NFL Draft Day is Upon Us!!!!

The Pittsburgh Steelers are on the clock later tonight when they (pending any trades) select 22nd overall.  It's a great thing to select later in the draft because that means that your team had an excellent season the previous year.  However, it also means that the team will have a smaller chance of getting impact talent.

Earlier in the year, I grabbed this ticket stub of Big Ben from his draft day.  It cost me $6, which is a little more than I was hoping to pay for a card not serially numbered.

I like the quote on the back though.

What are your team's biggest needs from the draft this year? Leave a comment below.

McCutchen Mailday #50: Pops & RunPMC!!!!!

One of my collecting goals for 2015 was to add 100 new Andrew McCutchen cards to my collection that I previously didn't have.  I thought this would be a tough task as I would need to add a new Cutch before every fourth day.  I have kicked that goal's ass!!!!  I'm typing this on March 16th (but didn't post until April 29th) and have already added fifty!!!! Yes 5-0!!!!!  It's going to take me awhile to catch up on all these cards I have acquired in the past month using only 1 post per day.

So far in my quest for 100, I've added a handful of 1/1s, a plethora of parallels, and even a handful of autographs!!!!

To celebrate #50...you gotta party!!!!
A Marte Partay seems appropriate!

2015 Heritage Clubhouse Collection 7/10 (Stargell, McCutchen, Marte, Polanco)

Let's welcome Pops and RunPMC (Polanco, Marte, Cutch)

What a sweet piece of cardboard!

A Tale of 1 City

I follow the Pirates minor league system as closely as I follow the major league roster.  With the way the Pirates used to do things before Neal Huntington took over, you could get maybe 3 years out of a player before you had to say goodbye to them.  They were in fan's eyes what the Oakland A's are doing now (but the Pirates had about 20 more losses each season).

Now the Pirates have a competitive team on the field for 162 games a year and also have a very interesting farm system rich with right handed pitchers drafted out of high school.  At the head of the class is Tyler Glasnow, but right behind him are Jameson Taillon and Nick Kingham.

Kingham is repeating in AAA to start the year, but will most likely be the first guy called upon to make his MLB debut this year.  Jameson Taillon, the 2nd overall pick in 2010, is still recovering from Tommy John Surgery last year.  It's likely that he will make his minor league season debut around June/July with the potential for a September callup.

Both the cards above feature Taillon and Kingham with the Pirates AA affiliate, the Altoona Curve.  I won both cards nearly 4 months ago for around $10 each.  The Taillon is numbered out of 75 and hails from 2013 Topps Pro Debut.  The Kingham is not numbered and is from 2014 Topps Heritage Minors.

McCutchen Monday: Hailing from 2014 Classics....

Hopefully Cutch can start to heat up.  His batting average being below .200 on April 26th is a very scary thing for Pirates fans.  Did his dreads he cut off give him magical powers and now they're gone?  Is he still battling through a knee injury and lower body pain?  Whatever the ailment for Cutch, I think he will start to heat up and have his average around .300 by the All-Star break.

The above card is an autograph of Cutch I purchased late last year (November/December?) and had stored away without ever scanning or spotlighting.  The card features a dirty relic from a jersey or even possibly pants based on texture.  I'm likely going to have 100 unique Andrew McCutchen autographs by year's end thanks to my Quest for 100 pickups I have gotten so far this year.

McCutchen Mailday #49 & 51: Mini Bazookas!!!!!

My Andrew McCutchen Quest for 100 has really gotten some nice cards to the PC this year.  Last month I received 3 big cards all on the same day and while it would have been nice to post all 3 in the same post for time sakes, one of them is such a big card in my collection that I just had to show it off by itself.  So you're getting two similar cards in one post and I am skipping over the 50th new McCutchen added to my collection this year because of it.

