2010 Topps Orange Refractors

I purchased a lot of 2010 Topps Orange Refractor cards on eBay recently. For a grand total of 51 cents, I received James Shields, Lance Berkman, and Mark Teixiera. I really bought this lot for the Teixiera card. However, the Berkman card is a plus since he was a Yankee this year. I have been getting a lot of Berkman cards lately for some reason. I don’t buy packs or boxes of Topps Chrome since there are only 4 cards to a pack. Also the surface is not ideal for autographs if the opportunity arises. I really would have preferred a color other than orange but who am I to question Topps. The red in the Astros logo kind of clashes with the orange. These cards are not serial numbered which would have been nice even if it were numbered out of 1000 or 2000. But for less than a buck, how can I complain?

Christmas Swag: 2010 Bowman Chrome

What better time than a few days after Christmas to show off some of the cards I received as gifts. Actually, the only cards I received were contained in a 2010 Bowman Chrome blaster box. Each box only contains 24 cards. I received a precious checklist which gave me 25 cards. I was kind of disappointed with the contents of the box. This box sells for 20 bucks. I received a numbered Top 100 card of someone I never heard of. I also received a Yunel Escobar refractor. It really took me two days to realize that this card was a refractor. Either my eyes are terrible or Bowman needs to differentiate the refractors from the base cards a little more. So unless some of these kids make it big, this box was a bust. But that’s OK because these cards were a gift which makes them special in my mind.

TTM Mailbag: Josh Hamilton

I hope everyone got what they wanted for Christmas. I will show off my Christmas swag in a future post. Josh Hamilton delivered an early Christmas present to my mailbox with a TTM return. I sent this request out during Spring Training, but Hamilton signed a bunch of cards during last offseason so I expected the wait. The finished product was well worth the wait. I received a 2009 Topps Update card signed in blue Sharpie. The card looks perfect. The card is undamaged and the signature looks flawless. I didn’t send out too many TTM requests this year, but this is my best return for 2010. Maybe my New Year’s resolution should be to send out more TTM requests.

2010 Topps Update Silk: Mitch Maier

I recently purchased a 2010 Topps Update Silk card of Mitch Maier for $2.05 shipped from an eBay seller. A lot of unknowns get cards in the update set. Maier isn’t exactly unknown, but he does play in Kansas City. Maier has gotten some playing time in the outfield during the past two seasons. He hasn’t done anything spectacular though. The card is serial numbered 34/50. I think the best part of this card is the powder blue Royals jersey. I really like that color. I wish the backs were not blank, but it would probably be difficult to cram all of that statistical information into such a small area. I am happy with my purchase. I got this card for less than the price of an average pack.

2010 Topps Chrome Blue Refractor: David Ortiz

I purchased a 2010 Topps Blue Refractor of David Ortiz on eBay for $2.24 a while ago. Why would a Yankee fan do such a thing? Because his eBay Bucks were about to expire so I took what was available instead of losing the credits. I plan on either reselling or trading the card. However, it is a cool looking card. It is my first blue refractor card. The blue border really makes the card pop. It is serial numbered 141/199 which is an added plus. Too bad that it’s a Red Sox card. It’s also too bad that eBay Bucks have to expire, but at least I got something out of the deal.

My First Albert Pujols Lot

I purchased a lot of 12 Albert Pujols cards for about six bucks on eBay. It’s not that I collect Pujols cards or anything. Maybe I should though. The guy is a true superstar after all. I just realized that my collection lacks Pujols cards. I probably tripled my Pujols stash with this purchase. There are some neat cards in here. I got a 2010 Topps 206 base and bronze card. I think those are my favorites. Pujols cards seem to go for about 40-60 cents each on eBay. He is one of the most popular players amongst collectors so this is no surprise. I like buying these player lots because you never know what you will find. Every now and then you will find an unusual card or a parallel or insert. I probably will not become a Pujols collector, but I will continue to buy player lots just because they can be just as fun as opening a pack of cards.

Lance Berkman: We Hardly Knew Ye

My latest eBay purchase was a lot of 18 Lance Berkman cards that cost me 23 cents shipped. All of these cards feature Berkman as an Astro but Berkman played for the Yankees this season so I had to pick them up. Of course, Berkman just signed with the Cardinals. That didn't last too long. The only cards I didn’t really want were the Topps Attax cards. I don’t really get them. I guess it’s a card game or something. Otherwise, I think I did really good with this purchase. I paid less than two cents for each card. Where else can you do that?

2010 Allen & Ginter Black Mini: Jose Lopez

I purchased a 2010 Allen & Ginter Black Mini of Jose Lopez for only 60 cents on eBay. I like Allen & Ginter in general and I like any kind of parallel. The black border looks really cool. I just wish the card was full size. Lopez had a rough year in 2010, but he is technically a former All-Star. Much like Mark Redman is a former All-Star. Lopez happened to be the best player on a bad team. Hopefully, next year turns out better. In 2010, he hit .239. Compare that to 2008 when he hit .297. I think I got a good deal especially if Lopez can turn things around next year.

