20/$1 Card Show Pickups

Going to card shows these days is usually hit or miss. With most cards readily available online, most dealers don't bother carrying commons. Those that do usually have a wide selection of '88-89 Topps and '91 Upper Deck amongst their inventory. As such, a trip to a show is very much a crapshoot. Still, if you truly take the time to look through those dime and quarter boxes, sometimes you will find something interesting, even with those 80's commons.

Here's what today's trip got, not bad for 25/$1.

'13 Topps Opening Day Ballpark Fun BF-8 Johan Santana
'13 Topps Opening Day Ballpark Fun BF-6 Adam Jones
'13 Topps Opening Day Ballpark Fun BF-14 Jayson Werth
'13 Topps Opening Day Ballpark Fun BF-16 Elvis Andrus
'13 Topps Opening Day Ballpark Fun BF-17 Aaron Hill

As I had mentioned previously, Topps Opening Day seems to have the inserts we only wish the base product would carry. Unique themes and photography which don't repeat the same players over and over again.

'84 Donruss 36 Brad Komminsk - I might have this card already, but I had to chuckle when I saw it again. Sure, Don Mattingly is now THE rookie to get out of '84 Donruss, but in 1984, Komminsk might've been a better prospect. Komminsk hit .334 with 24 homers, 26 steals, and 103 RBI at AAA in 1983. In his 8-year major league career, Komminsk totaled 23 homers and 105 RBI hitting .218. One of my childhood memory "busts".

'12 Triple Play 71 Buster Posey
'12 Triple Play 70 Brian Wilson
'12 Triple Play 72 Tim Lincecum
'12 Triple Play 7 Adam Jones
'12 Triple Play 9 Matt Weiters
'12 Triple Play 64 Andrew McCutcheon
'12 Triple Play 20 Joey Votto

I had seen these in passing before and didn't think much of them. However, looking at different ones  today, I noticed that some of the cards actually look like the player. I'm not sure what the point was behind this set, but they are an interesting niche item to the collection.

'12 Topps USA Olympics Bronze 76 Tony Azavedo
'12 Topps USA Olympics Silver 76 Tony Azavedo
'12 Topps USA Olympics Gold 76 Tony Azavedo
'12 Topps USA Olympics 70 Lolo Jones - I know the Winter Olympics just ended, but is bobsledding really a sport if Lolo Jones can jump from Track and Field and make the national bobsledding team in two years?
'12 Topps USA Olympics 59 Missy Franklin

 

'97 Score Hobby Reserve 535 Tony Gwynn
'97 Score Hobby Reserve 505 Ken Caminiti
'97 Score Hobby Reserve 402 Jim Edmonds
'97 Score Hobby Reserve 418 William Van Landingham
'97 Score Hobby Reserve 398 Tyler Green
'97 Score Hobby Reserve 421 Eddie Murray
'97 Score Hobby Reserve 423 Gary Disarcina
'97 Score Hobby Reserve 425 Willie Greene
'97 Score Hobby Reserve 344 John Wasdin
'97 Score Hobby Reserve 430 Roger Clemens
'97 Score Hobby Reserve 448 Danny Tartabull
'97 Score Hobby Reserve 359 Jarrod Washburn
'97 Score Hobby Reserve 335 Sterling Hitchcock

I'm not really sure what these cards are. The fronts have a gold foil stamp which say Hobby Reserve by Score, but the Beckett Almanac lists Hobby Reserve as numbered HR1, HR2, etc. These have regular numbering on the backs. Then you look turn the page and notice that Score also had a Premium Stock, Reserve Collection, Showcase Series, and Artist's Proof of the same set that year. It's like Topps' current rainbow of colors without the colors!

  
'06 Sweet Spot Update 55 Joe Mauer
'06 Sweet Spot Update 24 Ken Griffey Jr
'06 Sweet Spot Update 47 Nomar Garciaparra
'06 Sweet Spot Update 76 Mike Piazza
'06 Sweet Spot Update 61 Derek Jeter

I've always liked the look of this set. Little did I know that the set came in five-card packs with a SRP of $9.99. Ouch. Looks odd to see Piazza and Nomar in a different uniform. I'm pretty sure this is the first Padre Piazza in my collection.

'90 Panini Stickers 350 Chris James
'90 Panini Sticker 48 Paul O'Neil
'88 Panini Stickers 405 Benito Santiago
'88 Panini Stickers 401 Ed Whitson
'88 Panini Stickers 338 Gary Carter
'88 Panini Stickers 228 Randolph/Boggs
'88 Panini Sticker 1 1987 WS Trophy
'88 Panini Stickers 46 Brian Downing
'88 Panini Stickers 36 Kirk McCaskill
'89 Panini Stickers 479 Kirk Gibson
'89 Panini Stickers 205 Marvell Wynne
'89 Panini Stickers 295 Tony Armas
'89 Panini Stickers 190 Padres Team Logo
'89 Panini Stickers 286 Mike Witt
'89 Panini Stickers 136 Gary Carter
'89 Panini Stickers 278 Ellis Burks
'89 Panini Stickers 48 Mike Harkey
'89 Panini Stickers 291 Wally Joyner
'89 Panini Stickers 401 Yankees Stadium

These Panini stickers don't list for much in the Beckett Almanac, but surely they are worth more than that for team collectors who can't find them anywhere. Did anyone ever peel the sticker off and actually put them in the albums?

'13 Topps Chasing The Dream CD-3 Will Middlebrooks
'13 Topps 1972 Mini TM-11 Dustin Pedroia
'13 Topps 1972 Mini TM-28 Alex Rodriguez
'13 Pinnacle Behind The Numbers BN9 Yadier Molina
'13 Pinnacle Team 2020 T1 Jurickson Profar
'13 Hometown Heroes Zip Code 26 Andre Dawson

Lastly, I was able to snag a few more '13 inserts, my favorite being this parallel of "The Hawk". I don't care much for the card design of this set, and it drives me nuts that Panini doesn't have an MLB license, thus airbrushing all their products. Personally, I think it takes away from the look of the card.