Via @tristar1 ... Bo Jackson

This year's National Sports Collectors Convention is nearly here -- it's set for July 30-Aug. 3 in Chicago with a strong roster of autograph guests ready to sign for collectors who get a ticket and get in line for their moment beyond the ballpark.

Some signers are free if you attend the VIP reception on opening day of the show or buy a VIP ticket package -- a bonus for taking the time to hit every day of the show -- but landing other signers will take some planning and a few bucks.

It's tough to see everything at The National -- it's that big -- and the time it takes to work through autograph lines is valuable in that it impedes your shot at seeing it all. But, if you have wanted to meet a player and get that ink, a number of past and present stars are on the list this year. With that said, here are my picks -- skewing toward the best names for the lowest prices possible -- to grab off the autograph list during the full days of the show this year. (Keep reading for the full signers list at the end ... and, remember, times are always subject to change.)

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What's Buzzing: Big Dumper continues big swings, All-Star Game chatter, new pulls and more in this Tuesday edition.

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1 -- Big Dumper makes Derby history ... and here's more on Cal Raleigh

2 -- New MLB pulls are here

3 -- All-Star Game chatter 

4 -- All your off-season football card talk

5 -- Basketball cards on their minds

6 -- The National nears

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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What's Buzzing: The MLB Draft, All-Star Game festivities, still talking Tom Brady Rookie Cards, The National and more.

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1 -- MLB Draft reactions 

2 -- Not a bad Bowman find

3 -- All-Star chatter 

4 -- Talking Tom Brady Rookie Cards and more

5 -- Big Dumper is chasing history ... and here's more on Cal Raleigh

6 -- The National is on their minds

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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What's Buzzing: Tom Brady Rookie Cards, Manny Machado, case hits, The National, Cal Raleigh and MiLB.

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1 -- Talking Manny Machado

2 -- Case hits are on their minds

3 -- Talking Tom Brady Rookie Cards and more

4 -- Keeping an eye on MiLB action

5 -- Big Dumper is chasing history ... and here's more on Cal Raleigh

6 -- The National is on their minds

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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What's Buzzing: Cal Raleigh chases history, Aaron Judge, Nick Kurtz, The National, 2025 Donruss NFL and more.

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1 -- Big Dumper is chasing history ... and here's more on Cal Raleigh

2 -- Reactions to the 2025 Donruss NFL reveal

3 -- Inside a new soccer box

4 -- Aaron Judge

5 -- Nick Kurtz

6 -- The National is on their minds

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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What's Buzzing: Showing off Michael Jordan cards, new NFL and NBA pulls, The National, a big wrestling weekend and more 2025 Score chatter.

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1 -- Showing off Michael Jordan cards

2 -- Inside a new NFL box

3 -- Mosaic NBA delivers some ink

4 -- All your wrestling chatter heading into a big weekend

5 -- Talking 2025 Score NFL

6 -- The National is on their minds

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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What's Buzzing: Talking 2025 Score football cards, Jac, Trout, Topps Series 2, the National and still talking young pitchers.

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1 -- Talking 2025 Score NFL

2 -- Reel Big Fish

3 -- Is hobby legend Jac back?

4 -- Pondering futures for MLB pitchers

5 -- Ripping into Topps Series 2

6 -- All your National chatter

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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What: 2025 Donruss football cards
Arrives: Aug. 15
Box basics: One autograph and one memorabilia card per 18-pack hobby box (18 boxes per case)
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: Donruss once again arrives for a new season with plenty of colorful inserts and parallels as it showcases today's stars while also including plenty of nods to the past, too.

Keep reading for a gallery and more info.

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What's Buzzing: MLB All-Stars (and snubs), collecting Tom Brady, Jazz Chisholm Jr. cards, The National and more.

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1 -- Talking MLB All-Stars ... and snubs

2 -- A thread back from the dead

3 -- Collecting Jazz Chisholm Jr. 

4 -- A Luis Ortiz issue?

5 -- Showing off Tom Brady cards

6 -- All your National chatter

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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What's Buzzing: Showing off rare Tom Brady cards, pondering the best year for NBA cards, wondering how many "true" collectors there are and more in this Sunday edition.

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1 -- "How many true collectors are there?"

2 -- Showing off Tom Brady cards

3 -- "What's the best year in the history of basketball cards?"

4 -- Some new old baseball breaks here

5 -- Showing off Independence Day parallels

6 -- All your National chatter

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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Here's this month's roundup of items that have recently caught my eye as a buyer ...

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RETRO RECORD-HOLDER
The Card: Roger Maris 2014 Panini Classics Home Run Heroes Jerseys (/25)
The Price: $30
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: I ponied up a little bit for this one vs. my typical range for Maris mem cards since it's a rarer card, has a material (jersey/pants) swatch vs. a bat and is from a brand that packed a lot of potential for big names back in the day. Yet, at the same time, that price was a bargain. Yes, its centering is just slightly off, but otherwise it's clean -- that errant spot on the right side is part of the printed design on all cards here. It was an easy addition for a player I collect and pick off stuff for a few times a year. Those top corners are really clean on this one, which might not always be the case with those bold colors.
Grab a box right here: Nothing for this ... but MLB cards are here.

Keep reading for more interesting items ...

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What's Buzzing: Chrome, Dave Parker, NFL collusion, new wrestling cards, The National and signed books are today's topics.

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1 -- Talking 2025 Topps Chrome

2 -- An NFL issue?

