Update On Chavez Ravining Fantasy Baseball

I've been incredibly busy over the past few weeks which is evident from my lack of blog posts. I have a ton of awesome cards to show off still, but other than a pair of blasters I bought when 2015 Flagship came out, I haven't bought much. 

Anyway. I just wanted to give a quick update on the Chavez Ravining Fantasy Baseball league. I have been slow to putting it together, but everyone who is interested should be added to the league by the end of the week. I am still accepting sign-ups as well, so feel free to comment if you'd like to join.

Here are some of the basic rules of the league: 

• Dynasty League (Will go for more than one year)
• Mixed league (both NL and AL)
• 6X6 rotisserie scoring
• Batters: R, HR, RBI, SB, AVG, OBP
• Pitchers: K, W, SV, ERA, WHIP, K/9
• Hosted on ESPN
• Free to play (No entry fee)
• About 50% of the roster will be kept year-to-year

As far as the rules go, it is pretty much the same as it was last year. I didn't really notice any problems, but if you have any suggestions just let me know. Also, we will talk more in detail about the league specifics as I add you to the league as well as the blog I have set up for the league. 

Here is a list of who is currently signed up for the league:

• Dodger Penguin (Matthew)
• Mets Cardboard (Justin)
• Frankie M.
• Tim B. 
• Yadier Molina Baseball Cards (Brady)
• Kyle B.
• Need More Cardboard (Andrew)
• Brandon L.
• Chavez Ravining (Me!)

I have also heard from Tony L. and Greg Z., but I'm not quite sure if they are joining or not. We currently have nine members for sure (including me), but that number may jump up to eleven if both Tony and Greg join. EDIT: Brandon had to bow out, but we still have plenty of members. Eight for sure. 

Let me know if I inadvertently left you off the list. I double checked the comments and my email, but I seemingly always forget people in things like this. I have contacted most of you about the league already, so  I will start adding people to the ESPN page today. I'll also be adding all of the members to the Chavez Ravining Fantasy Baseball blog I started last year. This blog will be the place to contact other members of the league, as well as make announcements, talk about trades, etc.. Everyone in the league will have full admin rights to the blog, so feel free to post as often as you'd like. 

That's it for now. Hopefully I will be able to get some actual cards posted soon, but we'll see. Thanks!

A Quick Trade With William

I completed my sixth trade with William of Foul Bunt recently. Well, I'm not sure completed is the right term. William sent me some cool cards, but I have yet to send a care package back his way. Don't worry, William. A pile is going for you and it will be sent out the next round of shipping. 

Anyway. Let's get to the cards William sent me this time around. 

This particular package was relatively small, but I picked out a few of my favorites to highlight her on the blog. First we have a fantastic Dusty Baker card, unlicensed of course. 

I'm not the biggest fan of these Golden Age cards, or Panini products in general (they do have some cool hits though), but I like the overall design of the cards. Too bad there is no LA logo. 

William also tossed in a trio of Chris Davis cards for my buddy Dikran. I passed these cards his way a few weeks back and he was excited for the new additions. If anyone has any extra Davis cards laying around, feel free to send them to me or William. I'm sure we'd both appreciate them.

Thanks again for the trade William. Expect some cards in your mailbox soon. 

Chavez Ravining Fantasy Baseball

I've been waiting to write this posts for months. After the success of last year's league, I've been chomping at the bit to start up again. Although the league as a whole was a success, there were a few improvements that can be made for 2015 (including a few things I could have done better); but we'll talk about tweaking the rules/points a bit further down the line.

Let's talk about some of the format and some of the basic rules for 2015 before we get to the signups.

1. This will be a dynasty league. This means that we will carry this league on for as long as people are willing to stay in it. But don't worry, owners will have the chance to leave at the end of the year if it just isn't working for them.

2. It will be rotisserie scoring. This means that points will be scored by counting stats, and there will be no head-to-head match-ups. We will be using ESPN to play. 

3. Please, please pay attention and keep up with the league if you are apart of it. I understand that life gets in the way and we can all get busy at times, but the league doesn't work unless all of the participants are active. If you can spend at least ten minutes a week keeping up with trade offers etc. it would be greatly appreciated.

That is pretty much the extent of it right now. I have a good idea with where we will head going into the season, but I'd rather have that discussion on the Fantasy Baseball blog itself. 

If you are interested in participating, simply leave me a comment or send me an email.

