What?! Another Contest?!

As some of you know, my best friend Dikran is an aspiring Producer/DJ. He has been playing all types of instruments since he a little kid and he has finally decided to try and do something bigger with music. 

We have been been setting up a website for him, but in the meantime he does most of his communicating/posting through his new Facebook page.

We decided to host a contest here on the blog to help promote him, with the hopes that at least a few of you like his music. 

First things first, this contest will end this Friday (4-4-14) and a winner will be announced on Saturday (4-5-14) night.

PRIZES:

• The Winner will receive one Blaster Box of 2014 Topps Heritage as well as 250 Chavez Code points
• Second Place will receive 150 Chavez Code points as well as a goodie pack of cards from me
• All entrants will receive 10 Chavez Code points just for helping out and showing my buddy some support. If you maximize your entries and enter in all 4 possible ways, you will receive 40 Chavez Code points

HOW TO ENTER: 

Like many of my contests, you can earn multiple entries. Here's how:

• (1 entry): Like his Facebook Page here
• (1 entry): Follow his Soundcloud here
• (10 entries): Share 1 song of his on Twitter
• (10 entires): Blog about this contest on your blog

Comment on this post when you have performed one or all types of entry. 

All entries will be placed into a Random.org randomizer and the first two names after 10 randomization's will be the winners.

Have a listen to one of his songs below and thank you for taking the time to read the blog!

Matt Kemp's Jersey Looks a Little Weird

I picked up a 2014 Turkey Red card of my main man, Matt Kemp. I got it from eBay for about 2 bucks (I think?) and it arrived about 2 weeks ago.

One thing that stands out to me is the gray between the "O", "D", "G", and "E" on the front of the jersey. I don't think it was intentionally placed there, but I don't see how it got there otherwise. Unless it is supposed to be there, it seems like Topps missed another mistake in one of their products.

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It's not all bad with Topps though. I checked out my redemption status for 4 cards that have seemingly been there forever, and surprisingly they were shipped last week. I'll have more on those as soon as they are in hand.

Four New Cards To Brag About

Almost a month ago I came across a post by a fellow blogger. I have not had the luxury of talking to him before, but his post sent me over to a small baseball card site that was having a sale. There was a ton of stuff on sale, but I only picked up four cards for my various PC's. Lets take a look at what I walked away with. 

I only spent about 6 bucks on my entire order, but this card really made the purchase for me. Before this purchase I did not have any A.J Ellis hits. I still want to get my hands on an Ellis auto, but I have been pushing that to the back of my to-do list. This particular card comes for 2013 Topps Mini Baseball Online Exclusive, a set I know absolutely zilch about. If there are more Dodgers out there though, I want them. 

I picked up another card of a Dodgers backstop, this time of my newest PC focus, Russell Martin. Martin is one of my favorite players of the past decade and it is a shame he is in Pitt. Unlike Greg of Plaschke, Thy Sweater is Argyle, this is my first #'d Martin card. This particular copy is #'d 178/500. 

I finished off my small purchase with a pair of Shawn Green relics. The first one comes from 2002 Topps Finest. If this card is any indication of the product, then it looks to be a pretty rad set. 

The second relic is a bat slice, this time from Playoff Prime Cuts. I am not a big fan of the card, but that didn't stop me from adding it to my growing Shawn Green PC. 

Be sure to check out Tromp's Cards for sweet deals like the one I got. There is currently a sale going on, and it looks like all cards are 50% off. 

Trade with Cubs Cardboard: An A-Gon Variation

I completed my second trade with Kalib over at Cubs Cardboard last week. 

Speaking of Kalib, he is hosting a 2014 Allen and Ginters double box break and spots are only $15.00 each. With the purchase of a spot you get a team of your choice, as well as a random team that was not claimed. Kalib is selling 15 total spots for the break and only has a few more left. Be sure to contact him for more info. 

I was lucky enough to claim this sweet Adrian Gonzalez variation before anyone else had the chance after Kalib posted it on his blog. We swapped some cards and this baby arrived at my doorstep last week. 

I am not planning on going for all the variations in 2014, but when I have the opportunity to snag one I will do just that. I will be on the lookout for the Kershaw variation though. And the Ryu variation. Dammit....looks like I am going for all of the variations. 

Thanks again for the swap Kalib. 

