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Will the REAL Barry Bonds please stand up? (A fun game)

If you know me, you know I love photoshopping things.  I've been wanting to do something like this for a while, but wasn't sure how it would manifest itself until last night.  I have come up with a fun game.  Can you spot the error?  The game is to look closely at the cards below, and see if you can figure out what is wrong with them ... NO CHEATING!!!  That means, NO GOOGLING.  The answers are at the bottom of the post for you once you are done :)

Let's get started, shall we?

1982 Topps Cal Ripken Jr. Rookie Card

The first REAL collectible multi rookie card of the 1980's features the Iron Man smack dab in the middle.  What is wrong with this?

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1987 Topps Jose Canseco

Jose's most iconic Topps baseball card.  Sitting on the bench, early in his 20s ready to mash.  This card has likely been viewed by you hundreds of times.  What is wrong with it?

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1993 SP Derek Jeter

Jeter's most coveted rookie card:  The 1993 SP.  It has enjoyed some increase in value since retiring.  Something is off with this iconic card, though.  What is it?

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1990 Donruss John Smoltz MVP Error showing Tom Glavine

Donruss goofed up big time here, putting Glavine instead of Smoltz citing the reason "All white dudes look the same".  Ok, maybe they didn't say that.  This, however, is an error-error.  What is the problemo here?

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1986-87 Fleer Michael Jordan Rookie

MJ is not baseball, obviously but shouldn't the most iconic card from the 80s to present be featured here?  The only thing more jaw dropping than its price is how much this card is faked.  What is fake about this one?

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1987 Donruss Opening Day Barry Bonds / Johnny Ray Error

They were both on the Pirates and they both had moustaches, so who can blame Donruss on this faux-pas?  The most expensive Johnny Ray card ever, no doubt.  The moment this error was discovered, collectors scrambled to find this elusive card.  Well, not this card exactly.  Why not?

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AND NOW FOR THE ANSWERS.   Hopefully you didn't peek!

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1982 Topps Cal Ripken Jr. Rookie Card

The card you see shows Ripken, alright.  But what about the other two guys?

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Bob Bonner is safe, but Jeff Schneider morphed into 1970's teen heart throb David Cassidy from the Partridge Family.

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1987 Topps Jose Canseco

So, what is up with Jose?  It looks good, right?

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Check out the Gatorade bottle and banner in the background that I added.  Don't see anything else?  Take a look at his name.  The #1 misspelling for Canseco is "Conseco" so that would probably have been a tough one for folks.

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1993 SP Derek Jeter

This one is very subtle.  It is hard to see right off, as it looks like Derek was in the middle of juggling baseballs but ended up tripping over the SS logo.

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Give up?  The fake card shows the ball not having left his hand yet, whereas the real one shows the ball already having been tossed.

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1990 Donruss John Smoltz MVP Error showing Tom Glavine

Unless you are a Braves fan from the early 90s, you may not get this one.  The pic below is obviously not John Smoltz ... that was the whole point in doing this card, because Donruss put Tom Glavine on it instead.  But this isn't Tom Glavine, either.  Who is it?

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None other than their tomahawk chopping stablemate, Steve Avery.

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Here are the error-error, error and corrected versions altogether.

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1986-87 Fleer Michael Jordan Rookie

I put this one together as a joke last month.  EVERYONE knows this card.  And EVERYONE knows that 9 out of 10 of them are probably counterfeit.  I took a PSA graded copy and worked some magic on it, while asking people online if they thought it was real or fake, and if fake, why?  They came back to me with MANY answers.  "The logo is fuzzy." "The tag is too gold." "The font is off."  Barely anyone got it right....

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...that there was no basketball hoop!  C'mon, peeps!  I mean, what is Jordan dunking into?

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1987 Donruss Opening Day Barry Bonds / Johnny Ray Error

Last, but not least ... We have the Bonds/Ray error.  If you can't tell what is wrong with this one, then do not pass go and do not collect $200.

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The picture you see is not Johnny Ray at all.  It is, as my dad would call him, Sid "Coffee and" Bream.  Bream spent the majority of his career with the Pirates and Braves, but to my knowledge has NEVER been mistaken for Barry Bonds.

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Here is the fake, the real error and the corrected version altogether.  They could almost be triplets, right?

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That's all for now - thanks for playing!  I hope you had fun.

http://tanmanbaseballfan.com/2017/05/will-real-barry-bonds-please-stand-game.html

Tanner Jones, Author of Confessions of a Baseball Card Addict - Now Available on Amazon!

Comments

  • TNP777TNP777 Posts: 5,710 ✭✭✭

    A solid 3/6 for me - I recognized Cassidy, Avery and Bream. I knew something wasn't right about the ball on the Jeter card, but I don't own one or collect Jeter so I couldn't quite place it. Completely whiffed on the spelling on the Canseco card - I'm a bit embarrassed at that. I pride myself, a bit too much as it turns out, on spotting spelling gaffes. Also a bit surprised I missed the missing basket on the Jordan.

    Fun game. Do more.

  • mlbfan2mlbfan2 Posts: 3,115 ✭✭✭

    That was fun. Did you put Sid Bream on the Bonds card because of the very famous hit that involved both of them?

  • DboneesqDboneesq Posts: 18,219 ✭✭

    Great job Tanner. Fun game. I too missed the "missing basket" on the Jordan card!!!!! (As well as most of the others. lol)

    STAY HEALTHY!

    Doug

    Liquidating my collection for the 3rd and final time. Time for others to enjoy what I have enjoyed over the last several decades. Money could be put to better use.
  • mouschimouschi Posts: 695 ✭✭✭✭

    Thanks guys! @mlbfan2 ... nope actually i just was searching for 1987 Pirates players ... I was going to use Bonilla, but figured Bream would be funnier :)

    Tanner Jones, Author of Confessions of a Baseball Card Addict - Now Available on Amazon!
  • you got me w the gatorade banner... fun...thanks

    Back in the hobby after hibernating for many years... Collector from the overproduced years of 1986+
  • muffinsmuffins Posts: 469 ✭✭✭
    edited May 11, 2017 2:09PM

    the flip on the '87 opening day bonds/bream is missing the bar code and cert number.

    eta: duh.

  • mouschimouschi Posts: 695 ✭✭✭✭

    Here is an easy one. We all know and love the '07 Topps Jeter w/Bush & Mantle in the background. What is wrong with this one?

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    Tanner Jones, Author of Confessions of a Baseball Card Addict - Now Available on Amazon!
  • muffinsmuffins Posts: 469 ✭✭✭

    wrong bush.

  • Jimmy_CommonpantsJimmy_Commonpants Posts: 386 ✭✭✭

    Unless I am seeing it wrong, Jeter is batting from the left side of the plate in the photo and I don't think he is a switch hitter.

    I actively collect Kirby Puckett. I have collections of Michael Jordan, Emmitt Smith, Roberto Clemente, Dwight Gooden, Tom Seaver, Errict Rhett and Evan Longoria.

  • mlbfan2mlbfan2 Posts: 3,115 ✭✭✭

    @Jimmy_Commonpants said:
    Unless I am seeing it wrong, Jeter is batting from the left side of the plate in the photo and I don't think he is a switch hitter.

    He's batting righty. The photo shows his follow-through.

  • mouschimouschi Posts: 695 ✭✭✭✭

    Correct guys - HW is in that pic. This is the real one!

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    Tanner Jones, Author of Confessions of a Baseball Card Addict - Now Available on Amazon!
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