Cardboard Collections' Colbey Collects Carolina Cards.

I sent Colbey over at Cardboard Collections an email a while back about some cards I had for him, and being the slow ass that I am, I got cards from him before I even sent his out.  I sent him a nice little package of Carolina teams (Panthers/Bobcats) and other items.  He sent me some great cards for the PC and a couple set needs.  Here are some of the highlights:


































Justin Upton: Ticket to Stardom Perforated, OPC (with a sick catch pictured), Bowman Throwback, and SP Authentic
Mark Reynolds: Heritage, Topps Peak Performance, Upper Deck, and UD Tape Measure Shots.  481 feet by a righty off righty Brad Lidge. That's massive.  No wonder Reynolds strikes out all the time, he's the ultimate grip-it-and-rip-it guy. 

One football card was chillin in the package:

Score Glossy Eddie Royal.  One of my favorite Hokies of all-time.  Too bad he's pictured in the horrible Broncos throwbacks.

Thanks for the great cards, Colbey.  I hope you enjoy what I sent you!

Contest Update: First Cuts, Consolation Prize Winner, and Draft Order

Ok, so first cuts were made to narrow the 44 entrants down to 32.  The 12 that were eliminated were entered into a drawing for a consolation prize. The remaining 32 were randomly assigned a draft spot.  Details are on the Contest Page found here or on the sidebar.

Contest!!!! CLOSED

CLOSED

Ok, so let's make this official.  I am having a contest in honor of my wife and I approaching our 1 year anniversary in February.  Last post, I went through the results of the sidebar poll I had up and mention some ideas for a contest.  The response was excellent, so I wanted to make a post to clarify the rules.  The grand rule is that I am in charge.  Here is how it will go down:

1. Leave me a comment to enter

2. I will randomize the entrants, and take the top 32. If I don't get 32 entrants, I will random off the remaining spots.

3. There will then be a draft of the packs in the order determined in #2. You can choose a pack or a wild card. The wild card packs will be announced after the completion of the draft, so choosing one is a blind pick.

4. I will post the contents of 4 packs at a time, according to Round 1 of the seeded bracket. A poll will be posted on the sidebar where you can vote for one of the four packs. The pack receiving the most votes wins and moves to round 2.

5. Again, I will post the contents of 4 packs, according to Round 2 of the seeded bracket. The top voted pack in each group will move to the finals.

6. The best pack will be determined by vote, and the person who drafted that pack will be the winner.

I think this contest is a good way for me to show off some packs, as well as give away some cards.

As for the prizes:
Runner-up receives a package reflecting their collecting preference.
Winner receives the contents of the 8 Wild Card packs (less anything that I collect...see my want list). I will also announce added prizes as the contest goes on. Such as now. The winner will also receive these:






















The Special Refractor set from the Target Best of Chrome box: Strasburg, Heyward, Castro, Mantle, Robinson. 

So far, 15 people have responded for the contest:
Ryan of ("O" No!!!)
AdamE
Mark A.
BA Benny
TJ
Cubsfan731
Dawgbones
FanOfReds
Steve D
Derek
Greg Zakwin
Kev2380
Fuji
Dan
neilbuckeye

I'd like to get at least 17 more.

Hopefully the newly added prize will sweeten the deal...who am I kidding, it's all free and easy, so what gets sweeter than that?

Poll Results, and a couple of other notes

Thanks to everyone who voted for the most interesting packs on the sidebar the past couple of weeks. The results are in, and I must say, I was a little surprised at how the voting went. To review, we'll start from the bottom up.

Receiving 0 votes:
2004-05 NBA All-Star Lineup Diamond Collection

Receiving 1 vote:
2008 Gridiron Gear Football
2008 Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects
1999 Fleer Ultra
1996 Pacific Crown Collection
1994 Stadium Club Draft Picks











Receiving 2 votes:
2009 Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects
1995 Topps Embossed
1998 Bowman
2009 Sage Hit (2 packs)

Receiving 3 votes:
1998 Skybox Metal Universe
2005 Topps All American Football Retired Edition
1999 Bowman Series 2






Receiving 5 votes: the average number of votes was 4, so now we are on the plus side.
1999 Finest Series 2 (2 packs)
2008 Stadium Club (2 packs)

Receiving 6 votes:
1999 Finest Series 1 (2 packs)
2008 Upper Deck Football Heroes
1999 Bowman’s Best (3 packs)
2008 Upper Deck X (2 packs)
2010 Topps Magic Football











Receiving 7 votes: This is the honorable mention
2010 Topps Chrome Value Pack

Receiving 9 votes: The top three
2009 Goodwin Champions
2010 Greats of the Game (Dollar Tree pack)
2010 Bowman Platinum Value Pack











So, I have an idea for a contest involving these packs, but would like to get your feedback before I commit to it. Here’s how it would work.

You would leave me a comment or send me an email that you wish to enter. All the people that enter will be randomized, and the top 32 will get in. If you don’t get in, tough luck, this is a free contest and I make the rules. If I don’t get 32 people, I’ll random off the extra spots.

The 32 names will be randomized into a draft order. Then, each person gets to draft a pack. Since there are 24 packs listed, and 32 spots, I will throw in 8 “Wild card” packs. These packs won’t be named until after the draft. Thus, you have the choice to draft a listed pack or a wild card pack (until they are gone of course). I figure this will make it interesting since you will have to choose whether to draft something you already know, or take a chance on a blind pack. I’ve already made it interesting by noting that one of the less popular packs had an auto, and by noting that some are value packs, some are just one pack, some are 2-3 packs, etc.

