Making the Grade (Jan.): Aaron Judge, J-Rod, early cardboard of WWE stars, old mags, new slabs & more to begin a new year

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 ...

LEADING OFF WITH THE RECORD-BREAKER
The Card: Aaron Judge 2017 Topps Archives 1960 Rookie Stars
The Reason Graded: He has been an established slugger since his 52 homers as a rookie in 2017, but to a degree he'd fallen off card-wise (and power-wise) the last few years until smacking 39 in 2021 and his Yankees team record (and American League record) 62 homers this year.  I got rid of pretty much all of my RCs in 2017 -- no regrets -- to turn them into stuff I actively wanted (I'm still working rather glacially on some of those Clerks autograph runs) but some of my late-year Judge pulls and some inserts were saved along with my lone autograph. While I haven't yet slabbed my ink -- I probably will here at some point once I figure out what box I put it in -- this insert modeled after the memorable-but-overbearing 1960 Topps design was one that jumped out at me. Why? It was soooo clean.
The Grade: CSG 10

Reality Check: I was right and that pop shows me I'm not alone -- but it is surprising given how skinny the stock is here.

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

DON'T CALL IT A COMEBACK ...
The Mag: Sasha Banks & Charlotte Flair -- Pro Wrestling Illustrated, June 2017
The Reason Graded: This one finally came back among my crop of submitted magazines and, well, it remains an iconic cover no matter what my grade is. Magazine collecting -- even for wrestling -- wasn't really on my mind when I saw this one on the newsstand back in 2017 but I knew this was a strong cover of two notables in WWE. I bought it and stashed it for a few years and now it'll be stashed in a slab for may more. Believe it or not, since WWE shut down its magazine in October 2014 neither one of these A-listers had a WWE cover ... and they have very few clean solo covers from other titles. Is this their first cover where they are a main subject or shared the main spotlight? Maybe ... but their earliest magazine covers that I know of don't even come from the wrestling realm -- hopefully you'll see them here later this year. Flair arrived back in WWE on Friday and already is a champ again while Banks may end up on a big stage internationally here soon.
The Grade: CGC 9.6 (Universal)

Reality Check: This is a pop-one mag, of course, but it wouldn't be if I had bought more than one copy back in the day. I'm not sure what the circulation is these days for PWI but finding these on eBay will cost more than cover for copies that aren't even worth grading. I'm not saying it's an impossible find by any means but unless you have a wrestling memorabilia dealer nearby with a deeper inventory odds are you're not finding this in a 9.8 form. That's why I like the potential with magazine grading ... where do you find 'em now?

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THAT LITTLE EXTRA
The Card: Bo Bichette 2020 Topps 582 Montgomery Club -- Rookie Card parallel
The Reason Bought: I picked up this factory set stamped card for probably a lot more than it can be found for right now because, well, I wanted it and I was toying with the idea of grabbing all versions of this star's flagship rookie in a slab ... there are a few and I have a number of them but I'm not going to pony up for the tougher stuff beyond some of what I already have. Why? Slab prices on popular players or key rookies who are heavily graded these days can be erratic. (That's one reason why I slab oddball stuff I like over flagship RCs ... others will grade this stuff for me.) In this case, I wasn't a Club member ... so I waited to find one.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: Behold! The worst copy ... and I don't even care as I'm fine with nines and I didn't even check the pop report when buying this one.

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CONTROVERSY CREATES CASH?
The Cards: Mandy Rose 2016 Topps Heritage WWE Blue (/25) & Silver (/50) -- Rookie Card parallels
The Reason Graded: The WWE had a small scandal of sorts on its hands late last year where this top star -- one who really hadn't had any out-of-ring controversies or real-life issues that we've heard about -- had a historic and lengthy NXT title run end abruptly. She was fired from the company for starting up an OnlyFans-style account with semi-controversial content that wouldn't work for today's corporate audience and sponsor deals. I've collected and graded Rose stuff since the beginning, having pulled one of these from a pack and then picking up the other literally years ago. Why? This one was a strong retro release using the 1986 Topps MLB design for WWE stars of the past and present. With her WWE run done, I figured I'd pop these in here in case, you know, she makes a return to the ring elsewhere. (Based on the reported cashflow, she might not be.)
The Grades: CSG 8.5

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Reality Check: The fronts of these are razor-sharp and clean but that's not all that matters with grading. It's the back edges of these cards that show issues ... and that's perhaps because, if I remember correctly, the parallels were flipped over in the packs. Each has some small spots or a slight gouge that drop it down to this mark almost instantly. Either way, I still dig these cards a lot -- I'd buy more of these or other parallels popped up reasonably priced. She had a good WWE run if it's done and I'll still pick up cards if I like them.

