Liking Lots a Lot

Other than my box breaks with Kevin from Card Papoy and Brian from HSCA, my main way to accumulate trade bait is buying lots off of eBay.  Either a box breaker is getting rid of his Judgeless loot in one mega lot or the seller offers great combined shipping rates.  My latest pickup was of the combined shipping nature.

 I won several non Pirates, but this one was my favorite. Bowman Inception is always a much cheaper way to get a high end prospects autograph or future Game of Thrones actors.

 Polanco cards are dirt cheap right now as he is getting really close to being labeled the dreaded "injury proned" player.  This only cost me $8, which is about half of what it would have been last year.

 This jersey/auto cost me $4. When Polanco was first called up these were in the $30 range.

I always mention how collecting the late 70's Pirates is really cheap.  Players like Madlock, Parker and Al Oliver all sell low.  This Topps Supreme Madlock only set me back $3.

If you are a frequent purchaser on eBay it may be worth your time to check the sellers other listings. Usually I see a Pirate card I like and put a bunch of low ball bids on other auctions.  You may be surprised what you end up with.

Thanks for reading!

Proof of Life

I managed to keep my daughter in one piece while my wife was on her trip.  We accomplished a lot of fun stuff. Turns out I think I may have a little hipster as she loved a local burrito hangout that plays tons of folk music.  She danced the entire time. All I needed to do was give her a tallboy of PBR to complete the ensemble.

Our greatest accomplishment though was our major strides in baseball knowledge.  I had the Pirates game on tv and she just blurted out "foul ball" right as it happened.  #prouddadmoment. She also will keep telling me how she wants to go to more Black Bears games.  I think my wife is starting to feel threatened and booked us all tickets to the Nutcracker around Xmas.  I told her by that time I'll have her referencing sabermetrics. This time next year she may be doing guest posts on BWTP!

How about a card ...

2004 Topps Original Signature Edition Bill Madlock Auto 7/11

I think this is the lowest numbered Topps Originals card I have in my collection. Each player in the set has a handful of different cards of which many are hand numbered. I need to clean this case some as the guy who previously owned this got a little sticker happy.  

Madlock autos are always fun additions as they are cheap and always have a great look. I think I've only paid more than $10 once or twice and that was for 1/1's.  As a whole the late 70's Pirates are great value buys.  Tekulve is in this set as well, but he is a little tougher to find. Likely this is due to him being a cardboard god. 

Hope everyone is having a good weekend.  This is a transition week in Morgantown. The first WVU football is game is next weekend which unofficially begins fall in my area. Should be a good time. 

Thanks for reading. 

Late Night Tribute

I'm getting a little behind on trade packages, but I hope to remedy that beginning tomorrow. So if you have sent me something rest assured a post will be coming soon. I've also started to send out a few packages with three heading out the door so far this week and bunch more planned on Monday.

Tribute Time

2003 Topps Tribute World Series Edition Team Tribute Stargell/Parker/Madlock Triple Relic /275

This card is almost perfect for a Pirates collector. In the 2000's this combo was used a lot for relics, but the Tribute version is one of my favorites. It just has a cool look. Late 70's Pirate uniforms are awesome! 

On a side note the seller I purchased this from left a comment on my eBay feedback thanking me for the purchase and that he follows my blog. Always cool when someone comes out of the woodwork and says he reads my cardboard ramblings and my dislike for John Lackey. 

Thanks for reading! 

Consistent Penmanship

Every so often I compile some of my favorite players autographs and examine how their signature changes over the years. Here is a link to Neil Walker and Andrew McCutchen.  For Walker and Cutch both signatures got shorter as they got more established as professionals.  That is to be expected since demand goes way up.  Walker's change was a little more subtle while Cutch was more on the extreme end.

This time around I thought it would be cool to look at an older player.  Let's take a look at the Mad Dog, Bill Madlock.

Most of these autos are from the mid 2000's.  I would say he was very consistent.  Here is a much more recent auto.

A little more sloppy for the latest auto I have from Madlock in 2013.  This could be more of a product of signing tons of stickers at once or just writing getting sloppier as someone gets older.  My guess is signing a bunch of stickers at once.

Overall his signature remains consistent and above average for many of his peers.

Thanks for reading.

Turn Back The Clock

The Spring is always a busy time for me at work and the nice weather means outside projects at home, so free time is hard to come by. While it is always nice to be busy, sometimes you just need a weekend to recharge the batteries. The slate as it stands now is clear for this weekend!  

My hope is to spend some much needed time with my cards to get organized and send out a few packages. I've received so much great stuff this week that I want to return the favor to keep the momentum going.

Card time!

I've shown quite a few Madlock items since I've started BWTP. He is just a fun guy to collect that doesn't hurt the wallet. Minus the high end releases pretty much all of the Mad Dog's cards are less than $10. This holds true with pretty much all the late 70's Pirates minus Pops.

2003 Topps Turn Back the Clock Bill Madlock Auto

I won this card for around $6 shipped. Nothing beats late 70's, early 80's Pirate uniforms! This card is commemorating Madlock's 4th and final batting title in 1983. The set only had 7 autos.

AR Al Rosen
BM Bill Madlock
DM Dale Murphy
HK Harmon Killebrew
JP Jim Palmer
LD Lenny Dykstra
TS Tom Seaver

These are not super rare autos as they fell around 1 in every 6 jumbo boxes, but now that the set is around 12 years old they are not popping up on eBay as much anymore. Madlock by far pops up the most. At the time I'm writing this only 4 show up on eBay with three being the Mad Dog.

