COMC Pickups - 1971 Topps Set Needs

I figured that since I needed to catch up on a ton of mail, I would post twice today.  So, I added 3 more 1971 Topps cards off of my wishlist with my most recent COMC purchase.  I got this 1971 Topps Bobby Bonds and also Fergie Jenkins and Tony Oliva.  I think the biggest name I need, still, is Harmon Killebrew.

My 1971 set is so close to completion.  I really would like to get this one knocked out so I can concentrate on 1959 and 1969.  When those two are completed, I will likely knock out 1972 and maybe another set from the 1960s.  We'll see, that's a long way off.

COMC Chris Davis Pickups

Chris Davis is having quite a season for himself.  After last night's 2-home run game (his third of the season), Davis has reached 30 home runs before the All Star break.  He tied the Orioles record, with Brady Anderson's 1996 performance, for most home runs before the All Star break.  I have been gathering as many Chris Davis parallels as I can since I'm sure there will be a spike in the cost of his cards soon.  I got 3 new cards off of COMC with my latest purchase, two parallels from 2012 Chrome and the 2013 Topps blue sparkle.

I think the Orange parallel looks really cool scanned, especially since the orange matches up well with the Orioles' uniforms.

The purple parallels are really cool as well, of course.  I also have his black parallel and X-Fractor, so I am doing pretty well with his 2012 Chrome offerings.  If anyone has any 2012 Chrome parallels that I'm missing, please let me know.

Finally, here is the 2013 Topps blue sparkle parallel.  I also have his Silver Slate, but I need to add his Emerald (I have one for my set), the black parallel, gold parallel, etc.  I also wouldn't mind a printing plate.  Not to mention Pink and Camo parallels too.  Yikes, there are too many parallel cards to chase, it makes my head hurt.

COMC Pickup - 2010 Obak Matt Hobgood Auto

I took another item off of my wishlist with my recent COMC purchase in the above 2010 Obak Matt Hobgood auto.  I met Matt Hobgood back in 2010 when he was playing for Delmarva against the Greensboro Grasshoppers in Greensboro.  I tried to get his autograph after the players were coming off of the field, but I just missed Hobgood.  I left the stadium and noticed the team bus and tried to hang out there at the sidewalk.  Steven Bumbry, son of Oriole great, Al, was nice enough to remember that I had been trying to get Hobgood's autograph on a baseball, went on the bus and told Hobgood that I was trying to meet him.

Well, Matt came off of the bus and talked to me for a minute and signed my baseball for me.  He was only 18 or 19 at the time, but had the professionalism of a seasoned vet.  He is a really nice guy and I have prayed so hard that he have a successful MLB career.  He has struggled with a shoulder injury since he was drafted, but this season he appears to be healthy and is pitching well out of the bullpen for Delmarva.  I really hope he gets a promotion to Frederick so I can see him pitch against the Carolina Mudcats and maybe say hello again.

If I ever do another blog interview, he is definitely on my short list of potential subjects that I would like to interview.

COMC Pickup - 2011 Topps Tier One Jimmie Foxx Relic

I knocked a nice card off of my want list the other day when I made a purchase with my store credit on COMC.  I had sold a few cards on there and built my store credit up to $54, so I bought quite a few cards.  I got this 2011 Topps Tier One bat relic of Hall of Famer, Jimmie Foxx for about $15.  Foxx is probably one of my favorite Hall of Famers, so I have been wanting this card since Tier One came out.

The bat relic card is numbered 22/399.

Tier One did a really good job of having relic cards of higher-end Hall of Famers at decent prices.  I mean, I was able to get a Foxx bat relic for only $15.  There are other offerings with Foxx relics that are far mroe expensive.

My good buddy, Drew, was able to put together the entire 2011 Tier One relic set, which is an amazing feat in itself.  There are a few more that I wouldn't mind getting, but I don't think I will be pursuing the entire set.

Ebay Pickup - 2013 Topps Silver Slate Nolan Reimold

I added a nice piece to my Nolan Reimold PC today when the Silver Slate parallel came in the mail.  The card is numbered 3/10 and looks really awesome.  I enjoyed the Silver Slate parallels this year, even though the ones from Series One were from the wrapper redemptions and apparently Series Two's came from promo packs at card shops.  Grrr.  Oh well, they were available on Ebay, so I was able to get mine pretty quick.  It did cost me $23 to get it, but as huge a Reimold fan as I am, I had to have it.

I wanted to do more with my cards tonight, but I'm exhausted from work, so anyone who is expecting a package from me soon, I will pack them tomorrow and get them in the mail Friday.

2013 Topps Series 2 - Inserts and Hits

After sorting through all of my 2013 Topps Series 2 cards, I wanted to show a few of the inserts I picked up.  I busted 3 jumbo boxes of Series 2 and ended up with 30 1972 Minis.  You can see I got the above Brooks Robinson for my PC.  I also got Bundy, Machado and Lincecum that I will be holding onto.  For trade I have: 51, 53, 54, 55, 62 (x2), 66, 69 (x2), 70, 72, 74, 76 (x2), 80, 81, 83, 87, 88, 89 (x2), 92, 93, 94 (x2) and 99.

