Ike's Cards

2008 Baseball Heroes Box Break

2012-02-14T11:11:00.000-08:00

Here's a box break we did at the Winter Warm Up. Let me know if you are interested in trading. We opened boxes of 2005 Topps Gallery and 2006 Upper Deck F/X too. No videos, but will try to scan the hits for trades.

2008 Bowman Chrome Box Break

2012-02-12T11:09:00.000-08:00

This is a box break from New Year's Eve. Let me know if you are interested in trading!

Ike Is Back

2012-01-04T18:35:00.001-08:00

Hello and Happy New Year! Back in 2012 after a fall break. Baseball in St. Louis has had its ups and downs this fall but things in 2012 are looking up. We are going to the Cardinals Winter Warm Up in two weeks and hope to get plenty of autographs, open plenty of packs, and maybe even take a picture with the World Series trophy.

Lets start the New Year right with a reminder of the World Series - confetti from the celebration!!!

Daily Dimwit Artifacts Break

2011-08-29T05:00:00.000-07:00

Hey guys - the Daily Dimwit is running a 2006 Artifacts case break. Plenty of good teams left.

More info here: http://www.thedailydimwit.com/2011/08/group-break-announcement.html

Futures Game

2011-08-28T15:44:00.000-07:00

Here are two cool Cardinal relics from 2010 Pro Debut. I like that these cards are numbered and have giant jerseys on them. I think these will be perfect for autographs at the next Cardinals Winter Warm Up.

Eduardo Sanchez 187 of 299 – Sanchez made a splash earlier this year out of the bullpen but has been out with shoulder problems for the last two months.

Francisco Samuel Gold 25 of 25 – Samuel is supposed to be our closer in a couple of years but has been passed by Fernando Salas, Lance Lynn and Sanchez.

Let’s just hope they can give us what this guy has since 2006. Get well Waino!!!

Lucky A&G - Two Relics!!!

2011-08-20T15:03:00.000-07:00

We picked up our first hobby packs of Allen & Ginter a couple of weeks ago… and did we get lucky! All this in just five packs!

ARod 600th HR Baseball Highlight Sketches

Ascent of Man#4 and #21

Evan Longoria Jersey Relic

Jack LaLanne Film Relic!!!

Close up of the relic

We pulled these as well:

Three Hometown Heroes
Two Minds That Made The Future
Three Short Prints (Hochevar, Johnson, Mauer)
Three Mini Inserts (Portraits of Penultimacy, Uninvited Guests and Fortunes for the Taking)

2011 Seaver Nameplate

2011-08-18T04:21:00.000-07:00

Pulled this out of a jumbo pack. Its up for trade.

2009 Icons Box Break

2011-08-13T18:16:00.000-07:00

These are the cards from the box of 2009 Icons I posted about last month. This was a lot of fun to open and getting the Ozzie and Markakis cards made it even better. Everything else is up for trade!

First – The Numbered Cards (all numbered to 999)

The Relics

The Lettermen (20/40 and 1/35)

The Auto (80 of 199)

New Sizemore Cards

2011-08-08T21:47:00.000-07:00

Two more for my favorite player binder. The first is really a Josh Barfield card but the second is pretty cool.
2007 Co-Signers Josh Barfield / Grady Sizemore numbered 196 of 225

2009 Upper Deck Grady Sizemore Starquest Black Ultra Rare

Jim Edmonds 2002 Playoff: Another Oddball Relic

2011-07-29T21:50:00.000-07:00

My dad brought this home from one of his business trips. He covered most of the card and asked me to guess what type of relic this was. It was a shoe!!!

2002 Playoff Jim Edmonds Shoe Relic numbered 11 of 50

Here’s the back of the card:

Does anyone know if there are wrist band relic patch cards from this product?

Hey Yadi, Yadi–Seeing Double

2011-07-27T20:42:00.000-07:00

Yadi looks like he just picked off someone at first base again!

2010 Bowman Gold and Blue. The blue is numbered 435 of 520 and is close to the light blue the Cardinals used to wear.

I’m looking for other color versions of this card and have plenty to trade!

Met’s Trade with The Sandlot

2011-07-25T06:55:00.000-07:00

We completed a trade last month with the The Sandlot. We sent Mets, he sent Cardinals. Here's some of the loot!

2006 Flair Showcase Albert Pujols Emerald 91 / 150
2007 Topps Chrome Jim Edmonds Refractor 24 / 660
2009 Topps Gold Border Kyle Lohse 1349 / 2009

2007 UD Elements Skip Schumaker Auto
2007 Turkey Red Brad Thompson Jersey

2011 Topps Series Two Jumbo Pack

2011-07-24T07:15:00.000-07:00

My dad picked up a jumbo pack on a business trip. Mostly base and I didn’t get anything cool with the Diamond code card but there was one cool card:

Harmon Killebrew Leather Nameplate

I’ll trade this for a similar Cardinals nameplate if anyone has one.

2009 Donruss Americana

2011-07-23T05:19:00.000-07:00

I did a pack break of packs I won playing a dice game at last month’s Flea Market. I also won a blaster of 2009 Donruss Americana that my mom and I opened when we got home. I really didn’t want the box and hoped for a baseball blaster but the man at the booth thought I’d like it. I didn’t really like the cards but I did like this card:

John Wayne Relic numbered 33 of 500

I don’t really know who he is but the adults thought it was pretty cool.

