By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor

The high-end National Treasures line that has been in the Donruss/Playoff and now  Panini America portfolio for some time with football and basketball just might be headed to the baseball diamond soon.

How do we know?

Former Atlanta Braves slugger Dale Murphy tweeted photos of the cards as he signed them on Monday on his account, @DaleMurphy3.

The product has not yet been teased by Panini America.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor | Commentary

Collectors often like to refer to themselves as detail people.

We notice the flaws in cards down to the surface divots and fibers on vintage cards, and we notice the most miniscule markings on modern releases. It’s what we do. And we also notice things like Eric Davis‘ batting glove bunny ears on his 1988 Fleer card. (Go look, we’ll wait.)

Well, at least some of us do.

And some of us out there have noticed the peculiarities of cardboard and other collectibles when they have been viewed using Instgram and shared with others.  The free social media app for your smartphone allows people to share photos of whatever they choose with certain effects added to enhance the moods, the feels, of whatever they were feeling was worth a picture. In the case of some items? Well, grunging up a photo of it can often bring out its flaws, its uniqueness.

And, to me, it can be quite interesting.

Many people have enjoyed using the program, so much so that the small company was sold to Facebook for $1 billion back in April. (That’s not a typo, and that kind of money could get you all of the card companies these days — with plenty left over to start a collection. And the company’s Twitter feed? It’s got more than 10 million followers, dwarfing all of us in the hobby.) And it’s all, at its simplest, a way for people to share what they enjoy and to collect their own little view of the world in a particular place. And it’s quite popular.

For some of us, that view includes a lot of baseball cards and memorabilia.

I could see the flaws in my New Orleans Zephyrs batting helmet any day of the week as it sits in a shelf on my office daily. Why? Because it’s interesting and it was cheap — not because it was used by a superstar (unless you count one-time can’t-miss Pirates prospect Chad Hermansen among that group). But with a little “Lo-fi” image adjustment and a little more brightness/contrast added, those scuffs and scrapes, those layers of dirt and pine tar seem to take on new meaning. Well, at least I noticed some of it more. (You know, us collectors love our details.) I had noticed the scrapes and cracks before, but seeing the helmet in a new light made me go back and look at it again — and there were things I hadn’t noticed before, cracks and marks that make me wonder more about its previous life and how its owner, the player, treated it.

Vintage baseball cards can often have the same feel with those cards that are more flawed sometimes even more impressive. Roger Maris‘ 1961 Topps card seems to carry, at least for me, a perfect reflection of the haunted hero — a simple portrait taken before his life-changing chase of Babe Ruth‘s single-season home run record.

It’s a pricier card that I decided I wanted — but I kept things reasonable by buying a low-grade copy that had a clean, unobstructed view of his face. On my particular card, he is framed by a crease alongside the top left — damage caused years before he joined my cardboard cache — and some scrapes and surface spotting on the right. But the face remains as clear and concerned as it was back in 1961 when it rolled off the Topps printing press, save for a grouping of tiny white spots near his jaw.

After Instagram, though? Those flaws are enhanced with its worn corners enriched just like its colors. The face feels the same to me, though it seems to glow even more intensely. I can’t help but look at it even more.

It’s trivial, but it’s powerful. And it’s simple — and maybe that’s why many of us enjoy collecting.

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Do you use Instagram? Share some of your cardboard photos in the comments below … we just might show off some of them in a future issue of Beckett Baseball. (Here are a few more images from Olds’ messing around with Instagram — we’re sure you can do better than these.)

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor

If you remember USA Baseball‘s Nine Innings of Summer last year, then the video above will make sense — well, at least after the Don West bit.

If not, simply put, the organization is giving away autographed memorabilia once again but in a smaller fashion this year. It starts big — and it starts today — with an autographed Trevor Bauer cap going out to a collector.

Bauer, a first-round pick by the Arizona Diamondbacks last year out of UCLA, was 11-1 with a 2.23 ERA and 116 strikeouts in 93 minor-league innings this season. Tonight, he makes his MLB debut as a starter facing the Braves in Atlanta.

