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 Today: Big pulls, tracking Transcendent toppers, pondering grading differences and slower return times.

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary ... a super-sized edition with 20 cards to open 2020.

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SO CLOSE TO PERFECTION ...
The Card: Ronald Acuña Jr. 2018 Topps Chrome #193 -- Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: This one looked very clean to my eye and I figured getting some of my past Acuña pulls slabbed was a good move considering his almost-40/40 showing last year. Some of his cards are heavily graded to the point where they can be had for not much more than a typical cost to slab if not in top grades. Meanwhile, others aren't as plentiful and some can typically grade very well. I went with this one since it's not as heavily graded and it does tend to grade well. Plus, I just liked the photo here compared to others -- and those I already own slabbed.
The Grade: BGS 10

Reality Check: This one surprised me a bit -- just one half-subgrade away from a BGS Black. Only 14 cards have gotten the perfect mark and this one is among an also-small population. Most cards here check in at 9.5s -- a solid mark and a perfect card to bat lead-off for this first MTG of the year. I expect big things from Acuña this year and I'll be slabbing him often.

Keep reading for more.

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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 Today: Big pulls, heavily-graded players, painful NFL investments and ... a loaded NBA format?

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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 Today: Big pulls, looking forward to 2020 Topps, the NFL Top 100 QB debate, Joe Burrow & more in today's edition.

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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 Today: Nothing but big breaks and cool pulls in today's edition.

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and break down 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 boxes: 2019 Topps WWE Women's Division wrestling cards (Target blasters)
First Buzz preview & Checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)

Packs per box: 11 (10 packs plus one one-card hit pack)
Cards per pack: 7
Cards per box: 71
Cards per lot: 142
Base set completion: 
63 of 100 (63 percent)
Duplicates: 45

Notables on base cards: Mandy Rose, Mickie James, Elizabeth, Zelina Vega, Ruby Riott, Ember Moon, Becky Lynch, Bayley, Nia Jax, Beth Phoenix, Asuka, Carmella, Ronda Rousey, Alexa Bliss, Stephanie McMahon, Mia Yim, Sasha Banks

Rookie/First NXT Cards (17) – Toni Storm, Kacy Catanzaro, Chelsea Green, Xia Li, Io Shirai, Lacey Evans, Marina Shafir, Nikki Cross, Lacey Lane, Jessamyn Duke

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and break down 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: 2019 Leaf Wrestling Autographed Photo Edition
First Buzz Preview: Click here 
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (when available)

Packs per box: 1
Photos in this box: 5

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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. 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 it's the biggest roundup ever (in volume, not price).

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A UNIQUE SURPRISE 
The Card: Tony Gwynn 2015 Panini Immaculate Collection Collegiate Memorabilia (/99)
The Price: $16.25
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: It took me a while to find one of these (only casually looking), but this card of the Baseball Hall of Famer is one of a few that show him in his other sport, basketball, which he played at San Diego State. His estate auctioned off a number of game-used pieces and other memorabilia in 2015, generating more than $217,000 partly going to the Tony and Alicia Gwynn Foundation to help kids in need. His first Aztecs basketball uniform went for $11,858 in that SCP Auctions sale and the buyer was Panini America. These cards aren't all that plentiful in this release -- and they certainly aren't the only place the swatches went as there are just 99 standard cards and a second one limited to five copies with a much larger prime swatch. The follow-up release to this one had a few more, including prime cards, and he also had posthumous autographed cards (stickers) showing him in his basketball uniform in a National Treasures release. Spoiler alert: you'll see one more of these here at some point.
Grab a box right here: 2015 Panini Immaculate Collection Collegiate (when available)

Keep reading for more ...

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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 Today: Nothing but new breaks and pulls from around the collecting world in today's edition.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and break down 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: 2019 Topps WWE NXT wrestling cards (hobby)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 24
Cards per pack: 7
Cards in this box: 166
Base set completion: 
100 of 100 (100 percent)
Duplicates: 3

Notables on base cards: The Undisputed Era, Aleister Black, Johnny Gargano, Pete Dunne, Adam Cole, Ricochet, Viking Raiders, Lars Sullivan, Tommaso Ciampa, Moustache Mountain, Keith Lee, Velveteen Dream, Matt Riddle, Heavy Machinery, Walter, Kayla Braxton, Kushida, The Street Profits ... and everybody else

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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 Today: Big break highlights, bargain-hunting, Bowman Draft Sapphire and a talker of a thread.

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Have you seen the latest cool cards from a new release? With so many options for collectors of all kinds arriving every week it's possible you haven't. That's where Buzz comes in -- well at least on one brand you'll see here from time to time in what we're calling Buzz's Pick Six. Simply put, here are six cards from a new arrival that seemed interesting to this collector and we think they might interest you, too.