2001 Donruss Fan Club Albert Pujols Jersey Card

2011-07-21T18:30:00.000-07:00

I don’t know if this counts as a Pujols rookie card or not but I think its pretty cool.

What Bob Gibson says about the Cardinals’ Bullpen

2011-07-20T20:34:00.000-07:00

I hope the Cardinals have lots and lots of good friends.

My First Pack Of 2011 Ginter: A Retail Rack Pack

2011-07-19T22:01:00.000-07:00

My mom bought me my first pack of 2011 Allen & Ginter at Target last week. No Cardinals, but there was this:

Not just any mini. A Bazooka mini hand numbered 16 of 25!

I’ll trade this for a Cardinals Bazooka mini if anyone has one.

Orlando Box Break: 2009 UD Icons

2011-07-16T06:38:00.001-07:00

We're home now but here's the last box from Orlando. We gave this box to Dad for Father's Day and he let me open it while we were on vacation. Good box with a Markakis auto and Ozzie Letter Patch.

Dad - Scans when I get back to the office.

Orlando Box Break: 2002 Topps Chrome Series 2

2011-07-12T04:02:00.000-07:00

We found a super cheap box of 2002 Topps Chrome at the flea market last month. My dad made me wait until vacation to open it so we'd have something to do during my sister's dance competition routines. I was hoping for a Joe Mauer rookie card but didn't get one.

Orlando Pack Break Part 2: The $2 Packs

2011-07-09T12:16:00.000-07:00

Here's the $2 pack break from Orlando!

2006 Artifacts Yadier Molina Jersey

2011-07-09T07:27:00.000-07:00

Here’s a cool Molina jersey card numbered 108 of 325.

Pack Break from Orlando!

2011-07-07T18:32:00.000-07:00

Hello from Orlando!

We're in Florida for my sister's dance competition and trip to Disney World. We went to Orlando Sports Cards earlier this week and picked up some cheap packs for $1 and $2 and a pack of SPX.

Here's the $1 pack pack break video. More to come soon!

Thorzul July Group Break

2011-07-07T10:23:00.000-07:00

If you haven't already, head over to Thorzul's July Group Break and sign up. Plenty of great teams left!

He runs a great break. Here are cards he's pulled for me in the past:

2004 Play Ball Pujols Relics

2011-07-06T05:48:00.000-07:00

2004 Play Ball Albert Pujols Jersey numbered 14 of 50.

This was a cheap ebay pick up last month. that was made even better when we found this card in the package. This is a 2004 Play Ball Pujols Bat card numbered 25 of 25. The seller included it as a freebie as the card was slightly damaged. You can barely make out a slight crease in the lower right point in the star.

June Flea Market Packs

2011-06-29T06:48:00.000-07:00

I won some cool packs and blasters at last month's flea market. I went with my Aunt, Uncle and Grandma this month and they sponsored a few extra rolls at the dice game table with baseball card prizes. My dad let me do a video for everything except for the blaster my mom and I opened when we got home.

Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3:

Nachos Grande May Group Break

2011-06-27T20:11:00.000-07:00

We had the Cardinals in Nachos Grande May Group Break and he really, really came through for us. If you follow his blog at all you probably know all about this card but I wanted to post a bigger picture of it here. Its really is awesome. His 2002 Stadium Club box was loaded with Cardinals and it starts here:

2002 Albert Pujols Clubhouse Exclusive Dual Relic – The odds of pulling this type of card are 1 in 2073 packs. The odds of getting this Pujols card must be crazy!

If that weren’t enough, the box also had this Jim Edmonds Born In The USA jersey card.

There were also three gold cards. These are thicker than the regular cards and have gold lettering. (Dad – The third card was J. D. Drew. Drew wore the Birds on the Bat but he was never a Cardinal. The best thing he ever did for us was play lousy enough to be traded for Adam Wainwright. I’ve decided to impose a J. D. Drew quota on this blog. Maximum of one J. D. Drew card per year. Scroll down for 2011’s card.)

Nachos also opened three other boxes. These are my first 2000 Topps Tek cards.

1999 Upper Deck HoloGrFX

1999 Fleer Mystique. The Drew is a Rookie card numbered 1552 of 2999.

Trade with Baseball Dad

2011-06-26T14:19:00.000-07:00

I just finished my second trade with Baseball Dad: Indians for Cardinals. The trade was for one of my Josh Tomlin autographs for a 2007 Sweet Spot Scott Rolen jersey card. I wish Rolen and LaRussa could have found a way to work together… it sure would be nice to still have him at third.

Jack also sent a 2010 Bowman Chrome Green Xfractor of Tommy Phan. I’m saving this one to get autographed at Winter Warm Up if Phan is invited to sign.

He also sent a bunch of cool base cards that I’ve never seen before. I really like this 2004 Fleer Dan Haren card. It says “Gold Medalion” on the back and has the die cut curved corner. If anyone has the Yadier Molina version of this card (that’s one of his rookie cards) I have plenty to trade.

And finally Jack sent these cool Cardinal Hall of Famer cards from 2005 SP Legendary Cuts and 1983 Donruss Hall Of Fame Heroes. These are awesome!
Thanks Jack!!!

2008 Albert Pujols Stadium Club Stadium Slices

2011-06-19T07:04:00.000-07:00

We have Pujols jersey and bat cards but how cool is this? This is a Stadium Slices relic from 2008 Topps Stadium Club with a piece of the blue outfield wall from the old Yankee Stadium! The card actually looks even better in person.