Watch the video to find out about more — and how you can win the Bauer.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Sports Card Monthly Editor

On May 5, Eric LeGrand, the former Rutgers standout who was paralyzed on the field of play two years ago, tweeted showing off his new NFL jersey was going to be available to the masses soon with the proceeds going to spinal cord research.

Today, with the first glimpse at a card from the upcoming 2012 Prestige from Panini America, he has something else to tweet about.

His Rookie Card.

While the 6-foot-2, 275-pound former tackle is paralyzed from the neck down, that didn’t stop his former college coach, Greg Schiano, who is now in charge of the Tampa Bay Bucs, from signing him to the franchise’s offseason roster.

With that, card No. 301 in Prestige has come to life and it will be found in packs of cards beginning this week.

It won’t be his lone Rookie Card as LeGrand appears on the preliminary checklist for at least one upcoming Topps football product, but for now it’s the one that will get all of the attention and adoration of the 64,000-plus fans on Twitter following his journey off the football field, one with the mission of trying to walk once again.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Sports Card Monthly magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Sports Card Monthly Editor | Commentary

It may look like a simple trading card, but it’s got to be an industry first.

It’s a certified autograph card with a Twitter handle inscription — a Social Signatures insert card to be found in the forthcoming 2011-12 Elite hockey card set from Panini America.

Call it the first Twittergraph.

So when Paul Bissonnette sits down to sign his cards, as seen here, he’ll sign his name and write his handle, @biznasty2point0, on his card. In case the Phoenix Coyotes left wing’s penmanship is lacking by the time he signs a few, the same handle appears on the card itself so fans can follow him — or show off their newest card to him.

An innovation such as this does likely come at an added cost — inscriptions often cost card companies an additional fee (just like you when buying at a card show) because of the added time it will take to write them. (Time is money.) But it could pay off for Panini as you can also bet that there’s an added bonus built in here — the cards are quite likely to be talked about on Twitter.

What better way to get collectors talking cards than via tweets about cards from the players on the cards themselves? (It’s not the first Twitter-related trading card, though. You’ll have to go back to 2009 for that. Click here for the info.)

Panini officials have been mum with details on this one — size of checklist, quantity of cards signed and so on — but they will be found one per case in Elite, which arrives late next month.

Meanwhile, a  little birdie (it’s all about the bird on Twitter) informs me that it might be a possibility in other sports as MLB players such as @JasonHeyward have been spotted using their cellphones in certain photo shoots. Will they end up on cards? We’ll have to wait and see — but it’s an interesting possibility.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

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Join Beckett Media’s Chris Olds and Bryan Hornbeck as they rip into two boxes of 2011 Topps American Pie in this latest edition of Box Busters.

What will they find inside? Watch and find out …

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor | Commentary

The return of Topps‘ American Pie line after a decade on the sidelines was a slightly surprising one, but after just glimpsing at some of the cards in the newly released set it’s clear that it has done its job.

It’s a non-sport set that reflects American pop culture and history.

It’s a non-sports set that highlights the past as well as the present — right up to notable events of this year.

It’s a set I want to rip into — even though I haven’t even had it in hand yet.

Yes, the typical sports- or hits-minded collectors will likely balk at what they may find in this one — it’s probably not for you — but anyone who appreciates interesting things on cardboard beyond a certain realm (bats and balls) just might appreciate the scope of what’s seen in the base set alone.

I’ll save the basics and specific breakdowns about the product’s inclusions for another time (Box Busters or another break video), but here are some of the more interesting cards that stood out to me after an initial glance online:

– A card focusing on the death of Kurt Cobain.

– A card focusing on the arrest of Martha Stewart.

– A card focusing on Kanye West‘s awards show tact.

– A card focusing on the O.J. Simpson verdict.

– A card focusing on the legacy of Steve Jobs … and another focusing on the iPod … and others about Apple.

– A card focusing on Twitter.

– A card focusing on Tetris.

– A card focusing on Michael Jackson‘s Thriller.

