My 1st COMC Purchase: Batman, Bison, Hockey, and Pre-War British Tobacco!

I recently received my first COMC buy in the mail. I had been building up a cache of cards for almost a couple years and did so entirely through credit earned by completing challenges COMC offered after their breakup with Beckett.

BATMAN cardboard! I've discussed my love of these before and I couldn't resist picking up this great shot of a "Cycling Crusader" for a wee bit of COMC credit. The artwork on these cards is just spectacular and then some. This is from the Red Bat A Series released in 1966.

I'm beyond tempted to slowly put together this Red Bat set as it's only 44 cards deep and I now have six cards without putting in much effort.

MORE BATMAN! Here's the "Concrete Conquest" card from the B Series Blue Bat issue, also out of the year that was 1966. It's another 44-card set and although it's my first Blue Bat piece of cardboard I might just have to give it a go as well. Again, the artwork on this bad boy is just amazingly impeccable.

The '66 Black Bat set is a bit tricky at 55 cards but it's doable.

The colorful and puzzled Batman backs.

Despite the extra-large scan this beaut is a mini from 2005 Bowman Heritage and a Bison I somehow had never gotten my hands on. It sat on my Want List forever and I finally decided to change that. I dig everything about it, down to Matty sporting number 44.

I must give a big thanks to shoeboxlegends for making me aware of this beautiful piece of cardboard's existence. Teemu is synonymous with Ducks' history and this is all sorts of amazingly awesome. Gaudy is the best word to describe it and after seeing sbl post I immediately went and added it to this batch of COMC cards.

The back is somehow more reserved despite the color and font.

Rakell! Rakell would be priority 1A for me this offseason if I was Ducks' GM, basically in a tie with Hampus Lindholm. Both are Restricted Free Agents and I only prioritize Ricky because the Ducks' have done a much better job at drafting and developing d-men over the last handful of years. Both need to be signed long-term though and I believe both will be.

I wanted to add Rakell's Young Guns RC for the nice game shot and affordability.

This card has captivated me for years. It hails from the absolutely stunning UD Masterpieces of 2008 and the canvas shot of LT -- who in my humble opinion is the greatest running back of all-time -- is a classic and unique one showcasing his passing ability. Much like the pitchers batting pictures we all love this oddball photo UD chose instantly drew me to the card.

Tomlinson could do it all, excelling not just in carrying the ball but in catching passes from the backfield and split out wide, blocking, and throwing as he was 8 for 12 in his career with 7 TD tosses.

British tobacco cards allow me the opportunity to link to one of my favorite scenes from any TV show ever. That Yorkshire card was also a COMC addition for the aforementioned shoeboxlegends although this time it's a mere coincidence we both added this pre-war tobacco card to our respective carts. I nabbed it way back on January 5th of 2015 for some reason that now eludes me and it waited patiently for me to complete my order.

Yorkshire cakes is just a funny phrase which probably explains why I liked it. That and it was a lonely dollar to purchase. A dollar of store credit earned through challenges. Basically, a what the hell buy.

The rest of this COMC batch of goodies will be written up and scanned in the upcoming weeks.

1500th Post!

Today's post is the 1500th in the 3 and a half-ish year history of Plaschke, Thy Sweater Is Argyle. I wanted to thank every person that has ever taken the time to read, comment on, link to, or share my work. PTSIA began as ramblings of a Dodgers' fan with nobody to rant to, moved to analytical work (thanks Chad!), and has become a mostly card blog. I intend on writing more statistical and analytical pieces, I swear. I say that knowing full well I've said it before, but I actually mean it.

Anyways, enough with the chitchat. Let's get to what I know you all came for (phrasing....boom) and visit my blog for above all else.

Saving the best for second and after the jump. To those of you that actually clicked on the post: you're welcome.

4th Place = A Duke Snider Auto? YEEEESSSSSS!

Some time ago, I participated in a very interactive contest over at Cards Beyond Oceans. There were multiple winners, and I came in fourth place. Ordinarily, you wouldn't expect a fourth place prize to be a card you would end up cherishing. You would be stoked to win something and very grateful for the contest itself, but you wouldn't have the word "YEEEESSSSSS!" in the title. This was no ordinary fourth place prize though. It was a mystery prize, and I'm nothing if not a man of mystery.

The Duke of Flatbush! Oh snap! I was blown away to not only have been amongst the winners, but to have been in position to receive such an amazing piece of cardboard goodness. Numbered 80/99 and complete with a piece of Duke's lumber, it's just my third Duke John Hancock, two of which are certified.

The fine gentlemen across the pond also sent along some extras, including a new Kemp, a new Kershaw, and two new Broxton minis.

And as always, when England is involved, I get to show the phenomenal below clip and use the awesome tag that is "Would You Like A Spot of Tea.....YEEEESSSSSS." It's not the exact video I want - that one is no longer available - but it'll surely do in a pinch, and is just as spectacular as the one I was hoping to post.

Thanks for the fantastic prize Martyn and Tony! I greatly appreciate it!

Trade With 7 Hours From Tampa Bay: My First Dee Gordon Auto Yields A Trifecta, A Massive Amount of 2011 A&G, and Some English Aristocracy

I completed my first trade with Simon from 7 Hours From Tampa Bay. Simon posted a box break, and I was very interested in the card you'll soon see below. After a few e-mails back and forth, Simon and I came to an agreement on an awesome trade. I sent him a chunk of 1968 Topps Game cards he needed in his efforts to complete that set, as well as three autos and the 2011 Ginter N43 I pulled in my box break earlier this year. The centerpiece of the deal for me is this absolute beauty:

Oh snap! I've been after a Devaris Strange-Gordon auto for quite some time, and I'm thrilled to add this on-card and shiny bad boy to my collection. It's the refractor version of his RC autograph, #'d 128/499. It also completes my Gordon Trifecta.

Simon also tossed in the base version of Dee's RC and Andre Ethier's base card.

Before I get to just how much 2011 Ginter Simon knocked out, I'd like to point out that this marks the furthest one of my trade packages has traveled, as Simon resides in jolly old England. Which allows me to include the wonderfully amazing clips above and below.

Anyhoo, moving on as we flourish the pinkie.

Simon sent along a slew of 2011 Allen & Ginter needs. Getting specific, his bubbler included one Animal in Peril, one Ascent of Man, eight Hometown Heroes, and fifty-four base cards, five of which are SPs. My remaining '11 Ginter needs have been updated accordingly.

Thanks for the absolutely fantastic trade Simon! Do I hope we deal again? YEEEESSSSSS!