Blue Jay Monday: Dime box style

I'm long overdue for some trade posts.  The cards have actually started to trickle in over the past week, and I'm sure that when this post hits the airwaves, the post office will have a couple of more envelopes waiting for me.

The first one is from Nick at the Dime Boxes blog, who recently sent me a generous helping of insanity, along with some Blue Jays (of course).  I'm hoping to make this kind of post a regular staple on Monday's; featuring Jays cards that were sent to me by the blogosphere.

Let's start with some power hitters from the pile:

A little old school to the left, Big John Mayberry's 1980 Topps card.  Every time I see a John Mayberry card, I actually think of my dad.  My dad and I are polar opposites, I'm a big sports freak, while he on the other hand could care less about any of the 'big 4".  In the early 80's, my dad actually started to become a little interested in the Jays, largely because they were the talk of the machine shop he worked at.  The only player that my dad at all cared about was John Mayberry, and he would make it a point to talk to me about Mayberry if he had hit a HR or done something notable in a game the night before.  That will always be a great memory for me....

The TSC card of Dave Winfield just mystifies me.  Dave, did you not want your picture taken that day?  Don't get me wrong, Dave is not a man I would mess around with in any way, but honestly, how about a smile Dave??

The Joe Carter card on the right says on the back that I'm one step closer to $1,000,000!!!  Of course, with anything like that, you have to read the fine print, and sure enough that contest ended in June of 1998.

Damn tease....

We move from the power hitters to some more speedy types:

That Eric Thames hits the sweet spot for a Jays collector, a nice blue bordered parallel from the 2012 Topps set.  It's too bad that Eric is likely going to be the odd man out in the outfield this year, unless he can beat out Colby Rasmus for the CF job.  Don't bet the farm on it friends...

Another great card on the right.  Robbie Alomar doing his best Superman imitation.  Looks like he's going from first to third on a base hit, and the main reason I'm guessing that way is because he already has a sliding glove on his left hand.  What worries me though is that it looks like he's going to land on his right hand first.  Ouch.

Up next, smooth as silk....Jimmy Key

You're damn right Jimmy Key was a winner.  I loved watching this guy pitch.  This card is a perfect example of why he was so damn good, great follow through, body position excellent and ready to field his position.  Key was the only pitcher I trusted besides Dave Stieb when it came to throwing a gem in a big game.  I loved these gold parallels back then...another sad parallel addiction.

Finally, somebody has to tell me how Fleer and Pat Hentgen knew my plans?

I've planned to increase my top sets countdown to 30 sets in 2013, to run the entire month of December.  30 sets in 30 days will be even more exciting for me to write about next year, because there are a lot of older baseball and hockey sets that I will be starting next year, and my love for the vintage will permeate the countdown even further.  By the way, I had never seen a "Top 30" Ultra insert ever until this came my way.  It's a sharp looking card, the gold foil not withstanding...

I'll have the #2 set for you tonight, and a couple of posts waiting for you tomorrow, I'm sure that there are some of you out there who will have a little extra time to read on your hands.

Nick, thank you for the cards....as always very much appreciated!!!

thanks for reading, Robert