Mashburn Mondays #5

Monday, 16 July 2012

Major life decisions happen all the time when one is in college at 19 or 20 years old.  Is the girl (or guy) you are currently with the one you want to spend the rest of you life with?  What should I major in and what kind of career path will be the result of that major?  Will it really hurt me if I take drugs or drive a little tipsy?  Each of these decisions and many others will have a huge impact on the rest of your life.  For star college basketball players one additional significant question presents itself at that age...should I leave school and go pro?  On today's Mashburn Monday, both of the players I am profiling decided to leave school early.  It can arguable whether that is ever the correct decision for any player, but I am not going to get into that debate here.  I am just going to focus on these two players in a vacuum.  So let's take a look at both Jamal Mashburn, who left after his junior year in 1993, and today's Random Cat of the Week Kelenna Azubuike, who left after his junior year in 2005, and see if the decisions were wise.

Let's take a look.

Jamal Mashburn

Total Cards Owned = 502

 1995 Upper Deck Electric Court #78

Mashburn was on the Kentucky team that lost in that god-awful Duke game that gets replayed every single year.  I could write a 20 page paper about my feelings regarding that game, but I'll spare you for now and talk about his junior year team.  The 1993 Cats squad was a #1 seed had a great chance to win it all with Mashburn's leadership.  My favorite memory of that team was in the SEC Tournament when they beat Tennessee by 70 in Allan Houston's last college game ever.  This card is a stamped parallel much like the Electric Diamond in baseball.  I don't like stamped parallels much, but the photo is great and he is against one of better defending big men of all time.

Card grade - A-

Other players on the card
Nuggets - Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacques Wamutombo
Mavericks - Popeye Jones

 1998 Metal Universe Emeralds #83

After rolling through the SEC Tourney, Kentucky was awarded the #1 seed in the Southeast Region and continued rolling through the first four games of said region.  It was one of the most dominant regional performances ever with the closest game being a 21 point drubbing of Utah.  This set up a Final Four match up with the Fab Five of Michigan.  This card is a color parallel in the usually dull Metal Universe line.  This card would also tend to be slightly dull, except for the fantastic deer-in-the-headlights expression on Mashburn's face.  Easily one of my favorite Mashburn cards.

Card grade - A

Other players on the card
none

2004 Ultra #124

The Final Four game with Michigan is one of those games that deserves to be remembered more than it is.  The reason it is mostly a footnote is due to Chris Webber's time-out debacle in the final game that year.  However, that semifinal game was one of the better games that I have ever seen, despite my team coming out on the short end of the stick.  Following the overtime loss to Michigan (since vacated), Mashburn crushed the hearts of (but didn't surprise) many Kentuckians by announcing he was going pro.   The 2004 Ultra set is one of favorite sets of all time in both basketball and baseball.  I fell in love with that script name from the first time I ever saw it.

Card grade - A-

Other players on the card 

76ers - Glenn Robinson (ironically traded for Mashburn the next year)

RANDOM CAT OF THE WEEK

Kelenna Azubuike

Total Cards Owned = 7

 2007 Ultra #60

Following the graduation of Erik Daniels and Gerald Fitch, Azubuike became the star of the 2004-05 Kentucky Wildcats.  He led the team to an Elite Eight double overtime loss to Michigan State (a fantastic game BTW).  Against the advice of many, including the Director of NBA Scouting Marty Blake, Azubuike decided to forgo his senior year and join the 2005 NBA Draft.  This card is a simple free throw photo, but I love it simple for the uniform.  That is one of those uniforms, like the Astros rainbows, that is so ugly it's cool.

Card grade - A-

Other players on the card
none

 2008 Fleer #161

He has never come out and said it, but there is a story to indicate why Azubuike went pro when he did.  In February 2005, Azubuike's father was convicted of fraud and ordered to pay several hundred thousand dollars in restitution to his victims.  Kelenna declared for the draft in April of that year.  There is not rock-solid proof that his family troubles were the reason, but it had to play a large factor in his decision.  This card has very nice color going on with both the uniform and the floor in the background. 

