Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Clayton Kershaw Base Frame Autograph Black Parallel (5/5)

Very surprised I landed this but at the same time I am a tad worried about what grade it will receive from BGS when I submit it considering the low cost to acquire this card.

This is the 2nd of 2 cards I picked up using the funds from the sales of the cards I did not like the results from in my recent BGS batch. I am also on the look out for Kershaw autographs and metal frame ones are on top of the list. I already have the Gold frame from the 2015 set and roughly remember what that cost was. It was already in a BGS 9.5 case so there is a premium attached to that card. This one though popped up one morning when I was just doing one of my random searches and it was being sold by a well know eBay seller but their asking price seemed very low to me. I took a chance though knowing the seller and hoping I just landed a deal if this card indeed earns a 9.5 from Beckett. At worst it is a great card to have in my collection but man do I want this badly to gem.

Cinco

of

Cinco

Thank you for reading and have a blessed day.

-Penguin

BGS Submission Result Number TEN - 2013 Topps Museum : Adrian Gonzalez / Hanley Ramirez Archival Dual Autograph (5/15) Now Graded Mint 9.0

2013 Topps Musem Hanley Ramirez / Adrian Gonzalez Autograph /15

The return grade on this one will be surprise to me in some way as I have no idea since past returns on Topps Museum have not been kind to me. I have submitted a dual autograph in the past and came back a 9 when I thought it would get a 9.5. I submitted a Kershaw autograph expecting a 9 but it came back an 8.5. So while I see nothing wrong with this card as centering and surface looks good. Corners while not pointy sharp are still pretty good in my opinion. Almost any other card I would "expect" a 9.5 back but if it comes back a 9 I will be more than happy to take it. Considering I paid nothing for it all this is gravy anyways.

We close the second week of BGS results with a dual autograph of one former Dodger (Hanley) and one current (Adrian) who may go down as the greatest first baseman to ever play for the Dodgers.

I had no idea what to expect grade wise when I submitted this but I did know I wanted it to at least come back as a mint 9. It did and it was very close to actually earning an overall 9.5 which would have come to pass if either the corners or surface would have received an extra half a point. I am happy with the result as the main reason I wanted this graded was so I could file it away easier. I probably will never re submit this to try to get a bump as it probably would not do much for resale value. All said, this is not a bad result for a card that cost me nothing to acquire. Free mint card of two players? Yes please and thank you.

.5 from gold

Thank you for reading and have a blessed day.

-Penguin

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Adrian Gonzalez / Hanley Ramirez Dual Autograph (5/15) AND eBay Bucks Quarterly Purchase Number One

Like a broken record, it's that time of the year again, eBay bucks "purchases" aka FREE autograph cards. Woo hoo!!!

Just like the 1st quarter of this year I was able to earn enough bucks to acquire 2 great autograph cards. One was "purchased" on a traditional auction which I will showcase in 2 days and then this one that was on a BIN auction and had been on my watch list for over 16 months. Yes, 16.

I had wanted this card since I 1st saw it back in beginning of 2014 but the seller had turned down all my offers which meant I could no longer send another offer (you are allocated 3 per auction on eBay) but I noticed he/she kept changing the asking price every 2-3 weeks. At times the price went under what my offers were. Why didn't they take my offers prior I have no idea but even though I could pick it up at a price I was comfortable with I never pulled the trigger. I normally don't acquire dual autograph cards but I found this one unique.

• Hanley made his name as a Miami Marlin. Adrian started his career in Miami
• Hanley started his career as a Boston Red Sox. Adrian was traded to Boston.
• Hanley and Adrian were both traded to the Dodgers

Adrian I believe is going to make it to the Hall of Fame at some point and Hanley also has an outside chance. They also both should have 2000 hits at the end of their careers. The list goes on for similarities.