After the draft, the packs will be seeded (based on the voting above) in a tournament bracket in groups of 4. The first round will pit 4 packs against each other, and the readers will vote which is best. Each group of 4 will have 3 voted packs and one wild card. That will put 8 packs making the next round. Those will compete in two groups of 4 the same way. That will leave two packs in the finals, which will compete with each other through voting.

What would the prizes be, you say? Well, the runner-up would receive a prize package related to their collecting preferences. The winner will get the contents of the 8 Wild Card packs (less anything from my want list), as well as other prizes that will be announced as the contest goes on.

Let me know if this sounds interesting, or if you have any questions or suggestions.

On a completely different note, I will be going on a business trip to Huntsville, AL in February. Anyone know of anything to do in Huntsville? Anyone? It’s not quite as exciting as the business trip to San Francisco I have coming up in April, in which I’m hoping to catch a Giants game, and possibly an Oakland A’s game.

A visit with my wife's grandparents.

This past weekend, my wife and I drove to Northern Virginia to visit her grandparents since we didn't see them at Christmas.  Getting to spend time with her grandfather is something I greatly look forward to because I never had a grandfather myself.   Their house is incredibly full of history, as they are both major travelers and collectors of seemingly everything.  He has already given me most of his antique tool collection, some which I will post on here, as I have with one Stanley level so far.  Well, this time, he bestowed another collection on me, though this one is not as old as the tool collection:













This is just a start.  He's got boxes and boxes of these.  There are a few notable issues in there, such as the 35th Anniversary Issue in the front, the Girls of the Big East Issue, the Barbi Twins Issue and the Bo Derek "10" Issue (this is very timely with Night Owl's recent post titled "10").  Most of these are from the '80s, so it's not exactly a valuable collection.  Since I was born in the '80s, some of these are just plain weird, such as the ones with Suzanne Sommers, who I will always see as Carol Lambert from Step by Step. The articles are interesting (yes, there are, in fact, articles) because of all the political, technological, etc. references from the '80s.  The interviews are pretty cool though, featuring some of the great '80s baseball, basketball, and football players.  The jokes section is a little hit or miss, though, seeing as how many of the common words used back then don't seem to exist anymore.  As weird as it sounds, if you have a particular issue you've been looking for all these years, and I have it...perhaps we could trade?  I don't really plan on keeping these very long. 

Anyway, enough about that.  I was looking around their house/museum and saw a closet door with a sweet pennant on it:

As with most things, I asked him where he got it.  Of course, he picked it up at a Milwaukee Braves game back in the '50s.  He asked if was interested in having it, to which I replied a big yes.  He said, "Well, I'm not dead yet, but I'll write it down that you get anything I have related to sports."  Now, he doesn't have a ton of sports memorabilia sitting around, so it wasn't like he was giving me this massive treasure trove of items, but the pennant is absolutely awesome, so I was stoked.  Then, this conversation happened:

Grandpa: "It's a shame I don't have any of those baseball cards I used to get in packs of gum back in the '30s, it's amazing what those are worth now.  We used to play with them and beat them up pretty well, and eventually they just got tossed, I guess."

Me: "Yeah, I'm always fascinated when I find people on the internet who are showing off their old cards. Some of them even have the old tobacco cards from 1909 and 1910 and older."

Grandpa: "Oh really? What brands?"

Me: "Well, like the old Allen and Ginter, American Tobacco, and all those brands."

Grandpa: "Oh, I have a whole box of those up in the attic."

...this is about the time that I need a change of underwear.

Me: "Really?!?! Are you serious?!?!"

Grandpa: "Yeah, I collected everything."

I don't want to get your hopes up, so I'll make this quick.  I spent the next 2-ish hours up in the attic digging through box after box, trunk after trunk of old stuff.  I came out empty handed.  But, we have made plans to return and help them completely empty the attic to help them see what all they have up there.  It was a very interesting trip into the attic nonetheless.  There were a couple of old trunks up there, including his father's trunk from WWI.  I opened, and there were a few dozen old wax cylinder records.  If you don't know what those are, read here.  There were tons of old maps, stamps, coins, photos, magazines, etc.  Everything you can imagine collecting, I'm pretty sure there was some of it up there.  I can't wait to go back.  I'm holding out hope that we will actually find the tobacco cards.  Who knows, maybe a T206 Honus Wagner is in my future?

2009 UD A Piece of History Blasters

Just before Christmas, I hit one of the most dangerous milestones known to collectors while going after the 2009 UD A Piece of History set.  I needed one more card.  It's a horrible thing to be one card short of a set.  I think it is exponentially bad as you get closer to a set.  You know, you have 5 to go..."not bad, we're getting there." 4 to go..."now we're close".  3 to go..."c'mon, doesn't someone want to trade?".  2 to go..."maybe I need to buy a couple packs to try to close this one out."  1 to go..."I just need to get a hobby box and every discounted blaster that Wal-Mart has. So what if I go in debt.  I'm one freaking card away."  Well, I already opened a hobby box for Christmas, with no luck for the set.  So, there was only one logical thing to do next.  To make a long story short...

