Sunday Verse - Music Video Edition "Jesus Is For Losers"

While working on my blog this evening I pulled up Media Player and hit random.  A few songs in Steve Taylor's "Jesus is for Losers" from the awesome Squint album came up.  I remember when this song first was released and some of the controversy it caused.  Take a moment to watch the video (which from a productional stand point is very good) and listen to the lyrics.  Steve Taylor is a great song writer and this song is no exception.  If you want a copy of the lyrics I'm sure a Google search would bring them up.

Feel free to comment if you like what you hear/see or if you have any questions.  From this Loser, have a great Sunday everyone.

July 2011 Group Break - 1994 Fleer Extra Bases

Thanks to everyone who decided to participate in this last minute mini group break.  Due to family circumstances this one may not start and finish as quickly as I usually like them too, but I'll do my best to get the results posted as quick as possible.  Have fun and good luck!

Pack 1:
#203 Mike Kelly (Braves)
#216 Steve Buechele (Cubs)
#277 Darryl Kile (Astros)
#273 Steve Finley (Astros)
#007 Ben McDonald (Orioles)
#021 Tim Naehring (Red Sox)
 
#039 Tim Salmon (Angels)
#117 Kent Hrbek (Twins)
#136 Paul O'Neill (Yankees)
#149 Brent Gates (A's)
#190 Juan Guzman (Blue Jays)
#019 Aaron Sele - Second Year Star (Red Sox)

I personally like these taller cards.  It's a shame that this set wasn't renewed for 1995.

Pack 2:
#112 Bill Wegman (Brewers)
#325 Pete Smith (Mets)
#082 Lou Whitaker (Tigers)
#395 Matt Williams (Giants)
#366 Todd Zeile (Cardinals)
#400 Checklist
#314 Rondell White (Expos)
#267 David Weathers (Marlins)
#174 Dan Wilson (Mariners)
#037 Mark Langston (Angels)
#111 Wes Weger (Brewers)

#027 Frank Thomas - Game Breaker (White Sox)

These Game Breaker cards are beautiful!  Having the photograph horizontal gives a nice panoramic feel.  I know Jon from Community Gum will love this one.

Pack 3:
#370 Andy Benes (Padres)
#094 Jose Lind (Royals)
#292 Jose Offerman (Dodgers)
#066 Manny Ramirez (Indians)
#010 Mike Oquist (Orioles)
#202 David Justice (Braves)
#197 Duane Ward (Blue Jays)
#384 John Burkett (Giants)
#106 Dave Nilsson (Brewers)
#357 Rheal Cormier (Cardinals)
#369 Derek Bell (Padres)

#03 Ray Durham - Major League Hopeful (White Sox)

Ray grew up and went to high school in Charlotte, NC - my home town.  Even though this insert set has a very 90's feel, I still think it looks pretty sharp.  Especially the computer grid rolling hills in the background.

Pack 4:
#057 Albert Belle (Indians)
#073 Cecil Fielder (Tigers)
#085 David Cone (Royals)
#100 Alex Diaz (Brewers)
#160 Bobby Ayala (Mariners)

#177 Will Clark (Rangers)
#229 Tom Browning (Reds)
#258 Chuck Carr (Marlins)
#301 Wil Cordero (Expos)
#345 Carlos Garcia (Pirates)
#058 Mark Clark (Indians)

#028 Mo Vaughn - Game Breaker (Red Sox)

Pack 5:
#358 Bernard Gilkey (Cardinals)
#385 Royce Clayton (Giants)
#107 Jody Reed (Brewers)

#208 Greg Maddux (Braves)
#198 Devon White (Blue Jays)
#111 Wes Weger (Brewers)
#067 Paul Shuey (Indians)
#293 Chan Ho Park (Dodgers)
#095 Mike Macfarlane (Royals)
#371 Archi Cianfrocco (Padres)
#359 Gregg Jefferies (Cardinals)

#029 Matt Williams - Game Breaker (Giants)

Pack 6:
#344 Steve Cooke (Pirates)
#300 Sean Berry (Expos)
#257 Bret Barberie (Marlins)
#228 Jeff Brantley (Reds)
#176 Jose Canseco (Rangers)
#159 Eric Anthony (Mariners)
#099 Jeff Bronkey (Brewers)
#084 Vince Coleman (Royals)
#072 John Doherty (Tigers)
#056 Carlos Baerga (Indians)
#343 Jay Bell (Pirates)

#002 Ricky Bottalico - Major League Hopeful (Phillies)

Pack 7:
#319 Bobby Jones (Mets)
#283 Pedro Astacio (Dodgers)
#246 Greg Harris (Rockies)
#153 Mark McGwire (A's)
#142 Bernie Williams (Yankees)

#166 Ken Griffey Jr. (Mariners)
#019 Andre Dawson (Red Sox)
#271 Andujar Cedeno (Astros)
#050 Ron Karkovice (White Sox)
#330 Darren Daulton (Phillies)
#327 Ryan Thompson (Mets)
#001 Jeff Bagwell - Game Breaker (Astros)

The Rockies finally get on board with their first card!

