"Their mix of talented kids and established veterans may be better than the Braves', but the Dodgers don't have John Smoltz."I'm crossing my fingers hoping that a number one pitcher will emerge. I might even settle for a reliable middle relief corp. That was definitely one of our most visible weaknesses last year. Overall, improving our pitching should pay us big dividends in '07.
Hu's on First!
Photo Link: Flickr:trisheroverton's:
Post game celebration on flickr: Fredbird:
Every once in while (OK, more than once in a while),
REA likes to communicate about issues that we think
deserve attention but for some reason are receiving
little or no attention. There are several topics
that we would like to bring to the attention of
buyers today, in the hopes of educating buyers
and maybe saving someone money.
1) Practically every day we are seeing fake items.
Fake printed items. Posters that are actually
reproductions of vintage posters. Stand-up
cardboard counter displays that are not real.
Babe Ruth Candy wrappers that are not
real. Fans that picture baseball player portraits
that are reproductions. Photographs that appear
to be old but are not vintage. There is no limit
to what can be made with computers, especially
with printing equipment available today that is
very economical and which years ago did not
even exist. These items are being intentionally
made to fool people into parting with their
money for worthless items. These items are
being made to cheat buyers. Many of these items
are somehow reproduced from books and
auction catalogs, often enlarged from small
quality illustrations to their correct original
size. With computers these days, it is possible
for some criminals to produce very real- looking
reproductions and also to produce “fantasy
pieces” (defined as those items that are not
actually reproductions, as there is no
original, but are made to look old to fool
buyers). This is a BIG problem. These items are
offered to us practically every day, and they
are being offered to us by collectors who
themselves are victims. Most of the
sophisticated fake items of this type that we
have seen appear to have one thing in common:
They were purchased by sellers in the state of
Ohio. It is obvious to us that the individual(s)
resp onsible for most or all of these
imaginative quality fakes is located in
the state of Ohio, though these items are now
circulating throughout the country. It is easy
for us to tell in almost all cases whether an
item is real or not, often just from a scan.
We understand from experience that not
everyone can, including the numerous victims who
have sent us these recently produced fake items
which at a glance appear to be vintage items.
If you think that you have purchased a fake
item of this type and would like our opinion,
we will be happy to be of assistance. Please
write and/or send scans.
2) In recent weeks we have received a number of
consignments of graded cards that has motivated us
to adopt a formal policy regarding altered
professionally graded cards that we have not
previously seen a need to articulate. The
altering of cards is so widespread, and “card
doctors” so brazen, that REA has actually been
receiving cards submitted for auction to us that
are the very same cards that have been sold by
REA previously – in some cases
just months earlier – and which, since purchase,
have been significantly altered, reholdered, and now
grade higher according to the grading label. In some
cases a given card has changed hands and the new
consignor was not even aware it was a seriously
altered card. It is our policy that when we are
aware of such a problem, and we ARE looking, we
will be happy to auction the card in question -
but insist on providing all information
describing the alterations which have occurred
to the card of which we are certain. So far,
the potential consignors of such cards have
elected to have these cards returned rather
than have a proper description provided by
REA. Last week we returned a $10,000
card. The consignor couldn’t believe it was the
same card that we had just sold (in a lower grade
and looking quite different) in a previous auction.
Only after being provided with images of the card
as it appeared when we previously sold it was
the consignor finally convinced.
We’re not guessing here. We are talking about
cards that we know for a fact are problems.
The fact that we have to address situations
such as this at all suggests
a greater underlying problem than is generally
recognized. And while it is bad enough that the
altering of cards is an epidemic, it is
particularly disturbing that some of the most
sophisticated “work” on cards (including the
previously mentioned $10,000 card) has actually
been executed by employees of auction
houses that also deal in cards. We have to ask
ourselves “What is going on here?” Turning a
blind eye to this issue, in our opinion, has
far greater and more significant negative
potential consequences than our calling
attention to it and promoting discussion. We
all know that there is a subjectivity to grading
and that sometimes there is an honest difference
of opinion regarding a grade, or sometimes even
an honest mistake. We’re not talking about
honest mistakes here. Active and sophisticated
collectors, dealers, and auction houses know
that this is a problem. They just don’t talk
about it, except among themselves. In the end,
the collector loses. We want to be clear that we
think the major grading services do a valiant
job and we can’t imagine what the landscape of
the marketplace would look like without them.
