11/6/21 card show report: a couple very good signs

Two constants of my last few show recaps were my disappointment in a lack of dime boxes to pick through and the fact that I didn't come home with as much fun stuff as I was able to earlier in the year. I'm happy to say both of those situations changed this past Saturday when I headed east to Taylor for a couple hours. That's right: I said Saturday, the same day as a Michigan Football game. But I was able to get over there because Michigan didn't face off with Indiana until 7:30. So I was able to enjoy the show and kill time before the game. Efficiency at its finest!

Anyway, I was exciting to find that the dime boxes were back! I want to say I went through something like six to eight of those super long three row boxes, and after plenty of time spent ignoring recent baseball and basketball garbage, I came up with 80 cards.

Next up I waded through the dollar boxes for the types of hits I love for myself and trade packages, and I grabbed 17 of them, figuring I'd be paying $25 and then getting out of there with a few interesting pieces but nothing great.

Then I took a look at the dude's showcases, which very occasionally have something I'm interested in. For instance, in the past I snagged what I think was a nice deal on a Dylan Larkin manuletter auto. I quickly found two big singles I hoped I could take home with me, and luck continued to be on my side as that's exactly what I did!

More on those at the end, but first up we've got the few trade bait cards I didn't pick up for anyone in particular:

These were all a buck along with others I picked up for some trade packages, and many had languished in the guy's $2 box for months. I thought I'd diversify a little with a basketball pair, plus Quentin's a numbered auto and face mask cards are cool (and that Burleson is numbered 213/350) on the back.

And now for my own pickups, mostly of the dime variety:

On a day where a lot of the talk is centered on MLB's award finalists, let's look at some dime box baseball! Avila was a fun Tigers catcher and a 2019 Chrome Refractor was an easy buy for a dime, even if he's pictured with Arizona. Cobb pops up in pretty much any modern set that includes retired players and legends, and 2018 Diamond Kings was no exception. Griffey continues his march toward 1000 cards with base from 2006 Upper Deck Artifacts and 2013 Panini USA Champions. Mr. Padre also gets a pair, from 1992 Score Procter & Gamble all the way up to 2021 Ginter. That brand popped up a couple more times for HOF shortstops in the form of Larkin and Ripken from the previous two years. And I'll happily pay ten cents for a new Sparky card such as his 1981 Topps team checklist.

An unlicensed trio closes out the baseball portion. Cal's second appearance is courtesy of the weird fun/plain combo done by '21 Donruss. I still like to collect the occasional Scherzer card, and a Detroit appearance such as 2014 Donruss Elite is a bonus. And I even added to my Verlander collection, of which I have too many, with his 2020 Donruss Optic base.

The basketball portion is comparatively tiny but it's still a good sign that I found any for myself at all. The THJ and Duncan Robinson you see above are Blue parallels from 20-21 Panini Select and they look quite nice in hand, better than they scan, and much lighter too.

On the football side we start with two dimes. Transfer TE and New England draftee Asiasi is a 2020 Panini Phoenix parallel and I believe I correctly IDed it as "Fire Burst" but could easily be proven wrong. And I even added a new RC to my collection of Butts--Jake Butts, that is. His 2017 Select first-year is #11 of 14 I'm chasing.

And then the last two cards you see of New Orleans C Cesar Ruiz were from the dollar box. Should I have paid a buck each for 2020 Donruss Optic Purple Shock and Green Velocity parallels of his rookie? Maybe not, but they're Michigan uni cards and I wasn't originally spending much anyway, plus they doubled the size of his PC.

So now chronologically we're at the point where I was looking intently at the baseball showcase when something caught my eye. Could it be?...

Yes indeed, a Jake Cronenworth autograph! It may be from Gypsy Queen instead of a brand I actually like, but it's a nice first signature (or hit of any kind) of one of my favorite young players and the best Michigan Baseball alum to come along recently. The should-have-been 2020 NL Rookie of the Year enjoyed a nice encore in his first full season, making the All-Star team thanks to 21 HR and ultimately a 4.8 bWAR for a talented young Padres team that underachieved in the end. He was a key part of the Slam Diego thing and also hit for the cycle back in July. I look forward to adding more of his hits to a PC I was working on before he was cool.

When I asked the guy how much he wanted for it, he responded "...for you...$20." I'd taken a quick look at eBay and they seemed to be going for more like $30. While that cost still felt like an overpay to me, my desire to own a Cronenworth auto plus wanting to keep the guy in business won out and I added it to my purchase. Then another card caught my eye:

I've made no secret that Cal's one of my favorite all-time players, both in terms of the game and player collections. His 1032 cards dwarf all comers if you needed any proof. I also love me some 90s but if you didn't know that you haven't read anything on this here blog, so welcome.

Anyway, Fleer's collaboration with Sports Illustrated produced some outstanding products in the late 90s, and one of the results was an insert set that reprinted some of the formerly respected publication's most iconic covers, including signed versions. Cal graced the cover on July 29, 1991, when he was more than halfway to his goal of besting Lou Gehrig's iron man streak while, as the front says, "...enjoying the best season if his illustrious career." Ball don't lie, and neither do the numbers: the AL MVP (for the second time) went off for a career bests of 11.5 bWAR, 34 bombs, 114 RBI, .940 OPS, 368 total bases, and, oh yeah, six steals!

So yeah, it's a beautiful card of a great SI cover, plus it includes an autograph of one of the greatest players I've been privileged to watch. And his signature is obviously one of the best out there as well. Oh, and it's numbered (by hand)? Yeah, gotta have it. How much? "Hmmm...for you...$40." Yep, sold! What's funny is these two late additions ran my total up to $84 and I literally had four each of $20s and $1 bills in my wallet. "Ah, you're fine," he said, clearly realizing I'll be back next month as a regular customer, which is worth more than making me put back one of the cheapo dollar hits.

So a warm welcome to my third card with a Ripken signature and first that doesn't include a relic or manufactured piece. It was great to pair with an up-and-coming infielder's first 'graph in my collection and an outstanding way to end the show on a high note before I returned home to watch Michigan handle Indiana.

While I'm looking forward to next month and the final show of the year (which may involve me getting a highly sought-after in-person signature), I've still got plenty to show off over here, including my latest eBay score plus more of the Facebook lot. Until then, may all of your shows be as fruitful as this one was for me!