Instantly Hooked on Instagram

For a while, I didn't know how much I was into using Instagram for hobby related purposes. I didn't know how much I'd be able to trust users and besides, I hadn't done much trading in a considerably long time. I finally decided to give it a shot, and the longer I've had my new separate account (@drewshotcorner), I realized that a lot of my cards do indeed have a price tag and are not untouchable. Several trades later, I have to say I'm hooked. No offense to you guys, but the trading and selling is much more active there than it is on these sites from everything I've seen.

First, I made a trade with user @csgraphs a few weeks ago. I dealt a few autographs I didn't have any connection to for these two beauties:

2016 Topps Museum Collection Nolan Arenado Quad Patch Relic /75

2013 Topps Five Star Justin Upton Auto /333

Arenado is one of the top five all around position players in the game in my eyes, along with Trout, Harper, Machado, and Goldschmidt. He can do no wrong. This patch card I acquired more than likely will end up in Frankie's hands eventually, but for now I'm going to enjoy the dirt splattered relic chunks.

Meanwhile, it hasn't been the brightest start to Justin Upton's Tigers tenure. He is beginning to come on, which is encouraging and should have been expected. He is an example of an overhyped prospect that has come into his own over time. He was hyped to be much greater than he's been, but at least he's still an above average outfielder. I love Topps Five Star, and will struggle to unload this card because of how gorgeous his autograph looks.

Next, I worked out a trade with @cluelesscards that I didn't think I would end up doing, but lucked out with. He wanted one of my low end Troy Tulowitzki autographs, and I preferred to move the card only for a different autograph or relic. He then presented me with an alternative approach to the deal, as he had quite a few cards I needed of many of my PC guys.

Robinson Cano was the big winner once again, as I was able to add 10 new cards of his alone to my PC box. I'm starting to soften on his transition from New York to Seattle, and really have no issue with continuing to collect his stuff here and there. I think a lot of that has to do with the Yankees now having a major league caliber player at second base again in Starlin Castro; no longer having to deal with the black hole that was old Brian Roberts and Stephen Drew.

This trade also included my first Aroldis Chapman Yankees card. I've been pretty impressed with Chapman, but I must admit it's hard watching him pitch for such a non-competitive team. If he isn't moved by the trade deadline, I won't have much faith left in the organization. He has too much value to be left wasting away in this bullpen. Side note: how awful were those 2015 All Star Game hats?

Believe it or not, the Yankees boast a stronger young core than they've had in quite some time. Refsnyder has had some nice moments, Bird exceeded expectations last September, and Didi Gregorius may just be their second best hitter right now after the red hot Carlos Beltran. The Opening Day rookie card of Gary Sanchez is a total flop though. I don't think you can tell from the scan, but the photo is so pixelated. It looks like a custom card done horribly wrong. Sorry, Topps.

Because there is a Nick Swisher card included here, I guess this is the proper time to address that I have sold my 150+ card collection of his to Chris Olds, formerly of Beckett Baseball. He is a Swisher super collector, and as much as I enjoyed his stint in pinstripes it was all taking up too much space in my personal collection box. I might add a few of the cards back in time, because now I have just a few left, but I felt like it was the right thing to do and I did it.

I really like this Gypsy Queen framed parallel of Andrew McCutchen. Cutch is off to the worst start of his magnificent career, and may be considered the worst of the Pirates super talented outfield. I would never count him out though. He is no longer one of my major PC focuses, but I wouldn't pass up his cards if I were offered them. This one will be staying with me.

This was a good trade for me, despite losing an autograph from my autograph count (which is declining substantially since I first posted about it). 

The final trade I'll be showcasing in this post was with @cbbaseballcards. I gave up my Anthony Rizzo Tribute auto in exchange for these two Yankees autographs. Rizzo is one of my favorite players right now, but I want to find a card I like more than the one I had. 

