blue is a fall color this year

game 1 of the 2025 world series kicks off shortly after this post posts, but i won't be able to watch it due to a conflicting engagement. i am hoping it is as thrilling as last year's game 1 turned out to be. here are some related cards to the event, including a 2025 panini prizm trey yesavage card

his meteoric rise to the majors and the postseason is one of the more intriguing stories going in, and getting the game 1 start adds to the incredible season he has had. i found this card in a nickel box at the local card shop - twin cities cards, to be exact. i would expect his cards to be well sought after in 2026 releases.

there is maybe just one person as hot as vladimir guerrero jr going into the series. here's a 2021 topps update all-star game insert of vladito

that i found in a quarter box at a mall show recently. for the record, i was happy for guerrero and the blue jays but would have been happy for the mariners, too, had they won game 7. i didn't really care for george springer being the hero given his connection to the astros and their cheating during the 2017 season and world series, however i am looking forward to this matchup.

this card

arrived in my mailbox too late to show as a lead-in to the nlcs this year, but i can show it now. this is from 2025 topps dynamic duals which is in its third year (i think) as an online only release. jackson chourio had a better series than andy pages, but pages caught the last out so he has that going for him.

there aren't too many cards that i could think of off-hand that match a dodger up with a blue jay, but the one that immediately came to mind was the 1993 topps card featuring mike piazza and carlos delgado

that was a hot commodity back then for sure.

as far as players go, i immediately think of ron fairly (pre-scanned dodger card not readily available as i type this post so i defaulted to o-pee-chee (oh my!)), 

raul mondesi,

and shawn green

as players who have played for both the dodgers and blue jays, but i know there are several others like bob bailor, al oliver, russell martin and rickey henderson to name a few. i also think of roy hartsfield,

who was a dodger farmhand in the 50's and a dodger coach before ultimately going on to manage the jays.

i don't do an annual post of my favorite team rankings like night owl does, but if i did, the blue jays would be in position 2 or 3 on an annual basis. i will probably explain why in a future post, but it wouldn't be the worst thing in my near-term future if the blue jays were crowned world champs. with that said, let's go dodgers!

card show date to church

back in may i went to the semi-annual card show at a suburban church. it's held in a gymnasium that seems too small to me to function as a gymasium, but i am not an elementary school child so that might be the issue. anyway, i bought cards from four dealers and found some fun stuff.

the first guy i bought from is a regular at the local shows. i picked up a couple of 1955 bowman cards for the set build, along with this dandy

it turns out that these world series pennants were inserts in the 1961 fleer baseball greats packs. there are then only two dodger world champions pennants (1955 and this one) and i bet that the 1955 version is pretty spendy. cool vintage oddball pickup for the collection for sure.

the next seller i picked up cards from was another regular - the guy who always has bargain boxes with a seemingly neverending variety of cards. i found these three legends variations from 2009 topps update

a yasiel puig variation from 2018 topps

and some numbered dodger parallels from 2022 topps uk edition

turner & turner at your service.

he also had a box of autos and relics that were marked at 50% off sticker which meant most were a buck or two. i took a black parallel of victor gonzalez' 2021 topps update 1986 autograph

and a couple of dodger relics

from his inventory.

this 2009 bowman draft derek jeter card

goes in my name/number on the back collection, and this 2010 topps cards your mom threw out 1969 reggie jackson card

is an original back version

and probably the closest i will come to owning the real thing.

i am not familiar with paw patrol (i can tell you all about the wiggles, however) but i still picked up this 2024 topps update aaron judge thing

did he make a guest appearance on the show? not sure what the crossover is supposed to be.

finally, i chose to buy this 2023 topps mike trout city connect manupatch

i actually like the angels' city connect uniforms, although you don't get too much of it on this card.

there was another seller with a 50 cent box that i stopped to check out. i wound up with a few cards, including a desecrated 1975 topps pete rose card

and a beat up phil garner/keith hernandez rookie card from the same set

i mean no disrespect to bob sheldon and tom veryzer, but those top two guys made this card a hot commodity back when i was trying to complete the oakland a's team sets during the early billy ball days.

