Instagram Pickup - Willie Stargell Manufactured Patch

I don't know what it is, but I really like Willie Stargell cards.  Maybe it's the amazing yellow uniforms?  I'm not sure.  I shouldn't like him, since he beat the Orioles in two World Series that both went 7 games (1971 and 1979).  Still, he was a great player, and is widely respected as a Hall of Famer.

I got this card in a deal with a kid on Instagram who's name escapes me.  I don't remember what I traded for it, but I know he got the better end of the deal.  I was just glad to add this cool card to my collection.

I have quite a few Stargell Topps cards in my HOF collection, and I always am looking to add more.  I need to pick up his RC at some point, since it is on my Top 10 wishlist.  I might look for one at The National.

Orioles Care Package From Noah

My buddy, Noah, sent me a really nice care package recently.  In it were a ton of Orioles cards.  The above Cal Ripken from 2014 Topps Allen and Ginter might be the nicest one of them.  While I feel like A&G has run its course, the cards still look great.

I remember when A&G first came out back in 2006, it was a unique set that I felt was amazingly done.  It has worn out its welcome, especially with the non-baseball subjects.  You end up with cards that you seriously can't do anything with.  However, when you end up with some PC stuff, it comes out pretty nice.

Thanks so much for the care package, Noah!  I appreciate it greatly.

Ebay Pickup - 2010 Topps Sterling Brooks Robinson

I told myself that I wasn't going to buy anything on EBay for a while.  Not after everything I spent at the antique shop a few weeks ago.  I was set to buckle down and save for the National.  Yeah, that worked out really well when I opened up my EBay mobile app on my phone a few days ago to see what my notifications were all about.  On my feed was this awesome Brooks Robinson 2010 Topps Sterling 6-piece relic card.  The card is numbered 5/10 and was at an amazing Buy It Now price.  I bought my buddy, Max, one of these for Christmas, except it was Ernie Banks.  I didn't even know Brooks had one in the set.

So, going back to my philosophy of "If you see something amazing and you can afford it, you better get it while you can, because you may never see it again..." (thanks Scott), I picked up the card.

I am so happy I did.  The card looks amazing in person.  As you can see from the scan, both bottom corners have slight dings, but I don't really care.  They take nothing away from the card.  This might be one of the nicest Brooks cards that I have in my collection, now.  I'm really excited about that.

Final Mailday From Sean - Saying Goodbye to a Scammer

It's funny that I finally got around to posting some cards that I got from Sean from Instagram today.  These got here randomly in mid-February, right when Sean disappeared from Kik/Instagram again (for something like the third time or so).  When we first met, we were pretty cool, then I started to see a lot of people posting that he had scammed them out of cards.  He disappeared soon after, then reappeared in October with a new screen name, and a new Kik ID.  Sean, then, befriended my buddy, Ben, and worked out a trade.  Ben is a really awesome kid that I talk to every day.  He asked me what I thought of Sean, and I told him honestly that Sean was always good to me, but had a really bad reputation, after having scammed a few people.  Ben was really skeptical of making a trade with him, but went through with it.

Unfortunately, Ben never received his cards, after Sean messaged him to tell him that he got what Ben sent.  So, after the two of them went back and forth about Sean sending Ben back his cards (which Sean never did), Sean disappeared again.  I held off posting this mailday from Sean, out of respect to Ben because I hoped that Sean would do the right thing and replace Ben's stuff.

Today, out of the blue, Sean messaged me and right off the bat told me how disappointed he was that I never messaged him on his birthday back in April.  This kind of stuff frustrates me.

I try to be a good trade partner, and a lot of times, I make friends in the process.  I hardly ever have a bad experience with people, but with all of the drama that has surrounded Sean in the past, I pretty much told him that I didn't want to do any more trading, especially since he hasn't made things right with the other folks who he had apparently scammed.

You all who read my blog regularly, know how much I enjoy Instagram as a vehicle to make and complete trades.  There are a ton of good people on there, adults and kids alike.  I generally give folks the benefit of the doubt, and I am always giving folks second and third chances.  While I appreciate these cards, I won't be dealing with Sean or his friends any more.  They all have done ok by me, but they each have scammed others.  The trading community doesn't need a bunch of scammers around scaring off the actual good folks in the community.

So, I apologize for the negative tone of this post, but I felt that it might be inappropriate id I tried to paint Sean in a good light when he hasn't been legit with others.  Maybe one day, he will work on bettering himself, but in the meantime, I think I will be better off if I sever ties.

Mailday From Drew - Surprise Care Package

I got a care package in the mail recently from my good friend, Drew that was full of Orioles cards that he had gotten lately.  Drew and I haven't been able to talk to each other as much as we would like over the last few months, but when we do talk, it's like we have never been apart.  He called me up last week and we talked for a LONG time about his "Ten For Tuesday" posts on his blog (which you should check out).

Drew just finished up the spring semester of college and will have the summer filled with working and saving, which I know how that is!  I really appreciated him taking the time out to contact me, and even more in sending me a care package.

I miss my buddy a good bit, but we all know that life gets in the way of the hobby sometimes.  I'm just glad that he is doing well and has found a school that he is happy at, instead of the other one.  I know we will get together soon to catch up and maybe sometime soon we will be able to catch a show together or something.

Thanks for the care package, Drew!

Mailday From Max - Chicago Sun-Times Ernie Banks Edition

When Ernie Banks passed away on January 23, 2015, the first person I thought of was my good friend, Max.  He lives in Chicago and is a die-hard Cubs fan.  I knew immediately that I should reach out to him, so, I texted him, then we got on Skype together to chat.  Naturally, he was devastated to learn of the Cubs legend's passing, so I did my best to "be there" for him.

During our conversation, it dawned on me that I really wanted a copy of a Chicago newspaper documenting Banks's passing.  I have a copy of the Winston-Salem Journal article from when Mickey Mantle passed away (since I was 15 at the time, and that's where I was living), that I recently found folded inside a magazine.  I thought it would be nice to have something from Chicago commemorating Banks's life, so I mentioned it to Max.  He remarked that he hadn't even thought to do that, so he grabbed a copy for himself as well.  He almost had an opportunity to go to the public memorial for Banks, but his dad had something come up at the last minute and they were unable to attend.

I really appreciate Max's picking this up for me, and getting it to me in really good shape.  It is tough to ship a newspaper, and he did a great job in shipping it.

Gift From Conrad - 1971 Dell Baseball Stamps Brooks Robinson

On my return trip with Mom to the Columbia Antique Shop, my intention was to not buy anything else, since I had spent so much on my Banks RC, 59 Topps set needs and the DiMaggio ball.  I did see the above Brooks Robinson in one of the cases that were off to the side.  I figured, it wasn't priced at a whole lot, so I could pick it up for myself, you know, since I did go all the way back there.

While Mom was discussing the Mantle and Jackie with Conrad, he told me he was just going to give me this card, since I was such a loyal customer.

That was really appreciated.  I have actually recommended his shop to a lot of people, and just this week, I have had two of my Instagram followers tell me that they went to his shop, just because of the stories that I have told about it.

This card is a 1971 Dell Baseball Stamps (according to Ebay).  Apparently, they are a tough find, and that makes sense, since I hadn't seen one before I got this one.

So, thank you for the gist, Conrad!  Another nice Brooks Robinson in my collection.