Here is the one Camo card I picked up.  I didn't pull any pink parallels.  I have already had someone ask for any Camos that I pull, so this one is likely not for trade.

I got a Cal Ripken Cut to The Chase as well as a Manny Machado.  Other guys I got, who are for trade are as follows: Killebrew, Miguel Cabrera, Albert Belle, Banks, Jered Weaver, Posey and Koufax.

I ended up with two case hits in my boxes, which was really cool.  This Jorge De La Rosa may be for trade if someone has something comparable to it.

I got 30 Topps Gold parallels.  One of which is the above Brian Roberts for my PC.  I was really happy that Roberts, Markakis and Reimold are all in this series, so I have some parallels to chase down.  Other golds I got for trade are: 333, 370, 377, 389, 407, 429, 430, 459, 467, 471, 477, 482,504, 519, 530, 562, 576, 584, 593, 608, 619, 620, 622, 624, 626, 633, 655, 658 and 659.

My manu-relics consisted of Willie McCovey ROY, Ted Williams 1946 MVP and Luis Aparicio ROY.  My relics were the above Jeter (not for trade), Tim Lincecum (not for trade) and Carl Crawford.  The autos I received were Wilin Rosario, Collin Cowgill and Chris Archer.

The Making Their Mark cards look really sharp.  I got the above manny Machado for my PC, plus another that will likely go to Ryan.  I got 28 others and they are for trade as follows: 1, 2 (x3), 3, 5 (x2), 6 (x2), 8 (x2), 9, 10 (x2), 11 (x3), 13 (x2), 15 (x3), 16, 21, 22 (x2) and 25 (x2).

Another of the case hits was this #25 of 50 (OH DEAR LORD EBAY ONE OF ONE!!!!) silk parallel David Freese.  This one has been claimed and a trade is in the works.

I got 15 WBC cards, all for trade.  3, 4 (x2), 5 (x2), 6 (x2), 8, 10, 12, 13 (x2), 14 (x2) and 15 (x2).

I got 2 Topps Black parallels, Jon Lester #12 of 62 and Devin Mesoraco #35 of 62.

I got 7 'The Elite' cards.  They look really sharp, like Museum Collection or something and are pretty thick.  For trade are: Willie Mays, Ted Williams, Bob Gibson, Sandy Koufax, Johnny Bench, Jackie Robinson and Ozzie Smith.

I got 15 'Chase it Down' inserts including Manny Machado (he is all over this set) and Adam Jones for my PCs.  Weston from Fantastic Catch is getting most of these with the exception of the Pablo Sandoval, which is going to my nephew, Jacob.  Remaining cards for trade are: Bryce Harper, Cameron Maybin, Mike Trout, Alex Gordon and Mike Moustakas.

Chasing History inserts included Manny Machado (again) and Dylan Bundy, so those are mine.  Cards up for trade are as follows: 51 (x2), 52 (x2), 54, 56, 59, 66 (x2), 69, 70, 72, 73, 74 (x2), 75, 76, 81, 82, 83, 88, 89, 92, 95 (x3), 98 and 99.

I hope everyone remembers that I am pursuing the Emerald parallel set.  I am about a third of the way done with Series One and now need a bunch for Series 2.  I got 30 parallels out of my boxes.  Here are the cards that I got, meaning, I don't need to trade for these: 336, 337, 338, 363, 373, 374, 382, 389, 393, 411, 418, 433, 439, 455, 458, 464, 469, 474, 480, 529, 537, 550, 553, 557, 564, 565, 589, 590, 625 and 661.

Last, but not least, I pulled an SP.  I got the Mike Trout signing autographs SP, which is a really cool card.  I have also seen the David Ortiz Boston Strong speech card, which is just amazing.  This Trout might be for trade, but it will take something really good to land it.  Do you have what it takes?

So, there you have it.  Several of the teams have been called for out of the inserts, so I will be going back through them either tonight or tomorrow.  Once I do so, I will transfer my 'haves' over to my trade page (which needs some life, for sure).  I also plan on going through my inserts from Series One and adding them to the trade page as well.  I'm either going to trade most of this stuff away, listing some on COMC or setting up a table at my local card show very soon.  These boxes were expensive and I plan on making back a little bit of what I spent and I think I can do so pretty well.

That being said, if there is anything any of you want, please don't hesitate to contact me, either by email or commenting on the blog.  I appreciate all of the folks who have already gotten with me and the others who plan to.

I Got My HOF Certificate

My Hall of Fame donation certificate finally arrived today and man, it looks awesome!  I was all set to blog about some 2013 Topps Series 2 inserts and this was laying on my desk.

I can't begin to tell you how excited I am to have this.  I am going to run out and pick up a frame as soon as possible and put this on the wall for all to see.

I am really excited that the Hall of Fame added my interview with Virgil Trucks into their library and I hope that generations to come are able to hear his story and learn a little bit about the man that meant a lot to me and other fans out there.  I'm also glad I was able to share this experience with all of you.  Thanks for reading this blog and commenting.  I hope that I am able to do something like this again very soon.