Listia Lately

It's been a while since I've done a post of Listia finds and I have a stack here from the past few weeks that have yet to be organized so you see where this is going. Tony seems like a good starting point because, honestly, who doesn't like Tony Gwynn? I generally like Pacific cards but that Aurora issue is not one of their finest efforts. As for the one on the right, it's for some dice game I'll never play. But if I did play it, I'm sure I'd single my opponent to death with this card.

This 1975 Topps of Chris Cannizzaro is the most recent to show up. I "paid" 400 credits, which equates to about $1.33, but it was worth it to me to get a slab of vintage I didn't have yet. I'm nowhere near completing the '75 team set but, hey, baby steps.

The Tim Stauffer card was grouped with four other Bazooka cards which were of no interest to me but at 100 credits it was worthwhile just to get the Stauff. I'm glad he signed a minor league deal this offseason to stay with the organization. Stauffer is by far the longest tenured Padre and it would be strange to see him as anything else.

I think that gold sparkle parallel is the third version I have of that particular Logan Forsythe card but I'd have to double check to be sure and I'm comfortable right now. Cameron Maybin's poorly photoshopped 2011 Topps was part of a four card lot featuring the next two cards and a double of Cedric Hunter I've already passed along.

Matt Buschmann didn't pan out for the Padres but at least he's not Matt Bush, man.

Bip! It's really hard to come up with something to say about Bip Roberts that I haven't said before. Between five annual Bip Roberts Days and assorted other posts, I feel like I'm all Bipped out wordwise until next February 10. That 1990 Fleer was one of a ton from that set that particular user was getting rid of. I got this and two others for twenty-some credits apiece.

The Alex Cole card on the right was another of the aforementioned three 1990 Fleer cards I got for dirt cheap. I'm not an Alex Cole fan but I've always remembered his funky MC Hammer glasses. The reason I got this card was to send it to Dime Box Nick because it's a zero-year card. Not only is there this card of Cole as a Cardinal, I've since come to find out (or been reminded; it's hard to tell sometimes) there also exists a card of him as a member of the Padres despite the fact that he never played a regular season game for them either. That's getting in Canseco territory. Sadly, I don't have it. So, if you come across 1990 Upper Deck #751 I'd be glad to take it off your hands. In the meantime, I'll try to remember to mail this one to Nick.

I got that Finley with Backstop in mind but then I double checked his Finley list and there it was. So now I have another card of Steve Finley as an Astro that I don't really care about. Ehh, I'm sure I'll find somebody who will like it. For that matter, they might want the bunch of other cards of Finley with other teams which are just hanging out in what I just decided to call an apathy box.

It's odd that I don't collect cards of Steve Finley as an Astro but I do collect an Astro with no ties to the Padres. I don't try to understand the things I do. Anyway, if you read my last post you know I'm referring to Craig Biggio. If you didn't read it, sorry for ruining the surprise.

I forgot about Topps MBossed existing until I snagged this one up. I also forgot that they were, you know, embossed until it got here.

I generally don't collect much non-card stuff but sometimes you see such a good deal you can't say no.

Starting Lineup figurines aren't something I have ever collected but I was able to snap this Caminiti up for just over 1000 credits. That's only a little more than $3.00 in real world money so it wasn't much of a decision. The sweatbands should come in handy if I play softball again this summer. If I don't, having a pair of unused wristbands won't be the end of the world.

But what could be cooler than that?

Okay, I'm not even going to bother pretending to build suspense where there is none. By now you know if it's a long acquisition post there will be Joey Coras at the end.

And, sure as the sun dost shine, there's Little Joey. I have a few of each of these but nowhere near enough. I don't know that I'll ever approach a certain somebody's Tim Wallach collection but I am determined to accumulate the world's largest Joey Cora collection eventually. I have a loooooooong way to go before I even approach being in the discussion as such but these drops in the bucket help out. As always, if you have any copies of these or any other Joey Cora cards I'll trade you pretty much just about anything for them.

