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 ... it's all MLB and WWE this time with a new baseball season under way and it being WrestleMania week.

The Card: 2018 Topps WWE Then Now Forever 25 Years of Raw #RAW28 Mr. McMahon's Limousine Explodes
The Reason Graded: You don't see why? This is one of the greatest cards I've ever seen in any set, and it simply had to lead off here, too. The heat you see on the card is only rivaled by the heat that is this card. (Something like that.) So, what's the story with this? In a June 2007 episode of Raw, WWE Chairman and ultimate on-screen villain Vince McMahon had an unusual evening on the air. At the end of the show he walked through a star-laden backstage area to go to his limo at the end of his "Appreciation Night." He stepped inside, closed the door and at that exact moment it exploded on live TV. (See it happen here and read all about the fallout.) The company was bombarded with phone calls from some members of the public and it even issued a press release that McMahon was, indeed, dead. The company's stock even took a hit (seriously) as part of the story line. Somehow, it took all of these years for this epic moment to make it onto a card.
The Grade: BGS 9.5

Reality Check: I was all over this one the second I saw the checklist and knew I'd own it in a slab. The super-skinny stock and dark edges make it tough to land without a tweaked edge or corner, but mine is the first and it's nearly perfect. (The spot on the right is part of the photo, not a nicked edge.) The only thing better than a near-perfect copy of a card like this would be one signed by VKM himself ... after all, he somehow survived. This card makes me laugh and I laugh even harder with a high-grade copy.

Keep reading for the rest of this month's new grades and additions.

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post 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 582 Montgomery Club Stickers (Set No. 2 in membership)
Where to buy: Only part of membership

Base set completion: 
20 of 20 (100 percent)

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Have you seen the latest cool or interesting items on eBay? If not, you just might see some of those here every week as we're launching a weekly version of our eBay Buzz pieces that pop up from time to time. We’ll spotlight some items that have a story or just wow us with how much interest it might have — and we’re not just talking baseball cards, either.

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A CAREER IN A CARD ...
The Item: Ichiro Suzuki 2017 Topps Triple Threads Jumbo Patch Combo Relic booklet (1/1)
The Price: $29,999 Buy-It-Now (or best offer)
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: First and most importantly I don't think that price is ever going to be hit, but we'll lead off with some powerful window-shopping as the legendary MLB career of Ichiro Suzuki has come to an end. This piece shows him with the only three MLB teams he ever played for and it includes some impressive jumbo patches, too. This is the kind of magic that has been somewhat commonplace -- yet still not easily pulled -- in boxes of Triple Threads since it arrived back in 2006.
Similar Pieces: Ichiro Suzuki cards on eBay
The BlowoutCards.com Hunt: Click here for Triple Threads boxes (all years)

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

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post 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: 2016 Donruss baseball cards (blaster box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)

Packs per box: 7
Cards per pack: 6
Cards in this box: 42
Base set completion: 
27 of 195 (14 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notable players on base cards – Ichiro Suzuki, Pete Rose, Adrian Beltre, Stephen Strasburg, Alex Rodriguez, Bo Jackson, Anthony Rizzo, Ken Griffey Jr., Rickey Henderson

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What: 2019 SportKings Originals 1/1 Art Masterpieces
Arrives: Feb. 15
Box basics: One original piece of SportKings artwork per pack (10 packs per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Want a one-of-a-kind piece original trading card history? This new release brought to the market by Blowout Cards gives collectors just that in every single pack.

Keep reading for more info and a full gallery of images released so far.

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What:

What's buzz-worthy: Leaf goes high-end with its next multi-sport release with nothing but "premium hits" in this new line that features a mix of legends from around the sports world all in one place -- and sometimes all in one card.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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There are eight guys with realistic chances at being voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame tonight (announcement is set for 6 p.m. EST on MLB Network) and there's one good thing to be had here for potential new baseball card collectors or veterans still needing them.

Most of them have Rookie Cards can be easily landed thanks to the timeframe when they were made -- and they have plenty of cards to chase in boxes made since.