Aaron Judge and Greg Bird could work out in several ways. One could pan out, one might not. Perhaps both will fly to superstardom and bat 3-4 in the Yankees order for years to come. Or both of these cards will one day be found in the dollar bin. Autograph collecting is such a gamble, and I think that is part of why it is so addicting for collectors like myself. Judge has been on a tear lately in AAA, and I hope the Yankees give him a fair chance in the majors this season after they trade Carlos Beltran for more quality prospects (which again, as much as I like Carlos; needs to happen for the good of the future).

This is just the beginning of my summer collection overhaul. I just got a new job that pays pretty well, and while most of the money I make will be allotted to recovering my abysmal bank account post-study abroad, I will have some money to put towards this hobby too. I already have a few ideas up my sleeve.

The Autograph Counter

Hey everyone, Drew back here. So before I left for Italy, I organized more of my collection than I had in years. It was such a nice relief coming home to not too much of a disaster in my man-cave. While cleaning up, I decided to count every single signature I own. As long as I could identify the subject, it was added to my spreadsheet. The spreadsheet was designed to accommodate for all future autograph pickups, so I was able to add to it with the few TTM's and eBay pickups from when I was away.

As of today, I own 896 total autographs, and here is how it all breaks down:

Active Players - 296/896 (33%)
Deceased Players - 48/896 (5%)
Hall of Famers - 110/896 (13%)

Yankees - 287/896 (32%) of Total, 287/777 (37%) of Baseball
Jets - 54/896 (6%) of Total, 54/74 (73%) of Football
Knicks - 7/896 (0.8%) of Total, 7/14 (50%) of Basketball

I also have a spreadsheet that tracks how many autographs I have of individual players. Here's the current top 20 on that list:

1. Nick Swisher (12)
2. Luis Severino (11)
3. Joe Panik (10)
4. Robinson Cano (9)
5. Don Larsen (7)
6. Yogi Berra (6)
Wade Boggs (6)
Virgil Trucks (6)
Sparky Lyle (6)
Roy White (6)
Josh Hamilton (6)
Pat Neshek (6)
Goose Gossage (6)
Bobby Doerr (6)
Bob Feller (6)
16. Ty Hensley (5)
Lee Smith (5)
Don Mattingly (5)
C.C. Sabathia (5)
Bobby Shantz (5)

This was a grueling project, but I'm really glad I did it in retrospect. Now I can shoot for specific autograph goals in the beginning of the year, without changing my collecting habits of course. I'm going to add a counter on my sidebar indicating what my total is up to as my quest for 1,000 marches on.

I challenge you guys to see how many autographs you have in your collection! It might be more than you think!

July 14th MHCC Card Show Recap Part 2!

Hey guys, Drew back here! With another day comes another card show review post, and boy do I have some great stuff to show off here! Here are all the other cards Dad and I purchased throughout the awesome day at our local civic center:

First off is this sweet 2001 Upper Deck Yankees Dynasty dual relic of Wade Boggs and Joe Torre! This card certainly is a neat concept, in having a Torre relic on the card. It's not often that you'll find relics of managers in baseball card products nowadays, so this was definitely a unique pickup. 

Speaking of Joe Torre, Dad found this sweet buyback autograph of his and was able to get it for me for a pretty good price! Torre was one of my more wanted autographs in my collection, so I really appreciate him helping me knock that one off the list. I grew up with Torre managing so there will always be that special connection with me and him that I don't necessarily have as much with Joe Girardi. I'll always be stubborn that Mattingly didn't get the job, I guess. Oh, and also, this buyback is numbered 61 of 70, making it a pretty rare card all around!

Another autograph that has always haunted me has been Jimmy Key's, and I was also able to knock this one off the list this time around. It's not that he has a rare autograph, I mean he even signs TTM pretty consistently, but I just never got around to sending the 4 time All Star and 2 time World Series champion a request. However, this old Upper Deck hand numbered auto to 1993 finally fulfills my lazyness, and I like the card a lot. I'm not sure how rare it is, considering they printed way too many cards back then, but it's definitely a cool addition without a doubt.