Card grade - B

Other players on the card
Heat - Udonis Haslem
Warriors - not sure either Andris Biedrins or Baron Davis

2008 Upper Deck First Edition Gold #56

The 2005 NBA Draft was arguably the decade's second strongest class after 2003.  Because of this, Azubuike went completely undrafted and joined the NBA's D-League.  He was signed by the Rockets, but never called up for a year and a half.  He then signed with the Warriors which turned out to be a great place for him.  He had a breakout year in 2008-09 and all was looking well until a severe knee injury stopped him in his tracks.  He rehabbed for nearly two full years before making it back to pros with the Mavericks last year.  This card is nice because it shows the red-orange Golden State uniforms that I don't even remember (but I don't follow that team closely either). 

Card grade - B+

Other players on the card

Rockets - Luther Head

Mashburn's decision was the right one even though it devastated my 16 year old self.   Had he gone a year later, he probably would have been drafted around the same spot in the 1994 Draft if not a bit lower.  I don't think you will find too many people that think Azubuike made the wise decision by going pro when he did.  Had he waited, he could have gone in the weak 2006 class and not the strong 2005 class.  You definitely can feel empathy for his family situation, but it is a shame that his father put the family in that situation to begin with.  I guess the old Biblical saying that the sins of the father shall be visited upon the son is true in this case.  Despite that, he has forged a fair pro career, although he did have to prove himself in the D-League for two years instead of getting the seasoning in college. Azubuike is currently a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers following a 2012 draft day trade with the Mavericks.

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Mashburn Mondays #4

Monday, 9 July 2012

Last week, I discussed the Hornets which is the team most associated with several of the Wildcats I collect.  The main reason I talked about them was the fact that Anthony Davis was the #1 pick for the Hornets least week as well.  Draft chatter often surrounds this week's Random Cat of the Week as well.  Unfortunately, that chatter is negative at best and downright cruel at worst.  But before I get into that, we can check out some great Jamal Mashburn cards as well.

Let's take a look.

Jamal Mashburn 

Total Cards Owned = 502

1994 Fleer Pro Visions #1

Some of my favorite baseball cards from the "overproduction era" are the painted cards.  The best ones in my opinion were the Fleer Pro Visions.  I know that in the baseball version of this set, the entire picture, made by putting all 9 cards together, is a Wizard of Oz type painting.  This is the only card I have from the basketball set, so I don't know what the big picture is although from pics online it looks like a space motif.  It's not one of my favorites, but has its good points.

Card grade - C+

Other players on the card
none
 

1998 Bowman's Best #71

Basketball and Bowman has always seemed like an odd match.  Particularly due to the fact that, with a couple of exceptions, Bowman's Best was transferred but the base Bowman set was not.  I understand why because Bowman in the late 90s featured minor leaguers at its crux and basketball had no minor leagues at the time.  It's still odd that the Bowman's Best name was carried over.  Topps should have come up with a basketball-related set name in place of Bowman.  This card is not bad, but the oddity of the set name just drags it down to me.

Card grade - D

Other players on the card
76ers - Tim Thomas

2003 Ultra Platinum Medallion #57 Serial Numbered 065/100

In the history of all cards, there has never been a bigger hit-or-miss set line than Fleer Ultra.  Some Ultra sets are some of the best sets (IMHO) ever like 1997 or 2004.  Others (1995, 2002) are just downright boring.  Design-wise, 2003 is quite boring.  However, the fact that the medallions are die cut in a very cool fashion makes 2003 one of the better Ultra sets.  This card is the only card in either sport I collect in which I have a full Ultra rainbow (base, gold, platinum).  That and it's a great shot with a nice record of Gary Payton in Milwaukee.


Card grade - A

Other players on the card
Bucks - Desmond Mason, Gary Payton

RANDOM CAT OF THE WEEK

Sam Bowie

Total Cards Owned = 45

1986 Fleer #13

You all know the story with Sam Bowie, but just for clarity's sake.  Bowie was drafted #2 overall by the Trail Blazers in 1984 after Hakeem Olajuwon and before Michael Jordan.  While Bowie was not on their level in terms of career, he did make the All Rookie Team in the 1984-85 season, nearly averaging a double-double.  This card is from the super expensive 1986 Fleer set that features the Jordan rookie among many others.  It's a great card that shows one of the best players of all time with the rookie center.

