Big Mac of the Week - Week 4

Week 4 of this here series.  Here are weeks 1, 2 and 3.

Back to 90 Fleer!  Any guesses why I'd feature this card at this time???  These iconic and youthful stars of the early nineties have been reunited on the Dodgers??  Dodgers??

I thought it was strange enough when Mattingly showed up in LA.  Lifetime Yankee.  Those guys usually stay home.  But Donnie has been good in LA.  Maybe not great, but good.

Now McGwire.  I bet he'll look strange in Dodger blue too.

Anyway, this card would have been a lot better if they could have talked Mattingly into looking up.  Maybe he's staring in stunned silence at McGwire's pile of performance enhancers!!

Matingly:  Uh.. wha.. um..

McGwire:  Yup, pretty big pile huh?

Mattingly:  Well, ... ah..

McGwire:  I'm gonna get bigger than the elephant on my sleeve.

Mattingly:  Oh... er...

Oops!  Sorry, Mark, I love ya!

DK Card Draft surprise round 3

Disclaimer:  This is only open to participants in the DK Card Draft.  If you didn't pay me and send in a list, you are not eligible.  Sorry!

This is the last surprise round in the draft.  I guess they aren't much of a surprise anymore!

To get the order, I took the orders for the last 2 surprise rounds and added the positions together to get a total.  For example, Josh picked 8th in the first surprise round and 5th in the second.  So his total is 13.  Once I got everyone's totals, I ordered this round in reverse order.  Daddyohoho had a total of 17 (10th and 7th) so he picks first.  Sorry BuckStoreCards, into each life some rain must fall...

Here's the order, picks in the comments!

1. Daddyohoho - 72 Palmer
2. Speigel - 68's
3. JerryL - Hendersons
4. JoshD - Aparicio
5. BradR - Killebrew
6. DutchCardGuy - Chapmans
7. RyanG - 53 Mothers Padres Dude
8. Daily Dimwit -Bagwell
9. ShaneD -
10. BuckStoreCards -

This first scan is 3 groups, the 1968 Topps cards, the 2 Hendersons and the 2 Chapmans. 

 The Aparicio is #d /25 and the Bagwell is the 'Black Gold' variation.

Thanks for making this a great and speedy draft!

DK Card Draft surprise round 2

Disclaimer:  This is only open to participants in the DK Card Draft.  If you didn't pay me and send in a list, you are not eligible.  Sorry!

This is the second of 2 (maybe more) surprise rounds in the draft!

Here's how this round goes. I have been in a few drafts where I got a pick late in the first round.  It's OK, but kind of a bummer, since you miss out on the top few cards.  So I'm taking pity on those poor souls and setting the order of this surprise round to be the reverse of Round 1.

When it's your turn, pick your card in the comments!  Here is the order:

1. Dutch Card Guy - Glavine RC
2. Buckstore Cards - Grant Hill jersey
3. Daily Dimwit - Munson
4. RyanG - Sosa jersey
5. JoshD - Lakers
6. ShaneD - Strasburg
7. Spiegel - Kinsler
8. Jerryl - Mattingly
9. Brad - Ichiro
10. Daddyohoho - Reggie

It's kind of an eclectic mix this time...

DK Card Draft surprise round!

Disclaimer:  This is only open to participants in the DK Card Draft.  If you didn't pay me and send in a list, you are not eligible.  Sorry!

This is the first of 2 (maybe more) surprise rounds in the draft!

Here's how this round goes.  You choose a card below, check the comments to make sure nobody has already claimed it, then claim it for yourself by commenting.  This does not cost you anything in the regular draft, these are extra cards!

First come, first served this time.  The next one will be different, but I'm not telling how exactly.

So quit reading this drivel and go claim your extra card!

DK Draft Results Page

We are through Done!!!!   I'll have a wrap-up post soon!  In the meantime, please send me mailing addresses.  i know I have many of them, but it would be a great help!Last Updated: 11/13/2012 - 2:12PM(Pacific Time)

Round 1
Daddyohoho          27 - 2001 Titanium Rod Smith/Oronde Gadsen
Brad                       142 - 2008 Moments and Milestones Ryan Howard #d 9/10
Jerryl                      218 - Aaron Rodgers Rookie
Spiegel                   57 - Lolich Auto
ShaneD                  77 - 1981 Topps Nolan Ryan
JoshD                     56 - 2008 UD Ballpark Collection Pujols/Fielder dual jerseys
RyanG                    212 - 1952 Mothers Cookies Max West
Daily Dimwit         20 - 2002 Upper Deck Woodrow Dantzler GU #14/1500
Buckstore Cards     50 - 2008 Upper Deck X Johan Santana jersey
Dutch Card Guy     52 - 2008 Upper Deck Tom Glavine jersey

Round 2
Dutch Card Guy     96 - 2004 Leaf Limited CC Sabathia #d 100/749
Buckstore Cards     49 - 2009 Upper Deck Carlos Delgado jersey       
Daily Dimwit          54 - 2003 Fleer Pujols/Berkman (Berkman jersey piece)
RyanG                    186 - 2004 Topps Ryan/Clemens
JoshD                      156 - 1953 Bowman Sam Dente
ShaneD                   79 - 1987 Donruss Greg Maddux RC
Spiegel                    15 - Tyler Thornburg Auto
Jerryl                       220 - 2009 Topps Andrew McCutchen Red Hot Rookies RC
Brad                        60 - 1993 Topps Black Gold Ken Griffey Jr
Daddyohoho           179 - 1976 Topps George Brett

