Making the Grade (Dec.): A true rarity from a bargain box, mascot ink, Shotzi Blackheart, Beavis & Butt-Head, old mags, new stars, Michael Jordan, Paddy Pimblett's RC & plenty more

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 ... and it's one of my biggest groupings ever.

RARER THAN RARE ...
The Book: Batman No. 457 -- second-print newsstand edition
The Reason Graded: This one is why you grade. Why? Well this book is more than obscure ... it's obscure on top of obscure with a pop report that shows that in a couple ways. I had this sitting in a junk box of books -- comics bagged in bulk with others taped shut in between a couple boards -- since the late 1990s with it having absolutely no thought in my mind for that time. When I opened up the bag, though, I remembered its cool cover -- that's why I saved it -- and in the here and now it's an example of how the grading world has changed a lot of stuff. It wasn't popular back in the day and that makes it more valuable (potentially) now. What is it? It's a second printing of a newsstand copy for an issue that had the debut of a key character, Tim Drake as Robin. The regular edition of this book has been graded almost 1,400 times -- actually still a modest number for the era -- but a newsstand copy is something else. And a second-printed newsstand copy? Nobody wanted that. How many could have even been made and how many went unsold or were trashed? There's some mystery there as with a lot of things but the pop report talks.
The Grade: CGC 9.8 (Universal)

Reality Check: Just four copies of the 78 graded have checked in at my mark -- not bad considering I got this in some Sears catalog mystery box with like 25 comics for $10 back in the early 1990s. It wasn't a really impressive buy at all at that time -- a lot of stuff that just wasn't appealing or was later printings and I'm betting some of them were pitched or given away. Nobody wanted that then. But now? The numbers game and speculation has people on eBay sellers challenging the market. A 9.6 -- with twice as many copies as this one in existence -- has an eBay asking price of ... well just see it for yourself. It's not alone, either, as a 8.5 checks in with an asking of $3,800, an 8.0 checks in at $3,500 and a 6.5 is $1,499. Other versions (first print direct and newsstand) are cheaper along with direct second prints as they've all got far higher pop reports. People like the easier versions a lot -- eBay highs as much as $255 but not for this one -- and who knows where the other three 9.8s might even be? What might mine command? I'm not sure ... but I know this is pretty solid potential for something that was pocket change from years ago. Again, this is why you grade.

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

MY ONLY ASTRO ...
The Card: Orbit 2017 Topps Opening Day Mascot Autographs
The Reason Graded: The Astros won the World Series and I'll say it -- I'm not a fan -- but one member of the team I have been a fan of for much of the last decade is their irreverent mascot Orbit, who I have graded cards for more than once including a "Rookie Card" in 2013 Topps Opening Day. (Slabbed it -- in my very first Making The Grade in 2015.) Why? The on-field antics over the years have been fun and when I saw this auto I had to have one. This isn't his first sig -- that was in 2016 -- but this one is perhaps the best one, though his 2019 auto is also pretty good. I need to do a run of Orbit stuff but I'll admit that the Atlanta Braves' young mascot, Blooper, is more on my radar as he's an even more devilish one on Twitter -- good for a laugh from time to time.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: I re-discovered this one scouting my hit boxes and noticed the front of this skinny-stock card was perfect for the most part ... a super-minor spec on the bottom left corner -- but there a bigger spot on one of the back corners. That's probably what brought it down ... but I still dig it. And it's the top grade until somebody else takes the plunge.

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A LEGENDARY FIRST ...
The Mag: Ichiro Suzuki -- Sports Illustrated May 28, 2001 -- first cover (newsstand copy)
The Reason Graded: When Ichiro Suzuki made his big-league debut he made an immediate impact and his cards got pricey fast. I pulled a few but when I saw he was on the cover of SI for the first time I immediately b-lined to the local Books-A-Million where I lived at the time and grabbed three clean copies. They weren't as super-crisp as I had hoped but I still bought them as he was clearly a big deal and never got around to putting or two of them on eBay like I had planned. I recently found them and pulled them out and put one into a grading sub and got so-close results to a money-maker grade, though this still can command some good money.
The Grade: CGC 9.6 (Universal)

Reality Check: The pop report is pretty even among the top grades so that doesn't hurt a lot here. One bummer you can see, though, if you look closely, the top left corner of the slab was damaged during mailing -- so I had to send it back in to get re-cased. All that white paper isn't a good thing as spots from the black ink on the back cover can pop up here but I may take my chances and send in my other two for this issue with him being an un-questioned first-ballot Hall of Famer with huge international appeal. Actually, after looking at the asking prices on these are strong over on eBay ... I absolutely need to send in my other copies.

