Making my 11-year-old self proud

When I was a kid, I constantly scanned the pages of Beckett and Tuff Stuff, feasting my eyes on cards I couldn't have. Sometimes, it was vintage, like 1972 Topps, which seemed like cards that were so old I would never own them. In fact, I remember being in 8th grade when I bought a lot of Yanks, and was floored when a 1972 Topps Mel Stottlemyre was included.

Beyond the vintage were shiny, beautiful cards that just weren't available at CVS or Revco, where I got my cards. Once in awhile I'd go to a local card shop and blow some money from shoveling snow, but I almost always bought several packs as opposed to spending my money on a higher end pack or single card. I'd always glance at the display case, looking at the shiny cards that belonged behind glass or in the pages of the monthly magazine. Those weren't for me. I was buying packs of Collector's Choice and Hoops, and if I splurged, Fleer Ultra. I don't think I even knew Topps Finest was its own set that came in its own expensive packs. I just wondered why they never fell out of my regular Topps packs.

We were a very blue collar, middle class family. I never had the new Jordan or Penny Hardaway or Griffey sneakers, even though I spent hours looking at them in Eastbay catalogues. Cards were like that too. I could have the affordable ones, but just not the ones behind the glass. It was better than nothing.

It has stuck with me to this day, and is part of the reason I love '90s cards so much. They represent the cards that are ingrained in my head. The cards I put on pedestals on that I saw in the magazine pages. Now, with the magic of the internet, and the fact that I have a little money in my pocket, I can now have many of those cards I wanted. In fact, I can have them for a fraction of the price, because they aren't too pricey 20 years later.

Take this card, for example:

Man, I remember seeing this set. The neon. The cardstock. The futuristic look. This card was probably $10 or $12 back when it was out. Barley won an MVP that year. Fast forward to 2016, it was basically a throw-in for me on a recent COMC order. Seriously, it was probably a quarter or something.

And the thing is, I have no use for this card. At all. I'll probably put it in my kid's HOF binder. It was just the fact that I can now own something that I never dreamed of when I was a kid. It's very superficial and pretty stupid of me, but I felt like I needed a card like that to help bring some peace of mind to my 11-year-old self.

I then snagged a Refractor, because, why not? Again, it cost mere cents. But a 1993-94 Finest Refractor?! In my possession? I had to. I picked Seikaly since he is a Syracuse guy. But seriously?! A Refractor. From 1993-94. That's big.

While I can't quite pony up for a baseball Refractor from 1993, I did pick up a couple base cards.

Now, where can I buy a pair of 1997 Air Max Griffey sneakers?

TTM Success: Austin DeCarr

My second spring training TTM success arrived yesterday, and it's a good one. Yankees pitching prospect Austin DeCarr signed two cards for me. I must mention that I did offer for him to keep one of the cards, yet he signed both and even personalized one.

DeCarr was a 2014 3rd round draft choice out of a Connecticut prep school (spent a post-grad year there), and unfortunately missed last season with Tommy John surgery. It appears his rehab has gone well, and hopefully he'll be taking the mound again early this summer.

Turnaround time was only 9 days, which is pretty fast from NJ to Tampa and back. I thank Austin for his generosity, and wish him the best of luck this season.

SuperTraders #4: Bob Walk The Plank

SuperTraders packages are coming in faster than I can post about them, but that's ok! I love it. I did some sorting over the weekend breaking cards out into team lots. It's a great way to get rid of excess inventory!

On Saturday, I got two beauties in the mail from my pal Matthew over at Bob Walk The Plank. While it was "just" two cards deep, they were really nice.

The first that fell out is protected by one of those thick, tamper-proof plastic cases from Topps Tribute. Rarely do I get a card from this high-end of a set, and it did not disappoint. Feast your eyes on a flawless, on-card, shiny David Cone autograph. Ooooh man, is that nice. Numbered to just /199, the signature is great. Really classy card design too. Wow, I like this.

Despite the no license issue, Panini has been putting out some nice products over the last few years. They also have a nice, Refractor-type technology they put on select cards. Sometime it feels a little off on guys from the past, but I think it works well here:

Joe D #'d to just 75. What a pretty card. So nice I don't even notice the lack of an NY on there!

Matthew, I've got some stuff set aside for you that I look forward to sending your way. Thanks for these two awesome cards!

Twitter brings a new trade partner

I've probably traded with four or five new people on Twitter. I don't actively seek out new traders on this medium, but it's easy to get connected to new collectors through familiar collectors. That's exactly what happened this past week. Gavin from Breakdown Cards has a connection, @Stetsonaw, who posted about a 2015 Bowman Purple Ice Michael Pineda he was looking to unload. Gavin tagged me, and the connection was made!