That doesn’t mean there are no problems. At
the end of the day, we have this advice: “Buy
the card, not the holder.”
Via Sports Collectors Daily we find out about a new Babe Ruth discovery. The above picture is of a 4.5 x 6.5 inch team card of the 1914 Baltimore Orioles of the International League- Ruth's minor league team and first year in profession Baseball. It was produced by Baltimore News and is probably one of a kind. (or, at least, other examples have not survived the test of time)In the newly discovered team photo card, Ruth appears standing in the upper left of the back row. Also included among the players shown are Ernie Shore and Ben Egan, who along with Ruth, on July 10, 1914 were sold to the Boston Red Sox by Baltimore Orioles' owner Jack Dunn for a reported $25,000. When the Federal League established a major league team in Baltimore in 1914, directly across the street from the minor league Orioles, the competition hurt Orioles' attendance significantly. Some games drew as few as fifty fans in the stands. To avoid bankruptcy, Dunn was forced to sell his best players to Red Sox owner Joseph Lannin.
Also included in the find is the above 1914 Baltimore News Baseball card of Babe Ruth. This is one of only 10 cards known to exist and is very rare. In fact, if a mint example where ever found it might sell for more than the T206 Honus Wagner.
So, this past Thursday a bunch of guys from my office took the afternoon off to play some golf. It was for a charitable event that the Director of the company I work for help start and put together. The charity is called New Directions for Women. It is a non-profit drug and alcohol treatment provider for women, pregnant women and women with children. It's a great cause that seeks to address an important need.
Below is Hall of Famer Pee Wee Reese.
Below is Carl Furillo.
1: I think the above pic is Whitey Ford, but I'm not sure.
2: I think this is Whitey Lockman. Anyone know for sure?
3: I'm almost sure this is Phil Rizzuto.
4: I have no clue who this is!
5: Is this Richie Ashburn?So here's another chance to earn some more of those prime seats. Pick the winner of both League Championship Series and the World Series, as well as how many games it'll take each team to win. You've got until the end of the day on Thursday for your guesses, which gives people a little time to see how it starts, but the bold ones will put their predictions before they can see how it starts.Check out the post here and enter in your picks. You have until the end of the day today.
Did you know that the "Sultan of Swat" once coached for the Dodgers? This past weekend I picked up a recent eBay win. It's a 1962 Topps Venezuelan card of "The Babe" coaching for the Dodgers during the 1938 Baseball season. These particular cards are very rare. Venezuelan issues are very difficult to come by in any condition, let alone a condition that does not include glue residue on the back. Venezuelan card collectors almost exclusively glued all of their cards into scrapbooks.Retirement was often unsettling for Ruth. He had more than enough money, but he missed the game. He spent much time on the golf course, dabbled in a few other things, but his heart was set on managing a big league club. He would never be given the chance. The closest Ruth ever came to managing was when Brooklyn Dodgers general manager Larry MacPhail offered him a first base coaching job in June 1938. The Dodgers attendance was lagging, and MacPhail hired Ruth for the sole purpose of getting people to the ballpark. Ruth took the job, perhaps thinking he would have a chance to manage the Dodgers in the future, but MacPhail had clearly stated to Ruth that Leo Durocher was being groomed to take over the managerial reigns of the Dodgers for next season. Ruth never got along with Durocher, and he quit at the end of the season. The coaching position was the last time Ruth would have a job in major league baseball.
March 22, 1972 - October 11, 2006
Now that the sun has set, at least for the Dodgers, this year, who should I be rooting for?Lasorda is wearing a tuxedo and being part wise grandpa, part annoyed-at-these-wimps older brother and part Henry Kissinger. Brosnan says that part of the tuxedo-wearing concept was inspired by the Harvey Keitel role in the movie "Pulp Fiction."
