Buyback Franken-set: Angus Goes Shopping - Part I

Angus, who blogs over at Dawg Day Cards, has got to be one of the most generous folks in our online community.  Recently he did a little shopping on my behalf when he was traveling the Southwest United States.  Out of the blue I got an awesome bubbler stuffed full of cards, including plenty of buybacks.  Sweet!

Today I've got the first ten to evaluate for my ongoing franken-set project...

1968 Topps #268 - Bob Humphreys

A box-topper buyback from this year's Heritage set was on top of the stack, nice!  Bob Humphreys spent nine years as a relief pitcher in MLB, with his last appearance coming in 1970.  A solid buyback for sure, and he's wearing a cap as he should be.

Rough match-up as far as the franken-set goes though, as I really enjoy this candid dugout shot on Gil Flores' '78 card.

Flores stays in the binder for now.

1988 Topps #714 - Jim Fregosi

Next we've got a nice high number of White Sox skipper Jim Fregosi courtesy of 1988 Topps.  Unfortunately for Jim, his Sox finished a full 32.5 games behind the powerhouse Oakland A's in 1988.  In the absence of any competing #714 buyback though he's in!

1997 Topps #93 - Derek Bell

This is an interesting one in that I haven't seen very many 1997 buybacks at all.  Derek Bell was part of an impressive Astros lineup in the mid to late '90s, and enjoyed the finest seasons of his career during that stretch.

Had this Heritage Tony Cloninger buyback in spot #93.  I like this card...

...but I'm going with the Bell.

This one falls on one of only two completed pages as well.  Here's the before shot with the Cloninger at upper right...

...and here's the after, with Bell inserted.

1987 Topps #487 - Dave Gumpert

Here's a bland '87 Topps Dave Gumpert.  Dave was actually with the Royals for the 1987 season, but never saw action after May.  Those would be his final innings in Major League Baseball, as he was granted free agency at season's end but never signed on with another club.

Already had this 1973 Bruce Dal Canton in slot 487...

...and there it will remain.

1988 Topps #135 - Dennis Rasmussen

The Yankees dealt pitcher Dennis Rasmussen to the Reds in August of 1987, and as a result Topps treated us to some solid airbrushing on his 1988 card.  The jacket is particularly noticeable.

Is Dennis any match for this 1969 Tommy Davis Pilots buyback though?

No way!

1988 Topps #412 - Randy Myers

Here's another '88, hurler Randy Myers of the Mets.  Randy really hit his peak after being traded to the Reds, with whom he was named NLCS MVP in 1990.  He wound up with four All-Star appearances over the course of his career as well.  As my first #412 buyback Randy is now resident in the binder.

1988 Topps #723 - Bob Kipper

Next on the '88 Topps train, Bob Kipper, who is currently serving as the pitching coach for the Red Sox AAA Affiliate, the Pawtucket Red Sox, who play their home games only 15 minutes up the road from me.  Another nice high number, this one is in by default!

1986 Topps #767 - Jody Davis

From there we proceed to Jody Davis, donning the tools of ignorance on his '86 Topps release.  Jody was a rock at backstop for the Cubs in the '80s, appearing in 125 games or more every season from 1982 to 1987.  In 1986 he was named an All-Star for the second time and won the lone Gold Glove of his career as well.  Some good creds for a #767 for this project, but Davis is an automatic in regardless as my first #767.

1989 Topps #417 - Mike LaCoss

Mike LaCoss made 18 starts, and appeared in 45 games in total, for the Giants in 1989.  He went 10-10 and finished with a very respectable 3.17 ERA, the second best mark of his Major League career.  Based on this photograph it looks like Mike probably threw a mean splitter.

Mike Garman has been resident in the binder in slot 417.

This was basically a case of going with the '78 over the '89.  The more I look at that photograph on the LaCoss card though, the more I think I could have gone the other way with it.

1967 Topps #317 - Cesar Tovar

Last card today, a beautiful 1967 Topps Heritage buyback of second baseman Cesar Tovar.  Cesar is best known for once playing all nine defensive positions in a single game.  Pretty much your standard '60s posed player-with-bat shot here.  Does Cesar make the binder?

Not a chance.  Slot 317 is held down by about as close to a lock as you're gonna find at this stage of the project, my Pumpsie Green RC buyback.  I shipped the infamous Bartolo Colon Topps NOW card from last year to Douglas from Sports Cards from the Dollar Store to acquire this beauty, and I still love it every bit as much as the day it arrived in the mailbox.

A great lot here, with four new numbers and another contender that bumped its way onto a completed page.  This is just a preview, there are more great buybacks from Angus coming soon!


Franken-set Progress:  457/792 (57%)
"Rejected" Buybacks:  282
Total Buybacks in Collection: 739

Buyback Franken-set: Ten Randoms

Today's buybacks come courtesy of a large lot of 100+ that I won a few months back on eBay.  I just blindly reached into the box and pulled ten individual cards, let's see how they fare as far as the franken-set goes...

