Another Gem For Severino

Yesterday was opening day and Severino was lights out, allowing only 1 hit through 5.1 innings. Severino is certainly capable of putting up cy young numbers and he showed that yesterday. Stanton stole the show from Sevy though, hitting 2 home runs in his first game as a Yankee. Today I decided to show off two more of my favorite Severino's. 

It's sure going to fun watching Severino the rest of the season 

Opening Day 2018

It's been almost exactly one year since I last posted. I've still been collecting, but I lost interest in blogging at the time so it was tough for me to write out posts. One year later I'm looking to give it another shot. I'm hoping some people are still following this blog so I have an audience to write to, even if it's just small.

 Anyways... IT'S FINALLY OPENING DAY. There's no better feeling than waking up to a full day of baseball and that's what tomorrow is. Finally. 5 long months of boring winter. Nothing says spring more than baseball. In the time that i've been a Yankees fan, they've never looked this good. 2012 was good, sure, but this team is young and ready for a championship. 2017 was awesome to watch, with Aaron Judge leading the Yankees into the postseason, and absolutely tearing the cover off the baseball. Game 7 of the ALCS was an absolute heartbreaker especially since the Yankees had a 3-2 lead before heading to Houston, but I have even higher hopes for the 2018 Yankees. Judge, Stanton, and Sanchez hitting back to back to back... Is that even fair?

Yes, I still collect Arenado, but during the 2017 National my main focus was Luis Severino and other young Yankees studs such as Gleyber Torres. I have around 70 autos/relics of Severino, but I'll only be showing off two today. They happen to be two of my favorites:

Same card, different numbering. Although I rarely buy Panini, immaculate and national treasures are two exceptions. These cards are too unique to pass up. 

Hopefully there are a good amount of bloggers still around. It's been too long for me to be able to tell who's active and who's not. Let me know if you're still around!

Another Box Of 2017 Topps Tribute - Absolutely. Speechless.

Just about 2 weeks ago I broke my first box of 2017 Topps Tribute and it did not disappoint. I pulled a 1/1 to go along with autographs of both Trea Turner and Paul Konerko. In case you didn't read my last post, here's what I pulled out of my first box.

Yep, a redemption. It seems like there's a redemption in every box I open, but all of them are pretty good (Kris Bryant, Sandy Koufax, Jose Abreu, the list goes on). 

I ordered this box from blowout, and after ordering it I had second thoughts about whether I should rip it or not. Long story short, I decided to break it. I patiently awaited my mailman to deliver my package. I had plans on opening the box while I was watching the Yankees game, but my postman came at 12:00 (an hour before the game started) and I wasn't able to wait any longer. I noticed one pack was really thick, and another was really thin. I decided to save the thin pack for last since it was most likely a redemption, and there are some pretty good names for the redemptions such as Bryant, Harper, Tanaka, Kershaw, and also possible booklets. A booklet would be awesome.

I opened the fattest pack first. I thought it was a patch card at first, but it was just a thick relic card along with a rookie card, which is a case hit.

The rookie, which only fall 1 per case, David Dahl. I'm hoping to complete the set so it was nice to get a head start on the rookie set as well as the rest of the base.

My second hit? Would you look at that it's George Springer again! My initial thought was that it was going to be one of those boxes where 6 cards of the same player show up in the same box. The autograph definitely could have been worse though, as Springer is baseballs hottest player with 5 home runs in his first 9 games.

If I'm going to hit a Red Sox card at least let it be David Ortiz. When I say I get a Red Sox hit in every box, I mean I get a Red Sox hit in every single box. Well this time was no different.

To go along with that David Ortiz relic, here is a David Ortiz purple parallel /99.

The third relic of my box was a Felix Hernandez stamp of approval relic /199. I really like how Topps now has the sticker of authenticity on the relics, it adds a little extra sentimental value, especially when it's of a favorite player.

My second autograph was Sonny Gray. Gray may be a good pitcher, but he's in about every product so it's not very exciting to hit an auto of a pitcher who signs just about everything. I had just 1 pack left. I purposely left the thinnest pack for last since I knew it probably had a redemption.

I open the pack and I can clearly see that there is a redemption in the middle of the two base cards. It wasn't your typical blue background redemption though, it was white. 

I slowly slid down the card hiding the redemption...

...

DEREK. JETER. I'm still shocked that I pulled this. Jeter did not sign much at all in this product (less than 70 I believe). This is the second lowest parallel, the only one lower being the black (1/1). I absolutely cannot wait for this card to come in.

