tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67004423997373921012024-03-13T10:26:58.736-04:00plain gray swatch Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.comBlogger179125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-80215051945057283672021-03-22T21:28:00.000-04:002021-03-22T21:28:03.267-04:00In Defense of the Rookie Card<div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Hey there. How've you been? I mean really - how have you been?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">It times like these I feel like I have to ask, but I ask beyond pleasantries, I am expressing a genuine interest. After thirty years of trying to avoid people and conversations and close relationships and poorly lit parties I've softened in my days, and in my most recent count of near-isolation, that tallies about 373 days, I've grown at times apathetic but also more compassionate than ever I ever expected and can hold eye contact longer than before and can now take a breath, think of something other than my own comfort and say...how <i>are you?</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Take a free moment for self-reflection. Assess. It's unhealthy keeping your head down and your face covered and your jaw clenched for so long. Breathe (safely). Take a clean breath. Stare at the sunset, any bold celestial object or a bird in the yard or your dog's muzzle and relax.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Welcome back, Plain Gray Swatch.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">This blog was most active in the days from 2011-2015. Those days were different than whatever we find ourselves in now, certainly much simpler and cheaper, there was a lot more toilet paper available and for the most part I think we all slept a lot easier at night. In our little world, only semi-corrupted with exclusive licenses and on the precipice of a motley of color-coded parallels and disorganized card isles, it was simply an easier time than today. There were no shortages of the paper products we adore, no lines or knife fights to flip unlicensed memorabilia on the online auction site. Things were easy, indeed, but were they better? And in our ongoing theme of self-reflection, were they necessary?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I'm inclined to say no, at least for me 5-8 years ago. A quiet young 'professional' still able-bodied enough to play three baseball games every weekend, a new apartment in a new/old city and a new dog and a tree to sit under and drink the first craft beer I could ever afford, no it was all so unnecessary and luxurious and simple.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">It doesn't feel like that anymore. At times the constant refreshing online retail outlets or ebay saved searches or waiting on PayPal payments or repurposing bubble mailers can feel like a chore or even worse - a second job. All just to sustain, sustain, sustain. For many it's become a job. The past year has forced many out of work, into the relative danger of the public to buy children's play things and flip them online for a 5% profit an unspeakable risk, riding this wave with will eventually crash and disperse across the beach of human interest, like every other wave that came before it and every one that will follow.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Yet, through this ongoing slog of the current human condition, there's something else, an additional appreciation of the way things used to be, the reason many of us ended up in this space in the beginning. The chase. The rookies. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cnGQF-syAzo/YFksqyXf6qI/AAAAAAAAUB4/4FDcNgK-PXMqEWHDaVlO0-rBpX-teJGkQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/1616456873405168-0.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
<img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cnGQF-syAzo/YFksqyXf6qI/AAAAAAAAUB4/4FDcNgK-PXMqEWHDaVlO0-rBpX-teJGkQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/1616456873405168-0.png" width="400" />
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</span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">This isn't my card. As a Bowman Prospects 1st Bowman 1st Edition Firsty Firsty Lasty Lasty a lowly civil servant like myself cannot possess such a piece of cardboard. This would first require a reduction in amount of groceries. Three less tanks of gas for my truck. Five legs from selected pairs of jeans, which seem impractical enough as it is. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Or I can just wait it out a few days, weeks, months - however long the current fad lasts. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Austin Martin was The Toronto Blue Jays' first overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft, or what symbolized it, this past June. Many expected AM to go 1-2 after He of the Arizona Sun Devil Power, Spencer Torkelson, who went to the Tigers. But Martin slipped, with some concerns for his defense or whatever nonsense the Orioles and others managed to cough up in defending their own picks, and my favorite college player to watch ended up on my favorite professional team and that just floats right by me. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Since June I've tracked down Austin Martin cards here and there, mostly through Panini Prizm Draft and Leaf Metal Draft, the first a sign of just how much Panini could do - with or without the license - and the later a crime against nature but appreciated nonetheless. Bowman Draft proceeded without the young Floridian in late 2020, but word broke recently that he'll make his licensed debut in 2021 Bowman "First Edition" - which is, I don't know...<i>extra </i>first, or some other nonsense.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I've been looking forward to this one for many months and to be frank, I don't care for it. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The card is busier than my Wednesday meeting schedule. Despite this it's overwhelmingly colorless and devoid of heart, typographically mediocre and thoughtlessly photoshopped. It feels like a malfunctioning local news app set on bright mode. Like the endless concrete of an abandoned Rust Belt downtown. It just sold for $125.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><br /><a name='more'></a></span><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I've recently taken to clearing out old boxes of cards searching for Topps rookie cards. I've had no luck buying and ripping my own, so I wandered into the dusty closet in search for some forgotten lads to chase.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">If you remember anything from this blog in recent years you'll recall that this is generally not a Topps-friendly environment. I find their exclusivity a bane of the baseball card collector, creating an ugly caste systems of competing brands. Their designs and attention to detail have grown careless as they wallow on a license based on baseball's most defining characteristic and shared shortcoming: tradition. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">But one tradition I'll continue to buy in to, lay my precious (scoffs) time into, is the rookie card. I am hear to defend the rookie card in all of it's simple glory. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XOMmciBbfIg/YFk7FkX5A7I/AAAAAAAAUCA/1WGqDFV_DFg1FsVocEPtJQ32bHDrFKb_wCLcBGAsYHQ/s531/brc_semien.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="531" data-original-width="391" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XOMmciBbfIg/YFk7FkX5A7I/AAAAAAAAUCA/1WGqDFV_DFg1FsVocEPtJQ32bHDrFKb_wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/brc_semien.jpg" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">This is, of course, a Bowman - once home to the rookie card and current object of my ire. I've no idea if it's been photoshopped or not, I hope not, but I also have doubts. This came up in my recent rummaging and as a new Blue Jay I thought it might be a nice debut for Marcus Semien here. Unfortunately, like newer Bowman, you can hear the borders from three towns over and foil seems unnecessary, but that little red and blue logo in the upper left provides undeniable comfort. "This is Marcus Semien's Rookie Card." It's capitalized, so it must be true.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">But the Semien represents a low bar. There's so much more out there.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f9fakNeMEXk/YFk7-WdHdHI/AAAAAAAAUCI/J8K8Dglc0is-ivZFWheHCQEaGpwkp_HdACLcBGAsYHQ/s536/Rook_Bo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="536" data-original-width="396" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f9fakNeMEXk/YFk7-WdHdHI/AAAAAAAAUCI/J8K8Dglc0is-ivZFWheHCQEaGpwkp_HdACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Rook_Bo.jpg" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I've bagged on tradition a lot in this post, and while we're already a few years into the Topps Fire Universe, the set remains a refreshing sight for bored eyes after the torrents of Topps and Bowman and Donruss derivatives. But is it a true rookie? Almost any ebay seller will guarantee you as much, and promise you a 1000% return on investment and good health and better libido and World Peace in whatever country assembles your iPhone but again, we fall short of the true rookie feel.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">So we move on.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DzsMcIxdtNo/YFk83LiwycI/AAAAAAAAUCQ/Qt8nnCtNlQEFwb8hdDWKqTMKw0R5S9chwCLcBGAsYHQ/s588/Rook_LG%2BSP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="448" data-original-width="588" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DzsMcIxdtNo/YFk83LiwycI/AAAAAAAAUCQ/Qt8nnCtNlQEFwb8hdDWKqTMKw0R5S9chwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Rook_LG%2BSP.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">And we get a lot closer. The Gurriel short print or super short print or insignificant tall screenprint or photo variation or whatever this was seeded into every 1200th pack of whatever print run of Topps flagship is close to the real thing, and at least comes from the player's rookie season and features them in a uniform they wore in their rookie season and even features a fun waterslide. But no, we're not quite there yet.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-evxGhbrb9qE/YFk9cdPllGI/AAAAAAAAUCY/yV5iRl-xsMMnRz742ONZA8d7wlGDc3GHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s596/Rook_ichiro.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="596" data-original-width="465" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-evxGhbrb9qE/YFk9cdPllGI/AAAAAAAAUCY/yV5iRl-xsMMnRz742ONZA8d7wlGDc3GHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Rook_ichiro.jpg" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">And then it arrives. There's always that feeling after a long car ride, of finally laying your feet down on your grandfather's front yard, the smell of hot blacktop during the peak of summer vacation as a fifth grader. Fresh cut grass, the chatter of new birds and showing Joe Nextdoor this year's big thing, this guy from Japan who can throw better than anyone here and hit an aspirin into left center for a triple and pull a home run down the line just because he feels like it, playing out on the west coast so you can only see him on early mornings on ESPN when you try to wake up with the sun but Dad's always already up with his milky coffee so you watch the highlights on low while Earl Pitts plays in the other room. And you fall in love again with baseball, the envy in Joe's eyes, the rookie card especially, the one that's setting the world on fire while you're in bed fretting over tomorrow's math test but you know one number you'll never forget when you get home and that's .350, the stunning, impossible batting average that rookie from Japan just posted in his first MLB season and you won't forget it because you've got his rookie card, stained brown around the edges because you can never get the baseball diamond dirt quite out of your finger prints and dinged around the edges because you love it, it's yours and you'll never apologize for it.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">That's this card. To me. It's quite possibly the ugliest Topps set of all time but on card No. 726 is the most perfect spring training photo of quite possibly the most perfect human being to ever play the game, just playing catch, like you and Matty Mc will Tuesday night at practice and you'll stretch like him and tuck your jersey in tight just like him and hold the bat towards the batting practice pitcher just like Ichiro does and you'll strike out, but that's fine, you're here to pitch and you can always go home after the game and sort through your cards with that ugly teal green one on top, but the light will glance off that gold stamp that says ROOKIE CARD, on your card, your Ichiro Suzuki 2001 Topps No. 726.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">But what you see above isn't it, friends. a poorly airbrushed rendition of a uniform never worn by an amateur player is not, to me, a rookie card. Let it be a prospect card or a firsty firsty Bowman but to me, it is no rookie card. It is a lifeless, colorless, misguided attempt to capitalize on the ravenous jackals of this industry, and it's not for me. </span></div>Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-88590885527481831632018-03-11T14:05:00.000-04:002018-03-11T14:05:12.916-04:00bowman break spoils from the iron lion<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Earlier this week Sam over at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/1942724199330584/">The Iron Lion Breakers</a> hosted a 2016 Bowman Draft, Bowman's Best and Topps High Tek box break. My randomly assigned pair of teams were the New York Mets and Oakland Athletics. Definitely no Acuna-typed prospects abound with those teams, but I was hopeful for a colored refractor from Chrome and some AJ Puk or Amed Roasario cards.<br />
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We'll start with Bowman's Best, as there were just a few from that break to fall to my teams.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Z0mMDUfx1U8/WqVqkT-OAaI/AAAAAAAASDg/tl6QPdKclz8Ju-W12staZWY7GpZ4awqiwCLcBGAs/s1600/conforto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="460" data-original-width="328" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Z0mMDUfx1U8/WqVqkT-OAaI/AAAAAAAASDg/tl6QPdKclz8Ju-W12staZWY7GpZ4awqiwCLcBGAs/s320/conforto.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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Yes, this will be a colorful post.<br />
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Conforto has a sneaky good year in 2017, and he's generating some legitimate fantasy buzz. These inserts, though, seem unnecessary.<br />
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IN typical Bowman's Best style, there's some dual-player cards.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z3FZkyOCrbg/WqVq8nZ5iBI/AAAAAAAASDk/0D5kc66tWxgkrPHjOeyxlzl76514doF9wCLcBGAs/s1600/matz%2Blester.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="387" data-original-width="544" height="227" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z3FZkyOCrbg/WqVq8nZ5iBI/AAAAAAAASDk/0D5kc66tWxgkrPHjOeyxlzl76514doF9wCLcBGAs/s320/matz%2Blester.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Good try, BB, but aside from both being lefities, Matz and Lester aren't terribly similar.<br />
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That was it for the Bowman's Best, which was pretty disappointing for my Mets/A's draw. On to the High Tek:<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tlc7XdnP8UY/WqVriwSYloI/AAAAAAAASD0/W4GfiXzKizAjNm67Gw6HACYbYwDNPg23ACLcBGAs/s1600/tek%2Bfronts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="463" data-original-width="666" height="277" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tlc7XdnP8UY/WqVriwSYloI/AAAAAAAASD0/W4GfiXzKizAjNm67Gw6HACYbYwDNPg23ACLcBGAs/s400/tek%2Bfronts.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Hopefully you're all familiar with the gaudy Tek designs, varying background patters and so on. I did some damage in terms of card count here, hauling in a Jacob deGrom, Yoenis Cepedes and this David Wright:<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iTR8ZcYhCrg/WqVr2As_LAI/AAAAAAAASD4/sK2rig_e6b0aMCG31XtoyZ9pAetux2-4QCLcBGAs/s1600/wright.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="462" data-original-width="328" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iTR8ZcYhCrg/WqVr2As_LAI/AAAAAAAASD4/sK2rig_e6b0aMCG31XtoyZ9pAetux2-4QCLcBGAs/s320/wright.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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From the backside. These acetate/plastic cards have the see-through element, which forces Topps to get, uh, creative with the text.<br />
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Okay, on to something less gaudy, and finally some Athletics:<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wxOGJ73MYVY/WqVsW5MHuPI/AAAAAAAASEI/JJR4xW8mEIUvNK1R7mNr4Zbq2I8orV-uACLcBGAs/s1600/puk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="628" data-original-width="451" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wxOGJ73MYVY/WqVsW5MHuPI/AAAAAAAASEI/JJR4xW8mEIUvNK1R7mNr4Zbq2I8orV-uACLcBGAs/s320/puk.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
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There's the Puk I was hoping for, modeling the front of a decent-enough looking Bowman set. Not one I would chase, but certainly better-looking than it's Topps counterpart.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zC1ETedsfeY/WqVsq3gIcjI/AAAAAAAASEM/6zavpmrAAn8bGM-ytrCOvJxRFzr--O7WgCLcBGAs/s1600/rosario%2Bb%2Bback.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="469" data-original-width="651" height="230" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zC1ETedsfeY/WqVsq3gIcjI/AAAAAAAASEM/6zavpmrAAn8bGM-ytrCOvJxRFzr--O7WgCLcBGAs/s320/rosario%2Bb%2Bback.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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And there's Rosario. The backside of 2016 Bowman was certainly a treat to look at.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vH2_ToXWTRo/WqVtAqP7UlI/AAAAAAAASEU/HaNbnB45-GsY9mRBSfWkGgWJLp0mkSCfgCLcBGAs/s1600/holmesref.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="631" data-original-width="451" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vH2_ToXWTRo/WqVtAqP7UlI/AAAAAAAASEU/HaNbnB45-GsY9mRBSfWkGgWJLp0mkSCfgCLcBGAs/s320/holmesref.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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Since the Bowman Draft box was a jumbo, I think most of the break entrants wound up with refractors. Most of mine were uninteresting, like this Grant Holmes, but I will never turn down a refractor.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oXVC0K-EshQ/WqVtqudPddI/AAAAAAAASEg/q0JbD8gWxmAVTafOTM06Gix_Ceq1qTvowCLcBGAs/s1600/berretofi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="629" data-original-width="443" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oXVC0K-EshQ/WqVtqudPddI/AAAAAAAASEg/q0JbD8gWxmAVTafOTM06Gix_Ceq1qTvowCLcBGAs/s320/berretofi.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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Of course, it's Bowman, so all of the Draft inserts are chromed up and refracting light as well. Here's ex-Blue Jays Great Franklin Barreto modeling the Fantasy Impact insert. Blue Jays got a decent 3B for him, I think.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CxWgC3VoNLs/WqVuLkXzW0I/AAAAAAAASEo/LhVoyyCa8y02MyI7faLbcK8iTwNTk6EigCLcBGAs/s1600/ryan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="468" data-original-width="338" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CxWgC3VoNLs/WqVuLkXzW0I/AAAAAAAASEo/LhVoyyCa8y02MyI7faLbcK8iTwNTk6EigCLcBGAs/s320/ryan.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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Nolan Ryan as a pup on this MLB Draft History insert, which is the perfect way to mix legends and retired players into modern sets, rather than stuffing a 2018 Donruss Checklist with Mickey Mantle cards.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ovaxj7JmKDo/WqVuiWgD7AI/AAAAAAAASEs/RbQHA2jzkyMa1UXnNnguKKMHqUD2ivHowCLcBGAs/s1600/jeffreids.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="331" data-original-width="461" height="229" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ovaxj7JmKDo/WqVuiWgD7AI/AAAAAAAASEs/RbQHA2jzkyMa1UXnNnguKKMHqUD2ivHowCLcBGAs/s320/jeffreids.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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From old to young, as Bowman does so well. These horizontal cards depict a player's rise in draft selection, as Dalton Jeffries went from 1162nd in 2013 to 37th in 2016. Go to college, kids.</div>
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Finally, though I was shut out on relics (yawn) or autographs (duds), I managed to wind up with the rarest card in the group break.</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jcvi-yeazvA/WqVvJAqeH5I/AAAAAAAASE8/Q4FqeHmZYJ0aMYoWqUwo3RbcqPoiQTr3wCLcBGAs/s1600/alonsorange.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="462" data-original-width="327" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jcvi-yeazvA/WqVvJAqeH5I/AAAAAAAASE8/Q4FqeHmZYJ0aMYoWqUwo3RbcqPoiQTr3wCLcBGAs/s320/alonsorange.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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While both orange and gold, this is an orange refractor of Mets 1B prospect Pete Alonso, a second-round pick in 2016, numbered just 12/25. </div>
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So, there's that. I hope you enjoyed this Blue Jays-free post. </div>
</div>
Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-52441184324552280602018-02-28T19:31:00.001-05:002018-02-28T19:31:32.296-05:00february nue jays, leafs...and a good reason for a lack of posts<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
February was a light month for trading cards in this household. With just Topps flagship available in stores (for baseball products), there was no need to visit the stores and rip cards. With only Heritage out now in addition, the lack of urgency to rip has plateaued.<br />
<br />
This is just the third post here this month. There's a good reason for that, but I'll get into it at the end.<br />
<br />
With the Maple Leafs playing quite well this month, playing nine games without a regulation time loss, I decided to look out for an auto of one of the team's young stars, Kasperi Kapanen.<br />
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Turns out it wasn't too difficult:<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ki-9gp7efBs/WpdFPMHdafI/AAAAAAAASCM/ZCf85oZGDVU0RXbX_flNkwY4aNqILndwwCLcBGAs/s1600/kapenauto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="682" data-original-width="512" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ki-9gp7efBs/WpdFPMHdafI/AAAAAAAASCM/ZCf85oZGDVU0RXbX_flNkwY4aNqILndwwCLcBGAs/s320/kapenauto.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
This nice little gold auto from Fleer Showcase (the Fleer name was purchased by Upper Deck recently) hardly set me back much, which is surprising considering the love that the hobby gives the Maple Leafs. I also added an O-Pee-Chee auto on COMC from Kapanen, but we'll see that later on when it is finally in hand.<br />
<br />
But that was it for Maple Leafs. That craving was easy to quell.<br />
<br />
So on to some Blue Jays, and we'll start with an oldie but goodie:<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--NAkSS1Vvn0/WpdFzvxZKjI/AAAAAAAASCU/UVllLNzIGMAMdHLQxgeNwJdHfdetBTqAQCLcBGAs/s1600/jpaorange.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="685" data-original-width="516" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--NAkSS1Vvn0/WpdFzvxZKjI/AAAAAAAASCU/UVllLNzIGMAMdHLQxgeNwJdHfdetBTqAQCLcBGAs/s320/jpaorange.jpg" width="241" /></a></div>
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This would have been a painful purchase back in 2008 when it first came out, but JPA is now retired and his card values have plummeted. This is great for me, as this orange refractor auto (/25!) was have for under $10. A complete steal.<br />
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The following cardboard, which was almost offensively thick and must be stored in a snapcase, was even less and also numbered under 100 at /99.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ir_Top7rr3U/WpdGPlVhHOI/AAAAAAAASCc/HQtKqH8glTooamFnAAKfrUo3UqXUjibBgCLcBGAs/s1600/alford%2Bafl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="470" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ir_Top7rr3U/WpdGPlVhHOI/AAAAAAAASCc/HQtKqH8glTooamFnAAKfrUo3UqXUjibBgCLcBGAs/s320/alford%2Bafl.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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There's no reason that this needs to be the thickness of 15 cards by itself, but it is.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gJ6pCuhmlZc/WpdGawCaVwI/AAAAAAAASCk/EOp95ZXbmo0cUAOeaXKyKpuWHK-iQoWPwCLcBGAs/s1600/gurrielmono.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="513" data-original-width="685" height="239" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gJ6pCuhmlZc/WpdGawCaVwI/AAAAAAAASCk/EOp95ZXbmo0cUAOeaXKyKpuWHK-iQoWPwCLcBGAs/s320/gurrielmono.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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A new Lourdes Gurriel came in this month as well, this one being a monochrome refractor from 2017 Bowman's Best. It's one of the prettier autos I have.</div>
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Just today, another Bowman's Best auto came, this one for the minimum bid of $0.99:</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-phx6Yzot9ok/WpdGbE8_O4I/AAAAAAAASCo/J3RMG04VDfwiVpoKSKpKNKHsjkndCzNQQCLcBGAs/s1600/img162%2B%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="902" data-original-width="1185" height="243" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-phx6Yzot9ok/WpdGbE8_O4I/AAAAAAAASCo/J3RMG04VDfwiVpoKSKpKNKHsjkndCzNQQCLcBGAs/s320/img162%2B%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Warmoth was Toronto's No. 1 draft pick in 2017, so anytime I can grab an auto of his for under $10, I am very pleased. This one is limited to /250.<br />
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With the writing on the wall this spring about the Blue Jays not extending Josh Donaldson's contract any time soon, I decided to cast away my previous apprehension for chasing his cards, and decided to add some for memories alone.<br />
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Somehow, I ended up with a pair of patches. The first coming from the stunning Topps Definitive Collection from a Mother's Day jersey (in theory):<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xHtLtvoLgi0/WpdG_JsJ5eI/AAAAAAAASC8/fXuOZqn_w1AIc9KGbViDJOlR7qWy2d3JACLcBGAs/s1600/dosh%2Bdefinitive.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="665" data-original-width="474" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xHtLtvoLgi0/WpdG_JsJ5eI/AAAAAAAASC8/fXuOZqn_w1AIc9KGbViDJOlR7qWy2d3JACLcBGAs/s320/dosh%2Bdefinitive.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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And the second in a less pleasing to the eye design, but with an incredible patch featuring the Maple Leaf from the Blue Jays logo:<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-09Zpy4iR0_4/WpdG_Bf69rI/AAAAAAAASC4/Wkk2ZlhuatApGqx4mYSiFeDZgso84xUSgCLcBGAs/s1600/dosh%2Bnt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="660" data-original-width="469" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-09Zpy4iR0_4/WpdG_Bf69rI/AAAAAAAASC4/Wkk2ZlhuatApGqx4mYSiFeDZgso84xUSgCLcBGAs/s320/dosh%2Bnt.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
...and limited to just /10.<br />
<br />
Now. On to the reason for the quiet here of late.<br />
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Around the turn of 2018, my fellow writers at <a href="http://jaysfromthecouch.com/">Jays From the Couch</a> decided to take on a little endeavor. We were going to write a book. And we did!<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bCtXg12Ztxg/WpdIKlYm9RI/AAAAAAAASDM/id62FqZ4y2Mh36notrm8AZjD0fzqxSkIwCLcBGAs/s1600/20180227_170842.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1233" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bCtXg12Ztxg/WpdIKlYm9RI/AAAAAAAASDM/id62FqZ4y2Mh36notrm8AZjD0fzqxSkIwCLcBGAs/s400/20180227_170842.jpg" width="307" /></a></div>
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It took many late nights and headaches and an incredible amount of editing, fact-checking and sore typing muscles, but we did it. We finished about a week ago, and are pleased to announce that it will be released through Amazon TOMORROW!<br />
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If interested, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Jays-Couch-Guide-2018-Toronto-ebook/dp/B07B27ZX2Q/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1519863977&sr=8-2">you can purchase a copy here</a> for less than the price of those Donaldson patches. What you see above it the paperback, available from Amazon.com. The digital ebook is available from both Amazon.com and Amazon.ca.<br />
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Hopefully, this means more time to write here, but we'll see how that goes. </div>
Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-78136120282862918262018-02-16T20:24:00.000-05:002018-02-16T20:24:10.913-05:00a career in the stadium club: Jim Thome<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VRX5L2EDUEU/WoM3csk-SGI/AAAAAAAAR_s/p9k41soYOgkG9daNPxE8vVUY1Fxz78UHQCLcBGAs/s1600/thomestatue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="352" data-original-width="630" height="222" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VRX5L2EDUEU/WoM3csk-SGI/AAAAAAAAR_s/p9k41soYOgkG9daNPxE8vVUY1Fxz78UHQCLcBGAs/s400/thomestatue.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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In August, I will once again be making the pilgrimage to Cooperstown, NY for the Baseball Hall of Fame induction weekend. It's always a joy to see the motley of jerseys in the closed streets in the small Otsego Lake town, and every year, one of MLB's many cities will be well-represented.<br />
