It's a Christmas Miracle!

This wrapping paper is simply... Marvelous.

Me. Me posting to the blog is the Christmas miracle. Sorry I've been away so long. It uh... It has been a year. But in catching with the Card Blogger Secret Santa at the last minute, I vowed to our fearless leader Jon that I would at least get my haul on the blog. I had hoped to do more, since I also had a 300 card (precisely 258 of which were for myself) monster COMC haul featuring 30 sketch cards and tons & tons of non-sport & multi-sport items. But of course, I screwed that up pretty quickly. Oh well, maybe next year. January will be another massive shipment that will be mostly major sports cards, so I will need to at least get December's scanned & filed away, even if I don't do anymore bloggin'.

The tin will get lots of non-trading card use..

But anyway! The Secret Santa haul! I only had the time & (not even really the) energy for photos for this post, unfortunately. Getting the post up was the most important thing though, so... Here goes!

Mainly for haulin' art supplies places..

My goodness, Collecting Cutch did such an amazing job with this in every way. The presentation was magnificent, and not cheap. I don't have the box handy, but I believe shipping was something like $8? Then there was the appropriately treasure chest shaped Christmas tin they came in, wrapped in that delightful Marvel Comics wrapping paper at the top of the post. Inside the tin, the cards themselves were even wrapped in small lots. I wish I'd had the money & energy to put that kind of care into mine, tbh. It *felt* like a Christmas gift. So cool!

Now for some cards!

All I could muster was what looked like a pretty typical trade package. I did repurpose a bit of the wrapping paper to partially cover the lot and wrote a lil note of holiday wishes, but it badly pales in comparison. Bryan went all out, and I am so not worthy of that level of effort.

More base Cubs..

As for the package itself, as you can see, there were a handful of random Cubbies. I think I had everything but the Heritage in these first couple pics, but these were mostly filler anyway.

Buntybois..

I think the Bunt cards may be entirely new to me though. I only ever bought a pack or two, and I believe my only Cub was a blue Lester parallel. Anyway, the design is really nice. Floaty ball pics are also cool.

More Buntybois & Schwarbers..

The black & White Schwarber may well go straight to his binder page & stay there. It just looks good. Hendricks could also make it in as temporary filler, at least. I like my single pages to be blingier, but I still don't have much in the way of fancier (#'ed, hits, tougher inserts, etc) stuff of The Professor yet.

Bryzzo..

Finishing the Cub run with a nice blue Walmart blaster parallel of Rizz & one last Bunt of KB. Good stuff. Happy to see there was plenty of useful filler in there. But now onto the meat of the package.

McCutchen!

Before we move on from the baseball, a little McCutchen-y goodness from the supercollector himself. The tree is an on-card painting! And given how thematically on-point everything else in this package was, the thought balloon being on the penny sleeve functions as a nice subtle homage to our host Jon as well. 😁

Brad Utterstrom Prints!

Apologies for the terrible pics on these rad Brad Utterstrom promos & prints. I didn't realize how badly they came out until I transferred them from my phone to the computer.

More promo/prints..

Adequately capturing the sheer quality would've been nigh impossible anyway, I guess. These things belong in a museum. I am making the these two cards available to whoever wants them, however. I like to spread the love around when I feel I've been treated far too kindly anyway, but also, zombie stuff just ain't my thing. And the Wampa should probably be in the hands of a more serious Star Wars fan than myself as well. So go ahead & claim them in the comments & email me your address and I'll send it your way PWE style sometime early next year. One per person. First come, first served.

Last of the prints..

I was initially confizzled as to whether or not this incredible Mickey Mantle and the landscape above were prints or real because this one felt like it had actually been drawn on, but Bryan confirmed they were prints over on the Twitters. It was mainly just so I knew which binder to put them in, because they are rad as heck regardless.

WWE Superstar "The Outlaw" Jane Russell..

Moving away from the art prints but still keepin' it artsy with some Breygent movie posters. They are kinda glittery! I dunno if these are parallels or just base cards or what, since I've never had anything but sketch cards from this run of sets. They're pretty cool though!

That growth on the side of his head ain't messin' around..