Card grade - B+

Other players on the card
Lakers - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Blazers (behind Kareem) - Darnell Valentine

1990 Hoops #194

After missing much of the next 4 seasons with injuries, Bowie was traded along with a 1st rounder that became Mookie Blaylock to the Nets for power forward Buck Williams.  Bowie had his best years in a Nets uniform, but by this time he was already being criticized because of the careers of the others (Olajuwon, Jordan, Barkley) drafted around him.  Despite all the negativity, Bowie averaged 12 points and 8 boards in 4 years in Jersey.  This card is from the 2nd Hoops offering.  It is perhaps the only gray/silver bordered set that I like.  This card just screams basketball to me.

Card grade - A-

Other players on the card
Lakers - Magic Johnson (I think)

1994 Stadium Club #116

In the summer of 1993, Bowie was traded to the Lakers in exchange for fellow under-performing high draft pick Benoit Benjamin.  By the time Bowie was in L.A., his many, many injuries finally took their toll on the big man.  He lasted two nondescript, injury-plagued seasons with the Lakers before calling it a career at the relatively young age of 33.  This card is the 3rd in this series that features Bowie matched up with a Hall of Famer.  It was a happy accident on my part, but it does show that when he was on the court you needed your best guarding Sam Bowie.

Card grade - B

Other players on the card
Knicks - Patrick Ewing



The one word I will never use with Sam Bowie (or Greg Oden for that matter) is "bust."  Sam Bowie was not a bust, he was injured.  When he was on the court, he was in the upper-echelon of centers.  Unfortunately, injuries killed his career.  Despite his injury-filled career, he still lasted 10 years in the NBA.  There have been many other first round picks that cannot say that. 

Thanx for reading.

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Mashburn Mondays #3

Monday, 2 July 2012

The University of Kentucky made history at last week's NBA Draft by laying claim to both the 1st and 2nd overall picks with Anthony Davis going #1 overall to the Hornets and, in a mild surprise, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist going #2 to Charlotte.  When the lottery picks were announced, many were up in arms over the (no longer owned by the NBA) Hornets getting the first pick especially since the prize was Davis who is regarded as a monster prospect.  I don't believe for a second that the lottery was rigged, because if it was Davis would be in Brooklyn right now with the large-market Nets.  I personally think it was fate for the Hornets to get the #1 pick when a Wildcat was guaranteed to go, because when I think of several of the former Cats I collect, the Hornets come up a lot.  In their 24 year history (25 #1 picks total), the Hornets organization has picked a Cat 4 times, including their first ever selection. 

This week I will be focusing on the Hornets and the prior three #1 picks by them.  Even though Jamal Mashburn was not drafted by the Hornets, he spent arguably the most successful years of his career with the team.  Therefore in the Mashburn half of today's post, I will be fully focusing on his Hornets cards.

So let's venture into the Hive.

Jamal Mashburn

Total Cards Owned = 502

 2000 Stadium Club #150

This is one of my favorite Mashburn cards with the Hornets because it gives a really good view of the court at the Charlotte Coliseum (aka The Hive).  Aside from that it is also a tremendous rim-level photograph.  It is a bit odd that no other players are in the background.  I guess they were all shifted to the sides.  Since it is Hornets day here at the Quarry, this card is especially fitting with the Knick on the card as well.

Card grade - A+

Other players on the card

Knicks - Larry Johnson

2001 Fleer Shoebox Collection #142

Here we have a decent overhead shot of a Mashburn lay up featured in the one-and-done set Fleer Shoebox Collection.  I also like the pennant showcasing the team name.  Overall, I don't like this card very much for one reason, the ugly basketball logo for the set.  Red, white, and black??  When was that color combo ever used on a basketball?  It clashes horribly with the aqua and purple of the Hornets.  I think a nice orange ball would have sufficed and made the card better.