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1 Box of 2017 Topps Tribute - O' Wow!

Museum collection would usually be released around this time of year, but since museum collection is featuring WBC relics, it was moved back to the end of August. My local card shop had topps tribute for a hefty price (much higher compared to prices on blowout cards), but I decided to take a shot.

Topps tribute definitely offers a different look this year, looking a lot like 2007 Bowman's best. The parallels are a strong point in this years product.

The colors really pop out, especially on this Stephen Piscotty green parallel.

I still wonder why Topps continues to put out $5 relics in a $300 product, and this Lindor is no exception. In my opinion Topps should at least put a little color into the relics, not just plain white relics.

At least one of my relics was low numbered. Yet another plain white relic though.

What box would be complete without me getting a Red Sox hit? It's a really nice looking card, and even has the MLB authentication sticker. Although the relics weren't the greatest, all of the autographs I pulled definitely exceeded my expectations.

The first autograph I pulled was this Paul Konerko auto /199! Konerko was always fun to watch back when he played and I've always wanted an autograph of his. It's always nice when the worst autograph you pull is of Paul Konerko...

The second autograph of the box was this really nice Trea Turner orange /25! Turner is easily one of baseballs best young players, and is equipped for another great season. 

I purposely left the lightest pack for last because I knew a redemption would be in it. I was hoping for a Bryant, Harper, Kershaw, or a cool booklet of some kind, but I didn't get any of the above. If I did happen to get one of those players, I probably would've redeemed and kept the card, but I already received an offer I could not refuse for this redemption...

Adam Jones autograph patch black (black is a 1/1) parallel redemption! Unfortunately it's a redemption... If it wasn't a redemption, I definitely would have kept the kept. Not knowing if Topps would ever make the card or how long it would take to be made, I decided to take the safe way out and sell it. Overall it was a great box!

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So Far So Good For The Yankees This Spring

A lot of things need to go right for the Yankees in order for them to claim a playoff spot this season. Gary Sanchez needs to have another great year, Bird needs to prove that his injury didn't hold him back, Judge can't strike out half his at bats, Severino needs to get back on track, Ellsbury can't suck... Wait. That's not realistic! 

The past 6 games for the Yankees have revealed a few things for the Yankees; Their top prospects have performed great, Sanchez hit a home run, Bird can still hit, and the competition for the final two spots in the rotation will come down to the final week of spring training. Would it be cool to see the Yankees make a run at a wild card spot? For sure, and I think they have the ability to do it. Their starting rotation has the potential to be good and we all known the Yankees bullpen is (insert fire emoji). 

I had to include a card, so here's one of my latest pickups; a Starlin Castro museum collection jumbo patch /5! I was offered this card for a very reasonable price and couldn't turn it down, especially with the logo patch. Although Castro seems to swing at every pitch, he is certainly an upgrade over Stephen Drew... We all know how that went down. 

Do you think the Yankees will make a strong push for a wild card spot?

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Late Mail

I won both of these cards in a razz (raffle) for a mere amount of what they're actually worth. I know absolutely nothing about Gavin Lux except for the fact that he's 19 years old and was drafted in the first round of the 2016 draft. He's at least a couple years away from the majors, and I do not have that kind of patience when it comes to prospects.

I'll probably end up selling this card, or possibly grading it. I don't think there's anyway I could wait 2+ years to see if a prospect pans out.

The other card that I won was this Adrian Gonzalez booklet /10! Even though I'm not a Dodgers fan, I'll still end up keeping this card if it doesn't get traded for something Yankees related.

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Aroldis Chapman 1/1 Nameplate

Baseball is back! Kind of. Opening day is still 43 days, but spring training is here (Thank God). I've picked up quite a few cards since the last time I posted which seems like forever ago. I ended up selling my Scully, and got a nice chunk of cash for it. I put that money towards some cards that I'd appreciate more, such as this Aroldis Chapman 5X7 1/1 nameplate!

I could care less that Chapman is shown on the Reds on this "card." It's a 1/1 nameplate for crying out loud!

After the Yankees acquired Chapman from the Reds last year, I went out and bought this 1/1 booklet. I sold it shortly after due to Chapman was traded.

And here's a scan of the monstrous card. Even though I don't agree at all with Chapman's contract, I'll enjoy watching him close out games in the Bronx in the next 5 years. If only 86 million wasn't spent on him...

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