Round 3
Daddyohoho           75 - 1976 George Brett – slight softness on a corner
Brad                        120 - 1976 Topps Steve Carlton
Jerryl                       209 - 2002 Topps 206 Joe Mauer RC
Spiegel                    1 - Varitek Jersey
ShaneD                   74 - 1983 Nolan Ryan
JoshD                      29 - 2003 Upper Deck Seneca Wallace manu-patch
RyanG                     5 - 2005 Upper Deck Pedro Martinez Jersey
Daily Dimwit          97 - 1998 Bowman Lance Berkman RC
Buckstore Cards     19 - 2006 Finest Orien Green jersey #828/1178
Dutch Card Guy     201 - 2004 Throwback Threads Tom Seaver ‘Century Stars’ #d 17/1500

Round 4
Dutch Card Guy      210 - 1952 Mothers Cookies Joe Grace – writing on back
Buckstore Cards      53 - 2007 Topps David Wright jersey
Daily Dimwit          55 - 2007 Goudey John Smoltz jersey
RyanG                     14 - 2010 Topps Daniel McCutchen Auto
JoshD                       172 - 1970 Topps Orlando Cepeda
ShaneD                    122 - 1998 Stadium Club David Ortiz ‘Prime Rookies’
Spiegel                     31 - Pau Gasol Jersey
Jerryl                       202 - 2005 Donruss Elite Bo Jackson ‘Career Best’ #d 777/1500
Brad                        24 - 2003 Donruss Hank Blalock jersey #286/500
Daddyohoho           217 - 2003 Upper Deck Manny Ramirez Leading Swatches Jersey

Round 5
Daddyohoho           165 - 1976 Topps Jim Palmer
Brad                        101 - 2002 Topps Gold Jimmy Rollins ‘Class 1’ #d 382/500
Jerryl                       180 - 1976 Topps Fran Tarkenton
Spiegel                    40 -  JJ Reddick Auto
ShaneD                   113 - 2002 Topps Tribute Bo Jackson
JoshD                      013 - 2005 Topps Pristine Cadillac Williams RC Jersey Uncirculated #38/100
RyanG                     17 - 2011 In The Game Jake Hager auto
Daily Dimwit          6 - 2007 Ultra Carl Crawford jersey
Buckstore Cards      3 - 2002 Select Eric Bedard Auto
Dutch Card Guy      211 - 1952 Mothers Cookies Ed Chandler

Round 6
Dutch Card Guy      146 - 1953 Topps Gordon Goldsberry - pinhole
Buckstore Cards      116 - 2005 Diamond Kings Darryl Strawberry ‘Framed Red’
Daily Dimwit           2 - 2008 Bowman Garrett Mock Auto
RyanG                      38 - 2007 TriStar Brandon Hamilton auto
JoshD                       7 - 2008 Topps Manny Ramirez Jersey
ShaneD                    168 - 1973 Pro Superstars Mickey Lolich
Spiegel                     178 - 1960 Fleer Dazzy Vance
Jerryl                        155 - 1953 Bowman Jimmy Dykes
Brad                          143 - 2009 UD Ryan Howard ‘Starquest Emerald Super Rare’
Daddyohoho            183.  1978 Topps Strikeout Leaders Ryan/Niekro

Round 7
Daddyohoho            132 - 1975 Topps Phil Niekro
Brad                         219 - 2010 Allen & Ginter Gordon Beckham mini Bat Relic
Jerryl                        177 - 1960 Fleer Cap Anson
Spiegel                     133 - 1972 Phil Niekro
ShaneD                    190 - 2002 Donruss ‘Originals’ Robin Yount
JoshD                       181 - Bob Griese Pro-Action
RyanG                      39 - 2001 Bowman Felipe Lopez Auto
Daily Dimwit           216 - 2009 Upper Deck Mike Minor USA Jersey
Buckstore Cards      115 - 2002 Bowman Chrome Jose Reyes
Dutch Card Guy       147 - 1957 Topps Eddie O’Brien - crease

Round 8
Dutch Card Guy        148 - 1957 Topps Bob Chakales - crease
Buckstore Cards        32 - 05-06 Upper Deck Jason Terry jersey
Daily Dimwit            16 - 2011 Bowman Chrome Brock Hold auto – on card
RyanG                       51 - 2003 Leaf Termel Sledge Auto
JoshD                        59 - 2008 Goudey Derek Jeter SP
ShaneD                     114 - 2000 Stadium Club Nomar Garciaparra ‘3x3 luminous’
Spiegel                      134 - 1970 Topps Ron Santo All Star
Jerryl                         123 - 2010 Topps Heritage Chrome Joey Votto #d 1940/1961
Brad                          215 - 2008 Upper Deck Dontrelle Willis Jersey
Daddyohoho             105 - 2006 Turkey Red Chase Utley ‘White’

Round 9
Daddyohoho           121 - 2005 Diamond Kings Steve Carlton ‘HOF Heroes framed red’
Brad                        37 - 08-09 Topps Thaddeus Young Auto # 1054/5775
Jerryl                       145 - 2004 Donruss Throwback Threads Darryl Strawberry #d 39/100
Spiegel                    164 - 1977 Topps Jim Palmer
ShaneD                    162 - 2001 Topps Combos Yaz/Williams/Garciaparra   
JoshD                      167 - 1971 Topps Gaylord Perry
RyanG                     175 - 1961 Fleer Dave Bancroft
Daily Dimwit          28 - 2011 Bowman Sterling Jordan Todman RC jersey
Buckstore Cards      88 - 2004 Leaf Limited Roy Halladay #d 98/749
Dutch Card Guy      149 - 1957 Topps Jose Valdivielso - crease

Round 10
Dutch Card Guy      176 - 1960 Fleer Harry Heilmann
Buckstore Cards      166 - 2008 Co-Signers David Wright/Reyes #d 229/250
Daily Dimwit           34 - 2011 Panini Gary Forbes RC auto/manu-patch
RyanG                     184 - 1996 Afficianado Rivals Thomas/Ripken
JoshD                      44 - 2008 Upper Deck Hanley Ramirez jersey
ShaneD                    169 - 1973 Pro Superstars Wilbur Wood
Spiegel                    78 - 1992 Donruss ‘The Rookies’ Pedro Martinez
Jerryl                       182 - 1989 Pro Set Barry Sanders RC
Brad                         92 - 1999 Topps Roy Halladay ‘Rookie Rush’
Daddyohoho            63 - 2002 Diamond Kings Ichiro

