2012 Card Collecting Goals

2011 has come and gone and while it was an exciting year for my family and I (first year of little league with my oldest, bought a new home, and had another baby - our third) my card collecting sort of slowed down due to a lack of funds and time. To help me turn that around in 2012, I decided to set some goals. I did that in 2010 and while I didn't reach all the goals I set, it was nice to have them to strive for and I really made progress in my collection. So, in no particular order, here are my 2012 Card Collecting Goals.

1. TTM Autographs - 50 TTM autographs this year from at least 30 different people. One thing that I plan on doing differently this year in regards to my TTM requests is expanding to sports other than just baseball. ***COMPLETED***

2. 3000 Hit Club Bat Cards - Collect a bat card of 27 players in the 3000 Hit Club. I achieved my 2010 goal of a Bat Card of every member of the 500 Home Run Club and have decided to try for the 3000 Hit Club. Several players are members of both clubs (Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Eddie Murray, and Rafael Palmeiro) and I already have a Ty Cobb Bat Card, so I need 22 more.

3. Greatest Non Relic/Auto/Numbered/Parallel Insert Set of All-Time - I recently asked for suggestions for this and got some good ones. To clarify, this will be for baseball only. I plan to narrow the list down and select the greatest non relic/auto/numbered/parallel insert set of all-time and collect that entire set.

4. Cards Featuring Awards - In 2010 I started a collection of cards with players holding multiple bats, which I still add to. In 2012, I want to collect at least 50 cards featuring awards. This can be any award, Rookie of the Year, MVP, World Series trophy, etc., but the card must have a picture of the award on it, not just mention that the player won the award.

5. Dan Wilson Collection - Dan Wilson was a Major League catcher that played 13 seasons for the Cincinnati Reds and the Seattle Mariners. He is set an American League record for catchers with a .995 career fielding percentage and was an All-Star in 1996. My name happens to be Daniel Wilson, so I have always been drawn to collecting his cards, but haven't actively pursued his cards in years. I would like to complete a Trifecta (RC, Auto, and Game-Used) for him. I already have several different rookies, and a quick eBay search revealed several certified auto's but no game-used so that could prove difficult. ***COMPLETED***

6. Ryan Roberts Collection - Ryan Roberts had a breakout year in 2010 and is definitely a fan favorite here in Arizona. I met him at the All-Star Fan Fest and he is a super nice guy. Because he was not an everyday player until this year he actually has very few cards. He was included in the 2011 Topps Update Series and I collected as many of those parallels as possible. I haven't seen any of the 1/1's aside from two of the Printing Plates which I was able to get. I have a feeling that he will be included in a lot more product in 2012, so I definitely want to increase my collection of Ryan Roberts cards and so without knowing exactly how many cards he will have in 2012, I will set my goal at 25 unique Ryan Roberts cards for 2012. ***COMPLETED***

7. Brandon Webb Collection - In 2010 I set a goal to reach 200 unique Brandon Webb cards. After blowing out his arm on Opening Day in 2009 he has since signed with the Rangers but has not pitched in the Big Leagues. I'm not sure where he will end up in 2012. Right now I am at 196 different Brandon Webb cards in my collection, so I would like to reach 200 and see if I can add another 50 cards, bringing my Brandon Webb total to 250 unique cards by the end of 2012. ***COMPLETED***

8. Complete the 2004 Topps Derby Digs Jersey Relics Set - This set features pieces of jerseys worn during the 2003 Home Run Derby. I currently only have two cards from this set, Garret Anderson and Bret Boone so I still need Carlos Delgado, Jim Edmonds, Jason Giambi, Albert Pujols, and Richie Sexson to complete the entire set. ***COMPLETED***

9. Post Videos on My Blog and YouTube - Just this year I started watching YouTube videos of TTM successes, box breaks, eBay mail days, trades, etc. and have really enjoyed it. We got a web cam for Christmas so I want to start doing videos for my blog and YouTube in 2012.  ***COMPLETED***

10. Be More Active in the Blogging Community - I feel really fortunate to be part of this community and want to be more active in my posts, commenting on others posts, trading, etc. In 2011 I only had 96 posts compared to 231 in 2010. I would like to hit at least 300 posts in 2012. ***COMPLETED***

11. Vintage - I would like to add 10 solid vintage cards to my collection in 2012. In November I picked up a 1957 Topps Don Drysdale Rookie Card and it reminded me how much I love vintage cards. I have very few in my collection though. For me, when it comes to vintage cards, the condition is not all that important, in fact I think that a card that is 40+ years old should show some wear and tear.

12. Personal Collection - I would like to add 100 cards to my personal collection. These cards will include the 3000 Hit Club Bat cards, ttm autographs, the 10 solid vintage cards, 2004 Topps Derby Digs Jersey cards, in addition to relic, autos, numbered, rookie cards, etc. of either players I collect or Arizona Diamondbacks. ***COMPLETED***

13. Autographed Baseballs - I would like to get two baseballs autographed by star players this year. In 2010 I got Don Mattingly and in 2011 I got Don Newcombe to sign balls. Between D-Backs Fan Fest, Spring Training, the regular season, card shows/autograph signings, and the Fall League I would like to at least get two in person autographs of star players on baseballs. ***COMPLETED***

14. Organize My Collection - This will be a daunting task, but it needs to be done. I don't want any loose cards and I want to know where everything is at. Part of this will be deciding what to do with my Ken Griffey Jr. and Mike Piazza collections that I have from collecting growing up.

15. 1997 Upper Deck Ken Griffey Jr. Game Jersey - One Griffey card that I would love to have and keep is the 1997 Upper Deck Game Jersey card. Along with Tony Gwynn and Rey Ordonez (which I already have), these were the first baseball jersey cards. I have wanted this card for a long time, but it rarely shows up on eBay and has always been out of my price range. I would like to figure out a way to get this card.