I (Sort Of) Won Gint-A-Cuffs X! A Post-Mortem

Okay, so I didn't actually win Gint-A-Cuffs X, per se. That honor belongs to Spankee, who clocked in with 127.5 points. Topps was kind enough to send a couple of boxes of Ginter as prizes, so I was fortunate enough to win the second box trough random selection.

The Commissioner was kind enough to send that box to me earlier this week, and I decided to go ahead and score it to see how it would do when lined up against my contest box. I didn't do a pack-by-pack breakdown, but I did list out all of the scoring cards and scan a few of them. Let's take a look! (Also, check out my concluding thoughts on Gint-A-Cuffs X and 2018 Ginter, in general, after the scoring, and see my set needs here!)

+14 Favorite Team/Players

+1 Adrian Beltre

+1 Rougned Odor

+4 Joey Gallo (FP)

+2 Bryce Harper

+2 Kris Bryant

+2 Barry Larkin

+2 Jim Thome

-11 Damn Yankees

-1 Gary Sanchez

-1 Babe Ruth

-1 Rickey Henderson

-1 Miguel Andujar

-1 Aaron Judge

-1 Hideki Matsui

-1 Roger Maris

-1 Aaron Hicks

-1 Aroldis Chapman

-1 Clint Frazier

-1 Reggie Jackson

-1 Misc.

-1 Tyronn Lue

+3 Short-Print Mini

+3 Carlos Santana (#312)

+7 Black Border Mini

+3 Derek Jeter

+4 Jon Lester

+14 A&G Back Mini

+1 Babe Ruth

+2 Sean Manea

+2 Jacob deGrom

+2 Roger Clemens

+7 Joey Gallo (My FP)

+3 Short-Print A&G Back

+3 Anthony Rendon

+7 Red Brooklyn Back

+7 Justin Bour

+8 Baseball Equipment of the Ages

+2 Eye Black

+2 Modern Baseball Sunglasses

+2 Modern Catcher’s Mask

+2 Vintage Bat

+12 Fantasy Goldmine

+2 Bob Gibson

+2 Roger Clemens

+2 Tom Seaver

+2 Ernie Banks

+2 Greg Maddux

+2 Sandy Koufax

+8 Magnificent Moons

+2 Miranda

+2 Phobos

+2 Mimas

+2 Europa

+8 World’s Greatest Beaches

+2 Cozumel

+2 Bay of Angels

+2 Bondi Beach

+2 Trunk Bay

+12 World Talent

+2 Tzu-Wei Lin

+2 Yadier Molina

+2 Yoenis Cespedes

+4 Kris Bryant (FP)

+1 Aaron Judge (Yankee)

+1 Masahiro Tanaka (Yankee)

+3 Postage Required

+3 Two Penny Blue

+2 Indigenous Heroes

+2 Chief Cornstalk

+3 Flags of Lost Nations

+3 New Granada

+6 Baseball Superstitions

+3 Not Changing Seats

+3 Drawing in the Batter’s Box Dirt

+6 N43 Boxloader

+6 Caros Correa

+28 HITS!!!

+5 Billy Hamilton Full-Size Relic (Jersey)

+5 Michael Conforto Full-Size Relic (Bat)

+8 J.D. Martinez RIP CARD!!!

+10 Manny Machado Extended Mini (from Rip Card)

132 Points, Total!

That's right, had this been my competition box, I would have really won Gint-A-Cuffs! That rip card really put it over the top. I've never had a rip card before, and I swore that if I ever did pull one, I would rip it. Lesson learned! If I ever pull another one, I'll sell it! Now let's look at some scans!

Corre N43 Boxloader - 1 of 500

J.D. Martinez Rip Card

Machado Extended Mini - Front

Machado Extended Mini - Rear

Michael Conforto Full Size Bat Relic

Billy Hamilton Full Size Jersey Relic

Joey Gallo A&G Back Mini

Justin Bour Brooklyn Back Mini

Not too shabby! Everything except the Gallo is up for trade. I only ask that if you make a trade offer, please make it fair - don't offer to send me a ton of 80's and 90's junk wax! (I had a random person reach out a couple weeks ago and ask if I would trade an auto from a higher-end product for a bunch of junk wax....)

