Trading With Myself.... Sort Of

Since right around the beginning of this year, I have been selling some cards on checkoutmycards. While progress has been slow, I have managed $28.50 in sales so far, and this is how I spent it (including shipping).

1969 Topps Johnny Unitas

Sheer perfection on cardboard. This is a great looking card of one of the games greatest quarterbacks. I was fortunate enough to meet Johnny U a few times, shortly before he passed, and he was a very kind man.

2006 Upper Deck Ultimate Collection Derrick Mason autograph #5/99

Truly a signature that could not be contained by any stinkin' sticker. As you can see, Mason's scribblings venture outside of the signing area, but at least you can still see it. I heart on card autos.

2005 Fleer Patchworks Dontrelle Willis/Josh Beckett dual patch #21/25

The D-Train on the front, with a great looking 4-color patch

Beckett on the back, with a great looking 3 color patch. If this isn't the ultimate Marlins fan trade bait, I don't know what is.

2008 Topps Chrome Ichiro Trading Card History refractor

A card I have wanted since the first time I laid eyes on it. The Trading Card History subset was pretty solid, and the refractors are particularly awesome. I believe this card is based on a Japanese Menko design from the 1950's.

2002 Bowman Chrome Reprints 1989 Ken Griffey Jr. refractor

This will most likely serve as trade fodder for one of the 2 Mariners fans I owe cards to.

All in all I think this is a stellar haul for $28 delivered. Lately a lot of people have been ranting about the excessive shipping costs on COMC, especially when compared to Sportlots & eBay. While shipping may not be cheap, in my opinion you are able to find better deals on checkoutmycards, especially on higher-end "hits", than you are on either of the other 2 sites. If I had purchased these cards individually on eBay, shipping would have easily exceeded $10, and may have been in the $15-$20 range. For instance, the other day, I picked up a Markakis/Adam Jones dual relic from Unique for $7.50. The card has a stated BV of $30 (ha!), routinely fetches over $10 on eBay, and would most likely cost a minimum of $2 to ship. I just saved almost $5 by picking this card up on COMC. Sportlots is another name that people often bring up. To be honest, I don't have that much experience with them, but I know that they do not give you the option to submit an offer for cards you want. You are stuck paying whatever the seller is asking, which in some instances, is simply too much. I've also found that a lot of listings on Sportlots don't include a scan or picture of the card. This might not be a big deal to some people, but if you're purchasing a patch card made by Upper Deck, don't you at least want to know if the edges are clean? They most likely aren't.

Opinions are like Gellmans (no offense).... and everyone is entitled to think whatever they'd like, and obviously shop wherever they want to. For me, right now, that place is checkoutmycards.

More Trades From Around The Blogosphere

Another round of trades from across the blogosphere and beyond... The perfect way to start off a brand new year.

A month or so ago, reader Joe L. emailed me saying that he had gotten the wrong Topps 206 box, and that this particular hobby box should have been mine. Well... being the nice guy that he is, Joe sent me the 2 Orioles hits he pulled from his box, along with an AMAZING Ray Rice patch card. First up is the case hit...

2009 Topps 206 Nick Markakis Polar Bear framed relic

I'm not sure how I feel about relic case hits. The only thing that makes this card any different than the other Markakis relics in this set is the frame. I would be pretty bummed if I shelled out all that cash for a case, and this was the "big hit". C'mon Topps! These should at least be autographed or something.

2009 Topps 206 Koji Uehara Piedmont framed autograph

Welcome to my Orioles autograph collection Koji! You have an interesting signature, and I dig the exclamation points that look like they are supposed to be i's.

2008 Donruss Gridiron Gear Ray Rice 4-color patch #'d /50

This is officially the nicest patch card in my collection, and the only one featuring 4 colors. Joe swears he saw this card pulled in person, so I have confidence that this isn't a fake. Even if it is, aren't all "memorabilia" cards sort of fake in a way? There's no guarantee that the swatch on your card was ever actually touched by the player pictured.

Next up are a few cards from Duane over at Democratic Roadkill. Duane also emailed me about some cards he thought I might be interested in, and boy was he ever right. I am still rooting around for some Blue Jays cards to send back in return, and should have a package ready for mailing by Monday or Tuesday. Let's see what Duane sent!

