Helluva Day for TTM Success!!

I'm getting ready to jet out to Vegas for a week, so I will be brief.  I went to check my mail before heading out and I had three self-addressed stamped envelopes waiting for me.

2013 Gypsy Queen #163 - Will Clark

This card made me so excited that I couldn't wait to share it.

Recent TTM Successes

I don't recall if I have mentioned this before, but Pat Neshek of the Oakland A's is working on getting every card from the 1985 Topps set signed. His story is awesome, and it is partly responsible for me jumping back into the collecting game.

I decided to work on getting my 2013 Gypsy Queen set signed.  Yes, I know that it is a new set.  Yes, I understand that some of the players in the set have passed away.  Yes, I am okay with trying to get a set autographed knowing that I'm not going to be able to get every card signed.

Now that that is out of the way, I have a few cards to share.

I received back card #13, Wei Yin Chen of the Baltimore Orioles, on Monday.  This card excites me for two reasons.  First, Chen was a stellar pitcher last season, his rookie year.  He picked up 12 wins, which placed him fourth among A.L. rookies.  Second, Chen signed it in his native language, which I believe to be Mandarin Chinese.  It is extremely unique and will definitely stand out in my set.

This Nick Maronde rookie card came back to me yesterday.  I'm glad it came back.  As a Ranger fan, I get to see the Angels 19 times a year, and from what I've seen of this kid, he has some serious potential.

And here is the best card to come back thus far.  I also received this A.J. Pierzynski auto yesterday in the mail (it was a good day for TTM).  First, I've become a huge fan of A.J.  I hated him when he was in Chicago. He seemed cocky and arrogant. However, he has grown on me.  No one works harder or cares more than he does.  Second, the signature is awesome.  He covers the entire card.  How sweet does that look?!?!

Hopefully, I will have a few more pieces to post later this week.

It's Official....I Have Tribute Fever

I had to go to Oklahoma City for business last week. I had some time to waste, so I looked up one of the LCS's and stopped in. It was full of Sooner memorabilia (gross), but other than that, it was a great shop.

I've been looking at some of the Tribute cards online and they all impress me. It is a beautiful set. So I purchased a pack (at $55 a pack, I could only afford one) and was impressed with my five cards.

I pulled three base cards - Willie Mays, Manny Machado (one of only two rookies in the deck, I believe) and Giancarlo Stanton.  The base set has only 100 cards featuring legends and current stars, so you will definitely get cards of people you know.  I also pulled a blue parallel of R.A. Dickey, numbered 24/99.  Cool card, but nothing spectacular.

My hit was this Anthony Gose gold parallel signature, numbered 15/15.  The kid is not having a great season at Triple A.  Hopefully he will rebound so the card will gain a little value.  It is up for a trade if anyone is interested.

After I got home, I took to the Bay and found some other cards to add to my new Tribute set-in-progress. I found quite  a few base cards (buying them for a dollar or two a piece just seems so much more economical), but I was also able to get my hands on these beauties.

I snagged this Yu Darvish green parallel numbered 19/75.  I'm going to work on putting together the entire rainbow of parallels, though I'm sure the red and purple cards are going to cost an arm and a leg IF I can find them.

I also grabbed this Adrian Beltre Superstar Swatches orange parallel, numbered 23/25.  I don't know why, but I really dig the orange parallels.

Well, that's all I've got on Tribute for the moment.  Hopefully, there will be more to come soon.

Random stop at a semi-LCS

I was in DFW this weekend and happened across a card shop that I had never been to before. I was able to grab a couple cards for my PC's. I also received yet another eBay purchase in the mail.

2012 Topps Chrome Blue Parallel - Mike Napoli

This was the first of two I picked up at the semi-LCS.  It's a 2012 Topps Chrome Mike Napoli Blue Parallel.  There's really nothing special about it.  It's a basic card with a blue border. The lack of a unique characteristic was reflected in its price. In other words, it didn't cost me an arm and a leg.

A couple additions to my PC's

eBay has struck again.  I found a couple cards for my own Bryce Harper and Mike Napoli personal collections.

2011 Bowman Chrome Red Refractor #BCE1 - Bryce Harper

I got this 2011 Bowman Chrome Bryce Harper red refractor for less than $10.  It has been graded a 10 by GMA Grading.  I'm happy with that. A good piece to add.

2012 Topps Archives Baseball - Mike Napoli - 1/1 Black Printing Plate

I was also able to add this 1/1 black printing plate from 2012 Topps Archives of Mike Napoli.  Not a true 1/1 of course, but nice nonetheless.  I feel like I am missing something though, because I thought that printing plates were supposed to have reverse images on them.

I Need Your Help (Spread the Word, Please!!!)

Last night, I was visiting with my grandfather about Bobby Doerr (I was still caught up in the excitement of my TTM success), listening to him speak about Doerr and some of his other favorite players. During the course of conversation, my grandfather mentioned that I was related to a former big leaguer named Thurman "Joe. E." Tucker, or "Monk" Tucker as the family knew him.

Tucker made his major league debut on April 14, 1942 for the Chicago White Sox.  He was selected as an All Star in 1944, his only All Star appearance. Seeing Tucker as "the finest defensive player in baseball," the Cleveland Indians acquired Tucker via trade in January of 1948.  Though he missed time to an injury, he finished the season with a perfect fielding record (1.000). His career saw a steady decline after that season, and he never really returned to any kind of prominence, in terms of Major League Baseball.