Round 11
Daddyohoho         140 - 2008 Stadium Club Ryan Howard ‘1st day issue’
Brad                      119 - 1989 Fleer Billy Ripken ‘Black Box’
Jerryl                     187 - 2004 Donruss Elite ‘Draft Class’ Jim Rice/Kieth Hernandez(on back) #d 245/500
Spiegel                  160 - 2001 Topps Combos Johnson/Spahn/Carlton/Koufax
ShaneD                 163 - 2001 Topps Combos Williams/Gwynn
JoshD                    207 - 2007 Upper Deck Cal Ripken ‘Ripken Chronicles’
RyanG                   61 - 2008 Topps Heritage Ichiro mini
Daily Dimwit        76 - 2004 Donruss ‘World Series MVP’ Reggie Jackson #d 651/1000
Buckstore Cards    10 - 2008 Leaf Joey Galloway Jersey #244/350
Dutch Card Guy    150 - 1960 Topps Lou Berberet

Round 12
Dutch Card Guy        151 - 1964 Topps Barry Latmen
Buckstore Cards        87 - 2005 Donruss Studio Portraits Mark Teixeira #d 32/55
Daily Dimwit            95 - 2005 Skybox Autographics Harmon Killebrew #d 707/750
RyanG                       100 - 2010 Topps Ryan Braun 2020
JoshD                        136 - 1998 Skybox Craig Biggio ‘Access Airlines’
ShaneD                     72 - 1997 Ultra Vladimir Guererro ‘Gold Medallion’
Spiegel                      173 - 1972 Topps Billy Martin in action
Jerryl                         205 - 2003 Fleer Fall Classic Joe Morgan ‘Pennant Aggression’ #d 530/1975
Brad                          4 - 2006 Bowman Heritage Matt Clement Auto – on card
Daddyohoho             25 - 2006 Upper Deck Amare Stoudamire jersey

Round 13
Daddyohoho             23 - 07-08 Bowman Elton Brand jersey #161/199
Brad                          42 - 2011 Panini Lance Kendricks rc Auto # 98/100
Jerryl                         137 - 2005 Donruss Leather and Lumber Frank Robinson ‘Big Bang’ #d 1498/2000
Spiegel                      45 - Deron Williams Jersey
ShaneD                     141 - 2006 Ultra Prince Fielder ‘Lucky 13’ (rc)
JoshD                        48 - 2005 Turkey Red Kyle Orton auto
RyanG                       103 - 1998 Flair Showcase Row 1 Curt Schilling
Daily Dimwit            12 - 2005 Bowman Chrome Chase Lyman Auto
Buckstore Cards        64 - 1985 Donruss Pete Rose  
Dutch Card Guy        152 - 1964 Topps Earl Francis

Round 14
Dutch Card Guy          153 - 1964 Topps Don Lock
Buckstore Cards          131 - 1975 Topps Gaylord Perry
Daily Dimwit               154 - 1964 Topps Larry Brown
RyanG                          107 - 2012 Finest Ryan Braun Game Changers
JoshD                           43 - 2006 Bowman Heritage Andruw Jones jersey
ShaneD                        197 - 1995 Topps Ozzie Smith ‘Ring Leaders’
Spiegel                         36 - 09-10 Panini Carlos Boozer jersey #123/199
Jerryl                            157 - 2008 UD Baseball Heroes Cal Ripken/Tony Gwynn
Brad                             71 - 2003 Leaf Limited Vladimir Guererro #d 624/699
Daddyohoho                99 - 2008 UD A Piece of History Joey Votto (rc)

Round 15
Daddyohoho                129 - 2011 Bowman Chrome Freddie Freeman (rc)
Brad                             85 - 2007 Triple Threads Carl Crawford #d 464/1350
Jerryl                            193 - 2008 UD Sport Royalty Albert Pujols
Spiegel                         191 - Kiner/Williams
ShaneD                        203 - 1996 Ultra Rickey Henderson ‘Call to the Hall’
JoshD                           64 - 2011 Topps Bowmans Best throwback Ichiro
RyanG                         127 - 1998 SPx Radiance Fred McGriff
Daily Dimwit              174 - 1965 Tops Embossed Rocky Colavito
Buckstore Cards          135 - 1970 Topps Boog Powell All Star
Dutch Card Guy          89 - 2004 Donruss Classics Thurman Munson ‘Legendary Lumberjacks’ #d 251/1000

Round 16
Dutch Card Guy         170 - 1969 Topps Scratch Off Juan Marichal
Buckstore Cards         9 - 2008 Leaf Tavaris Jackson Jersey #50/350`
Daily Dimwit             171 - 1969 Topps Scratch Off Boog Powell
RyanG                        159 - 2005 Donruss Elite ‘Face 2 Face’ Jim Palmer/Harmon Killebrew #d 38/1500
JoshD                         41 - 2011 Panini Aldrick Robinson rc Auto # 75/199
ShaneD                      139 - 2007 Masterpieces David Ortiz ‘Framed Green’
Spiegel                       106 - 2004 Playoff Honors Lou Brock ‘Prime Signatures’ #d 556/2500
Jerryl                          196 - 2011 Topps Heritage Albert Pujols ‘New Age Performers’
Brad                           35 - 98 Collectors Edge Rashard Lewis auto – on card
Daddyohoho              33 - 07-08 Upper Deck Pau Gasol jersey

