A December You Complete Me AND Rainbow Additions

This post would have come sooner but I had decided to consolidate everything into one post and part of this haul only arrived today after the Sportlots seller neglected to, you know, actually ship the cards to me until this week, though we worked that out without incident.

So, what do I have for you today?  How about one eBay purchase and two Sportlots packages that equal two new rainbow cards and a bunch of baseball set wantlist help?

Gonna gonna gonna gonna gonna gonna buy me a rainbow, continued:

A quick purchase on eBay (I'm not letting these suckers get away as they're getting rarer) netted me this guy:

This is the Emerald jersey version from that rainbow I've been working on so hard for the last couple months.  This simple but pinstriped jersey is numbered out of 25, making it one of the rarer versions I have in the group, though I do have two /10 and two others /25.  It's a sharp card and I'm glad I picked one up that includes a nice Cubbies pinstripe.  This card goes along well with...

this Light Blue version of the jersey.  Much more common as it's #d /200, it's nonetheless an important part of the set.  This one arrived as part of the Sportlots package I was impatiently waiting for this morning, and it means there's only one card left on my wantlist that's numbered as high as 100--the Red jersey, which I have yet to see anywhere up to this point.  I'm now just seven cards away from the 30-card rainbow, and including that Red jersey, the average numbering dips to 28; make it 16.5 as soon as I pick that one up.  While I'm mentioning stats, how about a hand for the new leader in hits in any of my PCs now that Hill's 35 have surpassed Jake Long's 34 to take the crown?

You Complete Me, including an actual completed set:

As I mentioned, two packages, which I'll combine into one.

2001 Donruss Rookie Reprints:  1 (complete)
2002 Bowman:  2
2004 Topps Traded (set 2):  14
2005 Fleer Tradition:  17 (only need 2)
2005 Topps All-Time Fan Favorites:  2
2005 Topps Chrome:  19
2008 Topps Series 2 (set 2): 1
2008 Upper Deck Heroes:  10 (only need 3)
2009 Bowman:  10 (only need 4)
2009 Bowman Prospects: 8 (only need 6)
2009 Bowman WBC Prospects:  2 (only need 2)
2010 Bowman Chrome Prospects:  7
Totals:  93 cards, 12 sets, 1 complete

I'm obviously most excited about completing the 2001 Donruss Rookie Reprints set since I already went ahead and did a post about it on Tuesday.  Getting that final card, the Andres Galarraga 1986, was the impetus for the first of the pair of buys, and it led to a few more cards from 2005 Topps All-Time Fan Favorites, 2009 Bowman and 2010 Bowman Chrome Prospects.  The Light Blue Rich Hill above spurred the other buy which included lots more cards from the other sets listed and put a nice dent in most of those.    By my count I have nine sets that need 10 cards or fewer, meaning another Sportlots run may not be far behind.

Now that I've blogged all of that, I'm not sure what else will follow because I have nothing else in the pipeline at the moment.  Still, a new year, college bowls and a potential Lions playoff run leave the door open for new stuff very soon.  Until then, I hope everyone continues to enjoy the holiday season and that some of you get to enjoy the benefit of a week off like I am!

Completed Sets: 2001 Donruss Rookie Reprints

I've alluded to this set quite a bit over the course of writing this blog, and I'm thrilled that I finally get to show it off in its completed form now that the final piece of this puzzle--Andres Galarraga--arrived in my mailbox last week.  It's a complete set I have yet to see in-person or online, (though I know I'm not the first) which isn't too surprising since "only" 1982 complete sets are possible.  Putting it all together was a process 10 years in the making, from the day I first busted a couple boxes of the very fun-to-open set to picking up singles on eBay, COMC, Sportlots and the like, to holding all 39 reprints in my hands.

For those of you who weren't collecting at the time, a little bit about the set:  it was one of the many "randomly inserted" Donruss inserts that year, so I'm not really sure what the odds were.  This was definitely something a bit different for Donruss as they celebrated the 20th anniversary of their inaugural 1981 baseball set, and they never fell pray to the Topps mailing-it-in attitude of "Screw it, let's reprint more of our crap, people will go nuts for it."  

They also didn't go the Topps route of messing with the reprinted card after the fact as Topps did with some if their reprint sets, (i.e. reducing a multiplayer RC down to that single player) and their alterations were limited to three design elements to clearly mark these as reprints:  a silver "20th Anniversary" logo stamped up front, and on the back numbering based on the insert set--not its numbering from the original set--and a serial number based on the year the card was issued.  Cal Ripken's '82 reprint, therefore, is the lowest numbered card at 1982 copies, meaning that many complete sets are possible, as previously mentioned.  

