Have you visited our store? Click here.
Manny Machado 2010 Bowman Chrome Draft Prospects Superfractors #BDPP80 BRCR 9
Sold: July 29, 2018
# of Bids: 75
Final Price: $6,650
Ronald Acuna 2018 Bowman Chrome Mega Box Prospects Image Variation Platinum Refractors #BCP1
Sold: July 4, 2018
BIN/OBO (Offer Accepted)
Price: $1,250
This months list is introduced with a Machado Superfractor and man, for a card this significant, you’d think the seller would’ve taken a better pic. I had to work magic in PS just to get it this clear and it still looks like crap. ::sigh:: Anywho, this is a very significant card and one I prefer over the signed example. I wasn’t the buyer but I do think it’s a very strong addition to any serious collection. The gold color of this superfractor will look really nice once officially slabbed by BGS. The silver flip of the 9 will complement the gold shine.
The Ronald Acuna was a solid buy. This was another instance where the image provided was really out of focus so I had to work a few tricks in PS to get it to look the way it does here. Even though it’s still somewhat out of focus, it’s much better than it looked originally. I think Acuna has potential and cards like this Platinum 1/1 are seriously excellent additions, especially right now while he’s still young and proving his talent. I like the image on this card; it showcases the playful side of baseball, which I think some of us forget about but it’s just as important as the serious side.
Mike Stanton 2010 Bowman Chrome Topps 100 Prospects Superfractors #TPC5
Sold: July 26, 2018
# of Bids: 40
Final Price: $381
Ivan Rodriguez 1998 E-X2001 Essential Credentials Now #14
Sold: July 18, 2018
# of Bids: 14
Final Price: $260
The Stanton superfractor closed at what I believe right now to be a very reasonable price. As the years pass and Stanton continues to make headlines, cards like this will continue to appreciate. This being another gem from my favorite Bowman Chrome set, I had to watch it closely. With 40 bids, I wasn’t the only one who paid attention.
This Rodriguez Essential Credentials Now card has made a few appearances on the secondary market over the past few years but I’m not sure if it’s been this exact example each time or if others of the 14 serial numbers have surfaced. Either way, this is a great card from one of my all-time favorite parallel sets. The earlier part of this 100-card set features the superstars of 1998. This being card 14, Rodriguez was among that elite list. At just north of $250, this was a nice add.
Ichiro Suzuki 2001 Absolute Memorabilia Boss Hoggs #BH8
Sold: July 22, 2018
# of Bids: 18
Final Price: $113.50
For those of you who don’t already know, upon first glance at this 1994 Topps Black Gold ABDC, it might not seem like much but let me tell you this – it’s a monster. The 44 players depicted on this card make this card quite a bit more competitive against any one bidder. Big names are shown here so player collectors have to fight each other for this card in the rare occasions it surfaces, which is another issue. The 1994 Black Gold set was released during a time when serial numbered cards were becoming popular so these weren’t as collectible at the time but became much more so as time passed. As such, they likely weren’t taken seriously in 1994, which if true would contribute to their near impossible nature in the current market.
This Ichiro card made its way into the list because it hails from the very scarce Boss Hoggs set. 2001 posed some confusion with regard to print runs. For example, the Ball Hoggs set is serial numbered to 75, however, the first 25 in the print run of 75 were printed with holofoil text and titled Boss Hoggs. Since the Boss Hoggs share the same /75 print run, you have to know that the Boss Hoggs are only serial numbers 1-25/75. All other serial numbers, 26-75, are Ball Hoggs. When I got back into the hobby in 2003, it took me some time to figure this out with a lot of sets during the 2001 block. At any rate, given the scarcity, the rookie year status, and the cool ball cut, this card is a nice addition to the list.
Travis Lee 1998 Crown Royale Firestone on Baseball Autographed #1
Sold: July 21, 2018
BIN/OBO: (Offer Accepted)
Price: $50
So that Travis Lee card shown there, yea, it has a print run of just 8. Roy Firestone signed just 8 copies of each card in the 1998 Crown Royale Firestone on Baseball set, which makes the signed examples some of the most elusive parallels of the 1990s. This is the first Lee I’ve even seen so I knew I had to have it. I’ve always liked the set design. The flat gold foil and small Firestone headshot in the corner gives the card a somewhat antique look. I’ve always like it. The set is full of mega stars and hopefuls from 1998 so tracking down a complete set of these signed parallels would be nearly impossible.
Ahh, yes, the Jason Heyward card that shouldn’t exist. When I first saw the listing for this card, I passed on it but it wouldn’t be 12 hours later that I’d come back and hit the BIN. I first thought it was more ACEO nonsense but as I did some research and requested a pic of the back of the card, sure enough, this sucker’s authentic. It wasn’t meant for release, however. No, this was likely a prototype designed for internal review before final approval of product design.
Nomar Garciaparra 1998 Collector’s Choice StarQuest Home Run #25
Sold: July 22, 2018
# of Bids: 12
Final Price: $36.59
I watched this Pete Kozma for a many months. It just sat there with no watchers beyond me. I’d been interested in adding one Kozma to my collection and this card made sense but I didn’t think it was worth the $50 asking price so I waited… and waited… and waited some more. Finally, on the 4th of July, Burbank Sportscards had a 30% off sale AND this card met their minimum price threshold required to get free shipping AND I had $28.52 in eBay bucks credit. Price I paid for this card: $13.98.
The Nomar StarQuest Home Run parallel is kind of a bear. The HR parallels have print runs of just 100, which you might think is enough to go around – it isn’t. These HR parallels have proven to be some of the toughest /100 cards of the decade with many player collectors still trying to track them down. I’ve met guys who’d honestly be happy with a card of any player from this elusive beast of a parallel set. And still… this Nomar closed at less than $40. Go figure!
I was bidding on three of these. Missed out on every one.