Ripping Some 2020 Bowman

I like to get a taste of most new baseball product releases. For the products I really like - Topps Chrome and Bowman Chrome - I usually pick up a hobby box. When it comes to the next tier of products, I usually stop by my LCS and grab a few hobby packs. That's been my approach with Bowman for the last few years. Of course, things are a bit different this year. I hit a few Targets last week and was unable to find any Bowman on the shelves. I checked eBay and the 200% or greater markups were just too much for me. 

Browsing the Twitter universe the next day, I came across a user who buys and sells through Twitter who was selling some unopened Bowman for a very fair price. Since I was making a small bulk purchase, I was able to negotiate with him and got the price down a bit more. When it was said and done, I ended up paying $25 over MSRP for a lot of three value packs and four "fat packs." It was far better than what I would have paid on eBay.

Each value pack will give you 24 cards plus 5 camo parallels and the fat packs have 19 cards, so I was looking at 163 cards total. 

Starting out with the Buccos: I pulled six Pirates cards total with only one dupe. Lots of familiar faces here. I didn't realize Oneil cruz had an insert in this set until I pulled it out of the pack which was a neat little surprise.

Here's my "probably headed to eBay" group:

The prize of Bowman 2020 is Jasson Dominguez, the 17-year-old outfield prospect that signed with the Yankees in 2018 out of the international prospect pool and earned himself a cool $5 mil. He's the top prospect in the Yankees system and one of the top prospects in all of baseball... but, ya know... he's 17... and the odds are better that he'll flame out than be a star. That's true of all MLB prospects, but the hype around this kid's baseball card is pretty wild. It's going for $25 on eBay and the price is too juicy not to take in order to recoup some cost.

Curiously, I pulled exactly two copies of each of the top rookies in the set. The hype is real around all four of these guys. The one that jumps out to me the most is Gavin Lux because his name was floated for a week last June as a trade candidate for Felipe Vasquez. At the time Vasquez was one of the most dominant closers in baseball and would have made sense for any contender. The rumor was that Pirates were asking for Lux but he was the one player that was untouchable, per the Dodgers. The deal fell apart from there (so did Vasquez's career and probably the rest of his life as he's currently in jail facing 24 felonies. Ah, the Pirates).

These cards will be stashed away until one of them becomes the 2011 Topps Update Mike Trout Rookie. That's how it works, right?

Quarantine Cards

"I miss baseball." A phrase that many of us will utter many times over the next several months. I was just starting to get the baseball itch before all the craziness hit. It's going to be a long time before we see America's favorite pastime again. How this affect our collecting habits? Will we collect more? Less? Will we write and blog more? It remains to be seen. I'm going to use my added downtime to try and show off some of my favorite cards and get some trades going.

(L) 2020 Topps Heritage Bryan Reynolds Refractor #/571

(R) 2020 Topps Heritage Bryan Reynolds Black Refractor #/999

Heritage refractors: A very polarizing style of card. The general consensus seems to be more against these cards than for them. If that's the case, I'm in the minority. I'm sucker for refractors and I totally dig these cards. Reynolds broke out over the summer and his first card was printed for 2019 Update - so seeing him printed on cards is novel to me and frankly... I want them all.

2017 Bowman Chrome Josh Bell Refractor #/500

Another small eBay purchase. I was able to grab this for less than $10 shipped. Like Reynolds, JB really broke out last year. It seems people are still sleeping on him a bit, but the guy hit 37 dingers and knocked in 117 runs last year as was selected for his first All-Star game appearance.

2012 Bowman Chrome Josh Bell Gold Refractor #/50

This is card is, for the time being, the crown jewel of my ever-growing "Pirates Gold Room." AKA, my collection of Pirates Gold Refractors. The scan didn't quite do this card justice - but it's gold, and it's shiny, and I love it. I've been looking to get my hands on this card for quite some time. There were a few listings on eBay with pretty outrageous prices. Finally a seller came through a totally undercut his competition (by about half the price) and I was right there to scoop it up. Win/win.

2020 Topps Heritage 2020 Rookie Stars Yordan Alvarez / Aristides Aquino

2019 Donruss Devin Bush Red Press Proof

These two came my way via PWE from Max at Starting Nine. I won't be buying any Heritage packs this year so anything I'll be acquiring will be via single card purchase or trade. I was reading through Max's post about opening ripping Heritage and the Alvarez/Acquino caught my eye. I think both of these guys are for real. I'm pretty sure I'll be watching Aquino terrorize the Bucs for years to come. I had some random team set needs for Max, and we cooked a up a PWE trade quickly. The Bush rookie was a surprise - and an awesome one at that. Thanks Max, this was a pleasure!

