Cheap eBay Finds

I do a lot of bargain hunting on eBay. Occasionally, I will pull the trigger. I recently purchased 9 Alex Rodriguez cards and 2 Derek Jeter cards on eBay for less than a buck including shipping. All of the Arod cards show him in a Mariners uniform, but that’s OK for this price. There are a couple of doubles but that doesn’t really bother me. Anyway, here are the photos of my bounty. Don't these guys look young?

Pack Break: 2008 UD Documentary Part 2

As promised, here are the details of my second and final pack of 2008 UD Documentary. I will never buy any of this product ever again. It’s downright terrible. The photos have no relation to the game featured on the card. In some cases, the player in the photo is not named anywhere on the card. On the plus side, I did walk away from this pack with a Derek Jeter base card, Hanley Ramirez gold card (one per pack), and a Kevin Youkilis All-Star insert card (one per 4 packs). It figures that the insert would have to be a Red Sox card. Here are the photos of my haul.

Happy Thanksgiving to All!!

Happy Thanksgiving. I hope everybody has something to be thankful for. I for one am thankful for food, friends, family, and football. I'm sure I'm thankful for other things that begin with the letter F as well. Is there any better day to show off a Turkey Red card? I suggest that there is not. I never had a lot of Turkey Reds although I like the design. I don't think I have ever bought a pack. Below is a 2007 Turkey Red #118 of Hideki Matsui. I acquired it as part of an eBay lot a while ago.

Pack Break: 2008 UD Documentary Part 1

I recently opened a pack of 2008 UD Documentary that I received as part of a larger eBay lot. This was the first pack of this product I have ever opened. I must admit that I was disappointed. Each card features a game during the 2008 season rather than a player. The photo on the front of the card isn't even from the featured game. In some cases, the player on the front of the card didn't even play in the game. John Smoltz is on a card that features a game that Tom Glavine started. You'll also notice that 5 cards feature a Game 159, 3 feature a Game 97, and 2 feature a Game 63. Now that's a lack of variety. On the plus side, each pack contains a gold parallel card and I'm a sucker for parallels. The gold card in this pack was Grady Sizemore. I'll show off another pack of this product soon. Anyway, here are pictures of my bounty.

Goodies from eBay

I recently bought a lot of 42 2008 Stadium Club cards on eBay for $2.99 including shipping. I love the photography and design on these cards. The colors are so bright. Also, the pictures are interesting and unique. Of course, I would never buy an actual pack or box since the prices are so outrageous. But this was a good way to get some Stadium Club cards on the cheap.

Most of the cards were commons:

I received 8 numbered rookie cards:

And a beautiful Mickey Mantle card:

Pack Break: 2007 Fleer Ultra

This pack is part of my eBay 60 cent per pack lot. It’s a pack of 2007 Fleer Ultra. Let’s see how I did:
51-Jeremy Sowers – So far, Sowers has had a disappointing career. I’ll probably try to get this card autographed TTM
99-Ben Sheets – Sheets was injured in 2009. If Sheets is healthy, he is a viable pitcher. Some team will take a cheap shot on him next year.
111-Boof Bonser – Bonser also missed 2009 due to an injury. He should be back with the Twins in 2010. This card will also be destined for a TTM autograph attempt.
139-Cole Hamels – Yet another pitcher to come out of this pack. At least it’s a decent name.
UIM3-Cal Ripken Jr. – This is the “pull” of the pack. How can you go wrong with a Cal Ripken insert?Overall, this was a decent pack. I could have done worse. You’ll notice the 4 base cards are all pitchers in the middle of their delivery. A little boring but I can’t complain. I only wish there were a little more than 5 cards per pack.

2007 SPx Jersey Card - Jake Peavy

This is the Jake Peavy jersey card that I picked up as part of a larger lot on eBay. I promised I would show it off. This card by itself cost less than a buck. It is a 2007 SPx numbered 150/199. Of course, Peavy is no longer a Padre since the Padres can no longer afford good players. Peavy was traded to the White Sox this year while he was injured for a handful of prospects and some magic beans. He made a couple of starts for the Sox. However, Peavy’s contract has a couple years left so the White Sox made the trade to compete over the next few years. Peavy is a bonafide staff ace, but the White Sox still need some more pieces. Anyway, this is a good looking card and the price was right.

