You're an All-Star, Get Your Game On, Go Play

Just a quick post today.

I need a tie breaker vote over on the "Mets - June 2014" post on my Horizontal Card Challenge blog. The sooner the better, thanks!

And good luck to Starlin Castro and Anthony Rizzo who are representing the Cubs and the National League tonight in the All-Star game. This is Castro's third selection and Rizzo's first.

If I can get a photo of Jeff Samardzija in his All-Star gear, I might make something up for him too. For those living under a rock, Samardzija made the All-Star team based on his work with the Cubs. But after being traded to the A's right before the break, he is ineligible to play. *Sad trombone*

The Shark Goes Green

There's been a lot of talk about the Cubs/Athletics trade that pretty much shocked everybody. It wasn't necessarily the moving parts that were surprising, but where they ended up and how. On paper, it looks like it'll work out for everybody involved, but only time will tell. I'll probably root for Jeff Samardzija (and maybe a little for Jason Hammel, though I hardly knew ye) in the postseason just as I rooted for Mark Grace and the Diamondbacks back in 2001. What else will I do as a Cubs fan in the post season?

It's been a long time since I posted any kind of custom card. There was a brief flirtation with a season long set (that lasted all of of about three games) but I think I only posted the first one. The Cubs themselves have been uninspiring most of the season, though the game I attended at Wrigley Field the other day has had me doodling some designs again.

Not feeling real original, I recreated some of my lost templates to give Samardijza a proper sendoff. I never got my laptop hard drive recovered so these are from scratch and therefore slightly different from the originals.

I started my blog back in 2012 and this design was what I used for my custom team set that year. It's still one of my favorites to make. For the Cubs version, the number was white like the name (see the Anthony Rizzo is my blog header). But I tried to tweak this one to match the way the A's show the number on their jerseys, green number with yellow border. What do you think?

This was another one of my favorites and I even ran a poll/contest to come up with a name for it. The winner was PASS (Please Autograph Sweet Spot) because the signature area resembles the sweet spot of a baseball. One of the runner ups was FiPS or something like that because many of the cards I made showed some kind of fist pumping celebration similar to Samardzija here. For the record, the originals of these were made before Topps did their Fired Up insert set this year!

I don't think I have any Samardzija autographs in my collection yet, and I definitely don't have any of my customs signed by him, so these are just for fun for now. Maybe someday. Although, I should probably get him to at least sign my ATCRCS card before he goes and wins a World Series and gets expensive!

Starting from scratch...

In yesterday's post, I mentioned I was starting from scratch with my customs after losing all of my templates. While fiddling around trying to find something to inspire me for a 2014 Cubs team set, I remembered one of my first attempts.

I kind of laughed when I saw some of my first attempts using this design and and it showed me how far I've come just from tinkering around in Photoshop and watching tutorials. I had one of my old cards to base it off but I started it from scratch tweaked it a little to come up with this:

I wanted to do something with the new Wrigley Field centennial logo and this vintage-esque design is a good pairing. I don't know that it'll be a the final team set template but with the season right around the corner, it's probably a good idea to get the creative juices flowing again.

I usually look for good action photos to use but I think this one looks good with an almost posed shot. More like Heritage. Let me know what you think!

2013 Topps Heritage Blaster

My second selection among the prize pool for my Fantasy Blaster/Blogger League was 2013 Topps Heritage.

As with the Gypsy Queen from earlier in the week, I realize doing a break is about 6 months too late so I'm only showing the non base cards. Everything is up for grabs so let me know if you need/want something or want me to take a look at your want list for the base cards.

Since this year's Heritage set mimicks the 1964 Topps set, the Flashback inserts pull topics from 1964 headlines. I pulled two, presidential election coverage and one that talks about Juan Marichal pitching back to back shutouts.

This Then & Now card lets you know (on the back) that Whitey Ford and Felix Hernandez are comparable in Shutouts. Felix Hernandez leds the Majors with 5 in 2012 and Whitey Ford Dean Chance led with 11 in 1964. Whitey Ford had 8. Guess Topps was short on Yankees inserts...

I don't know what a New Age Performer is. Isn't that like crystals and horoscopes and tarot cards and stuff like that?

I did pull four Cubs out of the box, something that would have made this box a success earlier in the year. But unlike Qypsy Queen where I didn't buy any, I actually already picked up a Cubs team set when this was released.

