MiLB
Collecting Game-used: Having all the details ... with none at all
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Sometimes you have all the details thanks to an authentication sticker ... and sometimes you don't.
It's those don't times that can be work -- but often you can still photo-match an item's damage or other unique traits to photos from the on-field action. Other times, there's nothing. This month's item in the Collecting Game-used series is one of those "other" times and one where there aren't that many details ... yet I know it all. (And still can't prove a thing, either.)
Huh? Keep reading to see the details this time ...
MiLB Madness: Big-league standouts, racing tacos & more
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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.
BO KNOWS MiLB
The Card: Bo Bichette 2018 Topps Heritage Minor League (image variation)
The Buzz On This: My most-collected active player bats lead-off this time as I just wanted some MLB star power here -- he has that despite a down year in 2024 -- and this one also is a reminder. Of what? That, while the MiLB options in packs are not what they used to be right now, you can find a lot of today's younger stars on Heritage MiLB cards that ran from 1962 to 1973 on cardboard -- that's 2011 to 2022 in reality -- before the line was shelved last year. This was a slightly pricier pick-up vs. my typical stuff dropped here (oddball finds from team sets) as this is a photo variation SP ... a little tougher find but not an impossible one. What might be impossible finds at some point soon or the next few years? Unopened Heritage MiLB boxes and perhaps even some earlier editions of Pro Debut ... they have to have the smallest print runs of anything from Topps in recent years. No new stuff to open in box form has had me looking at singles more and more, despite many older MiLB boxes having affordable prices ... I may dabble with both more next year.Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.
Baseball America book might be your bonus with Blowout buys
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Who's in your new box of baseball cards? This book knows -- and it might end up in your hands with an order from us this weekend.
The box is, of course, 2024 Bowman Draft and it's set to arrive next week and the annual prospecting staple is always the home of the top young names in MLB's ranks. As part of the action on this popular hobby-only release, Baseball America and BlowoutCards.com have teamed up to potentially give buyers a little more in their prospecting stash.
How's that? We will be giving away copies of the 2025 Baseball America Prospect Handbook to random customers shopping on our site this weekend.
The Handbook is a comprehensive look at the best in MiLB as it presents the top 30 names for all 30 franchises and is packed with all you need to know as part of a 500-plus page package. It's a book that Baseball America touts as "a must-have guide for those in the industry, super fans and a great gift for baseball fans across the globe."
A digital edition ($23.99) of the book will be available via Baseball America beginning next month with the print edition ($39.95) to follow.
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Follow Buzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz or send email to BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.
MiLB Madness: Ballpark swine, a familiar name, Millie & more
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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.
DIGGING ON SWINE
The Card: Parker The Rally Pig 2012 Grandstand Richmond Flying Squirrels
The Buzz On This: This guy has more than a few baseball cards, believe it or not, and this isn't the only time I've grabbed one for the ballpark star who was born in 2010 and retired by 2015. He was named after the team's previous venue, Parker Field, and "literally ate himself out of Double-A," according to this piece. Do I have all of the Parker cards now? Maybe ... I need to research this one further and then check my archives. I have to be close.Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.
MiLB Madness: Pup meets alien, a past star, mascots & more
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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.
ALIEN PUP MEETS PUP?
The Card: Orbit 2019 Choice Albuquerque Isotopes
The Buzz On This: "Never work with children or animals" might be a Hollywood saying, but in the case of this mascot's cardboard the pup might be stealing the show. This team's sets have included cameos from shelter pups at least a couple years in the past so this actually isn't that unusual, but this one jumped out at me since it's the alien (who looks like a dog to me) mascot. What must that dog be thinking? That's what I'd really want to know ...Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.
First Buzz: 2024 Onyx Clubhouse Collection Batting Gloves
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What: 2024 Onyx Authenticated Baseball Clubhouse Collection Authentic Game-used Batting Gloves
Arrives: Sept. 26
Box basics: One pair of game-used batting gloves per box (12 boxes per case via four mini-cases)
Order: Click hereWhat's buzz-worthy: This MLBPA-approved product returns to collectors' hands once again with every box including a pair of used batting gloves from top young names, established All-Stars and even Hall of Famers.
Keep reading for more info, including a full checklist.
MiLB Madness: Mascot bling, Hawaii ball, big-leaguers & more
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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.
ALL ABOUT THAT BLING!
