What I Bought Instead of Allen & Ginter - Post #2

Alright, time for the second installment of my alternatives to a 2010 Allen & Ginter hobby box...

Every so often for probably the last year or so, I've received an email from Sirius Sports Auctions. I have no idea how they got my contact info, I think I always assumed I purchased something on Ebay from them and generally ignored the messages. For some reason though, when I received an email letting me know that their June auction was open for bidding, I decided to register for an account and check it out. I found that the auction consisted mostly of graded vintage cards, which was fine with me. The auction process works a little differently than Ebay. They list a large lot of cards once a month, and all auctions end at the same time. When the auction process ends, there is a "15 minute rule" where only anyone who has bid on a card previously can continue to do so, which I thought was an interesting twist. Not only that, but each time a previous bidder rebid on any card in the entire auction, the end time for all cards in the auction was pushed out 15 minutes. So the auction is only truly over after nobody has rebid on a single card for a 15 minute time span. I kind of liked this setup, but since the original end time was 11 PM Eastern, I had to go to bed long before the auction ended. I decided to place a few low ball bids to see what would happen. I was definitely pleased with the results:

1967 Topps Darrell Brandon - $4

The auctions are done largely via consignment as far as I can tell, so it's kind of hit or miss if you're looking for a very particular item. If you are a bit more open-minded and flexible though, you can do alright it seems. I was pleased that the first auction I decided to check out happened to have a decent selection of 1967 Topps Red Sox graded PSA 7 (Near Mint). "Bucky" Brandon was never a spectacular player, and went just 5-11 for the Sox in 1967, but I'd like to build this team set and for $4 I was pretty satisfied. Besides, it's better than this card:

1967 Topps Garry Roggenburk - $4

This is by far the most boring of the cards I won in the auction. It's a prime example of the "hatless" cards from the 60's that I can't stand. I would prefer airbrushing in all honesty. Roggenburk was acquired from the Twins at the end of the '66 season, which explains the incorrect jersey and lack of a hat. In case this card wasn't boring enough, he didn't pitch a single inning in the majors in '67 either. Oh well, another card closer to the team set.

1967 Topps Joe Foy - $4

Noticing a pattern here? I've paid more than $4 for a pack of cards I don't even care much about, so I was amazed to keep winning these at that price. Foy had a slightly better career than the guys on the first two cards, but still lasted just 6 seasons in Major League Baseball. His numbers don't look that impressive, but you have to take the time period (where pitchers were absolutely dominating hitters) into consideration. He was the steady third baseman for the Red Sox in 1967, appearing in 130 games for the club.

1967 Topps George Thomas - $3

Thomas was basically a bench player for the Red Sox in 1967. He didn't exactly have a stellar year either, batting just .213 with 1 HR and 6 RBI in 89 at-bats. His best years off the bench would come in 1969 when he hit .353 with a .400 on base percentage, and 1970 when he hit .343 with a .420 on base percentage, both for the Red Sox. Now, my favorite two cards of the bunch:

1967 Topps George Scott - $4

In the 60's and 70's, most of the true rookie cards are multi-player cards, and generally the second year was when the player got their own card for the very first time. If they were good enough, the second year card would be adorned with the All-Star Rookie trophy. I always liked the second year cards with the rookie cup better than multi-player cards. As such, this George Scott was the '67 card I wanted to win the most. In 1967, his second season, Scott topped the .300 mark and added 19HR and 82 RBI to go with it. He went on to have a pretty successful career with the Red Sox and the Brewers. Not only that, but he's got some pretty classic cards out there.

1967 Topps Dave Ricketts - $6

The last of the '67's I won is the only non Red Sox player in the bunch. Once again, not a spectacular player here. Ricketts played in only 130 total games spread over 6 seasons. That doesn't make this card any less impressive though in my opinion. I love the old collared uniform combined with the glasses and the strange pose. I had to pay a bit more for this one since it's a rare high-numbered card. Even still, I was excited to add this to the collection for about the price of some modern day hobby packs.

Cost: $25
Running Total: $30