And one more for good measure. The hand growing out of ol' Stagger Lee's face is packin' heat! And now you'll never be able see or think about him without the vision of his massive gun-totin' face boil haunting the very depths of your soul ever again! Christmas!

Front..

Back.. 

Heading down the stretch with this AWESOME Carddass (really?) Street Fighter card of underrated G1 (or would it be Gen 2?) combatant Edmond Honda! Gotta find one of these of my girl Chun-Li now.

Thank you so much for sticking with me this long. Now comes the reward for your patience. It's hit time!

Careful Ems, there's a snake in that sand trap!

Outside the top tier names, Goodwin Champions are always pretty cheap hits, so Emily making is an easy choice for a smol budget Secret Santa event like this, but from what I can find, a Jessica Henwick auto would probably more than break the $10 limit all on her own! Aside from her role on GoT, she can also be found in the Star Wars & MCU franchises in somewhat similarly situated roles as pilot Jess "Testor" Pava and Colleen Wing, long saving grace of the lamentable Iron Fist series on Netflix.

If you didn't see why I felt extremely spoiled & felt the need to spread the love around, well...  We haven't even gotten to the sketch cards yet!

Multiple Man by Dave Strong..

First up, one of my fave underutilized X-Men dudes from the early serieseseses of Upper Deck's revival of the ol' Fleer/Skybox Marvel Masterpieces line. This is dated 2008 on the back, which makes this series two or three, I believe. So yeah, it's from a time long before the brand name went high end in the mid-2010s. This is also cool because I'm a huge sucker for multi-character sketches, even when they're just of the same one three times, lol (my favorite amongst my suddenly expansive Wasp sketch card collection is also like that).

Witchblade by Jon Racimo..

And Bobby Lastly but not Bobby Leastly (shoutout to the dude Tom Campbell), we have a Witchblade sketch card. Racimo is on the lower end, and I do have a couple by him from this set already from the massive 57 card lot I picked up a few years back. But I like this one way better than the ones I already had, so this will be the one that gets the binder spot!

That's it! What a haul. Thank you again, Cutchmaster B. You are a legend. I don't know when exactly it will be, but a thank you sketch of your dude has been dialed up in my art queue. May the force

Thanks everyone for stopping by. I hope you have a wonderful holiday & rest of the year, and a pleasant 2020. Live long & prosper/May The Force be with you/May the odds be ever in your favor/etc/so forth.

Until our next...

Blog Bat Around- All-Autograph Team

Time for another fun new installment of the Blog Bat Around.  This time it's the all-autograph team, as originated by ol' Zippy Zappy.  I wanted to do a full 25 man roster, but the lack of pitchers in my collection & available scans of a couple of the bench bats I do have means I'll have to cut it a little short.  With that said, here we go.

C- Kyle Schwarber

2015 Contenders..

This is a most unfortunate choice, but I don't have any other viable options here.  I think Robinson Chirinos might literally be the only catcher autograph I own, and while he is a good defender with underrated pop, he is still a career backup.  So, Schwarbs it is...

1B- Jose Abreu

2017 Donruss Blue /149..

I have at least a solid half-dozen (Rizzo, Delgado, Grace, Abreu, Thames, & Derrek Lee) good options at first, but Abreu gets the nod because he's the one that I could find a scan of.  This whole post might look very different if I was a more diligent scanner who hadn't lost multiple computers before I could take the important stuff off them.  Anyway, you'll be seeing the other guy who was scanned as my DH choice on down the post.

2B- Robinson Cano

Stadium Club Lone Star Signatures /10..

I picked up an autographed Ryne Sandberg photo for $10 (it was from some signing at a riverboat casino in the early aughts iirc, and the place had a whole stack of them) at our short-lived and awesomely-named (Heroes Never Die) card shop back during the six months it existed, but I don't appear to have a scan of it on-hand anymore, and honestly, Cano has surpassed him at this point, so Robbie gets the nod.

SS- Corey Seager

2016 Diamond Kings Sketches & Swatches auto/patch /10..

Another position I'm sorely lacking in, but fortunately I have this one epic, discount blaster-pulled monster of a young superstar to fall back on (at least until Gavin blows me away with an offer).  I think my only other option at short is Nick Gordon, who is still in the minors in the Twins organization.