The Card: Wool E. Bull 2023 Choice Durham Bulls
The Buzz On This: It seems the mascot card is a staple of MiLB team sets -- it's one of few cards you can typically count on finding year after year unless there's a team name change -- and this one of the modern-day iteration of the mascot many might first remember from Bull Durham. This card caught my attention as it's one of few where the mascot shows off their version of the team's championship ring -- a ring card collection could be an interesting little twist even if not limited to just mascots. Beyond that bling, the achievements captured on the back of this card are also pretty strong for a veteran you can see on a lot of cardboard. Collect 'em all!Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.
Making the Grade (Aug.): Flashy football, colorful Shotzi, vintage Bruce Lee, Barry Sanders ... and The Great Cornholio?
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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 ...
ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL?
The Card: Derrick Henry 2023 Panini Luminance Red (/25)
The Reason Graded: This card was an instant need for me in some form the second I saw that photo and I managed to find this rarer parallel on the cheap and in clean shape to make it a double win. It was so clean, it was one of a couple cards from this that made it into my recent submission and, well, it's another win for the school ties part of my collection.
The Grade: CGC 10 (Pristine)Grade 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 8 8.5 9 9.5 10 P10 Total Population 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 Reality Check: That one checks in as a good as it gets and this release grades really, really well from what I have seen -- not a lot as it's a premium-priced brand -- but enough that it will get further looks from me. (Maybe more since football season will be upon us very soon.)
Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.
Board Buzz: Must-read threads on Blowout Forums (July 17)
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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: Topps Chrome is here, The National nears, collecting MiLB, taking the L in prospecting, Rece Hinds and MLB All-star reactions.
First Buzz: 2024 Topps Pro Debut baseball cards
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What: 2024 Topps Pro Debut baseball cards
Arrives: Sept. 6
Box basics: Four autographs per 24-pack hobby box (12 boxes per case); three autographs per six-pack jumbo box (eight boxes per case)
Checklist: TBD
Order: Click hereWhat's buzz-worthy: Minor League Baseball's only set of the year gets the neon treatment of the flagship release in this one and it includes some inserts and other finds only in this release and it also includes Chrome cards.
Keep reading for more as well as a full gallery of images.
MiLB Madness: Earnhardt, Flacco's bro, coach cameos & more
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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.
NASCAR MEETS MiLB
The Cards: Dale Earnhardt 2012 Hickory Crawdads
The Buzz On This: The racing icon's Chevy dealership is actually well-represented on MiLB cardboard from the past with several years of card sets including nods to their corporate sponsor. Sometimes, they're cards of office members, new cars, logos or scenic images that inject some horsepower onto the diamond, but this pair of cards -- pocket change-priced finds -- feature The Intimidator himself signing autographs and standing alongside his legendary No. 3. This is a perfect example of the odd things you might not expect to find in baseball card sets from down on the farm.Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.
MiLB Madness: A Griffey, a Junior, a pitcher who rakes + more
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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.
THE SECOND STINT
The Card: Ken Griffey Sr. 2010 Choice Dayton Dragons
The Buzz On This: This one popped up on a deep dive recently and I had totally forgotten about the father of an icon and Hall of Famer taking on a second career as a minor league coach and manager years ago. Of course, most collectors know the icon that is Junior but his dad was an accomplished big-leaguer, too, with 19 seasons in the majors that included three All-Star nods and two World Series rings as player with The Big Red Machine and then a third with the 1990s Reds, though they released him late that summer before the postseason. This Griffey's Rookie Card is in the 1974 Topps set and that was the last time he was in the minors before he suited up for a stint as a coach with this team before taking on a managerial role elsewhere for three years. He only has a few MiLB cards and they stand out from the pack vs. a lot of his big-league stuff with the Reds, Yankees, Braves and Mariners. That got me to bite here.Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.
MiLB Madness: Looking back, looking at card backs & more
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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.
IF YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW ... AGAIN
The Cards: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 2020 Choice Lansing Lugnuts 25th Anniversary set (nine)
The Buzz On This: The second MLB All-Star to be found in this one is Vladdy 2.0 (after Bichette 2.0 last month). This one is a cheap set I found on sale in the official MiLB Store ... so I did a bulk buy. Why? I want to slab some stuff in this one and the price was right for doing some cherry-picking. As I noted last time, if you don't dabble in the MiLB realm, there are some affordable ways to find top names in old unis without breaking the bank and this set shows off notables from this team's past -- a solid alumni set. Another type of cheap MiLB team set that can be loaded are the league "top prospects" sets and similar all-star team sets that can be sold by all teams in a league. My nine sets here were cheaper than pretty much all MLB hobby boxes so far this year.Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.
Making the Grade (April): Cards, comics, DVDs, mags & more
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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 ...
SNIKT!