Thanks for reading.

More from the Pirates Gold Room

A few weeks ago I wrote about an informal project I’m working on to collect as many Pirates gold parallels as possible. The post generated more comments than usual, so I’m going to give it an encore with a few more Pirates gold parallels that are currently living in my collection.

(L) 2016 Topps Chrome Joe Musgrove Gold Refractor #/50

(R) 2016 Topps Chrome Joe Musgrove Gold Refractor Autograph #/50

2017 Topps Chrome… I could take it or leave it when it comes to the design. 2017 was certainly not my favorite design year – but it delivered some key rookies for the Pirates with Josh Bell, Tyler Glasnow, and Joe Musgrove – although he made his debut with the Astros. 

2016 Bowman Chrome Joe Musgrove Gold Refractor #/50

Musgrove has been very inconsistent as a major leaguer but hasn’t come close to hitting his ceiling. Three years of average play is plenty to drive the value of your cards down. I was able to grab all three of these rookies for just about the price of a blaster.

2018 Topps Chrome Trevor Williams Gold Refractor Autograph #/50

Trevor Williams is your typical fan favorite. Family family, likable, and funny on Twitter.  He was fantastic in 2018, and really struggled with an injury-plagued 2019. Pirates fans are praying he can return to form this year and anchor the rotation. I believe I grabbed this for less than $10.

2013 Topps Chrome Update Pedro Alvarez Gold Refractor #/250

I have way, way too many Pedro Alvarez cards. “El Toro” as he was known to many Pirates fans was a true flash in the pan. The hype was real from the beginning. The Vanderbilt product was drafted #2 overall in 2008, and for a time was ranked higher in the Pirates farm system than Andrew McCutchen.

Pedro’s biggest year was in 2013 when led the NL in home runs with 36. He made his first (and only) All-Star team and participated in the Home Run Derby. With that kind of success comes a lot of cards! Topps printed the hell out of Pedro in 2013, and I have just about all of them. In fact, I could probably dedicate a whole post to him. Interestingly enough, he never signed for any Topps products. The only Alvarez autographs you’ll find are from non-licensed products – so I have very few.

Out of all the Alvarez cards I own, this is my favorite. This card is living proof of why borders are so awesome. Unlike the two Musgrove cards, you KNOW this puppy is a gold parallel right off the bat. It absolutely screams GOLD and I love that. Add on the Home Run Derby logo and a sweet action photo and you’ve got a really pretty card.

The scanner didn’t doesn’t do the card justice, it has a really great refractor shine to it:

My favorite part of the card is that Pedro isn’t wearing a hat or a helmet – a look that’s become somewhat of a Homerun Derby-specific appearance. I guess we have Bryce Harper and his glorious hair for that. Think about it though. Aren’t baseball players wearing caps or helmets in 95% of baseball card photos? The only consistent exceptions are short prints/variations, which are basically just a type of baseball card that features non-action photography. Ya know, players smiling on the bench and whatnot.

The Most Epic Trade

It all start when I was reading through a blog post from Brian over at Collecting Cutch.

In a blog post two weeks ago, Brian included a bit about his #1 most sought-after card – a 2014 Topps Opening Day Andrew McCutchen variant. I was super active in scooping up every Pirates card I could find between 2013-2015, and tucked away deep in my giant box of mostly-useless Pirates cards, I have a small stack of short prints and variants.

Sure enough, I had what Brian refers to as his unicorn. I am happy to say that it’s been delivered to a more deserving owner. As you’re about to see, this card must have really meant a ton to Brian, because OH MY GOODNESS did he deliver in return.

This is without question the largest trade package I’ve ever received – over 100 unique Pirates cards. A common theme will be “This is my first auto of this guy!” and “I’ve always been meaning to pick up a card like this.” There is some seriously incredible stuff in here. This is recap of some of the “highest highlights” – and there’s still a ton that I left out.

Yeah. Five envelopes, all with instruction/detail about how to dig in and enjoy. We’ll start out light and pick up the fun as it goes along:

A pair of Frankie Liriano’s to kick it off. He’s been in his prime on about three separate occasions in his career – the first being his early years with the twins. If you didn’t know, he’s back with the Pirates for his second stint. The 2019 Buccos are abysmal in every way that’s not named Josh Bell or Brian Reynolds – although Liriano has actually been a quality bullpen piece.

