Reeling in a Big Fisk

I've been trying to win myself a Pudge rookie on eBay for a long time. Not the usual Pudge I collect, though. I've got plenty of his rookies. I'm talking the original Pudge, who was one of the best catchers of all time, and I do love catchers.

But since I'm cheap as hell, I like to stalk auctions until I find the best possible deal. It took me a long time, but finally I ended up with the card I was after.

It's a little beat up. Looks like someone put a staple next to Garman at one point. But this stapling kid was neat about it, stayed right on the edge, was kind to the corners. Really, it's in far better shape than I would've settled for. And this is an epic add to the rookie collection.

Now, I ended up getting this card for a deal only because it was a part of a lot. The lot was all Fisk cards.

Some nice inserts were included, and a framed Masterpieces card. I dig a framed Fisk, especially in gear.

But that's not all this Pudge lot included.

My first GU Fisk card, and it's a sweet one. I tend to prefer bats over jerseys. The design of this card is nice, too. Fisk is looking very old-school in the high socks and the classic uniform. The background has a nice subtlety with the shadow of Fisk's bat grip.

So, how much did I pay for this lot, for the deal I stalked eBay for months to find? $4.99 shipped. On eBay, a Fisk rookie in fair condition runs about 4 or 5 bucks. For some reason, I find that lots like this end up getting less bids and have lower starting prices. Pretty sweet deal, right? There's something about getting a deal that makes the cards all the more enjoyable. Have you ever gotten lot deals on eBay where you get a better deal than you would on the single card alone?

Dime Box Ripkens: Card Show Wrap-Up

I love finding random treasures in the dime boxes, but one of my main focuses is adding to my Ripken collection. It's tougher to find Tigers players in the dime boxes, just because they're over-priced in Michigan. I rely on trades for my Tigers stuff. But as for Ripken, apparently he's just dime box fodder around the mitten, which is good for me, and my pursuit of one of my childhood heroes.

All out of the dime box. I rarely ever turn down a dime box Ripken, unless they're doubles from the junk wax years. I already had doubles of the Masterpieces cards at the top, but for a dime, that's a triple I can handle. The rest are all new. The Diamond Kings card is probably the biggest highlight of this bunch. I love the DK  sets.

Some more nice Ripkens. I dig the horizontal cards at the top. My favorite here is the 2002 Leaf card commemorating Ripken's ROY. Very classy design.

So this card show netted me a few dozen more Ripkens for the collection, on top of the other finds I noted in my last two posts.

I should also mention that the dealer who sold me most of these dime box Ripkens had what looked like an authentic 206 Honus Wagner encased in a huge brick of plastic anchoring his table. Really, it was only about half of the card, as the bottom had been chewed off. I should've taken a picture. It was cool to see one of these in person. When I asked him how he'd attained this card, he gave me the old cliche, "If I told you I'd have to kill you." I figured I'd leave it at that and go home safely with my handful of Ripkens.

Vintage Bowman from the Card Show

After my last post of the dime boxes at the card show, it's time to show off the big buys. I mostly bought vintage, because that's mostly what interests me these days. But I'll start off with a modern card that I just couldn't pass up.

I already had one of these, which I bought out of the dime box at my LCS the season Halladay won the Cy Young. Go figure. A few years pass, and now I'm paying $1.50, but that's still one hell of a deal. I couldn't resist a double of a key rookie for a bargain.

I pulled this out of the dollar box, just because I didn't have a '53 Topps card. And it's in pretty nice shape. I was hoping maybe I could turn this into a '53 Tiger in trade eventually, but it's a great card all the same. I'm not a huge fan of the obsession Topps had with headshots in this set, but I'm starting to appreciate it more. According to Baseball Reference.com's Bullpen page, Fritz Dorish here was one of MLB's first true relief pitchers, and the last American league pitcher to steal home. I love the Bullpen page.

So my best finds from this card show came from one dealer, who had some decent quarter boxes, but then I noticed some cards he had out on display, a set that always draws my attention. I dropped my stack of quarter '70s vintage, and went over to gawk--note, it takes a lot to make me quit looking at quarter boxes.

He had a bunch of '52 Bowmans, one of my all-time favorite sets, marked cheap. No bargain Tigers, of course. Not at a Michigan show. Still, I found some great cards:

A bad scan of a sweet card. A very nice looking Carl Furillo. A Dodgers lifer and fan-favorite from one of my favorite sets. I have to admit, I picked this up thinking this also might net me some nice vintage in trade some day. But I'd have no problem hanging onto this card.

I also nabbed Red Schoendienst. Again, it doesn't necessarily fit into my collection, but it's a hall of famer from a favorite set.

And finally, Charlie Silvera, not as big a name as the others, but he fits into my collection of vintage catchers wearing their gear. Charlie was the backup catcher for Yogi. I love this background. Charlie looks like he's playing at some little field built in the woods, which is, I guess, what you do when Yogi's the starting catcher. No fences in this background, just some blurry trees. Perfect example of what makes this set unique.

The dealer told me these were his doubles from his set. He had many other great names, and now I'm wishing I would've picked up a few more, but I'm happy with what I got. Always nice to find vintage Bowman at a show. When they're priced fairly, these tend to go fast, and I'm just glad I actually found a few nice vintage cards.