The Book: Wolverine No. 50 (newsstand edition)
The Reason Graded: Back in 1992, Little Buzz was probably nearing the end of his comic book days -- or maybe a little after this one arrived -- but with some connections to a local book store I was able to get comics before they hit those spinner racks that resulted in books getting broken spines like they were Batman up against Bane. (Or something.) And with that era being one of mass-produced stuff that was still very creative on both the art front as well as the printing/gimmick front, I and many others were buying ... in quantity. This issue is one exploring Wolverine's origins and it's got a cardboard cover with his claws the source of the big die-cut gashes here revealing the first page of what's in the file (issue). I bought maybe a half-dozen of them as it was cool -- a few at the local comics shop and a few more at the book store -- and that's the key here. These newsstand versions -- same except for the UPC in the corner and not a marvel direct logo (that started in 1981) filling the box -- figure to be much, much rarer in a high grade.
The Grade: CGC 9.8 (Universal)Grade 7.0 7.5 8.0 8.5 9.0 9.2 9.4 9.6 9.8 9.9 10.0 Total Population 7 5 19 30 43 66 141 339 895 0 0 1,557 Reality Check: This one was a win but I expected it as my copies here are razor sharp. How many of those graded might be newsstand copies? It's a mystery right now but asking prices on eBay as I prep this file are as high as $500 for a newsstand copy while a direct has a max asking of $299. Actual sales for 9.8s in recent weeks? About $320 for newsstand and $85 for direct. I'll take that ... I'm in for just $2.50 (though I may have gotten a discount) and my grading fees. Most "serious" collectors bought at comics shops in the boom years, seeing newsstand is inferior with those barcodes ... now those barcodes are gold as long as you're in an elite grade.
Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.
MiLB Madness: Bo Bichette, Casper Ghosts and 'Hey, Y'all!'
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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.
IF YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW ...
The Cards: Bo Bichette 2020 Choice Lansing Lugnuts 25th Anniversary set (nine)
The Buzz On This: I started prepping this one last week but realized I was light on some star power for this one, so I went to the official MiLB Store and did some window-shopping for team sets and finally opted to grab a nine-pack of a set that's got two solid names attached -- and several other big-leaguers inside -- since they were on a slasher sale and I had a discount promo code to burn. If you don't dabble in the MiLB realm, there are some affordable ways to find top names in old unis without breaking the bank and this set shows off notables from the team's past. In this case, it shows Bichette when he hit .384 with 10 homers, 51 RBI, 60 runs and 12 stolen bases in just 70 games back in 2017. I think this one finished off my run of Bichette cards found in MiLB team sets but this serves as a reminder that these look-back sets done from time to time and a more regularly appearing type of set can deliver. The sets can at times be loaded but are a little more plentiful (and that hurt values some) and other types are league "top prospects" sets and similar all-star team sets that can be sold by all teams in a league. My nine sets here were cheaper than all MLB hobby boxes so far this year.Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.
First Buzz: 2024 Onyx Vintage baseball cards
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What: 2024 Onyx Vintage baseball cards
Arrives: April 12
Box basics: Four autos per Base Series box (24 packs per box, six boxes per case); 10 autos per Mega Series box (10 packs per box, six boxes per case)
Checklist: Click here
Order: Click hereWhat's buzz-worthy: Onyx's Vintage brand takes the field with a new format approach -- two box styles this year -- and an array of newly created old-style cards and inclusions as it celebrates baseball.
Keep reading for more info and a gallery of images.
Buzz Break: 2022 Panini Elite Extra Edition (blaster box)
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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: 2022 Panini Elite Extra Edition baseball cards (blaster)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for FOTL/hobby)Keep reading to see a full breakdown of what was in this one.
Making the Grade (Feb.): Super Bowl icons, Sports Illustrated, Football greats, old magazines, even older coins & plenty more
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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 ...
THERE WERE NO GUARANTEES ... BUT I'LL TAKE IT
The Card: Joe Namath 1973 Topps
The Reason Graded: It's almost Super Bowl time and while I don't really collect any of the names who are going to be in this year's big game, I do collect names who helped make the big game in the past ... and this freshly graded card is a big one in my eyes. It's Namath's final card made by Topps during his career and I found it raw on COMC with is razor-sharp everything -- especially compared to other copies out there -- and decided it was not only grab-worthy, it was also slab-worthy with centering and only one corner with lightness and color immensely minor spotting on the front being the only issues. This one looked very strong for a vintage card so I submitted it for immediate grading directly via COMC, too.
The Grade: CGC 7Grade 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 8 8.5 9 9.5 10 P10 Total Population 3 7 6 6 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 43 Reality Check: I had visions of a higher grade, but the card backs here have dark ink and corners on the backs can be spotty ... and I think that's a reason this one graded lower than I had hoped. But, at the same time, it's a pop-six card with only five CGC 8s grading higher -- and nothing above that. That actually puts this card among the elite for graded copies of this one ... and that's not a bad thing with my total cost here under $30. (The slight spot on the bottom left corner of the card bugged me ... until I realized it's some funk on the surface of the plastic slab, not the card or inside the slab. That's something I hadn't run into with CGC's generally crystal clear and clean slabs.)
Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.
Collecting Game-used: A colorful Copa de la Diversión cap
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Second verse, same as the first -- well this time with a little less Lava.
It's apparently National Hat Day today, so I figured I'd get this Collecting Game-used series back on track (I missed doing one last month) with another game-used cap from down on the farm and this time it's from a specialty game and a player who actually did play in a pair of big-league games last year after spending the summer for the Columbus Clippers. If you don't recognize the logo, this one's from a game where they were the Veleros de Columbus during MiLB's Copa de la Diversión games.
As I noted last time, sometimes, unraveling the mystery is part of the fun with gamers ... and that mystery part doesn't happen as often with MLB stuff where it's as if everything that's used can get an MLB Authentication sticker and have a place in a database forever before it hits a collection or gets chopped up to live inside a baseball card. But down on the farm? It can be a different story. Sure, stuff gets documented and sold with a team letter or certificate often -- especially at the end of a season when the players are gone (and might not come back) -- but not everything.
Most of my items in this series are MLB or other things that are ironclad in their documentation or I have been able to photo-match the item exactly to a photo, video or event. This time? Not so much (though I admittedly ran out of time to really dig), but it did have some features and some mystery that worked out for a bargain price and it turned out to be another player who got a taste of the major leagues this past season and has played in The Show for a few years.
Keep reading to see the details this time.
Making the Grade (Jan.): Rarer parallels, minty fresh vintage, comics, mags, Jordan's cover, Derek Jeter's Bo Bichette & more
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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 FIRST FOR ME ...
The Card: Bo Bichette 2022 Topps Chrome Logofractor Edition Blue Refractor (/150)
The Reason Graded: If you're a regular reader, then you know that Bichette is perhaps my leading active player who I collect (casually ... as he's expensive). That means I dabble merely with what I like, what's a bargain and so on. In some cases, I'll grab a striking color of parallel or an appropriate shade from a certain brand that stands out from the rest and this Blue parallel fits right there along with this being a Logofractor parallel. Why did I grab this and then slab it? Well, the price was right (under $10 during the season) and it was one of few centered copies I saw and it was one that avoided a possible pattern gap in the logos that seemed to land on his cards often. When I grabbed this, it also became my first COMC pick-up to go directly to CGC for grading while all in their hands rather than starting out in mine.
The Grade: CSG 10Grade 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 8 8.5 9 9.5 10 P10 Total Population 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 Reality Check: It came back with an ideal mark, which is what I had hoped for, though you never know with surfaces of cards ... that's about the only big risk of buying/subbing stuff there at the moment other than corners, which should be a smidge more obvious on screen -- but not always. My total cost for card and grading here? Under $24 and it only took about a month to get it back. That's a move I've actually done a few times late last year as my goal of sending in some new stuff for slabbing didn't happen on the card side of things before 2023 had ended. There will be plenty more in 2024 -- cards, comics, coins magazines ... and more.
Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.
MiLB Madness: Loaded team, eccentric arm, batboys & more
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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.
Making the Grade (Dec.): International stars, commemorative coins, talented newcomers, WWE icons, old mags and comics
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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 ...
IMPORTED PERFECTION
The Card: Ichiro Suzuki 2000 Upper Deck Ovation Japanese (Nippon Professional Baseball)
The Reason Graded: This set is a favorite of mine among oddball/international releases and while it might look familiar it's not one you found at, say, a Toys R Us store back in the day. This is from a set made for the stars of Nippon Professional Baseball and was sold in Japan and it uses the familiar Ovation MLB design that really does stand out as a unique one from the past with its embossed baseball seams framing the photo. The core of this set isn't huge -- you'll get that part in a typical box -- but there are short-prints in th set that are serial-numbered as well as a number of inserts to chase as well as some MLB player cameos ... but this one is the biggie. It's not super-expensive and it's not a NPB Rookie Card or anything as that's 1993 for this lock of a future Hall of Famer, but this one is from the year before his MLB Rookie Cards arrived. I own two or three of these after opening a couple boxes long ago and one more recently and this one made its way into a bulk lot as my first one or two I graded came up a little short on what I wanted.