You are not locked into participating by doing this, so even if you are unsure if you want to participate you should still contact me. 

Also, I am more than willing to here suggestions about the league in the comments section. Don't want to do the dynasty format? Think we should do something else? Just let me know.

Looking forward to another great year!


EDIT: Here is some more info about the league. These are the thoughts I've had, so all the rules, format is up for discussion. 

• Mixed league (both NL and AL)
• 6X6 scoring
• Batters: R, HR, RBI, SB, AVG, OBP
• Pitchers: K, W, SV, ERA, WHIP, K/9
• Hosted on ESPN.
• Last year was free to play, may consider a small buy-in with prizes at the end of year.  Open to both options.
• About 50% of the roster will be kept year-to-year.
• Tenative Roster Limits. Depends on how many people participate. 

Catcher (C)	1	No Limit
First Base (1B)	1	No Limit
Second Base (2B)	1	No Limit
Third Base (3B)	1	No Limit
Shortstop (SS)	1	No Limit
Middle Infielder (2B/SS)	1	N/A
Corner Infielder (1B/3B)	1	N/A
Left Field (LF)	0	No Limit
Center Field (CF)	0	No Limit
Right Field (RF)	0	No Limit
Outfield (OF)	5	N/A
Designated Hitter (DH)	1	No Limit
Utility (UTIL)	2	N/A
Pitcher (P)	10	N/A
Starting Pitcher (SP)	0	No Limit
Relief Pitcher (RP)	0	No Limit
Bench (BE)	4	N/A
Disabled List (DL)	2	N/A

An Attempt To Clean Up The Scans Folder

Whew. It's been a long week. A loooooong week. In fact, this was probably the busiest week of my life. I figured school might get a bit busy toward finals, but I was welcomed aboard the struggle bus in just week five. When I wasn't in class or working at the tutorial center, I was doing homework. A ton of homework. Like a lot of homework. So much homework that I've only slept for about 12 total hours since Monday night. I'm still not sure why I'm at my computer rather than in bed.

Anywho. Let's get to some recent additions.

I'll start with a sweet pull from a pack of 2015 Topps -- pulled by my father of course. That man rarely ever buys cards, but he always manages to get something cool. I threw this up on eBay, but I'd be more than willing to swap it for a similar parallel of a Dodger. It's limited to just 99 copies, so we'll see what kind of interest it gets.

If this card looks familiar it is probably because I posted it back in October. Well, not the same exact card, but one of the other twenty-five. My buddy Dikran picked this up on the bay last week thinking that I could add it to the PC. I already have one, but I don't mind adding another beauty to the PC. Eight percent of the print run down; bring on the other twenty-three cards!

I also picked up a pair of fantastic new Kemp patches recently. I actually bought the top one, while my buddy ran across the bottom one right before the auction ended. We ended up walking away with both of them for just under ten bucks. 

I really enjoy the look of these cards, as well as the colorful patches. However, the thing that stands out just might be the description on the back. Panini tells us a little story about a game Kemp had back in 2013; but, it's what is in parentheses right under that which stands out. 

The enclosed game-worn (worn July 3, 2013) material is guaranteed by Panini America, Inc.

I have been a bit skeptical about the authenticity of relic cards for quite some time, but never enough to stop buying them. I do think the addition of the game-worn date does make the card feel much more authentic. I'm hoping we see this more in the hobby moving forward. 

Finally, we move on to yet another piece of cardboard that is in my possession thanks to a friendly tip from Greg. Seriously, if I were to ever become a billionaire, I would hire him to go and buy me some art. He really knows how to find a deal. 

Greg suggested I purchase this way back in December, and I believe I got it for about a buck or two. Initially, there is not much that stands out with this card. A closer inspection of the back, however, reveals that this is the no-number SSP. I'm not sure how limited these are, but I'm happy to finally add one to my ever-growing Matt Kemp PC. 

2015 Topps Is Here, Am I Late To The Party?

Well, it's that time of the year again. 2015 Flagship is out, and if you are lucky a Target near you has it. Dikran and I picked up a pair of blasters earlier this week, so let's take a look. 

Eww. This was my first card of 2015. (Hint: It's a sign of things to come...for me at least)

The box may have started with a Giant, but I was lucky enough to pull a pair of Dodgers a couple packs later. Overall, I enjoy the look of the set. I'm digging the colorful borders, especially considering we get the team color treatment. So much beautiful blue. 