i also grabbed this 1979 topps lou brock card

even though i don't have a need for it. it's just such an iconic card from my childhood - seeing the same person as the all-time and season record holder was pretty cool to young gcrl. and it's still cool, even though the player on this card would be different today. looking forward to 2028 topps heritage!

finally, i was on my way out when i saw some monster boxes set up near the doorway. there was a kid - probably late teens - who was set up with a table of toploaded and slabbed stuff. the monster boxes were on the side and clearly not the main thrust of his set up. i didn't want to spend too much more time at the show, but i started looking through one of the boxes.

i wish all sellers were like this one. he came over and told me that he would give me a deal on the singles from the box. i pulled this card out - a 2024 topps holiday shohei ohtani variation 

and asked him how he would price it. he said that it was a variation, and so i was ready for the $5 to $10 price tag. instead, he said a buck or so. um ok. i'll keep digging.

i wound up with quite a stack of cards - parallels and inserts - from various 2023, 2024, and 2025 topps releases. finding a 2024 topps chrome cosmic mookie betts extraterrestrial talent insert

was fun, but most of the cards in the one box i looked through came from topps flagship releases. clearly this person was buying a variety of release formats and looking for the big hits. here's a 2025 topps ohtani 8-bit ballers insert

and a 2025 topps rosie red insert

that both came from the celebration boxes. 

i was able to add the one dodger themed first pitch card to my collection

(that's usc trojan juju watkins) plus some other dodger parallels like a 2023 topps freddie freeman silver pattern foil card

from a collector's box, and some 2024 topps aqua parallels from fanatics packaging - freeman on a league leader card

and walker buehler

as well.

i didn't limit myself to dodgers, as i will always go for a miguel cabrera final tribute parallel

and i also couldn't pass up the color match on the padres team card

the last card i added to my stack was this 2024 topps chrome update jackson holliday stratospheric stars insert

i asked the seller to price the stack and figured i was looking at about 20 bucks. he came back with 10 and it was such a pleasant surprise. i hope to see him at future shows, although he hasn't been at the couple i've attended since then, and i won't be able to get to the next church show.

the almost daily dodger - roy campanella

it might surprise you to know that i am going to show four different roy campanella cards in this post, and each of the cards features a different photo! yes, in recent years we've seen some variety thanks to the willingness of topps to use black & white images on cards, colorized or not.

this first one is from 2021 topps update, and features campy on the 2020 topps design

it was part of the 70 years of topps insert set that spanned several different releases. we've seen that image before, on 2009 topps triple threads among other releases.

this next one is from 2021 topps stadium club chrome

and features a black & white image of campanella that matches the image on his 1951 bowman card as well as some more modern releases.

his 2022 topps stadium club chrome card (this is the refractor parallel)

features one of the less common images of the dodger hall of famer, although it was used for his 2011 topps legends variations and his 2023 topps chrome platinum anniversary cards.

the fourth card comes from 2022 topps museum collection, and it features a pretty common image

on this card, topps has his number 39 shown correctly in red. however, as i pointed out in last night's post, that is not always the case. topps also used this image for this year's museum collection release, and showed the number in blue. in fact, from what i can tell, topps is about 50/50 as to whether or not they show the number in the correct color across the multiple releases that this image has been used in. i don't know what happens during production, but this seems like it should be an easy thing to get right.

the k is for kershaw kountdown continues - 3k minus 124!

yes, the kountdown to 3,000 strikeouts for clayton kershaw continues (previous posts here and here) as he pitched against the cardinals on sunday. he struck out 6 batters in just 3 and two-thirds innings to give him 69 strikeouts on the season. those 6 cardinals that he k'd increased his career total to 2,876.

in honor of his performance, here are 6 cards to represent strikouts 2,871 through 2,876.

