These were too weird to not grab -- and the bigger the better.

My latest item in this Collecting Game-used series is not game-used and they're a bit of a mystery, too, despite coming from a reputable source and straight from an NBA team.

The image above? Well, that kind of says it all -- it's a pair of Detroit Pistons Crocs made for the NBA Paris Game in 2023 -- but to put this one in perspective, well, just see the next image.

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There are plenty of everyday kinds of game-used items out there that never show up on the auction block en masse, are rarely cut up and put into sports cards and rarely get autograph or authentication treatment or other attention.

But they are out there -- and they can pop up on the auction block often. Sometimes they can surprise you with how much they sell for -- stuff like champagne corks and bottles have been authenticated and stickered by some teams after championships. Then there are displays using confetti, pieces of floors, dirt, turf, nets ... they've nearly all shown up in cards, too.

But not this one? Nothing like my game-used Gatorade bottle ... at least that I know of. (Tell me if I missed those cards!)

You can keep reading to see the details ...

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Game-used collectors have been seriously spoiled since the arrival of the MLB Authentication program back in 2001 (I'm one of them), but there are still items that are fully authenticated that require more research for their full story to be known.

This is one of those pieces.

Sometimes, items can't be photo-matched to photos or videos because there are no obvious features or personalized touches that can make them stand out from others. However, for my final item of the year in this Collecting Game-used series, I present to you an item that I recently found that needed a little more research despite it having the coveted MLBA sticker -- but it has those obvious features. In fact, it's a piece that has so many unique features that I was able to track those touches and decipher its lifetime of use. (Well, at least as much as one can without official word from a player to know their uniform habits or info from an equipment manager, who would have been responsible for inventory and replacement of pieces when requested.)

In the case of this Cleveland Indians batting helmet, it was authenticated merely as a "team-issued" piece by MLBA in April 2014. However, the obvious use it shows is from continued play and a distinct lack of maintenance and cleaning (as likely requested by the player). It turns out to be from the entire previous season -- and that was a successful one for the team as it made it to the postseason for just the third time during the 2000s at that point. This helmet's grass, chips, impressive layers of pine tar and other marks can be documented in photos before it was taken out of storage and into collector hands.

Keep reading to see the details ... and the item in action.

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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 1.

The box: Arizona Diamondbacks Authentics Mystery Cap Box
The cost: $30 (via MLB Auctions)

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

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Maybe the MLB Home Run King doesn't know his market all these years later.

Barry Bonds offered a number of team-issued memorabilia pieces on his website on Tuesday afternoon -- a number of travel bags and a couple of warm-ups and a jersey -- and nearly all of the autographed items were gone in minutes.

Why?

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