Hanley's autograph

As June was approaching its end there were no real stand out cards that I wanted to acquire (other than the one I also picked up that will be shown in 2 days) so I looked at my watch list and saw that this one was still available and the price was even lower now. The seller would only accept immediate payment so I had to wait till my bucks were available but when they did I finally acquired this card and after 16 months it didn't cost me anything.

I have had some issues with grades on these Museum cards but this looks to be in at least mint condition with an outside chance of gem mint. There is no book value due to its scarcity (15 copies) but I think I might just submit this bad boy and cross my fingers for a gold banner. No matter the outcome though I am more than happy to finally have this card in my collection. 1 free card down and 1 to go.

Adrian's autograph

and

Five of fifteen

Thank you for reading and have a blessed day.

-Penguin

BGS Result Update Number Three - 2013 Topps Museum : Prince Fielder and Al Kaline Dual Autograph Now Graded Mint 9.0

2013 Topps Museum Dual Autograph of Al Kaline / Prince Fielder

In hindsight I probably shouldn't have submitted this for grading but since it was such a bargain I couldn't resist considering the "rarity" of the card. I think Prince is going to have bonce back year and this is a great card with a Tiger HOF as well. Even with that I look back and think that I know the corners are not the best and probably won't get better than a 9. Hopefully everything holds up enough to get an overall 9 but the idea of another limited numbered gem mint card for the collection is pretty much gone.

Full Submission Result and Thoughts :

As expected the corners did indeed come back with an 8.5. For good or bad I guess I know my conditions for the most part.. Edges also suffered a little as they came back with a little better grade of a 9. While this was the expected result I knew the minute I signed off on the submission form that it was a mistake getting it slabbed. My delusion of hoping to squeeze out a gem mint got the better of me. To make that happen the corners would have had to at least earn a 9 which I knew they wouldn't. Why did I do it then? Guess I got caught up in the moment of all the goodness this batch gave me. Oh well, at least this card is now easier to store as it's in a nice hard case.

Wanted a 9.5 but knew in my gut that after submitting it would come back a 9

At least the autograph came back as a 10

Thank you for reading and have a blessed day.

-Penguin

6 More Cards In Addition To All Of The Raw Reviewed Cards Submitted To BGS On March 7th, 2015

The past 3 weeks I have posted my results from the raw grading event that was held in my area on March 7th. Monday through Friday for 15 days those results were posted but on the weekends between those days you may have noticed I blogged about 6 other cards. Well the reason I did those at that time was because I included them in the submission batch that went to Beckett with all the raw graded cards. The only difference was that I bypassed the raw grade and went straight for the full grade review. So this post is a recap of those 6 and per the norm my thoughts on which will grade out to gem mint from least to best chance.

2013 Topps Museum Dual Autograph of Al Kaline / Prince Fielder

In hindsight I probably shouldn't have submitted this for grading since it was such a bargain I couldn't resist considering the "rarity" of the card. I think Prince is going to have bonce back year and this is a great card with a Tiger HOF as well. Even with that I look back and think that I know the corners are not the best and probably won't get better than a 9. Hopefully everything holds up enough to get an overall 9 but the idea of another limited numbered gem mint card for the collection is pretty much gone.

2010 Allen and Ginter McCutchen Mini Frame Autograph

Well with the iffy card of the batch out of the way we come to the couple that are borderline in the thinking of gem mint status but leaning more than not. This will probably be my one and only McCutchen autograph in my collection so it would be nice if it would come back with a gold banner. I don't see anything wrong with it other than one corner slightly not sharper but its not bent so my thinking is if anything the corner sub grade gets a 9.

2009 Allen and Ginter Kershaw Mini Frame Autograph

Now I am just being down right greedy. I already have one of these Kershaws in a gem mint grade so why submit another? Why because 2 is better than 1. Ha Ha. Unlike the McCutchen mini this one seems to be devoid of corner issues so I hope to earn my 2nd gem mint 2009 A/G mini of Kershaw for the collection. Nothing like a little trade bait for the future as well.

