It's late, but I figured I'd try getting out one last post in 2018 to bring up my total for the year to an even 270. Glad to see my posting was up a bit this year from 2016 (254) and 2017 (257). It wasn't always easy, but still managed to get out several posts per week. Go me!
This is sort of a Sentimental Sundays post (ok, it's Monday, but I took the day off work, so feels like a Sunday). I went through an old shoe box of cards from back before my full-fledged return to the hobby, and picked out some old cards from sets I'm working on. Could "past me" help out with some of my in-progress setbuilds? Let's check them out (plus I can use this post as documentation of my old collection and not feel so bad for "cheating on it" by taking out cards and integrating them into my current collection).
Woo.. 3-for-3 here, needing all these '72 Topps HOFers. I'm now up to 7% complete with this recently-begun quest. Got the pair of Killers back in 2005 in one of my first forays into buying cards on eBay ($0.99 + $0.95 s&h).
Needed half of these 1975 Topps cards: Seaver (scored this one in 2011 from a guy named Will, who's an accomplished musician) and Ryan/Carlton (which was a cherished highlight of my collection from the early 90s... think it was an LCS pickup, though might have been a trade with a classmate). Already had the Carew and Rookie Infielders. 58.64% complete.
Looks like I needed all three of these 1976 Topps. That Hammer sunset card is nice one to check off! I believe that was another eBay pickup sticking my toe in the water with baseball cards between stretches of full-on collecting. Now at 27.4% complete here.
1978 Topps-- some solid names among these rookies. I always liked multi-player rookie cards and the eternal promise they seem to possess. Needed the top 2, had the bottom 2.
"Hall Rating" leaders for this group:
Lou Whitaker 145
Dale Murphy 87
Lance Parrish 80
Jack Morris 77
Card Savers and yellowed top loaders are not a part of my collection besides sentimental remnants among these "pre-return to the hobby" cards of mine. Had the '74 Gibson, but this is an upgrade. Needed the '77 Fisk... hell of a card.
1979 Topps. Needed the Alan Trammell 2nd-Year and Bob Welch rookie, but already had the Cardinals Prospects. 30.81% complete
Ending the post with some Donruss. I haven't made a wantlist for '83 Donruss yet, but I'll put this pair of rookies with the few cards I've rounded up so far. Looks like I've already got the '84 Viola.
With some luck, perhaps I'll complete one or two of these sets in 2019. Thanks to past-me for the help. As always, if you want to lend a hand, take a look at my wantlist and let me know.
My tongue-in-cheek collecting goal for 2018 was to not finish any vintage sets-- sort of giving myself an excuse to chill out a little on that front. And it looks like I'll accomplish that goal. I mean-- well, I did complete 1980 Topps, which is in the grey area for what is considered vintage. And I also checked off 1982 Topps and a few other 80s sets. But I didn't finish any pre-1980 sets, so yes, it's an achieved goal!
But I made decent progress, so maybe my 2019 collecting goal should be to complete either 1957 or 1964 Topps, both of which I'm at around 70% complete currently. This Mazeroski rookie was a nice recent pickup. Off-center, but otherwise in great shape.
I also picked up about 30 cards in my latest COMC order. Highlights include Herb Score (woo!), Dick Groat ('60 NL MVP), and the great Robin Roberts.
Whitey Herzog here is another HOF RC, though he was voted in due to his success as a manager and general manager, not his exploits on the diamond. The card is in fine condition other than a little gash in the middle of the right side, not unlike my Brooks Robinson rookie from the same set. It was pretty cheap, so why not.
But the biggest add to mention here is this Jim Bunning. It's a tough high-number. A bit of a "dirty" PSA 4, but I think I got a good deal on it. Plus it's another coveted Hall of Fame Rookie Card. I believe I'm now down to needing only one more HOF RC in the set: Don Drysdale.
