Making the Grade (December): Rare Shohei Ohtani, Star Wars, Pete Alonso, Tim Duncan, vintage, several WWE stars & 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 ...

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.

HOT POLAR BEAR
The Card: Pete Alonso 2019 Topps Heritage High Number Chrome Purple Refractors #THC519
The Reason Graded: Another recent retail pull of mine, this card of the reigning National League Rookie of the Year came from a Hot Box blaster and it just jumped out at me as being a clean and virtually flawless card. Alonso seems undervalued considering the year he had -- one that was unprecedented with the longball -- but I'm generally a Heritage fan so I figured "why not?"
The Grade: BGS 9.5

Reality Check: I'll admit I had visions of a 10 or maybe a black-label here, but I'm fine with this grade, too. None have graded higher and only one lower -- so it's not that dramatic of a slab on the pop report -- but I'd grade this before taking the standard-stock challenge any day with the 1970-gray design that hides stock issues well.

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NOT A ROOKIE CARD
The Card: Chris Boucher 2018-19 Panini Instant NBA Finals #4
The Reason Graded: I'll 100-percent admit that I picked up a couple of these sets purely for this player's first basketball card appearances -- this card and a group celebration shot -- because of some school ties. I'll save you the trivia of mine, but this player has been deep on the bench of two NBA championship-winning teams the last two years and still doesn't have an in-pack Rookie Card. He was also the G-League MVP and Defensive Player of the Year last year while playing both ways for the Raptors in his home country (if that means anything) after a vagabond college journey of sorts that ended with a serious injury before his current route. All that said, I wanted one of these in a slab in case he never gets carded otherwise.
The Grade: BGS 9.5

Reality Check: I added the asterisk here since the pop report shows a big fat zero for this card -- likely since the set isn't in their overall system -- but I'm pretty sure I'm the only (or at least the first) to slab this one. Boucher has gotten some pretty good playing time this year and has had a few double-doubles for the defending champs so far, so there could be more to come ... and maybe some cardboard in packs?

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HOLIDAY NEXT DOOR
The Card: Holly Madison/Bridget Marquardt/Kendra Wilkinson 2005 BenchWarmer Holiday #18
The Reason Graded: This trio of reality show subjects -- Hugh Hefner's girlfriends on The Girls Next Door that ran on E! from 2005-10 -- appeared on a lot of BenchWarmer cardboard around that time and this one is one of a few examples where they are all on the same card. I busted a ton of BenchWarmer Eclectic boxes back in the day -- dirt-cheap, high-volume for autographs and memorabilia -- and had a few of the cards from this insert set. While going through them, I noticed that a lot had issues with their etched-foil surface and the super-skinny stock. I figured this could make a fun card if in a high-grade slab, so I graded it awhile back and had it stashed away for this most-wonderful time of the year.
The Grade: BGS 9.5

Reality Check: It did grade well and it's a one-of-a-kind card so, in theory, it's a name-your-price kind of piece -- albeit most people who might be looking for cardboard here are likely looking for autographs or memorabilia.

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RAZOR-SHARP VINTAGE
The Card: Joe Namath 1972 Topps #100
The Reason Bought: I actually own two other slabbed copies of this card but had to grab this one because it looks absolutely razor-sharp for the timeframe and presents far better than its grade for a price (about two blasters) that could have been much higher.
The Grade: BVG 7.5

Reality Check: The volume of slabs for this card seems high for BVG -- I'm sure it's quite steep for PSA -- but the number of cards that check in with a higher than this one here is in the minority. There's some staining by his shoulder and in the sky to the right of his face but otherwise this one looks very good to me -- and it still seems like it should be higher. Interestingly the BVG label was printed on the white side instead of the logo side, which is on the back ... so if you've ever wondered what a slab might look like with a cleaner white flip, here you go. (I think it looks a lot better.)

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ORIGINAL STAR WARS
The Card: Luke Skywalker's Home -- 1977 Topps Star Wars #159
The Reason Bought: Pssst ... if you didn't know, there's a new Star Wars movie on the way this month and it's all of that top-of-mind marketing that made me curious enough to look for cheap slabs from the original sets from the 1970s. I found this one for around $5 and grabbed it because it just looked a lot cleaner than that grade indicates.
The Grade: PSA 8

Reality Check: This one looks pretty good to the eye in all regards but with a loupe you can see some spots and small edge issues that are all masked well by the bright yellow here. It's not the flashiest card from the early releases by any means, but for the price I bit. You could easily open a fresh pack and find cards in worse condition than this -- and that's why slabs are more prevalent for this release than you might think. People are building sets out there for a landmark release like this one.