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BEFORE THE NXT TITLE ...
The Card: Mandy Rose 2016 Topps WWE Bronze -- Rookie Card parallel
The Reason Graded: I ripped a ton of WWE boxes around this time -- more perhaps the year before as I liked that one more -- but this year of WWE releases included RCs for Rose, who is a notable name now and was on cards here before she actually was a regular in-ring competitor. She was on the Tough Enough reality series -- she finished second but should have won it (and oddly the winner never appeared on any cards) -- but got a WWE contract anyway. She wasn't wrestling at this time -- she was off on the Total Divas show before then going to NXT where she had in-ring cards the year after this. I pulled a number of base cards here, though the stock is so skinny you can easily demolish corners and edges just by pulling open the packs too stiffly. I only had one of these parallels so I opted to slab it first.
The Grade: CSG 9.5

Reality Check: It's just short of a 10 but I'm fine with it considering the stock here. I was bummed to see that two topped it. Like others here, I'd like to put together a run of cards for certain brands but the RCs and parallels are more of a priority over others. It's not a pricey card but wax on a lot of these have dried up making the prices not really super-justifiable for ripping to chase fresh copies.

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MVP POWER?
The Card: Jalen Hurts 2020 Panini Mosaic -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: I grabbed a number of cheaper slabs for guys with school ties for me just before or just as the season started and this is one -- and based on how he's played so far this season it was probably a good pick-up. Why? This was only about $12 and I figured it was a sure thing vs. finding one in a box or grabbing raw copies. Heck, I don't even know if I opened any 2020 Mosaic -- I kind of gave up trying to compete with the flippers out there for basketball and football in recent times and what I have landed is a bit of a blur. Mosaic is a brand with a pretty meaty print run, so between these and parallels there are a lot of slabs -- and even more raw copies -- so I don't see any real reason to pay up for a higher grade as more slabs could be coming after a hot start.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: The pop report is a strong one with my grade checking in at the most-common mark. For the price, I'm fine with that. Note that 10s are the second-highest grade here ... and I bet that's the case with other grading companies, too.

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A BIG DEBUT
The Book: X-Men (1991) No. 4 -- first appearance of Omega Red (newsstand)
The Reason Graded: This book is pricey in higher grades as it's from early in a title with a popular artist, Jim Lee, who created some of the most-iconic X-Men stuff of any era. Atop that, this one is the first appearance of a dynamic character who people think might have screen time coming, which only helps goose interest here. This one is a newsstand copy -- rarer -- and it's from my stash of all those years ago. I actually own a direct (no UPC) copy, too, but this one was cleaner. Alhough it had a wrinkle in the cover from some tight jamming into a comics box in the past so I had to press it, which upped my grading cost and it took a long time to come back. That magic was worth it, though, as it totally fixed the problem.
The Grade: CGC 9.6 (Universal)

Reality Check: I missed on the 9.8 mark, though, and a high asking price there on eBay is over $950 for a newsstand copy. Others are lower, too, but actual sales are still above $400. Mine? They look to be in the $100-150 range. Still not bad -- and the pop numbers above include newsstand and direct copies ... so mine is definitely rarer in that population.

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AFFORDABLE ROOKIE
The Card: Zion Williamson 2019-20 Panini Illusions -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: I've had the copy of this card that I pulled from a box in the "get graded" pile for some time ... but his injury put that off as much as not knowing how the paper edges on the card backs here might grade. (They're not perfect since it's actual cardboard.) But when I spotted this one for only $10? Well, I decided to just grab one than pay slightly more than that to slab bulk with no guarantees of a nine.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: The population here is pretty strong -- and very few are checking in at 9.5 and up. That makes me think there are challenges here with the stock. I still might grade my Morant from this one to go with this ... though the higher volumes should mean others might be out there to grab on the cheap.

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A PERSONAL FAVORITE
The Card: Shotzi Blackheart 2020 Topps WWE NXT Autographs
The Reason Graded: The WWE's Tank Girl is a popular one and a favorite of mine and when I landed this auto I knew I was slabbing it even with that light S on the sig. She's signed a lot of stuff in just the last couple years so her auto has definitely devolved into a quicker versions of this where you can see the strokes for the letters with a little more detail and flair. (One reason it's among my favorites.) It's not the best photo but the design here is a strong -- I wish the stock was ... it's so skinny -- and I own a few between this and parallels. I have graded some and I want to grade my others, but there are challenges.
The Grade: CSG 9.5

Reality Check: A 9.5 here is a win as that skinny stock could have anything here easily checking in at 8.5s or less if you ask me.

