I Normally Don't Collect Heritage...

But I had to make an exception. When I first saw this card a few weeks ago I immediately knew that I needed to pick one up. This is the 2022 Topps Joey Votto short print variations and I just think it's an amazing card. A very nice nighttime shot of Votto in the on deck circle under the stadium lights just makes for a nice image. I was able to track down when this image was taken on Getty Images and it's June 21, 2021 when the Reds faced the Twins in Minneapolis. Cincinnati lost that game 7-5 and Votto went 2-5.

Throwback Thursday

It amazes me that after all these years of collecting I'm still discovering cards that I didn't know existed. Case in point are the 2015 Topps Throwbacks. These were included in one of every two rack packs that were sold in Target and Walmart. I guess these would be considered image variations since they have the same number on the back as their standard counterpart but the border on these are light bown. I love the old Reds pullover uniforms since I grew up watching the Reds play wearing them. Out of the 50 cards that were produced, the Reds had five of them (Votto, Frazier, Phillips, Hamilton and Cozart). While not a "short print" according to today's standards, I still think these are fantastic and I'm happy to have them in my collection. 

Farewell Charlie Hustle

I was keeping tabs on the Braves/Mets series yesterday when I received word from my wife's Uncle about the passing of Pete Rose. It's still a little bit of a shock, but I guess at 83 years old it was only a matter of time. Sparky Anderson, Joe Morgan and now Pete Rose. I know that the remaining members of the Big Red Machine aren't getting younger and no one knows how much longer those players will be with us. Love him or hate him, Pete Rose knew how to play baseball. I think that passion for the sport is what drew me to him as a collector. That and the fact that he was a flawed individual. He was far from perfect and a very polarizing figure. He made some mistakes and committed the cardinal sin in baseball that will probably forever keep him out of Cooperstown. I wanted to show off the last card I picked up of Pete prior to his passing. This 2010 Panini Century Collection Six Cent Stamp is fantastic. While I'm normally not a fan of Panini cards, in my opinion, this is just an amazing piece of cardboard. I don't have this card in hand yet as it's at COMC headquarters. There was a 3 cent stamp listed on Beckett that I purchased today since I had been eyeing that card for a while but hadn't pulled the trigger yet. I figured I had better grab it since a lot of the Rose cards I had been watching on eBay vanished quickly after the news broke yesterday and I wasn't sure when another copy would show up. There's nothing more I can say about the Hit King. He belongs to the ages now. People either liked him or they didn't. He was a polarizing figure before polarizing became the norm of society as it is today. But no one can argue his drive and determination to play the game hard. A game he loved probably more than life itself. After all, Pete once said "I'd walk through hell in a gasoline suit to play baseball."