Lone Wolf Pack Break

2011-06-17T07:28:00.000-07:00

I mentioned before that the principal at my school helps to run a card shop on the weekends. We went to visit him last weekend but it turns out he was on vacation. We bought the last pack of 2008 Bowman Chrome and the last pack of 2008 Moments and Milestones they had in the case and spent some quarters at the card vending machine.

The Bowman Chrome pack had a numbered refractor of current Cardinals backup catcher Gerald Laird’s baby brother – Brandon Laird 464 of 500.

The Moments and Milestones pack had a Clay Buchholz Rookie Autograph!

These are both for trade.

Dad: Isaac has inherited my “what if” disease – The one that, in other collecting realms, will not allow me to walk away from the last copy of a Jazz LP, or editioned poster / print, or other music or hifi related collectible in fear that it will not be there next time or, worse yet, the item is even more special than I suspect. This affliction has now spread to the the last (few) packs of a box at the shop. Isaac’s propensity to grab autos and relics out of these lone wolf packs has only worsened this condition in both of us.

Trade with Thorzul

2011-06-16T21:09:00.000-07:00

We finished up a trade with Thorzul that started with this card: http://thorzul.blogspot.com/2011/05/100-best-finds-in-30-dollar-lot-12.html

and turned into a larger trade that included these -
2008 – UD Heroes Mark Mulder 253 of 499
2005 – UD All Stars Albert Pujols 250 of 499
2010 – Triple Threads Bob Gibson 986 of 1350

2009 – UD Piece of History Rick Ankiel / Josh Hamilton 73 of 99
2005 – Donruss 04 World Series Red Schoendienst 228 of 500
2004 – Donruss World Series Records Bob Gibson 205 of 1000

And then a cool Bob Gibson jersey card from 2007 SP Legendary Cuts:

Thanks!!!

2011 Topps Tribute Cardinals

2011-06-14T09:01:00.000-07:00

We picked up a couple of Topps Tribute Cardinals a few weeks ago. I can’t believe there are really packs and boxes that cost this much! Glad we found these singles.

Pujols 111 of 199. Wainwright 39 of 199.

More Pujols Rookie Cards

2011-06-13T09:06:00.000-07:00

I picked up this three card lot on ebay last month for way less than the $35 – $40 local shops are asking for Albert’s 2001 Topps Stars card alone.

I’m not really sure if the Fleer Platinum counts as a rookie card or not. I’m posting both Fleer cards to show that the blue blemish looks like a consistent printing issue.

Thorzul May Group Break Results & June Reminder

2011-06-11T18:03:00.001-07:00

Hi guys. Just a reminder that Thorzul still has a few spots open in his June Group Break. We've been doing his breaks for awhile now including last month. Here's some of our loot from his May group breaks.

First - Cards from the Cheapo Group Break. We had the Cardinals and Yankees. The Yankees are up for trade. A Luddwick Finest Refractor, two Ankiel's, and nice looking Matt Morris insert.

Two numbered Giambi’s

And now the May Group Break. We had the Cardinals and Twins.

2005 National Pastime Pujols numbered 1 /2001 and base card.

And a Kent Hrbek Sweet Spot Jersey card that’s headed to David over at http://mmmrhubarb.wordpress.com/

Hobby Shop Mystery Pack

2011-06-11T09:41:00.000-07:00

My principal works at a hobby shop on the weekends. We went to the shop last weekend and picked up a few Cardinals, a pack of Bowman, and a mystery pack. The mystery pack is a brown lunch bag containing twenty cards and random relics or autographs.

This pack had a bunch of cards but no Cardinals and these two hits.

2005 Turkey Red Mark Mulder Jersey Card

2000 Diamond Authentics Jesse Ibarra Autograph. Here’s his claim to fame.

2009 Signature Stars Box Break

2011-06-09T08:54:00.000-07:00

My dad found a box of this on sale and gave it to me because he lost our bet. He bet me I couldn’t get to 500 reading counts points this year. The previous Third Grade record in my school was 300. I made it all the way to 513 points. Only two sixth graders had more points than me and they were over 600.

This was a bad box: two USA jersey cards, one USA jersey + auto (a repeat player!) and one average MLB auto. At least there were lots of Cardinals and a Lincecum and Markakis.

Trever Bauer and Chad Bettis jersey cards

Chad Bettis (again!) Jersey Autograph

Matt Tolbert Autograph

These are all up for trade.

Catching Up On 2011 Gypsy Queen & Heritage

2011-06-08T08:03:00.000-07:00

We forgot to scan these at the time but here are a few more Gypsy Queen cards. All are for trade.

Robinson Cano Bat Card. I pulled this on my birthday at the Cardinals game. My dad brought a rack pack to the game and this was in it.

Jayson Werth Jersey & Kevin Youkilis Sepia Mini 74 of 99. These were pulled out of the same hobby pack.

Thurmon Munson Frame 31 of 999. Can’t remember how we got this one.

Jim Thome Bat Card. This came from a hobby box.

2006 SPX Adam Wainwright Auto

2011-06-07T04:21:00.000-07:00

The latest addition to our Adam Wainwright Rooking collection:

Numbered 350 of 999.

Lucky Pack Break

2011-06-04T04:50:00.000-07:00

Our favorite hobby shop moved last week but my dad took me to the new location yesterday for supplies and a few packs. He didn't have as many packs but I picked up a 2011 Topps Pro Debut, a 2011 Bowman, and a 2010 Upper Deck Series 1. The new location is also close to a coin shop that sells cards so we stopped there on the way home. The owner is nice and discounts older packs. I got a 2009 Piece of History, a 2009 Icons, and a 2009 Goudey.