A parallel version, of which 1900 fewer of each card exists, was also possible to pull, and in picking up the Griffey for this set, I received my first parallel version in the eBay transaction that culminated in this post, in which the USPS did its best to prevent those cards from arriving to me, as usual.  My interest, though, was always in the main reprint insert set for several reasons.  First and foremost I enjoy the multitude of designs the retrospective gives you, featuring cards from 1982-1992.  Secondly, the serial numbering made this one of the more challenging pursuits of my collecting experience, especially when I encountered stubborn sellers clinging to the idea that they were worth much more than any sane person would pay for them.  Finally, the player selection is quite good and hits on many of my favorites from that time span, the era when I grew up and first got into baseball.

All that makes this easily my favorite insert set I've yet completed.  And now I proudly present to you all 39 2001 Donruss Rookie Reprints!:

• Cal Ripken Jr. 1982 (#0961/1982):  A great way to start the set off with a bang, though Donruss really had no choice--the '81 set featured no major RCs and the '82 version was devoid of anything major except Cal.  I have the original version of this one, of course.
• Wade Boggs 1983 (#1316/1983):  Here's the first of a few on this list I don't yet own.  Young Wade hit .349 in 104 games for the '82 Sawx on his way to a hit-filled HOF career and was one of four key '83 RCs in the set, the fourth being Julio Franco, who didn't make the cut for this set (to no one's surprise).
• Tony Gwynn 1983 (#0458/1983):  I own Gwynn's Fleer and Topps RCs from that year, but not this Donruss issue.  The back mentions that he was "A most pleasant late addition to the Padres in '82" and that he was called up from Hawaii.  Man, if you've gotta pay your dues in the minors, it may as well be in Hawaii, right?
• Ryne Sandberg 1983 (#1503/1983):  My eyes!  The goggles do nothing!  Aside from the ugly-ass uni on the front, this card reminds everyone that Ryno was traded from the Phils to the Cubs along with Larry Bowa in 1982.  Bowa, of course, headed back to Philly as a manager for a few years in the early aughts. This is another one I really need to pick up--I should get a wantlist going or something.
• Don Mattingly 1984 (#1006/1984):  This list considers Donnie Baseball's RC the only key rookie in the set, though the next card will have something to say about that.  Mattingly is certainly one of the more memorable recent Yankees even if he's not really HOF-caliber.  Not bad for a 1979 19th-rounder.  Bonus quote from the back:  "One of the very few Yankee farmhands who made it to the big leagues as a Yankee."  Those were the days....  Add this one to the wantlist too, by the way.
• Joe Carter 1984 (#1034/1984):  You'd better believe I have this one.  Carter's no HOFer but he had an excellent overall career, and he definitely sealed his place in baseball history with one of the most dramatic World Series homers ever.  The #2 overall pick in 1981 found himself in Cleveland the year after this card was made, and he would play for six teams in his 16-year career, though he'll always be remembered (and loved) by Blue Jays fans for his World Series exploits.  A worth addition to this set for sure.
• Roger Clemens 1985 (#0439/1985):  Screw this guy--I don't have this card and I don't want it.
• Kirby Puckett 1985 (#0920/1985):  There's no way this set would be complete without the incomparable Kirby Puckett.  This is a great posed shot of the Minnesota legend and it's a card I'm sadly missing in my collection--for now.  Kirby didn't show much power--no homers--in the 128 games of his rookie 1984 campaign, but the hitting prowess was already on display as he hit an excellent .296 in the first year of his HOF career.
• Orel Hershiser 1985 (#0217/1985):  At first glance, Hershiser may seem like a strange addition to this set, and this key cards list agrees, but this is a guy who won a Cy Young, pitched in three World Series (winning one) and amassed more than 200 wins in his 18-year career.  As with Joe Carter, Donruss made a wise choice here.

• Andres Galarraga 1986 (#0864/1986):  Here's another guy who inexplicably didn't make the key cards list for this year.  The Big Cat compares well to the previously mentioned Joe Carter as well as HOFers Orlando Cepeda, Jim Rice and Willie Stargell, and he enjoyed an outstanding, if not HOF-worth, 19-year career.
• Jose Canseco 1986 (#0247/1986):  This was definitely a popular card at the time, but as with Clemens, screw that guy.
• Fred McGriff 1986 (#0386/1986):  One of Tim's favorites, and for good reason as he was also an outstanding player for several teams over a long, productive career, not unlike a couple other guys you've just read about.  A Yankees prospect that got away (muhahahahaha!) the Crime dog moved around quite a bit but did manage to win it all with the '95 Braves.  An excellent choice for this set.
• Paul O'Neill 1986 (#1728/1986):  I've never liked O'Neill and I never will, but he was definitely one of those unsung guys who could put a good team over the top, as his five rings (one with the '90 Reds) prove.
• Mark McGwire 1987 (#1920/1987):  Overrated, one-dimensional cheater, so I'll take this opportunity to mention that the '87 set is the best represented here with eight total cards, though only five make the linked list.  This is definitely one of my favorite Donruss sets for that very reason.
• Barry Bonds 1987 (#1884/1987):  Yeah, whatever.  Next.
• Kevin Brown 1987 (#1669/1987):  Ugh, not only was this guy a cheater, he was also an overpaid douche, and I only vaguely understand his inclusion here, but that's probably mostly hindsight.  NEXT.
• David Cone 1987 (#0079/1987):  That's more like it.  Cone was also left off that list, but he won almost 200 games in  his 17-year career, including 20 twice, picked up a Cy Young award, won five rings (one with Toronto, four with the Yanks) AND pitched a perfect game.
• Rafael Palmerio 1987 (#1570/1987):  Ok, this is getting a bit depressing.  NEXT.

