Below are the cards I am missing. I’m not concerned with parallels too much, so I’m leaving them out of this list, but if you see a card that is not bolded & scanned on the link above, I will certainly consider obtaining it if you would like to part with it. Also, any oddball cards that I don’t have listed (because I’m not aware of them…magazine inserts, unlicensed, etc.), I am certainly interested in.

1987 Classic Update Yellow Kurt Stillwell 142
1987 Reds Kahn’s Kurt Stillwell 11
1987 Toys R Us Rookies Kurt Stillwell 26
1988 Panini Stickers Kurt Stillwell 276
1988 Royals Smokey Kurt Stillwell 23
1988 Royals Team Issue Kurt Stillwell 31
1988 Starting Lineup Reds Kurt Stillwell 18 (figure or card)
1988 Starting Lineup Royals Kurt Stillwell 16 (figure or card)
1988 Topps Traded Kurt Stillwell 115T
1989 Bowman Kurt Stillwell 120
1989 Cedar Rapids Reds All-Decade Best Kurt Stillwell 6
1989 Classic Light Blue Kurt Stillwell 14
1989 Donruss All-Stars Kurt Stillwell 29
1989 Donruss Baseball’s Best Kurt Stillwell 63
1989 Fleer Kurt Stillwell 293
1989 Kenner Starting Lineup Cards Kurt Stillwell 140 (figure and/or card)
1989 O-Pee-Chee Kurt Stillwell 217
1989 O-Pee-Chee Stickers Kurt Stillwell 266
1989 Royals Tastee Discs Kurt Stillwell 8
1989 Score Young Superstars II Kurt Stillwell 42
1989 Topps Stickers Kurt Stillwell 266
1989 Upper Deck Kurt Stillwell 616
1990 Classic Yellow Kurt Stillwell T29
1990 Fleer Canadian Kurt Stillwell 118
1990 Leaf Kurt Stillwell 256
1990 MLBPA Baseball Buttons (Pins) Kurt Stillwell 106
1990 O-Pee-Chee Kurt Stillwell UER-(Graduate misspelled-as gradu 222
1990 Panini Stickers Kurt Stillwell 79
1990 Publications International Stickers Kurt Stillwell 356
1990 Royals Postcards Kurt Stillwell 24
1990 Score Kurt Stillwell 96
1990 Topps Big Kurt Stillwell 293
1990 Topps Stickers Kurt Stillwell 269
1991 Bowman Kurt Stillwell 307
1991 Donruss Super DK’s Kurt Stillwell 24
1991 Leaf Kurt Stillwell 2
1991 O-Pee-Chee Kurt Stillwell 478
1991 Panini French Stickers Kurt Stillwell 279
1991 Red Foley Stickers Kurt Stillwell 91
1991 Royals Police Kurt Stillwell 21
1991 Score Kurt Stillwell 295
1991 Stadium Club Kurt Stillwell 189
1991 Studio Kurt Stillwell 70
1991 Ultra Kurt Stillwell 157
1992 Bowman Kurt Stillwell 135
1992 O-Pee-Chee Kurt Stillwell 128
1992 O-Pee-Chee Premier Kurt Stillwell 177
1992 Padres Carl’s Jr. Kurt Stillwell 21
1992 Padres Mother’s Kurt Stillwell 5
1992 Padres Police DARE Kurt Stillwell 23
1992 Padres Smokey Kurt Stillwell 34
1992 Panini Stickers Kurt Stillwell 97
1992 Pinnacle Kurt Stillwell 418
1992 Score Rookie/Traded Kurt Stillwell 19T
1992 Stadium Club Kurt Stillwell 650
1992 Studio Kurt Stillwell 109
1992 Topps Traded Kurt Stillwell 112T
1992 Ultra Kurt Stillwell 584
1992 Upper Deck Kurt Stillwell 329
1992 Upper Deck Kurt Stillwell 705
1993 Bowman Kurt Stillwell 434
1993 Pacific Spanish Kurt Stillwell 265
1993 Panini Stickers Kurt Stillwell 259
1993 Score Kurt Stillwell 379
1993 Select Kurt Stillwell 193
1994 Indianapolis Indians Fleer/ProCards Kurt Stillwell 1819
1994 Pacific Kurt Stillwell 90
1994 Topps Spanish Kurt Stillwell 198
1995 Indianapolis Indians Fleer/ProCards Kurt Stillwell 104
1996 Rangers Dr Pepper Kurt Stillwell 32
1996 Rangers Mother’s Kurt Stillwell 22
1997 Pacific Kurt Stillwell 210

I used all my fingers and most of my toes (even the broken one) a couple of times, and I think there are 72 cards total there that are absent from my Stillwell collection. If you are able to help me out, please let me know.

