Card of the Day: 2002 SPx GU Frank Thomas and Magglio Ordonez

Just a sweetass card today.

Game-Used and Auto: Nick Johnson

Okay, technically this is a card of a Yankee, but it was too sweet to pass up, and I’ll always like Nick, even if he’s made of glass.

SPx Young Stars

Absolutely one of my favorite cards in my collection. Sure, the design is busy as hell, but oddly enough I feel like it works, especially with the striped uniform piece, which fits in with all the lines and angles. I think a plain white swatch would have ruined the look. It’s a nice cut sig, as well. Definitely gets an A+ in my book, and I’m going to hold on to it for a long time.

Finds From The National Part 7: The Aughts

Good lord, even I didn’t realize how much I found at The National, and these posts are just scratching the surface, really. Let’s take a look at a sampling of the Expos and Nationals from the aughts.

2004 Diamond Kings

I really liked this series. I remember scooping up a bunch of these at a card shop back in 04, but the only one I can still find these days is Rafael Palmeiro. Maybe I traded some away, I don’t know. Either way, I was quite happy to find this O-Cab. The 00’s Diamond King issues were such an improvement on the ones in the 80s and 90s, there’s really no comparison. No offense to Dick Perez, but whoever was doing the art here was much better. Unless it was Perez and his style changed?

2004 Donruss Classics

I remember this set being lauded for its hits when I got back into collecting in 04, but I only ever managed to snag base cards. That’s fine by me, I like this design a lot. Very classy.

2004 Topps Gallery

04 Topps Gallery will always be near and dear to my heart because I pulled one of my favorite cards from it (I’ll be featuring it soon), and I was glad to come across an Expo from the set. They don’t quite get to the level of Upper Deck’s Masterpieces set, but I enjoy the Gallery issues nevertheless.

Remember that 04 Just Minors set? Here are the Expos:

2005 Sweet Spot Classic

This is another set that I remember having great hits at the time; I have a Reggie Jackson GU from this set that I cherish, so it was cool to be able to pick up some of the base cards. I also scored a Frank Howard that I’m sure will come up sooner or later.

2006 SI For Kids

These remind me of the Donruss Triple Play and Upper Deck Fun Packs concept. The back is Randy Johnson making a face, with an empty balloon so the kids can make their own caption. Meh. But I didn’t have it.

2006 SPx

I never had any 06 SPx, so I was pleased to come across this one. There must be a Ryan Zimmerman from this set, but I haven’t found it yet. With so many other cards out there, it’s hard to prioritize it, but I’m sure I’ll find it sooner or later.

Finds and Sales IV

Only one sports-related find last week: a Billy Ripken bobblehead that I’ll eventually show here. Most everything else was video-game related, and has sold well so far. So we’ll delve some more into the past here.

This was an eBay find for $1.00, and while I’ve considered reselling it, I’ve held on to it for awhile because I like it more than it’s probably worth. Having a game-used of Frank Thomas, especially with the stripe, is just awesome. Totally worth it. Maggs is just a bonus. And the design isn’t too bad, which is surprising for a dual-swatch card.

Baseball Stars may well have been the best baseball game on the original NES. Wikipedia explains why it was so awesome:

Baseball Stars was one of the first sports games to have data memory, therefore players could create a team, configure baseball league & play a season, and the game’s memory chip stored cumulative statistics.Baseball Stars was also the first sports game for the NES to have a create a player feature; giving gamers the power to name their players, as well as their teams. The game also introduced a role playing element; as each game played earns the winning team money, and the amount won is directly related to the sum of theprestige ratings of the players from both teams (as prestige determines how many paying fans attend the game). The money can be used to purchase upgrades to the various abilities of players currently on the roster, or it can be used to purchase pre-designed players (available in the Rookie, Veteran, and All-Star categories). Also a first, a hidden feature allows players to purchase female baseball players.

This thing sold FAST, too, and I understand. If I’d had a working NES to play this on, I might have been tempted to save it.

This was part of a previously-mentioned find that included a Wayne Gretzky auto and the 1986 Donruss Rookies set at a thrift store in Maryland. In fact, it was in the pack with the Gretzky auto. Considering the pack with the auto cost me 80 cents and this card alone sold for a couple of bucks, I’d say the investment was worth it.

This was another eBay flip that went from 50 cents to 2.00. Not a huge triumph, but the margin is excellent, and little finds like this add up. I also like the card, but I was a sucker for Igor’s Texas reign.

Last, I haven’t decided if I’m going to unload this or not. So only Clinton is still with the Skins, but at the same time…it IS the Skins. I’m just not sure where I would put it yet, and I’m not sure if it would sell for more than I purchased it for. Still worthwhile to own, either way.

Let’s hope next week is a little more productive, though I’m going to be at The National Saturday, so I’ll have an abbreviated schedule. Perhaps I’ll feature my National finds here? We’ll see.

A Blowout?

Willingham had four hits, two homers, and six RBI. Wow!

Nice win, but the Royals are closing in on us for the #1 pick. At the same time…I’m starting to feel like Royals fans might deserve that #1 pick. While the Nationals are a pretty abysmal team, the Royals seem clearly worse to me.

All Star Game Tonight!

Congrats Ryan for finally making the All Star game. I think that one day you might actually be voted in, but I’ll be rooting for you anyway.