• Barry Larkin 1987 (#1354/1987):  Not sure why one of the best shortstops of his generation and a deserving HOFer isn't included here, but there's still plenty of time to right that wrong.  A Michigan grad (have I mentioned that) and product of athlete factory Cincinnati Moeller High, the 1995 NL MVP gave his all for 19 years with his hometown team, highlighted by a championship in 1990.  All that remains is enshrinement in the Hall of Fame, something that had damn well better happen this year, along with counterpart Alan Trammell.
• Bo Jackson 1987 (#0327/1987):  There was no way Donruss was going to deny collectors another card of one of the 80s' biggest manias, but then again, Bo could have told you that.  Though he only played a few seasons due to injuries, the two-sport star managed to put up some big numbers, but even those were overshadowed by his highlight reel plays in the outfield.  This is a perfect case of a reprint set bringing back the perfect amount of nostalgia from collectors' childhoods.
• Greg Maddux 1987 (#0742/1987):  Maddux is the last of the '87s, and really, what more can I say about the guy than I already have?  Seeya soon in the Hall of Fame, buddy.  Just make sure you don't have the Sidney Crosby punk-ass facial hair going on, ok?
• Roberto Alomar 1988 (#0678/1988):  Speaking of HOFers, the first of the '88s is Robbie Alomar, an All-Star mainstay who deservedly was enshrined in 2011.  You know who he best compares to?  Sweet Lou Whitaker.  If only the Whitaker-Tram duo could enter the Hall together in 2012.  Oh well, at least Alomar got his due.
• Mark Grace 1988 (#0370/1988):  Interesting note:  Grace finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting that year to Wolverine Chris Sabo.  Both went on to win a ring, but it's not much of an argument that Grace had the better career by far.  It's good to see him sticking around the game as a commentator, though maybe he'll find a front office/management-type role someday.
• David Wells 1988 (#0087/1988):  As with the other Yankees on this list, (though Wells was briefly a Tiger as well) I was never a fan of this loudmouth fatass, but he did have a few nice seasons over his amazing 21-year career.
• Tom Glavine 1988 (#1978/1988):  Glavine doesn't look thrilled to be with the Braves here, but little did he know that he'd be a big part of the best team of the 1990s.  I made sure to check the back for a hockey reference, and sure enough it mentions that the Kings drafted him in 1984, the same year the Braves picked him up.  Looks like he chose the right sport.
• Matt Williams 1988 (#1218/1988):  Williams went a few picks ahead of the forthcoming Gary Sheffield in '86, but I think the Giants are pretty happy about their pick.  From 1987-1996, Williams was consistently homer-happy, including a monster shortened 1994 season, and put up some outstanding numbers.  When people like Topps assemble "fan favorites" sets based around guys that don't really get their due, they include players like Williams, and for good reason.
• Ken Griffey Jr. 1989 (#0702/1989):  I dunno, maybe you've seen this one before?  The first of five '89s is definitely the best--the Kid.  The old Rated Rookie logo brings back tons of memories for me, and I'm sure I'm not the only one.  In fact, I know I'm not, especially because of one of Kevin's typically excellent posts.  The original card, of course, has its place in my rookie card PC here.