Here are the highlights of some Wal-Mart blasters:

The usual 2009 APOH UD 20th Anniversary inserts.  World history and politics aren't exactly my forte, so I didn't really bother to look closer at the bottom two cards. They, along with the Jason Kidd, are headed to the Daily Dimwit.  The Reggie Jackson is headed to BA Benny. 

 

Big Papi Blue #/299
Chipper Box Score Memories #/999
Ankiel Red Parallel
Pujols/Cabrera Cut From the Same Cloth #/999 (I have the green parallel #/149 of this also)
Zambrano/Sabathia Cut From the Same Cloth Red #/99
Griffey/Bruce Cut From the Same Cloth Gold #/75 (This one is headed to Jonathan at RGB Cards)
Giles/Young/Gonzalez Padres Franchise Members 3 #/999

A nice array of color if I do say so myself.  On to the hits:

Tim Lincecum Stadium Scenes Jersey Red #16/180 (that is a sweet card for a blaster hit)
Prince Fielder Franchise History Jersey (Any Prince collectors? I got some good stuff for you)
All of those are available if not otherwise noted, so contact me if you are interested.

The Lincecum was actually in the same pack as the Griffey/Bruce Gold, the Reggis Jackson 20th, and a Longoria base card, making it easily the sickest pack of APOH I've ever opened.

Also, I have good news and bad news.  The good news:

 















I completed my set.

The bad news:
I bought so much APOH, I am a dozen cards short of completing the set a second time.  So, I need another Price RC.  I do have a red parallel of it if anyone wants to trade.  What will I do with a second set, you ask?  I don't know, perhaps a contest in the future...

Unreal Contest Prize. Check it out.

All About Cards has a ridiculous prize up for grabs in their contest.  You've got to check it out. Here's is a look at what you could win (even though I really hope you lose and I win.) 

Drool.

Christmas Box: 2008 UD Masterpieces Hobby

I have wanted to open a box of 2008 UD Masterpieces so bad.  I seriously think I had some kind of religious, spiritual moment when opening this box.  UD Masterpieces is so aptly named.  I've already completed the base set (w/out SP's) yet I still had to open a box. 

Isn't she beatiful? I didn't just rip open these packs.  I undressed them.  These cards are the perfect representation of this blog's title.  My wife doesn't get it.  The box is 12 packs, 6 cards per pack.  I should see two hits, one memorabilia and one autograph.  The checklist for relics and autos is very hit and miss, so I'm hoping for at least a decent auto.

Pack 1:
  75 Tony Gwynn
  47 Prince Fielder
  19 Ryne Sandberg Black Frame
  32 Justin Verlander
  18 Alfonso Soriano
  81 Ichiro
>>> Great start with a Sandberg parallel.  Gotta love getting Ichiro and Gwynn in the same pack.  The Verlander card from this set is truly a masterpiece. 

Pack 2:
  26 Grady Sizemore
  16 Jonathan Papelbon
  94 Ryne Sandberg SP
  YSL5443 Yankee Stadium Legacy Wade Boggs
  67 Eric Chavez
  53 Carlos Beltran
  88 Frank Thomas
>>> The first short print from the box is Ryne Sandberg.  2/2 on Sandberg so far.  I'll probably see 3 or so more Yankee Stadium Legacy cards in this box.  They'll go in a pile with the other hundred YSL cards I have sitting around.

Pack 3:
  2 Justin Upton
  79 Russell Martin
  64 Joba Chamberlain
  YSL5493 Yankee Stadium Legacy Wade Boggs
  60 Whitey Ford
  39 Roy Oswalt
  90 Ryan Zimmerman
>>> Two PC players in one pack, why doesn't that happen when I don't already have the cards?  We jump 50 games forward for the Yankees with another Boggsy, only this time he says, "no, I will not look at the camera!" Oh, and there's that damn Russell Martin again.

Pack 4:
  50 Joe Mauer
  117 Stan Musial SP
  CC-VW Captured on Canvas Jersey Vernon Wells
  42 Andruw Jones

>>> Here is the relic, a Vernon Wells jersey.  I love the look of these cards.  Not the greatest relic on the checklist, but not bad either.  Vernon is up for trade for anyone interested.  Stan Musial short print makes this a great pack. 4 packs in a I've only seen one bordered parallel, but I did get the first hit, so we're on track.

Pack 5:
  22 Kosuke Fukudome RC
  43 Chin-Lung Hu RC
  26 Grady Sizemore Black Frame
  76 Greg Maddux
  48 Ryan Braun
  69 Chase Utley
>>> So I get the Japanese and Chinese RCs in this pack.  The Grady card looks pretty good framed in black.  I call him Grady because he's the wrong Sizemore.

Pack 6:
  85 Chris Carpenter
  99 Ken Griffey Jr. SP
  92 Cal Ripken Jr. SP Black Frame
  20 Carlos Zambrano
  83 Ozzie Smith
  6 Mark Teixeira
>>> I vote this for sickest non-hit pack of the box.  Screw that, unless I get some ridiculous auto, this is the pack of the box, hands down.  The Griffey SP is classic and the black framed Ripken SP is probably the best card in the box.  The Iron Man looks great with the black border.  Getting the Wizard doesn't hurt either.