 On the left is the 2015 Bazooka mini and the right is the 2014 Bazooka mini

These mini bazooka cards were extremely short printed and despite not being numbered I see that they are found roughly 1: 108 retail jumbo packs.  Combine that with a 25 card checklist and these suckers are tough to find.  I grabbed both of the above cards for $25 delivered.

Austin Meadows Patch & On Card AUTO!!!!

I've purchased a few of the Leaf Trinity patch cards in the past like my Tyler Glasnow I showed off last year.  I have also grabbed a Cole Tucker for only $13 that I haven't had a chance to show off yet.  This on card autograph of the Pirates prospect, Austin Meadows, cost me only $17 delivered.

It is my 3rd on card auto of the young outfielder who is hitting very well as a teenager in the Florida State League.

McCutchen Mailday #48: All-Star Target Exclusive

My latest Quest for 100 new Cutch cards added to the PC in 2015 has yielded me a $1 purchase from 2014 Topps.  It's not a 1/1 like the other All-Star Game card I showed off earlier in the week, but technically it could be considered an ebay 1/1 since it is a Target exclusive and the 2014 All-Star game was played at Target Field.  I'm surprised no one has tried that yet.

Nothing too fancy about this card....
Tomorrow's will be better, I promise.

More Joey Bats invades the PTR

I've been on a big Jose Bautista buying spree lately and some of the cards I have coming in are just absolutely insane!!!!

Joey Bats made some national headlines after continued sqwalls with the Orioles.

Today is a 2014 Topps Power Players autograph numbered 24/25 that I snagged for $25 delivered.  It's incredible that one of the most elite power bats in the game today can have his autograph sold for only $25 when the card is numbered to only 25 copies.

I know Bautista was a late bloomer, but since 2010 he has hit more HR in the American League than any other player.  He's been an All-Star each of the past 5 seasons and a top 6 MVP finalist in 3 of the past 5 years.  He's currently leading the AL in walks and was the second most walked player last year.  On top of all that he has a beautiful signature which is actually legible.

Expect to see more Joey Bats from me in the future and like I said, some of it will be WTF!!!! WOW!!!! cards...

Future Stars Commemorative Pin

I've been lacking in my timely updates because quite frankly I've been adding more cards than I can keep up with.  When I saw this at my LCS, I knew that I had to add it for the $5 pricetag.  I am glad that I added it, but wish that I had spent an extra $5 and grabbed the numbered/colored version off ebay since they have been selling as low as $10 recently.

Overall, it's a nice looking card.  Polanco has been playing like a future star these past few games and if he lives up to his potential the Pirates will have the best young outfield in the game for the next 4 seasons.

McCutchen Mailday #47: 1/1 All-Star Game Letter "N" 2015 Topps

I honestly don't have a lot to say about this card besides WOW!!!!

My quest for 100 new Cutch cards to the collection in 2015 just got EPIC!!!
This "N" from Cutch's 2014 All-Star Workout jersey will go nicely with the "E" I have from Cutch's 2012 Workout Jersey.


Stay tuned though, cause it may not get better but there's more coming in terms of 1/1s...

Smooth as Silk: Franky Edition

It's been almost a year since I showed off a (Smooth as) Silk Collection card on the PTR.  I came across this 2013 Francisco Liriano for $2 and couldn't pass it up.

In addition to the Silk Collection card you see above, I also grabbed this gold chrome numbered 22/50 for 80 cents!!!!  I just couldn't pass that up either.

Liriano has been pitching very well this year.  Let's hope he can continue it throughout the season.  For his 2 starts this year, he 's compiled a 2.08 ERA, 0.77 WHIP, 14 strikeouts in 13 innings of work and yet he is 0-1.

Let's get Franky a W today!!!! Let's Go Bucs!!!!

McCutchen Monday: Band of Brothers

This is a card I have had in my collection for a LONG TIME!!!!

With AJ on the mound and Cutch starting to get back on track, it seems like an appropriate time to show it off on McCutchen Mondays.

