A Whale of a Sort

Summer break is over.  Technically I don't need to report until Thursday, but I've been working in my classroom since early last week.  It takes me a few days to set up my classroom and prep the first three weeks of lessons.

Not teaching summer school forced me to dip into my savings.  Outside of that... it was pretty amazing.  I'll have a recap post posted by the time students arrive on the 17th.

Today's post is a continuation of the Sunday Sort.  Last weekend I opened up three packages from Rod over at Padrographs and sorted everything into categories.  Phase two (which is the focus of today's post) is to sort and integrate the Tony Gwynn cards he sent.

But before we get into that, here's a Gwynn I recently purchased on eBay:

1992 Fleer Ultra Commemorative Promo #NNO

I have been trying to add this card to my 1992 Fleer Ultra master set for years.  It was handed out at the 1992 Fleer stockholders meeting and features Fleer's CEO back in the day.

The back talks about Gwynn and how he signed over 2,000 cards which were inserted into packs of 1992 Fleer Ultra.

I thought this card completed my run of 1992 Fleer Ultra Gwynn cards:

Unfortunately... while looking up this Mullan/Gwynn promo, I discovered that Gwynn also has a 1992 pre-production sample as well.  There are actually nine other sample cards I need to find, but I'm up for the challenge.

Okay.  Let's get to the Gwynns from Rod's care packages.  He sent over 200 Gwynns.  Obviously I don't have the time to scan them all.  In honor of Mr. Padre's jersey number, here are 19 cards that were added to my Gwynn PC...

1984 Fleer #301

Technically, I already have a copy of this second year base card.  But completed sets get priority over player or team collections. 

1992 Padres Police #NNO

1992 Padres Police #NNO

1993 Stadium Club Members Only #538

1994 Donruss Commemorative Anniversary #10

While originally sorting through all of the Gwynns, I thought this was his 1984 base card.  But upon closer inspection, it's from an insert set celebrating their ten year anniversary.

1995 Leaf 300 Club #13

1995 SP Championship Die-Cut #90

1996 Bowman's Best Mirror Image #7

One of these guys is not like the others, but there was a time when I thought Ben Grieve would end up being a superstar.

1996 Leaf Statistical Standouts #2 (#'d 1939/2500)

1996 Pinnacle Aficionado Slick Picks #15

1996 Topps Master of the Game #MG12

1996 Topps Gallery #147

1999 Fleer Tradition Diamond Magic #5DM

1999 Pacific Invincible Sandlot Heroes #17

2000 Fleer Focus Pocus #2FP

2000 Topps #240a & #240d

Much like the commemorative promo card above, I have been trying to complete the five card subset of 2000 Topps Gwynns for a few years.  Split between the two series, Topps highlighted the careers of ten players with a Magic Moments subset.  Each player received five cards that were short printed, which is why set builders may or may not consider their set complete with one of these singles.

2001 Fleer Tradition Grass Roots #13

2003 Topps Record Breakers #RB-TGW

If you've ever wondered how long it takes me to integrate and scan a large stack of cards into my personal collection, this Gwynn sort will help paint a picture.

1994 Donruss Commemorative Anniversary #10

Obviously sorting a few hundred cards usually doesn't take too much time, but thanks to the 90's... I had a lot of trouble figuring out which year some of these Gwynns were produced.  A card might say 1993 in the copyright area, but actually be listed as a 1994 card.  This also forced me to move some cards around in my collection.

Another delay I encountered were late 80's Topps and Donruss variations.  Holy cow.  Why did I ever decide to collect these?  Anyways... looking for missing periods, apostrophes, or asterisks with a magnifying glass took longer than expected.

Toss in a few breaks here and there... and this Sunday Sort took close to five hours.  This is by no means a complaint.  It's just an observation.  There are still seventeen stacks of Gwynns that I still need to integrate into the collection, but I needed to wrap things up and write this post.

Unfortunately... I couldn't stay awake last night and ended up falling asleep before I could finish, so this edition of the Sunday Sort gets to be published on a Monday morning.

Thank you Rod for these awesome additions to the Gwynn collection.

Happy Monday and sayonara!

While I Was Away

Sometime in late 2000 or early 2001, I made the decision to sell the bulk of my collection in an effort to pay the debt I had accumulated.  In some regards, it was one of the best decisions I ever made, because it eventually opened up the opportunity to buy a home.  On the other hand, I sold off most of my childhood collection.

Right around the same time, I also stopped working at the card shop across the street from the elementary school I taught at.  Within a year, the owners closed that shop and I pretty much lost touch with all of those guys.

I pretty much walked away from the hobby.  I had to.  When I purchased my place, all of my discretionary funds went towards furnishing this place. rebuilding a savings, and learning how to become a financially responsible adult.

That's why when it comes to card products from early to mid aughts, I'm not as proficient as some of you.  But the beautiful thing about our hobby is the more you are exposed to something... the more you learn and soak in.

Today's post recaps a PWE I received last week from Matt over at Diamond Jesters.

Four of the five cards he sent were from my time away from the hobby.  Let's check them out and see if I'm more knowledgeable because of them.

2000 Topps MVP Promotion #242

I was probably still hanging out at the LCS when collectors were ripping into packs of 2000 Topps baseball.  However, I don't remember opening any of this stuff myself.