1973 Topps #250 - Manny Sanguillen

Today's round gets off to a nice start with this '73 Topps Manny Sanguillen.  Manny was coming off of two straight seasons where he was both an All-Star and garnered some MVP votes when this card was released originally.  Bonus points for the appropriately odd '73 Topps background.  Is that a telephone pole behind Manny?

A brutal match-up for Sanguillen as far as the franken-set goes, as this '76 Topps buyback featuring HOFer Fergie Jenkins (and some palm trees!) already occupies that binder slot.

I went with Jenkins, but this one was honestly almost coin flip close.

1989 Topps #463 - Steve Lake

Next up we've got Steve Lake, a backup catcher with a career .237 batting average.  Not exactly stiff competition, but will this one make the binder by default?

Nope, this '79 Steve Comer buyback is already in slot 463.  You know what that means...

...Steve Lake is outta here!

1988 Topps #670 - Dan Plesac

Three cards in and we have a new number for the franken-set!  Plesac put up an impressive 2.41 ERA in 1988 in 50 appearances out of the pen for the Brewers.  He was so effective in the closer role that year that he actually received MVP votes!  A nice buyback for the binder, indeed.

1989 Topps #438 - Greg Gross

Here's an '89 buyback featuring pinch-hit specialist Greg Gross.  Greg actually played the 1989 season, his final in Major League Baseball, for the Astros after signing with them as a free agent at the outset of the season.  On a side note, the way this photo is framed here drives me nuts.

Standing in Greg Gross' path to the franken-set binder is another Philadelphia Phillie, catcher Jim Coker!  Not a very tough call here.

Absolutely no way I can go with late-career Greg Gross over that beautiful '60 Topps buyback.

1989 Topps #512 - Donnie Hill

Infielder Donnie Hill actually missed the entire 1989 season after an eye infection he developed in 1987 resulted in a decline in his vision, and in turn his hitting ability, throughout the 1988 season.  He returned to MLB in 1990 though, with his health issues largely behind him.

Already had this '73 Dalton Jones in the binder in slot 512.

It's hard for me to select a buyback from a year in which the player featured didn't even take a Major League at-bat, so Dalton Jones comes out on top in this match-up.

1974 Topps #435 - Dave Concepcion

This 1974 Dave Concepcion buyback is undoubtedly the highlight of tonight's grouping.  Dave was a 9x All-Star and won five Gold Gloves during the '70s.  His number is retired by the Cincinnati Reds, and he's a member of their HOF as well.

This one has some extra appeal to be because A) that's a unique and interesting photo and B) the Reds were on the cusp of greatness in 1974, and would win consecutive World Series in '75 and '76.  This one would have probably demolished any competition, but as it stands it gets a free pass into the binder as my first #435 buyback.

2012 Topps #289 - Casey Kotchman

Casey Kotchman has not announced his retirement to my knowledge, and is still "officially" a free agent as far as I know.  I think we can consider his current stats as final though, since he hasn't appeared in a Major League baseball game since 2013.  Fitting that he's shown with the glove on here, as he was known as one of the best fielding first basemen of his day.

Already had this Rick Auerbach in slot 289 of the binder.

I'm going with Kotchman.  Mainly because I haven't encountered many buybacks as recent as 2012, and since I don't have much of an affinity for either card that's enough to settle the debate.

1989 Topps #121 - Garry Templeton

Garry Templeton was a solid player in his day, with multiple All-Star selections to his credit and enshrinement in the Padres HOF.  His most productive days were far behind him by the time Topps printed this card up though.

Alvis Woods' '78 release is already holding down slot 121 in the franken-set.  I really like the background of the photograph on this one.

Enough so that I chose to stick with it over the Templeton.

1988 Topps #398 - Juan Samuel All-Star

Here's a nice bright one, Juan Samuel's All-Star subset card from 1988 Topps.  Juan enjoyed what was probably his career year in 1987, with 28 home runs, an even 100 RBI, and 15 triples!  He also struck out 162 times though!  I was lacking a #398 buyback, so the franken-set binder just got quite a bit brighter overall.

1990 Topps #355 - Marty Barrett

Last card for tonight, and it's nice to finish with a 1990 Topps buyback, and one featuring Red Sox fan favorite Marty Barrett to boot!  I was pleased to find binder slot 355 empty and thus to be able to add Marty to the franken-set.

While I'm not officially chasing a 1990 Topps buyback set at this point, choosing to focus on my franken-set instead, I am up to 41 buybacks from this release now.  Not bad!

Thanks for checking in, the next buyback post in the queue features some that were provided to me by a very generous blogger and trader!

Franken-set Progress:  453/792 (57%)
"Rejected" Buybacks:  276
Total Buybacks in Collection: 729

For Me, Stadium Club is Top(p)s

There haven't been many new releases so far in 2017 that have interested me.  Not that I mind, it's made this year an easy one for me in terms of resisting the temptation of retail and using my hobby funds in a more "targeted" manner.

The one set that interests me most every year, at least for these past few years since it returned, is Stadium Club.  A nice, tidy, 300-card checklist with no short prints, and featuring the most creative photos of any product Topps releases.  I'm sold.

