Put Your Sunglasses On

As collectors, we often go through different phases in what we're attracted to or in search of.  Lately, I've been on a shiny card kick.  Here are a bunch that I've picked up in recent weeks, courtesy of Sportlots and eBay...

I've shown a few different cards from this Donruss Optic set recently, just love the design.  Can't go wrong with future HOFer Yadier Molina either.

I find the catcher cards work best in this set, as it's much harder to tell that this is an unlicensed release when the tools of ignorance hide the fact that the jerseys and helmets are bereft of logos.

Another future HOFer here.  These first few are all standard "Holo" parallels, akin to Topps' Refractors, but shiny in a different sort of way if you ask me.

I feel like maybe collectors in general are not as hot on Charlie Blackmon because of the fact that he plays in Colorado, and got a somewhat late start to his MLB career age-wise.  I enjoy picking up his cards when I can find them on the cheap though, and that was certainly the case with every one of these Optic cards in today's post.

Moving into some Aqua parallels now, I believe these are serial-numbered to /299.  A nice enough looking Pedroia for my ever-expanding Red Sox collection.

In some cases I picked out the cards because I enjoy the player, team, or the look of the photo.  In other cases, like with Anthony Rizzo here, none of those things are particularly true but the price was just too cheap to pass on.

If I was going to pick up a Rizzo, might as well grab a Kris Bryant to accompany it.

Corey Kluber might be the least aesthetically pleasing card in this set.  Certainly high up there.  The lack of logos is absolutely glaring and painful here.  Not even sure I'll hang onto this card long term, but we'll see.

By contrast, Eric Hosmer doesn't look half bad!

Here's another photograph where, if you don't look too hard, you could almost convince yourself it's a licensed set.

Moving on now to some Blue parallels, starting with a guy who appears to have played his last game for the Cubbies.

Yikes, Kluber again?!  Of all the cards to have picked up multiple parallels of...

Whoops, here are a couple more Aquas that I missed in the first batch.  Manny Machado is not exactly a fan favorite, but I grabbed this one nonetheless.

Another guy who'll be in Cooperstown someday, the great Justin Verlander.

Another figure who's polarizing among fans.  I actually really like the way this Bryce Harper card looks.

Closing things out on the Optic front, here are no less than a dozen Orange parallels, all landed in a lot from the same seller...

Orange seemed like an obvious match for an Orioles card.

Chris Sale's card is right up there with Corey Kluber's in terms of the lack of logos being super noticeable.  I'll never really turn down a new Red Sox card though.

Pedroia makes his second appearance of the post, though I have to say I prefer the Aqua version.

JBJ!  I must be getting close to a completed Red Sox team set of these Orange cards at this stage.

Yeah, I love the image on this Perez.  I might have to try to complete a 9-pocket sheet of these in my shiny binder, each pocket with a different colored parallel.

Unlicensed or not, a serial-numbered Kershaw is a decent pick-up in my book.

Seems like the pitcher cards in general are rougher when it comes to the lack of licensing.  If I ever purge the Kluber cards in the future I'll probably toss Yu Darvish here in with them.

Last but not least on the Optic front, another Bryce.

I know unlicensed cards, and Panini product in general, aren't for everyone.  If that's the case for you personally, let's cleanse your palate with some good ol' officially licensed Topps Chrome, shall we?

These last four I picked up in a Sportlots order from a seller who had a few cheap 2013 Topps Chrome parallels.  I really love the colored refractors from the "white border years" of 2009 through 2014 or so.  Paul Goldschmidt is a guy who doesn't seem to get a whole lot of hobby love, but that's okay because it made this beauty dirt cheap to acquire.

I'm not really an Ian Desmond guy, simply grabbed this because it was 18 cents and did not increase shipping costs for my order at all.

A nice Orange Refractor here of another future HOFer.  Cy Young Award winner, 250+ wins, 3,000+ K's.  Was happy to be able to pick this one up for less than a buck.

Finally, the third Bryce Harper card in today's post.  I'm not exactly a Harper collector, but he's a legit star and I'm a sucker for the Topps All-Star Rookie Cup.  I paid a whole $5 for this card, which seems like a lot, but I have a feeling it'll hold its value and won't be easy to find at that price point years from now.

Thanks for joining me on this quick tour through some of my new shiny acquisitions.  Stay safe out there, and happy collecting!