Buzz Buys: Oddball Relics, Hall of Fame honors, gem cards, legendary owners & more

Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but a new year's resolution just might be to rip fewer blasters this year and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention. Would they capture yours? I'd be interested to know -- sometimes they might, sometimes they won't and that's fine. It's a buyer's market out there with plenty of options and bargains as well as high-end gems to chase.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... and this time around they're all under $10.

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NOTHING BUT NET
The Card: Brendan McKay 2018 Topps Pro Debut Fragments of the Farm Relics
The Price: $3.85
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: I've probably mentioned it before, but I'm a sucker for oddball memorabilia cards and this specimen was one i had to grab when I saw it. It's simple, a bit part of the ballpark experience and a safety feature that should have been seen a lot more often in cards if you ask me simply because they make for interesting cards. Inside this card is a piece of backstop netting from Dutchess Stadium in Wappingers Falls, N.Y., which is the home of the Hudson Valley Renegades. It didn't hurt that the card shows Brendan McKay, the fourth pick in last year's MLB Draft, but he's not the reason I grabbed this one at all. The Fragments of the Farm sets in Pro Debut the last few years are the home of some interesting cards that have items selected by the teams -- and they typically are found in every box.
Grab a box right here: 2018 Topps Pro Debut

Keep reading for five more interesting cards ...

HALL OF FAME PIONEER
The Card: Claire Smith 2018 Topps Allen & Ginter Autographs 
The Price: $3.75
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: She was the 2017 recipient of the J. G. Taylor Spink Award from the Baseball Hall of Fame -- the top honor given by the  Baseball Writers' Association of America -- and she was the first woman to receive the award. She was the first woman to have an MLB writing beat, covering the New York Yankees for the Hartford Courant in the 1980s and was a long-time columnist for The New York Times and The Philadelphia Enquirer before working for ESPN. You can learn more about her career here. She's one of a number of affordable autos found in Ginter boxes but certainly has a little more baseball cred than a lot of them as Topps' retro brand can include a wide variety of signers. Ironically, it cost me a bit more to pick up a multi-color Relic of her from this set, but both are unique items as she's not had cards anywhere else. She has nearly 30 different cards to chase between Allen & Ginter and Allen & Ginter X releases.  
Grab a box right here: 2018 Topps Allen & Ginter

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SEEING RED 
The Card: Calvin Ridley 2018 Panini Certified Mirror Red New Generation Jerseys (/299)
The Price: $2.73
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This NFL rookie had a really strong start and that spiked interest in all of his early cards even more atop the hype as he entered the league as a first-round pick out of Alabama where he was part of two national championship teams. With that said, I waited to pick up some of his cards as I knew that more would be coming and figured that he couldn't keep up the pace that led to six touchdowns in his first four games. That said, he's still got plenty of potential -- especially if Julio Jones makes a move. I liked the look of this one and the parallel color works well, too, atop the price that's lower than a pack.
Grab a box right here: 2018 Panini Certified

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A DIFFERENT KIND OF GEM
The Card: Rogers Hornsby 2015 Panini Cooperstown Etched in Cooperstown Gem Sapphire (/10)
The Price: $5.25
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: The confluence of precious gems and cards isn't that new, but this one had a good price and looked very clean (not that easy with an etched-foil surface) so I added it to my stash. Both times I've picked up gem cards from the Cooperstown releases they've been very affordable and this one was a stronger name -- a legend who won seven batting titles, two MVPs and ranks second only to Ty Cobb on the career batting average list at .358 over 23 seasons. I won't be chasing any of his original cardboard but I can settle on this Cubbie Blue gem that's reminiscent of one of his teams. 
Grab a box right here: Panini Cooperstown (all years)

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AN ODDBALL CLASSIC
The Card: Roy Clark 1979 TCMA Tulsa Drillers 
The Price: $3.44
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This one was tucked away in my watch list for a long time as an oddball card to watch in case it went on sale or presented itself at a lower price than when I had first found it. Why? The simple oddity of a Country Music Hall of Famer as the owner of a baseball team. Clark was one of the hosts of the country-minded music/comedy variety show Hee Haw for a good chunk of its 26 seasons on the air. Not my kind of show (I'd turn it off immediately when it came on when I was kid) but you have to recognize the longevity and its place in TV history. Clark died last month at age 85 and I hadn't even remembered this card appearance at that time. Here's a little bit about his ties to the team.
Grab a box right here: No boxes on this one ... and oldschool MiLB team sets can be tough finds at times.

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A UNIQUE FINISH
The Card: Max Weinberg 2018 Upper Deck Goodwin Champions Goudey Memorabilia Premium Series (/75)
The Price: $6
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: Depending on your age or musical tastes, you might know this Rock & Roll Hall of Famer as Bruce Springsteen's drummer in the E Street Band or Conan O'Brien's bandleader back in the Late Night with Conan O'Brien days or the dad of Slipknot's new drummer. These days, he can be found in boxes of 2018 Goodwin Champions cards and this card is among the more interesting pieces with something that's noted on the checklist but not on the card. The memorabilia piece isn't a piece of a shirt -- the typical for cards of non-athletes' cards -- instead, it's a drumhead. Even better? It's got a piece of a REMO crown logo instead of the plain white swatch that 90-plus percent of the drumhead cards will have. Cool card without that but awesome card with -- a steal to me at that price and  I don't even care what others might have sold for ... I would have paid more.
Grab a box right here: Goodwin Champions (all years)

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