So, I grabbed a 12-card rack pack from my local Target a couple of weeks back to experience the 2017 release for myself.  I know myself well enough to know that I probably won't chase, and certainly won't finish, this set.  In fact, I don't think I've finished off a single Stadium Club set since its rebirth.

Still, it's fun to open a pack every once in a while.  Let's see how I did...

First card out of the pack had me smiling.  Was always a fan of Ozzie Smith as a kid, and I don't recall having seen this fantastic photo on cardboard before.  I think the black and white works here.

Admittedly, not the most exciting photograph this product has to offer.  I'm guessing this one was chosen for the retro uniform.

Very similar to the previous card in terms of photo selection, though I do like that this one captured Thomas' swing at the exact moment that his bat made contact with the ball.

Don't have a lot to say about this one, so I'll take this opportunity to say that these cards seem to be curling already after just a few days.  Anyone else noticed this?

A unique dugout shot here of the guy that had the hobby in a fervor a couple of years back.  Is it just me, or have collectors cooled on Bryant a bit?  Makes you wonder how in demand Aaron Judge cards will be in 2019?

I'd say this is the most boring base card in my pack.

My first White Sox card of the man that Boston dealt to acquire Chris Sale.  Interesting that this photograph was taken in the same dugout as the Bryant above.

One thing I'm continually disappointed in year in and year out with Stadium Club is the inserts.  Obviously I could have done a lot worse than Mike Trout, but still this Beam Team card just seems uninspired to me.

This one is even worse.  I don't buy Stadium Club for the inserts though, it's all about the base set.  Both of these have already been tossed into a trade package that I hope to get out this coming week.

The last three cards in my pack were of the horizontal layout variety.  This is the exact type of photo that Stadium Club is known for, great stuff.

Check out the wingspan on Aroldis here!

Last card of the package, and arguably the best photograph.  Just an awesome perspective here.

This might not have been the most thrilling pack, and I wasn't fortunate enough to pull any Red Sox.  Nonetheless, this remains my favorite set of the year.  What I got here was enough to pique my interest, and I'll probably end up grabbing some more of this.

Thanks for stopping by as always!

A PWE of Firsts

Still trying to get back on top here after vacation and a new dog.  Finally starting to make some progress as I featured a package from Gavin last week and already returned fire.  Next up is Joe Shlabotnik, who writes the awesome blog The Shlabotnik Report.  Joe has actually sent me a larger bubble envelope and a PWE in recent weeks.  Since I'm limited for time at the moment we'll get through the PWE here tonight.

As the post title indicates, this was a PWE of firsts.  Like the Bobby Doerr card above, which is my very first 2017 Archives Red Sox base card.
 

Or this Red Sox team card, my first card from 2017 Topps flagship series 2, period.  What can I say?  I've really been doing a good job with resisting retail cardboard so far this year.  I don't miss it all that much, especially with friends like Joe to help me out!

The PWE also included this All-Time All-Stars insert of The Splendid Splinter.  Yup, you guessed it, this is my first of these as well.  Pretty sure these are inserted into 2017 Topps Series 2.  I've seen this image of Williams on cardboard before for sure, though I'm too lazy to go look up where.

I also got a pair of 2017 Topps Bunt cards in this package and yes, these are my first cards from this release as well.  Furthermore, this is my first card depicting Chris Sale as a member of the Red Sox.  They certainly gave up a lot to acquire his arm, but if you're a Sox fan you really can't argue with the return so far.  Last game notwithstanding, Sale has been arguably the best starter in the entire American League here in 2017.

On the opposite end of the spectrum you've got Rick Porcello, who's been experiencing a serious "return to Earth" after last year's unlikely Cy Young campaign.  He's struggled with giving up the long ball for sure, but to be fair his record makes him look worse than he's been pitching, as he's been plagued by a nearly historic lack of run support thus far.

In another first, Joe included a handful of these Star Wars cards that are from some type of strategy game.  While I don't normally collect these types of cards, I do appreciate the variety as a Star Wars fan and will happily add the ones that Joe sent to my relatively small collection of Star Wars cardboard.  My favorite three of the group were C3PO...

...the Stormtrooper...

...and quite possibly the premier villain of my childhood, Darth Vader!

Lastly, Joe was nice enough to include a 2017 Topps buyback for my ever-growing buyback collection.  Rance Mulliniks served almost exclusively as a DH for the Jays in 1988.  In 399 plate appearances he swatted an even .300 with 12 home runs, 21 doubles and 48 RBI.

Amazingly, this is actually the second time I've received a Rance Mulliniks buyback in trade.

This awesome '72 Deron Johnson already occupies slot 167 of the franken-set binder.  There is just so much going on in the background of this one.  Awesome '70s randomness.

Tough match-up for Rance there.

It's really getting tough to crack the franken-set at this point, but I appreciate any and all buybacks including the ones that are relegated to my reject box for now.

Thanks for the great PWE Joe!  I'll have the larger package posted here when I can find some more time for scanning, and I'm going to make every effort to get the cards I've had bagged up for you for weeks into the mail by early next week!

Franken-set Progress:  449/792 (56%)
"Rejected" Buybacks:  270
Total Buybacks in Collection: 719