COMC haul #5: a Griffey kind of glove

(Note:  all COMC haul posts can be accessed here)

Before I get on with today's post, I want to make a quick COMC-related plug.  As some of you may already know, awesome blogger Derek from Tomahawk Chopping decided to throw some stuff up on that site, and as a reminder, you can find his port here.

Well, on a related note, his fellow awesome blogger, Spiegel of Nomo's Sushi Platter, decided to do the same, so make sure to show him some COMC-style love and hit up his port that can be found right here.  And, you know, check out both of their blogs because they're great.

Meow, onto MY COMC pickup of the day.  The Tigers do play game 2 tonight, but considering how last night went, I'm gonna take a one-day break from Tigers cards and post something else I picked up that I thought was pretty awesome:

Ken Griffey Jr 2001 Upper Deck Gold Glove Slugger's Choice batting glove

For a mere pittance of $5, I picked up a sweet batting glove relic of one of my favorite players of all time.  I have to say that Junior Griffey had the best swing of any player who's played during my lifetime; I constantly find myself imitating it whenever I'm in a batting situation.  Because of that, I think it's pretty cool that I can say I now have nice relics of both his batting gloves and bat.  I can work on other relics at some other point, but I'm definitely satisfied with this pair at the moment.

Although he never did win a ring (or, you know, play in a World Series at all), I'm hoping posting a non-Tiger like Griffey brings my Tigers better luck (DAMN YOU, THIRD BASE) in game 2!

Complete sets: 1996 Upper Deck V.J. Lovero Showcase

I've said this before, but sometimes it really pays to sift through your collection, whether it's to compile a list of your complete and incomplete sets--as I've been doing the past few days--or just for the fun of reminding yourself of what you've put together and how cool it looks.  Also, sometimes you find a hidden gem you didn't realize you had!

Anyway, as I was flipping through my couple monster boxes of baseball complete sets to work on said list, I started looking at some of the insert sets I compiled during my collecting days.  One I hadn't seen in quite a while (since it sits in a large plastic case in a monster box that's usually piled under other boxes in my card closet) was the 1996 Upper Deck V.J. Lovero Showcase insert.

Lovero was a very talented photographer whose work graced the cover of SI, among other places.  Sadly, he passed away due to cancer a few years after this set was produced, but his legacy and skill live on in this wonderful set that features both his expert photography and some interesting (and even sometimes funny or insightful) comments about the players and their photo shoots.

As with many sets I collected way back then, I don't quite remember the genesis of my collecting this set (possibly a hobby box or two) or even completing it, but I do know I have each of the 19 cards.  Because the photos themselves say so much, and the backs provide an interesting look inside the process of an amazing artist, I'll refrain from commentary below and let you enjoy the cards as they are (blown up to make reading the backs easier).  But here I'll state my obvious love for this forgotten set, featuring many of my favorite players (Jim Abbott!), some photos that make me laugh at player antics and feel wistful for the 90s (backwards-hat Griffey, anyone?) and a gorgeous full-bleed photo design AS GOD INTENDED.  That and the Buhner is simply one of the greatest baseball cards you'll ever see, not to mention one that captures his essence perfectly.

So whether you're an aspiring photographer, someone more advanced (holla at Derek), or just like looking at pretty pictures, please share my joy in rediscovering this set and take in the perfection of the 1996 Upper Deck V.J. Lovero Showcase!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blowout, you complete me

Today a pair of very productive packages graced my mailbox:  I made a couple deals on Blowout this weekend--a small purchase and a trade--and ended up with the following:

Three 2008 UD Heroes cards

These four 2008 Topps Series II cards plus nine others.  I chose these because 1)  I didn't realize Topps produced women's sports cards, 2)  Dunn's had a remarkable comeback year, 3)  Chipper singled in his final All-Star Game, and 4)  I included Prado for Derek for the hell of it.  Lots of Braves!

In case you somehow didn't put it together from the title, that means I completed two more sets thanks to these pickups.  I'm definitely happy to have the excellent UD Heroes set completed, more so than my second set of '08 Topps II (which came mostly from an extra Series II box I picked up a while back).  But anytime I complete a set I consider it a cause for celebration.  Incidentally, the Topps set is available for trade if anyone can use it; otherwise I'll be working on trying to pick up another series I set to pair with it so I can trade or keep that.

Hooray for more progress towards completing sets!