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THE BIRTH OF BROADWAY JOE
The Mag: Joe Namath -- Sports Illustrated July 19, 1965 -- First Cover (subscription copy)
The Reason Bought: I've picked up a handful of these copies raw -- low-grade on all -- and decided earlier this year that I'd pick up this low-grade copy as I wait for the day where I can sub the rest and not expect to wait a year to get my marks back. (Mags are slow, slow sledding compared to comic books right now for CGC. I'm still waiting on stuff sent in last January.) That's fine. I know my copies will check in like this one ... maybe a little higher. But with this mag, which is the source of this NFL legend's "Broadway Joe" nickname, I'm fine stockpiling it in any grade. It's a piece of history.
The Grade: CGC 4.5 (Universal)

Reality Check: Mine is the worst copy and I'm good with that since there are only two -- and I'm pretty sure the better one is a newly slabbed copy. Only 10 no-label newsstand copies exist for this one, too, if the address label bugs you so in any form this one's rare right now vs. many mags. That's not to say it's impossible at all to find ... most mag grading is just focused on newer stuff and higher-grade stuff.

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BIG PULL
The Card: Wilt Chamberlain 2019-20 Panini Mosaic Oldschool Orange Fluorescent (/25)
The Reason Graded: Poke around in all my past Mosaic mega box, hanger box and blaster box Buzz Breaks in the big year of chasing Zion Williamson and Ja Morant Rookie Cards and you'll see where this came from. In the grand scheme of things, it's not that special of a card for Wilt Chamberlain -- it's one of many post-career cards -- but it is a rarer parallel from a brand with a big run, so that needle-in-a-haystack scenario was one that pushed me to grade. It also looked quite clean, which isn't always easy for high-run plastic-stock cards. The color scheme isn't exactly Lakers colors but since the Chamberlain photo isn't color, nothing clashes here ... and I think that helps the card's appeal.
The Grade: CSG 10

Reality Check: Only one graded and only one very-unlikely perfect mark might top it ... that's a win.

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BIG PULL II
The Card: Roger Staubach 2020 Panini Mosaic Oldschool Pink Fluorescent (/10)
The Reason Graded: Just like the previous card, this was a retail pull from Mosaic -- this time the NFL -- and I didn't rip anywhere as much of it to find this even-rarer card of the beloved Dallas Cowboys quarterback. I'm not a big Cowboys fan from this era but many are and since it's so rare I figured it was worth the slab. Pink isn't exactly a Cowboys color but the image and the silvers/blues do  seem to go together well here.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: I didn't see anything that I thought would drop this one down but that's OK ... I'm fine with nines and there are only nine others out there in the world that could compete with it.

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A MEMORABLE CHARACTER DEBUT
The Book: The Uncanny X-Men No. 244 -- First Appearance of Jubilee
The Reason Graded: I've had this one stashed since the early 1990s and I don't remember how I landed it -- it might have also been in a retail grab bag like this one as that's my best guess -- but it's the debut of a fun and iconic character in the Marvel Universe, Jubilee. As you can see from the pop report stats, this is a pretty popular book and it's a few hundred bucks in the higher mark. The cover doesn't really tie to the debut here -- I like 'em more when they do -- but the story is one that's filled with twists and turns as well as the debut.
The Grade: CGC 9.6 (Universal)

Reality Check: I didn't get the money grade but I came close. This book is around $100 (sometimes higher, sometimes lower) in this grade so I'm still feeling OK about it coming from a bargain box.

