Two trades and one generous reader

So maybe about a month plus ago I finally had tracked down a blaster of 2011 Gypsy Queen. While the product look better than I thought it would, I really was only interested the mini parallels and so was open to trading the rest of the contents.

Enter The Daily Dimwit. Sam had posted a bunch of GQ minis that were available for trade and I had a number of cards he needed, especially some of those bronze bordered cards. I will say, too bad the entire GQ set wasn't treated that way in base form.

Right off the bat, I was lucky enough to land a SP, hobby box variation in Walter Johnson. These special hobby box toppers (special box of minis) carry a lighter border and different photos. I think the "grittiness" of the Gypsy Queen carries it self quite well in the older star cards. I absolutely love the shots of Reggie and the Duke. I gotta say, with a number of these retro sets, the photo selection on a lot of the older, retired players are better than the original cards they were depicted. I mean, I'd rather see this shot of Reggie than what was shown on his 1977 or 1979 Topps cards.

In this next batch, we have a bunch of current day stars such as Longo, Lincecum, Votto, and more. I am in the middle of putting together a needs list for the GQ minis and hope to have that up this weekend. Thanks again Sam for the trade and good luck on that bronze border set!

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And while we're on the subject of Gypsy Queen minis, Colbey over at Cardboard Collections emailed me saying he had some GQ minis for trade. This was the second time trading with CC (Colbey, your package is on it's way!) and going his way is quite a few GQ base cards and insert set cards.

Enter ten more Gypsy Queen minis, four Kimball Champions minis from the '11 Topps Series 1, and three Allen & Ginter minis from the 2009 set.  Thanks again Colbey and good luck on this GQ set.

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And to close this post, I'd like to thank reader Trey who is/was just getting into the baseball card blogsphere but the the link I had isn't working. He had come across a comment I had posted, checked my blog and sent me this 2009 Topps T206 Yogi Berra as a way to getting his name and blog out there.

Trey, if you're out there, thank you again and I hope you get your blog up and running again. Don't worry about updating it every single day, but it's good vehicle to let other collectors know what your interests are and what you have available for trade.  If you see this, and have a new blog site, drop me a line and I'll link this post to your site.

***Update*** Trey's blog can now be found here.

A long time coming ...

for a new post that is. Man, I have been swamped at work lately, add freelancing, coaching baseball, and an hour plus commute, and by the time I sit down, I'm able to catch a couple of innings of the Sox or MLB Network and I'm cooked.

So, I made it a point to do two things today, finally get some posts up, schedule some others, and go to the LCS. LCS was a success as I managed to add 100 Allen & Ginter minis from 2006–2010 for 10 bucks and also picked up two cool vintage cards for almost nothing. Will try to get scans of this stuff up before the weekend is out.

So, first up, I gotta recap some trades I have been able to make over the last two months.

First up, a great trade with Crinkly Wrappers, a trade that stemmed from this post. CW needed the 1975 Topps Munson and had a 1975 Topps Palmer that I needed for my 1975 Topps Wantlist. The trade turned into a bigger affair and the end result was two happy bloggers.

First up, the '75 Palmer that I needed for my set.

From this Palmer, Ted hit a number of spots on my needs list. He was able to knock three cards off my 2010 Heritage set as well as knocking Chris Woodward off my All-Time Red Sox Roster collection.

Next up, a bunch of 2009 Topps Heritage, including a couple of short prints. One of these days I finish this set ... always amazed at how few of those coaches cards ever cross my path.

Next up, some Allen & Ginter minis ...

And how about that 2010 Celestial Sign of Vladi!!!! This is the second one I have obtained via trade and in both cases (the other a Longoria), I had no idea it was coming. Truly a a great surprise!!!!

Next up, some T206 minis for my "Frankenstein" T206 set as well as a couple of 2009 Goodwin minis. I still need to post my needs list for the Goodwins set, I don't think I'm too far off.

And finally, some good 'ol Red Sox cards ...

Thanks again Ted, hope to trade again!!

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On a side note before I forget, and forgive me if someone else posted as such, but I purchased a 2011 Topps Series 2 blaster box from Target and I swear that color and the photography is off compared to my Series 1 cards. As a designer, I can't get past how the blacks are not as strong and the grass doesn't seem as green. For example (and a scan would have been appropriate here) but I compared an Oakland A's card from each series and the green is off in the name arc and the same green uniform is TWO different shades. There's almost a dullness to the fronts. Anyone else come across the same issue? 

Oh, and no real big hits, I think my two best cards were a Kimball Champion mini of Koufax and Musial, no complaints there.

Trade with Bound for Beantown ...

So Joe, a fellow Red Sox Nation member at Bound for Beantown dropped me a line not too long ago about doing a trade. Joe has recently got back into collecting and was eager to help me out on a number of fronts.

First up, three cards off my All-Time Red Sox Roster collection. Nick Green (kinda looks like Bradley Cooper), Paul Byrd, and Lars Anderson. Poor Lars finally got back on track last year only to now be block by Adrian Gonzalez. I don't see Lars reaching Boston again and think he'll be elsewhere come Spring Training's end.

