Christmas Gift From Drew - Machado Patch and More

Believe it or not, Christmas packages are still rolling in, and this one was from my good friend, Drew.  He sent me this awesome Manny Machado patch from 2016 Topps Strata and also a 25th Anniversary Camden Yards logo OMLB.  I'll probably get the ball signed sometime soon; maybe at Fan Fest.

The Machado card is really nice and numbered 52/75.  Drew probably really liked this card and I'm sure he is hoping I re-gift it back to him once the Yankees trade for or sign Manny.  I kid, I'll keep the card, regardless!

Thank you so much for the gifts, Drew!  I really appreciate it!

Christmas Gift From Dalton

I was completely surprised at the huge box of stuff that came in recently from my good friend, Dalton.  He and I have been friends on Instagram and Snapchat for a long time.  He always comes to me for advice, and I try to help him out as best I can.  He had been hinting that he was going to do something big for Christmas, but I wasn't sure what it would be.  I never expect anything in return for helping him out, so when this big box came in, I was floored.

The box wasn't all filler, either.  He filled it up with some amazing stuff.  Some of the box was stuff I bought off of Dalton to help him finance some of his family's Christmas gifts, and the rest were surprises that he threw in.  The above Zach Britton signed photo was one of the surprises.

Dalton offered to sell me this signed Orioles photo a few times, but I didn't really have the money at the time.  I was really surprised that he ended up just including it in the package.  I asked him about giving so much, and he responded with "I wanted to make your Christmas amazing."  Well, he sure did that.

I was able to guess this signature right away, Trey Mancini.  I'll probably keep it in the top loader that Dalton provided, since my album pages aren't big enough.

Dalton knows how much I enjoy adding new cards to my auto binder, so he included three signed cards that he had.  I had gotten Carlos Baerga TTM (and I assume that's where Dalton got this one), but I hadn't gotten this particular card signed, so it was nice to get.  I assume he got the above Tim Laudner signed in person at a Twins Alumni event or something, seeing as the Twins are his hometown team.

I actually saw a bunch of Pat Dean cards the other day as I was cleaning up my minors box.  I wondered if I could get any signed, and I saw that Dalton included this.  I like these Elite Extra Edition cards; they look really nice when signed.

Finally, the stuff that really blew me away was all of this that Dalton included.  The bottom two balls (Manny Machado and Mark Trumbo) were what I bought off of Dalton to help him out.  The rest were ones he threw in.  Included was a multi-signed ball that included Greg Maddux, Ron Kittle, two game used balls and another that he had gotten signed, but I forget by whom, haha.

Dalton is a really good kid.  I sincerely enjoy helping him out.  I never did it with any thoughts of receiving anything in return.  He always has time to chat, even though he is always busy.  I think the world of him, and really am blown away at his kindness and generosity.  Thank you so much, Dalton.

Christmas GIft From Nick S.

My buddy, Nick, sent me a nice little package for Christmas that had a few autos and a nice rookie card included.  This Ashe Russell Bowmans Best is a really pretty card.  It is numbered 21/99.  I don't know much about Russell, but the card is nice, and I plan to hold onto it.

Nick included this Panini Prizm Manny Machado RC with the package.  Manny probably won't be an Oriole for much longer, but this card will stay in the collection.

Finally, Nick included this 2016 Bowman Conner Capel IP auto.  This will be put into my album with all of my other IP and TTM autos.

Thank you so much for the Christmas gift, Nick, I really appreciate it!!

Instagram Trade With Colin

This is the last thing I had scanned before I start on my Christmas gifts that I got recently.  This was a trade I did a while ago with a kid named Colin from Instagram.  I sent him a bunch of cards for his PC in exchange for this Manny Machado Target Red RC.  I had one in my collection that I had sold, and I held onto this one.  I can't remember who Colin PCed but I know I have more cards set aside for him in a pile somewhere on my desk.  Once I find them, my memory will have been jogged.

Thanks for the deal, Colin!

Orioles Relics and Autos From The National

There are, by far, not all of the relic and auto cards I picked up at the National.  I hit some of the bargain bins pretty hard the whole time I was there and ended up with some really nice cards.  This 2017 Tribute Adam Jones patch was probably the best of the bargain bin finds.  Numbere 9/25, it has a 3-color patch that looks pretty great.