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BARGAIN BUY (TO ME)
The Card: Chris Boucher 2021-22 Donruss Holo Laser parallel (/199)
The Reason Bought: I grabbed this one and got it cheap as it's not a Rookie Card or anything ... I just thought the texture looked cool with the dunk photo -- and that's probably why somebody graded this one. He's a popular player in Canada for a Canadian team and he's got school ties for me, too, so I bit.
The Grade: SGC 9.5

Reality Check: The bottom-right corner has a slight tweak to it so I'm not really sold on it condition-wise but this one was cheap enough it doesn't really matter. I typically use SGC for my non-sports stuff since they are reliable, affordable and quick ... and that can't be said right now for others who are fully grading non-sports. When my regular go-to starts doing more non-sports, you'll see more here.

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THEY'RE BACK!
The Book: Beavis & Butt-Head No. 1
The Reason Bought: With their return, I wanted some slabs and I opted for this debut issue that arrived in 1994 -- when I was probably closer to my way out of dabbling with comics. This was the start of a title that only lasted 28 issues. I liked how they're the showcase of the ad on the back cover here -- that wasn't a bad CD at all -- and it made me wonder about maybe chasing a few others. Why? These idiots were a big deal back then.
The Grade: CGC 9.6 (Universal)

Reality Check: The pop report is heavy -- but not that heavy considering the volume of comics being pumped out back then -- but there's power in that volume now as collectors can revisit the stuff and actually find copies vs. print runs these days. I didn't need to pay up for a 9.8 ... I just wanted one. This issue is very clean other than maybe how straight the stapling job was.

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NO PUNCHES PULLED ...
The Card: Paddy Pimblett 2022 Donruss UFC -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: I don't do a lot of UFC -- ripping or grading -- due to box prices and then, well, I'm just not as interested generally ... but this newcomer's sound bytes are hilarious and he's unfiltered (not in a really bad way like some fighters). This British star has a decent amount of cardboard and he's popular so some of it can get pricey -- I went with something basic.
The Grade: PSA 9

Reality Check: It was interesting to see that eights are the most-common grade here -- though not by much -- but I didn't check the pop report before buying. I suspect all of the parallels here and other types of cards might have lower pops but, again, I just went with the basics this time.

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A THROWBACK ...
The Mag: Michael Jordan -- Newsweek Jan. 25, 1999
The Reason Graded: I'm not totally sure why I had to have this mag when I walked into a bookstore back in the day but his second NBA retirement in 1999 was in the headlines and, for whatever reason, my store nowhere near an NBA team set up a table with all of the various magazines and books showing him on the cover. I picked through the stack fresh from a bundle to find one and grabbed it. I figured it would be different vs. his 50ish Sports Illustrated covers and that same logic was why I graded this one.
The Grade: CGC 9.2 (Universal)

Reality Check: This one bummed me out -- I didn't pay to press it -- and the only issues I noticed were some minor dents up top from when it was in a bundle of issues. There must have been something else here to knock it down -- and it's the worst copy of only three graded -- but perhaps this one would have commanded more had I gotten it pressed. Mags like this might not command as much as iconic early issues of SI -- it shouldn't -- but the volume slabbed will always be lower and they, in theory, might be harder to find raw. (People saved sports stuff more than stuff like this.) A graded international version of this exact issue with the blurb more on his forehead and with some other smaller changes has an asking price of $750 on eBay for this exact same grade. The 9.4 has an asking price of $399. Mags in high grades (9.2 and up) could have strong interest with low volumes -- and a mark like this looks essentially perfect compared to lower grades. (It also seems like a tougher scale vs. cardboard up top if you ask me.)

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SIX-PACK POWER
The Book: The Amazing Spider-Man No. 337
The Reason Graded: This one wasn't bought new when it came out -- this arrived a little before I was a regular buyer -- but I know I landed this for $1.25 and it looked clean enough but not perfect. I sent it in, anyway, after seeing the top-grade prices here on eBay (asking as high as $375 for a 9.8 on eBay and actual sales over $200). My grade? Let's just say not a win.
The Grade: CGC 9.0 (Universal)

Reality Check: At least there are others checking in lower than me -- a lot of them, actually -- as this one was a bummer. If I remember correctly, it has some smaller issues on the back cover and then some minor stuff on the front that could have been fixed with a press but I'm only ponying up for that on bigger and more-iconic issues. This issue is just cool due to a high-profile artist and a Sinister Six cover showing all of them -- some of Spider-Man's biggest adversaries of the past.