Part II: Return Of The Nick

Picking up where I left off with Part I, here are the other twenty-some cards sent by Nick from Dime Boxes. Of the ones above I'm especially fond of, uh, well, they're all pretty cool in their own right. Ruben Rivera cards always make me smile because I think of "the worst baserunning in the history of the game". Seriously, stop reading this and take 1:15 to watch that.
...
Okay, you're back. That Perry card is pretty great, too. It's the only Ted Williams Card Co. card I have now; I had a bunch back when they came out but you know how that goes. Another company whose cards I was always a fan of is Pacific. This design is a pretty good representation of the sort of thing they brought to the table every year back then. I have the Joey and a couple of others from this set but that great sliding shot makes this one bonus-nice. I probably should have taken a better picture of that Interleague Showdown card but if making you squint is the worst thing I do today I'm going to call it a success. Sorry I'm lazy.

Ed Whitson and Bruce Hurst are two guys I don't go out of my way to collect but manage to have about a trillion cards apiece anyway. I actually didn't have either of these though so... nice! As for the Ausmus, that is some quality photography. Timing. It's everything. Also, it's weird seeing Joey Hamilton naked-faced. I always remember him with a big, round, David Wells-ish goatee on his big, round, David Wells-ish face.

In addition to the eight '84s I showed in Part I, Nick also sent along ten '83s. I'm pretty sure these are my first cards of Juan Bonilla and John "The Count" Montefusco. The Bonilla is my favorite of the batch because, well, you know how I feel about unsung second basemen.

Here are the other four of the aforementioned ten. I got really excited when I saw the Swisher. I have a card of him as a Cub but this is my first of him as a Friar. Not only is he Nick's dad, he is one of only four (hopefully soon to be five) West Virginia-born Padres. Can anybody name the other three? One's pretty obvious.

As luck would have it, very few of the cards he sent were ones I already had. In addition to one of the two Montefuscos above, only six cards are going on my ever-expanding doubles stack. I need to do an updated doubles post; it seems like the easiest way for Backstop and Underdog to let me know which ones I need to send their way. In addition to that OPC of Adrian Gonzalez, I have a bunch of non-double cards of him that I want rid of just because I don't collect people who say they "bleed Dodger blue".

These are the other three that will bring joy to another collector as I already have copies of them. And, yes, I still collect Mat Latos even though I assume he bleeds Reds red.

Wow, that was a lot of incredible cards! A huge thanks once again to Nick; I'm definitely going to have to package up my "Nick stack" and head to the post office in the very near future.

Quick Turnover

These four cards aren't in my collection anymore. Last week I was putting together a return package for All The Way To The Backstop and had just sent all of my Padres doubles to my friend Sam but I had to include some Friars so I grabbed these off the top of a stack of cards I had recently gotten. They seemed like a better inclusion than a bunch of random commons and I thought there was a better chance of him not having these. I also tossed in a Rizzo he needed, an old Rollie Fingers card and some other Padres I can't recall off the top of my head to go along with some Nolan Ryans, Rangers and a slew of catchers pictured in their gear that he probably has most of anyway. At any rate, I hopes he liked what he got.

The Flip Side

Here are the backs of the cards from the last post. A few interesting things stand out. The shots of Cammy are clearly from Spring Training as he didn't have a goatee. He always kept a goatee during baseball season as a superstition and shaved it in the offseason because his wife didn't like it. Clement is also pictured naked-faced, which is strange as well since he came to be known more for his intricate, Eric Owens-like chinpieces. He never got as ridiculous as Dustin Hermanson but still. What surprised me on the back of Dade's card was his date of birth. From the picture on the front, I thought he was a grizzled veteran pushing forty at the very least. Turns out he was only 29 at the time; I'm glad I don't look that haggard at this age. Finally, when perusing the back of Phil Stephenson's card, I noticed the date at the end of his mini-bio. Hey, that's the day jodes was born! I should go check and see if any September callups made their MLB debut 09/10/82.

