Underrated

2017 Stadium Club Auto Tyler Glasnow /50

Obviously Stadium Club is not underrated.  It is universally  loved in our community as the best looking new set. I don't know if you can trust someone who doesn't think this set looks great on a year to year basis.

Where it might be a little underrated is rookie autos.  In baseball Bowman and Heritage are kings in terms of the rookie autograph.  I'll happily take a Stadium Club rookie auto for a fraction of the price. Glasnow obviously is cheap to begin with, but if I were to buy a red ink Heritage auto it would still cost me a pretty penny.  This gold parallel only set me back around $6 shipped.  Not too shabby.

Thanks for reading!

New Dual

Last week I participated in Zippy's all auto team Blog Bat Around by using dual autos. I loved adding these cards over the years because it allowed me to collect non Pirate players I liked by using the Pirate player as justification for the purchase.  The other nice thing was that the Pirate player always drug the price down to a much more manageable amount.  You want a cheap Buster Posey auto, just throw Tony Sanchez on there! There is a Cal Ripken auto that I've been wanting to find for a long time that features former Pirate prospect Don Kelly.  That seems like a nice way to get a Ripken auto.

The golden era for me to add these type of cards was 2005-09.  They seemed to be plentiful and were added to sets that didn't cost $300 a box. Sets like Donruss Elite and Topps Co Signers were fun sets that featured tons of unique combos.

Today these combo Pirate autos just don't get made as much.  When Cutch became a bona fide superstar he stopped signing.  The only dual autos that feature Pirates seem to be prospect oriented. These type of cards tend to be in high end sets.  Time to play the eBay waiting game.

2017 Panini Flawless Josh Bell/Tyler Glasnow Auto /15

The above card is something I've had my eye on for a while.  I've been adding Glasnow cards at a vigorous pace since his market collapsed.  The issue with this card is that Josh Bell autos continued to sell at a high price.  Finally, between Bell's slow start and auto over saturation his cards have started to drop in value. I won this card for about $20.

Not a bad looking card.

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Fancy Pants

Now that Cutch is a Giant the Pirates are void of any high $ players in terms of cardboard. The only exception would be collecting Chrome parallels of high end prospects, but I don't play that game. Paying $500 for a guy in AA is pretty crazy and crosses the threshold from collector to investor. To each his own, I just don't have that kind of disposable income. 

Lately I've been having fun picking up Pirates from high end sets.  Tyler Glasnow is the perfect example of Topps over saturating the market. At one point Glasnow was a top prospect which means you get a ton of cards. He was in every set. After a disastrous start to his MLB career his card prices bottomed out. I jumped on the opportunity.  

2017 Topps Five Star Tyler Glasnow Patch/Auto /35

While I'm upset that Tyler has had a rough go of it, his struggle has opened the door for high end card purchases.  Who knows, maybe he'll right the ship and this will turn out to be the steal of the century.  While that would be a bonus, I'm happy to own a nice looking card at a bargain price either way.  The final price was $11.50 on eBay.  

Thanks for reading! 

Hanging By a Thread

The only high end box I've ever opened was  Topps Triple Threads. While the box produced a few nice cards I really didn't enjoy the experience and vowed never to do it again.   My box busting days are behind me minus my breaks with Kevin and Brian. I also have a stash of lower end boxes if the urge were to strike at anytime.

On eBay I've noticed that many of the Triple Threads cards seem to be selling cheaper than in previous years.  Topps has a lot of premium sets on the market so I'm guessing breakers are being choosy on what they want to open.  You may want to take some time an look at some auctions.  Some bigger names are selling at what seems to be good deals.

Recently a seller that I follow listed a bunch of Triple Threads cards that were not getting much bidding action.  I pounced at the chance and picked up a couple Pirate autos and a little trade bait.

 Tyler Glasnow Triple Threads Auto/Relic /75

Jameson Taillon Triples Threads Auto/Relic /99

The Glasnow and Taillon cost me about $6 combined.  Probably not the numbers you are looking for opening a box like Triple Threads.  What little focus I've had on 2017 has been pretty much on Glasnow.  Since he has struggled so much at the MLB level his cards have bottomed out big time.  The Taillon was a nice bonus to take advantage of combined shipping.

Thanks for reading!

Low Ballin'

Panini for all its faults has two really nice high end sets to cherry pick off of eBay. If you like on card autos or patches you will hard pressed to find better prices on the secondary market than National Treasures or Immaculate Collection.

Of course the big names will still carry good value, but if you are a team collector you can really find some great deals on mid level stars and rookies.  Lately I've been on a Tyler Glasnow kick and have been accumulating some nice cards, many of which fall under $5.

 2016 National Treasures Tyler Glasnow Triple Jersey Auto /99

2017 Immaculate Collection Tyler Glasnow Jersey Patch /99

The auto was actually part of a lot that included a Jameson Taillon auto that only sold for around $7, and the multi patch card cost around $5. Glasnow is featured so much in this years Immaculate Collection that I basically just look at auctions that are close to ending and put low ball bids on all of them. Being that he was a pretty high end rookie at the beginning of the year means he has been featured in every set.  The market is saturated so cheap cards are going to fall through the cracks. While I don't win a ton, I would say I'm winning 3 cards a month for basically the price of pack of flagship each. 