Pack 7:
  65 Jorge Posada
  108 Joe DiMaggio SP
  20 Carlos Zambrano Blue Frame #092/125
  62 Alex Rodriguez
  34 Gary Sheffield
  13 Curt Schilling
>>> Apparently we've hit the stage in the box where all the framed cards are. Zamboni looks good in blue.  A nice looking DiMaggio short print rounds out the pack.

Pack 8:
78 Barry Zito
119 Dave Winfield SP
24 Adam Dunn Red Frame
70 Jimmy Rollins
42 Andruw Jones
28 Travis Hafner
>>> Yep, definitely in the frame groove.  A blue Cub and now a red Red.  Crazy.  The Dave Winfield short print makes up for the Andruw Jones dupe. 2/3 of the way through the box and only one hit.  The auto awaits!

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Pack 9:
  57 Pedro Martinez
  29 Troy Tulowitzki
  30 Matt Holliday Black Frame
  77 Jake Peavy
  63 Hideki Matsui
  35 Magglio Ordonez
>>> Ok, we get it, we're in the frame section.  Another color appropriate frame saves an otherwise boring pack.

Pack 10:
  71 Ryan Howard
  23 Jim Thome
  86 Carl Crawford
  YSL5468 Yankee Stadium Legacy Don Mattingly
  55 Johan Santana
  41 Vladimir Guerrero
  27 Victor Martinez
>>> I shouldn't have messed with the frame swerve.  A third Yankee Stadium Legacy, but this time it's Donnie Baseball.  My favorite stat of his is that he hit 6 grand salamis in 1987, but never hit one in any other season.

Pack 11:
28 Travis Hafner
15 David Ortiz
CC-CA Captured on Canvas Autographs Matt Cain
110 Yogi Berra SP
>>> Alright, the auto is an Auto/Relic of Matt Cain, which is definitely more than I was expecting.  That's my first Auto/Relic pulled from a pack so I'm stoked. The on-card auto looks incredible. It's also up for trade if anyone is interested.  The Yogi Berra short print makes this pack just plain awesome.  The Travis Hafner is the second dupe of the box, though.  On a side note, I have a few Hafner jersey cards if anyone out there collects him.  He's the one guy I seem to pull more than anyone else.

Pack 12:
1 Brandon Webb
36 Miguel Cabrera
8 Jim Palmer
YSL5443 Yankee Stadium Legacy Wade Boggs
56 Jose Reyes
7 Evan Longoria RC
84 Jason Varitek
>>> It's easy to overlook the last pack once all the hits are pulled, but this pack had the Longoria RC, the best non-SP base card in the set.  Seriously, I got a Yankee Stadium Legacy dupe?  6,661 cards in the set, and I can't get 4 unique YSLs in the box? Really?  Sorry, I had to have something to complain about.



 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
It doesn't get much better than that for Christmas.  I made out like a bandit this year.  All of the framed cards, both hits and the YSLs are up for trade.  I haven't decided whether or not to try to complete the SPs now that I have 10 of the 30, so I'm going to hang on to those for now.  I'm holding tight with 49 followers...c'mon somebody click that follow button and put me over the half-century mark.

Christmas Box: 2009 UD A Piece of History Hobby Part 2

On to part 2 of my 2009 A Piece of History hobby box break. 














The first half of the box had the Piece of Hollywood hit in the form of a costume swatch of John Hurt from Outlander. The first half also produced some decent inserts and parallels.  The second half still holds the guaranteed auto and relic, so lets see what I got:

Pack 9:
  64 Chien-Ming Wang
  16 Derrek Lee
  151 Star-Spangled Banner Blue #024/299
  706 Wayne Gretzky 20th Anniversary
  197 Republican Party Founded
  127 Juan Miranda RC
  161 D-Day Invasion
>>> If there was a history card to get a blue parallel of, I guess the Star-Spangled Banner is it.  Nothing wrogn with finding the Great One in a pack.  My wife's grandfather (the same one who gave me his tool collection) was on the beach on D-Day, so that card is extra cool to me.

Pack 10:
  63 Derek Jeter
  47 Manny Ramirez
  95 Michael Young
  47 Manny Ramirez Green #002/150
  115 Alcides Escobar RC
  177 Microwave Oven Invented
  103 Josh Roenicke RC
>>> Manny Ramirez hot pack! 

Pack 11:
  79 Brian Giles
  31 Troy Tulowitzki
  45 Vladimir Guerrero
  SS-RM Russell Martin Stadium Scenes #155/999
  711 Stephen Breyer 20th Anniversary
  185 X-Ray Invented
  137 Aaron Cunningham RC
>>> I knew I hadn't seen the last of Russell Martin.  Im not lying.  He's everywhere.  Who doesn't love getting a SC Justice in a pack of baseball cards. 

Pack 12:
93 Josh Hamilton
77 Chris Young
29 Travis Hafner
131 James Parr RC Autograph Violet
156 18th Amendment Adopted
149 Mike Hinckley
172 US Constitution Signed
>>> See Braves fans, I told you this box would have something for you.  Too bad I think this guy fell of the face of the Earth. I mean, this is a great card!  I love that the 18th Amendment card came before the Constitution card.

