SuperTraders #22: Cardboard Clubhouse

I've vowed to try and catch up on trade packages and clean out the scanned folder this week.

I'll start with a #SuperTraders package I got from Adam of the Cardboard Clubhouse. Prior to SuperTraders, I don't think I had the pleasure of swapping cardboard with Adam, so this is certainly one of the intended purposes of the group.

Adam is a big Halloween fan, and sent me some treats just before October 31, placing me about a month behind showing these off.

One of the greatest treats was an unopened Yankees 1993 Stadium Club team set. I had received a few of these cards in various trades, but definitely didn't have the complete set in one place. Now I do. Love that Brien Taylor led off things off. Man, what could have been...

I haven't busted this thing out of the plastic wrap yet, but I'm sure I will for storing purposes. It's too bulky!

There was also a ton of '70s vintage! Some cards I definitely didn't have, and some that will undoubtedly be used for some TTMs. It's kind of crazy that I still get taken aback when vintage falls out of trade package, but it hasn't lost its luster on me at all. These were also in really nice condition.

Of course, there was also a mixture of new cards too. I seem to receive less and less A&G every year, and since I don't really buy the product myself, I appreciate what is sent my way. This foil-stamped mini McCann 10th Anniversary is pretty cool, even though he's now an Astro!

Lastly, I thought this year's Pro Debut cards looked really nice. I actually liked the blues of this card more than the Yankees regular flagship design. Degano had a pretty horrid season and went from someone who looked like a stellar prospect to someone who couldn't find the plate. He had 34 BBs in 27 innings. Weird how that happens. Maybe he can straighten it out a bit this season. I'm pulling for the guy, as he seems like a good dude and is a great TTM signer.

Adam, thanks again for all these great cards. Halloween is only 11 months away!

A scary contest win

A few weeks ago, I was a victor in the awesome Halloween horror film sketch card contest over at Pack War, run by Corky. I was lucky enough to have first pick, and as tough as it was, I think I made an awesome decision:

Freddy Krueger!

I love how Corky make Freddy a silhouette, and used the red background to accentuate some of Freddy's features. Plus, it's just a downright scary pose. It's really well done! The back is really cool too. I'm not sure if Corky orders these or prints himself, but it's a great touch.

Corky also sent me this Tino which I definitely didn't have. I don't even recall seeing it anywhere. I love it when a blogger can dig up a Tino that's completely new to me. It happens a lot!

Thanks, Corky!

The unshiny new toy

With the Yankees barrage of new talent in the farm system, it has been very easy to become enamored with the shiny new toys. Guys like Clint Frazier, Justus Sheffield, and Gleyber Torres quickly supplanted upper-level Yankee prospects like Jorge Mateo has the new crown jewels of the system.

One guy who is being a little overlooked is James Kaprielian, a 2015 first rounder. He entered the year as the Yankees best pitching prospect, and he certainly lived up to that in his first few starts, going 2-1 and striking out 22 in 18 innings at High A Tampa. Unfortunately, his season ended there with an elbow injury. He didn't require TJ Surgery and has ended up pitching in the Arizona Fall League. Still, it was a blow to lose all the development time.

The injury and lost time definitely took away some of the shininess of Kaprielian, but make no mistake, he's a great arm with a real opportunity to help the Yankees, maybe even in 2017 at some point. While he is no longer the shiny new toy like he was heading into 2016, he's quietly still one of their top prospects, and a guy I expect to have an impact on the team, assuming he's healthy.

The injury actually did help one thing: his card prices, which are fairly low right now. He's got a decent amount of autos and relics out there so far, and I'm stocking up, as I believe he'll be back on the prospect radar in 2017. The relic above cost me just a buck, and I'll probably add a few more during the upcoming COMC Black Friday promos.

Simply the Finest

1993 Toops Finest.

I remember drooling over these cards as a youngster. I thumbed through magazines and looked at pictures of them, or looked at them behind the glass at my local shop. Those cards were not for me. I wanted them, but they were out of my league.

In 1994, I bought a grab bag at a card show with a '94 Finest Tom Glavine on top. I knew it wasn't 1993 Finest, but this is as close as I was going to come.

Years later, I did end up with that elusive 1993 Finest Mattingly. However, I eventually sent it elsewhere to a collector who would have valued it more than me. No regrets!

Well, thanks to Chris at The Collector, the 1993 Finest Mattingly once again sits in my collection.

Christ reached out a while back mentioning that he had the card, and I was excited to take it off his hands. He was also kind enough to send me a few other Yankees, including an equally cool Jorge Posada Bowman's Best RC. This too, was one of those shiny sets that always stood out.

There were also a few nice prospect cards to round out the package. While I was excited to get them (especially Kaprielian), those cards just don't move me the way these two legendary sets from the '90s do.

Thanks, Chris!

TTM Success: Josh Rogers

The Yankeres drafted Josh Rogers in the 11th round of the 2015 MLB DRaft, and he's been nothing short of great for them so far. As an advanced college arm, he spent most of last season at High A Tampa, going 10-5 with a 2.53 ERA and 90K/20B in 113.2 innings. The lefty clearly has some good control.

He's not part of MLB.com's Top 30 Yankee Prospects, further showing how far their system has some.

I'd expect him to be part of Trenton's rotation next year, and it shouldn't take long before he's knocking on the door of NY.

My Best Son Collects HOFers from My Best Friend Collects Chipper Jones

A couple of weeks ago, Mark from My Best Friend Collects Chipper Jones said that he’d like to send a few cards for my son’s Hall of Fame collection. For those who don’t know, I started acquiring a few Hall of Fame cards to place in a binder for my son, who is currently four. Several of you have sent him a bunch of great cards out of the kindness of your hearts. Even in trade packages, there will often be a team bag with a post-it that says “For Joey.” Rest assured, each card that comes his way goes directly into his binder.

I haven’t had the fortune of trading with Mark yet, but he kindly reached out and sent a batch. These were very generous. This was the card that really caught my attention:

Vibrant! Man, what a sweet Gibson. Not far behind was this:

That’s a damn solid entry into the binder.

Here is the rest of shipment one. That Gaylord Perry is um…interesting.

 

I said “shipment one” above because about a week later, Mark sent another awesome batch, headed by Hammerin’ Hank and Rod Carew.

I definitely did not have a Bunning for Joey either, so that’s cool. I love the mix of vintage and some newer cards. That George Brett Now & Then is really neat too. I feel like we need a modern day version of this set.

Mark, thanks so much for your generosity. It really is appreciated!

3 of 4 Accounted For

A couple of weeks ago, I snagged my newest Ty Hensley 1/1. This particular printing plate was the black one from 2012 Bowman Draft, the year he was drafted.

As luck would have it, my pal Drew of Drew's Hot Corner said he was going to be parting with a few Hensleys, and offered a very fair price on the following:

The cyan plate! So in a matter of a couple weeks, I went to owning zero to owning 50% of the four printing plates from 2012 Bowman Draft.

And I know where the magenta one is. It's still with Drew!

He has it signed and wasn't ready to part with it yet, which is totally cool. I like knowing where it is in the world, and I'm sure if Drew ever decides to move it, he'll give me first dibs.

I'll be keeping my eye out for the yellow one. It would be really cool to know where all four are! Do any of you own all four versions of a plate?

In addition to the cyan plate, this Red Ice from the same set was part of the deal. It's numbered 01/25. I didn't have this one, so I was happy to track this one down.

Drew, thanks for the deal!