Let's take a look at another shade of blue: Rangers blue. I pulled this sweet card just moments after Dikran pulled it from his blaster. Typically I'm not upset with a pair of cards for my PC, but the collation on these cards was horrific. Two blasters comes to around 200 cards and they yielded 26 dupes. Not Topps' best day. 

I did, however, enjoy the return of the team card. They've been absent the past few years, but they are back in 2015 and I'm digging the look. This happens to be one of those rainbow foil variations (another great idea). It's currently set aside to go to Bob Walk The Plank, but I have an inkling to keep it for myself. 

On second thought, I'll just keep this one. It features three players (Denard Span, a former Dodger, and a future Dodger) and, it is destined for my Harper binder. 

Inserts are pretty dull (again), but I did manage to nab a Harper from one of my packs. Dull or not, I'll take any cards from my PC guys. 

Now here are some decent looking inserts. They're not the greatest looking cards you'll ever find, but the idea is pretty cool. I'm always down to add new Robinson cards to the collection, so I'm excited to go after this subset. 

I'm getting pretty tired of these to be honest. They just seem too cramped. Also, it would have nice to see a different A-Gon photo considering we see the same one on his base card. But hey, a new Kershaw!

Other than that gold foil Pirates card, this was the only other parallel in either blaster box. I'm digging the look of these parallels so far, so I'd like to get my hands on some Dodgers. This is headed to Tony L. 

That was pretty much all of the excitement as far as the base cards go. Each blaster did promise a relic though, so let's take a look.

Dikran managed to pull that aptly colored Goldschmidt, whereas I pulled that awkward Cespedes card. Topps must have produced these a while back because Cespedes has now been on two different teams since he was last on the A's. But, I guess these are commemorating the player's first homer, so it make a bit of sense. 

Both of these are on eBay for the time being. I'd typically trade these away, but the good ol' bank account could use a gift right about now. 

Overall, I liked the set. Definitely the best of the past ten years or so. The design is great. The inserts are dull. Collation is still a problem. Lack of Dodgers always stinks. Excited to see what parallels look like, especially when Chrome comes out.The good definitely outweighed the bad, and I am excited to get my hands on more. Especially the last Matt Kemp card as a Dodger. 

Life and Baseball Cards: A Trade

I recently completed my first trade with CC of Life and Baseball Cards. He contacted me way back at the end of December, but I am just getting around to posting about the trade. YOu can check out what I sent him here. 

This trade package was awesome all the way around, so picking a favorite was tough. But, if I had to pick a favorite card, I'd pick this one. For whatever reason, I am a big fan of the "back to the camera" shots, even more so considering the beauty of '42' on the back of the jersey. 

I mistakenly scanned the card with the penny sleeve which left a large number 51 in the upper right hand corner of the scan, but it is too late to go back and re-scan it now. 

CC also sent over this sweet bronze framed Jackie from Gypsy Queen. I already filed the card, so I'm not positive what year this bad boy comes from, but my gut is saying 2013. I guess I'll have to look that up.

CC also added some cool new Beltre's in the package. First up we have this cool relic card featuring Beltre as a Mariner. The overall design on this card is decent, but I still don't like seeing Beltre in those Mariner unis. 

Last but not least, we have a pair of fantastic Beltre cards that are bit odd-ballish. Again, I filed the cards already so I cannot remember the exact details about the cards, but CC mentioned what they were in our email.  

2005 Throwback Threads  Adrian Beltre Polo Grounds PG-69 (#’ed 54/65)
2005 Throwback Threads Adrian Beltre Polo Grounds PG-69 (#’ed 44/60)

For the life of me, I cannot remember which company made these cards, but I am leaning towards Donruss. These just seem like something Donruss would produce in the mid-2000's. 

Thanks again for the trade, CC! I look forward to the next one!

A Smudged Matt Kemp Auto Is Still A Matt Kemp Auto

At one point in my blogging career I would post new autographs the day I got them. Especially if they were Matt Kemp autographs. However, times have changed and so have my posting habits. 

I picked this card up way back in the early part of December for a mere seven bucks. The auto is quite smudged, but that is okay with me. It isn't like I am planning on getting this card graded. 

This is officially my 15th Matt Kemp auto, though I do have a few others in hand waiting to be posted. One of these days I'm going to catch up with Greg and surpass his masterful Kemp PC.