Oh By Gosh, By Golly, Collie!

Did I feel incredibly lame while writing that title? Of course, but my hand(s) was (were) really tied in this instance (not another pun!) I was perusing Mojo and Beardy's Blog for the Ages a few weeks ago and saw some cards Mojo pulled over the summer that caught my eye. I sent him an email and we we're quickly able to work out a deal that benefited both sides (I sent him a 2009 Bowman Draft A.J. Pollock RC Refractor Auto). Mojo's got a great collection and is easy to deal with--I was so impressed with our trade that I give Mojo my full endorsement (ala Fred McGriff and Tom Emanski). Here's what he sent me:

2009 Bowman Chrome Austin Collie RC Auto: As a fantasy football veteran (though not necessarily a successful one) I realize the inherent value in Colts wide receivers. Despite sharing the field with Reggie Wayne, Dallas Clark and Anthony Gonzalez, Collie posts big numbers nearly every week and is in the very early conversation for MVP (27 receptions, 359 yards and 4 touchdowns through three games). Boy's got some serious skillz.


Thanks Mojo!

Box Break: 2010 Platinum Football (Blaster)

I fell in love with Topps Platinum last year when I pulled not one, but two, patch/autograph cards from blasters of the product. Though I don't but nearly as much football, baseball cards are a wasteland right now (unless Target starts carrying Triple Threads) so it was a no-brainer to grab a couple blasters (keep in mind I am just showing the best of multiple blasters) of Platinum. While I didn't pull a patch this time around, I was still happy with my blaster:

Anthony McCoy White Refractor RC #122/499: As a part-time Seahawks fan (I also follow the Titans and Packers) I was happy with this pull, even though McCoy is yet to produce on the football field. The refractors in this product look amazing in person and the rarer white refractors are just jaw dropping. I would recommend picking up some of these off eBay of your favorite team--refractors are one thing Topps does right.

Tim Tebow RC Variation SP: Well, I pulled a card of the "it" guy, even if we don't really know what "it" is. I'm not sure what to make of Tebow yet, I'd like to see him succeed, but I just don't know if he will ever be a top tier NFL quarterback. In the meantime, his cards have a good resale value, so I've got that going for me.

Gerald McCoy Rookie Refractor Auto #267/400: It only took (x) blasters, but I finally pulled my first auto from this year's Platinum. Gerald McCoy is set to become the next Warren Sapp (he's already got a preliminary agreement to join Dancing with the Stars in 2020) after he was drafted 3rd overall by Tampa Bay. This card hails from Group A, which is the most difficult group at over 1:300 packs. Defensive lineman don't usually sell that well, but it's still a nice card.

Thoughts: Though I wasn't nearly as lucky with Platinum as last year, I still enjoy the product and it offers some huge hits for retail. My advice? Try one blaster and see if you can't catch lightning in a bottle. Thanks for looking!

Box Break: 2009 Bowman DPP (x2)

Bowman is an extremely feast or famine product, and unfortunately, I was left quite hungry after these two boxes. It's possible that some of these lesser prospects will turn into starts later on, but I wouldn't exactly bet the house on it. Here are the goods:

Brett Wallach RC X-Fractor #1/199: An eBay one-of-one! I love x-fractors and was a little puzzled that Topps left them out of Bowman in 2010, although it does look like the will be inserted in Topps Chrome. Wallach went 6-4 on the year with a 4.25 ERA and 116 K's in 114 innings between the Dodgers and Cubs Single-A affiliates.

Tobias Streich RC Blue Refractor #99/99: Another eBay one-of-one! The blue refractors in this product are sharp, although strangely enough the hue of blue changed between Bowman Chrome and Bowman Draft. Streich was a 5th round pick but certainly didn't look like one in 2010, hitting just .150 in over 200 AB's. Not holding my breath on this one.

Jeff Manship Gold Refractor RC #12/50: It's always nice to pull something golf, even if it isn't of a top prospect. Manship (great last name) spent the second half of the season in Minnesota, posting a 2-1 record with a 5.28 ERA in 29 innings. Any Twinkies fans out there?

Tony Sanchez RC Auto: Sanchez is a big part of the Pirates youth movement and was having a great season in the minors (.314-4 HR's-35 RBI's) before breaking his jaw. Not one of the best autos in the set, but certainly not the worst.

A.J. Pollock RC Refractor Auto #/500: A.J. "the Beast" Pollock was a first round pick out of Notre Dame who missed all of 2010 with an arm injury but is still considered a solid prospect for the D-Backs. The refractor autos from this set are great looking in person, and the Mojo Hand was able to pry it away from me for an Austin Collie RC Auto. Love Pollock's signature.

Brad Boxberger RC Blue Refractor Auto #/150: The "hit" of my two boxes, Brad Boxberger was not the Reds pitching prospect I was hoping to pull from this box (looking for Mike Leake). Boxberger looks like he might be converted to a relief pitcher after struggling between Single and Double-A in 2010 (110 K's in 91 innings, but a 4.91 ERA and 1.46 WHIP). He's still just 22, so there is still plenty of time for him to develop as a pitcher.

Overall Thoughts: I had a great first box of this product (Jared Mitchell Gold Refractor Auto) but my luck came to a screeching halt with these two boxes. It's a fun break, but would be better with more than just the few refractors in each box. I'm planning to just stick to singles from now on. Thanks for looking and let me know if you are interested in anything.

Group Break Bounty: Donnie Baseball Edition

Thorzul just pulled this gem for me yesterday in a group break of 2005 Leaf Limited. This jaw-dropping card of Donnie Baseball features an autograph, bat slice and patch--not to mention it's numbered 2 of 10!! I'm no Yankees fan, but who doesn't love Mattingly? This baby is going into the vault for a long time. Thanks for the break Thorzul!