3 -- Collectors remember Dave Parker

4 -- Wrestling cards are on their minds

5 -- Checking in on the signed books section

6 -- The National section is open as the show nears

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading ... so here's this month's grading diary.

AS GOOD AS IT GETS
The Card: Caitlin Clark 2024-25 Panini Instant WNBA (/26,980) -- Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: I watched and waited for the most part with Caitlin Clark cards as Panini Instant stuff arrived regularly and her in-pack WNBA Rookie Cards arrived later in the year. But, when this award-winner card popped up with a clean and iconic studio photo? Well, I pretty much instantly (pun not intended as it's simply true) grabbed a 10-pack with an eye for a slab. It's in a past Buzz Buys (hit the archives) and this is the result a few months later.
The Grade: CGC 10 (Pristine)

Reality Check: This one is heavily made and should be heavily slabbed -- the number of Pristines has at least doubled just in the few weeks since I got these back from CGC -- but many won't be checking in at this top mark. I didn't slab to expect a perfect 10 but I thought this one had potential after going through my stack. Three of my 10 had solid centering and this one was first to make that cut ... with this mark I may not need to send in the other two. It's my lone Clark slab ... and it's strong enough it might stay that way just so I can say I went 1-for-1 grading here. We'll see.

Keep reading for more of this month's rundown of pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.

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What's Buzzing: New pulls, Junior Caminero, The National, storage and more in this Friday edition.

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1 -- What were they buying this month?

2 -- Talking storage 

3 -- Inside some Select NFL

4 -- Talking his cards as Junior Caminero hits 20 homer plateau

5 -- MLB chatter is here

6 -- The National section

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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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 packs: 2024 Leaf Metal Women of Sport 1/1 Pre-Production Proofs (two)
Where to buy: Click here for regular boxes (when available)

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

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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: 2024 Leaf Metal Signature Series Multi-sport 1/1 Pre-Production Proofs
Where to buy: Click here for other Leaf Metal boxes

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

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What: 2025 Leaf Optichrome football cards
Arrives: Aug. 29
Box basics: Six autos and two base cards per hobby box (12 boxes per case) or 12 autos and three base per jumbo (eight per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Leaf Optichrome "will deliver the most-comprehensive football checklist of the season, featuring a spectrum of football stars ranging from prep school phenoms to Hall of Fame legends," according to Leaf.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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What's Buzzing: The NBA Finals heat up, new pulls, NFL chatter, The National, Rafael Devers and, of course, 2025 Topps Series 2.

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1 -- NBA Finals reactions

2 -- New MLB pulls are here

3 -- The National is coming

4 -- Lots of NFL topics 

5 -- Still talking 2025 Topps Series 2

6 -- Reactions: Rafael Devers to the Giants

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

Follow BlowoutBuzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz.

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: 2024 Leaf Metal Women of Sport 1/1 Pre-Production Proofs
Where to buy: Click here for regular boxes (when available)

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

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Mystery Box Buzz Break is a new series here on The Buzz -- it's essentially a Buzz Break but only for "mystery boxes" that seem to be everywhere these days -- and not just in the sports realm. Like this and want to see more? Is there a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The mystery box: Boston Red Sox Mystery Publications Grab Bag
Where to buy: Via Red Sox on MLB.com (find new MLB cards at BlowoutCards.com)

Keep reading for a full breakdown and a gallery of what was in this box. (Yes, it was a box and not a bag ... but that's their image.)

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What's Buzzing: MLB chatter, The National, Frank Gore Jr.'s autos, the NBA Finals and more in this Friday edition.

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1 -- All your MLB chatter is here

2 -- Eleven years?

3 -- NBA Finals chatter

4 -- Still on their minds: 2025 Topps Series 2

5 -- So, about Frank Gore Jr.'s autos ...

6 -- The National section is open

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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What's Buzzing: NBA Finals action, 2025 Topps Series 2, Frank Gore Jr.'s ink, The National and more.

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1 -- NBA Finals chatter

2 -- A lot of patience

3 -- New & on their minds: 2025 Topps Series 2

4 -- So, about Frank Gore Jr.'s autos ...

5 -- Highlights from a Series 2 rip

6 -- The National section is open

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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What: 2025 Score football cards
Arrives: July 3, 2025
Box basics: Four autographs per 10-pack box (12 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Score once again kicks off Panini's 2025 NFL lineup soon with new rookies, plenty of stars, all those familiar inserts and more for football collectors.

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

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What's Buzzing: 2025 Topps Series 2 is here, new MLB pulls, Hidden Gems, Frank Gore Jr.'s ink, NBA Finals and The National.

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1 -- New today: 2025 Topps Series 2 is here

2 -- MLB pulls are here

3 -- Hidden Gems no more

4 -- So, about Frank Gore Jr.'s Topps autos ...

5 -- NBA Finals chatter ... and even more NBA

6 -- The National section is open

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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What: 2025 Pulse Foundry football cards
Arrives: Late August
Box basics: Four encased autographed cards per six-pack hobby box (10 boxes per case); One encased autographed card per Heat Seeker box (24 boxes per case); Two encased autographed cards per 24-pack/24-card booster box (10 boxes per case)
Checklist: See early players list for each version in the gallery
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: This newer player in the card realm hits the gridiron once again with a release with a trio of packaging formats, unique inclusions and varying lineups, too, for fans of autographs and football.

Keep reading for more info and a gallery of images.

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