I’m not a big gamer, but I love sports-themed games, especially baseball. Here are some of the best baseball games that I have played on various Nintendo systems:

Nintendo

• Bases Loaded: I think Boston was the team I used the most here, and one of their players reminded me a lot of Will Clark. The game didn’t keep track of statistics, so I always had a notebook next to me and I scored the games as I played. After each game, I would then enter the numbers into a database on my Apple IIe. (No, I’m not joking.)
• Baseball Stars: I thought this game was the bomb because several of the players were based on historical greats, and you could even create your own team! I can’t remember off-hand it kept track of statistics or not, though. I want to say that it did. The game is available to play online at Virtual NES.

Nintendo 64

• Major League Baseball Featuring Ken Griffey, Jr.: When The Kid is batting, hit left-left-right-right-right-left-left, make contact and round the bases. Man, how many homers did I hit with that dude?

Nintendo Gamecube

• MLB Slugfest 2003: Despite Alex Rodriguez being the cover boy for this game, it’s really fun to play. You can punch the fielder, throw at the batter, even catch on fire for unlimited turbo. And of course there are codes to play in the Roman Colloseum or with lion-headed players.
• MVP Baseball 2005: This is the one that I’m hooked on at the moment. I bought this in December for $2 and have been playing it constantly. Then-current teams, with options to unlock legends such as Johnny Bench, Satchel Paige, and more; play in classic stadiums; wear old-timey uniforms…this one really has it all for the traditional fan.

Nintendo Wii

• Wii Sports: I had a lot of fun playing the home run derby on this game until we moved into a house with an extremely low ceiling. Sadly, I can’t play it anymore without putting holes in the ceiling.

What are some of your favorite baseball video games?

In the 1970s, the best second baseman in the major leagues played for the Cincinnati Reds. Joe Morgan was more than just the best second baseman though; he was one of the best players in the majors and is slightly underrated by fans today. B-R’s EloRater puts him at #32 all-time, while The Baseball Guru puts him at #14, behind only Eddie Collins at 2B.

Brandon Phillips, obviously, is not that good. But he is doing a great job for the Reds currently with three Gold Gloves, two straight All-Star selections, and a Silver Slugger award. I hope DatDudeBP is able to continue putting up the numbers for the Reds for a long time.

• Moby Dick Typed on Toilet Paper [Neatorama]
• Gallery [Dirty Car Art]
• Griffey [Hagen Illustration]
• NFL receiver consoles Boehner, gets civics lesson [Fox News]
• Hulk Hogan: I Almost Played Bass for Metallica [Loudwire]
• Memories of John Franco, the newest Mets Hall of Fame member [Paul's Random Baseball Stuff]
• John Tyler’s Grandson Discusses Still Being Alive [mental_floss]

This was at 6:15 a.m.

After my wife shuttled the kids to school, she came back home to take me to the emergency room. As soon as I stood up, the blood started pumping out of my toe again and I knew there was no way she would be able to get me to the car. So we called our friends in the dispatch center (fortunately I do not live in the same city where I dispatch) and asked them to send an ambulance my way.

At this point, my toe had stopped hurting. But I knew that wouldn’t last, and I knew that it had to be treated to prevent infection. Did I mention there was blood everywhere?

End result: broken toe, sprained foot, and a bottle of Percocet.

But it did start the wheels spinning in my feeble brain…what if Topps took that concept and applied it to older issues?

We all know that the Montreal Expos were unethically magically transformed into the Washington Senators Nationals a few years ago by the grand poobah commissioner of baseball, Palpatine Bud Selig. So what if Topps went back in time and Photoshopped some of the old Expos cards into Nationals cards? How awesome would it be to have a 1984 Topps Gary Carter as a Washington backstop? Or a 1987 Topps Andres Galarraga rookie card sporting the Nats’ duds?