Pack 8:
#322 Bill Pulsipher (Mets)
#081 Alan Trammell (Tigers)
#394 Salomon Torres (Giants)
#365 Mark Whiten (Cardinals)
#399 Checklist
#313 John Wetteland (Expos)
#266 Gary Sheffield (Marlins)
#173 Mac Suzuki (Mariners)
#054 Robin Ventura (White Sox)
#241 Johny Smiley (Reds)
#338 Doug Jones (Phillies)

#020 Kevin Stocker - Second Year Star (Phillies)

These cards have a pretty good look too.  I like the 35mm film strip down the side.

Pack 9:
#329 Ricky Bottalico (Phillies)
#043 Joey Cora (White Sox)
#268 Jeff Bagwell (Astros)
#025 Aaron Sele (Red Sox)
#122 Pat Meares (Twins)

#133 Don Mattingly (Yankees)
#154 Troy Neel (A's)
#252 Armando Reynoso (Rockies)
#287 Kevin Gross (Dodgers)
#323 Bret Saberhagen (Mets)
#332 Lenny Dykstra (Phillies)

#020 Rondell White - Rookie Standout (Expos)

Armando Reynoso - man is that name fun to pronounce or what?!  This Rookie Standout is the first insert design that we've come across that I personally just don't care for.  What about you?

Pack 10:
#109 Greg Vaughn (Brewers)
#360 Ray Lankford (Cardinals)
#372 Tony Gwynn (Padres)
#096 Brian McRae (Royals)

#294 Mike Piazza (Dodgers)
#068 Paul Sorrento (Indians)
#013 Chris Sabo (Orioles)
#209 Fred McGriff (Braves)
#183 Dean Palmer (Tigers)
#386 Bryan Hickerson (Giants)
#108 Kevin Seitzer (Brewers)

#001 Bobby Ayala - Second Year Star (Mariners)

Pack 11:
#186 Roberto Alomar (Blue Jays)
#214 Tony Tarasco (Braves)
#220 Derrick May (Cubs)
#275 Pete Harnisch (Astros)
#008 Mark McLemore (Orioles)
#022 Otis Nixon (Red Sox)

#036 Bo Jackson (Angels)
#118 Chuck Knoblauch (Twins)
#137 Melido Perez (Yankees)
#148 Dennis Eckersley (A's)
#191 Pat Hentgen (Blue Jays)

#030 Dave Winfield - Game Breaker (Twins)

Bo knows tall cards!


Pack 12:
#377 Bip Roberts (Padres)
 
#309 Pedro Martinez (Expos)
#317 Dwight Gooden (Mets)
#169 Edgar Martinez (Mariners)
#044 Ray Durham (White Sox)
#236 Joe Oliver (Reds)
#333 Tommy Greene (Phillies)
#243 Ellis Burks (Rockies)
#389 Kirt Manwaring (Giants)
#352 Andy Van Slyke (Pirates)
#376 Phil Plantier (Padres)
#005 Steve Cooke - Second Year Star (Pirates)

I love the photo on the back of Pedro's card.

Pack 13:
 #038 Harold Reynolds (Angels)
#028 Frank Viola (Reds)
#014 Lee Smith (Orioles)
#270 Ken Caminiti (Astros)
#215 Willie Banks (Cubs)
#212 Terry Pendleton (Braves)
#196 Todd Stottlemyre (Blue Jays)
#151 Stan Javier (A's)
#134 Terry Mulholland (Yankees)
#119 Scott Leius (Twins)
#034 Jim Edmonds (Angels)

#008 Darren Daulton - Game Breaker (Phillies)

Pack 14:
#263 Charlie Hough (Marlins)
#233 Barry Larkin (Reds)
#182 Manuel Lee (Rangers)
#165 Dave Fleming (Mariners)
#105 Pat Listach (Brewers)
#090 Bob Hamelin (Royals)
#078 Mike Moore (Tigers)
#062 Jose Mesa (Indians)
#349 Orlando Merced (Pirates)
#305 Cliff Floyd (Expos)
#262 Jeremy Hernandez (Marlins)
#003 Chuck Carr - Second Year Star (Marlins)

Pack 15:
#255 Walt Weiss (Rockies)
#393 Robby Thompson (Giants)
#364 Bob Tewksbury (Cardinals)
#380 Wally Whitehurst (Padres)
#312 Larry Walker (Expos)
#265 Benito Santiago (Marlins)
#172 Roger Salkeld (Mariners)

#053 Frank Thomas (White Sox)
#240 Reggie Sanders (Reds)
#337 Danny Jackson (Phillies)
#253 Bruce Ruffin (Rockies)

#002 Rod Beck - Game Breaker (Giants)

Another card of the "Big Hurt" for Community Gum and yet another Giants insert!

