Clemente 1,300th Hit Stub, PSA 5!

Here's a really cool ticket stub I stumbled across on eBay that did not break the bank and was slabbed for the lowest-available price while I still worked at PSA. I sometimes think of what could have been if the Dodgers had not lost Roberto Clemente in the Rule 5 Draft. Greatness, that's what.

Despite Roberto never suiting up in the bigs for the Blue Crew I still enjoy collecting his stuff when the opportunity presents itself. I think this ticket stub was like $20 on eBay and it came back from PSA as a solid 5. Clemente recorded career knock number 1,300 in the June 1963 victory over the Cubbies.

Clemente finished the game with two hits and one RBI -- Ernie Banks had a hit, Ron Santo had three hits, and Bob Friend threw a complete game shutout.

2 Legends, One Ticket -- Roberto Clemente and Hank Aaron!

I could not resist picking up this stub for a reasonable price some time in the last year plus. A July 31st contest in 1957 saw Hank Aaron and Roberto Clemente take the field on the same day. Both men contributed and caught my eye for this latest addition to my collection.

Clemente had two hits and Hammerin' Hank had one as the Braves doubled up the Pirates. PSA gave this a 1.5 when I sent it in for authentication and protection. A third HOFer, Red Schoendienst, homered in the game.

1968 KDKA Pirates Roberto Clemente, SGC Authentic, From the Roberto Clemente Collection!!

Today's featured piece of cardboard is something I never thought I would own, let alone be able to afford. Sometimes this hobby surprises you and this day on eBay was most certainly one of those. While I don't exactly collect one-time Dodger prospect Roberto Clemente I very much enjoy picking up his cards here and there. This newest addition is easily the coolest and my new favorite:

Hailing from the 1968 KDKA Pirates set, it would be awesome no matter what as it's a really aesthetically-pleasing portrait of the Pittsburgh right fielder looking off into the distance at what appears to be a Spring Training-style facility. The real draw, however, is that variety line...

This comes from the Roberto Clemente Collection and was once owned by the legend himself. The auction included the letter of provenance and it was originally slabbed and sold through Hunt Auctions. This is easily one of the absolute coolest pieces I own, and while not crazy expensive, it will never leave my collection under any circumstances.

The Crown Jewel of My Roberto Clemente Collection: 1966 Kahn's Wieners Hand-Cut PSA Authentic!

My Roberto Clemente Collection is modest and there are plenty of more important/sought-after cards to chase but the below is by far my favorite Roberto that I own. I found this ages ago while cleaning at my old job at the card shop. I set it aside and there it sat for a long time before I finally asked my ex-boss to send it in to grade so we could better determine value and what I would dish out for it.

I love literally everything about the card: the yellow border; simple posed batting stance shot of the former Dodger farmhand; the facsimile auto; and last but not least the Spring Training background.

It ended up grading as I expected it would, Authentic only due to the obvious hand-cut being what you usually see with hand-cut cards....not perfect and janky. It came home with me on a recent trip back to Los Angeles and I couldn't be happier with the newest piece of my overall vintage collection.

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.

1972 Pro Star Promotions Postcards: Johnny Bench, PSA 5 (Via Canada)

I always enjoy picking up oddball issues and today's post features one I had never even heard of until I saw the card listed on eBay. I couldn't resist adding it and after a few bids I secured the latest addition to my Johnny Bench PC.

This 1972 Pro Star Promotions Postcard of the Hall of Fame backstop is a Canadian issue and unlicensed. I bought it raw and sent it in to PSA through work because why not. It came back with the 5 grade I expected due mostly to a janky bottom right corner. The simple shot of Bench works for me and Johnny is the 4th most valuable card in the set behind guys named Clemente, Mays, and Rose.

1967 Topps Posters Roberto Clemente, A Collecting Shift, and My 2016 Goals.

I thought I'd start 2016 off with a representation of what the year will hold collecting-wise for me. I've begun a fairly prominent re-boot to my collection in the last couple of months. I've almost cut my eBaying down to nothing and have made a strong push to complete the various sets on my Want List, and I plan on those things being the major goals in the new year.

I want to complete all of those sets plus 2016 Allen & Ginter when it hits. I'm going to just focus on my main essential PC guys -- Kemp, Kershaw, Martin, Getzlaf, Campanella, Wheat, Seager, Rosen, Alworth, John Gibson, Tomlinson -- as well as vintage and oddball vintage in-particular, as with the below poster. An occasional non-PC item that I just really like will probably be purchased here and there but I've been fine cutting those types of transactions out so I'll continue with that move.

I want to trade more and hold some giveaways to condense the collection and give back to our stellar card and card-blogging community. I've got some really cool stuff I picked up in 2015 (and even in 2014) that I have yet to post so I want to clean out the drafts folder and get everything posted and showcased.