And last, and certainly least, the blue Wal-mart parallel that I was supposed to get. I don't think I could have gotten a worse card from the set. Not only is he a NL Central rival, but arguably one of the top 3 hated players in baseball right now.

This probably would have been a decent pull at the beginning of the season and gone for a couple of bucks towards recouping the blaster cost, but without looking, I'd say it'll cost more to ship than I'd get for it.

I haven't seen what the others have pulled yet and for all I know, they struck gold. But after two fairly disappointing blasters myself, I'm rethinking the Fantasy League for next year. Six-plus months is a long time to wait for something bound to lose value the further from the release date it gets (unless of course you get the one on a million blaster). I'd love to hear any opinions from those who participated on how to change things a little. And even from those who didn't but followed along. What would make you join next year?

The Starting Rotation

Perspective is a funny thing. Never would I have thought having a 13-14 record for a calendar month would be a good thing. Alright, maybe not good, but an ok thing. In that 27-game, overall losing record stretch, the Cubs managed to outscore their opponents 129-99. That's right. One game below .500 but with a +30 run differential. It's a step in the right direction.

A lot of the credit goes to the Cubs starting pitchers, but not how you might think. The rotation was only 8-10 for the month but they also managed to drive in a National League-record breaking 19 runs themselves at the plate.

Recently returing to the rotation after a DL stint, Matt Garza hit a two run double in his season debut against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Unfortunately, the Cubs squandered the lead, losing 5-4, in a no-decision for Garza. I haven't had a chance to make a card for Garza yet but it's coming.

Edwin Jackson contributed two RBIs with a double to get the ball rolling in an 8-2 blowout against the Washington Nationals (a game that I attended).

Jeff Samardzija broke a 1-1 tie against the Colorado Rockies with a two-run home run, the second of his career. The Cubs held on for a 6-3 victory.

Add up Garza, Jackson and Samardzija's RBI total for May and you'll come up with six, equal to what Scott Feldman drove in himself. Spread out over 4 games, Feldman's four hits included two doubles and a home run.

That brings us to Travis Wood, whose grand slam against the White Sox brought his May (and season) total up to seven RBIs. Additionally, he had a two-run homer earlier in the month.

With that kind of run production, it comes as no surprise that Wood and Feldman are the only Cubs with a winning record. Although, the way Garza has been pitching, he could be joining them soon. Yes, I know he's 1-0, but let's get him a few more starts and we can talk again.

Let's keep it going into June!

Trade with Dutch Card Guy

It's a great time of year to be collecting cards. Shortly after a pair of new set releases, the first packs have been opened and Want Lists have been formed. Over the last few days I've been on the receiving end of a couple of different trade packages and today I have yet another!

This one crossed an ocean to get to me and Jeroen (AKA The Dutch Card Guy) made sure to fill the package to get his money's worth on shipping. 

The card that started the trade.

Aside from the Tony Campana, I totally skipped out on picking up the 2012 Topps Cubs Minis. Not on purpose though so these four will find a good home. I can't have too many Campanas!

Another set I missed out on (aside from a couple of non-Cubs in the repack boxes) was Topps 206. These make for a very nice set. I'm going to have to find a checklist and make sure I pick up the rest of the Cubs if there are any.

I was towards the tail end of my first foray into collecting baseball cards when Stadium Club first came out in the early 90's. I remember them being a pretty big deal with their fancy photography and borderless cards, probably Topps trying to compete with the newer, pricier company Upper Deck. I'm not sure they got this Mike Harkey card right though. Lot of dead space at the top and under his throwing arm, not to mention it is poorly cropped on both sides. I think I had a parallel version but not this one, so into the collection it goes.

This last Brooks Kieschnick card is one I don't think I've seen before. No logos are shown but I'd be willing to bet its an Orlando Cubs uniform. For as few games as Kieschnick played for the Cubs (64) I'm continually amazed each time I come across another card for him. I might be approaching a 1:1 card per game ratio! Slight exaggeration but not really... 

Thanks Jeroen!!

There was one more card that intrigued me from the package but I'm going to give it a separate post later this week.

2013 Topps Jeff Samardzija

Since lurking around and then joining the blogosphere, I've started paying more and more attention to baseball cards themselves rather than just whether I have it or not. I've previously written on the photo selection of major brands and while making my own customs over the past few seasons, I've looked at a ridiculous amount of Cubs photos trying to find the right picture to go with the design of my card. It's not as easy as it looks. Not every picture goes with every layout.