Here's the pack break:

2006 Topps Finest Adam Wainwright Rookie Auto

2011-06-01T11:28:00.000-07:00

Added to our Wainwright rookie collection a few weeks ago thru a cheap, three card lot from a new seller. I think a lot of folks were turned off by the new seller’s lack of feedback so the bidding was at a minimum.

The other two cards in the lot. Nelson Cruz Rookie Auto. Ryan Garko Rookie Auto Refractor 366 / 399. Both are up for trade.

Gyspy Queen Hobby Box Break

2011-05-30T15:29:00.000-07:00

My Dad surprised me with a Gypsy Queen Hobby Box last week that he bought when it first came out. He has some really good hiding places in the house because I did not know about this one. Like a lot of these boxes, our box only had one of the two autos so we'll be sending in the UPC for the second autograph.

Here's what we got...
Framed cards. Pujols, Ruth and Hornsby… as a Cub?!?!?

Everybody’s Gypsy Queen Autograph – another Cub hit for us this year. Boo!!!!

Our relics – Another Gehrig Jersey!!!

We were also lucky enough to get another printing plate. This time it’s a Pee Wee Reese Yellow Printing Plate 1 of 1. Like the Cody Ross plate I pulled on my birthday, it was in the same pack as the Hanson jersey card.

These are up for trade for similar Cardinals you may have. Thanks.

Gypsy Queen Printing Plates

2011-05-28T14:29:00.000-07:00

I pulled a Gypsy Queen Cody Ross 1 of 1 printing plate from the Birthday Blaster Box my family gave me on my birthday. I wished it was a Cardinal plate but was excited to get my second printing plate from a pack. My dad was in Atlanta last week and I saw a few packages in the stack of mail. I really wanted to open them to see what was inside but my I had to wait until he came home. At least Sewing Machine Guy put my name on the trade package so I got to open something.
Well, my dad is home now and he let me open the other two packages. Two Cardinals printing plates!!! Thanks Dad!!!

Gypsy Queen Retail: Seeing Double

2011-05-27T14:04:00.000-07:00

We've picked up loose packs of Gypsy Queen at Target the last few weeks and ended up pulling two autos!!!

There was just one problem...

Both Josh Tomlin Auto's are up for trade!

Birthday Box - 2006 Upper Deck Ovation

2011-05-26T14:17:00.000-07:00

This is the second box my Grandma gave me for my birthday. My dad gave me a box at the Winter Warm Up this year and I got a great Ken Griffey Jr. autograph. I also have cool Chien Ming Wang and Miguel Cabrera autographs from Ovation boxes. This box had another Cabrera auto (the wrong one), a scuffed HOF jersey card, an extra numbered rookie card, and a Pujols insert I didn’t have yet. Everyone but Albert is up for trade.

Baseball Art: New Don Hamerman Baseball Image

2011-05-26T09:29:00.000-07:00

20x200 is offering their latest editions in Don Hamerman's series of found baseballs.

Shallow Left Center

No. 46

Check out the other Hamerman images here: http://www.20x200.com/artists/don-hamerman.html

Birthday Box–2006 Artifacts

2011-05-25T14:07:00.000-07:00

My Grandma gave me two boxes for my birthday. My dad and I have opened two boxes before and haven’t done very well with the relics or jerseys. This box was OK. At least I got something to sent to Carl Crawford Cards. These are all available for trade. I’m looking for similar Cardinals or favorite player cards.
Carl Crawford Jersey 67 of 250

Coco Crisp Jersey 30 of 325

Ervin Santana Jersey 237 of 250

Chris Capuano Autograph 74 of 800

Trade with Sewing Machine Guy

2011-05-23T13:58:00.000-07:00

Sewing Machine Guy posted about a Nick Markakis Gypsy Queen autograph and my dad asked if it was up for trade. It was. We sent a Rick Porcello auto I got a couple of years ago for the Markakis. He also sent some cool Cardinals too. Thanks!

Two Cardinals Mini’s

A Matt Holliday Turkey Red

A 1982 Pete Rose

And here’s the Nick Markakis autograph

My dad brought home a pack of Masterpieces on his trip. I got this cool Justin Verlander numbered 34 of 75 right after his no hitter!

Dad – Looks like this card, or at least the scoreboard, is from Verlander’s 2007 no hitter against the Brewers. Chalk it up to SMG kharma.

2004 Yadier Molina Rookie Cards

2011-05-22T11:41:00.001-07:00

We’ve started picking up Yadier Molina rookie cards lately. The bad news for us is that they’re more expensive here in St. Louis than online or in other cities. My dad picked these up for me. I have a lot of cards to trade so please let me know if you have any 2004 or 2005 Molina’s available.
2004 Bowman Chrome

2004 Fleer Ultra

Dad - I asked Isaac why he was wearing his Sizemore shirt today. "So that Grady and the Indians sweep the Reds!"

2006 Adam Wainwright UD Future Stars Auto

2011-05-19T18:25:00.000-07:00

Here’s another low cost ebay addition to our Wainwright rookie stack. This one is pretty cool as its printed on clear plastic. The auto is on a clear sticker.

2011 Topps Redemption: Fausto Carmona

2011-05-18T18:24:00.000-07:00

We had the Indians in A Cardboard Problem’s 2011 Topps Series One Case Break and ended up with a redemption for a Fausto Carmona autograph. Not very exciting but at least the throwback uniform keeps things interesting.

