Gearing up for the Tribe-O-Matic Contest

I am finalizing the details on the Tribe-O-Matic giveaway contest.  I can tell you this much: it is going to be FUN!  I will be giving away THREE (count 'em THREE!) Strat-O-Matic games as part of the contest.  I am waiting for the games to be given away to arrive in the mail.  Once I've got 'em, we'll be all set!  The folks I've been working with tell me that the prizes will ship this week.

I am putting together a fantasy tournament that will feature the MLB teams and stats from 2009 and possibly from another year.  The final details will be revealed as soon as I get the word.  The tournament will feature up to 64 contestants playing for the Championship!  The grand prize is either a computer version of Strat-O-Matic or the board game (winner's choice) plus a selection of cards to be named later.

Of course, you know how I roll, so everyone that gets knocked out of the tournament will be entered into a drawing for a board-game (see below) version!

Keep watching for more info!

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For those not familiar with the Strat-O-Matic game, here is some background info:

Since 1961, Strat-O-Matic has created the most realistic simulation of statistically accurate baseball. Every player is rated by Strat-O-Matic’s unique rating system with statistical precision in each phase of the game – batting, pitching, defense and running.

Strat-O-Matic Baseball is played with the exact same rules as professional baseball. Each major leaguer has his own Strat-O-Matic Player Card based on his overall stats from the 2009 season. The gamer controls every aspect of each play from determining the starting line-up, stealing, hitting and running to replacing the starting pitcher. Instead of a bat and ball, the gamer uses dice, player cards and charts to play the game.

Use the logo on the right to check out the various games they have for us baseball fans!

A Tribe-O-Matic Contest is coming soon...

It's funny how things work out in life.  Just when I am leaving the memories of my "Last Great Giveaway" to fade into the distance like the last rest stop for 200 miles, opportunity knocks on my door.

Keep watching Tribecards for a fun, new contest featuring a classic blast from the past!

What is fantasy, anyway?

Are there "bad" fantasies?  usually, one thinks of good things when it comes to having fantasies, right?  We dream of winning the lottery, seeing our children graduate, having a mansion on a hilltop, etc.  In sports, we have "fantasy leagues."  These are the places we go to escape reality and create our own teams with players we'd like to have (or that we have to settle for having because we hosed our draft) and live out the dreams of a big time manager.  We hope to win all our games, shuffle players around, make trades and dump non-performers.

And then there is me.  I am in TWO fantasy leagues this season because last season, one humiliation just wasn't enough.  I enjoy putting myself through the heartache and heartbreak of managing (or mismanaging) the players I have.

I am once again in the "Card Blog" League.  Currently, I am 9th out of 10.  Not the worst.  I hadn't really done anything with the team since the draft, so today, on my birthday, I decided to make some moves.  It started with a couple trades, and we'll see where things go from there.

The other league I'm in is the "Card Collectors" league.  I am dead last there.  Again, today, I decided to roll up my sleeves and make some cuts.  Like the two guys I had on my roster that were DL.  I had such high hopes.

Of course, Kinsler is on one of my rosters (cant recall which just now) and he is not only DL, but he is uncuttable.  No dropsies for that guy. Dang it.

Of course, the big question is whether or not the changes will have any effect, and whether or not I will remember to actually use players that are PLAYING.  Like the Tribe in real life, I am off to a slow start.  Maybe I can get something going.

Hey, at least this year, I am not putting ONLY Indians players on my team.  Though, I do have several.  And yes, Choo is on one of my teams, thank goodness!

Cards from Rocco!

I've had these cards for a little while now, but am just getting around to posting them for your enjoyment!

The first card is a 1968 Fleer depicting the first Grand Slam in a World Series back 1920.  That's followed up with Cal McLish on a 1979 TCMA card.  And that is followed by none other than HOFer Gaylord Perry!  The card is not cut off in "real life," my scanner did that.  The card is a 1989 Interpretive Marketing Products (are they some spin-off of Upper Deck? Oh, did I say that out loud?).

Next up is Nick Sued on a 1992 something-or-other that looks like Impel or Classic, but is unbranded.  Ty Cline is chillin in the dugout on a 1978 TCMA while his buddy Floyd Weaver can't decide if he's just thrown the ball or waiting for someone to throw one back.  Both cards feature green printing on the back and are AWESOME additions!!

The Tim Ellis card is a 1990 Sportsprint, which I'm not sure I've heard of.  David Bell is featured on a cool spiral notebook-style card courtesy of 1991 ProCards.  And then, rounding out the very cool collection of cards is Jesse Burkett on a "Baseball Immortals" card that simply says "1st Printing" on the back in addition to a nice write-up and bio info.

Wow!!  THANK YOU, Rocco, for some very cool additions to the Tribecards collection!

Food of the Gods

Chris Harris over at stalegum.com has named the KFC Double-Down as the new food of the gods.  If I get a vote, I will certainly side with him, having eaten the wondrous concoction for both lunch and dinner in one day.  I would have eaten  one as a midnight snack, but KFC was closed.

Oh yeah, he's also got some juicy rumors about a certain card company.

I got Rob-bed!

NOTE: I had created this some time ago. Somehow, it was stuck in 'draft' mode. Yeesh.

