During the Holiday season (yesterday was out first snow), money is a bit more scarce as it is being funneled into different, "more important" avenues such as presents, foodstuffs for family gatherings and a noticeable change in the heating and electricity bills.
So it goes.
And while I won't be posting rips of sexy new high-end products at an impressive frequency, I'll still be posting. More than likely complaining about Topps, looking for flaws and redundancy and posting ebay and COMC grab.
But in terms of this post, I'll be writing about my "older" cards more frequently. I have a lot of great cards, or at least great to me. From time to time, I want to show some off. So I'm starting a new series in which I talk about my favourite players and their cards.
And of course, I am starting with Ken Griffey, Jr. I don't go after his relics or autos - so don't expect and three-colour patches or such on here. What drew me to his cards were 90's-00's inserts and commons from the Saved by the Bell era.
The format of these posts will be simple. The front and back of nine cards - the amount which fits on my scanner - and a short bit about each one. So let's get started.
1989 Donruss #33 Rated Rookie
There was no clear-cut KGJ to post first, here, so I went with possibly his least appreciated rookie card. I was only 2-3 years old when this card was minted. I love the violet-purple fade and black vertical borders. And of course, the v-neck jersey. AND the orange background. It's Ken's hipster rookie card.
2000 Upper Deck HoloGrFX Star Views #SV1
Yes, it is as awesome as it looks. Somehow the scan picked up the 3-dimensional star background similar to Score's Artist's Proofs parallels of the late 1990s. I may try and find the complete set of these, but I sure its full of jackasses like Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Alex Rodriguez.
2000 Pacific Invincible Reyes del Diamente #10
The Reyes del Diamente (Diamond Kings, for those english-only readers) set out of 2000 Pacific Invincible set were super awesome. While not picked up by the scan, the background is sort of a cream colour and the 'card' markings are in a deep red foil. Very cool set, even with the picnic-table-cloth backs promoting the pack you already purchased (and boy, did I purchase a LOT of Pacific from 1998-2004.)
1989 Upper Deck #1
Of course it's here, why wouldn't it be?
2007 Fleer Ultra Swing Kings Relic #SK-KG
I pulled this from a discounted blaster of '07 Fleer Ultra in about 2009. I was sitting on the floor in my girlfriend's room and almost cried over this plain gray swatch (hey, look at the header image of this blog...). Griffey was always a childhood favourite of mine, and this was my first relic I have pulled. I never bought any and still have not (though I have been eyeing some batting glove cards). It wasn't as great as seeing him hit a HR in a meaningless June blowout in Yankee Stadium in 1998, but it was still amazing and possibly my greatest pack ripping moment.
2004 Donruss Studio #60
While the Kid on the Reds was never great for my fandom of him, it came during a time when my baseball card collecting was ripe. Here's a "dark" Griffey. In most cards he's smiling, joking around, having a great time. Here he's zoned in. It's a great nighttime shot and has a beautiful skyline photo of a not-so beautiful city behind him. By far one of my favourite Griffey cards from one of, if not my favourite set of all time.
2000 Skybox Skylines #9 of 10SL
Speaking of my affinity for anything skylines and Griffey, here comes one of my favourite insert sets of all time. The colours and silver etched foil in the background explode off of this card. It's just perfect, even for a horizontal set. Once again, the ten cards in this set feature a bunch of jerkasses (Rodriguez, Bonds, Sosa), but the good guys included (Griffey, Ripken, Nomah, Jeteah, Piazza, Chippah) make it worthwhile to collect. I have 3 of the 10. I you have any, let me know and I will make a trade worth your while.
1994 Donruss 90's Dominators 6 of 10
You see, Topps? You don't have to design a card just for a relic. You don't have to print 10 different parallels and claim Hall-of-Fame(dom) on a player just to make a nice insert. I love the 90's Dominators set, and every other one I have seen is just as beautiful as this one - which as you might be able to tell NEEDS to be replaced, as it has been loved. The edges are chipping and there is some kind of glue-spot on his left glove/right shoulder.
2000 SP Top Prospects Minor Memories #Jr2
I'll close with a card from an insert set from 2000 SP. I think there are only about 5 in this set, and they may have a pretty low print run (ebay results: 6, including one Michael Jordan). They're a nice set, with a bright holofoil background. Simple, yet sorta flashy. Well done, definitely.
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