This Adam Jones relic was also pretty cool.  I was glad to find some of his stuff for cheap at the show, since I haven't added a lot to the Jones PC in a long time.  Jones has been with the club since 2008, and has begun to pass some Oriole legends in some of the all-time stat rankings.  I hope he can finish his career as an Oriole, but that remains to be seen.

I thought it was pretty odd to find a Manny Machado patch in a bargain box, but this one was in there.  Since I love Museum so much, I picked it up.  I don't remember what I spent, but it wasn't much at all, and I am pretty sure I got it in a bulk deal with some other stuff anyway.

Finally, I added this Bill Ripken certified auto from 2005 Leaf Century Collection.  The card is numbered 63/250.  I believe this is only the second Bill certified auto that I have been able to find.  The other being the Cal/Bill dual auto that Drew got for me a while back.

I looked at my stack of National finds today and realized that I am just about done posting about the show.  I'm not as far behind as I thought I was.  Maybe I can get the rest posted soon and move on to other things.

New Topps Now Pickup - Mancini's Magic Bat

Trey Mancini has done pretty well so far this season.  He might just end up becoming a new full-on PC for me, especially now that Nolan Reimold has retired and is not likely to have any new cards issued.

When Topps Now issued this card about the game the night before where Mancini hit a couple homers, then Gentry and Machado borrowed his bat and did the same...  I had to get it.  I got the 5-pack, and send one of the cards to my new friend, Andy, who is a huge Mancini fan.  I know he enjoyed the surprise.

There are a couple other Orioles Topps Now cards from this year that I missed out on, so I will have to EBay those.  I like this year's design.  The back has almost a glossy refractor look to it, which is pretty cool.

Card Show Pickup - Another Orioles Quad

I didn't really make many purchases for the PC at the most recent card show I attended.  The show was on February 11 and I went mostly to pick up some bulk Topps cards for more TTMs, but I did find this quad relic Orioles card that I thought would go nicely in my Davis PC.  The seller wanted WAY too much for the card, but as I was about to leave at closing time, I made him a reasonable offer, and he accepted.  Yeah, the patches are great, but there's no way I would pay the sticker price he had on the card ($100).  No way at all.

Luckily, I got it for a LOT less than that.  I also got it for exactly what I had left in my wallet, which worked out nicely.  I had a great time at the show, Chris came with me and actually helped me this time.  He didn't get too bored, and actually picked up a few things for himself.  One of which was a really sweet Matt Cain patch card for an absolute steal.  He may have done better than I did!

Surprise Christmas Care Package From Billy S.

It says something when someone you have never met before you is compelled to send you a Christmas gift.  When you pair that with the heartfelt note and kind words exchanged in addition to the gift, you definitely take notice.  I was approached through Instagram DM recently by a fellow who uses the handle "bscollectables".  He said that he had seen the things I did for the Instagram card community, especially helping kids get some help with their collections, and he felt the need to send me a little something for Christmas.

Well, the package arrived shortly after that, and I was blown away.  In the package was several chrome rookie cards of some pretty high-end stars: Kris Bryant, Manny Machado and Corey Seager.  Not only were those in there, but a base RC of Seager, two base rookies of Manny and a Cal I didn't have in my collection.

There was also a Dariel Alvarez auto from 2016 Chrome, as well. Billy also included a letter reiterating what he said in the DM about my helping the community and having a great passion for baseball cards.

I can't express how humbled I am that I had this impact on someone I hadn't even met before.  I sincerely appreciate Billy's kindness, and I plan on doing something for him in the future.

Thank you so much for the package, Billy, I really appreciate it!

Christmas Gift From Nick H.

I got a really nice package and note in the mail from my friend, Nick H. right before Christmas.  He included two Stadium Club cards for my set, and also a few Orioles for the collection.  This 2015 Topps Manny Machado logoman pin is a really cool card that I didn't have in my collection.  The back of the card got a little messed up in shipping, but you can't tell when looking at the front.  I still love the card, regardless.

I love these Topps Trajectory Autos from 2014 Topps.  This will go with the Ripken that I pulled.  This design might be one of my favorite across all brands, sets and subsets of baseball cards.  It just looks really cool and the color coordination of them really stands out.

