A New Set Idea! First 3 Out of the Way!

Hey guys, Drew back here! So recently I've dug my head into yet another set, but this one, unlike the 1961 Topps Set, is a modern day product. I am going to attempt the 2011 Topps Tier One "Top Shelf" relic set! Each card I am attempting to pick up is numbered out of 399 and features one piece of game used memorabilia from some of the best players the game has ever seen, to players that could get to that level at some point! There are 50 cards in the set, and due to the higher numbering, even some of the all time legends in the set's cards are selling dirt cheap! So, I was able to buy 3 of the cards recently, and they all came in within the past few days! Take a look:

The first card I bought was the bat card belonging to "Stan The Man", Stan Musial! I didn't have any memorabilia cards of Musial until this card came in, and I'm glad I do now. It would take an awful lot of money to finish off the trifecta and pick up a rookie card of his, so I probably shouldn't consider a Musial trifecta anytime soon! But the card cost about $12 and I feel like I did well on the price!

Relic number 2 is of current Giants ace Tim Lincecum! Lincecum has been one of my favorite pitchers in baseball over the past few years, and a lot of that respect came from having him in fantasy baseball last year, even though it wasn't his best year. It was all good though, because Verlander did most of the work in my rotation! Anyway, this one was numbered 394 of 399, and it's a piece of his jersey. A lot of the cards in this set have bat relics, which is okay, but I do sort of wish some of the older cards had some wool in them!  

The final card is an absolute beauty, even for a Red Sox card! It's the Jimmie Foxx bat relic! I literally probably had under 10 cards of Foxx in my entire collection, but this one certainly is a step up from anything else of his that I own. The bat piece in the card probably is the oldest piece of game used memorabilia I own, as Foxx played mostly through the 20's, 30's, and 40's! Fortunately, this set also contains a lot more old memorabilia, in Cobb, Sisler, Speaker, Hornsby, Ruth, and Gehrig, so I'm going to have my hands full! And oh by the way, I don't mean to brag but this card cost me $8.

So, 3 down, 47 to go! This set is absolutely beautiful, and when it's complete I will cherish it to say the very least! So, if anyone has any of these cards, for trade or for sale, please consider shooting me an email and letting me know if you want to try and work something out! Thanks everyone!

See Ya!

TTM #70- Finally!

Hey guys, Drew back here. Well, my classes are now over for the summer, with only finals seperating me from the sweet summertime! I can't say I won't be busy though, with a few vacations scattered throughout the summer, as well as 3 amazing events. First on that agenda, we just learned about, is that we got tickets to see Paul McCartney's On The Run Tour in Yankee Stadium on July 15th! I couldn't believe it when I heard the news about this, and I absolutely can't wait to go! Next, I'm going to a Yankee game in August, and I'll be hitting up the White Plains Card Show most likely, featuring some awesome autograph guests! So, I've got a lot to look forward to, but I can't let those things affect me over the next 2 weeks. Oh, I did say I wasn't going to post for a weeks, HA! Yeah, who would've thought I'd be right back here again? Typical me.

So anyway, it took a few tries, but I recently got a semi-success from my TTM miracle! Check it out:

None other than Stan "The Man" Musial sent me his autographed postcard! After numerous tries of getting him to sign a custom, I gave up hope and requested one of these, which are normally given to you when asked. I'm sure that these were pre-signed, because unfortunately Mr. Musial, at 90 years old, isn't getting any younger. Recently, Dad bought me an autographed baseball of his off of Craigslist, and even though the autograph wasn't beautiful, it was worth it, because the guy was a legend.

Just by reading off his list of accomplishments on the card, 3,630 hits, 6,134 total bases, 24 All Star selections, and a lifetime average of .331, makes you feel like he's in the top 10 at least for greatest hitters the game has ever seen! For absolutely no cost, I was given this nice little commemorative autographed card of his, and I'll always cherish it! He has a beautiful signature, and is a true hero of baseball! I'm so glad I was able to add a new piece of his to my collection. 

This video truly shares how great of a person this man is. Here's a salute, and a major thank you to Mr. Stan Musial, may I wish you all the best in the future!

See Ya!

Revealing the Mysterious Binder... A Little at a Time... Stan the Man Edition

Hey guys, Drew back here! Remember that binder? Yeah, a few posts ago I showed off some of the highlights of an enormous tub full of cards given to me by a very nice lady whose father recently passed away. Well, there was 1 binder in the tub that stood above it all. It was so impressive that we actually have to start a new series to show off all of the good stuff and give them the respect they deserve! Let's kick off this series with these 2 cards:

Today we dedicate the 1st post of the series to Cardinals legend Stan Musial, as well as an appearance by Giants great Willie Mays! On the left is an actual 1961 Topps Stan Musial card, and on the right is a 1963 Topps "Pride of N.L." Willie Mays and Stan Musial card. Without actually explaining the book value of these cards, let's just let stats do the talking as always.