2015 Topps Silver Frame Kershaw

It is hard to see how any metal framed cards get anything less than a gem mint grade but I have seen them. I (knock on wood this one won't be the case) have not had that issue and hope it does not start here even though I don't think it will. The card is clean and edges and corners are "sharp" so a nice limited Kershaw gem mint card would be nice here.

2013 Bowman Chrome Corey Seager Green Parallel

Yeah, so now we come to the "uh, duh" cards of the batch which are also the last of said batch. These were acquired pre-graded as gem mint and so that is what I expect back (the uh, duh comment once again) and the pursuit of mint/gem mint rookie cards of Seager continues.

2014 Topps High Tek Puig Autograph

Just like Seager, uh duh.

So that is it. 6 more cards were added to the BGS submission pile and when I get the results later this week and the actual cards back next week it will be interesting to see the sub grades from all the cards that either gem minted or pristined.  

Thank you for reading and have a blessed day.

-Penguin

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Al Kaline / Prince Fielder Dual Autograph (12/15)

Believe or not I found this card because I was looking for an autograph of Prince and not of Hall of Fame member Al. I came away with a great looking signed card of both for a lot less than it's worth.

I have always enjoyed watching Prince swing the bat and I think he will have a bounce back year in 2015 with the Rangers. His power from the left side will love that short porch in right. I have been looking to reacquire Prince's autograph for some time now but could never find the right deal. Everyone had his cards set at high prices or the actual autograph was of poor quality. So the search continued till I found this on the bay. Al was always on my list to acquire at some point in the future but not a priority. Well if I could get this card for a steal I could knock off two birds with one stone and in the end boy did I.

Starting bid was $10 and when I found it the price had been driven up to $15 with a day left. There is no book value due to its scarcity (15 copies) so I had to bid to what I felt was right to me. Glancing at past sales history on eBay I found that others sold for $34, $50 and $75. Two days after I picked this one up another sold for $56. So the median price was give or take $50 and if I was real lucky I could snag it around $34 the lowest price it has sold for. Well I guess people took at day off when I won the card as I ended up with it in the mid 20's. Lucky day for the Penguin.

I finally picked up an autograph I had been searching for and another that I wanted somewhere down the road for less than I sold the Fielder signed ball back during the ball purge. Always a little worried when I score that good of a deal on a card that possibly the card is damaged or not as described. It arrived a week later with no problems whatsoever.

Kaline's auto

Prince's auto

12 / 15

Thank you for reading and have a blessed day.

-Penguin

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Jackie Robinson Blue Bordered Variant ( 39 / 99 )

I can finally close the door on this variant set that I have been trying to complete for the past few months. The last card to acquire was the immortal Jackie Robinson.

Book value for his card is at $8 but I have seen sold auctions that I bid on close at over $10. Wanted the card but wasn't going to pay book or over for it. This copy came up one morning and the seller had it at a buy it now at $10 or best offer. Tempting to just buy it at his asking price but didn't so I sent in an offer of $7 and thankfully he accepted it. Just a dollar below book but with the great Ryu buy from across the ocean seen HERE and the ability to complete the set and move onto another project it was satisfying to do the transaction. Card came in just a few days later in pristine condition and has now been added to the collection. This also is my first Jackie card ever so not a bad one to acquire for that distinction.

39 / 99 Forever Blue Jackie

Card(s) of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Sandy Koufax / Matt Kemp / Andre Ethier / Steve Garvey Game Used Memorabilia ( 38 / 75 ) AND then some

It was time for me to acquire a card with some Koufax memorabilia. Knowing that his autographs go for hundreds of dollars I knew I was not going to land an on card auto version but I sure as hell could land a memorabilia one. As stated before I don't normally go for those type of cards but Koufax is not your normal former player.