• Randy Johnson 1989 (#0219/1989):  Johnson appears to be sneering "Yeah I started my career with the Expos, and yeah I had the mullet all the way back then, so what?"  The sure-fire HOFer actually found himself traded to the Mariners in 1989, and the rest is history, thanks to five Cy Youngs, a World Series ring, 300+ wins, a ridiculous 4875 Ks, a no-hitter AND a perfect game, plus a 20 strikeout game.  Dude was good.
• Gary Sheffield 1989 (#1756/1989):  See:  Barry Bonds.  Screw this guy.  In the ear.
• Craig Biggio 1989 (#1225/1989):  One of the greatest athletes ever to play the game, period.  Catcher, second base, outfield, it didn't matter where you put him, he'd hit, or get hit, but he'd always get on base.  And when he did that, you could count on teammates like Jeff Bagwell to bring him home.  A 3000 hit club member, I hope to see him enter the Hall very soon.
• Curt Schilling 1989 (#0677/1989):  Something something...bloody sock...something...politics...something...Warcraft....  Interesting note on the back:  The Red Sox sent him to Baltimore along with noted cheater Brady Anderson, though of course Curt found his way back to Boston in time to live up to his team's name years later.
• Larry Walker 1990 (#0423/1990):  Walker still has a pretty decent chance at making the Hall, but if he doesn't he can still rest on his laurels, which include fairly impressive numbers both inside and outside of Coors field.
• Bernie Williams 1990 (#0564/1990):  Basically Paul O'Neill minus the douchiness, plus he was a homegrown Yankee, not that New York fans would feel that they have to point that out AD NAUSEUM.  
• Sammy Sosa 1990 (#0391/1990):  Steroids and cork are the lasting images from a career that should have been remembered for mammoth home runs and 1998.
• Juan Gonzalez 1990 (#1239/1990):  Oh that the ill-advised trade to Detroit never had happened.  At least he won't make the Hall and everyone can just forget about his stupid ass.
• David Justice 1990 (#1614/1990):  The guy had some very nice seasons, especially with the Braves, and won two rings in a crazy six Series appearances.  I'll always remember him with the Braves, not the Indians, Yankees, Mets and A's.

• Ivan Rodriguez 1991 The Rookies (#0727/1991):  Clearly one of the greatest catchers ever, Donruss was smart enough to include Pudge in their Rookies set that year.  Though I'll always remember him with Texas, I'll also fondly recall his seasons with the Tigers, including the magical 2006 World Series team.
• Jeff Bagwell 1991 The Rookies (#0697/1991):  The erstwhile Red Sox 3B was the NL Rookie of the Year that year on the way to what should be a Hall of Fame career.
• Manny Ramirez 1992 The Rookies (#1520/1992):  Here's Manny being Manny as the final entrant in the set and the only representative from 1992.  I started following Manny a couple years after he became a productive player so for the longest time I associated him with Cleveland.  Still, it's clear that his best years--in general, mind you, what with all the drama--were with Boston.  There may never be another one like him, and if there isn't, it would be a detriment to the game (mostly).

There you have it, my favorite insert set of all time completed!  Please let me know what you all think of this set, what Donruss did with it, if you have any of the originals and your thoughts on those, etc., and look forward to more content hopefully soon.

Merry Christmas from TMG/V!

I've delayed a bit in posting some stuff while waiting on a tardy shipment from Sportlots, so hopefully I'll have something new for you next week.

In the meantime, I'd suggest you hit up some of the excellent recent posting done by other blogs, especially My Cardboard Mistress's 12 Days of Cardmas and Cardmas Riddles, plus Jaybarkerfan's Blog of the Year contest (there's still time!).

I'd like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a wonderful holiday.  May your Refractors be bright, your autographs be on-card and your promised hits not be redemptions!

So from all of us here at Too Many Grandersons/Verlanders, e.g. me, Merry Christmas!

2010 Press Pass PE football Blister Packs (x25)

Two Saturdays ago I hit up Meijer and found something new and interesting to try:  blister packs of 2010 Press Pass Portrait Edition football.  I pulled two of the one-per-pack autographs (James Starks and Rusty Smith) and thought they might be fun to buy again.

Flash forward to this afternoon when I made another required trip to my favorite store, armed with more Santa Bucks coupons.  Again, nothing else appealed to me in the card aisle, but on a whim I decided to price check the Press Pass PE packs to see what they'd ring up at since that's how I verified they were 20% off last time.  I was more than a bit surprised, then, when the formerly $14.99 packs came up at $5.59 apiece.  Thinking the one I had grabbed was a fluke I tried two more, and sure enough, they pulled up the same price.
Well I sure didn't need more of a kick in the pants than that!  I promptly cleaned that particular store out of all 15 packs they had.  After busting those, encouraged by what I had pulled, I hit up another store and grabbed 10 more--out of the roughly 25 they had on hand there, I mean I was trying to show SOME restraint.  That explains why you see "only" 15 of the 25 packs above, by the way.