Stan Musial, as I recently explained when I was able to pick up an autographed baseball of his a week or so ago, was a heck of a player. The guy was voted into 24 All Star Games! You might not think of him along the lines of Ruth, Gehrig, Mays, and Aaron, but honestly, you should. With his amount of All Star appearances, he is tied with Willie Mays and Hank Aaron for the most All Star appearances EVER. Granted, for about a four year stretch in the late 1950's-early 1960's, 2 All Star games were played a year, and all 3 of them did get some bonus appearances due to that. But that is a very special number in my mind.

He also not only won 1, not even 2, but 3 National League MVP's! To top it off, he even missed a year in the service. It truly shows how legendary of a player he was when you see him with another American Icon Willie Mays on the same card. Those two men hit 1,135 home runs between them. Oh yeah, these cards are THAT good. And the condition you ask? A little wear but they look amazing!

Trust me, there's more of what that came from! Stay tuned for the next installment, so you can see what other treats we found in this binder!

See Ya!

Incredible Craigslist Gift from Dad!

Hey guys, Drew back here, and this pickup today was one of the greatest I may have ever gotten. A few days ago, my dad found a listing on Craigslist that really shocked me. He emailed the dealer and found out that the person selling it actually has worked not in the same area, but in the same building as my dad for many years! Dad bought the baseball without me knowing anything about the reply to the listing, and gave it to me today!

Stan. The. Man. Stan Musial, if you've been reading my blog for the last few months you may know that Musial has been the "white whale" of my collection for a long time. I've tried him twice through the mail, first time getting a postcard, but not even the famous signed one he gives out, an unsigned one. The second time I sent $40 and I got my money back as well as my custom. Thankfully, the wait has finally ended. I own a Stan Musial autograph.

In case you don't know just how good the Cardinals great was, let me explain. 24 Time All Star. 3 Time NL MVP. 3 Time World Series Champion. 3,630 hits, .331 career batting average, 475 home runs, and 1,951 RBI. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1969 on the first ballot, and was also inducted onto the All Century Team! To top it off, he missed a year right in his prime to serve for our country in World War II. He is one of the most beloved baseball players of all time, and maybe the greatest living Hall of Famer out there!

As for the autograph, there's one downfall. It was signed in sharpie. However, the dealer did a great job of preserving the auto because he told my dad that he met Musial and got this ball signed in the 1980's at a card show in Detroit. The dealer recalled that Musial must've been having a bad day and he wanted to just get it over with and get a drink afterwards. That's not the Stan Musial I usually have heard about, but I'm still delighted to own this piece. I'm going to take precautionary methods and get this ball preserved from any future fading, because as of right now, it looks fantastic. Better than any of his more recent autos now that he's 90 years old and supposedly in hospice care.

I'm planning on taking it to the White Plains card show later this March to get it authenticated, and it will 99.9% pass the authentication process.

The guy also included 2 more baseballs. The left one is of Tony the Tiger, some Kelloggs baseball that you got when you ate a certain amount of cereal. Pretty unusual I've gotta say. To the right is a stamped baseball of the 1984 World Champion Detroit Tigers, which is pretty cool. I have a few stamped balls, even one of one of the late 70's Yankees teams. I'm still not much of a baseball collector but this Musial auto has been the second ball I've gotten in the last couple months, and while I wasn't there to make the stories, the stories behind the 2 baseballs I've gotten recently are great.

Thanks so much Dad for getting this for me, I really appreciate it!

See Ya!

Check Out My Cards Purchase Part 2 & TTM Fail

Hey guys, Drew back here. I just got my report card, and I saw an instant replay of exactly what happened last quarter, I came .375 of 1 point short of Principal's List, which really should be rounded up and it's extremely ridiculous. Anyway, I got back from Upper Deck yesterday, and I'll have that posted soon, but for now, the last 5 cards in my Check Out My Cards purchase. Let's see what Drew bought shall we?

2007 Sweet Spot Classic Bo Jackson Jersey

This card is very nice. I got it for I think 2 or 3 dollars, and the baby blue jersey doesn't really fit Bo Jackson, which makes me laugh. I love the Sweet Spot relics, and I'm considering getting even more! I have an Al Oliver, Goose Gossage, Don Mattingly, Reggie Jackson, and I think Dave Parker too, so I admit I'm hooked to these!

2008 Sweet Spot Robinson Cano/Brian Roberts Dual Jersey

Now this is an awesome card! I like Brian Roberts and I also really like unique jerseys! This is a nice add to the Cano collection, and I gotta try to find the patch version.

2008-09 UD Radiance Devin Harris Sweet Shot Autograph

I'm not a basketball collector, but I do watch and love to play basketball. You may remember WAY back on this blog when I went to a Nets game, and from that day on, Devin Harris became my favorite basketball player, ahead of LeBron, Kobe, and Dwayne Wade. So, when I saw this auto at a cheap price on COMC, I rushed to buy it. It's really cool, similar to Sweet Spot.