Round 17
Daddyohoho               11 - 05-06 Upper Deck Gilbert Arenas Jersey #77/250
Brad                            90 - 1997 Ultra Nomar Garciaparra ‘Kid Gloves’
Jerryl                           198 - 2009 Goodwin Champions Ozzie Smith mini
Spiegel                        73 - 2000 Fleer Tradition Chipper Jones ‘Ten-4’ die-cut
ShaneD                       91 - 2000 Upper Deck Hitters Club ‘Eternals’ Nomar Garciaparra
JoshD                          46 - 2003 Bowmans Best Marcus Trufant rc jersey # 357/499
RyanG                        98 - 2007 Ultra Justin Verlander ‘Strike Zone’
Daily Dimwit             68 - 1977 Topps Pete Rose – 2 corners soft
Buckstore Cards         126 - 2004 Donruss Elite Michael Young ‘Round Numbers’ #d 233/500
Dutch Card Guy         189 - 2005 Playoff Prestige ‘Connections’ Seaver/Bench

Round 18
Dutch Card Guy         84 - 2004 Ultimate Mark Teixiera #d 197/675
Buckstore Cards         18 - 2004 Pacific JP Dumont jersey #3/50
Daily Dimwit             204 - 2004 Sweet Spot Classic Stan Musial
RyanG                        108 - 2008 SP Authentic ‘Marquee Matchups’ Miguel Cabrera/Jered Weaver
JoshD                         62 - 2009 UDX Ichiro die cut
ShaneD                      161 - 2001 Topps Combos Griffey Jr/Aaron
Spiegel                       69 - 2004 Donruss Classics Robin Yount ‘Legendary Lumberjacks’ #d 311/1000
Jerryl                          58 - 1998 Leaf ‘Gold Star’ Mark McGwire
Brad                           118 - 2007 Bowmans Best Miguel Cabrera
Daddyohoho              206 - 2004 Ultimate Brooks Robinson #d 654/675

Round 19
Daddyohoho             66 - 1985 Fleer Pete Rose ‘4000th hit’
Brad                          199 - 1993 Leaf Ozzie Smith ‘Heading to the Hall’
Jerryl
Spiegel                     86 - 2004 Donruss Classics Joe Morgan ‘Legendary Lumberjacks’ #d 327/1000
ShaneD                    83 - 2001 Fleer Platinum Ryne Sandberg Rookie Reprint
JoshD                       8 - 2008 Leaf Brandon Stokley Jersey #15/100
RyanG                     102 - 1997 Flair Showcase Jay Buhner ‘Row 0’
Daily Dimwit           80 - 1985 Donruss Highlights Don Mattingly #36
Buckstore Cards       104 - 1987 Fleer Update Fred McGriff
Dutch Card Guy       208 - 1992 Upper Deck Minors Manny Ramirez

Round 20
Dutch Card Guy       185 - 2003 Leaf Clean Up Crew Rolen/Pujols/Edmonds
Buckstore Cards       22 - 2007 SP Vince Young jersey
Daily Dimwit           81 - 1985 Donruss Highlights Don Mattingly #45
RyanG                      200 - 2002 Fleer Tradition Ozzie Smith ‘This day in history’
JoshD                       94 - 2011 Topps Hanley Ramirez Cognac
ShaneD                    117 - 2007 Finest Prince Fielder ‘Finest Moments’
Spiegel                     125 - 2006 Bowman Mark Teixeira #d 270/500
Jerryl
Brad                         188 - 2004 Donruss Elite Face 2 Face Randy Johnson/Jim Edmonds #d 585/750
Daddyohoho            30 - 08-09 Upper Deck Tony Parker jersey

Round 21
Daddyohoho             109 - 2011 Bowman Platinum Justin Verlander
Brad                          195 - 2009 UD Starquest Albert Pujols ‘purple common’
Jerryl
Spiegel                      214 - 2004 Sweet Spot Classic Ted Williams
ShaneD                     124 - 2000 Topps Michael Young RC
JoshD                        47 - 1995 Superior Pix Tyrone Wheatley auto hand #d 773/6500 on card – creased
RyanG                       93 - 2009 Upper Deck Matt Holliday Xponential X5
Daily Dimwit            67 - 1986 Fleer Pete Rose ‘Future HOFer’
Buckstore Cards       70 - 2007 Turkey Red Chrome Carlos Beltran #d 1710/1999
Dutch Card Guy       130 - 2008 Tristar Projections Freddie Freeman

Round 22
Dutch Card Guy       144 - 2006 Upper Deck Mark Teixeira ‘Star Attractions’
Buckstore Cards       213 - 2010 Topps Carl Crawford #d 129/2010
Daily Dimwit           82 - 1987 Fleer All Stars Don Mattingly
RyanG                      111 - 2011 Bowman Platinum Robinson Cano
JoshD                       110 - 2011 Bowman Platinum Buster Posey
ShaneD                     128 - 2008 Bowman Chrome Freddie Freeman
Spiegel                     192 - 2008 UDx Xponential Albert Pujols X2
Jerryl
Brad                         138 - 2000 Skybox Metal Alphonso Soriano ‘Talent Show’
Daddyohoho            194 - 2006 Fleer Tradition Albert Pujols ‘Diamond Tribute’

Angelic Carews from Napkin Doon

Aren't they beautiful?

Two sweet looking Carew's, both very nice additions to my collection!  These were brought to you by the kindness of one Napkin Doon, who traded them to me for a surprisingly small return.  Thanks Nap!

Card Draft almost live!

I just need an e-mail for shoeboxlegends and one payment.

ShoeboxLegends!  Where are you??

Join my Draft!

I need 2 more drafters for my card draft!  Check it out, salivate and sign up!  $16 per slot.  I have decided to sweeten the pot a bit.  Here are 6 cards that will be added to the 214 already shown on this page!

4 hits and 2 really nice rookies!  Come and get em!

Also, most of you have already paid, but if you haven't, it is time.

Thanks!