Pack Break: 2007 Fleer

I recently bought 10 packs of various baseball cards on eBay for $5.99 including shipping. That’s 60 cents a pack according to my math – not a bad deal. I’ve got some Fleer, Fleer Ultra, and UD Documentary. I’ll share a few of my pack breaks as I go along. This is a retail pack of 2007 Fleer.

Cory Sullivan – Sullivan was a backup outfielder for the Mets this year. An unimpressive start.

Jonathan Papelbon – Although Papelbon is a dominant closer, he is a Red Sox and that’s bad.

Michael Cuddyer – I like Cuddyer. He a good player, fan friendly, and recently Minnesota picked up his $10.5 million option. So if you’re looking for a loan…

Josh Johnson – Johnson is a decent pitcher who will leave Florida once he gets too expensive

Eric Chavez – This card is a mini, inserted in 1:2 packs. I hate cards that aren’t 2.5 inches by 3.5 inches. I’m also mildly sick of Eric Chavez. Needless to say, this card does nothing for me.

Dennis Sarfate – Just another middle reliever

Fred Lewis – I have about 5 rookie cards of this guy and I have never even seen him play.

Troy Glaus – Glaus is a 4-time All-Star but his best days are behind him. Glaus only played 14 games for the Cardinals this year due to injury.

Ryan Zimmerman – This is a Rookie Sensations insert. These are in every pack. It’s a pretty flashy looking card to come from such an inexpensive set.

Jason Bay – This is a Perfect 10 insert. These are inserted in 1:5 packs.

Overall, I’m pretty satisfied with this pack. I think I got my 60 cents worth. I received 3 inserts and 2 “rookie cards.” I wish Fleer was still in production. These cards are perfect for TTM autographs. They are simple, inexpensive, and have no gloss. But there’s no more Fleer. I guess that’s progress for you.

My 3 Favorite Autographs

The idea for this post comes from Dinged Corners. I’m showing off my 3 best autographed cards. And I’m sorry but one of them has a sticker on it. So without further delay, here are my favorite autographs in no particular order.

My first card is a 1993 Topps card of Chuck Knoblauch signed in blue. This was the first card I ever received signed through the mail. I hate landscape oriented cards but the card looks nice anyway. I sent this card out way back in 1999. I think I’m getting old.

The next card is a 2006 Fleer card of Mariano Rivera. I received this TTM by sending to the Yankees spring training facility. Why do I love this card? Because it has the autograph of the greatest closer in the history of baseball. He also happens to be a Yankee. Enough said.

The final auto is a sticker. But I have a story to go with it. This is a 2007 UD Black Adrian Gonzalez autograph numbered 20/25. This card is special because I won it from Pat Neshek through a contest on his website. Also, he wrote an article about his box break which consisted of 2 cards. Check out the link: http://mlb.mlb.com/pa/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071220&content_id=2334394&vkey=mlbpa_news&fext=.jsp

Matsui wins MVP Award

The Yankees won their 27th World Series this week. Hideki Matsui was named MVP of the Series. He certainly deserved this honor after going absolutely insane in the Series. He almost had a cycle in Game 6. Matsui has been a great addition to the Yankees since he arrived in 2003. However, he has been the victim of injuries and father time. I don't think the Yankees should bring Matsui back next year. He would likely be another overpaid veteran designated hitter. Remember Jason Giambi? As long as Damon comes back, the outfield will be set. Maybe Austin Jackson comes up in a year or two. Matsui probably will not be an outfielder next year anyway. Matsui will probably end up as a DH for the next couple of years if he can stay healthy before calling it a career. I'm a Yankee fan and I love Matsui, but it just doesn't make sense to bring Matsui back.

An Open Letter to FOX Sports

Dear Fox Sports:
Your baseball coverage is awful. Your commentators are boring and lack general baseball knowledge. I'm not the only person who feels this way. In fact, every baseball fan I know regardless of team loyalty feels this way. Also, I have been unable to see the end of playoff games due to late start times. You see, my boss wants me to be on time for some crazy reason. This means I need at least 8 hours of sleep in order to be productive the next day. Here's how to fix the playoffs. First, fire Tim McCarver and Joe Buck. And demote Ken Rosenthal to the groundscrew. Replace them with the local announcers from the home team. I'm sure there is a way to do this. Next, start weekday games at 7:00PM and weekend games at 1:00PM. I don't care how much ad revenue you stand to lose. Finally, cut out the lengthy pre-game show and any other non-baseball activities. I trust these changes will be in place for the 2010 playoffs. Thank you for your consideration.
Respectfully yours,
Every Baseball Fan in America