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Last year, it was Houston, Texas and Montreal, Quebec - the latter of which is no longer an MLB city.<br />
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I'm assuming we'll see plenty of <span style="font-family: inherit;">Québécois </span>again this season with the induction of the ultra-talented Vladimir Guerrero <strike>Jr</strike>. But also to be extremely well-represented should be Atlanta (for Chipper Jones) and a good mix of Philadelphians and Clevelanders.<br />
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While I plan to look at all of their lives through baseball cards in the coming months, I'll start with Big Jim Thome. Long known as one of the nicest guys in baseball, and worthy of enshrinement on that alone - Jim Thome also did one thing incredibly well:<br />
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Mash taters.<br />
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Thome was a fast riser in the Cleveland farm system, spending just four seasons down there, hitting just 51 HR between Rookie Ball and AAA, before earning a full-time job in the strike-shortened 1994 season.<br />
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1992<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CQuakInVc1U/WoM5MFpY6_I/AAAAAAAAR_4/cGcqcrW7sAYYje6pxqWyk15GvnFr-p2XQCLcBGAs/s1600/1992%2BJT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="760" data-original-width="540" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CQuakInVc1U/WoM5MFpY6_I/AAAAAAAAR_4/cGcqcrW7sAYYje6pxqWyk15GvnFr-p2XQCLcBGAs/s320/1992%2BJT.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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Believe it or not, scouts thought early on that Thome was undersized - just 175 lbs. when he was drafted as a <i>shortstop</i> out of high school.<br />
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While Stadium Club may have peaked as a base set in 1992, Jim Thome sure didn't.<br />
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1993<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uEmDGvPWK9o/WoM5RqjtwVI/AAAAAAAAR_8/w_8k9SNUFtMdeW-H0ifB-3XFXiToDSi4ACLcBGAs/s1600/1993%2BJT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="760" data-original-width="540" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uEmDGvPWK9o/WoM5RqjtwVI/AAAAAAAAR_8/w_8k9SNUFtMdeW-H0ifB-3XFXiToDSi4ACLcBGAs/s320/1993%2BJT.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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But seeing as he made it into the set in both 1992 and 1993, Topps probably knew he would be a mainstay for years to come. It's still strange to look back on his early career and see him A) fielding on the left side of the diamond as opposed to the right and B) fielding at all.<br />
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Seriously, Topps, there's taters to be mashed.<br />
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1994<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OvKYAz5enQw/WoM5TquQ3fI/AAAAAAAASAA/U2Zc5X_77mA8FARdAr5-PqDtar8ll-SeQCLcBGAs/s1600/1994%2BJT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="760" data-original-width="540" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OvKYAz5enQw/WoM5TquQ3fI/AAAAAAAASAA/U2Zc5X_77mA8FARdAr5-PqDtar8ll-SeQCLcBGAs/s320/1994%2BJT.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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Still thin. Still playing a position other than 1B.<br />
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The card? Still one of TSC's top set designs, in all of its mid-1990's label maker glory.<br />
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1995<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9ZaTpU17X50/WoM5WE4oPbI/AAAAAAAASAE/BJ-BnyNn8Ck8gj0IHDGZZYvA1YJEdiqXwCLcBGAs/s1600/1995%2BJT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="760" height="227" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9ZaTpU17X50/WoM5WE4oPbI/AAAAAAAASAE/BJ-BnyNn8Ck8gj0IHDGZZYvA1YJEdiqXwCLcBGAs/s320/1995%2BJT.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The Cleveland uniforms really took off in 1995, as did Thome's career. He would go on to mash 25 HR in 1995 and drive in 73, slashing .314/.438/.558!<br />
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Sadly, Cleveland came up short to the Atlanta Barves superpitchers in the 1995 World Series.<br />
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1996<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JTYRyePgUUA/WoM5YRaEipI/AAAAAAAASAI/il7kiTZTObwzQGHA7FRV3xhj5ORnT8FtgCLcBGAs/s1600/1996%2BJT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="760" data-original-width="540" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JTYRyePgUUA/WoM5YRaEipI/AAAAAAAASAI/il7kiTZTObwzQGHA7FRV3xhj5ORnT8FtgCLcBGAs/s320/1996%2BJT.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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TSC '96 is an underappreciated set. Topps stuck with the foil, but got a little bit more ambitious than in previous years.<br />
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Thirty-eight more taters found themselves mashed.<br />
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1997<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NGyDLw80i_8/WoM5al8lPwI/AAAAAAAASAM/N9dP7MRPq5U7bRzWqczRJOKbIlymGctkACLcBGAs/s1600/1997%2BJT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="760" height="227" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NGyDLw80i_8/WoM5al8lPwI/AAAAAAAASAM/N9dP7MRPq5U7bRzWqczRJOKbIlymGctkACLcBGAs/s320/1997%2BJT.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Let's just forget about '97 TSC.<br />
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Goddamn, though, look at those forearms.<br />
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1998<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JCvUUJodGR8/WoM5dTqddqI/AAAAAAAASAQ/UH_wavAvYAMVoHJvzIOdm5yQ_8eHkMTTQCLcBGAs/s1600/1998%2BJT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="760" height="227" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JCvUUJodGR8/WoM5dTqddqI/AAAAAAAASAQ/UH_wavAvYAMVoHJvzIOdm5yQ_8eHkMTTQCLcBGAs/s320/1998%2BJT.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Honestly, I don't remember 1998 TSC, but at least Thome has found his way to 1B at this point. He's also starting to thicken, growing plump off that 1997 World Series cut, perhaps, despite losing in seven games to the Florida Marlins in one of my favorite childhood World Series matchups.<br />
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1999<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gUZChnqn6Mo/WoM5feAVBKI/AAAAAAAASAU/ns4n4h9Hd-MUsu1oGRufqMB7Tds66lLbwCLcBGAs/s1600/1999%2BJT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="760" data-original-width="540" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gUZChnqn6Mo/WoM5feAVBKI/AAAAAAAASAU/ns4n4h9Hd-MUsu1oGRufqMB7Tds66lLbwCLcBGAs/s320/1999%2BJT.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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Am I alone in my love of 1999 TSC? That's about as classy as you can make holofoil on the front of a card, and the semi-transparent logos in the top left corner were spectacular and surprisingly never matched by another copycat product.<br />
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2000<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l9GjmlPlNvQ/WoM5hH9TIHI/AAAAAAAASAY/UKud3mmcNqcD-27bdUp6N7H9KPFX5fyHACLcBGAs/s1600/2000%2BJT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="760" height="227" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l9GjmlPlNvQ/WoM5hH9TIHI/AAAAAAAASAY/UKud3mmcNqcD-27bdUp6N7H9KPFX5fyHACLcBGAs/s320/2000%2BJT.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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By 2000, there were whispers of a future Hall of Famer in Jim Thome. He didn't slow down, either, blasting 37, 49 and 52 HRs from 2000-2003, his final years in Cleveland before his 2011 homecoming at age 40.<br />
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2001<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-c3cnCjPxLt8/WoM5jGF6BvI/AAAAAAAASAc/EDkqQBucx_Y6tFdm_u1PUhiVnXVXNGqewCLcBGAs/s1600/2001%2BJT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="760" data-original-width="540" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-c3cnCjPxLt8/WoM5jGF6BvI/AAAAAAAASAc/EDkqQBucx_Y6tFdm_u1PUhiVnXVXNGqewCLcBGAs/s320/2001%2BJT.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
<br />
<i><a href="https://plaingrayswatch.blogspot.com/search/label/Dirt">Dirt</a>. </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
2002<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dIcM542ag9Y/WoM5lluYppI/AAAAAAAASAg/5o3D6MS0frobeOrfB1vpzsp_7y8TGMAIACLcBGAs/s1600/2002%2BJT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="760" height="227" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dIcM542ag9Y/WoM5lluYppI/AAAAAAAASAg/5o3D6MS0frobeOrfB1vpzsp_7y8TGMAIACLcBGAs/s320/2002%2BJT.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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And another year I don't remember, 2002. Despite that, TSC found a real gem here with the alternate home uniform and pickoff play at first.<br />
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2003<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-p9HhktE8qM0/WoM5n88CMkI/AAAAAAAASAk/8PntB5OqMGoah06GeZkAuXPuZZNcxYQigCLcBGAs/s1600/2003%2BJT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="760" data-original-width="540" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-p9HhktE8qM0/WoM5n88CMkI/AAAAAAAASAk/8PntB5OqMGoah06GeZkAuXPuZZNcxYQigCLcBGAs/s320/2003%2BJT.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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Now, you might be thinking: "Jim Thome played well after the 2003 season, in fact, he had 231 home runs <i>after</i> that season!"<br />
<br />
And you would be right, but there's a very good reason this post stops at 2003.<br />
<br />
Because Topps Stadium Club did, and that's a damn shame. I also didn't think this post out as much as I had hoped, and with the recent re-vamp of Stadium Club, I must have assumed there were some more to post. But there isn't. Forgive me.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
And Jim, if you see this: come visit our campsite in Cooperstown in August. You can mash the ceremonial Taters.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-46747407949810960842018-02-06T20:52:00.000-05:002018-02-06T20:52:06.847-05:00a trade! with million cubs project<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
Usually, I don't do many trade posts. Often, it's because I lack the energy to physically scan, crop and post the images. Other times, it's because ya'll send so many great cards, it's often overwhelming fot his (very) part-time blog.<br />
<br />
But when another blogger post their side, I'll often reciprocate. And that's why we're here right now. A few weeks back I started corresponding with <a href="https://onemillioncubsproj.wixsite.com/onemillioncubs">A Million Cubs Project</a>. Eager to downsize my collection***, I decided to propose sending Beau a buttload of Cubs that I had no use for, hoping <i>someone</i> might enjoy my excess Sammy Sosa cards. I mean, I sure don't. I didn't intend to get so much in return, but when Beau asked, I answered: "some Blue Jays and (why the hell not) some Expos."<br />
<br />
So I guess I am an Expos collector now, as Beau dropped some goodies.<br />
<br />
But first, the Blue Jays.<br />
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<br />
The oldest card in the box was this Damaso Garcia. I had a friend names Damaso in elementary school for about a year before he moved away.<br />
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I have no idea what happened to him.<br />
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I really like 1981 Donruss. Especially this incredibly mis-cut Garcia. '81 is colorful and simple. These are good things.<br />
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<br />
Also good is EVERY KELLY GRUBER CARD EVER.<b> </b>Even 1991 Fleer yellowness.<br />
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If the 1991 Fleer is too much for you, set your eyes on the gaudiest of all Satdium Club sets, 1997:<br />
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<br />
I secretly collect Shawn Green, mostly because I'm sad he left Toronto so early for Los Angeles. I should probably be over it by now, but hell, look at that swing.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wM87C0Mfbfs/WnpEWgLnRRI/AAAAAAAAR98/sNAWRHwpPx0BWJy5_0u2vH0Dxt2yNyD7ACLcBGAs/s1600/Borders%2BStudio.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="446" data-original-width="314" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wM87C0Mfbfs/WnpEWgLnRRI/AAAAAAAAR98/sNAWRHwpPx0BWJy5_0u2vH0Dxt2yNyD7ACLcBGAs/s320/Borders%2BStudio.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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And look at this 1993 Leaf Studio of Blue Jays legend and World Series MVP Pat Borders. There are few sets as perfect as this one.<br />
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Spectrum, from Upper Deck in (inexplicably) multiple years, is not:<br />
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<br />
But I figured I had to show one shiny card from the Evil Black Blue Jays period. He also happens to be the Greatest Blue Jay of All Time (G-BOAT.) More on him on another day.<br />
<br />
I'm not quite ready for that post, yet.<br />
<br />
I am, however, ready to start welcoming more Expos into my collection. Beau did a great job facilitating that, including soon to be Hall of Famer, Larry Walker:<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HQ0aATHQYjQ/WnpXcxxIuEI/AAAAAAAAR-Y/QjVEKKWX4tw4ueV5XK6xBmi19vrp5G6hQCLcBGAs/s1600/94%2Bud%2Bed%2Bwalkers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="581" data-original-width="406" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HQ0aATHQYjQ/WnpXcxxIuEI/AAAAAAAAR-Y/QjVEKKWX4tw4ueV5XK6xBmi19vrp5G6hQCLcBGAs/s400/94%2Bud%2Bed%2Bwalkers.jpg" width="278" /></a></div>
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Upper Deck ruled the trading card world in the 1990s, and it did so with cards like the Walker's base card above. It's a masterpiece. They also took full advantage of subsets, like the Home Field Advantage card as well.<br />
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The trade also included this 1992 Donruss, depicting Walker in his short-term home at first base, getting those powder blues all dirty:<br />
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From Walker we move to another beastly Canadian, the pride of New Brunswick, Matt Stairs:<br />
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Stairs looks like he's also been rolling around in the dirt. A true ballplayer with light tower power, and inspiration for one of the greatest baseball-player themed shirts in existence:<br />
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Of course, we cannot talk Montreal Expos without the greatest to ever wear those powder blues, Rock Raines. There were a few Raines cards in the box, but the following stood out the most.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9xCwPfHJ5-E/WnpY8Cwv8nI/AAAAAAAAR-w/xTQnYmiOjeslzJRMmUzWsZA8wgTeVuLEQCLcBGAs/s1600/90%2Bstarline%2Braines.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="405" data-original-width="293" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9xCwPfHJ5-E/WnpY8Cwv8nI/AAAAAAAAR-w/xTQnYmiOjeslzJRMmUzWsZA8wgTeVuLEQCLcBGAs/s320/90%2Bstarline%2Braines.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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This is a 1990 Starline was a first for me. Also, I have never, ever seen these. So that's neat.<br />
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O-Pee-Chee is still active in Upper Deck hockey's offerings, and they're doing a mighty good job with those set nowadays. That's in direct contrast to the 1980s, when it was mostly a retread of Topps Flagship, like in 1987.<br />
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Regardless, any Raines cardboard is fantastic, and when you wood-panel the man, it's even better.<br />
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Back to Upper Deck. Part of the reason they dominated the 1990s was great photography on base cards with a simple, yet timeless design.<br />
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Both of those characteristics are on display here in this Delino DeShields card. There were three DeShields ones that stuck out, with the highlight being this checklist from the same set:<br />
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And illustrated by Vernon Wells, Sr.<br />
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<br />
Man, I should have actively collected DeShields in the early 1990s. He has some great cards.<br />
<br />
We'll end on my favorite set of all time, 1993 Leaf. Despite being a beautiful set on the front, 1993 Leaf has the distinction of being "that set you put in a binder backwards" due to the stunning card backs which feature brilliant photos of the city skylines. Today, we've got John Vander Wal:<br />
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<br />
Just perfect.<br />
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Thanks for the Canadjian cardboard, Beau. And for those of you reading who haven't made it to his website yet, check it out. And be sure to send him your Sammy Sosa cards, <a href="https://onemillioncubsproj.wixsite.com/onemillioncubs/single-post/2018/02/06/Tuesday-Trade-Review-New-Sosa-and-Rizzo-Refractor">even if they're not Cubs</a>. Whoops. </div>
Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-51095167006638403222018-01-26T20:57:00.000-05:002018-01-26T20:57:36.428-05:00january nue jays (and a...cub?)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
I went a little overboard in January.<br />
<br />
Overboard might be a bit of an overstatement. But I did manage to rough up some of my current Blue Jays collections, and even managed to add one (pictured above) of a Blue Jay that use to be a Chicago Cubs. And an Oakland Athletic Elephant.<br />
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In case you haven't figured out who it is yet:<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qTogYf2SONQ/Wmutkmurd3I/AAAAAAAAR7A/-yopm4XP-2MRXyBz3MugP7LuBExbtYpxACLcBGAs/s1600/dosh%2Bink.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="467" data-original-width="661" height="225" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qTogYf2SONQ/Wmutkmurd3I/AAAAAAAAR7A/-yopm4XP-2MRXyBz3MugP7LuBExbtYpxACLcBGAs/s320/dosh%2Bink.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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It's Josh Donaldson! Donaldson was originally drafted by the Cubs in 2007, and was traded to Oakland in that blockbuster Matt Murton/Rich Harden deal. He was then traded to the Blue Jays on Black Friday, 2014.<br />
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Oh, and then he won an MVP award.<br />
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Donaldson was also part of a rather large purchase I made from The Dimwit, who's doing some fun box breaks over at the Iron Lion. Join in on the fun.<br />
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In the lot there was this woody Dosh:<br />
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Without logos, Panini can really waste some space on a card. I didn't really aim to add these Donaldsons this month, they just happened to cross my path. Further down, you'll see what brought me to the lot.<br />
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I did, however, intend to add some new Marcus Stroman, but was limited in what I found that really interested me. And the first wasn't a Blue Jays card at all.<br />
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I'm coming around to Topps Now, but have little interest in using the website to acquire them. This is the only one I have so far, but there's one commemorating Stroman's first MLB HR this summer in Atlanta that I'd love to find at a reasonable price.<br />
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But this one was, and it came with his friend Josh. I won a decent relic lot, mostly as trade bait, that happened to have both of these and about four more. Any Eric Hosmer and Jose Abreu collectors out there?<br />
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Back to the Dimwit lot, and my apologies for bouncing around so much in this one.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-K29UcTEV96k/WmvWkxsuOoI/AAAAAAAAR9A/g0-QSFW2dfgXeAN4d5TijVm0waAugrABQCLcBGAs/s1600/bats%2Brelics.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="428" data-original-width="574" height="238" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-K29UcTEV96k/WmvWkxsuOoI/AAAAAAAAR9A/g0-QSFW2dfgXeAN4d5TijVm0waAugrABQCLcBGAs/s320/bats%2Brelics.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
My second Bautista auto and first multi/jersey relic. Someone (a saint, probably) sent me a Bowman's Best bat card of him wayyy back in the day, while he was still a Pirate. While never a stronghold of my collection, my Jose Bautista cards are actually pretty solid.<br />
<br />
Anyways, on to what brought me to the Dimwit lot, before I wrap up the Blue Jays vets.<br />
<br />
Roberto Alomar:<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZhasYJ9wWuQ/Wmuwsklo80I/AAAAAAAAR8I/HySS-BdmLZMFYdpBG1sr3V-VvMs-dRQ8QCLcBGAs/s1600/almoar%2BDK.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="659" data-original-width="465" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZhasYJ9wWuQ/Wmuwsklo80I/AAAAAAAAR8I/HySS-BdmLZMFYdpBG1sr3V-VvMs-dRQ8QCLcBGAs/s320/almoar%2BDK.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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Diamond Kings was solid this year, but again, plenty of wasted space.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6q4uAKpbt6I/WmuwskK-HZI/AAAAAAAAR8Q/3tm7RdUpXYM3lPKkT0TEQ55HcsQQtH-twCLcBGAs/s1600/almoar%2Bhof%2Bpaninis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="655" data-original-width="932" height="280" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6q4uAKpbt6I/WmuwskK-HZI/AAAAAAAAR8Q/3tm7RdUpXYM3lPKkT0TEQ55HcsQQtH-twCLcBGAs/s400/almoar%2Bhof%2Bpaninis.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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For being on some gaudy foil board, these are actually quite nice and my first foray into the Panini HOF cards. With the zoomed in photos, there's at least some salvaging of the excess space, though.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YeaMN9Sz3u8/WmuwskAmY4I/AAAAAAAAR8M/IUzFQ3qz0LIdmKHb7lQy6GXc7C8A90e2gCLcBGAs/s1600/alomar%2Belite.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="659" data-original-width="468" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YeaMN9Sz3u8/WmuwskAmY4I/AAAAAAAAR8M/IUzFQ3qz0LIdmKHb7lQy6GXc7C8A90e2gCLcBGAs/s320/alomar%2Belite.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
<br />
There, you go! Bringing back Donruss Elite was a big win for me. I just wish it was serial numbered to a super-low /999 copies, though.<br />
<br />
Anyways. On to the big one:<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5Y438ACeZjw/Wmuws3u3HzI/AAAAAAAAR8U/rKE9rouZn9YIqt6aaiKZxQ_Y1zZYvME9ACLcBGAs/s1600/alomar%2Bimmaculate%2Bauto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="662" data-original-width="469" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5Y438ACeZjw/Wmuws3u3HzI/AAAAAAAAR8U/rKE9rouZn9YIqt6aaiKZxQ_Y1zZYvME9ACLcBGAs/s400/alomar%2Bimmaculate%2Bauto.jpg" width="282" /></a></div>
<br />
That, amigos, is my first Roberto Alomar autograph. On-card and everything. It's not the best version of his auto and there's no Blue Jays logo to be found, but this is surely a star in my collection right now.<br />
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From old to new, Toronto's current second baseman also made an appearance as well:<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yeH9jhk7dFk/WmvZFVrsUfI/AAAAAAAAR9Y/YTyfP4-lZAUtaAsAD5UrZUpGLx9nHMbGwCLcBGAs/s1600/dt%2Bonyx.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="460" data-original-width="654" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yeH9jhk7dFk/WmvZFVrsUfI/AAAAAAAAR9Y/YTyfP4-lZAUtaAsAD5UrZUpGLx9nHMbGwCLcBGAs/s320/dt%2Bonyx.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This one is from 2015 Onyx Platinum (that doesn't make any sense.) Onyx made some nice-looking cards, without MLB or MLBPA licenses it seems, but the stock is flimsy and they seem to have disappeared.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Baby Jays</b></div>
<br />
Kevin Smith was Toronto's 4th rounder (5th pick) in 2017 and had a really great start with rookie-level Bluefield, hitting 13 HR, batting .268 with a .874 OPS in 54 games.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T_lmzLN1kV4/WmuwC4TmNXI/AAAAAAAAR7w/GuvTMmYuyuEgXNp3Fwz6KZVsl627hqfNQCLcBGAs/s1600/smithrefractautor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="570" data-original-width="432" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T_lmzLN1kV4/WmuwC4TmNXI/AAAAAAAAR7w/GuvTMmYuyuEgXNp3Fwz6KZVsl627hqfNQCLcBGAs/s320/smithrefractautor.jpg" width="242" /></a></div>
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Smith was the second SS Toronto drafted this season, just after this guy:<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jgI0voeRjXo/WmuwN-_4t9I/AAAAAAAAR74/parAEKcZPnk2t_aJyddnljsw85h7bEdagCLcBGAs/s1600/warmoth%2Bee%2Bdc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="586" data-original-width="418" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jgI0voeRjXo/WmuwN-_4t9I/AAAAAAAAR74/parAEKcZPnk2t_aJyddnljsw85h7bEdagCLcBGAs/s320/warmoth%2Bee%2Bdc.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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I'm going hard after Logan Warmoth cards, and this Panini Elite Extra Edition came pretty cheaply considering it's limited to /75. It's die-cut, but...hardly. EEE shows you what Panini can do with licensing, and the verdict is that it's quite good.</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GAeWfDVBU54/WmuwSvFpYaI/AAAAAAAAR78/hKA_SFDoyksivtrHt5vPC3pDwDQ0hGNGgCLcBGAs/s1600/warmoth%2Bgreen%2BBB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="589" data-original-width="414" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GAeWfDVBU54/WmuwSvFpYaI/AAAAAAAAR78/hKA_SFDoyksivtrHt5vPC3pDwDQ0hGNGgCLcBGAs/s320/warmoth%2Bgreen%2BBB.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>
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This one came deceptively cheap as well, around $5. In comparison, his Bowman Draft green refractor often goes $40+ for a card that's also limited to /99.<br />
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I also managed to spend $5 in one shot on these Lourdes Gurriel, Jr cards:<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ehUisrLu1as/WmuvYNHVLuI/AAAAAAAAR7Q/UhdnECgoCX4MkIP3K5h8hP0JRaOSX5JMwCLcBGAs/s1600/gurrielparallels.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="552" data-original-width="797" height="276" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ehUisrLu1as/WmuvYNHVLuI/AAAAAAAAR7Q/UhdnECgoCX4MkIP3K5h8hP0JRaOSX5JMwCLcBGAs/s400/gurrielparallels.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Two from 2016 Bowman...</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wRbsG5UBxME/Wmuvi4jKuBI/AAAAAAAAR7Y/qYMAwNAcmscL4EjdVHJCRWTras2HWEC5QCLcBGAs/s1600/gurriorange.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="555" data-original-width="404" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wRbsG5UBxME/Wmuvi4jKuBI/AAAAAAAAR7Y/qYMAwNAcmscL4EjdVHJCRWTras2HWEC5QCLcBGAs/s320/gurriorange.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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And an orange refractor from 2017 Platinum, which is rather ghastly to be honest.</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1QIvjbEC-kY/Wmuvc9gYtBI/AAAAAAAAR7U/WpgL08PCo9EaVclKrx_zE2fmuWXN7oHfACLcBGAs/s1600/gurriel%2Bbb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="686" data-original-width="454" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1QIvjbEC-kY/Wmuvc9gYtBI/AAAAAAAAR7U/WpgL08PCo9EaVclKrx_zE2fmuWXN7oHfACLcBGAs/s320/gurriel%2Bbb.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
<br />
And this autograph from 2017 Bowman's Best only set me back about $3-4.<br />
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The true steal came in the form of Nate Pearson, though, with this 2017 Leaf Valiant Black limited to just /5.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_vHIn6USOP8/WmuvtydJs7I/AAAAAAAAR7g/CvxxHt9EoBEVI6-_K69df0cxxAfCeaBhgCLcBGAs/s1600/pearson%2Bvaliant%2Bblack%2Bback.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="585" data-original-width="415" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_vHIn6USOP8/WmuvtydJs7I/AAAAAAAAR7g/CvxxHt9EoBEVI6-_K69df0cxxAfCeaBhgCLcBGAs/s320/pearson%2Bvaliant%2Bblack%2Bback.jpg" width="227" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kqTJXV5sYqU/WmuvpUlSCVI/AAAAAAAAR7c/RG5E4Q9-hWYKK1zLluGIjiNTDyH2c7MEgCLcBGAs/s1600/pearson%2Bvaliant%2Bblack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="641" data-original-width="455" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kqTJXV5sYqU/WmuvpUlSCVI/AAAAAAAAR7c/RG5E4Q9-hWYKK1zLluGIjiNTDyH2c7MEgCLcBGAs/s320/pearson%2Bvaliant%2Bblack.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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That is, unless your into SIC MOSH MOJO HITZ though:<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hf5KXfZACVY/WmuwYbIThNI/AAAAAAAAR8A/BXGFbBlHN7MNlcYAunwWYEIge2oR9lU9ACLcBGAs/s1600/urena%2Bmega%2Bpatch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="418" data-original-width="588" height="227" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hf5KXfZACVY/WmuwYbIThNI/AAAAAAAAR8A/BXGFbBlHN7MNlcYAunwWYEIge2oR9lU9ACLcBGAs/s320/urena%2Bmega%2Bpatch.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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You've been here long enough, so here's a patch from Panini Elite Extra Edition that could choke a horse. This one is also limited to five copies, and features a Blue Jay face. Apparently you can't print the logos on the card but you can smash part of one into a small window. Sure, why not?</div>
Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-25406202822738433262018-01-16T08:55:00.000-05:002018-01-16T08:55:06.925-05:002015-2016 ud champs hockey (but actually fish)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1uMfaSpbvpg/Wly8P39TvmI/AAAAAAAAR5A/SjcV1dQ-4n0WW0ZXOkN_ZqvUaKTXpr5awCLcBGAs/s1600/champs%2Bfish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="598" data-original-width="830" height="460" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1uMfaSpbvpg/Wly8P39TvmI/AAAAAAAAR5A/SjcV1dQ-4n0WW0ZXOkN_ZqvUaKTXpr5awCLcBGAs/s640/champs%2Bfish.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The fish that started it all. </i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
I don't collect many oddballs or non-sports cards. Movies and TV shows don't interest me to the point of putting them on cardboard and looking at stills when I can just watch the show or movie when I feel like it. Outside of baseball and hockey, I'm not exactly adventurous when it comes to adding new genres to my collecting.<br />
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This is probably why I tend to despise Allen & Ginter's and Goodwin Champions. The magicians, Frisbee dogs and generals of the Crusades is extraneous in a set to me. Others enjoy it, though, which is fine. There's always a niche in the world to be filled.<br />
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One major exception to this, for me, is UD Champs. Modern Champs has always had a maple-flavoured flare to it, and 2015-2016 was when this set really peaked. Aside from the nice base cards, easy to land on-card autos and relics, the inserts were Canadian-themed and generally pretty fun, ranging from Canadian food to natural places and even FISH.<br />
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Champs in 2015-2016 had a 30-card insert of fish of Canada, and I pulled three from - regrettably - my only box of this product. I was hooked. I knew I needed the complete set, but chipping away at singles ($2-3/each) wasn't going to happen. So I loaded up the old Ebay machine and found myself the complete set of 30 for just $13 shipped, complete with penny sleeves for each card and secured in a team bag.<br />
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I love fish, and to fish. Fish have always been important to me, bringing me closer with my Grandfather, dad, brother, friends and nature. I've learned lessons from doing dumb things to catch them, and learned more about the wild from a stream bank than I ever learned in six years of college schooling.<br />
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What follows is not a normal review. Sure, the art work is beautiful. The cards are *just* rare enough to elicit a chase. But this review is more autobiographical than anything else. Enjoy this one. I enjoyed writing it.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SYuH5g8-qgk/Wly9e1r0mUI/AAAAAAAAR5M/KEr6kClwQLYQ3DZOCRdXvHSp5NyfrtC1wCLcBGAs/s1600/1%2Bthrough%2B3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1146" data-original-width="532" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SYuH5g8-qgk/Wly9e1r0mUI/AAAAAAAAR5M/KEr6kClwQLYQ3DZOCRdXvHSp5NyfrtC1wCLcBGAs/s400/1%2Bthrough%2B3.jpg" width="185" /></a><b>1. Longnose Gar</b><br />
<br />
Gar are super cool. I've never caught one, but I've tried. Since they don't get very big around here, or are very common, it's difficult to lure the sleek predators in with something you're using to land something like a northern pike. The lineage for these guys goes back almost 100 million years into the fossil record. They are survivors.<br />
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<b>2. Black Crappie</b><br />
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Crappie, both black and yellow, are pretty common around here but tend to "sink" to the lower depths of our lakes in the summer, into the darker, cooler water. If you know where to get them you can certainly land a lot at once. My only memory of crappie fishing was nearly hooking my dad with a jig on Salmon River Reservoir back in high school. He wasn't too happy about that.<br />
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<b>3. Steelhead</b><br />
<br />
You'll see it here plenty of times: I'm not a salmon guy, but they are integral to the aquatic food systems and sportfishing industry in the United States and Canada.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Mz5hH3cUY0M/Wly_hYnXczI/AAAAAAAAR5Y/fEizIVFwcYs2pXBykEWtlZuHzAbRBCqgACLcBGAs/s1600/4%2Bthrough%2B6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1146" data-original-width="535" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Mz5hH3cUY0M/Wly_hYnXczI/AAAAAAAAR5Y/fEizIVFwcYs2pXBykEWtlZuHzAbRBCqgACLcBGAs/s400/4%2Bthrough%2B6.jpg" width="186" /></a><b>4. Bowfin</b><br />
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Bowfin is probably the most misunderstood fish in the checklist, along with burbot. I caught one when I was younger, a surprisingly strong fight from a fish only coming in at about 14". These guys can breathe out of the water, which confuses a lot of sportsmen when they throw them on shore but they don't die. Unfortunately, this happened often as Bowfin were often viewed as a junk fish, but luckily, this stigma has changed of late. Bowfin are now prized for the fight they give, and some people enjoy the meat smoked.<br />
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<b>5. Brown Trout</b><br />
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46 Corners is an assemblage of state forests in Oneida and Lewis Counties in New York's Tug Hill Country. Mostly managed softwoods, 46 corners is a place not unlike the settings of classical American folklore of the <a href="http://www.lumberwoods.com/fearsome_critters.htm">Lumberwoods</a>. Brown trout are abundant there among the 55+ miles of trout stream we frequented - strictly in a lawful sense* - of these state forests, as are hillside gougers, squonk, hidebehinds, and even the elusive snipe.<br />
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*I say "lawful" in that 46 Corners and the maze of gridded dirt logging roads through the area is where it was pretty easy to have an underage drinking party in high school - of which I was rarely invited, as I was a good little honor student athlete, of course.<br />
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6. Flathead Catfish<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pr-R7C9_DyE/Wly_lDWlezI/AAAAAAAAR5c/ZF0C9e6cFQEKZOnue_fTza3uyXLHOEdHgCLcBGAs/s1600/7%2Bthrough%2B9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1145" data-original-width="533" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pr-R7C9_DyE/Wly_lDWlezI/AAAAAAAAR5c/ZF0C9e6cFQEKZOnue_fTza3uyXLHOEdHgCLcBGAs/s400/7%2Bthrough%2B9.jpg" width="185" /></a><br />
7. Chinook Salmon<br />
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<b>8. Coho Salmon</b><br />
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I'm not a big salmon guy, never have been. Working on Lake Ontario has taught me plenty about these beasts and their role in ecosystem destruction and recovery as it rages its vicious cycle on the Great Lakes and beyond. Part of me is annoyed by them, but the rest of me is impressed with the effect they can have on lake ecosystems.<br />
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<b>9. Bull Trout</b><br />
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Bull trout are westerners, so I have no experience with them. They are, however, a handsome fish and it is quite difficult to maintain their populations as their habitat demands (plenty of cover, cold water, deep pools) are hurt by the ongoing destruction of our wilderness.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-j5a-g1pRP68/Wly_-WYmpCI/AAAAAAAAR5g/lHC6RmeYyDki24f7CpooVqTDZMGkk-j_wCLcBGAs/s1600/10%2Bthrough%2B12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1224" data-original-width="571" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-j5a-g1pRP68/Wly_-WYmpCI/AAAAAAAAR5g/lHC6RmeYyDki24f7CpooVqTDZMGkk-j_wCLcBGAs/s400/10%2Bthrough%2B12.jpg" width="186" /></a></div>
<b>10. Bluegill</b><br />
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Bluegills are everyone's first fish, it seems. They're easy to catch with a hook and worm and sometimes a bobber if needed, and there's millions of the out there. There's no fight in these shallow water panfish, and some say they're quite tasty when fried or grilled, but beware of the little bones.<br />
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<b>11. Cisco</b><br />
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Cisco, or lake herring, have been an incredibly important fish in American history, and very few people seem to know about it. The first are integral to the food chain in the Great Lakes, acting as one of the main food sources for walleye, lake trout, and other predatory fishes.<br />
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<b>12. Brook Trout</b><br />
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Brookies are popular where I currently live, where anglers don't have boats for open water and where public fishing access points are common. The State has been great at providing these sites of late, using money from fishing licences and fines (in theory) to provide access to all, especially, in recent years, to handicapped fisherman. Despite being severely undermanned, they keep doing great stuff with the personnel they do have. I've only really targeted brookies once, and I ended up with No. 30 on this list instead.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vM5MAyhfW3M/WlzAC6KqyVI/AAAAAAAAR5o/6OwJYPeVfogLUNfm8lNdbF8Y0KvV8wutQCLcBGAs/s1600/13%2Bthrough%2B15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1140" data-original-width="536" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vM5MAyhfW3M/WlzAC6KqyVI/AAAAAAAAR5o/6OwJYPeVfogLUNfm8lNdbF8Y0KvV8wutQCLcBGAs/s400/13%2Bthrough%2B15.jpg" width="187" /></a></div>
13. Carp<br />
14. Lake Trout<br />
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<b>15. Burbot</b><br />
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Did you know the burbot is the only freshwater cod or cod-like fish? It's true. I remember catching one when I was pretty young, through the ice on Oneida Lake. My dad called it a "lawyer" which certainly confused me back then, and even now doesn't make a whole lot of sense. There's a lot of things he taught me the name of that weren't 100% correct, but he was right on with this one.<br />
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Even then, we didn't appreciate burbot as much as we should. They're hard to catch, and sometimes this makes sportsmen appreciate them less. Not like the following...<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VISohvG5CDo/WlzBDrM4sdI/AAAAAAAAR50/Hg3PzsUPf-IcpxS9CW4bVEcNDFS_wuakwCLcBGAs/s1600/16%2Bthrough%2B18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1213" data-original-width="575" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VISohvG5CDo/WlzBDrM4sdI/AAAAAAAAR50/Hg3PzsUPf-IcpxS9CW4bVEcNDFS_wuakwCLcBGAs/s400/16%2Bthrough%2B18.jpg" width="188" /></a><b>16. Muskie</b><br />
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Now we're rolling. Muskies are the apex predator of North American waters. Take a gander at YouTube and you'll find videos of anglers reeling in nice northern pike, only to have a muskie take the fish for itself. They're notoriously difficult to catch and at up to 40 pounds they are a monster to get out of the water.<br />
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Here in NY, they're often cross-bred with northern pike into a hybrid monster, the Tiger Muskie, which is sadly absent from this list. A true marvel of the fishmaker's art. They are, however, sterile, and cannot breed in the wild, and are bred by The State purely for sport fishing.<br />
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<b>17. Northern Pike</b><br />
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Northern pike are my favorite fish. Every year on opening day of walleye season, I secretly target them instead. Most don't enjoy the meat and personally I've never tried it, there's just something primal about this incredible predator of our mostly unknown aquatic worlds. I think part of it comes from their aggressiveness in striking a lure, often breaking the water's surface in their own moment of predatory maximum.<br />
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But northerns also represent one of my favorite, and most recent, fishing memories. I think it was over one of my winter breaks from college when I was ice fishing with my dad and brother on Oneida. My brother hooked something big, but we didn't know what it was.<br />
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"Take off your gloves" he said. "and when you see its head, pull him out of the hole." I had no idea what to expect, but I knew that he knew more than me and it would be worth sticking my hands into the super-cooled lake to take whatever lies beneath, not long after, the head of a northern pike made it into the hole, and I grabbed it, and threw all 30" of the behemoth onto the ice before it could use its 1/2" teeth to rip through my arms. It was, by far, more exhilarating than any other take of my life.<br />
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<b>18. Pacific Salmon</b><br />
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Again, I'm not a salmon guy. I just cannot give the time and effort at this juncture of my being. Someday? "Pacific Salmon" itself is misleading in this context, a trading card checklist, and it's the one thing about this insert set I am annoyed by. You see, Chinook, Coho and Sockeye are all represented in these thirty cards, but they're <i>all Pacific Salmon</i>, just in different life stages and habitats. Now, I don't expect perfect accuracy in the scientific fact here, but this overlook could have been corrected and other fish species, such as the Atlantic Sturgeon could have been featured.<br />
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I'm going to use this space here as a brief plug for sturgeon, which we are actively looking to restore in NY State. If you would like to learn more about New York's programs into helping reintroduce and invigorate sturgeon in the Northeast, please visit <a href="http://www.nysturgeonfortomorrow.org/">NY Sturgeon For Tomorrow</a>.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ox1j42_cmg8/WlzBHT0LpnI/AAAAAAAAR54/A-7vYHyTq70R1PzZM6NvUlxwUbJWG5h8gCLcBGAs/s1600/19%2Bthrough%2B21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1218" data-original-width="573" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ox1j42_cmg8/WlzBHT0LpnI/AAAAAAAAR54/A-7vYHyTq70R1PzZM6NvUlxwUbJWG5h8gCLcBGAs/s400/19%2Bthrough%2B21.jpg" width="187" /></a></div>
<b>19. Pumpkinseed</b><br />
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Pumpkinseeds, like bluegill, are mostly admired by youth and not seasoned anglers. Despite being easy to catch, they're beautiful fish and as I have heard. plenty good to eat.<br />
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<b>20. Rainbow Trout</b><br />
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I used to work on Skaneateles Lake in the Finger Lakes, and rainbow trout were a huge commodity there and in the tributaries of the lake. Every year, the town I went to school in stocks a couple hundred of these in the 8-10" range and kids get a chance to fish for free, and the fishing is good in the small, man-made pond that they toss them in. It gets them hooked early, and the beautiful rainbow-like coloration goes a long way in making that happen.<br />
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<b>21. Rock Bass</b><br />
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Rockies kind of fit in between the sunfish (bluegill and pumpkinseed) and crappie. They are always fun to catch and are super common, and often are a food source for refugees in Syracuse because of that. It's not super-evident in the card, but there's often some red coloring around the eye, which when you hook them on a bright day, stands out quite a bit in the water. One of my favorite fishing spots behind the house I grew up on has plenty of rock bass. In the spring and early summer they sit on their nests, and just by dragging a lure by they will attack defensively, making them an easy take.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BJFQfdGDyd0/WlzBL3NOX0I/AAAAAAAAR58/pwxuHxbmaNkrhXLgHtmeTA1_UT7GQN5TwCLcBGAs/s1600/22%2Bthrough%2B24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1140" data-original-width="535" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BJFQfdGDyd0/WlzBL3NOX0I/AAAAAAAAR58/pwxuHxbmaNkrhXLgHtmeTA1_UT7GQN5TwCLcBGAs/s400/22%2Bthrough%2B24.jpg" width="187" /></a></div>
22. Green Sunfish<br />
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<b>23. Largemouth Bass</b><br />
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There exists a rivalry between walleye and bass fishermen on our local waters. Basically, the walleye fisherman are likened to technicians, silent stalkers of a ferocious predators, where bass fisherman are mostly regarded as lethargic, beer-bellied loudmouths with too-fast boats, destroying wake laws and scaring all the damn fish away. And the stigma, sadly, is deserved.<br />
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Still, largemouth bass are fun to catch on occasion where you don't really want a challenge and I always am brought back to fishing flooded timber of the Salmon River Reservoir as a teenager with my brother and cousin. When the waters rise it's generally harder to catch fish, that is until they spill into the surrounding forests into 6-10" of water and graze the bugs and such of early spring. That was certainly a fun day, but the snags were brutal.<br />
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<b>24. Smallmouth Bass</b><br />
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Smallmouth are pretty common on the river which I grew up, but I don't really have any specific memories of them, other than watching them swin lazily through the crystal clear waters of a place called Green Pond as a kid. Green Pond was accessible only by floating through an 8' culvert in a canoe. If you approached by land, you were trespassing, but if you're just floating, you're on state property.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-avlfrqH5yic/WlzBP6gARQI/AAAAAAAAR6A/srt2Da4IA4UaqUR1c-TxddPmrOgKi26fQCLcBGAs/s1600/25%2Bthrough%2B27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1145" data-original-width="531" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-avlfrqH5yic/WlzBP6gARQI/AAAAAAAAR6A/srt2Da4IA4UaqUR1c-TxddPmrOgKi26fQCLcBGAs/s400/25%2Bthrough%2B27.jpg" width="185" /></a><br />
25. Sockeye Salmon<br />
26. Brook Stickleback<br />
27. Golden Shiner<br />
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Well, this is a rough patch for me. I'm not a salmon fisherman and shiners and sticklebacks aren't fish sportsmen target very often. Shiners, though, are common in pretty much all swift water here and I've caught more than a few. Some might say that shiners and sticklebacks have no value, but that reminds me of an Aldo Leopold quote:<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;"><i>“The last word in ignorance is the man who says of an animal or plant: 'What good is it?” </i></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;">That's right, I've unwittingly lulled you into a conversation of ecology in the guise of a trading cards post. Devilishly clever, I must say.</span><br />
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Okay, moving on...<br />
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<b>28. Walleye</b><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-p0D9js3-SYc/WlzBTIDeL4I/AAAAAAAAR6E/u_XJpHsTbxkQ919oz_2Fuw0YTdzIyZ5dQCLcBGAs/s1600/29%2Bthrough%2B30.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1060" data-original-width="493" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-p0D9js3-SYc/WlzBTIDeL4I/AAAAAAAAR6E/u_XJpHsTbxkQ919oz_2Fuw0YTdzIyZ5dQCLcBGAs/s400/29%2Bthrough%2B30.jpg" width="185" /></a>Walleye is the fish of our family. The State stocks an incredible amount in the waters nearby, and the annual beginning of the season is a holiday. As a Little Leaguer, walleye season always started the same day as Opening Day - the first Saturday in May. The parade in down town, which doesn't happen anymore, would be lined with moms and dads in fishing gear, fresh off the water to watch their kids walk down main street, still decked out in hip waders or camouflage muck boots.<br />
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The sport carries on into the spring and summer, and especially in the winter through the ice. Out on the ice, dawn-drinking is the norm, as is freezing yourself to the bone with intent on landing a limit of three "eyes" or "walldos."<br />
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<b>29. Yellow Perch</b><br />
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I would almost always prefer landing a perch, a cousin of the walleye. They're better eating, manageable in size, and are in much stronger populations here. They tend to school up, and with a daily limit of 50 per person, you can stock your freezer in just a couple of hours with a pile rivaling that of the beer cans next to the ice shanty.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Jty0sTGhyeQ/WlzIFxeg4AI/AAAAAAAAR6U/PxucD_flyV4s43FKG8VDPKALXe46jczgACLcBGAs/s1600/fryicefishing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Jty0sTGhyeQ/WlzIFxeg4AI/AAAAAAAAR6U/PxucD_flyV4s43FKG8VDPKALXe46jczgACLcBGAs/s320/fryicefishing.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>30. Yellow Bullhead</b><br />
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I'm glad bullhead is No. 30. I've caught more bullhead than anything. They're fun, they look cool, and they're delicious.<br />
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When a river meanders across a broad plain, eventually the meanders are cut off an separated into what we call oxbow lakes. Whatever was inside the channel at the time fills out the population of the meander in the future. In one such meander, we found only bullhead, growing fat off bugs and other benthic goodies. Sometimes a pickerel would move in during high water and if the channel reconnected to the main branch of the river, but never enough of them to drive the bullhead population down.<br />
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Anyways, we used to drag our canoes a few hundred feet through cow pasture to fish these oxbows, which formed around Fish Creek just before it drained into Oneida Lake. We would bring two five-gallon pails each, one to sit on and the other to fill our creel. We would come home, sometimes, with 200-300 bullhead, sunburned, stinking of cow shit and stale lager. It was The Best of Times.<br />
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Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-68461486216625818042018-01-08T12:00:00.000-05:002018-01-08T12:00:08.069-05:00i checked out my cards: baby jays<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ElPUlCBWFus/WlLFAgOB1dI/AAAAAAAAR4I/4iazcpDU1r80B7xwSlmQE9bhQi8w9aTGACLcBGAs/s1600/20180105_142152.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ElPUlCBWFus/WlLFAgOB1dI/AAAAAAAAR4I/4iazcpDU1r80B7xwSlmQE9bhQi8w9aTGACLcBGAs/s640/20180105_142152.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is what I have been staring at since Thursday afternoon. With the Nor'easter spinning off the Atlantic Coast, a bunch of veeeeery cold air north of the Great Lakes was pulled down from Canada, resulting in about sixty straight hours of lake-effect snow locally. </div>
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So on Friday I worked for home (for real!) and watched the snow blanket the area, and once my tasks were accomplished I took sorting more of my recent COMC Black Friday order. Previous entries can be seen <a href="https://plaingrayswatch.blogspot.com/2017/12/i-checked-out-my-cards-keep-doin-that.html">here</a>, <a href="https://plaingrayswatch.blogspot.com/2017/12/i-checked-out-my-cards-fringeaverage.html">here </a>and <a href="https://plaingrayswatch.blogspot.com/2018/01/i-checked-out-my-cards-oldest-of-friends.html">here</a>.</div>
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For this installment, we'll take a look at some Baby Blues.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DqAiwaUjiAk/WlE68bZ-00I/AAAAAAAAR3E/KqJUx6iu9LsTzJBZg1o8CMpUyPQP2rTDwCLcBGAs/s1600/bo%2Bt100.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="573" data-original-width="414" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DqAiwaUjiAk/WlE68bZ-00I/AAAAAAAAR3E/KqJUx6iu9LsTzJBZg1o8CMpUyPQP2rTDwCLcBGAs/s320/bo%2Bt100.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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You won't see any of Toronto's No. 1 prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. here, but Bo Bichette, another son of a 1990s star is no slouch, leading us off in his Bowman Scout's Top 100 above.<br />
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Sticking with bloodlines, I also picked up some sky-blue refractors from this 2016 Bowman. The sky blues look great with Blue Jays on them.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mE91nPxV8xc/WlE7BWe4dvI/AAAAAAAAR3I/8uqF32RAkocEfYIuLw0pVMKkmUwiTRJrQCLcBGAs/s1600/cavan%2Bsky%2Bblue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="575" data-original-width="409" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mE91nPxV8xc/WlE7BWe4dvI/AAAAAAAAR3I/8uqF32RAkocEfYIuLw0pVMKkmUwiTRJrQCLcBGAs/s320/cavan%2Bsky%2Bblue.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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Reese McGuire, surprisingly, doesn't have a dad that's an ex-All-Star. Still, he's a legit catching prospect that came to the Blue Jays last summer when the Jays traded Drew Hutchison to the Pittsburgh Pirate in a very lopsided trade.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/--NiZnNyn6No/WlE7qc4ot5I/AAAAAAAAR3Q/Gtbmitu4zqY1Lug1FVHzoP9kpULMS0WoQCLcBGAs/s1600/reeseleafauto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="610" data-original-width="432" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/--NiZnNyn6No/WlE7qc4ot5I/AAAAAAAAR3Q/Gtbmitu4zqY1Lug1FVHzoP9kpULMS0WoQCLcBGAs/s320/reeseleafauto.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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Leaf 2013 brought back some memories of the very early 1990s, and boy does this card lend itself to a nice inking.</div>
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As does 2014 Bowman Inception:</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bsX5ZFREpB8/WlE7szWzI_I/AAAAAAAAR3U/51y0j4vJZZQVs50yuV3S3YfcYyxVfJc5wCLcBGAs/s1600/reeseinceptionauto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="615" data-original-width="434" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bsX5ZFREpB8/WlE7szWzI_I/AAAAAAAAR3U/51y0j4vJZZQVs50yuV3S3YfcYyxVfJc5wCLcBGAs/s320/reeseinceptionauto.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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This year wasn't my favorite as far as Inception goes, but 2016 was tremendous with the celestial theming. Unfortunately, the <b>plain gray swatch </b>relic comes with an unsatisfying sticker autograph.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oHzeuVKE3Rg/WlE7vDryB_I/AAAAAAAAR3Y/4HByEqccFWw-MmJq82z3cn-soUi9vn9PgCLcBGAs/s1600/reeseincesptionjerz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="614" data-original-width="430" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oHzeuVKE3Rg/WlE7vDryB_I/AAAAAAAAR3Y/4HByEqccFWw-MmJq82z3cn-soUi9vn9PgCLcBGAs/s320/reeseincesptionjerz.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>
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Still, that's a pretty fantastic-looking card.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_OvCiNVRjJ8/WlE70aRJTOI/AAAAAAAAR3c/XBv5HQ1-Wro-JwcaTB0cLv7qkIBaLS1zgCLcBGAs/s1600/srf%2Bauto%2Band%2Bpurple.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="607" data-original-width="867" height="280" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_OvCiNVRjJ8/WlE70aRJTOI/AAAAAAAAR3c/XBv5HQ1-Wro-JwcaTB0cLv7qkIBaLS1zgCLcBGAs/s400/srf%2Bauto%2Band%2Bpurple.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Sean Reid-Foley had a strong debut in 2014 and was solid in 2015, but he hasn't progressed past Double-A yet in 2017. The recent slowing of his progress and rank loss in the Blue Jays top prospects list means his secondary card values have dropped as well.</div>
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The same goes for Conner Greene, who also struggled with Double-A New Hampshire this season.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--I7m-0332-4/WlE75H7hGAI/AAAAAAAAR3g/L5MdY5v60nEnioUW3L9XO6Y8QjtTwmaYwCLcBGAs/s1600/greeneautos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="615" data-original-width="880" height="278" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--I7m-0332-4/WlE75H7hGAI/AAAAAAAAR3g/L5MdY5v60nEnioUW3L9XO6Y8QjtTwmaYwCLcBGAs/s400/greeneautos.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I've got a purple one of these somewhere, too, and a base green "paper" parallel. Greene throws a hundred but like many others that do, has trouble placing it. He's also buds with Charlie Sheen, which, well, take that as you will.</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zBTCA2ymIps/WlE79GgymHI/AAAAAAAAR3k/5hQwZi9sXbwQcxC2JhrvR6tSRTPNepwkACLcBGAs/s1600/alford%2Bbbr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="577" data-original-width="410" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zBTCA2ymIps/WlE79GgymHI/AAAAAAAAR3k/5hQwZi9sXbwQcxC2JhrvR6tSRTPNepwkACLcBGAs/s320/alford%2Bbbr.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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Bringing back this design of Bowman's Best in 2016 was a great idea. See? Topps can still swing it sometimes, even if they're just rehashing old sets and an insert.</div>
