Interview with Negro Leaguer Carl Long

Things lately have been kind of...woof. It's a long story not worth getting into, if only to say ALL of the important things are going great. Overdue packages go out tomorrow or Thursday, scout's honor.

Anyway, I did something I've been meaning to do for quite awhile to distract myself a bit: edit video.

I'm not exactly a pro at this, but I'll imitate one from time to time. I had the chance to interview former Negro Leaguer Mr. Carl Long in Charleston last summer at a Riverdogs game, and I've been meaning to get this up. Hope you enjoy it! Thanks again, Mr. Long, for the interview at the ballpark!

FYI: I'm NOT the dude who didn't know Charlie Pride played in the Negro Leagues. 

Keep an eye out next week, I'll be giving away some cards Mr. Long auto'ed for me.

Have a good one everybody and goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!

Ginter Project: Stanley "Doc" Glenn

This is the second most recent of the ttms I've gotten in the past few weeks: Stanley "Doc" Glenn. Mr. Glenn was a catcher in the Negro Leagues who caught Satchel Paige, so this is the second auto I have of one of Paige's former catchers, the other being Larry LeGrande. An unexpected story is that he made a cameo in Gene Conley's bio. Mr. Glenn was a catcher in the Braves minor league system when Conley was coming through, and even compared Conley to Paige when Conley threw a 1-0 shutout against Wilkes-Barre during to win his 20th game in 1951.

He put out a book a couple of years ago, and I hope to order it after the first of next month.

The scans won't come through. There are actually two cards there, but the scanner keeps cutting them in two. So here's a pic of both and neither of them.

This is also a really sweet card, from the follow through to the wry smile he's wearing here. Really, really well done, and a great sig. Thanks Mr. Glenn.

He was also gracious enough to answer a few questions. Favorite player growing up: Josh Gibson. Best moment in baseball: hitting four HRs in one game. AND, why is his nickname Doc? He is a physical therapist. Cool.

Have a great one everybody, and he a goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!

Don't Mess with the Mule: Mail from John "Mule" Miles

This is the first card I received from the 2007 Ginter Negro League project:

If I can complete the whole thing I'll put them all together in one big post.

There is tons of info out there on Mr. Miles if you Google it, so I'll just link to the search. He's probably most famous for hitting HRs in 11 straight games (eleven!), because of which his manager "Candy" Taylor said Miles "hits like a mules kicks"....and so a legend was born.

He was kind enough to also take the time to fill out the little question sheet I send out, which is always a pretty awesome gesture. Favorite player growing up: Babe Ruth. Toughest Pitcher he had to face: Satchel Paige. Favorite current player: Ryan Howard with the Phillies. If you are like me and semi-desperate for a reason to root for the Phillies against the Yanqis, I think that's sufficient reason right there: the image of an elderly gentleman famous for hitting like a mules kicks pulling for Ryan Howard.

He also included two sheets with further info one his career, which I scanned and have included here. A click and they should go full-sized.

And #2:

Finally, Mr. Miles said his favorite teammate was Clyde McNeal. I've done some research on Mr. McNeal, but am coming up empty so far. Any advice on where to look would be great appreciated!

A big "thank you" to Mr. Miles, opening up your letter was awesome! Have a great one, everybody and goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!

Bob Motley: Umpire

Big night last night for Gomes (where's all the love, Contrarian!?!), big night tonight for CC.

If there are things I've made clear on the blog, among them are a) I like to read and b) anything anyone sends me in return from a ttm request is absolute gravy. Guys who ask for a donation in return for an auto are generally not my purview, but there are a few exceptions. Among them are guys who also have a book.

So, when I was looking for addresses for Negro Leaguers from the A & G sets, I was pretty stoked to find Bob Motley.

Now, one of the things that bothers me about a lot of folks in the on-line ttm community is the comments directed towards 1) guys who request money for an auto and 2) guys who are looking to sell books to people who request autos ttm. Motley does both, and there are quite a few comments about it if you look around.

Where I'm from, if $5 and a sales pitch give you the vapors and are liable to make you fall out (Troll's compa can translate for the rest of ya'll), you just need to stay on the porch with the rest of the dogs that don't run in the tall grass (again, see Esther Gin'n'Juice).

Well, a Motley Ginter courtesy of a trade with 2008 Allen and Ginter Cardscape, $5, a couple of weeks later, this was in the ole mailbox:

LOVE IT. Not just the auto on the left, but the word "umpire" on the right. Incredibly cool. The ad up top also came with, in addition to this card:

Of course, hard up as I am for cash (like everyone else in the world these days), I grabbed the book on amazon and am now about half-way through it. It was co-written with his son, and it is great. Very, very fun read, and I hope to send it to Motley in the next month or so for a sig.

Thank you, Mr. Motley, and I'm loving the book!

Have a great one! Tomorrow I'm smoking butts with hickory (some mozzarella thrown in for the compa) so it's a big fat southern weekend going down in ND!

Cardboard APB: 2007 and 2008 A & G Negro League Stars

All right folks, I've been trolling ebay for weeks trying to get these with no luck. Looks like with 2009 A & G out the '08s and the '07s have disappeared. I'm looking for the regular base cards, no minis or cards with mammoth hair. I can't even find a complete checklist off the intertubes.

So, here's the deal, Ginter collectors. Tell all your neighbors, tell all your friends. I'm putting a bounty out for the first person who can send me the complete 07 and 08 run of Negro League Stars. I'll start out with an offer of a 2003 Topps Heritage Pujols jersey.

Leave a comment or email me, and the card is yours!