Card grade - C

Other players on the card
none

2003 SPx Winning Materials #WM-13

Here we come to something I think works better for basketball than baseball, the jersey card.  Don't get me wrong, I appreciate a nice Rockies relic but they are too often either white or gray.  Very seldom do you not see a colored swatch with basketball relics.  This one is especially nice since it is a dual relic with both an aqua jersey piece and a purple piece of warm-up.  All in all a very nice overall relic.

Card grade - A

Other players on the card 

none

RANDOM CAT(S) OF THE WEEK

Hornets' First Round Picks

Total Cards Owned

Rex Chapman = 119

Tony Delk = 126

Jamaal Magloire = 157

1989 Hoops #54

Rex Chapman was the first ever draft pick for the expansion Charlotte Hornets after they took him 8th overall in the 1988 draft.  Chapman never turned out to be the franchise foundation that he was drafted to be (mostly due to injury), but he put in three and a half very good seasons in Charlotte before being traded to Washington.  For some the 1986 Fleer set with Michael Jordan's rookie (among many others) is the definitive basketball set.  I think that 1989 Hoops is even more important because this is the set that made basketball card collecting cool in the 80s.

Card grade - B+

Other players on the card
none

1996 Upper Deck #190

Tony Delk was selected with the 16th pick of the 1st round of the 1996 draft after his MOP performance in the 1996 Final Four.  Delk didn't do much in Charlotte and became a journeyman, but he did have a 10 year career and had a couple of pretty good years with Phoenix and Boston.  I like this Upper Deck design better in basketball than in baseball due to the basketball-look of the border.  I'm still not a big fan of text on the front, but the photo shows Delk at his sharp shooting best.

Card grade - C

Other players on the card
Cavaliers - Chris Mills

2000 SPx #115  Serial numbered 2027/2500

Jamaal Magloire was picked by the Hornets with the 19th pick in the 2000 draft.  He is widely regarded as one of the top 2 or 3 players that came of that year's class, but the 2000 class is also thought of as the worst of all time.  As a whole that is probably true, but Magloire did quite a bit in five seasons in a Hornets uniform including making the 2003 All Star Team.  This card is a bit strange in that it is an autographed relic card, but it is also numbered as part of the base set.  I really hated that technique, which was used quite a bit by Upper Deck in the early 2000s. 

Card grade - B

Other players on the card
none (well other than the unidentified third of a head who may or may not be a player)


Will Anthony Davis (or Hornets 2nd rounder Darius Miller for that matter) outperform the previous UK/Hornets connection?  Only time will tell, but I'd say he has a pretty good chance.

Thanx for reading.

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Mashburn Mondays #2

Monday, 25 June 2012

Oftentimes in college basketball when there are relatively short coaching stints (10 years or less), one player is identified with said coach and vice versa.  Today's installment of Mashburn Mondays will take a look at two such examples.  The first is obviously Jamal Mashburn and Rick Pitino.  The second is the Random Cat of the Week Tayshaun Prince and Tubby Smith.  Both players were arguably the best players of each coach's Kentucky tenure and now both will be shown off here.

1995 NBA Hoops #36

Mashburn was the first major recruit to Kentucky following the probation from the violations that occurred during the Eddie Sutton era.  The major violator in that instance was Dwane Casey who would later go on to coach the T-Wolves and is currently coaching the Raptors.  Whoever said cheaters never prosper never met Mr. Casey.  It always bugs me when the coaches that do the wrong get virtually no penalty, but the school is rendered almost non-existent for several years afterward.  This card is one of three that Mash has in the base NBA Hoops set.  He definitely knew how to Fing-A-Roll.

Card grade - A-

Other players on the card

Clippers (l-r) Bo Outlaw, Lamond Murray

1997 Ultra #50

One story I hesitate to tell is that of the game that everyone sees around March every year.  "The Game" against Duke in the Final 8 in 1992 is quite possibly the most heartbreaking game in my entire life.  I experienced higher highs and lower lows in that game that in any other game ever, including those that I competed in myself.  But I'll speak more about this game later.  This card is a nice shot on one of my favorite designs ever.  I don't know what it is about the script name, I absolutely love it, although 1997's version is not as good as 2004's.