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THE X-BABIES!
The Book: Excalibur: Mojo Mayhem one-shot (1999)
The Reason Graded: As you know if you're a regular reader here, I did this series heavily back in the early 1990s when I dabbled with comics and cards for few years. This one's artist, Arthur Adams, has a unique style that caught my eye at first but the appearance of the X-Babies -- shrunken versions of the team -- also made it worth the look. I only had a couple copies of this one from back then so I picked the best of the two and sent it in, though it's not really that expensive of a slab. Why? I liked it and these graphic novel one-shots have stiff cardboard covers that also helped them stay in good shape, too.
The Grade: CGC 9.6 (Universal)

Reality Check: I was a little surprised by the pop stats here -- both in the total being low but yet that there were that many graded, too. It's an oddball ... but it's the X-Men.

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IN LIVING COLOR
The Card: Tim Tebow 2018 Topps Heritage Minor League 1969 Deckle Color parallel
The Reason Bought: These parallels of the black-and-white inserts in this MiLB release aren't that easy to find -- and they might be as rare as 25 copies based on preview info but they are not numbered -- but when I saw this one priced at about half the price of a typical blaster box now I bit.  Why? It's a 10 and Tebow's baseball stuff will always stand out as oddball and interesting to me, too, despite not being a fan. This one felt like a good copy of a perhaps-rarer card at a good price.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: Check out that stat ... the only one. Works for me.

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MY SECOND TIME AROUND
The Book: Detective Comics No. 575
The Reason Graded: This story has a happy ending -- no, not the Batman story ... my grading story. This photo was taken when the book first arrived back from CGC grading and pressing ... and if you look closely at the bottom right corner and edges, well, that doesn't exactly look like pressed material there and it wasn't how it looked when I sent it in, either. The book somehow got damaged in the process after pressing (think ironing) and grading so I went though the free process of sending it back and it's back in my hands fixed as best it can be. (Still a 9.4.) Mistakes happen and this one got fixed.
The Grade: CGC 9.4 (Universal)

Reality Check: I bought this book long, long ago (early 1990s) raw and I paid a lot more than I would have normally (back then) via Mile High Comics to get a good copy. Why? I collect the artist and it turns out the four-issue storyline here was a memorable one with two popular artists involved, Alan Davis and Todd McFarlane.

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THE GRADE I WANTED
The Card: Spencer Strider 2022 Topps Living Set (/4,718) -- Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: Strider's dominance this season caught my attention quite a bit -- for my fantasy team -- but he really didn't have as much cardboard as I would have expected for a guy who did appear in a lot of the early 2020 releases. Why? I'm not sure but I'm sure a good part of this gut feeling about his card volume is that a lot of releases were delayed to the point where they arrived after my wants had passed. That or I just told myself to wait it out and pay less after the first wave of flippers got theirs. In this case, I picked up a five-pack as the Living Set artist here, Jared Kelley, did a good take on the pitcher and added an Easter egg as a nod to his Braves strikeout record.
The Grade: CSG 10

Reality Check: I was glad to see this mark as buying stuff printed directly from Topps has been hit and miss for me with centering and stock issues. I did five of these I think (I'm sure it's in a past Buzz Buys here) and only two would have been grade-worthy. I sent one in and with this mark it doesn't look like I need to send the other ... at least not right now.

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A FAVORITE OF MINE
The Card: Shaun Alexander 2000 Pros & Prospects (/1,000) -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: I've always liked the couple of cards from all those years ago that showed this Alabama Crimson Tide star, if I remember correctly, taking the field for his final college game before being a first-round pick of the Seattle Seahawks. What I do remember for sure back then is that I was standing in Bryant-Denny Stadium checking out the scenery from one of the spiral ramps as the A-Day spring game was happening ... and the announcer telling the crowd where Alexander was just drafted. (No Twitter or text notices back then ... heck, I didn't even own a cell phone.) He was the star player that year -- and this was before the Nick Saban era where boatloads of first-round picks were reality every year -- so he was at that point even more on my collecting radar. I never owned a copy of this card back then (I was finishing school and didn't have the cash for big eBay buys) but when it presents itself I consider them.
The Grade: SGC 92

Reality Check: The grade didn't matter here -- it's OK -- I just wanted this card in a slab. It's surprising to see only one check in higher. I'm wondering out loud if other company pop reports look like this ... making a mental note made to do that sometime this year.