Pack Break: 2008 Upper Deck

I picked up a pack of 2008 Upper Deck Series One cards for 51 cents from an eBay seller. There are 8 cards per pack. So what did I get? Here is the loot.

Joe Mauer
Damion Easley
Jeff Keppinger
Jim Leyritz YSL
Carlos Lee Starquest Common

So where are the other three cards you ask? Well, here is the rest of the pack.
Derek Lowe Game Used Jersey

How cool is that? I pulled a game-used jersey card out of a 51 cent pack that is two years old. I know its only Derek Lowe but still? I think I got my money’s worth.

The Rise and Fall of Rich Harden

Do you remember when Rich Harden was the next big thing as a prospect for the Oakland A’s? For a while, he was the next big thing. And then he got hurt – repeatedly. By the time he left Oakland in 2008, it was a downhill trip. Harden was recently released from the Rangers and now finds himself without a team. I don't think he even made any postseason rosters. All of this may explain why I was able to buy one of Harden’s 2004 Donruss Studio cards on eBay for all of six cents shipped. It is a pretty cool looking card. It features a portrait of Harden in his Oakland uniform with the Bay Bridge in the background. Harden may try following in the footsteps of Kerry Wood by moving to the bullpen. He probably cannot succeed long term as a starter.

eBay Mailbag: Eric Byrnes

My latest eBay purchase was a lot of 7 Eric Byrnes cards that cost me a grand total of 12 cents with shipping. Byrnes had his best years in Oakland and Arizona. At this point, his cards probably aren’t worth much more than 12 cents. All 7 cards feature Byrnes as a Diamondback. I received 3 Upper Deck Starquest cards – one of which is uncommon. I also received 2 Bowman cards – one of which is Gold. For 12 cents, I think I got my money’s worth.

Topps Replaced My Card!!

You may recall that I purchased a box of 2010 Allen & Ginter a while ago. I had a lot of fun opening that box even though I didn’t pull anything that great. However, contained in that box was a mini card of Vasco Nunez de Balboa that was badly damaged. It really wasn’t that big of a deal, but I paid $78.00 for that box. So I wrote a letter to Topps demanding justice. And to my surprise, I got it. Topps sent me the same Balboa card in perfect condition. They even threw in a polite form letter. I was hoping for a few extra goodies, but that would be greedy. Thank you for your customer service Topps. I salute you.

eBay Mailbag: Hideki Okajima

I recently purchased a lot of 9 Hideki Okajima cards from an eBay seller for a grand total of 22 cents shipped. I’m still a Yankee fan so I apologize for this purchase. But there was a Sweet Spot card and a Turkey Red card involved so I pulled the trigger. At any rate, I only paid about 2.5 cents a card so I got a decent deal. Okajima is a pretty good reliever. He was a much better investment than fellow countryman Dice-K who cost the Red Sox over 100 million dollars. And to all of my fellow Yankee diehards – I’m sorry.

eBay Mailbag: Ricardo Rodriguez

I purchased a game-used jersey card from an eBay seller recently for a grand total of 65 cents. The card featured Ricardo Rodriguez from the 2001 Bowman Draft Picks set. My first task upon receiving this card in the mail was to determine who the heck this guy is. Thanks to baseball-reference.com, I discovered that this guy spent parts of 4 seasons in the big leagues with Cleveland and Texas. Although featured as a Dodger on the card, he never played for them in the big leagues. He didn’t do anything spectacular while in the majors, but he had his cup of coffee. Good for him. I should probably do this kind of research before bidding. But I can’t really complain. I got a game-used jersey card for some loose change.

Who Are These People?

You may remember that I purchased a box of 2010 Allen & Ginter a while ago. Included in that box were a bunch of cards of non-baseball players. I thought this was unusual since I purchased a box of baseball cards. What gives? I wound up with 21 of these non-baseball cards. I don’t even know who half of these people are nor do I care. I like Allen & Ginter but these non-baseball cards are a pet peeve of mine. Anyway, I would like to trade them for a handful of Allen & Ginter cards of any year as long as the cards feature actual baseball players. If anyone is interested, just leave a comment or email me.

eBay Mailbag: Garrett Atkins

I recently stole 3 cards of Garrett Atkins from a seller on eBay recently. I actually didn't steal them but I did pay 6 cents for all three. I received a 2008 Allen & Ginter which is my favorite since I now love Allen & Ginter. My second favorite is the 2008 X-Ponential followed by the 2007 SP Authentic. Two of those cards are inserts by the way. Atkins spent most of his career with the Rockies. Atkins now struggles with the Orioles. But then again, most of the Orioles struggle.

eBay Mailbag: Clint Sammons

I recently purchased a total of 5 Clint Sammons cards on eBay. I paid a total of 11 cents for these cards. I received 4 2008 Topps cards and a 2006 Bowman. Sammons is not a big name player. In fact, he spent all of 2010 at AAA Gwinnett. If that’s not bad enough, he hit .162 in 271 at bats. Brian McCann has nothing to worry about. In his limited big league time in 2007, 2008, and 2009, Sammons boasts a sub-.200 batting average. Anyway, I don’t think I can go wrong with an 11 cent purchase.