2,871 - 2021 topps chrome update black gold

2,872 - 2021 topps update black gold

2,873 - 2022 topps diamond greats die-cut

2,874 - 2022 topps allen & ginter

2,875 - 2022 topps allen & ginter hot box silver portrait

2,876 - 2022 topps chrome update diamond greats

some repetition here with these six cards, which are really just three cards and three parallels of a sort.

kershaw remains in 21st place on the all-time leader board, and will remain there until he passes zack greinke, who struck out 4 earlier in the week to increase his strikeout total to 2,918. kershaw is now 42 k's behind greinke and 124 behind the 3,000 milestone. 

it would seem that kershaw's next start would come this weekend in tampa bay. regardless of when he makes his next start, i will be back to update the kountdown soon thereafter. stay tuned!

this collector is on sapphire!

i suppose it will be a pack of 2023 topps that i will purchase at some point later this year that will make things official, but with the calendar turning i can say that 2023 marks the 45th anniversary of my first card pack purchase, and is therefore my 46th year as a baseball card collector. you could even say 47th year as i was given a pack of 1977 topps cards back in the summer of sam and star wars.

of course, the first packs that i bought with my allowance were from the 1978 topps set, and i have held that set near and dear to my heart ever since. i am always on the lookout for cards featuring the design as i try to assemble some sort of "master set". one of the first custom card efforts i undertook after purchasing photoshop was to complete my 1978 topps dodger set with cards that i thought were missing from the actual set, along with a couple other cards that would never have been but i appreciated seeing.

although topps seemed to ignore the 1978 set for a long time, they couldn't hide from it in 2011 when they celebrated 60 years of topps.  here's what they had to say about the set then:

i don't know if it is truly one of the "most adored issues of the '70s" for a lot of collectors, but it certainly is for me.

the front of that card is a reprint of gary carter's card from the 1978 set

which features a candid - not posed - photo of the kid. there are quite a few of each type of photo in the set, and i hope in 2027 that heritage gets it right.

as for that "master set" i mentioned up top, i figured i would go through the checklist of cards that i have compiled and completed. the checklist itself is not complete in terms of all non-1978 topps cards that feature the 1978 design, and it only focuses on cards that are different from the actual 1978 set - different teams or photos. so, for instance, there are only a few cards from the 1978 topps burger king sets represented, and i do not include any direct reprints (other than the carter card above which i include more as a header). so, here is what i have in my "master" 1978 topps set:

1978 topps zest #5 willie montanez

1978 topps burger king astros # dave bergman

1978 topps burger king astros # jesus alou

1978 topps burger king rangers #5 jon matlack

1978 topps burger king rangers #8 fergie jenkins

1978 topps burger king rangers #10 reggie cleveland

1978 topps burger king rangers #17 al oliver

1978 topps burger king rangers #21 john lowenstein

1978 topps burger king rangers #22 bobby thompson

1978 topps burger king tigers #7 jim slaton

1978 topps burger king tigers #13 lou whitaker

1978 topps burger king tigers #15 alan trammell

1978 topps burger king tigers #16 steve dillard

1978 topps burger king tigers #6 jack billingham

1978 topps burger king tigers #8 jack morris

1978 topps burger king yankees #10 rich gossage

1978 topps burger king yankees #11 rawly eastwick

1978 topps burger king yankees #16 jim spencer

2001 topps archives #305 lou whitaker

2001 topps archives #80 jack morris

2003 topps all-time fan favorites #78 jim rice

2003 topps all-time fan favorites #99 jack clark

2003 topps all-time fan favorites #118 ron guidry

2003 topps all-time fan favorites #123 mark fidrych

2003 topps all-time fan favorites #ffa-dde doug decinces autograph (no base card)

2004 topps all-time fan favorites #33 keith hernandez

2004 topps all-time fan favorites #97 eric gregg

2005 topps all-time fan favorites #44 dusty baker

2005 topps all-time fan favorites #110 rick monday

2005 topps all-time fan favorites #132 bob boone

2006 topps walmart blaster insert #wm47 carlos delgado

2012 topps archives fan favorites autograph #ffa-gf george foster

2012 topps archives fan favorites autograph #ffa-gl greg luzinski

2013 topps archives #226 larry bowa

2013 topps archives #239 dave parker

2014 topps future stars that never were #fs-3 eddie murray

2017 topps throwback thursday 1978 topps record breaker design #122 cody bellinger