Next, the first of two cards from this set, is this Mickey Rivers 2001 Upper Deck Legends of New York bat autograph! Yesterday I watched a lot of "The Bronx is Burning", the old ESPN special about the late 70's Yankees scene, and Rivers stands out more than most, always opening his mouth and messing around. A modern player that kind of resembles Rivers to me is the Brewers' Nyjer Morgan, because they both have larger than life personas. I'm definitely glad I got to add this one as well, even though I did already have an autograph of his. 

The other card from that set we picked up was this Phil Niekro jersey autograph, which is apparently short printed out of 195! Niekro is another autograph who has eluded me over the years, but I was finally able to knock him off the list as well. He only played 2 seasons in New York, but the legendary knuckleballer certainly donned the pinstripes very well in those years. I've always loved watching knuckleball pitchers, especially RA Dickey recently, so it's definitely a cool card to have. 

It seems that the theme of our pickups here at this show are mostly of guys I have barely anything of, so it's fitting that Bucky Dent made an appearance as well. I literally had absolutely nothing worthy of mention of the man who hit one of the most clutch home runs in Yankees history, which is really pathetic. So, finally I got to change that, thanks to my awesome dad. 

Unfortunately, the run of newbies in my collection came to a close, as I got my 11th autograph of Nick Swisher on the day as well. I have this same buyback already, but it's encapsulated unlike this copy, which was probably once in a case. I'm starting to try to enjoy the last few months with him as a Yankee potentially, if he decides to sign elsewhere next year. He's just what the team needs though, so it would be disappointing to let him go. 

One autograph that Dad got me that also took me by surprise was definitely this Career Best autograph from  2009 Topps of Robinson Cano! Cano's card prices have skyrocketed, especially in New York, so this really was awesome. He is easily my favorite player in baseball, and I truly believe the reason he did horrible in the Home Run Derby was because he was saving his bombs for when it will count in the next few months! 

Unlike Cano, this Melky Cabrera guy absolutely raked in the All Star Game this year, taking home the MVP. I've always been a fan of his, especially back in his Yankee days, and that love came back this year as he has been an MVP candidate for my fantasy baseball team (what a draft pick!). I got this 2005 Topps Finest rookie auto of his for a solid price, which was unexpected because of how well he's doing. Gotta love it.

  
Finally, Dad decided to pick up this mini 5 card set of Yogi Berra, which was extremely cool because the first card in the set was signed! I've never seen this Front Row set before, but I'm really glad Dad introduced me to it by getting me it. It's only my second Yogi autograph, so I'm thrilled with this one over all of the other stuff.

But, there is still a lot more to come, besides just cards. Be sure to check out this site within the next few days if you want to be amazed! Ok, maybe not amazed, but if you want to see something cool, this is a good place to be! Thank you again Dad for all of the incredible stuff! I still don't get why I deserve all this!

See Ya! 

A Big Old Box of Yankees From Dad!

Hey guys, Drew back here. So I've been meaning to post this for a little while now, and feel bad for not having done so sooner. Anyways, recently, Dad contacted someone on Craigslist, who was selling a huge load of Yankees cards. One day he came home with an enormous box full of Yankees, which brightened my day since I was feeling very sick at the time. Check them out!

Yeah, there were a whole lot of pinstripes inside this box, 5 rows to be exact. There were a lot of duplicates but that won't be a problem as I have many big Yankee fans to give them to. Now let's get into the stuff I thought mattered most...

Here are 8 new Nick Swisher cards I got through this. In total, I added 18 new Swisher's to my collection, giving me about 156 unique cards of his. I was surprised I didn't have a few of these, but I'm glad I was finally able to get them out of the way.

