Boggs, a pair of fan favorite types [for the most part] in Guillen and Coleman and a pair of pitchers [Gooden and Hershiser] who had era defining runs as superstar pitchers in the mid 1980s.

I started building up a stash of cards here and while I didn’t know what I was looking for, was worried the stack had mushroomed to more like 60-70 cards - I didn't even realize I ended up with a pair of 1978 O-Pee-Chee Willie McCoveys, but I found a 1973 Topps Al Kaline, a 1977 O-Pee-Chee Tom Seaver, a 1980 Topps Joe Morgan, a pair of 1982 Topps Traded cards of Ozzie Smith and Reggie Jackson and a pair of 1989 Upper Deck Nolan Ryan cards [I think I already had the multiple exposure version, but not the throwing football version from the high series].

I couldn't leave 1954 Topps and 1955 Topps cards because they feature a pair of catchers - while my tools of ignorance collection cards might be more of a 'side project' compared to other collector (s) whose similarly themed focus is simply more comprehensive, its pretty cool to have catcher cards that are at least 65-years old.

I also found a 1991-92 Topps Stadium Club Michael Jordan, 1965 Topps Tony Kubek and a random card from the 1959 Fleer Ted Williams set - maybe it was tough to decide which were my keepers as I had make some choices on what to put back, but least I found that one booth to get into.

When I whittled things down, I relented to pay $40 straight up for my mash up of cards, which still may have been too much - but after a long year or so, it was fun just to rummage through random cards in-person.

For the rest of the time I spent [maybe an hour or so total], I was walking around looking to see what I maybe able to grab - I was hoping to find someone selling plastic pages and/or magnetic trading card holders, but it didn’t look like there was one table set-up for supplies.

The story I've commonly heard is because of supply chain issues from China through the pandemic - the demand for supplies have intensified where once common items like top loaders command a premium.

Peeking in on cards displayed in showcases, I was impressed with random cool things like vintage 1953 Topps Mickey Mantle, a supposed Babe Ruth cut [I think that is what I saw] that was inserted as part of an autograph repack product, a couple of Michael Jordan certified autographs and a PSA 10 2018 Topps Update Juan Soto gold parallel- maybe not the cream of the crop of sports collectibles, just 'wish they were in my collection' cards I quickly made note of.

There were tables with your typical retail flipper material and I relented to pick up a 2021 Topps Series I Mike Trout tin for $25 - presumably 'new in box,' shrink wrapped with the cards still inside.

The Trout tin might have been a no brainer buy, even if they retailed much less - another booth may have sold similar tins [no Trout] for $35-$40 each.

Out of a small sample size of two vendors I bought from, no bags were provided - I might already be planning my next time and I need to bring something to carry what I purchase.

Featured autograph - Rene Gonzalez

Off a Facebook f/s listing, maybe it was easier to pick up a signed card [$5] of the one-time Angels utility infielder from the early 1990s - without worrying about sending an autograph request to some address and not getting a response, where I have to look somewhere else to add to my all-time Angels autograph collection.

Whether certain guys would actually sign if I just took the time to send them a request - there are countless rank-and-file guys that don’t seem to get any TTM traffic reported over the years, so I assume they don't sign or perhaps might do so through an autograph middleman of sorts.

A to Z Music Challenge

Inspired by this post, I wanted to see if I can come up with a list of bands / artists I like - I  get self-conscious about listening to the same things over and over, where most of what I like to listen to has been preprogrammed over the past 5 decades. 

It's pretty clear where I stand as far as dating myself, but for the most part these are probably my 'ride or die' music artists / bands with a few exceptions - where I've listed artist / band with a random 'ride or die' song I come back to even though I won't dig for any other songs by the same artists / bands.  

A - AC/DC, Aerosmith - AC/DC was all about the hard hitting arena rock that gets the blood flowing, that teased all sort of trouble and mayhem, while the Aerosmith I followed through the early 1990s starred in a run of great music videos that really made think long and hard.   

B - Bon Jovi, Beastie Boys - no one has to know I still seek out Bon Jovi songs and rock out to the  classics like Wanted Dead or Alive or Livin' on a Prayer, Blaze of Glory. 

C - Coldplay - I have never really embraced them, but through the course of the 2000s, these guys set the tone as far as what I listened to.  

D - Daft Punk, Darude - I was into Daft Punk because the electronic music beats kept me on my feet as something a little different. Darude = Sandstorm.

E - Eminem - I never really embraced him as an artist, but Higher and Till I Collapse are on list of pump me up songs. 

F - Foo Fighters, Fleetwood Mac, Fun - through the course of the late 1990s onward, Foo Fighters set the tone as far as what I listened to as far as mainstream rock band.

I like to imagine myself back in the late 1970s, listening to some Fleetwood Mac but in the here and now want to be like that guy on a skateboard - who got his 15 minutes of fame in 2020 chilling to Dreams with his cranberry drink.   

G - Goo Goo Dolls, Green Day, Guns N'Roses, Genesis - I've thought about at least a couple of crushes in my life listening to Goo Goo Dolls; I swear Green Day's 1,039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours was all about my high school crush. 