2008 SP Authentic Dustin Keller Rookie Leatherheads Auto /150

One of the big 2 cards in this purchase was this one. I got it for $10, and I wanted it from the second I saw it. It's monster thick, about the thickness of the Sweet Spot autos, and I really liked the concept of the cards. Now, if they didn't have autographs I wouldn't have wanted it, and even though Keller will most likely be a candidate for the Worst Auto tournament, it adds more to the card and it looks really nice. Plus there are only 150 of them.

1989 Upper Deck #1 Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie Card

Even as a diehard Yankee fan, I love to expand my collection into some of my other favorites too. Some of my favorite non Yankees are Felix Hernandez, Justin Verlander, Tim Lincecum, Prince Fielder, Vladimir Guerrero, Albert Pujols, and definitely Griffey. I didn't get this card because I like Griffey, well, that is partly the reason, but the other part is that it is a monumental card. It's the only card in the BCHOF that I could afford so far, and I needed to try to get it. Now, 20 dollars later (a steal in my opinion), I now am holding possibly the most famous baseball card of all time (ok, second to Honus).

I think I made out well for $60 on Check Out My Cards, and after my good report card, I earned myself a trip to the next White Plains card show in May. That's what a 94.675 overall average (and 100 in Spanish) gets me! Anyway, I had a disappoint yesterday courtesy of The Man, Stan Musial. I sent him my custom card, and was hoping I wouldn't get one of those postcard things. So, I got it back yesterday, and not only was the custom sticking out of the side of the S.A.S.E, bent in half, and unsigned, but he included a post card. Take a look at it:

Nope, that isn't a signature. It's a biography with a picture. Yay. Now I can read about what I missed out on. I think either A) He'll give you a signed postcard if you include $, or B) he ran out of signed ones and wouldn't sign more. He is 90. This isn't as bad as the Whitey Ford disappointment but I'm mad about what happened here.

Aight I'm out, See Ya!

Bob Feller Custom Finished!

Hey guys, as Spring Training is here, I am piled in snow. On my driveway we must have at least 8-11 inches of snow, and we've had no school for 3 straight days! Since we don't get winter recess here in NY, this is a nice treat! Anyway, I've spent a lot of the time in the snow or working on customs. I'm preparing many trades and TTM's to ship out, getting pretty close to the first 330 2010 Topps cards, I think I still need about 30 though. I got a lot of doubles in the box from my blaster. Anyway, on the post below this (or on the sidebar), the cards not in red are still available for trade, and I made my wantlists a lot neater, so check that out for a really easy way to see what I need. My 2010 Topps wantlist looks like a checkers game, you'll see when you're looking for cards I need! Anyway, I wanted to show you all how the custom Hall of Fame Heroes cards are coming out, I'm gonna start sending them as soon as I'm done! I started printing them yesterday, so first check out the cards, the fronts are printed but the backs aren't yet:

Bob Feller


Andre Dawson


Stan Musial


Side View of Stan Musial

I used plain white dummy cards to make it thick, I have a bunch of them, and they look great! I used double sided tape (mom helped me with this card making experience, thanks again mom!), and stuck the card to the dummy. Two of the cards are not perfect, but the Musial came out perfect!

Backs

The Plain white back, soon to be covered in pictures like this:

Musial Back


Feller Back

My signature will be in between the "Congratulations" paragraph and my name, like Richard P. McWilliam, or whatever the heck his name is. By the way, I'm sending in the Dye "no relic" card for a replacement, Upper Deck finally got back to me.

Any advice is needed! I'm gonna make a few more now, starting with the Dawson back though! See Ya!

P.S. If you request one, I'll do my best to try to make one for you, if not you can feel free to use the pictures I used, just save them or something! Later.

Stan Musial Custom Complete

Thanks to an interesting statistic provided by Grandpa Roy, I have officially created the entire Stan Musial custom card. Once I get it printed I will have it in the mail! Check it out!

Front:

Back:

TTM Autograph Design

Hey guys, Drew back here. I'm gonna wait until the weekend for finishing the catching up process due to some mid terms, but in my spare time I've decided to try making some custom autograph cards for future through the mails. I know some people have done this before, and I already have a card finished, but I need to know a few things, please answer me in the comments if you have any advice on this stuff:

1- Is the design nice?

2- How can I change the dimension size so when I print it it is the size of a regular card? (I used GIMP, a throwoff of Photoshop)?

3- Is it worthy enough to send out?

4- Any other suggestions?

Check it out, and let me know, thanks, Drew

UPDATE: Just made another one, I think this one came out a little better, but let me know again if you have any suggestions, thanks.

Weird???

Funny how both of these legends have almost the exact same stance. Even funnier that Upper Deck decided to use them both!