First Pitch Customs - Redesign

First off, I apologize for missing my post yesterday. By the time I realized I didn't hit "Publish" for my scheduled post, I figured it would be easier to just skip a day. I know, I know. That's a slippery slope to not posting for a while. But I have a few post ideas coming up so no worries.

Second, I got an extra day's run on Pimp My Fantasy League post with some additional help from "unclemoe" of the 2008 Topps Set blog. Check him out if you don't already! We're now up to half-full with a few more nibbles that I think will turn into committments once the season gets a little closer and the details are hammered out. Looks like we're leaning towards the $15 Blaster prizes so if you're interested in playing, leave a comment on the original post here.

Now onto the real post.

Last year, in addition to my ATCRCS cards, I debuted a subset of cards featuring various athletes, celebrities, politicians and other personalities that have thrown out a first pitch at Wrigley Field.

I have whittled down my collection to mostly Cubs items so these allow me to branch out a little from Cubs players while still sticking to the theme. The other day when I was cleaning up my computer and external hard drive, I ran across my folder of first pitch photos and noticed they were all in color. Now, one of the reasons I went with the ATCRCS design for the players was that older photos were in black and white and I wanted a uniform look. I figured I could desaturate the newer color photos a lot easier than I could colorize old B&W photos. I don't know why I didn't see it before but once I did, I decided to revamp the First Pitch series. Here are the new counterparts:

And one more for good measure:

 
Not sure about doing backs for these yet. The important information is now already on the front.

While looking for photos to use, I realized there was another Cubs tradition I was overlooking. I'm not if any teams do it as often (or even at all) but the Cubs also have "Guest Conductors" for the 7th Inning Stretch. Sometimes it is the same person who throws out the first pitch, sometimes not. I may look into doing something for those as well!

Let me know what you think!

ATCRCS: First Pitch Friday - John Paul Stevens

Featuring former Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens in this week's First Pitch Friday segment seems like a no-brainer. Chicago native, lifelong Cubs fan and influential American? Check, check and check. In fact, I'm a little surprised that he's only thrown out the first pitch once. And he was 85 at the time!

While doing some google searches to find the correct date, I learned that Justice Stevens attended Game 3 of the 1932 World Series between the Cubs and Yankees. This was the game where Babe Ruth allegedly called his home run shot. And he is 100% positive that I can remove the word allegedly from that sentence.

I always enjoyed the subject of American History in school and while it's hard for me to think of things that happened in my lifetime as "history", Justice Stevens has definitely made an impact with some of his rulings. Here's an interview he did with 60 Minutes right before retiring. It's a typical interview piece that mostly focuses on his youth and career but he does mention the Babe Ruth incident and you can see some of the Cubs stuff he has in his office, including a Mark Prior jersey. He seems like such a smart, down to earth guy that would be fun to have a beer with and talk Cubs even in his 90s. Sorry about the ad before the video, couldn't find another one.