Now for some thoughts on my boxes of Ginter for GACX. Most of my commentary revolves around collation. My first box was short a hit. I ordered a second box, and it was also short a hit. I ended up buying a third box, and it had all hits in it. So did the prize box.

Beyond the hits, I also had issues with the inserts. The first box I purchased had zero "Magnificent Moons" inserts. Instead, it had eight "Baseball Equipment" inserts. Furthermore, both the first and second boxes had the same exact "World's Best Beaches" insert cards. 

Boxes one and two were clearly the problem boxes. Beyond the issues mentioned above, both boxes were nearly identical in the base cards included. Hell, the second box had the two copies of Christian Villanueva's short-printed mini (card #315). How the hell does that happen? That makes Ginter a very expensive set to build. 

Lastly, it's a bit of a bummer that Topps is now treating rip cards as hits. In the past, these were included in addition to the three promised hits. I won't complain on this one too much, especially since I had a rip card in my **free** box. It was just something that crossed my mind. 

Lastly, I want to specifically thank Mark for serving once again as our faithful Commissioner. Without his work, I'm not certain GACX would have happened! Also, a huge thanks to Topps for sponsoring the contest and providing prizes! As a winner (finally!), the prize was certainly appreciated!

Thanks for the read!

An Owed Apology

I was scrolling through my Twitter feed last night when I came across this tweet from Sooz, everyone's favorite Topps employee:

Sigh ... cool to see, but then a jerk has to ruin it with a not funny, but he-oh-he-so-thinks-he-is comment. https://t.co/1RwmNMlxwN

— Sooz (@yanxchick) July 22, 2017

Naturally, I had to read the replies and try to determine what was going on. Of course, a handful of d*ckheads had to throw their comments on Twitter and different forums.

"What a waste. Who cares about company employees?

"If it isn't a baseball card, why is it even part of the set?"

Those are just a couple of the "nicer" comments, if you can call them that. I became pretty upset that people were reacting this way. First, if all you care about are baseball cards, then Ginter is not the set for you. The reason it is so popular with many collectors is precisely because it has non-baseball cards in it. Second, how awful does it sound when people say they don't care about Topps employees? To me, it sounds extremely self-centered and narcissistic, and that's coming from a self-identified conservative! (wink wink, we can all get a little chuckle, right?)

The more I thought about this, the more I realized that I am part of the problem. I love baseball cards, which means that I love Topps (since I can't stand cards without logos). Yet I have rarely been one to point to something and thank Topps or the employees. 

More frequently, I am criticizing something about the company. The same player photo being used too many times. Inconsistent formatting. Long wait times on redemptions.

Never have I thanked Topps for having multiple products out that have a wide variety of prices, allowing everyone, regardless of income, the opportunity to collect something.

Never have I thanked Sooz for this year's Stadium Club photos, especially ones like this:

I don't care what anyone says, this might be the single greatest baseball card ever (and I don' say that just because I'm a Rangers fan).

I've never thanked Topps for providing hobby boxes as prizes for Gint-A-Cuffs or for providing boxes for review to other bloggers that I read regularly (self promo: Topps, if you read this, I would be happy to review your baseball products! haha). The company does give back to the collector community and I don't think they ever really get the credit they deserve.

Is it okay to critique and criticize the company? Absolutely. However, if that's all you want to do - without ever offering praise when it is deserved - then keep your thoughts to yourself. You are offering nothing that makes the hobby or collecting community better. 

I'll take my own advice here, too. For my part, I apologize to Topps for being a critic too frequently. To Sooz, I apologize that there are those out there that would take this opportunity to ruin something that the rest of us would (figuratively) kill for. Thank you for your hard work and for trying to interact with our community on a regular basis.

Now, if we could just get you to follow in your husband's footsteps and be a Rangers fan instead of a Yankees fan......

Cards From P-Town!!!!

I'm WAAAAAAY behind on posting. Grad school has been eating me alive, so when I get home, I haven't really been doing much in the way of collecting...and that includes posting here. I'm trying to rectify that, but I make no guarantees.