I've done this before, most recently on the 2013 Topps Didi Gregorius that featured a double-play-breaking-up slide by Darwin Barney. I know others have done it on much tougher cards from years past before Topps used Getty Images, but I thought it would be fun to take a look at what is actually going on in these cards. From the day of the game down to the play if possible, starting with the 2013 Topps Jeff Samardzija, card #229.

2013 Topps Jeff Samardzija #229

Unfortunately, this photo didn't give me a lot to work with. I knew they were on the road but I don't know opposing stadiums as well as Wrigley Field. My only hope was to do a search on Jeff Samardzija in the Getty Images databank and wade through the hundreds of pictures. Luckily, they don't wear the blue jerseys very often and I can view 100 at a time so it didn't take nearly as long as it could have. 

Photo taken by Kevin C. Cox

With the caption, I was able to narrow it down to game one of a four game series against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field on July 2, 2012. No specific inning, pitch or batter is given. With the date now in hand, after visiting Getty, I took a quick visit over to Baseball-Reference to see how the Cubs and Samardzija fared that day.

The game turned out to be one of the 61 games the Cubs managed to win last year. Samardzija pitched 7 innings, giving up only 4 hits, walked 1 and struck out 11 on his way to earning his 6th win of the season. This game was the first of three double digit strikeout games for him in 2012.

He benefited from a solo home run from Anthony Rizzo in the 4th inning and a bases loaded, bases clearing double from third baseman Luis Valbuena in the 7th, who happens to be making a cameo appearance on the card. I'm pretty sure, based on the position and posture of the player in the background, that it is Valbuena and not shortstop, Starlin Castro. Castro would be more likely to be standing straight up and/or facing the outfield at this point in the pitcher's delivery. Zing!

As for the back of the card, Samardzija's career chase is Nolan Ryan's career strikeout record of 5,714. Considering that he's racked up 322 in 5 seasons and Nolan Ryan has thrown more than that in 5 single seasons, I would say the record is safe. At least from Samardzija.

The blurb mentions that Samardzija "posted four consecutive starts of zero or one runs." This stretch covered his 4th-7th starts of the season. Surprisingly, the Cubs won all four of those starts. Not surprisingly, they didn't score early enough to get Samardzija credit for more than two of them.

And there you have it, a pretty thorough dissection of the 2013 Topps Jeff Samardzija card. TMI? Not enough? Either way, I've got 7 more cards to do, plus maybe some inserts!

Player collection updates...

I mentioned last week or so that I am a fan of the 2012 Cubs. Yes, their record is horrible. And they just got blown out 17-1. But I see some potential in a core group of guys that I hope survives the dismantling and rebuilding process. Aside from Ryne Sandberg, I decided this past off season I would start player collections of Tony Campana and Darwin Barney.

Campana hasn't had much to work with yet in terms of cards but so I'm trying a little harder with him. Just one more parallel from this year to go that is already on its way and some from last year. As I showed earlier in the week, I picked up a 2012 Campana printing plate to go along with my one from last year's update card. I don't know a Cubs fan that doesn't like him or appreciate what he does for the team, but his limited edition cards don't seem to cost very much. I'm ok with that.

I'm a little more lackadaisical with the Barney collection and am just going for base cards and parallels right now. I have added a couple of relics and autographs when I see one at a fantastic price and its ending in the middle of the night or something. That's how I picked up this dual relic autograph card:

Unless the seller dropped the card in a mud puddle and managed to clean off everything but the jersey swatches, this is the filthiest relic card I've ever seen. I didn't notice it in the auction photo, only when it arrived. Check out this nearly glowing Andrew Cashner by comparison I picked up from the same seller for less than a buck.

And actually, a few recent bulk trades and the following ebay pickup, led me to start looking into a player collection of Jeff Samardzija. He has a lot more card than I realized once I started looking outside of Topps. I found one seller who had all three of these guys for a reasonable price: 

Jeff Samardzija Black #/61

Darwin Barney Black #/61

Tony Campana Black #61

Before I picked these up, I thought the black border would be grittier for some reason. But they are just as smooth as the base card. Maybe because they're glittery? Each is numered out of 61 so with 23 Cubs in the team set, I won't be going after all of them. But I am very happy with these three.

I'm debating on starting an Anthony Rizzo collection but right now the answer is no (even though he's Riz-zonkulous) I think he's got more Padres cards right now than Cubs cards so maybe when that tips more in the Cubs favor, I'll change my  mind. Hopefully I'm refraining from buying high and not missing out on what will be considered cheap n the future...