A Few Frankenset Pages and Some Odds and Ends

"I should really post something. Anything." This has been the refrain going through my head for quite some time. As usual, I've had a lot going on card-wise, and it gets hard to know what to highlight. 

The last month or so, I have begun trading on Trading Card Database (TCDB) and have been very active getting cards that I have been chasing for a while, as well as jettisoning some of mine that I have no attachment to. To me, that's the great thing about trading on TCDB, and really about trading in general. But the site has a great trade matching feature, so once you get a good base of cards added to your want list and your "For Sale/Trade" list, it's pretty easy to get some trades going. I thought it would be a lot of work to get these lists started, and it has been to a point, but it's been worth it. I couldn't even begin to highlight some of the great cards I've traded for in the last month, and I won't miss anything that I traded away. It's a great deal. 

But today, I want to go back in time to my neglected Frankenset (the completed one, not the one I'm working on as priority #13 or so in my collection). I've put some more scans of pages on my Frankenset page, and wanted to highlight a couple of favorite cards from those pages. 

Card #100: 1990 CMC Iowa Cubs - The Lesser Known Brian McCann:

Card #132: 1993 Upper Deck Fun Pack - Mike Devereaux

I remember Devereaux being a slow defender in Ken Griffey Jr. Presents Major League Baseball for the Super Nintendo. But he was actually a good fielder by defensive WAR metrics and stole 10 bases in 1992. Also, if you were curious, my research indicates #2 is Mark McLemore.

Card #139: 1990 CMC Nashville Sounds - Paul Noce

Another entry from the 1990 CMC minor league set. This is a classic card with a fun backstory. 

Card #140: 1994 Upper Deck - Jose Canseco

Canseco has several fun and unique cards from his career. Not sure what he plans to do with that shovel, but at least he doesn't look angry.

Someday, I might get all of my Frankenset pages uploaded for your viewing pleasure (including pages 12 to 14, which you may have noticed are missing if you followed the link above). At this pace, it might be sometime in 2029. 

Gum and Guns: The Frankenset Recap (Page 63: Cards 560-568)

Welcome to another installment of a series covering my completed Frankenset. I thought it would be fun to share the set page by page on this blog, and also provide some random commentary with each page. More information on the Frankenset as well as links to the pages that have been revealed can be found here.

Today we'll look at page 63 of the set, which includes cards #560 to 568. 

1994 Collector's Choice #560 - Jose Canseco

Dateline 1994: Jose still keeping up the charade that his athleticism was all-natural.

2001 Topps #561 - Trot Nixon

Trot's given name? Christopher Trotman Nixon. 

1989 Upper Deck #562 - Carney Lansford

Carney and the ump discussing dinner plans. 

1989 Topps #563 - Bill Schroeder

Just happy to be here, Skip!

1976 Topps #564 - Kurt Bevacqua

Bevacqua defeated Johnny Oates in the final round of the Joe Garagiola Bazooka Bubble Gum Blowing Championship (better known as the JGBBGBC). The Tigers and Pirates were the only teams not to send a player to join the competition, depriving us of knowing the bubble blowing potential of John Wockenfuss or Rennie Stennett. 

1991 Fleer #565 - Bill Pecota

Even if he checked his swing, this still looks like a strike. 

1991 Topps #566 - Craig Wilson

Did Wilson hit .171 in 1991 because he was spending too much time on his juggling? You decide.

1983 Fleer #567 - John Grubb

Ranger Aid fell out of popularity after people discovered its two ingredients were crude oil and the tears of Rangers fans.

1998 Fleer Tradition #568 - Miguel Cairo

Hacky sack with a baseball? Better be wearing your steel-toed cleats.

What is your favorite card from the page? I almost have to go with the Bevacqua, probably followed by Carney Lansford arguing (I love player/manager arguing cards), and maybe Bill Pecota third. 

An Unexpected PWE: Everyone's Dream

I recently received a PWE from Brendan, better known as Elliptical Man over at A View from the Third Floor. When I saw the envelope, I didn't think I had won a recent giveaway or anything, so I was intrigued. So, what was inside? It didn't take me long to see they were all candidates for my Frankenset, but if there was any doubt, Brendan included a little checklist guide to what he sent.

