Card Show Recap: They Still Exist.

I spent a number of hours at a local card show in Orange County this weekend with some friends. It was a good time and a nice change of pace. A few more vintage tables would be great but I was still able to find some cool stuff to purchase.

My favorite pickup was this 1962 Post Roberto Clemente Red Lines Variation, slabbed a PSA Authentic. I somehow missed it on my first pass through the show and the table it resided at and thankfully everyone else missed it. It was priced at a very reasonable $15 and I love getting a good deal on a sweet item. It's a great combo and a fun addition to my beyond modest Clemente Collection.

One vendor had a slew of scorecards that were signed. I thought they were pretty cool but didn't want to spend too much on such a random item. I ended up finding the above which was appealing because Max Muncy was playing for the AAA Dodgers at that point (summer 2017) and I don't have anything Muncy in my collection. Plus, the Dodgers were playing the New Orleans Baby Cakes which is a great team name to go along with a great mascot. At $10 it was an easy decision and will be something fun to display on my desk at work.

One dealer had some really nice dollar boxes to pick through and I nabbed the above plus a few others to end up at 11 cards for $10 when it was all said and done. A ripped RIP card /10 for a dollar every day of the week. The Piazza, almost unbelievably, is a set need for a set I don't even want to finish.

BWTP's Secret Santa Goodies

I participated for the second year in Bob Walk's Secret Santa shenanigans. I recently received a bubbler from Captain Kirk which hit on a number of my current collecting interests. There was more than what I scanned but, short on time, I focused on the best stuff.

Kirk knocked off the remaining two needs from the Dodgers' portion of 2001 Topps American Pie. This appealed to me back in the day because it's such a nice looking set and I'm glad I'm finally done with it after all of these years.

Four more Want List needs followed with these additions to my 1975 Fleer Pioneers of Baseball Set. It's still one of my favorite sets and is full of so many interesting players.

Captain sent along four brand new additions to my Clayton Kershaw Collection.

Somehow this Matt Kemp didn't already reside in my Bison PC, which honestly stuns me as I feel like I had numerous copies of this at various times.

Finally, three of my all-time favorite Dodgers.

Thanks and Happy New Year!

When Andrew McCutchen Hit Number 200, I Won A Bunch of Cool Stuff

Brian of Collecting Cutch fame held a contest a while back to predict when Andrew McCutchen would hit his 200th career dinger. I managed to somehow guess the exact day and found a bunch of goodies in my mailbox shortly thereafter as my contest winnings.

The main draw of Brian's contest with this slick-looking autograph of Hall of Fame hurler Bob Gibson. It is my first John Hancock of Gibson and is numbered 96/100. I was not and am not at all familiar with these Historic Autograph Originals but I do like that it came pre-slabbed.

Here's a fantastic Matt Kemp 1/1 Yellow Plate from his 2006 Updates & Highlights rookie card. I'm always happy to add another sweet hit to my Bison Collection.

Three new additions to the Minotaur PC.

Two more Mattycakes cards I was previously without.

ManBearSeag! Hope the elbow heals up fully over the offseason.

Finally, random goodness and three of my favorite Dodgers ever.

Brian, as always, you are too generous! Thank you my friend!

Collecting Cutch & My 1st SuperFractor!

A while back I got a really great bubbler full of cardboard from Brian, formerly of Pirates Treasure Room and now the proprietor of Collecting Cutch. He sent a ton of great stuff and I've highlighted my favorites below.

My first SuperFractor! This beaut is the Super for Russell's 2009 Bowman Chrome offering, which just so happens to be one of the best Russ cards out there in terms of the photo they chose. Play At The Plate would be proud. Here's the full shot of that play between Martin and Nyjer Morgan, commemorated on Russ' 2009 regular Bowman card and seen on this 1/1 Black Plate I picked up eons ago. I might get this graded just for giggles.

Gorgeous! This sweet logo patch-auto, numbered 3/5, hails from 2011 Topps Marquee and the Acclaimed Impressions subset. I'm always thrilled to add a high-end Bison John Hancock to the collection. If it also brings with it a sweet piece of the "Los Angeles" from a Blue Crew uniform, it's icing on the already sweet cake.