1951 Bowman #222 - Thurman "Joe E." Tucker

I need your help.  I have already purchased his only baseball card, card #222 of the 1951 Bowman set. That is for me and my collection. However, I would like to find a signed ball by Tucker to give to my grandfather.  Not surprisingly, the internet isn't flooded with them. I can find plenty of index cards and even a post card, but no ball that is signed by him (and him alone).

If any of you can, by some sort of miracle, get your hands on a ball with his signature, I would be forever grateful! Please pass along this message on your blogs, I would greatly appreciate it!

TTM Hall of Fame Success

My mailbox had an awesome surprise in it this morning: my first Hall of Fame TTM success!

Bobby Doerr - HoF 1986

Boston's "Silent Captain," Bobby Doerr.  The man was a defensive wizard, once converting 414 straight chances between errors, a span of 73 games.  He could also hit the ball, a lifetime .288 hitter with 1,247 runs batted in and 223 home runs.

I sent this ball out Friday, and received it back this morning, a five-day turnaround.

2013 Topps Tribute Mike Napoli on-card auto

eBay strikes again. I was browsing last week when I saw this beauty, the 2013 Topps Tribute Mike Napoli on-card auto numbered 01 of 50.  Any Mike Napoli card is welcome in my PC, especially one that is a) from the Tribute line, b) is autographed, and c) is the first in a relative short print.

Anyone in for a 2013 Gypsy Queen box or case break?

I haven't bought any GQ packs in a while.  I'm starting to get jittery.  Would anyone be interested in buying in to a box break or case break?  I think that for a box, $15 a team would cover the purchase and shipping of the cards, and for a case, a team and shipping could be had for $100 (maybe less, depending on if I could get a deal from someone).

I would like the price to cover the team of your choice and one randomly assigned team.

I've never done a break before, but I would really like to do this.  Let me know your thoughts on everything (cost, format, etc.) and whether or not you would be interested (I wouldn't take it as a commitment just yet).

Thanks!

My First TTM Success!

Saturday came with a nice little surprise in the mail.

2013 Gypsy Queen #2 - Joe Nathan - TTM Autograph

I received my 2013 GQ #2 back from Joe Nathan.  The signature looks great, especially in the blue Sharpie.  It looks like Nathan took hi time signing the card, but I could be wrong.

I sent the card out on April 11, 2013 and received it back on May 4, 2013, making the total time away 23 days.  Not bad at all.  We'll see if any of the other cards I sent that day come back any time soon.

A few cards to add to my Tom Grieve PC

This was a good weekend for me, in terms of card collecting at least.  Expect this to be one of about three updates today.  (Apologies if I fill your update screen!)

Saturday, I was able to add a few cards to my TAG PC.  I received a couple cards from a friend who has lost interest in collecting.

1972 Topps #609 - Tom Grieve

The first card he gave me fits into two personal collections, Tom Grieve and 1972 Topps.  The photo on this card is...awkward...to say the least.  I can't figure out if here is trying to look cool or if he is trying to act like he doesn't see the camera; either way, he looks strange.

1972 Topps - First Two Additions

I have my first two additions to my 1972 Topps set: Denny McLain (#210) and Ken Suarez (#483).  I received these a couple weeks ago from William over at foul bunt as part of a trade we worked out.

1972 Topps Baseball # 210 - Denny McLain

Decisions, Decisions....

As I've stated before, I have just recently gotten back into card collecting.  When I was collecting before, I was a kid.  Al Gore had yet to invent the Internet, so I had no way to share my collection.  And I definitely didn't think about collecting a set other than whatever was out at that time (mostly Upper Deck products).

So I've been trying to figure out which players I want to collect and which vintage set to I want to go after?  Well, these questions have been answered (mostly with Rangers).  First, for the players.  I have decided to collect vintage cards for Tom Grieve.  Grieve, father of former major leaguer Ben Grieve, was a first round pick of the Washington Senators in 1966.  He played until 1979, at which point he joined the Rangers' front office.  After holding various positions within the organization, including GM, he has been the Rangers' color commentator since the mid-1990's.  (Interesting trivia note: Tom and Ben are the first father-son duo to be selected in the first round in their respective drafts)

For current players, I am collecting Mike Napoli and Bryce Harper.  I hated Napoli as an Angel.  He just seemed like someone I wouldn't get along with if I met him on the street.  But when he came to the Rangers, he gave everything to the organization.  He busted his butt on a daily basis, played with everything he had, and never quit on his team.  As a fan, that's all you can really ask for.  As for Harper, the kid is a stud.  He is going to be great, and I just want to be along for that ride.

For future stars, I am collecting Joey Gallo.  The Rangers 3B prospect is currently lighting it up in Hickory.  He was last year's Arizona League MVP, tallying 18 homeruns on just 150 at bats.  In case you're wondering, that's 18 homeruns in just 43 games.  In highschool, he pitched a Perfect Game and touched 100 on the radar gun.  His defense in the hot corner has been spectacular as well.

As for my vintage collection, it took me a while to decide, but I finally did it.  I am going to start collecting cards from the 1972 Topps Baseball set.  This was the first set to feature the Texas Rangers (they had just relocated from Washington, D.C.), and it also happens to be an absolute monster.  Consisting of a whopping 787 cards, this is one of the largest sets of its time.

So there it is.  These are the players and set I am collecting.  If you have any of them, please let me know to see if we can work out a trade or purchase.  I appreciate your help!