Pack 13:

  11 David Ortiz

  59 Johan Santana

  FM-RWBS Franchise Members Quad Mets (Reyes/Wright/Beltran/Santana) #104/999
  696 Arkansas Razorbacks 20th Anniversary
  106 Matt Antonelli
  186 Pluto Recategorized
  130 Josh Outman
>>> I really didn't expect to add much to the PC with this box, but the Quad Mets with Wright will be going in the binder, so I am ecstatic.  I had the Triple Mets already, so this will look good right next to it.  As a space guy, I like the space-related history cards.  Unfortunately, the whole Pluto-isn't-a-planet thing is stupid.

Pack 14:
  91 Scott Kazmir
  42 Alex Gordon
  26 Brandon Phillips
  SS-LB Lance Berkman Stadium Scenes #663/999
  196 Debut of New York Times
  126 James McDonald RC
  160 USA Enters World War II
>>> Another nice Stadium Scenes, this time with a great picture of Minute Maid Park.

Pack 15:
  74 Ryan Doumit
  10 Josh Beckett
  58 David Wright
  48 Russell Martin
  BSM-CJ Chipper Jones Box Score Memories Jersey Red #110/180
  701 Alex Rodriguez 20th Anniversary
  118 Josh Geer RC
  176 Elevator Invented
>>> David Wright shows up, Russell Martin peaks in for a third time, and an A-Rod helps celebrate UD's 20th Anniversary.  Oh yeah, and a sweet Chipper Jones jersey card.  It's a red parallel, too, which looks awesome on a Braves card.  Ok Braves fans, sorry for making you think the Parr auto was the only big Braves card.  I am ecstatic with this hit, easily the highlight of the box.  If I'm not going to pull a player I collect, Chipper is on the short list of others I am happy to pull (you know, along with Jeter, Pujols, Ichiro, etc.).

Pack 16:
  32 Garrett Atkins
  96 Roy Halladay
  80 Tim Lincecum
  72 Ryan Howard Green #078/150
  112 Luis Cruz RC
  184 Brooklyn Bridge Completed
  124 Lou Marson RC
>>> Well, no David Price to finish my set.  The Ryan Howard green is a nice parallel to finish off the box (note: the green Howard has already been sent to Dawgbones, so it isn't available). 





 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That does it for my hobby box of 2009 APOH.  That was a great Christmas present.  Most of the cards are available for trade, so if you see something you like, let me know. 

Christmas Box: 2009 UD A Piece of History Hobby Part 1

I've finally gotten all of the Christmas looseys posted, so it's time for one of the big dogs.  My father-in-law gave me hobby boxes of 2008 UD Masterpieces and 2009 UD A Piece of History for Chistmas; here is the APOH:














Question: when you open a hobby box, do you tend to fold the box top into "display mode" like I did, or do you just bust into it?  I so rarely open boxes that I like to get into the feel of having my own box of packs to rip.  It makes me feel like I'm beating the system or something; like I'm sticking it to the man.  I don't get the opportunity to do many box breaks, so I'm going to milk it for all it's worth. The box has 16 packs, 7 cards per pack, with one auto, one player relic, and one Hollywood relic per box. I had some mercy on y'all, because I originally thought about splitting this box into 4 sets of 4 packs, but instead I'm going with 2 sets of 8 packs.  Without further ado, let's get to the packs.

Pack 1:
  94 Ian Kinsler
  14 Jonathan Papelbon
  46 Torii Hunter
  105 Alfredo Aceves RC Green #112/150
  140 Jose Mijares RC
  168 Women Vote in New Zealand
  142 Robert Parnell RC
>>> I mentioned a few posts ago, BA Benny loves that I always pull Yankees/Mets refractors/parallels.  So why not start the box off with the Aceves Green (Yankees).  I love the New Zealand card, but only because it makes me think about Flight of the Conchords. 

Pack 2:
  57 Jose Reyes
  9 Nick Markakis
  41 Miguel Tejada
  182 First Anesthetic Used Blue #060/299
  731 Sergei Federov Upper Deck 20th Anniversary
  164 1989 San Francisco 'Quake
  148 Gaby Sanchez RC
>>> I like the History set in this, but I think they should have gone without parallels of the Historical cards.  I'm really glad I wasn't that first dude to get anesthetized (see picture below). The UD 20th Anniversary cards are to 2009 APOH what Yankee Stadium Legacy is to 2008 Masterpieces.  Still no David Price RC to complete my set.

Pack 3:
  89 BJ Upton
  25 Edinson Volquez
  73 Jimmy Rollins
  SS-DM Daisuke Matsuzaka Stadium Scenes #864/999
  188 Thanksgiving Becomes Holiday
  136 Will Venable RC
  191 National League Established
  139 Devon Lowery RC
>>> Always good to see an Upton, even if I already have a bunch of this card.  The Stadium Scenes inserts is one of my favorite insert sets. Tell me that isn't a perfectly laid out player picture and serial number combo. This pack had 8 cards...unusual to see two rookies and two historical cards in one pack.

Pack 4:
  78 Jake Peavy
  62 Alex Rodriguez
  10 Josh Beckett Blue #200/299
  726 Hakeem Olajuwon Upper Deck 20th Anniversary
  200 Czechoslovakia Splits in Two
  144 Jason Pridie RC
  152 Eisenhower Inaugurated
>>> It would appear as though I jinxed the Yankees/Mets run after the first pack.  Now we have back-to-back Red Sox insert/parallel packs.  Gotta love opening baseball packs and getting a Hakeem "The Dream".



