Card grade - A

Other players on the card
Bulls - Dennis Rodman (the phantom legs are possibly Steve Kerr, but I don't know for sure)

2003 Upper Deck/Black Diamond Single Diamond Jerseys #BD-MA

In his junior year of 1993, Mashburn became UK's first AP All American since Kenny Walker in 1986.  Both he and Pitino saved UK Hoops from irrelevancy.  All you have to do is look at SMU football and see how far a program can fall.  Kentucky's penalties were not THAT severe, but the potential for becoming just another program was there.  This card is being shown as a tip of the cap to Spastikmooss.  He alerted me last week to a card with a 3 colored jersey piece that I already had.  The one I had was a single color, but I'm not that picky.  But I figured I would show off the one 3 colored jersey piece that I do possess for Mash.  

Card grade - A-

Other players on the card 

none

RANDOM CAT OF THE WEEK

Tayshaun Prince

Unique cards owned = 84

 2003 Fleer Platinum #78

Tayshaun Prince was a part of Tubby Smith's second recruiting class (and first that didn't mostly transfer away) and was without a doubt the highest profile recruit under Tubby Smith.  He was a member of the 1998 McDonald's All American team alongside Al Harrington, Richard Jefferson, and Corey Maggette among others.  This is a 2003 Fleer Platinum card which features the god-awful "flaming pony" logo of the Grant Hill-era Detroit Pistons.  It is arguably one of the worst sports logos ever.  Aside from that, the card is not too bad.

Card grade - B

Other players on the card
none

 2006 Bowman #81

Prince was selected with the 23rd pick in the 1st round of the 2002 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons.  He is the only Kentucky player that I collect that has spent his entire career with a single organization (well so far anyway, because there are trade rumors as we speak).  Following a rookie year off the bench, Prince cemented himself into the starting lineup in his sophomore season.  This card is from 2006 Bowman and is similar, but not identical, to the baseball set.  The main difference is the hollow letters in the player's name.  I like the baseball better.

Card grade - C-

Other players on the card
Unknown Cavalier (possibly LeBron James)

2008 Topps #75

The highlight of Prince's professional career was the 2003-04 NBA Finals victory over the heavily favored Los Angeles Lakers.  Prince was not the superstar of the team, but he was a starter and a solid contributor throughout the playoffs.  Prince continues to maintain his starting spot on the rebuilding Pistons, but it would not be a huge surprise to see him in a different uniform next season.  This card is 2008 Topps done correctly.  It takes the biggest problem from the baseball set, the overhead "bump," and moves is to the bottom as a nameplate.  It looks so much better like that, and I like the small logo in the bottom corner as well.

Card grade - A

Other players on the card

Bulls - Drew Gooden

Another week of UK love here at the Quarry.  I hope you enjoyed my trip down memory lane and as always thanx for reading.

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Mashburn Mondays #1

Monday, 18 June 2012

Welcome to the inaugural edition of Mashburn Mondays.  For those of you that are unaware, I live in Kentucky.  Since there are no pro teams in my state, my fandom has been spread around the country with my love of the Colorado Rockies and Chicago Bears.  Even though I love both of those teams, my biggest fandom is reserved for my Kentucky Wildcats basketball team, even if I am not a huge Calipari fan.  For me, the best decade in sports history was the 1990's for the UK team.  2 national titles (easily could have been 3 in a row) and up near the top the rest of the time.  Even though I collected very few basketball cards as a kid, they are what brought me back into the hobby back in 2006.  I started collecting pro cards of the players from those great 1990's teams, especially Jamal Mashburn my favorite player ever. 

What I am going to do on Mondays is show off some of my extensive Jamal Mashburn collection.  I will show one Mashburn card from the Mavericks, one from the Heat, and one from the Hornets to give the full spectrum of his pro career.  He was with Philadelphia in name only at the end of his career, but no cards were made of him with the Sixers.  I will also show off three cards of a (sometimes) lesser known Kentucky player that deserves a little recognition.

I know many of you are not basketball card collectors by any means, but I sort of like them for one reason.  The abundance of multiple players on a card.  Sometimes in baseball, you get the play at the plate or the double play card which shows two or more players, but basketball often has multiple players on a card and it really gives a better overall view of the actual gameplay.  Also, NBA cards are designated by the split year.  For example 1998-99 Topps instead of just the single year.  I will be identifying them only with the beginning year, because quite frankly I hate the dashed year format.

