The Top 30 Griffey Acquisitions of 2020: The Runners-Up

Regardless of how nutty a year can get, you can always count on your old pal, The Junior Junkie, to show off some of the coolest Griffeys I acquired over the course of the year. And it has become more or less a tradition, too, that I mention to you that once again it was NOT as good a year as 2015 was. Frankly the odds of my ever again approaching that level of Griffey-getting are less and less likely as the cost of Griffeys climbs through the proverbial roof. Still, it was a decent enough year.

Of course they couldn’t ALL be Top-30 material which is where this post comes in. Here in no particular order and with limited commentary are the Runners-Up - cards not quite good enough to crack the upper tier, but still fun to look at. 

Enjoy!

Panini's streak of killer relic design remains unbroken. And it's one of those "Christmas Cards." Don't I know somebody who collects those?

Get used to that AP logo - you're gonna see it a few times today.

The most common and least expensive of the infamous Stand & Deliver cards from 1997 Score.

Speaking of 1997 Score, they sure took parallels to another level. These you were all but guaranteed to never mistake for a common.

I think even non-Griffey collectors can appreciate a nice JR/SR dual relic.

There's those AP logos again.

This is an 8x10" GIANT, and probably the biggest die-cut I own.

Stadium Club continues to be my favorite set of the year. Hands-down, bar-none, nothing even comes close. I am super proud of Topps for keeping the photo quality so high. Good luck finding packs in stores, though.

Some of these approach “The Man” level chromatics. There are plenty to go around of each of these, so prices are relatively low for what you get. And the red jersey on the CTA only adds to the vibrant colors there. Some very gratifying gets whose prices are not yet totally unreasonable.

I was shocked to find I was missing so many from this set. I still think the regular Starburst versions look better.

Ebay Bucks impulse buy.

I did not have to turn in my report card to get this one, but that's the schtick. I hope my LCS participates because this could be really fun with the kiddos down the line.

I resent these things.

Pacific inserts 4 life. The composition notebook foil is bizarre.

These were a big hit in the collecting groups and some of the nicer manu-relics in recent years...

The big R is for "right handed pitchers bewaRe."

This is one of the prettiest relic designs I've seen from Topps flagship in some time.

I absolutely love these things and have like 20 of them.

I think Panini heard me praise Topps' relic design back there. LOL wow.

Now with vitamin C.

I've always been a big fan of the design of the rip cards, so I didn't mind that these have both already been ripped - I just wanted the cards.

Off-center or not - when it comes to '90's refractors you gotta take what you can get these days.

Preview from 1995 which, as far as I know, didn't end up getting made.

I already had the one on the left, but the one on the right is new to me. And #/100. How about that brand name? "Just Stuff." I mean, I guess.

Great photo and a lovely Mariner-blue relic. Couldn't pass it up.

I don't even really like this one.

This one I LOVE.

These were case hits. And absolute stunners.

Actually a pretty tough '90's insert that very nearly cracked the Top 30.

Big ol' chunk o' pants.

I already have one of these that reads “CIN,” but this is way better.

1:240 or 1:13 BOXES. And a lovely mirror surface that is condition-sensitive as all get out.

One last AP splotch. A real looker, too.

I loved the 1985 throwbacks this year and ended up with a bunch of different ones. These are just a few of the ones I have, and there are plenty more I don't.

The coolest bit here is the serial-number #001/100.

You better believe I 100% bought into the hype. These will probably get their own post soon...

We got a lot of customs based on the Keith Shore design being that it's the one everybody and their grandma bought five of to resell on what became a very bloated market. I thought this one was cute.

And we got a new cameo this year, too. Those don't come up too often (though I do have two new discoveries on their way to my mailbox as I type this - I'll have them up in the Cameo list soon!).

OK, that's more than enough for now. I'm all but certain I left a few out, but there's plenty more coming in the my perennially-nowhere-near-as-spectacular-as-2015 Top 30 posts starting tomorrow with #21-30. Thank for reading.