1/4 of the box and no hits yet...

Pack 5:
  61 Pedro Martinez
  13 Jacoby Ellsbury
  CSC-MM Joe Mauer/Russell Martin Cut from the Same Cloth #695/999
  716 Frank Thomas 20th Anniversary
  138 George Kottaras RC
  192 International Games Begin
  150 Mitch Talbot RC
>>> I knew I wouldn't get too far through a box before Russell Martin appeared.  Another UD 20th with the Big Hurt, I love it.  I've seen that Kottaras/Int'l Games/Mitch Talbot combo before...

Pack 6:
  3 Dan Haren
  99 Ryan Zimmerman
  51 CC Sabathia
  CSC-PC Albert Pujols/Miguel Cabrera Cut from the Same Cloth Green #045/149
  158 Germany Leaves League
  147 Luis Valbuena RC
  174 Golden Gate Bridge Completed
>>> Good to see Zim as always.  Finally, a parallel of an insert, and one of the best insert cards, too. Ah yes, Germany leaves the League.  I guess they didn't like the DH rule.  I'm looking forward to April, since I will be visiting San Francisco for a week, and hopefully getting to see the Golden Gate Bridge.

Pack 7:
  35 Justin Verlander
  19 Aramis Ramirez
  POH-HU A Piece of Hollywood Shirt "Outlander" John Hurt
  721 George W. Bush 20th Anniversary
  143 Fernando Perez RC
  194 New Orleans Founded
>>> And we have our first hit, and it's from a movie I've never heard of.  According to IMDB, Outlander came out in 2008, starred Jim Caviezel, and was about an alien man (Caviezel) who lands on Earth in the time of the Vikings.  I'll have to check it out.  Anyone seen it?  Of course, the swatch isn't from the main character, it's from John Hurt's character, Hrothgar.  The swatch is very satisfying; it appears to be some puffy felt fabric. I touch all of my swatches, so this was awesome.  This pack also yielded a Dubya and a New Orleans, ironic.
 
Pack 8:
  67 Mariano Rivera
  83 Ichiro
  30 Matt Holliday
  SS-RG Ryan Garko Stadium Scenes #320/999
  141 Jason Motte RC
  180 Pilgrims Land at Plymouth
  146 Justin Thomas RC
>>> Two future HOFers, some pilgrims and a nice-looking Garko.  The more I see the Stadium Scenes cards, the more I like them. 



















































That does it for the first half of the box.  I should have the second part coming soon.  Just to give a hint, we still have an auto and a relic to go, and the second half will be particularly appealing to Braves fans.

Christmas Pack: 2010 Upper Deck Hobby

Anyone who has ordered anything from Dave and Adam's Card World for more than $75, knows what this pack means.  When you order that much from them, they include bonus packs or boxes.  Since my Father-in-law got me two hobby boxes for Christmas, I got a bonus 2010 Upper Deck pack.  That means this is the last post before I start posting my big Christmas presents: Hobby Boxes of 2008 UD Masterpieces and 2009 UD A Piece of History.  I only opened one other pack of 2010 Upper Deck, so I was excited to see what the hobby pack had to offer.

Base: Ryan Franklin, David Ortiz, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Ervin Santana, Glen Perkins, Chris Iannetta, JP Howell, Mitch Stetter, Adam Kennedy, Koji Uehara, Zach Duke, Taylor Teagarden, Clay Buchholz, Luis Perdomo, David DeJesus
>>> Nothing special to talk about here. 

Yankee Stadium Ballparks
>>> I like the ballparks set in 2010 UD, it never gets old paying tribute to the great buildings of baseball.

Carlos Zambrano Portrait
>>> The portraits cards seem really bland to me.  I could live without a bad picture of an angry man.

Ryan Howard Biography
>>> The Biography inserts are a good way for UD to add substance to the set without a license.  Ryan Howard lit up Shairon Martis in this episode.

Adrian Gonzalez Biography
>>> Adrian Gonzalez goes 6 for 6.  That's ridicutardedly good. 

Hanley Ramirez Baseball Heroes 20th Anniversary
>>> These are great looking cards.  The layout begs for an autograph, though.

I have to say I think 2010 UD turned out pretty good for an unlicensed set.  But, who am I to judge card designs.  After all, I'm just a collector. 

Well, that does it for the random Christmas packs.  Next up is the hobby boxes, so be on the lookout.  Don't forget to vote on the sidebar for the random packs you most want to see in the future.

Christmas Pack: BIEBER!!!!!!!

My sister-in-law is hilarious.  Among the 5 hobby packs of 2010 Bowman Chrome was this little gem:






















I know the suspense is killing you.

Really, a 150 card set and you get 2 cards per pack?  I got some kind of crazy harnessfractor, with a picture of him latched in to a contraption that keeps him falling when attempting to dance, I guess.  The second is a puzzle piece.  There is more than one puzzle in the set.  One puzzle is too many puzzles.  I got his elbow. Yay.  Of course, the big mojo of the pack is the sticker.  I hope I never say mojo again.  Apparently "Runnin' Outta Time" is not even a song title.  It's one of the lyrics.  Seriously, and we wonder why kids are idiots these days.  Since I don't want this blog to have any credibility, here is the song:



I'm sorry.  Even if that little girl is the new sensation, I can't get into it.  I prefer music by talented folks.