Eighteen cards in total made their way from beautiful San Diego to the less picturesque Fargo in a 70 cent envelope. Some were cards I already had in my Frankenset, but some were new to me, so I will need to see if they might find a home in the set. 

Dave Stewart the cameraman. Chuck Finley hugging a runner. The Gary Pettis is a great find. He missed the bunt! Hadn't noticed this one before. Some great glasses/sunglasses shots, too. Do you know the guy in the middle? Scroll down for the answer. And Steve Carlton with the White Sox? Just doesn't look right.

Chris Bosio signing some autos. Why is 40-something Carlton Fisk bunting? Tim Raines bunting - makes more sense. Pitcher running the bases. Two legendary nicknames. Love a good bubble gum card. And then you have the Rollie Fingers mustache battling the Justin Turner beard (sorry it's sideways). 

I appreciate Brendan going through my list and finding some awesome cards to fit my Frankenset categories. He's a loyal reader of the blog, too, so I owe him a double thanks! 

The man in the middle on page one was the one and only Jay Buhner. If you got it wrong, you owe me one Ken Phelps card.

The Best of the Rest: Challenges of Building a Frankenset

When I first learned about the concept of a Frankenset, I was excited. I had been setting aside unique cards for quite some time, and now I had a way to meaningfully organize them. Hunting for cards to fit the holes in your set is a fun pursuit, too. It's like hunting for cards in a regular set, but there's an added dimension because you have to find a card to fit the slot first. 

That's the stage I'm at with my Frankenset. I'm still hoping to fill 792 slots, and not surprisingly, most of the cards I need are in the 700s. But I'm getting there, slowly but surely I suppose. I figure I can make some custom checklist cards to fill 6 or 7 slots eventually if I can't find anything that fits some of those higher numbers. Lately, I've been scouring Trading Card Database and looking at sets that go above 660 in the hopes of filling some of those numbers. I'm about 50 to 75 cards short right now, but honing in on a wish list to get me closer. I'll post that soon when I have it organized, so if you can help, I'd be glad to swing a trade or two.

But this post is going to take a different angle on my Frankenset. For every card with #738 you find, there might be 2 or 3 or 4 cards with #135 that you'd like to put in your set.

But you can only pick one. That leads to some tough decisions. And cards that are more than worthy of finding their way into the set are suddenly on the outside looking in. This post is dedicated to some of those cards. 

The following pairs are cards with the same number. The card on the right made it into the Frankenset, and the card on the left was relegated to the "Best of the Rest" section at the back of the binder. I picked some of my favorite second place finishers to display, so hope you enjoy them. 

#219: 1983 Topps Mike Armstrong vs. 1994 Collector's Choice Jose Offerman

The Mike Armstrong card is an all-timer. Serial killer look paired with serial killer glasses. But I like the Offerman card. Apparently, the runner tried to break up a double play not by sliding, but by running straight into Offerman while the second baseman decided to get uncomfortably close to the play for some reason. Plus, it's the Silver Signature version!

#157: 1992 Donruss Triple Play Greg Harris vs. 1983 Donruss Goose Gossage

The glove on the head makes me want to choose Harris. The glasses make me want to go with Gossage (though Harris's are fantastic, too). The tiebreaker here is star power. I'm going with the Hall of Famer.

#274: 1995 Score Darren Lewis vs. 1982 Fleer Jack Morris

Darren Lewis appears to be trying to break up a double play here. But picture him for a moment on a waterslide... Works, doesn't it? 

There's just too much to like with the Jack Morris card, though. The odd shadow or possibly UFO surrounding his hat. The chain link fence. And of course, the off-center photo cutting off Black Jack's entire right arm. 1982 Fleer delivers again.

#586: 1993 Donruss Joe Oliver vs. 1975 Topps Tim McCarverI might be willing to change my mind on this one. I really like Oliver biting the dust (Is he mid-air?), but McCarver just doesn't look right with the Red Sox. He only played 22 games with them. So, for now at least, I'm going with Joe Buck's old sidekick in the booth.

