Trade with The Daily Dimwit

Sam, of the blog The Daily Dimwit, contacted me about a 2012 Allen & Ginter card that he pulled recently. I told him I was interested and we worked out a trade. I got the card in yesterday. It's a 2012 Allen & Ginter Miguel Montero mini...

...A & G Red back hand numbered 20/25. Thanks for the trade Sam!

A couple of CONTESTS!

I came accross a couple of contests that I thought I would promote.

Fantastic Catch: http://fantasticcatch.blogspot.com/2012/07/50-followers-contest.html?showComment=1343773489240#c8141244288433992514

Nachos Grande: http://fanofreds.blogspot.com/2012/07/200000-is-big-number-and-big-numbers.html

eBay Pick-Up: 2011 Topps Marquee Titanic Threads Chris Young Auto 02/10

I picked up this amazing card off eBay last week and got it in the mail today. I was kicking myself for not just using the $17.99 Buy It Now option, but I actually ended up winning it for $16.05 plus $3 shipping. So for less than the price of a blaster box, I ended up with this sweet card!

Justin Upton Bobblehead

Yesterday, my family and I went to the D-Backs game. The D-Backs played the Mets, or should I say Ike Davis. Davis hit three solo home runs for the Mets only 3 runs, with the D-Backs winning 6-3. We got there early so we could get the Justin Upton Bobblehead. When I opened the bobblehead up today to look at it I noticed the bat was broken...

 

... but that's okay, because it was supposed to be broken. The booblehead commemorates Upton's broken bat home run that he hit last year on September 19th against the Pirates.

 

Here's what $3 got me at my LCS

I picked up these 12 cards on Friday from my LCS. They were all in a 4 for $1 box.

For Trade (let me know if you're interested):

1995 Emotion Hideo Nomo RC

2005 SP Legendary Cuts Bob Gibson Lasting Legends numbered 018/399

2005 Donruss Elite Warren Spahn Turn of the Century numbered 243/250

For TTM:

2001 Bowman Reprint Al Rosen

2011 Topps Peak Performance Edwin Jackson

For My Son:

2011 Topps Josh Collmenter RC

For My Mike Piazza PC

 2004 Leaf Limited Mike Piazza numbered 528/749

2007 Topps Moments & Milestones Mike Piazza numbered 022/150

For Joe of Hello Victory:

2011 Topps 60 Evan Longoria

For My D-Backs PC:

2001 Bowman's Best Josh Kroeger RC numbered 2192/2999 

2011 Topps Diamond Sparkle Armando Galarraga

2006 Bowman Heritage Joe Saunders RC

TTM Success: Rick Cerone

I sent this 1988 Score card to Rick Cerone on 7/14/12 and got it back signed today, 13 days later. Cerone spent 17 years in the big leagues and played for 8 different teams and played for the Yankees three different times.

eBay Pick-Up: 2009 SP Authentic Gerardo Parra RC Auto

I picked up this 2009 SP Authentic Gerardo Parra RC Auto numbered 018/125 on eBay recently. I scanned it today for this post and realized that it is miscut. It's slanted. I don't think you can tell from the scan, plus I cropped it so that it would look normal.

TTM Success: Brad Ziegler

I sent a ttm request to Arizona Diamondback and fellow card collector Brad Ziegler on 7/19/12. I recieved my card back signed just a few days later, 7/24/12. Thanks Brad!

P.S. Ryan Roberts hit a home run in his first game as a Tampa Bay Ray. This is significant because I have a bet with a co-worker that Ryan Roberts would hit 20 home runs and steal 20 bases this season. I'm hoping that he will get more playing time in Tampa and he'll reach those numbers. He currenty has 7 home runs and 6 stolen bases.

Ryan Roberts has been traded to the Rays

Ryan Roberts was traded tonight to the Tampa Bay Rays for minor league second baseman Tyler Bortnick. Roberts was a fan favorite here in Arizona and will be missed. He played hard and had fun, everything that you could ask out of a player. I had the opportunitty to meet him and he was really nice. I will still continue to collect him. The card below is a recent eBay pick-up. It's a 2012 Allen & Ginter mini.

eBay Pick-Up: 2006 Topps '52 Edition Ryan Roberts Gold Refractor numbered to 52

I saw this card pop up on eBay recently and had to have it. Before seeing it, I didn't even know that it existed because I wasn't really collecting in 2006. At $6 shipped, and not having seen one in over a year of regualarly checking eBay for Ryan Roberts cards, I jumped on it. The card looks fantastic in person! I actually got this card and the regualr refractor version in the mail the same day and I showed my wife and she asked me "Why did you buy two of the same card?" I had to explain to her that one was numbered to 1952 and the other was gold and numbered to 52. Silly wife!

eBay Pick-Up: 2006 Topps '52 Edition Ryan Roberts Refractor numbered /552

I picked up this 2006 Topps '52 Edition Ryan Roberts Refractor off eBay recently for $3.75 shipped. There is also a Gold Refractor number /52 of this card which I may or may not have also picked up recently. If you have the base version of this card and would be willing to trade me, let me know.

TTM Success: Billy Beane

I sent a ttm request to Oakland A's General Manager, and focus of the book and movie Moneyball, Billy Beane on July 14th. Yesterday, July 20th, I got my card back signed. His signature is fairly simple and the second B appears to have gotten smudged, but still it's a very cool success!

Trade with Waiting 'til Next Year

Tom, of the blog Waiting 'til Next Year, contacted me about a 2012 Heritage Ernie Banks insert that I had gotten in a pack recently. We arranged a quick trade and I got a few cards in the mail a couple of days ago. Thanks Tom!