I'm at 291/417, good for 69.78% complete. Not exactly knocking on the door of completion, but at least well over the hump. Maybe I should turn my 2019 goals on the likes of 1974-1979 Topps, which are less daunting, but if I want to reach, '57 would be a good one to strive for.
I recently added another piece to my Darth Vader custom booklet.
Here's one of the sides when it's folded up.
Here's the other side.
And here it is opened up. Jake Lloyd as lil' Anakin is the new addition. I didn't have to make a custom overlay for it, as the original card works well enough.
I'm still on the lookout for a Hayden Christensen auto card that'll work (and at a good price), and after that I will consider the booklet complete, as those are the 4 main guys to portray the character.
This year is the 12th Annual Festival of Lightsabers in my house. It's where I have myself (well, my wife is along for the ride) a Star Wars film festival during the week between Christmas and New Years. I've actually kept records on the Festival throughout the years, so in case anyone is curious, here's how it has gone down:
FESTIVAL OF LIGHTSABERS : history
2007 - 1st Annual Festival of Lightsabers
I, II, III
IV, V, VI - special editions
2008 - 2nd Annual Festival of Lightsabers
I II III
IV V VI - original theatrical versions
Ewok movies
2009 - 3rd Annual Festival of Lightsabers
I II III
IV V VI - theatrical
2010 - 4th Annual Festival of Lightsabers
I [The Phantom Edit fan edit]
II [Attack of the Phantom fan edit]
III [regular]
IV V VI - special editions
Robot Chicken star wars special I
Family Guy - something something dark side [empire]
Star Wars Holiday Special w/ Rifftrax commentary
2011 - 5th Annual Festival of Lightsabers
Family Guy - It's a Trap [Jedi]
Clone Wars II animated film
III
IV V VI - original theatrical versions
Family Guy - Something, Something Dark Side [Empire]
2012 - 6th Annual Festival of Lightsabers
Rifftrax prequels
Trilogy special editions
2013 - 7th Annual Festival of Lightsabers
New Hope [original]
Empire [original]
Clones
Sith
Family Guy (New Hope)
Jedi [original]
2014 - 8th Annual Festival of Lightsabers
I, II, III
IV, V, VI - special editions
2015 - 9th Annual Festival of Lightsabers
IV - special edition
V - special edition
II "Attack of the Phantom" fan edit
III
VI - theatrical
VII (in the theater, IMAX 3D)
+ All 3 Family Guy specials
+ Fanboys
2016 - 10th Annual Festival of Lightsabers
25 - Rogue One (in the theater, IMAX 3D)
26 - A New Hope (special edition)
27 - Empire (special edition)
28 - Attack of the Clones
29 - Revenge of the Sith
30 - Jedi (special edition)
31 - Force Awakens
2017 - 11th Annual Festival of Lightsabers
24 - Force Awakens
25 - Last Jedi (in the theater, IMAX 3D)
26 - Family Guy Blue Harvest + Robot Chicken SW Episode I
27 - Rogue One
28 - IV (theatrical)
29 - Family Guy Something Something Darkside + Robot Chicken SW Episode II (I also watched the Star Wars episode of that Netflix "Toys That Made Us" show)
30 - V (theatrical) + Robot Chicken SW Episode III
31 - VI (theatrical) + Family Guy It's a Trap
2018 - 12th Annual Festival of Lightsabers
26 - Solo
27 - Rogue One
28 - A New Hope (special edition)
29 - Empire (special edition)
30 - Jedi (special edition)
31 - The Force Awakens
1/1 - The Last Jedi
I was a little bummed to not have a new Star Wars movie out this holiday season to carry on our recent tradition of watching one in the theater on Christmas Day. I think they should have held onto Solo until December instead of releasing it back in May, where it was a bomb by Star Wars standards. Looks like Episode IX is due out 12/20/2019, so that's cool.
I wasn't all that excited for Rogue One when it first came out, but in hindsight, it's probably the best of the new films.