21s For The 21st

There have been 22, nearly 23 players to wear number 21 for the Padres in the regular season. Cito Gaston was the first, from 1969-'74. Alan Foster was next in '75 and '76 and Gary Sutherland had it in '77 before Chuck Baker in '78. Mike Hargrove, Jay Johnstone and Paul Dade wore 21 in '79 and Dade kept it through '80. Nobody wore it in '81; it was also vacated '84-'86 and 2005. Carney's brother Joe Lansford wore it in '82-'83, Jim Steels in '87 and Dickie Thon in '88. Phil Stephenson got it in '89 and kept it through '92. Billy Bean (the one who actually wrote a book, not to be confused with Billy Beane whom Joe Morgan thinks wrote a book) held it down in '93 and '94 before Ken Caminiti from '95 through '98. Gary Matthews, Jr. wore it in '99. Dusty Allen was hitless in 14 PA for the Padres in 2000 and Matt Clement took the number later that season after the announcement that the 31 he had been wearing would be retired for Dave Winfield. Mike Colangelo in '01, Sean Burroughs in '02, Jaret Wright in '03, Rich Aurilia in '04 and David Wells in '06 all wore it before Heath Bell got it in '07 and kept it through last season. Heath will be wearing 21 for Miami this season; the player who wore 21 for the Marlins last season will wear it for us this year as John Baker continues to pay tribute to his idol Roberto Clemente.

Haiku Time: Cammy

Heroin and coke
Together they blow your mind
And in time your heart

Ten Trivia Gems

Each of the past two days, I've wanted to post a Jerry Hairy card to celebrate both his unlikely game-winning home run and his unlikely game-winning walkoff home run but, alas, the only card I have of him that I haven't already posted depicts him fully clean-shaven and, as you know, that just doesn't fly around here- not until June 1st at least. So, with that not an option, I'm just going to toss up another batch of beards accompanied by a slew of completely unrelated Padres facts. I hope you enjoy.

1) Of all Major League franchises, the Padres hold the second-WORST all-time winning percentage (.463)- second only to the Tampa Bay (Devil) Rays (.432). This season, the Pads have the second-BEST winning percentage (.609) in MLB- second only to the Tampa Bay Rays (.681).

2) Even the most casual fan knows that we've never had a pitcher throw a no-hitter and that we've never had a batter hit for the cycle. However, I frequently notice people inquiring whether we're the only team to not have one or the other. The answer? Yep. However, this was not the case until my brother Paul's birthday last season when BJ Upton of the aforementioned Rays relieved his club of sharing that dubious dishonor with ours.

3) Also well known is that 2001 inductee Dave Winfield was the first player depicted wearing a Padres hat on his Hall Of Fame plaque, joined only by Mr. Padre himself six years later. The first member to have at one point played for the Friars was elected a decade and a half earlier- Willie "Stretch" McCovey in 1986, pictured appropriately wearing a Giants cap.

4) In addition to weighing considerably more than two of me, gargantuan first baseman stuck in left field Kyle Blanks was born on the same day in the same year as my younger brother John. There wasn't much celebrating happening on their fifteenth birthdays as some b-holes chose that day to jack some planes and forever alter the Manhattan skyline and American history books for the worse.

5) In their 42 seasons of play, the Padres have used 23 different Opening Day starting pitchers, led by four-timers Randy Jones, Eric Show and Jake Peavy. Oddly, six hurlers have had multiple Opening Day starts in non-consecutive years: Jones ('75-'77, '80), Show ('84, '86-'87, '89), Ed Whitson ('88, '91), Bruce Hurst ('90, '92), Andy Ashby ('96, '99) and Woody Williams ('01, '05).

6) Halfway through the 1990 season, "Trader" Jack McKeon was replaced as manager with Greg Riddoch. Both men posted identical .463 win percentages.

7) Although 1980 was Dave Winfield's final year as a Padre and he played his last Major League game in 1995, his #31 was not retired until 2001. It was last worn in 1999 by Matt Clement who switched to #21 the following season.