Next up, some YYYYOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUKKKKKKKKKKK!!!! Love this sweaty guy. Kevin has really turned himself into one of the game's top players. He was never your typical top prospect, toolsy guy. He came from University of Cincinnatti—not exactly a baseball powehouse—he's slow, and does not look the part of an athlete, but sure knows how to play the game. His swing was built for Fenway and have turned himself into a great fielder no matter which side of the corners he plays from. The "Greek God of Walks" looks good here in this batch of cards, including his 2003 Bowman rookie that I did not have.

In this batch, we have another rising Sox star in Clay Buchholz. A guy that other teams have coveted in trade talks over the years. Now along with Jon Lester, has given the Sox an excellent home-built, 1 and 1A top of the rotation for years to come. I didn't have too many of his cards, so this was a nice add, especially his All-Star jersey swatch.

 Next up, some more BoSox including a Lester I didn't have in the '10 Upper Deck.

Joe also sent along a bunch of retro minis too!!! First in the lot was three, numbered to 99, T206 Cycle cards.

More Topps T206s from 2009 and 2010. As we now know, T206 is dead and will not return this year.

Next up, some Allen & Ginter minis. I have received a number of these lately and need to update my Frankenstein set wants. When I was at my local shop on Friday, he told me that he has not received any info regarding an 2011 Ginter offering. I wonder if Topps will push this later this year. Above are batches from the 2008, 2009, and 2010 sets.

And finally, we close with more retro minis from 2009 UD's Goodwin Champions. Will be building this set—love the artwork too much to not build it. A nice mix of SPs and black borders.

So thanks Joe!!!  I need to put the final touches on your package and get that out to you this week. You definitely hit on all my likes with this trade.

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Coming up this week, I'll have my trade bait Utley patch recap coming on Monday, plus I'll show what I picked up at the local card store, will do another trade bait post, plus will show a card or two I designed for "Cards that Should Have Been." I won't be doing any TTM requests this Spring Training, but for those that do, good luck and this is the week to get those requests in the mail. The earlier the better as most teams don't really get their workout going till later this week.

Trade from Bound for Beantown and some incredible baseball photography

So this shot is just a tease for the package I received yesterday from Joe over at Bound for Beantown. Will definitely upload more shots from this trade either today or tomorrow. Lots of Ginter, T206, and Goodwin minis to go along with a bunch of Youks and Buchholz cards!!!!

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Also, came across some fantastic baseball photography from Hy Peskin via the UniWatch blog. Awesome, awesome stuff!!!!!!!! Really, you need to take a look, especially if you are into vintage cards from the 50's and 60's. Absolutely stunning!!!

Trade with Thoughts and Sox and other tidbits

Being a die hard Red Sox fan, one might think it would be hard trading with other Sox card collectors, but I find it pretty easy. I try to keep my Red Sox collection narrowed down to my All-Time Roster collection and then collect cards from my favorite Sox over the years. Guys like Rice, Mo Vaughn, Nomaaaah, Pedro, Varitek, Youk, Lester, and Buchholz. I don't need to have all of them, but pick up some here and there when I can.

Plain and simple, there is just too much out there and so I have an abundance of Red Sox cards that sit and collect dust. So when Adam from Thoughts and Sox emailed about trading, it was an easy match. Adam has an extensive list of Sox needs so I was able to hit across a wide variety of sets along with a number of other Sox oddball items not on his lists. I think close to 500+ cards when his way. After receiving the package below, and telling him how happy I was with the contents, he said he felt it wasn't enough. I told him not to worry and that making a dent into what I collect far out weighed what I traded away.

So with that, onto the package.

First up, some vintage 1971 Topps Red Sox!! Rico, Boomer, and Reggie. These three cards will be showcased again for a blog series that will roll out as we get closer to the start of the season. Three sharp looking cards of some Sox greats of the seventies.

While on the Red Sox theme, next up are four cards off my All-Time Sox roster collection.

How about some letterpatch and jersey relic Red Sox.

Adam also hit on my Heritage set needs knocking off another '60 and three cards off my '61 set.

Next up we minis, with a bunch of 2008 Allen & Ginters ...

Some 2010 Ginters ...

Ginter insert sets ... really love the flag series cards ...

And finally, some 2009 Topps T206s to boot!

So there you have it, a trade that worked out great for both Red Sox collectors and crossed off many numbers off of each others wantlists. Thank you again Adam and go Sox!!!!

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I also received a trade with reader Matt, but accidentally deleted my pics. I'll be sure to retake and post tomorrow.

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I also received my collection from the Topps Million Card Giveaway. I had been wondering what condition these would be, and was rather pleasantly surprised. All of the vintage '60s had nice, strong color and decent corners. Only two, a '68 and '69 had really soft corners. The various 70's cards were all strong Ex-Mt to Nr-Mt. I'll try to showcase a few of these in the next day or two.

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Gregory over at, Plaschke, The Sweater Is Argyle, nabbed the Utley patch card. Some 2010 Allen Ginters and insert set cards are heading to the east coast in exchange.

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And lastly, the Tooth Fairy brought me a little surprise. I had won last week a 2010 Allen & Ginter Creatures of Legend, Myth, and Joy and when I opened the envelope, these fell out.

Four minis that I didn't have for my T206 Frankenstein set and a bunch of T206 base cards, one of which a SP NNO variation Brian McCann. If anyone is collecting this set, or wants to trade for one of these, drop me a comment or email.