I looked at this year's Topps Museum set as he is on multiple copies with multiple and different players. I did not want the ones with him showcased with Giants players even though Kershaw was also on the card so I set my sights on this one which also had my favorite current player Kemp along with Ethier and old timer Steve Garvey. But the main draw this time for me was Koufax. Book value of this card is $50 and has fetched over $40 since the set's release but I didn't want to pay that price so I waited for the right auction to come along and finally this one did. A little back and forth bidding ensued but in the end I won the card for 50% of book. Never a bad deal when it's that much of a discount. So I now own a Koufax memorabilia card with the bonus of some other current and former Dodgers.

38 of 75

But that is not the end of the story. There was a bonus in the package when it came. As stated in previous blog entries I had no intention of acquiring the base cards from the set as I was focused on the blue variants instead. I would get the set it if someone low balled it but I was not about to go look for it. Well this seller took that situation off the table as he sent me the whole base set including Ryu which has a book value of $6 by itself and to top it off he sent me the copper variant of Kershaw. Now that is a great seller. If all sellers were like that they probably would be out of business but I for sure will buy from him again just on good faith and appreciation from this transaction. Definitely got bang for my buck on this deal.

Complete base set and copper variant of Kershaw 355 / 424



Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Hanley Ramirez Game Used Memorabilia Autograph ( 6 / 50 )

Time to add an on card autograph of our current shortstop Hanley Ramirez. Due to him only being with the team less than a year there wasn't much selection from this year's sets to chose from. I was only going acquire one if the autograph is on a card that shows the him in Dodger blue. This card is a slight exception to that rule.

Topps Museum had the most options for Hanley autographs but still not a lot of them were for sale on eBay. The slight exception to my collection is that if you notice one of the swatches of jersey on the card is black. Uh... Dodgers don't wear black on any uniform so you know where this jersey comes from, his days back when he was a Marlin. There are other copies that had orange and other offensive Marlin colors but this one had just black which was acceptable as his picture still shows him in blue. So this was the card I wanted to acquire and in the end I was the high bidder on this $30 book value card for just $15 delivered to my doorstop. The black is a slight annoyance but I can look past that and welcome my first Hanley autograph card into my collection.

Marlin Jersey colors with Dodger Blue picture. 6 / 50

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Hyun-Jin Ryu Blue Bordered Variant ( 63 / 99 )

I went half way across the world to acquire a much needed card and couldn't believe the price I paid for it.

I've been trying to finish up my blue bordered variant set and was down to just Ryu and Jackie with Ryu being the hardest to acquire due to what I suspect is that he has Asia and USA appeal and that it is a rookie card to boot. I have lost out on at lest 10 different auctions with the prices ranging from $13 to $30. I wanted the card but was not going to overpay. Book value is $25 so anything over $20 for me was a non starter. At the same time I know that there are only 99 copies of these so I had to patient but still be somewhat aggressive.

I don't normally buy items on eBay from other countries but this card showed up by a seller in Japan. That is a long way from home for me but he had a starting bid of .99 cents and I kept my eye on it. Auction was nearing its end with the price still at just $5. Thought there was no way it would stay that low. I put my bid in with just seconds left and couldn't believe I just won the card for a little over $9 delivered from Japan to my doorstep here in the USA. That is a steal in my book. Paying single digits for a $25 card of a variant rookie is a good day any day. With this card I am just one step from completing the set and the only one left is the man that broke baseball's color barrier, Jackie Robinson.

From Korea via Japan 63 / 99

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Matt Kemp Blue Bordered Variant ( 65 / 99 )

One step closer to finishing my blue bordered variant set from this year's Topps Museum collection. I finally got my hands on the man himself, Matt Kemp. This card has been difficult to acquire since the set came out but with Kemp being injured his cards have come down in price so this one became a tad cheaper.

Found the card on eBay and the seller had it at a starting bid of .99 cents with $2 shipping. This card was a lot pricey a month or so ago and hitting over $10 on some auctions so I assumed while it wouldn't be at that price I expected to pay more than .99 cents. Well I was right, I had to pay $1.04. About a minute left in the auction someone put a bid in and with a few seconds left I put my high bid in and it only raised the winning price .5 cents. $3 and a handful of change got me this great looking blue card of the Bison. Only Ryu and Jackie are left for me to track down. Here's hoping the season ends better than it began for Matt.

