Favorites from the month of February

I was actually on top of things last month, and scanned the new additions to my collection as I received them. But, I forgot to actually post the pictures, which kind of negates being prepared. Here's some of my favorite pick-ups from the past month, with the HD Platinum probably being at the top of the list. The Topps HD parallels are impossible to find (I think this is only the 2nd one I've seen on eBay in the past 3-4 years), and I managed to get a great deal on this one!

2011 ITG Heroes and Prospects Heroes Jerseys Silver #26 S2 PR/150

2005 Leaf Certified Materials Fabric of the Game A's Jsy 98 #/50

2003 Donruss Elite Aspirations 168 #/65

2000 Topps HD Platinum 42 #/99

2003 Donruss Classics Timeless Tributes 70 #/100

2004 Leaf Exhibits 1939-46 Best Wishes Left Second Edition 39

A Few New Additions, Including an MLB Logo Patch

I've been lucky enough to pick up quite a few cards over the past few months, both via trades with other Rickey collectors, and purchases on eBay and trading sites. I figured I'd quickly share some of my favorites.

2005 Donruss Champions Impressions MLB Logo Patch Padres 311 #/2

2005 Prime Patches Team Materials Triple Team Logo Patch 4 #/37

2005 Absolute Memorabilia Team Trios Swatch Double 21 #/100

1996 Select Certified Mirror Red 70 PR/90

2000 SkyBox Star Rubies Extreme 84 #/50

2001 Topps Archives Future Rookie Reprints 80 Gold 11

2011 Topps Triple Threads Sapphire 78 #/25

1997-98 Fleer Million Dollar Moments

Spanning two years of sets, and included in 1997 Fleer Series 2, 1997 Flair Showcase, 1998 Fleer Series 1 and 1998 Ultra Series 1, the Million Dollar Moments cards were basically sweepstakes promotions, inserted one in every pack.


The cards include both modern day and retired stars, with the fronts including the description of a specific moment in the players career. Not surprisingly, they chose May 1, 1991, the day he broke Lou Brock's all-time stolen base record.


The backs of the cards included the official rules of the sweepstakes, as well as a place to fill out all of your personal information in case you managed to complete the entire set. It is the information on the back of these cards, however, that makes what should be a throwaway card into a player collectors treasure hunt! As can be seen above, the text in the white box on the box of the cards states "You're One Step Closer to Winning $1,000,000." This is the message that was found in all of the cards that were inserted in packs, and is the version that you can readily find for sale.


There are certain cards on every player collectors want list that don't seem like they belong. For me, the 1997-1998 Fleer Million Dollar Moments Redemption was one of those cards. For the longest time, I had no idea what the card even was (Beckett lists it as "1997-1998 Fleer Million Dollar Moments Redemption," with a price of $0.25), and yet I only know of one other Rickey collector that has one, until now that is! I managed to track down a few complete sets of these redemption cards, which were given to collectors as a prize for sending in the first 45 cards of the 50 card set (the last 5 cards were extremely short printed, and it's with these that you had a chance of winning $1,000,000). Unlike the cards found in packs, the backs of the redemption cards state "This is Not an Official Game Card." This should be the end of the hunt, but there is still a third version that exists.


This last version is the same as those found in packs, but has been stamped "1-45 VOID" on the back. I'm not 100% positive how these can to be, but my guess is that when a collector would send in his cards to get the redemption set, Fleer would mail back the redemptions, along with the initial 45 cards that were submitted. It makes sense that Fleer would void these cards, as they wouldn't want everyone turning right back around and submitting them again for another set.

It's also possible that a fourth version of the cards exists. There were supposedly 10,000 "Instant Winner" cards inserted in packs, which I'm assuming would also be noted in the white box on the back. I've never seen or heard of a Rickey (or any other player for that matter), but that doesn't mean they aren't floating around out there somewhere.



Shameless plug alert: To attempt to recoup the cost of the sets, I've currently listed some of the redemption singles on eBay. The checklist card above shows the entire set, but I've also included a complete list below. If any player collectors are still looking for their players card, send me an e-mail, and I'm sure we can work something out.

1. Checklist (with all cards listed for you hardcore player collectors)
2. Derek Jeter
3. Babe Ruth
4. Barry Bonds
5. Brooks Robinson
6. Todd Hundley
7. Johnny Vander Meer
8. Cal Ripken Jr.
9. Bill Mazeroski
10. Chipper Jones
11. Frank Robinson
12. Roger Clemens
13. Bob Feller
14. Mike Piazza
15. Joe Nuxhall
16. Hideo Nomo
17. Jackie Robinson
18. Orel Hershiser
19. Bobby Thompson
20. Joe Carter
21. Al Kaline
22. Bernie Williams
23. Don Larsen
24. Rickey Henderson
25. Maury Wills
26. Andruw Jones
27. Bobby Richardson
28. Alex Rodriguez
29. Jim Bunning
30. Ken Camminiti
31. Bob Gibson
32. Frank Thomas
33. Mickey Lolich
34. John Smoltz
35. Ron Swoboda
36. Albert Belle
37. Chris Chambliss
38. Juan Gonzalez
39. Ron Blomberg
40. John Wetteland
41. Carlton Fisk
42. Mo Vaughn
43. Bucky Dent
44. Greg Maddux
45. Willie Stargell
46. Tony Gwynn
47. Joel Youngblood
48. Andy Pettitte
49. Mookie Wilson
50. Jeff Bagwell

Random Inserts and Game-Used from February

Here's a few of my favorite Rickey additions from the past month or so.




