A Sunday COMC Blaster

Had a little free time to do some scanning this morning, and it's been a while since I did one of these COMC "virtual blasters".  So, I hit up my card chest where I store my backlog of to-be-processed cards from past COMC orders and grabbed and scanned at random until I reached the $20 mark.  Let's take a look at some of my pick-ups...

2015 Bowman's Best Atomic Refractor - Mookie Betts - $2.20

I read an article the other day that was strongly hinting that Mookie Betts might be the best player in baseball, ranking him ahead of Mike Trout.  I think the author of that one needs to slow it down and give it a few years here, but at the same time I'm beyond excited as a Red Sox fan to see what kind of season Mookie will put together in 2017.  This Atomic Refractor satisfied my appetite for shiny, and I guess I did okay negotiating the price as well, as the cheapest example listed on the site today is going for more than $4.

2009-10 Upper Deck Champ's Yellow Parallel - Jonathan Toews - $2.50

If you check in here even semi-regularly then you've probably seen me post some of these parallels before.  $2.50 is more than I'd like to pay for one, but as I near the halfway point with the 100-card set it's getting harder and harder to track down the ones I need.  Besides, Toews and Kane cards tend to demand a premium, and now I have them both.

2015 Allen & Ginter 10th Anniversary Buyback - Curt Schilling - $1.19

I've become somewhat obsessed with Topps buybacks in recent years, but my love of the buyback is not confined to the ones offered in Topps flagship and Heritage each year.  I've also got a few of these A & G 10th Anniversary buybacks in my collection, and in a moment of weakness I paid just over a buck for this Schilling.

2007 Goudey - Vladimir Guerrero - $.85

2007 Goudey was the set that got me back into collecting, ten years ago now.  I bought a ton of blasters of this stuff, and completed the entire 200-card set in both red and green backs.  The 88 short prints have been a different story, though I'm really getting close to the end now.  Finding one I needed for under a dollar was completely unexpected, and awesome.  Even if I have to overpay for the last few I'm determined to knock this set off this year.

1994-95 Pinnacle Rink Collection - Alexandre Daigle - $.61

These days Alexandre Daigle is remembered as a giant bust, but I was right in the middle of my childhood phase of collecting when he was a hot prospect pre-bust, and I remember the hype.  With Rink Collection being among my favorite parallels of the '90s I was certainly grabbing this one at 61 cents.

2013 Panini Golden Age Tip Top Bread - Red Grange - $.63

I recently discovered these Tip Top Bread inserts from 2013 Panini Golden Age and fell in love with them.  I am a fan of the simple design, bold colors, and the fact that they're die-cut in the shape of a bread tag.  These have a nice, vintage feel to them.  Since I'm not a football guy this is my first card of the infamous Red Grange as well.  Love that helmet!

2014 Allen & Ginter - Xander Bogaerts - $.65

Xander Bogaerts is my favorite current player, has been for a few years running now.  I've done a good job chasing down some of his higher end parallels and even a few autos, but inexplicably had not tracked down his basic Allen & Ginter rookie card until now.  Problem solved for 65 cents.

2015-16 Upper Deck SP Authentic All-Time Moments - Wayne Gretzky - $.49

The SP Authentic "Moments" subsets of the past few years have provided some of my favorite photographs on hockey cards, and this Gretzky is just further proof of that.  Less than 50 cents for this one?  Yes please!

2015 Bowman Chrome Purple Refractor (#'d /250) - Blake Swihart - $1.30

I'm a sucker for a serial-numbered parallel, and I picked this one up right around the time that Swihart was first getting regular playing time with Boston.  Not exactly my favorite card of today's post, but I guess I could have done worse with a dollar and 30 cents.

2013 Panini Boxing Day - Gordie Howe - $.65

I don't think this one needs much explanation.  Happy to add any cardboard featuring the great Gordie Howe from his stint with the Whalers.  I think these were some type of hobby shop giveaway promo up in Canada for Boxing Day.

2014 Bowman Chrome Shimmer Refractor (#'d /15) - Bartolo Colon - $2.35

I can never get enough of Bartolo Colon, he's one of my favorite figures in all of sports.  Guys that play at the top level well into their 40s are impressive, and the fact that he's made it this long with his "physique" makes Bartolo in particular even more fascinating to me.  Numbered to just 15 copies, this is probably the star of the small collection of his card that I've assembled over time.

1999 Team Best Player of the Year - Alfonso Soriano - $.44

I'm always on the lookout for new cards featuring the Norwich Navigators, the short-lived AA team that played their home games just 30 minutes from where I grew up in Connecticut.  At 44 cents this might be one of the cheaper finds I've ever had for this mini collection.

1987-88 O-Pee-Chee - Mike Bullard - $.75

I picked this one up for a future Stat Kings post.  Bullard had a hell of a season in 1987-88, lighting the lamp 48 times.  His goal totals dropped significantly after this season, and he finished his career overseas.  More on this one in the future...

2016 Panini Diamond Kings - Ted Williams (Photo Variation) - $1.38

I thought Panini did a great job with Diamond Kings last year given their limitations.  Had they been able to show proper logos and uniforms this would have been one of my favorite sets of the year.  As it stands I'd like to at least complete the Red Sox team set, and this photo variation is one of the more difficult cards I'd need to do so.

1995-96 Topps Finest Refractor - Doug Gilmour - $1.25

I really enjoy the two years of Finest hockey refractors from the mid-'90s.  These '95-96s fell at just two per box in what was a high-end product at the time, so they're not all that common even nowadays.  Scoring a HOFer that I needed for a buck twenty-five felt pretty good. 

2014 Bowman Chrome Bubbles Refractor (#'d /99) - Jacoby Ellsbury - $.80

I've shown a few of these Bowman Chrome Bubbles Refractors over the years, and I'll pick up just about any star I can find for less than a dollar.  I know I like a design quite a bit when I find myself shelling out cash for a modern day New York Yankee.

2014 Topps Stadium Club Legends Die-Cut - Nolan Ryan - $.83

I've been casually collecting Nolan Ryan cards for just about the entire length of time that I've been into sports cards.  1990 Topps was the first baseball set that I opened packs of, and the 5 card subset tribute to Ryan that kicked off that set got me hooked.  I still search COMC for cheap Nolan Ryans from time to time, and 85 cents seemed like a great deal for this die-cut insert from Stadium Club.

2013-14 Panini Prizm Initial Impressions Prizm - Dougie Hamilton - $.85

I was a big Dougie Hamilton guy during his brief tenure with the Bruins, and I was among those fans who were disheartened to see him dealt to Calgary.  This rookie year insert is a Prizm parallel (basically Panini's equivalent of the refractor), so it's extra shiny.  A nice minor addition to my Bruins collection on the cheap.

2013 Gypsy Queen Framed White - Jim Abbott - $.36

Jim Abbott is easily one of the most inspiring athletes ever to step onto a baseball diamond, and I love that I can often find his cards for super affordable prices.  I recently landed a great buyback of his for my franken-set project, but that will have to wait for another day.  For now, this framed Gypsy Queen parallel was a nice add for mere pocket change.

Well, these 19 cards bring my total to $20.08, so I'll stop there for today.  I hope you enjoyed seeing some of the results of my COMC window shopping, thanks for reading!