Secret Santa pays me a visit from the Pacific Northwest

Just before I was to head out for my yearly Christmas travels, a box from my Secret Santa showed up! Before I get into it, thanks again to Jon from Penny Sleeves for once again running this year's program. Like Matthew before him, he does a great job!

I was thinking I might be getting a package from someone new this year, as I noticed in the comments there were a lot of names I didn't recognize. Many were from Twitter or TCDB, so I figured I might be getting something from an unfamiliar name.

WRONG!

A nice flat rate box showed up from one of my oldest trading partners, Kerry from Cards on Cards! Although he does send some surprise packages throughout the year, I was thinking this one might be too well-timed to not be Secret Santa. And I was right! I opened the box and there were two glorious team bags, as well as a sticky note that read, "This worked out well. I had some cards set aside for you anyhow."

Kerry always sends super generous packages, and this one was no different. The highlights were what were undoubtedly the main Secret Santa gifts in the form of two Tinos I didn't have!

The relic is aN eBaY oNe Of OnE #'d 100/100!

And the Gallery is a Private Issue #'d to 250.

Two low numbered Tinos I needed?! Secret Santa was good to me.

And the team bags were great too, chock full of Knicks and Yankees! I was really happy that Kerry was kind enough to include two RJ Barrett rookies! These are the first cards I have of the promising Knicks rook. I love the old school Hoops Tribute design!

A few more Knicks, including some Kevin Knox RCs and a sad card of Porzingas. I do love the sweet Knicks City Jersey.

For the baseball portion, I really loved the 2019 Chrome Refractors. A nice pink of DJLM and the Jeter is awesome.

I LOVE this shot of Judge.

I'm surprised by how many Yankees cards Edwin is going to end up with this year. I loved having him in Pinstripes, even if it was for a short time and even if he stunk in the Playoffs.

Lastly, a vintage stock card of Yankees legend Ivan Rodriguez. Perhaps he is hitting his only Yankees homer in this shot?!

Kerry, thanks for being an awesome Secret Santa!

Join Secret Santa!

For the past few years, Matt from Bob Walk The Plank executed a nearly flawless Secret Santa amongst bloggers and collectors. This year, Jon of A Penny Sleeve For Your Thoughts has stepped up to the plate big time and offered to host. Click here to sign up!

The Secret Santa game has always treated me well.

In 2016, my pal Coach Tom of Waiting Til Next Year sent me an awesome box of cards, with this Phil Rizzuto leading the way. Tom even had someone else mail it so the origins left me very stumped.

Then in 2017, another All-World Blogger, San Jose Fuji, sent me a true treasure and a card I had wanted forever.

I also really enjoy shopping for the person I'm assigned, and COMC's Black Friday is a great way to pick up some good cards to send along.

Thanks to Jon for organizing!

Secret San(ta) Jose Fuji

My Secret Santa gift from Bob Walk The Plank's second annual event arrived yesterday, and I was thrilled to see it was from my long-time blogging buddy San Jose Fuji. He's obviously one of the more established bloggers out there, so I knew there'd be something good awaiting me. And between P-Town Tom last year and Fuji this year, I've really drawn some lucky straws.

I know several bloggers have been waiting to open theirs on Christmas, but I have no restraint so I tore into Fuji's package.

There were seven cards total, but I saw the back of this first and was immediately excited:

And the front!

This is a card I've wanted for a really long time! 20 years to be exact. It's a 1997 Studio Derek Jeter Hard Hat. The set is one of my favorite inserts ever. I remember seeing them in Beckett and really wanting one. I eventually got the Bernie Williams, then last year picked up the Juan Gonzalez and had him sign it TTM.

I am particularly horrible at keeping want lists, but I was fortunate enough to have it on my "Ten Most Wanted" on the right-hand side of my blog. Most are generic wants - Derek Jeter auto, Robinson Cano auto, but this was one of the actual specific cards I've wanted, and Fuji was able to track one down. Amazing!

While they are numbered to 5,000, they are a lot tougher to actually find. I can't believe I finally own the Jeter!

Fuji also bundled up three Tino Martinez refractors for me. I am partial to the Bowman's Best. It looks awesome.

And three other shiny Tinos from his Mariner days.

Thanks again, Fuji. You really hit it out of the park! I'm very grateful for the cards, and hope you and your family have a great Christmas. And special thanks to Matt for organizing once again. It can't be easy!

Secret Santa loot!

Last week, my wife said, “Here, you got a package from FedEx.” I wasn’t expecting anything, nor did I recognize the return address. That could only mean one thing, really: SECRET SANTA!

I quickly opened to find a blaster of Archives. Cool, I thought. I haven’t busted any of this. Except then I noticed the tape job. Oh yeah, this was just a package decoy.

Upon opening, I found a smaller wrapped box, filled with four team bags full of cards. There was a note that said “From BWTP Secret Santa.” Still, no identity! How secretive.

Whoever this fellow collector is did a great job of researching what I like. Perhaps it’s a frequent trade partner, but pretty much every card in this package was tailored to what I collect. Impressive!

While it was all great, this is the card that dropped my jaw:

Look at that! Rizzuto game worn pants, with a Jose Reyes relic to boot! I love the old, cream-colored Yankee swatches. They are so awesome looking, and this is a really sharp card. It’s crazy to me that on several occasions, a fellow collector has sent me a Rizzuto relic. There were plenty more Scooters too, as I needed each of these for my mini PC of him:

It wasn’t just all Scooter. My Secret Santa knows I love prospects! I was psyched to get another Gleyber Torres card, even if he’s still featured as a Cub. I’ll take any I can get these days! There was a ton of Bowman, overall, which I love.

Interestingly, none of these “Breakouts” are with the Yankees anymore.

Neither is this guy <sniffle>.

There were also plenty of cards of a former prospect turned mega star as well. Gary Sanchez cards are not easy to come by anymore after his torrid last two months of the season. They are nearly impossible to get for a reasonable price on eBay or COMC. There was no shortage of the man child here.

Secret Santa, hopefully you’ll reveal yourself in the comments. You did a good job of leaving no traces as to your identity. The package was above and beyond what I could have imagined for a Secret Santa gift. Thank you!

Secret Santa haul

I apologize that this has taken so long to post my Secret Santa haul from Bad Wax’s Secret Santa/Hanukkah Harry. I finally found a few minutes between changing poopy diapers to scan the cards and provide a quick write-up.

My Secret Santa was Cam from Cardboard Heaven. If you haven’t checked out his blog, do so. He definitely has one of the best blog headers out there. I’m envious of it and wish I had the Photoshop skills to create something as cool.

I gave a list of a few wish list cards, but I’m always happy with any and all Yankees. Cam didn’t disappoint. He sent a fantastic haul. Here are the highlights:

My favorite card is definitely this 2011 Eduardo Nunez Auto Refractor. The signature is on-card which is sweet. I’ve never been able to get Nunez TTM, so I really wanted a 2011 auto of his.

Next up, a framed mini relic of ARod. This is only my second ARod relic! Pretty sweet card. The A&G relics are always well done.

 Jesus! These Bowman Futures cards are really growing on me.

Liquorfractors!

And a big stack of Yanks that I was too lazy to scan. The stack was full of many of my favorite Yanks – Jeter, Mattingly, Yogi, DiMaggio. I can honestly say that none of the cards were dupes either!

Cam – thanks for the great Secret Santa gift!