The Case of the Missing Smile

A few weeks ago, I posted that I happened to have some retail luck in pulling this:

In the comments, P-Town Tom asked something that was on my mind, also: do all of Randle's Fan Favorites autographs have the smiley face?

A couple weeks went by and I was able to pick up this blue parallel:

This card also had the smiley face!

I decided to create a saved eBay search to let me know when a new Randle card was posted so I could see if there were any without the smiley face.

I waited and found nothing. Nothing, that is, until last week:

Smiley-face-less Randle is now mine!

Trades! Packages From The Lost Collector And P-Town Tom!

I received a couple PWEs a while back and haven't had the chance to scan the cards. I finally did it and now it is time to give some credit where credit is due!

First up, The Lost Collector sent me a couple of sweet Pudge cards form 2017 Archives:

I really can't get enough of Pudge...which is a good thing, because he seems to be one of Topps' go-to guys, especially in a Rangers uniform!

Next up, P-Town Tom sent some sweet signed cardboard my way:

Did I mention that the signatures come from some of the best players in franchise history?! Witt and McDowell are remembered fondly, and Hough and Sunny are in the Rangers Hall of Fame!

Thanks Tom!!

An eBay Mailday

A few weeks ago, I posted about my luck in purchasing some 2017 Archives retail. I was fortunate enough to pull the one auto I wanted of Lenny Randle.

Naturally, I decided I wanted to try to get all of the parallels of this card. First up, the sky blue parallel numbered to 75:

You'll notice that this auto has a smiley face, as well! P-Town Tom wondered in my first post if all of his signatures have the smiley face - it appears that the overwhelming majority do. I searched and found that all listed autos except for one had it. I tried to grab the one without, but it sold for more than I wanted to pay. 

Stoked to have this in my hands! Now I just have the light pink (salmon) and red parallels to go!

I hope everyone is well!

Trade with Sports Cards and Memories

A week ago, I saw a post on Sports Cards and Memories that featured Chris breaking a box of Tier One. One of the cards in the box was a Ranger. I left a comment and asked Chris if he would be interested in moving it. Later that evening, Chris emailed me and we quickly worked out a deal!

Without further adieu, here's the card:

This relic auto numbered to 75 of Nomar Mazara! The Big Chill's signature has really gone down hill, but I think that is fairly common with players that sign for Topps, since they are required to sign a million different cards. Either way, I am stoked to have this card in my collection!

Chris also mentioned that he had a couple Pudge cards that I might be interested in, so I obliged and took them off his hands! Along with a few set needs, these were in the package as well:

This is the '59 Bazooka insert from 2017 Topps Archives! I have another copy of this card coming my way in the future from The Lost Collector, but I will never complain about a beautiful Pudge in my collection!

The second Pudge that Chris sent also came from the 2017 Archives set:

This is the blue parallel, numbered to 75! It's the first blue parallel from the set in my collection. 

Thanks a ton Chris! Think of me whenever you pull any Rangers in the future!

PS - I posted earlier today about my want of some 2017 Allen & Ginter inserts. Please take a look and let me know if you pull any of these and want to trade them!

Some Inserts That I Actually Like

Usually, I'm not a fan of inserts. I often feel they are a gimmick, inserted into packs for no reason other than to make building a set more difficult. The common flagship set now has somewhere near 10 to 15 inserts each year. Isn't that a bit overboard?

However, there are inserts that occasionally catch my eye. I'm a big fan of the Fortune Teller inserts from 2017 Gypsy Queen, and I loved the Skippers insert from last year's Allen & Ginter. 

I don't know how, but I missed the 1969 Topps Super inserts from 2016 Topps Archives. When I saw the Cole Hamels card in that set, I knew that I had to snag it. 

There is just something about the simplicity that I love. It reminds me of oddball sets, in that it is simply a photo and a facsimile signature. Plain and pure.

The back is also bare bones. Nothing fancy, no Twitter handles or silly "facts" ("Cole likes video games!" Who cares???). Just a simple box with the player's name, team, and position. This is the base (or "blue back") version.

I also managed to snag the red back version, numbered to 50.

Sometimes, an insert speaks to me. Especially when it is this simplistic.

I hope you are having a great day!

Gavin Is A Talented Man

A while back, I commented on one of Gavin's posts over at Baseball Card Breakdown. He was sharing the contents of a Box of '17 Archives he opened, and I let him know that I was interested in a Rougned Odor parallel he pulled.

Fast forward to last week. I arrived back to my place after taking a last minute, two week journey to Omaha and South Dakota (where my Alma Mater is) to spend time with friends and visit the College World Series. I opened my mailbox and found two thick bubble mailers, the first of which was from Gavin. 

He sent me the card I requested...

These are classified as "peach" parallels, evidently. When companies get to the point that they no longer use common colors, I think we may need to have a conversation about going overboard on the parallel cruise. I would have been happy if that was all that was in the package. But there was more!

Along with several team set needs, Gavin also included some PC wants. For example, he sent this Prism Juan Gone:

Interesting side note: when these cards were released, they came in three-card packs. These were the "base" set cards; however, to protect the "prism" part of the card, inserts from a set call "Gems of the Diamond" were placed on both sides of the "base" card. This led to the insert set being larger than the base set. Weird.

Gavin also included this beautiful Rusty Greer Gold Label. I wish the current Gold Label product was as beautiful as this one. 

This Ivan Rodriguez Upper Deck Legendary Lumber relic also found its way into the package. It's my understanding that this is an actual piece from a game-used bat, but I don't understand their need to place stitching on the "ball." Regardless, it's a Pudge relic that I didn't have before, so I am grateful!

Lastly, Gavin included a couple of customs. The first hit my main PC:

Matt Harrison! How awesome is that?! My first custom for the PC!

The second was one that I had seen before on his blog, and it gave a great smile:

This sketch card was featured on BCB back in March when Gavin recapped a couple of packages from Night Owl and myself. I remember reading the post and then getting a pretty good laugh from the sketch. Now I know how Jerry Koosman feels...but I won't complain. I'm honored to be on a card with the certain first-ballot hall-of-famer. Gavin, I can't thank you enough. This may be my favorite card in my collection.

Thanks for reading, and I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Retail Treats Me Right

I have zero interest in Topps Archives. I think it is ridiculous that Topps has two "vintage inspired" products in Heritage and Archives, and for me, Heritage is enough. However, Archives frequently has Fan Favorite autographs of some lesser-known former players, and that I do like. 

When the checklist for 2017 Archives was released, I saw that Lenny Randle was representing the Rangers in this year's Fan Favorites autograph insert. I decided that I would grab some retail, as I did not and do not care to purchase a box for approximately $100 at my LCS.

I went to my local Wally World and grabbed three rack packs and a blaster. Nothing fun in the blaster, but in the second of the rack packs, I pulled this:

What are the odds that I would actually pull the card I was looking for? I'm not sure that has ever happened to me. I love the card, especially the smiley face Randle included over his last name!

So, I was fortunate. Retail treated me right and I have no need - or desire - to buy any more Archives this year.