A Boatload of Crap

Sort of describes my week.  Sort of describes how this post is going to go.  As I attempt to get somewhat organized heading into the holidays, here are a bunch of scans that have been sitting in a folder waiting to see the light of day on the blog...

Grady Sizemore's 2014 Topps card was one of my favorite baseball cards from this past season.  Given that he lasted just over 50 games with Boston Grady's not going to have many Red Sox cards, but this horizontal beauty certainly makes up for the lack of quantity with quality.  This particular card is the Gold Refractor from Topps Chrome.

My copy was the second of 50 in the print run.  I happily shelled out a 5-spot (with free shipping) to add this somewhat scarce card to my Red Sox collection.

This Xander Bogaerts blue framed parallel from 2014 Gypsy Queen is much more common, at 499 serial-numbered copies.  I've really soured on Gypsy Queen over the years, but the framed parallels continue to look great as far as I'm concerned.

I typically shy away from anything "USA Baseball", but this Will Clark card was a surprise throw-in from an eBay seller, and I will never turn down a new Clark card.

A gloriously off-centered (from top to bottom) '71-72 Topps Gary Smith.  In great shape overall, and I love anything Golden Seals.  Wouldn't mind someday knocking off '71-72 Topps hockey either.  Plucking this from the dollar box at my local hobby shop was an easy decision.

This one's from the shop as well, but from the 6-for-a-dollar box.  Marcel was just surpassed by Jaromir Jagr on the career points leader board, and now sits in 6th place.  An early '80s OPC HOFer for around 17 cents seemed too good to pass up.

This 1958 Topps Gene Baker is from the same shop.  Paid $1 for this one, just because the condition is fantastic.  Gene is in much nicer shape than all of my other '58 Topps cards, with strong corners and just about perfect centering.

1958 Topps is one of those sets where I think the card backs are much more interesting than the fronts.

Here's one from a recent COMC order.  I'll say it again, Panini Prizm cards look great when they don't have to mask or erase logos and team names.  I thoroughly enjoyed the World Cup this summer, and though I didn't buy any of this product when the set came out (a little expensive and not really available in my area), I've picked up a few singles from COMC in the months since the tournament ended.  Aguero was an obvious choice as one of the top players in the world today.  In fact, he's currently ranked as the #1 striker in the Premier League.  I don't think I'll ever bother trying to complete this set, but these really are sharp looking cards; job well done Panini!

...and we go from that to a total stinker.  I picked this one out of a dime box at the one and only card show I made it to in 2014.  I liked it for two reasons; it's just a terrible photo, and also Canseco never played a game for the Angels.

Last but not least, another card from the same dime box as Jose.  This Bobby Hull was totally new to me, I don't recall ever having seen this set before.  Found out thanks to Zistle that this is from the 1992-93 Future Trends Canada Cup '76 set.  I love the photograph, something I don't recall seeing on a hockey card before.

While the write-up leaves more than a little to be desired (in fact it sounds like an excerpt from a fourth grader's book report), both photographs on the card are just awesome.  Well worth the ten cents it set me back.

Hope to be back with some thank you posts, as well as some other more structured ideas, in a day or two!