Matt Kemp is an Elite Dominator

After a long day of posting yesterday, I plan on taking it easy today. I will be getting back to my roots, for a while at least, and posting card of the day type posts again.

This was had off the bay for about 2 bucks shipped. Any time I can add a new card of The Bison to my PC I am pretty happy. The fact that this one is #'d, albeit to 999, makes it all the better. I wasn't the biggest fan of Donruss when it came out, but I do enjoy the inserts. I know there are a few more Kemp inserts out there, as well as some of the other Dodgers. The only thing that truly bugs me about these unlicensed cards is the blue numbering on the front of the jersey. That certainly isn't Dodger baseball and it kind of ruins the card for me. I try my best to look past things like that, but sometimes you gotta vent. 

The Contests Are Back: 3 Cards, 3 Winners

This contest, unlike others, will have three winners. The three winners will have their choice of the cards below. This contest will run until Monday, 4/7/14 until 9pm PST. A winner will be announced shortly after. 

To enter this contest just leave a comment below. You can comment once a day, and each comment is worth 1 entry. You can also email me the answer or DM me on Twitter to the question below for 5 entries:

What is the first Matt Kemp card I posted on the blog?

You may also earn one additional entry for the contest by posting about the contest on your blog. Only one entry per contest per this method though. No need to post about the contest all week. 

You can also earn an additional entry for posting about the contest on Twitter. Unlike past contests, this will only be worth one entry over the life of the contest. 

If done right, you can achieve a maximum of 19 entries. 

The entries will be randomized using random.org. They will be randomized 7 times and the lucky people that land on 1, 7, and 22 will be the winners. The person who lands on 1 will get first choice at the card, 7 will have second choice, and 22 will get the last card. 

Topps Chrome Rainbow: Hyun-Jin Ryu Orange Refractor

In addition to the sweet Matt Kemp Gold Refractor I picked up last week, I was able to add another card to my Topps Chrome Rainbow. In fact, this card officially means that I am 30% of the way to the entire team set rainbow. 

This one was shipped for 3 bucks, a bargain for a card as nice as this one. Hyun-Jin Ryu is becoming one of my favorite players to collect, and I may end up picking up another copy of this card for the binder. I absolutely love the orange refractors and may just have to finish up the orange team set sooner than I was planning. If you don't have an orange refractor of your favorite player yet, I strongly urge you to go and buy one. You won't be let down. I guarantee* it. 

*Guarantee void in Tennessee

Re-evalutaing My Collection

I have been putting this post of for a while. I guess I have been trying to hide from the madness that cards have been causing me.

A a full-time student, a part-time worker, a blogger, and the manager/editor of the MLB Section at Pro Sports Extra, I have been overwhelmed. Being overwhelmed at some point in your life is completely normal, but eventually it becomes too much to handle. Things start to get pushed back, other things start to slip the mind, and there is a constant feeling of being behind. 

That is why I am re-evaluating my collection and my goals. 

Let's take a look at some of the things I plan on continuing first.

1. My Main PC Guys

Of course I wasn't going to stop collecting my main guys. I will still be on the hunt for anything from Matt Kemp, Clayton Kershaw, Adrian Beltre, Hyun-Jin Ryu, and Shawn Green.

2. Dodger Autos and Relics

I am a Dodger fan first, and a card collector second. It has always been that way and the Dodgers play a large role in my collection. I plan on acquiring more hits from my boys in blue as time passes by.

3. Secondary PC's

I will take advantage of every opportunity I get to post a scan of this fabulous card.  The Secondary PC guys will still be a part of my collection. That means anything from David Ortiz, Bryce Harper, Yasiel Puig, Adrian Gonzalez, Hanley Ramirez, Corey Seager, and Andre Ethier will still be welcome here. 

4. Tertiary PC's

This is new to most of you. I have decided to actually expand my collection in one particular area. I will not actively be on the hunt for these players, but I will attempt to add their cards through trades.

• Russell Martin
• Paco Rodriguez
• Kerry Wood
• Jose Fernandez
• Zack Greinke
• Manny Ramirez 

5. Topps Team Set Project/Topps Chrome Rainbow

I will continue these two "lifetime" goals until the dawn of time. You can check the progress of these in the title bar up top. 

6. Parks and Rec Auto Quest

No way I'm stopping this. I haven't been able to watch this show lately because they haven't uploaded the newest season to Netflix yet, but as soon as they do I am looking at an all day marathon. 