McCutchen Mailday #46: Artist Proof 1/1 Leaf Legends of the Diamond

If you've followed my blog at all over the past year, you know that I have purchased several commissioned cards from Chris Henderson.  Chris' work is fantastic and I highly encourage you all to get a commission from him of your favorite player.

During my search for more 1/1 Cutch cards for my Quest for 100 new Andrew McCutchen cards added in 2015, I discovered some *sick* *sick* *sick* cards of which I won several.  My bank account took a major hit one week when I added 4 1/1s in a 5 day span.

This is the first of which I added.

It's an Artist Proof from 2014 Legends of the Diamond  As Chris normally does, he perfectly captured the athlete with his realistic artistic talents.  It is signed on the front with a 1/1.

The back just aknowledges that this card is an artist proof from 2014 Legends.

Gonna be a Marte Partay!!!!

Starling Marte has been hitting the ball terrible lately. It felt great to listen to the radio broadcast last night to hear that in the 8th inning the Bucs were having a Marte Partay after he clubbed a homer estimated to be 459 feet. What a shot!!!!

I grabbed this low numbered 2014 Donruss Power Plus autograph back in February for around $12.

McCutchen Mailday #45: 2015 Career High Relic

Today's card is a card that I have had in my possession for nearly 2 months.  That just goes to show how far behind I am in my posting.  I had a 2015 goal to add 100 new Andrew McCutchen cards to my PC by year's end.  My latest addition is from 2015 Topps and shows tribute to Cutch's MVP season WAR where he posted 7.9 Wins Above Replacement.

I like the design of these Career High marks, but like my John Holdzkom autograph, I wish that Topps could keep all the cards either vertical or horizontal.  It would be nicer to display if they were all facing the same direction.

The back of the card just gives details to Cutch's season.

I'm not complaining but is this real life?

Why are Jameson Taillon cards so cheap?

Is it because he's recovering from Tommy John?

Is it because he was drafted over 4 years ago and hasn't reached the majors yet?

Is it because he is in too many sets?

No matter what the reason...for $1.79 delivered I will not pass up an unlicensed on card auto of Jamo.

Can you fault me for not questioning?

Happy Jackie Robinson Day!!!!

It's Jackie Robinson Day!!!  All major league baseball players will be wearing the number 42 today.

Let's celebrate with a nice Andrew McCutchen  Prizm Jackie Robinson parallels

These numbered parallels are meant to honor Jackie Robinson's 42 and are in a dodger blue with 42 in background. I might try to seek out the other Buccos for these parallels.

MORE SICK MOJO GERRIT COLE!!!!

Yesterday I went to the Bucs home opener and IT WAS AWESOME!!! Gerrit Cole pitched an incredible game racking up 8ks thru 6IP. He ran into trouble in the 7th by loading the bases before recording an out, but groundball specialist, Jared Hughes came in to get a double play and pop out minimizing the damage to only 1 run. The Bucs offense was supplied by Buccos Blasts by Harrison, Alvarez, and a 2 run shot by Corey Hart. The bullpen's only struggle was by Mark Melancon in the 9th when he almost blew a non save 4 run lead. Overall though great pitching from Cole and the 3 round trippers is what gave the Bucs the win.


I've been adding more and more Gerrit Cole National Treasures cards over the past month.  The Notable Nicknames on card autograph continues to elude me, but I've added another sick On Card Auto and Patch of The Cole Train along with a Jumbo Jersey.

 Check out the beauty of that card!  On card autograph.  Sick patch!  Low numbering!

The Cole above is a lot like my Polanco I showed off in February.

As you may recall I was going to be adding as many National Treasures as possible until I ended up spending $425 on this product.  I've seen some people with sick boxes containing 1/1 bat barrels, but I have also seen some breaks that produced a lot of rookie autographs along with HOF jersey cards numbered /99.  I think I will get a lot more value out of my reverse box. Every card I have acquired is less than 50 copies.