A Travesty

The NCAA should be embarrassed.  Only two teams get to play for the "Championship", and after they both suck for four quarters, we crown the winner "National Champion"?

Christmas Packs: 2010 Bowman Chrome

My sister-in-law and her boyfriend picked up 5 hobby packs of 2010 Bowman Chrome for Christmas.  It gave me a unique opportunity to explain the Chrome Curve to non-card-people.  Anyway, I was very surprised to get hobby packs, so I was excited.

Here are the packs:

Pack 1: Starlin Castro RC, John Simms USA, Yan Gomes Prospect, Kyle Gibson Prospect
>>> Not bad to start with the Castro RC and a USA card

Pack 2: Brian McCann, Elvis Andrus Refractor, Jeremy Barnes Prospect, Tim Pahuta Prospect
>>> Refractors should be the base cards with colored refractors as the inserts.

Pack 3: Derek Holland, Aramis Ramirez Refractor, Thomas Di Benedetto Prospect, Gary Sanchez Prospect
>>> Another refractor, not bad

Pack 4: James Loney, Matt Garza, TJ McFarland Prospect, Tyler Chatwood Prospect
>>> A newly traded Matt Garza

Pack 5: Mike Stanton RC, Matt Garza Refractor, Rossmel Perez Prospect, Bryan Mitchell Prospect
>>> Stanton RC is always nice, and Garza shows up again, refractively.

Well, I didn't get anything spectacular, but I love Christmas packs nonetheless.  If anyone sees anything that tickles their trade fancy, let me know.  Thanks again to my sister-in-law and her boyfriend!

 

Joy of a Completed (First) Page

I've had the pleasure (and pain) of seeing many others out there show off their completed pages, all while I was chasing a couple sets and hadn't put a single card into pages.  My collection was housed as follows: Baseball mostly sorted into 5,000 count boxes and some smaller boxes, Football unsorted in several old blaster boxes, and basketball in pages, by team, in binders by divison.  In the late '90s, I switched to mainly basketball cards for some reason and I had them all in pages, even the dupes.  I have recently been taking the basketball cards out and using the pages to house some of the sets that you guys have helped me complete.  I now have my 2008 Masterpieces (w/out SPs unfortunately) and my 2009 A Piece of History in pages.  The set I really want to complete is 2008 Upper Deck X Base, Die Cut, and Die Cut gold.  I finally completed my first page of the set:

The set is perfect for displaying in a binder, so I'm now dying to finish it.  Let me know if you can help!  Dawgbones has already let me know he can help.  I have my Die Cut and Die Cut Gold needs on my want list.  Fortunately I have two of the big three cards of this set: Pujols Gold and Longoria RC Gold.  The Jeter gold might be a challenge.

Tools of the Trade #1

Welcome to my first Tools of the Trade post.  The title is probably a little more literal than most of you expected.  I intend to showcase a new collection of mine: Antique Tools.  My wife's grandfather heard me talking about how much I enjoyed my new garage/workshop, and he decided it would be a good time to start passing on to me his antique tool collection.  He is a very unique man, and a passionate collector of many things who collects the way we all wish we could.  Perfect example: He once bought a farm because he wanted a farm.  The farm had an old workshop on it, so he decided to fill it with all of the appropriate hand tools.  When they moved from the farm, the tools went into storage, until recently when he started giving them to me. 

I want to make this a regular feature, as it is a way for me to diversify the blog, perhaps introduce people to something different, and also motivation for me to learn about my new (or old, i guess) tools.  I figured I had to start out with something many people may be familiar with: a level.  This, however, is not just any level.

Stanley Rule and Level Company No. 4 Level

Not all of the tools are identifiable as this, but I wanted to start of with a name that many people would recognize.  This level is absolutely beautiful. The level measures 28 1/4" x 3 1/8" x 1 3/8".  It has metal endcaps and metal plates at the two glass tubes.  A closer look at the plate with the markings:

The markings read:

STANLEY

RULE & LEVEL CO.

NEW BRITAIN CONN. U.S.A.

PAT. 6-2-91. 6-23-96.

There is also a "4" imprinted into the wood.  The bubbles still work, though they would need to be adjusted with the adjustment screws to be level. 

It seems like every piece I look at in the collection quickly becomes my favorite piece, but this one is pretty special being a Stanley level.  If anyone knows anything more about it, please let me know. 

Well, I hope you enjoyed this post!

Christmas Pack: 2010 Bowman Platinum Retail

I recently opened my Best of Chrome box which yielded a hobby pack of 2010 Bowman Platinum that was pretty boring.  Well, I also picked up a retail pack just to see if there was anything good to be had there.  The retail pack was 10,000 times better than the hobby pack. The contents:

100. David Wright
>>> A new Wright PC addition, ok, you've got my attention, pack.

PP38. Brian Johnson
>>> Always happy to pick up the AC/DC legend.  Anyone else think he should start a band with Carlos Santana?...they could be called AL/NL...get it?!?!?

70. Jimmy Rollins
>>> A former MVP, this is shaping up to be a great pack.

40. Johan Santana Gold Refractor #440/539
>>> Right now, BA Benny is wondering why every refractor/parallel I pull is a Met or a Yank. I'm sure he's not complaining, though, seeing as how most of them get sent his way.

