a super 1971 topps super rich allen

because rich allen's array of 1971 releases - his topps flagship card, dell's today stamp, and other issues - featuring photos taken in dodger stadium, i am always looking for an extra copy to put in my dodger stadium mini-collection.

i recently noticed that i did not have a second copy of his short-printed 1971 topps super card, so i took a look on check out my cards.  that's when i spotted this beauty:

looks like little timmy tried to paint rich in to a white sox uniform, or perhaps a few years later, back in to a phillies uniform.  or maybe someone wanted to see what allen would look like as a member of the big red machine. however, time has taken its toll and the paint is chipping away to reveal the dodger blue underneath.  glorious.

1887 Tobin Color Lithographs

Many early examples of baseball cards are actually advertisements for different retail shops. The Tobin Color Lithographs stand out from others that came out in the era because of the detailed caricatures. It's a small set of ten cards, but the lineup is very impressive.

Mike "King" Kelly of the Boston Beaneaters

Cap Anson of the Chicago White Stockings

Dan Brouthers of the Detroit Wolverines

Jack Glasscock of the Indianapolis Hoosiers

Tim Keefe of the New York Giants

Mickey Welch of the New York Giants

Ed Andrews of the Philadelphia Athletics

Charlie Ferguson of the Philadelphia Athletics

Jim McCormick of the Pittsburgh Alleghenys

Paul Hines of the Washington Senators

I can't even decide which I like the most. They all have a strange appeal. The cards remind me of the illustrations in a Humpty Dumpty storybook I read when I was very young.

I would be hard pressed to find them in my collection because my team did not exist yet, but I would never say no to having them in my collection. I love all the oddities you can find and the great artwork out there, if you just dig a little. This set is definitely out of Topps' comfort zone.

Rally Squirrel

Keep this in mind, when you are struggling to find cards of your favorite common player...

The Rally Squirrel has not one, not two, but five cards out there.

On cardboard, it started with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2012.

Wanting to explore the league a bit, Rally Squirrel found itself in Philadelphia in 2015.

But Rally Squirrel had had enough of the transient life. It longed for its first home. By 2018, he ended back with the St. Louis Cardinals. All is right with the world again. Rally Squirrel had come home.

Rally Monkey could not be reached for comment.

Bryce Harper Autograph And Laundry Tag Card

2018 Topps Dynasty Autographed Patch Gold #AP-BH5 - Bryce Harper (1/1)

While there are some stupid relic cards out in the collecting world (pens anyone?), this "relic" at least is part of a uniform. The tag off of a uniform.

Topps Dynasty is for the collector that likes to blow "stupid money", as the Phillies like to say. So maybe the Phillies management will go in for this Bryce Harper autographed card with laundry tag relic that is a one of one. I mean it's only $3,999.99 plus $29.99 shipping on eBay. That's a bargain! Especially if you open a PayPal credit card account. That way it's only $167 per month for twenty-four months! Interested yet? Me either.

While I have the lofty, never attainable goal of getting a copy of every card ever made of my favorite team, I would never be able to get a card like this. Nor would I necessarily want it. The concept seems gaudy. The execution looks like it came from the mind of a five year old. My apologies to all five year olds out there. Also, my apologies if this card is your cup of tea. It's just not mine.

This card is a nice dream perhaps, but as a realistic goal... not so much.

Hey. You know who could afford this card? I heard Bryce Harper just got a boat load of cash. Manny Machado did too. Maybe they could buy it and hand it out to a random fan. That sounds nicest of all.

The Card Is Mightier Than The Pen

I present to you... the "Player Used Pen Relic"!

Bryce's expression pretty much says it all. Just when I think I've found all the idiotic relics out there, I find pictures of this one. It's a 1/1, so you know it's worth something.

:::eye roll:::

At least this relic is signed, so there is some kind of value attached to the card. Pens, tablecloths... is there no end to the madness? If this is the state of the hobby, I might have the wrong hobby.

I would be a little angry if I found this in a pack of Topps Tier One. I'd laugh a little too, but that's just me. I don't necessarily want this in my collection, so what kind of resale value would something as "unique" as a pen relic have? It helps that Bryce's signature is on it. It helps that Bryce Harper is one of the most talked about players in the game at the moment. That would push the value up. What would someone be willing to pay for something like this though?

