Q&A – Does Rob Thomson Have A Rookie Card?

When the Phillies fired their manager Joe Girardi in early June, 2022 their record was 22-29. Coming in to take over as interim manager was Rob Thomson. The Phillies won nine straight games under their new manager. As the season went on the Phillies kept playing better and better. Under Rob Thomson, the team ended the regular season 87-75 (65-46 just under him). On October 3rd the Phillies secured a Wild Card spot in the playoffs. This was the first time the team had made the playoffs since 2011. Beating the Cardinals, Braves, and Padres, the Phillies became National League Champs making it all the way to the World Series. In the end, the Phillies lost the World Series to the Houston Astros 4-2. You never want your team to lose the World Series. But considering how the season started compared to where it ended 2022 was a great year for the Phillies. Citizens Bank Park will have a new pennant on display next year, and the team will receive NL Champion rings. It shouldn’t have been a surprise that the Phillies made the choice to keep Rob Thomson around as manager for the next few years. I think fans have a lot to look forward too.

Does Rob Thomson have a rookie card? Yes. You can find Rob Thomson’s rookie card in the 1987 ProCards set. Card #2351 shows him as a catcher for the Lakeland Tigers. The card has his name as Bob instead of Rob. Rob Thomson was drafted by the Tigers in the 32nd round of the 1985 Draft. He played four seasons professionally in the Tigers minor league system. In 1988 his coaching career began with the Tigers. Starting in 1990 be began a long career with the Yankees that lasted until 2017. The Phillies saw him join the team in 2018.

Like most ProCards, Rob Thomson’s card is fairly easy to find. Due to his recent popularity prices have seen an increase, but are still quite affordable.

As of this writing Rob Thomson only has about (20) different cards. We don’t see as many manager cards made as we use to. Other key cards of his include 2008 Topps Gift Sets New York Yankees #15, 2009 Topps Heritage Rob Thomson / Tony Pena / Kevin Long / Dave Eiland #465, and 2009 Topps Yankee Stadium Opening Day #27.

Mike Baker Authenticated Is A Pointless Service The Hobby Does NOT Need

In 2020 and 2021 we saw card prices shoot to the moon. And in 2022 we have seen them completely tank.

During that fun time when everything was going up in price lots of new businesses arrived on the hobby scene attempting to convince collectors that they needed them. A lot of new and naive people bought right into it too. In this hobby it is very easy to convince people you are something that you really aren’t.

One of these joke business ventures that popped up is Mike Baker Authenticated. I’ve talked about them before, but it can’t hurt to bring them up again.

Mike Baker Authenticated would love to grade your graded cards. They’re trying to create another level of scarcity for you to chase. DON’T FALL FOR IT!

For example, lets say you have two of the same cards both graded by PSA a GEM MT 10. Mike Baker Authenticated wants you to believe that if they place one of their Silver, Gold, or Black Diamond labels on one of them its going to be worth more than the card without it. This has to be one of the most pointless services ever offered to collectors. What’s next? Grading the graded, graded, graded card?

Who is Mike Baker? Mike Baker was the first grader to work for PSA. In fact, he was their first employee. He was right there when the world famous 1909-11 T206 Honus Wagner was graded a PSA NM-MT 8. It was altered/trimmed, and slabbed in a PSA holder. That card shouldn’t have been graded. Knowing the publicity and money that card would bring is what didn’t stop them. On the Mike Baker Authenticated website it states “He has been a developer in the field of identifying counterfeit and altered trading cards.” What a joke!

Probstein123’s auctions was the first place I remember seeing Mike Baker Authenticated labeled slabs. Early on the COA Mike Baker Authenticated supplied with the card was down right sloppy. SGC graded cards came with PSA labeled COAs. Numerous misspellings could also be found. You could tell they were in a rush.

With card prices in free fall, grading companies are beginning to lower their fees. It wouldn’t surprise me if one of the big three BGS, PSA, or SGC go under. BGS or SGC more likely. PSA has some other sources of income. HGA and CSG could also be on the chopping block.

If the grading companies are hurting right now, so is Mike Baker Authenticated. This downturn could easily put them out of business. A good thing about a tanking market is purging the hobby of bogus and unnecessary services such as Mike Baker Authenticated. If you’re attending a card show and see their little tent, just ignore it.

Q&A – Where Does This Barry Bonds Card Come From?

Question: Where does this Barry Bonds card come from? The design looks like 1997 Topps Baseball, but the photo and card number are different. Please help!