Originally I thought I needed the Pineda. I have no clue what I have. Stetson was actually the one who pointed out that I have it on my "have" list on my blog. Derrrp.

Regardless, we still agreed to a blind trade, because hey, why not? Stetson sent me a great team bag full of Yanks, including my first 2016 Heritage cards. I've always been a fan of the '67 set. If I ever chase down a vintage set, I feel like '67 would be the one. Plus I already have the Mantle. That's a nice head start.

This is is also my first Starlin Castro Yankees card. Is that the first-ever photo-shopped sweatshirt?

This card also caught my eye! While it's from 2008 Topps, it's stamped with a 2008 All-Star wordmark. I did minimal searching and can't find much about it. I wonder if it was given out at All-Star fanfest or something? The back says 2 of 4, so there are three other cards in the set.

I can never have enough of Robert Refsnyder's first Bowman card.

These got little fanfare, but I think they are one of the nicest insert sets Topps has put out in the last few years.

Old school Bowman Chrome don't pop up in trade packages much!

There was a bunch of other goodies as well. Stetson, I owe you. Thanks!

SuperTraders #3: Mark Hoyle

Man, you guys are kicking my butt at #SuperTraders. I haven't sent out a thing, but rest-assured I will. I'm still trying to figure out my strategy - PWEs? Bubble Mailers? Bust a box? I'm not sure. I have a few unique ideas as well, just have to find some time to implement. However, fellow SuperTraders, rest assured I'll be stepping up my game soon.

I got my third SuperTraders package in the mail, this time from the king of vintage, Mark Hoyle. Mr. Hoyle seems to have an endless supply of vintage. I figured he'd be tapped out by now, but somehow he keeps replenishing. Take a look:

Wait a second. Those are far too shiny to have come from Mark.

Ok, getting older, but still not the vintage Mark clearly prides himself on. However, this is one of my favorite cards of all time. Great set, great player.

A HOFer for my son's binder. This is starting to feel more like a Hoyle package.

Here we go. While may not vintage vintage, these cards are still older than me.

BINGO. You knew it was coming, right?! Some awesome '70s Yanks.

Mark, thanks sir. Can't wait to get some Red Sox out of my house!

Tiny hooks a brother up

Uncle Tiny recently shot a nice package my way. He knows Yanks prospects are in my wheelhouse, and is always looking out for them.

I love this Greg Bird manu-relic. It's such a bummer that Bird is out for the season. I was really looking forward to him building on a strong rookie year.

This is the tale of two Tylers. Tyler Austin was once one of the crown jewels of the Yankees system. He was ranked as the 77th best prospect in the entire game heading into the 2013 season. Since then, he's battled injuries and just hasn't raked the way he did in 2011 and 2012. By now, he was supposed to be in the Bronx or right on the cusp. Instead, he's likely headed for another year in Scranton. Maybe he'll have a big start to the season and put himself in position for a call-up the way Slade Heathcott and Mason Williams did last year. However, without an invite to Big League camp, he's certainly not someone the Yankees are counting on. Too bad.

Tyler Wade on the other hand, just keeps climbing the Yankees organizational ladder, and doing so rather quietly. He was a 4th round pick in 2013, and spent last season in A+ and AA ball, where he was on average 3 years younger than the league average. He's likely ticketed for AA to start the season, but he's spending the spring in Big League camp as a 21-year-old, which is impressive. He might not be as sexy of a prospect as Jorge Mateo, but he's closer to the Majors (for now) and has a great chance to be a useful player in the next season or two.

Brad Halsey auto. RIP, sir.

Here's the best of the rest. Leonardo Molina is super young and oozing with tools. Giambi is not young, but is young at heart for sure. I believe he's spending his spring coaching the Indians. I'll be curious to see if he ends up coaching or managing one day.

Tiny, thanks my friend!

When 11 for 100 is a good average

If you're a .110 hitter in the majors, you're not good. In fact, you are probably used to riding buses in the minors, because someone hitting .110 doesn't last very long, unless your name is Stephen Drew.

But when you're a player collector, and you buy a lot of 100 cards of your favorite player, and you end up with 11 you needed out of the 100 cards, that's surprisingly good.

For the most part, I don't buy large lots of my PC guys. It ends up always being dupes. While this was no different, this seller had 100 Tino cards for $.99 + $3 shipping. I decided to take a shot and was the only bidder. I figured if I came away with a few new ones, I'd be pleased. I have to say that 11 exceeded my expectations. Additionally, many of them were Cardinals cards, and I actually am missing a ton from those years.

All in all, I'd have to say it was a pretty good deal, and was a fun lot to sort through despite not needing 89 of the cards.

I won't be doing this again anytime soon, but overall, not a bad experience.