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RARER THAN IT LOOKS
The Card: Chris Samuels 2000 Pacific Prism Graded Series (/138) slabbed -- Rookie Card (/1,000 total)
The Reason Bought: If I remember correctly, this release had a small volume of the overall rookie volume graded and one slabbed RC in every box. This one was a $10 pick-up -- I must have been feeling rich as it's not that special but he's a player with school ties for me who I have met as well as a guy who was a first-rounder with a solid NFL career. (He started every game he played in nine seasons.)
The Grade: BGS 8

Reality Check: The slab in every box gimmick didn't really pay off for this card looking at that pop report, did it? Now I wonder if any 8.5s have popped up ...

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SCHOOL TIES GRAB
The Card: Tua Tagovailoa 2020 Panini Chronicles NFL Playoff Momentum -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: He's been a machine this season as well as a guy who has been a poster child for some NFL issues, but for me he's a school ties star so I'm buying no matter what ... when I can afford to. This one was $15 and I did it because I like these acetate cards and the design of this one was pretty tight with a strong but simple photo. 
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: That volume is a lot higher than I expected and this is the most-common mark but I dig it. I might even grab some better ones if they present themselves.

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A BIG DEBUT
The Book: Superman: The Man of Steel No. 18 -- first appearance of Doomsday
The Reason Graded: This book is from my originally bought run of newsstand copies that were part of the story arc that introduced this new villain and led to the death of Superman in January 1993 ... a run that's recently been collected and re-published for the 30th anniversary coming soon. I didn't have any of that in mind when I dug up my issues from all those years ago but when I saw how clean all of them were I knew I'd want some slabbed. While the pops for 9.8s are high they can still command good cash -- and newsstand copies like this with a UPC can sometimes command more as, logically, there are fewer clean copies of them out there vs. direct/hobby shop editions.
The Grade: CGC 9.6 (Universal)

Reality Check: I don't see what got me knocked down here save for maybe some pressure on the staples that have them slightly more indented than they might normally be. That's a bummer because the price difference is there despite the pops being far higher on 9.8s ... though that's for all copies as newsstand copies were just recently broken out into separate editions (after I sent this one in). I'm not the biggest fan of Superman stuff -- there is just too much over the years -- and I wasn't into DC at this time but a lot of people are.

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DEATH-DEFYING ...
The Card: Sabu 2000 ECW Series 4 (posing)
The Reason Graded: A few years ago, I found a run of these cards (and stickers) that were randomly inserted into packs with action figures for the iconic and extreme small company in the pro wrestling landscape. The biggest stars had toys and others had cards (and stickers), too, and if I had unlimited resources I'd slab a lot more here. I picked a couple of top guys out of my stash and graded, knowing the results were not going to be elite-level grades ... I just wanted some slabbed in my stash. 
The Grade: CSG 7

Reality Check: This one is the lone copy graded for now so a seven is as good as it gets for a card that is one of very few for him until his brief WWE run years later.

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SMALL TROUT
The Card: Mike Trout 2012 Topps Mini
The Reason Graded: I might have graded another one of these back in my early bulk subs because it's an early card for a top guy from a brand that's relatively popular (a hobby-only release, too). Raw copies has asking prices for more than $40 on one place where I buy and with PSA 10s over $300. Seeing that, I need to get any and all other copies I have for this one slabbed up as well. 
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: Mine checks in at a 10 now -- green-label 9.5s are the same as 10s if re-slabbed -- which works for me.

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PAIRED WITH A LEGEND
The Card: Shohei Ohtani 2019 Topps Chrome variation (with Ichiro Suzuki)
The Reason Graded: This is a rarer second-year card for Ohtani with a strong name to have as a cameo. When I saw how much demand there is here I figured it needed to be graded, though I knew it had a spot that would nix a top mark. (They're over $300 as PSA 10s.) If they are truly rarer finds, that makes these safe holds for the longer term and that's another reason I went there.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: There are no standard Chrome cards for these variations -- just Refractors -- and that might help the value, too. What helps here? I'm the only one to grade so far.

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MY FAVORITE COLOR THAT YEAR ...
The Card: Bayley 2018 Topps WWE Then Now Forever Blue Autographs (/50)
The Reason Graded: I ripped a metric crap-ton of 2018 WWE flagship (Series 1 and then Series 2 dubbed the name above) and that meant I pulled my fair share of good autos (as well as lesser ones) and this one is among the better ones for what one has done in the ring, though she's not as pricey as others. Long term, though, she might be as strong as or better than others as she sure seems like wrestling is the only thing she wants to do. I think I own this one in a couple colors -- and one other might be in graders' hands now -- but this color is one that's a favorite to me so it made a previous cut with some other autos.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: Checked in at the top mark that's realistic -- there are Perfect 10s from CSG but I only noticed I botched some of my tables here toward the end of writing this one. (I'll get 'em next time ... pretty much nothing here has a perfect grade to top it.) All that blue looked very clean so I knew it could be a contender. You can easily botch cards opening packs here as the stock is so skinny.

