New Doctor Who Trailer

I don't know if my love of Doctor Who has ever crossed over to this blog but there is a new trailer out for the new half-season and it tackles the ultimate time travel question: should you go back in time and kill Hitler?

Brian Banniser 206 Mini Almost Master Set

I enjoy it when a set sneaks up on you.  In this case I'm talking about a set of Brian Bannister mini cards from the 2010 Topps 206 set.  Thanks to random chance of pulling three variations of the cards through ripping packs and getting sent the second hardest to find card by Beardy, I'm missing two cards from a master set.

In the 2010 Topps 206 set the minis can come to you with one of many different backs.  The standard is the Piedmont back.  Here are the remaining variations based on their rarity:

American Caramel: found in every four packs
Polar Bear: found in every 10 packs
Old Mill: found in every 20 packs
Cycle: found in every 230 packs
Carolina Brights: one copy throughout the whole print run

So I'm missing the American Caramel and the 1 of 1 Carolina Bright.  If you happen to have one of these two cards get in touch with me and we'll work out something.

Everybody's Got A Record: Hideo Nomo Edition

**In this series we strive to prove the universal truth that every baseball player holds some kind of record.**

Hideo Nomo is the only Japanese player to ever pitch a no-hitter.  He pitched his first no-hitter against the Rockies in 1996 while with the Dodgers.  In 2001, he pitched another another no-hitter for the Red Sox against the Orioles.

2002 Fleer Genuine Hideo Nomo Jersey Relic

Show and Tell #109: Mascot Cards From Night Owl

Mascot cards...you either love them or hate them. I love them and I am not sure why exactly but I assumed that Night Owl wouldn't really. I guess my assumption was wrong but nonetheless, he did send me a couple of cards featuring the Minnesota Twins mascot, TC.  For those curious, "TC" stands for Twin Cities and TC has  been the mascot since 2000.

2011 Topps Opening Day #M-14 TC

2011 Topps Attax TC #229

Cards From The Box: It's Prime Time

**In this series we delve deep into this box of cards, purchased for $2.99**

The Box held a few more of what seem to be completely random Bippings...first we had Pete Stoyanovich and now be have a Prime Time Bipping.  There were a few smatterings of Deion Sanders football cards but for whatever reason there were seven copies of his 1996 Topps card.

1996 Topps #315 Deion Sanders

The magnificent seven:

This Bipping also gives me a chance to write about Deion's rap album from 1994 called Prime Time.  With songs titles like "Y U NV ME?", "Heidy Heidy Hey," and "Sum'n About That Woman" you can see why it reached #70 on the charts.  You can find it on CD for $4 on Amazon or cassette for $2.

Joy Of The Completed Insert Set: 2011 Topps Series 1 Reprints

Another insert set bites the dust.  This is the reprint set from 2011 Topps Series 1.  I usually just scan the completed pages for these sort of posts but these cards look so nice that I thought it was only appropriate that the each get the "x-large" scan treatment.  I've included the set that each card is from as well.

#1  1914 Baltimore News

#2 1932 U. S. Carmel

#3 1934 Goudey

#4 1916 Sporting News

#5 1921 National Caramel

#6 1911 T205

#7 1950 Bowman

#8 1911 T205

#9 1921 National Caramel

#10 1909 T206

#11 1910 Tip Top Bread

#12 1910 Standard Caramel

#13 1903 Breisch-Williams

#14 1949 Bowman

#15 1934 Goudey

#16 1933 DeLong

#17 1935 Diamond Stars

#18 1941 Double Play

#19 1916 Sporting News

#20 1932 U.S. Caramel

#21 1933 DeLong

#22 1933 Goudey

#23 1932 U.S. Caramel

#24 1934 Goudey

#25 1921 National Caramel

#26 1932 U.S. Caramel

#27 1911 General Baking Co.

#28 1916 Sporting News

#29 1911 T205

#30 1909 T204

Show and Tell #108: A Zito From Manhattan

For all my posts about Barry Zito I can't quite believe I've never posted a Giants jersey card of him.  All of my posts have been A's jerseys and after consulting the collection turns out I didn't have a Giants jersey relic yet.  So thanks to The Lost Collector, straight out of New York City, for sending me my first.  Thanks again AJ!

2010 Upper Deck #UDGJ-BZ Barry Zito Jersey Relic

Heartbreaking Damage: How Not To Cut A Cereal Box

**In this series we highlight the cards that may have seen better days but the rough times these cards have seen have made them infinitely more interesting.**

This card comes from a discount bin at the last Topeka card show I went to I think in April...I always flunk my "which series of Post cards is this card from" test and I chocked a little bit when it turned out to be from 1962.  The book value of this card is $120 and with every snip of the scissors that cut this card out of the Post cereal box that value went down, down, down.  Still, it's my favorite McCovey card that I own.

1962 Post #131 Willie McCovey

Everybody's Got A Record: Jason Bay Edition

**In this series we strive to prove the universal truth that every baseball player holds some kind of record.**

When Jason Bay won the Rookie of the Year award for the National League in 2004 he became the first Canadian to win the award.  Although he's had trouble staying on the fields these past two season with the Mets his career 162-game average is 29 home runs and 102 RBIs.

2005 Fleer #AW-JB Jason Bay Autograph 67/99

2010 Topps Chrome Blaster Results Show

Hmmm, the collectors dilemma.  Full price 2011 Allen and Ginter blasters or two 2010 Chrome blasters with a steep 40% off sticker on them?  I'll take Chrome eight out of ten times on that one...even if the cards are shaped like a bell curve.  So I ripped 16 packs of Chrome over the weekend...here are the notable results.  No autographs which isn't too surprising and I was averaging one refractor or better card in each pack and I think I only had one pack with four basic base cards.

We'll start this in terms of rarity...I only found one notable rookie in the packs...not that 2010 Chrome had many memorable rookies...

#174 Jason Heyward [Rookie Card]

I've skipped the refractors because my scanner just makes them look like regular cards...onto the X-Fractors which in Topps Chrome aren't numbered but in Bowman Chrome they are. 

Tommy's back in rare form again with a record of 11-5 this season. so far. 

#8 Tommy Hanson X-Fractor

#57 Josh Hamilton X-Fractor

For whatever reason these two blasters gave me a good start to a Mariners team set of X-Fractors.  I pulled three Mariners X-Fractors in total...no Ichiro unfortunately but I did get a King Felix.

#208 Kanekoa Texeira X-Fractor

#167 Franklin Gutierrez X-Fractor

#92 Felix Hernandez X-Fractor

One Chrome Heritage card of Victor Martinez.  He's having a good year with the Tigers and the Red Sox replaced him with Jarrod Saltalamacchia, who I've written about before. 

#C140 Victor Martinez Chrome Heritage #0974/1961

While I've never seen a Superfractor in person, my favorite non X-Fractor is the purple variety which burst onto the scene in 2009. I was able to get one per blaster...

#175 Scott Sizemore Purple Refractor 226/599

#102 Jake Peavy Purple Refractor 136/599

Last but not least, I found a blue bordered Chicle of Orioles Mr. Dependable Nick Markakis.  If you take a look at Nick's stats he rarely misses games throughout the year, always hits around .300 and gets about 185 hits a year.  Not to bad.

#C24 Nick Markakis Chicle Chrome #015/199