Merry Strasmas Jr. and stuff that's less-hyped

Thank God the Nats don't pick first next year...
Derek (of Tomahawk Chopping) and I recently completed our first non-break trade, one that was mainly centered around our 2011 Bowman wantlists.  Of primary interest to me was Derek's ability to cut a major swath into my Chrome needs.  In terms of what was changing hands involving 2011 Bowman stuff, I came out way ahead, so I made sure to send a bunch of Bravos Derek's way, including a few hits he had previously coveted (the best being a Mike Minor autograph).  Well Derek responded in kind, AND HOW:  today in the mail I received

the love child of Stephen Strasburg, the Virgin Mary and maybe the ghost of Mickey Mantle, as far as the baseball media are concerned.  Yes, it's the second coming of Strasmas, Bryce Harper's Bowman Chrome Prospects "RC".  The reason I'm so excited is not because I'm any kind of prospector--I'm just doing my best to complete this set like everyone else, along with the "base" Prospects and Bowman's Best, which is just a great looking set that's fun to collect.  This guy is probably the best of the bunch, and it puts me 1/3 of the way towards my set-building goal.  Seeing as how this is currently a very desirable card that's probably worth its weight in sticker autos, I really appreciate Derek being willing to send it my way (where I promise it will remain with the rest of my set, not in an eBay auction titled "Bryce Harper Bowman Chrome RC PSA 10? 1500 HR? L@@k" with a BIN of $1000) so thanks again to a great trader and blogger.

Thorzul rules, politicians drool
For those of you who didn't see Thorzul's post today, first, shame on you for not following his awesome blog, but secondly, go show some support for a guy that (among others) got handed a pretty raw deal thanks to some continued questionable decisions in his state.  Politics aside, (and that's often best among friends, naturally) dude deserved better, as does education in this country in general.  You don't want future generations unable to point out Canada on a map or think that $200 for a pack that includes a scrub sticker auto, quad-single color jersey and serial-numbered scrub RC is exactly what the consumer is begging for, do you?

More trade bait draft II stuff
Update courtesy of the man himself, Tim, including draft order and a hint about the card that'll earn you a free box of UD baseball.

Not enough no-hitters
Anybody catch that gem by Justin Verlander last night?  I'm making it official:  if he throws another no-no this season, I'm officially changing this here blog's name to Too Many Verlanders, and old Curtis will just have to deal with it.  I did it once before and I'll do it again--this time permanently.

Go 'Nucks!
I don't technically have a horse in this race, but it's been fun watching Vancouver's quest for the Cup, a co-worker pulls for them, and they have the advantage of having a former Wolverine star, Jeff Tambellini, possibly playing for them tonight in the clincher, so good luck to the Canucks!

Mailbox Monday: Tomahawk edition

A few packages arrived in the mail today, which means a good source for content!

Trade with Derek of Tomahawk Chopping:
Derek needed some 2011 Bowman, I needed some 2011 Bowman, and so we traded, Q.E.D.  I sent him a nice package which will surely lead to some more good trades between us (oddly enough, we hadn't traded other than during his participation in my group breaks) and for now I got a ton of help with the Chrome Prospects portion of my set.  Here's a quick look at a few he sent, which includes some MLB bloodlines, funny names, top prospects and a Detroit Tiger:

Those sure do scan nice, don't they?

Derek also sent another Bowman's Best insert I needed, which is great, but as I said before, I'm not scanning those until I can show them off as a complete set.

Thanks again for a great trade, Derek!

As of today my wantlists stand at:
Prospects:  1 29 42 48 49 50 51 53 57 58 61 64 66 71 78 92 105 109 
Chrome Prospects:  1 17 29 42 62 73 80 92 94 103 105
Bowman's Best Prospects:  1 5 6 10 13 14 21 22
Bowman's Best Veterans:  1 3 5 11 13 15 18
(I expected to have the rest of the non-Harper base prospects today, but I'm working with a Blowout forum member  who apparently just can't figure things out...)


MOAR 2008 DRAFT:
A nice deal on Blowout brought me the following beauties from 2008 Leaf Certified:

This Arrington auto/RC goes well with my Mirror Blue version and is #d to 999.  Picasa says this is Arrington #17 for me and every one of those is an autograph!

Any Henne is a good Henne for me, but a multi-relic/auto/RC/parallel is pretty sweet.  This Chad is #d out of 100 and is my 24th of him overall, including my 11th with an autograph.

Finally, we have a Mirror Blue Mike Hart auto/RC, also #d of 100.  I now have 14 Harts and each and every one of those is autographed.


Those put me up to 289 unique Michigan hits, so I'll keep plugging away til I hit 300 and beyond!

Time for some more contest pimping!

I'm sure you've all seen this by now, so here's my entry for Derek's (Tomahawk Chopping) awesome contest.  The deets, courtesy of the man himself:

"If you win this contest I will snoop around on your blog, check out your want list, see what your favorite team is and do some shopping for you, without your help. So by the time opening day arrives you will receive a package full of recently purchased cards (plus what ever I have of your team). The amount of the card shopping spree depends on how many entries, and right now I'm not classifying that with a number. It will be at least $10 worth of cards (shipping fees not included). I know the contest would completely rock if I did something like $50 bucks, but come on I'm working full time and going to school for my masters full time, I don't have that kinda dough lying around."


So follow his blog (if you're dumb and weren't doing it before) throw something like this on your own blog and leave him a comment saying you did the first two.  Before you know it, BAM!  Three entries for free cards.  Big thanks to Derek for a great giveaway, and good luck to all who enter (except Play at the Plate, because he always wins stuff.  KIDDING!).