1993 Studio Travis Fryman

Hobbies are hunting and archery: Fryman would use bow hunting to get over a slump.

Favorite player as a kid was Rod Carew: Fryman grew up in Florida, not near a big league team. Carew was a good role model for a young hitter.

Might have been a soldier if he hadn’t been an athlete: Fryman turned down an acceptance to the US Military Academy at West Point to concentrate on baseball.

Where he is now: A minor league hitting coach in the Indians organization.

Wallet card with one of New York City's last fallout shelter signs

Fallout shelter signs used to be quite common, especially on public buildings. However, they are no longer accurate (they haven't been for decades) and New York City has now begun a campaign to actively remove them so they don't cause confusion. I'm not going to take a picture of every one I see but I figured I would photograph one for posterity before they are all gone. This one is on a church on W. 37th Street.

1993 Studio Phil Hiatt

Hobbies are golf and fishing: Nice outdoorsy picks.

 

Favorite sports announcer is Dick Vitale: A college basketball fan, I guess.

 

Favorite player as a kid was George Brett: Hiatt and Brett were teammates when this card was produced, don’t know how much that factored into this pick.

 

Most prized possessions are his athletic trophies: You would think anyone who reaches the highest level of a major sport would have many trophies.

 

Might have been an accountant if he hadn’t been an athlete: He did not go into accounting after his baseball career.

 

Pet peeve is bad attitudes: No one likes bad attitudes.

 

Where he is now: He now owns the Triple Play Party Center in Cantonment, FL. In 2010 he shared his thoughts on baseball cards with this blog.

Vintage from the flea market

Now that I am collecting vintage I figured I would see what was in the local flea market. I keep reading about incredible deals on beat-up old vintage you all seem to find at flea markets and card shows. I don't think that's likely to happen here in New York though, too many collectors with too much money. I did pull some '73s and '72s from a dime box though; they were the oldest cards in the box. 126 common cards for $10, not bad.

The '72s . . .

 . . . and the '73s. I just scooped all the ones I could find, there were quite a few duplicates so I will have some to trade. Anyone with '73 needs let me know.

There were a few '73 high-numbers, that's pretty cool.

Summer of '71

Another vintage trade, this time with Summer of '74. He sent me a nice stack of '71s. Some highlights:

One of the key rookies in the set.

 Three hall-of-famers, including my first vintage Gil Hodges.

 A great photo from the old Yankee Stadium. Interesting to see the near-empty bleachers in the background, with a few very casually dressed fans visible in the background.

 A great photo from the old Shea Stadium. Jesus Alou appears to be taking a pitch in the middle of game action, even though some other Astros are just walking off the field into the dugout. And look at the fans - it's helmet day at Shea Stadium!

1993 Studio Alex Cole

Hobby is music: Listening or playing, I wonder?

 

Favorite sports announcer is Chris Berman: Cole did not get a nickname from Berman.

 

Favorite player as a kid was Julius Erving: A basketball selection. Cole grew up in North Carolina, not near any one NBA team.

 

Might have been a coach if he hadn’t been an athlete: Cole did not go into coaching after his baseball career.

 

Pet peeve is tardiness: Mine too.

 

Where he is now: Has had numerous legal troubles including doing jail time for selling heroin. Not sure where he is now.

Vintage Card Breakdown

Got some awesome vintage cards in a trade with Baseball Card Breakdown. Sending him back a bunch of cards for his '78 Topps set and other modern set and PC needs. REMEMBER - if you have vintage (any condition) that you are willing to trade for modern cards - let me know! (I also have some beat-up vintage to trade as well).


Early '60s! Love the Yankee cards of Deron Johnson and Eli Grba.

 Mid 60's!

 Late 60s/early 70s! Billy Martin had two fantastic cards in 1972 Topps and now I have them both.

 1973! A lot of these are coming in lately. Roy White and Sparky Lyle appearances here.

 Gavin also threw in some modern cards as well. Love those minor-league cards!

Street trade

Some of the dupes from the Lost Collectors' package were cards that Al is always looking for - Mattingly, Rivera, and UD Baseball Heroes. I converted them into these cards:

Bowman Platinum must be the most underappreciated shiny set there is. These cards always grab my eye.

 Some more random cards that I picked up.

Trade with The Lost Collector

Just did a big trade with the Lost Collector. We're both Yankee fans so lots of Bronx Bombers went both ways. AJ also threw in some awesome vintage cards. If you have vintage to trade, I have lots of modern cards (and some beat-up vintage) to trade and will make sure you get more cards than you send me!


Some highlights:
Lots of Tino Martinez cards, of course.

 I love this shiny, psychedelic card.

 Another nice holographic effect.

 Great photo that really capture's CC's personality.

 The vintage was a small stack of '73s. Dave Nelson recently passed away. Very unusual style of photo - in a good way.

 This has to be one of the first beards on a modern baseball card, especially for a non-Oakland A. And I love the details of the old Yankee Stadium in the background, including the monuments in center field. Also visible are a sign for Schaefer Beer and for the New York Lottery, which had started only a few years earlier. That sign says "50 cents can get you $50,000!".

1993 Studio Randy Milligan

Hobby is boxing: That’s an unusual hobby. I wonder if it was banned from his contracts?

 

Favorite sports announcer is Brent Musburger: Solid national choice.

 

Favorite player as a kid was Jackie Robinson: Milligan was born five years after Robinson’s retirement, and was ten when Robinson died. Impressive that he acknowledged a player from before his time.

 

Might have been a mailman if he hadn’t been an athlete: Milligan did not go into postal work after his playing career.

 

Pet peeve is having to play ball on Easter Sunday: You’d never know it from his performance. He played on three Easter Sundays and had five hits in ten at-bats. He did go 0 for 2 on Easter Sunday 1992, presumably shortly before taking this questionnaire, but did walk twice in the Orioles’ win.

 

Where he is now: A scout for the Orioles.