My wife's big Christmas gift from her folks was a new TV-- a 55" 4K resolution behemoth (and obviously I benefit from the gift too!). And she also got some LED striplights for a neat backlit effect. So we practically have a damn "home theater" thing going on now. Nice to watch the Star Wars movies on a high-end, big-ass TV.
- - - ---o
Here are the results from my recent contest/draft:
1. Chris the Collector - Prize U - Luis Tiant 2003 Topps Retired auto
2. Brett Alan - Prize Q - 6-card lot of shiny Topps Fire parallels
3. The Turrdog - Lot Z - Tom Brunansky and Daryl Boston Topps Retired autos
4. CrazieJoe - Prize C - 5-card oddball lot
5. Nick Sheren - Prize S - Priority Mailing of various baseball cards
6. Bo - Prize B - Willie McCovey lot
7. night owl - Prize W - a pair of 2018 Tribute Dodgers. Jansen and Sutton.
8. Jafronius - Prize D - Jorge Soler auto/relic
9. John Miller - Prize R - 4-card vintage lot
10. Rod (Padrographs) - Prize V - "Neglected Hall of Famers" custom set
11. Larry Presnall - Prize I - pair of Orioles autos
12. Nick (Dimebox) - Prize E - Sandlot lot
Does that look correct to everyone? Let me know, if not. I think I have all your guys' mailing addresses except for Jafronius. I'll try to get the prizes out soon, but it might be a couple weeks. Thanks again to everybody for reading, commenting, and whatnot!
- - - ---o
Beermas 2018
Every year, my awesome wife gifts me a fancy beer for 12 days (of Beermas), culminating on Christmas Eve. Here's a quick recap of this year's beers.
1. Omnipollo - Mango Margarita Slush IPA
Almost like a sour beer. Weird, but good.
2. Founders - Frootwood
Nice sweetness.
3. Evil Twin - Breaking the Waves
The lactose smoothes it out, hard to believe it's so boozy (10% ABV)
4. Breakside - Coming Out Party
Nice enough beer.
5. North Jetty Brewing - Ledbetter Red Scottish-Style Ale
Smooth, full body.
6. Grimlock - Rye Porter
One of my favs this year.
7. Snow Cave - Wintertime Ale
I'm not a big Belgian style beer fan.
8. Hopworks Urban Brewery - Kentucky Christmas
Another favorite of the bunch.
9. Decadent - Black Raspberry Cream Pop
Not as sweet as you might expect from the name, but not bad.
10. Megafauna - IIPA
Tastes pretty boozy, but ok.
11. Pelican Brewing - Cherried At Sea
Wasn't crazy about this one. (Again, I'm not big on Belgian-style ales.)
12. Stone - Woot Stout
Stone is one of my favorite breweries, and this one didn't disappoint. I share a little taster glass of each beer with my wife, and this one was her favorite.
This great looking Orlando Cepeda 2005 Topps Retired refractor auto had been sitting on eBay for years, overpriced and with no Best Offer option (It wasn't outrageously overpriced, but definitely more than Cepeda autos typically sell for, even low-numbered ones). This holiday season, with the help of a 15% off eBay deal, I bit the bullet and brought it home. I love Topps Retired refractors and I love cards numbered 12/25, so it was hard to resist.
I already own his 2004 Topps Retired Christmas Card (I posted a pic of it the other day.. the one where he's been photoshopped into holding a carton of eggnog), so now I just need to keep an eye out for the 2003 Retired version to complete the trifecta!
- - - ---o
The 3rd through 12th Day of Christmas condensed into today
The camera on my phone has been acting up lately (sorry for the tilted Cepeda photos.. that wasn't a stylistic choice, lol). This threatens my plan of posting for 12 days in a row, since the camera issue makes it more of a pain to get images and keep the daily posts coming.
So I guess let's just blow it all out now. All eligible folks can go ahead and choose a prize from the pool, first come, first served, up to 10 winners, joining Chris and Brett from earlier. Comment on this post with your pick. [UPDATE: Looks like that's a wrap. Thanks, everybody. I'll try to come back with another contest soon since this one didn't quite go as planned.]
