TTM Success - Billy DeMars

I've done a lot of checking lately on older players who sign TTM and found some that have cards in some pretty old Bowman sets.  I also have been working on trying to get some Orioles on as many older years of Topps and Bowman as I can.  Since their (the Orioles) first cards showed up in 1954, I have to find St. Louis Browns in older sets.  It is getting tougher and tougher to find living St. Louis Browns, so it is critical that if I want to get this stuff signed, I need to get it done ASAP.  So, I picked up this 1951 Bowman Billy DeMars card and sent it off for signature.  The card came out great, I think.  I love the old Browns hat and jersey, and DeMars has a nice signature.

DeMars (b. 1925) played in the majors in 1948, 1950 and 1951 for the Philadelphia Athletics and St. Louis Browns.  He was a shortstop and third baseman who collected 50 hits, no home runs and a .237 batting average over his career.

I mailed to DeMars on February 10 and got the card back on February 17, for a 7-day TAT.

Another Huge Package From Max

I got another huge package in the mail the other day from my very good friend, Max, that was packed full of Orioles stuff and a few other odds and ends.  This package was a result of a trade we worked on which landed him a 2013 Topps Mini Jake Arrieta printing plate.  Since Arrieta is no longer an Oriole, I sent the plate to Max and he hooked me up with some really nice stuff.  The above 2011 UD Goodwin Chapions Manny Machado relic was the cornerstone of Max's end of the deal.  If you look closely at the relic, you can see some dirt on it.

One of the oddball cards Max threw in, because he knows I like Hall of Famers, was this 1959 Fleer Ted Williams card.  I know next to nothing about this set, but I thought the card looked really cool, so I was happy he put it in the deal.

Another nice card he sent along was this 1951 Bowman Vic Wertz.  I have a couple '51 Bowmans and would consider doing the set, except that there is a key rookie card in there that would take me forever to get, the Willie Mays.  There is also a Mantle that is his true rookie, but it doesn't carry the price tag that his '52 Topps carries.

I was so glad to continue to deal with Max.  We have gone beyond just trading by now and talk to each other regularly as friends.  I've advised him on some cards and we chat once a week over Skype.  He's just about the friendliest person I have met over Instagram, and even at his young age, one of the most knowledgeable.  I really wish more of the kids on Instagram could take the lead from him and conduct business the way he does.

Thanks for another great package, Max, as always, it is definitely appreciated.

Playing Catch-Up - Vintage Card Show Pickups

So, I still had a few cards that I wanted to show from 2 card shows ago; a few beat up old vintage cards that I thought looked cool...

I saw this Marty Marion and picked it up because I wanted to have a card that went with the TTM success I got of him a few months before he passed away. I like the old Browns cards and I also really like the 1952 Bowman set. I have a friend who wants to sell me some, so I need to get some money together so I can relieve him of them and maybe start considering putting that set together.
I got another 1952 Bowman, this time it was of Eddie Joost. I wasn't as lucky trying him for TTM. I got a return to sender and he died maybe a week later. I like the navy blue A's colors here, a far cry from today's green and yellow.

Here is a 1951 Bowman Joost as well. I really like the A's colors on this one. I love the old bowman cards and how they are pretty much works of art. Anyone can look at the 1953 Pee Wee Reese and agree with me.


Finally, I got this 1964 Topps Tony Oliva RC for $2.00 from the same vendor. Oliva was a solid major leaguer. I doubt he ever gets into the HOF, but he was solid nonetheless. I love the 1964 set and will definitely try to put that one together sooner than later.

Card Show Pickup - 1951 Bowman Ray Scarborough

Something else that I picked up at this past weekend's show was this 1951 Bowman Ray Scarborough. His significance is that he was from a small town nearby, Mount Olive, NC. Yes, the pickles come from there (they're great by the way).

I first heard about Ray Scarborough from a client/friend of mine who had actually met him in person and then spent time talking with his wife after he had passed away. I thought it was a cool story, nonetheless and when i saw the card, I thought I should grab it. Yes, I also grabbed one for my friend.

A Few More Hits From The Card Show

I did get some cards other than Virgil Trucks at the show. I had hoped I could grab another Bowman Feller, but I didn't have a lot to spend, and I figured with his recent passing, several of the dealers may have had Fellers going at a premium, so I tried to avoid his stuff at this show. Instead, I got a few random cards. Here they are:
I needed a George Kell card to go with the autographed baseball I picked up last month. I like the 1951 Bowmans, so I knew when I saw this one, that it would fit nicely into my collection.

Because Topps likes to mock their set builders, I picked up this 2010 Topps 'card number 661' Stephen Strasburg by trading the guy in the neighboring booth a Matt Cain auto from UD Masterpieces. I think it was Masterpieces, or Artifacts. Oh well, tells you how much I remembered having it in my colleciton. I was able to file thie Strasburg into my 2010 set, so maybe I can call it complete again. Or should I wait until they issue card number 662: Ken Griffey, IV. Hmmm.

Finally, I traded my booth-neighbor a handful of 4/$1.00 cards for this Sweet Spot Brian Burres Mini Helmet Auto. Burres was non tendered by the O's some time ago, but the card still looks sharp. I love the mini helmet idea.

