Ebay Is My National…Sigh.

It took a few months to get everything formatted and updated the way I wanted it (sorta), but my Player Collection Lists (aka PCLs, btw) are live!  You can view them all through the google doc links below, or on the buy/sell/trade page (my section is at the bottom).  Viewing below is quicker this time around.

Greg Maddux Have/Want List

Ryan Dempster Have/Want List

and the new guy, Carlos Marmol Have/Want List

If you were to go to the trade page, you’d also notice that I erased all my set wants (aside from my 95-96 basketball insert set wants).  I just don’t have any real desire to collect sets anymore.  I think I mentioned this before, but I believe I was just using set building as a place holder for my true love of player collecting.  Set Building deserves better than that.  Perhaps you have a place in your heart for set building.  I can now help you somewhat with the following sets:

2008 Heritage (& High), 2009 Heritage (& High), 2010 Heritage (to a limited degree), 2009 Topps Series 2, 2009 A&G.  The one that I’m still considering going after is the Garbage Pail Kids flashback, but my parallels are all up for grabs!  If you have set needs, and can part with something not highlighted on my google docs, please inquire inside.

Okay.  On to the actual topic listed in the title.

I don’t get to go to the National this year.  Even though I earned an extra week of time off for longevity at my job this year, I had to spend 2 of the 3 moving my girlfriend back in with me.  Pssh, like that was worth it!  (Love you, sweetie!  I know you don’t read this, but I’m only joking!)  The other week was taken up with other randomness and unfortunate sickness already.  Long story short, I have a day left for the rest of the year.  And it’s August.

Also, there are surprisingly few card shows in the Chicago area.  I guess there are a couple, but anything under 30T just doesn’t seem worth the drive to even the closest suburb considering what we’ve seen at the two card shows we’ve attended this year.  I still need to display my spoils from the most recent card show at some point.  This post is about the online card show I frequent most known as Ebay.  It, too, can be quite the disappointing show, but these cards make me happy.

"Save" the best for first

Closers never get to start, so enjoy your shining moment, Mr. Newest Member of my collection!  What we have here is a 2008 Triple Threads Auto Jersey thingy #16/50.  As you all know, 50 is as low as I go.  I wanted to start my El Nino K collection off with a bang, and I got quite that for paltry bucks.  This sucker went for much less than the #/75 version, which is sepia and looks worse.

The autos I’ve seen from Carlos so far vary widely.  That scrawl isn’t the best looking ‘graph out there and sometimes it looks downright hideous.  I’ve found the ones that also feature his jersey number turn out the best.

This is the first Triple Threads card I’ve held in my hands and touched.  Man is that front flimsy.  I can’t imagine it was manipulated in any way, but I expected it to be more secure around the jersey pieces and not feel like I was going to bend those stars by trying to touch the fabric (yes, I touch the fabric of all my game-used).  Otherwise, I like the card.  Not enough to drop a bag of bones on a “box,” but the thing looks good and scanned very well for me.

This card taught me something.

I figured no one ever shows the backs of these, so why not.  I knew Marmol was a catcher in the minors before being converted.  I did not know he was originally an outfielder.

He's comin' right for us!

This scanned terribly.  It’s a black refractor, which you can’t tell at all.  I love the picture.  It’s like it belongs in a 3D set.  The black version isn’t numbered.  There’s a guy trying to sell the red #/61 for way too much money, but I’ll keep looking!

Pitching the Void

For all I know, this could be the Abe variation.  You certainly can’t tell me otherwise, since we can’t see the umpire.  I don’t know why I like the Wal Mart Black variations, but I really, really do.  I got this for $0.34 shipped (free shipping like a sucker).  Still maybe overpaid, but I imagine at a show in Chicago, they’d put this in the 50 cent bins.

You can't escape the black

This is the only Dempster mini I have so far.  With all the Ginter out there that’s been busted, some kind blogger must have other variations to trade, right?

Bluuuuuuuuuuuuuue

Yowza, is that bright or what?  Last year’s finest Blue Refractor #194/399.  It looks fancy and shiny and it has a trivia question on the back that has nothing to do with pitching or Cubs (and the answer is a Cardinal…).

Inserts!

I’m going to whip through a lot of the Maddux stuff.  All of these (except the top left) came from one lot.  Can you guess which card made me decide to bid on it?  The top left card came in that Great, Cheap ebay lot that netted me the Topps Chrome Traded sets, etc.  I promise I’ll post more about what else was in that massive sucker another time.  I haven’t even really gone through it yet.  6 of these are numbered, two of them are #/50.  Most of my ebay Maddux purchases have revolved around memorabilia type stuff, however.  Ready???? RAPID FIRE!!!!!

1

2

3

4

I got more on the way, too!  These bat cards are great dual purpose vehicles for serving my Maddux and pitcher batting collections.  I actually accidentally one 2 of the third one down (I didn’t realize I bid on the one already, and I didn’t get outbid on either).  There are two ways I can go about it.  1) I can just say it’s part of my pitchers batting collection or 2) Trade away the extra to anyone who wants it.  I prefer 2.

Overall, I’d say that was a pretty good National for me.  No long lines.  No crowds.  No fuss. No muss.  No deposit.  No return.  No more.

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