What's Buzzing: A Game Of Thrones case breakdown, Barry Bonds, Ronald Acuña Jr., new MLB pulls and more in this Friday edition.

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1 -- Inside a Game Of Thrones case ...

2 -- Talking Ronald Acuña Jr.

3 -- Nice pull in the tennis realm

4 -- Collecting Barry Bonds

5 -- New MLB pulls

6 -- Pondering the Angels' potential ... 

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

Follow BlowoutBuzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz.

If you're one of those baseball collectors who's been all about the anime, this one's for you.

Buzz was busy today adding a bunch of cardboard to the preview gallery for the forthcoming 2025 Bowman release (click here to see all of those and order your boxes), but this one -- all 30 cards in the 2025 Bowman Anime insert set -- gets its own standalone.

Why? These baseball cards are unique and they're a popular style of artistic card inclusions from a few companies in a few sports in recent years. This time there are 30 standard cards for stars of the past, present and future -- and then four Japanese icons will have Kanji Variations to find as well.

You can learn more and see the 30 standard cards after the jump.

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With these Ticket Stud or Ticket Dud stories I'm turning just a tiny bit of that energy just a few degrees away from cards (we'll still have plenty of them here) for a different kind of cardboard. What am I doing? Simple ... this is an occasional dip into some random ticket lots -- a show and tell showing something small with a story.

This time? A pair of MLB tickets from a few years ago this week.

Keep reading to see the details this time ... and tell me if you think it's a Ticket Stud or a Ticket Dud.

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Big name, small price ... I couldn't pass on that.

My latest item in this Collecting Game-used series is a little different than a lot of my buys when it comes to MLB Authenticated baseballs. Most times, I go the mystery-box route on the cheap with key dates or certain teams with players I like or collect among the likely possibilities, but this one was a straight-up buy -- still on the cheap -- recently. Why? That's because it was used for a pair of pitches from a newcomer on a World Series winner to one of the biggest names in the game today.

The price? Less than a retail mega box of whatever new card brand you like -- a certainty with this item this time vs. playing the possibilities of what might from packs. The possibility will get me often, but this time a game-used future Hall of Famer in my stash here works just fine with That Mike Trout Guy attached. (He good.)

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

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Minor league baseball cards from the past can include some weird stuff ... stuff you wouldn't imagine to be found on a baseball card. Here are some some new oddities in this latest edition of MiLB Madness. 

LOADED WITH TALENT ...
The Card: Peoria's Past, Chicago's Future -- 1989 Kodak Peoria Chiefs
The Buzz On This: I found this for less than 50 cents and, well, it felt like a steal with it being a fun card with some serious star power on there. Who? Hall of Famer Greg Maddux for starters along with memorable Cubbies of the era ... Mark Grace, Jerome Walton, Dwight Smith, Joe Girardi and even a few others who made it to The Show. (Click the image at right to view all of the names.)

All-star caliber team/group shots are not often the norm in MiLB sets -- you typically get everybody on a team shot or not at all -- and that makes this one feel more like a classic card. (Or even a Classic card where creative combo cards were quite normal at this time in their sets.)

Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.

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A quick and historic debut like this one should have collectors watching cardboard ... but right now that only means Topps Now. 

Nolan Schanuel made his MLB debut in August with the Los Angeles Angels just 42 days after he was drafted and since then he's done nothing but collect hits and get on base at a historic clip. According to MLB.com, Schanuel has now made it on base in 27 consecutive games to open his career and that's the fourth-longest streak since 1900. The record is 47 games by Alvin Davis in 1984, while the others ahead of him were back in 1938 (29 games for Hall of Famer Enos Slaughter) and 1918 (38 games for Truck Hannah).

Why does this matter? His only MLB cardboard is in 2023 Topps Now for now with his Rookie Cards not coming until next year's releases -- and he doesn't even yet appear on any MLB prospect cards in Bowman sets, either.

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Update (Aug. 22): A total of 9,785 copies were sold for this card.

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Card No. 725 is a first for this new MLB player -- and almost his only cardboard regardless of place in the game.

Nolan Schanuel made his debut on Friday night with the Los Angeles Angels going 1-for-4 and that got him his first 2023 Topps Now card as seen here and he followed that up with two more hits in his first double-header as an MLB player yesterday.