This week's list: Six 2019 boxes that I'd rip (or maybe even stash) right now ...

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SAFETY IN NUMBERS -- AS IN A BOATLOAD OF ROOKIE CARDS
The Box: 2019 Topps Update Series Baseball Jumbo Box
The Price: Click here
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This year's rookie crop is a strong one -- and there might be more potential than the 2018 class that sparked serious interest in this release last year. It was seemingly plentiful all year long and then poof -- the rocketship took off. This year's isn't super-cheap (right now) but some of that fuel seemingly has gone to Series 2 since it has earlier cards for a couple of high-profile guys -- Series 2 is pricey and surprised me -- but this one has some of those guys' cards as well as a number of others. Topps Chrome also seems to have some very good potential in my mind, too, but these jumbo boxes include a ton of stuff and the chances you get at parallels and other stuff here - in volume -- put this one at the top of my list. (And if you're on a budget and don't want to swing hard on this one -- you might look for blasters of Series 2 and Update both here and at retail ... those can still be found. These won't last as long as those, though.)

Keep reading for five more interesting items in this week's roundup ...

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and break down 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: 2009 Topps WWE wrestling cards (hobby box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com when available; Click here for other WWE boxes

Packs per box: 24
Cards per pack: 7
Cards in this box: 165
Base set completion: 
90 of 90 (100 percent)
Duplicates: 19

Notables on base cards: Triple H, Steve Austin, John Cena, CM Punk, Tommy Dreamer, Chris Jericho, Shawn Michaels, John Morrison, Matt Hardy, Natalya, Cody Rhodes, Jim Ross, Edge, Layla, Randy Orton, Michelle McCool, Alicia Fox, Maryse, Rey Mysterio, Gail Kim, Hornswoggle, Festus, Batista, Santino Marella, Santina Marella, Beth Phoenix, Mickie James, Tiffany, Jerry Lawler, Undertaker, Nikki Bella, Brie Bella

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals just might be to rip fewer boxes 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.

So, with that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... and this time around there's a bit of everything but more on the affordable side.

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MONSTER YEAR, SIMPLE ROOKIE CARD
The Card: Derrick Henry 2016 Donruss Rookie Card (BGS 9.5)
The Price: $9
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: I made this pick-up just before he started his recent run of big games mostly because it seemed underpriced for the grade, which is a solid quad 9.5. Interestingly, just 25 copies of this card have been slabbed and nothing has checked in below this mark. It makes me think you could pick off a factory set at a pretty cheap price if you want to dabble with grading key cards here -- and there are a few where you could do pretty well with some 9.5s or 10s. About that price ... one of the other 9.5s had an asking price of $40 on eBay when I looked. Sure, the action here is heavier on Optic, ink and rarer parallels, but simple RCs of affordable sets seem to be go-to cards for more and more people these days.
Grab a box right here: 2016 Donruss (several formats)

Keep reading for more interesting items ...

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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 Today: Bowman Draft and Panini Prizm breaks lead the way here ... but they are not alone.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and break down 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: 2019 Topps WWE NXT wrestling cards (hobby)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 24
Cards per pack: 7
Cards in this box: 168
Base set completion: 
98 of 100 (98 percent)
Duplicates: 3

Notables on base cards: The Undisputed Era, Aleister Black, Johnny Gargano, Pete Dunne, Adam Cole, Ricochet, Viking Raiders, Lars Sullivan, Tommaso Ciampa, Moustache Mountain, Keith Lee, Velveteen Dream, Matt Riddle, Heavy Machinery, Walter, Kayla Braxton, Kushida, The Street Profits

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You won't see Bryce Harper explaining his autograph ... but these guys will.

Pro wrestlers are a little different and that's what can make things a lot more interesting if you're a collector -- and that's where a new release from Topps and the autographs of two recently renamed wrestlers comes into play. All it took to see this was some work (not war) on the ol' Twitter machine.

They are The Viking Raiders -- aka Erik and Ivar -- who made their cardboard debuts with these personas in boxes of the newly released 2019 Topps WWE NXT cards that arrived this week. The current WWE Raw Tag Team Champions are in this one as part of the "Called Up" portion of the base set and autographs.

Now, about that ink?

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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 Today: Bowman Draft and Panini Prizm breaks arrive -- and the breaks are plentiful -- as well as Immaculate NFL breaks and a notable NXT newcomer's first autograph 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 Today: Panini Prizm breaks madness, big Patrick Mahomes pulls, uncut sheets, a big WWE pull and more.

