Buzz Buys: Vladdy, The Fridge, Will Ferrell, Will Smith, WWE Stars, RCs, The Real World, Ken Stabler's smiley face & more

Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less 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.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys.

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OFF-SEASON SLABBING
The Card: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 2019 Topps Chrome RC (PSA 9)
The Price: About $15
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: The pop report on this one is flip-flopped like a lot of new modern cards -- it's got more than 1,500 PSA 10s but just over 150 PSA 9s out of nearly 1,700 graded ... not the norm, really. Nonetheless, I still didn't mind it in this grade for this price. The short-printed Series 2 card that carries the same photo as this one is a tougher grade -- those corners can be chippy -- but rather than sub my own there and hope for a PSA 9 I just decided to go this route on Chrome. I'll probably do more when they present themselves or perhaps submit others at some point. (I'll have a big submission I already made batting lead-off in a future Making The Grade, too.) My gut feeling is that this super-rookie didn't live up to the massive hype we had envisioned last year -- so 2020 could be one that is dramatic for his cardboard ... one way or another.
Grab a box right here: 2019 Topps Chrome 

Keep reading for more interesting items ...

SOMETHING IN THE FRIDGE
The Card: William "The Refrigerator" Perry 1986 Topps RC autograph with "The Fridge" inscription (Fanatics Authentic)
The Price: About $50
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This was a bit of an admittedly expensive impulse buy -- one for the mix in something different part of this ongoing series -- and it's a Fanatics buy where I bought it blind ... as in they show you one of several copies they have available. The slight snow here and the yellow blotch up top aren't ideal, but I've seen worse things on 1986 Topps football cards. Super Bowl XX was the first Super Bowl I remember watching and that was mostly because of the pop culture phenomenon that was "The Fridge" and the Chicago Bears' Super Bowl Shuffle video that was an MTV must-see as the Shufflin' Crew brought bad athlete rap performances to the pop culture forefront. (It worked for a 9-year-old.) I hadn't ever tracked down an auto of this memorable player who once even had a G.I. Joe figure (I had that) and I figured the presentation in a slab and the inscription (albeit not super-readable) were a fun addition. (That made the difference for me.) Believe it or not, asking prices on these are much higher for signed slabbed copies of this card ... without inscription. 
Grab a box right here: New NFL boxes are here

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FULLER SIGNATURE PREMIUM?
The Card: Kacy Catanzaro 2019 Topps WWE Women's Division Green Autographs (/150)
The Price: About $35
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: I picked up this one awhile back and might have paid a little more than other copies, but I went there with this one because it appears to have more of a fuller signature for this American Ninja Warrior standout who has turned her attention to the WWE. She's got one of the longer names in WWE and a lot of her autos here look more like a "KCat" than this "KCatanz" that's probably more of a full-name sig. So far, her ink from this set is the only option for collectors (13 cards, all /199 or less) as she was on hiatus from in-ring action and wasn't in the NXT release a good part of last year. With her notoriety away from WWE, these autographed cards might have a longer shelf-life at a higher price compared to other newcomers and they have at times definitely sold for more than others, too. I also prefer this color of parallel over others in this release that gives you an auto in every box and can deliver relatively well in blaster form (though not every time). There are a few parallels to chase with and without ink.
Grab a box right here: 2019 Topps WWE Women's Division

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SHAQ'S OTHER STADIUM CLUB ROOKIE
The Card: Shaquille O'Neal 1992-93 Topps Stadium Club (Member's Choice) Rookie Card PSA 9
The Price: $6
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This Hall of Famer was a cardboard force back when he arrived and this product was one that was huge back then with its still-pricey Beam Team insert and two standard RCs for Shaq. I'm a sucker for cheap slabs and this Member's Choice card arguably has a much better photo than the more-popular one. The gloss and super-skinny stock of that time didn't always age well -- boxes may or may not cough up snowy cards now -- so trying to pull and grade these might be rougher than you might think cost-wise.
Grab a box right here: New NBA boxes are here

