Christmas Swag!

Merry Christmas everyone!! I hope everyone found something nice under the tree. If you’re reading this blog, someone probably gave you baseball cards for Christmas. My Christmas Day haul included 5 packs of 2008 Upper Deck X. I always liked this set but never bought any packs or boxes. I probably should have. I think I did pretty well with my 5 packs. There were no hits but I'm happy with what I pulled. There are 2 inserts in every pack if you count the Die Cuts as an insert. That gives me the sense that I’m actually getting a value. I’m not a big fan of the Die Cut cards. They are awkward to handle. Also, you might notice that some of them weren’t fully cut on the top and bottom of the card so the part that should be cut off remains with the card. Anyway, here are the results.

Pack 1:
Chase Utley
Albert Pujols
Mark Teixiera – Die Cut
Brandon Webb – Xponential
Whitey Ford – YSL
Robinson Cano

Pack 2:
Brandon Phillips
Lastings Milledge
Nate McLouth – Die Cut
Jonathan Papelbon – Xponential
Garrett Atkins
Kosuke Fukudome

Pack 3:
Josh Hamilton
Daisuke Matsuzaka
Josh Beckett – Die Cut
Ryan Zimmerman – Xponential
Ryan Howard
David Wright

Pack 4 (For the BJ Upton and Vlad Guerrero fan):
Derek Jeter
BJ Upton (Die Cut)
Vladimir Guerrero – Xponential 2
Vladimir Guerrero – Die Cut Gold
BJ Upton
Mark Teixiera

Pack 5:
Conor Jackson
Matt Holliday
Howie Kendrick – Die Cut
Trevor Hoffman – Xponential
Bobby Murcer – YSL
Nate McLouth

Yankees from Play at the Plate

I received this package from Play at the Plate. It’s mostly 2008 UD Documentary Yankee cards but there are some other Yankee cards thrown in for good measure. I have never been a big fan of UD Documentary but these are Yankee cards so I must make an exception. It’s a nice group of cards. The scans are below. I think my favorite card might actually be the O Pee Chee Phil Coke rookie card. For some weird reason, I like that black border. I wish the Yankees could have traded someone else to get Granderson. Anyway, a thank you package will be in the mail at some point.

Pack Break: 2007 Fleer Ultra

This is my latest pack of 2007 Fleer Ultra. I pulled my share of washed up players in this pack. With only 5 cards, a couple of cards can ruin a pack.

1. Gary Sheffield – Shef is a role player at best these days. He is well past his prime. Also, he has a reputation as a professional jerkass.
2. Conor Jackson – Jackson is still young but he missed a bunch of time due to desert fever or valley fever or some kind of fever. If Jackson can stay healthy, he could be productive.
3. Matt Morris – Morris is now retired after some good years with the Cardinals. He fell off the cliff pretty quickly and last played with the Pirates.
4. Richie Sexson – Sexson is one of those home run or nothing type of players. But he quietly faded away, didn’t he?

5. Daisuke Matsuzaka – This is definitely the pull of the pack. It’s a Dice-K Lucky 13 Rookie Card. I know it’s a Red Sox card, but it’s still nice.

TTM Mailbag: Pat Neshek

This is my favorite TTM success to date. It comes from Pat Neshek c/o the Twins training facility in Fort Myers. For those of you who are fans of Mr. Neshek you know that he is an avid autograph collector and friend to the hobby. For those of you who aren’t fans, you should be. Check out his website at http://www.eteamz.com/PatNeshek/news/index.cfm?cat=242699 Anyway, he signed a 2007 Topps and 2007 Upper Deck in blue Sharpie in only 8 days. As an interesting sidenote, the 2007 Topps came out of a hobby box and the 2007 Upper Deck came from a 10 cent box at a card show.

More Jersey Card Goodies!

I recently bought a bunch of game-used jersey cards on eBay. It was a pretty good haul – nothing spectacular, but I think I got a good deal. Overall, the tab came to 21 bucks and change including shipping. I received 15 2007 SPx cards of various players including two different cards of Matt Cain. And all of the cards are numbered which makes me happy. The scans are below. I like the 2007 SPx design. It’s clean and simple. Also, those big letters do something for me.

But wait, there’s more!!! I also received 15 UD Ultimate Collection jersey cards in this lot. These cards aren’t numbered but they look cool. A neat little detail is that some of the jersey swatches have tiny holes from where seams were sewed together. My only beef is that some players who changed teams are shown in the old uniforms even though the new team name is displayed. Oh well. Overall, I think I got a pretty good deal. I will keep some of these cards. Some will be resold on eBay and some will be traded. Anyway, more scans below.

Pack Break: 2007 Fleer Ultra

This is a pack of 2007 Fleer Ultra from my eBay lot. It only had 5 cards but I think I did OK. Keep in mind that this pack cost me about 60 cents.

Victor Martinez – Even though Martinez was traded to the Red Sox, I still like this card. Martinez is shown in his old Indians uniform which makes it OK. Plus, he is one of the best catchers in the game.

Jeremy Bonderman – Bonderman had a miserable 2009, but – well, there is no but. At his best, Bonderman stinks.
Nick Johnson – I like this card because Johnson is an ex-Yankee. He has had his share of injuries, but Johnson can be decent when healthy.
Mark Teixiera – This is the best card in the pack. Tex was the MVP of the Yankees and should have been league MVP. I don’t mind that he is featured in a Rangers uniform either.
Mike Piazza – This is a Faces of the Game insert. I can’t complain whenever I pull an insert. But, Piazza in an A’s uniform at the end of his career leaves a little to be desired.

Welcome to New York!!

So the Yankees have traded for Curtis Granderson. It seems like he will take over center field duties for Melky Cabrera who will move to left field. Damon and Matsui probably will not have a place on the team. The Yankees picked up an All-Star in this trade, but they also gave up some promising youngsters.

To Phil Coke, we thank you for your consistent service out of the bullpen. You were one half of the Philthies and you will be missed.

To Austin Jackson, we will never know if you would have been the Yankee centerfielder of the future as had been predicted but best of luck wherever you eventually settle in.

To Ian Kennedy, get the hell out of town!!

In an interesting side note, the Granderson card above is the only 09 SP Legendary Cuts card that I own. I picked it up at a card show for 10 cents with the intent of getting it autographed TTM but the design is so nice I think I'll just keep it the way it is. Those are really nice looking cards.

TTM Mailbag: Mike Cameron

My most recent TTM Autograph success came from Mike Cameron at his home address. He has always been a good signer in the offseason. Both signatures came out perfectly in blue Sharpie. Mike signed my 2004 Bazooka and 2006 Topps in only 8 days.

2007 Fleer: Old Timer's Edition

I busted another pack of 2007 Fleer. I really like the set, but this pack turned out to be full of players who are definitely past their prime or injury prone. I am happy to get the 2 inserts as well as the Alexi Casilla RC. Anyway, here are the results:
- Chris Ray
- Ben Sheets
- Paul LoDuca
- Aaron Miles
- Steve Finley

- Alexi Casilla
- Mitch Maier
- Jon Lester (Rookie Sensations)
- Felipe Lopez
- Jim Thome (Crowning Achievement)