7. Topps Flagship/Topps Heritage/Topps Chrome

Finally we get to the end of the list.  I was previously collecting nearly every set that was realized for Topps/Bowman  in 2013 but that is just too stupid and expensive for my taste. I decided to cut back to just my favorite 3 sets of the year. Topps Flagship, Topps Heritage, and Topps Chrome. I will look to complete the master set for 2014 Flagship, but that will change to the base set only next year. As far as the other two sets go, I am just going to complete the base sets, including the SP's on Heritage. Otherwise, I will only be looking for Dodgers/PC people with the other sets. 

As far as everything else goes, its out the window for the time being. That includes my mini collections like Pimping Dingers, Celebrating on the Mound, and the rest. I will keep the cards I already have with the intention of starting those up again when I am out of college with a real job and an apartment of my own, but as of now they don't fit. 

Hopefully this will relieve some of the stress associated with the hobby and it will allow me to get things under a bit more control. I will be contacting a few people with some cards that I no longer have interest in and there will be a mega Trade Bait Tuesday next week. If there is anything you are interested in let me know,  and we can work something out. This will also allow me to continue with contests again. In fact, expect a new contest tonight!

Topps Chrome Rainbow: Matt Kemp Gold Refractor

It seems like forever since I've laid hands on a new card for my Topps Chrome Rainbow quest, but that changed a few days ago.

I saw this pop up on eBay as a BIN auction. I noticed that other cards sold for about half the price this one was listed at, but I didn't want to chance missing out on this card as finding these Kemp's has been a daunting task. It was shipped for around 10 bucks, which was well worth it. This awesome card is #'d 34/50.

Vintage Dodgers Cardboard Is My Favorite Kind Of Cardboard

A few weeks ago I picked up some new vintage pieces to add to my Topps Team Set Project. I am primarily going after the cheap guys now with intentions of going after guys like Koufax and Robinson later. Let's take a look at some of the newest additions.

This hails from the 1963 Topps set and is probably my favorite out of the few I bought. This is my first card 1963, a set that I really enjoy. I'm bidding on a '63 Koufax, but I already know I won't be the winner. Doesn't hurt to bid though.

I also picked up a couple of cards from the 1966 set, though it isn't my favorite set from the decade. In fact, it may be my least favorite. Both cards look pretty boring to me, but maybe my find will change as I add more cards.

I also added this card from 1961. I have never heard of Bob Lillis before, but I have already acknowledged my lack of vintage player history before. According to the back of the card, Lillis led the league in at-bats in his 1956 and 1957 seasons with the St. Paul Saints.

Last but not least, we have some beautiful 1960 Topps. I absolutely LOVE 1960, and I will probably make it a goal to complete it as my first vintage set. None of these cards are in mint condition, but they suffice for my purpose.

The best part of these cards is that they were all shipped for just under 10 bucks. I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for some more vintage in the future.  

That's a Clown Card Bro!

A few weeks back I was feeling the need for some Bryce Harper cards, so I took a look on eBay and walked away with three new ones. 

This bad boy is #'d 14/50. I seem to be too tempted to build the rainbow for cards these days, but I am smart enough not to go for the Harper rainbow. I have so many projects going on lately that I have decided to dial back on a few things, rainbows being one. More on that at a later date. 

This is another new Harper card, though it didn't come in the three card lot I purchased. It is an exact replica of the one above, a picture I'm not too fond of. It's not a bad picture per say, but I am soooo tired of the same generic photos Topps has been featuring on their cards. 

Back to the eBay lot now, this was also included and goes straight to my Topps Flagship master set. I am getting closer to completing Series 1, though I still have a little ways to go. 

This was the third and final card in the eBay lot, though it's my least favorite of the three. I am not a big fan of Bowman Platinum and the sapphire parallel doesn't look nearly as good in person. It is still a new card for the Harper PC, so I will happily take it. 

Finally, here is a sweet Harper from Panini Select. Like most collectors/bloggers, the lack of licensing really kills these cards for me. Not only do the cards suffer from lack of logos, but the photos Panini gets to use are diminished. They seemed to do fairly well in this particular set, but like every Panini set, there leaves a lot to be desired. 

If you didn't notice, every one of these Harper cards is a close up view of him batting. Yawn. I am getting tired of seeing the same old picture and I hope this will eventually be fixed. Considering it's Topps (mostly), I have a better chance of receiving a redemption within a year of redeeming it, than to see Topps change their photo selection. 