A while back, before the Cubs won it all, our good friend P-Town Tom of the now former "Waiting 'Til Next Year" blog sent me a stack of Rangers cardboard, which I am more than grateful for (if you're interested, you can go here to learn about the new name of Tom's blog).

Tom also indulged me on another project I have wanted to do, which I haven't forgotten about, Tom! I promise!

As I'm currently sitting in my advanced theory class, I don't have a ton of time today. Therefore, I'm going to share the cards that Tom sent over without much detail. Tom, I apologize - but know that I am really thankful for them!!!

My First Twitter Trade: I Now Have A 2016 Allen & Ginter Unannounced Mini!!!

A couple weeks back, I took my search for the 2016 Allen & Ginter "Skippers" mini insert of Rangers manager Jeff Banister. I've been watching on eBay and have even made a few bid, but all cards were out of my price range. So I asked the Twittersphere to help me out. 

@CRyden33 came to the rescue. A few messages back and forth and we agreed on a trade that was more than fair. I went home for the holiday, and when I returned this guy was in my mailbox:

That's one handsome card!

I super stoked to have this in my collection. The SSP unannounced minis always seem really hard to get, so I am glad I found someone willing to make a trade.

I hope everyone have a relaxing Thanksgiving!

Grabbing a few Big Names for my 1969 Topps Set at Duane's

Earlier in the month, I was home for a wedding and decided that I wanted to stop by Duane's Sportscards in Arlington. Among other things, I wanted to grab a few cards for my 1969 set, as I felt that I was neglecting it.

Duane's always has a large selection of vintage, and usually the prices are pretty good. They may cost a bit more than eBay, but I'm happy to pay a little more to help out a card dealer that I know.

Anyway, I snagged four cards, all of players that are pretty well known. As I am currently sitting in class, I'm just going to post scans of the cards and who is portrayed on them.

First up:

Don Sutton

Phil Niekro

Juan Marichal

And lastly, Joe Torre.

So that's it for now. Hope everyone is having a good day!

A Few Boxes of 2016 Heritage Minor Leagues

I've got to get this out: I hate the Blue Jays. For numerous reasons. I cannot stand them. Their fans are pretty awful - I've already received a handful of hateful/threatening tweets since the game ended just a few minutes ago. Stay classy, you keyboard warriors of Toronto.

Okay, I feel slightly better, but not a lot.

On to something that will make me feel better. This year, my box opening has decreased dramatically. This is due to a combination of being on a tighter budget and the fact that Topps products are becoming more and more disappointing.

However, when I saw that Heritage Minor Leagues would have an on-card auto and a relic card in each box, I knew that I was in. The best part? A box only runs about $50. So I set aside some money to purchase two boxes, as I thought that would guarantee a full set. Spoiler alert: it didn't.

I bought my first two boxes at my LCS in Lubbock. My relics weren't bad - at least I've heard of these guys:

My autos? Well, they were a different story. I haven't heard of either of these guys:

I also pulled a few of the blue-border parallels:

And I even snagged a peach-parallel (can we please call it something else???) numbered to 25:

However, the "big hit" of my two boxes was this:

The Tyler O'Neill "green bat" variation (thanks to eBay for the photo - I'll explain momentarily). So far, only three of these types of variations have been found. It's cool to pull one.

A few days later, I was back in DFW and I decided to stop in and visit with Duane of Duane's Sports Cards. After the initial hand collation of my first two boxes, I had only about 66% of the set. So I decided to buy another couple boxes.

My relics were decent:

I've heard of these guys, too. How about the autos?

Wait - another Jackson auto??? Okay, that sucks. What about the blue-border parallels?

That Blandino looks familiar...oh yeah, I pulled the same card in my first round. I also pulled a peach parallel (still sounds stupid):

Hey, that isn't too bad.

And I also noticed that one box had two autos in it. You may have seen the tweet:

Forgot to post this earlier. Pulled Phil Bickford SSP no team name auto from '16 Heritage Minors. pic.twitter.com/zqUhIbzkUT

— My Cardboard Habit (@cardboardhabit) October 2, 2016

Sweet! One of the "SSP" no team name autos of Phil Bickford!!!! I didn't realize Bickford was traded to the Brewers earlier this year, but this is still a sweet card.