Well, that was a great pack. I wish Bowman Platinum didn't scan so crappily.  The Wright is a great addition to the PC and the Gold Refractors look awesome.  Hopefully I can get the rest of my Christmas posts done before February.

Stocking Packs!

My wife stuffed a stocking for me and included were five packs.  She gave me two Dollar Tree packs of 2010 Update, two retail packs of 2008 Upper Deck X, and one retail pack of 2010 Topps Football. 














I hadn't opened any Update yet, and I'm trying to finish the 2008 Upper Deck X trifecta of Base, Die Cut, and Die Cut Gold, so the baseball packs were perfect.  The football pack was great, too, because I opened maybe one rack pack of Topps Football this year and wanted more.

Topps Update (Dollar Tree packs contain 5 base cards):

1: Ty Wigginton AS, Jeff Keppinger, Jake Arrieta RC, Bobby Wilson, Vladimir Guerrero/Miguel Cabrera AS  
>>> Not much to talk about in this pack, especially the extremely boring Vlad/Cabrera card.

2: Felipe Paulino, Gaby Sanchez, Mike Redmond, Josh Bell RC, Bobby Crosby.
>>> Still not much to talk about.

Upper Deck X:

1: Justin Verlander, Chien-Ming Wang, Jim Thome, Chase Utley Die Cut, Mariano Rivera Xponential, Carlos Quentin Die Cut Gold
>>> I have already completed the base set, but this pack was awesome since I needed the Utley and Quentin.

2: Alex Rios, Jonathan Papelbon, Josh Beckett, Whitey Ford Yankee Stadium Legacy, Russell Martin Xponential, Josh Hamilton Die Cut
>>>Not as lucky here as I already had the Hamilton.  I'm still debating as to whether I want to go after all the Xponentials as well. Does anyone collect the Yankee Stadium Legacy cards? I've got like 100 or so sitting around gathering dust.

Topps Football:

1: Brian Cushing, Jared Allen, Aqib Talib, Deon Butler, Michael Jenkins, Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins,  Anthony Davis RC, Toby Gerhart RC, Terrence Cody RC, Ben Tate 75th Draft Anniversary, DeSean Jackson Attax
>>> The insert weren't great here, and neither were the base cards.  Aqib Talib helped Kansas beat VT in the '08 Orange Bowl, so I could live without seeing any more of his cards.  I like Gerhart, so I guess this pack wasn't too bad.

I'm ecstatic that I knocked off another die cut and die cut gold off the list, so these cards were greatly appreciated.  I've only just begun on my Christmas loot, I've still got 7 packs and two hobby boxes to go, so be on the lookout.  A lot of good trade bait is on the way.

2010 Best of Chrome Value Box: Bowman Platinum Hobby

This is last pack from the first box of cards from my Christmas loot.  Before Christmas, my wife and I were out doing some last minute browsing, and I bought myself a Topps 2010 Best of Chrome Value Box from Target with some early Christmas money her grandfather sent us.













 Naturally, I have to break it down into 5 separate posts: Topps Chrome, Bowman Chrome, Million Card Giveaway, Special Refractors, and Bowman Platinum Hobby.  This is the last post for this box, and is what I expected to be the highlight: 2010 Bowman Platinum Hobby

PP23: JD Martinez Prospect
>>> Who?

PP42: Brad Miller
>>> Center for the Houston Rockets...no?...ummmm...Congressman from North Carolina...no, again? I give up...

45: Pablo Sandoval
>>> Hey, I actually recognize that guy.

32: Vladimir Guerrero
>>> I've seen a fair amount af Vlad here lately. 

15: Joey Votto
>>> Finishing out the pack with an MVP...I can live with that.
The scans suck:

I don't really see the need for this set and I don't find it particularly appealing, though I do also have a retail pack and a retail value rack pack to post later.  I don't plan on buying more Bowman Platinum, mainly because I'm broke, but also because I would prefer almost any other product.  All in all, I'd say this box was ok.  I didn't get anything too special, but it was a nice variety I guess.  I've got a ton more Christmas stuff to come...

2010 Best of Chrome Value Box: Special Refractors

This is another group of cards from my Christmas loot.  Before Christmas, my wife and I were out doing some last minute browsing, and I bought myself a Topps 2010 Best of Chrome Value Box from Target with some early Christmas money her grandfather sent us.













 Naturally, I have to break it down into 5 separate posts: Topps Chrome, Bowman Chrome, Million Card Giveaway, Special Refractors, and Bowman Platinum Hobby.  Here are the 5 Special Refractors:

BC-1: Stephen Strasburg
>>> About time Topps put out a Strasburg card...

BC-2: Starlin Castro
>>> No offense to Castro, but this should have been Buster Posey.

BC-3: Jason Heyward
>>> No offense to Heyward, but this should have been Neftali Feliz.

BC-4: Mickey Mantle
>>> Seriously, who comes up with these miniset ideas.  Who had the gigantic brass balls to say, "We'll have Strasburg as #1, then a couple of other rookie card-sellers that weren't ROYs, and then we'll have Mantle."

BC-5: Jackie Robinson
>>> See above, and replace "Mantle" with "Robinson".

 

I dig the special refractors but haven't ruled out having them as part of a contest or putting them on ebay.  I'd prefer to keep them together, but we'll see.  Stay tuned for more Best of Chrome.