While exchanging trade ideas, Brian had asked me for some of my favorite players. Gerrit Cole, in a sad way, is one of them. A #1 overall pick that actually panned out for the Pirates. I wasn’t opposed to trading to him to Houston because I was 100% certain he wouldn’t sign a second deal with the Pirates. So any return was a good one. What he’s doing now in Houston would have never happened in Pittsburgh… but that doesn’t make it sting any less. I still root for him, quietly.

How sweet are those cards? All numbered /99 or less.

Continuing on the Cole train and now joined by his friends Pedro Alvarez and Mark Melancon. The patches are this card are so bad ass. Melancon has enjoyed a small revitalization of his career thanks to Shane Greene immediately imploding in Atlanta’s closer role. As for Alvarez… man, it seems like just yesterday that he was swinging for the fences in the 2013 home run derby. After failing to make the Marlins Opening Day roster (ouch), he’s out of the majors.

Back to Liriano: a Case Hit from 2016 Topps. This baby has a metal border on it. It feels like a dang paperweight and is officially the only metal card that I own. Numbered to only 16.

Printing plates, anyone? 2011 Topps Jose Tabata and Joel Hanrahan, and 2012 Jeff Locke.

Everyone remembers Jose Tabata a little differently. The word “Bust” comes to mind. I've written about this before: I remember Jose best for failing to move his elbow out of the path of a two out, 9^th inning fastball… that broke up a perfect game.

2014 Topps Supreme Oscar Taveras/Gregory Polanco Dual Auto /25. Wow… to think what could have been. Polanco still has a chance to make something of his career, and Taveras sadly does not. Beautiful card.

Three brand new players to my auto collection. Believe it or not, I’m a Pirates fan that didn’t previously own a Freddy Sanchez auto. That has now changed! Clay Holmes and Jose Osuna are two guys that have bounced between AAA and the majors for two years now. I’m a sucker for a nice Bowman Chrome Auto – especially a refractor.

Another awesome patch, this one capturing the corner of the buccaneer bandana on the Pirates logo. /99. Marte has been a staple in the Pirates lineup for six plus seasons now. I’ve collected him heavily and I’m happy to add several more awesome cards to the collection.

Almost an entire team set of 2017 Topps Chrome Blue Refractors.

Some great humor here from Brian. But seriously, he’s not kidding. He sent me enough printing plates to open my own card factory.

Yet another first auto for me: Pedro Alvarez. I never bought any Alvarez autos because A. They were always overpriced B. He never signed for a licensed product. I’m somewhat of a snob when it comes to certified autos, but this one I can get down with. This is also my first jersey letter patch card, from any player. 

Also pictured is a beauty – 2015 Gypsy Queen. Tri-color patch /5.

A couple more Marte autos, a Gerrit Cole Leaf auto, and a Cutch auto from the Cutch Collector himself.

And for the grand finale, an incredible Tyler Glasnow patch from Panini Immaculate. This might be my favorite card of the bunch, capturing what looks like the “S” in Pirates. You’ve probably heard of Glasnow by now due to his insane April/May with the Rays. If he stayed in Pittsburgh, you probably wouldn’t know who he is. His career was becoming somewhat of a mess but he’s clearly figured it out in Tampa. Like Gerrit Cole, I’ll quietly root for him as long as he’s not pitching against the Pirates.

Brian, again, I can’t thank you enough. It took me a solid 30 minutes to work through each package and enjoy each card. Carefully looking over each card for serial numbers and looking through each package to come across another note from was more fun than any hobby box I’ve ever opened. Your generosity is unparalleled.

Thanks for reading!

Catching Up On Some Recent Trades

I've been getting a ton of mail lately, far too much to keep up with on the blog- but here are this week's highlights:

All five of the cards above are from CynicalBuddha over at Collector's Crack. He's a huge baseball fan,  and has some really interesting collections. Definitely worth checking out his blog!

I was very pleased with everything he sent me, particularly the Grilli gold border. I love Grilli's S1 picture- It sums him up well. Buddha was kind enough to throw in a bunch of other cards. Next up, an auto...

Sent to me by Mr. Judson Meeks over at My Cardboard Habit. If you don't know Judson, you probably blog on a different planet. Judson runs a very entertaining blog, and he's an incredibly generous trader. I think I've established myself as Judson's "Pirate Guy," which I am more than OK with. 

I'm not in love with the design of these Trajectory auto cards, but I am in love with a rookie auto from a current Pirate. My thoughts on Lambo are pretty well documented.

Thanks to both of my trading partners, and thanks to you for reading!