Pack 16:
#180 Tom Henke (Rangers)
#163 Tim Davis (Mariners)
#103 Brian Harper (Brewers)
#088 Tom Gordon (Royals)
#076 Gene Harris (Tigers)
#060 Kenny Lofton (Indians)
#347 Jeff King (Pirates)
#303 Jeff Fassero (Expos)
#260 Chris Hammond (Marlins)
#231 Rob Dibble (Reds)
#179 Rick Helling (Rangers)

#005 Carlos Delgado - Rookie Standout (Blue Jays)

Pack 17:
#245 Joe Girardi (Rockies)
#144 Geronimo Berroa (A's)
#127 Jim Abbott (Yankees)
#121 Pat Mahomes (Twins)
#029 Brian Anderson (Angels)
#219 Brooks Kieschnick (Cubs)
#051 Jack McDowell (White Sox)
#341 Curt Schilling (Phillies)
#328 Jose Vizcaino (Expos)
#284 Brett Butler (Dodgers)
#244 Andres Galarraga (Rockies)
#005 Jose Canseco - Game Breaker (Rangers)

Pack 18:
#147 Ron Darling (A's)
#138 Luis Polonia (Yankees)
#114 Rich Becker (Twins)
#030 Chad Curtis (Angels)
#024 Ken Ryan (Red Sox)
#011 Rafael Palmeiro (Orioles)
#279 James Mouton (Astros)
#223 Rey Sanchez (Cubs)
#205 Ryan Klesko (Braves)
#187 Pat Borders (Blue Jays)
#146 Scott Brosius (A's)
#001 Kurt Abbott - Rookie Standout (Marlins)

That does it for the first half of the '94 Fleer Extra Bases box.  Daddy duties call, but I'll be back soon with some packs from our next box - 1995 Sportflix.

July 2011 Group Break - Team Randomization

It's time to get this mini group break underway.  I've loaded in all of the teams not claimed into Random.org and we'll hit the random button 3 times to see who gets which team as your second team.  Any team not claimed goes to me, however those teams are available via trade with me.  That said let's hit play...

I'll put the first trade request out there.  I'd gladly give up the Reds for either the Padres, Mariners or Orioles.  If you'd like to request a trade then please use this thread, NOT the sign-up thread as I mentioned in the video.  All trades need to be made prior to the end of the break.

I have a few extra "tall boy" pages for these Fleer Extra Bases cards if anyone still needs them.  They are my cost - $.20 a page.  I do ask for at least an extra buck to cover shipping since I'll have to use a larger mailer to accommodate the pages.

Colbey - Reds --> Traded to hiflew for the Padres
hiflew - Padres --> Traded to Colbey for the Reds
BA Benny - Twins & Cubs
madding - Mariners
arpsmith - Royals
Community Gum - Orioles
Axemanohio - Phillies
Michael Speigel - Angels
dominicfdny - Expos

Mini Group Break Reminder

Boxes have arrived and I'm going to start busting packs this weekend!  I hope to get some of the packs posted this weekend as well so if you've been on the fence NOW is the time to sign up!

Sign ups will officially close Saturday, 7/23/11 at 12 noon, EST.  If you have signed up then please submit your payment.  Thank you!

P.S. - White Sox and Giants fans in particular should be happy w/ the first few packs!

Gint-A-Cuffs Scoring Results

I'm probably one of the few out there with a computer that doesn't have Excel so I used Google Docs to create my own spreadsheet to catalog and score my hobby box of 2011 Allen & Ginter.

If I understand the rules and my math is correct (!) then I believe I have finally scored each pack and came up with a grand total of 197 points.  I don't know if that is a good score or not since nobody else has posted their score as of yet (7/21/11 at 1:45 pm EST).

For per pack and total score you can view my Google Doc HERE.

Box Break - 2011 Topps Allen & Ginter (Gint-A-Cuffs III)

I decided to throw my name in the hat so to speak and try my hands at this year's Gint-A-Cuffs contest.  Click HERE for a complete pack by pack run down of my box's contents.  If you just want to see the inserts look below.  Most of them are there for your viewing pleasure (as well as proof of what I pulled!).  I didn't pull anything earth shattering, but it was a lot of fun.  Now to collate my cards and come up w/ want and trade lists!

8 points

 

3 points each

   
2 points
3 points


1+1 (Favorite Team) + 2 (Other Favorite Player) = 4 points

   
1 point
3 points

  
2 points
10 points

  
Heyward SP = 2+1 (Favorite Team) + 2 Other Favorite Player = 5 points
3 points
  
2 points
3 points

  
1 point (Favorite Team)
2-1 (Yankees) = 1 point

  
3 points
10 points

  
1 point (favorite team)
2 points


2 points

  
1 point (Favorite Player)
3 points

  
3 points
3-1 = 2 points (-1 Yankees)

  
3-1 = 2 points (-1 Yankees)
3 points

 
3 points each

 
1 point (Favorite Team)

 
3 points
2 points


10 points


2 points


2 points

  
10 points
5 points (Favorite Player + Favorite Team)


2 points

If my math is correct and I understand the rules then I netted a grand total of 197 points!  Not every card that was worth points was scanned here.  If I had known how the Commish wanted the results to be shown I would've followed Night Owl's format from last year.  Oh well...here is hoping the rest of the Gint-A-Cuffs participants choke!