The Lost Collector Goes Antiquing

A couple weeks back AJ sent me a large envelope with this bad boy inside. What a cool surprise!

Before I started blogging I was active collecting just about every piece of Pirates memorabilia under the sun. Getting married and then starting family put a stop to these type of purchases as most of the disposable collecting income goes towards cards now. So I'm extra thankful that AJ thought of me when he dug this out. I love these type of pieces.

The envelope also included some cardboard.

 Success begins in the classroom.  It will make you have a rocket arm and earn millions of dollars.

 You too can graduate and become a world class athlete .

 One of my favorite Pirate cards of the year.  Each made history as the first MLB player from their respective homelands.

 Chrome version!

 Osuna got a long look last year with Marte's suspension. Not really seeing how he makes the team next year.  It looks like his bat would play, but Josh Bell is the first baseman.  His outfield defense left something to be desired.

 Former WV Black Bear Kevin Newman.  If all goes well, he may be the starting shortstop this summer.

Unique shot of the camo jersey.  Going to be weird not seeing Cole and Cutch at Spring Training.

Thanks for the cards and year book AJ.  Such a nice surprise.  Maybe I should start digging around for hidden treasures.  I think I have a lamp in my attic, you want it? Doesn't look like I have any Yankees treasures.

Thanks for reading.

The Lost Collector Likes Bunting

It seems my good pal AJ has been sharing his love of Bunt with all the blogs.  Late last week I received a pwe of a nice sampling of the 2017 Buccos.

 It really is nice having a bargain set that people are really gravitating too.  I think people are a little sick/bored of Opening Day so Bunt has been a nice change of pace.  Here is a blue parallel of Marte. I'm sure there is some kind of joke about feeling blue and PED's but I'm not that creative right now.

 The base cards are so vibrant.  I know several blogs have discussed these in detail so I'll spare the wordy review, but needless to say I like them. The team oriented color schemes kind of remind me of what Donruss football does.

 The two big Bucco rookies.  Glasnow has struggled while Bell has been very good.  People worried about Bell's defense but he has been fantastic at first.  He is also showing more power than he ever had in the minors which is a good thing.

 Two well known regulars to finish out the Bunt.

Ugh....I'm starting to lose hope in Cutch going back to the player he was.  I know his babip is extremely low so his slow start has some bad luck, but metrics like bat speed are not painting a nice picture. I'm really hoping for a nice 6 week spurt or the Buccos are going to be in big trouble.

Thanks for all the cards AJ.  Love the Bunt set! I may have to buy a few packs myself.

Thanks for reading.

Trade: The Lost Collector

I've received some interesting things over the years in trades, but this has to be near the top of the list.

Yup, that is an inflatable parrot courtesy of The Lost Collector.  I'm not sure how he ended up with it, but my daughter thanks you.  She has been carrying it around everywhere. 

Of course AJ threw in some great cards. 

I really like this Rhoden auto.  He doesn't have much in way of certified autos so this is a nice addition. Extra bonus for pill box cap. 

Donruss Signatures is an all time great set.  How fun would it be to open a box! 

I really wish John Jaso was a little more productive.  Just imagine the marketing with him being a Pirate. The possibilities are endless.

Nice to see some Chris Stewart Pirates cards. One of 9000 former Yankee catchers to find a home in Pittsburgh. I often joke that it is just a matter of time before Gary Sanchez is a Pirate.

Jason Grill sporting Doug Drabek hair!

Thanks for the great cards AJ! The inflatable parrot was great.  Where in the heck did you get it?

Thanks for reading! I'm going to go back to being mad about Marte's suspension.

Mass Mailing and a Trade With The Lost Collector

Today I mailed out 14 packages! This was a long time coming as each time I cleared a few hours to accomplish this something would come up.  Thankfully the stars aligned and many of my trading partners will be receiving something very soon.  Hopefully I will have another 10 or so complete before the end of the week!

Trade time!

My good pal AJ of The Lost Collector fame sent me a loaded trade package last week.  This time around he decided to throw a curveball and include some great cards of my Alma mater WVU.

One of the sharper cards out there are these SP Authentic patch autos. You get a nice clean signature to go along with a premium patch.

 On the field Chris Henry was a dynamic deep threat. Unfortunately, Henry had a lot of off the field issues. Tragically Henry died when he fell out of the bed of a moving truck while having an altercation with his fiancee.

The word on the street is that Geno is getting one more shot as the starting quarterback of the Jets. I'm sure the Jets fans are disappointed, but this really pumps me up. Hopefully he takes advantage of the chance as he should have more talent around him this time around.

AJ didn't stop with just WVU cards....baseball time!

 This was an IP success for AJ in which he was nice enough to send my way.

 It was nice to see Cutch finally have a good week. Love the Chrome card!

 The Pirates fell apart in June when Cole and Cervelli got hurt. Thankfully both should be back very soon. My favorite is the play at the place Cervelli.

 It was cool to see a set devoted to position players pitching.

 When the original list of All Stars came out this year Mark Melancon was the only representative. This was a little disappointing as both Marte and Polanco were having their best years. Thankfully Marte got the call to fill in for Yoenis Cespedes.

 A couple of guys that found nice success after their Pittsburgh years. I was especially happy for Steve Pearce who was one of the more snake bitten players in recent memory. Each time he was due to get an extended look he would get hurt.

 Two of my favorites growing up as a Buccos fan. Flair is just so classy.