I suggest looking at the checklists of these sets and trying it out.  I'll think you will be surprised at how successful you can be.  

Player Specific Lots

I recently found a seller on eBay who creates player specific lots from newer sets.  Some of the starting bids are a little high but some decent deals can be had on rookies.  I took advantage of a Tyler Glasnow lot that had a $5.99 starting bid.  That turned out to be the only bid.

The auto was the centerpiece of the lot.  I've been adding a decent amount of Glasnow cards ever since he got sent back down to AAA.  He has been dominating down there so maybe he can stick around for good when he gets called back up in September.  

Some high end base rookie cards.  The copper is an unnumbered parallel.

This aqua parallel is /299.

A nice sampling of base.

The pink parallels are not numbered. They actually look kind of weird in person.  Not sure if it is a good or bad weird.

The last card in the lot was "the rookies" insert of the Bucco pitcher.

All in all not a bad lot and a nice easy way to accumulate a sampling of cards from two higher end sets. The auto was just icing on the cake.

Here is a link to the seller on eBay.  You might be able to find some deals especially if you buy multiple lots to save on shipping (I assume with 100% feedback he does this).

Timing is Everything

2016 Elite Extra Edition Glasnow/Reyes Dual Patch /10

I'm always amazed when sellers pick the absolute worst time to put a card on eBay.  Take this dual patch as a very good example.  Both Glasnow and Reyes are two high end pitching prospects. The problem is that Glasnow got demoted a couple months back and Reyes is out for the season with an arm injury. Those facts make for a very nice buyers market.  

Normally I avoid these type of cards unless they come dirt cheap.  I already have a nice sampling of Glasnow autos and really have no interest in Alex Reyes.  Turns out my low ball bid of $8.99 was enough to win the card. I'm sure once Reyes is healthy I could sell it for a little bit of money next season, but I'm happy to add it to my Glasnow collection.  My guess is he'll eventually work his way back to the MLB at some point this season.  

Thanks for reading. 

King of Queen

2017 Topps Gypsy Queen Tyler Glasnow Auto

I was at Target again the other day, but I decided to forgo the card isle this time around. Figured I better quit while ahead with Gypsy Queen after my incredibly lucky blaster last week. Instead I went on eBay looking to grab one of Tyler Glasnow's autos. 

For whatever reason base autos out of Gypsy Queen seem to sell much cheaper than sets like flagship and Heritage. I was able to get this rookie auto for less than ten bucks.  Not too shabby.  

I was shocked that Glasnow made the team out of spring training. He had already accomplished everything you could in the minors, but it just not the Pirates way of doing business. Service time is always an issue and just about everyone was thinking it would be June by the time he would be in Pittsburgh. 

If you don't know much about Glasnow he is one of those big time boom or bust prospects.  He is a big kid that throws really hard, but like most big guys he has command issues. Obviously him reaching his potential would do wonders for the Pirates postseason chances. You just have to expect meltdown outings like his first start on Monday where he couldn't get out of the 3rd inning. 

Yay for cheap on card autos!  

Thanks for reading. 

Year 2 NOW

The Pirates got card #1 again with this Tyler Glasnow.  I wasn't even aware Topps was producing individual Spring Training NOW cards. I knew about the team sets and I figured they would go all in on the World Baseball Classic (which they have).  Thankfully a friend of mine gave me a heads up when this Glasnow went live.  I would have missed it for sure.  

I plan on experimenting with different ways of getting the Pirate releases.  I'll continue with eBay for the most part, but I may purposefully let a few go and see how much I can find them for a couple months down the road or even after the season.  I noticed several of the non rookies only selling for a few bucks on eBay. We'll see how this plays out. 

Hope everyone is enjoying March Madness.  WVU punched their Sweet Sixteen ticket this afternoon! Looking like we will have a date with Gonzaga. 

Thanks for reading. 

A Piece of Glasnow

I'm in dire need of a good card maintenance day. You ever crave those? I know I do. I'm still sitting on a few big trade packages waiting for some time to really dig in and give them the posts they deserve. Once I get a couple hours I can finish out 2016.  Between college basketball, work and a non sleeping toddler 11pm can sneak up on you pretty fast.

Also have a couple of trade packages that need rounded out.  I think I've been holding a Mike Trout hostage from Gavin for over a month.  In my defense I'm waiting to throw a few more cards in there! Seems like a waste of space to have only one card in a bubble envelope!

How about a new card

Like previous years I tend to take my foot off the pedal buying new cards around the holidays. My biggest acquisition the last couple of months was the Kiner rookie that I posted about the other day. Most purchases have been the $5 or below variety like this card....

2016 Diamond Kings Tyler Glasnow Mini Patch /25

I've had good luck finding some nice deals from this set.  I bought a Taillon patch from the same set back in the summer for under $10. Other than the stupid blank hat this card would look really nice. 

