Plugging Some Holes

When it comes to shopping for cards online... COMC's fall has led to the ascension of Sportlots (at least for me).  They've always served different purposes.  Sportlots helped me complete sets with their affordable commons, while COMC filled gaps in my player and team collections.

Since I've always tried to get the most bang for my buck, I avoided paying 20¢ for commons and preferred to find pricier cards over on COMC.  However their decision to restructure their shipping rates forced me to drain my balance, start using Sportlots more, and focus on card projects that have been collecting dust for quite some time.

1984 Topps Glossy All-Stars #10

1986 Topps Glossy All-Stars #7

1990 Topps Glossy All-Stars #8

Last week, I started shopping for some 80's Leaf Dave Stieb cards... which led me to plugging some holes in my 1984 to 1991 Topps Glossy All-Star project which was missing the entire 1986 set.  Well, I found one vendor with almost the entire set:

This lot puts me past the 50% mark on this project...

I'll be busy the next four weeks, but as soon as my summer break starts... I'm hoping to cross off the bulk of these needs with the help of eBay and Sportlots:

While shopping for those Stieb cards, I completed another set sitting in my office:

1990-91 Pro Set Hockey Set

Back in early April, Stuart over at S.R. '75 Cards sent me this set.  I'm a huge fan of early Pro Set sets and was happy to add their inaugural hockey set to my collection.  While flipping through the set, I noticed it was missing one card:

1990-91 Pro Set #298

No biggie.  That's what Sportlots is for.  If you're not familiar with this set, here's a quick peek:

Pro Set included everyone from draft picks to coaches to officials.  They even included a card for the puck.

They also honored the all-stars, award winners, and stat leaders.  Plus a ton of guys who would eventually make the Hockey Hall of Fame:

Speaking of future hall of famers, the 1990-91 rookie card class was full of them:

Jaromir Jagr is the lone player to not receive the honor.  But that's because he hasn't officially announced his retirement.  He last skated in the NHL in 2017, but was playing professionally in the Czech Republic up to last season.

Thank you Stuart for generously gifting me with this awesome set.

Let's wrap this post up with the two cards that inspired this Sportlots order:

1985 Leaf #54

1986 Leaf #68

Last week, I showed of this 1987 Leaf card of Dave Stieb that Adam over at Thoughts & Sox sent me:

1987 Leaf #72

I mentioned that I might chase down his other three Leaf cards from that era.  Two down, 1988 to go.

Like the Topps Glossy All-Stars... I'll target this card in a few weeks when I have more free time on my hands.

Until then, here is today's question of the day:

Where do you shop for cards online?  COMC?  Sportlots?  eBay?  Other?

If I were to break down the numbers, eBay and their vendors get most of my money.  However my purchases usually involve single cards or smaller sets/lots.  Sportlots is a distant second, but that might change this summer.

I look forward to reading and responding to your comments.  I apologize that I haven't replied to comments on my recent posts.  It's on my list of things to do this weekend.  Stay tuned.

Happy Thursday and sayonara!

The Run is Complete!

The ball is finally starting to roll again... as I try to start hammering out semi-regular posts on this blog.  I've been busying scanning and stock piling photos for future posts and it's starting to pay off.

Today I'm showing off the final four cards I needed to complete my Dave Stieb O-Pee-Chee base card run that was inspired by Angus over at Dawg Day Cards.  He got the project started by sending me his 1980 O-Pee-Chee rookie card along with Stieb's 1981, 1986, and 1988 cards.  Sportlots dealers handled the rest.

I ordered the final four on the same day from two different dealers.  One of the PWE's arrived within a few days with these three cards:

1989 O-Pee-Chee #535

1990 O-Pee-Chee #4

1992 O-Pee-Chee #320

The last card finally arrived this week:

1991 O-Pee-Chee #460

And here's a look at its entirety:

This was such a fun project to honor one of the best pitchers from the 80's and the greatest baseball player to attend the same high school as me.

Thanks again Angus for inspiring this project.  I wouldn't have even considered attempting it, so I am forever grateful.

Unfortunately... that 1991 O-Pee-Chee didn't only delay the completion of my Stieb base card run.  It also pushed back this Thoughts & Sox thank you post.  Adam sent me more Canadian cardboard way back in March:

Why did I want to include his cards with the cards from my Sportlots order?  Because the coolest card he included was this:

1987 Leaf #72

Now I have to decide whether or not to complete his Leaf base card run.  After checking COMC, it appears as if he only had a handful of Leaf cards (1985 to 1988) that mirror the Donruss design, so there's a good chance that I will accept this challenge.  But for now it's not high on my priority list.

Thank you Adam for the generous care package... and once again... sorry about the delay.

Happy Monday and sayonara!

North of the Border

Toronto swept the A's to open up the 2026 season.  It stung, but they're the defending American League champions.  Can't say I'm surprised.  In fact, if the A's aren't in the running in October... I'd be okay with the Blue Jays getting another shot at the Dodgers or whoever ends up representing the National League.

Today I'll be celebrating our neighbors to the north again as I update a recent project and show off some Canadian collectibles.

Let's start with my Dave Stieb O-Pee-Chee base card run that was kicked off a few weeks ago when Angus sent me four of Stieb's thirteen cards.

I found a seller on Sportlots who had five more for 20¢ each:

1987 O-Pee-Chee #90

1985 O-Pee-Chee #240

1984 O-Pee-Chee #134

1983 O-Pee-Chee #130

1982 O-Pee-Chee #380

With these in hand, I'm down to needing only his 1989 to 1992 O-Pee-Chee singles (which I purchased on Sportlots earlier today).

I'm debating on whether or not to complete Stieb's entire Topps base card run, which is identical to his O-Pee-Chee except for the addition of a 1993 Topps single.

Speaking of Angus, I wanted to highlight the final pieces of his December care package.  Let's start off with another Stieb:

1985 O-Pee-Chee Poster #22

These posters were inserted into packs of 1985 O-Pee-Chee baseball and are slightly smaller than a 5x7 print.

Next up is an 80's postcard featuring Youppi:

1988 Montreal Expos Photocards #NNO

There's no date printed on this postcard, but I found this image on TCDB.  Youppi was the official mascot of the Montreal Expos from 1979 to 2004.  When the Expos packed up and moved to DC, Youppi switched sports and became the Montreal Canadians mascot.

The final item he gave me is this really cool stamp booklet:

2019 Canadian Stamp Book

This is the view of the back and cover.  Here's a look at the stamps:

These are flippin' awesome.  Back in the Summer of 2013, my parents and I took a two week trip up to Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia.  Vancouver left a great impression on me and my father.  We had talked a few times about going back up, but it never happened.  This stamp booklet is a nice reminder of one of my favorite travel destinations.  I'll be adding it to my small, yet sentimental stamp collection.

Last, but not least is a single O-Pee-Chee Empire Strikes Back card from John over at Johnny's Trading Spot:

1981 O-Pee-Chee Star Wars ESB #74

The Empire Strikes Back is my favorite movie from the original trilogy and this card captures one of the best scenes.  

I'm a big fan of Vader's bounty hunters... especially Boba Fett.

Like Angus... John has inspired me to track down more of my favorite singles from this set.  I haven't actually pulled the trigger and won any cards, but when I do... I'm sure it'll end up in a post.

Thank you Angus and John!

Here is today's question of the day:

Have you ever vacationed in Canada?  If so, do you have a favorite vacation spot north of the border?

If you live in Canada, have you ever vacationed in the United States?  Do you have a favorite vacation spot south of the border?

I look forward to reading and responding to your comments.

Happy Monday and sayonara!