2009 UD Ballpark Collection Stat Kings quad swatch

Ballpark Collection was yet another in a long line of overpriced sets featuring a gratuitous use of relics. All autographs are on stickers, and the price tag is upwards of $100/box. Pretty freakin' ridiculous if you ask me, especially since most of the relics (even the six & eight swatches) sell for right around the $5 mark on the secondary market. I'm still going to collect the Markakis & Adam Jones cards though. Being a player/team collector is such a pain in the ass sometimes, but such is life as a collector.

2005 Upper Deck Baseball Heroes Jim Palmer relic #'d /50

This card has some chipping on the right edge, which is pretty standard for Upper Deck. I really like artwork on this card, and being numbered to 50 certainly doesn't hurt either. Both '05 & '08 Heroes are great products, but for me, '05 takes the cake since all autographs are on-card.

2009 Topps Allen & Ginter's Creatures of Myth, Legend & Terror Hydra mini

I goofed up a bit and left this card on my want list, even though I've already got a copy. If anyone needs this card for their set, or happens to be a huge Hydra fan, this card is for trade. My Creatures want list is officially down to just TWO cards, LMT3 & LMT14. If you happen to have them, please contact me and I will make sure you are more than fairly compensated. At this point I'm soooooo close, and just want to knock this set out.

Next we have a card sent to me by Larry the SewingMachineGuy, who is not to be confused with Larry the Cable Guy. Larry just re-did the banner on his blog, and it looks great. If you've never been there, or haven't been there in a while, I suggest checking it out immediately. Much like Joe & Duane, Larry emailed me to say that he'd pulled a Nick Markakis relic from a pack of '09 Sweet Spot, and was wondering if I was interested. Naturally, I was, and quickly sent off a Maggs relic in return.

2009 Upper Deck Sweet Spot Nick Markakis Sweet Swatch Memorabilia

Finally, we have an amazing card from Jeff at I Am Joe Collector. Over the summer he busted a case (maybe 2) of 2008 Upper Deck Football Heroes, and happened to pull not one, but TWO Joe Flacco hard-signed rookie autos. I immediately emailed him about acquiring one, but didn't have anything in my collection that Jeff was interested in. Fast forward to late November, when the Darren Sproles black refractor auto from my 2005 Topps Finest Football mini box break caught his eye, and a comment appeared on my blog that simply read "Sproles for Flacco". In my mind, that is a no brainer, and here is the beauty that arrived early last week, just in time for Christmas.

2008 Upper Deck Football Heroes Joe Flacco rookie autograph #'d/ 250

Hot damn that is beautiful! "Joe the quarterback" had better bring it this Sunday, and every Sunday (or Saturday) from now until Super Bowl Sunday!

A big thank you to both Joes, Duane and Larry for the great cards! It was a pleasure trading with all of you. Oh, and Happy New Year to everyone out there in the great net of the inter.

Card Shop...

Today, I went back to Sport Card Depot, in search of some loose packs of '08 Masterpieces for my set. I was hoping to pull a short print or two I need, and a few of those black framed parallels as well. In all I purchased 6 packs for $3.50/pack. Even though short prints are seeded 1:2 packs, there were none to be found in any of the six packs I ripped. After opening 4 packs, I had only pulled 1 black framed parallel (needed it), and none of the remaining base cards from my want list.

Then along came pack #5. After ripping the wrapper, I saw the word "Congratulations" and knew I had a hit on my hands. Closer examination revealed that it was a Dodgers hit. "Dammit" I thought, "another Andruw Jones jersey card". As I was flipping the card over, I noticed that the card was rather thick, like thicker than a regular jersey card. "Dammit", I thought, "an Andruw Jones patch card".

You could imagine my surprise when I finally flipped the card over and saw this....
Totally sucks that there's a cat hair on the patch, but that's what happens when you've got one. There's nothing in this house without cat hair on it. Supposedly these patches are seeded 1:15 or 1:20 cases. Yes, you read that right, CASES. At least that's what a little birdie told me anyway. After a rought run of horrible luck, it's nice to finally pull an unexpected hit out of something. This may actually be one of my better pulls ever, if not the best. Sad, I know, but my box busting luck has been fairly lousy in the "big hits" department.

In case you were wondering, pack 6 contained another black framed parallel from my want list.