3B- Aramis Ramirez

2013 Prizm..

This card is almost certainly fugliest Aramis Ramirez auto I own in a walk, but it was the one that was scanned.  He's easily my strongest option at 3B regardless, being a borderline Hall of Famer & all.  Yangervis Solarte, Josh Harrison, and Javy Baez would be my other options here, but I don't have Solarte or Baez scans handy, and they're all better suited as Utility infielder options anyway, which is where you will find Harrison if you keep reading.

LF- Yoenis Cespedes

2014 National Treasures /25..

I have no shortage of corner outfield depth, particularly in left field.  Billy Williams, Alfonso Soriano, and Yoenis Cespedes (and Albert Belle, who, to continue the theme, was scanned but said scan is no longer available) are all mashers, but I'm going with Cespedes, because he's the best defender of the bunch.

CF- Andruw Jones

2001 Fleer Platinum '97 Circa Rack Pack Buyback Autograph /200..

Andruw Jones was another easy choice, due to lack of depth (an Austin Jackson that isn't in my possession yet or playing George Springer or Jason Heyward out of position in center were my only other options here).  You can't go wrong with one of the greatest defensive centerfielders of all-time, and this new arrival is a fantastic centerpiece for his Single Page Sensation collection.

RF- George Springer

2015 High Tek Tidal Diffractor /99..

We're going with Springer in right field, which has been his primary position in the majors, which he defends brilliantly.  I would probably have gone with Frank Robinson here if I still had the scans, but I'm quite content with this pick.  I got this for under $7 juuuust before he started to blew up last year.

DH- Carlos Delgado

High Tek Gold Diffractor /50..

As mentioned above, my only other scanned powerhouse first baseman has to be my DH, and that man is Carlos Delgado.

UT1- Ben Zobrist

Tract... Card?!

The card itself is far weirder than the choice to put him on my team.  Having a super utility player is a fantastic luxury, and Zobrist is the best in the business.  As for the card, COMC called something to the effect of a "Personal Issue Tract God", and that's exactly what it is.  There's a huge wall of religious nonsense on the back, along with a JSA authentication sticker (it also came with a separate COA).  Weird but cool, I guess.  And more importantly, cheap.  I was never much of a fan of organized religion, and I don't know how anyone could be these days with the way conservatives have completely perverted Christianity into a religion of hatred and discrimination.  But I digress...

UT2- Josh Harrison

2015 Topps Supreme..

Josh Harrison is a solid, versatile all-around player. I'd still put Javy here and save either Josh or Yangervis (maybe both) for the end of my bench, but again, no scans... *le sigh*

SP 1- Fergie Jenkins

2013 Topps Supreme /50..

I doubt Fergie Jenkins being the ace of my staff will come as a surprise to anyone.  I have somehow managed to accumulate double digit autographs of him, and that completely blows my mind.

SP 2- Chris Sale

2014 Topps Supreme eBay 1/1..

It's always nice when you can field two legitimate aces.  Sales autos have finally gone up & out of my range in the past couple years, but I think I scored this collection centerpiece for a cool $7.

SP 3- Taijuan Walker

2013 Leaf Memories..

Taijaun seemed to finally be putting it all together in the desert, but he's probably out until the second half of 2019 after undergoing Tommy John surgery in May.  So as I rebuild my photo album & reinsert them into posts in late-August, I hunted up another inconsistent, injury-prone young starter with all-world potential to add to the post.

SP 4- Carlos Rodon

Boom!

Unfortunately, while I can field a full staff and a competent swingman, I still have to cut it off here and jump straight to the end of the bullpen, because both Jerry Koosman and my swingman Matt Shoemaker are lacking a scan, RA Dickey isn't even in my possession yet, and I just don't really have anyone else to fill out my relief corps.

RP 1- Wade Davis

2017 Topps Fire /250..

Davis was only with the Cubs for one season, but he left a great enough impression on me to gleefully grab this foily Fire auto when it dropped to under $5.

RP 2- Bruce Sutter

Topps Retired..

The back end of my bullpen is on lock with Sutter, Davis, & if I had the scan handy, Lee Smith (shame, since it's a somewhat interesting card and I actually it pulled myself).  I'm not even naming a closer amongst those three.  I'm fully confident with any of them, and Sutter & Smith being from a bygone era, can both regularly go multiple innings if need be.  Maybe I don't even need any middle relief!