Available for trade if anyone is interested!

2010 Cardinals Flag

2011-05-16T15:25:00.000-07:00

I picked this up at our second game of the season. I had my eye on it at the Winter Warm Up but couldn't justify the cost since that weekend is usually pretty expensive. The Warm Up did yield a coupon to the Cardinals Authentics shop so I brought it with us. The flag was still there, I caved, so here it is: three feet tall x nine feet long. It definitely shows the wear from flying over Busch III last year. Not sure where its going yet, but its probably headed to my office.

2004 Donruss Elite Molina Rookie Autograph

2011-05-15T06:26:00.000-07:00

Not sure when it started, but I’ve been picking up Wainwright and Molina rookie cards when I come across them cheap. I picked this one up on ebay last month. Its not bad for a sticker auto but Yadi is definitely someone Ike wants to get in person.

Another Rack Pack Box of 2004 Fleer Platinum

2011-05-14T06:34:00.000-07:00

My dad got us another box of 2004 Fleer Platinum Hobby Rack Packs. No Ryan Howard or even anyone close this time. There was one repeat autograph though.

Javier Vazquez

Rich Harden

Richie Weeks

And the repeat autograph goes to….a Billy Wagner redemption. BOOO!

These are all up for trade.

Random 2011 Packs

2011-05-12T18:33:00.000-07:00

I stopped by a card shop while traveling in Delaware a few weeks back and picked up a few packs for Isaac. Here’s the fun stuff…

2011 Pujols / Braun Heritage

2011 Shiny Pujols RBI Leaders

2011 Jon Jay Gold Border

2011 Randy Wells auto. What’s with all the Cubs autographs and relics we’ve pulled out of 2011 Topps? This one is up for trade for 2011 Cardinals autos or relics.

Flea Market Packs

2011-05-11T16:25:00.000-07:00

We go to the flea market everyone month. My favorite booth is a guy who lets you roll dice for prizes like packs and blaster boxes. My sister is really good at guessing her last roll and got me an extra blaster prize. I got a ton of stuff last month that we video taped but our video was too long for YouTube. Here are some cards from last month’s prize packs.

2008 or 2009 Albert Pujols Cardinals Checklist

2008 Albert Pujols Opening Day Fold Out Card

Bazooka Gaylord Perry Jersey Card

2001 Topps Gallery Pujols Rookie Card!!!

2011-05-11T10:48:00.000-07:00

Here it is. The card I was hoping to get from the box my Dad gave me for my Birthday. My first ever Albert Pujols rookie card!!!

Dad: We were really lucky this card was in box. Rookie cards were short printed 1:3.5 packs according to the wrapper so each 24 pack box might have 6 - 7 rookies per box. This box had seven but we haven't heard of any of the other six rookies, including the other Cardinals rookie.

2001 Topps Gallery Video Box Break

2011-05-09T17:01:00.001-07:00

Here’s Isaac’s 2nd try at a video box break. I wanted to get him an Albert Pujols rookie card for his birthday but thought it would be more fun if he actually pulled the card from a fresh pack. I found a 2001 Topps Gallery Hobby Box for a good price on ebay and pulled the trigger. It wasn’t until *after* the box arrived that I realized that the rookie cards were short printed and inserted 1:6 packs or so. Gulp… Let’s see what’s in that box. Isaac, take it away!

Part One

Part Two

Birthday Blaster Box Break!

2011-05-07T08:06:00.000-07:00

The Birthday Blaster was awesome!!! There were 10 hobby packs and one bonus pack. Here are the cool cards:

2009 Piece of History Red Sox 674 of 999
2006 Bowman Chrome Gold Refractor of Mike Butia 7 of 50
2009 Icons James Shields 575 of 999
2008 SPX Carlos Lee Dual Patch 30 of 50. How cool is it that its part of the "Brewers?"
2009 T206 Cole Hamels Jersey Relic
2011 Gypsy Queen Fukudome Jersey Relic
2011 Gypsy Queen Cody Ross Cyan Printing Plate 1/1!!!
2008 Spectrum Grady Sizemore Jersey Relic 45 of 50

Dad: That Gypsy Queen pack had 8 base, 1 insert, 1 SP (I think), and both hits. I'm convinced they stuck the Ross in that pack to make up for the horrible Cubs relic!!!

Happy Birthday, Buddy!

2011-05-06T21:51:00.000-07:00

Isaac turns nine today! Mom, Dad and his little sister made him a custom Birthday Blaster Box to open over breakfast! It'll be a busy day, but here's the plan:

- Breakfast + Birthday Blaster Box
- Baseball Practice
- Team Picture
- Cardinals vs. Brewers at Busch III
- Dinner with Grandma & Grandpa
- Open Presents!!!
- Cookie Cake and Ice Cream

And now, the awesome blaster box!

Gypsy Queen Rack Pack II - Another Iron Horse!

2011-05-05T19:17:00.000-07:00

Here are the results of our 2nd Gypsy Queen Rack Pack. We’ll start with one of the best cards we’ve ever pulled out of a pack.

Lou Gehrig Framed Mini Jersey

The bonus pack of green framed was packed with a Cardinal’s HOF’er.

And now the inserts…

And finally – Adara

All of the mini’s were base cards but its hard to believe all of these cards came from one rack pack!

An Awesome T206 Leftover

2011-05-05T18:24:00.000-07:00

Our local card shop is downsizing. They are not closing, just moving to a smaller space. He marked down the last packs of T206 to $2.50 so we bought two packs last week. Isaac pulled this one out of the second pack!