Quickie eBay Pickups

Me and the eBay go together like fried chicken & waffles. While I've been trying to take 'er easy the past few weeks, I have picked up a few cards. My belly is on the verge of an epic explosion, and there aren't many posts to be read around the 'sphere tonight. While I may not have anything ingenious to offer, at the very least there will be 3 nice cards to look at. Hopefully everyone out there had a wonderful turkey day. I sure did, and am about to head off into the land of slumber. No, not because I am heading out to get a good deal on hot holiday electronics in the morning. I have to work at 6am. Hmmm.... 6am? Isn't that when the Blowout Black Friday sale starts?...... Sometimes it's not so bad having to work early on Black Friday.

Here is what I've scored over the past 2 weeks:

2008 Upper Deck Premier Patches Nick Markakis #'d /21

One of those cards that I've chased for a while and would always get outbid on. Not this time, oh no. This time it is mine.The left patch is just barely 3 color. There's a tiny bit of gray peeking through in the bottom right corner.


2009 Topps Finest Joe Flacco gold refractor #'d /75

Odd that these are #'d to 75 instead of 50. I've become used to 50 being the gold refractor gold standard. A sweet card of my hometown quarterback, and a welcome addition to my newborn football collection.

2009 Topps Finest Dwayne Bowe pigskin refractor #'d /25

It's time to play would you buy that card for $0.99 plus $2.50 shipping & handling! For me the answer was yes. Bowe is one of my favorite young receivers, and someone I hope the Ravens try to trade for next season. If he can get out of lowly KC, there's a chance he could be a beast.

That's all I've got for tonight. To anyone venturing out tomorrow morning, best of luck to you, and may you find excellent deals. To anyone checking out the Blowout extravaganza tomorrow, best of luck as well. I hear there will be some pretty sweet deals to be had, although quantities will be limited. Saw something earlier that said a CASE of '08 Documentary would be $11.27 or something nuts like that.

Wish List Card #9

Yes, I know that's a 2009 Triple Threads card. The set might be terrible, and a total ripoff, but this card is frickin' sweet! It's a Frank Robinson jumbo patch booklet thingy, and I really like it. I think Triple Threads always delivers top notch relic cards of retired players. I don't think there are many of us who care for the gaudy rainbow sticker autos found in this set, and thankfully this card is auto free. Look at the size of that patch!

This Frank Robinson card sold on eBay yesterday for $255.00. It was listed with a BIN/Best Offer price of $500. See the completed auction here. It looks like this is yet another card that will forever remain on my wish list.

Triple Turds isn't so bad when they don't screw it up with sticker autos and a checklist full of bums. This card should serve as an example to that point.

Cards from darkship

This is yet another post dedicated to the awesome cards that find there way to through this blog. Reader darkship emailed me out of the blue a couple of weeks ago and said he had some cards to send my way. I recognized the handle, from various group breaks, and sent him my information.

What showed up over the weekend completely blew me away, and I've been searching for some sweet Royals cards ever since, to send in return. Included in this package were a whopping 3 autographs, and a patch card #'d to 5!

2008 Upper Deck Baseball Heroes #168 Luke Scott charcoal autograph

My first Luke Scott auto. This guy has pretty quietly put together a decent season, and leads the O's in home runs. I like Luke Scott, and hopefully they can find a place for him next season.

2008 Upper Deck Baseball Heroes #15 Brian Roberts purple patch

Wow, just wow. This is the 3rd or 4th Brian Roberts patch I've acquired via trade. There are more patches of his in my collection than any other player. This one is a beaut, featuring 3 color breaks, and actually matches the jersey worn in the photo. Amazing!

2008 Upper Deck SP Authentic #SP-RR Ray Rice autograph

This is my first Ray Rice autograph, and I love it. He's on my fantasy squad this season, and appears in line to get a lot more action in his second full season. Ray Rice is a quick, shifty little runner with great moves, and the rest of the league should consider themselves on notice.

2008 Masterpieces #SG-JG Jeremy Guthrie Stroke of Genius autograph

Another great card. These Masterpieces autos have to be amongst the nicest ever produced. Guthrie also has a great signature. He may be an ace by association in Baltimore, but Guts can pitch, and I think would make an excellent 2nd or 3rd starter almost anywhere.

