A Matt Harrison Update

Last week, I posted about three new cards for my Matt Harrison PC. At then end of that post, I teased about another low-numbered Harrison that I won but hadn't yet received.

Well, I've received it:

This comes from 2013 Topps Tribute. I love the image on the card: throwback uniform and Harrison is clearly looking to chase down a popup...which must be very, very shallow (as in, between the pitcher's mound and catcher).

Yup, I'm a fan.

I Got The Group Break Bug

I'm so far behind that this post is about the release of Bowman Chrome which, at this point, has to be months ago. 

I couldn't sleep one night so I decided to watch some group breaks on YouTube. As I watched, I decided that I needed to get in on a Bowman Chrome break. After checking out prices on eBay, I realized that I couldn't afford the entire Rangers team in a break; rather, I took the player break route and purchased a couple of Ranger players. I selected Jose Trevino and Andy Ibanez. The best part about the break, however, was that the breaker made this a "keepers" break, meaning that you could purchase the same players for the same price for the following two breaks. I was in.

(After reading all of that, it sounds a little confusing, I think. Apologies if I lost anyone).

Anyway, after the breaks were all said and done, I ended up with six autos total. 

I got a redemption for a blue refractor of Andy Ibanez. Not pictured: a redemption for Ibanez's base auto.

Speaking of base autos...

I snagged three base autos of Jose Trevino. I'm pretty stoked to get these. Trevino is the Rangers catcher of the near future, and he's a pretty good defender behind the plate. He has quickly become a fan favorite and was the Rangers' Minor League Player of the Year this year. 

This was the best card I received in the breaks, though:

I believe this is called a "blue mojo" refractor. Whatever it's called, it's a good looking card!

Have you been in any breaks recently? What was your best "hit"?

Another eBay-centric Post

I miss Yu Darvish. I was exhilarated to see him pitch well for the Dodgers leading into the World Series; I was crushed to watch him get crushed. I was furious that Yulieski Gurriel made a racist joke toward Darvish's Asian heritage, and even more pissed that MLB essentially gave him a slap on the wrist for the action.

I'm still holding out hope that he re-signs with the Rangers. 

In the meantime, I've picked up a few Darvish cards via eBay. I have to admit - these were low bids that I didn't expect would stand up...but they did! I'm not complaining. Let's get to it.

This is a gold wave refractor from 2017 Topps Chrome. I've never been one to complain about parallels, but when Topps essentially has two gold refractors, both numbered to 50...well, perhaps we've gone a bit overboard.

I also snagged this no nameplate variation from 2017 Topps Gypsy Queen. Whereas the gold wave was a bit too far, I think these are just lazy. "How can we make a new variation?" "Hmm. Let's just leave the name off the front. It worked for Frank Thomas, right?" Yet, I still purchased it.

Speaking of variations...

This is one of the photo variations from 2017. As you may remember, I complained about the over-abundance of photo variations in 2017 Topps Update a little while back. I'm clearly biased, because for some reason, I don't mind this one (or the other Darvish photo variation featuring him on the mound in a Dodgers uniform). I'm going to give myself a pass.

When I began writing this post, I definitely did not mean for it to become a gripe-fest! I apologize! What are your thoughts about some of the "variations" in the various 2017 sets? 

Some Recent Pickups At My LCS

I haven't really bought a lot of cardboard at my LCS lately. For the most part, he sells hobby boxes and rarely packs anything out. On one hand, I understand. It can be hard to move product one pack at a time. On the other hand, with the prices of baseball cards this year (thanks, Judge), many people - myself included - can't afford an entire box.

However, there were a few times that he did pack out a few products. For instance, I was able to buy a few packs of Bowman Chrome. In one of those packs was this:

A base auto of Mitchell White. Or, as I like to call him, "Mr. Squiggly Line."

Okay, I get it. The number of autographs these prospects are asked to sign is astronomical. That's on us, as collectors, for wanting an autograph in every product. However, there has to be some blame placed on the player, right? I mean, this is absolute garbage. It is ridiculous that cards like this make it into products. I could keep going, but I will digress.

Anyway, I went in earlier this week to grab some top loaders and a ball cube when I noticed that the owner was packing out some Bowman's Best and Topps Chrome from this year, so I bought a few packs of each. In my packs of Bowman's Best was this:

I haven't heard much about Adell, other than he was a first round pick of the Angels. It seems he is a "consensus" five-tool prospect. I think I will hang on to it and see how he does. 

No autographs came from my Topps Chrome packs, but I did pull a pretty decent rookie card:

A prism refractor of Cody Bellinger. This is a beautiful card. I know Bellinger made a splash this year, but I still wonder if he will be a future star in the game. Just in case, I'm holding on to this one, too.

So, not a bad few packs of cards. Has anyone else had a problem with their LCS not selling packs frequently?

A Matt Harrison-Centric Post

Player collections can be funny, at least for me. I can go weeks or months without adding a single card. This is especially true when you are down to pretty much a handful of low-numbered cards as the only ones you need.

Such is true with my Matt Harrison PC. It feels like an eternity since I picked up a card that I needed for this PC. But, as the cardboard world seems to go, I've added three within the last month. Crazy.

First, I received a care package from none other than Greg, the mind behind the Plaschke, Thy Sweater Is Argyle blog. A while back, I sent a 2016 Topps Gold Label black-framed Julio Urias auto to Greg. Greg said this package was for that card, but I am pretty sure that he has already sent me something for it. I guess this means that I will have to keep sending all the Cory Seagers I pull his way!