Enough chatter, let's take a look at some cards.

1993 NBA Hoops Draft Picks #4

Why not start right from the beginning with Mashburn's rookie draft pick card.  He was selected with the #4 overall pick in 1993 by Dallas after Orlando picked Chris Webber, Philly picked Shawn Bradley, and Golden State picked Penny Hardaway.   Gee, I wonder if Philadelphia would like to have that pick back.  As far as the card goes, I like the simplicity and it shows exactly what the player looked like on Draft Night.

Card Grade - B+

Other players on the card 

none

1998 Topps # 25

Mash was traded by the Mavericks to the Heat at the trade deadline in 1997 for three players, most notably Kurt Thomas (who was still active in 2012 BTW).  This card is from the base Topps set from 1998.  This is my personal favorite Mashburn card primarily because there are two other former Wildcats (Walker, McCarty) on the card as well.  I also like the design much better than the 1998 baseball offering even with the brown border.

Card Grade - A+

Other players on the card

Celtics (l-r) - Walter McCarty, Antoine Walker, Travis Knight, Tyus Edney 

Heat (background far right) - Terry Mills (I think)

 2001 Fleer Maximum #78

Mash was later traded to the Hornets in a massive nine player deal involving the likes of P.J. Brown, Eddie Jones, and Anthony Mason.  This 2001 Fleer Maximum uses the same design as the 2002 baseball design.  I have always been a fan of the design for both sports with its use of the team colored border although it is a bit too large.  

Card Grade - B

Other players on the card

Pacers (top-bottom) - Jamaal Tinsley, Al Harrington

Hornets - Baron Davis

 RANDOM CAT OF THE WEEK

Walter McCarty

Unique Cards Owned = 57

1996 Stadium Club Rookies #17

Walter McCarty was drafted by the New York Knicks with the 19th pick in the 1996 NBA Draft.  One of the interesting factoids about Walter McCarty is that the pick used to draft him was acquired by the Knicks from the Heat for Head Coach Pat Riley (himself a former UK player).  McCarty was my favorite Wildcat from the 1996 championship team.  Although he was never a star player, he did manage to carve out a nice 10 year NBA career.  This card is not one of my favorites of McCarty.  It's just way too bland.

Card Grade - C-

Other players on the card
none

 1998 Fleer Tradition #58

McCarty was traded from the Knicks to the Celtics before the 1997 season along with three other players for Chris Mills (former UK player) and 2 2nd round picks. The 1998 Fleer Tradition set used the same design as the baseball set from that year.  It really works well with this card and it is a good photo although I think it would have looked better moved little to the left.  I understand why they didn't because of centering the player, but it still would have looked better.

Card Grade - A-

Other players on the card 

Magic - Bo Outlaw
Celtics - Dana Barros

McCarty finished his career with a half season in Phoenix and one year with the Clippers, but I don't currently own any cards of him in those uniforms and I don't think there are any.  So let's go with a superstar sighting instead.  This is the base card from 2003 Topps which obviously went a very different route from the blue border of the baseball set.  The photo is pretty good with the green headband, although I have no idea why Walter is jumping.  Then again, Kobe has made better players look bad so there is that.

Card Grade - B+

Other players on the card
Lakers - Kobe Bryant


I hope you guys enjoyed this trip to the hardwood even if you aren't a basketball collector.  Sometimes it's nice to step out of your comfort zone though.  I hope you read again next week when I will continue the look back at UK hoops through the years.  I promise it won't be so rambling next time.  Well, actually I can't promise that, but come back anyway.

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New buys from Sandlot Cards

Thursday, 24 February 2011

*QUICK NOTE* - I was not compensated for this post, these are my completely truthful feelings.

I was doing some random Googling a few weeks back and happened upon a new, to me, online card shop, Sandlot Cards.  It turns out that the shop is actually new for everyone.  It seems to be a smaller, but more user-friendly version of Sportslots.  It is still getting up and running, but has a nice inventory and the best possible feature for the team collector.  Every card has the team listed and you can search by team, how great is that?  Anyway I spotted a couple of cards I had to have on the site for a VERY reasonable price.  Let's show off the loot.