The Future of the Pirates, In One Card

One of my informal collecting goals for this year is to acquire a certified autographed card from each of the Pirates projected Opening Day starters. I've already got several bench players, relief pitchers and role players, but I've had a hard time finding affordable autos of the young stars (McCutchen, Marte, Alvarez). Thanks to 2013 Gypsy Queen and the off-season, I've finally been able to knock one of these off my list for a decent price:

Marte is without a doubt one of the biggest, if not the biggest part of the Pirates future. The guy has all of the tools to be to a bonafide star, and times he already looks as if he is one. He also prompts some awesome calls from Pirates announcer Greg Brown, usually including the cheesy-yet-awesome exclamation, "MARTAY-PARTAYYY."

To hear that call and others, play around with this for a minute. I guarantee it will give you a chuckle.

I feel like Gypsy Queen autographs embody everything that a perfect card should have. Sharp action photography, a nice border, and sufficient room for an on-card signature.

Starling's inscription is a little violent looking and the centering is a little poor, but this card is actually better than many I've seen. For less than 10 dollars shipped, I will refrain from filing any complaints. This baby is a welcome addition to my Pirates PC.

Atomic PC Additions and Some Topps Series 1 Previews!

I haven't posted in forever. That's a fact. I feel bad too, because I was having some great interactions and building somewhat of a following. However, even when I'm not posting I'm constantly reading and browsing blogs, and you guys have provided some excellent reading material. 

I've also been neglecting eBay and COMC somewhat, but I was able to sit down the other night and put together a few orders. Here's what I hauled in:

I actually stumbled across these by accident, in a way. I was searching eBay for 2013 Topps Chrome atomic refractors, which are numbered to 10. I absolutely love the "cracked ice" look to these parallels, but the 2013's are generally way too expensive, being so rare.

 In my search I learned that in 2011 Topps, the atomic refractors are exactly the same design, but numbered to 225. Boom! There were several of each of COMC, so I was able to pick and choose. The best part is, the Liriano is 47/225, his jersey number! I absolutely hate when eBayers use this gimmick to jack up prices, but that wasn't the case here. Happy to have it!

I'm still looking for this same card, but of Pedro Alvarez. Please let me know if you see one!

Next up:

This baby. What to say here. This is more or less a case of, "Whoa. Shiny. Must. Have." It also satisfied many of my conditions for buying a single:

Price? The price was right. Really right (I think). The same card has gone on eBay for waaayy more than I bought it for, although the grades were higher.

Rarity? Somewhat rare. It's an X-fractor RC, at least.

Value? People f**kin' love this guy. I'm sure the 9 brings the value down. 

Unique? I've never owned a graded card! Plus it's a just a beautiful looking card all-around.

That was enough for me. I guess this is technically for trade if there are any Harper super-fans out there that are dying for a card like this. I'd need a great offer though. 

Moving on: How about 2014 Topps Series 1?! Who's excited?! I'd be lying if I said I wasn't. I'm definitely a bigger fan of S2, Update, and Chrome... but the novelty of a new product is always exciting to me. I've been avoiding the card isle all week and WallyWorld in an effort to save up for some packs of S1. I may even consider a blaster. Thoughts? Anyone out there buying a hobby box? Joining a group break? I'd love to hear some opinions. 

I've been keeping up with Topps' updates throught Twitter, and here are some of the cards that have caught my eye:

All of these autos are pretty damn nice. I've seen a ton of complaints about all of the autos being stickers. I actually don't mind the stickers for S1 and S2, because it means that other Topps products with on-card autos will remain higher end (Chrome, Gypsy Queen Five Star, etc). It also cuts down on redemptions, I believe.

A few quick housekeeping items; I 've updated my Trade Bait. There are over a dozen 2013 Topps Chome sapphire blue refractors /199 on there, as well as tons of other goodies. Check it out! I'd love to get some trades going.

Also, if you haven't checked me out on Twitter, please do so! @big44cards

Thanks for reading! Nate

Trade with Alex of Chavez Ravining

Happy Holidays everyone. Between all the stress of the holidays, I'm happy to say that I've been able to balance things well this year and not drive myself too insane. I've luckily had some spare time, which I've spent organizing my collection and setting up trades.

Two weeks ago, a guy by the name of Alex contacted me because he was interested in a 2013 Topps Chrome Adrian Beltre Camo parallel that I had, #'d to 15. It's a gorgeous card, really. I have no affection towards Beltre however, hence it's placement on my trade bait. 

Before I get into the cards: If you haven't already checked out Alex's blog, titled Chavez Ravining, you must. It's an incredibly interactive blog and has quickly become one of my favorites. 