Nick is a really nice kid that I have been trading with on Instagram for most of the past year.  He is a big Michael Choice fan, so I got him a Team USA patch card for Christmas.  I really hope to do some more deals with Nick in the future, because he is really nice and easy to deal with.

Thank you so much for the Christmas gift, Nick!  I loved all of the cards and the note that you sent!

Christmas Gift From AJ

I got a really nice Christmas gift in the mail from my little buddy, AJ, that had a ton of Orioles and a few other relics and autos included.  AJ is a huge Reds fan that I try to help out when I can.  He has had a couple older "graphers" give him a hard time at games, so I try my best to send him some stuff to help his collection since the older kids seem to think making fun of someone's collection is something to do.

AJ sent me this awesome Manny Machado blue parallel from 2012 Bowman Platinum.  I need to pick up a magnetic case for this.  The card looks great, and I really appreciate AJ sending it along.

AJ sent me a handful of these Orioles holiday parallels from Topps Retail.  I really liked this Wieters, especially since he probably won't be an Oriole in 2017 Topps.

Among the relic cards that AJ sent, he included this Adam Jones relic from 2015 Topps.  AJ also sent one of his own cards, signed, from his past baseball season.  I thought that was a really cool gesture, which I definitely appreciated.

Thank you so much for the Christmas package, AJ!  I appreciate it!

A Gift From Frankie At The National

I spent a lot of time at the National with my good friend, Frankie.  The National was in hit back yard, and he was a very gracious host to Andrew and I while we were there.  Early on at the show, Frankie surprised me with this awesome 2016 Museum Collection Manny Machaco quad relic.  It has a nice piece of orange patch, as well.  The card is numbered 42/75.

I really appreciated Frankie hooking me up with this card.  He didn't have to give it to me, but he did.  I love Museum Collection, and this Machado will look great in my collection!  Thanks Frankie!

My First Topps Now Card - Orioles Record Breaker

Topps came out with a really cool idea this season by putting the previous day's highlights on a card.  The concept gets even better in that the cards are only available for order for 24 hours, then the print run stops.  Some cards have been run for 200+ copies; some for over 1,000.  There have been a couple Orioles ones issued this year, but I finally took the plunge on Topps Now when the Orioles tied the home run record for June.

I bought the card off of the Topps website for $9.99 and it ended with a print run of 526 copies made.

This card will be an entry in my Chris Davis PC, but when I was scanning the card for this blog post, I noticed something about the card that I didn't realize before.  Have you caught it yet?

That is Matt Wieters on a Topps card.  Why does that matter?  Well, since he signed with the Orioles, Wieters has not been featured on any Topps products, with the exception of Topps Bunt and E-Topps.  He has had no regular issue Topps cards.  He signed an exclusive deal with Razor back in 2008 that would have allowed him to appear on Topps or Upper Deck cards one year after his debut.  He has had no Topps cards at all, so either he or they have not budged.  So, this Topps Now card could be his first ever Topps card (really, who counts E-Topps or Topps Bunt?).  That makes this card that much cooler for me.

There are two other Chris Davis Topps Now cards that I have seen.  I plan on picking them up, but am holding out for the National.  My hope is that a vendor there will have them, and I can rack up.  I really like this concept and hope that Topps keeps it up.  I also hope some of my PC guys do some major things to end up on future offerings.

Ebay Pickup - Orioles Quad Patch From 2016 Museum Collection

I finally got a good deal on a quad relic of Orioles from 2016 Museum Collection.  I got it for less than $20 and it is already in a magnetic case.  It features Jones, Davis, Hardy and Machado, with a patch from Davis.

I now have Davis patches from 2014 to 2016 Museum Collection and I plan on adding some more, if I can get them as reasonable prices.

Awesome Trade With Jared

My friend Tim from the blog "I Love The Smell of Cardboard in the Morning" emailed me recently about a package he intended to ship to me.  In his closing remarks in the email, he mentioned that a fellow blogger had pulled an amazing Manny Machado dual relic/auto and was looking to unload it.  I took a look at the card and was amazed by it, but shot myself down pretty quickly.  My thoughts were "this card is awesome, but there is no way I will be able to afford to pry it away from him..."  Fast forward a couple weeks and I get a surprise follow on Instagram and then an email from the proprietor of the owner of the card, fellow blogger Jared from the blog Catching Up With Collecting.