Glasnow is one of those love/hate prospects. Some like Keith Law think he is a front line type of starter while some on Fangraphs think the command and lack of a good third pitch will continue to plague him.  He is a big kid so many of the issues that plague tall pitchers has plagued Glasnow.  This will be a big year for Tyler as he'll likely get an opportunity to make the rotation. I'm really pulling for him as you can see why scouts drool when he is on his game.  High 90's fastball and a 12 to 6 curveball.  He will follow that up with a game where he walks 5 guys.  If he cuts the walk rate down the Pirates have a potential star.  

Thanks for reading! 

Rotation Line Change

Pirates prized pitching prospect Tyler Glasnow makes his debut this afternoon. It should make for good TV as Glasnow is a 6'8 flame throwing strikeout machine.  What will make it interesting is that he has some significant command issues.  He has been able to work around this in AAA, but obviously this is a different animal.  Double digit k's and 4-6 walks have been commonplace for him, but this will likely not be a recipe for success in the big leagues.

I'm hoping he shows enough to stay in the rotation the rest of the year.  Habitual under performers Jeff Locke and Jon Niese have no upside so it really shouldn't take a whole lot to knock them out.

Why does work always get in the way of baseball?

Laboring on Labor Day

Tomorrow I'm flying to San Antonio for work so in turn I was in the office most of the day today trying to tie up some loose ends before I hit the road. Not the best way to spend the holiday, but I'm glad I did it because otherwise I would be digging out of a hole for two weeks once I'm back.

As far as the trip goes I'm pretty excited to head back to San Antonio. I spent a week there when I was in high school so I've accomplished most of the touristy things. Have a pretty open slate so I might just walk around and try to relax some. Anybody been recently? I'm open to suggestions.

2015 Panini Father's Day Tyler Glasnow Patch /10

I've bid on some of the Father's Day cards over the past couple of years, but fell short on most. For some reason this card only sold for .99 plus shipping. The card is actually not numbered, but according to the seller this card is considered the pyramid parallel, thus it is out of 10. I didn't bother to check to see because the price was so good either way. Panini has been releasing a ton of Glasnow cards so it has been fun picking up a few here and there.

Their were some rumblings that the Pirates might call up Tyler Glasnow, but it is looking like he will stay down in the minors. His numbers are very good, but he can struggle with command at times. He'll have a chance to crack the rotation next year in Spring Training, but the odds are he will find his to Pittsburgh in June because of service time. 

Hope everyone enjoyed the long weekend. 

Victory!

I've recently put myself on an eBay hiatus in order to spend a little more time organizing. If you received a package from me recently that was part of the cleanup process. My hope is to get cleaned up by the New Year. Every time I get the urge to start searching cards that will just be my reminder to sort some more. Plus, sorting means putting together trade packages so everyone wins!

2013 Bowman Victory Tyler Glasnow Auto /10

Here is one of my last eBay purchases. Bowman Victory is a rare set created as prizes for winners in the Bowman Prospect Challenge.  The checklist included all the big prospects so the secondary market prices on the set were very high. Click here to look at the checklist. I paid $44 for the card which was almost $30 less than the last copy. 

Tyler Glasnow's stock seems to go up everyday.  Currently pitching in the Arizona Fall League, Glasnow continues to turn heads. It will be interesting to see if he will be ranked the number 1 prospect in the Pirates system as the season approaches. Jameson Taillon's stock has dropped some since his Tommy John surgery so my guess is yes.  It will be interesting to see how quick the Pirates move him through the system. 

Thanks for reading!

Mr. Glasnow

2013 Bowman Chrome Tyler Glasnow Auto

With the graduation of Polanco to the big leagues and the season ending surgery to Jameson Taillon, Tyler Glasnow is the Pirates top prospect.  The big 6'7 righty has dominated the minor leagues ever since he entered the Pirates system.  If all goes well he will end up in AA soon and maybe have his major league debut late next season or possibly break camp in 2016.

The Pirates are officially over .500!!!! Seems like a million years ago when they started off the season hot and looking like they hadn't skipped a beat from last year.  Poor pitching put us in a hole early, but thankfully that seems to be getting a little better.  The Pirates have a ton of games against last place teams before the All Star break so some serious ground could be made up.

Top Ten List

Since the Pirates are off to a rough start I figured I would showcase some prospect cards.  Here is a visual top ten list of the Pirates top prospects.  I used the Fangraphs list as the reference.  Polanco looks to be the only one on the list that can have an impact this year since Taillon is having Tommy John surgery.  The system is a consensus top 5 in most publications and number 1 in Baseball America.  Another promising thing is that many of the guys that fall 11-20 would make most teams top ten, so that is encouraging for the future.  

10.  Luis Heredia

9. Harold Ramirez ( No Card)
8. Josh Bell

7. Reese McGuire

6. Nick Kingham

5. Alen Hanson

4. Austin Meadows

3. Tyler Glasnow

2. Jameson Taillon

1. Gregory Polanco