Before I show off just the hits from these, I'll give you a quick update on the rest of the stuff from this set having now opened 27 packs:

• Set 1 completion:  42/50
• Set 2 completion:  28/50
• Extras:  13 trips, 4 quads, 1 quint
• Blue parallel:  20/50 with 7 doubles (1:pack)
• Headliners:  6/34, 2 doubles (1:3)
• Class of 2010:  4/10, 1 double (1:6)
• Face to Face:  7/20 (1:3)

And now, the hits:

Yes, I really did pull FIVE autos of Joe Webb.  Two more of James Starks definitely made up for that, though, as he's one of the better ones in the set.  The Stafon Johnson and Chris McGaha Reds are alternate versions of the basic Gold autographs.  Spiller is the hit of the break here, a Wal-Mart Exclusive auto (hilarious since I never set foot in that hellhole) numbered 02/25.  Clausen, talentless emu that he is, is a Gold version of the jersey insert numbered 193/199, while Benn and Canfield are the base versions of the jerseys.

All told, I finished with only three jerseys, which is better than I could have hoped in my wildest dreams.  The three Starks and the Spiller (if I can ever determine a value) may net me some useful cash or bring something nice in trade.  As usual, everything you see above is available for sale or trade but it'll take a bit of time for me to get everything put up on my football FS/FT album; that shouldn't stop you from making offers should you desire.

I'm not currently posting base set wantlists because I may go back for a few more of these packs before all is said and done, and hopefully I'll eventually hit something bigger, be it the Donovan Warren auto (the lone Wolverine) or the big guns--autos of Sam Bradford and Tebow of Nazareth.  Even if I don't, these are a blast to break and are light years ahead of the shit Topps keeps spewing out.  Let's see, blaster of worthless tripe or three of these?  Decisions, decisions....

The Rich get Richer

While I'm waiting for one more eBay pickup and a package from Sportlots, here's something I grabbed for a steal of a price via Blowout:

Whatcha lookin' at up there, Rich?

This is Rich Hill's 2008 Topps Triple Threads Emerald triple jersey/auto.  For a mere $5 delivered I couldn't pass up this green stunner, numbered 26/50, especially since I have a White Whale version of this very card.  That actually makes it my third Triple Threads card of Hill thanks to this one.  Hill #33 in my PC ended up not being part of the rainbow of him I'm working on, but fear not--you'll see more of those cards soon.

Merry eBay 1/1...boxing day?

As a follow-up to Thursday's post, another of my eBay purchases arrived yesterday:

Rich Hill's 2008 Upper Deck Baseball Heroes Autographs Red.  I know it seems crazy that I've been picking up a bunch of stuff in a small amount of time, but considering how limited some of these are--including this one being numbered 10/10--I know I have to strike while the iron's hot.  I should also point out that I really did get this card at a steal of a BIN price--less than I've spent on higher-numbered non-autographed cards in this rainbow, even.

All that said, I now have 21/30 cards in the rainbow, with a couple more en route to me, which is very exciting, as you might expect.  Some pertinent stats:

• This ties with the Jersey Autograph Navy Blue for lowest print run I own at 10
• It's the penultimate card I need that's just autographed, the last being the Purple version /5
• The average print run of the nine cards I still need is now 47
• Remaining types of cards I need:
• Base parallels:  2 (Light Blue /49, Purple /25)
• Autographs:  1 (Purple /5)
• Jersey Autograph:  1 (Emerald /5)
• Jersey:  3 (Light Blue /200, Red /100, Emerald /25)
• Patch:  2 (Beige /10, Purple /5)
• I'm now at 32 different Rich Hill hits, and of course 21 of those are from this rainbow

You should see a couple more from this project within a few days as I await a final eBay purchase, plus a couple Sportlots buys, which are also exciting because they'll produce a complete set I've been dying to show off.

Merry eBay 1/1mas!

Another of the exciting eBay purchases I alluded to a couple times this week arrived today:

Rich Hill's 2008 Upper Deck Heroes Autographs Beige.  Yes, beige, I know.  As you can clearly see, this guy is #d 01/25.  I didn't get it specifically because of that--I got it because it's the only one I've seen so far, and better yet, the seller was very cool and took my best offer on an auction where he actually hadn't set that up.  As these are getting hard to find, such a gesture is very significant and I certainly appreciated it.  

This version ties for my second-lowest number in the rainbow thus far with the Patch Light Blue; the Jersey Autograph Navy Blue tops the list at 10 copies made.  In case you're interested, the new average numbering for the remaining cards I need is 43, mainly thanks to a /100 and /200; after those two are gone, the highest-numbered version will be /49 and the new average will be 17!

I'm now exactly 2/3 of the way done with this 30-card rainbow, and fortunately I have a line on a couple other copies.  Just as encouraging is the fact that this is Rich Hill hit #31 for me, comprising almost half my Michigan baseball PC!

Coming up in the next couple days watch for at least two more eBay posts (unless those somehow arrive at the same time) plus a Sportlots package.