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Another reminder to watch your COMC inventory closely: I ended up with two of these. And the same with this one:</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tiz9lnteeP8/WlE8CHuOJ0I/AAAAAAAAR3w/A0G0EvdH2Ow85vhmfy9IisCAnxy-r5ACwCLcBGAs/s1600/alford%2Bbba.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="569" data-original-width="408" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tiz9lnteeP8/WlE8CHuOJ0I/AAAAAAAAR3w/A0G0EvdH2Ow85vhmfy9IisCAnxy-r5ACwCLcBGAs/s320/alford%2Bbba.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
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Alford led me to pick up another sky-blue refractor from 2016 Bowman, and with Biggio and Alford already, I might as well see what other Jays from 2016 Bowman I can grab. </div>
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Unlike some of the Jays pitchers, Alford had a real strong 2017, earning a call-up this summer before breaking the hamate bone in his wrist and finishing the season at Triple-A. He played in the Mexican League this winter and did extremely well.</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-E7go2O03vJE/WlE7_2FShtI/AAAAAAAAR3s/cmU-n4SH3A0omYCElFhyGydrxD4F-hBXACLcBGAs/s1600/alford%2Bsky%2Bblue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="575" data-original-width="406" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-E7go2O03vJE/WlE7_2FShtI/AAAAAAAAR3s/cmU-n4SH3A0omYCElFhyGydrxD4F-hBXACLcBGAs/s320/alford%2Bsky%2Bblue.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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From A...to Zeuch. TJ Zeuch was Toronto's first-rounder in 2016, and as a bit of a safe pick, he had a great debut season in 2017. </div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OqxNOSgLXlc/WlLS6ki0KxI/AAAAAAAAR4c/2so229z2zlwtWXKs0QZ0T5U4DNImngfeACLcBGAs/s1600/zeuch%2Bblue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="658" data-original-width="468" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OqxNOSgLXlc/WlLS6ki0KxI/AAAAAAAAR4c/2so229z2zlwtWXKs0QZ0T5U4DNImngfeACLcBGAs/s320/zeuch%2Bblue.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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Beyond leading the Blue Jays pitching prospects in 2017, he's also a leader in the chase for the most pitchery of pitcher faces as well.</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WGWwQAopyYw/WlLTAI0wFTI/AAAAAAAAR4g/H-V283wJdKQ2zJOzXRqeJZgu6wkgYWA2QCLcBGAs/s1600/zeuch%2Bfantasy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="650" data-original-width="467" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WGWwQAopyYw/WlLTAI0wFTI/AAAAAAAAR4g/H-V283wJdKQ2zJOzXRqeJZgu6wkgYWA2QCLcBGAs/s320/zeuch%2Bfantasy.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
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Finally, we'll end with Max Pentecost, the Jays' top hitting catching prospect. Pentecost has been kicking around the org since 2014, battling various shoulder injuries. One of his first cards was this 2014 Bowman Sterling autograph on a sticker:</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bNA7QIBvxjU/WlE8Ejhff_I/AAAAAAAAR30/2HpvRbI29csMqmx8iyd7PUeQgamsk4H7QCLcBGAs/s1600/pentecost%2Bsterling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="617" data-original-width="440" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bNA7QIBvxjU/WlE8Ejhff_I/AAAAAAAAR30/2HpvRbI29csMqmx8iyd7PUeQgamsk4H7QCLcBGAs/s320/pentecost%2Bsterling.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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And yes, it's that hideous in person. But us prospectors have to prospect.</div>
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Of course, as bad as this Sterling auto looks, the following is the opposite. </div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9FqxjSxt9lc/WlE8Hwy1TfI/AAAAAAAAR34/IZv5KeG78SEC9kbSXXndcytGfbhzqVj1wCLcBGAs/s1600/pentecost%2Btrinity.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="443" data-original-width="630" height="225" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9FqxjSxt9lc/WlE8Hwy1TfI/AAAAAAAAR34/IZv5KeG78SEC9kbSXXndcytGfbhzqVj1wCLcBGAs/s320/pentecost%2Btrinity.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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No sticker, no terrible photoshopping, no chrome board - well, no board at all. This "card" feels almost like a piece of glass, but is definitely a solid plastic from 2014 Leaf Trinity, and hand-numbered at just 23/25.</div>
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It's thick, around 1/8", crystal clear, and the blue is beautiful.</div>
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To give y'all a better look, here's a photo rather than a scan, coincidentally with some stats of Pentecost's that I was using to write up a post over at Jays From the Couch.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sFywFkoBw8U/WlLFYxSHEII/AAAAAAAAR4M/D56fns7HXbADbQS-oju_omE_YZpaSevOwCLcBGAs/s1600/20180106_155750.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sFywFkoBw8U/WlLFYxSHEII/AAAAAAAAR4M/D56fns7HXbADbQS-oju_omE_YZpaSevOwCLcBGAs/s640/20180106_155750.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hopefully that gives a better idea of of the Pure inserts from Leaf Trinity. If you've got a favorite player int he set, I recommend grabbing one of these.</div>
Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-52052218539229878462018-01-05T20:26:00.002-05:002018-01-05T20:26:35.061-05:00i checked out my cards: the oldest of friends<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5Qb6RBUhpXs/WlAjJnc5S9I/AAAAAAAAR2Q/t3WW_mHBhLk_dfn4ivB_O3Iu0T7jlU-6gCLcBGAs/s1600/jrgriffey.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="353" data-original-width="503" height="280" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5Qb6RBUhpXs/WlAjJnc5S9I/AAAAAAAAR2Q/t3WW_mHBhLk_dfn4ivB_O3Iu0T7jlU-6gCLcBGAs/s400/jrgriffey.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Right.<br />
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Back to it. This is the 3rd Edition of "i checked out my cards 2017" Black Friday binge, where I hit the core players in my collection: Roberto Alomar, Carlos Delgado, and Ivan Rodriguez. Previous entries <a href="https://plaingrayswatch.blogspot.com/2017/12/i-checked-out-my-cards-keep-doin-that.html">here </a>and <a href="https://plaingrayswatch.blogspot.com/2017/12/i-checked-out-my-cards-fringeaverage.html">here</a>. It's an Alomar-heavy crop, so if you don't like Hall of Fame second baseman, just leave. No one will miss you.<br />
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On to the cards.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4mal2HlSpOI/WlALVMXulMI/AAAAAAAAR0o/VWay6UXN0MAfdVV0xz3fhU1fTJ8UfzB4ACLcBGAs/s1600/alomarbb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="495" data-original-width="351" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4mal2HlSpOI/WlALVMXulMI/AAAAAAAAR0o/VWay6UXN0MAfdVV0xz3fhU1fTJ8UfzB4ACLcBGAs/s320/alomarbb.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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The original Bowman's Best (1994) was basically a cacophonous version of Topps Finest, which was a huge hit in 1993 and the original high-end set. I don't remember their releases, but I can imagine they were hyped up back then. Bowman's Best had kind of a granite countertop thing going on beneath the chrome, which as a (very) young geologist, I appreciated.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yjzeEsP9w4Y/WlALZZgjpAI/AAAAAAAAR0s/XXwynhUMb7ARrUmJ2unbKft2uKPwOFcRACLcBGAs/s1600/alomar%2Bfinest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="452" data-original-width="323" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yjzeEsP9w4Y/WlALZZgjpAI/AAAAAAAAR0s/XXwynhUMb7ARrUmJ2unbKft2uKPwOFcRACLcBGAs/s320/alomar%2Bfinest.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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The original Topps Finest was solid, but the design certainly hasn't aged well. There were parallels back then, of course, like this blue one (1 of 5,000!) featuring Alomar in the white-paneled Jays cap. Superb.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CF0hz5vh0hw/WlAL8VDWo9I/AAAAAAAAR1I/wwMEsfj6y48xrrPGqQ0LuDDRKDeFt4BvACLcBGAs/s1600/alomartbg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="496" data-original-width="349" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CF0hz5vh0hw/WlAL8VDWo9I/AAAAAAAAR1I/wwMEsfj6y48xrrPGqQ0LuDDRKDeFt4BvACLcBGAs/s320/alomartbg.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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Topps of 1993 is an important set to me, not so much because I like it now, but because its the first cards I remember opening. The Blue Jays had just one their first World Series in 1992, and Alomar was a star. Black Gold cards were the first insert I remember aside from regular old Topps Gold, but they were the first with the hologram-style foil. Nearly 25 years later, I still love the Black Golds.<br />
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This time through my COMC Black Friday binge, there was something I was searching for in my Alomar collection.<br />
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Headbands.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VJu6XPAPRho/WlAbNm4VhRI/AAAAAAAAR10/yyGOCGGwXn4pegp3eUVwYu0JvTR2FJOgQCLcBGAs/s1600/alomarchives.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="454" data-original-width="323" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VJu6XPAPRho/WlAbNm4VhRI/AAAAAAAAR10/yyGOCGGwXn4pegp3eUVwYu0JvTR2FJOgQCLcBGAs/s320/alomarchives.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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Topps is still producing Alomar headband cards, such as the Archives offering from 2016. Not my favorite Alomar, but I'll take any one of him in the headband.<br />
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Like this 1993 Fleer:<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4jNfWNngYcg/WlALdtZK5mI/AAAAAAAAR0w/uLoOm_xxgu4F51_LAcll-aejZlpxgbtpwCLcBGAs/s1600/alomar93fleer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="460" data-original-width="331" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4jNfWNngYcg/WlALdtZK5mI/AAAAAAAAR0w/uLoOm_xxgu4F51_LAcll-aejZlpxgbtpwCLcBGAs/s320/alomar93fleer.jpg" width="230" /></a></div>
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Or this much higher-end 1995 SP:</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dmmBiiBV_T0/WlALv79iifI/AAAAAAAAR1A/wl3znOwtb-Ut2Dj13qtUdQLb414inUakgCLcBGAs/s1600/alomarsp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="321" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dmmBiiBV_T0/WlALv79iifI/AAAAAAAAR1A/wl3znOwtb-Ut2Dj13qtUdQLb414inUakgCLcBGAs/s320/alomarsp.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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And my current favorite, this 1994 Collector's Choice Up Close & Personal.</div>
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<br /><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FY-VarR_BHQ/WlALojYhjJI/AAAAAAAAR04/kREcuQqqkI0ZCHd2oMneYELPl0tambb1ACLcBGAs/s1600/alomarucap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="326" data-original-width="456" height="228" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FY-VarR_BHQ/WlALojYhjJI/AAAAAAAAR04/kREcuQqqkI0ZCHd2oMneYELPl0tambb1ACLcBGAs/s320/alomarucap.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I'm pretty sure I pulled this card as a kid, but I was about eight years old and those corners are going to straighten themselves. I've replaces a few gems from my childhood.</div>
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This isn't one of them:</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lpRCp1wYksU/WlALh_ZrFHI/AAAAAAAAR00/wTEnSORrFNc6U6d2Bzz114h4l7VGu1gTACLcBGAs/s1600/alomarbbdesi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="498" data-original-width="350" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lpRCp1wYksU/WlALh_ZrFHI/AAAAAAAAR00/wTEnSORrFNc6U6d2Bzz114h4l7VGu1gTACLcBGAs/s320/alomarbbdesi.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>
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Ewww, Orioles. Bowman's Best was much more cleaned up and impressive in 1995, and while it's hard to tell from the photo, the quad-player offering is actually a refractor. Desi Relaford didn't make much of himself, but on the back is Craig Biggio - another Hall of Fame second baseman and Luis Castillo, who did have a nice career.<br />
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Okay, one more Alomar for the road.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uaGKcIocvJ4/WlAL2xuiwxI/AAAAAAAAR1E/gFhDhN6h98MSNdbQAKQqeFUniKg1EbDHgCLcBGAs/s1600/almoardb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="614" data-original-width="431" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uaGKcIocvJ4/WlAL2xuiwxI/AAAAAAAAR1E/gFhDhN6h98MSNdbQAKQqeFUniKg1EbDHgCLcBGAs/s320/almoardb.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>
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I would have to put Diamondbacks Alomar as my No. 2 to Blue Jays Alomar, as his cards with them are pretty rare and given his long career, seems almost ridiculous. I've had my eye on this one for a few years. I must have been the only one who wanted it. That's fine.<br />
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On to Carlos Delgado! You might want to put your sunglasses on now because it's about to get really shiny around here.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-e2tlY4QSKTI/WlAMDA-UPhI/AAAAAAAAR1M/qCU-7ihVTtMjP8Ty5VAhJtpujSYcXGQngCLcBGAs/s1600/delgadointlref.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="495" data-original-width="353" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-e2tlY4QSKTI/WlAMDA-UPhI/AAAAAAAAR1M/qCU-7ihVTtMjP8Ty5VAhJtpujSYcXGQngCLcBGAs/s320/delgadointlref.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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I've always wanted an International Refractor, and a 1998 Bowman Chrome of one of my favorite Jays is a great place to start. Delgado is easy to collect in that way: his cards are affordable, he never played in an era of low print runs, and there's not a whole lot of competition for him. It leads me to pick up cards I wouldn't normally jump on, ones I just admired in black and white from the pages of Beckett, like this 2000 PACIFIC Prism (with an "S", that's how you know its good) Drops Silver parallel.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-25ZlY4a3c8w/WlAMInzKmwI/AAAAAAAAR1Q/0uPh--4vQvAhfyuTrBURIQ9fNUVUicVOgCLcBGAs/s1600/delgadodrops.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="498" data-original-width="355" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-25ZlY4a3c8w/WlAMInzKmwI/AAAAAAAAR1Q/0uPh--4vQvAhfyuTrBURIQ9fNUVUicVOgCLcBGAs/s320/delgadodrops.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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And man, is it heckin' cool in-hand. Prism from 2000 was a pretty set regardless, but this background pattern is especially fun. Shall we taste the rainbow?</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_AqouiwvKOU/WlAfs-BaIgI/AAAAAAAAR2A/73Z-EuqVD4w1RXpRMG022unXcrGKHsncwCLcBGAs/s1600/delgadoionix.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="502" data-original-width="352" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_AqouiwvKOU/WlAfs-BaIgI/AAAAAAAAR2A/73Z-EuqVD4w1RXpRMG022unXcrGKHsncwCLcBGAs/s320/delgadoionix.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>
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Upper Deck (UD if you were a cool kid) Ionix was a fun one-and-done brand in 2000. The bend of this card gave it a good scan, but in-hand kind of looks like how a card would look if you somehow turned SURGE into cardboard and printed baseball players on it. Which fits into the <a href="https://frinkiac.com/meme/S04E17/1014562.jpg?b64lines=IFNPIEkgVElFRCBBTiBPTklPTiBUTyBNWQogQkVMVCwgV0hJQ0ggV0FTIFRIRSBTVFlMRQogQVQgVEhFIFRJTUUuIA==">style at the time</a>. </div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JwbDR_fKN0Y/WlAMLbQWGoI/AAAAAAAAR1U/E8pkIArHZX4GZHid3r9mgO_tZfa9L4juACLcBGAs/s1600/delgadofinest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="497" data-original-width="347" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JwbDR_fKN0Y/WlAMLbQWGoI/AAAAAAAAR1U/E8pkIArHZX4GZHid3r9mgO_tZfa9L4juACLcBGAs/s320/delgadofinest.jpg" width="223" /></a></div>
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LOUD. Delgado spent just one season with the Marlins, but it was a very good season in which he hit 33 HR and drove in 115. As a 1B, the analytics didn't love him, and he only put up an fWAR of 3.3.</div>
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Also that year, the Detroit Tigers were very bad, but they had a very good All-Star catcher that season in Ivan Rodriguez. There's no Tigers cards to show here, just Ranger - but they are magnificent. We'll start with this absolutely perfect 1994 Topps Stadium Club where he's deck out in the Tools of Ignorance:</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ijWqbxELYNQ/WlAfwjXmz9I/AAAAAAAAR2E/ldHRY-xUmLgKqhWfCZqIeMSND0iVSPHwQCLcBGAs/s1600/pudgefection.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="502" data-original-width="363" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ijWqbxELYNQ/WlAfwjXmz9I/AAAAAAAAR2E/ldHRY-xUmLgKqhWfCZqIeMSND0iVSPHwQCLcBGAs/s320/pudgefection.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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It doesn't get much better than that. TSC 1994 is a set I will have to complete someday. It's not as artful as some other TSC offerings, but the photography remained outstanding and the plastic-personalization name labels was so fitting for 1995.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2zRvYhdD7Ks/WlAMRNLLHYI/AAAAAAAAR1c/xhiEG9Ez6TIDb0zB8kbeXpEak_y5qLTfgCLcBGAs/s1600/Pudge%2BGlove.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="439" data-original-width="616" height="228" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2zRvYhdD7Ks/WlAMRNLLHYI/AAAAAAAAR1c/xhiEG9Ez6TIDb0zB8kbeXpEak_y5qLTfgCLcBGAs/s320/Pudge%2BGlove.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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In 2001, Pudge won his 10th Gold Glove. Upper Deck was getting more interesting with the memorabilia cards by that time, and the price was right for me, 16 years later, to grab this game-used batting glove card. </div>
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Okay. You've made it this far, and you deserve something great. I give you: 1994 Upper Deck Ivan Rodriguez - Electric Diamond parallel!</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-10kArmFI8xI/WlAMUhkjpeI/AAAAAAAAR1g/uBTQNpecDXo1B3rpqifOoAS13UFCi6kYgCLcBGAs/s1600/94%2BUD%2BPudge%2BFront.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="456" data-original-width="322" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-10kArmFI8xI/WlAMUhkjpeI/AAAAAAAAR1g/uBTQNpecDXo1B3rpqifOoAS13UFCi6kYgCLcBGAs/s320/94%2BUD%2BPudge%2BFront.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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Pretty cool, right? Pudge was so popular by 1994 that he warranted one of the best-looking cards in the set. However...</div>
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It.</div>
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Gets.</div>
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Better.</div>
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Are you ready? Good.</div>
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BAM.</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-urCFj53dqlQ/WlAMX-A-ICI/AAAAAAAAR1k/LXDUy8krcboG2OkMy3vg6Bh8bauYjYGIwCLcBGAs/s1600/94%2BUD%2BPudge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="536" data-original-width="383" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-urCFj53dqlQ/WlAMX-A-ICI/AAAAAAAAR1k/LXDUy8krcboG2OkMy3vg6Bh8bauYjYGIwCLcBGAs/s320/94%2BUD%2BPudge.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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We're not worthy. </div>
Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-13597164202709632372017-12-31T15:53:00.001-05:002017-12-31T15:53:12.260-05:00takeaways from the return: 2017 in cardboard<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xhp6susnJz4/WklK1rQgDLI/AAAAAAAAR0U/kshF9tXLic8akiyHWOA9xPHz9Nn60m0KACLcBGAs/s1600/lennys.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="300" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xhp6susnJz4/WklK1rQgDLI/AAAAAAAAR0U/kshF9tXLic8akiyHWOA9xPHz9Nn60m0KACLcBGAs/s400/lennys.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I'm seeing a lot of "year in review" and "top however many of 2017" posts rolling in. Part of me is reluctant to do anything too similar to other writers in this arena, but I feel we need to step back for a minute, take a look at our surroundings, and objectively evaluate what's coming in 2018 for sports card collecting. That's what I am hoping to do here. No real show-and-tell, and certainly no puff piece of how rewarding and fulfilling card collecting is.<br />
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While this site goes dark sometimes, I've never really walked away from the scene. And after getting back into it heavily these past couple months, it hasn't really been encouraging. I wouldn't call the current trends in collecting troubling, as it's just too hard for me to take anything, especially sport and corporate-related, too seriously. But it's not great right now. Topps has done nothing but resurrect old sets and bury faithful fans with parallels, and Panini is continually putting out flawed products with banged-up corners and bad checklists - and doing it without logos.<br />
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Right now, the strongest part of the hobby is Upper Deck Hockey, and there's not much of a challenge. This feels like the deepest rut collecting has been in since the 2000s, and there's a lot of work to do to get back to what collectors actually desire, if that ever happens again.<br />
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We have some time before that exclusive MLB license expires - and likely, is renewed - before anything is going to change. That being said, I've come up with some thoughts and takeaways from the past few months and how I see things shaking out in 2018 and deeper into the future.<br />
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<b>5. Get ready for more yankees.</b><br />
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Sure, you can go ahead and chirp the official Topps account by demanding more Brewers and Padres in sets, but buddy - it's never going to happen. yankees bring in the dough, and putting a yankee on the front of a foil pack gets that kid in southern Iowa to beg his parents to buy it, not Wil Myers or Joey Votto. It's all about marketability now, and the Cubs, yankees, Red Sox and Dodgers are king, and you're going to pull them out of pack whether you like it or not, <b>because they are what sells</b>.<br />
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<b>4. Prospecting is dead for collectors</b><br />
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This one hurts. I'm always looking for prospects to get cheap and flip, to offset some of the cost of the hobby - which if you haven't noticed, is getting kind of ridiculous. Only like fantasy sports, the little guys, the casual collectors, are being forced out.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-huR1klb6vFs/WkknWeaWwEI/AAAAAAAARzo/lafHvPlL15s4ig_sTXPUuYLgykUUEeBRgCLcBGAs/s1600/vladautos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="307" data-original-width="769" height="254" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-huR1klb6vFs/WkknWeaWwEI/AAAAAAAARzo/lafHvPlL15s4ig_sTXPUuYLgykUUEeBRgCLcBGAs/s640/vladautos.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>I have two Vladimir Guerrero Jr. cards. This is why.</i></td></tr>
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Prospecting for the common man is dead. Have you checked the price of a box of Bowman Draft lately? I'll do it for you:<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-v3EghMApoVA/Wkko-eKFIOI/AAAAAAAARz0/m0yjVSBN0-AxcAQaaCskbCy4LU86yUV9ACLcBGAs/s1600/17bdraft.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="490" data-original-width="1040" height="150" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-v3EghMApoVA/Wkko-eKFIOI/AAAAAAAARz0/m0yjVSBN0-AxcAQaaCskbCy4LU86yUV9ACLcBGAs/s320/17bdraft.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Only $.37/card! And hey, those three autographs are guaranteed to be players you'll see in the bigs before you know it.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uxGCVqPW8as/WkkpVSqVOgI/AAAAAAAARz4/cZRxZcTTBZ8nD3sjO7Ln-Bo2ebAp4UnwQCLcBGAs/s1600/bowmandraft.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="480" height="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uxGCVqPW8as/WkkpVSqVOgI/AAAAAAAARz4/cZRxZcTTBZ8nD3sjO7Ln-Bo2ebAp4UnwQCLcBGAs/s320/bowmandraft.gif" width="320" /></a></div>
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Perfect.<br />
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Not to mention to get any refractors or someone who will actually see the majors, you're going to have to fill your truck bed with cases of the product and send your kid's college savings account over to pay for it.<br />
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<b>3. Zombie sets are here to stay.</b><br />
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<i>Topps Rep:</i> What do you, the collector soaked in our golden shower, want to see in 2017?<br />
<i>Collector:</i> We would love to see a set designed for set collectors, without parallels and inserts. Emphasize a beautiful base card.<br />
<i>Topps Rep: </i>Good news, Gallery is coming back!<br />
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Literally no one asked for a reboot of Gallery, and when it did come, no one cared. Hopefully this one was a stark wake-up for Topps, but they're so tone deaf at this point that it doesn't matter. You're going to get rebooted sets with piles of parallels and short prints and shitty inserts. If you want a clean, beautiful base card, minimal inserts and nonsense parallels, you have to leave baseball altogether and pick up some Upper Deck hockey.<br />
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<b>2. The hobby will always be dominated by money.</b><br />
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Prices are going to go up. Maybe not right away, but with less folks than ever buying cards, producers will have to compensate. Maybe it means more high-end stuff that costs nothing to release but they can still charge $200 for 10 cards. Maybe it's the continual rehash of old sets and inserts for those they lost in the 90s and 00s. Maybe it's a set for set collectors. Unfortunately, vintage isn't going to get cheaper, and eventually that market will dry up, and we'll lose even more people, which worries me a bit.<br />
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The benefit of this, though, is the weak secondary market and places like Sport Lots and Check Out My Cards. A few weeks after release and it's pretty easy now to grab your favorite players from high-end sets (if they're even in it, GOTTA GET THAT AARON BOONE IN!).<br />
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<b>1. 2017 Topps was the worst flagship set, ever - and 2018 looks worse.</b><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-haujuoQ40nU/Wkksq_AKorI/AAAAAAAAR0E/oqWCKo2X0r0tT2rmjl54hGCiFC_dc4dNwCLcBGAs/s1600/Andrelton-Simmons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="760" data-original-width="540" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-haujuoQ40nU/Wkksq_AKorI/AAAAAAAAR0E/oqWCKo2X0r0tT2rmjl54hGCiFC_dc4dNwCLcBGAs/s320/Andrelton-Simmons.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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I've seen this card a lot in the past couple months, and I think I know why. One - it's a pretty good looking card, aside from the...whatever design of the text; and two - it might be the only memorable card to come out of Topps' 2017 flagship.<br />
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And, yeah. <a href="https://twitter.com/nightowlcards/status/947510010959073280">It's going to get worse before it gets better</a>. We've all seen the yankees on the sell sheet for 2018 product, and assuming Topps will put one of the other 29 teams in there means it'll probably sell well, because there's nothing else out there, and we'll complain and buy and complain and buy and support the snake swallowing its tail and it'll probably be worse in 2019 as well. But whatever.<br />
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Of course, the hobby is what you make it. There's hundreds of sets out there that need completed. Vintage to be chased and placed in binders and player collections and team collection and oddities. There's no reason to give in to the shambles of the modern releases unless that's what you're in to, and if it is - cool! You do you, bro. I'm just an ornery bastard that remembers the good ol' days of variety and proper checklists and when the cards were legitimate art and not just instagram filters.<br />
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There's still plenty of fun to be had chasing cardboard, and I look forward to hanging out with the rest of you all as the journey embarks on another turn in the road (even if we're currently wading through the ditch.)<br />
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Rip on.</div>
Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-47292909764308860262017-12-30T09:24:00.001-05:002017-12-30T09:24:23.726-05:00i checked out my cards: keep doin' that hockey<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HhjSSTX_A-A/WkUYVvwy3ZI/AAAAAAAARwk/5ZA9ZRzvaas8w2dDdioLr1RFUcysc3OIQCLcBGAs/s1600/scandella%2Bretro.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="537" data-original-width="382" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HhjSSTX_A-A/WkUYVvwy3ZI/AAAAAAAARwk/5ZA9ZRzvaas8w2dDdioLr1RFUcysc3OIQCLcBGAs/s320/scandella%2Bretro.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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Welcome back to the second in a line of what will likely be around 10 posts representing my 2017 COMC Black Friday binge. Today, we keep doin' that hockey, with some new additions to my Minnesota Wild and Toronto Maple Leafs collections. There's also an Islander/Sabre snuck in.</div>