McCutchen Monday: Red Hot Rookie Refractor

Here's another predreadlock Andrew McCutchen as I am showing off some of my Cutch cards I have had in the collection, but never spotlighted on the PTR.

Maybe without all that hair weighing him down, he'll be able to swipe 30+ bags again.

I'm heading to Pittsburgh today for the home opener. My baseball vacation week is coming to an end soon as I return to work Thursday.

McCutchen Mailday Numbers 42, 43, and 44: A lot of Shine!!!!

Big mailday today as 3 new Andrew McCutchen cards came in the mail from eBay in my pursuit for 100.

These three beautiful low numbered parallels hailing from 2014 Topps Chrome, Prizm, and Finest cost me a grand total of $32.  That might seem pricy for only 3 pieces of cardboard that don't have any relics, signatures, or manufactured pins on them.  That's all true, but if you looked at these 3 cards and the way they refract light and shine on a page, you'd change your mind.

All 3 cards are numbered to 100 or less copies and are part of a bigger rainbow project I intend to complete of Cutch this year.

The lack of Spring Training at bats and now his knee problems are a sign of concern for the Bucs as they start the season 1-4. Every single game they lost in Cincinnati could have gone to them just as easily, but you can't make excuses for the loss column. 3 Games under .500 and 4 games out of 1st isn't worth panicking over in April. They've been there as recent as last year. Cutch's health, however, is a little worrisome. I thought he was Fearless as depicted in this card.

Triple Auto: Jamo, Thor, Archie Bradley graded 9.5

Archie Bradley is set to make his MLB debut today against the LA Dodgers and Clayton Kershaw.  Talk about a tough matchup for your MLB debut.  I grabbed this graded 9.5 triple autograph of Jameson Taillon, Noah "Thor" Syndergaard, and Archie Bradley a few months back for $100. The card is numbered to only 10 copies and a few that I have seen raw sell on eBay often aren't as nice as this one.

It is very likely that barring unforseen injuries all 3 of these young men will make their MLB debuts this season.

Double Sickness!!!! Kemp & Bautista Dual On Card AUTO!!!!

I've been picking up some nice Jose Bautista cards lately and my most recent addition is no different.

A Dual On Card Autograph of Matt Kemp and Jose Bautista numbered to 25.  The grade is a little low (only 9) but that is mostly due to an 8.5 grade on corners.  I'm willing to bet that Greg at Plaschke wouldn't mind having this in his collection.

I'm happy I was able to grab this for only $31 delivered.

I'm heading to Baltimore today for the Orioles home opener against the Jays.  It should be a lot of fun.

Doesn't get much better than this...

Since my blog debuted 4 years ago, I have shown off some pretty impressive Stargell, Clemente, and Mazeroski cards in my collection.  To date though, I never had a card that contained game used relics of all 3 on a single card....until now

A triple bat relic of 3 of the most famous Pittsburgh Pirates to ever play the game.  All 3 players on this card have bronze statues outside PNC Park acknowledging their contributions to the team and city.  The low numbered card was purchased when eBay was running a 10x eBay bucks promotion so it essentially dropped the price a great amount.

McCutchen Mailday #40 & 41: a pair of minis

I got very far behind in my posting and by the time this gets posted I will have likely added another dozen McCutchen cards to my collection in my Quest for 100 new Andrew McCutchen cards added to the PC.  At the rate I am currently on pace, I will have added 100 new Cutch cards to the collection by the MidSummer Classic.

My recent pair of ebay winnings came in on the same day and feature 2 mini colored parallels.

Up first from 2013 Gypsy Queen is a Sepia mini numbered 43/50.  It was won for less than $3.

I bought 10 tobacco sized pages last year and have already filled 2 pages of them with just Cutch tobacco minis.

Next up is a colored parallel that should be very familiar to anyone who has read my blog because I supported the entire month of October with nothing but pink parallels.  This 2014 Topps mini is numbered to only 25 copies and ran me $14 delivered.

