eBay Mailbag: Relic Cards

My latest purchase from eBay netted me 5 game-used jersey cards for a total of $3.54 with shipping. The haul included:

2009 Upper Deck 20th Anniversary Tim Hudson
2009 Upper Deck USA Jake Barrett
2008 Upper Deck Gustavo Chacin
2007 Bowman Heritage Pieces of Greatness Ivan Rodriguez
2006 Fleer Ultra Fine Fabrics Brian Roberts

It’s a pretty good value for 5 relic cards. I think this is my first Chacin card ever and it’s a jersey card. I’m not too keen on those USA cards though. It’s not that I’m not patriotic, but who the heck is Jake Barrett? Anyway, if someone wants the Barrett card as part of a trade, it’s available.

Pack Break: 2007 Fleer Ultra

This is my last pack of 2007 Fleer Ultra. It wasn’t a great pack either. Here why:

Gary Matthews Jr. – A multimillion dollar bench player
David Ortiz – A Red Sox
Eric Chavez – I think he has more baseball cards than games played. His cards show up everywhere even though he’s always hurt.
Greg Maddux – I’ve got nothing against Maddux – He’s a professional and a Hall of Famer
Jamie Burke – A 40 year old rookie catcher

Thank you for preventing this pack from being an utter waste Mr. Maddux.

My First Topps Black Card

This is my latest eBay purchase. It is a 2009 Topps Black card of Greg Reynolds #ed 42/58. I don’t know much about Reynolds but I have never owned a Topps Black card before this one and I wanted to have one. Ironically, I picked up my second Topps Black card less than a week after buying this one. This card was only 35 cents with free shipping so I can’t complain. It may not be a big name, but I now own a Topps Black card for less than a buck.

Pack Break: 2009 Topps Chrome

This is the first pack of 2009 Topps Chrome that I have opened. I can’t say that I like having only 4 cards in a pack. They had better be some killer cards.

Josh Outman – Who?
Fausto Carmona – I’m starting to have doubts about this pack
JuanCarlos Sulbaran – You don’t play Major League Baseball. Why are you in my pack? I hate these WBC cards.

John Maine – So this pack didn’t go well at all.

Card Show Swag!

I attended the White Plains Card Show at the Westchester County Center yesterday. I think I was one of the few people who didn't shell out the big bucks for Don Mattingly's autograph. It was cool just to see him in person though. He is still extremely popular. He signed from 12PM until around 3:30PM. Anyway, I had a great time as usual and picked up some nice cards. It's hard to pick up any Yankee stuff since the NY dealers seem to mark everything up. For example, I asked several dealers for a price on a 1993 Topps Jeter RC. Asking prices ranged from $8 to $15. I didn't dare ask about the Topps Gold version. I have picked up the base card for between $3 and $5 and the Topps Gold version for between $8 and $11.

Anyway, the first thing I did when I walked in was hit the bargain boxes. I walked away with 20 cards at 10 cents a piece. They are pictured below. My favorites are the 2006 Topps Black Chris Capuano #/55 and the 2008 Topps Chrome Bobby Crosby Refractor #/599. The Crosby is actually my first refractor.

I purchased some supplies and did a lot of window shopping before getting in line for the free John Montfusco autograph. An hour and a half later, I had a cool looking autograph. Montefusco was a pretty cool guy. He was very friendly and approachable. He was sitting at a table with Ralph Branca, Bobby Valentine, and Ed Roebuck. Although the wait was a little long, the result made it worthwhile.

After a well earned lunch, I found some decent bargains, all from the same dealer. I wound up with 12 1986 Topps Traded Barry Bonds RCs. I already had three at home. I know Bonds is a steroid using jerkass but I like the card. I also picked up some Griffey RCs on the cheap. I bought 6 1989 Topps Traded cards and 5 1989 Donruss cards. I also wanted to pick up a box of 2009 baseball cards but nothing really caught my eye. I was pretty satisfied with the experience. There really is no better way to spend a Saturday then to walk around a card show.

Trade with It's like having my own Card Shop

My latest trade package comes from Daniel of It's like having my own Card Shop. I sent him cards of the Diamondbacks and players with multiple bats. In turn, I received some nifty Yankees cards. My bounty is shown below.