Again, here's the list of eligible folks, as explained a few posts back:
Sport Card Collectors
Collecting Cutch
Bulldog
Julie Owens Brett Alan
Fuji
John Miller
TSHenson
shoeboxlegends
The Lost Collector
Jafronius
Tony Burbs Chris (The Collector)
JediJeff
madding
Nick (Dimebox)
Billy Kingsley
night owl
Jon (Penny Sleeves)
Dennis (Too Many)
Trevor P
Zippy Zappy
Bo
Nick Vossbrink
Corky
P-town Tom
gregory
GCA
ketchupman36
Jason (HeavyJ)
Greg Zakwin
CrazieJoe
Marc
Brian (Highly Subjective)
Coast To Posts
Rob
Laurens
SumoMenkoMan
Jeffery Turri
Mark Hoyle
Twitch
Rod (Padrographs)
RAZ
Nick Sheren
Larry Presnall
Thanks everybody, for the birthday/Christmas well wishes.
When I tell people my birthday is Christmas Eve, they often respond saying they feel sorry for me, assuming I got screwed out of presents. Haha, they never met my family!
They spoil me rotten every December 24/25 and this year was no exception. In addition to the Topps Tribute box I posted about yesterday, I also got these boxes of cards under the tree. Definitely more than I was expecting, especially the bonus Ghostbusters box, but I'll get to that story another day.
Today I'll be recapping the 2017 Five Star box. Just 2 cards per box (both autos), so it's a gamble.
Woah! I lucked into a nice Cal Ripken, Jr #'d 9/15! Definitely a sweet pull of an all-time great.
If anything is a little bittersweet about this pull is that I already have a couple nice Ripken autos in my collection. Would have rather pulled an auto I don't have yet, like say Ichiro, Jeter, Mariano, or even Judge. But Cal is still among the best names I could have possibly pulled, so I can't complain. I'll happily add this to my Iron Man PC, though if anyone wants to make a compelling trade offer, I'd listen.
As for my second auto...
Well, it's not as exciting as Cal Ripken, but still a solid pull of one of today's top pitchers, Noah Syndergaard. I'll take it! I seem to have a knack for pulling hits from the Mets rotation, as in recent years I've pulled a couple autos of Steven Matz. I also have a Zack Wheeler auto. (Just my luck, I don't have the best guy, deGrom). But back to Thor, he's been the subject of trade rumors lately, with my Padres being among the interested parties.
- - --o
2nd Day of Christmas
Sorry if my last post was confusing regarding the contest/draft thing. I'm just trying to do a little something nice for friends 'o the blog, while also trying to get some action on the blog during what's usually a slow time of the year. So the plan is I'm posting for 12 days in a row (12 Days of Christmas), and on each post, there will be a new winner. On day one, it was Chris. Now on day two, it'll be the first eligible person (listed below) to comment on this post choosing a prize from the prize pool. (Update: Congrats Brett Alan! He picked the shiny Topps Fire lot.)
Sport Card Collectors Collecting Cutch Bulldog Julie Owens Brett Alan Fuji John Miller TSHenson shoeboxlegends The Lost Collector Jafronius Tony Burbs Chris (The Collector) JediJeff madding Nick (Dimebox) Billy Kingsley night owl Jon (Penny Sleeves) Dennis (Too Many) Trevor P Zippy Zappy Bo Nick Vossbrink Corky P-town Tom gregory GCA ketchupman36 Jason (HeavyJ) Greg Zakwin CrazieJoe Marc Brian (Highly Subjective) Coast To Posts Rob Laurens SumoMenkoMan Jeffery Turri Mark Hoyle Twitch Rod (Padrographs) RAZ Nick Sheren Larry Presnall
Prize Q - 6-card lot of shiny Topps Fire parallels
Merry Christmas, everybody! My mom has had a hot streak of getting me great high-end boxes for my birthday. First there was a box with two Mike Trout autos, and then a box with a Trout 1/1.
Will this year's box carry on the tradition?
Boom! It's not Trout, but this is still a terrific start to the box! I've got one Kris Bryant auto already, but it's an unlicensed Panini card so I'm thrilled to be able to add a legit-Cubs autograph to the PC. From peeking on eBay, looks like this card is already "live" so shouldn't take me long to redeem it.
As for the other autos in the box, there were a couple young guys with promise who haven't quite put it together yet (Bradley Zimmer [orange /25] and Lewis Brinson [green /99]), and an old guy, HOFer Phil Niekro [/65]. The box promises 3 autos, so that means the Bryant redemption was just a sweet bonus.
Lots of star-power with the relics, though the jersey pieces themselves are nothing special, just boring grey or white jersey swatches. But hey, they're all numbered under 100 and I sorta collect all these dudes, so I'm happy with these pulls. Max Scherzer, Ichiro, Giancarlo Stanton, Anthony Rizzo.
Decent base cards, too. Trout doesn't get shutout. The Benintendi is a numbered parallel (/99).
Good stuff.. thanks, Mom! No Mike Trout hits, but still plenty of good cards for my collection.
As for my December 24th otherwise, it was a nice evening at the in-laws. I'm a little sick of It's a Wonderful Life and Miracle on 34th Street every damn year, but it makes my mother-in-law happy, so I can deal with it, lol. It was a nice birthday. On social media, despite a few solid tweets, I lost 2 or 3 followers (what kind of monster unfollows someone on their birthday?!)-- can't please all the people all the time, I guess. Screw 'em. But yeah, was a good birthday overall.
Did you know that the holiday season of Christmas actually lasts for 12 days and begins on 12/25? Yep, while counting down to Christmas might be more popular these days, the 12 Days of Christmas technically lasts into January.
Going old school, I've got a 12 Days of Christmas giveaway starting now. Here are the rules: The eligible people are listed below, thanks to their recent commenting.. always appreciated. Y'all only get one pick.. once you successfully claim a prize, you're done. Just be the first eligible person to pick a prize (from the prize pool) by commenting on this post. Go! [Update: Chris took Day One, claiming the Tiant auto] Once there's a winner, you'll have to wait till the next day for your chance to pick again. And be specific.. if you just say "give me whatever" or something like that, your pick won't count.
Sport Card Collectors
Collecting Cutch
Bulldog
Julie Owens
Brett Alan
Fuji
John Miller
TSHenson
shoeboxlegends
The Lost Collector
Jafronius
Tony Burbs Chris (The Collector)
JediJeff
madding
Nick (Dimebox)
Billy Kingsley
night owl
Jon (Penny Sleeves)
Dennis (Too Many)
Trevor P
Zippy Zappy
Bo
Nick Vossbrink
Corky
P-town Tom
gregory
GCA
ketchupman36
Jason (HeavyJ)
Greg Zakwin
CrazieJoe
Marc
Brian (Highly Subjective)
Coast To Posts
Rob
Laurens
SumnoMenkoMan
Jeffery Turri
Mark Hoyle
Twitch
Rod (Padrographs)
RAZ
Nick Sheren
Larry Presnall
Prize U - Luis Tiant 2003 Topps Retired auto
Congrats, Chris! Looks like people are still picking in the comments.. Sorry for any confusion, but the contest is "dead" for today now. Check back tomorrow for another chance.
I haven't picked up many new Christmas Eve Cards this year, but here's a decent one.
While I haven't pulled the trigger on starting a Charlie Blackmon PC, like him enough to where I wouldn't rule it out in the future. He's led the NL in runs scored the past couple years and has a lifetime batting average over .300. Respect!