Guns N' Roses was the mainstream super rock band of the early 1990s and hard to ignore at their peak. 

I think when referring to Genesis, I think mostly about Phil Collins.  

"Take the lyrics to 'Land of Confusion", in this song Phil Collins addresses the problems of abusive political authority .. "In Too Deep", is the most moving pop song of the 1980s about monogamy and commitment .. the song is extremely uplifting, the lyrics are as positive and affirmative as, uh, anything I've heard in rock .. "

H - Hall & Oates - I grew up on listening pop, soft rock stations playing mid 1980s songs.  

I - Ice Cube - for the most part I fit into the stereotype of someone from suburbia trying to latch onto a little hip hop as some kind of edgy thing. 

J - John Mayer - there might have been a time, where I turned into mush listening to some of his songs.  

K - Killswitch Engage - The End of Heartache - I only know of this one song, because it was the entrance music of one time Angels reliever Brian Fuentes during the 2009 season.

L - Linkin Park - through the course of 2000s through 2010s, didn't realize these guys would set the tone as far as what I listened to, for better or for worse. I once found them loud and abrasive but I find them inspirational now, even with the passing of the lead vocalist Chester Bennington in 2017.   

M - Michael Jackson - my childhood GOAT. 

N - Nine Inch Nails, Nirvana - with the music I listened to, there might have an been an edgy phase that revolved being a wannabe, angsty teen where I wanted to listen to loud, unconventional industrial music or at times depressing themes that Kurt Cobain [R.I.P.] pushed. 

O - The Offspring, Oasis - The Offspring was a punk band that found mainstream success so I maybe  latched through them through early 1990s as the new, coolest thing where I'd gone from pop music, rock, grunge and then punk. Oasis probably hit my consciousness through the mid 1990s as an import from England and looking past their popular hit songs, Acquiesce still lingers.  

P - Pearl Jam

Q - Queen

R - R.E.M. - a girl I had a crush on in the early 1990s had a R.E.M. t-shirt and as a joke, I remember mimicking the lead singer Michael Stipe in that Losing My Religion video. Maybe a couple of songs I liked was Everybody Hurts and Man on the Moon. 

S - Staind, Sylvester, Social Distortion, Stone Temple Pilots - Staind lead singer Aaron Lewis really had a nice little run of some really heartfelt songs [It's Been Awhile, So Far Away, For You] that just hit a little different back in the early 2000s. 

T - Third Eye Blind, Tears for Fears, Toad the Wet Sprocket - go figure, crushes play a big part of music I listen to and 3EB's first album [titled Third Eye Blind] is always going to be about that certain college crush. 

Tears for Fears, Everybody Wants to Rule the World symbolizes the decade of the 1980s for me. 

Toad the Wet Sprocket might not have ever reached true mainstream success but for me, past all bands that were at their peak commercially - listening to Toad the Wet Sprocket songs [Walk On the Ocean, Fall Down] always gets me nostalgic for the early part of the 1990s. 

U - U2 - through the course of the early 1990s onward, these guys set the tone as far as what I end up listening to through the here and now. They end up probably my No. 1 group of all time, though I keep going back to mostly their older catalog than any of the 'here and now' songs.  

V - The Verve - Lucky Man

W - Weezer

X - X Ambassadors - Renegades

Y - Young the Giant - My Body

Z - Zombie Nation - Kernkraft 400 - this and Darude's Sandstorm end up probably the most well known 'jock jams' songs played at stadiums during the past 15-20 years. 

TTM autographs received: Andy McGaffigan

The former big league reliever from the 1980s signed my cards in about 3 weeks - the priority was getting back the 1984 Donruss, though there really wasn't a light area of the card to sign over.

I don't remember where I got the 1989 Bowman, but maybe the odd size has always annoyed me - however, I was able to send the card out and maybe I like the 'challenge' of seeing something other than a regular sized trading card signed through the mail.

Random miscellaneous pick ups

While the bulk of my recent loose card purchases revolves around trying to fill rank-and-file holes between 1984 Donruss and 1990 Leaf for possible TTM requests - to change things up, I grabbed a few of the more quirky cards I've saved a picture / screenshot off in my camera roll and/or listed out on a cheat sheet.

I wouldn't normally buy a minor league team set card of a pitching coach - but the shopping cart caught my eye along with the billboard ad for an ancient cell phone from the late 1980s.

This is the post that inspired me to have this card on a list somewhere - H/T

This is the post that inspired me to have this card on a list somewhere - H/T

I haven't done anything with my Angels frankenset [see sidebar for details] but I like this card - I don't know if I can whittle down my 40-50 wants outright but I'll see if I can do something [or not].

It's early but India looks like a high flying big league rookie so far - strictly on the low end side of things, I picked up a pair of his first paper Bowman Draft cards from 2018.

Just as a change of pace, I can imagine collecting a retro, more high brow looking set like 2005-2006 Turkey Red - this Palmer might be sent out for a TTM request, but the background may just be too dark to make it a priority.

Glenallen Hill was one strong man

I picked up this Mlicki for the baserunner with a svelte, familiar body shape lurking in the background.