When I returned to Lubbock, I stopped by my LCS and dropped off the Bickford and O'Neill to be sent into PSA for slabbing and grading. I don't care so much about the grades (I expect both to be 9's), but I love seeing a Heritage card in a PSA slab. I guess it's an OCD thing.

I also collated my new boxes to finish off my set. But wouldn't you know, I am STILL a few cards short. Most annoyingly, I need card number 107. I shouldn't need ANY base cards after buying four boxes. Ridiculous. Beyond that, I need three short prints: card numbers 203, 206 and 212. If you have any of those, let's talk!

Lastly, each box comes with two cards that offer chances at winning a day to "make your pro debut." Each card has a code that is revealed by scratching the coating and entering the code on the website www.topps.com/promotions. The card looks like this:

I had eight of these cards. I never win anything, so I threw the cards away. Then I decided, what the heck? I pulled the cards from the trash bin next to my desk and scratched them and began entering them one-by-one into the system. Loser after loser. On the sixth entry, though, I actually won! The system said I was a winner and then asked me to answer a few short questions about my love of baseball. Sweet!

So, what exactly did I win?

It appears as if I won either a hat or a pin! Cool deal! I seriously doubt that I will win the grand prize, so I will take whatever I do win and be extremely happy!

So, overall, I love the set. Heritage in all of its variations is one of my favorite product lines. However, this set is a major disappointment in its collation issues. I shouldn't have to buy four boxes to put a set together, and if I did buy four boxes, I should have the entire set! I was not so fortunate. Receiving the same autos and parallels was just a coincidence - or at least that's what I'm telling myself.

Anyway, I am off to bed. Hope everyone is well!

A Nice eBay Mailday

Recently, Topps Heritage High Number hit the market. I love the Heritage products, so I knew I needed to grab a box or two. I did just that, but in the excitement of getting everything organized and put away (more on this in a later post), I forgot to create a post about what I pulled. In short: nothing terribly exciting.

So I decided to hit up eBay for some of the cards I did want. A couple came in a few days ago, and since I am in Iowa City, Iowa, for a wedding, I have a bit of free time on my hands to share with you what I bought.

First up, this guy:

You can't tell from the front....

...but this is actually the mini parallel version of the card. Only Desmond and Nomar Mazara had mini parallels in the set. Speaking of Mazara...

...I was able to grab this redemption for his Real One Auto. Topps hasn't indicated whether or not Mazara has signed these, so I am assuming that means that he hasn't. However, if the way the Rangers are playing the Blue Jays is any indication, he may have a few months of free time pretty soon.

That's it for now. I hope everyone is doing well!

The Daily List - November 29, 2013

1. It's official - I'm starting an Anthony Rendon PC. I noticed over the weekend that I've got quite a few cards of the Nats' second baseman and I even have a saved search for him on eBay. Might as well go ahead an make it official. I have a few old girlfriends that would have appreciated that level of commitment. Ha!
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  
2. Speaking of "looking at cards over the weekend," I went back through my 2013 Bowman set from the early release this year. I thought I had that one finished; however, when actually thumbing through the cards, I found some holes. Help me out with these, please!
1. Pro set - 22, 48, 161
2. Prospects - 12, 25
3. Prospects Chrome - 1
3. Marcus over at all the way to the backstop is working on putting together the 50-card 1971 mini insert set from 2013 Topps Update. If you have some of the cards he needs, do him a solid and send them his way.
4. Lastly, I know that I'm not saying anything that hasn't already been shared, but what is up with this Topps Redemption nonsense??? I've been waiting for an eternity for a few cards. Last week, I checked the website, and it changed three times over the span of an hour. What the crap, man??

That's it for today's hit list. Again, I'm looking for feedback about how to make my blog better, more user-friendly and more reader interactive. Leave me a note in the comments! I'm going to a concert tonight, one of my favorite bands since high school called Taproot. So I leave you with this to melt your face!