#36: 1992 Topps Scott Ruffcorn vs. 1985 Topps Fred Breining

Here we have what I can only assume is a senior picture vs. Fred Breining, who as I pointed out in a previous post, looks like Jerry Seinfeld when he wore those big glasses in an episode of Seinfeld. Going with Jer--- I mean Fred, on this one.

#4: 1992 Classic Best Scott Sharts vs. 1997 Score Rockies Team Edition Ellis Burks

The juvenile humor is so tempting here (I assume you know what a "shart" is), but I decided to be an adult and pick the fun Ellis Burks glove-on-head card.

#128: 1991 Pacific Senior League Baseball Razor Shines vs. 1969 Topps Tommie Aaron

An all-time great name vs. an all-time great "lesser known." I like the Aaron card better, so going with Tommie.

 

#387) 1992 Stadium Club Ruben Sierra vs. 2002 Upper Deck Al Leiter 

A top vs. bottom matchup this time. The Sierra is such a unique card, but I love the angle on the Al-Leiter card a lot. And bonus points because the ball is still in the frame, too. Going with Mr. Leiter here.

Well there you have it. Let me know your thoughts. Favorite card of the bunch? Want to make a case for one of the second place finishers? Put your comments below!

See Other Side for More Fun

In building my Frankenset, I made a rule fairly early on: the card had to qualify based on the front of the card alone. I wanted it to be apparent looking at the front of each card why it belonged in the set. I always thought this was a good decision, but wondered about those pesky card backs. Because there are some good ones out there. Where do they fit into the Frankenset world I have created? There must be a place for them somewhere.

Then it hit me. It happened a few weeks ago when I was looking at the gallery view on an early 90s Upper Deck set on TCDB. I was searching for card numbers that might fit my Frankenset, so I went to the gallery view to get a good look at the front of the cards. But right next to the front of the card is an image of the back. I noticed some really interesting ones and planned to go through some of my own that I already had to see what I could find. And what did I find? Plenty of material for ANOTHER Frankenset. A Frankenset just focused on the backs of the cards.

Now with two young children at home, I don't have much time for anything much less tracking and hunting down cards for another Frankenset, so I'm going to start slow. Here, I am going to feature some of the cards that inspired me to go down this path, in addition to some others I have found so far. Some of the cards fit the existing categories in my main Frankenset, but with card backs, you have more written material to work with, so there will be some new avenues to explore, which is exciting.

Two cards right off the bat that I really enjoyed were this Mickey Hatcher card and this Luis Polonia card where he is being harassed by, I am assuming, Lance Parrish's son. 

1991 Upper Deck #666, Mickey Hatcher

1992 Upper Deck #147, Luis Polonia

These are both fantastic. If you didn't catch it, Hatcher is experiencing a hot foot. The front of the Hatcher card also made it qualify for my regular Frankenset. Luckily I have two copies.

Another category I found was cards describing players in much too-glowing ways. I found this example fairly absurd:

2001 Topps #183, David Segui

Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx, Frank Thomas, Albert Pujols, David Segui. Umm...no. 

Then there was the flipside. Cards basically bashing the player's abilities in one way or another. 

1991 Score #153, Mickey Hatcher

There's Hatcher again. Ol' gray haired, bad kneed Mickey. At least some compliments followed.

Another fun one was Dave LaPoint ripping himself with a classic line.

1990 Score #357, Dave LaPoint

A body made for bowling. I can relate. 

A final category that I enjoy is random facts on the backs of cards.

1992 Topps #18, Greg Cadaret

Greg Cadaret enjoys Huey Lewis? Who doesn't?!

Another random fact comes from the 1991 Topps card of Mickey Tettleton, who I found out was nicknamed "Froot Loops" in researching a previous post. Now I know why.

1991 Topps #385, Mickey Tettleton

I'm looking forward to finding more of these diamonds in the rough, but it might take a while to put together a full set. I have probably about 200 so far, and don't have that many more cards to look through here at home. But like I said, I don't have time to work on it anyway! 

