A White Whale Hooked

The hustle and bustle of the holidays are upon us. Add the already hectic holiday time to a crashed hard drive and you've got the makings of a Christmas disaster.

Beyond all miracles, Christmas has been salvaged big time by a group break from I Am Joe Collector. Not one, but two Joe Jackson bat cards were pulled from the boxes. One for each grouping. Not too shabby!

When I learned about the first Joe Jackson bat card available, it instantly went on my want list. That 2001 SP Legendary Cuts card is still on the list, only now it's not as high a priority. This officially becomes my coolest card. My best pull. The only thing that could possibly top this would be a relic from the 19th century with a White Sox connection. Come to think of it, that might not even top this.

I have tasted the forbidden fruit of Joe Jackson and I like it! Regardless of Jackson's involvement in the misdeeds of others, this is a bat relic of an elite player who was cut down in his prime. Not by illness or death, but by banishment. It has a gritty allure to it all. This feels like something that should not be. By all means, it shouldn't be here at all.

I have strong reservations about butchering historical artifacts for the greed of today's collecting market. The players of nearly a century ago did not have the same mindset about the collecting market that today's players have. There was no collecting market back then. All that was around were a bunch of kids and a few eccentric adults with time on their hands. That's part of what makes this card so unique and special.

I'm still pinching myself to make sure it isn't a dream. It's a reality and my smile is still ear to ear.

Shoeless Joe Pulled, Consumers Weep

First, read this. Up to speed? Good.

Why do manufacturers seed the product given to Beckett? Is it for a cheap thrill? Is it to showcase their product?

They tell us that the boxes sent are random. They tell us that these pulls are representative of their product. They say that you too could have a chance at pulling these cards, if you only buy the product.

Do we really need another scandal involving Joe Jackson? This time I know that he's innocent! Unless a 57 year old corpse can "fix" a box of baseball cards, I doubt he had any wrongdoing in this one.

This isn't the first "pull of a lifetime" that Beckett has pulled. This is not luck anymore, it's fraud. The companies that are sending this seeded product over to Beckett to be opened on camera should be ashamed of themselves.

Does this make me want to run out and buy their product with my limited funds? NO! This makes me want to stay far away from every box that I see Beckett open. If Beckett is pulling these amazing cards, what could there possibly be left for me? Not a whole lot.

My "pull of a lifetime" came a short while ago. The problem? I wasn't the one that got to open it. Still, I got the Willie Mays material card numbered to ten. That's the important thing. That card will probably be the best thing I will ever pull in my lifetime. And it was all pure luck.

I'm a White Sox collector. When I see a card that I would love to pull being "found" in a pack, two weeks before the product shelves, by a company that was given the box for publicity purposes, I'm going to be more than a little mad about it. I'm going to be furious!

A Shoeless Joe Jackson dual bat relic numbered to 25 is not representative of the product. These cards need to be in the hands of people that plunked down hard earned money to buy a pack or a box or even a case, in some instances. If the companies want the product to be seen, they should provide scans of every card they produce.

The odds of me ever pulling one of those cards out of the product just plummeted downward astronomically. If I pull this card from my one spot in one box of this product, I will probably have to be rushed to the hospital. My chest will start to hurt and Satan will be wearing ice skates on my front lawn.

Will One Of These Be In My Future?

I bought four team slots in an upcoming box break of Donruss threads. I was randomly picked the Twins, Giants, Nationals, and Reds. I traded the Twins for the White Sox.

Will I get a Shoeless Joe Jackson card? I hope I get at least the base common card. What would I do if I got the Shoeless Joe memorabilia card? I honestly don't know what I'd do. Maybe I'd run screaming into the night with joy. Maybe I'd faint. Maybe I'd shriek some high pitched shrill tone. I just don't know.

I fell very short of my 2008 goal, which was to get the first Shoeless Joe bat card into my possession. It wasn't lack of trying. It was lack of funds. It has moved to my long term goal list.

Now, I'm hearing that 2008 Donruss Threads has been sold out and oversold. I'm hoping that this doesn't mean that I'll be left out in the cold. If it does, I can live with that, just not as well as I could have. Still it should be interesting to see what pops up in my four teams.

White Sox: I'm hoping for Shoeless Joe, but who knows.

Giants: Unless something blows me completely away, enough to ensure a huge sale, these are all going to The Nennth Inning for some random White Sox cards. For some reason, I can't add The Nennth Inning to the Long & Winding Blog. I've been trying for months and it won't take.

Nationals: I'm not really hoping for Nationals here. I'm hoping for some good old fashioned Expos from this slot.

Reds: There are many players that would make this slot cool, but I'm hoping to get a prickly thorn named Rose. I figure that if a Pete Rose is pulled, I have a two out of three shot at it. The odds might be slightly higher with the Reds as one of my teams.

Will all four teams be a bust? I certainly hope not. The odds are in my favor to get at least one decent pull. I wouldn't hold my breath on that though. Regardless of what I obtain from the box break, it will definitely be interesting. I just know that I'll miss out on Carlton Fisk, since I didn't pull the Red Sox. Oh well. There's always the secondary market.

Jealousy And Awe

Most people who know me know what a huge White Sox fan I am. Occasionally, people will send me links on White Sox related material. Today, I got a doozy in the e-mail from Wax Heaven.

Check out this guy's cards. I'm a bit dazed by all of the pretty cards, so I don't know if this guy owns all these cards or what. If he does, color me impressed. I took a look at all the sub albums and I was blown away at the sheer volume of it. I want these cards. Some are one of ones, so I know that I will never obtain them. But I want them anyway.

One card in particular that I'd maim for (I'm not a firm believer in killing) would be the Shoeless Joe Jackson bat card. I want one! I will make it 2008's goal to scrounge enough cash to obtain this card. That will be my New Year's resolution. OK, my only selfish one.

I could drool over the White Sox World Series relic cards that are in this collection. Yes, I want them all, but I would be happy if I could get the Shoeless Joe bat card. The coolest card I have right now would have to be the triple material card of the pitcher, catcher and batter involved in the infamous A.J. Pierzynski dropped third strike play.

I have over 3,000 different White Sox cards in my collection as of this writing. It's a decent start, but there's much more work to be done. If I can obtain this card in 2008, it will be the crown jewel in my collection. I have confidence that I can make it happen. It's just going to take time, luck and skill.