2017 topps throwback thursday 1978 topps record breaker design #123 giancarlo stanton

2017 topps throwback thursday 1978 topps record breaker design #124 aaron judge

2017 topps throwback thursday 1978 topps record breaker design #125 edwin encarnacion

2017 topps throwback thursday 1978 topps record breaker design #126 j.d. martinez

2017 topps throwback thursday 1978 topps record breaker design #127 joey gallo

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #1 mike trout

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #2 bryce harper

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #3 mookie betts

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #4 kris bryant

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #5 francisco lindor

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #6 aaron judge

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #7 jose altuve

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #8 clayton kershaw

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #9 carlos correa

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #10 manny machado

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #11 buster posey

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #12 chris sale

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #13 adrian beltre

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #14 gary sanchez

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #15 charlie blackmon

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #16 jacob degrom

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #17 corey kluber

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #18 george springer

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #19 luis severino

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #20 noah syndergaard

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #21 andrew mccutchen

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #22 paul goldschmidt

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #23 shohei ohtani 

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #24 rhys hoskins 

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #25 christian villanueva 

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #26 walker buehler 

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #27 ronald acuna 

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #28 gleyber torres 

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #29 ozzie albies 

2018 topps on demand inspired by 1978 #30 juan soto 

2021 topps 70 years of topps #70yt-28 shohei ohtani

2021 topps 70 years of topps #70yt-28 cal ripken jr

2021 topps update 70 years of topps #70yt-28 carlos correa

2022 topps archives #101-200

that last group is card number 200 (vladimir guerrero) along with the design variation card of spencer torkelson and a numbered parallel of trevor rogers.

a couple of notes on the 2006 delgado above. as far as i am aware, that is the first card to be issued after 1978 using the design that didn't fall under the archives/fan favorites umbrella as well as the first card using the design to feature a player who was not active in 1978. heck, even eric gregg was umping back then. with all of that, the first thought i had back when i first obtained the card was that the topps logo certainly seems out of place! 

i know that topps used elements of the 1978 design on the backs of the super home team release in 1981 as well as the squirt cards from 1981 and the cracker jack cards in 1982. i have the dodgers from those sets, but don't count them as part of this "master" set endeavor. the 2018 online set is pretty much where i draw the line.

to be clear, the cards listed and shown above are the cards that i currently have in this "master" collection, in addition to the complete 1978 topps and o-pee-chee sets themselves.  i am ignoring the 1978 burger king cards that were identical to the flagship topps versions and the 4-in-1 rookie cards that were short printed as part of the 2018 on demand set along with the parallels and inserts from that set. same goes for the refractor inserts and autograph parallels from fan favorites (aside from a couple of dodgers and a mark fidrych auto that i pulled from a pack) and all the parallels and variations from 2022 archives (other than the two shown). just too much to try to track down. i also don't include my 1978 topps burger king dodgers that should have been custom cards (or those of others) in the "master" set - just official topps releases - although thanks to gavin and gio i have many 1978 customs printed and in sheets as well.

i know that other more recent uses of the design exist - in 2019 topps issued some autographed cards featuring the 1978 record breaker design as an insert to their archives release, but i don't think i will ever land any of those - the subjects included the likes of juan soto, ohtani, mike trout, and sandy koufax. there was also a 2016 throwback thursday set that featured the managerial design from 1978 in a "then and now" theme, and in 2019 topps again produced a throwback thursday set using the 4-in-1 rookie design. i don't have any of those cards, either.

i am fully aware that my tenure in the hobby is not as long or as fervent as others and i am not trying to make it seem as though i am in any way special or unique as a collector. this has truly been as close to a lifelong hobby as i will have, and i am glad that i stuck with it when others typically abandoned it. i do plan to scale back in 2023, although i have had those thoughts before. i anticipate good things from 2023 topps heritage and i will, as always, be on the lookout for new steve garvey cards, along with dodgers - primarily clayton kershaw - and cards that fit in to my mini-collections.

best of luck to all with your collections in 2023!