The first lock of the bunch is former New York Yankees closer Mariano Rivera, MLB's career saves leader (652), who is a contender for the highest Hall of Fame voting percentage ever. That mark is 99.6 percent of ballots and is held by Ken Griffey Jr. back in 2016. Unlike Griffey -- and others you'll see here -- Rivera has just one Rookie Card. It can be found in 1992 Bowman, a set that added gloss and white stock into the brand's repertoire along with a deeper checklist (and guys in street clothes). Rivera has more than 5,500 different cards but only one gets the RC label -- that's a rarity in this day and age that helps bolster its value. (If you want one, buy it graded. They have been counterfeited.) >> Check out his autographed cards (and more) on eBay

Who else is out there and potentially headed to Cooperstown?

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What: 2017-18 Leaf Pearl hockey cards
Arrives: March
Box basics: 11 hits per box (two boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Leaf's ultra-high-end brand arrives on the ice with a number of legendary inclusions there as well as some lofty additions from both history and pop culture.

Keep reading for more as well as a full gallery of images released so far.

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Between everyday Buzz Breaks and the near-monthly Buzz 12 in 12 marathons, Buzz busted a lot of packs in 2018.

How many? Well, Buzz is almost afraid to count -- though it was seemingly news to me that the 12 in 12 marathons actually started early last year. (That's even more proof there's been a lot of wax to get these hands ... it's all a blur.)

It was a year of memorable pulls for me at times with some icons' autographs found in my packs. It also was fun one ripping into really old packs, too, with some cheap thrills there.

Breaks are among the most-popular items seen here nearly every day and Buzz knows that. So look for plenty of breaks in 2019 -- but, before that time comes, keep reading for links to not one, not 18, but 25 memorable breaks from 2018.

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What: 2019 TRISTAR Hidden Treasures Platinum autographed baseballs
Arrives: Jan. 30
Box basics: One autographed baseball per box (12 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: TRISTAR's autographed baseball chase brand leads things off for a new year with stars and legends along with some specialty balls guaranteed per case that add to the chase.

The biggest chase of them all this year? Keep reading for that and a gallery of what's in this one.

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What: 2019 Panini USA Baseball Stars & Stripes baseball cards
Arrives: March 13
Box basics: Five autographs or memorabilia cards per five-pack box (20 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: The newest USA Baseball release will once again include a mix of past and present players' autographs, memorabilia and more -- including players as young as the 16U National Team Development Program.

Keep reading for more as well as a full gallery of images.

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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 here on The Buzz ...

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SportKings is back and one of the surprises in store for this one is that the legendary brand will be found in blaster boxes this time around -- with a hit in every box -- without a premium price. 

This time around, it's SAGE creating the brand that stems from the 1930s, and while we'll have more details for you if you keep reading, the big key today is that there's another surprise as this one has arrived.

Blowout Cards will be giving away the contents of a 20-box case on Friday at 11 a.m. (Eastern) right here on BlowoutTV.

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What: 2018 Leaf Metal Sports Heroes trading cards
Arrives: Jan. 25
Box basics: One sealed autograph card per hobby box (20 boxes per case) or three sealed autos per jumbo box (12 per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Leaf tries a new format for its multi-sport, ink-driven release with a pair of box formats for collectors to choose from as it presents some of the biggest names across the sporting world all in one place.

Keep reading for more and a selection of images.

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Do you like Buzz Breaks? Today's your day then as we launch 12 in 12 -- a series of a dozen breaks of wax boxes and wax packs in a dozen hours. We'll post one every hour all day long ... this is our finale for today.

The box: 2013 Panini Pinnacle baseball cards (hobby box)
The cost: Click here

What's inside this one? Keep reading ...

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post 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 Panini Chronicles baseball cards (blaster box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)

Packs per box: 5 (four standard, one Revolution)
Cards per pack: 5 (three in revolution)
Cards in this box: 23
Base set completion: 
2 of 60 (3 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Base cards – Corey Seager, Jose Abreu

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Do you like Buzz Breaks? Today's your day then as we launch 12 in 12 -- a series of a dozen breaks of wax boxes and wax packs in a dozen hours. We'll post one every hour all day long ... this is Hour 8.