 This was one of the two that caught my eye.  A 2010 Topps Black Jhoulys Chacin #17/59.  A steal at $5, the cheapest on COMC was $15-ish.  Not the last we will see of Chacin here though.

 I also knocked out a few random cards in order to get a discounted purchase.  This 2011 Topps insert is sweet for two reasons.  First, they put both Rockies hitting stars on the same card.  Second, since they did that rather than pair them with others...I only have to get one of these awful inserts.

 I also picked up the last two cards I needed for my 1999 Topps Series 1 team set.  I actually had the Helton but I pulled it for my "I'm still putting it together" Rookie Cup collection.  The Castilla card is great, I might have to pull a Topps and Photoshop in Andres Galarraga, Larry Walker, and of course George Washington to have a Best 90s Rockies ever card.

 The 2007 Gold Todd Helton is my first 2007 that is not from U&H.  I think the 2007 set was very underrated, second best of the 2000s behind 2009.  The 2000 Topps Gold Label Class 1 of Helton was actually a very welcome surprise throw in for the purchase.

 I also had to add another Jamal Mashburn to my nearly 50% complete player collection.  This is a 2010-11 Panini Prestige card.  You know you are getting older when a player you remember well in college is now getting retired veteran cards. 

Saving the best for last.

The 2010 yellow printing plate of Jhoulys Chacin is my very first 1/1.  But not the last(stay tuned for my newest when it arrives).  I had never actually touched a printing plate until this one arrived.  I am not actively seeking or collecting plates, but when I spot a Rockies 1/1 for $10 I am not turning it down.

I got a few other cards as well for less than $20 shipped.  I am definitely glad I found this upstart shop while I had basically the pick of the litter.  The man that runs it, Erik, also has a blog in which he describes the ups and downs of starting an online card shop as well as getting his son into the hobby.  Check it out here, and you will probably find as many good buys as I did.

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Recent buys from eBay

Thursday, 10 February 2011

Since I don't have a card shop anywhere near me (closest is about 40 miles away), internet buying is my main source of purchasing.  I just thought I would show off a recent acquisitions from eBay. 

A couple of new cards for my Jamal Mashburn collection.  I got both of these surprisingly cheap.  Combined for under $3.00 total shipped in two separate auctions.  I think I paid $5 for the Topps Pristine base card around a year ago on Sportslots, so I was thrilled getting the jersey for $1.35 shipped.

A card that would've been right at home in The Budget eBay Collector.  A 2001 Topps Reserve Jeff Cirillo for 12 cents shipped.  I picked the Neifi Perez in a trade with someone, so that leave me only Todd Helton from having this team set complete.  Yeah only 3 Rockies make a team set, but for some sets it's only Todd Helton, so at least we got three here.

 

 These cards are 2004 Topps Chrome Presidential Pastime refractors.  I actually bought these for a trade with a fellow blogger, but for the life of me I can't remember which one.  I only remember seeing the set on his/her wantlists.  If you or any anyone you know of are collecting the PP refractors, I have James Madison and James Monroe up for trade.

 Finally, I picked up this 2010 Topps Peak Performance bat relic of Troy Tulowitzki.  Price = $4.99.  But that's not all I got for the $4.99, I also got these two.

 2008 Topps Update Angel Berroa (Dodgers) bat relic and a THICK 2001 Playoff Absolute Memorabilia Elpidio Guzman (Angels) bat relic serially numbered 523/700.  It is about the thickness of three normal relic cards.  (Cheesy announcer voice):  But wait, that's not all you get.
*UPDATE* Both bat cards are now with new owners.  I hope they enjoy them as much as I do the Tulo.

 The seller also threw in these two as a bonus to the lot of 3 bat cards.  A 1996 Score Ken Griffey Jr. and a 1997 Donruss Mark McGwire.  Not bad at all.  The Dodgers and Angels bat relics are up for trade (does anyone know of any Angels collectors?) as well as the Griffey and McGwire. 

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