30 Day Baseball Card Challenge

Friday, December 13, 2013

Charlie Hustle & The Chemist

Each year, I get 150 to 250 new students, which makes it very difficult for me to remember all of my former students' names.  So when they stop by after school it's always a challenge for me when they pop their head into my classroom and say, "do you remember my name?".

Ironically, the students' names I usually remember aren't the quiet, honor roll, respectful kid who was extra polite and positive.  It's the ones who stirred up the drama, loved being the classroom clowns, and found trouble on a regular basis.

I'm not exactly sure what that says about me as a teacher or a person, but the same thing applies to sports.

Today's post centers around two players who are often remembered for their off the field issues instead of all of the positive things they did on the diamond.

First up... Charlie Hustle.

The 1st Three Black Friday Boxes Busted

I know there are those who will never forgive Mr. Rose, but I'm not one of them.  Gambling on baseball was wrong.  Lying to everyone about it was wrong.  But he eventually manned up and admitted his mistakes.  In short... Pete and I are cool.

Which is why I had no problem with adding a few of his autographs to my collection.  I'm still amazed that you can pick up boxes of 2012 Leaf The Living Legend for under $10... especially when each box contains an autograph of the all-time hits leader.


Granted... they're sticker autographs on cards featuring photos without team logos, but for the price I can live with that.

In addition to the autographs, each box contained 10 packs with 6 cards per pack.  The three boxes I busted produced two complete 50 card sets.  I fell one card short of completing a third base set.

Blowout Cards still has boxes for $9.95 if you're interested.


Next up... The Chemist.


Okay.... I have to admit.  This guy is a total clown, media whore, and admitted steroid user.  But he's also a guy I cheered for on a regular basis for the first half of his career.  He drove in a lot of runs for the Oakland Athletics and definitely helped bring fans into the Coliseum.

I don't have a lot of respect for the guy as a human being, but as a collector of Oakland Athletics memorabilia... it was hard to walk away from this deal:

Ball:  $15.88
Shipping:  $6.84
Final Price:  $22.72

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  I know some of you are shaking your heads.  But I just couldn't pass up the opportunity of adding this autographed baseball to my A's shelf in the office, where it sits right next to my Kurt Suzuki ball.

Happy Friday and sayonara!

12 comments:

cynicalbuddha said...

I remember when Leaf put out it's first Rose set and thought that wasn't that bad of a deal, but when they came out with the $19.99 blaster boxes I thought wow that's are really good deal. And now you can find these for under $10 bucks. Holy crap can you say saturation? But still ten buck for a Pete Rose auto I'd do that any day. Nice haul. Can't wait to see more.

shoeboxlegends said...

Very nice on both counts, I agree with you about Canseco but that ball is still a cool piece of history no matter how you feel about him.

Scott Crawford said...

Awesome pickups.

Pete's Pete. I think I paid $40 for my Pete autographed ball in 2001, so 3 sticker autos for $30 in 2013 dollars is great.

Why would Jose really be something to scoff at? Yes, he's, well...he's Jose Canseco, but he's also Jose Canseco. Hugely historically important no matter what those schmucks in Cooperstown say.

Matt Pederson said...

Nothing wrong with a Canseco ball for $20. I would take that deal any day of the week, and despite an apparent over-saturation, a Pete Rose autograph is still a Pete Rose autograph. Great purchases on both parts.

Section 36 said...

I always figure that if I can get an autographed ball for around the price I'd have to pay for an unsigned ball, it's a pretty good deal.

Corky said...

At $10 a box for the Pete Rose blasters you can not complain, I might have to pick up a couple.

Fuji said...

He's flooded the market for sure. But it's hard to pass up a Pete Rose autograph for that price. Plus 2 out of 3 times, I ended up with a complete base set too.

Fuji said...

I was really excited about adding that to my collection. I ended up putting him next to my LaRussa ball in honor of their good times together.

Fuji said...

Glad to see there are people who take the time to appreciate his on the field accomplishment... than his off the field tomfoolery.

Fuji said...

I can't even begin to calculate how many sticker strips Pete had to sign for this particular product alone. Hopefully Leaf doesn't put out a Rose set every other year ;-)

Fuji said...

That's pretty much what I thought when I saw this deal.

Fuji said...

Plus who knows... maybe you'll pull a redemption for the full 50 card autograph set. Good luck if you decide to pick up a few.