Jared had heard that I was an Orioles fan and would be interested in the card, so I asked him what it would take to pry it away.  Then, I remembered that I was going to be heading to the antique shop in Columbia and could possibly find some cards that were on his top ten want list.

So, after my trip, I had a couple cards I thought Jared would like, and we instantly matched up on a deal.  You can read about what he got in the trade here.

This Machado card is really awesome, and I am happy that I was able to pull off a trade to get it.  It is numbered 8/10 and will go in a magnetic case, once I go to the card show in the middle of this month.

Thank you for the deal, Jared!  I hope you are as happy with your end of the deal as I am with mine!

Christmas Gift From Drew

Wow.  Take a look at the above card.  Yeah, Drew gave this to me for Christmas.  A card that he has had in his collection for a few years now.  A card that he once told me that would end up in my collection, once he felt the time was right.  I guess the time was right, because this 2005 Donruss INKCrdible Cal/Bill Ripken dual auto was in the Christmas package from him that arrived yesterday.

This card is amazing.  I actually had no Bill Ripken autos in my collection, one that I have been building since 1990.  No Bill Ripken autos at all.  I still don't have him on a ball.  I'm not sure why, except for maybe that he doesn't sign a lot; he doesn't seem to have too many certified autos in any products either.  Getting this card into my collection is a huge deal for me.

This card was also in the package, and while it seemed like I kind of overlooked it with my excitement over the Ripken dual auto, this triple relic from 2014 Panini Classics is a really nice card as well.  Numbered 3/99, it is really cool.  This is going right into the Chris Davis PC and spreadsheet.

Drew has been the longest tenured friend that I have made since I started this blog and joined the online card community.  I have seen him grow up from a 12-year old kid to a college student about to embark on a huge journey in his life.  His blog has undergone huge changes recently, including a change in URL.  I recommend that you check it out.  The link can be found here.  I have also updated it on my sidebar.

Thank you so much for the awesome Christmas gifts, Drew!  Good luck on your journey, and I will be here in a completely different time zone waiting to hear from you!

Christmas Gift From Cameron

I got an amazing Christmas package in the mail recently from my good buddy, Cameron.  He really blew me away with what he sent.  He is such a good guy, and didn't have to get me what he got, but it was very appreciated.

The above Matt Wieters three color patch from Panini Donruss is such an amazing card.  Wieters doesn't have much as far as relics and stuff, so this one is a nice addition to my collection.  It really was a surprise.

Cameron included this blue 2014 Bowman Chrome auto of Oscar Taveras as a throwback to our first deal.  We met during a trade for a Topps Hi Tek Taveras auto.  Since then, we have been really good friends.  This is a nice Taveras and it is numbered 9/150.

He included a nice auto of Hunter Harvey from 2014 Bowman Sterling.  I really like this card and I'm glad Cameron included it.  It looks really awesome.

I got this 2015 Topps Chrome Christian Walker from Cameron as well.  I have a couple of these, but am happy to add another one.

Cameron also included a few refractors like this Machado blue.  This card is numbered 18/250.  I don't think I had one of these yet, so I was glad to get this one.

Also, here is a purple refractor of Chris Tillman.  This is numbered 89/150.  I didn't have this one either.

Thank you so much for the Christmas package, Cameron.  The cards were amazing and I love them!

Relic Cards From Blaine

Continuing on with what I got from my friend, Blaine, here are some of the miscellaneous relic cards that were included in my package.  I don't know about you, but I really like the 2014 Triple Threads design.  The cards have what I would call a matte finish and it is really visually appealing with these cards, I think.

This 2014 Triple Threads Gausman relic is numbered 10/36.  The bright orange swatch really pops.  Gotta love the orange alternate jerseys.

This 2013 Allen & Ginter JJ Hardy is a nice card.  I don't have a whole lot of Hardy stuff, even though I really like the player.  I just haven't really done any kind of PC with him.  He has been the backbone of the Orioles these last few years, and I am glad that he is around.  He may be declining offensively, but he is still amazing with the glove.  He fills his job well as the "field general" in Baltimore.