On to my 2nd personal collection; I was able to add 22 Robinson Cano cards to my respective Cano collection. It's been difficult for me to collect Cano's cards of late because his stock has finally soared as it should have a long time ago and everything of his is in demand. But I'm glad I was able to knock off a whole lot of 2008 UD Documentary and 2008 Topps Moments & Milestones cards of his. And yes, every card in the scan above is a different card, they're not doubles. Yeah, I'm confused too.

Here I found a lot of decent rookie cards, or at least, rookie cards that were decently valuable at one point or another. The top row of the scan consists of many different Melky Cabrera rookie cards, who is having a great year over in Kansas City, when many people didn't think he could do it again. He's currently sporting a .303 batting average, with 18 home runs and 83 RBI! The bottom consists of many Donruss Chien-Ming Wang rookie cards. Wang is trying to make a comeback with the Nationals this year after several injury filled seasons, but hasn't reached the point of success he had for the Yankees in 2006 and 2007. 

I used to think I had a lot of 1990 Topps Bernie Williams rookie cards. I now feel like I have enough to give one to every person in the entire world. It's definitely a nice card though. 

In this box I was able to add 2 more Dellin Betances rookie cards to my collection! I can't get enough of this guy's rookie cards, as the Lost Collector recently informed me of his MLB debut quickly approaching, as he was called up to the Yankees on  September 9th. He hasn't had an opportunity to pitch yet, but I'm sure he will during his little cup of tea. 

Next were a few of the MANY numbered inserts and parallels we came across while searching through the box. Nothing overly valuable, but I always liked numbered cards and I'm glad to add these to the collection. 

Also, there were plenty of Mark Teixeira insert and parallels, all numbered! I don't have much of anything of Tex, who is putting up another very good season. He seems almost underrated on this Yankees team, because not many people talk about him, but I honestly feel like he deserves to be in MVP talks every year. Despite a typical slow start, he is probably one of the best (if not THE best) 1st basemen in baseball defensively, but also has a great power stroke and has a solid 37 home runs. The batting average this year though? Meh.

One of my favorite parts of the box were all these nice parallels and inserts of former Yankee greats such as Yogi Berra, Phil Rizzuto, Whitey Ford, and Roger Maris. I have to admit the card companies did a great job honoring these players, as these cards are just absolutely beautiful looking. The Rizzuto Topps Archives Chrome Refractor is amazing looking in person and I love the Maris Diamond King card.

Now on to one of my favorite sets of all time; nothing better than some 2008 UD Masterpieces. I found some awesome framed cards mixed in, including a Yogi Berra green /75, a Whitey Ford not numbered black border, and two Joba Chamberlain parallels, one numbered to 50 and the other /25! These are seriously as beautiful as it gets in the card hobby, and may very well be my favorite modern set out there.

An engraved piece of Joe DiMaggio's bat? Holy WOW! Yeah, I know, it's not actually a real bat relic of Joltin Joe's, but it sure does look sweet. The card dedicates a magical DiMaggio performance when a play at the plate initiated by Charlie Keller allowed him to circle the bases and score, eventually leading the Yankees to sweet the 1939 World Series. I don't have much of DiMaggio so its a cool add for sure. 

While this card isn't of Joe DiMaggio, it is at least a real game used jersey card, of former Yankee great Paul O'Neill! The card celebrates his 1994 season when he batted .359, something close to unheard of today, or at least a modern day rarity. I've always had a lot of respect for O'Neill, he truly was a warrior on the field but a gentle giant off of it. I would love to meet him sometime for sure.

We move on to the next relic, which oddly enough is the only non Yankees card in the entire box! However, it does feed another hobby addiction of mine, which is cards of Hall of Famers! Out of 2005 Donruss Champions, here's a nice Joe Morgan bat card! You don't see much of Morgan as a Giant but its pretty cool nonetheless.

