The Braves send Escobar packing...

Being away on vacation most of the week I've only loosely kept up w/ baseball so needless to say I was a little surprised last night when I tuned in to watch the Braves take on the Brewers and I saw Alex Gonzalez in the line up. I thought to myself, now who is that - only seeing the back of his jersey in the crowded dug out at first. Then I heard Ernie Johnson say he was playing short stop and after that I was able to piece the puzzle together - the Braves shipped Escobar off to Canada.

At first I was really surprised and disappointed. Then I started to remember all the half hearted plays he made last year in addition to this year. Then I looked at his stats (which I rarely do for any player) and compared them to Alex's career numbers and this seasons numbers. After doing so all I could do was grin. Then Alex doubled in his 2nd at bat as a Brave and the smile on my face only grew.

I liked Escobar. I liked his defensive capabilities and occasionally his offensive capabilities. I didn't like his immature attitude he displayed at times. Don't get me wrong, I wish him all the best in Canada with the Jays, but I'm not all that sad he's gone. I believe the addition of Alex Gonzalez to the Braves is an excellent fit and I'm positive he'll help anchor the infield. Assuming Chipper can stay healthy and Prado and Glaus can continue in their performance in the 2nd half of the season I'd say the chances of the Braves making the post season are very very good. There is still a lot of baseball to play so I'm not putting the cart before the horse just yet...but I'm excited about the Braves play on field and their chances.

Here's hope Topps will include Gonzalez in a Braves uniform in their Update & Highlights set later this year...

Successful trade w/ On Card Autos

Over the 4th holiday I received a bubble mailer that I wasn't expecting. A few weeks back I sent Chris over at On Card Autos a purple Refractor of Starlin Castro and he told me he'd send me some Braves goodies. Well I gotta say I was very impressed w/ the bubble mailer full of goodies.

Yunel Escobar 2008 Topps Chrome #53 Bronze Refractor #d 339/599

I love Refractors and this is a beauty! He also sent me a 2008 Topps Chrome Brian McCann which I didn't already have. Nice.

Edgar Renteria 2006 Upper Deck shiny green foil card (don't know the insert's name) #75 #d 25/99

Sometimes I forget Renteria even played in Atlanta. I'm not familiar w/ this card, but hey it's #d to 99 and it has that Refractor vibe going.

Gary Sheffield 2008 Topps Moments & Milestones #52 #d 124/150

Gary's years in Atlanta were too short. Great #d card that also goes straight into the Sheffield/Braves collection.

He also sent me a 2010 Topps Yo Mamma card of Chipper Jones that should help round out that set.

All in all it was a great trade and I look forward to sending more Cubs stuff to Chris.

In the mail 7/1/10 through 7/7/10

Got a little back logged while I was "away" so here's my attempt to show some of the stuff that I grabbed from here and there over the last week.

Jeff Francoeur 2010 Bowman Orange #93 #d 005/250

2010 Topps Allen & Ginter Mini #278

Yunel Escobar 2010 Topps Allen & Ginter autograph #AGA-YE

2010 Topps Allen & Ginter game-used bat #AGR-YE

Brian McCann 2009 Upper Deck Starquest Emerald Super Rare #SQ-29

* For whatever reason the scanner screwed up my image on the 2010 Topps A&G jersey card and I was too lazy to re-scan it.

Jason Heyward 2010 Sports Illustrated for Kids #477

I hadn't seen this card before and I got it for cheap ($2) so I couldn't resist. (scan is horrible, card looks much better in person!)

Chipper Jones 2010 Bowman Blue #125 #d 398/520

With this possibly being Chipper's last season I figured I could splurge and pick up a few cards of his that I wouldn't normally.

In the mail 6/1/10 - 6/5/10

I've fallen a little behind on posting some of my acquisitions thanks in part to a hectic work schedule and a comic book convention I attended over the weekend, but I'm back to show off more of my cardboard collection!