I missed out on 2006 Triple Threads when it was released, so these are the first two that I've been able to pick up, they just happened to arrive in the same month. You can't beat a card with Rickey and Reggie!




The 2009 Triple Threads at the top helped "complete" the set for the year. I now have all three variations numbered to /36, /27, /18, and /9.



This one is obviously not a Rickey card, but is a nice oddball addition to the collection, as you can prominently see him celebrating on the front.


Another oddball card is this 1991 Tuff Stuff Jr. cut-out. Although it is on magazine stock, and not card stock, it does actually have a back to it, so it was meant to be cut out.





The multitude of 1990's Pacific parallels seem to be never-ending, so it's nice to cross a few off the list whenever possible. I used to despise these parallels, but they've actually started to grow on me.




We'll end with a couple of more recent cards, as although he's in the Hall of Fame, Rickey's cards just keep on coming. The first is from 2011 Topps, while the second is from 2010 Topps Sterling.

Additions for the New Year (and the end of the old one)

I seem to only have time to post cards when I get a bunch of them scanned at once, but I guess that's better than nothing. Here's some of my pick-ups from back in December, as well as some from early January as well. So far late-January and early-February have been epic in terms of finally tracking down a few hard to find 1990's inserts and parallels, and I can't wait for them to finally arrive. Stay tuned in the coming weeks, once I get them all in hand, for a post highlighting my newest additions.

2010 Topps Hat Patches and Bat Barrels

Topps decided to try something new this year, and released a series of manufactured Hat Patches and Bat Barrels in their sets throughout the year. I'll never be able to own an actual hat patch or barrel, so it is nice to at least have the opportunity to obtain the next best thing.








Rickey had four different hat patches (each #/99), two vertical and two horizontal. I'm still not sure how the A's patches made it through any sort of quality inspection (maybe there wasn't one?), but all of the patches are cut this way, almost as if they were planning on it being a horizontal card, and then changed their minds.

While I did like the patches, I was a little skeptical about the bat barrel relics. Fortunately, these far exceeded my expectations, and are actually much nicer in person than they appear online, and they even look pretty good online.





There are three different parallels, the base #/99, the black version #/25, and a pink version numbered #1/1. The pink version has not yet surfaced on eBay, but I hope it does just so I can snag a picture for this post. The Jeter below recently sold for $250+, and I have a strong suspicion that the Rickey will go for even more.



Topps currently has plans to release manufactured glove cards in 2011, but unless the checklist changes, Rickey has not been included. But, this is only for Series I, and who knows what they have in store for Series II or Update.

A Very Burbank Birthday

Now that my latest birthday is behind me, it's time to revel in the spoils. My lovely wife gave me a Beckett gift certificate, and I also received some other funds which were partially used towards expanding the Rickey collection.

Most player collectors probably have a love/hate relationships with Burbank Sportscards, and I do as well. If you're looking for that hard-to-find 90's insert or parallel, there's a good chance that they have it. You'll also probably pay an arm and a leg in the process, so it all comes down to how much you want it. But, with a little digging, you can surprisingly find a few "deals" hidden among the $499 autographed relics.


1994 Stadium Club First Day Issue #654 (print run 2,000) -- I'm not sure why I haven't been able to track this one down already, as with 2,000 of them out there, it shouldn't have been too hard to find. But, 1994 Stadium Club finally complete, for a total of 9 cards including Golden Rainbow, Members Only, and First Day Issue parallels.


1996 Leaf Signature Platinum Press Proofs #142 (print run 150) -- I've never seen this card for sale on eBay, so even though the price was a bit high, I have a feeling it would have been much more had it actually been put up for auction. This now completes the 1996 Leaf Signature set, with a base card along with the gold and platinum press proofs.



1998 Circa Thunder Rave #87 #/150 -- It was nice to finally be able to track this one down, but the elusive Super Rave #/25 is still out there somewhere!


1998 Pacific Platinum Blue #9 (print run 67) $10.65 -- I now have all 3 of the 1998 Pacific Parallels which included the Silver and Red Threatt (yes, it's spelled with two "t"'s) versions.


1999 Upper Deck Encore FX Gold #58 #/125 $19.05 -- This is another card that I don't remember ever seeing for sale on eBay. It's also nice that 1999 Upper Deck Encore only had two cards, the base card, and this parallel.


2003 Donruss Elite Throwback Threads #25 #/250 $9.90 -- There are 3 "base" Throwback Threads in the 2003, all #/250, but this is the first one that I've picked up so far.


2003 Topps Chrome Refractors #186 #/699 -- I recently purchased the Gold Refractor #/449 as well, but am still looking for the Black Refractor #/199 and the Uncirculated X-Fractor #/50.


2003 Topps Tribute Contemporary Memorable Materials Relics #RH $15.45 -- Although not serial numbered, these 2003 Topps Tribute relics don't surface very often, as they are pretty nice looking cards. Plus, most of them feature Rickey in vintage A's gear, which is always a plus!

I had a lot of fun on my Beckett shopping spree, and the early holes in the collection are slowly dwindling. The thrill of the hunt in tracking cards down one-by-one is fun, but every once in a while, adding a stack of cards all at once can be just as fun!