This is the very first eBay auction I've seen that has a real-honest-to-god-Honus Wagner T206 card for sale. It is graded PSA 1 condition which means its pretty rough. There are creases and rounded corners throughout the card. Of course, for most collectors the grade of this card doesn't matter. Just having it would be a dream come true. This particular card came from the Tri-Star Hidden Treasure promotion. It has a price tag of $235,000.00.
I came across the most incredible collection on the internet. Hobo Nickels. These are hand carved coins made by the wandering homeless in America from decades ago. They typically used a Indian Head nickel as their medium. They reflect a very important and usually forgotten part of American history- through the first World War, Prohibition and the Roaring 20'’s, and the Great Depression. Please check out walrafen's collection. There are many more different nickels displayed there. He gives a great description and explanation of these items.
Each hobo nickel is unique as they were all individually hand carved, using the design of either the Indian or the buffalo as a base, and altering it to another design altogether. The Indian has been changed into clowns, women, other Indians, friends and loved ones, bearded men, ethnic figures, famous people, and self portraits. The buffalo has been turned into men with backpacks, and animals such as a donkey or elephant. The influence of the events of the times can be plainly seen as we view hoboes, servicemen in uniform, flapper girls, prisoners in chain gang garb, shopkeepers, and read dates, names, places, or other inscriptions put on the coins.
These nickels, carved by yesterday'’s homeless, were traded for meals, a place to sleep, a ride, or other favors. Some were carved with images of loved ones as mementos of better times, or to honor those lost to time.
I cheered, I screamed, I chanted and I clapped. It was exciting, it was breathtaking, it was unbelievable and it was over. This was one of the loudest games I've ever heard. The crowd was insane from the start. We saw a team flourish and scrap to earn a playoff berth. Unfortunately, it finished far too soon.
Here is a video I made of the Opening Ceremonies.
I also had a chance to barely make the third period of the Kings home opener. I had just sat down when the puck was dropped to start the period. 14 seconds later Michael Cammalleri scored a goal. Go King Go!
November 11, 1911- October 6, 2006"God's been good to me. They didn't think Buck was good enough to be in the Hall of Fame. That's the way they thought about it and that's the way it is, so we're going to live with that. Now, if I'm a Hall of Famer for you, that's all right with me. Just keep loving old Buck. Don't weep for Buck. No, man, be happy, be thankful."
"Here comes a throw on that runner and here comes another runner, and Lo Duca is going to tag both of them out and the Dodgers become the Brooklyn Dodgers of old,"” Scully said during the second inning of Game 1 of the Dodgers-Mets National League Division Series. He sprinkled in a tale about Babe Herman tripling into a double play - a joke about the bad old Bums. And he said, "We turn the clock back to the daffy days of the Brooklyn Dodgers."”Embrace it, own it and laugh it off!
"“In a year that has been so improbable, the impossible has happened."”Did Vin Scully prepare this line just in case something fantastic or incredible occurred in the series (or if the Dodgers won the World Series), or was this a spur of the moment phrase. He answers it simply- the only way he knows how.
"“God, where did that line come from?"”
I have a new post up at LAist.com. Please heck it out if your so inclined.
Tommy Lasorda would say that, “the great Dodger in the sky will show us the way.”
"Although Clemens' and Bonds' careers have taken the same arc toward eternal athletic life, they are perceived as differently as, well, white and black.It a bit of a disturbing acknowledgment and shows that we may still have further to go.
America does not want to believe the dirt on Clemens because he is a nice guy, a family guy, a good ol' guy and, let's be honest here, a Caucasian guy.
America likes its sport villains dark and moody and everything that has always been Bonds."
"On the way back from the baseball game 9/22/06in San Francisco to San Jose, I saw the fighting on the train. One fanatic Giants fan come to Dodgers fan who was sitting on the seat and start yelling at him.He might be pissed off because Giants had lost the game. He pushed and then punched his face."
Thanks to: www.CustomSignGenerator.com
League Championship Series:
Detroit in 4
Cardinals in 6
World Series:
Detroit in 5