2008 Upper Deck SP Authentic RA-8 Joe Flacco "event worn" jersey

Joe the quarterback has looked much improved this season, and is already beloved here in Baltimore, despite this being just his second season. Unless you're from Baltimore, or follow it's sports news closely, you've probably got no idea how bad we longed for a decent QB in this town. Our collective prayers look to have been answered. Have you seen who's #1 in this week's power rankings?

2009 Topps #LPR-49 Cal Ripken Jr. manu-patch

How many of these things did they make for each player? I am way too lazy to actually look it up, but this is the 3rd different Cal Jr. that I've got in the collection.

Once again, awesome cards, and far more than I ever expect anyone to ever send me. Why this keeps happening to me, I don't know. It's inspired me to give back, so the first 3 people to comment on this post, who are also followers of this blog, will receive a few choice cards fromt their favorite team or player.

darkship, thanks a lot for the great cards, and be on the lookout for a package of Bo Jackson-ey goodness to arrive sometime later this week.

Random Packs From Tribecards

A few weeks back I was fortunate enough to have received some random packs from David of Tribecards. Granted, everyone who responded was fortunate enough to receive cards, which makes it all the more remarkable that David got them all sent out. Everyone who has posted them so far has gotten much more than they ever expected. I won't keep you in suspense, and let you know from the jump that I also received more than I was expecting. Not only did the packs include a few "hits", there were also several cards that I found quite interesting, and had never seen before.

I debated for a few days about which card to begin this post with, and managed to convince myself that if one has a card this ridiculous and awesome, then one has no choice but to start with....

KARATE ELVIS!

This is a 1992 The River Group Elvis Collection card, and it is kickass. Chubby, mutton chop, Vegas Elvis is my absolute favorite Elvis era. This is a still from Elvis' appearance on "Kung-Fu", starring the late David Carradine, and it's really awesome!


These next 2 are pretty sweet as well. I loved TMNT when I was a kid, and they are one of the prime reasons I believed Rafael Palmeiro was Italian in descent. They are from the 1990 Topps Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie set.

Remember how hard the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles video game was? The level where you had to swim in the sewer used to be my demise.


Sticking with the movie theme, here's an E.T. card from 1982. It was released by Universal Studios, and is in really good condition. I was one when this set was released, so it's cool to have one, especially since it was obviously issued before my time as a collector. The star border on this card is awesome.

Here's another non-sports card. This one is quite strange, and appears to have been released by Harley-Davidson. It's a custom motorcycle set technically released by Thunder Productions, but a close inspection of the fine print reveals that Thunder Productions is affiliated with the Harley Davidson Company.I'm not big into Harleys, but this one is pretty nice looking.

All right, enough of the non-sports. Let's see some baseball cards. First up is a 1996 Topps Stadium Club Eddie Murray. Even though he's not in an O's uniform, it's still an Eddie Murray card, and he still looks all business.


A Barry Larkin Diamond King. This one is from 1990, and definitely takes me back to my childhood collecting days.


I'm really starting to get tired of seeing this guy on baseball cards, but I didn't already have this one, and it's a nice compliment to the '08 version that I already have.

There were a few Orioles to be found in my random packs of kindness as well. I already had them all, but it's always nice to pull a card of your favorite team from a pack of cards, even if it is a repack of kindness.

1990 Topps Bob Melvin

1992 Topps Stadium Club David Segui

1991 Score The Franchise Cal Ripken Jr.

Those "The Franchise" inserts were hot little numbers back in the day. I always like them, but not as much as the Dream Team inserts, and it was pretty cool to find a potential future Hall of Famer waiting for me. Of course I'm talking about the card below, a 1993 Score Dream Team insert of Tom Glavine.


Speaking off Hall of Famers, here's a 1992 Fleer Ultra Ozzie Smith card. 1992 was the heyday of my childhood collecting days, and this was one of my favorite sets. Ozzie was in his twilight at this point, and was still a ton of fun to watch.


Wow, this has to be the ugliest female superhero ever. She's so.... green... and strong. This card is from 1993, and was released by Skybox. It's part of a Marvel Comics set, and is definitely interesting I don't know much about comic books, they were never really my thing. I can appreciate the artistry of them and all, which is why I like this card. They were just never really by bag is all.