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Speaking of the Sabres, the first card there up at the top is of Marco Scandella, who Minnesota lost to the Sabres in the Tyler Ennis trade. It was a good deal for both sides, but personally I preferred Scandella.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PAm-5vyE2eI/WkeZFtOC18I/AAAAAAAARzY/OKfQe6zdm6ES3ceTmyRlOdqYka0X1mFQgCLcBGAs/s1600/zuuuuuk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="407" data-original-width="576" height="226" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PAm-5vyE2eI/WkeZFtOC18I/AAAAAAAARzY/OKfQe6zdm6ES3ceTmyRlOdqYka0X1mFQgCLcBGAs/s320/zuuuuuk.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This looks awful, but it isn't. 2016-2017 MVP had this awful foily throwback SUBSET reminiscent of <a href="https://plaingrayswatch.blogspot.com/2012/11/collection-favourites-ken-griffey-jr.html">Skybox's Skylines in 2000</a>. I love that MVP offers subsets and this one is a beaut, Clark. </div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AzE8a-_tw-c/WkUZQXiUwNI/AAAAAAAARww/ujBjm2wW5IoVvyEr93ItT6K22wsP9bv6wCLcBGAs/s1600/nino.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="295" data-original-width="412" height="229" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AzE8a-_tw-c/WkUZQXiUwNI/AAAAAAAARww/ujBjm2wW5IoVvyEr93ItT6K22wsP9bv6wCLcBGAs/s320/nino.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The best thing about collecting hockey cards is that I still get Upper Deck in all of it's wonderfulness. Above is just the base card for Nino Niederreiter (my first Nino!) from 2015-2016. And its a great base card.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-R0DtSZypObg/WkUZUd2GhKI/AAAAAAAARw0/Qb1ZD_CBfV0mNp2PHnzZBA4VDWB8jBJSwCLcBGAs/s1600/koivu%2Bred%2B199.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="375" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-R0DtSZypObg/WkUZUd2GhKI/AAAAAAAARw0/Qb1ZD_CBfV0mNp2PHnzZBA4VDWB8jBJSwCLcBGAs/s320/koivu%2Bred%2B199.jpg" width="222" /></a></div>
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Moving into the veterans and parallels, this red parallel from 2016-2017 O-Pee-Chee Platinum (/199) is one of my nicer Mikkos at this point. My collection is certainly lacking.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Zq8fHOTDLWg/WkUZZNYJMOI/AAAAAAAARw4/_ZgoY6TVWE0qQPcvKFO4t_4IKrrQrAcQACLcBGAs/s1600/moulson%2Bcramer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="381" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Zq8fHOTDLWg/WkUZZNYJMOI/AAAAAAAARw4/_ZgoY6TVWE0qQPcvKFO4t_4IKrrQrAcQACLcBGAs/s320/moulson%2Bcramer.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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I always wanted a Cramer's Choice card, and a couple months back I <a href="https://plaingrayswatch.blogspot.com/2017/11/november-nue-jays-pre-comc-binge.html">acquired a Rick Ankiel from 2000 Pacific Invincible</a>. Knowing that Crown Royale brought them back to the hockey world recently, I looked for the cheapest one I could find of a decent and active player. Matt Moulson, now banished to the AHL, was that player. This one is a nicely thick die-cut with red and silver foil treatment and a snow white band for the ink. In-hand, this is a gem numbered to just /199.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZgCrckDvbUA/WkUZdDJgOvI/AAAAAAAARw8/YIjxILbpjj0ThLWMdCuPq5_kOBKHudpEgCLcBGAs/s1600/jvr%2Bdc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="352" data-original-width="498" height="226" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZgCrckDvbUA/WkUZdDJgOvI/AAAAAAAARw8/YIjxILbpjj0ThLWMdCuPq5_kOBKHudpEgCLcBGAs/s320/jvr%2Bdc.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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With O-Pee-Chee (cough Upper Deck couch) free to do as they wish in hockey, there's plenty of die-cuts still, and they don't suck. From 2015-2016 O-Pee-Chee is this James van Riemsdyk, who I've really come to like this season (not like I didn't before) just in time for him to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. </div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5EHwdIEPM5w/WkUZgivwFZI/AAAAAAAARxA/_gs3QQhAbmALjeVrJHJ3jV3rKCOJUYAzACLcBGAs/s1600/jvr%2Bcanvas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="536" data-original-width="382" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5EHwdIEPM5w/WkUZgivwFZI/AAAAAAAARxA/_gs3QQhAbmALjeVrJHJ3jV3rKCOJUYAzACLcBGAs/s320/jvr%2Bcanvas.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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And here he is again from 2016-2017 Upper Deck, this time on the Canvas variations. This is one of the more benign photos used for Canvas.</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FJSyyLnmviY/WkUZkAzNiXI/AAAAAAAARxE/6TOG3WeakxMlzRwLWEsOs7WAQfwBIAxHACLcBGAs/s1600/kadri%2Bcanvas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="456" data-original-width="325" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FJSyyLnmviY/WkUZkAzNiXI/AAAAAAAARxE/6TOG3WeakxMlzRwLWEsOs7WAQfwBIAxHACLcBGAs/s320/kadri%2Bcanvas.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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Hey, that's better. And it's Nazem! Kadri was one of my collections I tried to really boost this Black Friday, and I added on goodies.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AIAkLyIRX0M/WkUZqzxYt5I/AAAAAAAARxI/YutmZTt26bogFLX4BYWKb5mrhu-tjs8IACLcBGAs/s1600/kadri%2Bopc%2Bred%2B199.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="454" data-original-width="325" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AIAkLyIRX0M/WkUZqzxYt5I/AAAAAAAARxI/YutmZTt26bogFLX4BYWKb5mrhu-tjs8IACLcBGAs/s320/kadri%2Bopc%2Bred%2B199.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
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Like Mikko Koivu, I grabbed his red prim from 2016-2017 O-Pee-Chee Platinum.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zgH01zYWoUw/WkUZw2DlMZI/AAAAAAAARxQ/BQVXxaQiYkwOnMw8NLED2XamkmtXhuYRQCLcBGAs/s1600/kadri%2Bsandc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="456" data-original-width="311" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zgH01zYWoUw/WkUZw2DlMZI/AAAAAAAARxQ/BQVXxaQiYkwOnMw8NLED2XamkmtXhuYRQCLcBGAs/s320/kadri%2Bsandc.jpg" width="218" /></a></div>
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As well as his Colors & Contours from 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 Upper Deck MVP. The top is a Level 1 Purple (sure, why not) and the following is a Gold - Level 2. So it looks like I have some rainbows to work on.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Dae_LIC7NMY/WkUZzeCAfyI/AAAAAAAARxU/m7calg4Okc0e6BetGUTC3BCgOp_T-MhegCLcBGAs/s1600/kadris%2Bsandc%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="455" data-original-width="323" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Dae_LIC7NMY/WkUZzeCAfyI/AAAAAAAARxU/m7calg4Okc0e6BetGUTC3BCgOp_T-MhegCLcBGAs/s320/kadris%2Bsandc%2B2.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6_U1olp18Pw/WkUZ2tkLVTI/AAAAAAAARxY/j3Cd8WA37Xwd53SGAf1LFrDWrctYsJADQCLcBGAs/s1600/kadri%2Bspill.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="456" data-original-width="325" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6_U1olp18Pw/WkUZ2tkLVTI/AAAAAAAARxY/j3Cd8WA37Xwd53SGAf1LFrDWrctYsJADQCLcBGAs/s320/kadri%2Bspill.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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Kadri fell to Series 2 in 2014-2015 Upper Deck, but he did so with this beauty, in one of the most Nazem Kadri cards I've seen. Hockey is dominated by action shots, and Upper Deck plays around with their photos all the time, resulting in gems like this.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Sp8OJa3kPAA/WkUZ5YlbL9I/AAAAAAAARxc/enK1fPHM7cMBUeuzdmcaXCRx-ObJfivzwCLcBGAs/s1600/kadri%2Btrilogy%2B109.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="457" data-original-width="328" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Sp8OJa3kPAA/WkUZ5YlbL9I/AAAAAAAARxc/enK1fPHM7cMBUeuzdmcaXCRx-ObJfivzwCLcBGAs/s320/kadri%2Btrilogy%2B109.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
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They also play the high-end game as well, creating bafflingly low-glass small-time hits in expensive box breaks such as this one. The green jersey parallel from 2015-2016 Trilogy (of what, exactly) is a pretty nice one in-hand, but the cheap digital numbering adds a handle of Barton's Vodka to the mix for such a classy set.<br />
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So that's our hockey. Still to come from the COMC binge will be:<br />
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<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Hall of Famers and Legends</li>
<li>Baby Jays</li>
<li>Champion Jays</li>
<li>New Collections</li>
<li>Dirt</li>
<li>Hits</li>
<li>Doc, and:</li>
<li>What the hell was I thinking Buying this Card</li>
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Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-16270404252678590152017-12-29T13:49:00.000-05:002017-12-29T13:49:06.763-05:00drinkin' and rippin': 2015 panini contenders blaster<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-A9D2C0KkBKQ/WkWaC8UJkeI/AAAAAAAARx0/BpojRZY_2zgim1iG2d6s7JL3N8lscGJEwCLcBGAs/s1600/20171228_170940.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1233" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-A9D2C0KkBKQ/WkWaC8UJkeI/AAAAAAAARx0/BpojRZY_2zgim1iG2d6s7JL3N8lscGJEwCLcBGAs/s320/20171228_170940.jpg" width="246" /></a></div>
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We braved the hoards of Xmas present returnees on Thrusday afternoon to stop at the localish Target while out on some errands. Baseball products were in low supply, and aside from $49.99 (no heckin' way) boxes of Panini Extra Elite or something with only 11 cards, I grabbed the $14.99 blaster of Panini Contenders from 2015, a mostly college-based set with two guaranteed autographs. The price was right, at least.<br />
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<b>The Beer</b><br />
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We picked up this Pappy's Porter (and the glass it is in) from The Alchemist in Stowe, Vermont this September. Alchemist does everything well, especially IPAs, so I was pretty excited to try something different from them, and it did not disappoint. Perfect thickness and with a sweet taste at the beginning, smoothing out into a deeply roasty and approachable bitterness at the end.<br />
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Now, on to the cards.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1gZ6_CMXVvI/WkWaTy68hlI/AAAAAAAARx8/cW2BWNsLokw1u0Ni8uqf9ug3vH4Shm6tQCLcBGAs/s1600/15PCpack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="322" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1gZ6_CMXVvI/WkWaTy68hlI/AAAAAAAARx8/cW2BWNsLokw1u0Ni8uqf9ug3vH4Shm6tQCLcBGAs/s320/15PCpack.jpg" width="184" /></a></div>
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The first card out would normally be something I would fire onto ebay almost immediately, but this time I was less angered by pulling a yankee as 2017's Rookie of the Year was decked out in Fresno State threads instead.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GFXly6MCHHc/WkWacIsww-I/AAAAAAAARyA/xbkg9mL653AEbmbS_zyxO9b7BMRJLoJEQCLcBGAs/s1600/Base%2BJudge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="497" data-original-width="353" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GFXly6MCHHc/WkWacIsww-I/AAAAAAAARyA/xbkg9mL653AEbmbS_zyxO9b7BMRJLoJEQCLcBGAs/s320/Base%2BJudge.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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The base cards, I must say, are excellent. I just don't know why they call the set "Contenders" when "SEASON TICKET" is written all over. In order for Panini to eventually get that license back, they need to clean it up a bit.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NsjryPgNz78/WkWai1uHOlI/AAAAAAAARyE/0ZYTGxF05kAGaGSvsyqiMBoWIhRQjpVAACLcBGAs/s1600/Base%2BHoffman%2BBack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="497" data-original-width="355" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NsjryPgNz78/WkWai1uHOlI/AAAAAAAARyE/0ZYTGxF05kAGaGSvsyqiMBoWIhRQjpVAACLcBGAs/s320/Base%2BHoffman%2BBack.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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The backs are nice as well, and capital-region guy Jeff Hoffman, ex-Blue Jay, models the purple colors of his college squad, Coastal Carolina.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FP3wFEEIc-I/WkWao9e92EI/AAAAAAAARyI/2N2CAydpmH4eGAxEENtpv1kthiTnDW8SgCLcBGAs/s1600/Base%2BSeager%2BUSA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="353" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FP3wFEEIc-I/WkWao9e92EI/AAAAAAAARyI/2N2CAydpmH4eGAxEENtpv1kthiTnDW8SgCLcBGAs/s320/Base%2BSeager%2BUSA.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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Unlike Topps, Panini does well with the Team USA stuff. Here we see the Dodgers' Corey Seager. I don't collect anything 16U as it seems pretty gross to me having cards of kids. </div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kfkalckCCTU/WkWavDmPuwI/AAAAAAAARyM/DBujuQtFnws1XocnGRsAo-1Cmr7VITk3ACLcBGAs/s1600/Base%2BHOF%2BBiggio%2BThomas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="714" height="280" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kfkalckCCTU/WkWavDmPuwI/AAAAAAAARyM/DBujuQtFnws1XocnGRsAo-1Cmr7VITk3ACLcBGAs/s400/Base%2BHOF%2BBiggio%2BThomas.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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There's also some Hall of Famers sprinkled into the set in their old college threads. Here we have Frank Thomas with the Auburn Tigers and Craig Biggio with the Seton Hall Pirates. These were the highlight of the set.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IeoNvBK4qpw/WkWa4v5vrQI/AAAAAAAARyU/lnN4pNCxS0gz_qKgbgf1MVaua4Vp9d-rQCLcBGAs/s1600/OSC%2BNola.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="574" data-original-width="406" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IeoNvBK4qpw/WkWa4v5vrQI/AAAAAAAARyU/lnN4pNCxS0gz_qKgbgf1MVaua4Vp9d-rQCLcBGAs/s320/OSC%2BNola.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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Old School Colors drop in every pack, and I thought the Aaron Nola was the best-looking one of the modern players. Also, I juts love Aaron Nola and LSU baseball. Like the base cards, they also come in Hall of Famer format:</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vShEi9h6Xxc/WkWa9gqWEVI/AAAAAAAARyY/HSE3equpij8DQT11xoad9YZhj1SF8SQ9ACLcBGAs/s1600/Gwynn%2BBiggio%2BOSC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="577" data-original-width="823" height="280" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vShEi9h6Xxc/WkWa9gqWEVI/AAAAAAAARyY/HSE3equpij8DQT11xoad9YZhj1SF8SQ9ACLcBGAs/s400/Gwynn%2BBiggio%2BOSC.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Two Craig Biggios in seven packs? Yeah, I'm fine with that. Especially with the Astros-esque patter on the old Seton Hall jerseys. We also get to see Tony Gwynn with San Diego State, a team he coached after retirement and before he lost his battle with cancer.</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GSN8XI1s6hw/WkWbFhYQnHI/AAAAAAAARyc/5cLkGXE3o7wDbWkfII8sRqLkzgOJ9zqRACLcBGAs/s1600/Kingery%2BColors%2BReunion.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="577" data-original-width="822" height="280" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GSN8XI1s6hw/WkWbFhYQnHI/AAAAAAAARyc/5cLkGXE3o7wDbWkfII8sRqLkzgOJ9zqRACLcBGAs/s400/Kingery%2BColors%2BReunion.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Scott Kingery, like his fellow 2B Craig Biggio, showed up twice. Modeling the Class Reunion and School Colors subsets, Kingery rocked the blue and red of Arizona State before being drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies.</div>
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I was fortunate enough to watch Kingery multiple times this summer with Triple-A Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs, and let me tell you - he's going to be goof. </div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7r6bMNkQiYs/WkWbUWU_XsI/AAAAAAAARyk/mhSuXFaEeTMq3gWsWLslEHhCRJoUVssDgCLcBGAs/s1600/Game%2BDay%2BHarris.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="575" data-original-width="410" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7r6bMNkQiYs/WkWbUWU_XsI/AAAAAAAARyk/mhSuXFaEeTMq3gWsWLslEHhCRJoUVssDgCLcBGAs/s320/Game%2BDay%2BHarris.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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Our first and only Blue Jay is Jon Harris from Missouri State. Harris has had a rough go of things after his first two pro seasons in 2017, but I think he'll bounce back in 2017 and be someone the Blue Jays might play by 2019 or so. That 2019 team should be exciting. </div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g3zH3EqKieE/WkWbZRCr4II/AAAAAAAARys/Neiv-MJYBvgkQEKDqDZPvgMfo5rWmg_ZwCLcBGAs/s1600/CC%2BSome%2BGuys.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="537" data-original-width="380" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g3zH3EqKieE/WkWbZRCr4II/AAAAAAAARys/Neiv-MJYBvgkQEKDqDZPvgMfo5rWmg_ZwCLcBGAs/s320/CC%2BSome%2BGuys.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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Only one Collegiate Collections card dropped, and I don't know who these guys are.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e0PUmiBi-ZM/WkWbga0547I/AAAAAAAARyw/FlJEO4V-XIwfNaVCTt7mHvp3GUFsywKEgCLcBGAs/s1600/Passports.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="536" data-original-width="766" height="278" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e0PUmiBi-ZM/WkWbga0547I/AAAAAAAARyw/FlJEO4V-XIwfNaVCTt7mHvp3GUFsywKEgCLcBGAs/s400/Passports.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I do however, know these guys - one of which is a former Blue Jay and current Oakland Athletic, Franklin Barreto. I feel like there was an early-2000's insert that looked a lot like these.<br />
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I mentioned earlier that there were two autographs in each box. Here they are:<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MnCQ8EsOx0U/WkWboEQusdI/AAAAAAAARy0/FwSRpSUcnEEtvIFCgmAExpx8nEezBu8fACLcBGAs/s1600/Auto%2BAustin%2BRei.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="537" data-original-width="378" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MnCQ8EsOx0U/WkWboEQusdI/AAAAAAAARy0/FwSRpSUcnEEtvIFCgmAExpx8nEezBu8fACLcBGAs/s320/Auto%2BAustin%2BRei.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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Austin Rei, an A-ball catcher for the Boston Red Sox, and:<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8rxLvJQD5x0/WkWbsDK6p4I/AAAAAAAARy4/RYRETM5qRvs-ZIPARZ62Do6WLu6gW1kOgCLcBGAs/s1600/Draft%2BTicket%2BBlue%2BSuperdakotachalmers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="536" data-original-width="380" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8rxLvJQD5x0/WkWbsDK6p4I/AAAAAAAARy4/RYRETM5qRvs-ZIPARZ62Do6WLu6gW1kOgCLcBGAs/s320/Draft%2BTicket%2BBlue%2BSuperdakotachalmers.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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Supernintendakota Chalmers, of the Oakland Athletics in the blue-foil parallel (unnumbered.) Chalmers is a high-strikeout, little-control P who spent 2017 with the A-Ball Vermont Lake Monsters, as we come full circle on this post, back to Vermont.<br />
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The hits are not good, but the product is a really nice one and worth the $15. Panini continues to flood their products with color, but their price point isn't really competitive with Topps in regards to quality and player selection just yet - especially at the retail level.<br />
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Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-64279336701898977582017-12-28T09:24:00.000-05:002017-12-28T09:24:01.900-05:00i checked out my cards: fringe/average<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I made it a point in 2017 to once again go hard at the Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals over at COMC.com. I hadn't made a late November order & shipment there since 2014, so I had already built up a decent inventory, but I tossed a few more bills with America's Worst President on them into my budget and took a shot at establishing some new collections.<br />
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Here are some guys I like to call my fringe/average collection, guys I like to collect but don't always seek out. You may get some comments on your blog from me about them, though.<br />
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<b>Josh Donaldson</b><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-B9NaKQOqP8Q/WkT5rOte9vI/AAAAAAAARvk/ZNTZyy98lxkUYQ5JQApdd6WBjWkzPSSDgCLcBGAs/s1600/donaldception.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="536" data-original-width="1146" height="186" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-B9NaKQOqP8Q/WkT5rOte9vI/AAAAAAAARvk/ZNTZyy98lxkUYQ5JQApdd6WBjWkzPSSDgCLcBGAs/s400/donaldception.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Let this be a lesson to you COMC shoppers: manage your damn inventory. I wound up with three of these very thick but also beautiful Josh Donaldson cards in this order, but that's okay. There's other Blue Jays collectors out there that might benefit from adding these. Let me know if you need one.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ALY4Zf68Hlg/WkT6Gw97mOI/AAAAAAAARvo/c8uCu3_mWC82HdjxuuMFedP_apdE_OvwQCLcBGAs/s1600/dosh%2Bmc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="379" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ALY4Zf68Hlg/WkT6Gw97mOI/AAAAAAAARvo/c8uCu3_mWC82HdjxuuMFedP_apdE_OvwQCLcBGAs/s320/dosh%2Bmc.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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You might be wondering why I don't target Josh Donaldson, the best position player on the Toronto Blue Jays since 2011 Jose Bautista. Well, Dosh is a free agent after 2017, and he's never tested the open market. He's mentioned he's open to staying in Toronto long-term, but management doesn't like to pay anyone besides old, fat, slow first baseman. So I'm thinking his 2019 cards will feature him in at least two different uniforms that might not be Blue Jays ones.<br />
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But man, he makes the high-end cards of late look great. Inception, Museum Collection, and here on an Atomic Refractor from 2016 Bowman's Best.<br />
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<b>Yu Darvish</b><br />
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I was heartbroken when the Texas Rangers won the bid for Yu Darvish a few years back. Less so when they worked the guy over in the 2016 playoffs. But still, he's one of my favorite pitchers and I'll often tune in to watch him pitch on the west coast after Blue Jays games.<br />
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Here's another 2017 Bowman Inception, which is one of the best looking art sets ever made.<br />
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If you haven't figured it out, yet: I like refractors a lot. That includes these 1989 reboots as well as the Bowman's Best Bluey (/250) above.<br />
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And this one, from 2014 Topps Finest. Of all the zombie Topps sets, I love Finest the most and I won't be apologetic about it. Especially with reboot gems like these:<br />
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I had a lot of problems with these when they were first re-released, mostly due to the ridiculously prominent TOPPS FINEST STERLING logo taking up half the card. You know what...I still do.<br />
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However...<br />
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Intimidators was one of the better iterations of Finest. The purple here makes the card just explode in-hand, and it scanned pretty well, too.<br />
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So, that's only two guys. It's a bit difficult to break up an order of about 200 cards, so many had to be cut, but these ones stuck out and deserved their own post. Here's what's still to come:<br />
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<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>The Oldest of Friends</li>
<li>Baby Jays</li>
<li>dirt</li>
<li>The Mojo</li>
<li>Keep Doin' that Hockey</li>
<li>Hall of Famers</li>
<li>Doc</li>
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Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-10392553491928522262017-12-22T18:41:00.000-05:002017-12-23T09:46:54.982-05:00december nue jays<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The month started off with some more unlicensed action, as I jumped into 2017 Leaf products to make a play at some Blue Jays 2017 draftees, Nate Pearson and Logan Warmoth. The Pear Son and the War Moth.<br />
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These Baby Jays aren't yet in their Blue Jays uniforms yet, despite playing plenty of games as professionals in the organization.<br />
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Logan Warmoth is a shortstop and played his college ball as a Tarheel, which with some clever photo editing makes for and easy transitions to a royal blue Jays uniform. Leaf Draft's State Pride inserts are nice and all, but they're a bit lacking in-hand. Plenty of prismatics and space for an auto, but also, just...meh.<br />
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Warmoth, though, is my current favorite from the 2017 draft. I have high hopes for him.<br />
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I did manage to secure a Pearson in uniform, though, out of 2017 Bowman Draft.<br />
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That's a really great debut card, even if there's some Photoshopping going on. Pearson pops 100 on the reg but he'll need some secondary pitches if he wants to pitch in the rotation, which they all do - that's where the money is.<br />
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In his first pro season with Rookie (A-) affiliate Vancouver Canadians he did just that, making seven starts and tossing 19+ innings, posting a 0.95 ERA and striking out 24 batters and walking just five.<br />
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Speaking of minor leaguers, they've been getting some attention in our little circle of later, with Night Owl securing a <a href="http://nightowlcards.blogspot.com/2017/11/minor-league-cards-are-better.html">complete team set for the 1979 Albuquerque Dukes</a>...and man, it doesn't get much better than that.<br />
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The year 2016 was a great year for Bowman as I gradually see more and more of it (as will you in a future post). Here's a Green Conner Greene, numbered to /99. The angle of this shot with the green infield background really works, and I think I landed this one for $5-, so the seller might regret that in about a year and a half.<br />
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Greene, like Pearson, has the ability to hit 100 MPH, and he's friends with Charlie Sheen. So there's that.<br />
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My best score of the month, however, was a pile of Lourdes Gurriel Jr. cards. Leaf Draft comes into the fold yet again, here, as does something we've seen a few times already on this page.<br />
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The base autographs from Leaf Draft this year are quite nice. If Leaf had a license, they would be doing great things and getting much, much more attention. Much of that attention would be focused on their excellence in acetate cards, where Bowman/Topps are doing some mediocre-to-decent work right now as well in the Tek sets.<br />
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These also came with the Draft auto above, and I was more interested in these. Somehow I've managed to not get the very base Tek auto until right now. The green parallel, with autograph, is still pretty hot, but this whole package came in, I believe, around $11.<br />
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As did this:<br />
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Eleven dollarydos is more than I like to ever spend on a single, but I thought that if I really wanted to make a dent in this rainbow, that that was a good price. There's still an orange out there, but it looks awful. The gold isn't magnificent itself, so I think the BURST variation auto is the only one I'll make a significant move at from here on.<br />
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Stay tuned to PGS over the next week or so as I finally have my first "vacation" since this time last year, and I have plenty in the pipeline of cardboard goodness. Stay hard.</div>
Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-28478674265635948052017-12-20T13:03:00.000-05:002017-12-20T13:03:35.638-05:00drinkin' and rippin': 2015-2016 upper deck champs hockey<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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On Black Friday, or Cyber Monday - I'm not sure which - I did my usual prowl of Dave & Adam's Card World website for some deals. You've already seen my <a href="https://plaingrayswatch.blogspot.com/2017/12/i-ripped-thirty-rack-packs-of-2015.html">blister-inducing rip of 36 rack packs of 2015 Panini Prizm</a>, but after that slumming I decided to class it up a bit with an all-time favorite - 2015-2016 UD Champs Hockey.<br />
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Things went well, but first, the brew:<br />
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Being a Thin Man Brewery offering with Hudson Valley banger Captain Lawrence Brewing, I knew it would be good, and it was. As I heard on the IFS Podcast once, you can't go into a New England IPA half-assed. You need to whole ass-it, and these two powerhouse breweries did just that. 4.25/5, but unfortunately long enough ago that I cannot replay the details. It's good, okay?<br />
