Today Was A Good Day (I Didn't Even Have To Use My AK)

Today was the first day of classes. It is even more special for me, as I begin my last semester. If I keep on track, I'll finish my dissertation in October and I'll be done. October can't get here soon enough.

I also got a text from my LCS owner to let me know that my PSA order was in. I decided to drop in to pick it up. I had five cards in the order:

Five Kris Bryant rookies! Three PSA 10s and two PSA 9s (one of which is from Chrome). I decided a while back that I should get this graded and slabbed, for both protection and re-sale value. Bryant seems to have staying power (so far), and while I doubt he will be on Trout's level, it would be nice if his rookies grow in value in a similar way that Trout's rookie did. 

While I was in the shop, I decided to grab a couple of boxes of the 2017 Topps Clearly Authentic. I watched a few case breaks of these and I really dig the cards. I opened the first box and thought to myself, "Oh great, a freakin' redemption." I'm still waiting on other redemptions, the last thing I need is another in in the queue.

But then I read the name on the card:

So...yeah. I'll take that. This is officially my first dip into the Aaron Judge auto-mania pool. I immediately listed the card on eBay. The card seems to bring decent money, and I would like to take advantage of that before his value bottoms out. That being said, there is definitely a part of me that wants to redeem this one.

My second box was okay:

Well, maybe it was better than okay. Alex Bregman is a nice pull, also! This is the second Bregman I have pulled (I also pulled one from 2016 Bowman's Best). That was a bad day at the shop!

If I am being honest, these aren't the first boxes of Clearly Authentic that I have bought. I also picked up a couple last week. The pulls weren't quite as nice.

Carson Fulmer was the first...

...And Javier Baez was the second. Baez isn't bad, and I think Fulmer can be a solid starter, but neither of these are on the Judge/Bregman level (in my opinion). 

So there it is, a handful of PSA Bryants and a handful of Clearly Authentic. 

It was a good day.

(And I didn't even have to use my AK)

My First 2017 Heritage Fix

Though Heritage came out Wednesday, my LCS didn't get any in until today. It's only two days, but it felt like forever. Heritage is one of, if not my favorite release every year. I was initially a little hesitant because the '68 set is one of my least favorites, but Heritage turned out okay. Anyway, let's get to what was in my two boxes.

First, let's take a look at the guaranteed hits. Every box promises a relic or an auto. Both of my boxes had relics. And they were boring at that:

Joe Mauer and Rick Porcello. Could be worse, but could be better. Had that been all I pulled, I would have been pretty upset.

But they weren't. I pulled better cards!

The first box offered up some good cardboard. First up:

This Odubel Herrera blue border parallel. These are limited to 50 copies each, or at least that's what I've read. Not a bad start!

Next up:

The Clayton Kershaw action image variation!

But the best card of the box was this guy:

The Andrew Benintendi rookie photo variation! These are short printed, as the base card features Benintedi and another player.

Heckuva a box! There's no way the second box could be better, right?

Boom. Right off the bat (no pun intended) was the Buster Posey '68 3D box loader! These fall about one per case.

From there, I pulled this:

The Bryce Harper color swap variation! But it doesn't stop there!

Though it looks gold, this is the base refractor of Wilson Contreras! Such a great box. How could it get any better?

Well, I think adding in a Kris Bryant action photo variation would certainly make the box better!

Though the "hits" were duds, these were by far the best two boxes of Heritage I've opened in a while! The relics are up for trade, but everything else has been listed on eBay to help me recoup some of my money. I'm going to sort everything this evening, so I should have a wantlist and trade list listed soon!

Topps Sent Me a Christmas Gift

You may have seen a few of these posting up on Twitter and other blogs, but I'm going to go ahead and share just in case you haven't.

I checked my mailbox earlier today and found a Christmas card from Topps.

Included with the Christmas card was an actual card. More specifically, a Topps NOW highlight card:

Naturally, the card would feature the Cubs, the Yankees....

...and the Red Sox. Nice to see a nod to Ichiro included, also. 

Now don't get me wrong, Kris Bryant represents just about everything that brought the Cubs their first title in more than 100 years. And I understand acknowledging Big Papi, as this was his last season. And Ichiro is, well, inhuman......

I don't hate Gary Sanchez, I really don't. What he did this year was incredible. But aligning that with the other three moments featured on the card isn't quite right. To me, the other moments represent a culmination of events: careers for Ichiro and Ortiz and an entire century (and more) of waiting for the Cubs. 

So, you ask, what would have been more appropriate for the card?

Well, including this guy would have been my first choice:

Of all of the people retiring, I'm not sure many represent a true history of the game in the way that Mr. Vin Scully does. The man has made some of the most iconic calls in the sport's history. Scully represents the final tie to times of old. With him gone, the sport has lost it's history's keeper, essentially.

I didn't sit down to criticize Topps for their card design; the thoughts came to me as I was typing. In reality, I think it is a very kind gesture by the company to send out these cards to everyone who purchased a Topps NOW card. We often spend a good bit of time complaining about Topps, but on occasion, they get something right. This is one of those times.

Thanks Topps!