Blue 65 of 99

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Clayton Kershaw Blue Bordered Variant ( 20 / 99 )

Kid K's card here puts me over 50% through with this year's Museum set. Already acquired Koufax, Duke, Adrian and now Clayton. Only have Kemp, Ryu and the immortal Jackie left to get.

I have always appreciated Clayton but more and more each day he is becoming my 1A favorite player on the Dodgers. Kemp is still top dog but that is more nowadays because of how he treats fans and how the game has not changed him since he debuted. Clayton here on the other hand year in and year out is going out there and producing possibly a historic career. Take out the wins and he is on pace to break a few records when all is said and done. So I just love adding more Kershaw cards to the collection.

The prices have finally come down a tad on the blue bordered cards and I was able to acquire this gem for just a few cents over $3. Can't beat that for great looking, numbered card of our ace. 4 down 3 to go. The hunt continues.

20 out of 99

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Adrian Gonzalez Blue Bordered Variant ( 36 / 99 )

Another card that shows off the Dodger's first half MVP so far. I have decided to basically bypass the regular cards of this years Topps Museum unless I find a team set for a nice price. Just going to concentrate on the blue bordered variants. I already acquired Koufax and the Duke but have yet to get a player from the current roster until now. Adrian has been the only constant everyday player for the team ( Kershaw is the other constant but plays every 5th day ) and is starting to become a favorite of mine as I get to see him play on a day to day basis instead of him being on the east coast or 18 times a year when he was with the Padres.

The blue bordered cards have been up and down in price and other than the Ryu rookie card I have a set price in mind that I would be willing pay. With that in mind I have missed out on a lot of auctions due to that but I finally landed on this one. Picked it up for a measly $3. So that is 3 blue bordered cards down and 4 to go to complete the set.

36 / 99 of a Blue Adrian

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Dee Gordon Primary Pieces Game Used Material ( 39 / 75 )

Not the biggest fan of Dee but with him being a nice guy and more importantly a Dodger I will always look for good deals. I think this one qualifies as one.

Topps Museum this year has a lot of fabric cards and I am still trying to get my hands on a Kershaw copy but til then I will pick up other ones here and there. Dee's card came up for auction and had the standard starting bid of 99 cents. Not much action as expected and as the auction was winding down I put my bid in and won it for just $5. I have added it to my collection but it is available for trade. Never have been the biggest fans of fabric cards unless they are very unique ( logo adorned, etc ) or accompanied by an autograph but I know other people live for these. I'll gladly trade this for an autograph or variant card. Til then, welcome to the collection Dee.

3 colored card with it being on 39 out of 75. Not too shabby

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Duke Snider Blue Bordered Variant ( 42 / 99 )

Still trying to complete my blue bordered variant set from this year's Museum edition and have been able to only get Koufax so far. That is up until this past week when I scored this little gem.

Duke Snider was our best center fielder in the organization til Matt Kemp came along and will always be loved in Brooklyn. A class act all around. It is unfortunate that I never got to meet the man before he passed away.

These blue cards are numbered out of only 99 so there are only so many chances I get to buy it one. Even with Duke's star power he is probably the least desired of the Dodger bunch within the set. Wasn't going to stop me from acquiring my copy and probably made it easier to get as the demand was lower. Had my eye on a few auctions and this one seller had his auction starting at just 1 penny. With less than 10 minutes left no one had bidded on the item so I put my bid in and won the card. At just one cent. Ha Ha. Never won an auction at that price. Granted the shipping was a $1.50 but even with that I received a low numbered card for under $3. You just can't beat that.

42 of only 99.

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Maury Wills Autograph ( 172 / 399 )

Go, Go , Go . . .

That chant for Maury Wills back in the day when he was a base stealing threat every time he came up to the plate. I have met Maury a few times and back in the day even helped him sell him a Ford when he came into my old workplace. That was in the 90's before I even collected cards, balls, etc so I didn't even get an autograph at that time. He was nice then and he has been cordial every time I have seen him since.

