Now Onto Something I Really Like

After being swamped at work and on vacation for the last 3 weeks or so, I'm back to share some more of my thoughts with everybody.

Spring training is under way and my beloved Cubs are once again favored to win the NL Central. Some people have them favored (again) to go a lot further than that. However, after the all the hype and then the disappointment two years running, I'm a little more cautious. They do have one of the best teams in baseball (on paper). Somehow in October they forget how to do the things they did to get them into the playoffs in the first place. I was completely fed up after last year's debacle. So much so that I was even contemplating rooting for the Royals or Nationals. At least I wouldn't be disappointed if they got swept in the first round. For those teams this would mean a milestone.

Let's look at what could be the opening day batting order at wrigley.

2B- Aaron Miles
SS- Ryan Theriot
LF- Alfonso Soriano
3B- Aramis Ramirez
RF- Milton Bradley
1B- Derek Lee
C- Geovany Soto
CF- Kosuke Fukudome (very scary)
SP- Carlos Zambrano
Closer- Carlos Marmol

I hope that Lou will open his eyes and put Soriano in the 3 hole. The only problem with that is you would have to put Miles in the lead off spot. A guy with a .329 career OBP. Wait a minute, Soriano's is the exact same. Well there you go. Unfortunately this is a pipe dream that will never happen.

I think the rotation will be:
1. Carlos Zambrano
2. Rich Harden
3. Ryan Dempster
4. Ted Lilly
5. Sean Marshall

The pitching from 1-4 is pretty solid. I just hope that Dempster has a repeat season from last year and Marshall has a breakout season and Harden stays healthy and........................

Well we all know what has happened for the last 101 years. Let's just hope for the best. I can't take the White Sox fans anymore. Damnit, that was four years ago people.

My Favorite Michael Jordan Card

With my most recent break of a box of 08-09 Fleer Basketball under my belt. I got to thinking about how much I love the design of the 88-89 Fleer set. While I was reminiscing about this set and all the great cards (Pippin, Rodman, Stockton, Miller, etc), I remembered about the Jordan All-Star card. This card has to be one the best Jordan cards ever made. The best player in the game doing the bust Tomahawk dunk ever! Doesn't get any better than that.

Oh What a Feeling

And I'm not talking about dancing on the ceiling either. I recently went into a local card shop. For those in the area, I recommend going to Heroes on Cermak and 14th in Riverside, Il. I really wanted to buy a box of 08-09 Co-Signers Basketball. Chuck, the owner, only had two packs left. So after pondering for about 10 mins and talking about the news with Panini, I decided to buy them. First pack, I was happy with. I pulled a Kevin Love gold auto #'d 17/25. Then in the second pack was the dual auto of Dolph and Danny Schayes #'d 201/240. I also pulled a Jason Thompson and Russell Westbrook. Sure, I understand it's not like I pulled a Rose or Beasley auto, but I would have never thought with the last two packs that I would pull both autos. I basically bought the whole box for $20. Here's the scans of the cards.

To Bust or Not To Bust

Everyday I read through a bunch of different blogs. Everyone has their own opinion and that's what makes these so enjoyable to read. One of the common themes that a lot have talked about is box breaks. People are irritated because they buy a box and more times than not they don't get back what they paid for the box. NEWSFLASH..... 95% of the time this isn't going to happen. When you bust open a new box, you do it because you like to rip open packs to try and find that 1/1 Abe Lincoln hair piece or that Babe Ruth cut. You shouldn't expect to get it, but it's fun to try. If someone doesn't truly enjoy busting packs, then it's pretty simple, DON'T DO IT. However, like most of us out there you do and if that's the case with you, don't bitch and moan that you didn't get your money's worth.

Must Satisfy the Craving

I have a massive addiction of opening wax packs/blaster boxes/hobby boxes/whatever. The problem is I can't always afford to buy the newest boxes. A couple weeks ago, I was doing my normal searches on eBay and came across something. It was a 90-91 Fleer Basketball wax box. I know this doesn't sound like much but it was a way to satisfy the craving to rip something and did I mention that it was 2.99 plus 5.70 for shipping. So for under $9 I was able to open 36 packs. I ended up pulling three Jordans, three Pippens and a few others worth at least $1. So I will sell one of the Jordans for around $10 and the rest is in my collection for free. So if anyone is trying to put this set together, let me know.

