Buyback Franken-set: Black Friday Buybacks

It's been well over two weeks since I've made any progress on my Buyback Franken-set project.  I'll have to pick up the pace if I hope to finish this project in 2019, which is probably a coin flip at this point.  Anyway, to get things moving again I've got the buybacks that I picked up on COMC during last November's Black Friday promotion.  I picked up exactly ten over the course of that weekend, which is perfect...

1969 Topps #292 - Al Downing

This one was an obvious choice.  What a fantastic, classic photograph on Al Downing's 1969 release.  I like this one so much that I broke my informal self-imposed rule of paying $1 or less for buybacks on COMC unless it's a superstar or some other very rare buyback.  Paid $1.15 for this one and don't regret it one bit!

Ron Schueler's '75 release is in slot 292 of the binder.  Al or Ron, Ron or Al?  Hmm...

Downing's in.  I checked and it looks like Night Owl already has this one in his '75 Topps buyback quest, so Schueler is off to the rejected box.

This number is part of a completed page, so here's a look at the page now with Al Downing in place.  My favorite here might be the Downing, or maybe that '76 Ted Simmons at top center.

1990 Topps #229 - David Wells

I'm constantly on the lookup for cheap pick-ups in my quest to complete 1990 Topps in buyback format.  A nice addition towards that end here with pitcher David Wells.  Any time I pick up a buyback from this set I secretly hope it loses out for the franken-set so that I can shift it to the 1990 Topps binder.

In this case I already had this loud and very '90s Frank Thomas buyback in slot 229, allowing me to do just that!

1981 Topps #582 - Gaylord Perry

Here's a fun one.  I hemmed and hawed over this '81 Topps Gaylord Perry buyback for quite some time.  It had been in and out of my cart on occasion for months, but priced just a big higher than I was willing to pay for it.  When it dipped to $1.75 during the Black Friday sale, I pounced.

I had this '76 Mike Kekich in the franken-set at #582.

Had because obviously I went with the spit-balling HOFer over Kekich.

1990 Topps #330 - Ron Darling

Yeah, another 1990 Topps buyback.  It won't be the last one you see tonight, either.  1990 was Ron Darling's final full season with the Mets, and it wasn't one of his more memorable ones.  He went 7-9 with a 4.50 ERA, the worst of his career to that date.

Darling has a number that's a multiple of ten as well, which means a tough match-up generally speaking.  Certainly the case here, as he is pitted against one of my all-time favorite buybacks in this '74 Juan Marichal.

Easy call there, the 1990 Topps buyback set gets another card.

1963 Topps #373 - Jim Campbell

I grabbed this one because I love old catcher cards, and am also a fan of franchises of the past.  Jim Campbell's two MLB seasons weren't exactly stellar, but I just love the aesthetics of this particular card.  Will that be enough to get it into the franken-set, though?

Ah man, I was really hoping so, but this Tom McCraw is one of my favorite '71 Topps cards.  This is a tough one for sure, without a real clear winner in my mind.

I'll stick with the McCraw for now, but that was pretty much a 50/50 call.

1990 Topps #22 - Bruce Ruffin

Another '90 Topps buyback, this one not quite so exciting.  Surely this one's destined for the '90 Topps set...

Looks that way!  That World's Fair shoulder patch alone is enough to best Bruce Ruffin.

1958 Topps #138 - Earl Torgeson

Couldn't resist this one on a few counts.  First, I enjoy vintage players wearing spectacles.  Secondly, 1958 Topps has been growing on me more and more in recent months.  Finally, #138 is a number I was missing from the franken-set, which means Earl gets automatic entry into the binder and I get one card closer to completion.

Best of all, he completes a new page for me as well!  A lot to like on this page, I'd have a hard time picking a favorite.

1990 Topps #320 - Dave Stieb

Next on the 1990 Topps front, David Wells' rotation-mate in Toronto, Dave Stieb.  Stieb went an impressive 18-6 in 1990, with an ERA below 3.00.  He was named an All-Star for the final time that season, finished 5th in AL Cy Young Voting, and was even named on a few MVP ballots.

320 is a new number for the project as well, and completes another page!  Given that I simply purchase buybacks that I like at random and haven't gotten to the point of checking card number needs when buying new ones yet, it's somewhat amazing that I hit on two new numbers in a row in the later stages of the project here.  A trio of '75s, a Schilling, a Pilot, and a Pumpsie Green rookie here, not bad!

1963 Topps #192 - Clay Dalrymple

Here's another one I grabbed mostly because I enjoy the photograph.  I didn't really intend to grab two catcher buybacks from '63 Topps in this same batch, but it worked out that way.  Will Clay make the binder, or meet the same fate as the Jim Campbell above?

Ouch, some big names on this "Active NL Home Run Leaders" card from 2012 Topps.

I can't see bumping those three guys for Clay.  Oh well, my rejected box certainly got a lot nicer with some of these additions.

1990 Topps #582 - Rick Honeycutt

How about another 1990 Topps buyback to close things out?  Rick Honeycutt sure answered the call to the bullpen a lot in the late '80s and early '90s for Oakland.  63 appearances in 1990.  He must have been icing up that arm constantly!

That Honeycutt buyback is the same card number as the Gaylord Perry from earlier in the post.  Didn't take Perry very long to be challenged, that's for sure.

Obviously I'm leaving Gaylord in the buyback binder, and Rick joins the 1990 Topps set.

That was fairly successful.  Two new numbers, two new completed pages, and a handful of cards closer to a 1990 buyback set.  I'll take it!

For the next Buyback Franken-set post, I've got a great batch sent to me by a fellow blogger.  Until then, thanks for stopping by!

Franken-set Progress: 644/792 (81%)
1990 Topps Buyback Set: 111/792 (14%)
"Rejected" Buybacks: 575
Total Buybacks in Collection: 1,330