This particular card is a very rare parallel which doubled as a contest card.  I was vaguely familiar with these parallels, but I'm pretty sure I learned about it in recent years from someone on YouTube or in the blogosphere.

I definitely missed out on this product:

2002 Donruss Originals Silver Sample #82

I've never opened up a pack of this stuff, but according to Baseballcardpedia... it's a tribute to a few Donruss sets from the 80's.

This particular card is a "sample" card that was originally inserted into a copy of Beckett Baseball Card Monthly #212.  What's interesting about this "sample" set is the size.  Donruss produced 100 different "samples" plus "gold" parallels which were distributed in the same manner, but at much lower quantities.

Next up is an insert I am familiar with...

2002 UD Piece of History Tape Measure Heroes #TM14

I wrote about the Tony Gwynn from this set last fall, but don't remember opening up this product myself.

That being said... I definitely remember the home run this card is referring to.  I'll try to include a YouTube clip, but if it's blocked out here's a link.

According to Baseball Monkey this is one of the longest home runs in MLB history.

The next card is very familiar...

2007 Topps Turkey Red #33

But that's because Topps has produced a bunch of different Turkey Red products and inserts over the years.  This particular card was from a product released right around my return to the hobby.  Unfortunately, I doubt I opened any of this product back then.

That year Topps released a 200 card base set that was loaded with SP's and "Ad Back" variations.  This Kurt Suzuki is one of the SP's on the checklist which were inserted into one out of every four packs.

My return to the hobby in late 2007 or early 2008 was inspired by YouTubers opening up boxes of high end products like UD Black and Topps Triple Threads.  I was drawn to the autographs and relics being released at the time.  Unfortunately stuff like that was way out of my hobby budget, but that's what molded me into the "bargain bin" collector that I am today.

Speaking of today, here's the final card from Matt's PWE:

2021 Topps X Derek Jeter #15

This card is from one of those Topps Online Exclusive products.  I wasn't too familiar with this set, but it looks like Topps released it on March 9th.  That's right around the time I returned to my classroom after a year of "distance" learning due the pandemic.

Ironically... the pandemic led to the hobby boom... which led to me selling a bunch of cards on eBay and at my buddy's card shows.

There have been two times in my life when I went out of my way to sell cards... and both of them relate to cards from Matt's PWE.  Don't worry Matt... all of these cards have been integrated into my collection and I zero plans to sell cards anytime soon.

Happy Saturday and sayonara!

The Waiting Game

It's official.  I spent the final $4.99 sitting in my COMC account on a shipping request that is scheduled to take place on November 2nd of this year.  Is this the last time I buy something on their site?  Not sure.  But for now, I don't have any plans on adding additional credit.

I'm also waiting on a pair of Topps Project 2020 cards that I purchased last month.  Based on a comment I read over on this blog, it looks like I might be waiting awhile.

The question is... will I receive my COMC or Topps Project 2020 order first?  Last week, I would have assumed the latter, but with these COVID-19 delays... I'm not as confident.

The good news is I never have to wait for blogger care packages, since they're exactly that... care packages.  They are not expected.  They're surprise packages that show up in your mailbox, because the sender is a caring, generous human being.

Last month, I showed off some UD Decade bat cards I received in my last COMC shipment and Julie over at A Cracked Bat offered to add one more to my collection:

2001 UD Decade 70's Game-Used Bat #B-MM

Mota once held the MLB record for pinch hits... a fact I probably learned from his 1980 Topps highlights card.  Forty years later, he's still #3 on the all-time list.  This card is the twenty-third addition to this set build.  Not sure I'll ever complete it, but I'm one card away from being halfway there.

In addition to the sweet Mota (which makes him appear to be staring into the sun), she also sent me some bonus cards:

Ramon Laureano is my favorite current Oakland Athletic and has looked pretty solid so far... although he'll probably be required to take a vacation after yesterday's events.

Julie also included one of those limited 2019 Topps Chrome Sapphire cards that collectors were chasing last year.  Who doesn't appreciate a classic handlebar mustache?

According to the note she included in her care package, some of these were cards from her "pick pockets".  I'm not 100% sure which cards are which... but I feel like I claimed that Colt Brennan jersey card for my Hawaii PC.  Up until this past season, he held the NCAA single season record for passing touchdowns.

Thanks Julie for the very generous care package.  I love these "no strings attached" cards we exchange.  I know you stated a return package isn't necessary, but that's not how I roll.  It's going to happen at some point.  I'm just not sure if it'll happen before I receive my COMC and/or Topps Project 2020 shipments.

Okay... today's question involves the waiting game.

Who is currently waiting on shipments from COMC, Topps, or both?

And does anyone know if Topps has announced an updated ETA on these Project 2020 cards?  From what I can see the latest cards that were shipped to customers are cards #99 and #100.  I wasn't able to find the dates when these two cards were available on the Topps website, but as of last Friday... they were selling cards #193 and #194.

I wonder if the shortage of supplies (plastic protective holders) have anything to do with these shipping delays.

Happy Monday and sayonara!

Extra Innings

     

2019 Topps Stadium Club Autograph #SCA-MC

On a positive note, I purchased a redemption card for this Matt Chapman autograph on eBay back on July 10th.  Received it a few days later.  Entered the code a few days after that... and received the card last week.  I was very pleased with the overall turnaround time, so kudos to Topps and their redemption department.  Wait.  Did I just type that?