A quick scan of eBay shows that a 1/1 Bryce Harper autographed card is selling on average for $500. Does the used pen add to that value or detract from it? How much would you be willing to pay for a used pen piece? What if it what used by your favorite superstar player? How much would you pay now? What if I threw in a scowling picture of said superstar? How much would you pay? Still not convinced? Final offer. The pen piece, the scowling picture, his autograph and it's the only one out there. It's one of a kind! How much would you pay now?

It seems like Topps is trying to sell Ginsu knives on a late night commercial. Maybe Sham-Wow (it's a sham! Wow!) or something. Have the card companies grave robbed all the relics? Will Indiana Jones have to come ot of retirement to steal them all back?

As you can see, there are way more questions than actual answers when it comes to relics like this. The question still remains... how much would you pay for this card?

2019 Topps Now Manny Machado Relic

I like the idea of Topps Now. It's basically a card on demand system that allows you to order cards of selected events for a 24 hour window. Nice, huh?

Recently, Topps Now has gotten parallel crazy, much like their brick and mortar releases. This card is available in regular for $9.99. It also has relic parallels.

A relic parallel numbered to 99 is $39.99. A relic parallel numbered to 49 is $69.99. A relic parallel numbered to 25 is $99.99. A relic parallel numbered to 10 is $149.99. A relic parallel numbered to 5 is $249.99. A relic parallel numbered to 1 is $799.99.

Did I mention that the relic is a tablecloth?

RANT MODE ON:

Of all the idiotic, stupid, money grabbing schemes that Topps could think of, this one takes the cake! I understand game used items. It's part of the appeal of getting closer to the game. Uniforms, bats, bases, and dirt. These are all things that either were used in a game or had the potential to be. I can even see stadium seats, since that is an integral part of the game experience and the ambience of the sport. But a tablecloth that was used at the announcement of a signing? What idiot thought this was a good idea? What possible connection does a tablecloth have to the game. If you want to have a connection to a player at a major signing, take the uniform jersey that he was wearing, not the tablecloth. Did someone eat paint chips as a kid? Who the hell thought this was a good idea? They should be suspended. This relic makes me want to have a picnic, not see a baseball game.

RANT MODE OFF:

I'm glad that Manny Machado did not sign with the team I follow. I would not want to feel at all compelled to entertain the thought of purchasing this relic to complete a collection. This is probably one of the stupidest "relics" I have seen. It makes of mockery of the entire relic system. The only reason for these cards is a quick cash grab. I'm not going to judge if you want one of these cards. That is your personal preference. I just don't see a reason for it.

I'm all about living in the moment. I love the idea of Topps Now. This is a monstrosity. A travesty. A disgrace to card collecting. Those are just my thoughts, though.

the devil in dan mcginn

for the record, i am a fan of the 2015 topps buybacks.  i like the stamp that was added to the cards much more than the 75th anniversary stamp that was on 2014 topps buybacks, and much more than the multi-colored 65th anniversary stamps that were on 2016 topps buybacks.  i have purchased many lots and singles of the 2015 buybacks in an effort to acquire as many dodgers as i can.

sometimes there are other gems in those lots, such as this 1971 topps dan mcginn card

a close-up of the stamp

shows that the beard and horns - classic devilry doodling - were applied to the card prior to it achieving buyback status.

what might have possessed a person, assumedly a youth, to disfigure this card to such a degree?  here, for the record, is the back of the card, which features a clean-shaven mcginn, unaltered by dastardly sketching.

mcginn didn't pitch in the big leagues in 1971 until june, so perhaps the owner of the card was disappointed to open a first series pack and get a guy who wasn't on a major league roster at the time.  or, perhaps this fan was listening to a game in which mcginn pitched poorly, of which there were several during the 1971 season.  my guess is that the card's owner figured out that mcginn's presence in a game was a curse against the expos, as the team lost 25 of the 28 games in which mcginn appeared during the 1971 season, including the last 22.  

regardless of the reason, i envy the person who opened a pack of cards in 2015 and found this card.