Also, today is my birthday, the big four-one. Here are the 41 most recent folks who've commented on my blog:
Sport Card Collectors
Collecting Cutch
Bulldog
Julie Owens
Brett Alan
Fuji
John Miller
TSHenson
shoeboxlegends
The Lost Collector
Jafronius
Tony Burbs
Chris (The Collector)
JediJeff
madding
Nick (Dimebox)
Billy Kingsley
night owl
Jon (Penny Sleeves)
Dennis (Too Many)
Trevor P
Zippy Zappy
Bo
Nick Vossbrink
Corky
P-town Tom
gregory
GCA
ketchupman36
Jason (HeavyJ)
Greg Zakwin
CrazieJoe
Marc
Brian (Highly Subjective)
Coast To Posts
Rob
Laurens
SumoMenkoMan
Jeffery Turri
Mark Hoyle
Twitch
Good news, guys and gal!.. You're eligible for my 12 Days of Christmas c0ntest/draft thing that starts tomorrow. There will be 12 winners, so not everybody will take home a prize, but you'll have to keep a watchful eye on the blog for the next few days if you want to win a prize. (It'll mostly be a first-come, first-pick dealy.)
If you're reading this on Christmas Eve and are disappointed to not see your name on the list of eligible folks, well, it's a Christmas miracle! Comment on this post by the end of the day (12/24/18 11:59 pm Pacific) and I'll squeeze you onto the list. (UPDATE: now closed!)
As for prizes, resurrected from the early days of my blog is the Prize Pool! Trying to get a nice variety of available prize options.
Thanks for reading and have a Merry Christmas, if you're into that sorta thing!
I was thrilled to win this awesome Harold Baines card from Brian the other day. He had a contest post of predicting where Andrew McCutchen would end up. I pulled Philadelphia out of my ass, and wow, a few hours later, it was announced that he did in fact sign with the Phillies!
I've always liked Harold Baines and was pleasantly shocked at the news of his HOF election. This is a great card to ring in the occasion in my card collection. Panini Flawless cards are always classy. No logos, but there's enough going on to where you don't really notice, between the two impressive patch bits and his crazy autograph. Harold doesn't have the most visually appealing signature, but still much better than a lazy squiggle. The low serial number is a nice feature, too.
And I won this pink parallel in Brian's wonderful Save The Boobies event back in October. Victory was mine in this instance thanks to my lucky pick back in September that J.D. Martinez would hit the first double of the 2018 World Series. Sure enough that prophecy was fulfilled a month later in Game 1! For my nostradamus-like abilities, I scored this Giancarlo Stanton / Aaron Judge "award show" checklist from Series Two #'d 42/50. I collect both these guys, though I'll likely throw this in the Judge PC since I already have well over 100 Giancarlo cards and I'm still getting there with Judge.
Always down for bonus Cutch cards thrown in for the ride.
But the real surprise punch of the package was this Adrian Beltre bat relic #'d 60/99. Heck of an addition to the ol' Beltre PC.
Thanks for the contests and the bonuses, Brian! Very generous of you.
- - - ---o
Next up is Fuji. I figured we were square, but somehow I was still on his "hit list", and hey, I'm not going to object to receiving cards in the mail.
The 2015 Chrome George Springer is a refractor.. nice! And Fuji was just a little late on getting me that '82 Jack Morris I needed for my set, beaten to the punch by Turrdog, but still appreciated.
The meat of the package was this pair of Mad Dog Madlock relic cards.
Awesome stuff! Thank you, Fuji!
- - - - - --o
Lastly, Dennis from Too Many Verlanders graciously included me in his blast of holiday mailings.
Kicking off with a neat pair of blue Gavins.
Some Pads from the Past I collect, Gwynn Jr, Nevin, and a golden Giles.
Wow, now this is a Christmas package. These ornament cards from Pacific are a blast.
But the "Christmas Cards" that really get my attention are 12/25 cards. I'm always happy to land a card of any player with that yuletide numbering.. but a guy I collect? That's a bullseye for my collection! HOFer Greg Maddux and Guy From Granite Marcus Giles, both top tier dudes I collect.
Big thanks, Dennis! I'll hit you back with a return soon.
Merry Christmas, Brian, Fuji, and Dennis! Your generosity brightened my holidays.
