BGS Result Update Number Fourteen - 2011 Gypsy Queen : Clayton Kershaw Mini Leather Parallel (2/10) Now Graded Gem Mint 9.5

Original pic and thoughts :

2011 Gypsy Queen

My new favorite mini in my collection and what would complete my happiness? Why a gem mint grade of course. Only 10 of these cards are in existence and not one has been graded yet by BGS. I would love to have the only one to be a gem mint and I think it has a tremendous chance at that. I see no flaws so we shall see what BGS thinks.

Result and thoughts :

Even though this was lower on the list of earning a gem mint grade I would have been very disappointed if it didn't earn at least a 9.5. This card, as stated before, is my new favorite NON autograph of Kershaw and with it being numbered out of only 10 and none being graded so far I wanted to be 1st and possible the only one to achieve gold status. Thankfully I did just that.

I find it kind of funny that BGS kept it in its mini rigid holder and placed it into their holder. Just like the Piazza Dynasty card I wonder if they ever took it out or graded it while it was in the holder? Don't know and don't care as I got the grade I wanted. Obviously I submitted to BGS for slabbing and I am curious to see the sub grades as I didn't see a flaw so I wonder how close to pristine it was. Ah, pristine, to this day I only have one card that earned that elusive grade and this would have been a great one to make it 2. It wasn't meant to be but I am more than happy with this card's results.

Final Submission Result and Thoughts :

Even though my batch did include some pristines I was kind of surprised that this was not one of them. When I submitted it I could see nothing wrong with it and wondered how close it got to earning that hard to obtain 10. With it now back in hand I see it wasn't that close but I am still very happy with the end result.

This card is numbered out of only 10 and this is now the only one that has been graded and thankfully it came back in a gold banner. It is a strong 9.5 as it earned 3 9.5 sub grades and 1 10. Centering was one that I thought was perfect but that was one of the 3 9.5's but I am not going to complain as when I submitted it all I wanted was a 9.5 and that is what I got back. Great card got better

Leatherly goodness

Thank you for reading and have a blessed day.

-Penguin

BGS Result Update Number Ten - 2011 Gypsy Queen : Clayton Kershaw Mini Frame Autograph Now Graded Gem Mint 9.5

Original pic and thoughts :

2011 Gypsy Queen

Now we get the 6 cards that could go either way. I expect each of them to have at least 2 9.5 sub grades if not 3 but there is one thing or another that might drop that last sub grade to an 8.5. First up is this sweet pick up I showed off earlier in the week. At 1st glance when you look at this card there is hardly a flaw you can see with the naked eye but if you slant it a certain way you can see some surface blemishes on the plastic coating. The question isn't if that sub grade doesn't earn a 9.5 but whether it can hold and earn a 9 so the other 3 can get 9.5's so the overall grade is a 9.5.  

Result and thoughts :

There were 6 cards that were in my opinion borderline from being a mint 9 or a gem mint 9.5. This was the one of the 6 I really wanted to earn that 9.5. Even though I would like them all to have a 9.5 banner this one being limited to only 25 and with it being inserted into packs as a redemption card means probably not all have or will be redeemed. This is the only copy to surface on eBay in the past year and I am the 3rd owner of the card. This would become my new crown jewel of Kershaw autographs that is not his rookie card if it could squeeze out a 9.5.

When I picked up my order there were a lot of gold tops staring at me and I searched for this one and then I saw it. GEM MINT. Woo Hoo. I was worried that those surface scratches might hinder the end grade but thankfully it did not. The sub grade held to at least a 9 and I now own the only and possibly the only one that will ever grade this high. I might even put it up on eBay with one hell of a reserve just to see how high it would go but of course with no intention of selling. 

Yet ANOTHER gem mint autograph of Kershaw for the collection. Keep them coming.

Final Submission Result and Thoughts :

9.5

9.5

9.5

9.5

Nothing but gem mint numbers here baby. 

I would normally place a card like this higher up on the list with it being such a limited card with a strong overall 9.5 grade and not one that just squeezed by but there are bigger surprises with the remaining 6 9.5's. 

I expected the surface grade to be the one weak link of the four sub grades but that was not meant to be as it earned a 9.5 like the other 3. This is the 1st 2011 gypsy queen of Kershaw to grace the Beckett offices and I am happy to report it left in a spiffy gold case. My new non rookie crown jewel of Kershaw autographs is now firmly in my hands with no intention of ever letting it go. 

25 in existence and only one to be graded gem mint.

Thank you for reading and have a blessed day.

-Penguin

BGS Raw Card Review Submission From March 7, 2015 Update Number 12 - 2011 Gypsy Queen Clayton Kershaw Mini Frame Autograph w/Relic

Original pic and thoughts :

2011 Gypsy Queen

Now we get the 6 cards that could go either way. I expect each of them to have at least 2 9.5 sub grades if not 3 but there is one thing or another that might drop that last sub grade to an 8.5. First up is this sweet pick up I showed off earlier in the week. At 1st glance when you look at this card there is hardly a flaw you can see with the naked eye but if you slant it a certain way you can see some surface blemishes on the plastic coating. The question isn't if that sub grade doesn't earn a 9.5 but whether it can hold and earn a 9 so the other 3 can get 9.5's so the overall grade is a 9.5.  

Result and thoughts :

There were 6 cards that were in my opinion borderline from being a mint 9 or a gem mint 9.5. This was the one of the 6 I really wanted to earn that 9.5. Even though I would like them all to have a 9.5 banner this one being limited to only 25 and with it being inserted into packs as a redemption card means probably not all have or will be redeemed. This is the only copy to surface on eBay in the past year and I am the 3rd owner of the card. This would become my new crown jewel of Kershaw autographs that is not his rookie card if it could squeeze out a 9.5.

