by Mary Bubbins

Created on: March 24, 2008

Long before the days of Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokemon cards, there was such a pastime called Baseball. It was called America's favorite pastime and many a child dreamed of becoming their athletic hero. This admiration is what sparked the ignition in a young boy to collect as many baseball trading cards as they could of their favorite teams and players. It made them feel like they were the king of the block, and the more cards they acquired, the larger their chest puffed with pride. One of the most popular ways to trade came in the form of playing baseball card games. Not only would these card games help them accumulate as many trading cards as their hands could hold, but they were fun and challenging as well, often requiring a bit of skill and finesse of the hand to take the cake.

The first of the most popular baseball games was flipping the cards. This is a game that anyone can play, but takes a bit of practice to win. The first player stands, takes his card, and then while holding it along his side, flips only his wrist and lets the card drop to the floor. Landing either picture up(heads), or picture down(tails), the second player assumes the same position, and if their card matches the first, they win them both. If not, then player one is the proud papa. There are no rules that require only one card per round and it was common for three to five cards to be thrown by player one and then by player two. The players alternate between who throws first.

The second game was tossing the cards. Anywhere from two to five players could involve themselves in this trading competition, and the object was to get your card closer to the wall than any of your opponents. It's similar to shuffleboard, bocci, and horseshoes in that the placement is key and you can potentially knock off your opponent's throw. The player's must first decide how many cards are used per round and then mark a line that is a reasonable distance from the wall, like six to twelve feet. Standing behind the line, the first player tosses his group of cards, one at a time, towards the wall. Play then moves to the next person. Ideally they could get a card so close to the wall that it would actually lean against it, but if the next opponent going after them is good enough, they can knock it down and land closer. The player whose card is closest to the wall at the end of the round wins the whole she-bang!

Finally there is the game of colors. This was created because of the fact that every year, the basic look of the

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>