 The two sexiest Pirates ever. Just look at that Candelaria.

Thanks for all the great cards AJ. I need to find a for more Yanks to round out a return package for you.

Thanks for reading.

Lost Collector Found Some Cards

A while back AJ aka The Lost Collector mentioned that he found a couple of Aramis Ramirez cards for me. It turns out he must have found a 90's treasure trove.  December has been 90's month here at Bob Walk headquarters.

It is hard to choose if I like these frequent flyer mile cards or those cards that look like credit cards better. Opening Skybox products in the late 90's early 2000's was quite the visual experience.

 You name the gimmick Pacific did it. While this is the "checklist" card it doesn't make it any less cool.

 In order to keep the structural integrity of this card in place I didn't open it. In case you don't know these are from Collectors Choice and were called Evolution Revolution. This particular version is of Al Martin.

 Aurora was actually a pretty cool set. This is a very young Aramis Ramirez.

 More Pacific of the newly retired Pirate thrid baseman.

 I love this card because of the Hill Cats uniform. Aramis was a pretty big prospect so this card probably fetched a decent amount around the time of his debut.

 I miss sets like MVP and Collectors Choice. Upper Deck gave some nice choices for those collecting on a budget and still made them look unique. Topps struggles to make sets for the budget minded collector.

I think Vance Worley just signed with the Orioles if I'm not mistaken. I'm guessing he'll have a pretty good chance to make the roster.

Some Bowman rounds out the pwe. Harold Ramirez is probably the most high end of the prospects featured.

Thanks for the great 90's Buccos AJ. I need to find a few more Yanks before I have enough to send something your way.  Hopefully right after the New Year!

Thanks for reading and have a nice Christmas Eve!

Trade: The Lost Collector Delivers Operation Shutdown

Today has been a good organization day here at Bob Walk the Plank headquarters. I was able to get 18 bubble mailers ready for shipment with another 4 just waiting for the final cards. Some of this stuff I had been sitting on for over a month, but Hurricane JBF hit me hard and took some time to dig out. Now I'm back to my normal flow, so mailboxes beware!

In the middle of last week I received a nice envelope of cards from my pal AJ, The Lost Collector. Always nice to receive some mail your weren't expecting.

This card can conjure up a lot of memories for Pirate fans. Derek Bell played for the Pirates in 2001 and had a terrible season. Coming into Spring Training 2002 he assumed he still had the starting job. Pirate management said his outfield slot was open competition which lead to one of the greatest sound bites in Pirate history...

Nobody told me I was in competition. If there is competition, somebody better let me know. If there is competition, they better eliminate me out of the race and go ahead and do what they're going to do with me. I ain't never hit in spring training and I never will. If it ain't settled with me out there, then they can trade me. I ain't going out there to hurt myself in spring training battling for a job. If it is [a competition], then I'm going into 'Operation Shutdown.' Tell them exactly what I said. I haven't competed for a job since 1991."

The Pirates would end up paying Bell 4.5mil not to play for them. He actually retired to a yacht in which local media dubbed him an actual Pirate.  He steals money and lives on a boat!

It has been a long time since I've seen an SI Kids card in person. My brother and I would fight over these back when we were young. 

Thanks for all the great cards AJ. I'll be sure to hit you up soon!

Thanks for reading.

Trade: The Lost Collector

Last month when looking for Pirate rookie autos I came across a Ty Hensley that I figured AJ aka The Lost Collector might want. I took the gamble and purchased it and sure enough AJ needed it. I have had good luck recently finding cards for my NYC area buddies AJ and Zippy. With both of them collecting Yankee prospects and myself always on the hunt for Pirates, I often find sellers who hit all our needs. 

AJ was nice enough to send some return cards my way...

This was my favorite card AJ sent. I've been showing off a lot of Inception baseball lately so this fits in nicely with the theme. The picture really pops on this parallel numbered to 99. My hope is that Geno can be traded to the Rams one day so he can throw to Tavon Austin and Stedman Bailey.

 Speaking of Stedman and Tavon......two nice rookie cards.

You almost have to feel bad for Daniel Moskos. The Pirates took him in 2007 because they knew he would be an easy sign. The consensus pick was the for the Pirates to take Matt Wieters, but they were cheap and avoided the negotiations with Scott Boras. Moskos never did anything of note with the Pirates and currently is a free agent looking for a minor league deal.

 Taillon might join Liriano and Cole in the rotation at some point this year.

Nice relic of Stedman Bailey. It has been nice to see Stedman getting more involved in the Rams offense the last few games. Hopefully he and Tavon can play a big role next year and finally make St. Louis respectable again.

As always AJ thanks for the nice mix of Mountaineers and Buccos. I'll keep my eye out for some of your PC guys when I'm shopping on eBay.

Thanks for reading.

Surprise Package From The Lost Collector

AJ from the blog The Lost Collector sent me a nice little care package this past week.  Check it out.

 Bay was my favorite Pirate in the mid 2000's.  Always nice to receive a cool relic.

Zach Duke is reinventing himself as a reliever with the Brewers.  Nice to see him doing well, as it was looking like he might be out of baseball.

 God I hope the Pirates resign Martin.

 POPS!

Thanks for the great cards AJ.  Always nice to receive surprise Buccos in the mail.  Extra bonus is that I didn't have to climb the stairs in my basement to get these card!  I'll have some Yankees for you in the near future.