Topps, you're making clown cards bro!

Trade with Reader Douglas: Picking Up Some Prospect Autos

I completed my first trade with blog reader Douglas. He approached me after last week's trade bait post and we quickly agreed to a deal. 

Most appealing to me was this clean Joc Pederson auto. Pederson is the Dodgers top prospect but is stuck behind inferior talent.This is my only Pederson auto, but hopefully more will be in the future.

Sticking with Bowman Sterling, this auto comes from Dodgers 2013 2nd round draft pick, Tom Windle. Windle will probably be on the fast track to LA as a lefty-specialist, though with the stacked bullpen there is no reason to rush him.

Greinke is my newest binder guy, though more on that later. This card was more of a throw-in on our deal, but is still an awesome card. I dig these Pastime cards, licensing or not. This bad boy is #'d 122/125.

This card put the deal over the top and is my first auto of the 2013 1st round pick. IN fact, this is my first auto that is #'d 1 out of anything. This card hails from 2013 Leaf Memories, a set I am fairly indifferent on. The card isn't too shabby, though there is nothing exciting about it. Either way, I was able to pick up a seet John Hancock of one of the Dodgers top right handers on the farm. I now have my eyes set on Zach Lee.

In addition to the sweet ink above, Douglas sent over some set needs and miscellaneous Dodgers. Thanks for the trade Douglas. 

Highlighting a few Fantastic Blogs Pt. 3

Previous posts in this series: Pt.1, Pt.2

So I decided to change up the name of this series. It was previously called "Highlighting a few Underrated Blogs", but with so many good blogs out there it is tough to really consider any of them underrated. I will continue to highlight some of the blogs that deserve more traffic and eventually work my way up to the bigger blogs.

Fantastic Catch

I'll be honest. Weston's blog was a big influence is changing the name of this weekly series. Like the name suggests, Weston's blog is a fantastic catch. A Cardinals fan (Ucckk!), Weston PC's some of their young studs, including Joe Kelly and Lance Lynn. He is also on a mission to collect every rookie card out there from 2010 to present. Check out his blog and be sure to give him a follow.

Big 44 Sports Cards

If that sweet looking McCutchen auto doesn't convince you to check out Nate's blog, I don't know what will. Nate is a Pirates fan and is on the lookout for sweet bucs to add to his collection. He is also trying to complete the 2013 Topps Chrome set.....in all blue parallels. Those cards are #'d /199, which means that Nate's quest won't be the easiest in the world, but is still attainable. Head over and see if you can help him out.

Playing With My Cards

Last but not least, we have Ethan who runs Playing With My Cards. I recently stumbled upon Ethan's fantastic blog, and it is quickly becoming one of my favorites. Who doesn't love bubblegum cards? Ethan, like myself, collects Dodgers, though that is hardly the end all to his collection. He has some awesome mini collections including Getting a Grip, 42, The Turtleneck Collection, Mmmmmm... Doughnuts!, and his Birthday Cards. Be sure to head over and check it out. 

Double Allen and Ginters Box Break Hosted By Cubs Cardboard

Kalib over at Cubs Cardboard is hosting a 2-box break of 2014 Allen and Ginters when it comes out in July. 

For 15 dollars, you will be able to pick any available team and you will be assigned a random team after 15 spots are filled. That is 2 spots, including a team of your choice for only 15 bucks!

There will be 6 total hits, so sign up today. Check out Kalib's post for more info. 

2014 Topps Series One: Yasiel Puig Rainbow

Editors Note: This post comes from Dikran Samarjian. He will occasionally have posts here. As you may know, Dikran and I usually split the price of higher end cards to share, at least until we are out of college and can actually earn some money. If you would like to get in touch with him, you can give him a follow on Twitter @D_Samarjian. Any comments you leave will be forwarded to him as well. Enjoy!

This post is way past overdue, but the wait is over.

Ever since 2014 Topps Series One came out, I had made it my duty to venture out and complete the Yasiel Puig rainbow. Of course the 1/1 platinum is almost impossible to get, so I had to make my quest more realistic. It cost me a pretty penny, but long story short I finally completed it!