As always, its up for trade for similar Cardinals’.

Gypsy Queen Rack Pack

2011-05-04T18:19:00.001-07:00

Some cards from the value rack pack…

Favorite Player Base

Sticky Fingers Insert (there were actually three inserts, one per pack in this rack pack)

The retail only green sparkly / glittery framed card. We got Strasburg, Price and The Mang.

Gypsy Queen Value Packs at Target

2011-05-02T17:36:00.000-07:00

St. Louis area Targets now have Gypsy Queen singles, blasters and value packs. The value packs are similar to the 2010 Chrome value packs: three retail packs and a three card bonus pack of retail only framed parallels for $8.99.

Random Packs from the Coin Shop

2011-04-30T20:47:00.000-07:00

My last basketball game was in March. My dad would take me to lunch after Saturday practices or games and sometimes we would eat near a coin shop that carries baseball cards. We bought a few packs on our last trip and got really, really lucky.

First – a numbered card of one of my favorite players.

Next – A gold refractor David Ortiz. I forget what this is numbered to.

Next – a Black Border card from the 2011 Topps set.

Last – a Dominic Brown autograph from 2011 Topps.

These are all up for trade. I’m trying to talk my Dad into letting me sell them on ebay though.

Great Weekend at Busch III!!!

2011-04-28T18:15:00.001-07:00

Despite the rain and tornados, it was a great weekend at the ballpark. The Cards took 2 of 3 from the Reds (and blew the lost game late… a common theme this year), Isaac took his Aunt and Uncle (White Sox and Cubbie fans from Chicago) to their first Cardinals game, and we had great Easter weekend with family.
The Cardinals honored two HOF greats on Saturday and Sunday, offering fans a Red Schoendienst replica statue and – amazingly – the first ever Stan Musial bobblehead giveaway. I also took advantage of a coupon from the 2011 Winter Warm Up to buy some game used and stadium used memorabilia… more on that in another post.

Saturday Giveaway

Sunday Giveaway

And if you’re wondering where our seats are this year… here’s the view of the field.

And here’s the view to the right… aisle seats next to the Cardinals Bullpen!!! Here’s Carp warming up before Saturday’s game.

Another Dance Competition…

2011-04-19T19:58:00.001-07:00

My sister had another dance competition last month and my dad surprised me again with a box of cards to open during the day. One routine = one pack. It was another box of 2006 Ovation. I got a numbered rookie Skip Schumaker card but the auto wasn’t as cool as the Griffey, Wang or Cabrerra autos from the other boxes. I’m keeping Schumaker – everything else is available for trade including the base cards.

Skip Schumaker Rookie #290 of 999

Mark Prior Jersey

Jeff Kent #6 of 499. I guess he might be a HOF’r some day?

Dave Gassner Rookie Auto #38 of 99

Dad – According to Baseball Reference, Dave Gassner debuted on April 16, 2005. His last game in the majors was April 21, 2005.

2004 Fleer Platinum Hobby Rack Pack Box

2011-04-16T06:15:00.000-07:00

Dad: So I bought the kid a cheap box from Atlanta Sports Cards. Four rack packs per box, one auto per pack, and a shot at a Pujols autograph… or a dreaded expired redemption. We had a blast opening the box and wait until you see what he pulled out of the last pack!

First – the base cards. Those throwback uni’s are great.

And one for CCC…

And now the autos…
Delmon Young #86 of 210

Vernon Wells #180 of 200

Billy Wagner Redemption – Ugh!

… and the last auto more than makes up for the redemption. Ryan Howard! One for Ike’s favorite player binder!!! #40 of 160.

And just for kicks – there’s nothing Platinum about the checklist cards.

Thorzul’s March Group Break

2011-04-14T08:38:00.001-07:00

It took my dad too long to scan this card from Thorzul’s March Group Break. We got a few Cardinals and a few Rays but nothing that can compare to this one: A Stan Musial Jersey Card from 2005 Throwback Threads. Its AWESOME!

Can’t wait to see what Cardinals he pulls this month!

Diamond Code 18: HOF Straggler

2011-04-06T03:57:00.000-07:00

Second Box of 2006 Artifacts: A Trio of Pinstripes

2011-04-01T20:11:00.000-07:00

My sister had more dance stuff and my dad let me open another box of Artifacts. I'm still waiting to get my first Cardinal jersey card from this set. At least all of the jersey cards from this box had pinstripes. These are up for trade if anyone is interested.

Dad - Got a great deal on these boxes in February from Atlanta Sports Cards - my favorite place to pick up cheapo boxes for Isaac.

More Fleer Autographs

2011-03-26T19:24:00.000-07:00

Two more Cardinal autographs from 1999 Fleer – one from the Greats of the Game set, the other from the Sports Illustrated set.

The Brock is a double. We have the Forsch, Gibson, and Schoendeinst. The Musial is really pricey or we’d go for all the Cardinals in either set.

2006 Fleer Tradition Hobby Box

2011-03-22T03:59:00.000-07:00

My little sister had a weekend dance competition two weeks ago. She did a good job even though she was sick. She actually made me sick too. My dad surprised me with a hobby box of 2006 Fleer Tradition for me to open a few packs at a time between dance routines. I’ve been asking him about the box for awhile because a store had them on sale. I was pretty sad when I found out the last box was gone but my dad was the one who got the last box!