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CHEAP DOMINATOR
The Card: Derrick Henry 2018 Panini Obsidian Electric Etch Green Galaxy Gear Relics (/25)
The Price: About $5
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This patch card was a bargain pick-up showing a guy who dominated this season and was an even bigger force in the postseason. The unique look of these cards and their die-cuts might limit the appeal to some collectors here and there, but there are still some huge cards waiting out there in boxes. This kind of card for this price worked for me.
Grab a box right here: 2018 Panini Obsidian football cards

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WILL SMITH'S ROOKIE CARD
The Card: Will Smith 1991-92 NBA Hoops
The Price: Pocket change ... up to $1.25 or so
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This memorable throw-in card in this old Hoops set is one that I've always wanted to grab and slab -- but only if I can land one with a high mark, preferably via BGS. I picked off a few of these but ultimately all four came in with a minor flaw here that nixed the BGS idea in my book. Smith does appear on a number of sets since he's had films with cardboard (Independence Day, Men In Black, etc.) but I think this was his first. Asking prices on high-grade novelty cards can be pricier than you might expect -- a PSA 9 copy of this one was pushing $20 on eBay the last time I looked.
Grab a box right here: New NBA boxes are here

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BEFORE MLB STARDOM ...
The Set: 2010 Multi-Ad Sports Pacific Coast League Top Prospects
The Price: $15
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This 36-card set showcasing MiLB All-Stars from a decade ago includes a few other big-leaguers but none can tough the greatness of this trio -- all guys who put on a show in MLB in varying ways. They have six World Series between them all, and Johnson -- aka Will Ferrell -- once played all 10 positions in a single day for 10 different MLB teams to raise money for charity. This is one of just two MiLB card sets including "Rojo" and the other one is a rarer set given away at a game, so it's a little tougher to find than this obscure set. Unfortunately my Rojo probably isn't in slab-worthy form (top left corner is a tad fuzzy for my taste) but Ferrell did have Topps Archives cards and I do have some slabs from that time, though I never did complete that set. It had one Ferrell per blaster box that year and I still didn't get it done ... and the boxes seemed very plentiful then but are nowhere to be found now. (Where did they all go? And have you seen prices on them? Surprising.)
Grab a box right here: New MiLB boxes are here

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IN ACTION ON THE CHEAPER SIDE
The Card: Bryce Harper 2019 Topps Heritage High Number action photo variation
The Price: About $6
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: These action variation cards are one per hobby box in this release, and something about this card got to me to grab it beyond its price which was far lower than others where I was looking at the time. It was probably the photo -- and the idea of what Heritage might feel like if we just went there with action shots as the norm. Another plus here is that this set was the home of his first Phillies Heritage cardboard ... so that stands out, too. His stuff is cheaper than it's been in a long time right now, so he's worth a look if you think he's due for a big year. His 2019 campaign was not among the worst years he's ever had -- not even close -- but you wouldn't know that from how his cards looked now vs. a few years ago price-wise.
Grab a box right here: 2019 Topps Heritage High Number baseball cards

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CHECK OUT THAT PATCH
The Card: Jay Ajayi 2017 Panini Gridiron Warriors Jerseys Prime (/25)
The Price: Under $6
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This one was a pick-up purely because of that patch and its price -- that's the lower left portion of the logo right where the top of the dolphin crosses over the sun and the right rip of its tail. It's a rare card -- just 25 made -- and this patch made up a number of those based on the few that I saw. All of them looked pretty interesting but this one was the best so I grabbed it. It would be cool but impossible to put together the run of all 25 so I'll simply sit on this colorful piece. We get a lot of cool cards of the player-worn variety these days and this is a classic example at a classic price -- it doesn't have to be expensive to be interesting.
Grab a box right here: 2017 Panini football cards