Tom threw in this card in as an extra because it fits my Cards Featuring Awards collection.  It was a nice surprise! Thanks Tom, and yes it does look like there are ninjas cutting onions not too far away from Cito Gaston.

2011 Donruss Elite Kyle Winkler numbered to 200

2012 Bowman Ian Kennedy Blue Parallel numbered to 500

Trade with Hello Victory!

Most of you know that Joe, of the blog Hello Victory!, and I work together. He's a Rays and D-Backs fan, so whenever I come accross Rays stuff I like to send it his way. I recently gave him some Rays cards and he returned the favor with a Randy Johnson cards and few Griffey's for my collection, including a 2012 Allen & Ginter. It's been said before and it will be said again, this card is freaking AWESOME! As a Grifffey fan I absolutly love it! Right now it would get my vote for Card of the Year. Thanks for the trade Joe!

I'm loving all the new Topps Griffey cards. Keep em coming Topps!

Youngest to 350 HR's - If only he could have stayed healthy!

I know I have most of this set, I need to take a look at what it would take to complet it.

Can't wait to see what Griffey's Hall of Fame ballot percentage is. How could you not vote for him?

I live in Phoenix and experienced Randy Johnson up close and I still sometimes forget how dominant he was on the pitching mound 1999-2002!

eBay Pick-Up: 8 cards for $0.01

A couple days after 2012 Allen & Ginter came out I won a lot of 2 Ryan Roberts short prints on eBay for $0.01 ( + $2.25 for shipping). The seller threw in 6 2011 Topps Chrome cards, just because. One was a Justin Upton, so that was an extra bonus for me.

eBay Pick-Up: 200 Fleer Showcase Tony Womack Sweet Sigs Auto

I got a eBay gift for my birthday earlier this month, so I've got several small purchases coming in. I picked up this awesome auto for $4.95 shipped.

eBay Pick-Up: 2012 Topps Ian Kennedy Black Parallel

I picked up this 2012 Topps Ian Kennedy Black Parallel numbered 42/61 off eBay recently. I got it for $3.24 shipped.

My D-Backs Bobblehead Collection

My last few posts have been D-Backs bobbleheads that I've gotten recently and in my post yesterday I mentioned that I had to start a second shelf to accomodate my new acquisitions. So here are the shelves.

From left to right: Racing Gracie, Chris Young, Randy Johnson, Dan Haren, Augie Ojeda, Kirk Gibson, Carlos Quinton, Chris Snyder, Dan Haren All-Star, and Justin Upton All-Star.

From left to right: Orlando Hudson, J.J. Putz, Eric Byrnes, Mark Reynolds, Conor Jackson, Greg Schulte, Ryan Roberts, Ian Kennedy, Chris Young, and Johnny Estrada.

D-Backs Bobbleheads #18, #19, and #20

I picked these up on eBay, all from the same seller and the seller was nice enough to deliver them to me at for about half of what shipping would have been. I now have 20 different D-Backs Stadium Giveaway Bobbleheads. There are just over 50 total, so I still have a ways to go. But adding the 5 that I bought this month and the two that I have gotten so far this season have caused me to take over another shelf and they look awesome!

Mark Reynolds

Eric Byrnes

Chris Snyder

D-Backs bobbleheads #16 and #17

I've gotten a few more D-Backs bobbleheads recently. Here are #16 and #17 in my D-Backs Bobblehead collection. I picked them up at a local antique mall for $8 each. I got three more today, which I'll show soon. I also had lunch today with fellow blogger Adam of Thoughts and Sox at the TGIFriday's at Chase Field. Had a great time actually getting to meet another blogger in person!

Conor Jackson

Orlando Hudson

TTM Success: Rudy Ruettiger

I sent a ttm autograph request to Rudy Ruettiger on 6/15/12 and I recieved my card back signed on 7/5/12. Awesome ttm success! Rudy is one of my all-time favorite movies!

Card Shop Pick-Up: Base Card

I picked up this 2003 UD MVP Dual Aces Dual Base card of Kevin Brown and Curt Schilling last week at my LCS for $2.

2012 MLB All-Star Game

I'm looking forward to watching the 2012 MLB All-Star Game tonight. I'm hoping for an N.L. win. I'm not even going to make an MVP prediction because I picked Cano to win the Home Run Derby yesterday and we all know how that went. I'm just hoping for an exciting game!

Home Run Derby Prediction

I look forward to the Home Run Derby and All-Star game every year. Looking at the Home Run Derby rosters, I'm going to predict a Robinson Cano repeat. He's going to have his Dad pitching to him again this year and I think it would be cool to have a back to back winner, but I'm not really rooting for anyone in particular. Good luck to all the contestants!

American League
Robinson Cano
Prince Fielder
Jose Bautista
Mark Trumbo

National League
Matt Kemp
Carlos Gonzalez
Carlos Beltran
Andrew McCutchen

More Birthday Cards

Here is the 2012 Topps Series 2 Jumbo Pack that my boys got me for my birthday.

First up are the first half of the base cards. The Upton wasn't the first card in the pack, but it was nice to get a D-Backs card.

Next up are the inserts. I didn't get a relic or an auto but I got one of the black parallels, so I was happy with that.

These next 5 cards followed the inserts. As a D-Backs fan I was thrilled to see 3 D-Dacks cards in a row. I don't think I've ever come accross 3 cards in the same pack of the same team all in a row, let alone cards from my favorite team. I'm highlighting the other 2 cards as well because they all feature some sort of celebration, which I really like as well.

Next up are the rest of the base cards.