It's a day on the calendar that's always going to be remembered ... but this is not really tied to that. This one's simply from MLB action two years ago today.

This month's ball in the Collecting Game-used series is another that came to me via a grab bag where all I knew was the date of the game -- and I actually chose this date due to the visiting team, the Atlanta Braves, which I kind of casually collect on the game-used front. This was from the first game of a doubleheader between the two National League powerhouses and it was handled by a pair of All-Stars for its one-pitch lifetime in The Show.

Keep reading to see the details this time ... and the ball in action.

Continue reading →

A good rookie, a good at-bat, a good ball ... that was one pitch away from history.

This month's entry in the Collecting Game-used series is another that came to me via a blind grab bag where all I knew was the date of the game ... and yet this was another win. The player? Jackson Merrill, the runner-up in the National League Rookie Of The Year behind winner Paul Skenes, and a name I didn't expect to land for a price lower than many a retail mega box of cards.

And, to top it all off, this wasn't some meaningless ball in the dirt or a ball just watched -- well, it kind of was -- it was something more for a low price and that's perfect. It's kind of how I roll most of the time with these items.

Keep reading to see the details this time ... and the ball in action.

Continue reading →

As you probably know if you're a regular reader here, Buzz is a fan of the game-used bargain bin just as much as any other ... so this is a result of one of those digs.

This month's item in this Collecting Game-used series? Well, it's another $10 game-used baseball from a recent Philadelphia Phillies firesale -- and it's one with a likely future All-Star's name attached. That name is Dansby Swanson, the Atlanta Braves shortstop who's in the midst of a career year this summer with new highs in hits, doubles, homers and RBI with plenty of time left to play.

The ball? Well, you can keep reading to see the details and see it in action.

Continue reading →

What did you land for your last $10 spent 0n collectibles? There's really no wrong answer there -- and there are a lot of possibilities for collectors of pretty much anything out there right now -- but not that long ago I landed a dozen game-used baseballs from the Philadelphia Phillies for, yep, $10 apiece.

This is one of those balls -- and it even included a BallQube -- but I still think it's a nice item for the price.

It wasn't a blind-bag scenario as I picked off a dozen MLB Authenticated game-used baseballs from the cheapest of the cheap -- picking out highlights from a spreadsheet -- as the team was burning off end-of-year inventory along with other balls from the past. The cool part about collecting from the MLB bargain bin for stuff from recent years? You can often find your exact ball (or see other dated game-used items) over in the MLB Film Room, which is a searchable database of pretty much every single play.

You can keep reading to see the details on this one ... and the ball in action.

Continue reading →

This month's Collecting Game-used item is really just a tip ... a reminder to watch out for postseason offers from teams that need to get rid of stuff that has piled up over the last year.

Fire-sale Season for MLB teams is all about stuff that's left over for them ... knowing that another season's worth of game-used items will be showing up before you know it -- and even they don't have unlimited amounts of space (or maybe patience) for used equipment to pile up.

The ball you see above? Yes, it's oddly pearl white -- clearly not prepped and rubbed-down for game use -- and it's got a shockingly neon green color on it, too. Meanwhile, green is something I didn't have to cough up to get this particular ball into my hands.

It was a freebie, a throw-in -- a batting practice home run ball -- with the purchase of a dozen game-used balls via Phillies Authentics. It's fully authenticated just like the baker's dozen of baseballs I grabbed for just $10 a ball. Shipped. And it wasn't even a mystery box situation, either -- I'm a sucker for those -- as I got to pick my dozen off a list.

The only mystery was whose name was attached to this one.

You can keep reading to see the details ...

Continue reading →