If I'm recalling correctly I pulled the Dale Murphy from this set. The only reason I remember pulling that card was because it was my first ever purchase from Dave and Adams. Always amazing how looking at a card can make you remember the most random moments.

The Pirates are going for 8 in a row tonight. If this team can ever figure out how not to suck in April it would be a power house.

Have a great weekend.

Mad Dog and a Dolphin

When you build a good portion of your collection via eBay it is hard to be surprised when you come across certain cards. For me when it does happen, these surprises come in two forms. The first is when I come across a card that I didn't know existed. Since I'm a team collector that puts a heavy focus on autographs this rarely happens. Once a set is released my normal protocol is to look at the checklist and make a mental note of what Pirates are in the set. Over the next few months I keep track of auctions to get an idea of what the going rate is and try to find a deal.

As most of you know life sometimes gets in the way and with some many sets being released it is hard to keep track. So was the case with this gem from 2014 Leaf Memories.

2014 Leaf Memories Buyback Auto /5

I knew this set existed since I already had this Candy Man, but never paid attention to what Pirates were in it. It is a Pirates goldmine! 

The other type of eBay surprise I was referencing is when you find that illusive high end card. When it comes to WVU players Pat White is the cream of the crop. He won 4 bowl games during his career including two BCS games. In terms of his cardboard I have just about everything you can own of Mr. White. Most of the holes in my collection are high end/low numbered releases. One such card I've been looking for was the patch/auto /99 out of Exquisite. At the time these cards were super expensive costing hundreds of dollars. Since Pat fizzled out of the NFL I make it point to fill in some of the holes in my collection now that prices are much more affordable.

2009 Pat White Exquisite Patch Auto /99

My patience paid off as I found a copy with a premium patch. I was grinning from ear to ear when this card arrived in the mail.

So there you have it. Even on eBay you can be surprised in a good way when purchasing cards. You can find a mysterious Mad Dog and catch a big fish if you are patient.

Thanks for reading.

A 1/1 Madlock from Asia

2013 Topps Supreme Magenta Printing Plate Bill Madlock Auto

Topps Supreme was an Asia only release, but many autos still hit eBay soon after the release.  The price point was high and the checklist was mediocre so you could find some reasonable deals on some big names. It would have been a perfect release to do a reverse box purchase and hunt down a ton of autos for the price of one box.  

This Madlock is the second printing plate that I've seen hit eBay since the products release.  I don't always search for Mad Dog so it is possible the others have hit as well, but I was happy to finally win a copy.  This is the Magenta version and it ran me around $35.  I have some unique autos of Madlock, but since this is from an Asia only release I would venture to say this one takes the prize.  

Hope everyone is enjoying the holiday.  Remember to shoot me an email if you ever want to trade.  Thanks for reading.

Original Madlock

2004 Topps Originals Signature Edition /60

I've shown a lot of Madlock's since I started the blog so I'll be brief.  This set was encased so the picture is a little blurry, but the card is very nice.  Kind of cool that card is hand numbered and features an awesome uniform picture.  Mad Dog is one of my favorite Buccos to collect so it always fun to show off his cards. 

Some New Old Archives and $30 a Week Habit

First, Roger from $30 a week habit found this gem and gave me a shout out.

This is the back of a Sam Jones 62 Topps.  The Pirates have been walking the plank a bunch this year.  

In honor of Archives being released this week here are a few older Fan Favorite Autos from 2012.  I always enjoy adding the Pirate autos from the Archives set as they are always affordable and have some great pictures.  I especially like the Madlock as he is one of my favorite older Pirates to collect.  

Hopefully the Buccos can put together a good series against the Dodgers this weekend.  Gerrit Cole got them off to a good start last night.  Let's see if the rest of the rotation can follow his lead.  I'm not holding my breath.  

Have a good weekend.  

Mad Dog 1/1

2005 SP Legendary Cuts Bill Madlock 1/1

I love the picture Upper Deck used for this card.  How can you not love the pill box hat and old school warm up jacket?  The four time batting champion is one of my favorites from the time period as he has a nice signature and is easy on the wallet.  

Anybody have any extra Pirate cards around?  I have a ton of trade bait that has yet to make it on the blog, most of which are relics and autos. Just shoot me a message and we can work something out.  

Thanks for checking out the blog!

Third Base Triple Auto and More Gypsy Queen (2013)

2006 Ultimate Collection Triple Auto 45/50

This is a nice card featuring some of the more prominent third baseman of the 70's and 80's.  While none of these guy are hall of famers all three had great careers.  Plenty of gold gloves, All Star Appearances and batting titles spread among this group.  

I love adding autos of the Pirates from the late 70's.  Players such as Madlock, Dave Parker, Al Oliver and Phil Garner all sign a good bit and the prices are very affordable.  

My friends and I will be opening more 2013 Gypsy Queen tomorrow afternoon.  We are doing two boxes a piece this time!  We are on a 1 year delay with our product opening.  I'm assuming in a few months 2014 will be at the price point that we are more comfortable with.  I'll showoff the good stuff in a post tomorrow night. 

I'm getting pretty excited for this years Archives set.  They are inserting autos of the cast of Major League this year!  One of my all time favorite movies.  Who wouldn't want a Ricky Vaughn auto?  

Let's go Bucs

Have a good Friday!