It was very hard to get the cards for the right price, especially when it’s Yasiel Puig. People get pretty greedy when you’re dealing with one of the hottest players in baseball. Also not to mention, when the cards are eBay firsts, it is expected to pay highest dollar for it. (I had wasted no time starting my journey to complete the rainbow.) The majority of the retail bases I had purchased cost me at least 10 dollars including shipping.

The numbered cards are a whole different story. Obviously the most expensive card was the clear #'d /10. Though the card hit triple digits, it was a great buy. I think the clear cards are gorgeous regardless the player. Props to Topps for creating such a nice card. I completed the much more realistic 12 card rainbow and quickly secured the cards in plaques. 

It was a fun and highly anticipated journey with the bid wars and delivery wait, but I am not much of a parallel collector. I love the sexy “chunk-a-licious” multicolored patches and on-card autos. Alex and I have decided to put the rainbow for sale. I will also accept a fair trade. I am a Celtics fan, and of course a Dodgers fan. I want to add a booklet or two to my collection just letting you guys know ;) lol!

Contact Alex with any trade offers, and as for the purchasing goes it will be on Alex’s eBay. Anyways I hope you guys enjoy the cards as much as we did. If these cards were from Chrome I would definitely keep them because the Chrome line is gorgeous!

I am going to have Alex embed my latest track I had produced to this post. If you guys could check it out and show some support/give me some feedback it would be more than appreciated! I’m just a kid with a talent and a huge love for music and some support wouldn’t hurt. Thanks guys! Until next time, take care!

     

Trade Bait Tuesday

I've been going through my cards and need to get more organized. I have a ton of cards I'd love to trade, but keeping track of them is difficult sometimes. So, I have decided to create Trade Bait Tuesday. I will post a scan with a page full of cards for trade. If you are interested in any of the cards just let me know in the comment section. Expect this every Tuesday and some Thursdays. 

Finally Got My Hands on 2014 Heritage

I have been low on money for awhile now. I don't usually have a whole lot to spend in the first place, but my card funds were even lower than normal this paycheck. However, I was still able to pick up some cards without completely breaking the bank. 

I took a trip down to my LCS with my good friend Dikran to get rid of some old basketball/footbal cards that were taking up too much of my space. The owner, Matt, didn't want to take them so I told him I was going to take them to the dumpster, bluffing of course. He quickly changed his mind and took them off of my hands. I told him to give them away to the next kid that walked into his store, so hopefully someone can enjoy some free cards. 

There were quite a few boxes of Heritage there, but I knew I couldn't afford a box. I had 4 bucks in my wallet so I ended up buying a pack which I figured would be a small start towards the set. Dikran then go the itching to open something so we made a deal. I told him that if he bought a box of heritage, I would take him out to lunch and he would get to keep the hit, as well as the variations given they weren't a Dodger or one of my PC guys. He agreed, and we were soon busting some brand new cards.

Before I get to what I walked away with, we'll take a look at Dikran's lone card. This happened to be the hit of the box, and is not bad considering some of the other hits out there. It is currently on eBay, so be sure to bid if you are interested. I won't be able to trade this one. 

I guess I was lucky in the sense that every other "hit" from the box ended up coming my way. The first happens to be the action variation of Big Papi. I absolutely love this Heritage this year and this card is no exception to that. This is going to the Oritz PC, but it could just as well be a Pimping Dingers addition.

This was the other "hit" from the box. Lucky me, I was able to get this without having to do anything other than taking out my best friend to lunch. It may be hard to tell from the scan, but this is the refractor and is #'d 517/565. It is probably my favorite card from Heritage, at least so far. 

This particular box happened to hold 9 high-number short prints. Especially helpful since I am putting together the set. I have also decided to stop my pursuit of building sets, other than Topps Heritage and Topps Flagship. More on that later though. 

These two cards happen to be my favorites of the SP's we pulled.

We pulled 12 base Dodgers from the box, missing only Kemp and Puig (I think). There is a lot to like here, my favorites being: Ryu, Wilson, Greinke, Kersh, and Jansen. There is a nice mix of players with their hats on and off, which is a nice touch Heritage seems to add every year. The Wilson card almost seems to be an action variation, but after checking online, it isn't. Wither way, it is a gorgeous card of the Beard. 

Check out what I still need here. I am not looking for the inserts, but I do want the Dodgers. 

I still think getting all of these cards for the cost of a burrito is a steal. It is definitely the most delicious box of cards I have ever bought.