So What If I've Never Had A Contest

This blog has run for five years and not once have I had a contest.  Never.  Well, today, I was looking around and saw that I have a good many baseballs sitting on my shelves and in closets that really need good homes.  So, I thought it might be nice to part with a few in fun ways.

I have one ball up for grabs on my Instagram account, so if you wanted to take a look, my username is: wregenthal.

For the above baseball, it can be won by the person who scores enough points. How do you score points?  Well, first, you sign up by commenting on my blog down below, which will activate your interest.  That's one point.  If you are already a follower of or become a follower of my blog, that's another point.

THEN, you must correctly answer (by sending me an email) the following questions, point values will be awarded based on the difficulty of the question. The individual who has the most points by 8:PM Eastern time tomorrow, will be the winner of the above baseball.

**You get a bonus point if you enter my Instagram contest as well.

Convoluted?  Well, this is why I don't have contests :)

I know some folks who don't have google+ can't comment on my blog entries.  You can email me with your interest.  Please follow the blog, though.

Ok, here are the questions (please EMAIL me with your responses.  My email is on my siderbar)

1. In what movie is the line said: "You're a policeman, there are rules for policemen." (3 points)

2. What New York Yankees fan would I hit with a shovel if I ever saw him in real life? (5 points)

3. What, in my opinion, is the movie that ended the cold war? (5 points)

4. What was the first set I completed after I started this blog? (10 points)

5. What was the first card I got in my first trade with Drew? (10 points)

6. Who signed this baseball? (5 points)

Thanks for playing guys.  I'm really looking to just have fun with this.

Ebay Pickup - 2014 Topps Chris Davis Camo Parallel

Here's another Chris Davis parallel from 2014 Topps.  This time, we have a camo parallel that is numbered 75/99.  The camos look just a little different than last year.  I believe they are a touch greener than last year's desert camo.  I could be wrong, maybe I just need to clean my glasses.

Spring Training is upon us now as we prepare for the 2014 season.  The Orioles held off on signing a mediocre pitcher just for the sake of making a move.  I had hoped they would add an innings eater to the rotation to give Kevin Gausman a little more time in the minors, but I trust in Duquette and Buck, so we'll see how the season goes.  I'm tempering my enthusiasm, but I shall remain optimistic.  We will see.

I just hope the O's extend Davis.  I'm really scared that he and his 'super' agent will walk and the O's will be without one of my favorite players.  Uggh.  I'm so over the dark ages of O's history.  Time for them to remain relevant for longer than one season.  Come on guys, get Davis locked up.

Hits From 2014 Topps Series One

Continuing on with my 2014 Topps posts, here are the biggest hits that I got from my break of three jumbo boxes.  I got three manufactured relics.  All of them were Red Sox.  Two of them were Ted Williams.  Not too bad.  I'm sure Scott will end up with some of them and I know my brother, John, will end up with at least one as well.

This Topps Black parallel was pretty sweet.  I'm no Yankee fan, but this card will definitely get top loaded and put in with my good cards.  This will likely end up being an iconic card for Mo, I believe.  Even with the product placement for Pepsi and Gatorade as well.

Finally, I had an epic pull in one of my boxes (I believe it was the second box).  I got a redemption for a Cal Ripken Trajectory autograph.  Pretty sweet, if you ask me.  I was kind of in shock when I pulled it.  I was beside Scott and on Skype with Andrew, so they got to see it get pulled also.

Ok, there you have it.  I got some good stuff from 2014 Topps.  I ended up with a few other autos (Wade Miley and Jason Kipnis) and some decet relics (Buster Posey, Rick Porcello and Andrelton Simmons).  I got a pink parallel (Wily Peralta) and another black parallel that I hope to post soon.  Overall, I was very satisfied with my purchase of three boxes of cards from my friend and supplier, Taylor Crane from CranesCards.

