Zapped...before Christmas

Over the past few months, I have received two very generous card packages that I've been slow to properly show. They are sort of daunting to scan, which admittedly is the main reason. Each were incredible, but honestly it's just easier sometimes to show off the smaller ones.

One of these was from Zippy Zappy, who for some reason, kept telling me sorry it was taking him so long for a proper zapping. I always thought this was silly, as he owed me nothing.

While I was away for Christmas, a large flat rate box arrived. I figured it likely had one of his repacked hobby boxes, which are always fun. But I was wrong. Here's what was inside.

Yes, there were some of his famous repacks, but not in a box. Instead he sent a full on binder, and some other odds and ends, including a Yankees CD from 1998, which looks to have a collection of Stadium songs and game calls, as well as an Ultra Pro ball case. I have a few signed baseballs that are unprotected, so this will go to good use.

The packs were mostly minor league team sets, which should create some good TTM folder.

On to the binder, which had a custom Luis Torrens taped onto the front, and an Eric Jagielo glass autograph taped onto the inside. Side note - Zippy and I probably spent a lot of money on Jagielo cards, who was one of three Yankees first rounders with Ian Clarkin and Aaron Judge. If we had only funneled all the money into Judge early on...

So I took a pretty easy way out and snapped a bunch of photos to really help show the assortment. It was a really fun binder to flip through, and I've actually still got it intact.

There was a page of almost all relics and autographs, and here are a few. Crazy to see Wilkerman Garcia as a "throw in", as he got SUPER expensive at one point after 2015, but has had a couple of uninspiring seasons since.

This is a new Tino to my collection! If I want to get up over 1,000 Tinos, I should just focus on Topps Tek. That would get me there with all the variations and patterns.

Here's a different assortment of cards I particularly enjoyed as well.

ZZ, this post didn't really do you generosity justice, but thank you for thinking of me.

Shiny from Tiny

Uncle Tiny sent me some Bowman blue shiny earlier this week.

First off, a very cool mini Eric Jagielo. Although Jagielo isn't part of the Yankees organization any more, he sort of still is. He was in the initial trade where the Yankees acquired Aroldis Chapman from the Reds. The Yanks obviously then got Gleyber Torres and others from the Cubs for Chapman, and ended up re-signing Chapman. So the Yankees essentially swapped Jagielo for Torres. It's not quite that clean, as a lot of other players were involved.

Now we're talking. Yankees 2016 3rd-rounder Nolan Martinez. I can't help but like that his name is a combo of Nolan Ryan and Pedro Martinez, so it looks like we've got a future HOFer on our hands. Just 18 years old (born in 1998!!!), Nolan is current MLB.com's 30th best prospect.

Thanks for these, Uncle Tiny!

TTM Success: Eric Jagielo

So I cheated a little bit. I had already had a TTM success from a few years ago from Eric Jagielo, the former Yankees prospect now with the Reds. He was one of the pieces the Yanks sent to Cincy for Aroldis Chapman.

However, I had reason for sending to him. I had this:

Man that would look fancy with a second signature on it, wouldn't it? Therefore, I present this:

Looks great, eh? It's sad that these guys are no longer in he organization together. The Yankees had three first rounders that year - Ian Clarkin, Aaron Judge, and Jagielo. Judge is certainly the top prospect of the bunch, on the cusp of the Majors. Clarkin is still a top prospect despite missing last season with an injury. Jagielo performed perfectly fine, but has caught the injury bug a bit. Still, I wouldn't be shocked if he ended up being a very solid offensive player for Cincy in the not-too-distant future. I wish him the best!

He also signed two cards for me. I'll probably toss one of these to Cardboard Clubhouse in a SuperTraders package at some point.

TTM Success: Ian Clarkin

Yankees lefty Ian Clarkin signed two cards for me, and tossed in an extra of his own. Sadly, I am not certain when I sent this. You see, I lost all my TTM records from 2011-2015 on my previous work computer. Stupidly I had kept my spreadsheet there instead of a cloud or drive I could access, and when I left the company, I massively dropped the ball and forgot to bring a copy.

I was really bummed when I realized what I did. The spreadsheet had who I sent to, what I sent, where I sent to, the number of cards, success/failure, and any notes. It was a lot of info to lose. Total screw up on my part.

I've got a new spreadsheet going on Google Docs, so I'll always have it. There's nothing I can do about all the lost info, except ensure that I don't do it again moving forward.

Long story short, I'm not sure when I sent this Clarkin. I know that I definitely didn't include the Bowman All-American Classic, so I thank Ian for that. The Bowman Ice looks awesome signed as well!

I know Eric Jagielo was a great signer with the Yankees. He's with the Reds now, so maybe I'll try to complete the duo.

Thanks for the return. Mr. Clarkin! Best of luck this season.

Housewarming gift from P-Town Tom

Sweet mesh trucker hat, Tino.

After I moved, P-Town Tom reached out request my new address. He sent me a very welcome house-warming gift!

Tom is one of those guys who always pays attention and keeps an eye out for cards that fit your PCs. This package had a little of everything.