Answer: Cool find. Throughout the 90’s Topps would issue Pre-Production cards promoting that year’s newest card designs. Your Barry Bonds card is one of those cards. Topps issued them to promote the 1997 Topps Baseball design. Various outlets that Topps dealt with received them.

Nine cards (#PP1-#PP9) make up the 1997 Topps Baseball Pre-Production set.

• Frank Thomas #PP1
• Brady Anderson #PP2
• Barry Bonds #PP3
• Eric Young #PP4
• Ricky Bottalico #PP5
• Royce Clayton #PP6
• Tom Goodwin #PP7
• Craig Biggio #PP8
• Ellis Burks #PP9

Each card in the Pre-Production set utilizes the same photo that went on to be used in the main base set EXCEPT for Barry Bonds. The Barry Bonds Pre-Production card and base set card have two different images making it a bit more desirable.

What Does An Authentic 1988 Cal League Ken Griffey Jr. San Bernardino Spirit #34 Baseball Card Look Like?

A massive wave of new people entered the hobby over the last few years. Things that might be common knowledge for veteran collectors may not be so common for all of the newbies. Scammers are just waiting to take advantage of these naive new collectors. So many fraudsters have been exposed so far this year with many more on the way.

I recently watched someone spend over $100 on a handful of unlicensed/fake 1988 Cal League Ken Griffey Jr. San Bernardino Spirit #34 baseball cards. Its sad that this still happens.

Reinforcing the fundamentals of this hobby can’t hurt. Especially with all of the new people. Below is what you should be looking for if you’re in the market for an authentic 1988 Cal League Ken Griffey Jr. San Bernardino Spirit #34.

Authentic front

Authentic back

In the early 90’s an unlicensed version of this card began to surface. The overall layout and design is similar to the authentic version, but the dead giveaway is the different photo. As you can see there are two unlicensed cards floating around. Both utilize the same photo, but the text and placement of the text are a little different. The card number on the second example is a bit fatter as well. You never see these unlicensed fakes graded by PSA, BGS, or SGC because they aren’t authentic. The secondary market has been filled with them for years. You’ll notice they are always cheaper when compared to the authentic version. Its funny to see that one was pictured on a bobblehead in 2019.

Unlicensed front

Unlicensed back

Unlicensed front

Unlicensed back

Q&A – Does Donald Trump Have A Rookie Card?

Question: Hi!  I’m looking for a gag gift for my friend.  Could you tell me if Donald Trump has a rookie card?  Thanks.

Answer: Love him or hate him.  Donald Trump is the 45th President of the United States.  One thing is for certain.  His presidency will be studied, investigated, and talked about long after he’s out of the White House.  Will that talk be good or bad?  That’s totally up to you and your political views.

Yes.  Donald Trump does have a rookie card.  During the late 80s and early 90s, Eclipse Comics issued a handful of non-fiction, non-sports related card sets.  These sets cover all kinds of subjects like the Savings and Loan crisis, Iran-Contra scandal, AIDS, and the Kennedy Assassination.

In 1989, Eclipse Comics released a set titled Rotten to the Core.  This 36-card set covers the best and worst of New York City’s politics.  Card #26 is of Donald Trump.  Its widely accepted as his rookie card.  The card’s back goes into lots of details about his dealings at the time.  Quite the entertaining read.

Raw copies sell for $20.  Gem Mint 10s have reached $100.

Does Chris Coste Smile?

I met Chris Coste about a year and a half ago in Williamsport at a Phillies dinner and he seemed like a really nice guy when I got him to sign one of my bats.  Doing a quick eBay search for his cards, you’ll quickly find that he doesn’t have a ton of stuff to collect.  Coste is one of the few players that his actual rookie card has the “rookie” logo on it.  He has no first year prospect cards from Bowman or Bowman Chrome.  Looking at the handful of cards he does have, you’ll see a disturbing trend – he barely smiles.  Maybe he doesn’t like having his picture taken or maybe he just needs a hug.  Either way, a good portion of his cards has him looking like he’s in desperate need of a bran muffin 🙂  Go Phillies!

Q & A – What does TCMA stand for?

Question: Hello, I’ve been asked what does TCMA stand for? I used to know but forgot! Thanx. John B.

Answer: John,TCMA stands for Tom Collier and Michael Aronstein.  It’s an anagram for the company’s two owners.  They made a lot of minor league cards.  Thanks.