We'll start off with a nice Kris Medlen rookie. 2009 Topps Unique #168 Red #0614/1199. Medlen pitched a great game last night despite giving up 3 solo homers to the Diamondbacks. Hard to believe he's been in the Bigs now for over a year (MLB debut was 5/21/09).



Switching gears to Finest. Brian McCann 2010 Topps Finest #116 Refractor # 003/299. As I'm sure you've read elsewhere, scans just don't do these cards justice, esp. the refractors.



Nate McLouth 2010 Bowman Throwback #BT31

I love this insert set partly because I never had many 1992 Bowman cards. The '92 set came out just a few years after I started collecting and I never could seem to find it at the stores where I bought cards. I'm surprised at how well the design has held up and how it doesn't seem so retro looking when compared to other early 90's designs.



Brian McCann 2010 Bowman Throwbacks #BT87



Yunel Escobar 2010 Bowman Throwbacks #BT95



Chipper Jones 2010 Bowman #125 Orange #046/250



Martin Prado 2010 Bowman #18 Orange #235/250



Caleb Brewer 2010 Bowman #BP81 Blue #400/520

A quick scan of the back of the card reveals he was part of a no-hitter in '09 along with 3 other teammates as well as not giving up a home run in 2009.



Michael Dunn 2010 Bowman RC #211 Gold



Martin Prado 2010 Bowman #18 Gold



Yunel Escobar 2010 Bowman #182 Gold

2010 Topps Finest first impressions

Since I don't have a good local card shop (that I know of) I hit up eBay looking for some 2010 Finest Braves Refractor goodness and a few finally hit the mailbox today.

I picked up blue refractors of Chipper Jones (168/299), Brian McCann (013/299) & Yunel Escobar (028/299) as well as a refractor of Tommy Hanson (289/599). I gotta say that I'm not as impressed with the front design as in past years. To me the background is bland and it looks odd that the team logo doesn't even fit...at least the Braves logo doesn't. The blue refractors are shiny indeed, but still seem blah to me. The regular refractors (/599) don't have the wow effect either on me. In a way I guess I'm kind of glad as it makes it that more easier for me to save my cash and wait for the next product.

The backs of the card are OK. I'm not a huge stats junkie, but the lack of even 2009's stats bothers me. True you get a snapshot of their career stats so I guess that is better than nothing. The finestrivia is interesting however and for young collectors I can see how this may be a good way for them to learn about the history of the game.

In the mail 3/17/10

You just gotta love cheap cards, especially cheap autographs!

2010 Upper Deck Yunel Escobar Portraits #SE-4, Chipper Jones Portraits #SE-3, 2009 Upper Deck Goudy James Parr Goudey Graphs #GC-JP, 2009 Upper Deck Sweet Spot Sweet Beginnings autograph #113

In the mail 2/19/10

2 autographs today! I normally don't go after autographs, but I got these two for cheap and I couldn't resist.

2010 Upper Deck Yunel Escobar Signature Sensations #SS-YE. Paid $2.50. The whole debate of sticker autographs I don't partake in...though I do prefer Upper Deck's transparent sticker they use for autographs over the silver foil stickers Topps uses. At least it looks like Escobar signed the card directly. I was amused late last season when Bobby Cox benched Escobar due to his behavior/attitude. I hope he continues to grow up because he has a lot of potential on the field.

2009-2010 Panini Limited Dell Curry Decade Dominance Autograph #d 32/49. Paid $.99. I don't buy a lot of basketball cards anymore because I have a harder time following the NBA than I did growing up. When my dad would take me to the "Hive" to watch a Charlotte Hornets game it was a fantastic experience. The whole city was pumped to have the NBA in town. To this day I still don't know what the Time Warner Cable Arena looks like full for a Charlotte Bobcats game. The NBA just isn't the same anymore.

I guess that is why I love this card so much. 1) It reminds me of the 'good old days' of basketball in Charlotte, 2) Dell Curry was so much fun to watch play and 3) Autographed cards of Dell aren't that plentiful since he played in a time when the trading card market wasn't as complex as it is now.