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RARER IN HIGHER GRADE
The Card: Tim Duncan 1997-98 Fleer Ultra #131 Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: This is perhaps my favorite RC of this future Hall of Famer but I'd never tried to track one down in a slab. That part's not that hard -- it's finding them in decent shape that is. The striking photos used on the RCs here are nice, but the dark images with moody lighting showcase nicks and peeling spots so easily it's downright criminal that Fleer used this stock with high gloss that chips off easily. I didn't check the pop report for a wider look, but it seems like the uglier Gold Medallion parallels actually grade better than the regular cards do -- that's certainly the case for Duncan's cards.
The Grade: BGS 8.5

Reality Check: Check out that pop report -- nothing exists above a BGS 9 and this card has been around longer than BGS has -- so there has been plenty of time for some near-perfect cards to be slabbed ... if they exist. For comparison, about half as many Gold Medallion cards have been slabbed but seven got 9.5s and 47 got BGS 9s. This felt like a solid $30 pick-up to me when I found it -- that could be high, but I doubt I'd pay up for a higher-graded one. Anybody sitting on raw copies of key rookies from this set should consider slabbing if they are clean.

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PERFECT 10
The Card: Mandy Rose 2016 Topps WWE Heritage #47 Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: At the time this RC arrived, Rose wasn't really a regular in-ring competitor on WWE TV just yet -- she had been part of WWE's Tough Enough competition reality show and also was on Total Divas before going full-time in NXT. But that didn't stop the cardboard, though. She's been on the main WWE roster since that time, though, and has had a good run, so I figured I'd slab one of these from this chip-heavy set that at times has some rough cuts and printing spots on its oldschool stock. This card's white background also showcases any dark ink sports well -- and a number of them I have pulled had issues. Those problems were why I didn't go the BGS route, instead going for a PSA slab.
The Grade: PSA 10

Reality Check: I didn't expect a 10 here but I'll definitely take it as it's the only 10 for this card (only one graded) but also one of only four PSA 10s for any card from the release. (Albeit only 26 graded.) The others must be tied to an Andre The Giant super-collector since they are all for that WrestleMania III legend. Hobby boxes of this one have seemingly dried up a bit -- guaranteed autos will do that -- but the blasters are still around and relatively cheap. I think this came from a case where I had a few to pick from ... but not enough volume to really get picky. If I pull a few more, I might try a BGS sub for this one at some point.

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ALL ABOUT THE NUMBER
The Card: Shaun Alexander 2018 Elite Draft Picks Status Die Cut Red #88 (/49)
The Reason Graded: This player and this particular photo are favorites of mine, so those were small reasons why I opted to grade this card. The big reason? You can't see it in the photo, but the serial-number of this card is 37/49, which is his uniform number. That combined with some general scarcity and no obviously visible flaws made it one to make my slab-it-up list just for fun.
The Grade: BGS 9.5

Reality Check: I didn't see anything wrong with this card but I was still a little surprised considering the foilboard stock and die-cuts -- those two things can lead to condition issues quite easily. Not this time.

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INVINCIBLE
The Card: Vince Papale 1977 Topps #397 Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: This RC from the commons bin back in the day picked up steam back in 2006 when Mark Wahlberg brought his underdog story to life in the movie Invincible. He only had a couple of in-career card appearances but has since had a few certified autograph cards and other cards (though still not a ton). I liked the look of this one for the price (about $10) since I hadn't ever had one present itself -- its centering is clearly its only issue here. I own a ton of 1977s from some bulk trades back in the day, but the lot I landed didn't include a single copy of this guy's card.
The Grade: PSA 5

Reality Check: I probably paid a little more than I should have for the price, but it still looks pretty good for that mark -- centering obviously an issue. Prices for this card can be all over the place between asking prices and actual sales, too.

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I DIDN'T DO IT ...
The Card: 1990 Donruss Carl Yastrzemski Puzzle #37-39
The Reason Bought: I mean, why wouldn't you want this oddity? The more important question here is why the heck would somebody slab one ... and not pick a puzzle piece that could conceivably grade higher? (Also, why this one and not one that shows the face or a better visual for the Boston Red Sox legend and Hall of Famer?) So ... many ... questions ...
The Grade: BGS 8

Reality Check: This $1.99 joke cost somebody else more than that to slab, so the joke is on them. Right?

