Bobbin' For Cards

Sometimes, when it comes to pursuing my Cubs All-Time Roster Collection, it kind of feels like bobbing for apples.

There are so many players with cards on the market, just plainly floating in front of my face.  But, when I throw myself into the market to grab one, I often come up empty.

Of course, there aren't actually cards floating in a bucket anywhere in my house - that would be counter productive.

Then again, sometimes I come up with a nice, big ol' Granny Smith.  Or a Bob Smith, anyway:

The proprietor of one of my LCS's kindly set this card aside for me as he is acutely aware of my collecting habits - the man is a saint!

Bob Smith's 1958 Topps high-number has dodged me several times, most recently when I was sniped on Listia by just a few credits about a month ago.  The prospect of adding a vintage high-number to my binder for exactly $0.00 was just so damn appealing; it was such a let down.

No matter, this time I'm clutching it in my teeth... errr hands - that metaphor is over with.

"Riverboat" here was one of three men to suit up for the Cubbies who bore the name "Bob Smith."  Further complicating matters, there was another contemporary infielder who also played for the Red Sox with the same name.  Despite this web, I've managed to track down the correct guy.

Will the real Bob Smith please stand up, please stand up?

Thankfully, I already added these two to my binder

 Bob was a lefty pitcher who got two years in the Show and exactly one game with the Cubs.

Traded by the Red Sox for future manager Chuck Tanner in 1959, he pitched exactly 2/3 of an inning on April 29th and was lit up by the Redlegs; he was torched for six earned runs!

He soon found himself swapped to Cleveland so that "Handsome Ransom" Jackson could finish his farewell tour with his original franchise and out of the Bigs for good.

Soooo the fact that he had such a common name, a terrible track record and only one known baseball card (a high number, at that) made this a tough rectangle to track down.

Just finding this gem (one of my favorite sets!) would have been enough for me to call this "bob"bing session a success; but then I noticed a nice stack of Target Dodgers:

This team-issued set sponsored by the big box retailer was released to celebrate 100 years of the Dodger franchise and aimed to include a card of every man to ever suit up for them.  Seeing as they are almost as old as the Cubs, there is a lot of helpful player overlap.

I should take a second to mention that GCRL has done a tremendous job spotlighting this oddball set, including this very card.  Thank you for that!

Jack had two brief stints as a serviceable extra outfielder in 1900 and from 1903-04 (a Cubs Double Dipper, as GCRL might say) before he was eventually traded to Brooklyn for future World Series cog Jimmy Sheckard.

Now, maybe this is just me, but that picture doesn't look right to me.  It looks too sharp and clear to be of the correct era.  Plus, the jersey looks more like the style that was worn in the 30's and 40's.  This set is plagued with picture errors - is it possible that this is another?  Or am I just loco?

Personally, I thought I was going loco with all my luck, especially when I noticed a couple of singles in the discount bin that I had been wanting to pick up.

I feel in love with the Alcantara card the first time I saw it scanned on the blogosphere.  I adore those late-60's Cubs throwback uniforms, the photo selection works well with the excellent 2015 design and the "Future Stars" designation is icing on the cake.  I hope Arismendy turns out at least half as well as this card!

Motte is one of the new guys on the Cubs roster, brought in to bring some veteran leadership to an otherwise young bullpen.  While, he is sporting some severe "pitcher's face," I appreciate that the photo wasn't cropped so tightly that that's all we could see.  Not to mention, I like the design of 2011 Topps infinitely better than the train-wreck of a design that was 2014 Topps that was holding Motte's spot in my collection.

Tightly cropped and a hodge podge of a layout. Ugh.

At this point, time was getting short and it was time for me to be on my merry way.  But, I couldn't resist the urge to rip open a pack.  So, I bought a single pack of Heritage.

I didn't pull any hits, short prints, gum stains or anything like that,but lo and behold, resting right on top was another guy I needed for my CATRC:

Jokisch is a lefty starter who made his debut late last season.  He looked pretty good - 1.88 ERA in 14.1 innings and 10 K's, but there are still lingering doubts about his durability and his stuff in extended action.  He'll probably be riding the shuttle from Des Moines to Chicago a few times this year.

Spencer Patton?  Sorry, I'm not too concerned with you.  Or the rest of the pack's contents:

See anything you like?

My attention was taken by the fact that an impulsive stop to my LCS (which I keep thinking I've fished clean out) produced three new additions to my CATRC.  

That doesn't happen much anymore, over ten years into this project.

I may usually come up empty when I go bobbin' in the LCS; but, today I came up with not one - not two - but three, shiny apples in my clutches.

That certainly brightened my Monday!