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REALITY TV'S ROOKIE CARD?
The Card: The Real World premieres -- 2011 Topps American Pie
The Price: Pocket change
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: "This is the true story … of seven strangers … picked to live in a loft and have their lives taped. To find out what happens when people stop being polite ... and start getting real." We're pushing almost 30 years since The Real World arrived with that description on MTV as it arrived in 1992 and helped launch reality TV as being a viable format (though network TV took it up a notch in later years with Survivor and countless other shows since). This franchise is still going with more than 30 seasons and has had spin-offs. You'd think it might be an interesting place to look for some affordable autographs for non-sports catch-all sets. Five of the seven original cast members are on this card -- Julie Gentry, Becky Blasband, Heather Gardner, Eric Nies and Kevin Powell -- and I think it's the only cardboard for the series as a whole. With the Instagram/YouTube/Twitter-verse we live in, it seems like there could be some interest in stuff like this both past and present ... right? More than a few Real World cast members have ended up elsewhere in pop culture, too, like in the WWE, film roles, politics, TV hosting, the SI Swimsuit Issue, creating major-publisher comic books, and even on the NFL Network. (And I'm sure there are many others from recent years I'm not familiar with whatsoever ... you know, after it stopped being real.)
Grab a box right here: Find non-sports cards here

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SIMPLE QUALITY
The Card: Walton Goggins 2019 Upper Deck Marvel Cinematic Universe 10th Anniversary Legendary Scripts Autographs
The Price: $7.25
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: The design of this one is intentionally low-key -- it's meant to look a bit like a script -- but the subject of this one is a solid performer whose credits include Ant-Man and The Wasp, Tomb Raider, The Big Bang Theory, The Hateful Eight, Justified, Sons of Anarchy, G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Django Unchained, The Shield, The Bourne Identity and plenty more ... even Major League: Back to The Minors. He's got less than a dozen autographed cards and all but one are from the Marvel stuff with this being one of the newer creations. While I wish certain franchises could end up on their own card sets -- Quentin Tarantino stuff, for example -- that's just not easily done.
Grab a box right here: Click here for non-sports boxes

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MYSTERY (TO ME) CARD?
The Card: Randall Cunningham 1991 Score prototypes
The Price: $12.25
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This card isn't accidentally in a top-loader and it's not a 10-cent card from a 1,000-percent forgettable third-year release for Score NFL, either. It's actually an early sample card made to promote the set that is easily noticeable in that the blue here is on the left when it's appears on the right side of the standard card. The card back has other small differences with the photo crop (the photo slides to the side a bit) and other stuff you wouldn't notice unless they were side by side like the trademark on one of the logos and some text coloring. I picked this one up because I think the really rare promo stuff from around this time -- I didn't even know this existed until recently -- could pick up steam since they just can't be anywhere as plentiful as the standard stuff. Just six cards were done for this -- Joe Montana, Lawrence Taylor, Derrick Thomas, Mike Singletary, Boomer Esiason and Cunningham.
Grab a box right here: New NFL boxes are here

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HIS ONLY INK SO FAR ...
The Card: "Gentleman" Jack Gallagher 2019 Topps WWE Raw Autographs (/99)
The Price: $6.25
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This British star has a schtick that's relatively unique and amusing at times, but that's not why I picked this one up on what I considered to be the cheaper side of things. I grabbed it since it's his first autographed card and he's only got this auto and four parallels so far that are all 50 copies or less. If he turns out to be a signer only for this release, then there could be added interest here later if he works his way into higher-profile storylines.
Grab a box right here: 2019 Topps WWE Raw

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Modern oldschool ... with a smile
The Card: Ken Stabler 2011 eTopps Allen & Ginter Super Bowl Champions  (/749)
The Price: Under $2
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: eTopps tried some things in the past and this holofoil take on oldschool Allen & Ginter tobacco cards is one of those things that it didn't do often. I picked this one up mostly for its bargain price for a Hall of Famer but also because I like Ginter and this is a card with a photo that has one of those weird details I always look for on Stabler cards. You can't see it all that well with the Ginter treatment, but, yes, that's a smiley face sticker on the stripe of his Raiders helmet. (You can see it a little better here.) This isn't its only time it's seen on cards, either. I don't remember the story behind it but it's always one of those minor Easter egg things I look for. Why? Just for fun.
Grab a box right here: New NFL boxes are here