The Grade: CSG 10Grade 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 8 8.5 9 9.5 10 P10 Total Population 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 7 9 11 0 30 Reality Check: This time? That's the kind of grade I was hoping for and that alone is a reason this one is batting lead-off this time ... it's not my biggest card in this lineup but it's a nice copy of an oddball card with a historic name attached. This grade has the highest pop but two thirds of slabs check in lower than this one ... it's not a super-easy 10 if you ask me with the soft stock and the embossing perhaps being problematic along with a foilboard (front) and glossed (back) surface.
Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.
Collecting Game-used: Fresh Lava from down on the farm
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Sometimes, unraveling the mystery is part of the fun with gamers ... and that mystery part doesn't happen as often with MLB stuff where it's almost as if everything that's used on a field or during a game can get an MLB Authentication sticker and have a place in a database forever before it hits a collection or gets chopped up to live inside a baseball card.
But down on the farm before they are big-leaguers? It can be a different story. Sure, stuff gets documented and auctioned/sold with a team letter or certificate quite often -- especially at the end of a season when the players are gone (and might not come back next year) -- but not everything. Baseballs? Nope. Caps? Not often. Helmets? Sometimes. Buzz did some on-the-cheap power-shopping in recent months and landed a few game-used caps from MiLB action and this first one is from the Columbus Clippers, the Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians.
Most of my items in this Collecting Game-used series are MLB or other things that are ironclad in their documentation or I have been able to photo-match the item exactly to a photo, video or event. This time? Not so much, but it did have some features and some mystery that worked out for a bargain price -- cheaper than some packs of cards out in the retail wild -- and it turned out to be a player who got a taste of the major leagues in 2022, too.
Keep reading to see the details this time.
MiLB Madness: The off-season ain't stopping this series ...
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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.
MANNY BEING MANNY ... ADMITTEDLY BEFORE MILB
The Card: Manny Ramirez 1991 Little Sun High School Prospects
The Buzz On This: OK, OK ... this isn't MiLB cardboard but it's thisclose to it as this card comes from a small set of players who were quickly on their way to pro ball when this one arrived from a small card company that released a number of small yet interesting sets. In this case, Ramirez was fresh out of George Washington High School in New York where he hit .650 with 41 hits, 40 runs 15 homers and 40 RBI in just 22 games as a senior. His career stats there? A mere 35 homers, 28 doubles, 17 triples, in 67 games where he hit .630. Oh and he stole 76 bases out of 78 attempts. Sure, you can look up his MLB stats -- that's easy -- but this card is all that numbers-wise and more. (Too bad I forgot to take a pic of it when I found this set in a bulk lot of MiLB sets months ago.) There are a few other MLB players in the set but none come close to Manny Being Manny.Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.
Black November Wave 3 ... here are five deals I'd grab now
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If you hadn't noticed, there are a number of boxes with discounted prices right now right here as the new wave of Blowout Cards' Black November sales is here
Many of the discounts were dramatic enough that Buzz once again had to ponder the possibilities in many of the boxes and cases -- and here are five that caught this collector’s eye ... and there's far more that just might suit your tastes in the big sale.
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STRIKE NOW ... BIGGEST INK IS REDEMPTION
2022 Topps Heritage High Number Hobby Box & Case
This release being in Black November sales will be one of those things we look back at years from now and wish we had loaded up on it a lot more ... and a part of that sentiment could come as soon as next year. In fact, Oct. 31, 2024, is when the redemptions for Julio Rodriguez's very-in-demand autos in this one expire. Now, you shouldn't expect his ink in every case -- that's a reason it's a $600 card for just the basic version -- but there are a few autos per case and a hit per box here for starters. Atop that, there are inserts and variations all flowing regularly that can have key names attached and easily pay for the box. Beyond that, the base set itself is small so you should land most of the set in every box (or come close) and that means you can stockpile key names here for slabbing or future deals ... or sell them off in lots as timing works for you. Among the rookies? Rodriguez, Spencer Strider, Bobby Witt Jr., Spencer Torkelson, Jeremy Peña and a ton of others. Among the auto Relics? Mike Trout, Matt Olson, Joey Votto. Among the standard autos? Bryce Harper, Witt, Carlton Fisk, Juan Marichal, Jim Palmer, Rodriguez, Juan Soto, Votto, Olson, Trout, Nolan Ryan, Ronald Acuña Jr., Steve Carlton and many others. The long-running power of the brand and the relative scarcity (difficulty to pull ink) can make some names big surprises here. There are a lot of formats to consider here but this one is, by far, the one with the biggest potential. Oh, and there are Hot Boxes, too.Keep reading for a few more boxes you should consider (and are likely to end up in Buzz's cart).