1 Amazing Box Of 2016 Five Star

It was kind of a last minute thing, but my dad and I took a trip down to the White Plains card show in, well, White Plains. I didn't bring a whole lot of cash with me and I also didn't bring any of my own cards, so it was a quick trip. One of the first booths I stopped at had an Arod dynasty /5 for a pretty good price, but I didn't want to spend all my cash within 5 minutes of being there so I decided to walk around some more. Long story short, I spent half an hour trying to find that card again. I gave up and decided to look elsewhere. So instead of spending the money on the Arod dynasty, I spent about half of that money on a box of 2016 Topps Five Star. I originally picked out two boxes of high tek, but I opted to go for five star once I saw it. Of course just as I was walking about, I passed the booth with the Arod dynasty... Oh well.

I noticed that the pack was very thin which most likely meant I had redemption. I've had great luck with redemptions in the past, so redemptions don't bother me, especially if it's good.

The first card on top was a Max Kepler base autograph. An hour earlier I bought the exact same card for 1/15th the price of the box. I would've been happy with this card if I hadn't already had the same exact card. The next card more than made up for the Kepler though... I knew both Bryant and Urias had redemptions in five star (I thought Maeda did too but apparently I was wrong), but as soon as I saw that white front I was almost certain it was Urias or Maeda (which I would have been happy with). Well... This came out.

Vin Scully gold parallel autograph /50! I was absolutely ecstatic when I pulled this! I pulled a Scully auto from 2012 prime cuts a little over two years ago and never thought I'd pull another. I'll definitely be redeeming this since the card is already live, and hopefully I'll be sending it to BGS for grading as long as there are no major flaws. The next week of posting will be a recap of everything else that I got at the show.

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Out With The Old, In With The New

It's been 2 months seen I've last posted. The absence of baseball and the fact that I have track everyday hasn't helped with the lack of posting either. Even though I haven't been posting, I've still been picking up some cards every now and then, and I have a lot to post. Since my time is limited though I'll be sticking to 1-2 cards per post and I'll hopefully post at least once or twice a week. So without further ado, here is one of the newest cards I have added to my collect!

1/1 Starlin Castro jumbo sleeve patch from 2015 triple threads! Even though Castro really frustrates me when he swings at almost everything he sees, this was a must have piece of cardboard for me. The card speaks for itself. There's not much else to say about it besides it's one unique card.

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Seyanora, Teixeira

As strange as it seems, the most fond memory that I hold of Mark Teixeira isn't his walk off in 2009 or his walk off grand slam just last week, it's him busting it down the line to beat out a double play in the 9th inning. Mark was nursing an injured calf, but there were runners on 1st and 3rd with only one out, the runner at 3rd being the tying run. Even though he hits a little dribbler to the second baseman, he hustles down the line despite the calf injury and makes a headfirst dive into first to avoid hurting himself furthermore. He can't believe that he's called out, and the emotion he displays just shows how much the game meant to him. The funny part is, the title of the video is Yanks lose on close play. I didn't know being safe by a yard was considered close! I couldn't download the video to this post, so I left the link below.

http://m.yankees.mlb.com/chc/video/topic/47149716/v24614295

To me, that sums up his career in 2 minutes. 400+ home runs, lots of gold gloves, a career full of injuries, and a heart set to play the game he loved. Now with Teixeira leaving, it's like all the players that I watched growing up are gone with the exception of Gardner and Sabathia. 

It won't be the same!

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And That's The Season

The season didn't exactly go as planned for the Yankees; Alex Rodriguez was forced out of baseball, Carlos Beltran was traded for a hard throwing 22 year old, Andrew Miller was traded for 22 year old outfielder with lots of upside, and Aroldis Chapman was traded for a 19 year old shortstop. Lots of changes made for the New York Yankees. It will be a long 181 days until next April...

The postseason starts in 2 days, and hopefully I'll be watching the Orioles beat the Blue Jays in Toronto. Or in a perfect world, Jose Bautista would go 0-5 with 5 strikeouts. Either way it would be nice of the Orioles to send the Jays home early. If there's one team that I'd have to root for this October, it would probably be the Indians, especially since they are up against the Red Sox. If not the Indians, I think it would be fun to see the Cubs win it all. Speaking of the Cubs...

Here's the newest addition to my collection! Last years National League rookie of the year has put up   very impressive numbers this year, and it looks like he will be the MVP of the National League. I got this card for a very good price, and just in time for the postseason. I had always wanted a Kris Bryant autograph in my collection and I seized the opportunity to get one. It's not 2013 bowman chrome, but it's a cool card to have nonetheless. My plan is to hold onto it, but if the price keeps rising during the postseason and if the Cubs win the World Series... Well... Then I may change my mind. I can definitely see the price of this card rise if Bryant does well throughout the month of October. I'm really looking forward to October (and November) baseball!

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Down To The Wire...

Tomorrow is the final day of the long 162 day regular season. It seems like just yesterday I was freezing on opening day at Yankee Stadium. With the regular season ending, that means postseason baseball! Even though the Yankees didn't make the playoffs, I'm still really looking forward to watching the games (as always). I was able to pick up two bowman chrome autographs of players on postseason teams, one being on the Nationals and one being on the Cubs.

First up is this Trea Turner bowman chrome autograph BGS 9.5/10! Trea Turner has quietly put up a great season for the Nationals, and now he has a chance to lead his team through the playoffs. The Nationals could be a dangerous team if Harper and Murphy get it going again. I'm looking forward to watching the madness that will take place 3:00 tomorrow!

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The Future Of Judge

When Judge came up to the big leagues on August 13th, he was the center of attention. After hitting 2 home runs within his first 2 games, including a first at bat homer, he seemed to be swinging at air. In 84 at bats, he struck out 42 times. I understand that he's young and this is his first year in the majors, but even for a young hitter a 50% strike out rate can't be too good. It was painful to watch. Hopefully next year he can turn the page and have a better year, because the Yankees are going to need his bat next year. I know one thing though, I don't want to watch a player that strikes out 50% of his at bats. While Judge was all hyped up, I pulled the trigger on this card that was on eBay:

This 2016 Bowman inception Aaron Judge 1/1 cost me a pretty penny, but at the time I thought it was worth it, and my offer was accepted. Right now though the price that I paid seems to be a tad high, but this card is staying in my collection so the price isn't what bothers me. I'd love if Judge didn't strike out 50% of his at bats! Next year the AL East won't be as tight (at least in my opinion) so I think the young Yankees have a chance at the division. Judge, Bird, Sanchez, Severino, and possibly Frazier will all play a large part in determining the outcome of the Yankees season. Tonight is also the last Yankees game I'll be attending this season.

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Playing Catch Up

With the start of high school I haven't had any time to do anything besides baseball and school. Repeat that cycle 7 times a week and that leaves me with not much time. I don't think I've blogged since Miller, Beltran, Nova, and Chapman were traded, but as a Yankees fan I'm glad those moves were made. Gary Sanchez proved that he's the real deal, Aaron Judge proved that he can strike out every other at bat, and Tyler Austin... Well he's in the unknown. I haven't done much with my collection with the exception of moving my Clint Frazier bowman chrome autograph and Jorge Mateo gold autograph. I was hesitant at first about moving them, but prices always drop in the offseason and I feel that Mateo might be traded sometime in the near future.

I went out and acquired 3 new cards, one of them being this Ken Griffey Jr national treasures printing plate autograph! This is the only Panini card I have in my collection, but it's also one of the most unique in my collection. Unless something that I fall in love with pops up on eBay, this will most likely be going nowhere. Hopefully I'll still be able to post once or twice a week.

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