Bill Freehan the RC Man

I'm sure everyone roughly my age remembers this:

Well here's another famous BILL BILL BILL BILL that arrived in my mailbox this morning:

That's right, guys, it's Bill Freehan's 1963 Topps RC, knocking a huge item off my checklist for that PC.  This copy is in half-decent shape, with an obviously bad upper-right corner, iffy centering, some fading and various other flaws.  Still, for what it cost relative to other copies I've seen on the interwebs, I thought it was a nice deal.  It also feels great to have the most important card knocked off that list, leaving me with just seven to go in that collection.  

The speed at which I'm acquiring these may prompt me to go after his modern cards as well as part of this collection, though that's something I'll decide once I have everything from his actual playing days.  Because this is the only card in today's post, I thought I'd also include the back:

You can see here that Bill had some pretty nice Minor League stats before his first full season in the bigs in 1963.  The following year he made his first of ten consecutive All-Star teams, and eleven overall.  What's interesting to me as I ponder his career is that it makes me wonder if that's the career arc young Tigers catcher Alex Avila is heading towards, which would be outstanding for a Detroit team that hasn't developed an excellent catcher in forever--maybe Matt Nokes, at least for the first couple years of his career?

Stay tuned for a few more piecemeal posts of recent PC eBay pickups that I've purchased in the last week or so, plus another small Sportlots buy, all of which will lead to some exciting (at least for me) additions to my collections and therefore this blog.

Weekend roundup: a Blowout trade, more You Complete Me and BCS and eBay rants

From Friday up until this evening I had an eventful few days of collecting.  Besides a couple forthcoming eBay purchases about which I'm pretty excited, there was this stuff:

BCS rant:

I'll keep this quick because it doesn't exactly relate to collecting, other than my foolproof comparison between the BCS and Topps:

• It completely ignores what the consumer wants
• It turns out a consistently terrible product
• It claims to value tradition, but blatantly ignores it in favor of the same old shit
• I want no further part of it until it's fixed

The fact that Alabama is playing in the NCAA football title game is a complete travesty and should mean the immediate abolition of the BCS for its failure to determine the two best teams that deserve to play each other for the national championship.  It's an inherently flawed system that has only once produced a reasonably satisfying champion in its history, and the corrupt human element of it has made it worse.  

But more than that, the hypocrisy of it kills me--Michigan was in the same boat in 2006 and we fans called for a rematch with Ohio State after losing by such a close margin on their field, our only loss.  We figured we deserved the rematch on a neutral field, but some people correctly pointed out that we hadn't won our conference title, not that it was officially mandatory for playing for the national title.  That was fine, but then the SEC and their propaganda factory, CBS, put on a shameless display of self-promotion that will forever be an embarrassment to anyone who isn't a NASCAR-promoting, Larry the Cable Guy-loving redneck with an IQ lower than the number of teeth in his gums.  The relevant point here is that the SEC was the loudest opponent of the rematch game.

Flash forward to 2011 and would you look at that?  Suddenly a rematch looks a bit more attractive to those Southerners--not as much as their sisters, but it's up there--and they finally have something to loudly and ignorantly yell about that doesn't involve Obama being a "seekrit muslin communist that weren't born in 'murica cuz I dun sawed it on the Fox News."  The hypocrisy is staggering, as is the fact that a one-loss Oklahoma State team was a perfectly reasonable candidate for the title game, as was Stanford, really.  For a formula that uses some complicated math, the BCS sure does benefit one specific region whose biggest numerical accomplishment was counting to potato.  The title game basically has an autobid for the SEC, and now apparently it has two.  Guess what?  They ALREADY PLAYED THAT GAME.  ALABAMA LOST.  END OF STORY.

So even though it won't happen, largely because Bubbas and Cleatuses would form an unruly mob hell-bent on seeing birth certificates of every NCAA executive, it's past due that we get a playoff going, even if it's only something as simple as four teams.  There's just not enough of a sample size to let a bunch of biased, corrupt and uninformed coaches and media select the two "best" teams to meet for the title.

End of that rant, Go Blue in the Sugar Bowl!

eBay:  the BCS of online auction sites:

Anybody else get one of these in the mail?:

Whiskey.  Tango.  Foxtrot.  This is why I hate class-action suits.  What's funny is I'm not sure how I even became eligible--I didn't sign up to be part of this because I rarely get in on these, and the whole $0.17, which eBay obviously spent more on to ship to me, isn't even enough to cover their exorbitant and extortionate fees.  Like the 20th Gio Gonzalez autograph you pull from a $300 Topps box, this is literally not worth the paper it's printed on.  Screw you, eBay, you dumb bastards.