Anyway, here's the card at the center of that package:

This comes from the 2004 Just Rookies set. The card always makes me crack up - who's the poor schmuck in the lower-left that had his faced blurred and half cropped out? One day, I'll figure it out. This is the black version, numbered to only 25!

Just a couple days before receiving the package from Greg, I won an eBay auction for the following card. It arrived the day after Greg's:

This is the 2013 Topps ERA leaders black printing plate from Series 1. I honestly never thought I would see this card or, even if I did see it, I had even less confidence I would win it. I guess I'm fortunate that David Price and Jered Weaver have kind of taken a step down from the star players they were in 2013 (well, Weaver retired, but Price certainly isn't what he was). 

I always hate the "1 of 1" tag on a printing plate. It is misleading. I think we should petition Topps and all other card companies to label printing plates as "1 of 4." That's a losing battle. 

Finally, I noticed another card hit eBay that I have been looking for since I began collecting Harrison's cards. I had seen others in the set and fell in love, but Harrison's never popped up anywhere...until last week. Behold:

The 2011 Topps Lineage 1952 Canary Autograph of Matt Harrison! These are limited to only 10 copies. I love the gold shimmer (hey Fuji, not a gold refractor, but I think that Gwynn would look good with this background, too!). The only "knock" I have on the card is that it's a sticker auto. Regardless, I love this card. It looks perfect to me (the scan is a little off because of the crop), so I am thinking about sending it in to PSA to get slabbed to keep it that way.

So there you have it: three cards in a month for a player collection I haven't added anything to in a while. Do you have any player collections that you are finding it hard to add cards to?

**UPDATE** Naturally, after I finished and scheduled this post, I won an auction for yet another low-numbered Harrison that I needed (for less than $3, at that!). I'll get that post up as soon as I receive the card!

Looking Ahead to 2018

Now that I've put a bow on 2017, it's time to look ahead to 2018.

This post will be much shorter than my last.

The reality is this: my only goal for 2018 is to enjoy collecting. Whatever brings me enjoyment will be the path I follow. As I was mentioning in the last post, setting goals - at least for me - made collecting less enjoyable because I felt like I had to do certain things.

There are a couple things that I hope to do, however. First and foremost, I want to build the 2018 Heritage set (including High Number). I've got every Heritage base set dating back to 2013 (those high-numbered short prints can be a pain in the butt to gather!) and the High Number sets from 2016 and 2017 (though I think I also have 2015 somewhere, I just need to find it).

I would also like to keep getting my collection organized in the Trading Card Database. This has been an incredibly useful tool for me recently, and I hope to get everything put in by the end of the year. I crave organization!

So there it is: my 2018 non-resolutions!

Looking Back on 2017

I didn't have a post-op breakdown of 2017 put together in my queue prior to the new year, so I guess now is as good a time as any to look back. Here were my goals and my analysis of how I did.

1. Get my hands on a 1969 Mickey Mantle

Nope, didn't happen. One of my resolutions that didn't make it to paper was to not force myself to work on sets or collections. I did that in the past and it really took the joy out of collecting for me. That being said, I didn't force the '69 set in 2017. When I felt like snagging a card or two or found a deal I couldn't pass up, I went for it. I also accepted set needs in trade packages. But I didn't force anything. A Mantle that I could afford never crossed my path and that's okay. 

2. Finish organizing my collection

Sort of happened. I got about three-quarters of the way through organizing my collection and then found the Trading Card Database. This site is by far, the most detailed and in-depth organization website I have found. Therefore, I am in the process of get my collection organized there.

3. Start and complete the 2012 Topps Heritage base set

Nope, didn't happen. Never got there, for the same reason that I didn't get my hands on a 1969 Topps Mickey Mantle.

4. Add 50 new cards to my Rusty Greer player collection

This definitely happened. Beyond all of the trade packages and small purchases here and there, I bought a 75-card Greer lot on eBay back in January. In all, I'm willing to be that I snagged a hundred and fifty Greer cards during the year.

5. Find a new way to digitally share my growing Rangers cardboard collection

Check! As I mentioned, the Trading Card Database has become my go-to for organization. It is also perfectly suited for sharing my collection. I still have a lot of cards to add to the database (mostly scans).

So there it is. Two-and-a-half goals completed, two-and-a-half failed. However, it doesn't matter that I didn't complete all of the goals. In 2017, I really just wanted to enjoy my collection more than I did in 2016. Though I had some serious down moments in 2017, it was fun.

Now, let's look at some of my favorites from 2017!

Favorite Card

This was kind of a given, right?

Favorite Set

2017 Topps Heritage

Favorite Insert Set

It's a tie among 2017 Allen & Ginter inserts!

Sporting Fish & Fishing Lures

World's Dudes

Best Pull of 2017

2017 Topps Heritage Mike Trout Clubhouse Collection Auto Relic

Runners-Up for Best Pull:

2017 Gypsy Queen Marcus Stroman Auto/Relic Booklet

2017 Clearly Authentic Aaron Judge Rookie Redemption

2017 Heritage High Number Addison Russell Clubhouse Collection Auto Relic

Best TTM Return

1972 Bobby Valentine

Best Photo Not to Appear on a Card

No Caption Needed!!!!!