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On to the packs.<br />
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There's some small details in there, but Champs is a hit-driven box (two memorabilia, one autograph guaranteed per box) with some unique inserts splashed in. Despite a beautiful base set, it's not one for collectors despite a 350-card set with 50 short prints rounding out this offering.<br />
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The base cards are beauties, with the faux-vintage look, medium cardboard stock, and frosted window photos. One nice bit of the set was the amount of rarer jerseys found in the photographs, including this black New York Islanders alternate:<br />
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There's only so much you can do with hockey card photographs (Upper Deck S1 - don't read this) but UD make sit work real well in Champs.</div>
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The backs match (and there's some variants I won't get into) with the rough cardboard stock. They're not terribly easy to read, and for the Maple Leafs haters out there, this is the only one that will be featured in this post:</div>
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Poor Reimer is currently getting worked over pretty often with the Florida Panthers.<br />
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There's a fair amount of horizontal cards, too, like this Victor Rask:<br />
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And lots of rookies mixed in, like this Brady Skjei, who recently rose to some somewhat stardom in this recent <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Ij4a6x_mPs">Saturday Night Live skit with Chance the Rapper</a>. Note: that's not Brady in the skit, and Chance manages to embarrass the rest of SNL's currently garbage cast. </div>
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The simple, framed design lends itself to the older-style jerseys.<br />
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There's also some bronze or gold or somethingorother parallels which I could absolutely do without, but at least there's a player collection in there:<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2xQ_AR1I2KE/WjaoGnYpJ2I/AAAAAAAARtQ/7BpoYcw27X86-b4E0O1IHxOI3ZxpIMyZwCLcBGAs/s1600/Suter%2BBronze.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="417" data-original-width="299" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2xQ_AR1I2KE/WjaoGnYpJ2I/AAAAAAAARtQ/7BpoYcw27X86-b4E0O1IHxOI3ZxpIMyZwCLcBGAs/s320/Suter%2BBronze.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
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To my baseball faithful that may have skipped UD Champs' baseball equivalent known as Goodwin Champions (which, well...wasn't very good), the Hockey offering is mostly the same aside from a Canadian-heavy offering of inserts. In 15-16 Champs, Famous Foods, Fish and Northern Wonders are inserted, but unlike baseball, are offered in standard stock, and not minis (thankyouthankyouthankyou.)</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-klWG5pPSUIA/WjaoKq7PR_I/AAAAAAAARtU/o7ayk4R28o0AUdhcbWM8_j165XBT1CqQQCLcBGAs/s1600/foods.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="410" data-original-width="573" height="285" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-klWG5pPSUIA/WjaoKq7PR_I/AAAAAAAARtU/o7ayk4R28o0AUdhcbWM8_j165XBT1CqQQCLcBGAs/s400/foods.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The foods are fine, but the Northern Wonders are spectacular, though the only one I managed was Banff National Park. Banff might have been the best to come away with if pulling only one, and it's an extremely important place geologically and within the paleontology world. </div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GPfYBLrY2i0/WjaoNFA6NtI/AAAAAAAARtY/lnZZ1lVq7FoHl5G9Mkby9YJOHKqA4cWJQCLcBGAs/s1600/banff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="409" data-original-width="574" height="285" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GPfYBLrY2i0/WjaoNFA6NtI/AAAAAAAARtY/lnZZ1lVq7FoHl5G9Mkby9YJOHKqA4cWJQCLcBGAs/s400/banff.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I pulled all of my hits in the first five packs, which really hurt the momentum of the box break, but let me appreciated the inserts and base cards more. My low-grade hit was this Matt Puempel jersey swatch. </div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rmWsxZUy2Ks/WjaoU2LpIGI/AAAAAAAARtc/BKncE9b6DS0QxBiRPDNzB0GEQ_13ioR5gCLcBGAs/s1600/puempel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="530" data-original-width="376" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rmWsxZUy2Ks/WjaoU2LpIGI/AAAAAAAARtc/BKncE9b6DS0QxBiRPDNzB0GEQ_13ioR5gCLcBGAs/s320/puempel.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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Puempel has struggled outside of the AHL, playing just 79 NHL games since his debut in 2014-2015.</div>
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Now on to my favorite aspect of Champ's, the fish. I managed four, including the bluegill, brook stickleback, common carp and one of my favorite fish - the Muskie, or muskellunge, depending on your local vernacular. </div>
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They're an introduced hybrid, but are by far the king of predators in any water body they live in the Northeast states. </div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Mb3OfffJsMM/WjaoZIKuFMI/AAAAAAAARtg/hM8vC24O_y4XCU0oVzraxCv2ZMB-8s3ZwCLcBGAs/s1600/champs%2Bfish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="598" data-original-width="830" height="459" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Mb3OfffJsMM/WjaoZIKuFMI/AAAAAAAARtg/hM8vC24O_y4XCU0oVzraxCv2ZMB-8s3ZwCLcBGAs/s640/champs%2Bfish.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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For some more traditional hits, we have an autograph of known face-punching enthusiast Scott Hartnell. Again, the semi-gloss cardboard stock with frosted photos is perfect for inking, and the blue of Hartnell's auto here really stands out in a real beauty. </div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fsY-FxBz88U/WjaodK49GaI/AAAAAAAARtk/3G8CPXOKGAMJbt3WL7kqOhkqcnoS27-CwCLcBGAs/s1600/hartnell%2Bauto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="573" data-original-width="401" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fsY-FxBz88U/WjaodK49GaI/AAAAAAAARtk/3G8CPXOKGAMJbt3WL7kqOhkqcnoS27-CwCLcBGAs/s320/hartnell%2Bauto.jpg" width="223" /></a></div>
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There was one more major hit in the box, and it nearly paid for the entire box itself. Here he is, with a bright orange but inaccessible jersey swatch, McJesus himself:</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pKk9t-f12xo/WjaogYiHVUI/AAAAAAAARts/HQmQ3KN32kkvJ-QihN4_iQ6sxSB1dPTVwCLcBGAs/s1600/mcjesus%2Bjersey.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="569" data-original-width="405" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pKk9t-f12xo/WjaogYiHVUI/AAAAAAAARts/HQmQ3KN32kkvJ-QihN4_iQ6sxSB1dPTVwCLcBGAs/s400/mcjesus%2Bjersey.jpg" width="283" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Does he ever stop making that face?</i></td></tr>
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Auston Matthews is better.</div>
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Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-3507174714662006892017-12-18T10:22:00.001-05:002017-12-18T15:38:07.410-05:00my favorite card of 2017<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This is in response to Tom's contest over at <a href="https://tilnextyear-tom.blogspot.com/2017/12/contest-favorite-card-of-2017.html">Waiting 'til Next Year</a>.<br />
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My answer to this question almost every year (for baseball, at least) comes from Topps Stadium Club. There would be no exception this year.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6K1GzTij12A/WjfciX_J9tI/AAAAAAAARt8/xKAszjraoGsAC-jJh3BcXbgg8xF1t4k0wCLcBGAs/s1600/Jameson-Taillon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="760" data-original-width="540" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6K1GzTij12A/WjfciX_J9tI/AAAAAAAARt8/xKAszjraoGsAC-jJh3BcXbgg8xF1t4k0wCLcBGAs/s400/Jameson-Taillon.jpg" width="283" /></a></div>
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2017 Topps Stadium Club #135</div>
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Jameson Taillon</div>
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I have family in Pittsburgh, and our visits there often revolve around either the Pirates or the Steelers. I have minimal interest in the latter, but have always liked the Pirates a bit and PNC Park is simply the most beautiful place in the world where baseball is played. Enjoy. </div>
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Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-33898655161450063982017-12-17T11:37:00.001-05:002017-12-17T11:37:23.170-05:00trading stains with p-town Tom<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cjVTXeI674E/WjaNtwJPwMI/AAAAAAAARrY/m7QoUbeI0EY5vO-tBJFYgiZFp-EpKUVugCLcBGAs/s1600/94tombstone%2Bolerud.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="692" data-original-width="477" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cjVTXeI674E/WjaNtwJPwMI/AAAAAAAARrY/m7QoUbeI0EY5vO-tBJFYgiZFp-EpKUVugCLcBGAs/s320/94tombstone%2Bolerud.jpg" width="220" /></a></div>
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I started kicking around here a few months back, and after my previous tenured with plentiful trades, I wasn't exchanging any cardboard with y'all. That was until I opened up some <a href="https://plaingrayswatch.blogspot.com/2017/10/fire-emojis-or-lack-thereof.html">2017 Topps Fire</a>, which I found was difficult to get rid of through ebay and my dire attempts to fire it into the sun where it belongs.<br />
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Luckily I came across a post at <a href="https://tilnextyear-tom.blogspot.com/">Waiting 'til Next Year </a>(side note, still waiting?) where he was doing the charitable work of extracting this evil from other collectors in attempting to complete the set.<br />
After I threatened Tom night and day with haunting visages of bent corners and miscuts, he finally agreed to take some Yankee-branded Topps Fire off my hands, and I managed to throw in an Edwin Encarnacion to top him off.<br />
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I would have been happy with one less Yankee and two less Topps Fire base cards in my house, but Tom submitted a care package anyway, full of Blue Jays from late 80's and early 90's.<br />
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That's right. Junk wax. Glorious junk wax. Let's take a look.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o0DAFPPRYVw/WjaWuQa96xI/AAAAAAAARro/sFFvT3l0DowdbLQAXrDJ6pH3NppOoz6NwCLcBGAs/s1600/stieb88.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="627" data-original-width="456" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o0DAFPPRYVw/WjaWuQa96xI/AAAAAAAARro/sFFvT3l0DowdbLQAXrDJ6pH3NppOoz6NwCLcBGAs/s320/stieb88.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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Some '88 Stieb in ideal '88 condition, rocking the white panel, Spring Training v-neck/chest hair and the unexplainable yellow name ribbon. Just perfection.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_k57duoH5kI/WjaXIxocj9I/AAAAAAAARrs/cEpXHDvG0UUXzYnRI14Gq1PIb-bU6SMSwCLcBGAs/s1600/91stieb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="555" data-original-width="382" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_k57duoH5kI/WjaXIxocj9I/AAAAAAAARrs/cEpXHDvG0UUXzYnRI14Gq1PIb-bU6SMSwCLcBGAs/s320/91stieb.jpg" width="220" /></a></div>
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More Stieb, this time in green, pitching to a packed house. Magnificent.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BMsaYpvUeFw/WjaXT9EUvXI/AAAAAAAARr0/G7MzkDBVFEodH_mmO9ZhuHtAgLy-IzYZgCLcBGAs/s1600/90dgruber%2Band%2Bstieb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="555" data-original-width="832" height="213" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BMsaYpvUeFw/WjaXT9EUvXI/AAAAAAAARr0/G7MzkDBVFEodH_mmO9ZhuHtAgLy-IzYZgCLcBGAs/s320/90dgruber%2Band%2Bstieb.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Stieb again, this time with the accompaniment of the legendary Kelly Gruber. You might notice the Scotch tape on the Stieb, but do not worry - Tom isn't one of those domestic terrorists who use Scotch tape on top loaders, this was left over from an eBay transaction.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9v1cIdXZvxU/WjaXresKhNI/AAAAAAAARr4/Vli5Opef7uguJZljbrSuVHXFgzhGLnyuACLcBGAs/s1600/91GruberCC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="553" data-original-width="387" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9v1cIdXZvxU/WjaXresKhNI/AAAAAAAARr4/Vli5Opef7uguJZljbrSuVHXFgzhGLnyuACLcBGAs/s320/91GruberCC.jpg" width="223" /></a></div>
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More Gruber Art, this time from 1991 Upper Deck. US chose Gruber for this checklist despite such powerhouse players on that Jays roster such as Kenny Williams, Greg Myers and Junior Felix. I kid. The core for the upcoming World Series Champions was in place - George Bell, Pat Borders, Tony Fernandez, Tom Henke, John Olerud, Dave Stieb. Fred McGriff would go a long way in helping them land Joe Carter and Roberto Alomar for the 1992 run. What. A. Team.<br />
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And what a card. Nowadays, a Topps intern just throws an Instagram filter on a card, like this - which was also in the trade:<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2I8GBAhfkQU/WjaYuKE_f4I/AAAAAAAARsE/omuQF2NoOIw3s7wswdJbYD5aLSfQKbdTACLcBGAs/s1600/17almoargallery.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="641" data-original-width="478" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2I8GBAhfkQU/WjaYuKE_f4I/AAAAAAAARsE/omuQF2NoOIw3s7wswdJbYD5aLSfQKbdTACLcBGAs/s320/17almoargallery.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
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Right. Gallery is a thing again, as Topps flagship previewed before releasing as a stand-alone product in the Fall. I assumed my Anthony Alfords would be my only Gallery entries, but here we are with a third. It's nice.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xBIXBY5B7sY/WjaZEouQk8I/AAAAAAAARsI/JbBRQLJ8a-wOhE6w_X1gBRlXbq7GWL9nwCLcBGAs/s1600/91alomar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="551" data-original-width="394" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xBIXBY5B7sY/WjaZEouQk8I/AAAAAAAARsI/JbBRQLJ8a-wOhE6w_X1gBRlXbq7GWL9nwCLcBGAs/s320/91alomar.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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The Gallery wasn't the only Alomar, as this extraordinarily mis-cut 1992 Topps was there, highlighting the package for me - until we get to the final card in the post. This is one of my favorite Roberto Alomar cards, pictured as a Blue Jay for the second time on a Topps card (he was in Topps Traded in 1991), and rocking some baller threads.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-i3njIcyP2dE/WjabPri1yII/AAAAAAAARsU/ygnK53I4KacAt3UCZsiWXPkMcUhEQNjVwCLcBGAs/s1600/17tuloOD.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="566" data-original-width="394" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-i3njIcyP2dE/WjabPri1yII/AAAAAAAARsU/ygnK53I4KacAt3UCZsiWXPkMcUhEQNjVwCLcBGAs/s320/17tuloOD.jpg" width="222" /></a></div>
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My Guy Troy Tulowitzki showed up as well, unfotunately decked out in the incredibly terrible 2017 Topps designed, lessened by the Opening Day branding. This is one of the least offensive 2017 Topps cards I've come across.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OL_w1L6-0Yw/Wjabh2LxucI/AAAAAAAARsY/H9uIrEUiUq0WLuhNkXr-5sULHo-jThjJwCLcBGAs/s1600/molitorHFA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="476" data-original-width="645" height="236" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OL_w1L6-0Yw/Wjabh2LxucI/AAAAAAAARsY/H9uIrEUiUq0WLuhNkXr-5sULHo-jThjJwCLcBGAs/s320/molitorHFA.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Ah, that's better.<br />
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I was a huge fan of the Home Field Advantage cards from Upper Deck in 1994, a true golden era for eight-year old Roy-Z. The only one I remember having was Brady Anderson (?), so this was a welcomed addition.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hhP6C4oeIfA/Wjab9hj1y3I/AAAAAAAARsg/Y91-XkKZfykS2T6LvhegyoF4E_DfDKRKwCLcBGAs/s1600/91leiterborders.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="555" data-original-width="830" height="213" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hhP6C4oeIfA/Wjab9hj1y3I/AAAAAAAARsg/Y91-XkKZfykS2T6LvhegyoF4E_DfDKRKwCLcBGAs/s320/91leiterborders.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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As were these '91 Jays. This design has grown on me in time, but it's hard to find a Pat Borders or a Blue Jays-branded Al Leiter card that I won't love.<br />
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But the true gem, in all of its junk wax glory came at the end in this sticky beauty:<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X03SsTRKIvw/WjacXsfEIyI/AAAAAAAARsk/485djnWA1r0Esk5sAHiQCOQZh6dSkTg5gCLcBGAs/s1600/grubergum.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="621" data-original-width="858" height="288" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X03SsTRKIvw/WjacXsfEIyI/AAAAAAAARsk/485djnWA1r0Esk5sAHiQCOQZh6dSkTg5gCLcBGAs/s400/grubergum.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Another '88 Topps, this time gum-stained. The front is also miscut, but otherwise the card is in excellent shape. But man, that gum stain is just beautiful.<br />
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I liked this one enough to put it up next to my 1989 Fleer Bill Ripken.<br />
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Thanks a bunch, Tom.</div>
Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-45226228838188025582017-12-02T10:00:00.000-05:002017-12-02T10:29:04.681-05:00i ripped thirty rack packs of 2015 prizm and now my fingers hurt<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-flVjszzSJYU/WiCYTsACaVI/AAAAAAAARpo/iTELsjm-_cMjoppC0GGRMhcLfe-KQyOBwCLcBGAs/s1600/pack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="461" data-original-width="266" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-flVjszzSJYU/WiCYTsACaVI/AAAAAAAARpo/iTELsjm-_cMjoppC0GGRMhcLfe-KQyOBwCLcBGAs/s320/pack.jpg" width="184" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>I hate you.</i></td></tr>
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On Cyber Monday, an interesting deal popped up at Dave & Adam's Card World:<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">2015 Panini Prizm Baseball Super 12-Pack Box $19.99</span></div>
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Super 12-pack box? Neat! What I thought I was buying was something like a hobby box for a retail price, but what a super box really is, is a bit different.<br />
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You see each box (I grabbed two for a total of $40) contained 12 <i>rack packs</i> with <i>three</i> packs each and a bonus Red, White & Blue PRIZM pack in each.<br />
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So, yeah. That's a lot of cards for $40. And what it comes down to, manual labor-wise, is opening 24 rack packs, three foil packs within each (72) and additional 24 packs of RWB PRIZM parallels.<br />
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So if you're ever in the need to mindlessly rip packs on a budget, that's the way to go.<br />
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I should also mentioned that I ripped these mostly in the dark with just the light of the TV illuminating the room as the dog had scratched his eye earlier in the day (he's okay now.)<br />
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Here's the numerous spoils of the boxes.<br />
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For a fun little extra, try and pick out at which point in the scanning process I figured out how to deal with my scanner cutting the edged off of everything. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JOkJguGAaLM/WiCYb8FFOBI/AAAAAAAARps/D9rkAWnN0VMILEP8NQUPW4VBOM-LosxEACLcBGAs/s1600/base.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="693" data-original-width="495" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JOkJguGAaLM/WiCYb8FFOBI/AAAAAAAARps/D9rkAWnN0VMILEP8NQUPW4VBOM-LosxEACLcBGAs/s400/base.jpg" width="285" /></a></div>
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The base cards are...awful. I love Pacific Prism back in the day, on its simple, thin, light stock and shiny foil frontage. PRIZM, though? It's basically Topps Chrome with a worse design, no logos, and bad photos. But I wasn't in it for the base cards.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-83z9wyJn5dE/WiCYgkEuopI/AAAAAAAARpw/30ftIvghiXcGrh6IWWtzxzqXkVj9c8VZgCLcBGAs/s1600/actual%2Bprizms.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-83z9wyJn5dE/WiCYgkEuopI/AAAAAAAARpw/30ftIvghiXcGrh6IWWtzxzqXkVj9c8VZgCLcBGAs/s400/actual%2Bprizms.jpg" width="283" /></a></div>
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PRIZMS were about 1:2, or maybe that was inserts in general. For the most part, good players came out of the inserts, and these refractors look exponentially better than the cold steel/Kia dashboard feeling of the base cards.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bDBsjrJHKH0/WiCYmdHjEdI/AAAAAAAARp0/BGE2nz8K6dAXE7G_jBn26BAQ_PZQkVEzgCLcBGAs/s1600/fieldpass.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="634" data-original-width="734" height="345" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bDBsjrJHKH0/WiCYmdHjEdI/AAAAAAAARp0/BGE2nz8K6dAXE7G_jBn26BAQ_PZQkVEzgCLcBGAs/s400/fieldpass.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The Field Pass inserts are numbingly boring, but at least that Miguel Cabrera will go well into my DIRT collection. Each insert has a Prizm parallel, especially with colors (I think?) and again, make the cards so much better to look at.</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XaPu5dA3Qoc/WiCYrSchQ8I/AAAAAAAARp4/CjageScIE90X7XIQToBZSfFP0KBCPa3YwCLcBGAs/s1600/marshals1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="495" data-original-width="703" height="225" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XaPu5dA3Qoc/WiCYrSchQ8I/AAAAAAAARp4/CjageScIE90X7XIQToBZSfFP0KBCPa3YwCLcBGAs/s320/marshals1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The Diamond Marshals inserts are very solid die-cut set, shaped like a badge. Goose Gossage and Brian McCann are not in this set, despite their constant attempts to police the sport.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Oh yeah</i>.</td></tr>
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Agian, the refractor version is much, much better.</div>
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Around this point I decided that the key to making any Panini Prizm card look good it to have a colourful uniform in the photo. The Late 90s teal Mariners uniform is a perfect example of this, as is the Giancarlo Stanton Marlins uni above.</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GYt1erfXing/WiCY1Y8NwsI/AAAAAAAARqE/U3nBplC8vYAJgXzdShwM4LwGJcfvoFKGwCLcBGAs/s1600/freshfaces.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="469" data-original-width="667" height="281" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GYt1erfXing/WiCY1Y8NwsI/AAAAAAAARqE/U3nBplC8vYAJgXzdShwM4LwGJcfvoFKGwCLcBGAs/s400/freshfaces.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The Fresh Faces/please like our Rookie Card logo insert is fine enough. These must have been a bit more rare, as only three fell out of the two boxes. You'll see the third later. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">U-S-A! U-S-A!</td></tr>
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I've collected Team USA cards in the past, but I could go without <i>yet another </i>Alex Gordon USA insert. It was 10 years ago, man. Move on.</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mfZ_CSbgIF0/WiCY9UNyfDI/AAAAAAAARqM/34mpCpHiD7Q8sP-rWfADva8jemRy0SwEACLcBGAs/s1600/fireworks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="864" height="283" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mfZ_CSbgIF0/WiCY9UNyfDI/AAAAAAAARqM/34mpCpHiD7Q8sP-rWfADva8jemRy0SwEACLcBGAs/s400/fireworks.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The Fireworks took an old Pacific Prism (~2000) idea and translated it into a modern chromiumed insert and...let's just say there was plenty lost in translation. This could have been great but are, well...fine. </div>
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Not on to the <strike>refractors</strike> PRIZMSZ.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HGtLAnIDp1o/WiCZbxRu-eI/AAAAAAAARqU/-DBNUKg7ZqQGFgiWn8B_1KP4tmgYQ90VwCLcBGAs/s1600/camo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="719" data-original-width="498" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HGtLAnIDp1o/WiCZbxRu-eI/AAAAAAAARqU/-DBNUKg7ZqQGFgiWn8B_1KP4tmgYQ90VwCLcBGAs/s400/camo.jpg" width="276" /></a></div>
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Camouflage! Are you sick of these yet? Yeah, so is everyone else.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2leUKzckTVY/WiCZhPdwEUI/AAAAAAAARqY/JgMSHlOIQP4qXX5E8vqERo4pOewcM6AvwCLcBGAs/s1600/skafractors.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="468" data-original-width="665" height="225" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2leUKzckTVY/WiCZhPdwEUI/AAAAAAAARqY/JgMSHlOIQP4qXX5E8vqERo4pOewcM6AvwCLcBGAs/s320/skafractors.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Pick it up, pick it up, pick it up.</i></td></tr>
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SKAfractors!</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--WXp7gtwJxw/WiCZnvPy1CI/AAAAAAAARqc/6uG6ICkgGrsDCN6Nt9Qv1Si2_3hO1PpiQCLcBGAs/s1600/special%2Bprizmsz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="427" data-original-width="913" height="186" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--WXp7gtwJxw/WiCZnvPy1CI/AAAAAAAARqc/6uG6ICkgGrsDCN6Nt9Qv1Si2_3hO1PpiQCLcBGAs/s400/special%2Bprizmsz.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I don't know what these are named, but the Bautista was the best-looking card in the box(es). I didn't even remember I had pulled the Kazmir until I scanned all of the cards. I just wanted it to be over by this point.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9pDcLJkrSeM/WiCZtwpv-bI/AAAAAAAARqg/GCUteQS-2AMiF-4ZtB-AZOS-U5QhJ9ShACLcBGAs/s1600/blue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="547" data-original-width="778" height="280" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9pDcLJkrSeM/WiCZtwpv-bI/AAAAAAAARqg/GCUteQS-2AMiF-4ZtB-AZOS-U5QhJ9ShACLcBGAs/s400/blue.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Blue! After taking a o=look at the coloured Prizms, I have to wonder why the would even make the base chromers. These are /75, I think.</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Y2ZWcPbN884/WiCZy0KyGDI/AAAAAAAARqk/dDguUV6Oh6MkfjOoF_e56Xhs1M2-M-VBgCLcBGAs/s1600/orange.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="544" data-original-width="779" height="278" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Y2ZWcPbN884/WiCZy0KyGDI/AAAAAAAARqk/dDguUV6Oh6MkfjOoF_e56Xhs1M2-M-VBgCLcBGAs/s400/orange.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Orange! Card producers currently think orange is a good idea. On anything other than a Giants, Orioles or Marlins card - it isn't. </div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XMCZq6DWOCM/WiCZ-MOXsfI/AAAAAAAARqs/qD4XTeUi-jgBTp8s_EQ49m9l0q5_lA6YgCLcBGAs/s1600/autos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="610" data-original-width="865" height="281" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XMCZq6DWOCM/WiCZ-MOXsfI/AAAAAAAARqs/qD4XTeUi-jgBTp8s_EQ49m9l0q5_lA6YgCLcBGAs/s400/autos.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Hey, autographs! They're both terrible. It could have been worse. A meteorite could have struck the house at this point.</div>
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As much as a pain in the ass it was to open all of these packs, jamming all of these on to the scanner bed that cuts off the edges was even worse. Hopefully that's remedied. Oh, wait. </div>
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There's still 72 more red white & blue Prizmsz to sort through...</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DKX74I2Rkp8/WiCaBW5dYzI/AAAAAAAARqw/A9Z0IL2yhkUw8t9TwWXJL0DMc2foc7qbwCLcBGAs/s1600/redwhiteblues.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="583" data-original-width="621" height="375" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DKX74I2Rkp8/WiCaBW5dYzI/AAAAAAAARqw/A9Z0IL2yhkUw8t9TwWXJL0DMc2foc7qbwCLcBGAs/s400/redwhiteblues.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Yeah, neat. </div>
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My fingers still hurt. </div>
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Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-64778299344549684842017-11-30T18:13:00.001-05:002017-11-30T18:13:26.952-05:00november nue jays (pre-comc binge)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ldnnr8_hEOA/WhTeMVsFEmI/AAAAAAAARmo/UzA0Sq8vWYkVqml0mIS2rUJBoGNbab_CQCLcBGAs/s1600/Marcus%2BNeg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="318" data-original-width="225" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ldnnr8_hEOA/WhTeMVsFEmI/AAAAAAAARmo/UzA0Sq8vWYkVqml0mIS2rUJBoGNbab_CQCLcBGAs/s1600/Marcus%2BNeg.jpg" /></a></div>
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The weather is cooling, and the singles from ebay keep trickling in. I've been more busy and avoiding retail strores as much as possible, so there hasn't been any ripping to speak of since the Topps Fire hate rip and the Heritage Minors, but there's always something interesting worth discussing, as long as I can find some images to keep the attention.<br />