8) 1992 was a record book year for two soon-to-be-jettisoned sluggers. Fred McGriff became the only Padre ever to lead the league in home runs while Gary Sheffield won the batting title- the only Friar other than Tony Gwynn to do so.

9) LF/1B John Kruk ('86-'89) and RP Jon Adkins ('06) are the only two West Virginia born players in Padres history. While Kruk went on to attain a certain level of celebrity during his time in Philadelphia and his subsequent broadcasting career, Adkins will be best known by most for being part of the trade that brought us Heat Bell.

10) Shrek and Jairston are the ninth set of brothers who have both worn the Padres' uniform. Including the Hoffmans with Glenn serving as third base coach, the Hairstons are the sixth set to suit up at the same time and the fifth set- along with the Alomars, Mr. Padre and Chris, the Gileses and the Fightin' Gonzali- to be teammates. The three sets of Friar hermanos whose tenures in San Diego didn't overlap are Phil and Jerald Clark, Melvin and Wil Nieves, as well as Mike Maddux and The Professor.

The FoC 100th Post Celebratory Review and Beardstravaganza

Wow, one hundred posts. I guess this is a milestone and should be approached in a completely over-the-top fashion thusly. I can honestly say that when I started this in January of Aught-Nine, I imagined that I'd have a hundred posts knocked out much, much sooner. Oh, well; it's finally picking up steam and I have no complaints about the journey. Before I get into links and statistics, let's take a moment to pay our respects to Beard Month with eight completely generic nineties-style 'stache/goat combos: The well trimmed goatee was pretty much a career-long mainstay for all of these guys except for Benes. He spent most of his time in San Diego naked-faced, adopting the look only toward the end of his Padres tenure when it was getting trendy. When it first started appearing on his face is when we should have known he was turning evil and would soon become a member of our hated northern rivals. These next four Pads were nowhere near as decisive; they are pictured in a state of limbo, exhibiting the lazy look favored by George Michael and sdsuaztec4 (nope, I'm still not anywhere near done with this post):

Although this is the one hundredth post, more than a hundred cards are depicted. Including the fourteen in this post, 138 to be exact. This is the part where I get my Wonko on and have some fun breaking down numbers that nobody else is even remotely interested in:

• 3 guest posts
• 16 Tony Gwynn posts, 33 cards (24%)
• 10 cards of Padres pictured with other teams (Abner, Furmaniak, Gaudin, Sut, Jerry Hairy x2, Cora x2, C. Gwynn & B. Giles) (7%)
• 7 non Padres sharing a card with a Padre (Edgar Martinez, A-Rod, Brett Butler & Will Clark w/ Tony, Matt Holliday w/ Adrian & J.R. House and Juan Castro with Ben Davis) (5%)
• Two Dodgers (Butler, C. Gwynn) are pictured, albeit with all references to filthy Dodgerdom obscured.
• 19 players pictured more than once, led by Tony's 33; Klesko & Adrian have 6 & 5 respectively; Broke, Joey, Abner & Briles have 3 apiece.
• This month has far and away been the most prolific, with 29 posts to date showcasing 45 cards, including 23 Tonys in 14 posts. Tied for second are February & April of this year with 12 each.
• Two back to back posts in February are tied for the most comments with 7.
• 63 posts are tied with zero comments.
• My friend Shane a.k.a. Shizzle a.k.a. Sheezy is mentioned, inferred to or referenced on 6 occasions.
• Aside from the two Abners Steve sent with his post, there has been 1 reader contribution.
• 4 logoless oddball cards are depicted
• 1 post doesn't have a card- it's the most important post of them all.
• Gaslamp Ball is mentioned, linked or alluded to more times than can be counted.
• Heath Bell has been mentioned the most times without being profiled

Well, I think that just about puts a bow on it. I'd like to use this part to thank everybody who has read, commented on, retweeted, linked, contributed to or had anything whatsoever to do with these first hundred posts. As always, feedback, submissions, suggestions and anything else you can come up with are more than welcome. Thanks once again.