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A FUTURE STAR
The Card: Cora Jade 2022 Panini Prizm WWE Green Prizms -- Rookie Card parallel
The Reason Bought: I picked up this retail parallel of a WWE newcomer without hesitation since it was centered -- an issue that has nixed me from buying soooooo many cards from this landmark release. While a lot of you out there are chasing the rare, numbered Hall of Famer stuff from Prizm, I have said a few times here that I think the secret sauce in this one is the volume of Rookie Cards for stars who had zero WWE cardboard before this set and even very little on the indies, too. Jade got a big push early on and is still a main-event caliber name in NXT. What's next in this new year? I suspect a lot of things are possible ... so her affordable cards are on my radar. (Her rare stuff and autos can be very pricey ... I'm not that dedicated enough to chase those.)
The Grade: PSA 9

Reality Check: I grabbed this without looking at the pop report ... a nine is fine and it being the only one is even better.

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ALWAYS LIKED THIS ONE ...
The Card: Delmon Young 2003 Bowman Heritage -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: He was the first pick in the MLB Draft that year, so the expectations were high -- just like his card prices back then -- and he's perhaps a good reminder that hype doesn't always pay off in the long run. (He played 10 years in MLB, hitting 109 homers and .283 for his career but ain't worth much at all.) This card? I think it cost me $8 since it was a 10 but that didn't matter as I always liked this design and the simplicity of it with this being one of three looks that were considered for the 1956 Bowman design before Topps bought the company and left these plans in the scrap heap of history.
The Grade: PSA 10

Reality Check: This might not be the sharpest 10 the more I look at it, but I think it will still save me the $12ish to grade my own razor-sharp copy I have had sitting in a box for years. Maybe. We'll see ... hundreds of cards would be in line before it.

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A FAVORITE OF MINE NO MATTER WHAT
The Card: Tua Tagovailoa 2020 Panini Chronicles Draft Picks Donruss Rated Rookies
The Reason Bought: He's had plenty of big plays, plenty of big doubters and plenty of things to worry about health-wise this season and that's one reason why I've not really chased anything bigger or rarer for this former Alabama star. Even for him -- a player I like -- I'd wait for prices to fall ... and some big cards for him carry big, new-car prices. I'm good with affordable draft pick slabs like this as school colors are more interesting to me vs. Dolphins colors to tell the truth.
The Grade: PSA 9

Reality Check: The total volume here is way higher than I expected but at least the nine-to-10 ratio is more like it should be. The stock here could be hit and miss from my ripping experience due to edge issues from packaging.

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BUZZ DOES SOME SOCCER?!?
The Card: Kylian Mbappe 2017-18 Topps Chrome UEFA Champions League -- Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: I don't do a lot of soccer but I have dabbled mildly here and there when it comes to ripping and before the stuff really blew up. This card? Kind of a big deal even before his World Cup run where he ended up a runner-up to Lionel Messi and Argentina. His rookie-year cards are popular for sure and 10s here are pricey so I decided to grade even though it's my only copy and I knew it wasn't going to get a top mark.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: I was a little surprised to see the pop report here look as meaty as it does -- I figured its pre-pandemic arrival would have had more people grading elsewhere and those stats are likely higher via other graders. But I use CSG basically exclusively at this point for nearly everything though, so I popped this into a bulk sub. I was surprised to see a few cards checking in lower here.

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CHARACTER TRAITS
The Book: The Uncanny X-Men No. 283 -- First full appearance of Bishop (newsstand version)
The Reason Graded: The UPC code here is a big reason I graded this one -- it's one of many issues I grabbed back in the day on the less-popular format that these days is likely a lot rarer in graded form. This book is a full debut for a memorable character in the X-Men stories and one that has shown up on film, though definitely not as much as others. My interest in the X-Men comics was cooling right around this time (not a big fan of this artist) so I have some issues beyond this but only picked them up out of routine. My lone copy here was sent in as it looked pretty solid and prices are really good for newsstand copies in elite condition.
The Grade: CGC 9.6 (Universal)

Reality Check: I missed the top reality-based mark -- the others above it are surprises but seeing how few they are you should realize that those are just not the norm -- but who knows how many of those 3,200-plus are barcodes?

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BO WITH THE FLOW!
The Card: Bo Bichette 2020 Bowman Chrome -- Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: Among my green-label subs in the past, I did a small run of the names people would expect to sub and this was one result -- a solid one that's now a 10 if it were re-subbed under their new scale. It was a win, while others in that batch might have lost their shine since then (looking at you, Fernando Tatis Jr.) and I'll just wait to show those here when/if there's a quality comeback. Bichette is a guy I collect so a 10 on a sub is a win for me even if the pop report is way skewed toward 10s on this one.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: More than half of all cards checked in here, so that caps some of the potential for mine -- though I bet the PSA pops are way crazier looking in both depth and divide even bigger. (I typed that before I checked ... 1,926 total graded with 1, 344 as 10s via PSA ... woof.)