When I picked up my order there were a lot of gold tops staring at me and I searched for this one and then I saw it. GEM MINT. Woo Hoo. I was worried that those surface scratches might hinder the end grade but thankfully it did not. The sub grade held to at least a 9 and I now own the only and possibly the only one that will ever grade this high. I might even put it up on eBay with one hell of a reserve just to see how high it would go but of course with no intention of selling. 

Yet ANOTHER gem mint autograph of Kershaw for the collection. Keep them coming.

Thank you for reading and have a blessed day.

-Penguin

BGS Raw Card Review Submission From March 7, 2015 Update Number 8 - 2011 Gypsy Queen Clayton Kershaw Mini "Leather"

Original pic and thoughts :

2011 Gypsy Queen

My new favorite mini in my collection and what would complete my happiness? Why a gem mint grade of course. Only 10 of these cards are in existence and not one has been graded yet by BGS. I would love to have the only one to be a gem mint and I think it has a tremendous chance at that. I see no flaws so we shall see what BGS thinks.

Result and thoughts :

Even though this was lower on the list of earning a gem mint grade I would have been very disappointed if it didn't earn at least a 9.5. This card, as stated before, is my new favorite NON autograph of Kershaw and with it being numbered out of only 10 and none being graded so far I wanted to be 1st and possible the only one to achieve gold status. Thankfully I did just that.

I find it kind of funny that BGS kept it in its mini rigid holder and placed it into their holder. Just like the Piazza Dynasty card I wonder if they ever took it out or graded it while it was in the holder? Don't know and don't care as I got the grade I wanted. Obviously I submitted to BGS for slabbing and I am curious to see the sub grades as I didn't see a flaw so I wonder how close to pristine it was. Ah, pristine, to this day I only have one card that earned that elusive grade and this would have been a great one to make it 2. It wasn't meant to be but I am more than happy with this card's results.

Thank you for reading and have a blessed day.

-Penguin

Card of the Day - 2011 Gypsy Queen : Clayton Kershaw Mini Frame Autograph w/Relic (21/25)

Yesterday I showcased the "throw in" or bonus if you like of the Gypsy Queen Kershaw package that I recently acquired. While that "leather" card is nice and I did want to have a unique new card of Kid K this is the card I was after since I first saw it online back in November. Now months later it is finally mine.

I have and always will be partial to black and/or blue bordered cards so when I first laid my eyes on this beauty I knew I had to try to acquire it. Since it is limited to only 25 and if you know how to work around eBay you can track the card's history which is what I did. This is the only copy ever to be on eBay as of today and this seller originally bought it from another seller who received it from Topps via the redemption program. The seller I received it from kept trying to sell it with him lowering and raising the price on a weekly basis with no luck. I found out later that he tried to trade it offline as well but that deal fell through. I kept in contact with him and had the funds pile growing for some time and waited and hoped it wouldn't sell. One day he dropped the price drastically and I jumped all over it. The card was finally mine.

As with all my Kershaw autograph cards I want them to at least grade out to a mint 9 with no autograph issues. On the posted picture online this card looked to be in very good condition with a chance of a gem mint grade. Once the card was in hand I got to examine it closer and while I think it will still get a mint 9 my hopes of gem mint have been diminished a tad. Corners, centering and edges look great. All should grade out well BUT the surface has some minor scratches. If that grade can hold to a 9 then I should be able to earn an overall 9.5 but if not I will have a spiffy 9 and that isn't bad.

Another autograph of Kershaw and couldn't be happier as being told "no" to our deal back in December was the best thing that could have happened for the transaction. Able to acquire Urias autograph at a discount and no money out of pocket and then score the two cards I was really after back then for a deal today. Win win for the Penguin.

21 of 25

Thank you for reading and have a blessed day.
-Penguin

Card of the Day - 2011 Gypsy Queen : Clayton Kershaw Mini Leather (2/10)

I love firsts especially when it's of my favorite player. I have always enjoyed these mini cards but my focus has usually been on the ones that are found in the Allen and Ginter brand but my gaze was drawn to this one from the inaugural Gypsy Queen which was released back in 2011. What makes it so special? It's made of "leather" of course.

Eagle eye readers of the blog might remember that back in December I was in the process of acquiring a special Kershaw package on eBay. The seller and I couldn't get on the same page so I ended up acquiring a BGS gem mint of Julio Urias instead. Even with that though I kept in contact with the seller to see if we could work something out. After a couple months he and I finally pulled the trigger which also in turn set up a trade between us which I will be posting about in a short while.

While I acquired two cards in the transaction I believe they deserve their own post. Even though this one is more limited (10 vs. 25) than the one I will show off tomorrow that one is the big get for me. This card is labeled as "leather" but it really isn't made of that material as it just has the look and semi feel of it. I have owned my fair share of mini cards but this is my first numbered one and what better player than Kershaw? This card and tomorrow's card are both destined for a BGS in either full submission form or at the very least as a raw grade review. When I saw this card online it looked to be centered nicely, corners sharp "enough" and the seller stated they saw no flaws per se. Once in hand the only thing that "might" hinder a good grade is one corner has a slight fuzziness to it. Other than that I think I am good to go.

In the end I picked up my first "leather" card, of my favorite player, on my favorite team, in the "rookie" issue of a loved card brand. Tomorrow I show off the card I was really after as I consider this mini a bonus.

2 of 10

Thank you for reading and have a blessed day.

-Penguin