Ebay Pickup - 2014 Topps Chris Davis Black Parallel

Going back to 2014 Topps, here is the black parallel of Chris Davis that I picked up off of Ebay.  I got this one for just over $7, so I'm pretty happy about that.  His black from last year has lingered as Buy it Now for $19.99.  I guess since this is only a checklist card, that's why I got it cheaper.  Who knows.

The card is numbered 42/63 and turned out really awesome on my scanner.  I still have a ways to go as far as the rainbow is concerned, but I think I'm doing pretty well with what I've picked up so far.  The black versions of the 2014 cards look really nice, in my opinion.  I do wish Topps would go with a different border color every now and then, kind of like what they did in 2007.  What would really be nice would be an off-the-wall type design, much like 1972 or 1975.  That would be really awesome.

Ebay Pickup - 2012 Topps Triple Threads Brooks Robinson

Before I continue on with thoughts about 2014 Topps, I wanted to show the other item that I got in the mail yesterday, this 2012 Topps Triple Threads Brooks Robinson.  The ebay listing was shown to me almost a month ago by my good friend, P. A.  He told me he thought the card should find its way into my Brooks PC.  Well, I added it to my watch list and let the auction end twice before I finally allocated the funds for it.

As you can see, it has a ton of pieces of jersey and is numbered 17/18.  It definitely will look amazing in my Brooks PC, which is where it is headed at this moment.

Thanks for letting me know, P. A.!

Ebay Pickup - 2014 Topps Clear Chris Davis

What's all this negative fuss about 2014 Topps?  I actually liked it, but I like just about everything.  I'm kicking off my 2014 Topps series of posts with an amazing parallel I was able to pick up and it (the series of posts) will culminate with my 3-box break that I did at Scott's house.  This effectively ends my series of posts from 2014 Orioles Fan Fest, in case you were keeping track at home.

Chris Davis doesn't have a base card in Series 1, but he does have a season highlights checklist that shows his 30 homers and 90 RBI before the All Star Break.  I have gone ahead and started gathering up parallels of the card and the best one I found so far was the above clear parallel.  The card is numbered 4/10, as you can see above.

The card looks amazing.  It scanned awesome, but it must be seen in person to really appreciate how great it looks.  I was glad I found it when I did.  It cost me a bit of a premium at $35 but to me, it was worth it.  What do you all think?

2014 Orioles Fan Fest - Our Last Autograph Station

I had vouchers for one more autograph signing, the 4:40 session with Kelvin De La Cruz (above), Henry Urrutia, Larry Bigbie and Matt Wieters.

Urrutia looks like he has packed on a little bit of weight this offseason.  He will be one of the Orioles' keys to success this year.  Especially if they don't sign anyone else, and the way it is looking, they won't.

Larry Bigbie was a former first round pick of the Orioles (1999) who was named in the Mitchell report in 2005.  Before that mess happened, I saw Bigbie play for the O's (in 05) over two games against the Yankees.  He hit a homerun in each game.  He has a connection through Ball State University with a good friend of mine.  I mentioned my friend to him, and Bigbie said that he recalled him, which was cool.

After Bigbie was named in the Mitchell report, he kind of fell off of the baseball landscape.  He played briefly in Japan then quietly ended his career.  It was kind of good to see him back.  I liked him when he was an Oriole and I don't hold a grudge against him for being named in the Mitchell report.

Finally, I was able to speak to Matt Wieters again.  I told him about how we met when he was playing with Frederick back in 2008.  Brandon Snyder brought him up to us and had him sign.  That was my first experience trying to get autographs of prospects at minor league games and it was a success.  Wieters was really nice to us this time around as well.  He kind of laughed off my asking him to go ahead and sign that extension, but it was all good.

So, I got 4 guys signatures.  Each on baseballs.  I gave the De La Cruz ball to Michael since he needed it for his collection and the Wieters post card to Scott since he was so gracious to let Chris and I stay at his place.  We had a really good time and I seriously can't wait for the season to start.