I liked this box because there are at least three different Adam Wainwright rookie cards in the box. My box only had one Wainwright base card but there were others in the box that I liked. I did get a complete set in my box but I don’t know if I’m going to keep it.

These are a base card of Albert, an insert of Albert, and an insert of Ryan Howard.

These are an insert of Prince Fielder, a Goudey mini insert of Jason Giambi, and a Michael Young jersey card.

Dad: $28 for the hobby box (36 packs, 10 cards per pack). Definitely worth the price of admission as a little diversion during the dance competition. I forgot to scan a throwback card though… just imagine the Pujols base card with a black and white picture on Heritage-type cardboard.

Diamond Code 17: The Last Series One Code

2011-03-19T14:46:00.000-07:00

Diamond Card 16: Who?

2011-03-16T12:03:00.000-07:00

Dad: I graduated high school and enrolled at U of I in 1989. I don't know who this guy is either...

A Unique Mini Book Relic!

2011-03-15T12:17:00.000-07:00

Here’s one we’ve never seen before. I took Isaac to an out of the way hobby shop over the weekend and ended up buying a few packs for him, two of which were of last year’s T206. The first pack was uneventful but the second pack had a giant gap between the top and bottom cards which turned out to be this:

Pretty cool mini-book dual relic card numbered to 99, especially since Hamilton has a few pages in Isaac’s favorite player binder. But it gets better:

The Pence bat is pretty blah but how about that Hamilton swatch? We weren’t sure what it was but figured out pretty quickly that it’s the lower label on the front of Hamilton’s jersey. Isaac thinks it might be worth more than a typical mini book relic from this set (about $20 based on recent ebay transactions) because it’s more unique than a plain jersey swatch. If he’s right, he’s thinking about flipping it – if not, it already has a spot with his other favorite player cards.

First Box of 2006 Artifacts

2011-03-14T14:22:00.000-07:00

My dad bought some boxes of 2006 Artifacts. I don’t know how many boxes because he will not tell me. He let me open a box while my sister was at dance. There was only one Cardinal card of Scott Rolen that I already had. The four hits were bad. We got TWO hits of the same guy!

The Chavez jersey and Atkins auto are up for trade. The two Broussard’s are already taken.

Arizona Finds

2011-03-13T13:17:00.000-07:00

Dad here – I took my bi-annual trip to Arizona last month. While I could not, sadly, find time time to hit any Spring Training sites I did make a stop at Batter’s Box on the drive North and visited an antique mall on the return drive.
I picked up a few things for Isaac at Batter’s Box. The shop focuses nearly entirely on vintage but I did find these at very reasonable prices: much cheaper on ebay – especially for the Pujols.

The antique mall, the Brass Armadillo, had a ton of baseball display cases but I didn’t have time to ask the clerks to unlock each and every one just to see if they had anything interesting. One case had these two staring out at me. I grabbed both for less than $20 total... not bad for two HOF’rs. Not sure why they’re in screw down cases but it makes scanning difficult. I’ll take these out of the cases and re-scan so they’re better in focus.

2011 Topps Jumbo Box Summary

2011-03-12T19:01:00.000-08:00

We were lucky and got a pretty good box. We got the three hits we were supposed to get -

Dominic Brown Auto, John Lester Leather Name Card, Geovany Soto Jersey Card

Our bonus "hits" were -

Clayton Kershaw Sparkle, Miguel Montero Printing Plate, Andrew McCutchen Black Border

Aside from getting some Cardinal hits, the only way it would have been better is if my Dad let me open all the packs at once instead of over a month.

Diamond Cards 14 & 15: The 1970's

2011-03-11T21:56:00.000-08:00

Southtown Sluggers

2011-03-10T19:32:00.000-08:00

My dad took me to Southtown Sluggers last month. It is a small shop but full of new and old cards. We got four cool cards from the buy one get one free box plus a few packs. For $12, I got four cool relic cards – three of them borderline hall of famers.

2006 Artifacts So Taguchi Jersey 239 / 325

2003 Jim Edmonds Bowman Heritage Jersey

2005 Donruss Greats Lee Smith Jersey

2005 Diamond Kings Larry Walker Dual Bat 36 / 100

1999 Fleer Sports Illustrated Lou Brock Autograph

2011-03-08T17:42:00.000-08:00

I picked this up (two of them actually – by mistake) on ebay for surprisingly little money… around $10. I’ll have to check the other card but maybe its because the “L” in Brock goes off the card.

I haven’t looked at a checklist but it looks like Brock, Gibson, Hrabosky, Slaughter and Musial are the only Cardinals in the set. I’ve entertained thoughts of collecting all of the Cardinals in this set but the Musial is really, really pricey for some reason.

2002 Topps Want List

2011-03-07T11:11:00.000-08:00

Isaac turns nine in exactly two months (!!!!!) and asked if we could build the Topps set from his birth year. So... I found an ebay dealer who had open hobby cases of both Series 1 and Series 2 cheap (like less than $20 each ppd) so I bought two boxes of each.

Series 1: I thought for sure we'd have a complete set between two hobby boxes especially after the first box. That box had us 44 cards short or 88% of the base set. Alas, the second box only had 20 of those 44 cares so we're 24 cards short. We did like the inserts sets and will post the trade bait in a separate post.

Series 2: The first box was excellent and had us just 11 cards from the complete 354 card set, or 97% of the base set. The inserts aren't as varied as the first series but we did get a monster hit... odds-wise any way. The odds of pulling a Prime Cuts Relic Auto are 1 in 8927 packs and we pulled one numbered 10 of 50. Too bad it was of Wilson Betemit.

