It's Now Time to Officially Get Excited About Baseball

It wasn't that players are to report to Spring Training in just a few weeks or the recent signing of Kuo to a contract today to avoid arbitration that has me excited. No, it's something much more important. It is something that has always, since I was a child, ushered in the new Baseball season.

That's right! 2011 Topps Baseball cards have officially been released. The Baseball collecting season has started and I am ready to get excited. I hope to have a future post showing as many Dodgers from the set as soon as possible. Plus, there are a bunch of great looking inserts to gaze at. Check out the below Andre Ethier card as an example.

Heck, I might have to make a special trip to Target this evening.

Auto Collection: Preacher Roe Fall Classic

Here is another autographed card from my collection. It is a 2003 Fleer Fall Classic "All American Collection" card of Dodger hurler Preacher Roe. It is numbered 287 out of 450.

Roe was a great pitcher for the Dodgers in Brooklyn. In 7 seasons with the team he went 97-37 with a ERA of 3.26. In 1951 he won an incredible 22 games with only 3 losses. 19 of those games were complete games. The pitch that helped him to such a lofty record was the banned spitball. From an old Sports Illustraded article:

"Lot of people have asked me what I used to throw," Roe said, his eyes still on the Dodgers, who were taking batting practice. He turned with a self-conscious movement, as though he were taking off his shirt in public. "I like to tell 'em it was my sinker. Well, you know, the ball did drop real pretty, but it was more than a little ol' sinker. I guess it won't hurt anybody to tell the truth now. I threw spitballs the whole time I was with the Dodgers. Seven years in all."

Read more here: "The Outlawed Spitball Was My Money Pitch"