Dave Dravecky's tale is perhaps a somber one in MLB history, but this story isn't that ... this is one from the very beginning.

And, short of a contract signing bonus -- if there even was one -- this is about something at the absolute start of it all.

The newest piece in my collection wasn't some discovery curated and placed on the block with an auction house marketing team pumping it up to be something more, something beyond what it is. In fact, this was a random find over on eBay of all places where it had been sitting for at least months -- if not longer -- as part of a dealer run. It was simply one of many similar items bought in bulk years ago and I actually even passed over it a few times before some curiosity got me to stop and do some research. That's when I realized what I had found. Is it a monster? Probably not unless you like monster-sized trivia while digging on the cheap ... to be honest that's kinda my thing. Sure, it's not finding Earl Weaver's 1977 gamer at a thrift store or a razor-sharp Walter Payton Rookie Card for a buck at an estate sale ... but what I found seemed interesting to me and I think it might be to you, too.

Dravecky's story, to a degree, is captured on his 1990 Score baseball card above, but that's not where it all ended -- or where it began -- and that's something that got me to stop and look when it seemed unfamiliar on eBay. I first knew Dravecky as a San Francisco Giant and, of course, how his career ended, but his time in baseball didn't start around the arrival of his 1983 Fleer and 1983 Topps Rookie Cards as a San Diego Padre, either. No, no ... that's not the life of a 21st-round draft pick. It was a bit more complicated than that.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: NBA and WWE chatter, The National, Connor McDavid, Fun Face and more in this Monday edition.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: New pulls, 2024 Topps Series 2, Fun Face, The National and more in this Sunday edition.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: NBA pulls and NBA Finals chatter, Fun Face, soccer pulls and more in this Saturday edition.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2024 Topps Series 2 baseball cards (hanger)
First Buzz preview & checklist/odds: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (hobby & jumbo)

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: 2024 Topps Series 2, Elly de la Cruz, Fun Face, NBA Finals, The National and more.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Fun Face, NBA Finals, Tom Brady Rookie Cards, The National, new pulls and more.

Continue reading →

What: 2023 Leaf Eclectic Baseball cards
Arrives: August 2024
Box basics: Four autographed cards per box (10 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Eclectic hits the diamond late but with several brands in one colorful spot that is solely about autographed cards and includes some updates to other previous releases, too.

Keep reading for more info and a full gallery.

Continue reading →

Jackson Holliday may not be in The Show at the moment, but his new cardboard is already getting looks.

A series of short-printed variations in 2024 Topps Series 2 -- which officially arrived today (get your boxes here) -- includes the top prospect on a card that's an homage to one of the most-controversial baseball cards of all time, the 1989 Fleer Billy Ripken card that had an obscenity written on his bat knob.

So far, there are six versions of the homage card to chase along with a traditional action photo version that isn't all about the controversial card from 35 years ago.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Jerry West, Paul Skenes, NBA Finals chatter, chasing Fun Face, "what if" and more.

Continue reading →

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 ... 

--

DOGPOOL'S DEBUT
The Book: Prelude To Deadpool Corps No. 3 -- first Dogpool appearance
The Price: Under $8
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This was an impulse/curiosity buy once I saw Dogpool -- a character that I'm admittedly not that familiar with -- on this cover of Empire in advance of the Deadpool & Wolverine movie to come as well as in a preview trailer. Why? Well, one reason I grabbed this was that the lone graded copy of this book on eBay at that time had an asking price of $400-plus. While I know that's high, you never know what people might grab if the that pup steals the show or at least picks up some headlines alongside Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds when this one hits. (Weird thing have happened with Baby Yoda and Star Wars' Porgs in recent years.) This comic cover isn't exactly the same as what we're getting on the big screen dog-wise, but with the movie figuring to generate a lot of buzz and perhaps include a lot of cameos I've been looking at stuff here and there ... and I really need to go find that magazine, too. It's actually got higher asking prices on eBay than this book and has sold for more than $20. (It's a UK mag ... so it's perhaps not as easily found just yet.) The comic has had CGC 9.8 sales of $85 and $299 in recent months, too, so there's definitely some speculating ... and there should be. This movie will be huge.
Grab a box right here: BlowoutCards.com for non-sports cards

Keep reading for more interesting items ...

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2024 Bowman baseball cards (blaster)
First Buzz preview & checklist/odds: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for a few formats)

Keep reading for what was inside this one ..

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Fun Face will be a chase in Series 2, Ethan Salas, off-season NFL chatter, new pulls and NBA Finals chatter.

Continue reading →

What: 2024 Panini Prizm baseball cards
Arrives: Aug. 28
Box basics:  Three autographs per 12-pack box (12 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Prizm arrives for another year with all-time greats, future prospects and selected MLB newcomers in play here as part of the familiar formula of the past but without current veterans.

Keep reading for more info and a full gallery of images released so far.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: NBA Finals chatter, Topps Series 2, inside a case of Topps Tribute, Caitlin Clark and more.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: NBA Finals chatter, Topps Series 2, Gunnar Henderson and plenty more in this Sunday edition.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Awaiting NBA Finals Game 2, Topps flagship chatter, Jayson Tatum, fake slabs, grading fees and 2024 Score NFL reactions.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The pack: 2023 Topps Heritage baseball cards (value)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for a few other formats)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery for what was found in this one.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: NBA Finals reactions, Topps Series 2, a big pull, "true," on-card AEW ink and more in this Friday edition.

Continue reading →

What: 2024 Topps Tier One baseball cards
Arrives: July 3
Box basics: Two autos and one Relic per four-card box (12 boxes per case)
Checklist: Click here
Odds: Click here
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: A new year of Tier One is here with "a fresh look on a classic brand," according to Topps with new colors, parallels, inserts and more all in store this time around.

Keep reading for more as well as a gallery of images.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: The NBA Finals are finally here, Caitlin Clark, new-release reactions and more in today's edition.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Bowman Chrome Sapphire Edition chatter, the NBA Finals, pondering a price on Sir Paul and more in this midweek edition.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: MLB bans, NBA Finals, Justin Jefferson, a Hall of Fame question and more in today's edition.

Continue reading →

Minor league baseball cards from the past can include some weird stuff ... stuff you wouldn't imagine to be found on a baseball card. Here are some some new oddities in this latest edition of MiLB Madness. 

THE SECOND STINT
The Card: Ken Griffey Sr. 2010 Choice Dayton Dragons
The Buzz On This: This one popped up on a deep dive recently and I had totally forgotten about the father of an icon and Hall of Famer taking on a second career as a minor league coach and manager years ago. Of course, most collectors know the icon that is Junior but his dad was an accomplished big-leaguer, too, with 19 seasons in the majors that included three All-Star nods and two World Series rings as player with The Big Red Machine and then a third with the 1990s Reds, though they released him late that summer before the postseason. This Griffey's Rookie Card is in the 1974 Topps set and that was the last time he was in the minors before he suited up for a stint as a coach with this team before taking on a managerial role elsewhere for three years. He only has a few MiLB cards and they stand out from the pack vs. a lot of his big-league stuff with the Reds, Yankees, Braves and Mariners. That got me to bite here.

Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2024 Bowman baseball cards (blaster)
First Buzz preview & checklist/odds: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for a few formats)

Keep reading for what was inside this one ..

Continue reading →