Tony Tuesday: TriStar 1/5 Auto

My Tony Sanchez collection has been increasing a lot over the past month when he went on a rampage tearing the cover off the ball in Spring Training.  Well, not literally, but he did have an excellent Spring Training and earned a place on the Pirates Opening Day Roster.

This low numbered 1/5 autograph hails from 2009 Tristar and is the red parallel.  It cost me $17 delivered and is my 19th Tony Sanchez autograph.

McCutchen Monday: Opening Day is here!!!!

It's the best time of the year...

Opening Day!!!

I took the day off so I can watch as much baseball as possible today.
LET'S GO BUCS!!!!

Celebrating Easter with the Rabbit!!!

Ask any little kid (and most adults for that matter) what they think of when they hear Happy Easter and you're likely going to get a response ranging from Easter Bunny to colored eggs to ham dinner.  Sadly you won't hear many people recognize the true meaning of Easter.  My blog isn't meant to create any cultural or philosophical intrigue into our society.  I simply like to show off baseball cards I have acquired.  One such card is a Rabbit Maranville Cooperstown I got for a $1.

I wanted to show off a bible verse inscription card today, but sadly I don't have anymore to share.

Please take the day to celebrate the true meaning of the Holiday and enjoy the day with your family/friends/loved ones.

A John Holdzkom John Hancock

When the 2015 Topps Series 1 Checklist came out, there was one card in particular that I NEEDED to add to my collection.  After nearly 2 months I finally have it in hand.

Behold the majestic awesomeness of this cardboard...

When John Holdzkom made his major league debut last year, it was feel good story that made some headlines.  If you watched him dominate batters, it was a great story for the Pirates scouting department and fans were very excited about the former Indy Ball league prospect.

Holdzkom has always had a strong strikeout numbers, but didn't find his control until last year while a member of the Buccos minor leagues.

I got a chance to meet John Holdzkom at PiratesFest last December and he was kind enough to sign a baseball from a game he pitched in.

Holdzkom looks to begin 2015 in the minors but will likely be the first arm they call upon when needed.

McCutchen Mailday #30-39: Card Show Pickups

I grabbed 10 new Andrew McCutchen cards all from one location last month.

For a combined $12, I walked away with a pair of numbered Opening Day blue parallels from year's past, a trinity of 2012 Topps Gold Parallels, a 2015 insert, and some vintage designs in recent years.

Overall it was a very good haul for me at that show because I also snagged a bunch of vintage cards that I will show off in the very near future.

The Quest for 100 is getting close to the halfway mark and the year isn't even a third of the way complete.

McCutchen Mailday #29: 2014 All-Star Stictches

The first 2 months of the new year saw me add an average of 15 new McCutchen cards per month (well ahead of my estimated goal of 9 per month).  I've been trying my hardest to get the blog up to date, but events like my Go Green event through St. Patty's Day delayed showing off more Cutch cards than I could have.

I received this card on the last day of February and it marks my 29th unique NEW addition to my Cutch PC.  My pursuit to add 100 new Cutch cards by year's end seems like it won't be a problem at all.

I picked up this card for 2 reasons.

2014 Topps All-Star Stitches 5/25

1) I love getting Cutch All-Star jersey relics

2) Since I am primarily a team collector, I don't usually add cards of some of the game's best players unless they appear on a card with Cutch.  Adding a jersey of Yasiel Puig was a nice addition.  I could certainly do without that piece of $#&@ Carlos Gomez on the card though.  

Carlos Gomez is my least favorite player in baseball today in case you weren't already aware.

Honus Wagner 1/1 Auto hits the PTR

One of my 2015 collecting goals was to add another Pirates HoFer to my collection. I've already added Max Carey to the collection and now....

I've added an autograph of the greatest shortstop ever

This card is absolutely amazing. Shame the auto is a fake. The above custom card cost me $13 delivered. It may not be real, but makes a great conversation piece.

It goes well with my t206 Wagner bat relic.