Finally, we get to the 3 autographs in the lot. The first 2 were out of the 2003 Upper Deck Yankee Signature Series product, on card autos of Lee Mazzilli and Norm Siebern. I very well may consider building this set one day, as I do have 4 different autographs out of it now, in Sieburn, Mazzilli, Winfield, and Cone! I had to research Sieburn because I literally knew nothing about him, but he was a 3 time All Star who played outfield for the Yankees from 1956-1959.

The final card was one I've wanted to get myself for a while. Out of 2006 UD Artifacts, and numbered out of 699, is an on card autograph of Ken Griffey Sr.! Yeah, Junior would've been a little better, but his daddy wasn't too bad either. A lifetime .296 hitter; Griffey spent 5 seasons with the Yankees, on a few rough teams in the mid 80's. He's got a really nice strong signature, and it fits the card design amazingly!

Anyways, that'll just about do it! Thank you so much as always dad, I'm speechless by the insane amount of things you do for me and I appreciate it so much!

See Ya!

August 20th White Plains Card Show Box Break! A&G?

Hey everyone, Drew back here. So, we're not quite done reviewing the card show. When we all got into the car on the way back, dad pulled out this box from his bag, saying we have a box to break soon! It was a box of the new 2011 Allen & Ginter! He got a very good deal on the box, and while I hadn't been overly impressed with the product so far, I definitely was excited to open the box. Before I get into the results, here is a little bit of product information, although most of you already know what to expect:

Part 6:

2011 Allen & Ginter Box Break

PRODUCT CONTENT

24 Packs Per Box

8 Cards Per Pack

192 Cards Per Box

1 Box Topper Per Box (Cabinet/N43)

1 Mini Per Pack

3 Relic/Autograph/Printing Plate/Booklet/Rip Card Combo Per Box

Look for a lot of Variations and Inserts

Alright, let's get into my box!

MY BOX BREAK:

Cabinet Card: Baseball Highlights- A-Rod's 600th HR

I definitely prefer these box toppers rather than the smaller versions, the N43 cards. As a Yankee fan, I couldn't have gotten much luckier than I was pulling one highlighting a Yankee's accomplishment. Never been a big A-Rod fan but it's definitely better than any of the others, for me at least. 

Base Set: 127/350 (36%)

Most of you have seen one too many Allen & Ginter cards highlighted throughout the blogs, considering it's maybe Topps' most popular release every year, after the flagship product of course. I'm glad that Topps put a little more into this year's design, as it definitely has a bit different feel to it. They look pretty nice in my opinion, my favorite card being the Derek Jeter card. 

Crack the Code Cards: 3 (Jeter/Reyes/Hoffman)

Topps used the weird borders for the Crack the Code contest this year, with each card having a different border design. Does anybody know if the code has been cracked yet? Just curious.

Hometown Heroes: 18/100 (18%)

Here's Topps' annual insert that dedicates a country, state, continent, etc, where someone grew up. I have to say that this insert set has been way over done and it's gotten old. I barely even look at them anymore, and just throw them into a pile. 

Minds That Made: 3/40 (7.5%)

Floating Fortresses: 3/20 (15%)

Ascent of Man: 4/26 (15%)

In 2011, Topps really went out of there way to make this product way more than just a baseball set. With all these random subsets, considering smart people, boats, and the history of man, it really kills the purpose of Allen & Ginter. The first couple years I did a lot of Ginter breaking, I didn't mind this stuff, but after year after year of random inserts finding their way out in trades, I'm getting sick of them. 

Baseball Highlight Sketches: 4/25 (16%)

I really liked these the first year they brought them out, 2 years ago, but since then they've really gotten sort of boring. The paintings, to be honest, haven't been all that great, and the design is a bit redundant. I pulled the Mark Teixeira card and then 3 trade bait cards out of this box.

Minis: 

Base- 6

A&G Back- 5

Black Border- 3

Here are most of the minis. The top row is made up of the Allen & Ginter back variation minis, and the bottom row is made up of the regular minis.  While the minis are the most realistic cards compared to the original set of Allen & Ginter, I almost feel like they are just more variations and versions to chase after. I guess some people like the chase, but with the ridiculous amount of variations and parallels of every card made over the past few years, it seems close to impossible to get every card you need to finish a player/set/team collection.

