Buyback Franken-set: Dime Box Nick Edition

It wasn't all Red Sox cards in the last package I received from my friend Nick.  He tossed in a nice small lot of 7 buyback cards as well.  A good size lot for a post on an evening where I'm not feeling all that well, especially after a day of hauling furniture.  Let's crank through these and see how they fare when it comes to my buyback projects...

2012 Topps #646 - Francisco Cervelli

This one might be my favorite buyback from the grouping Nick sent this time around.  I like the shot of Cervelli in full catcher's gear during what I assume to be a post-game celebration.  Certainly looks much more aesthetically pleasing than the buyback I had in slot 646 prior:

A boring checklist card!  I do like how the 1990 Topps checklists broke the set out by team, then alphabetically by player last name within each team.  You know what's happening here...

...Cervelli bumps the checklist from the franken-set, and over into the dedicated 1990 Topps buyback binder.

1979 Topps #616 - Billy Almon

Billy Almon looks a little dejected on his 1979 release here, almost as though he just struck out.  I'm not all that familiar with Billy as a player to be honest.

Brian Holman, who went 11-11 as a starter for the Mariners in 1990, sits in slot 616 of the franken-set binder.  Same deal here, Almon takes up residence in that binder...

...bumping Holman over to the 1990 Topps set.  Really starting to pick up some steam with that secondary buyback project, even though I'm unsure whether completing this set in buyback format is even possible.

1978 Topps #449 - Tim Blackwell

Here's a nice Expos buyback, featuring catcher Tim Blackwell from 1978 Topps.  Blackwell actually spent 1978 with the Cubs though, having signed with them as a free agent in February of that year.  Does this one make the cut?

Well, I put this 1989 Carmelo Martinez buyback from Gavin into the franken-set binder just this past week.

Carmelo gets the bump already.  The franken-set binder is a tough place to take up residence, and this is certainly a prime example of that.  Just a few short days in the sun and Carmelo is off to the rejected buyback box.

1990 Topps #335 - Andy Hawkins

1990 was basically Andy Hawkins' last full season as a starter.  In 26 starts that year he went just 5-12 with an ERA on the wrong side of 5.00.  Still, a very cool buyback for me as it's my first #335, and as such fills an open pocket in the binder!

1990 Topps #202 - Mike MacFarlane

Keeping it rolling with the 1990 buybacks, next we've got Mike MacFarlane of the Royals.  Mike hit 24 doubles and drove in 58 runs for Kansas City in 1990.  He's got a tough match-up for the Buyback Franken-set though...

...in the form of a Ron Guidry 1978 Record Breaker subset card from 1979 Topps.  Easy choice here...

...as Guidry stays put and MacFarlane strengthens my 1990 buyback set even further.

1990 Topps #455 - Jeffrey Leonard

Next up, outfielder Jeffrey Leonard relaxing on a cool day by the batting cage.  1990 was the final year of Jeffrey's 14-season MLB career.  I like the casual pose here, as well as that interesting jacket.

The great Dontrelle Willis already calls pocket 455 of the franken-set binder home.  This one's got some good sentimental value for me, I remember Willis being a pretty big deal early in his career with his unique delivery to the plate.

Makes it an easy choice to leave Dontrelle in place and shift Leonard over to the 1990 binder.

1990 Topps #423 - Fred Toliver

Last card for tonight, pitcher Fred Toliver of the Padres.  Freddie actually didn't pitch in the Majors in 1990, 1991 or 1992.  He did make a brief return in 1993 for 12 games, the last of his MLB career.  Toliver has some competition for the franken-set project in the form of...

...Fred Toliver?!?!  Some collectors may find this frustrating, but I think it's ideal.  I'll leave this silver foil version in place in the franken-set binder...

...and shift the rarer blue foil version over into the 1990 Topps buyback set.

What a great and much-appreciated batch from Nick.  The franken-set was improved for sure thanks to these, but what I'm most excited about is the whopping five additions to my 1990 buyback set from this lot!  That puts me past 10% complete on that crazy quest, thanks Nick!!!

Franken-set Progress: 619/792 (78%)
1990 Topps Buyback Set: 83/792 (10%)
"Rejected" Buybacks: 481
Total Buybacks in Collection: 1,183