October Refractor Report

Still need a couple more participants in the DK Card Draft!  Comment on the original post to reserve a spot.  If you have a spot already, go ahead and send payment when you are able.

If you read this blog at all the last 9 months, you know I'm collecting refractors this year.  Any refractors!!  The goal is 1000 for the year.  This is my monthly report.

Here is the monthly progress report for October!

Obligatory graphic.  Posts are always better with graphics.

As of October 31st, I have the following:
779 - Baseball Refractors
58 - Football Refractors
55 - Basketball Refractors

892 total Refractors!  That's 90 added over the last month.  Wow!  That's two great months in a row!  2 months left and I only need 108 to reach my goal!  I'll keep the pedal to the metal even if I pass 1000, but dang, I'm getting so close.

More math...

I have 89.2% of my goal of 1000 Refractors.
I have been accumulating refractors at a pace of  2.925/day (slightly down from 2.937/day for the 1st 9 months of the year).
I am on pace for 1070 refractors.

Big thanks this month to Oscar at All Trade Bait, All The Time, Spiegel from Nomo' Sushi Platter, and this months high contributor with a sweet total of 31 refractors, Dustin from Coot Veal and the Vealtones!  Thanks guys!!

As always, let me know if you have refractors to trade!

Nomo Doin' Work

**After you read this, go sign up for my card draft, a few spots remain!

Work sucks lately.  But today it was a little brighter.  A few days ago, a co-worker and I were talking and somehow, the fact that I collect cards came up.  I didn't think much of it, but today he brought in the cards he had from his youth for me to look at.  A bright spot in an otherwise dull day!

Now all the cards he had were all in the 1988-95 range.  No big hits or anything special, but he did make me take the three cards below because I must have made appreciative grunts when I saw them.

The McGwire, I immediately recognized as one I don't have.  Since I have 630+ different McGwires, one this common is a surprise.  I grunted appreciatively.  He offered me the card.  I accepted.  The fool!

The Kukoc and Mourning are oversized tall cards from 1995.  The die-cutness of the Kukoc attracted me and the Mourning is a pop-out.  Sweet!  So after a minute of me sounding like Monica Seles (see here for an example), they were all mine!  Some of you may look down on my blatant use of this poor soul, but hey, he brought cards to work!  OK, it wasn't that bad, but I did walk away with three cards and a slightly nicer workday. 

Also, I recently received a package from Spiegel of Nomo's Sushi Platter.  He sent a very nice assortment of cards (including refractors!!), but I already put all of them away, so I'll just show the centerpiece of the trade:

A Gorman Thomas on card auto!!  Here's the story:  I was involved in a card draft recently, when Spiegel took this card a few spots ahead of me.  I pulled out my patented grunt (in the form of a comment where I whined that this was the card I wanted, how dare he take it!).  Just like at work, it worked like a charm!

So in short, I apologize to Spiegel and my nameless, faceless co-worker, but thank them both for the sweet cards.  Rock on!

DK Card Draft sign ups now open

OK, I got lots of feedback and it looks like we are a go on the first Diamond King Card Draft!

Here are the details:

-here are the cards up for grabs.  57 'hits' (relic or auto), tons of serial #d, some vintage, rookies etc.  214 total cards.
-I'm shooting for 10 drafters.  Those who commented that they were interested in my previous post have first dibs on a spot as long as they confirm before Wednesday morning, so if you are not one of those, don't send the $$ until I let you know you are in.
-$16 per slot, send it to paypal, use the gift option.  The paypal address is kmattson2002 at yahoo dot com
-random.org for the draft order, snaking rounds.
-I will have a optional draft kick off on the first day of the draft (date and time TBD).  This will be a gotomeeting (screen sharing) session with a conference line so we can (trash) talk.  I'm thinking about 1 hour.  This will officially kick off the draft, and the first picks will be made.  If you can't make this, just send a list of picks and I will fill them in for you.  After the kick off, all picks should be made with lists so we can keep this moving.
- I was hoping to get this under way asap, but I hear there is some kind of super-storm, and then some election.  So now I am thinking Wednesday Nov 7th as a target date.  Feedback?

Big Mac of the Week - Week 3

Week 3 of this here series.  Here are weeks 1 and 2.

This weeks entry is a 1997 Leaf "Dress for Success" insert.

The front is canvas and the Athletics text is slightly raised.  Feels pretty cool.  I enjoy cards that the manufacturer took extra steps on.  This is a good pose and layout IMO as well.

Here is the back.  Unlike the front, this is a slick, glossy finish.  Very jarring at first glance, but then I saw the serial numbering and decided it was all good.  You can tell from Mark's body language here what a speed demon he was!  Built like a cheetah, right?

Ha ha, come back next week for more!

Passing on Refractors

Why would I pass on free refractors?  I, the chaser of all things refractory, for the last year?

I, the man who still finds himself 198 refractors short of his goal for the year?

Actually, its pretty simple.  The Triple Crown.

I consider myself a baseball history buff.  I enjoy the nostalgia of it.  I also love how baseball numbers and feats seem to mean more than in other sports.  Numbers like .400, 3000, 56 and even broken numbers like 4191, 755 and 2130 all mean something to me.  Not just the records themselves, but the stories and triumphs behind them.

One feat that lives in baseball lore is the triple crown.  Every player ever to accomplish it is a Hall of Famer.  It implies a skill level so far above average that its been done a total of 14 times since 1900.  And only 4 since 1950.  And until this year, not since 1967, 45 years ago.

I remember as a kid, watching the stats accumulating through the year.  I had to read the newspaper to get the stats, and there were not nearly as many as today.  I remember honing my math skills by extrapolating the league leaders current totals to what they might have over 162 games.  I'm still pretty slick at arithmetic today, mostly because of baseball statistics.

