Ike’s slump, Harvey’s chances, declining Mets representation, and a whole lot of nonsense

The results of our Reader Poll are in and I have a reader!  This is quite an achievement, but just getting a reader to your blog isn’t enough.  No, you need to work on getting said reader to return and eventually (don’t rush it) getting your readership into plurals.  It’s about giving the people what they want and people like their entertainment to be interactive, or so I am told.  In an effort to reach out to the fan community and give them a voice on this site, I’m starting a mailbag feature.  Post a comment here or send me a message via Twitter or however else the kids are communicating these days and I’ll do my best to get back to you at some point in your lifetime.

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Neuner wrote:

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I don’t think you can connect Ike’s lack of game-used cards so far this year to his poor start to the season.  Sets are planned out months in advance, so, if anything, it would be his season-ending injury last year (and the botched treatment) that has kept his material out of 2012 products.  The good news is that he is hitting again and his one 2012 game-used card so far is a beauty – a dual Jumbo Lumber bat card booklet with Wright in 2012 Museum Collection.  I’d say things are looking up.

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A month ago, I wasn’t very hopeful for getting Matt Harvey game-used cards this year, but two factors have me rethinking this.  First, Pelfrey’s season-ending injury has opened a door in the rotation, and while Harvey won’t be rushed, he could find himself in a very important role when he makes his MLB debut in August or September.  Second, Topps has tweeted a picture of a Harvey jersey they have in their possession, so the material is there waiting to be cut up.  Between the in-hand jersey and a near-certainty of a late-season call-up, it makes sense for Topps to plan for some Harvey cards in one of their late-season products.

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Poor Mets representation in 2012 Topps sets is definitely a concern that has been noted by the blog community.  Looking back at 2011, there was a lot of player diversity in Mets game-used cards, but most of those players are no longer with the team.  Beltran and Reyes were mainstays who also represented the team at the All-Star game, but now they’re gone.  Angel Pagan and Fernando Martinez were also starting to get some representation, but they’re gone too.  Jason Bay is Jason Bay, so Topps will probably get a few more cards out for him despite his lack of production on the field.  Jon Niese has been featured on one card this year and Josh Thole has all but been forgotten; Dillon Gee is the only 2011 newcomer with multiple game-used cards, all in 2012 Museum Collection.  That just leaves David Wright, who is left carrying the whole team.  While a lot of the other players have a strong following among the team’s faithful, they lack the widespread appeal that would make them no-brainers for game-used sets.  Without that, it could be a long road ahead to get the Mets some respect from Topps.  Winning would sure help in that department (their strong start this year did not go unnoticed by whoever is running their Twitter account, so that’s something).

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thelmarosendahl8037 wrote:

If you want to get the best deal on your auto insurance policy, work on your credit. Most states use your credit score to determine your premium, believing that individuals with a lower score are at a higher risk for accidents. Do everything you can to raise your score, and the cost of your insurance will drop as a result.
Whatever cause you need temporary car insurance, it is a simple and simple matter to set up. Insurance providers need fewer particulars than they need for a twelve-monthly insurance policy. You’ll need to give them the car registration and inform them the length of time you wish the cover to be, and that’s pretty much it. It really couldn’t possibly be easier, and when you consider how dim a outlook the police force take about driving without cover, well, how does a two hundred pound instant payment and 6 penalty points on your license grab you? Other than the damage to your driving record there’s clearly damage to the leased/borrowed/hired auto that you would need to pay for, to not point out any injuries you cause as a result of an accident. One other big plus of this kind of insurance cover is it is extremely affordable, you can get comprehensive cover for an inexpensive rate. You have no defense to not have temporary vehicle insurance, so if you understand you could drive a car other than your own for a short time, go examine the insurance cover now.I’m a Chicagoan and, of course, I like to think that there’s something special about anything Chicago, including Chicago auto insurance. But, as far as Chicago insurance goes, there just isn’t. That, however doesn’t mean that there’s nothing about Chicago insurance that’s specific to Chicago. There is. But it’s not special, something similar happens in all large cities.

If we do get any game-used cards from the bench players and injury replacements in 2012, it probably won’t be until late in the year like Justin Turner’s jersey card in 2011 Bowman Sterling last December.  The main problem here is the lack of exciting options; Scott Hairston and Ronny Cedeno just aren’t relevant enough to bother with, Mike Baxter, as good as he is as a pinch hitter, just has too limited an upside, and Turner has already been covered.  Josh Satin has a shot given his service time last year, but he has yet to get past Taxi Squad status this year.  Jordany Valdespin and Zach Lutz have a shot, but not until next year, at the earliest.  Kirk Nieuwenhuis is a viable option as a regular for most of the season so far (and a pretty good one at that), but I don’t know if Topps can work quickly enough to make something happen before the end of the year.

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Doug Dickey wrote:

Hey man, nice blog!  Just thought I would throw it out there that I have collected R.A. Dickey since I was a kid (same last name) and I have managed to create a enormous collection.  Check out my site if you want: http://dickeyscollection.webs.com
I have some of his most rare cards that you might like to take a look at in there. I’ve almost managed to collect every single one of his cards as well :).

OK, who let a spammer in here?  Wait, is that relevant commentary?  Could this be a real comment?  The use of a link in the message body matches the typical spam format, but there’s a chance it might be legit.  If so, you probably won’t like to know that I have this:

Sorry, but this one is staying in my collection.  Your pursuit of all the Dickey in the world will forever come up short.