Another 1991 Score Dream Team card of a Hall of Famer. Kirby Puckett was my little brother's favorite player growing up. Even though he wasn't an Oriole, which I viewed as a betrayal on the part of my brother, I couldn't really blame him for liking Puckett. He was one hell of a player, and definitely one of those guys you could never really dislike. He played his heart out and left us too soon.


I mentioned earlier that there were some "hits" included in my random packs. It was pretty cool to find them both, especially since I had no idea they were going to be in there. First we have a 2004 Upper Deck Legendary Cuts bat card of Joe Morgan. I really like the design of this card, and having a bat piece in the shape of an H is much better than a boring ol' square.

And finally, a 2003 Upper Deck Sweet Spot Classic Mark McGwire patch card. This is manufactured patch, which isn't exactly my favorite thing in the world. It's also of Mark McGwire, who isn't my favorite person in the whole world. He betrayed most of us, and made a mockery of the game. He was among my favorite players in the late 80's early 90's, so I took it personally. It's still a nice card, and once again unexpected. One could definitely do worse.

David, thanks a lot for the random kindness. I really enjoyed checking out some cards that I otherwise never would have seen.

Cards I Shouldn't Of Bought On eBay Last Week Pt. 5

Just when you thought it was safe...

2007 Upper Deck Premier Patches Frank Robinson

I obviously have problems. There's still more, but this is getting old.

A Ginter Free Post

Fear not, I'll be back with more A&G in a few days, but in the meantime I wanted to show off a couple of new additions to the ol' collection.

This first card I purchased from eBay. I can hardly believe it was only a dollar and change. This was the season before Kell played with the Orioles, but that doesn't mean I like the card any less. Kell is a Hall of Famer, and anytime you can pick up a vintage card of someone enshrined in Cooperstown for a dollar, you've got to feel good about it. This is not only my first George Kell card, but also my first '55 Bowman. Hard to believe I hadn't previously picked up any of these, especially considering how much I enjoy the totally cheesy yet iconic "what's on television" design.

1955 #213 Bowman George Kell

Next up is a card I still cannot believe was actually offered to me in a trade. Previously, I've mentioned the insane amount of generosity that is constantly shown to me by the card blogging community, and the card below is yet another shining example. Grant of the fabulous Old School Pack Buster blog emailed me last week and said that if he couldn't trade this card, he was just going to put it up on eBay, and that he'd much rather see it go to someone who would appreciate it. Well, I sent over game used cards of Ichiro, a Griffey chrome, and some other random Junior inserts, and in return not only did I receive this card, but several others as well. Grant, you've got more Mariners heading your way shortly, and thanks for this beaut!

2009 Upper Deck SPX #GJA-BR Brian Roberts Game Patch Autograph
This is the first Brian Roberts auto I've ever owned, and check out that 3-color patch! Mr. Roberts has a pretty nice signature, don't you think?


This is probably the last you'll hear from the bearded one for a few days. I'm heading to the beach for a little vacation, and should have some news for everyone when I return, along with some more Ginter.

For anyone thinking about possibly robbing me while I am gone, I'll have you know that Grandmagroomer was nice enough to let me borrow his helldog. So that, coupled with my vicious attack kitties will make any intruder very sorry for even having thought about it.

Oh, I almost forgot.... TOMORROW IS MY BIRFDAY! I am old.

This be th' weirdest trade package ye be havin' ereseen

Why all the pirate speak you say? Arrrrrr! Unless ye want t' end up in Davy Jones' locker, I suggest ye be patient.

This is definitely the oddest trade package I have ever received, but I should have expected no less from the mad scientist himself, PunkRockPaint. A month or so ago, Travis posted his want list for 2008 Allen & Ginter minis. This happened to be right around the time I was looking to unload a bunch of 2008 Ginter to make room for 2009 (which has shipped, and should be in my hands soon). Well, I wasn't collecting the mini set, and sent Mr. PRP a treasure chest full of cards from his want list.

This craziness is what I got in return. Once I had ripped open the bubble mailer, this is what I found inside:
I'm sure Steve Jobs is happy that someone is recycling AppleCare packaging. What else would one do with a box that essentially holds just a piece of paper? You gotta love the creative graffiti on the Apple logo, and the slight verbiage changes, both of which are sheer brilliance. On the back you can see right off the bat that "thar be no Jones' in here." At first I was a little discouraged, but what was inside more than made up for it.

