Highly objective trade

Brian, from the new blog Highly subjective and completely arbitrary wasted no time immersing into the community and finding his tone and his stride. I quickly contacted him to set up a trade, even though I didn't have much Twins-wise, but it's always fun to add new trading partners to the ol' handbook.

Brian is my type of collector (now now, let's not get all excited, my heart belongs also to other traders (you know who you are)), and we seem to share many similar views about the hobby (yes, I guess that means that my type is someone who thinks like me. I like me a lot). And after shipping something like a couple team bags of Twins, he hit me bag full throttle with twice as many, plus a couple of unopened packs. You win round one, Brian, but I'll be back for more. Yup, you guessed it, there'll be a second date.

First pack : 17 cards of 88 Score. My second one after the one sent by Julie. At that rate, I'll have a complete set by the end of the year.

Second pack : Conlon cards ! I love those. I didn't own a single one before that, which is strange, since I've always pondered trying to complete the set. Ok, maybe only one of the series.Seems like a great way to learn more about the players.

Now, for the Blue Jays goodness :

80's junk needs ! I have very few early Donruss, strangely. I understand that those very first sets were riddled with errors, misprints and terrible photographs. The card stock isn't that great either. Which is what makes it indispensable. That Jorge Bell on the bottom right is an oddball. An 86 wax box card numbered...hold on...lettered A. Anyone know more about those ?

I already had those, but you can never, NEVER go wrong with holograms and Black gold cards.

Speaking of Alomar, how about throwing out your own brother ? I only had the gold parallel of that card, so yay.

Mid-90s !

More mid-90s ! So much foil, it's almost blinding. I love all of those, especially the Delgado silver parallel and the electric diamond (yes, I'm one of the few who really like 94 UD). The Crash the game insert was a hell of a great idea. Carter went 3 for 4 on August 9 1995. But didn't hit a HR. Too bad, I would've redeemed it otherwise.

Stepping away from the 90s. This makes me sad. That Mondesi is very, very shiny.

New old cards !

Good thing those first two are parallels, or I would've thought each card was from the same set and year.

Finally, Brian also included that sweet Elite auto. Ok, turns out Jackson never played for the Blue Jays (he was included in that trade to the Brewers to get Overbay), but who cares, it's a nice, low numbered shiny card.

There were twice as many cards, sorry I didn't scan them all, but a bunch of great Blue Jays, a Griffey and even a few Knicks rounded out the package. Thanks a lot for all that, Brian, I had a blast sorting them out. As a matter of fact, I think one of those is my 5 000 th different Blue Jays card. I'll know once I enter them in my spreadsheet.

This is so exciting !

Jet lag : my first look at 2015 Topps

Yesterday, I also received the cards from the 2015 Topps case break held by Chris, who's holding a 2015 Heritage case break, so don't hesitate to go have a look at the teams still available ! You'll notice that the Blue Jays are still up for grabs.The reason is very simple : even though it was fun to join that 2015 Topps flagship break, it's hardly worth it in a shear monetary/value way. Chris has nothing to do with this, he did a great job with the break, filming everything and sending out the packages real fast. But the amount of Blue Jays hits and inserts is very small compared to other teams. Not counting parallels, there are only 20 different cards in series 1.  The Dodgers have 85. The Yankees, 87. And the two autos are of Brett Cecil and Aaron Sanchez, that I can find for a couple of dollars shipped. Add to this the fact that I add a few extra bucks for additional shipping charges, and I guess I made my case. And it's the same with this year's Heritage. Some Sps, but besides that, nothing much to expect.

But again, and I insist, this still was fun,and it looks like it's a ton of work, so thanks again, Chris, and I'll be looking out for the next ones. We never know !

As a matter of fact, all things considered, I didn't do too bad parallel wise. A couple of low numbered ones, and a foil parallel.

Black parallel, SN 22/64

Snow camo, SN12/99

 And it's no surprise, you all know by now that those foil parallels don't scan well at all !

One of my usual ebay sellers (from Japan) had a foil parallel lot that included the Bautista on the left and the cards down there. I don't know any Giants or A's collector, but they'll probably end up in a trade at some point. He also had that logo pin, one of the handful of Blue Jays hits, so I might as well pick it up now while I think of it. It's a cute, hefty, thick card, and cost me something like $4.

While I was at it, I also bid on that R.A. Dickey game used...Well, game used bat. Those always amuse me. I'm not sure an AL pitcher goes through too many bats, but like they say, it's not from any specific game or event. I'll just see it as a pretty piece of wood. And try not to get a splinter in my finger.

The usual ebay suspects

Today, I received a box full of goodies sent from my good friends at Comc. Yes, I consider like friends. I don't know if they'd drive me to the airport, but I like to think they would. We're tight like that.

As usual, I got some stuff directly from Comc, and some other cards that I won off ebay.
As usual (bis), I'll start with.....VINTAGE !

I want as many Brooks Robinson cards as possible, starting with his playing days. The good news is that even his older cards can be found for a few dollars. This one cost me $5, and I've got the 1958, 1960 and 1961 issues headed my way (yay).

 A third year Reggie. Does anyone actually try to put together a mint 1971 set ?

Woohooo, it's 1972 !! Including Mays' last card as a Giants. Those last four were less than $3 each.

 I am very, very happy to finally be adding this card to my collection. I've been chasing it for a while now, but I always got outbid while sleeping (this is unfair, ebay should have a rule against that). I didn't want to spend more than $12 on it (no reason in particular, I just like setting challenges to myself. It keeps me awake during auctions), so I just waited for the right moment and the poorest condition available (but still presentable). And tadah, $11 later, it's mine. One of the most iconic cards, in my opinion, from one of the most important years in baseball.

Now THAT'S a play at the plate.

Next up : the best insert set ever. It took me 20 years, but I've finally completed it. Life is so much simpler with money and the internet...

 That Winfield is actually also a Blue Jays card. I'll keep it in my 93 Upper Deck binder though. He'll live.

Again : not a fan of Panini. But I like those Immaculate cards a lot. Especially for 99 cts each.

Remember how I mentioned that I absolutely love those All time favorites autos ? Well, I wasn't lying. Now, if I can just get my hands on the Blue Jays Olerud one...

I don't really understand that set. No logos, no photos, just sticker autos (that would make a good jingle). I wonder if anyone bought those ? They're still fun to collect though (so I'll take that as a yes)

See how much better an auto looks like when it's free from its sticker prison ? Look at that exuberance. It's absolutely perfect. Topps Tribute can hardly ever be found for cheap, so I'm happy I got that one for $4.

It doesn't really show, but that card looks very nice in person. It's acetate and hefty and just plain cool. Too bad the auto is a little faded (what did they think ? It's plastic). Still a nice addition, and yes, I'm aware that Isiah Thomas never played for the Knicks. He could've, though, considering his style of play and hatred of the Bulls.

Raymond Felton left the ship at the right time. He won't play as much in Dallas, though.

So there you go ! Whole buncha pickups from a little bit everywhere and everything.Just like I love it.

ROY vs Runner Up : trading with Off Hiatus

A few weeks ago, I sent a few cards to Tony, from the great blog Off Hiatus Baseball cards  (Voted best new blog this year by the entire community of bloggers, and they know what they're talking about, even though they didn't vote for me (then again, this may precisely show that they know what they're talking about)). I was young, I was intrepid, and I just sent some random Brewers cards I had laying around.Nothing very special, nothing fancy, your usual 90s cardboard, plenty of which he probably already had.

A little bit after that, Tony offered up for grabs some cards he'd gotten at his LCS (or at a show, I don't remember), and I asked if he'd be willing to send one overseas. And overseas it traveled, and here it is :

Incidentally, this is my very first '76 Topps issue. A great shot of the future Blue Jays World Champion (but I don't think it was on his mind at the time, especially since the Blue Jays didn't even exist in 76).

Along with that card, Tony included over 100 cards from my want list. And I know how big of a pain it can be to browse through a want list and check each and every year, so I really appreciate the effort. He knocked off a bunch of my 70s and 80s needs, so yay.

They don't seem to get much love in the blogosphere, but I really like the design on those 78 cards.

Also included were an awesome variety of cards from all eras

1987 Leaf !

Ten days ago, I didn't know those oversized cards existed. Tony and Mark knocked off the Blue Jays checklist for 83, 84 and 86

Mid 80s Sportflics ! Man I love those. Nothing beats Sportflics. I wonder how kids liked them back then, if they thought it was the coolest thing on earth.

Ok, Kellogg's issues beat Sportflics to the finish line. Tony is represented by Tony the Tiger, which seems fitting.

I'm missing a ton of early Donruss. I don't even own a single 83 issue.

Topps Bigs are a pain to put in binders, but their backs are awesome

Some random oddballs and minis. I wonder how you use those scratchoffs ? I'm afraid to try. I'm afraid it'll turn into a mix between Jumanji and Poltergeist.

90s needs ! (aaaaah, those were the days)

Modern vintage throwbacks. From what I've seen, I think they id a good job on those Goudeys.

 Jose ! I have several parallel versions of the 2011 Topps, and for some strange reason, was missing the regular issue.

At first, I thought Tony include that Neon Deion because he's part of my Pc. Turns out, it's a Blue Jays card (yup, look on the bottom right). This is crazy, I had no idea there were cards of him as a Blue Jay, considering he signed with them for a month in 2001 before retiring, but never played. This has got to be the only one out there. Well done Tony !

Thanks a lot Tony for taking the time to look at my want list and knock off so many cards. I owe you a bunch of Brewers !

Quickie

The more I spend my life on roam Ebay, the more I find interesting dealers offering good rates on international shipping. The Comc mailbox service is absolutely great, and about to become greater as they're dividing in half the processing costs, from $1 per card to .50 cts, but I prefer receiving cards in 10 days rather than 6 to 8 weeks. Especially when buying lots of 10 cards or more, then it makes sense to have them sent out directly to me. Plus, many ebayers let you shop around for a few days (usually no more than a week), which helps diminish shipping costs. It doesn't help my overall spending, though, but I've got it under control. Kinda.

Here's what I got today from one of those aforementioned ebayers :

To tell the truth, I really wasn't familiar with those players. I picked them up (the cards, not the players. Not my type) because I think they look amazing (again, the cards, not the players). Nice design and nice on card autos. A quick search tells me that Joe Lawrence played 4 months for the Blue Jays and 55 games, batting .180 (ok) and Kevin Witt played 20 games in a couple of years, despite being drafted in the first round by the Blue Jays. Ah well. $3 each seems like a lot to pay for their autograph, but what can I say, they're so pretty (the autos, not the players)

Those were a couple of dollars each. I'll always pick up a Delgado for a couple of dollars (the card, I mean...ok, I suppose you get it by now). It doesn't show on the scan, but the Shannon Stewart is all shiny and nice. Calling a card "Summer School" seems kind of offensive, doesn't it ?

This card was the main attraction, and the main reason why I got the other ones in the first place. It was $4, which is a bit much for a relic card, but it features three of my favorite Blue Jays all time : Delgado, Wells and Halladay. Boring patches but a nice and simple design, SN 66/75

And finally, a lot of Knicks GU that I got for$10 (there were 12 cards, I didn't scan them all) :

Renaldo Balkman wasn't memorable as a Knick, but that three color patch looks nice. The problem is that since I'm used to the mid- 90s collecting ways, I tend to try and get each and every card I find of the teams and players I collect. Maybe I should be more selective. And focus on players who actually played for the teams in question.

But then again, where's the fun in that ?