This year's Museum set has a few autographs that I would love to have and was lucky enough to add this one for such a low price. When the set first came out most of these were going for over $10 and while not terrible I wasn't in any hurry to get my copy at that price. I sat on the sidelines and waiting for the right price to come around and when it did I made my move. In the end I was able to acquire this card for just $6. I love when you can get autographs at such a bargain price.

Nice, crisp blue auto of a Dodger Legend. 172 / 399

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Matt Kemp Primary Pieces Game Used Memorabalia ( 13 / 75 )

Another day and another Kemp search on the bay. Watching a few auctions from this year's sets and thought maybe I can score a game used card at a low cost. The only good thing about when I player is not performing on the field is that their cards become cheaper to acquire. Matt is not immune to this. Auction was nearing its end and it was still sitting at $5 so I for sure was going to put a bid in. Put my bid in for a tad over $10 and that is what I won it for. $10 is a minor steal on a game used card for a superstar. I now have my first game used material card of Kemp since I reentered the hobby. To top it off it is dual color. Love the blue.

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Sandy Koufax Blue Bordered Variant ( 48 / 99 )

I love my blue variant cards for the Dodgers. The cards just look better when they are adorned with blue.

As with this year's Bowman set, Topps Museum has a blue variant but at lower print run than Bowman's 500. Topps comes in at just 99 so I know this hunt will be a tad harder and possibly a tad more pricey. Let the bargain hunting begin.

With the few current Dodgers within the set its funny how the first one I get is a retired great. Sandy Koufax. I haven't owned a Koufax card in years and I believe I only owned one copy back when I collected in the 90's. Possibly two but no more than that. Nothing needs to be said about his career as most of us know it by heart as we hear about is constantly when Clayton Kershaw pitches and is rightfully compared to this great lefty.

Koufax has a few signed cards within this year's set but I assume I will never get one as I don't want to pay the price and I already have a nice graded mint baseball signed by the legend. So since he is in this year's set I went on hunt for the blue variant and while pricing is not out yet on the set I picked this up for less than $3. Either way I think that is a great buy for a limited variant let alone a Dodger great. So I now have the first blue for this year's set and now onto the rest.

Dodger Great Sandy Koufax in Blue Glory. 48 out of 99.

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Adrian Gonzalez Autograph w/Dual Game Used Patches ( 39 / 50 )

It's early in the game but so far this is my prized pick up from this year's Topps Museum.

A goal for me this year was to get an autograph of our new first baseman Adrian Gonzalez on card with him depicted in Dodger blue. This happens to one of the first to make it to the market. While there are Tri game used patch cards out there I could care less about the game used aspect of it as I just want the autograph. The Tri version are normally going for at least $35 and some topping $50. Will not spend that much. So I was looking at the Dual patch cards and I missed out on a few auctions but I finally landed one at a nice lucky price of just over $13.

Card came in a nice non scratch screw down so I have no intention of taking it out. My first Adrian in Dodger blue and it looks great and got it at a great price in my mind.

Nice and crisp also numbered 39 out of only 50.

Card of the Day - 2013 Topps Museum : Don Sutton Autograph ( 208 / 399 )

Just started looking at this year's Topps Museum set and I'm working on a few subsets and variants but the main draw for most sets will always be the autographs. This year's set has a few and this is the first one that I have been able to acquire.

Don Sutton had a hall of fame career with most of his major accomplishments being with the Dodgers. Didn't expect to seem him in this year's set due to him not being the most popular of old Dodgers but there he was and I wanted to get a copy of the card. Off to eBay which is the norm and while there many auctions I had a set price that I was willing to pay and I eventually won this card for just a tad under $7. Not too shabby. Even though it doesn't matter to me the card is also numbered 208 out of 399. Nice clean autograph of a Dodger great.

208 of 399