One Pack Break: 2010 Topps 206

Vernon Wells
Orlando Hudson Copper
Andy Pettite
Roy Halladay SP
Derek Jeter
Felix Hernandez Polar Bear Back (the one good thing in the pack)

Thoughts: I wasn't a fan of Topps 206 before today and this pack did little to change my mind about it. Why Topps feels the need to release an Allen & Ginter Jr. is beyond me--Heritage and A & G are enough vintage for one year. The hats off cards are beyond stupid and make a bad looking product even worse. The autograph checklist is terrible for the most part (for some reason, there is a card of Ryan Garko auto card in a Mariners uniform, even though he never played a game for them, and who wants a Garko autograph anyway) and the stickers look even more tacky and out of place than usual. Needless to say, I won't be buying anymore packs. Bring back Upper Deck!

eBay Grab Bag: Mariners and More

2007 Bowman Draft Michael Saunders Future Game Jersey: When Ken Griffey Jr. retired, Michael Saunders became my favorite Mariner. He's shown signs of improvement at the plate this season and I hope that he can grab the left field role full-time next season. It's always nice to see a home-grown guy succeed.

2009 SP Authentic Michael Saunders Silver RC #33/59: See above.

2008 UD Heroes Felix Hernandez Jersey #56/125: A jersey card of King Felix for $3 with shipping? Sign me up! He's got a shot at the Cy Young this year, but baseball voters are idiots so they'll probably choose A.J. Burnett.

2009 Bowman Draft Luca Panerati Red Refractor #2/5: Though I normally can't stand WBC cards, I got this red refractor for only 5 bucks, so I figured why the heck not? Panerati is a native of Italy currently in the Cincinnati Reds system. He's only 20-years-old so you just never know what might happen. For five bucks, I was willing to gamble.

2007 Just Stars Michael Saunders Auto #/100: It's Sunday and I'm trying to watch football. I've got nothing interesting to add. Sorry.

2009 UD Signature Stars Michael Saunders RC Auto: Though it's a sticker auto, you can barely tell as it fits nicely into the design of the card. I haven't seen too many of these on eBay, and with Upper Deck's demise in baseball, it's crazy too assume that this card is relatively short printed. Now if Saunders would only start hitting...

Another Great Pacific Northwest Trade

If you haven't made a trade with Kerry from Cards on Cards yet--what are you waiting for? My neighbor to the south has provided me with many of my favorite Mariners and Griffey cards, and this trade package was no exception. This is what he sent in the latest installment:

2009 UD Spectrum Rick Ankiel: Yes I know there aren't that many UD Spectrum fans out there, but I'm a sucker for anything shiny. It's nice to see Ankiel get the chance to play for a contender in Atlanta--if he could top off his amazing transition with a World Series it would truly be story book quality.

1992 Arena Holograms Ken Griffey Jr.: Kerry sent me two of these, one opened and another unopened in the original pack. I'm not quite sure what ever happened to Arena Holograms, but anyone who makes Griffey cards is okay in my book.

2010 Topps Chicle Stan Musial: For the most part, Topps Chicle was an utter abomination--an affront to the beautiful world God created. But, a few cards did turn out well. This is one of them.

1997 Fleer Ultra Ken Griffey Jr.: The baseball card world is a lesser place without Fleer Ultra just as baseball is a lesser sport without Ken Griffey Jr. This card may make me cry.

2002 Upper Deck Game Swatches Edgar Martinez: It seems like Kerry is a magnet to Edgar jersey cards, because I think this is around the 3rd or 4th he's sent me (not that there's anything wrong with that). I wish I was a magnet to Albert Pujols or Matt Holliday cards so I could return the favor.


Thanks for the great cards Kerry! Good luck Ducks!

Card of the Week: 2008 UD Heroes Ken Griffey Jr. Jersey Logo Patch #24/25 (Shamwow!!)

Trying to say anything about this card is worthless. It's beyond description...but feel free to tell me how cool it is.

Box Break: 2009 Bowman Chrome (Shiny!)

My brother and I both ordered a box of 2009 Bowman Chrome to bust as a last hurrah before he took off for college. For around $50, you got a boatload of shiny cards and an on-card autographed prospect. The checklist is decent (the big names include Freddie Freeman, Tommy Hanson and Carlos Santana) and with so many parallels there's rarely a dull pack in the box. My brother was lucky enough to pull a Santana auto, here's what I got:

Carlos Pena/Felix Hernandez/Bryan Shaw RC (#/500)/Jorge Cantu, Daniel Murphy and Joey Votto Refractors: I like the design of both the veteran and prospect cards and they really pop with the refractor finish. I was happy to pull the Felix as I already had his blue refractor and x-fractor from the set.

John Lackey/Garret Atkins X-Fractors #/250: Cool cards, lame players. Anybody want them?

Andy Parrino Blue Refractor RC #/150: The blue refractors in this set are simply beautiful, which is good, because Parrino is currently hitting .249 in Double-A. But seriously, if I didn't have a girlfriend, I would consider dating one of these blue refractors.

Brad Emaus Rookie Refractor Auto #200/500: While Brad Emaus isn't one of the big name prospects in the set, he's putting up some solid numbers in the minor leagues, and it's always nice to pull a refractor auto. Emaus is a second/third baseman in the Toronto system with a season line of .290-15 HR's-75 RBI's-.397 OBP between Double and Triple A. Next year's Brennan Boesch perhaps?

Overall Thoughts: Despite the fact that I didn't pull one of the top autos, I was still very happy with this box and would probably consider getting another. With 10 refractors in my box, including a prospect auto, I've got plenty of trade bait moving forward and the high quality base cards seem like inserts themselves. If you can find a box of 2009 Bowman Chrome for between $50-60, I would give it my seal of approval. Thanks for looking!