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First up is the Stroman above, which, I didn't think I could hate a Marcus Stroman card...but there it is. I am yet to find a redeeming quality to 2017 Topps. I truly believe it's the worst flagship they've ever put out.<br />
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While I don't like Gypsy Queen so much either, the Glassworks box toppers from 2017 caught my attention, and Marcus was the lone Blue Jay from the checklist.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EytcbWANd-0/WhoH-mMJwtI/AAAAAAAARos/7zMTAAh2LigRCHBnKfkoqAMZJP7Jx-qpQCLcBGAs/s1600/img053.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1204" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EytcbWANd-0/WhoH-mMJwtI/AAAAAAAARos/7zMTAAh2LigRCHBnKfkoqAMZJP7Jx-qpQCLcBGAs/s400/img053.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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This monster is a 3x5" on a refractor board. It's a great-looking card, but on the back there is the token Topps "Congratulations" spiel. Stop congratulating me for buying your product, you pompous assbutts.<br />
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Keeping with Blue Jays pitchers, I've started working on a PC of TJ Zeuch, their first rounder from the 2016 draft.<br />
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This insert from Bowman Chrome basically just features where the player was originally drafted and where they were drafted and signed. In 2013 Zeuch went 924th overall, but in 2016, he was a first-rounder at 21st. It's a fair enough concept for a card and fits the Bowman brand. The colors in this insert are also unique, so it was an easy purchase.<br />
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He also wrote his name on it for some reason.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DbwGpAmVYio/WhTeOu1AMAI/AAAAAAAARmw/ed2MgZ38ulE34Cvx101DaXndR0wGylD3ACEwYBhgL/s1600/Zeuch%2B99.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="311" data-original-width="441" height="225" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DbwGpAmVYio/WhTeOu1AMAI/AAAAAAAARmw/ed2MgZ38ulE34Cvx101DaXndR0wGylD3ACEwYBhgL/s320/Zeuch%2B99.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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From Z to A.<br />
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I think this came out of 2017 Topps, possibly making it the only redeeming quality of this year's "effort." For the record, 1987 Topps was seven years old by the time Anthony Alford was born in Columbia, Mississippi in 1994, and Major League Baseball went on stike less than thirty days later.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-63g9fGdYjm0/WhTeOosPcZI/AAAAAAAARms/9IA0JTy4WFg6vaNNhrdcxMX3RQZ-ivkNwCLcBGAs/s1600/Alford%2B87.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="331" data-original-width="240" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-63g9fGdYjm0/WhTeOosPcZI/AAAAAAAARms/9IA0JTy4WFg6vaNNhrdcxMX3RQZ-ivkNwCLcBGAs/s320/Alford%2B87.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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To another A, Rick Ankiel. I have a low-key Ankiel collection, along with other players that were huge prospects at the time but along the way something went wrong, and their cardboard is now virtually worthless.<br />
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That's pretty much how I came into finally owning a Pacific Cramer's Choice card. This one is from 2000 or 2001 though, so it's not one of the originals with a gem-like appearance.<br />
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Still big, though:<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wrawZ_fhbaE/WhTeO5gTFCI/AAAAAAAARm0/PWUHPJywMW4fO8bcCE46XGG3PxDDELeYgCLcBGAs/s1600/Ankiel%2Band%2BAlford.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="696" height="281" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wrawZ_fhbaE/WhTeO5gTFCI/AAAAAAAARm0/PWUHPJywMW4fO8bcCE46XGG3PxDDELeYgCLcBGAs/s320/Ankiel%2Band%2BAlford.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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I used a 2017 Bowman's Best of Anthony Alford, also autographed, to show off the size. The seller was kind enough to include a top loader, but I don't think soft sleeves exist for cards this big. Man, it's loud.<br />
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I've also been going though a bit of a 2017 Bowman High Tek binge now that the price has plummeted. High Tek offers awful reward for your money for breakers, and I'm taking advantage of that through ebay, pumping up my Lourdes Gurriel, Jr. collection.<br />
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Here's the base (left) and the autograph (right.)<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pB-jeAZMxcM/WhTe1pHf-OI/AAAAAAAARnA/iuaEvVzCFT4pGXfEo7pvxlzI0oT3JTL0wCLcBGAs/s1600/img044.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="971" data-original-width="725" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pB-jeAZMxcM/WhTe1pHf-OI/AAAAAAAARnA/iuaEvVzCFT4pGXfEo7pvxlzI0oT3JTL0wCLcBGAs/s320/img044.jpg" width="238" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1Izye3I9R9w/WhTe1pOzA1I/AAAAAAAARm8/YivtKRR4suU-epDix0EsDVPWt_450F7nQCLcBGAs/s1600/img043.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="971" data-original-width="732" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1Izye3I9R9w/WhTe1pOzA1I/AAAAAAAARm8/YivtKRR4suU-epDix0EsDVPWt_450F7nQCLcBGAs/s320/img043.jpg" width="241" /></a></div>
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Upon closer inspection, the autographed one is a diffractor, but since it's unnumbered, it fell through the cracks as a base auto for around the price of a pack of Gypsy Queen. Add another parallel to the pile.<br />
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Not to be confused, of course, with this Tidal Diffractor, which is numbered out of /199:<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fIGquqXQKgM/Whn0bA209uI/AAAAAAAARoc/n04Gmap01S8nP3OlewYkKwLyxNS9pFWagCLcBGAs/s1600/Gurriel%2BTidal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="732" data-original-width="562" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fIGquqXQKgM/Whn0bA209uI/AAAAAAAARoc/n04Gmap01S8nP3OlewYkKwLyxNS9pFWagCLcBGAs/s320/Gurriel%2BTidal.jpg" width="245" /></a></div>
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Right. So all of those look pretty much the same, but the final one has the "Tidal" pattern, which looks more like a simplified hurricane or whirlpool. I may further expunge upon this in the future, using photographs instead of scans.<br />
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Tek autos are reasonably priced on the secondary, as long as you don't go too hard into the parallels. Somehow, I managed to pick up the Bo Bichette (base) in a lot for an extremely reasonable price along with Sean Newcomb, Anderson Espinoza and Jorge Mateo (Tidal Diffractor.)<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xfy2LBXlS2M/WhoJJbvmIiI/AAAAAAAARo8/Vrf4pASUlm8PLpBUzBCjzPrhHZiO57s3wCLcBGAs/s1600/bo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="617" data-original-width="462" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xfy2LBXlS2M/WhoJJbvmIiI/AAAAAAAARo8/Vrf4pASUlm8PLpBUzBCjzPrhHZiO57s3wCLcBGAs/s320/bo.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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As November churned on, I finished out the Black Friday-Cyber Monday weekend with a few more additions. It only resulted in one auction that put cards in my hand before the end of the month, though, and that was these:<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zLNH-hJ60JM/WiCPYwT5xaI/AAAAAAAARpQ/qYeM0bezFTkTiWRabwNkQrNlSx_NIASNQCLcBGAs/s1600/galleryfords.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="503" data-original-width="763" height="262" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zLNH-hJ60JM/WiCPYwT5xaI/AAAAAAAARpQ/qYeM0bezFTkTiWRabwNkQrNlSx_NIASNQCLcBGAs/s400/galleryfords.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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So, Topps Gallery is a thing again, but it doesn't' have to be. Especially when you're just putting shitty instagram filters on Getty Images. Want to resurrect a great Topps set? Bring back the original Topps Stars.<br />
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With that being said, I'm done with 2017 Topps Gallery.<br />
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But let's not end on that negative (though I do like the Alfords.)<br />
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You may have noticed the scans of the Bowman High Tek are...bad. I experimented with a couple methods, such as directly on the glass (above) and on top of a small snapcase. The answer to a good-looking Tek scan? Put it right in the snapcase and put it on the glass:<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GH8v55sZxQg/WiCP-law_VI/AAAAAAAARpY/iohmufuNVxotF9VuLd8yZSt5TJfIxbvowCLcBGAs/s1600/bo%2Bdiff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="666" data-original-width="485" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GH8v55sZxQg/WiCP-law_VI/AAAAAAAARpY/iohmufuNVxotF9VuLd8yZSt5TJfIxbvowCLcBGAs/s400/bo%2Bdiff.jpg" width="290" /></a></div>
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And there you have it, a 2017 Bowman High Tek Bo Bichette diffractor (/199) in all of it's holographic glory.<br />
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Stay hard, friends.<br />
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Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-70165691225847690912017-11-26T11:22:00.001-05:002017-11-26T11:23:05.521-05:00getting blasted: 2017-2018 upper deck series 1 hockey<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w_QoQrHx6t4/WhnhPotT8pI/AAAAAAAARnQ/Wi0EoRGJX4cbFKQzGWvdR9Bek8d8MBl1wCLcBGAs/s1600/Luongo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="389" data-original-width="546" height="227" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w_QoQrHx6t4/WhnhPotT8pI/AAAAAAAARnQ/Wi0EoRGJX4cbFKQzGWvdR9Bek8d8MBl1wCLcBGAs/s320/Luongo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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It's been quiet here, between some increased work activity, the holiday(s), birthday(s), and some other things, but yesterday I was able to saunter on out through the writing hoards of half-dead Black Friday shoppers to finally get my hands on some 2017-2018 Upper Deck Series 1. While never a cheap product, it's always damn near the top of hockey releases - featuring excellent photography, plenty of nice base cards, limited parallels, and some decent, 90s-esque inserts and of course: Young Guns.<br />
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This year's cover boy is none other than Toronto Maple Leaf Auston Matthews:<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ono_gb4i2fU/WhnhT7-dWFI/AAAAAAAARnU/PCeCSHJ8tPoUu4KVveT288pYZDG58vtAwCLcBGAs/s1600/Foil%2BPack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="321" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ono_gb4i2fU/WhnhT7-dWFI/AAAAAAAARnU/PCeCSHJ8tPoUu4KVveT288pYZDG58vtAwCLcBGAs/s320/Foil%2BPack.jpg" width="186" /></a></div>
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Matthews isn't a guy I collect with much vigor, as his huge breakout rookie season in 2016-2017 has inflated his value among collectors, pushing us hobbyists out of the picture. Your basic foil pack is found 12 times in each $20 blaster, with just five cards in each pack. <i>Cartes par paquet. </i><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6nEmb6N9TTU/WhnhaSIzJYI/AAAAAAAARnY/kZ1FCYXodAkTr2UypFRbR2GwYUj7FgF7ACLcBGAs/s1600/Fleury.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="505" data-original-width="365" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6nEmb6N9TTU/WhnhaSIzJYI/AAAAAAAARnY/kZ1FCYXodAkTr2UypFRbR2GwYUj7FgF7ACLcBGAs/s320/Fleury.jpg" width="231" /></a><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JFpgivBAFVI/WhnhnbPM-pI/AAAAAAAARng/7XWtwUf_8twLK_TSiumjfT0nPs_6RcjAQCLcBGAs/s1600/OEL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="626" data-original-width="455" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JFpgivBAFVI/WhnhnbPM-pI/AAAAAAAARng/7XWtwUf_8twLK_TSiumjfT0nPs_6RcjAQCLcBGAs/s320/OEL.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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With Upper Deck, you come and stay for the unique photography. Here we have Marc-Andre Fleury, fresh off his drafting by the 17-18 expansion franchise Vegas Golden Knights on draft night in a new, well-selling jersey. </div>
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From new to old, we see Oliver Ekman-Larsson, featured in the best sports uniform, period. Just fantastic.</div>
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I'm always amazed at how much product NHLers use in their hair before they cram it under a helmet for the next two and a half hours.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4NsmFHL4b0w/Whnhfm6G_FI/AAAAAAAARnc/L0b0D6XZVw4mnpgItVPCydfZnXmACr4fACLcBGAs/s1600/Laine%2BBack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="505" data-original-width="361" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4NsmFHL4b0w/Whnhfm6G_FI/AAAAAAAARnc/L0b0D6XZVw4mnpgItVPCydfZnXmACr4fACLcBGAs/s320/Laine%2BBack.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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Patrik Laine, AKA Diet Auston Matthews, models our card backs. Laine has just one year of service, showing off the Winnipeg Jets logo in the background of the ice-cool card. Upper Deck hasn't changed much over the years, and I take comfort in that.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-juyI9RFcKN0/WhnhvRXhkrI/AAAAAAAARno/zC0rNeEicdQi-CLU_4NFDkX5LRHmUo33gCLcBGAs/s1600/Tarasenko%2BPortraits.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="544" data-original-width="390" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-juyI9RFcKN0/WhnhvRXhkrI/AAAAAAAARno/zC0rNeEicdQi-CLU_4NFDkX5LRHmUo33gCLcBGAs/s320/Tarasenko%2BPortraits.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
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Portraits fall 1:14 and I was lucky enough to land this Vladimir Tarasenko, the Russian Tank. I'm not sure lucky is the best word, though, as this season's version of the Portraits insert is black-and-white and could not be more uninteresting.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cF_selY2zQo/Whnh7dsGj4I/AAAAAAAARns/Mf0Tm2BkB9YOq8OzKIYRMSGoRuO8GabgwCLcBGAs/s1600/Brodie%2BCanvas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="543" data-original-width="392" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cF_selY2zQo/Whnh7dsGj4I/AAAAAAAARns/Mf0Tm2BkB9YOq8OzKIYRMSGoRuO8GabgwCLcBGAs/s320/Brodie%2BCanvas.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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The Canvas "parallels" are 1:14 and the highlight of the inserts, using a canvas-like feature on a light cardboard stock with an alternate photo choice, usually one of the players in a rare pose or from a different angle, such as this one that looks like it was shot from ice-level in an ensuing scrum. Brodie wouldn't be my top choice of players to receive here, but I am appreciative of the Canvas inserts as always, regardless of the player pulled.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PpF7k8FAaR0/WhniDQ9NtII/AAAAAAAARnw/ipdea6thiHo1iPyv6HrsMcxad7YEt7H0gCLcBGAs/s1600/Jones%2BSS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="544" data-original-width="398" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PpF7k8FAaR0/WhniDQ9NtII/AAAAAAAARnw/ipdea6thiHo1iPyv6HrsMcxad7YEt7H0gCLcBGAs/s320/Jones%2BSS.jpg" width="234" /></a></div>
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The Shining Stars (Defenseman in Series 1) looks straight out of 1998 or so Upper Deck, featuring an impossible to scan foil board with stamped, gold-foil logos. While very nice in-hand, they're a nightmare to scan. Here we have Seth Jones in the awesome Columbus Blue Jackets third jersey, featuring the cannon logo.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hWcn13y-CdI/WhniMWG1RLI/AAAAAAAARn0/gFUuc4a_rjkOPUom4YHxYWjxFi8WHzsHgCLcBGAs/s1600/Dubois%2BYG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="507" data-original-width="368" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hWcn13y-CdI/WhniMWG1RLI/AAAAAAAARn0/gFUuc4a_rjkOPUom4YHxYWjxFi8WHzsHgCLcBGAs/s320/Dubois%2BYG.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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And here they are, the Young Guns. Falling 1:6, I grabbed the guaranteed two per blaster. Pierre-Luc Dubois was one of the better ones in the 2017-2018 set, but we're not even close to the class of 2016-2017.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1NhzKE-CBH0/WhniMXwJxAI/AAAAAAAARn4/baefqaLTihQqyRL1nEsr1v4DNeIpH3I2gCLcBGAs/s1600/Sorensen%2BYG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="506" data-original-width="367" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1NhzKE-CBH0/WhniMXwJxAI/AAAAAAAARn4/baefqaLTihQqyRL1nEsr1v4DNeIpH3I2gCLcBGAs/s320/Sorensen%2BYG.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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The Sharks' Marcus Sorensen was pulled as well. This year's cards are very blue in design and look great with the teal Sharks jersey.<br />
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Now on to the Leafs.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x-Vqg3htB8s/WhniZt69ZdI/AAAAAAAARoA/DzsAUTY_vlM9G5w2-b8vPEkc0wvNYvigQCLcBGAs/s1600/Komorov.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="545" data-original-width="390" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x-Vqg3htB8s/WhniZt69ZdI/AAAAAAAARoA/DzsAUTY_vlM9G5w2-b8vPEkc0wvNYvigQCLcBGAs/s320/Komorov.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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Here's a great shot of Uncle Leo playing in the outdoor game. Komorov has only played in two outdoor games, the 2014 Winter Classic in Ann Arbor and the 2017 Centennial Classic at BMO Field. This one is from the latter.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6P30iMepZ_M/WhniZuqEEDI/AAAAAAAARoE/i0e1PRxp9bMtyszaavPuRMwEX_qTX23dwCLcBGAs/s1600/Mitch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="545" data-original-width="391" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6P30iMepZ_M/WhniZuqEEDI/AAAAAAAARoE/i0e1PRxp9bMtyszaavPuRMwEX_qTX23dwCLcBGAs/s320/Mitch.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
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Mitch! makes an appearance. Marner, like Matthews and William Nylander, is also a tough guy to collect right now.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I_RmZuLosrA/WhniZrBbUrI/AAAAAAAARoI/KSFMWUMemR4p__7BNqadcVyqpV5LhPk9ACLcBGAs/s1600/Nazem.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="546" data-original-width="391" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I_RmZuLosrA/WhniZrBbUrI/AAAAAAAARoI/KSFMWUMemR4p__7BNqadcVyqpV5LhPk9ACLcBGAs/s320/Nazem.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
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Nazem Kadri - not so much. With so many Maple Leafs collectors losing their minds over Auston Matthews, Kadri has fallen behind, even though 2016-2017 was his best season and 2017-2018 might shape up to be just as good. Its another one of those alternate photo type UD cards, featuring Kadri in a <strike>third grade class</strike> Maple Leafs team photo.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cKsakkXKM38/WhniacZfhpI/AAAAAAAARoM/8_zjNr11v5EB3gPrTXVAhqPSUsT8RvxZACLcBGAs/s1600/am34.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="545" data-original-width="390" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cKsakkXKM38/WhniacZfhpI/AAAAAAAARoM/8_zjNr11v5EB3gPrTXVAhqPSUsT8RvxZACLcBGAs/s320/am34.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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As much as I complain about the secondary market on Auston Matthews cards, I can manage to pull him once a blaster on a good day. Aside from an action shot, Upper Deck couldn't have made a better card than this one, featuring a very old school Toronto St. Pats uniform. Just awesome.<br />
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So there you have it. UDS1 has been found, and it's beautiful. The End. </div>
Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-5999923680267274132017-11-04T12:01:00.003-04:002017-11-06T10:35:02.377-05:00october nue jays<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This October, I made what was probably my 5th or so return to card blogging. I've had a pretty good outlet over at Jays From the Couch in regards to analysis and speculation, but there was always that urge to write beyond that wall, to really just spill out my love - and frustrations - in a more appropriate arena.<br />
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Luckily, my ebay, comc and blogspot passwords all still worked, so I didn't lose much time there. However, I needed some material, and pulling nothing but Yankees from 2017 products wasn't going to cut it. So I resorted to ebay, and it went well.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tdfCAiJDYyU/Wf3bSdMT1mI/AAAAAAAARcA/KjZ3Hikz5cwca4j7m9xq1Fp50OjbzOcrACLcBGAs/s1600/stieb%2Barchives%2Bauto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="317" data-original-width="227" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tdfCAiJDYyU/Wf3bSdMT1mI/AAAAAAAARcA/KjZ3Hikz5cwca4j7m9xq1Fp50OjbzOcrACLcBGAs/s1600/stieb%2Barchives%2Bauto.jpg" /></a></div>
I don't recall which year of heritage this came from, but this one had been on my radar for a long time. Stieb is a legend in the land of the Blue Jays, and his silky smooth autograph on the 1990 Topps is just beautiful.</div>
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I don't have the original, but I am sure one of you out there does. Unlike the nice blue border above, it's purple, but still represents the obnoxiously 90's flavour of that set:</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EG1i-eJnWH8/Wf3gfDwjltI/AAAAAAAARco/szmH4fGRr18w4g-v4u2WelM1OkpbvzjPgCLcBGAs/s1600/1990stieb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="709" data-original-width="520" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EG1i-eJnWH8/Wf3gfDwjltI/AAAAAAAARco/szmH4fGRr18w4g-v4u2WelM1OkpbvzjPgCLcBGAs/s320/1990stieb.jpg" width="234" /></a></div>
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A couple weeks back, I complained almost endlessly about 2017 Topps Fire. Don't get me wrong - it's a total trash fire. I was, however, drawn to the following card:</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qN5DH5Xg6b0/Wf3bNWvjKYI/AAAAAAAARb8/vw7Rl1E-0v8BEBuolPE0MHd9coMmX2c5ACLcBGAs/s1600/bats%2Bfire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="325" data-original-width="235" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qN5DH5Xg6b0/Wf3bNWvjKYI/AAAAAAAARb8/vw7Rl1E-0v8BEBuolPE0MHd9coMmX2c5ACLcBGAs/s320/bats%2Bfire.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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It's the blue parallel of Jose Bautista's Monikers insert, under the guise of "Joey Bats." The graffiti on these is a nice touch, with the player bursting through a brick wall. The blue works well with the Jays uniform. These might be the only redeeming part of the Fire set.<br />
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Here's a 2017 Bowman Green parallel (90/99) of future super-utility Jay, Lourdes Gurriel, Jr., making his debut here at PGS. Personally, I find the "paper" designation to Bowman flagship demeaning. Baseball cards are paper. </div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_tyRPvdSRwY/Wf3biE5zefI/AAAAAAAARcM/u1M1XVcalZAijudpznp0fdaLtAuWj3dXwCLcBGAs/s1600/gurriel%2Bbase%2Bauto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="326" data-original-width="237" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_tyRPvdSRwY/Wf3biE5zefI/AAAAAAAARcM/u1M1XVcalZAijudpznp0fdaLtAuWj3dXwCLcBGAs/s320/gurriel%2Bbase%2Bauto.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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Chrome is what brings everyone to the show, and as much as I <i>do</i> like the chromes and their associated refractors, I enjoy the flasghip so much more, even in the worst Bowman design, possibly ever. The above Gurriel auto was purchsed in conjunction with the Stieb that led this post off, coming in at about $7 American. </div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1oU0U-P20cI/Wf3beXILn3I/AAAAAAAARcU/zrbCrfyT8pk4IbN4FEHlSskcCNrRuua6wCEwYBhgL/s1600/gurriel%2Bnatty%2Bgold.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="331" data-original-width="240" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1oU0U-P20cI/Wf3beXILn3I/AAAAAAAARcU/zrbCrfyT8pk4IbN4FEHlSskcCNrRuua6wCEwYBhgL/s320/gurriel%2Bnatty%2Bgold.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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At this point, you might notice a theme growing. While most Jays prospectors are going heroically strong on Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero, Jr., I'm doing the same on Gurriel and the next guy. Gurriel has some development issues at the moment, but I am pretty confident in the guy. This gold refractor (44/50) came from the National Convention packs.</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-F-mwtakGpB0/Wf3bq7RvD7I/AAAAAAAARcQ/9WdBb4NcilM-Tngm5ljM0HmTKWdc-_digCLcBGAs/s1600/maese%2Bpaper%2Bauto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="329" data-original-width="239" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-F-mwtakGpB0/Wf3bq7RvD7I/AAAAAAAARcQ/9WdBb4NcilM-Tngm5ljM0HmTKWdc-_digCLcBGAs/s320/maese%2Bpaper%2Bauto.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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I was really excited about Justin Maese once he was drafted by the Jays in 2015.He has struggled a bit, but much of that was due to injuries. One thing he's already mastered, though: The Pitcher Struggle Face. </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VDlqbqfVbbU/Wf3buyU_sKI/AAAAAAAARcY/9d4Fbnah4YADiEfRJkHeIYUEExgELpJrgCLcBGAs/s1600/zj%2Bcamo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="329" data-original-width="237" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VDlqbqfVbbU/Wf3buyU_sKI/AAAAAAAARcY/9d4Fbnah4YADiEfRJkHeIYUEExgELpJrgCLcBGAs/s320/zj%2Bcamo.jpg" width="230" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>What's a ZJ?</i></td></tr>
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Zach Jackson checks off two important collections of mine: Team USA and Blue Jays. Not to mention this 2017 Panini Baseball Stars & Stripes is limited to just /99 and features a swatch of digital camo jersey, which I am admittedly a sucker for. </div>
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While only featuring seven scan-worthy cards, I feel like I did pretty well in October 2017 in regards to ebay pickups. Already for November, I have two Gurriels and one Marcus Stroman on the way, not to mention countless Anthony Alford and Marcus Stroman auctions ending soon. November should be a good month. </div>
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*If you have to ask, you can't afford it.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fO5BP0s2E6o/Wf3cLW6-iOI/AAAAAAAARcc/cOquL9h-o3cfEOjPuMXmXLLf8fhVnag_gCLcBGAs/s1600/zj.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="257" data-original-width="387" height="212" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fO5BP0s2E6o/Wf3cLW6-iOI/AAAAAAAARcc/cOquL9h-o3cfEOjPuMXmXLLf8fhVnag_gCLcBGAs/s320/zj.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-52913063917424250952017-11-01T15:29:00.002-04:002017-11-01T15:29:53.857-04:00drinkin' & rippin': 2017 topps heritage minors<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Tuesday the 24th was a long day. Some travel, meetings, a webinar, an more travel. After returning from beautiful Avon, NY - gassing up the rental and jamming the key into the drop box, I returned home to find a svelte cardboard box on the table from Dave & Adam's Card World. Inside were two boxes of 2017 Topps Heritage Minors and some free hockey packs.<br />
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I haven't bought boxes since about 2013 or so, again with a Topps minors product in Pro Debut. Then, I did well. This time, well...let's see.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xvuGMvSrtVU/WfYMBoDKeTI/AAAAAAAARZ0/5IvCYluGE-Ifw7dGyIBAhIhZYgD2FJnUACLcBGAs/s1600/20171024_182915.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xvuGMvSrtVU/WfYMBoDKeTI/AAAAAAAARZ0/5IvCYluGE-Ifw7dGyIBAhIhZYgD2FJnUACLcBGAs/s320/20171024_182915.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Drinkin' and Rippin' is a simple concept. A boy, a beer and a box of cards. In this case, two hobby boxes of 2017 Heritage Minor Leagues. The beer in this case is from Thin Man Brewery in the Elmwood area of Buffalo and is the double-dry-hopped version of their Very Friendly IPA. It's fucking great.<br />
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On to the cards.<br />
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My goals were simple: a few Blue Jays, some hot prospects, and some Yankees to flip. If we can't avoid all of the Yankees seeded into today's product, we might as well profit.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qEb0DxctVuE/WfUjrnDAQQI/AAAAAAAARYk/r4jOGTxENCokiMJlod8stJVXAk22bhtrACLcBGAs/s1600/img019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1038" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qEb0DxctVuE/WfUjrnDAQQI/AAAAAAAARYk/r4jOGTxENCokiMJlod8stJVXAk22bhtrACLcBGAs/s320/img019.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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It started off as expected, with plenty of Yankees to be had. I think they made up at least 10% of the base set and closer to 15% of the inserts. This is a lot easier to disguise in minor league sets where all levels of the minors cloak the pinstripes.<br />