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FUNDAMENTAL BARGAIN
The Card: Tim Duncan 1997-98 Fleer Rookie Card
The Price: $1.50
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This RC is one I have picked off slabbed and shown here at least once -- maybe more -- and you see it here again because it's a set with a clean look and even cleaner printing combined with a no-gloss approach and some good photos at times. It's cheap for the timeframe, too, which isn't always easy for basketball stuff.
Grab a box right here: New NBA boxes are here

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ANOTHER LEGEND
The Card: Pat Summitt 1994 Flair USA Basketball
The Price: Under $2
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This legendary basketball coach appears on fewer than 30 cards and this was her first to end up in packs as part of a USA Basketball presence in the past from Fleer. She only has one non-cut certified autograph (/599) that came 15 years after this one, too, despite a life in the game that set all kinds of records. Summitt has earlier cards in team-created card sets for the Tennessee Lady Vols, but this is the closest thing to a standard-definiton Rookie Card so I grabbed it for the price.
Grab a box right here: New NBA boxes are here

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BEVERLY HILLS ...
The Card: Gabrielle Carteris 2018 Leaf Pop Century Signatures
The Price: $2.50
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This member of the Beverly Hills 20210 cast isn't a pricey auto at all compared to the few others who have had them ... but there might be a little more interest for all of them with the new series that came and went last year on Fox getting people thinking about the past hit. Pop Century always has plenty of surprise inclusions I check on here and there for cheap additions -- though I'm not sure how many times I've ripped into boxes since its hits-only format keeps box prices strong and the possibilities of big cards are there to do that, too. (I tend to grab the ones I like and then others that seem like bargains for the ol' autograph stash more than rip boxes.)
Grab a box right here: Leaf Pop Century (all years)

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OFF-SEASON CHEAP THRILLS
The Card: Ronald Acuña Jr. 2018 Panini Chronicles Score Rookie Card
The Price: Around $1
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This guy was a dominator last season and his several RCs from Panini all found in Chronicles are still on my radar as they are super-affordable and can have some solid looks on cards that won't break the bank. Simple as that.
Grab a box right here: 2018 Panini Chronicles

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HUGE CARD IN THE PAST
The Card: Joba Chamberlain 2007 Bowman Chrome Prospect Autographs Blue Refractor (/150)
The Price: $5
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: Chamberlain was a top-tier hype guy on cardboard who delivered big on the field in some instances in the past -- so much so cards like this one were at one time very, very big. (This had to have been a $100 card easily but I didn't have time to research it further.) Not so much now. I never chased down his stuff back then so I didn't have one, but for this price for a parallel auto was good and I did it ... just so I could point it out here. Chamberlain was a solid player with some good K numbers but I look at the stats now and still wonder where the hype was coming from. (Yes, I know the pinstripes helped a lot.)
Grab a box right here: Bowman Chrome boxes (all years)

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OLDSCHOOL SIMPLICITY?
The Card: Andy Pafko 1958 Topps autographed card (PSA/DNA authenticated)
The Price: About $20
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: Something about this card got me to notice it months ago and I figured "why not" as it's got a solid look and a big bold sig for a 17-year MLB veteran and former All-Star. When it comes to cards, he's perhaps best known for his 1952 Topps card but that one is just not something that has ever appealed to me due to its price. But, this one was in the ballpark and toward the end of his career. He's not all that tough of an auto as he signed plenty before his death at age 92 in 2013, but his certified auto volume is pretty low with fewer than 20 cards out there. Slabbed signatures are interesting pieces that have a different feel than in-person ink and should be considered here and there if they seem like they might have a place in your collection. This one has a place in mine.
Grab a box right here: New MLB boxes are here

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