On to lighter topics:  You Complete Me!:

I made another productive purchase through the always-reasonable Sportlots, so I thought it was time for another YCM post.  For under $15 shipped I got cards from these sets:

• Baseball:
• 2000 7-11 Coins (5)
• 2000 Upper Deck (24)
• 2005 Fleer Tradition (7)
• 2008 Topps Series II set 2 (5)
• 2008 Topps Co-Signers (3)
• 2008 Upper Deck Heroes (2)
• 2009 Bowman (2)
• 2009 Topps Update (6)
• Football:
• 2001 UD MVP (5)
• 2008 Topps (4)
• 2008 Upper Deck Heroes (8)
• 2009 Topps (1)

Total cards:  72

Sets added to:  12

Sets completed:  2

All of these cards were from one seller (the way to go with Sportlots) and all started with the 2000 7-11 coins, a set I've been wanting to finish for a while.  The guy had all five I needed, so I proceeded to pick up literally everything else he had from each of my set lists.  A nice consequence of that was also completing 2008 UD Heroes football, but I also made some strides in plenty of other sets, as you can see from the list.

No scans of these today, but I'm planning on getting up a post of the 7-11 hologram coins if I can figure out how to get them scanned/photographed so they look good.

Blowout blowo--wait, I actually completed a trade:

You read that right--I got through a Blowout thread without buying something and was able to complete a deal instead.  As I was looking through the mass of post-Black Friday box breaks there, I found a guy complaining about his bad luck with a cheap box of 2007 Playoff Contenders.  His three autographs were a guy I can't remember, Anthony Gonzalez (not too bad, plus he was able to sell it) and one that I thought was a great pull, but he lamented the quality of the hits, so I told him I'd take the third off his hands.  A couple of trade bait Aaron Rodgers RCs I no longer wanted later and this was in my possession:

This is Leon Hall's 2007 Playoff Contenders Rookie Ticket auto RC.  It's a great autographed rookie of one of my favorite Wolverines who's gone on to success in the NFL, and it pairs well with another I have from the set, Hall's college teammate David Harris.  I now have 18 hits of the budding star CB, every one of them an autograph.  This card also puts me 12 away from a nice, round 400 in that PC.

That's not all I got in the deal, though, since we both threw in a few extras.  As such, I ended up with this assortment:

It includes a 2008 Topps Chrome RC of Mario Manningham, Steve Breaston's 2007 Bowman Chrome RC, a 2007 Playoff Contenders Round Numbers insert of Hall and Reggie Nelson (#0241/100) and three Tom Bradys:  2006 Topps Draft and a couple 2008 Topps Chrome NFL Dynasties Tribute inserts.

I'm definitely happy with this trade, especially since no money actually changed hands and we both got something we really wanted, which proves that is possible once in a while.

Stay tuned for the previously-mentioned eBay pickups soon as they're both key cards as far as my PCs go.

2010 Press Pass PE football retail blister packs

No Michigan game, no Day of Rest post, though there's still some decent-to-good conference championship action today.  I'm rooting for everyone who can help Michigan get to the BCS bowl it clearly deserves, but either way, I sure wouldn't mind seeing Michigan State get pantsed by a Wisconsin team out for revenge.

So while doing my usual traversal through my Google Reader, I caught Sewingmachineguy's post that mentioned Meijer still had cards 20% today.  I needed a few other things there anyway, so I headed down to a different one than last week, one that I think has a better card aisle.  Nothing really looked all that great to me since most of it was recent blasters, as usual, plus there were 2008 UD Heroes football boxes, which I now know to avoid.  Then some hanging blister packs caught my eye and I remember that I had looked at them before:  2010 Press Pass Portrait Edition football:

These were originally $14.99 but were discounted to $11.99 thanks to this week's 20% off sale.  Here's what I pulled:

Base

Not a bad bunch of players, and unlike the often crappy player selection in SAGE, I'm reasonably happy with these.  Plus, the design is fairly pleasing.

Inserts

Gronk and McCluster are one-per-pack Blue parallels.  Yawn.  Benn is a 1:4 Class of 2010 insert that's also sorta boring in terms of design, but at least he's a reasonably good player.

James Starks Sideline Signatures Gold auto

Rusty Smith Sideline Signatures Gold auto

And then there was the real draw of the packs which justified the price:  the one-per-pack autographs.  Actually, each pack guaranteed one auto OR memorabilia card, but of the bunch on the hanger, I picked two that didn't look terribly thick to me and hoped that they contained signatures; I'm not paying $12 per pack for a $2 jersey in this day and age.  Some might consider that pack-searching, but in my defense, I didn't molest the packs through the blister packaging, put them on a scale or even stare at them for 10 minutes to try to gauge their thickness--I took a quick look at each and thought "I'm pretty sure these aren't jerseys."

As with the base, the autographs have a nice design that's conducive to the inclusion of a signature.  Better yet for many, the autos are on-card, and that's always a plus.