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Each box contains a relic and an autograph, and Box 1 was a dud in that regards. The following are two of the lesser impressive or impactful available.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-K-NlfzSz7xQ/WfYNGjtUQXI/AAAAAAAARaA/DU5X64JU8r8TUvw5zsWEg4NmwnxasL7jwCLcBGAs/s1600/mateo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1048" data-original-width="780" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-K-NlfzSz7xQ/WfYNGjtUQXI/AAAAAAAARaA/DU5X64JU8r8TUvw5zsWEg4NmwnxasL7jwCLcBGAs/s320/mateo.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
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The Jorge Mateo (a Yankee, of course) was the first "hit" to come out of the packs, and man. I wasn't ready for this kind of disappointment. The cards are absurdly thick for not being patches, resulting in packs of just three cards. At least Mateo is a good player, and a fast one at that: he stole 234 bases in 452 minor league games so far, and he's just 22 years old.<br />
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Next up came the auto, from Jacob Heyward. I had to look him up, which isn't a good sign. The Giants' LF prospect had a pretty mediocre season in 2017 at A-Ball.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FKhWTDkQF8I/WfUi9NnWyJI/AAAAAAAARYU/4HM5M5a_sNIMcueF3fvxWh_gY7eyGng9QCLcBGAs/s1600/heywardauto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1216" data-original-width="936" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FKhWTDkQF8I/WfUi9NnWyJI/AAAAAAAARYU/4HM5M5a_sNIMcueF3fvxWh_gY7eyGng9QCLcBGAs/s320/heywardauto.jpg" width="246" /></a></div>
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The autos take the look of the base card, but come backwards in the pack as they're potentially hard to spot. With Heyward signing blue on a white jersey, it wasn't difficult in this case.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5O8D8zWlRfs/WfYMsikutYI/AAAAAAAARZ8/xjG7Fu78Aj0k9UgsLudxLnjqHxtLnHlsACLcBGAs/s1600/gordonsp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1031" data-original-width="752" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5O8D8zWlRfs/WfYMsikutYI/AAAAAAAARZ8/xjG7Fu78Aj0k9UgsLudxLnjqHxtLnHlsACLcBGAs/s320/gordonsp.jpg" width="233" /></a></div>
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Here's a short print of Twins' middle infielder Nick Gordon. This one shows just how pretty these cards can be in their 1968 glory. There was another significant SP in these boxes, but this one was a football player in a baseball set for some reason:<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rHdnpPCsQZI/WfYUeoAVitI/AAAAAAAARbQ/RYYzb-a5cwQ9zVBb-VgAg41Mxns2_cMDQCLcBGAs/s1600/tebowsp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1257" data-original-width="981" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rHdnpPCsQZI/WfYUeoAVitI/AAAAAAAARbQ/RYYzb-a5cwQ9zVBb-VgAg41Mxns2_cMDQCLcBGAs/s320/tebowsp.jpg" width="249" /></a></div>
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Baseball America All-Stars fan 1:6 packs, so I was hoping for six, and received six.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lBwQrp4oSNc/WfYOsADFKJI/AAAAAAAARaM/EmRa_oqrm4M9khUdQvikLDuuuv-jLdZgwCLcBGAs/s1600/BaAm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="335" data-original-width="489" height="273" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lBwQrp4oSNc/WfYOsADFKJI/AAAAAAAARaM/EmRa_oqrm4M9khUdQvikLDuuuv-jLdZgwCLcBGAs/s400/BaAm.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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These are really excellent, bringing the scouting and prospecting aspect to the hobby without having shlubby Bowman scouts signing sticker autos. I was very lucky to pull Blue Jays' top prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and future impact OF Ronald Acuna of the Atlanta Braves organization. Vlad Jr. cards are already looking extremely collectible.<br />
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Speaking of Blue Jays, there were plenty in Heritage Minor Leagues, a 250-card set.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-248kB02lZ30/WfYPWmQBBSI/AAAAAAAARaU/V4mdmKvgc106E7mM92hVmEEm3XS0QdP9gCLcBGAs/s1600/jays.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="736" data-original-width="1600" height="183" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-248kB02lZ30/WfYPWmQBBSI/AAAAAAAARaU/V4mdmKvgc106E7mM92hVmEEm3XS0QdP9gCLcBGAs/s400/jays.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Again, Guerrero is looking awesome. Redi-Foley...might be considering his next murder. The Rios is a total dud. But there's more:<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4yytWrkXq-A/WfYPikh01KI/AAAAAAAARac/X7LLNdmaApMrEDbDTKa7y1-4Im24VsT7QCLcBGAs/s1600/img025.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="740" data-original-width="1600" height="185" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4yytWrkXq-A/WfYPikh01KI/AAAAAAAARac/X7LLNdmaApMrEDbDTKa7y1-4Im24VsT7QCLcBGAs/s400/img025.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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We get ROWDY and Urena in the next batch, along with a J.B. Woodman. Urena was solid in his limited MLB debut in 2017, but Tellez was disappointing with Triple-A Buffalo.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UNiy8LCNSto/WfYP6SR-C4I/AAAAAAAARak/3qRpriYJJowTjzcTY8Pu_eJ-l7q-5GWvgCLcBGAs/s1600/img020.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="696" data-original-width="1392" height="160" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UNiy8LCNSto/WfYP6SR-C4I/AAAAAAAARak/3qRpriYJJowTjzcTY8Pu_eJ-l7q-5GWvgCLcBGAs/s320/img020.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Another future Blue Jay falls from the 1:5 Topps Discs insert, this time Bo Bichette, who won a MiLBY award for Offensive Player of the Year. When I say <i>falls</i>, I mean it literally. If you're not paying close enough attention, when you pull the deck of cards out of the pack, the discs fall out freely. There were also some mascots involved in this set, but I couldn't care less about those.</div>
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Of course, with it being a Topps release, there were plenty of parallels:</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0zVr6C2qXv4/WfYQcFkb-5I/AAAAAAAARao/Xg3e8bffl5w7cMZjvovHK7Mr8y5UoQ8MQCLcBGAs/s1600/parallels.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="332" data-original-width="961" height="220" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0zVr6C2qXv4/WfYQcFkb-5I/AAAAAAAARao/Xg3e8bffl5w7cMZjvovHK7Mr8y5UoQ8MQCLcBGAs/s640/parallels.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Blues fall 1:17 and are numbered to /99.<br />
Greens fall 1:33 and are numbered to /50.<br />
Grays fall 1:66 and are numbered to /25.<br />
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None of the above are particularly interesting and they'll probably end up on ebay.<br />
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On to the good stuff. This box treated me well with the second memorabilia card, as I added ex-Blue Jay and current Oakland Athletic Franklin Barreto to my collection.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4BM1XEHi_OQ/WfYR0bop7lI/AAAAAAAARa4/_oo2y7F5e0AWiP_1C9CQvH_mXvEJmNFRwCLcBGAs/s1600/barreto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1069" data-original-width="769" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4BM1XEHi_OQ/WfYR0bop7lI/AAAAAAAARa4/_oo2y7F5e0AWiP_1C9CQvH_mXvEJmNFRwCLcBGAs/s320/barreto.jpg" width="230" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>plain gray swatch</i></td></tr>
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After that, though, a case hit:<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wrSKDcxlKEE/WfYSCA7mNyI/AAAAAAAARa8/D1vng72aoJUzMoHGrnd7qtn9SqODNlRiACLcBGAs/s1600/arozarena.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1192" data-original-width="910" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wrSKDcxlKEE/WfYSCA7mNyI/AAAAAAAARa8/D1vng72aoJUzMoHGrnd7qtn9SqODNlRiACLcBGAs/s320/arozarena.jpg" width="244" /></a></div>
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You might be thinking, "Hey, that's just a base card." And you would be right, but in this case Topps has dropped Arozarena's first name on this card (it's Randy, by the way) and printed them at a scant enough amount for them to be inserted at 1:714. This one already sold on ebay, but there's not much demand for this listless variation.<br />
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While the Arozarena pull was a good one, it paled in comparison to the autograph in box two. Prior to this one, I was a little disappointed.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-C6uH4pwtF6I/WfYUAlcRCHI/AAAAAAAARbM/35dBoWSlSSUQ_T6dRhht9ZvA4iz0YybFgCLcBGAs/s1600/img017.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1176" data-original-width="888" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-C6uH4pwtF6I/WfYUAlcRCHI/AAAAAAAARbM/35dBoWSlSSUQ_T6dRhht9ZvA4iz0YybFgCLcBGAs/s320/img017.jpg" width="241" /></a></div>
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Looks familiar, right? It's the first card in this post, but it's also a photoshopped and autographed version of it, featuring one of the game's elite prospects in Eloy Jimenez. While not rare, this is a huge pull for the player alone.<br />
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Heritage Minors 2017 was a good break, but most of it's allure comes from very rare parallels and the potential of guys like Eloy Jimenez, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Gleyber Torres. It's affordable at just $52/box, and the reward can be either significant or non-existent. It's a bit of a roulette, nut fun nonetheless. </div>
Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-78245515956786920532017-10-29T12:41:00.000-04:002017-10-29T12:41:02.841-04:00getting blasted: 2017-2018 o-pee-chee<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Last weekend I had the urge to rip some hockey cards. I was hoping for some Upper Deck flagship, unaware that the release date isn't until November 9th. Not to worry, though, as MVP and O-Pee-Chee were already on the shelves, and I happily walked away with a fresh blaster of the latter.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ckcl47dQKoY/WfX4yUs-9KI/AAAAAAAARY0/hSNJbmB5zr0JVM2N_5WUrUSBAOkeO2wWgCLcBGAs/s1600/img030.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1362" data-original-width="792" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ckcl47dQKoY/WfX4yUs-9KI/AAAAAAAARY0/hSNJbmB5zr0JVM2N_5WUrUSBAOkeO2wWgCLcBGAs/s320/img030.jpg" width="186" /></a></div>
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O-Pee-Chee is an important set in regards to the history of hockey, and it's recent resurrection has resulted in a very popular and fun set. I made a run at the complete set a few years back, but gave up rather quickly despite its availability. At the time, it just wasn't <i>in the the cards.</i><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--Pc5IQqIZqE/WfX4_s6RmKI/AAAAAAAARY4/MKbdrnCmlYguoiKKKnqJHRce9nmisZwUACLcBGAs/s1600/img032.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1032" data-original-width="1476" height="278" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--Pc5IQqIZqE/WfX4_s6RmKI/AAAAAAAARY4/MKbdrnCmlYguoiKKKnqJHRce9nmisZwUACLcBGAs/s400/img032.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The main set is simple and reminds me of some Score designs in the mid-to-late 1990s. The cards are purely cardboard without much noticeable gloss on the front and zero gloss on the back. OPC remains one of the few sets that please the sense of touch for those who collected before the 1990s miss.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TmXHneSW-b8/WfX5DJh1sHI/AAAAAAAARY8/dn6xwpm20dYZP6GVepO9mStJ2oYJhVU4ACLcBGAs/s1600/img031.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="723" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TmXHneSW-b8/WfX5DJh1sHI/AAAAAAAARY8/dn6xwpm20dYZP6GVepO9mStJ2oYJhVU4ACLcBGAs/s400/img031.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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First, the Maple Leafs. Believe it or not, the Matthews above is my first of the NHL's version of Aaron Judge. He's featured on card No. 1 in this set, and is very much "The Guy" in NHL collecting right now. I'm not working hard at collecting Matthews, I'll center that attention on Nazem Kadri.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Oyqzvkdbw9w/WfX5KXBDHAI/AAAAAAAARZA/Kh8Z3QP2ZJgcNjFoF0WYMDdee725EcWGgCLcBGAs/s1600/img027.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="996" data-original-width="708" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Oyqzvkdbw9w/WfX5KXBDHAI/AAAAAAAARZA/Kh8Z3QP2ZJgcNjFoF0WYMDdee725EcWGgCLcBGAs/s320/img027.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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Marquee Rookies, Checklists, Season Highlights and League Leaders fall at 1:2, and somehow I only noticed this one aside from the checklists.<br />
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Falling 1:2 as well are the vintage parallels, which are really my favorite thing about this set. They can get frustrating if you're going for a complete set, but overall are fun and excellent-looking in 2017-2018. I managed one Maple Leaf, Connor Brown.<br />
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Rainbows come at a rate of 3:blaster or 1:8 packs. Managing three was huge, even if it involved two New York Rangers. As we'll see coming up, though, I broke the odds multiple times in this blaster.</div>
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This Aleksander Barkov is a parallel-parallel, a Mini Black Foil insert coming at 1:41 packs. You'll generally see one of these per hobby box, and I was lucky enough to get one in a blaster. If there's any Panthers collectors out there, get at me. I'd love to share this with someone who might appreciate it more, and I have mini top loaders to protect it in.</div>
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As I mentioned above, I broke the odds multiple times in this little box. The Barkov would have made me happy enough, but the following was the true gem:</div>
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Despite the rounded corners being completely cut off, you can get an idea that the above Shea Weber Playing Card Foil Parallel is a real beauty. These come at a rate of 1:66, so this was a huge pull for a $20 USD blaster. Good stuff like this is why folks come back to OPC so strongly every year.</div>
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O-Pee-Chee continues to impress, and I implore any hockey collectors to go out there and grab some of this product. </div>
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Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-3473802304514149342017-10-18T21:57:00.001-04:002017-10-18T21:57:27.516-04:00fire emojis, or a lack thereof <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Oh, hey Bryce</i></td></tr>
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<br />I knew what I was getting into, I swear. I saw the pack and blaster box breaks elsewhere of the chaotic, completely nonsensical Topps Fire, but I jumped on it anyway. Splatters, holograms, flippability. All things aside, it came down to one thing: I hadn't purchased cards in a long time and this was something new.<br />
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I use the term "new" loosely, as Fire represents an unholy marriage between such classic sets as Circa Thunder and UD-x. Those were classics, right?<br />
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Right, of course they were. Let's jump into this blaster. My goals were simple: more Blue Jays than Yankees, some colorful stuff, and that's about it. Maybe this was a hate-rip. I don't even know anymore.<br />
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Pack 1:</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iCT9OzIfZv4/WegDYYd1TRI/AAAAAAAARXU/TcpGvM6q2nYAZ5HyiQpf3vC5avr80xUAQCLcBGAs/s1600/griffey%2Bbase.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="467" data-original-width="331" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iCT9OzIfZv4/WegDYYd1TRI/AAAAAAAARXU/TcpGvM6q2nYAZ5HyiQpf3vC5avr80xUAQCLcBGAs/s320/griffey%2Bbase.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
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Ken Griffey Jr.</div>
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Johnny Damon</div>
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Seung-Hwan Oh</div>
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Stephen Strasburg</div>
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Roberto Osuna</div>
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Carlos Correa /299 Orange somethingorother (1:10)</div>
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So...that's a pretty good start. This pack was purchased before Houston's unforgivable ALCS collapse, though...so I'm still kind of mad. Also, if you're going to highlight some of the game's greatest players of all time...maybe avoid their overweight DH phase.</div>
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Pack 2:</div>
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Matt Olson</div>
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Pedro Martinez</div>
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Joe Musgrove</div>
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Carlos Correa</div>
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Jonathan Villar</div>
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Wade Boggs - Monikers (Gold, 1:5)</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5nCHna786TQ/WegDo6nbVJI/AAAAAAAARXY/oH7oQNh1mScW9CvqXv1Jx9WtbkehvaMogCLcBGAs/s1600/gold%2Bboggs%2Bmonikers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="472" data-original-width="341" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5nCHna786TQ/WegDo6nbVJI/AAAAAAAARXY/oH7oQNh1mScW9CvqXv1Jx9WtbkehvaMogCLcBGAs/s320/gold%2Bboggs%2Bmonikers.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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The monikers seem hit-or-miss. Chicken Man is one I've definitely heard, but as we'll see later, they get more obscure. If you squint hard enough, you can almost see Boggsy behind the FIRE logo, "Chicken Man" written in stereotype-style graffiti, and for some reason - bricks. </div>
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Pack 3:</div>
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Carl Yastrzemski</div>
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Reggie Jackson</div>
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Gary Sanchez</div>
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Lorenzo Cain</div>
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Kenta Maeda</div>
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Dan Vogelbach, the other orangesomethingorother (1:4)</div>
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There's...nothing worth mentioning here, other than a big shift in Jays: Yankees to 2:1. Yaz represent the FOURTH retired Red Sox within the first three packs, as well. Fun.</div>
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Pack 4:</div>
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Rob Zastryzny (who?)</div>
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Raimel Tapia</div>
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Renato Nunez</div>
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Wade Davis</div>
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Xander Boagerts</div>
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Clayton Kershaw Fired Up (Gold, 1:20)</div>
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I have no problem with this pack. Three rookies right off the bat, even if only one of them is likely to be in the league five years from now. Another Sox to end the pack isn't terribly inspiring, but the Kershaw is a beaut.</div>
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Pack 5:</div>
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Jose Canseco (why?)</div>
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Dave Winfield</div>
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Francisco Lindor </div>
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Zach Britton</div>
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Dellin Betances</div>
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Billy Hamilton (Green, 1:14)</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Is anyone else singing Christmas carols to themself?</i></td></tr>
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<br />Despite the green Hamilton, this was a garbage fire. Two Yankees and a Canseco. You can't get much worse than that. Ratio update: 4:1 in favor of the Evil Empire.</div>
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Pack 6:</div>
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Eddie Mathews</div>
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Aaron Boone (WTF)</div>
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Cal Ripken Jr.</div>
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Jon Lester</div>
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Michael Fulmer</div>
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Ricky Henderson Monikers - Gold (again?)</div>
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We've reached so deep into the garbage that that super gross water that forms at the bottom is leaving a stink on my fingers that will last for weeks. AARON BOONE?! Come on. </div>
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The Moniker insert here is Rickey Henderson, listed a the "Man of Steal" which I do not remember ever hearing. There must have been a better option than this. </div>
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I picked Eddie Matthews for the lone scan from this pack to illustrate how ridiculous the retired players look on a design like this. An absolute atrocity.</div>
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Pack 7:</div>
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Tyler Glasnow</div>
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Dansby Swanson</div>
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Didi Gregorious</div>
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Evan Longoria</div>
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Yoenis Cespedes</div>
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Roberto Osuna (Flame? There's no flames. It's...reddish, though.)</div>
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Didi is currently my least-despised Yankee, but he brings the ratio up to 5:2, which is horrifying, but expected. Osuna saves the pack, even if it's the second iteration of Osuna in the box, with no other Ajulejos represented. It was a fair ending.</div>
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But overall, yes...this was a hate-rip. What a monstrosity of a product. Legends on glorified holoboard emoji cards? Aaron Boone? Come on. This is the kind of garbage that Topps can keep throwing out there, and the lack of competition on the market means we'll buy it right up. </div>
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Oh, dammit. </div>
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There's another pack. Four exclusive gold minted super ultra mojo boner base cards inside! This is a threat, not a promise.</div>
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Clayton Kershaw</div>
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Mike Trout</div>
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Jeff Hoffmann</div>
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Ryne Sandberg</div>
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So, there's that. There's very few positives in this product, one of which is the very excellent "Joey Bats" Monikers available and also some Marcus Stromans. Other than that, it's just plain awful.</div>
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Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6700442399737392101.post-55022810990179697312017-10-11T11:18:00.001-04:002017-10-11T11:18:45.197-04:00The Future of Baseball in Syracuse<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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On Monday, news leaked that my "hometown" team, the Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs, had been purchased by the New York Mets. Take a look around this blog and you'll see some throwbacks to the franchise and its significance to me, especially regarding the logo.<br />
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I use the term hometown loosely, as I grew up more than an hour away from Syracuse and identify completely with Western New York and the City of Buffalo. However, its where I live and the Chiefs are the team I have been watching since the early 1990s, so anything similar to what happened earlier this week gets me a little edgy.<br />
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Syracuse is not a baseball town, and it never will be. That's fine. Neither is Buffalo. But people here are fickle and miserable and find every reason to hate going to games, sometimes myself included. Attendance is poor, but it's getting better due to GM Jason Smoral's relentless spirit and unending promotions. Can the Mets affiliation save baseball in Syracuse? I'm not sure. But we can explore this a bit. In order to at worst - <i>maintain -</i> baseball in this city, here are some suggestions.<br />
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<li>Retain Jason Smoral. Smoral has been GM of the Syracuse Chiefs since 2013, or since I've been living here permanently. Since he took over, the Chiefs have increased their attendance, mostly due to the aforementioned string of promotions, peaked by 2017's "What If" Night which featured the temporary re-brand of the Chiefs to the Syracuse Salt Potatoes. The promotion did so well, they sold merchandise to all 50 states and ended up finishing the season with yet another Salt Potatoes night versus my Buffalo Bisons. It brought something to the game that this area lacks entirely: <b>community</b>. I don't think any of this happens under any other GM, and that's why he needs to stay.</li>
<li>Go full re-brand. In the past the Chiefs have updated their colors (blue for Toronto, red and navy for Washington) and modernized their logos, but they've been the same since the 1960s (1950s?) and quite frankly, they've been left behind. Syracuse need to run with 2017's Salt Potatoes promotion and take the path of Binghamton, Richmond, Fresno, Round Rock and other successful MiLB teams have: get weird. </li>
<li>Update the food options. The food vendor at NBT Bank Stadium is truly dreadful. When a city struggles to rise from the ashes of the Rust Belt, one thing usually emerges: food. This has happened throughout Syracuse, but there has been <b>zero</b> carry-over to the stadium. Local favorites? There's just one: Hoffmann hot dogs, which I will defend until the day I die. The stadium offers salt potatoes only on promotion days, and other than that...burgers, more dogs, chicken fingers. And they're all awful. Better food will bring more people into the seats.</li>
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Seems simple enough, right? Probably not. We still have the whole Mets affiliation...thing. </div>
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In yesterday's interviews, Jeff Wilpon said something in regards to committing to the city and keeping baseball in CNY. Forgive me for not taking a Wilpon quote as gospel.</div>
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There's plenty of variables that might move the team out of the area, and none seem too far-fetched. The first is that CNY is NOT Mets territory. Aside from Queens, though, what is? The city and surrounding areas probably profile as such, in regards to fandom:</div>
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<li>Yankees (70%)</li>
<li>Red Sox (20%)</li>
<li>Mets/Blue Jays/Nationals/Braves (5%)</li>
<li>Other (5%)</li>
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This will never, ever be a Mets town. They're front-runners. Just look at SU Football attendance. The Mets aren't winners. When their teams aren't competitive, the fans disappear and cry into their shitty Syracuse Pale Ale*. The Mets affiliation itself will not affect much, aside from subjecting this eyesore of a city to <i>even more orange.</i></div>
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Will attendance drop? Probably not. But there's no way they're filling the stadium up on weeknights, regardless of any of my suggestions or the Mets' efforts to do so. The best we can hope for is sustain, be a short taxi service from AAA-MLB, and give the city something to do on summer nights. </div>
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Will sustenance be enough for the Wilpons? Since they've already paid out millions in fines for their PONZI schemes, probably not. There aren't many other markets worth pursuing in New York State, though, especially upstate.</div>
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The city's main competition will be Long Island. Currently Long Island features the Ducks, but would those stadium owners outbid our locals after the stadium lease ends in 2025? Absolutely. Why have unaffiliated ball when you can have Triple-A? It makes too much sense, even if it would still be a 45 minute drive rather than a 45 minute plane ride between both options. </div>
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I do believe baseball can succeed in Syracuse, but it will take something we just don't have here: community effort. In a city without an identity, its extremely difficult to support a Triple-A team playing in between a swamp and a swarm of overpasses located away from the populated area. The next eight years will be do-or-die for this franchise as a Triple-A affiliate. Baseball isn't getting any more popular here, and a best-case scenario might actually be Double-A in the somewhat distant future. </div>
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Oh, and this is acard blog or something, so here's a Chiefs card:</div>
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*Okay, it's not that bad. </div>
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Roy-Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05366956148844607371noreply@blogger.com1