Real One Auto Madness

Heritage is less than a week away from being released. It seems every year heritage gets released, i log on ebay and find autographs from various years at amazing prices. So what did i do? i bought a few.

Paid: $3.99

Year: 2013

Brandon Maurer. Who is that? Maybe someone who follows the Seattle Mariners can educate me on the subject. Out of all the years i have completed, 2013 is the year i have the most autos(23) so this was a nice addition. I don't know how much bigger my binder can get.

Paid: $9.99

Year: Same.

Hey! I know who this guy is! I've seen this one pop up online at insane prices. So, i did what i usually do in order to get it at  a fairly reasonable price, wait. Well, i waited and waited long i tell you! a year and a half later i found one, and coughed up a Hamilton for it. I've never seen the red ink version surface anywhere. Im going to be waiting longer on that one.

Paid: $13

Year: 2012

Dodger Fans will probably enjoy this one. He won a silver slugger and a gold glove in 2014. This slugging first basemen played with the Red Sox the year this was issued.  I remember dealers at shows wanted 100 bucks for this. I couldn't picture myself paying that much for a current players auto. 

Paid: $35

Year: 2005

2005 Heritage Autos aren't easy to come by, especially when it comes to hall of famers. I did jump all over this as soon as i laid my eyeballs on it. Much like Mr. Gonzalez, i saw this going for 1 Franklin back in the day. So, i took advantage. My 2005 auto section is quiet, but this will make some noise for sure.

1963 Topps Wantlist

Completed!

2015 Topps Series 1 checklist is live!

This set looks like it will be my favorite released the past 5 years leaping over 2011.

http://www.cardboardconnection.com/2015-topps-series-1-baseball-cards

Variation Shopping

I've been having an urge lately of buying variation SP's for my flagship sets.

When you have a collection as big as mine, you tend to get distracted on what to get.

I haven't purchased any of these in awhile so i hit up ebay for these jewels:

Paid: $4

2012 Topps variations are pretty tough to come buy at a decent price, i gobbled this one up pretty quick at this steal of a deal.

Paid: $5

Paying homage to his two no-hitters, one of the best pitchers in the game today, also has one of the more recent great looking variation cards i've seen in a Topps set.

Out of all of the variations you're going to see, this one is a personal favorite to me.

Paid: $5

Another Tiger? Another Cy Young award winner.

This being the third in a row, i thought i could switch gears and jump to this year's crop of postseason celebration variations.

Paid: $6

What is there to say about NOMAH? Will he get into the hall of fame someday? Perhaps. It would be pretty awesome if it happened, im not completely counting him out yet, anything could happen.

2013 Topps Update decided to use past all-star game uni's along with other legend variations sporting theirs. Pretty neat concept. I've always liked the idea of looking at Garciaparra in his 2000 All-Star Game Jersey. I felt like it was just yesterday that AS Game was played.

2014 Topps Update Recap

A couple of days ago i decided to assassinate some of the brand new 2014 Update.
I didn't bother recording this break because i was being lazy about it.

One blaster box plus 10, thats right TEN rack packs and still somehow i came up 24 cards short of a set.

I did find my first Yoenis Cespedes card in a red sox uni, so thats pretty awesome!

Parallels, Parallels, & more Parallels!

I couldn't image buying so many blaster boxes/rack packs and pulling these things over and over again. Pink, Camo, Red Foil and blah blah blah.

Me being a set collector the most annoying thing in the world is finding more of those things rather than base cards.

One "relic" i got out of the blaster box was this World Series patch card of Sandy Koufax:

These come one per blaster box.

I never really cared all that much about manu-relics but these look pretty cool and i am considering putting this set together.

Overall, i give this little break a B+, i think the set is really nice, granted it might have too many rookies i've never heard of, but hey which traded set doesn't? Ohh and those parallels. Lets hope someday in my lifetime, Topps will stop making these.

Next time i might just buy a complete 330 card set.  

Vintage Pickups: 1963 Topps #210 Sandy Koufax

Well that didn't take very long did it? My most recent pickup was yet ANOTHER HOF'er from '63.

Sandy Koufax.

Another great one i plucked off ebay at a price i was amazed to see. I'll take the old stuff over the new crap they put out these days (topps chrome, bowman platinum, etc.) anyday of the week

Paid: $35

At 35 bucks, this was a complete bargain to me. I couldn't find any other one on the bay for a reasonable price. So of course, i jumped all over this.

It seems to me these days vintage is popping up all over the place at good prices.

It must be the newer stuff that grabs "collectors" eyes today.

I have more great ones coming, stay tuned.

Vintage Pickups: 1963 Topps #320 Warren Spahn

Im sure the year 1963 is a year that might seem familiar to most of you out there who read/follow this blog, for those who don't, 1963 Topps is my favorite baseball card set of all-time.

My 63' set just took another big step towards completion. I don't own many HOFer's from that set but im working on it.

Im not too picky as far as condition goes, as long as i complete this set, thats all that matters. I thought i found a gem of a deal when i saw this on ebay.

Paid: $7

Meet Warren Spahn.

A 363 career game winner, the all-time wins leader by a left-handed pitcher & he is considered to be one of the greatest pitchers ever to play the game.

I remember very well watching the introduction to the all-century team at the 1999 All-Star Game at Fenway Park. I thought it was really cool being 14 years old, seeing legends of the past being united with the present.