I know, I’m terrible. I’m probably the worst Photoshopper on the planet, and there are many out there who are better than I could ever dream of being. So prove it. Take an old Expos card and make it Washingtonian. Or put a 1980s-style Atlanta Braves uniform on Warren Spahn. Or let’s see Frank Howard wearing a Rangers jersey.

If enough people are into it, maybe I’ll throw a prize your way.

Now get to it!

“Quirky” doesn’t do this film justice. Not really a horror movie, but not entirely a comedy either, Rubber is a surreal film that you must pay attention to in order to understand that you can’t really understand it. A terrible tire named Robert awakens and begins a killing spree, offing everything from a bunny rabbit to a police officer. This murderous Michelin is evidently enamored with a dark-haired woman with a foreign accent named Shelia (played by Roxane Mesquida), but even blows up a mannequin dressed to resemble her as she mocks him through a speaker tied around the mannequin’s neck.

Why does all of this happen? As Lieutenant Chad (Stephen Spinella) so eloquently explains, “No reason.” That’s the point of the whole film: there is no point.

Despite the pointlessness of Rubber, it is a captivating eighty minutes. You really have no reason to miss it.

Watch Rubber on Netflix.

• The Complete Star Wars Uncut [Neatorama]
• My Stoogeum Visit – Don’t Be a Lame Brain!! You gotta go! [Zombies DON'T Run]
• Babe Ruth: Rare and Unpublished [Life]
• 1976 Topps Ron Paul [Cardboard Junkie]
• How Return of the Jedi Should Have Ended [How It Should Have Ended]
• Avengers Art Appreciation Variants [Super Punch]
• Liam Neeson Confirms He’s Filmed a Scene for The Dark Knight Rises [SuperHeroHype]

Jackie & Me
by Dan Gutman
HarperCollins, 1999
160 pages

I love baseball cards, and I love stories about time travel. Write a book about a kid who can travel through time using baseball cards, and you’ve got me hooked.

Joe Stoshack is a mostly regular kid living in modern-day Louisville, Kentucky, but when he touches a baseball card he can travel through time to the year the card was made. Dan Gutman has written about several of Joe’s adventures, including meetings with Honus Wagner, Roberto Clemente, and Babe Ruth. In this book, Gutman’s second in the “Baseball Card Adventures” series, Joe travels back to 1947 when Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in baseball.

Not only that, Joe often changes his appearance in his travels. In this particular instance, he wakes up to find that he has transformed into a black kid in 1947! Gutman tinkers with a few historical facts and changes the order of some events to fit the story. For instance, he describes Dixie Walker passing around a petition on the first day of the season to be traded if Robinson is allowed to play for the Dodgers. That actually happened, but not on opening day; Walker circulated his petition in spring training.

Joe learns a valuable lesson, not only about the racism that Robinson faced, but about Robinson’s character in his response to that hatred. Of course, he applies that lesson in his own life when he returns to Louisville.

While written for children (recommended for ten years and older), these are entertaining books even for adult baseball fans. They are light reads and shouldn’t take more than a few sittings to finish–if you can even put it down.

Click here to learn about the play adaptation by Steve Dietz.

Click here to learn more about Dan Gutman.

Purchase Jackie & Me by Dan Gutman.

On this awesome post by dayf (which will get a spot on the next “Random Awesomeness” post, but go ahead and look at it now), I tried to leave a comment fifteen times. I counted.

Here is what the comment would have been:

Thanks for doing this. Saves me the trouble (although I might still try to do another one with the other photo).

Worth its own post? Not really. But it’s the principle of the thing.

Dear Blogspot users,

This is not the first time I have had trouble posting comments on your excellent posts. Sometimes it’s an OpenID “error,” sometimes the characters of the captcha don’t match (but they do), sometimes it just takes five times of clicking “Post comment.” But it’s getting really annoying, and it’s discouraging to me as a reader of your awesomeness.

WordPress is free.

WordPress is better.

I’ve used both. And I will never ever return to Blogspot.

Sincerely,

A WordPress user that reads your content.

Am I the only one that has trouble posting comments on Blogspot? Does anyone have trouble posting comments on WordPress?