Bryce Harpukkah: Day One, Tigers Vintage

I scored a Bryce Harper International card a while back in a retail pack of 2011 Bowman, and I was thrilled. Not because I give a crap about Bryce Harper, but because I missed out on Stras-Fever. I put the card right up on the ol' Bay of e and sold it for $35. Now, that's not much of a haul for most of you bloggers, but that's a big budget for me. I gave myself the joyous task of spending that $35 as soon as possible, and I thought I'd post what kind of jolly tidings old St. Harper could bring me.

Oops. Strike that. This is Harpukkah. Napkin Doon owns the rights to the Brycemas holiday, and I credit him with the inspiration for this post and the string that will follow. Thanks for the idea, Nap. We still have a trade to get going soon.

So, there's eight days of Hannukah, and thusly eight days of Bryce Harpukkah. That's about what it took me to spend my sales. Well, let's say I spent my Harpukkah cash in eight days. That just makes this whole thing tidier.

I think we'll start off the first day of Hannukah with some vintage:

1954 Bowman Fred Hatfield. I snagged this one off eBay for less than the price of a stamp. Sometimes I feel kind of guilty when I win these auctions, when the seller actually loses money. Well, OK, I don't feel that guilty. This card has a crease right through the middle and some serious damage in the top left corner, but you get what you pay for. How's that Harper trade looking so far? Kind of dreary? Fear not. We have many cards to come.

And what's so wrong with this one? It's vintage Bowman; it's a Tigers card. All seems right with the world so far. And Fred "Scrap Iron" Hatfield led the league in being hit by a pitch in four seasons. I guess that's why he became scrap.

Here's something a bit more Bryce-worthy:

1950 Bowman: Walter "Hoot" Evers. This is just a fantastic looking card. It has everything I love about these vintage Bowman cards and more. While many of the pictures are posed portraits, this artwork looks inspired by a semi-action shot, Hoot taking practice swings on deck. Hoot cards only go up to 1954, so there aren't a ton of them, and I'm glad to own this one. It's a little roughed up, but in pretty great shape overall for a little over $2 shipped.

That does it for day one. Much more to come with Harpukkah in October.

Card Show: Vintage Scrounging

I spent a lot of time digging through the cheap boxes at the card show, which I posted about yesterday. I found myself having little interest in the game-used and auto singles for sale. Most of the players I collect are over-priced in Michigan, so I count on trades and eBay for those. When it comes to actually spending a few bucks on a single card, I'm often uninterested at shows, even good ones.

But then there's always vintage. And I found a dealer with the best prices of the day, selling cards at ten percent of BV. I was happy to indulge. I can't turn down vintage at those prices.

Wertz was my first vintage Bowman purchase when I got back into collecting. I picked up his 1951 card, which is still one of my favorite cards. I like Vic, even if he's not in Tiger uniform. And 1954 isn't my favorite vintage Bowman set, but this is one of my favorite players from this era. By the way, if anyone has a 1950 Bowman Wertz for trade, I'll find some good stuff for you.

I didn't pick up this card at the show, but I'm feeling nostalgic, so here's another look at that sweet 1951 Wertz:

That's one hell of a card.

Back to the show:

I can't pass up a Granny on my woodgrain TV. One of my favorite names in baseball here, and a great looking card. This one was two bucks, I think, and well worth it for a vintage all-star. The corners are a little rough, but the centering is nice.

This is actually my first 1955 Topps card. Sure, Jack Parks never made it to the majors, but he got a nice card. I couldn't be happier to add this oddball player to my collection, even if it's the only card I ever pick up from this set. Parks is in full catcher gear--my favorite pose on a vintage card.

That does it for this batch. I'll show the rest of the vintage I snagged in the next post.