First off, some cool Tinos. The 1994 Fleer is a personal favorite of mine. I love the design - one of the best of the 1990s - and it also reminds me of the summer of '94 when Sunoco offered their Fleer set for filling up with gas. I used to get some many of these cards from my dad's co-workers.

And as far as I can tell, this Tino is from an away game at Yankee Stadium. Tino looks to be in a HR trot - he went deep against the Yanks on May 1 and 2, as well as July 21. However, he could have also been scoring off of someone else's HR. Part of the reason Tino was brought to NY was because he always torched them as a visiting player. The Yanks took notice.

Tom also included a few minor league autos, including Ty Hensley. The Jagielo is very cool too.

And as he usually does, Tom included something for Joey - a full set of 1980 TCMA All-Time Yankees. This set is awesome! I'll definitely add it to Joey's binder.

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Thanks for the gift, Tom!

First card at my new address!

I am finally moved into the new house! It was painstaking, as many of you who have moved recently know. Plus, my cards are all still boxed up. It's a very unsettling feeling.

A few days ago, I received my first bubble mailer at the new house. My wife rolled her eyes. Oh good, your baseball cards know where to find you...or something like that she said.

Anyhow, inside was this lovely Eric Jagielo auto. This set is stunning, and I love the on-card autos. The texture of the card is perfect for a signature.

This card arrived just before the trade deadline. I was a little worried by the end of the day that Jagielo might be an ex-Yankee, but luckily he is still in the system. I suppose his injury hurt his trade stock, although the Yanks were very quiet at the deadline, especially in terms of dealing prospects.

Don't forget to shoot me an email if you need my new address!

Not to get all Zappy on you, but...

I'm going to get sappy on you for a second. Actually, no. I'm going to get ZAPPY on you.

Every, let's say, six to eight weeks, I'm on the victorious end of a Zippy Zapping. Kenny, of Torren' Up Cards, loves (at least I think) hitting me with these epic card packages.

One thing I always enjoy, almost as much as the cards, is the creative way that Kenny packages. Last time, it was the re-created Bowman box. This time, it was a large stack of cut 9-pocket pages. It was like a PWE on PEDs. He could get a job in product packaging in a second if he ever wanted.

See? Good stuff.

So what did he send? Everything. I don't even know where to start.

I'll start with Eric Jagielo. Jagielo gets a little overshadowed by Aaron Judge now, but let's not forget that he was drafted ahead of him. Oh, and he's at .287/.382/.558 with 7 HRs so far in AA. Not shabby. I know Zippy likes Jagielo a lot, so I appreciate the autos.

I wish Jose Contreras got a longer leash with the Yanks. He wasn't awful with them, he just wasn't as expected. He still put up some decent numbers, especially in his first year. They traded him away for Esteban Loaiza, who sucked. Plain and simple. Contreras then went on to be an All-Star, and play a key role on the White Sox World Series team. Sigh.

I like Angelo Gumbs mostly because of his sweet ass name.

Peter O'Brien is interesting. The Yanks turned him into Martin Prado, then turned him into Nathan Eovaldi, among others. So they essentially turned an all-bat prospect into a 25 year old starter. Not a bad swap. O'Brien can hit and hit and hit. He had 34 HRs last year, and nine already this year. He just can't catch. But his power is going to carry him to the Bigs. He'd be a good DH.

What in the world? Ren and Stimpy Mojo?

Vintage! How did I take this long to get to these? National effin Chicle of a dude named Dixie? That's the '30s for you. How great is the back of the card? I mean, what a batting tip! Except, no, you can't step out of the box anymore. Oh, the PURISTS must be livid at this new rule since you could step out in the 1930s!

This card isn't that old compared to the Chicle.

Fast-forwarding a bit to new author Jorge Posada.A 1994 Bowman's Best RC. This ain't no reprint, son. This is the kind of card from the kind of set I would see in Beckett growing up. The ones I never saw in person or ever dreamed I'd own. They didn't sell these at CVS.

 

My first silk, and it's sooooo smooth!

I can't really mention Posada without Andy Pettitte, and here's a lovely rookie of the lefty.

From one ace to another! #BigMike! I needed this one. I'm up over 100 different Pinedas right now, and it's getting tougher and tougher. His prices are going up, up, up on eBay.

I don't think I've met any one collector who knows as much about the Minors, especially the Yanks' affiliates, then Zippy Zappy. He loves his minor league baseball, and his dedication to the Staten Island Yankees is admirable. He's also got, hands down, the best Luis Torrens collection out there. I can't imagine any collector out there has a better one. I am fortunate that he has probably acquired dupes and can spare ones like these for me.

And here are a few more prospects that we both like a lot, especially Jacob Lindrgen!

 

Jeter, on a Sega Gen? Yes, please. I really need to count my Jeters. I want to know how many I have. If it's less than 500, I am going to try and get to 500. If more, I may go for 1,000. Because, well, why not?

 

And a couple more fun ones that I love...

 

I think this is a great way to end it. Thanks, ZZ!