What makes Schanuel unique? He was the 11th pick in this year's draft back on July 9 -- just 42 days ago -- and he signed and played 21 games in Rookie/Single-A/Double-A ball before getting the call to the big team. That's not totally unheard of as nine players have actually skipped MiLB completely before their MLB debut since 1986 ... but that is still lightning-fast and, more importantly here, very few players these days make an MLB debut having so little cardboard. After all, we live in a world of, well, "Now" as well as prospect sets such as USA Baseball and Perfect Game that can have players on cards and in packs with certified autographs, memorabilia cards and more as young teenagers years before they're anywhere near a pro contract.

As for Schanuel? Keep reading ... he doesn't have much at all when it comes to baseball cards.

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You should know by now that Shohei Ohtani is having another historic year with dominating performances on both the mound and at the plate ... it's stuff that could only be called Ruthian -- and yet Babe Ruth didn't do it all at the same time.

Right now, on June 28, he leads the league in homers (28), RBI (64), slugging percentage (.654), total bases (200) and other offensive stats, while also having. 7-3 record on the mound with 127 Ks in 95 innings and a 3.02 ERA ... in short, he leads his team in pretty much everything. This kind of showing could mean serious headlines by year's end, too, with that home run pace alone.

The Japanese icon and pitcher-slash-DH's 2018 Rookie Cards are ones you should be thinking about right now as there's been a serious uptick in interest -- and it was already high. But, thanks to there being plenty of sets that year and with him in most of them, there's still a lot to choose from that's not priced out of many collectors' budgets. Things do get quite interesting with basic cards in slabs, too. (Prices should surprise you ... they did for me just prepping this.)

Ohtani, who had a ton of cards during his career in Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan starting in 2013, appears on literally thousands of unique baseball cards -- he'll probably hit around 15,000 by year's end or this time next year. More than 3,000 of those are from 2018 alone. His time in MLB releases started almost immediately as he never needed MiLB time and arrived in almost everything in the 2018 lineups from Topps, Panini America and elsewhere -- Rookie Cards, parallels, autographs, memorabilia you name it he's had it all since then. And there will be plenty more to come, perhaps making those earlier cards feel more unique to some ... especially if they missed out.

For simplicity's sake here, we have carved out all of his Topps Now and several other small-set cards sold as online releases as well as Panini America's meaty lineup of Ohtani (about 30 basic RCs and tons more when it comes to hits and inserts). We've also punted all autographs and Relic cards to make this a starting point with the widest affordability and accessibility possible, though there are plenty of high-dollar cards in this roundup.

Keep reading for a rundown of Shohei Ohtani Rookie Cards ... and it won't even be all of his stuff you could dabble with from that key year as there are plenty of cards with RC logos that don't fall under the definition.

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Update: The auctions close at 5 p.m. today with the break tonight.

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Cheap Fun Breaks is teaming up with MLB Auctions for a charity break during a game this Wednesday.

Up for grabs is a box of the high-end 2022 Topps Definitive Collection baseball cards and BlowoutTV's Houdini will handle the break during the Mariners-Angels game with bidding closing at 5 p.m. The break will take place during the YouTube Alt Cast of the game (at this link) during the seventh inning and will benefit St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The game is scheduled for a 4:07 start.

This one will be a spot break, so all auction winners get one card from the pricey box of cards that's loaded with six autographed cards and two Relic cards.

MLB will match the closing auction price for each of the eight auctions, which are live now. Bidding on each spot opens at $150.

To learn more about 2022 Topps Definitive Collection, see the First Buzz preview for the set right here.

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Follow Buzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz or send email to BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com. 

>> Click here to buy cards on BlowoutCards.com

Fast Five is a quick list that might offer a basic starting point for a themed collection or new focus -- five things that could be fun for a beginner or a new way to add something to your stash if you're a grizzled veteran.

This time? Five MLB players who impressed Buzz this week.

BIG NAME, BIG GAME
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 1B Toronto Blue Jays -- Rookie Cards in 2019 releases
MVP or not, you should all know Guerrero after last season and this year he's atop MLB with four homers in seven games -- and three of those were in a single game against the Yankees on Wednesday night. He's hitting .333 with eight RBI and six runs but I think the key here is that he's a main guy on a team with a crop of young home-grown stars -- and that is a recipe for hobby success if they get things done this season.

Keep reading for four more making up the list this time.

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Update: The above card sold for $1.84 million when the auction ended -- the buyer being a direct-mail company's CEO.

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The action is picking up as the clock is winding down for the finale tonight at Goldin Auctions with this 2003-04 Exquisite Collection LeBron James card already topping the $1-million mark with its premium.

There's about nine hours to go before the auction might end with more bids beyond the current 24, but even the current mark would make it the most-expensive basketball card ever sold as well as the priciest modern card in any sport, topping past $900,000-plus sales of key Mike Trout autos via Goldin.