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BRONZE BOMBER
The Card: Kairi Sane 2018 Topps Heritage WWE Bronze #101 Rookie Card parallel
The Reason Graded: I put this card into a past PSA submission because I wasn't sure how minor surface issues might be handled. A small surface spot on the top edge (many cards in this one can have a very minor spot from packaging) eliminated it from possible BGS submission in my eyes, so that's why I opted for PSA. I've slabbed a few copies of this WWE newcomer's cards and this one was a natural to grade at some point for my stash because it was very clean overall -- and that's not easy with the stock here, especially on color parallels.
The Grade: PSA 10

Reality Check: It turns out I probably was more worried about the minor spot than I should have been -- so that's good to know if any other cards from this simple set. It's one I like, so it's possible I might slab others at some point. I was expecting a PSA 9 here but I'm fine with 10s, too.

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AIR RAIDDDD!
The Card: Parker Posey 2013 Press Pass Parks and Recreation Autographs #PP
The Reason Graded: This card was a pick-up of mine years ago because of her memorable moments in Dazed & Confused and because there are a number of big names in that classic who need more cardboard, especially certified ink. I don't grade autographs often, especially on-card ones, because there can easily be condition issues since those cards are handled more than others while they go off to be signed. This one looked very good when I was flipping through a hits box, though, so I sent it in.
The Grade: BGS 9.5/10

Reality Check: The grade works for me as it's the highest graded copy available -- though it was a bit of a surprise that four other copies had been graded (three equaling this one). They are her only cards slabbed that are of her, though she has had some other card appearances (listed as her characters) where it's possible they might be slabbed.

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A RAW PICK-UP
The Card: Ken Griffey Sr. (and others) 1974 Topps #598 Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: This one was a $2 pick-up of mine because it looked pretty good un-slabbed, and I've always been a sucker for the RC of the dad of an MLB icon because he's only got this one and its O-Pee-Chee counterpart compared to the half-dozen for his kid (and many other cards from that same year). There are a lot of risks with buying raw vintage if it's not in-hand, but this one looked really good on a screen and almost just as good in-hand ... so I figured I'd grade it.
The Grade: BVG 7

Reality Check: The upper-left corner has a spot where there's a speck of slightly off-color cardboard and there's a very slight diamond cut here, but I wasn't totally unhappy with the grade. I figured it would fall somewhere between there and maybe as high as an 8 -- it looks a lot better than many raw copies.

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THREE LEGENDS ... AND THAT TRIPLE H GUY
The Card: Triple H 2014 Topps WWE Road to WrestleMania #101
The Reason Graded: Elaborate WrestleMania entrances happen for some WWE stars and in the case of this card showing one of those moments, it's an early card appearance for three notable stars. At left are Sasha Banks and Alexa Bliss, while the woman at the right is Charlotte Flair, who were merely extras just five years ago. This cameo Rookie Card of sorts is one I've always wanted to slab, and I picked off a bulk lot of this one cheap to see if it could top those I pulled from packs. I picked the best I had.
The Grade: BGS 9

Reality Check: Not the grade I was hoping for here, but I'm generally fine with nines. The skinny stock here can easily result in damaged corners in unopened packs and the black borders showcase any flaws with ease. I was hoping for a 9.5 or 10 here but I may stick with this one for now unless something jumps out at me when I go looking again. This cameo RC fits my graded WWE niche well and it's a fun and super-cheap card with a story.

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FINISHING LIKE A BOSS
The Card: Sasha Banks 2019 Topps WWE Undisputed Rob Schamberger Art #RS3
The Reason Graded: A simple insert set in packs of Undisputed this year is a showcase for WWE artist Rob Schamberger, who most often uses watercolors to spotlight stars in the ring and had original sketch cards in every box of Transcendent. This one was my favorite in Undisputed by far and when I pulled one I knew I would be slabbing. My first copy I ever saw had a lifted corner right out of the pack, so I had to track down a small Banks lot that included a few of these and I picked the best one based on a close inspection.
The Grade: BGS 10

Reality Check: It looks like I picked 'em pretty well as this one came just a .5 sub-grade short of a perfect BGS Black slab. The centering might be a smidge off vertically based on where the foil stamp is, but I'll take a 10 all day long on this one, which was the first copy of this card graded. Undisputed's stock is super-solid when it comes to grading. I've never been disappointed when slabbing other than the back corners on a single card from its first year ... and even that one came back a BGS 9.

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