The 2 most important things I watched were first, home runs.  The single season homer record was often 'challenged' early in the season, but as the summer wore on, nobody could keep it up.  The other was the triple crown.  This was even more hallowed in my mind, since even early in the season, very few had a real shot at it.

Yaz has grown in stature in my mind and collecting habits specifically because he won the crown.  And now, the newest crown winner has cost me refractors!  You see, I recently won a contest over at Arpsmiths Sportscard Obsession, and one of the possible prizes was 3 refractors.  Gold mine for me!!

But also offered was this:

Done deal.

Big Mac of the Week #2

Mock if you must, but I collect Mark McGwire.  I've been a fan of McGwire ever since his rookie season when he hit a still rookie record 49 (presumably steroid free) bombs.  This series is supposed to be weekly, but I whiffed after week 1.  Not a great start, but I'm the boss of this here blog and I decree that I get a mulligan.  So...

Here's week #2!

This here is a 1993 Topps 'Black Gold' #39. In person, it shines a lot more than in the scan.  But the scan does show off the crosshatch design that Topps used to get this version of the 'Gold' parallels to be one of collectors favorites.

This card was for the 92 season, in which Mark bounced back from a disastrous 91 campaign where he had hit just .210 with only 22 HR's.  He was already battling knee and back problems even though he had not yet hit 30 years old.   I guess that's what a heavy, 6'5" frame gets you.

I remember whispers even back then that Mark must have done something drastic or even *whisper* against the rules to make such a quick turnaround.  Personally, I doubt it was the roids that early, but you never know.  For comparison, how about Adam Dunn's horrible season last year.  He hit .159 and only 11 HR.  This year he bounced back to 41 dingers.  Sure, he only improved his average to .204, but that's .045 better than last year!

In that light, McGwire could have done what he did legally too.

Thanks for reading!

Fun and Cheap - the 1st DK Card Draft?

I'm thinking about putting together one of those card drafts that have made the rounds lately.  I'm thinking 8 participants, 20 rounds.  I have about 50 GU/autos, a healthy helping of vintage and a load of other fun stuff.  I'd be looking to make this very well worth it, probably looking at a $15-18 a slot.

I'd probably require a list from each participant every 2 days (if the old list has all been picked)to keep things moving.  This would take place late this month or early November.

Any interest?  Please comment or e-mail!

Card show - Keepers and For Trade

Before we get this post under way, I have added the 2001 Topps Archives Reserve set to my wantlists.  I picked up a few of them at the last show (not pictured) and think I want them all.  So send them my way!


On to the show pickups!  Of course, the show was fun, since it was.... a card show.  Good assortment of dealers and customers.  I picked up a 50+ card stack of older cards on the cheap.  By older, I mean commons from the early 50's to the mid 60's.  I didn't scan those for this post.  I also found good dime box deals on refractors and picked up between 30 and 40 of them.  Sweet!  Again, not pictured here.

Here are a few of the cards I picked up.  This first scan are all cards I plan to keep.

The Carter is a 76 SSPC card. Very interesting.  I also picked up a Fisk, Tony Perez and Don Sutton from this set.  The Giambi is a 92 Staduim Club Dome, woulda been pretty sweet back in the day.  Not so much now.  The Posada and Darvish are my first RC's of each.  The Rose is from the tough 84 Fleer Update set, plus I'm a sucker for Rose in an Expos uni.  I think this might have been the last of his Expos cards I needed.  A framed Ichiro DK finishes up this eclectic bunch.

Now some stuff I really didn't need, but picked up anyway.  All is for trade!

 And more!

The McCann and Jones Die-cuts are up for trade, just like the rest of this page, but I really like them.  It'd be nice to get back a die-cut of a player I might like more in return.  However, that is not required, if you want em, make an offer!

MLB scheduling woes

So I'm in Annapolis Maryland on business this week.  I knew about this trip for a while, so I was rooting for the Orioles to make the playoffs.  I figured, as a wild card, they'd be away for the first 2 games, then home for two, right during this week when I'm close.

And they did it!!

But for reasons I still don't understand, MLB didn't go with the 2-2-1 schedule I remember, but a 2-3 schedule.  That's 2 games in Baltimore (before I got here) and then 3 in NY.

Bummer, I wanted to see Camden Yards!

Big Mac of the Week

Mock if you must, but I collect Mark McGwire.  I've been a fan of McGwire ever since his rookie season when he hit a still rookie record 49 (presumably steroid free) bombs.  I have 633 different McGwires and will continue to accumulate them.

One of the best things about collecting Mark is that the card companies don't make cards of him any more.  I assume that it's a combination of him being a steroid pariah and (I assume) him not giving them his permission.  Even without any new cards of him being produced, I bet there are between 3-5000 different McGwires out there.  Unfortunately, most of those that I don't have are very much of the High Dollar variety.  Oh, well!

So with 633 different Big Mac cards, I have enough fodder for a little over 12 years of 'Big Mac card of the Week' posts!  Here's #1!

This here is a 2001 Topps Hobby Masters insert #HM1.  It's extra thick and the words 'Hobby Masters' have a plasticy feel too them like they are a sticker applied after the card was made.

Thanks for reading!

What took them so long??

In several holiday posts over the life of this blog, I have lamented the fact that none of my family ever gets me card related gifts.  Not on Christmas, my birthday, veterans day, Halloween, World Radio Day, International Widow’s Day or even Day of the Seafarer!

This shocking lack of love is probably due to the fact that they know absolutely nothing about cards, and are afraid to get me a dud.

But hey, even a dud would be nice if I get cards, right?

But wait!  As you may have guessed since I'm writing this post, the drought has ended!  And I'm only writing about it 3 and 1/2 months later.  I guess that'll teach them!