The Runnemede, N.J.-based auction house has a number of other big-ticket memorabilia pieces and interesting items in its current auction. (Don't believe me? Hit that link and look at the first six items -- they're huge and don't make my list this time.)

Keep reading for a deeper look at a few more items ending tonight.

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This zoomed-in crop of a publicly available Getty Images preview photo taken by Lisa Blumenfeld shows four spots of wear that can all be seen on this Nick Swisher game-used SSK bat from 2012 that Buzz owns today.

Most of the time, your safest way to pick up a piece of game-used memorabilia from Major League Baseball action is to look for the sticker.

You know, the MLB Authentication sticker that has a code to tell you exactly when and where an item was used -- an ironclad way to know something is legit as it's stickered immediately after an item is pulled from play. But there are limitations to collecting game-used memorabilia.

Not every item that gets used gets a sticker -- and that's where you can find gems.

If you can take that risk and do the research, you can find an item that's better than stickered -- you can find pieces if you know how to photo-match. Not every item can be matched every time for sure, but that's part of the fun of collecting -- the hunt for the items and the hunt for images to show that they are, indeed, 110-percent legit.

You can keep reading to see the details this time.

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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: Angels throw a no-hitter for Tyler Skaggs, important threads taking a turn, non-sports breaks, The National and more.

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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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DEFINITELY DIRTY DEFINITIVE
The Item: Mike Trout 2019 Topps Definitive Collection autographed game-used patch booklet (/5)
The Price: $5,000 Buy-It-Now (or best offer)
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: Look close at that patch and you'll see some game-used dirt that only makes this impressive piece from a high-end brand even cooler. What's coolest about this? It's a gem that's not a 1/1 card -- there are four more like it out there in boxes of Definitive, which is a good thing. (Even better? Today is a 13 percent eBay Bucks day if you use the app ... get on it!)
Similar Pieces: More 2019 Topps Definitive Collection autos on eBay
The BlowoutCards.com Hunt: Click here for Definitive Collection boxes and cases 

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

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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 ... a super-sized edition this time around that's heavy on MLB and NBA but with a few surprises.

The Cards: 1991-92 SkyBox #544-546 Team USA puzzle
The Reason Graded: I picked up a box of this one for roughly $16 late last year (a bargain price) and pulled two sets of these puzzles, which was good. Why? Because grading these and the other notables from the iconic Hall of Famer-loaded Dream Team is pretty heavy and this one has been on my to-do list. I landed most of the notables more than once but just one Jordan that was noticeably off-centered. These glossed cards on the puzzle could have issues that the standard cards don't have simply because of their surfaces, but mine were clean. I will revisit my second set to see if anything stands out. I may go the PSA route on the other set for variety's sake if I see anything that would make me wonder about potential grades.
The Grades: BGS 9.5

Reality Check: This one was a stressful one as I had hoped for matching grades. Thankfully, that's what I got and that's where most cards land for all three pieces of the puzzle. This is a textbook example of the kind of cardboard that can make you some money with grading, too, as they're no more than $10 total raw, while BGS 9.5s together should top $100 in some cases and asking prices for the middle (Jordan) card alone can be steep. It's memorable cardboard from the past with nothing but iconic players involved, so there's still good demand -- and that's another reason why I slabbed. Wax boxes aren't all that plentiful, either, compared to other boxes around that time.

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 Tier One baseball cards
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 1
Cards per pack: 3
Cards in this box: 4
Base (Relic) set completion: 
0 of 36 (0 percent)
Duplicates: 0

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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 packs: 2019 Topps Now Future World Series baseball packs (two packs)
Where to buy: Click here (previously only offered via Topps.com)
Cards per pack: 3

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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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What: 2018 Topps Transcendent Collection Japan Edition baseball cards
Arrives: Dec. 21
Box basics: 11 autographed cards -- and plenty more -- per box
Checklist: Click here
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Topps' biggest high-end baseball brand gets a Japanese edition with a sole focus on two of the biggest MLB stars from the country -- Ichiro Suzuki and Shohei Ohtani.

So, what comes in this one? Keep reading for more info and a full gallery of images released so far.