Here's a triple auto, numbered 19/25, out of the sticker dumpster fire that was 2012 UD SP Signature Edition. It also features Andrew McCutchen and Shane Victorino; I don't think I'd ever use the word "superstar" to describe Victorino. Really good to great for stretches, yes. But superstar, nope.

Three more new additions to the Mattycakes' PC.

Brian added a cool 10 cards to my Kid K PC. The above jumbo is my favorite.

The Sega CardGen with the old-school Brooklyn throwback is just nails.

ManBearSeag! I dig the 1967 Topps set so the Heritage is right up my alley.

Vintage Koufax! There is literally little better. Drysdale came along for the ride too!

A Gerrit Cole auto appeared. (Go Bruins!)

As did a cool Gil Hodges numbered out of 99.

And some miscellaneous Koufax cards, with the silver GQ mini #'d /199.

A pair of less super-fractor-y Russ cards. That Martin Konami Mini is awesome.

And finally, a lot of random goodness. Look, that famous Campy pose again.

Red-themed Kenley and Duke Gypsy mini are the highlights.

An endless amount of thanks Brian!

Mike Piazza!

Starting A Johnny Bench PC: 1971 Topps!

I've decided to begin one more vintage player collection. It's partly because my Rosen and Campy PCs are winding down to the hard and expensive stuff while my Wheat PC can only grow so fast considering it's all pre-war stuff I need. In addition, I really like the player I'm now collecting and his cardboard is aesthetically-pleasing. So, to start off this new collection I picked up this beaut:

1971 Topps, number 250, EX to EX-MT and a steal on eBay: hello Mr. Johnny Bench! I've been a Bench fan for some time and that's fitting considering I tend to gravitate towards a number of catchers (Piazza, Russ Martin, Carlos Santana, A.J. Ellis). '71s are always tricky with that chippy black border but I was able to nab this gorgeous copy for about a third of what we sell it for at work in the same condition. I simply could not pass that up.

For this PC I'll only be targeting his 60s and 70s cards. There will probably be an oddball or two that finds its way into my hands but I have no desire for his 1980s cardboard. I'll need an auto to go along with the fantastic triple relic I traded for back in 2012 (so I guess technically that was the start of my Johnny collection).

The First of Many Chavez Ravining Posts: Puig, Greinke, Orel, Piazza, Big Hurt

About a year ago I purchased a large portion of cardboard from my good buddy Alex of the now-defunct Chavez Ravining. Alex had decided to leave the hobby for a while to focus on other things and I appreciate that he gave me the opportunity to add some great cards to my collection. He'll be back one day, as this hobby is cyclical in that way. Whenever he returns I'll have some cool stuff to send his way as a thank you, but in the meantime it's about time I showcase some of the awesome stuff he sent my way.

We start with a former Dodger in Zack Greinke. I don't believe he had any autos during his time in Los Angeles so I'm happy to pick up the above and below relics of him. The Triple Threads "Zack Attack" is numbered 12/36.

That's probably a Brewers' jersey swatch. Probably.

An assortment of #ManBearPuigs and a few Greinkes. The Panini Prizm Fearless insert is numbered 02/99 and is my favorite card of the whole lot featured today, followed closely by the Puig sketch from Edward Vela.

Piazzas make any bubbler better. Fact.

This is such an easy 80s card I'm surprised I somehow never owned it until now. I may one day break it from its plastic-y, made-for-TV tomb. 1985 Topps Orel Hershiser RC; simple but appreciated.

And finally, a Frank Thomas 1990 Bowman RC slabbed as an SGC 96. It just felt right to scan it in and include it in this first batch of goodness. Also, I really love SGC holders above any other graded holder.

This is just the tip of the iceberg and I have not come close to scanning in the best stuff I received from Alex. The first of many thanks amigo!

About Damn Time

Congrats on the Hall, Mike! Well earned. Piazza was my favorite player growing up and remains one of my all-time faves. Here are some of my favorite pieces of cardboard featuring one of the greatest Dodgers ever to wear Blue.