So all that said, I did OK here.  Starks is obviously the better pull, and COMC tells me he goes for $25 while Smith reaches $20.  Starks, of course, is a Packers RB, but here he's airbrushedly (feel free to use that word yourself) pictured with his alma mater, Buffalo.  Smith is a Tennessee Titans QB from Florida Atlantic, which probably partly explains why he went all Ned Flanders with his inscription.  I don't want to sound like I'm against inscriptions like that, though--overall I think they're a cool idea and add a nice personal touch to autographs.

For under $25, these were kind of fun to open.  I don't think I'll pick any more up unless I can find them for under $10, which isn't totally out of the question.  Everything you see here is for trade, especially the two autographs, both of which went right into my Football FS/FT album.  If you see anything you like, please let me know and I'll set it aside for you.

Card show report: 11/27: a Michigan Man will buy Michigan cards

Previously:  a trade with Dustin (No Relics Pulled), some sweet vintage

Finishing off my pickups from Sunday's show, here's a look at two other purchases I made:

First off, I grabbed three cards from a guy who cut me a reasonable deal and also told me to be on the lookout for a Jim Abbott autographed baseball the next time I'm there.  The hits:

Mike Comrie 2003-2004 Upper Deck Rookie Update Top Draws auto

Not the only hockey auto I picked up on the day, this is my second of Comrie.  Mr. Hillary Duff inked a nice signature on this card, even if he didn't take advantage of ample space, and he thought to include his uniform number too.

Jim Abbott 1990 Topps in-person auto

For a couple bucks, I couldn't resist adding my first autograph, even if it's not certified, of the former one-armed standout.  Besides being an excellent pitcher, not to mention an inspiration, Abbott reminds me of one of my favorite scenes from the killed-far-too-soon-but-funnier-than-the-rest-of-the-crap-on-these-days Party Down (still available on Netflix Instant!):

Yes, Veronica Mars fans, that's Jason Dorhing, a.k.a. Logan Echolls, and one of many VM actors to cameo on this outstanding, hilarious show, including Kristin Bell herself.  Check it out!  Jim Abbott?  Jim Abbott!

Rick Leach 2004 TK Legacy auto

This card of a former Michigan dual-sport star allows for a great juxtaposition later, so keep an eye out for that.  Another $3 steal, at least in my book, Leach fits several of my PCs:  Michigan baseball, Michigan football and the Tigers, as he was Detroit's first-rounder in 1979.  Though he never lived up to that billing on the diamond, his baseball skills were probably on par with his football acumen, so you can't blame the guy for going that route, and to his credit, he didn't exactly go full Henson on us, plus he did beat Ohio State three times.  His dual-sport skills merit my picking up a football autograph of his before long as well.

My second purchase involved three more TK Legacy singles plus a couple packs.  Here's what the two 2004 TK Legacy III packs yielded:

These are the six base cards, and I didn't have anything of any of them, so they were cool pickups.  Of course, I bought the packs for the one-per-pack autos which were:

Erick Anderson and Marcus Ray, both new additions to the PC.  Anderson, the 1991 Butkus award-winner as best LB, played here from '88-'91 and went onto a brief NFL career.  Ray, a safety, played from '95-'98, including, of course, the '97 championship team.  He's since gone on to coaching at several levels and, as a Michigan Man, is sure to excel at whatever he goes on to do.

Those two packs were part of a package deal for two MORE TK Legacy singles:

Welcome to the football PC, Bill!  Yep, along with Leach, a football star who played baseball, here's Freehan, an eventual baseball star who also played football for the Wolverines in 1960, from the 2003 set.  I'd seen this one on COMC but could never get a good deal on it, so I pounced on it in this package deal, and now I have 59 different subjects among my 387 football PC cards, more than 250 of which are autographs.  Not a bad feat thanks to ANOTHER UM baseball/UM hockey/Detroit Tiger!

And then there's this bad boy from 2004, my favorite pickup of the show.  I briefly considered a couple other dual autos, but in the end this one won me over.  Hand-numbered 002/100, this card combines autographs from probably the two most important people in Michigan hockey history--legendary coach Red Berenson and goalie Marty Turco--two men who are responsible for Michigan's two most recent hockey championships.  If names like Bo, Woodson and Harmon are synonymous with college football's best historical program, these two are among the gods of college hockey's flagship school.

As you can see, despite there not being much of a mix of brands, I ended up with a nice assortment of Michigan sports hits this time instead of focusing exclusively on football, despite my desire to hit a nice round 400 before the end of the year.  Part of that was due to a dearth of stuff I needed, but fortunately I know where to look next time for some top-notch stuff like the Berenson/Turco.  You may just see stuff to that effect in just a few weeks, so stay tuned.