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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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THE POWER OF GRADING
The Item: 1980 Topps Rickey Henderson Rookie Card (PSA 10)
The Price: $17,300 after 33 bids with more than three days remaining
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This is a card that's been slabbed by PSA more than 18,000 times but just 22 have gotten a PSA 10. Even PSA 9s are relatively rare compared to other grades (just 1,842 exist) while PSA 8s are the most-common grade with more than 8,500 cards in that grade. This is an iconic Rookie Card that has topped the $30,000 mark seven times since 2015, according to PSA, with a high of $38,400 via Heritage Auctions early last year. Many times cards like these get posted with hefty Buy-It-Now prices so it should be interesting to see where this piece of cardboard perfection ends.
Similar Pieces: Other 1980 Topps cards on eBay
The BlowoutCards.com Hunt: Click here for MLB boxes

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

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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 ...

Continue reading →

Here's a look at the top five players on this week's Baseball America Top MLB Prospects Hot Sheet and their seasons so far. It's a little something to help those who might want to dabble with prospecting -- some basics on their baseball cards alongside a highlight line from those more scouting-minded. We may not do this every week, but we'll check in on BA's top crop from time to time for the remainder of the season.

1. Wander Franco, SS, Tampa Bay Rays — Rookie-level Princeton Rays
Season so far: Hitting .339 with 1 double, 2 homers, 11 RBI and 3 SBs in 14 games
Baseball America’s highlight line: “When we ranked Franco as the No. 1 international prospect last year, we knew he was a talented hitter whose offensive ability was well beyond his years. Since then, he’s only gotten better. ... He has a chance to develop into an impact hitter, the type who could race through the minors and get to the big leagues by the time he’s 20."
CARDBOARD BASICS
Approximate card total (so far): None
First Chrome auto: Not yet
One auto to consider: No autos yet
Buzz’s card take: His first MiLB team-issue cards should be of interest when they arrive -- it sounds like Baseball America is sold -- but watch out for other Wander Franco cards out there. They're relatives who are or have been in the minors, too. This Wander Franco doesn't even have his mugshot on MiLB.com. (Spoiler: That's why you see the No. 2 player on the list above.)

Keep reading for the rest of the top five ...

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Have you seen the latest crazy 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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HOW ABOUT THIS OHTANI?
The Item: 2018 Topps Inception Jumbo Patch Autograph Shohei Ohtani 1/1
The Price: $50,000 Buy-It-Now (or best offer)
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: Inception is a fun memorabilia-laced creation and this card is among the biggest in the product that arrived just yesterday. Ohtani appears on just 10 cards in the product -- three un-numbered versions and the rest rarer than 25 copies -- and this is one of two 1/1s in the release for this super-hot international star. Will that asking price be met? I doubt it, but it's a nice card.
Similar Pieces: Other 2018 Topps Inception singles on eBay
The BlowoutCards.com Hunt: Click here for 2018 Topps Inception boxes

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

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Here's a look at the top five players on this week's Baseball America Top MLB Prospects Hot Sheet and their seasons so far. It's a little something to help those who might want to dabble with prospecting -- some basics on their baseball cards alongside a highlight line from those more scouting-minded. We may not do this every week, but we'll check in on BA's top crop from time to time for the remainder of the season.

1. Jo Adell, OF, Angels — High-A Inland Empire 66ers
Season so far: Hitting .318 with 14 doubles, 14 homers, 47 RBI and 11 SBs in 50 games
Baseball America’s highlight line: “At just 19 years old, Adell is quickly emerging as one of the top five-tool prospects in the minor leagues. He earned a promotion to the California League roughly a month ago and has taken the circuit by storm.”
CARDBOARD BASICS
Approximate card total (so far): 400
First Chrome auto: 2017 Bowman Draft
One auto to consider: 2016 Leaf Metal
Buzz’s card take: He’s heavily hyped and was very pricey when his first Chrome ink arrived. A season like this won’t change that. Bargain-hunting could be tough here — but he’ll also likely keep appearing on prospect checklists.

Keep reading for the rest of the top five ...

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Have you seen the latest crazy 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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SUPERFRACTOR MANIA ... CATCH IT!
The Item: Bryce Harper's 2011 Bowman Chrome Prospects Superfractor autograph (BGS 9.5/10)
The Price: $499,999.99 Buy-It-Now (or best offer)
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: Superfractors are the top draw for prospectors and they're the cards that get dollars flowing with their golden swirls. This one is among Bryce Harper's rarities before his Rookie Cards arrived and it's got the museum-style price attached to it. Will it sell for that? Probably not, but that best offer button has probably been hit more than a few times in the past.
Similar Pieces: Check out all of the Superfractors on eBay right here
The BlowoutCards.com Hunt: Click here for Bowman boxes from several years

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

Continue reading →