The box: 2002 Topps 206 Series 2 baseball cards 
The cost: Varies depending on where found

What's inside this one? Keep reading ...

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What: 2018 TRISTAR Hidden Treasures autographed baseballs (Series 10)
Arrives: Sept. 26
Box basics: One autographed baseball per box (12 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: TRISTAR's autographed baseball chase brand is back for a 10th series and second this year with a new Grand Treasure baseball to chase and a number of big names from the past and present all possible.

Keep reading for details on that one and a gallery of what's possible in this one.

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Hotlanta doesn't just apply to the city this time of year -- right now it also applies to one if its rookies.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. hit a lead-off home run for the third consecutive game on Tuesday night and that was his fifth consecutive game overall with a homer. (And he hit two.) At just 20 years old, he's the youngest to do that in the last 100-plus years and he's the first player since Brady Anderson back in 1996 to open three straight games with a longball. (Anderson did it four times during his record lead-off streak.)

The MLB record for most consecutive games with a homer? That's eight -- a mark held by Ken Griffey Jr. (1993), Don Mattingly (1987) and Dale Young (1956). For the Braves, a franchise with a rich home run history, he's tied the consecutive games mark held by eight players -- a group that includes Hall of Famers Rogers Hornsby, Hank Aaron and Chipper Jones. (How many homers does Acuña have in his last eight games? Eight -- just not in every game in a row.)

For the season, Acuña is hitting .288 with 19 home runs and and 43 RBI -- and since the All-Star break (24 games) he's hitting .358 and 12 of those home runs have come during that time. And for collectors, it's also at a time when his Rookie Cards are beginning to regularly appear in baseball card sets released this season.

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What:

What's buzz-worthy: Flawless returns to the baseball diamond once again with more ink, more variety to the gem cards and plenty of big-time memorabilia cards.

Keep reading for more info and a full gallery of images released so far.

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The wrapper redemption programs at the National Sports Collectors Convention are a challenge, a pastime and a must-do for many attendees every year.

But there are drawbacks, too, hence that challenge part. There can be long waits -- depending on how long the lines are and, more importantly, how early you got in them -- and there's the possibility that your line could get cut off before land your treasures.

But the wait can be worth it with the surprises in your packs -- or your boxes you grab to get said packs -- and that's what Buzz opted to try a few times this year. First up? The Topps program.

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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: Dominating pulls, showing off 1990s NFL cards, NSCC chatter and the "best box of my life."

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If you want to see how different Topps' Allen & Ginter baseball card set is, all you have to do is look at the checklist set scroll down to card No. 18.

"Bullpen car."

That's just one of the surprises in the 2018 edition of the retro-styled brand that's been revived since 2006 with 1880s stylings that include not only baseball stars but "World's Champions" in other sports and beyond.

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Leaf Trading Cards will be one place to grip and rip some packs at this year's National Sports Collectors Convention in Cleveland on Aug. 1-5 as the company will have three wrapper-redemption programs for collectors to consider.

The first is a retro Leaf set that can be chased via a box break at the company's booth. Those who open a box of 2018 Leaf In The Game-used or 2018 Leaf Pop Century will get a two-card pack of 1948 Leaf Metal cards. They'll be paralleled with cards as rare as 1/1 and the roster of names there will include Shohei Ohtani, Stephen Curry, Conor McGregor, Lionel Messi, Ken Griffey Jr., Pele, John Elway, Baker Mayfield, Shaquille O'Neal and Gordie Howe to name a few.

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Do you like Buzz Breaks? Today's your day then as we launch 12 in 12 -- a series of a dozen breaks of wax boxes and wax packs in a dozen hours. We'll post one every hour all day long ... this is Hour 10.

The box: 1990 Score baseball cards
The cost: $9.99 (you can find it for less)

What's inside this one? Keep reading ...

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