Let's move on a bit and see what's inside the box:
More awesome piratatiousness (totally just made that word up, all rights reserved bitches) on the inside! All three of these packages were quite tempting, and one's natural curiosity (this one's), was begging to know what Oriole goodies were inside. The only question was which one do I open first?

Well... I went with Davy Jones' locker, but only because it felt like it was in a toploader, and was also quite thick. I felt like I had just found One-Eyed Willie's rich stuff when I saw this inside:

2006 Flair Showcase Brian Roberts Letterman patch 4/7!!! I'm not sure, but I think this may actually be a REAL patch, and not manu-crap. If you've ever seen any of the custom cards featured over at PunkRockPaint, you'd wonder if this was one of them. According to the product information, these patch cards are only numbered up to the number of letters in that players last name. That makes WAY too much sense to actually be true. That thing on the card that looks like tape, is in fact tape. Thankfully, it's on the toploader only.

The rest of this post is probably going to be a let down after that, and I'm not going to post all of the cards that were sent (there were too many!). If you wish to stop reading, I suggest you do it now.

Ok, moving right along then. After the shock and awe that awaited me in Davy Jones' locker, I decided it was time to Walk The Plank! Let's see how that turned out shall we?

2001 Pacific Royal Rookies Signature Series Edward Rogers autograph. Who? Ok, if that last card wasn't a PRP original, this one HAS to be. According to wikipedia, he played in parts of 3 seasons for the Orioles, including 2 that I followed pretty closely. I still don't remember him. I don't even remember the thing that he is supposed to be memorable for, at least according to wikipedia:
"Rogers will always be remembered for a rather unique play he was involved in during a 2006 game against the New York Mets. As he came in to pick up a bloop single into left field, the ball took an odd hop and went up his sleeve and he had to reach into the back of his shirt to get it out."

Nice hat Ed!

1994 Upper Deck Collector's Choice Cal Ripken Jr. "Hello, Lucy? Yeah, it's Cal. Yes, this is a cellphone. What? Oh, yeah, I do think I've got a pretty good shot at breaking Lou's record. What? NO! Stay away from Billy's bat. That stuff is NOT for the children."

1994 Pinnacle "The Naturals" Cal Ripken Jr. Some bloggers out there are always raving about how wonderful 90's inserts were. Looking at this card, it's hard to argue with them.

1997 Topps Finest "Competitors" Cal Ripken Jr. As my pal Brotherhugger would say, "it's still got the protective coating on it, so you know the book value is intact." Couldn't have said it better myself. This is another 90's insert that is really, really, really good looking.


After walking the plank, there's nothing left too loot except the Keel Haul. I'm going to assume that's the stash they keep in the ship's keel..... right? This particular section was loaded with some good ol' fashioned Orioles, that happen to share a last name. Speaking of sharing (damn that was a smooth segue), here they are:

2002 Fleer Greats Brooks Robinson. I'm not sure if this is a parallel version or not. It has a metallic matte type of finish, almost like brushed aluminum or something. Me likey!

2002 Topps Archives Brooks Robinson. Obviously this is a reprint of Brooks' '64 Topps card. Notice the bird on his cap? This might be my favorite of the Oriole birds that isn't a cartoon.

2007 Topps Heritage "Flashbacks" Brooks Robinson. This is the same photo used on Brooks' '57 Topps rookie card. I REALLY want that card! It was the topic of my second "Wish List Cards" post. See? Yeah, I want that card. Why Topps decided to put this card using this photo in '07 Heritage instead of '06, the world may never know. It seems to not make sense, which is probably reason enough right there.

2002 Topps "Through The Years" Frank Robinson. Another reprint, this time of '69 Topps, and a different Robinson. As I have stated before, Frank is my favorite of the Robinsons. He's in the 500 home run club, and that's all you need to know.

See, I told you it was going to be a let down after the Roberts patch. Why'd you keep reading? Don't blame me, this is your fault!

Thanks to PunkRockPaint for all the great Orioles cards, especially the Roberts patch. I look forward to crushing your soul in Gint-A-Cuffs!


OH WAIT! NOW I GET IT! PIRATES.... PATCHES... EYES...