– A card noting the founding of Google.

– A card focusing on The Unabomber, Ted Kaczynski.

But that’s just me … other cards showcased a few game-changers in pop culture: cell phones, The Ramones, CNN, Nintendo, All In The Family, Richard Pryor, John Lennon, Hot Wheels, Andy Warhol, the birth control pill, the Barbie doll, Motown, Jim Henson, Dr. Seuss, TV dinners, the bikini, the arrival of Playboy, the remote control, credit cards, Nancy Kerrigan, Happy Meals, “Who shot J.R.?”, Survivor … and so on.

Many times celebrity-focused or history-focused releases are chock-full of C-listers that a card company can afford to sign autograph and likeness deals with or with historic names and highlights from the 1960s and before. For a thirtysomething, American Pie is a refreshing release in that it includes plenty of stuff from the last three decades — history that unfolded right before our eyes.

Something tells me that with the base set alone — and countless other insert sets found in American Pie — a lot of collectors will be reliving history inside every single pack.

In between landing our Carrot Top and Wilmer Valderrama autograph and memorabilia cards, of course.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

Click here to view the embedded video.

News-related trading card of the week

MEGA-HUGE, IMPORTANT thing to know of the week

• July is customer appreciation month on Beckett.com (Hint, IT’S JULY.)

This week in lawsuits and other prickly things

• Knock, knock. Who’s There? Wildcat suing. Wildcat suing who? Well, lots of folks.
• What better way to commemorate the MLB All-Star game than with a cactus figurine

First looks and sneak peeks of the week

• 2010-11 National Treasures Basketball
• Upper Deck’s 2010-11 The Cup
• Topps  unveils new names in the Allen & Ginter autograph checklist
• A peep at Panini’s brand new 2011 Gold Standard Football
• 2011 Bowman Draft Picks & Prospects Baseball
• Yo, Adrian! It’s Ringside Boxing Round Two!
• 2011 Topps Tier One Baseball
• 2011 Main Event NASCAR cards
• We’ll tell you the odds, anyway: 2011 Goodwin Champions autographs & memorabilia

Box Busters

• 2010-11 Luxury Suite Hockey

Auction Action

• Signed Black & White Babe Ruth photo (Current bid: $1,999)
• 2010 Topps Sterling Honus Wagner cut auto Relic 1/1 (Starting at: $2,999.99)
• 2008-09 UD Black Michael Jordan Trophy patch auto 1/1 (Current bid: $2,461)
• 1887-90 Old Judge Goodwin & Co Connie Mack (Starting at: $2,500)
• 1980s Star BGS Basketball (Jordan, Bird and more)
• 1970s Wrigley-Field-flown flag (Price: $459.99)

Tweeting tidbits of the week

• Which professional athletes do you follow?
• If you know what #planking is, tweet @tolentinotweets with a hobby plank for a prize
• @darrenrovell knows what we’re talking about (when it comes to planking and cards)

National Sports Collectors Convention news of the week

• Lou Gehrig’s Japan tour jersey and more up for grabs at The National
• Leaf readies promo cards for this year’s NSCC
• Topps announces subjects for 1961 Heritage cards for VIP attendees

This week in mythical hockey players, contests, superheroes and more

• Who in the H-E-double hockey sticks up is Taro Tsujimoto?
• Panini adds Dirk Nowitzki to Panini Authentic autographed memorabilia roster
• Upper Deck to send one lucky collector to the MLS All-Star game
• PSA 10 1956 Mickey Mantle sells for $115,000
• The Dallas Cowboys draft a few from the Marvel Universe

Just for fun (From FunnyorDie.com)

So we’ll be mentioning a few MLB players’ Twitter feeds in the next issue of Beckett Baseball … here’s an obligatory piece of Nick Swisher multimedia we’ll be sending people to see here from the magazine.

Did you know that Swisher apparently has more followers (1.3 million and change) than any other active MLB player? (I, the Swisher fanboy, couldn’t believe it, either.)

Let us know who you follow in the comments field below …