Been too long … looking back at a cool 1/1

 

Way back in Beckett Baseball No. 42, I profiled sketch card artist Paul Lempa who paints his sketch cards with immaculate detail. It was a fun story that I enjoyed — but not as much as some of his work. Well after the story appeared in the mag, a Nick Swisher one-of-a-kind painted sketch card showed up in my mailbox. The scan does it no justice as the texture on this one is just as interesting as the painting itself. (Let’s hope I can post more this year … )

Do you have a Swisher item I might want? Contact me on Twitter,@chrisolds2009.

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Laundry tags aren’t so common for some players

The laundry tag card isn’t all that common for some players as there just aren’t a ton of jerseys chopped up each year for baseball cards.

Although I am sure he has a few — but not many — my only Nick Swisher tag card comes from the 2009 Ballpark Collection Laundry Tags set where a tag made the cut to make just five serial-numbered cards.

It wasn’t super-expensive but it also wasn’t single-jersey swatch cheap, either. Definitely a slightly cooler card than some, though.

Do you have a Swisher item I might want? Contact me on Twitter, @chrisolds2009.

Yankee Effect means I end up paying more for Nick Swishers …

When a player becomes a New York Yankee, a lot changes — and it’s got nothing to do with long hair (read the link … he had a great reason), beards, Hollywood wives, etc.

It’s got everything to do with deep-pocketed fans of, hands down, the most-successful baseball team in the world.

Nick Swisher being a New York Yankee means I end up paying more for his key cards — if I can land them at all.

One such example? This 2009 SP Authentic Signatures card is a short-print — and it’s one of just a few Yankees autographs. But it’s also just one of the many stickers he’s signed for a few years now — just like plenty of cheaper autographs out there. I got sick of missing out on the card — the few times it came up for sale — and I had to pony up to land it for the cost of about 4-5 other Swish autographs.

It’s the pinstripes. Guaranteed.

But this Beckett.com forum post is pretty entertaining, though.

Do you have a Swisher item I might want? Contact me on Twitter, @chrisolds2009.

Swish doesn’t have too many Chicago White Sox autographs …

There’s not too much overly special going on with this 2009 Inkredible Nick Swisher card … but it’s a great design for a sticker autograph and a solid photo and simple design.

I actually like this one a lot, and, as a plus, it’s one of not many signed cards showing Swish as a member of the Chicago White Sox.

That’s about that for this one.

Do you have a Swisher item I might want? Contact me on Twitter, @chrisolds2009.

There are plenty of Nick Swisher game-used baseball bat cards, but there are just two bat knob cards in existence …

Topps has produced more than a few Nick Swisher game-used baseball bat cards since the first one arrived in 2004 Bowman Draft, but Swish has just two bat knob cards made by any card company.

Each is a 1/1 autographed knob card found in 2009 Topps Unique, a one-shot product that had some high-end thrills found inside its packs.

The two knob cards in Unique have different card numbers — and I am not sure whether one that I lost on eBay is the other card or whether I won this one during its second time on the block. Neither card had much distinguishing features on the knob, unlike most Swisher gamers, which typically have had “BLS” (Swisher’s grandmother’s initials) or some other message on them.

Do you have a Swisher item I might want? Contact me on Twitter, @chrisolds2009.

SwishFan.com … the beginning

Here is where, from time to time, I will post images and brief descriptions of the Nick Swisher cards and memorabilia in my collection. Over time, my goal to have everything in the stash documented right here.

Do you have a Swisher item I might want? Contact me on Twitter, @chrisolds2009.