Feeling Pretty Good

Fernando Tatis Jr. says he's feeling pretty good... which hopefully means his return is just around the corner.  Not trying to jinx it or anything, but I wanted to share some cards of his that I added to my collection over the summer.

First up is this manufactured relic that Chris The Collector sent to me back in June:

2022 Topps Jersey Number Medallion #JNM-FT

Although I'm not a fan of these taking the place of actual "hits", I think some of them are pretty cool.  This is one of them.  I like the simplicity of the design and if I had more room in my office... it would make a nice display piece.

Chris also tossed in these two blue Padres parallels:

Next up is a six pack of Tatis that was included in Woody's care package:

I met Woody back when I was still hanging out on the forums looking for trades.  He's sent thousands of cards for my collection over the years and has even donated cards to my students as well.

All six of these Tatis cards were brand new to my collection.  That's not surprising though, since I don't open up new product very often.

The final round of Tatis cards were sent to me by Reader X.  Like Woody, he's sent me and my students thousands of cards over the past few years.

I'll start off with this thick, high-end card:

2022 Topps Tribute #11

Wow.  This card is gorgeous.  And it's thick enough to do some damage if you wanted to use it as a weapon.  Boxes of 2022 Tribute run around $500... so this product is a little out of my budget.  That's why I'm lucky to be the recipient of this copy.

Xavier tossed in a few other Tatis cards as well:

And this four pack of 2015 Topps Gold parallels:

Thank you Chris, Woody, and Xavier for these Tatis collection contributions.  Normally the Monday I head back into my classroom at the end of summer is a bummer.  But I gotta admit... these cards have me feeling pretty good.

Happy Monday and sayonara!

Long Lost Treasure

I've been cleaning my office for the past week or so.  It's been a slow process, because there were an unbelievable amount of sports cards to be sorted.  There were about a dozen eBay purchases, a few stacks worth of COMC cards, a ton of blogger care packages, and a bunch of cards from last month's card show.

If I didn't have a bad back, I could probably sit down and organize everything in a day or two.  Unfortunately the most I can tolerate is around two hours of sitting down and that involves several sessions of stretching in between.

Anyways... I'm excited to report that I'm probably about half way finished.  In a few days, I should begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel.  It'll be nice to finally be able to walk into my office and find things.

Speaking of finding things... yesterday I found this package under a stack of magazines sitting on the floor behind a box of supplies.  A quick glance at the date revealed that I received this package back on March 6th of this year from my buddy Woody over at CCW.  Now this date might not mean anything to any of you, but that was the day I rushed down to Las Vegas to see my mother.  The next day she passed away.

The next few weeks were kind of a blur.  I vaguely remember Woody reaching out to me about this care package and responding.  But then it just got lost in the shuffle until I uncovered it yesterday.

Woody... if you're reading this buddy... I'm very sorry for the delay.  I ended up waiting one more day to crack it open.  This afternoon, I tore into the package and pulled out fifteen team bags filled with cards:

I ended up sorting them by teams:

As usual... Woody hooked me up with A's, Padres, Seahawks, and Packers for my PC's.  He also threw in some 49ers, Raiders, Giants, and Warriors for my students.

I didn't want to delay this post any longer, so I picked my favorite card from each stack of cards:

My students will be excited to see fan favorites like Marshawn Lynch, Buster Posey, and Steph Curry.

Personally... I was super excited to see a six pack of this card:

2019 Topps #126

If the year ended today, I'd pick this card for my Favorite Card of 2019.  I have another one somewhere.  I just need two more for a nine-pocket page.

He also included three hits:

2018 Topps Independence Day MLB Patches #IDML-WM

This is the first time I've actually held one of these cards in my hand and I've got to say that I'm pretty impressed.  I really like how Topps took the time to use a photo of Myers wearing the Padres Independence Day uniform.

2008 Topps Chrome Autograph #TC177

I remember the Seahawks signing Flynn to a big contract back in 2012.  Some guy named Russell Wilson beat him out for the starting job and Flynn eventually found his way back to Green Bay.

2018 Donruss Rookie Phenom Jersey #21

This is a pretty sweet card of the San Francisco 49er's 2018 2nd Round Draft Pick.  Dante's numbers should improve with Garoppolo throwing the ball his way in 2019.

Well that wraps up this post.  I'm embarrassed that it took me so long to open this generous care package.  I hope Woody won't hold it against me.

Happy Saturday and sayonara!

Kick in the Butt

No matter how overproduced some of the stuff was... I'll always have a soft spot for 1980's baseball cards.  They were the baseball packs I grew up opening and the nostalgic feeling I get when I stare at them is truly priceless.

Ninety-eight percent of the packs my mother or I purchased were of the wax variety.  However... every now and then, I'd have the opportunity to open up a Topps rack pack.