However, I was lucky enough to pull the base and black border minis of Nick Swisher for my Swisher collection! I like the looks of the black border minis this year over any of the new changes, because I was sick of the regular black border that had no style or anything to it. Pulling these cards of Swisher was one of my favorite parts of the box, because I guess it means a little less eBay shopping for me!

Mini Inserts:
Animals in Peril- 2 (DHole, Ethiopian Wolf)
Uninvited Guests- 2 (RMS Queen Mary, Waverly Hills Sanatorium)
World's Most Mysterious Figures- 2 (Kasper Hauser, Captain Charles Johnson)
Portraits of Penultimacy- 2 (Watson, Igor)
Step Right Up- 1 (Fire Eating)

Again, way overdone on the non sports stuff this year. Does Topps really think we care a whole lot about these cards? What need do I have for a card of a DHole or Fire Eating? I can even tell you that 9 of every 10 kids probably wouldn't care all too much about a card having to do with these subjects. Yawwwn.

Bazooka Back Mini: 1 (Yovani Gallardo)

This card was definitely a surprise, and without it I may have been a little disappointed with the break. It's a hand numbered to 25 card of Yovani Gallardo. Gallardo is having a pretty good year, with a 15-8 record and a 3.37 ERA. He's definitely one of the more underrated pitchers in baseball, and had he been more well known this could've been a better pull. That being said, if anyone has a Yankee Bazooka back (especially Swisher/Cano/Granderson) and is interested in this, please let me know.

Relics: 3

I guess we'll start from the worst to the best. Here's a jersey card of former Yankee prospect Austin Jackson. Jackson was supposed to be everything the Yankees were hoping for in a future center fielder, until they decided to ship him out to Detroit in the deal that landed Curtis Granderson. So far, he's shown a lot of promise, but he's becoming known as a bit of a strikeout machine. Then again, so is Granderson. But who would I rather have based off of this so far? Granderson. 

Next is a bat card of perhaps one of the hottest hitters in baseball, none other than Dan Uggla! I never had the idea, even through his terrible start to the season, that Uggla couldn't do it anymore. A lot of hitters this year, for some reason, can't even bat .200. I'm not quite sure what the reason was, but guys like Adam Dunn and Uggla, guys who were some of the better sluggers in the game, suddenly are averaging 2 hits per every 10 at bats! Anyways, lately Uggla has pushed the average up quite a bit, and still has quite a few home runs, with 30. 

Lastly, the biggest pull of the box was this Albert Pujols bat card! You can't hit much better than King Albert, as he's by far the best all around hitter in baseball. Even battling a lot of injuries this season, Pujols still leads the National League in home runs and is well on his way for another 35 home run season, and maybe 40 as well. I sure hope Pujols is doing what he's doing in a fair way, as it would really be a devastation to baseball if he was caught using performance enhancers. I doubt it, but hey, you never know.

Overall Thoughts: All in all, 2011 Allen & Ginter is pretty much the same as always, with a ridiculous amount of oddball cards mixed in along the way. I would say better things about the product had the inserts been a little less redundant and if they used some actual baseball creativity rather than some cemeteries and near extinct animals. Make a seperate set for that stuff if you really think its THAT necessary to include in your product line.  The design this year was great, the price is better than ever, the hits are decent enough, but there's just something missing from this product, or that it's just getting old fast. Overall Grade: B

Well, that'll just about do it for the entire Card Show report! I want to thank everyone as always for sticking through it and checking the blog out, I can't even tell you how much it means to me. And also I would like to thank my dad once again for all of the great things he's done and given to me over the past few years, and I know you'll probably read this sooner or later, so well, thanks Dad. You're the best! 

See Ya!