Early Candidate for Best Griffey Acquisition of 2014

I broke down and paid real money for a Griffey recently, and it's just so damn cool I couldn't help showing it off.  Without further ado:

2014 Topps Series 1 All Rookie Cup Team #TARC-8 Relic

Yeah, it's a manufactured relic, and there's a stigma that comes along with that; but it's just so awesome.  The card is no less than 15 base cards thick, so these must be really easy to spot for pack searchers.  It also weighs a ton.  And is that an eBay 1/1?  Why, yes it is.  I ended up with Junior's Cincy number.

There's a real Griffey rookie cup relic out there somewhere (1990 Topps), but there are only three, and I assume they are in the vaults of more prolific collectors than I.  This will have to do. 

I Saw Red (Cardboard): a Trade Post

When I close my eyes and try to imagine what Matt from Red Cardboard looks like, I imagine this:

My mind's eye adds a grizzled neck beard and tight pants.

Matt's is one of my favorite blogs.  You may have seen his recent 800 posts to determine the greatest Reds card of all time.  That manly '57 Klu pictured above took the top spot after being seeded 17th.  Because of Matt I had no choice but to turn to eBay and snag one of my own.

He's also a solid trading partner.  I'm not sure who is ahead at this point, but I've always got a stack growing for him, and it seems he must have the same for me (ahem).  Here are a few he sent my way:

I recently came across a bunch of these in a mystery longbox, and I've given just about all of them away.  This is the first I've seen of the Griffey and it is a beaut.  Gotta love the brown/silver border.

I know it's hard for Matt to give away Cincy Griffeys, so these are appreciated.

These as well.  I didn't know Junior was born on the same day the phonograph came out.  He looks good for 131.

Check out this sweet Dessens.  The guy had 10 wins in....whatever year this card came out.  Stat leader!  I remember when homeboy would be, like, throwing strikes all the time, and the people'd be like "No messins wit Dessens!"  There's also another dude on this card somewhere, but whatevs.  Dessens!  #dessensHOF

Thanks again, Matt!  I'll have more Redlegs out to you soon enough...

"Go Reds."

Bootylicious: Card Show, 2014 Topps, eBay, and LCS Booty Galore

I returned to the card show for the first time in two months yesterday.  My Griffey guy was not there, so I had to make do with what I could find in the unorganized boxes of other dealers that were there.  Luckily I have a reputation now, and one dealer put a Griffey aside for me that I couldn't pass up.

This is the rare 1st Day Production parallel from one of my favorite sets, '93 Stadium Club.  The price was right, so it was an easy yes.  I don't believe I'll be keeping this one in a binder, opting instead for one of those screwy screw cases.

That Flair on the left is one of those Section 2, Row 1, Seat 1 deals I still don't completely understand.  Apparently it's very fancy, though, and it was a value.  I may very well already own the one on the right, but who cares?  It's shiny.

 

I don't mention it often, but I'm a big McCovey fan.  I was also able to snag this one on the relative cheap.  This is my first vintage relic.

With so few Griffeys to buy, I decided to try out a theory on some packs of 2014 Series 1.  A dealer has a freshly-opened box and was selling packs 3 for $5.  You see, I think I have a system for getting the hits out of fresh boxes of 2014 Series 1 based on my experience with the hobby box I busted last week.  I bought just the top two packs from each of the four stacks of packs in the box.  Is my system valid?  Judge for yourself:

 Jhonny Peralta Letter Patch 1/1

 

Paul Goldschidt Clear Parallel #8/10

The rest of the inserts I got were pretty standard, but this is not bad for nine packs, right?

I miss getting excited about pulling Arod cards.

These last two are not inserts, but I did need them for completing my set.  I have yet to scour my cards for SP's, but I will let you know.

I also scored this guy on the bay in exchange for money:

That's the gold one #/99.  It's pretty cool, I guess.  I lucked into it at a low price.  I really want the framed '89 card and the rookie cup relic one.

I'll end with vintage because vintage is cool:

Forget that price tag - I got this at my LCS for a dollar.  One dollar.  Mr. Ryan is an alum of my high school, so I couldn't pass this one up.

Back to the Olympics!

Taking a Break From the Olympics to Write About Griffeys From Foul Bunt: a Trade Post

Quick note: you should join Nachos Grande's group break for it is good.

I'm never sure how to begin a trade post, so I'll just say that William of the excellent Foul Bunt sent me a nice mixed bag of Juniors plus a few I needed. 

My favorite from the bunch is this cool later-year Topps insert I've never seen before.  I really dig the fun design here.

This is the quintessential mixed bag of Griffeys.  Here we hit lots of different brands, eras, and uniforms.  I love flipping through stacks of Griffeys that look like this.

This Looney Tunes card has all the qualities of an oddball for sure, but the set is made by Upper Deck and is so big that it practically demands recognition as a valid thing.  It's also strange that it contains only Junior, Senior, and Jim Abbott (apart from the cartoon characters).  This is one I didn't already have, so yay.  I have no strategy for finishing the set, but I feel like I must.

And the greatness of that Topps card cannot be denied.

You couldn't have a Junior without a Senior.  I'm often contemplated starting a collection for Senior, but I've never really committed to it.  For now my senior collection is very sparse and unofficial.  Perhaps someday, after I get all the Juniors, that is.

Thanks, William!  Love the new business cards!

Oh, shit.  The luge is on....

