Instagram Trade With Nick S. - Bobby Bundy Auto and More

It is often forgotten that there is another Bundy in the Orioles organization.  Dylan Bundy's older brother, Bobby, is also a pitcher in the O's minor leagues.  Drafted by the Orioles in the 8th round of the 2008 amateur draft, Bundy has slowly made his way up the ranks in the system.  He is currently at AA Bowie.  He has played in 8 games, pitching 15 innings this season.  Both Bundy's have been quite injury prone, and it seems that neither will be with the Orioles after this season.  That really is a shame, since Bobby's younger brother, Dylan, has been such a highly touted prospect.

I got this card, a 2015 Bowman auto, from my friend, Nick S. on Instagram.  Nick approached me and asked if I would be willing to take a deal for the card, and I accepted.

Nick was also nice enough to include a 2014 Topps Mini gold parallel of former Oriole, Nick Markakis in the deal.  This card is numbered 57/63.  I sure do miss Nick patrolling right field for the Orioles.  It really is a shame that he wasn't resigned this offseason, but the O's were worried about a neck condition that Markakis had.  The condition is, in fact, evident this season, as it has sapped him of his power.  He typically averages 16 home runs a season, but through 81 games this year, Markakis has none.  He is batting a nice .295 with 91 hits so far this year, but the power is gone from his game.  I fear that he is definitely on the decline.  That being said, I still respect Nick as a ballplayer, and miss him on my team.  He was great for the Orioles, and I know he is missed among O's fans.  Maybe one day, he will return to the organization.

Thanks for the deal, Nick, I appreciate it!

Trade With Matthew

I follow the "Topps Baseball Card Collectors" page on Facebook.  After I posted a few times asking (begging) folks to let me know if they have the two Brooks Robinson patches I need and then posting looking for Chris Davis and Nolan Reimold parallels, I met a kid named Matthew.  Matthew is 10 and is just starting out with his card collection.  I believe I am the first person he actually traded with, although I know he had a couple others cooking with Scott and Andrew.  Matthew admittedly has a lot to learn when it comes to trading cards, but I have tried to give him a few pointers along the way.  He also started a blog, which you can check out here.

So, I got 3 cards from Matthew in exchange for several Carlos Santana (the Indians catcher, not the amazing guitarist) and Yovanni Gallardo cards.  I didn't mind sending him a few extras, as I have no need for Santana or Gallardo.  Surprisingly, I didn't have the above Chris Davis Chrome refractor from last year's Topps Chrome.  This saves me from thinking I already have it and missing it every time I pick up Davis PC needs.

You saw the Bobby Bundy Bowman Chrome at the top; He is the 'other' Bundy in the Orioles' system.  He's Dylan's older brother and a pretty good pitcher in his own right.  The final card in the package is the above Billy Hamilton Bowman Platinum purple chrome parallel.  This is a really pretty card.  I think I'm going to add it to my RC collection and not flip it for anything.

So, I hope everyone gets a chance to check out Matthew's blog and make him feel welcome to the blogging community.  It's nice to see kids continuing to get involved with cards.  It's a sure sign that our hobby will continue into the future.

Dec. 2012 Raleigh Card Show Part 3 - Oriole Pickups

One of the best parts about the December 2012 Raleigh show was that there was a new vendor there selling all of his 2012 inserts.  He had busted cases of 2012 Bowman and 2012 Bowman Chrome and was practically giving away the inserts.

I have been wanting some Bowman Red Ice parallels for a long time, but because they are numbered to 25, they are hard to come by.  He sold me this J. J. Hardy Red Ice parallel for $3.00!!  I have seen most Red Ice parallels go between $15 and $25, so I had to jump on that deal.

I also got several other Oriole parallels, including these two Bowman Chrome green parallels.  I think these look really nice.  I'm a fan of the colored Chrome parallels, when they are of players I want, so I was glad to grab a few greens for the collection.

I was able to get some Bundy cards from the guy as well...  I got the above Bobby Bundy in my package of O's inserts and the guy also sold me a couple parallels of Bobby Bundy's younger brother, which I will blog tomorrow.  All of these cards, including the Hardy, were sold to me for $6.00.  A STEAL!  So, stay tuned to see the 'other' Bundy's I picked up!