COMC Pickup - Apollo Creed 1979 Rocky II Sticker

I was looking around on COMC on Black Friday, trying to find some unique cards to add to my collection, when I found this Apollo Creed sticker.  It comes from the 1979 Rocky II series.  Because Apollo is one of my favorite fictional characters, I figured I should go ahead and pick this up.

I'm not going to go for the series or anything, but it was just a cool thing to add to my cart before I checked out.  Aside from the 2015 Ginter cards, this was the only thing related to Apollo on there.

Yeah, it is a little silly, but still pretty cool.  Also, I think it only cost me $0.35, so that's not bad, either,

Also, if you haven't gone to see "Creed" yet, you really should!  We went and saw it Thanksgiving weekend, and it was so good.  They did a good job in continuing the Rocky universe.  Obviously, he has a part in it, but he doesn't overshadow the movie, as it isn't about him.  Seriously, go check it out!

COMC Pickup - 1979 TCMA Virgil Trucks

It has been a while since I have picked up a new Virgil Trucks card for the PC.  When I was doing my Black Friday shopping, I grabbed this 1979 TCMA Virgil Trucks since it was really cheap.  I wish he was one of those guys that Topps would include here and there in some of their products.  Trucks might not have been a superstar, but the hardcore card collectors would get a kick out of pulling a piece of game used jersey or memorabilia of Trucks from a pack.  I know I would.

He was one of a kind.  To think, it has been over 5 years since I first "discovered" Mr. Trucks.  All because my buddy Drew was helping me figure out which players were good at TTM signing.

I still wish I had taken him up on his offer of paying him a visit in Alabama.  That would have been really cool, but probably still awkward.  I ended up doing a trip like it, meeting someone with old ties to the game, and had a blast.

I wonder if an opportunity like that will ever pop up again.  If it does, I know I will jump at the opportunity without any hesitation.

Black Friday Pickup - 2014 Bowman Red Ice Chris Davis

I bought a bunch of gifts for people with one Black Friday purchase on COMC.  I went back to the site later during their sale, after I sold a few things, and bought myself some cards.  One of them was this 2014 Bowman Red Ice Chris Davis that I needed for the 2014 rainbow.

The card is numbered 19/25.  I had a chance to get one when it first came out, from my friend Noah, and I mistakenly told him that I already had the card.  This event is what actually prompted me to start my Davis spreadsheet on the blog.  Since then, I have been diligent in updating it, and it has come in handy when I have gone to make a Davis purchase.

I was disappointed that there weren't as many of the cool parallels in this year's Bowman offering.  I was equally as disappointed that Davis wasn't included in Bowman and Topps Chrome.  Oh well, I'm certain he will be in 2016, I just hope he is in an Orioles uniform.

Julie Sends the First Holiday Package of the Year

I got my first holiday care package of the season in the other day from Julie.  She writes the fantastic blog "A Cracked Bat".  She was nice enough to include some really good cards.  The above Zach Britton relic from 2015 Topps Update was a nice addition to the collection.  The Orioles were kind of a middling team this past season,  but they still had 4 all stars.  Not bad!

I need to see if the other All Stars have relics.  Those would be nice cards to pick up.

Julie included this base auto from 2015 Chrome of Christian Walker.  I need to try to get the color parallels of Walker's 2015 autos, but that is something I will do later on.  Walker is a good player, but I would be completely ok with him playing this season at AAA Norfolk.  Especially if that means that Chris Davis will be coming back.  Come on guys, sign the man!

Finally, Julie sent me this really nice insert from 2015 Topps of Jason Johnson.  Johnson doesn't have a whole lot of cards these days.  He is significant for me because he was the first ever player I got an auto of IP.  He was really nice at the time, and I always hoped that he would pitch well for the O's.

Thank you so much for the care package, Julie!  I really appreciate it!

The Camaro Rides Again

My friend, Jeff, you know, green68camaro, sent me a care package that i got today to help me with my 1994 Topps set that has been languishing for quite some time.  Jeff sent me about 17 of the cards that I needed for the set.  I have another friend who is sending me some as well.  I think I will focus on completing this one in the new year.

This card, though, is one of the cooler ones of the bunch.  I remember Doug Drabek being the best pitcher around when I was in middle school.  When he eventually signed with the Orioles, I was excited.  He didn't do all that well in Baltimore, but I still think he was a great pitcher.  I need to see about getting him TTM or something.

Anyway, thanks for the care package, Jeff!

Instagram Care Package From Green68Camaro

I got a care package in the mail recently from an Instagrammer that I have been trading with quite a bit lately, Jeff, who goes by green68camaro.

I had found him a 1948 Bowman Marty Marion RC at a card show not too long ago, and we worked out a deal for it.  Since then, we have sent each other a few things.  This care package was a bit of a surprise, though.

In it, there were two nice Brooks Robinson cards for my PC.  The above card is a 1998 UD Retro Brooks.  It actually took me a few minutes to be able to read their fine print to see what year it was.  I even had my glasses on...  I could have saved time and just ebay searched it to get the year.  Maybe I need new glasses?

Anyway, this is a really nice card that I don't believe I had in my collection.  I don't recall '98 Retro, but that was when I was out of cards during college, so that makes sense.  I need to take a look and see if any other Hall of Famers that I like are in there.

I'm pretty sure I had a copy of this 1988 Pacific Baseball Legends, but another one is always welcome.  I believe these are very underrated cards.  I have seen a lot of people get these and use them for TTM autos.  These cards, when signed, turn out really great.  Brooks does some TTM signing, but the fees for flat items are pretty high, so I will just keep this in a top loader in my PC.  I just feel that there is never enough said about the merits of the 1988 Baseball Legends set.  I'm sure a lot of folks in the hobby agree.

Thanks so much for the care package, Jeff!

Instagram Trade With Spencer

I completed a trade on Instagram last week with a guy named Spencer that landed me this awesome 2011 Leaf Draft Sonny Gray auto.  I haven't added much to the Sonny Gray PC in a while, so when I saw that he had this card available, I did what I could to get it.

Spencer got a Gregory Polanco Bowman Sterling auto and a Jordan Zimmermann gold chrome parallel, and I got the Gray, a Chris Davis Bowman Chrome parallel and a card that will be a Christmas present for a friend of mine.

Spencer was really nice and easy to deal with.  If you are on Instagram, he has some nice stuff available.  Check out his page at SMCards9.