Play at the Plate's Infamous Cardboard Hookup: a Trade Post

Brian from Play at the Plate is a lucky man.  We all wish we had a friend like his.  You never know what the guy is going to showcase on his blog next, but you know that you'll probably be a little jeals. 

It seems his friend has everything from cool vintage to blinged-out modern era stuff and everything in-between, and all at brother-in-law prices.  I very presumptuously requested that he snag any Griffeys he may come across next time he makes it over there, and he was kind enough to humor me.  He sent some excellent late-90's/early-00's Griffeys.  Here they are, hot off the scanner:

This card is made of steel.  I felt a difference immediately, then read the logo at the top and was like, "Whaaaaa?"  I dropped it onto a granite countertop from a height of one inch and it went "clang."  Super steely.  My wife bought a ham, and I had half a mind to slice off a hunk and with this very card.  I have half a mind about a lot of things.

This SP design was the last one I remember seeing before I stopped collecting, and I remember not being all that crazy about it.  I've come around, though.  Super thick with giant, bold gold stamps - it's unique.  Doesn't scan too well, but unique.  I love the set now.  Plus I needed that insert on the left, so these were especially welcome.

I know I've called the 1994 Upper Deck Griffey base card the "Superman card" in the past, but this '03 Topps Chrome is a close runner-up just for the color scheme and the shape of the inset picture.  I can't bring myself to make fun of Topps Chrome, guys.  It's awesome. 

I also think Leaf was at its best right before it stopped being made - case in point: that card on the left.

Thanks, Brian!  I already have a bunch of catcher cards saved up for your next trade package.

Hometown Heroes Heroes: a Tale of Two PWEs

I do try and make it a point to keep up with the latest releases, even when those releases don't contain any logos.  When I learned that my local Target store was selling 2013 Panini Hometown Heroes I thought, "It's not that big a set.  I'm sure to pull one of the several Griffeys from that brand in only a few packs."  And yet, pack after pack yielded no Griffeys.  Don't get me wrong, the cards are reasonably cool and make for excellent trade fodder, but what about the big picture?  I'm here for Griffeys, friends.  Griffeys.

I bought numerous more packs and even a jumbo pack from a card show but to no avail, I about gave up - I was ready to throw in the towel.  Translation: wait for someone else to pull the Griffey, package it, mail it to COMC, pay the 25 cents for processing, wait the 30 days for processing, then get around to pricing it, then after I buy it wait until I have an appropriate quantity purchased to have them all shipped, then wait for the shipping.  This is like a two month process, folks, and Daddy needs his fix.

Lucky for me we have a really great blogging community, because not one but two different bloggers sent me this gem via PWE in the same small amount of time.


Jon at Community Gum and Dime Box Nick both came through with this little beaut.  In fact they arrived only a day apart.

 

I would like to have seen a Cincinnati short print of this one.

Nick was also kind enough to throw in this early Mariners schedule featuring their newest superstar:

Thanks for feeding the habit, guys!  Jon, I don't remember if I've sent you stuff, but you're now on the list.  Nick, I've already got you covered, bro.  Thanks again!

A Delightfully Hit-Heavy Hobby Box of 2014 Topps

I guess I have a new tradition.  Last year when the flagship set came out I bought a box, and I used that purchase to justify this one.  My goal was to get most of the base set knocked out and a few of the more common Griffey inserts.  Turns out I got zero Griffeys.  None.  Nada.  But I don't consider this purchase a failure by any means.  I ended up with a bunch of great hits, and immediately scanned them all for your face balls to enjoy.  Here they are without base card interruption.

This was in my very first pack:

I'm not going to lie - I was pissed.  I thought this was going to be the one relic in the entire box, and nothing against Ben, but I don't collect him or his team.  I got worried this box would be a bust.

Then this was in my second pack:

This is one of those framed rookie reprints they've been talking about.  It's got to be a quarter-inch thick and weighs about a half pound.  This one is the black-bordered version, the most common, but she's a beauty and probably my favorite pull from the box.  But wait, there's more.

This was in my fourth pack:

My first ever silk collection card.  This is of the newly-mustachioed Jeff Samardzjidzidjaba.  I'm officially a fan of this parallel.

But the hits kept coming.  This was in my seventh pack:

That would be the 1/1 black printing plate of Andres Torres.  I don't know him, but hopefully somebody will.  It's the first printing plate I've ever pulled myself.

In my eighth and ninth consecutive packs were these guys:

A couple of lovely foil-stamped vintage buybacks.  Part of me was thinking "hot box" at this point, but thereafter the hits stopped and all I got were relatively standard parallels and inserts.  Here's all of them:

These cards without relics don't really do it for me.

These are growing on me.

So are these.

These I find just OK, but I do like the concept.

These are not quite red, but they're not quite pink, either.  They're puce.  Puce.

Still not sure what to do with these Power Player cards.  I'll probably just bite the bullet and put the codes into the website.  Maybe I'll win a cool autographed Griffey or something.

As for the base cards, the box contained 296.  Number of duplicates?  ZERO.  Well done, Topps.

I have yet to comb through my base cards for SP's, but I'm happy with my hobby box even if I find none. 

As a whole I like the 2014 set.  I hear a lot of complaining about the cards around the blogsphere, but I really have no idea why.  The photography is fresh and fun, and I even like the base card design.  It's neat.  No hate here.

As usual, most of this is available for trade for Griffeys.  I only need 22 cards to complete Series 1 now, so I'll have that list up soon.  I also have a bunch of extra base cards from my previous 2014 purchases, so those are available, too.