So, there you have it, I got several Virgil Trucks cards, a mini helmet auto, 3 1948 Bowmans, a Stephen Strasburg and a vintage Bowman of a Hall of Famer. Not too shabby. I have one more thing I got from the show that I will post later, nothing momentous, but I will have to wait to get the box out of my car, and seriously guys... it's cold outside, and I'm lazy. So, maybe tomorrow, ok? Haha! Hope you have enjoyed!

More Card Show Pickups - Virgil Trucks Edition

During some down time at the show, I looked around for some things that caught my eye. I didn't really want to spend money, but when boredom strikes, I can't help myself. I was able to find great deals on some Virgil Trucks cards that I didn't already have. Here they are:

My first 1953 Topps. I had always dreamed that my first '53 Topps card would be the Satchel Paige. Oh well, I'll own it one day. I really like the 1953 Topps set. The cards look SHARP. I don't have to many Browns Topps cards, I'm sure there was a Brown in '51 Red Back, but I haven't looked in a while. I have a couple '51 Bowman Browns cards that I got a few shows ago.

I think the back of the '53s are really cool, too. I like the signature over top of the bio. It accents the back pretty well, and as far as I can remember, it is the only Topps set in which they do that. I bet it is something that Topps will revisit in one of the upcoming flagship sets. I'm surprised they haven't done that already.

I was able to pick up a pretty sharp-looking '59 Topps for $5. I have always liked this set as well, and have enough cards to consider making the set. I know I had a poll a year ago and said that this would be the next set I started, but I found some '71s by chance and started that one instead. I need to take a look and see exactly how many '59 Topps I have and see where I can go from there...

I like the back of the '59 Topps as well. It is pretty simple, just bold colors and stats, nothing else. There are very easy to read card backs for sure.

I just happened to find this 1954 Bowman Trucks while walking by a vendor. I had just bought the 3 1948 Bowmans that I found Saturday and was walking my change back to my booth and I saw a guy with binders of vintage cards. I asked him if he had and Trucks cards and he flipped right to this one. The card is in great shape. He had a sticker on there for $20, but said he'd sell it for $5 (wow) and I said that I only had $4 in my hand, and he said SOLD. SWEET!!!!

The back of this card is sharp as well. I really think I got a steal when I bought this one. I'm sure it was because I asked for a 'random' player and the guy had it. I think it is a bit of a travesty that not many people know who Trucks is.

Finally, I bought this 1951 Bowman Virgil Trucks from the same vendor who I bought the '53 and '59 Topps from. I felt bad for the poor lady who helped me find it. She was sitting at her booth, bored, and offered to help me search for Trucks cards. She found this one after searching for a bit, so I had to buy it. I loved the booth I bought it from, they had a crap load of vintage stuff, it would be real easy for me to fill a vintage set with the stuff that they had. I'm definitely going to buy from them again when I need some vintage stuff. I sure wish they had a better selection of 1948 Bowman, though. I think I would be able to knock out a bit of that set for sure.

I feel like it has become a bit of a mission of mine to educate the masses about Virgil Trucks. It is a shame that more people aren't aware of who he is or what he has accomplished. I tell everyone I can about how awesome Trucks was with TTM and how good he was when he pitched. If you haven't already, please do a search on him and read up. You will be thoroughly impressed.

April 3, 2010 Raleigh Card Show

Wow, it has been such a busy day. I will try to get to everything in subsequent posts, but first, I wanted to talk about the card show that Chris, Max, Alicia and I went to in Raleigh. Max and I have been looking forward to this show for a while, since it has been a long time since we had last been to a show together. Today was a one-day only Easter show, and it fit right into our other plans for the day...

First, here is a nice little gift from my best friend. I had come back from one of Chris' 2,000 trips to the potty and was handed this yearbook from Max. It was a nice surprise. He always knows things that I will enjoy. Here's to hoping there are some more moments like this one in the future...
Next up, we found a guy who had a bunch of old Bowman's for $2.00 a piece. I picked this up (a 1951 Bowman) because he was a St. Louis Brown (the team who moved to Baltimore to become the Orioles). I also bought another for Max because the player is listed as being from Lincolnton, NC, which is minutes down the road from Max's house.

I found these next 2 cards (Brooks Robinson Topps Tribute) for $1.00 each. I thought they were nice and shiny, so I got them. I believe they are from 2002.

I picked up 9 1948 Bowmans. Yep, I decided to put this set together. 48 cards total, and I already have 11 of them. Seems do-able, I think. Of course, the Berra and Rizzuto are going to be tough, but I was able to get the Musial, so I think I can do it.

I was able to pick up another Hall of Famer, though, Red Schoendienst. Not bad. The card is really nice. I am really enjoying this set.

I found this 1934 National Chicle Diamond Stars for $5.00. Its a rough looking card, but that is why I liked it so much. What do you think?

Here is the reverse of the Diamond Stars. I like the 'tip for young players.' Pretty cool. The words are a bit faded, but I think they are legible.

Hahaha, Harry Doyle himself. 2010 WWE Hall of Fame Inductee, Bob Uecker. My wife remarked the other day how she would like a Uecker card, and this was in a 75% off box. My one 'OH COOL' find at the show.

I don't need to tell you that I had an awesome time today, but the posts that will come later will definitely explain. Today was one of those days which you sit back and wish all could be like. I wish I could spend more time with my friends and family like I did today.