So many 2020 Tino cards

This card marks my 31st Tino Martinez card released in 2020. That seems like a lot for a guy who was a minor to semi-star for a short time and retired 15 seasons ago.

Although I suppose it's not that many, considering Trading Card Database lists 145 Tino cards for 2020. Granted, many of them are parallels, but still. That's a lot of cards.

The card above is from Topps' on-demand yearly mini set. That's a set and card size I have little to no interest in, except when my favorite player of all time is featured. So of course I'll pick up the Tinos that are out there. 

This is one of the rarer ones, as it's the pink numbered to /25. It's always fun to pick up ones like this before the base card. Extra bonus is that it's PINK for the SAVESECONDBASE contest this October.

The 2020 Tino I'm most excited about that I don't have yet is the blue Chrome Sapphire. They are toiling around at $5-$6 on eBay, but I do hope they come down just a touch before I decide to smash that BIN button.

I guess it's a double-edged sword. If it weren't for Tino in 2020 products, I'm not sure what would excite me about 2020 cards given the current state of, you know, not being able to buy cards anywhere. I do pick up Gleyber and Judge and Cole cards, but those are mostly through TCDB trades and not purchases. I rarely purchase non-Tino cards.

As of now, Tino has a few cards set to be in 2021 Topps flagship, but they are all autographs as far as I can see, which leads me to believe Topps has a few sticker sheets of his autograph left and need to throw them on something. I'd be surprised if they are on-card, but we shall see.

Regardless, 31 new cards to my Tino collection from 2020. That's pretty nuts.

I thought the Glossies would be a little...Glossier

"That John Denver is full of sh*t, man."

That was the line that popped into my head when my 2019 Topps All & Ginter Tino Martinez Glossy Mini card arrived. It is a 1/1, and my first modern day Tino 1/1!

I wasn't sure why, but the card didn't seem very glossy. It would be easy to flip right past in a stack of minis. Luckily I knew I had it coming to me, but I wonder how many of these get overlooked by people ripping wax.

I spent a lot more on this card than I planned (and I blame Zippy Zappy). I made what I felt was a low offer to a seller on eBay, and it was accepted. However, even the "low" offer was a lot more than I typically spend on cards.

Still, a Tino 1/1 from 2019? Sign me up!

And if you have a stack a of minis, take another look, because you might have a glossy without even knowing it!

#LittleMike

So far, Michael Pineda has had a fairly pedestrian start to the 2015 season. After pitching really well in 2014 (1.89 ERA in 76 innings), then dominating this spring, many expected him to get off to a very fast start for the Yanks.

He hasn't been bad, but he hasn't been good either. He's come away with the "win" in two of his three starts. However, his ERA sits at 5.00 on the dot, but with a 2.56 FIP. That will all balance out. His second start against Baltimore was likely his best, although he gave up 5 ER, he had 9 Ks/0 BBs and looked really sharp. He just made a few mistake and the Orioles made him pay.

What impressed me about yesterday's outing against the Rays was that he clearly didn't have his best stuff, including a very rare walk (to the leadoff hitter no less!), but he battled, found a way to hold the Rays down, and gave the team a chance to win. To me, that's a sign of maturity, something Big Mike seemed to have lack over the course of his young career. He figured out how to battle and kept his team close when he wasn't as sharp as usual. Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens used to say that those wins meant the most to them.

So Big Mike hasn't quite been big yet, but he hasn't been awful either. The Yanks have won each game he has pitches, and as the weather warms up, I expect Big Mike to as well.

The card above is actually a mini (hence, Little Mike) from 2014 Topps Mini. It's a gold parallel #'d 32/63. I got a great deal on this card, along with an ARod, which is now in the hands of Zippy Zappy. It's my 101st different Pineda card.

JBF Week: I shall call him Mini Me

I've grown to like Topps Minis over the last few seasons. I like this type of mini a lot more than A&G or Gypsy Queen minis.  I actually don't really know why. It's the same card, just smaller. I guess I've always liked to see the same thing, just downsized. After all, I loved Topps Micros in the early '90s.

The above Brett Garnder and CC Sabathia were from 2013 Topps Mini. The Gardner is #'d to 63, while the CC is #'d 5/5, which is awesome. I've actually found that these are fairly affordable online, and I've picked up a few for trade packages from time to time.

Here is another batch, courtesy of the same JBF package. I might need to try and complete this team set!

PINKeda Mini

So, I purchased this card thinking it was a full-sized card, and then it showed up as a mini. It was just a classic case of me not paying attention to the item description (which clearly stated "MINI") and what actually exists. It's #'d to 25, so that's a nice little bonus.

Regardless, I needed it and I like it. I'm not positive where I stand on Topps minis as a whole. I suppose they are slightly less desirable because they aren't available to the masses, but I still enjoy the Yankees minis. This card, and ones like it, certainly have a place in my collection.