The Best Blogging Name

I have had some days off of work recently.  My latest days off have had me spend some time on organizing my baseball card collection.  This mostly consists of updating my various lists at the Platter as well as cataloging my collection on Microsoft Excel.

I never fully realize how many individual cards I own of my favorite players until I scroll down to the bottom of a spreadsheet and start typing.  My benchmark for placing a singular player collection into its own personal binder is 200 cards.  Once a player collection reaches that milestone, then he gets his very own binder for storage.  I even write his name on a white shipping label and stick it on the binder.  I go that extra mile for the players that I adore.

Ichiro is one of those players that I have had the pleasure of watching play the game of baseball since his debut in 2001.  I have seen him play baseball in-person on a few occasions at Dodger Stadium and in Arizona during spring training.  His style of hitting is still interesting for me to watch.

The lunging and quick sweep of his bat through the hitting zone is a joy to see.  The speed that he had when he first debuted in the United States was like watching a track star round the bases.  Some players create a certain buzz and murmur throughout the ballpark.  Ichiro has that effect on baseball fans no matter if he is at home or on the road.

The Diamond King sent me a slew of Ichiro cards as part of a trade we made.  The Diamond King lives in the marijuana loving state of Washington and that is the place where Ichiro used to patrol the outfield tracking down fly balls.  I am not saying that the Diamond King is a marijuana user, I am just stating that his neighbors probably partake in Washington's favorite past time.

Ichiro is a solo binder guy for me.  After receiving this awesome trade package from the Pacific Northwest, I am almost at the 300 mark for Ichiro baseball cards.  Not only has Ichiro been a great ballplayer, but he has been a hobby superstar since his 2001 rookie season.  He has many cards out there for me to track down and I will probably have close to 400 Ichiro cards by the end of 2014.

Ichiro has been an electrifying baseball player and the card companies have done a swell job capturing this on cardboard.  Flipping through my Ichiro binder is one of my favorite page turners of my collection.  My Ichiro binder is a close number two to my solo Hideo Nomo binder.

The Diamond King was kind enough to send me some cards that are new to my collection.  They are also new to my eyes since I haven't seen them on the internet or anywhere else.  Maybe one of my readers can inform me on the origins of the Topps/Nestle team-up.

Was this card in a package of ice cream bars at some point?  What do freezing temperatures do to baseball cards?

I love oddball cards of the players that I collect.  They add an extra layer of uniqueness to a binder page. This Upper Deck Pepsi card may have been a stadium giveaway in Seattle?  I say this because there is a logo for a 25th year anniversary of some sort.

I wish more stadiums and modern food companies would release sets again.  I would buy a lot more loaves of bread or boxes of sugary cereal if baseball cards were included.

The Dodgers have about 81 home games a year, where they distribute bobbles of current and past boys in blue.  Maybe they can squeeze in one day and hand out an exclusive pack of baseball cards.  That may get at least one kid introduced to our glorious hobby.

Thank you for the additions to my collection, Diamond King!