2009 Goodwin Champions Joba Chamberlain, Derek Jeter, and Jorge Posada

2009 Topps Update Hairston, Gardner, Sabathia, Robertson, Posada, Jeter

Some ARod cards as well as a neat card of Mariano Rivera entering from the bullpen


I also picked up some cards of new Yankee Curtis Granderson. I plan on building up my collection of Granderson cards. So another trade is successfully executed. Thanks to Daniel for the cards. I look forward to trading with you again.

Pack Break: 2007 Fleer

I opened up yet another pack of 2007 Fleer. I have to say that I’m impressed by this product. It has 2 inserts per pack and each pack costs next to nothing. Also, I’m on record saying that these cards were perfect for TTM autographs. The rookie cards in this set are hit or miss but that’s OK. Anyway, here is the haul.

Brian McCann – I don’t have anything bad to say about McCann, but I don’t really know much about him
Livan Hernandez – How old is this guy? He must be in his late 50s.
Ricky Nolasco – He recently signed a $3.8 million contract…and his ERA was 5.06 last year
Angel Berroa – Berroa is a former Yankee, All Star, and Rookie of the Year. But he is a current bench player
Shane Victorino – Believe it or not, this is only the second Shane Victorino card that I own
Shane Youman – Who?
Justin Hampson – Who?!!
Brian Schneider – Dead Weight
Ian Kinsler – This is a Rookie Sensations insert. It’s actually my second Rookie Sensations card of Kinsler but these are pretty cool looking so it’s OK.
Carlos Beltran – This is a Perfect 10 insert. Note the retro uniform. So, overall it could have been worse. It also could have been better. But how can you lose when you are guaranteed 2 insert cards in every pack?

The Wizard of Ouch?

I came across this 1993 Upper Deck card of Kim Batiste of the Phillies. I was taken by the photograph of Batiste punch-tagging what looks like Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith in the head. If this is so, is this any way to treat a then future Hall of Famer? If this is not Ozzie Smith, then who is the victim of Batiste's tag?

Happy Trails Randy Johnson

After a 22 year career, Randy Johnson called it quits today at the age of 45. I think most people would agree that he is a hall of famer. I will remember Johnson for his 2 years spent as a Yankee. He wasn't exactly the most popular guy in New York, but he was a decent pitcher during his time in pinstripes. I always found it interesting that Johnson was traded from Arizona to New York and then back to Arizona. The Yankees originally sent Brad Halsey, Dioner Navarro, and Javier Vazquez to Arizona for Johnson. Halsey didn't work out. Navarro became a servicable catcher. Some thought Navarro would one day replace Jorge Posada. Vazquez is back in New York to eat up innings. (Ugh.) On the flip side, the Yankees received Alberto Gonzalez, Steven Jackson, Luis Vizcaino, and Ross Ohlendorf when they traded Johnson back to Arizona. Gonzalez and Jackson made little contribution. Vizcaino was a decent reliever for a while. Ohlendorf was a middle reliever before being traded to Pittsburgh in the Damaso Marte-Xavier Nady deal. So the Yankees got 2 years out of Johnson and received some salvage value at the end. Overall, it wasn't a bad deal for the Yankees.

The Joy of Food Advertising

This card is a 1993 Upper Deck RC of Chad McConnell. Although it's a rookie card, it's nothing spectacular. Despite being drafted in the 1st round of the 1992 draft by the Phillies, McConnell never made it past AA. What makes this card special is the delicious trifecta of food products in the background. I think we are all familiar with Hostess snack products and Wonder bread. But it gets better. Also paying for space at the stadium is Old El Paso, maker of hard and soft taco kits. Best of all is the Checkers billboard. Checkers is the best fast food burger joint on the planet, edging out White Castle. So, the real stars of this card are not holding a baseball bat. In fairness, McConnell did last 4 seasons in the minors.

I Miss Topps Traded

Happy New Year folks!! To celebrate 2010, I busted 2 packs of 2009 Topps Update. It seemed like the thing to do. I didn’t get anything spectacular but the highlights are below.

Personally, I think Topps Update is getting a bit redundant. What happened to the good ol’ days when it was called Topps Traded and the set only featured rookies and players traded during the season. Also, I’m absolutely sick of Toppstown cards. Also, I’m not a fan of these propaganda cards. Is Tim Lincecum fighting in a war or something? On the positive side, I have always been a fan of Topps Gold cards. Being numbered to /2009 only sweetens the deal. (I know, I’m a sucker)