Here's the list from google docs. Let us know if you have any problems accessing the list. We have a ton of dupes, obviously, so if anyone else is interested in building this set let us know and the partial set is yours!

Ike's Cards 2002 Topps Want List

Aside from the "easy" inserts, we did not get any hits in either Series 1 box. We did get a relic in each of our two Series 2 boxes.

Wilson Betemit Prime Cuts Bat Relic Auto. Odds 1:8,927 packs.
Greg Maddux Aces Jersey Relic. Odds 1:1,180

Diamond Cards - Lucky #13

2011-03-05T12:03:00.000-08:00

We got greedy and entered another code to see if we could three die cut cards in a row. We didn't.

Diamond Cards - Two In A Row!!!

2011-03-05T11:00:00.000-08:00

Hammerin' Hank Diamond Die Cut

Diamond Code 11 - That's More Like It!

2011-03-05T10:31:00.000-08:00

Diamond Die Cut - Mariano Rivera

Diamond Card - 10 is a Champ!

2011-03-04T14:29:00.000-08:00

Champ Summers...

Fan IQ - Topps Offer Update

2011-03-04T10:10:00.000-08:00

We posted about the Fan IQ Topps giftcard offer last week - $40 e-gift
cards for $20. We received some emails questioning the validity of the
offer and the integrity of Fan IQ. This, of course, was after I had
already sent payment.

I'm happy and relieved to report that all is well. We received three
$40 gift cards this morning for the advertised price of $20 each!
Now --- what to order...

Thorzul’s March Group Break

2011-03-03T17:12:00.000-08:00

Thorzul’s March Group Break is open. Thorzul has always been lucky pulling Cardinals for us. These are my favorites from last month.
Diamond Kings Jim Edmonds regular card and brown card.

Diamond Kings Lou Brock insert.

And finally, the best Cardinal of the break. I wish he could have pulled the gold Sabathia for himself but I really like this gold Pujols numbered 34 of 50.

Dad – Isaac has been begging me to help him do a group break. I really like Thorzul’s Pick ‘em Plus One format (I need to trademark that) but am hesitant to make the plunge b/c of time and $$$ concerns. I’m more worried about the time really, as I *think* the cost may actually be lower as we’re usually just interested in the Cardinals out of the boxes we open --- so even just a few people signing up is better than eating the entire cost. So – how much time and effort are we talking about? Thoughts and input appreciated.

Diamond Cards 7 - 9

2011-03-03T15:27:00.000-08:00

2006 UD Ovation Adam Wainwright

2011-03-02T14:33:00.000-08:00

Another numbered 2006 Ovation rookie card, this time of our injured Ace – Adam Wainwright.

Codes 4 and 5 + The Freebie

2011-03-01T14:05:00.000-08:00

Fourth - 1992 Brady Anderson

Fifth - 1977 Jay Johnstone

And the bonus free code was for - 1992 Wally Whitehurst

Diamond Card - 1987 Secret Weapon

2011-02-28T17:54:00.000-08:00

Our third code card (it was a Pujols code card) is for...

The Secret Weapon!!!

Second Diamond Card - 1976 John Hale

2011-02-28T13:51:00.000-08:00

Don't know who he is either...

First Diamond Code - 1980 Mike Barlow

2011-02-27T16:50:00.000-08:00

First Diamond Code Card is for Mike Barlow. I have no idea who he is.

50% Off Topps Online Gift Cards!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2011-02-25T06:06:00.000-08:00

Ok folks, Ikes Dad here with a deal you can't refuse... if you don't mind buying retail from Topps directly.

If so, get thee to FanIQ Deals for their 50% Off Topps Trading Cards special!!! For $20, you get a $40 e-gift card from Topps which expire Feb 12, 2012. Limit of 3 per person so $60 for $120 worth of cards. Just in time for Gypsy Queen, Heritage, Series 2 baseball.

Here's what's available in the Topps Online Baseball Store.

2010 Ron Teasley Allen & Ginter Autograph

2011-02-24T20:59:00.000-08:00

Catching up on the backlog of group break cards Isaac and I were fortunate enough to participate in over the last year or so. This one is an excellent autograph of Negro Leaguer Ron Teasley from the 2010 A&G set. This one was from a Carl Crawford Cards break from last summer. Good stuff!

Read more about Teasley and his career at the Negro League Baseball eMuseum.

For Berra and Guidry, It Happens Every Spring

2011-02-23T11:46:00.001-08:00

Not a big Yankee fan but absolutely loved this story.

For Berra and Guidry, It Happens Every Spring - NYTimes.com

2009 Nick Markakis Upper Deck Ultimate Autograph

2011-02-21T06:19:00.000-08:00

Here is another Nick Markakis card. It is my only Nick Markakis autograph and its even numbered 10 out of 39! I got this from a group break that my dad signed us up for last year.

2004 Bowman Heritage Box 2

2011-02-21T04:48:00.000-08:00

My mom said my breathing sounds like Darth Vader.

2004 Bowman Heritage Box 1

2011-02-20T19:23:00.000-08:00

Ikes first video box break. Should have made him make the bed first...

Ike's First Box Break?

2011-02-19T14:58:00.000-08:00

Picked up two blasters of 2004 Bowman Heritage at the flea market today... CHEAP! Isaac wants to do a video box break. We'll see how the video looks but this may be his Internet debut! If not, we'll scan and post the good ones.