Contest Winnings from Drew

I recently won a contest that was held by Drew at Drewscards. Actually, I was a co-winner, but that’s not the point. Anyway, my prize was a Tri-Star Obak box topper of Roy Hofheinz. He is the man behind the Astrodome. This is my first Obak card. It is quite a neat looking card as you can see below. Big thanks to Drew for the prize.

eBay Mailbag: Luke Hochevar

My most recent eBay purchase was a 2010 Allen & Ginter card of Luke Hochevar. The card cost a total of 7 cents. I now have a thing for Allen & Ginter and this was a cheap pickup. I like the matte finish and I like the old timey design. Hochevar's 4.81 ERA led him to a 6-6 record in limited duty. He's on the Royals so cut him some slack.

2010 Allen & Ginter Box Break

I finally busted my box of 2010 Allen & Ginter. This was a fun box to rip open. There are a lot of different inserts and parallels in this set. Anyone who wanted to build the entire set would quickly realize that such a task would be expensive and time consuming. Anyway, without further ado, here are the highlights of my box.
There were 13 Short Prints in the box.
I received 8 Regular Minis (Ad Backs and Regular Backs) and 3 Black Minis.
Each box contains 3 hits. Unfortunately, the first 16 packs yielded 0 hits. I started to get nervous. Could this box be a dud? No. I received all 3 hits of the guaranteed hits in packs 17, 22, and 24. That’s a strong finish. The hits are pictured below. I received a Hanley Ramirez Bat Card, a Melky Cabrera Bat Card, and an Autograph of Ricky Nolasco. I also pulled a bunch of cards featuring non-baseball personalities like Copernicus and Leonardo DaVinci. I hope to trade those cards at some point. I guess I could have done better and I could have done worse. Overall, I am satisfied with this box. I did not pull anything spectaular but it was fun to bust and I got some nice cards out of it. I probably could not recover my initial investment but that’s OK.

eBay Mailbag: 2006 Topps Astros

I purchased two cards on eBay for a total of 7 cents. The first is a 2006 Topps card of Charlton Jimerson. Jimerson was last seen playing in the Angels organization. The other card is a 2006 Topps SI for Kids card of Craig Biggio. This is why I purchased the lot. For some reason, I own very few Biggio cards and a ton of Jeff Bagwell cards. Both are probably going to the Hall of Fame. So for a few cents, I made a small contribution to my collection of Craig Biggio cards.

2010 Allen & Ginter Hobby Box

My latest eBay purchase was a Hobby Box of 2010 Allen & Ginter. I paid $78.00 for the box. That's big money for me. I haven't bought a hobby box of cards since 2007 Topps. I never bought a box of Allen & Ginter before. I’ve actually never purchased a pack either. The box contains 24 packs containing 8 cards each. I am guaranteed 3 hits in the box which is part of the reason that I made the purchase. I imagine that I’ll get stuck with three no name jersey cards. I will share the contents in a subsequent post.

eBay Mailbag: 2007 Topps Commons

I purchased three 2007 Topps base cards on eBay for a total of 9 cents. The first is a NY Mets team card. I am not a fan of team cards but whatever. The next card features career backup catcher Mike Redmond. Redmond is currently a man without a team, but I don’t think he is officially retired. The final card features Jeff Francis who is still a part of the Rockies starting rotation. Overall, not a bad purchase for 3 cents a card.

2005 Bowman Game-Used Jersey Cards

I recently purchased three 2005 Bowman Game-Used Jersey Cards from an eBay seller. The grand total came to $2.44 with shipping. The first card features Conor Jackson. Jackson is now playing for Oakland. Actually, he is on the disabled list again, so he is not really playing for anyone. Jackson spends a ton of time on the DL. The second card is Yusmeiro Petit. Petit came up in the Mets organization. He got some big league time with Florida and Arizona. He is currently in the Seattle farm system. The final card is that of Melvin Mora. Mora also came up in the Mets organization, but he spent most of his career with Baltimore. Mora is now playing with Colorado. When did that happen? I was not aware of that. Anyway, I think I got a pretty decent deal on this lot. I like 2005 Bowman and these cards are a good addition to the collection.

East Coast National: Part Six

The final purchase that I made at the White Plains show was a pair of autographs that cost me $5. The first card is a 2007 Topps Co-Signers Dual Autograph of Nook Logan and Chris Young. This is my first dual autograph. I’m not sure how these two players are related or why they are on the same card but it is a cool looking card and well worth the money. The dealer seemed surprised that it was in the 2 for $5 box. The second card is a 2007 UD Future Stars auto of Carlos Gomez. Gomez was a top prospect for the Mets when he and others were traded for Johan Santana. So there it is. I'm finally done with my card show posts!

East Coast National: Part Five

I purchased a bunch of common cards from the 10 cent boxes at the East Coast National Card Show. I came up with some decent finds. They are pictured below.

I also bought a few more cards out of a 20 cent box but I think they were worth it: