Blog Bat Around - My Turn

This year's Blog Bat Around is hosted by This Card is Cool - My Life in Baseball Cards.  The topic:

The 2011 baseball card collecting season is finally over - other than Bowman Sterling (coming out December 21st). What set or release stands out as your favorite from the year? What set or release brings your lunch back up to your throat?

I was really looking forward to the 2011 line up of baseball cards.  It would mark my 2nd year of collecting cards again and the release calendar was full of great product.  Trying to name one set as my favorite of the year is card so I'll go with my top three.

1) 2011 Topps.  Since I decided to go back to 2008 and start building the flagship base set of Topps I've enjoyed what each set has brought to the table.  I loved the early pictures I saw of the 2011 design and knew this would be a fun set to build.  The one thing about the base set each year is the focus on the cards and inserts (to some degree) and you don't have to worry about the hits.  While Topps has gotten better in my opinion with their autos and relics in the base set most collectors would agree that is not the reason you buy the base set.   

 

At least by the time the Update set rolled around at least there was something outside of manufactured patches of a Braves player I wanted to chase (see above).  I now have a new view of collecting parallels going forward, but the 2011 set was not short on offering up many different types of parallels.  My favorite (as a Braves collector) are the red boarded factory set exclusives.  On the insert side I was immediately sucked into the small Kimball Champions.  I guess blame my love of A&G on that.

      

2) 2011 Topps Finest.  I've never been able to afford the mid-level stuff outside of a few base cards I've been able to pick up here.  When the chance to jump in a group break of Finest was presented I didn't want to hesitate.  Thanks to the guys over at Community Gum and their purchase of a case from Turner Field (not really) I was able to land several fantastic Braves cards.  The base design was great looking for starters and the insert/auto/relic checklist was loaded with Braves talent.

  

     

It helped that the Braves had a lot of great rookies on the roster during the 2011 season and Topps did a great job at including most of these great young players into the Finest set.  If it hadn't been for the group break opportunity I probably would've missed out on this great set.

 

3) 2011 Topps Gypsy Queen.  I can't put my finger on it, but there was a lot of buzz in the hobby over the new GQ set and I was eagerly awaiting my chance to bust open a few packs.  Being on a tight budget and not having a very good card shop locally I have to rely on retail to get my pack fix.  I bought several rack packs and blasters early on and continued to one not only be impressed with the card set itself but two with the number of relics and autos I pulled.  Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't the GQ set the first to utilize on card autos in 2011?  With the set coming out earlier in the season I was excited about getting some of my first Dan Uggla cards as a Brave and I was fortunate enough to land this mini bat relic of his right out of the gate.  I'm still working on finishing the set, but I was thrilled to hear that it's coming back for it's sophomore season in 2012.

Honorable Mention:

2011 Topps Marquee and 2011 Topps Lineage.

  

Marquee was my first ever high end product that I got to open myself.  Granted it was part of a group break I hosted earlier this year, but the level of anticipation and excitement I had around the release of this product was so high.  While the set was the home run I think a lot of collectors were hoping that it would be I was happy with many of the cards I ended up with.

The one thing about Marquee that intrigued me the most was the Museum Collection auto cards.  The cards are printed on metal with shiny gold trim.  The front of the card is a refractor like sheen with the on card auto being done in silver ink.  The cards are heavy and super super nice.  I count this Tim Hudson card #04/10 as being the single best card acquisition of 2011 if not of all time for me.

  

Another set that had some people licking their chops was 2011 Topps Lineage.  I know a lot of collectors were thrilled to see the inclusion of the 1975 minis.  I wasn't alive in 1975 so I can't say that I was all that impressed with the early images, but after buying a blaster with a guaranteed relic I immediately saw the appeal.  The guys at Community Gum hosted a case break of Lineage several months ago and I too was fortunate enough to beat out my fellow Braves bloggers and claim the team.  They didn't disappoint me either as they pulled not only one but two great on card autos.

  

I'm still trying to figure out the overall purpose of the Lineage set. If you know what it is please share with me!  While the base card design was lacking (don't get me started about the horrible card backs) I was more than pleased with the parallels, on card autos and the 1975 minis.

The topic also asked about our least favorite set of the year.  For me that would be 2011 Bowman Platinum.  While the 2011 effort was far better than 2010's I just didn't feel the need for this set.  I bought exactly one pack - a rack pack at that.  One may have though that with Freddie Freeman being on the pack I would've bought more - nope.  One pack was enough - although I wouldn't mind having a empty blaster to cut up.

I guess my love for all things Bowman has continued to wane as this set didn't do anything for me.  When it was first released I made some effort to obtain a few of the red parallels of Braves players, but that effort quickly evaporated.

So there you have it.  My take of Blog Bat Around.  Thanks for reading.

Holy Grail

In my other hobby (toy collecting) the term holy grail is often thrown around.  It is usually used in context when describing an item that someone has been in search for or is the pinnacle or gem of their toy collection.  I can't say that I've seen card collectors use that term since I've started collecting again and even blogging.

That said I'm dropping the word.  This is my new holy grail.  The more and more I learn about Tim Hudson and his family the more and more I like him.  That said I've shifted some of my collecting of other Braves players over to "Huddy".  I'm not a super collector, but I love acquiring new cards of his.  Prior to this new card I think I only have 2 autographs of his - and this easily trumps those.  So if you haven't already glossed over the text and scrolled down to see this card I'm talking about here it is:

 

2011 Topps Marquee Museum Collection Autograph #04/10

Let me say that the scan of this card does NOT do it justice.  This thing is down right beautiful.  The card is metal which in itself is cool enough.  It's covered in gold and combined with the holofoil like front the gold blends in well.  I feel like I just pulled a Golden Ticket from a Wonka Bar!  I love the on card autograph and the silver pen was a great idea.  Numbered to 10 also doesn't hurt things!  So have any of you reading this had the chance to see one of these cards in person?  Does anyone else have one of these cards in your collection?

2011 Topps Marquee Results!

Video streaming by Ustream

Sorry for the technical difficulties we had starting out, but I finally got the video problem resolved.  The first minute or so of the video is my trying to get people back to the live broadcast so you may want to skip ahead to see the first pack being ripped.  Onto the results! 

Pack 1:

#65 Mike Schmidt (Phillies)

#55 Ryan Howard (Phillies)

#79 Jose Reyes (Mets)

#31 Mickey Mantle - Gold parallel #93/99 (Yankees)

#MM-BR Brooks Robinson - Monumental Markings Autograph Redemption (Orioles)

Pack 2:

#48 Ty Cobb (Tigers)
#54 Tom Seaver (Mets)

#31 Mickey Mantle (Yankees)
#68 Adrian Gonzalez - Bronze parallel #191/199 (Red Sox)

#GMQR-10 Roy Halladay - Gametime Mementos #024/199 (Blue Jays)

Pack 3:

#39 Cole Hamels (Phillies)

#42 Michael Pineda RC (Mariners)
#12 Bob Gibson (Cardinals)
#04 Christy Mathewson - Blue parallel #051/299 (NY Giants)

#TTJR-111 Alex Gordon - Titanic Threads #43/99 (Royals)

Pack 4:

#46 Derek Jeter (Yankees)

#08 Jim Palmer (Orioles)

#43 Stan Musial (Cardinals)
#13 Dustin Pedroia - Blue parallel #092/299 (Red Sox)

#AID-44 Daniel Descalso - Acclaimed Impressions #118/400 (Cardinals)

Pack 5:

#66 Ubaldo Jimenez (Rockies)
#76 David Wright (Mets)
#60 Zach Britton RC (Orioles)
#08 Jim Palmer - Blue parallel #175/299 (Orioles)

#AIT-3 Drew Stubbs - Acclaimed Impressions #590/606 (Reds)

Pack 6:

#05 Ozzie Smith (Cardinals)
#06 Robinson Cano (Yankees)
#88 Josh Hamilton (Rangers)
#73 Eddie Murray - Blue parallel #077/199 (Orioles)

#TTJR-65 Shin-Soo Choo - Titanic Threads #44/99 (Indians)

Pack 7:

#96 Carl Crawford (Red Sox)
#30 Cy Young (Red Sox)
#28 Carlos Gonzalez (Rockies)
#65 Mike Schmidt - Bronze parallel #051/199 (Phillies)

#GMQR-49 Jason Heyward - Gametime Mementos #057/199 (Braves)

Pack 8:

#90 Joe Dimaggio (Yankees)
#78 Roy Campanella (Dodgers)
#40 Joe Morgan (Reds)
#35 Jason Heyward - Gold parallel #49/99 (Braves)

#MM-PON Paul O'Neill - Monumental Markings #56/75 (Yankees)

Pack 9:

#81 David Price (Rays)
#59 Ryne Sandberg (Cubs)
#83 Reggie Jackson (Yankees)
#53 Miguel Cabrera - Blue parallel #068/199 (Tigers)

#TTJA-84 Billy Butler - Titanic Threads Autograph #03/10 (Royals)

Pack 10:

#82 Tim Lincecum (Giants)
#02 Juan Marichal (Giants)
#87 Brandon Belt RC (Giants)
#15 Nolan Ryan - Blue parallel #003/299 (Rangers)

#TTJR-109 Mark Buehrle - Titanic Threads #68/99 (White Sox)

Pack 11:

#73 Eddie Murray (Orioles)

#61 Jose Bautista (Blue Jays)
#80 Evan Longoria (Rays)
#41 Justin Morneau - Gold parallel #19/99 (Twins)

#GMQR-55 Carlos Santana - Gametime Mementos #040/199 (Indians)

Pack 12:

#33 Tris Speaker (Indians)
#95 Roy Halladay (Phillies)
#75 Duke Snider (Dodgers)
#79 Jose Reyes - Bronze parallel #064/199 (Mets)
#54 Tom Seaver - Blue parallel #159/299 (Mets)

#MM-DST Drew Storen - Monumental Markings #259/600 (Nationals)

And there you have it!  It was so much fun opening these packs.  I'm glad several of you guys that participated are happy w/ the cards that came out of the boxes.  I only wish the hits would have been a little widespread.  I'll do my best to get these cards out in the mail ASAP.  I should have everyone's mailing address by now.  Thanks again to everyone that participated.  Remember to let me know if you guys want to try this product again if there is a price drop or sale somewhere.  If you have any other suggestions of product you'd like to see featured in a future group break let me know and we'll see what we can do. 

September's group break will happen next week - mid-week most likely.  My brother is getting married next weekend so I'll try to squeeze it in before the weekend.  I'll do video again.

2011 Topps Marquee 2nd Team Randomization

I know the release date of August 24th is still a ways away, but I wanted to go ahead and post the 2nd team randomization so everyone would have plenty of time to browse the checklist and trade your 2nd team.  There won't be any limits of how many times you can trade, but I do ask that you leave comments on this post so I can track them.  Don't want to send the wrong team's cards to someone because I didn't know you traded with someone else.

We'll be using Random.org with the remaining unclaimed teams numbered 1-15.  These teams will be listed in no particular order.  I'm keeping the original order in which the first teams were claimed.  I'll hit the random button 3 times and which ever team comes up first goes to #1, second goes to #2 and so on and so forth.  Because I can't ever seem to be able to get a good screen capture I'll video the actual process via Random.org.

LET THE TRADING BEGIN!

FINAL RESULTS:
01) Colbey (Braves) + Tigers
02) IkesCards (Cardinals) + Rays
03) hiflew (Rockies) + Marlins
04) Play at the Plate (Rangers) + Astros
05) BA Benny (Mets) + Angels
06) Matt Pederson (Yankees) +Twins
07) Cardsplitter (Red Sox) +Pirates
08) Ryan G (Dodgers) + Royals
09) daddyoho (Phillies) +Nationals
10) beady (Orioles) + Blue Jays
11) arpsmith (Giants) + White Sox
12) Ryan (Reds) + Padres
13) Matt Pederson (Cubs) + Mariners
14) cynicalbuddha (Brewers) + A's
15) Jason (Indians) + Diamondbacks

2011 Topps Marquee Group Break - ONE SLOT LEFT!

Just a quick reminder that there is only ONE slot left to claim your favorite team in next group break of 2011 Topps Marquee.  If you have already claimed a team please submit your payment ASAP so I can place our order.  Once everyone pays we'll also randomize the remaining teams so everyone can start trading if they want.

paulie3jobs - if you still want the Yankees please let me know by leaving a comment or submitting your payment...otherwise the Yankees will go back up for grabs.

Remember everyone that we're busting 3 hobby boxes of Marquee.  Each pack is guaranteed to have 1 hit (low #d on card auto, #d jumbo relic or #d multi-relic/auto) per pack!  This means we'll get 12 hits total!  We'll also get 15 one per pack #d parallels.  This oughta be a fun product to break so don't miss your chance.  For the sign up information click HERE.  For a look at the various types of hits click HERE.  For a complete checklist click HERE.

2011 Topps Marquee Break Update - $38 / 2 teams

I wanted to thank everyone that has expressed interest in my idea of a case break of Topps Marquee.  The only way it would work as I proposed it is if all 30 teams (29 teams since I'm claiming the Braves) were claimed.

I'm having a hard time seeing some teams claimed as it was pointed out to me that not every team is very well represented across the various checklists.  That said I wanted to propose another option that would cost a little less and might be more feasible to fill up and more fair to everyone who participates.

I personally don't like the idea as much of drafting at random the hits from the box...so you'll get 1 team of your choice plus another at random.  That way it'll double your chance at getting a good card(s) and it should help fill up the break making it a reality.

The break would be done via video and posted to YouTube.  I've never done the whole UStream thing, but I may look into that as well.

What I'm asking you to do now is leave a comment with your team of choice.  There are only 14 slots available so don't delay.  If you already left a post yesterday/earlier I'm going to put you down for that team.  If you don't want to participate in this 3 box deal then please let me know ASAP so others have a shot.

3 boxes, $38.00 per slot shipped.  15 slots total - first team is of your choosing.  After all 15 slots are claimed then a 2nd team will be assigned to you at random.

You have 2 weeks to submit your payment.  The sooner the better.  PayPal gift payments can be sent to:  cardboardcollectionsATyahooDOTcom  Make sure you let me know your team of choice and your mailing address.

01) Colbey (Braves) (PAID)
02) IkesCards (Cardinals) (PAID)
03) hiflew (Rockies) (PAID)
04) Play at the Plate (Rangers) (PAYMENT SENT)
05) BA Benny (Mets) (PAID)
06) Matt Pederson (Yankees) (PAID)
07) Cardsplitter (Red Sox) (PAID)
08) Ryan G (Dodgers) (PAID)
09) daddyoho (Phillies) (PAID)
10) beady (Orioles) (PAID)
11) arpsmith (Giants) (PAID)
12) Ryan (Reds) (PAID)
13) Matt Pederson (Cubs) (PAID)
14) cynicalbuddha (Brewers) (PAID)
15) Jason (Indians) (PAID)

2011 Topps Marquee - Case Break?

Another new Topps product for 2011.  Hobby exclusive Marquee.  4 packs per box, 5 cards per pack with 1 #d autograph or 1 #d jumbo or multi-relic card in each pack.  Color me interested.

If you have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed click HERE for the sell sheet.

Checklist looks really good.  Is it just me or does this product remind you of Unique from a few years ago?  I got an e-mail this evening from Blowout Cards soliciting pre-orders for Marquee for it's August 24th release. I could get a case (6 boxes) and host a case break for about $40 a team.  The case would yield 24 hits total...potentially plenty to go around for everyone.  I've got a new baby coming probably in the next week so no July group break hosting duties for me...but if there was enough interest we could possibly do a case break of this in August.

I'm going to spread the word for this potential case break on both my Facebook and Twitter profiles.  If this is something you'd like to join in the please help spread the word on your blog/FB/Twitter.  I can't really offer any discounts for doing so, just my sincere thanks.  So if this sounds fun then leave me a comment letting me know what team you would want.  I'd give everyone 2 weeks to pay using a gift payment via PayPal or cash by mail.