Anyways, I snagged the above 1967 Topps Posters Roberto Clemente from my LCS, aka work, for just $2.50. I love Clemente and the shot used; I have a very small PC of him that I add to when it doesn't break my wallet.

1960 Topps: ¡Hola, Roberto Clemente!

The latest addition to my accumulation of Roberto Clemente cards is his rad 1960 Topps offering. I say accumulation rather than collection because if I actually tried to collect Clemente seriously -- even in lower grade with the occasional mid-grade pickup splurge -- I'd probably go bankrupt quickly.

The price was a bit more than I was hoping to pay for this good copy with nice eye appeal. There's writing on the back I didn't catch listed in the description but overall I'm comfortable enough with the price I paid to add to my very modest Clemente stash. I will say this: I'd take this over a blaster any day of the week.

Trade With Coot Veal and the Vealtones: Vintage Dodgers Are The Best.

I completed my second trade with Dustin from Coot Veal and the Vealtones. Dustin contacted me about some Dodgers' bait he had and after a handful of e-mails we had worked out a deal complete with both new and old cardboard.

Vintage! Vintage first, because of course vintage first. This '57 Podres immediately caught my eye from a trade bait post Dustin put up and I just had to have it. That Brooklyn B had a lot to do with my desire to acquire.

Floating heads! Would you believe it wasn't Wally Moon that attracted me to this 1962 Topps Leaders card? Mr. Clemente has a strong and growing hold on me.

We round out the vintage portion of this trade post with a well-loved 1952 Bowman of Carl Furillo. It pairs nicely with the well-loved '52 Bowman Campanella I have.

Moving on to more recent cardboard we start with a triple relic of Don Drysdale. It's a bit creased but I'm not passing on game-used Drysdale cards. It's #'d 42/99.

I was able to add many a new Matt Kemp card, starting with this manufactured coin thing from 2013. It's also numbered, 47/99 to be exact. It's....heavy.

The rest of the Kemp pickups plus 5 new Clayton Kershaw cards for my Kid K PC. I'm closing in on 400 unique Bison cards and should be there by the end of 2015.

Dustin also added a pair of new Russell Martin cards along with a pair of much appreciated and needed Allen & Ginter inserts and a relic I sent to Stupienski.

Thanks for a wonderful trade Dustin!

Another Vintage Roberto Clemente Pickup: A Beautifully Beat 1956 Topps

I'm starting to gain a soft spot in my collecting ways for vintage Roberto Clemente. Working around so many pieces of his playing-day cardboard will do that to a guy. He has so many great cards, but unfortunately most say "Bob" rather than "Roberto" for reasons that are obvious if you know anything about the U.S. in the late 1950s through the 1960s. However, his 1956 Topps card -- a second-year offering -- is just a perfect card, complete with a great action shot and a swell portrait on top of a great design. Best of all, Topps did in fact go with Roberto.

Yes, it is horribly trimmed. I knew that going in -- it's the only reason the card stayed in my price range -- but it's more trimmed than I had realized. I'm okay with that as owning the card was more important to me than condition, and I enjoy my vintage showing some wear and love. I'll eventually upgrade it but for the time being I'm more than pleased with what is just my second vintage Clemente.

My First Vintage Roberto Clemente!

Working at a card shop -- particularly one that specializes in vintage -- can have its advantages. I see cards I've never seen before, get to personally examine them if something catches my eye, and I get an up close and personal look at other people's collecting interests which allows me to analyze if something needs to be added to my personal collection. One customer we have is a huge Roberto Clemente collector and it's been a joy to watch him collect. Also, holding so many beautiful pieces of Clemente cardboard is pretty damn sweet.

I knew I had to add a vintage Bob and remove a large hole in my vintage PC. Though I had many options to choose from I wasn't looking to break the bank and I do enjoy oddball releases. 1964 Topps Giants fits nicely into both categories in addition to being a really aesthetically-pleasing set. The above beaut is my very first piece of vintage Roberto, and the best part about it was the price: it was free!

We had a customer looking to sell a huge collection of basically everything from the 50s to the 90s: baseball, football, basketball, and hockey. Roughly 90% of what my bosses buy is 60s or older, and we dug through his stuff for about 3 hours before my boss bought about 4000-5000 cards to add to our inventory.

The gentleman was very nice and told my boss I should be able to pick out a card for my hard work. I wasn't going to oblige unless I got the go-ahead, of course, and when I did the decision was an easy one as I've had my eye on a Clemente for some time (and the '64 Giants card in particular).

The seller also let me pick through what he had left after the transaction, so I partially filled an 800-count box with a ton of mostly non-sports stuff. Eventually, I'll post on some of those cool cards. In the meantime, a long-overdue welcome to the collection, Roberto!