I have a relic card like this one of Christian Walker from 2014 Topps Heritage Pro Debut, but it is a different color (white, I think, but I don't remember).  This blue one was nice to find in my package from Blaine.  Walker hasn't yet caught on with the O's, but with Chris Davis's impending departure, the first base job may be his (Walker's) to take.

Finally, I was pretty sure I had one of these, but I need to look through my boxes to verify.  This is a 2011 Goodwin Champions Manny Machado relic.  This is one of the first relic cards issued of Manny, so this is a pretty cool piece to have.

Blaine's deal still continues to deliver.  I will close it out tomorrow by showing off the autographs that were included.

Short Prints From Blaine

I still have a bunch of stuff from Blaine to show off, but I have been really busy lately.  Also, with the World Series starting, I will be watching that as well.  I'm still trying to post every day, but I haven't had much time to get the posts done.

I got four short prints from Blaine, two of which I have scanned and posted here.  I was looking for the above Manny SP for a while since it came out, but I never jumped on it.  I kind of forgot about it for a while, so I was really happy that it was in the package.

Here is the Futures Game jersey SP of Manny from 2014 Topps.  I also forgot about this card, so it was really cool to get it in the package as well.

I need to do a better job of looking up different short prints, but some of them are so hard to tell, then I give up on them.  Oh well.

By the way, the other two SPs were Dylan Bundys.  One of them was one I had, but the other was needed.

Thanks for hooking me up with these, Blaine!

Pickups From Our Trip

Chris and I were able to pick up a bunch of good stuff while we were in Baltimore this past weekend.  I got two game used balls; one thrown to Matt Wieters in the first game of the series, and a foul ball that Manny Machado hit in the last game.  I really wanted one from that last game, since it was Davis's last game as an Oriole.  They were $35 each, and I can type in the authentication number online and it will tell me who was pitching and who was batting, and the result of the play.  This is always really cool.  These will be put up with the other game used balls that I have.

I got this cool jar of field dirt from Camden Yards, which is something I have wanted for some time now.  I paid $20 for it, which I thought was fine, but a couple drunken "experts" at the Authentics store made their point known about how stupid it would be to spend $20 on a jar of dirt.  I guess they just don't "get it."

A family of Orioles fans in front of us during the second game gave Chris this foul ball hit by a Yankee during the second game.  It was hit down the line in the 5th inning, I think, which makes me think it was Brian McCann who hit it.  Not bad.  He mashed the crap out of the label, whoever hit it.

We did a little "graphing" before the first game, and both of us got Steve Pearce on OMLBs.  Not bad, since I didn't have Pearce yet.

I got my Orioles knit bomber hat before the second game, and Chris got one from a group of Yankee fans who didn't want theirs.  Before the last game, I got this Steve Pearce bobblehead.  Chris really wanted one, so I tried to get one for him from the entrance, but the guy was less than courteous.  It didn't make sense that it was all fans 15 and over, when a few weeks ago it was advertised as ALL fans.  Oh well, there were plenty of Yankee fans who didn't want theirs, so Chris ended up getting one from a nice lady in Yankee gear.  See, not all Yankee fans are bad (cough cough Drew cough cough).

We had such a good time.  I just added up everything that I spent, and it was quite a bit, but it was well worth it to be able to spend time with my son.  He is at a good age to hop in the car and take somewhere.  Soon, he may not be interested in stuff like this, so I have to enjoy it while I can.

Ebay Pickup - 2009 UD Team USA Manny Machado Triple Relic

I got this awesome Manny Machado triple relic card for a steal on Ebay recently, thanks to my friend, Fred.  He sends me links to ebay auctions every now and then, that I try to jump on, if I am able.  I was in the checkout line at Food Lion when I got the message with the link to this card, with 6 minutes to go, and I got it for less than $10.00.

Manny is having a great season, so far.  Hopefully, he can stay healthy, and remain on the field for the entire season.  He sure would have helped out last year in the playoffs.  The Orioles are playing amazing baseball right now, and I hope they can keep it up.  There is nothing like seeing your guys on the biggest stage.