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OLDSCHOOL APPROACH
The Card: Shohei Ohtani (and others) 2018 Topps Archives 1981 Topps Future Stars Trios
The Reason Graded: The 1981 Topps set is not one of the epic designs of the past -- it's unique and the "caps" approach is one that might work well with some modern tweaks if it were tried. (We'll sorta get that touch when 2023 Topps arrives ... but I already know that design isn't likely going to be a favorite of mine.) This one? Still not strong ... but a Shohei Ohtani appearance on a rookie-year insert from a brand I have ripped often over the years is one that stands out and one I'll slab ... just like the first card in this piece. This  one looked like a 10 contender to me so it went in a bulk sub. I'm also a sucker for multi-player RCs ... I liked that added element a lot as a young collector.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: I likely missed something here as I didn't think it would check in this low ... but here we are. There are lower marks, so this isn't that bad ... I just figured it was fine.

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THE ÜNDEAD BRIDE!
The Card: Sü Yüng 2022 Impact Wrestling Series 2
The Reason Graded: If you're a regular reader, you'll know that one name that entered my collecting radar in just the last couple years is this indy wrestling veteran who, well, doesn't have that much cardboard to collect despite years in the game and a lot of uniqueness in the realm. The newest set of Impact Wrestling cards included her highest-profile card appearance to date and it's one where this might be the highest grade I find without some demonic miracles involved. Why? All this dark ink here -- on both sides -- with skinny stock and cards packed in a boxed format ... those are are all bad news for the minor details that are looked at with grading.
The Grade: CSG 8.5

Reality Check: I only picked up two sets and this was the better of the them on the front -- and like the Rose cards previously mentioned this time it's the cuts on the back edges that are the problems. Will I grade my other one? Maybe, but I suspect it won't grade any better than this, maybe even a notch lower. Here's hoping 2023 will include some more cardboard from this promotion or sets with stars who work a little bit of everywhere like she does.

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WILD THING'S BASKETBALL CARD
The Card: Michael Jordan (with Charlie Sheen) 1995-96 UD
The Reason Bought: I dabbled with NBA stuff back when this was a new arrival but for some reason the star of Major League having a card appearance here never really registered with me from a collector standpoint. This subset basically shows off a list of favorite players for a celeb with their photo getting the main ride here on the back. Rather than spend a couple bucks on a raw copy -- and stuff back then wasn't all that grading friendly -- I did this lower-grade slab for just a few bucks more than a typical retail jumbo pack of cards.
The Grade: CSG 8.5

Reality Check: Only one card checks in lower than this and there are four others like it ... not that surprising really since it's Jordan. What's interesting is how not that much checks in above a nine.

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I PULLED THIS MONSTER
The Card: Sasha Banks 2021 Topps Chrome WWE Five-Timers Club Orange Refractor Autographs (/25)
The Reason Graded: Will we see this moneymaker in a wrestling ring soon? Perhaps ... but it's sounding like not where people might expect. Does that mean her WWE run is over? Not sure. I've actively grabbed her cards since 2015 or so and pulled this rarity from a Chrome box, which was not an easy pull as it's an insert parallel. (Poke around in my past Buzz Breaks ... it's in there.) I didn't see any obvious issues so I graded this one -- and I even pondered paying for the sub-grades on this on back when that was an option but didn't. Why? Big name, big card, big potential.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: I'll admit I was a little bummed with the mark here -- and after that I wanted sub-grades -- but I can live with a nine. I also felt better when I saw somebody else checked in a notch lower here. (Sorry for you, too.)