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'TIS THE SEASON ...
The Cards: Bo Bichette 2020 Topps Holiday -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: We haven't seen the 2022 version of this Walmart exclusive just yet this year -- it's coming -- but Bichette and this RC in all of its versions was a target of mine for a while. So much so, I picked up both of these not realizing I already had one. (No worries ... the price was right.) I also grabbed the variations and a parallel but have not graded any of those yet since there are a lot of his rookie slabs out there ... I figured others might do that work for me and I'll let them take the risk of non-10 results that probably won't cost me much more than a bulk grading fee. We'll see. 
The Grade: CSG 9/9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: The population volume surprised me a bit but it's nowhere near the flagship volume, which I also like. (PSA, for example, has graded over 30,000 copies of his regular RC. That's just too many.)

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PAIR OF PAST PICK-UPS
The Cards: Kris Bryant 2015 Topps Heritage High Number -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: I presented a pair of these last time and promised more ... so here we are. This card was a favorite of mine in the past -- I probably own about five slabbed copies now -- on the casual side and it shot up a good amount when the Cubs won the World Series. But now with him having a bad year in Colorado he's not quite as pricey. I just like this one and historically speaking Heritage is among my favorite brands, too. 
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: A total of 12 copies have been graded and I own four of them -- half of the nines and a fourth of the 10s. I'd take more if they were cheap ... and in theory he's perhaps a contender for a big comeback next season. Maybe.

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CLOSER TO CRIMSON
The Card: Najee Harris 2021 Panini Chronicles Draft Picks Donruss Optic Pink -- Rookie Card parallel 
The Reason Bought: This was another of my early season or even preseason pick-ups on the cheaper side of things. Why? School ties and I'm generally a fan of Optic and Chronicles stuff in general on both the draft and NFL side. 
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: I wasn't that surprised by the stats here as Optic stuff would be some of the first graded out of packs.

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PULLED THIS ONE ...
The Card: Mickey Mantle 2021 Topps X Mickey Mantle Yellow parallel (/75)
The Reason Graded: Go poke around in the Buzz Breaks section and you'll find my packs I opened for this one from Topps ... I did the minimum number typically needed to land a parallel and I did. I noticed this again going back through some of my hits/numbered inserts boxes and noticed it looked tight ... so I sent it in since 75 copies is a pretty low volume generally speaking for a legend of the game.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: I was right ... top mark and the only one graded. That's a simple win.

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A FOOD ISSUE GEM
The Card: Jose Canseco 1989 Mother's Cookies 
The Reason Graded: Years ago now I used to buy a lot of random bulk lots for this guy -- the main player I collected in the 1980s and 1990s and then lightly in the 2000s before hits priced him out of my focus. When I recently dug out a couple of 3,200-count boxes of nothing but him in volumes that nobody really needs (hey, they were cheap) I happened upon a run of oddballs. I had a number of these in there -- maybe more than 50 -- and some of them jumped out hard as very, very clean. Now, is this a pricey card that was made to be packed out in packs put in cookies? Nah ... they made too much. But they are cleanly made and used some really strong photographs -- both portraits and some action -- to make them very clean oddball/food issue sets that had full licensing. I set aside two that looked really good and this one went into a past bulk sub. 
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: I was right on this one, though I wondered what might have dropped it down from perfect-10 status or even the previous green-10 status ... these are that clean. (I'm betting my small lot came from a stockpile of leftovers or from somebody who bought in bulk back in the day ... I doubt these were in packs and then packed out. Too clean.) If I happen upon that box again going through my stash I might grade more. Why? Just for fun.  

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A HEATER OF THE PAST
The Card: Cody Bellinger 2017 Topps Heritage High Number Chrome Purple Refractor (Hot Box) -- RC parallel 
The Reason Graded: Back when I ripped a box and it was a Hot Box for this brand, he was a big deal. While it's not a big card now I threw this one in a bulk sub after giving it a look ... it was really clean. He's a free agent now so there's a good chance he'll end up in a new spot with a new spotlight on him ... so early cards with some brand appeal might sell better than you might think. I didn't slab this for that reason but there could be interest if he heads to a high-profile team and performs.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: Looks like they all have checked in at this mark -- so mine's not that special -- but then again there are no copies topping it, either.

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