OK, so I didn't get any (good) cards, but this is a start.  The day was Father's Day.  I am a father.  This entitles me to pampering, mockery and usually a gift or two.  This year, I awoke to four black frames divided into four horizontal sections.  The horizontal sections each had five clear plastic cases in each.  The cases had sports cards from the junk wax era in them.  Something like this, except the cards in mine were much worse:

So, as a family, we laughed, we cried, I thanked them profusely.  Then I went and put some real cards in my new frames!  I apologize for the pics, they are not very good, but you get the idea.

 First, I put most of my 2003 DK Evolution set into one.  It looks great on the wall!

Next, I went through my Mark McGwires and picked out some pretty ones.  This also looks great!  I haven't spoken much about my Big Mac collection on this blog, but I have over 600 different McGwires!  These are all doubles!

Another less publicized part of my collection is the 'funky' cards.  Here are 20 baseball funkys.  I thought they would look good on the wall, and since the only reason I have these colorful and shiny cards is for them to be gazed upon with awe, respect or disdain, the wall is a perfect place for them.  This one looks MUCH better in person, since when you move, you get a kaleidoscope of color and movement!

Why I saved the worst picture for last, I don't know, but I put basketball funkys in the last frame.  Much like the baseball funkys, this one looks great in real life.

Over time, I will replace the cards with others for variety's sake.  Thanks to my fam!  And keep em coming!

September Refractor Report

If you read this blog at all the last 9 months, you know I'm collecting refractors this year.  Any refractors!!  The goal is 1000 for the year.  This is my monthly report.

Here is the monthly progress report for September!

My wife says this picture is too cheesy for my blog, but I think cheesy is the perfect description of my blog, so...

As of September 30th, I have the following:
717 - Baseball Refractors
30 - Football Refractors
55 - Basketball Refractors

802 total Refractors!  That's 143 added over the last month.  Assessment:  Oh yeah!  Last month was (hopefully) the last in a series of disappointing months, but this one was the bomb!!

More math...

I have 80.2% of my goal of 1000 Refractors.
I have been accumulating refractors at a pace of  2.937/day (up from 2.72/day for the 1st 8 months of the year).
I am on pace for 1072 refractors.

Big thanks this month to Mike at Ba Benny's Baseball Card Buffet, Mark from This Way to the Clubhouse and, this months high contributor with a whopping total of 58 refractors, Sam from The Daily Dimwit!  Wow, I gotta send Sam more stuff.  Thanks guys!!

As always, let me know if you have refractors to trade!

Motivation!

To any hardy readers who have not given up on me...

For the month of October, if you notice a gap of four days between posts on this blog and are the first to comment to that effect, I'll send you 100 cards from the team of your choice, with at least 1 relic or auto in the bunch.

There, that oughta get me posting again!  Stay tuned for tomorrows September Refractor Report!

August Refractor Report

If you read this blog at all the last 7 months, you know I'm collecting refractors this year.  Any refractors!!  The goal is 1000 for the year.  This is my monthly report.

Here is the monthly progress report for August!

As of August 31st, I have the following:
581 - Baseball Refractors
26 - Football Refractors
52 - Basketball Refractors

659 total Refractors!  That's 37 added over the last month.  Assessment:  Ouch!  For the first time, I'm behind on the pace!  Never fear, I have some honey coming up later in the year, specially designed to attract refractors!

More math...

I have 65.9% of my goal of 1000 Refractors.
I have been accumulating refractors at a pace of  2.72/day (down from 2.92/day for the 1st 7 months of the year).
I am on pace for 996 refractors.

Big thanks this month to reader Steve who sent me 12 fractors this month and Speigel from Nomo's Sushi Platter who I sent 16 fractors.  Thanks guys!!

As always, let me know if you have refractors to trade!

Technical Difficulties

If any of you are waiting for e-mails from me, I am having major computer troubles and will get with you soon.  In the meantime, here is a couple of gratuitous pictures for your pleasure:

 Magic air-kneeling Papelbon!

And magic uniform-expanding beast!  I wonder how heavy that bat is?

Two for trade, 8 for keeps

I just got an ebay purchase in the mail.  It was from one of those sellers that offered free shipping after the first card, so I grabbed a few!

The top 2 here are for trade, so let me know if you want em!  The Berkman is #'d /50.

And the rest are keepers for me, but you gotta see them!!

The Ripken Gold Medallion is kind of cool.  I love me the 72 set and if Billy Martin doesn't look pissed at something, then the photo that shouldn't be on one of his cards!  The Guerrero isn't overly wonderful, but it is a serial #'d Diamond King and I need most of that 'Rookie DK' set.  The coolest, in my opinion, is the Jim Thome!  It's from the Christie Brinkley Collection inserts from 96 Pinnacle.  Boxing gloves?  Christie Brinkley?  Are we still talking about baseball cards here???  Great card!

This was the card that got me started on this purchase.  Edgar is revered here in the northwest, and I had no relic of his.  It's an interesting card.  I think I like it.

The Thome was sweet, but this has to be my favorite card of the bunch.  Psycho-George and Cheerful-Al!  Words fail.  Whoever took this picture was not surprised when George went loco at the pine tar game.

And finally, the basketball!  Cheap Ewing RC!  Insanely die-cut Pippen!  These are the kind of hoops cards I'll go for all day long.  At least at the cheap-o prices I got them for!

July Refractor Report

If you read this blog at all the last 7 months, you know I'm collecting refractors this year.  Any refractors!!  The goal is 1000 for the year.  This is my monthly report.

Here is the monthly progress report for July!

As of July 31st, I have the following:
545 - Baseball Refractors
25 - Football Refractors
52 - Basketball Refractors

622 total Refractors!  That's 61 added over the last month.  Assessment:  Much better that the last few months, but I still need to pick it up!

This month I have verified that the refractors from the following sets are not marked with a 'refractor' label anywhere on the card:

1993 Finest 
1994 Finest
2007 Topps Heritage Chrome
2011 Topps Chrome

I'm looking for any other sets with no label on the refractors.  If you know any, let me know!  Fact-check?!?!