We'll kick it off with two Target red parallels. I was very pleased with all of the love that the Buccos received in 2013 Update, as well as the All-Star weekend. 

Another Alvarez Parallel from update. Seems like Alex has a knack for pulling Pirates! I was really excited about the Cutch parallel on the right, for two reasons: A. It's nearly impossible to get your hands on fairly priced Cutch cards, and B. I didn't purchase any regular Bowman this year, only Chrome.

To the left we've got a very nice David Price camo parallel, also from Update. I figured I'd lump him in with the Pirates because he'll definitely be signing with Pittsburgh by next week.

Just kidding. But I can dream. The Pirates have actually been mentioned as a "contender"for DP... where they'll get that kind of money remains to be seen. 

On the right is a Barrett Barnes auto from 2013 Bowman Inception.  Barnes is currently pegged as the Pirates #10 prospect. He's stuck behind some great talent, but he's only 22. It'll definitely be an uphill battle for Mr. Barnes to reach the show.

Finishing out the baseball cards are a Vlad jersey and a nice Will Middlebrooks parallel. I'm not necessarily a fan of Middlebrooks, but this is one of the sickest cards in all of 2013 Topps. 

I've always been a fan of Vlad, simply because he has no right arm but rather a cannon. He also opted against batting gloves which is nicely captured on the card.

 Finally, A nice big ol' Marc Gasol Jersey. I've mostly connected with baseball collectors, but basketball cards are a big part of my collection, so this was very welcome. The card isn't too special, except the fact that Marc seems to be doing some odd dance move with a basketball photoshopped in. It's a shame he's out this year, as one of the more exciting big men in the league.

Thanks again to Alex for the trade, and thanks for reading!

My Best Trade Yet, with ARPSmith

Back in October, I stumbled across an awesome blog - ARPSmith's Sportscard Obsession - run by an awesome blogger, Adam.

I eagerly scanned his want list, and luckily I had a few goodies for him. I shot him an e-mail and before long, a trade was born. I sent off some SF Giants for him, and asked for anything he could spare in return. The first bullet in his wantlist states, "Those who fill one of these needs will be greatly rewarded!"

..and let me assure you, this guy is not kidding.

I found myself with a stack of Pirates, and I could immediately tell that this collection was loaded with color! Parallels. Yes.

First off is a nice Jeanmar Gomez parallel from 2013 Update. I already have the emerald, but not the gold. Perfect. In the center is former 1B/3B Casey Mcgehee, from 2012 Update. To his right is his successor, looking lovely on that Emerald background. After two great years with the Brewers (and then one really bad one), he got a shot with the Pirates. It was more a less a disaster. 

Next up is a nice horizontal from 2011 Topps Diamond. I really like the look of the these cards, and specifically this very card. A great shot of Cutch, Garrett Jones, and Ryan Doumit. Any card with Cutch on it is gold to me. Doumit's Pirate career is comparable to Mcgehee's... no need to trash him too.   Garrett Jones just signed with Miami after the Pirates decided not to pay him. I'd be lying if I said I won't miss him. My favorite memory of him was back in June when he blasted one straight into the Allegheny. It was only the second time a homer went into the river on a fly. Quite impressive.

To the left is a Starling Marte RC from 2012 Topps. Just a gorgeous card. The gold sparkle bodes so well with the Pirates black and gold jerseys. To the right is Cutch from 2013 GQ with a nice white border. 

In the center is, allegedly, a Jose Tabata "Future Stars" Insert. There are several strange things going on here:

1) Is "Future Stars" not the most played out term for inserts? Ever!?

2) Jose Tabata will most likely never come close to star status

3) ...that's Ronny Cedeno.

I poked around the internet, and I don't think Ronny Cedeno had card in 2011 GQ. A very interest error card. Cedeno's a short stop, Tabata a right fielder. Poor editorial work here, but a cool card nonetheless!

Lastly, a nice 2013 Topps Chome orange parallel of Mr. Russel Martin. I already have the Sepia and Black Parallels... do I see a rainbow in the future?

Below it is a wonderful bonus that Adam was willing to send my way. I'm actually a big fan of Jonathan Dwyer. He was drafted by Pittsburgh, and he's been with the team for three years now. He was actually cut during pre-season cuts, but then re-signed after several injuries at the runningback position. He's a power back, something that the Steelers have been lacking lately. My favorite aspect of this card is Dwyer's number. He wore 21 in college, and wears 27 now. Not sure where the 41 came from.

Adam, thanks so much these awesome cards. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined such a complete and exciting package.

If you'd like to check out more of my Pirates PC, it can be seen HERE!

Thanks for reading!