And that be that.  I think it's a pretty darn good squad, outside of my utterly atrocious catching situation (and literally not being able to field any middle relievers *cough*).  Anyway, thanks, as always, for stopping by!

Until our next...

More from the Cubs/Cards Connection

I sent more Cards cards to Cards on Cards cuz he pulled some Cubs cards I liked that my night owl tendencies allowed me to get to before the other Cubs collectors were awake to notice them.  We are an unintentionally competitive bunch.  There's just so many of us, and none of us are even bandwagoners.  We've been through the lean years, yo.  And so it goes...

Mercifully, today will be a MUCH shorter post than yesterday.  It's just a PWE, and I'm only showing the blingier half of it.  Long posts that take forever to put together are one of the prime culprits that have knocked me out of the blogging game for months on end in the past, but not this time.  Not yet anyway.

So, without further ado, here's the gems of the PWE Kerry sent my way.

KB Chrome Perspectives..

Up first, quite possibly this year's NL MVP, Kris Bryant!  I never really got the hate for these nifty Perspectives inserts the first place, but the chrome versions really bring them to life.  Outstanding.

Pink Refractors..

They're more magenta really, but they look nice too.  This year's set was really made for chrome, and much like 2008's set, I feel the chrome version will eventually partially vindicate this year's largely disliked design (I was never bothered by it in the first place).

You just never know from season-to-season, but if everyone else keeps playing at a high level, how unstoppable could this lineup be with Schwarber in it next year?  I guess will depend on who is leading the charge at the top of the lineup, since Dex is finally gonna get PAID this year, but yeah.  The Cubs window for success hasn't been this wide open since the 1930s.  Hopefully they can make it all the way through it this time.

If you complained about Addison Russell starting the All-Star game, you've been feasting on crow the whole second half of the season.  Kid has found his next gear.  He might yet steal the Gold Glove from Crawford at short (not that egregious, Addi's easily the next best in the NL, metrically speaking), and will almost certainly win the Silver Slugger for the position.  A good September could put him at 25+ homers and 100 RBIs on the year.  He may not be Barry Larkin yet (Lindor looks the most like Larkin to me, while Correa looks like the love child of Ripken & ARod), but he's already calling to mind Jimmy Rollins, and he might be a significantly better defender than either, and they were both great defenders (both 13+ career dWAR).  Crawford's got the metrics this year, but I haven't seen anyone play the position so silky smooth since Ozzie Smith.  Addi is just that fun to watch.

Whew, rant mode off.  That's all for today.  I'll try to do better tomorrow.  Thanks for stopping by!

Until our next...

The Trading Post: Cards from Cards on Cards (on Cards)

This is the only redbird you'll ever likely see on this blog..

I have another trade in progress with Kerry from Cards on Cards, so I better get this older one posted already!

He loves him some Cardinals, and I hates them so, but I often manage pull them by the buttload, and he is the primary beneficiary.  He struggles similarly with Cubs, and some of them make it back my way.  The competition for Cubbies is often fierce in the cardsphere (even when they stunk), however, and my collecting habits are... eclectic, so I tend to have to mix it up, and this post will be no exception.

3/4 of the major additions..

The Gold BowChro Cespedes came from a Loot Locker pack, I believe, and was the catalyst for this deal.  Cain was a late request as well.  I wasn't expecting the Heritage Chrome, but it was a welcome surprise.  While Lorenzo Cain's page is still in the early stages, my Yoenis Cespedes single page collection is now nearly complete. :)

2016 Bowman Solers..

The undercard of this trade was a lot more Cubs-centric, though there was a psychedelic Allen Iverson base card from the late-'90s in there too.

Some new Jakes..

Finishing up strong..

We'll close it out with a couple nice Schwarber RCs and the last of the four big scores in this trade, that there Kris Bryant RC.  I also wasn't expecting it, but I will never ever turn down a KB RC, even if it's my third copy of the same card.  It's an instant classic too, cropped enough to see the concentration in his eyes.  Great, great card, amongst a package filled with many.

That's all for today.  Thanks for stopping by! :)

Until our next...