Anyone who is familiar with mid 80's to early 90's Topps rack packs recognizes the Topps Glossy All-Star inserts.

Starting in 1984, Topps included one of these inserts into every baseball rack pack.  This tradition continued through 1991.  For years, I've been talking about acquiring all 8 twenty-two card sets and putting them into a binder for easy viewing.

Today, I finally got the ball rolling...

So far, I have the 1987, 1988, and 1989 sets in their entirety:

1987 Topps Glossy All-Star Set

1988 Topps Glossy All-Star Set

1989 Topps Glossy All-Star Set

As you can see, all three sets share the same design on the front:

The only exception is the year at the top of the card.  The concept is similar to the Living Set that Topps is currently marketing, except that these aren't numbered continuously.  Each of these sets are numbered 1-22.

The card backs basically feature the same design as well with the exception of the years located at the top and bottom.  The card stock is slightly different on the 1988 set as well.

This project wouldn't have been possible without the help of my buddy Woody over at The Cardboard Connection.  Two weeks ago, he shipped me this medium flat rate box filled with goodies:

Inside there were tons of cards for my Oakland A's, San Diego Padres, Seattle Seahawks, Green Bay Packers, and Japanese athlete collections.  He also included a bunch of San Francisco Giants, Oakland Raiders, and Golden State Warriors cards for my students, as well as a bunch of oddball issue sets that I'll eventually feature in future posts.  Three of those oddball sets were the ones pictured above.

He also sent me most of the 1990 set:

1990 Topps Glossy All-Star Set

I'm excited to start targeting the 1984 to 1986 sets as well as the 1991 set on eBay.  Hopefully they're pretty affordable.  If not, I've got a lot of patience.

Thank you Woody for this very generous package of cards.  And thank you for finally inspiring me to start this project.  I truly needed that kick in the butt.  

Happy Saturday and sayonara!

That's a Negatory!

I'm currently building twenty-plus baseball card sets and one of them happens to be the 2013 Allen and Ginter Across The Years insert set.  A few days ago, Woody over at Card Collectors World sent me a direct message with a simple question... Do you still need the Pedroia in there?

It would make more sense if you understood the context of the question.  You see, Woody shipped me one of those medium size flat rate boxes a few weeks ago.  However I hadn't had the chance to tear into it, so I had no idea what Pedroia he was talking about.

I started thinking about all of the different collections I have and which ones the Red Sox second basemen would fit into.  Well today I finally got around to opening the box and discovered the card you see above.

Unfortunately... I purchased the Pedroia off of Sportlots back in early January, so Woody if you're reading this, the response to your question is...

But I really appreciate you looking out for me.  And I can definitely use all of the other cards you sent my way.

Shall we take a looksie?  Let's start with the contents of the box laid out nice and neatly:

What you're looking at is four sets, a couple of singles, and three boxes filled with cards.  Let's get things started with the sets:


Set #1:  1995 Classic Metallic Impressions Nolan Ryan

I'm a sucker for oddball issues, especially when they feature a hall of famer on embossed metal cards.  There was a brief period during the mid 90's when these metal cards were the rage.

Originally, I was going to put them with my other Nolan Ryan inserts and oddballs, but they were a little too thick and heavy to be stored in my binder.  So they'll be stored in their original tin.


Set #2:  2005 Bowman Chrome AFLAC Redemption

I had no idea who was in this set since I was out of the hobby back in 2005.  When I opened it up, I did recognized a few familiar names:  Hank Conger, Kyle Drabek, and Travis Snider.


Set #3:  1990 Pro Set Super Bowl Silver Anniversary

Okay.  This might be one of the most overproduced box sets in the history of football cards, but it's also one of the coolest.  I love early 90's Pro Set products and this set is no exception.  In fact that Bart Starr card is a masterpiece.


Set #4:  1997 Donruss Studio Portraits

I saved the best for last.  I know that some collectors don't like oversized cards, because of storage issues.  But I embrace them.  I've been a fan of these 8x10 Studio Portraits for years.  It's nice to finally own the complete set of 24 cards.  Here's a look at the Gwynn up close:

Next up are the three boxes filled with baseball and football cards for me and my students.  After pulling the cards out, I sorted them by team stacks:

I scanned just the tip of the iceberg:

In addition to these cards, he sent me a bunch of Ichiros for my collection.  I had scanned a 9-pocket page filled with my favorites, but I accidentally misplaced the scan.  If I find it, I'll share it in a future post.

Last, but not least... he sent me some really nice cards to share with my students:

Many of them were disappointed with their team this year, but I have a feeling they won't be disappointed with these.

Thank you Woody for this awesome care package!  I apologize it took so long for me to rip into it.  It was definitely worth the wait.  I don't have a lot of Boston stuff for you, but I have a permanent place in my trade box designated for you.  Until then... try to stay warm.

Happy Saturday and sayonara!