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END OF AN ERA?
The Card: The Four Horsewomen of WWE (Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch, Bayley, Charlotte Flair) 2016 Topps WWE Road to Wrestlemania Bronze parallel
The Reason Graded: When it comes to NXT history, I think this moment and this crew is easily among the elite if not the cream of the crop and they have shown it on the main WWE roster, too, with all of them having title runs and plenty of memorable moments in the years since this moment and this card. This is a parallel of a black-bordered base set -- one per pack but a pretty big set -- and the back edges are all black, too, on skinny stock. It's mostly corners that can be issues here but I have graded all of my parallels -- my other one was mislabeled without the parallel notation so it's not in the official pop numbers but it is noted here (*).
The Grade: CSG 9.5

Reality Check: I'd totally grade more if I could find them ... it's just a good card. I graded a base version and landed a BGS 9.5 there if I remember correctly.

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RICKEY LOVES RICKEY
The Cards: Rickey Henderson 1981 Fleer base and "Most Stolen Bases"
The Reason Bought: Yes, these are really low-grade copies ... and they were cheap, too.  (Like $5 each.) So, why buy? I wanted a closer look as to why ... and the best I can decipher here beyond the obvious centering is. some surface denting or wrinkles yet they still both look pretty good. Since I casually collect Henderson slabs here and there (though not many recently) these also had some added interest for me as filler/educational slabs.
The Grades: CSG 7.5 & CSG 5

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Reality Check: The low grade here is one of four copies checking in that low for this card -- the volume on both cards here is pretty shocking but I bet some early submitters in CSG tried some bulk orders. This being a second-year card for the Hall of Famer there could have been some logic in that ... but with just 10 total cards at a nine and nothing above that out of more than 100 copies ... well, that should show you what kind of attention a 10 could command here.

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A BIG DEAL
The Card: Julio Rodriguez 2021 Bowman's Best -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: I think this is the last of the handful of slabbed copies I picked up for this rookie who had a big 2022 and I did so at a lower price than if they were 10s in a new CSG slab, too. For more thoughts, check out The Buzz Archives when I mentioned this before in this series. Also ... I need to dust off my slabs better before I take pics ... I know that much.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: The population here is pretty modest and most are 10s but in this case I think that's fine as his RC volume is low. While many will just latch onto the RC logo -- and, to a degree, they should as they're nice -- but this is the Rookie Card.

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SOME SILVER WINGS
The Card: Ricochet 2018 Topps WWE Then Now Forever (Series 2) Silver Autographs (/25)
The Reason Graded: Back when he first arrived, this high-flyer really caught my attention and this card was one of my pick-ups as it's rare, has a clean auto and looked very, very sharp. (It was also relatively cheap.) The only problem was how he arrived and then kind of fell off the radar despite having some of the most-unique moves to be found in a WWE ring ... so that's why it has sat in my archives until appearing here now.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: I was right on how it looked and it checked in at a 10, making this raw buy a nice one. The stock on these sets is skinny and I have seen a lot of potential gloss issues with cards maybe not aging well, too, but a 10 on a rare card is sweet no matter who it is.

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ATOMIC ENERGY
The Card: Paige (aka Saraya) 2015 Topps Chrome WWE Atomic Refractors -- Rookie Card parallel
The Reason Graded: I opened a metric crap-ton of WWE flagship and Chrome in 2015 chasing a handful of newcomers on either their first Rookie Cards or appearances after NXT debuts. She's among those key names to me and in a recent pick-up of smaller boxes/packs I landed a pair of these. The Atomics are busy but they are colorful and work with the photo-heavy frames here.
The Grade: CSG 9.5

Reality Check: I don't remember whether I graded both of my recent pulls -- I might have and it might be in a past MTG post -- but if not I'll do more. I also need to check all of my base and Refractors here to see if any others are worth the slab since she's now back in the wrestling ring as Saraya (her real name) in AEW. Add that to my 2023 to-do list.

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FINISHING WITH AN IMPORT
The Card: Daisuke Matsuzaka 2000 Upper Deck Victory (Japanese edition) Aces Inc.
The Reason Bought: I picked up this oddball card -- it's an insert from a Nippon Professional Baseball release from Upper Deck made for release in Japan -- long ago for just $6. (I'm not sure what one can get from any grading company for that price unless maybe you need some penny sleeves or other supplies.) Why did I grab it? Stuff you don't see everyday with familiar names attached can be interesting and over time one might be able to re-sell it for more. He's a memorable name both here and there, too.
The Grade: BGS 9

Reality Check: A number of these were graded ... and mine is the worst. I love how the corners grade isn't a 10 ... even though there are no corners on this card. Oh well.

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