Thoughts & Sox & 1960 Topps

The cards that manage to work their way into the mailbox never cease to amaze me, and the cards I'm about to show you are a fine example of other people's kindness. It's not like I'm not sending anything back in return, but that's not the point. The point is that people send me some awesome cards in trade. Cards i would probably never own otherwise, and for that, I am grateful.

Adam from Thoughts & Sox and I talked about this trade for months before it actually happened. The funny thing is, the longer we talked about it, the more chaotic it got. In the end, Adam ended up sending me a bunch of 1960 Topps O's. 20 to be exact, which is damn near a complete team set, along with a smidgen of random Orioles thrown in for good measure. In return, he received the autograph of a certain suspected steroid user who happens to be rather large in stature.

1960 Topps Walt Dropo

1950 Rookie of the Year, and not exactly a lightweight with the stick.

1960 Topps Joe Ginsberg

Gotta love a card with a cartoon on the back! Even if Heritage has made you tired of this design, you've got to appreciate the classics, which 1960 Topps most certainly is.

1960 Topps Billy Hoeft

1960 Topps All-Star Rookie Willie Tasby

1960 Topps Orioles Coaches

Oooh... a short print. Heritage has really messed up my mind man.

1960 Topps Billy Klaus

Rumor has it he is Santa's cousin

1960 Topps Johnny Powers

Great name, not to great career. 215 at bats over 6 seasons, and a lifetime average of .195.

1960 Topps Al Pilarcik

1960 Topps Wes Stock

1960 Topps Paul Richards

Here's another back, since the fronts can get boring. Not to me, I love this set, but you know...

1960 Topps Gene Green

1960 Topps Bob Boyd

I have another version of this card. It's a buyback, with one of those ugly gold foil stamps, so it's nice to have this one as well, which is pristine.

1960 Topps Rip Coleman

1960 Topps Roy Face & Hoyt Wilhelm

1960 Topps Chuck Estrada

Brother of Eric

1960 Topps Hal Brown

This one is going right to PSA. That's a 10 if I've ever seen one.

1960 Topps Bob Mabe

1960 Topps Gus Triandos

1960 Topps Jack Fisher

1960 Topps Jackie Brandt

This concludes the vintage Topps goodness portion of this post, but is not the end of what Adam sent. Here's a sampling of random O's for your Saturday viewing pleasure (or misery)

1990 Sportflics Joe Orsulak

This guy was among my favorite O's from back in the day. He was never anything more than a serviceable outfielder, but he had great hair.

1968 Topps Deckle Brooks Robinson

Wow, this card is awesome! I've been wanting one of these for awhile now, and am really glad to have one, especially of Brooks. I think card companies should do more with black & white photos, especially in vintage sets.

1997 Bowman Jayson Werth rookie card

I'll bet the O's front office is still kicking themselves for giving up so soon on Werth.

1994 Tetrad (Classic) Signature Rookies Scott Klingenbeck

How stupid are the Orioles? This guy was drafted in the 57th round in '89 by the Tigers, and did not sign. Drafted again by the Angels in '91, in the 60th round. Once again he did not sign. Finally, the Orioles drafted this turkey in the 5th round(?!?) of the '92 draft. How do you go from 60th round pick to 5th round pick in 1 year?

Wow, what a long post. Sorry guys, and thanks for reading. At least it was full of vintage Topps cards, which I figured would only make my poor writing a little more appealing. If you haven't been to Adam's blog, do yourself a favor and check out Thoughts & Sox right now! Even if you're not a Red Sox fan, do what I do and leave derogatory remarks about how much you hate them. Don't be too mean about it though, otherwise Adam may not send you card as nice as the ones he sent me.

Thanks for the great trade!