Continue reading →

Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ...

A BIG BLASTER PULL
The Card: Shohei Ohtani 2018 Topps #700B hand on helmet SSP photo variation
The Reason Graded: Not that long ago, I pulled this card from a Series 2 blaster box and decided that it needed a slab since these SSPs appear to be relatively rare -- and I was even more surprised to see how they didn't grade all that well on the pop report. Meanwhile, mine looked very clean ... so I had to do it.
The Grade: BGS 9.5

Reality Check: Only one card graded better than mine and four others have equaled it while eight cards have checked in at a BGS 9 or lower -- that seems pretty low for a modern card, though the skinny stock here clearly could have issues after these cards hit packaging. I'll admit that this was a pull while Ronald Acuña Jr. hunting in Series 2, but this feels like a win on top of a win with it grading so well after being pulled from a discounted box. Here's hoping his third season is as strong or better than his first two, which are remarkably similar from the batting side.

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

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and break down 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: 2019 Topps WWE Money In The Bank wrestling cards (online-only retail tin)
First Buzz preview & Checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)

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 Today: Big pulls from recent releases, "What should I buy?" and a thread that's about everything but high-end cardboard.

Continue reading →

Have you seen the latest cool cards from a new release? With so many options for collectors of all kinds arriving every week it's possible you haven't. That's where Buzz comes in -- well at least on one brand you'll see here from time to time in what we're calling Buzz's Pick Six. Simply put, here are six cards from a new arrival that seemed interesting to this collector and we think they might interest you, too.

This week's six-pack: Six autographs I'd grab now

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THE RETIRING CHAMP
The Card: Jimmie Johnson 2018 Panini Prizm Patented Penmanship auto
The Price: $69.99 Buy-It-Now (or best offer)
Boxes: Click here for all NASCAR stuff
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This 44-year-old announced today that the 2020 NASCAR season will be his final campaign as a full-time Cup driver and, in turn, his final shot at becoming the all-time season championship record-holder. He's presently tied with Richard Petty at seven career NASCAR Cup Series titles and has been that way since 2016 when he last took home the crown. In the three seasons since then, his best finish was 10th so it's debatable whether he might make a run in his final lap, but he will be one who is watched heavily. I met and interviewed him when he was a rookie which was fun back in the day but I'm actually not sure if I've ever pulled one of his autographs in my off-and-on time collecting NASCAR stuff. There's a decent amount of ink for him out there -- more than 800 different cards -- but his autograph has always been relatively minimalist, so that's why I never chased one otherwise. I might make sure to track one down now.

Keep reading for five more items in this week's roundup ...

Continue reading →

Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals 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 there's a mix of pricey and cheaper buys.

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I WAS SEEING GHOSTS FOR A WHILE ... 
The Card: Sam Darnold 2018 Panini Spectra Neon Blue (/75)
The Price: $15.25
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: I'm generally a fan of Spectra despite its funky looks at times and I spotted this one just after his return at a price that seemed lower than the norm so I grabbed it. I was a tad worried in games after that, thinking this was a bad pick-up, but it seems he's rebounded a bit so we'll see whether this was a decent pick-up in the longer term. I like the look of these sequin-looking cards with this particular parallel, so that's probably another reason I went this route.
Grab a box right here: 2018 Panini Spectra football cards

Keep reading for many more interesting items ...

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and break down 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: 2018 Topps WWE Then Now Forever (Series 2) (hobby box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com when available; Click here for other WWE boxes

Packs per box: 24
Cards per pack: 7
Cards in this box: 164
Base set completion: 
97 of 100 (97 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards: Sasha Banks, Mandy Rose, Eddie Guerrero, Lacey Evans, Steve Austin, Edge, Shawn Michaels, Velveteen Dream, Candice LeRae, Becky Lynch, Jake Roberts, Sting, Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, Shinsuke Nakamura, Roman Reigns, Bayley, Matt Hardy, Ted DiBiase, Andre The Giant, Bray Wyatt, Dakota Kai, Beth Phoenix, Randy Savage, Drake Maverick, Goldust, Bianca Belair, Randy Orton, Braun Strowman, Drew McIntyre, Bret Hart, Jeff Hardy, Otiz Dozovic

Rookie/First NXT Cards (21) – Ronda Rousey, Shayna Baszler, Peyton Royce, Billie Kay, Ruby Riott, Liv Morgan, Ricochet, Ember Moon, Zelina Vega, Andrade "Cien" Almas, Alexander Wolfe, Danny Burch, No Way Jose, Kona Reeves, Hanson, Rowe, Akam, Rezar, Killian Dain, Eric Young, Hideo Itami, Mark Andrews

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