Bowman Platinum Lot

For a total of 12 cents, I picked up a pair of 2010 Bowman Platinum cards on eBay.  The foil didn’t really scan well.  The first card is Chris Coghlan and the second is Kyle Drabek.  Coghlan has always been kind of a spare part.  But Drabek was a decent prospect.  I accumulated a few of his cards a few years ago.  He has been plagued by injury.  He should be decent if he can stay healthy. 

I Got a Second Chance

I picked up this 2010 Bowman Chrome rookie card of Ike Davis on eBay recently.  I actually got this card on a second chance offer.  On the few occasions when I have gotten a second chance offer, I always feel like I am getting some kind of bonus.  Of course, it’s just as likely that the seller had multiples of the item and wanted to sell both.  Davis had a downright awful 2013 that included a trip to AAA Las Vegas.  He finished 2013 batting only a few points above the Mendoza line.

Discounted Relic Card

I picked up a 2010 Topps Heritage game-used jersey card of Jeff Francis on eBay recently.  Don’t let that $8.00 price tag fool you.  I only paid $0.65 for this card.  Francis used to be the best pitcher on the Rockies, but his stock has fallen in recent years.  It’s a nice card with a nice black swatch of jersey. 

Listia Mailbag: Alexei Ramirez

I picked up this 2010 Topps Game Used Jersey Card of Alexei Ramirez on Listia for just 707 credits.  I caught a break because the seller did not upload a picture of the card.  So I took a bit of a risk but it paid off.  The jersey swatch is plain white, but it looks really good. 

It's an Insert Card!!!

I don’t make a habit out of buying Red Sox cards, but it happens from time to time.  I picked up this 2010 Upper Deck Baseball Heroes insert card of Jon Lester recently.  It cost me 6 cents on eBay.  I bought it because it’s an insert card.  I don’t know if that means anything these days.  Inserts used to be a big deal.  Now, it seems like every other card is an insert.  Just the same, I couldn’t resist. 

From Majors to Double A in Three Years

I picked up a 2010 Topps rookie card of Tommy Manzella for only 6 cents on eBay.  Manzella had a brief stint with the Astros in 2009 and 2010.  He has not been heard from in the majors since that time.  He spent some time on the Rockies AAA team earlier this year.  He is currently on the Blue Jays AA team and barely hitting .200 for the year.  It doesn’t look good.  The Long Island Ducks may be next. 

Sam LeCure's Rookie Card

I picked up this 2010 Bowman Sam LeCure card for only 6 cents on eBay.  Supposedly, this is his rookie card.  LeCure is a reliever for the Reds so I don’t think this card will fund my retirement.  But it is a good looking which I may try to get autographed someday. 

Shiny Dime Cards

I snagged a 2010 Bowman Platinum rookie card of Wade Davis for the princely sum of 10 cents on eBay.  The card is quite shiny and impressive looking.  I like Bowman Platinum.  I’m not sure that I like Davis going to Kansas City.  I have already discussed my disdain for Ervin Santana.  The Royals have a habit of hiring overpaid pitchers.  Davis is supposed to be a starter but time will tell. 

Jonathan Lucroy's Rookie Card

I purchased this 2010 Topps card of Jonathan Lucroy on Listia.  It set me back all of 7 credits.  And after all, it’s Lucroy’s rookie card.  The logo on the card says so.  So I will sell this card someday to fund my retirement.  Probably not.  Although Lucroy is a serviceable catcher for the Brewers, I doubt that he would ever be considered Hall of Fame material.  In any event, it’s a nice looking card to add to the collection.

eBay Mailbag: 2010 Topps Update

My latest eBay purchase was a lot of 4 2010 Topps Update cards. I paid 11 cents shipped for all 4 cards. I received one card each of Brian Matusz, Logan Morrison, Travis Wood, and Jeffrey Marquez. All are considered rookie cards. I figured I could use some for autograph purposes. For the price, I can’t really go wrong. I generally pay 10 cents for commons at card shows. I got these cards for less than 3 cents per card.

Contest at 2008 Topps Set Blog

There is a contest at My 2008 Topps Set Blog. It's easy to enter. All you have to do is become a follower of the site. The prize is a good one. The winner gets a box of 2010 Bowman Chrome cards. To get started, click on the link below.
http://topps08.blogspot.com/2011/01/contest-win-box-of-2010-bowman-chrome.html

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.

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.

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.

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.

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: 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.