Role-Reversal: My Favorite Frankenset Card by Page; Page 6 (Cards 55-63)

It's time for another installment of my favorite Frankenset card (by page), where I show off my Frankenset by giving you my top three favorite cards from each page of the Frankenset. Let's jump right in.

3) 1981 Topps #62, Joe Pettini

This card is a beautiful convergence of the 1970s and 1980s.

2) 1992 Donruss Triple Play #63, Rickey Henderson

The 1992 Donruss Triple Play set has some great Frankenset material. The makers of the set clearly were trying to be a little bit off the wall in an attempt to cater to a young audience. I'm a little torn about what I think about their approach, but I think I'm ok with it. One of the main reasons why is the fact that this was the middle of the overproduction era and this was kind of a fringe set, so why not do something a little different. I mean, you had both Upper Deck and Leaf in 1992 basically copy their 1991 design, and none of the other card makers really did anything too exciting in my opinion that year. So Triple Play's strange pictures and odd subsets work for me in that context. 

On page five of the Frankenset, we saw an entry from the Triple Play set, and now have another. It's a bit puzzling, though, to use an odd photo for a player of the caliber of Rickey Henderson. For Pat Kelly, sure. But Rickey had just broken the career stolen base record the season prior, so you'd think there would have been an opportunity there.

1) 1994 Score #61, Jose Canseco

The scene was Fenway Park, May 29, 1993. With shadows overtaking the field and the Rangers desperately behind in their game against the Red Sox, slugger Jose Canseco asks his manager Kevin Kennedy for a chance to pitch. In his first and only major league pitching appearance, Canseco pitches the 8th inning, allowing three hits, three runs, and three walks as the Rangers fall 15 to 1. 

This game was just three days after what was perhaps Canseco's most famous (or infamous) highlight. On May 26, Carlos Martinez of the Indians hit a deep fly ball to right field that Canseco misplayed. The ball hit him on the top of the head and bounced over the fence for a home run. It was quite a stretch of three days for Mr. Canseco. 

Remarkably, after the pitching appearance on the 29th, Canseco began having elbow trouble and would have Tommy John surgery six weeks later. He missed the remainder of the 1993 season. 

In fact, as I learned from the back of this card and confirmed with some additional research, Jose's career was considered to be in jeopardy as a result of the injury. Of course, he made it back to have several more solid seasons in MLB.

Here's a look at Jose Canseco's mound performance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iufXBbwtUk

Which of these was your favorite from page six?

My Favorite Frankenset Card by Page; Page 3 (Cards 19-27)

Page 3 of the Frankenset has some solid cards. It can't quite measure up to page one or page two, but it does feature two baserunners you wouldn't expect to be pictured chugging around the bases on a baseball card.

Here are those entries:

1995 Pinnacle #22, Bob Hamelin

6'0", 230 lb. Bob Hamelin flying out the batter's box so fast his helmet falls off. Shocking fact: Hamelin stole four bases in 1994. FOUR! He swiped 11 in his six seasons in MLB.


Our second unlikely baserunner:

1996 SP #23, Tom Glavine

Stolen base fact (unlike the case of Hamelin, not found on the back of the card): Tom Glavine stole one base. In 22 seasons. Glavine had 1645 plate appearances in his career, whereas Hamelin had 1508.

So Bob Hamelin was clearly the better base stealer. (The preceding sentence was just typed for the first time in Western Civilization's known literature.)

Odd choices by Pinnacle and Upper Deck, for sure. But this week's winner is the beneficiary of an even odder choice decision by the makers of the 1990 Classic baseball series.

1990 Classic Yellow #T25, Jeff Treadway

Did you catch it? Odd, isn't it? Besides "why in the world would you choose this photo?," the other main thought I had was wondering what happened here. The only thing I can see causing this scenario is Treadway fouling the ball off. One of those barely got a piece of it spinning foul balls. For a guy who hit .277 in 134 games the previous season, you think Classic could have done better. Or maybe they were being sneakily intentional, because this card in my opinion, is a true "classic."