Must Have Rookies

To me there is an imaginary list of must have rookie cards. These are cards that you can buy for under $250. I would like some input on what people think if I left any out. I would like to limit it to 10 per sport. Sorry, I don't do Hockey.

Baseball

• Alex Rodriguez 1994 SP
• Derek Jeter 1993 SP
• Cal Ripken 1982 Topps
• Rickey Henderson 1980 Topps
• Albert Pujols 2001 Sp Authentic
• Ken Griffey, jr 1989 UD
• Mark McGwire 1985 Topps USA
• Roger Clemens 1985 Fleer
• Mike Schmidt 1973 Topps

Football

• Joe Montana 1981 Topps
• Walter Payton 1976 Topps
• John Elway 1984 Topps
• Dan Marino 1984 Topps
• Jerry Rice 1986 Topps
• Brett Favre 1991 Stadium Club
• Ladanian Tomlinson 2001 Topps Chrome
• Peyton Manning 1998 Topps Chrome
• Tom Brady 2000 Leaf Limited
• Barry Sanders 1989 Score

Basketball

• Larry Bird/Dr. J/ Magic Johnson 1980 Topps
• Chris Paul 2005 SP Authentic Auto
• Dwight Howard 2004 SP Authentic Auto
• David Robinson 1989 Hoops
• Kevin Garnett 1995 Finest
• Kobe Bryant 1996 UD
• LeBron James 2002 Finest

Feel free to add any or let me know if you think I forgot someone. Remember only cards that you can buy for under $250. Like I said earlier, I'm also looking to limit to 10 (which is the hard part)

All Things Exquisite

One of my favorite recent purchases is pictured below. It is a 07/08 Exquisite Basketball Quad Patch card of the Bulls numbered 5/5. This is the reason why I got back in the hobby and am planning on staying in. I love the design of the card as well as the absolutely awesome patches. Granted, at $400+ for 5 cards, this is the kind of cards that should be made. It is still a big risk for me to put out that kind of money with little chance of getting it back. All of my exquisite cards so far have been bought on Ebay. The deals that you can get for most part is ridiculous. I picked up this card for right around $30. I will be showing some of my collection in the next few days.

I am also going to be adding my list of wants/needs. If anybody sees anything on here that they would like to add to their collection, let me know and we can work out a trade.

Welcome Back to the Hobby

Well after reading several blogs over the past few months, I decided to start my own. I recently got back into the hobby after about 15 years. When I was a kid there was no such thing as relic cards and we actually had a better chance getting struck by lightning than pulling an auto. I was completely amazed that you are able to buy a box for around $60 and were actually guaranteed a couple relics and/or autos. This is until I realized how many and how worthless they actually are for the most part. I still have a hard time understanding that I can pull a baseball rookie card and yet not even hear of them until 3 years later. I probably busted 6 boxes of Topps Chrome this past summer only to have 10 autos of people that I have to wait on for three years to see the value. While I do like to collect, I also enjoy going to the card shows and selling there too. It's my way of getting money from cards I don't really want and buying ones I do. I, like many people these days are on a limited budget. I have a 3 year old and we just found out two days before Christmas we're expecting another.

Getting back to the shows.

I've probably done my local monthly show for the last 8 months. I am trying to figure out what people are looking for at these shows. Out of the 8 shows, I probably only broke the $40 mark (table money) 3 shows. Only one of those shows I made over $100, and that's because I sold one card for $300. This past Sunday was the monthly show. I went again and bought my usually table. Now I have everything on my table from a 50 cent bargain box to cards that book well over $100. While most of my collection is from the last couple years, I also have cards that go back to the 60's and 70's. I always have the same people asking about the same cards and never pulling the trigger. Not that I'm priced high. I have a Walter Payton in really good shape, it would probably grade a 7 or 8, that I'm asking $160 for. I also have a 1969 Mickey Mantle in good shape (books for $350) I told one guy $80 and he said that the best he could do was $60. I just don't understand what is going on. Are they going to the show to just waste a Sunday morning? This is what I'm beginning to think. There is also plenty of people walking around. I'm just trying to figure out what I have to bring that people will want. Any ideas for me? I recently emailed Mario from Wax Heaven on this subject. He said he thinks it is Ebay that killed the hobby. I do agree, however, when my asking prices are about the same as Ebay it doesn't make sense.

Thanks for reading my first blog. I hope to update at least once a day.