First Day Issues Top 5 Pulls of 2010

Two thousand and ten was a banner year for me in terms of card collecting with a bevy of big money hits and rare pulls. Of course I also spent a boatload of money, but in the end, I'd say I did pretty well. Judge for yourself:

#5) 2008 Bowman Draft Gordon Beckham RC Auto Refractor #/500: This might not be the biggest pull in terms of monetary value after Beckham's stinker of a season, but considering I pulled it from two packs at a gas station, I feel it deserves to make the list. The card is in great condition and I might send it in to BGS or PSA if I ever work up the energy. It'll be tough to pull a better card from a gas station, but I'll never rule it out...

#4) 2010 Topps Chrome Awkwasi Owusu-Ansah Superfractor RC #1/1: I thought I might go my whole collecting career without pulling a superfractor but in my second ever hobby box of football cards I pulled this beauty. Now, Akwasi Owusa-Ansah (henceforth referred to as AOA) isn't exactly a household name, but anybody in a Cowboys uniform is a potential hobby star and I can't complain about an amazing looking card that was 1:2,500+ packs.

#3) 2009 Bowman Draft Jared Mitchell Gold Refractor #37/50: With some of the proceeds of the sale from card number one on this list (you won't want to miss that) I purchased a box of 2009 Bowman Draft from Atlanta Sports Cards and pulled a Mike Minor RC Auto and this Jared Mitchell Gold Refractor RC Auto which sold for $150. It was tough to part with because I love the design of 2009 Bowman, but I don't have the courage for high stakes prospecting, so I dropped it like it was hot.

#2) 2010 Topps Platinum Sam Bradford/Colt McCoy Dual Auto #13/25: This card came from my very first hobby box of football cards after the frustration of not pulling a patch/auto out of countless retail blasters reached it's boiling point. I ordered this box from Blowout Cards and although it didn't contain a patch auto (Topps rectified the situation later) I was awfully happy to pull a dual auto of the top rookie quarterbacks. With Bradford's strong season and McCoy's late season emergence, I was able to sell this on eBay for a cool $150. If only every box was so fruitful...

#1) 2008 Bowman Draft Jason Heyward Aflac Auto SP: Early on in 2010 I was hooked on Bowman Draft after pulling a few autos from a box of the 2009 variety. I decided to go after a box of 2008 Draft but finding one at the right price (less than $100) proved elusive. I finally gambled on a box from eBay even though I didn't really have the money for it at the time...call it hunch. About 2/3 thirds of the way through the box I hadn't pulled a single card of note until this jawdropper emerged. With Heyward's hobby star rising and the extreme rarity of this card, I was able to sell it for an unbelievable $500 dollars. The pull of a lifetime? Maybe...

Pack Attack: Topps Chrome Wrapper Redemptions

Here's what Brian and I got from our wrapper left over from the box busting bonanza. I was a little disappointed we didn't receive a Strasburg or Posey, but it was a solid group of players overall. The cards look great in person and don't seem to have any of the quality control issues that the regular Topps Chrome set had. Thanks for looking!

Box Break: 2008 Bowman Draft Hobby (Aflac Auto)

I've been on a bit of prospecting spree lately, a choice made easier by the utter lack of new products being released. As crazy as it sounds, I had a gut feeling that if I was going to buy a box, it had to be a box of 2008 Bowman Draft. The feeling was so strong that I spent some money I didn't really have to get a box off eBay, and as luck would have it, the decision turned out pretty well. You've already seen the best card out of this box but here are the rest of the inserts to get a better idea about how the product looks:

Brent Morel Blue Border Parallel #69/399: The blue border parallels fall about one per box and work fairly well with the design of the base cards. My blue border was of White Sox third base prospect Brent Morel, a third round pick of the team who just got promoted to Triple A. He's a career .298 hitter in the minor leagues so there's a chance this card may raise in value from $1 to $2. I guess that's just what makes prospecting so much fun.

Will Inman Rookie Refractor: The refractors from this set look phenomenal in person--really some of the nicest looking refractor cards I have ever seen. The first one I pulled was of Padres' pitcher Will Inman, who was originally drafted by the Brewers in 2005. The 23-year-old right hander has put together a solid minor league career and is currently sporting a 3.42 ERA at Triple-A Portland. The Padres' already have a surplus of pitching, so maybe he'll be moved at the deadline this year when the team looks for more offense. At least he's still in baseball.

Lou Marson Futures Game Refractor: Marson came to the Indians as the part of the Cliff Lee trade and started 2010 as Cleveland's primary catcher. He's struggled at the plate and is likely only keeping the seat warm till top prospect Carlos Santana gets called up, but Marson did hit three doubles a few days after I pulled this card, so that's something. Right?

Kevin Dubler X-Fractor Rookie #68/199: After nearly being blinded by the shine of this card (I first thought it was a Gordon Beckham auto) I realized that I had pulled an x-fractor of someone with a great baseball name. Unfortunately, Dubler hasn't lived up to his surname yet, with just 14 two-baggers in over 300 minor league at-bats. There's still time, but I don't plan on stocking up on his cards just yet. I would love to get an x-fractor auto from this set--it would look stellar.

Carlos Gutierrez First Year Auto: Well, thank goodness for the next card, because this is one of the worst autographs in the product. Carlos Gutierrez was a first round pick of the Minnesota Twins out of the University of Miami and has struggled to live up to his potential after undergoing Tommy John surgery. He's currently in Double-A but it looks like he is still a long way off from the big leagues. Though I was upset that I didn't pull a good chrome auto with so many good names available, I quickly realized that I couldn't feel too bad after I pulled the Heyward. That's just selfish.

Jason Heyward Aflac Auto: Sold for $499...nuff said.

Overall Thoughts: If you can find a box of 2008 Draft between $80-90 it's a great buy. There's an amazing checklist of future stars (Jesus Montero, Mike Stanton, Ike Davis, Buster Posey, Gordon Beckham, Wilmer Flores, etc.) and if you pull a parallel version of an autograph you're in for a nice payday. There's also an outside shot at a Jason Heyward Aflac Auto, though a bit less so after this box :) The base chrome cards have a nice design and the refractors look great in person. If you like prospecting, and are looking at fun high risk/high reward type box, then I would highly recommend 2008 Draft. I'm using my earnings from this break to buy a few more boxes so stay tuned for a couple of box breaks in the next week.

As always, thanks for dropping by!

I Just the Pulled the Most Amazing Card of My Life: Run, Don't Walk to First Day Issue and Prepare to Be Stupified!! My Oh My!!! You Gotta See This!

I just got done busting a box of 2008 Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects (full review to come once I catch my breath) and needed to show the blogosphere the mind-boggling great card I pulled. Behold, a 2006 Aflac Auto of rookie superstar Jason Heyward. I was literally shaking when I pulled this card (a case hit by the way) because I knew it was one of the best cards in the product. Little did I know how good it was--the last few have sold on eBay between $400 and $500 dollars!!! Needless to say I am on top of the world right now and I am still trying to wrap my mind around how amazing this card is. WOW! Thanks for looking!!!