Rob sent me a stack of Indians cards in appreciation for the Mets he received during my "Last Great Giveaway."  While no such reciprocation is necessary, I am ALWAYS happy to get Tribe cards in the mail!!

A couple of early Manny cards, a very cool Roberto Alomar, Early Wynn, Jim Thome, and some Topps Traded Tiffany's!  Sweet!!

More Traded Tiffany cards and if you look closely, you will see that the rest of those are not Topps, but are O-Pee-Chee, and not the "Hey, we stole (er, bought) the rights to use the name" variety either!!

THANK YOU very much, Rob!  These are great cards I look forward to adding to the collection!

Big League Choo!

Shin-Soo Choo is batting .350 on the season so far with an OBP of .500.  He's averaging an RBI per game (12 games, 12 RBIs as of today).  He's also got 14 hits, 10 runs, 3 triples and 4 homers.  Oh, he's also stolen a base or three for good measure.  In a season where the fans are furious with management, dissatisfied in general with the club, and trading seats for packs of cards (okay I made that up), it's nice to see a shining star peeking through the clouds.

*For the record, my Paint skills are no where near those of PRP, especially on the MacBook.

Vote on the Upper Deck Death Poll!

Chris Harris, over at StaleGum, is holding a "Death Poll" contest!  Yeap, that's right, for the cost of an item from your collection (preferably UD), you comment the date on which UD announces it's own demise.  Just go HERE to read more and enter!

 The only catch is that UD cannot be bought out/merged/etc.  I am saddened by that fine print, as the truth is that Topps will mostly likely buy out the grossly mismanaged Upper Deck company.  To me, that is the sweetest type of poetic justice that could exist.  It was not long ago that UD made an attempt to take over Topps.  Not only did that fail, but many die-hard fans revolted.  Topps is aptly named.  Those of us who have collected our lives, especially those who are closer to the origination date of Topps and baseball cards, have a very special place in our hearts for the Topps brand.  Sure, they managed to create their own contractual exclusivity with the MLB, but we'll set that aside for now to concentrate on the lawsuit-ridden, non-royalty-paying, just-how-far-can-we-go-by-almost-showing-logos-on-our-cards Upper Deck.

What I would love to see is a group of cardboard bloggers come together, pool enough start-up money to obtain a loan, and make a bid for UD.  No, not just a bid, but a hostile takeover of the whole operation.  We would come in, fire everyone (well, almost everyone), and run the show like it should be run.  We've got amazing PR people in our group.  We have incredible artists already outdoing the major labels as far as design and photography.  We have shrewd business folks among us.  We have grown from less than a handful of writers, collectors, enthusiasts to well over hundreds of industry-related bloggers.  Heck, even UD couldn't help but take notice with the likes of Wax Heaven, The Baseball Card Blog and others. 

Sure, taking over Upper Deck would mean no one wins the Death Poll, but it could also mean everyone wins a chance to make the hobby what we'd like it to be.

In the mean, GO VOTE!

Tribe feelin' a bit like Chuck

"Two and Two" on the season so far, the Tribe are not only 50/50 but happen to also be exactly at the midpoint in the standings for their division. Sure it's early in the season, but that's no reason not to find the lighter side of being a Tribe fan.

Valbuena snags the ball!

Yesterday, Valbuena charged after a pop-up and caught it on the run in the middle of traffic. What a catch! Now, if I could just win a free trip to Tribeland and a couple tickets to the game....

Actually, one of my 'Bucket List' items is to take part in the off-season fantasy camp program they hold every year. Has anyone gone to one of those for their favorite team? I'd like to hear about it!

And the winner is....... not me.

And so it goes, I did *not* win Beardy and Mojo's "Baseball Card Rap - 2bak" contest. Thorzul unceremoniously kicked my ever-lovin' butt. In a way, it was like I had been playing for the Tribe myself. But, in another, it wasn't.

Thanks to all who voted for me!! Honestly, I was surprised by just how many people *DID* choose mine! You folks are awesome!

If you missed the video, here it is - one more time:

1987 Surf Indians Book of Topps Cards (1952-1986)

In 1987, Surf detergent came out with a series of books featuring Topps baseball cards from 1952-1986. The book has a bright red cover and shows a pile of Indians cards worthy of a banner for the top of this blog.

Inside, pages show each and every base-set card Topps produced for the given year. The sets are divided up into the respective years, and each year's cards begins with a paragraph talking about the Indians ups and downs for that year.

The back of the book features sections called "Pitching Record and Index" and "Batting Record and Index" respectively. There is also a section at the back for autographs, and a coupon for 50 cents off a box o' detergent.

Missing from the book are any spin-offs or subsets. For example, the 1965 Topps Embossed are no where to be found here. It's too bad they couldn't include EVERY Topps-made card from '53-'86, but this still holds up well as a reference.

Though the images above are from theBay, I've had my copy of the book for many years. Since I am not very adept at identifying the older cards by sight, this book has been a great tool in figuring out which year a particular card was released.

In addition to the Indians, editions of the book were made for:
Braves, Orioles, Red Sox, Angels, Cubs, Whit Sox, Reds, Tigers, Astros, Royals, Dodgers, Brewers, Twins, Expos, Mets, Yankees, A's, Phillies, Pirates, Cardinals, Padres, Giants, Mariners, Rangers, and Blue Jays.