More math...

I have 62.2% of my goal of 1000 Refractors.
I have been accumulating refractors at a pace of  2.92/day (down from 3.08/day for the 1st 6 months of the year).
I am on pace for 1068 refractors.

On pace still!  But barely.

Big thanks this month to Mark from Stats on the Back who sent me 13 fractors this month and Kirk from Eutaw Street Cardboard from whom I purchased 26 fractors in his 'Selling for the National' project.  Thanks guys!!

As always, let me know if you have refractors to trade!

Featured Diamond Kings set of the month - June

Welcome to yet another series inspired by my blog goals for this year!  Every month, I will feature a Diamond Kings set in depth.  Gotta stay true to my roots!

June is only a bit late.  I'm getting better!

Back into the distant past!  Where dinosaurs ruled, dirt was still a recent invention and Jamie Moyer hadn't even made the major leagues yet!!  It's the 1984 Diamond Kings set!

If you were around back then, you may have noticed that Donruss cards were harder to come by than Topps or Fleer that year.  In fact, I didn't see a single Donruss pack in any of my 'go to' spots for cards the whole year.  Only later did singles from 84 Donruss start making their way into my backwater town.  It is that very phenomena that makes the 84 Donruss Don Mattingly RC the most valuable card of the year.

And of course, there were Diamond Kings.  Donruss went in a radically different direction, design wise, for their 84 set, and the DK's were no exception.  The 82 and 83 DKings were almost exactly the same design, so close that they're hard to tell apart.  The 84's are their own animal.  The border design is frillier and the hard, linear backgrounds are replaced by softer, mellower, almost blurred backgrounds.  A very nice addition to the standard headshot is a tiny 'in-action' thumbnail of each player.  That's cool.

1 Robin Yount - classic
2 Dave Concepcion - kinda boring looking, but a good pick
3 Dwayne Murphy - No good A's?
4 John Castino - Who??
5 Leon Durham- Awesome!! The glasses are impressive.
6 Rusty Staub - anything with Staub on it is cool...
7 Jack Clark - he looks pissed and sunburned
8 Dave Dravecky - pre-snapped arm, well designed card
9 Al Oliver - This one makes me happy.  The smile, the Expos uni, the frighteningly bright yellow background...

10 Dave Righetti - Rags!
11 Hal McRae - underrated
12 Ray Knight -
13 Bruce Sutter - Hair!  Lotsa hair.
14 Bob Horner - Speaking of hair!  Big bad Bob.
15 Lance Parrish - I like this one.  This is exactly how I remember Parrish
16 Matt Young - Umm... Mariners was a tough call this year I guess.
17 Fred Lynn - Freddie!!  Love it.
18 Ron Kittle - Kittle was gonna be big in 84.  Didn't happen, obviously.  Nice glasses though.

19 Jim Clancy - Clancy looks like he was mixed with a rodent of some kind.
20 Bill Madlock - Mad Dawg!  Very nice looking card.
21 Larry Parrish - Eh
22 Eddie Murray - As Tony the Tiger would say, Grrrrrrrreat! Eddie's the man!
23 Mike Schmidt - Classic looking card of a classic 3b.  For once the DK borders don't clash with the art colors.
24 Pedro Guerrero - Man, this takes me back.  Pedro!
25 Andre Thornton - He's mostly forgotten.  But he could hit!
26 Wade Boggs - Chicken and Beer.  That's Boggs for you.
NNO Checklist

Oh, and to add to the 'character' of this set, there are errors!  The artist credit "Perez-Steele Galleries", found on the backs of the cards, was misspelled "Perez-Steel Galleries" on cards from packs. The only corrected versions came in factory sets.  Weird!

Previous months:
January
February
March 
April 
May

The King is a Pimp!

Time to pimp my Kingly guts out!!

You have already seen these, if you have any card-blog-viewing-skills at all, but if not, check it out!

DrewsCards - Drew has made a milestone of 1000 posts and is celebrating with a contest.  He's giving away 4 large groups of Obak cards.  It's easy and fun, thanks Drew.

Eutaw Street Cardboard - Cool contest that can involve helping him raise money for the National!!  I took most of the refractors for my project, but there are still tons of cards you might like.  Give it a shot!

</pimp>

June Refractor Report

If you read this blog at all the last 6 months, you know I'm collecting refractors this year.  Any refractors!!  I'm only 10 days late this month, so I'm getting better!!  Again, this month was my worst month so far, but the numbers did go up, so that's better than nothing!

Here is the monthly progress report for June!

As of June 30th, I have the following:
485 - Baseball Refractors
24 - Football Refractors
52 - Basketball Refractors

561 total Refractors!  That's a whopping 5 added over the last month.  Ouch!

OK, here is where I get to ask a couple of questions that impact this quest.  First, are these considered refractors?????

The Robinson has a rainbow-y, refractory look to it.  The Koufax, not as much, but both are shiny.  It seems like I have seen these referred to as refractors, but I'm really not sure.  Next question...

I have several 2011 Topps Chrome cards that have been sent to me as refractors.  They look refractory, but do not have any 'refractor' label on the back.  Here is an example:

Are these refractors?  I think they are (hope actually, since I have several and I'd hate to take my numbers down even further than they already are) , but I'm not sure.  Any knowledgeable folks out there??  Are there any other sets with unlabeled refractors?  I seem to remember that the refractors from the 1st year or 2 they were produced were unlabeled, but are there any others?  Help me out!!

Anyway.

More math...

I have 56.1% of my goal of 1000 Refractors.
I have been accumulating refractors at a pace of  3.08/day (down from 3.71/day for the 1st 5 months of the year).
I am on pace for 1122 refractors.

OK, so another terrible month, but I'm still on pace for a HUUUUGE year, so no biggie.

And as always, let me know if you have refractors to trade!