O How I Miss O Pee Chee

I found a pair of 2009 O Pee Chee black bordered cards on eBay for 12 cents.  The only other black bordered card that I have from this set is Phil Coke.  I picked that card up at a card show for cents.  I have no idea why I remember that.  These two cards feature Anibal Sanchez and Carlos Villanueva.  Sanchez is currently starring for the Tigers.  Villanueva is actually starting for the Cubs.  I did not know that.  I would have guessed somewhere in the minors.  Anyway, I really enjoyed the short-lived return of O-Pee-Chee.  It was a really colorful card design.  It also lacked a glossy finish which is my mortal enemy. 

Clay Buchholz's "Rookie" Card

I picked up a 2008 UD First Edition “rookie” card of Clay Buchholz on eBay for 6 cents shipped.  First Edition is the cheaper cousin of the regular Upper Deck set.  So far this season, Buchholz has been a stud.  He has a tiny ERA and 4 wins to show for his efforts.  This will change if history tells us anything. 

Pitching Woes

Jered Weaver.  Chad Billingsley.  Zack Greinke.  Joel Hanrahan.  What do these people all have in common?  They are all Major League pitchers.  They are all on the disabled list.  They are all on my fantasy team which now finds itself in last place.  My starting pitchers now consist of Madison Bumgardner, Phil Hughes, Tim Hudson, and Matt Cain.  Free agency can only help me so much.  And don’t even get me started on my relievers.  John Axford is awful.  Carlos Marmol is awful.  Steve Cishek might get some saves if the Marlins ever win.  That leaves Huston Street as my only reliable closer.  It can’t get any worse, right?

Angels Cards from eBay

I picked up a lot of 3 2013 Topps Angels cards on eBay for 16 cents with free shipping.  I bought this lot for the Jered Weaver card.  Weaver is on my fantasy team and I have a habit of accumulating cards of my fantasy players throughout the year.  Of course, Weaver isn’t helping my cause since he is on the DL.  To add insult to injury (or perhaps injury to injury), Zack Greinke is also spending time on the DL.  Thanks Carlos Quentin.  The other two cards represent a past Blue Jay in Scott Downs and a current Blue Jay in Maicer Izturis. 

Cheap Finds on eBay

I purchased this game used jersey card of Erubiel Durazo on eBay.  You may remember Durazo from the Diamondbacks and Athletics.  It has actually been 8 years since he last played in the big leagues.  So why would I have any interest in this card?  It only cost 60 cents.  I basically entered a lowball bid so that if anyone got the card on the cheap, it would be me.  Apparently, I have nothing better to do on a Saturday afternoon. 

2012 Topps Gio Gonzalez Autograph

I picked up this 2012 Topps autograph of Gio Gonzalez on Listia recently.  I was the winning bidder by 1 credit.  The total cost was 3,334 credits.  That is more than I am accustomed to spending, but it was worth it.  The card looks great.  And it’s not exactly a no name.  Gonzalez is shown in an A’s uniform, but he played for the Nationals last year.  And he turned in quite a season.  He almost won the Cy Young.  I can understand why RA Dickey won the award though.  For the record, that is a sticker autograph. 

Preparing for the Baseball Season

Opening day fast approaches.  I have started to purchase some 2013 baseball cards.  I still need to draft my fantasy team.  That will happen this Thursday.  As usual, my strategy will be to stock up on quality starting pitchers.  This year, I will attend three spring training games.  I prefer spring training over regular season games because the tickets are cheaper (but certainly not cheap) and the seats are MUCH better.  Also, the weather cannot be beat.  I will see the Marlins at Red Sox, Red Sox at Twins, and Orioles at Twins.  I will take as many pictures as my camera will allow.  I will also try to snag a few in person autographs at the games.  If anybody has any spring training success stories with these or any other teams for that matter, please feel free to share.  By the way, I will have opening day off from work for the first time in forever.  Score!

I've Neglected You Topps Heritage

My most recent eBay purchase involved a lot of 2012 Topps Heritage base cards.  Actually, I bought two separate lots.  One was a Blue Jays lot and one was a Cubs lot.  I never bought packs of this stuff, so I figured I would add some cards to the collection.  There are some duplicates, but these cards were much cheaper than buying packs so I can’t complain.  These cards seem like they would be great for autographing.  I hope to do some spring training and TTM autographing this year.  By the way, those Darwin Barney cards are not the error cards.  Neither is the Kerry Wood card. 

2012 Bowman: Paul Konerko

I bought a 2012 Bowman Paul Konerko card on eBay for just 6 cents.  I don’t have many 2012 Bowman cards.  I usually don’t buy packs or boxes of Bowman.  But I like this design.  It has a simple white border and an attractive color photo.  I have a ton of Konerko cards but that’s because he has been around forever. 

Who is German Duran, You Ask?

I paid 6 cents for this 2008 Stadium Club card of German Duran on eBay recently.  I really liked the design of 2008 Stadium Club.  The photographs are second to none.  Also, the set contained several autographs that can be purchased on the cheap.  Bring back Stadium Club Topps!  Duran had a brief major league stint in 2008.  Since then, he has floated around the minors.  I think I only bought this card because I like Stadium Club.