Quality Trade Brings in a Certified Chicago Cubs Autograph

Most of the trades for the One Million Cubs Project will be quantity. Obviously, nearing just, “just,” 100,00 Cubs cards there is a long way to go to reach a million. So, those large bulk trades are needed in volume. Note: currently there are three 1,000-plus card swaps either in transit or in the coming days.

This is my first low-volume, quality Cubs trade. I will admit most of my higher end five dollars and go cards are saved for eBay and selling to build up that PayPal account, but @hodag94 tweeted a nice Cubs autograph and I happened to have exactly what he was looking for.

Up for grabs was a 2011 Topps Heritage Starlin Castro certified autograph. First, this set designed after the 1962 Topps set is beautiful. It was the original wood grain, more classic than 1987 Topps.

Kevin, a.k.a. @hodag94, was after early Andre Dawson cards. As a Cubs fan, I had kept a stockpile of Dawson cards even though he was with the Expos from 1977 to 1986. So, a deal was made. I sent Kevin a 1977 Topps Andre Dawson Rookie and a 1978 Topps Dawson second year card.

There were some extras attached to the Castro. Make it a “Ryno Count” of one. A surprise Sandberg appeared in the form of this 2002 Topps Archives Reserve, a new addition to my collection.

Another Archives came, too. This one a 2016 Archives Topps 65th Anniversary Billy Williams. It’s a reprint of Williams’ 1961 Topps rookie card. Also a new card in my collection.

Finally, a couple 2017 Topps cards of Addison Russell and Jon Lester.

A great trade and I’ll be keeping this Castro in the screw down slab and display on one of my Cubs shelves.

Thanks, Kevin for the A+ trade.

Chicago Cubs Top Ten List – Latest Trade Review

Today’s trade review has a different format. It will be a top ten list of my favorite cards from this particular trade.

Michael from Facebook was the trade partner here, and this was my first big snafu in a trade. We agreed to swap 184 Atlanta Braves for 184 Chicago Cubs cards. There was a problem: Michael’s cards arrived safely…but they were Boston Red Sox cards. Oops!

Michael has a box of Braves on the way, and gained some extra Red Sox in the process.

This trade brought me some dynamite Cubs additions. Several new cards that I didn’t previously have and many superstars. This top ten list doesn’t do the box of Cubs I received justice.

10) 2017 Topps Kris Bryant Major League Milestones

A number of Kris Bryant cards were included here. One new to the collection is this insert. I dislike horizontal cards, but love what this card represents. Bryant went 5-for-5 with three home runs and two doubles against the Reds on June 27, 2016. I remember watching that game in awe of that performance. What a fun season.

9) 2016 Bowman Retail Exclusive Yellow Border Jeimer Candelario

These retail exclusives just have a yellow border, and this photo is rather bland. However, it is a parallel not previously held in my collection. Candelario is also a pretty highly regarded prospect now with the Tigers.

8) 2008 Upper Deck Diamond Collection Rich Hill

Two years ago this card wouldn’t have cracked the list, but Hill has had a major league resurgence the last two years. Again, it’s horizontal, but in this case I like it because of the photo choice. In action pitching shots work better horizontally.

7) 1984 Donruss Chuck Rainey

Another trade that brings in an autograph. Not only that, it’s on a 1984 Donruss. This set is top three among my favorite releases of all brands in the 1980’s.

6) 2017 Topps Fire Wade Davis 69/199

A serial number parallel from the retail only Fire. This release was largely booed in hobby circles. It’s a “meh,” for me. It’s different and I like different. If all brands looked the same it would be boring.

5) 2017 Topps Gallery Ian Happ & Anthony Rizzo

Another retail exclusive, Topps Gallery was only released in Wal-Mary stores. I loved Gallery the first time around, and absolutely love the new product. Unfortunately, I didn’t break any Gallery. The nearest Wal-Mart has an extremely weak card selection, so Target fills my retail fix. The other area Wal-Mart stores are 20 and 30 minutes away and I just didn’t feel like taking the time in search of this one. I’m happy to be receiving these in trades.

4) 2017 Bowman Chrome Mojo Refractors Oscar De La Cruz &
Cubs Talent Pipeline

There’s a trend here with retail product. While I didn’t search for Topps Gallery, I was on a mission to find the Bowman Mega Boxes that contained the Mojo Refractors. Only once (in about 25 Target trips) did I strike gold and found five boxes. De La Cruz is a highly touted Cubs pitching prospect, and the Pipeline card features Eloy Jimenez, now with the White Sox and the fourth ranked prospect in all of baseball in the most recent Baseball America Top 100 rankings. Ian Happ and Mark Zagunis join Jimenez here.

3) 2017 Topps Archives Kyle Hendricks

I have an attraction to the 1982 Topps design. Maybe it’s because it was the year I was born. Or it could just be that it’s a classic Topps design. Can’t get enough of this design and the photo works great on this card.

2) 2016 Topps Archives 65th Anniversary Dontrelle Willis

Another new addition. No, this isn’t a 2002 Topps Willis rookie. This is a 2016 reprint celebrating the 65th anniversary of Topps. Always loved this Willis card, especially after his highly successful years with the Marlins.

1) 2017 Stadium Club Anthony Rizzo & David Ross

Stadium Club has never earned my money. The main reason is that it is released the same week or week after a main product (which escapes me). So, my money goes elsewhere. I really should spread the wealth because Stadium Club has amazing photos and the designs always look great. Love the Rizzo tarp catch picture, and the Ross photo is classic.

Thanks for the trade, Michael, and sorry for the mixup.

Latest Trade Nets 155 Cubs Cards With More Ryno's and Some 1970's

Another Twitter trade is in the books. This latest deal was with Kevin, @soldoutscandal.

Our deal swapped 155 San Diego Padres cards for 155 Cubs cards.

My package came on Monday and included 10 Ryne Sandberg cards for the “Ryno Count.” All of them are duplicates in my collection, but I do have a limited number of the 1990 Fleer Baseball MVP.

The story of Steve Macko is a sad one. Macko was drafted in the fifth round of the 1977 Major League Baseball draft. He excelled in the minor leagues and earned a big league call up on August 17, 1979.

His career lasted a little less than a calendar year appearing in 25 games. In August 1980, he collided with Bill Madlock during a game suffering a bad bruise. Soon after it was discovered he had testicular cancer. Sadly, Macko passed away a little more than a year later in November 1981 at the age of 27.

There were four cards from the 1978 Topps set: Woodie Fryman, Larry Biitner, Mike Krukow, and Ivan DeJesus. This set is a classic. I love the design. It was one of the first “vintage” sets I saw as a young collector. My neighbor had a few commons he gave me. Even though those cards were only 10 years old at the time they seemed ancient to me.

As much as I loved the 1978 Topps design, I despised the 1979 Topps design. It looked so familiar to the 1976 Topps set. However, looking back we were spoiled with original design by Topps. I’ve been disappointed over the last decade with each Topps set.

Finally, there was one new addition to my collection in this box. It’s a 2017 Donruss Kyle Hendricks. I am hot and cold on the new Donruss releases. Really like the throwback design here, but the non-logo is a definite turnoff.

As always, another fantastic trade. Thanks, Kevin.

Custom Cubs Cards Courtesy of Rookies App

I was an Android user until 2014. The iPhone had tempted me, but enough to take the plunge. Despite using Mac computers for three years at my previous job, I never did get used to their quirks. That was a big reason why I stuck with Android.

Then the Rookies App drew my attention. For about a year the company kept touting the app as “coming soon to Android.” That was 2013. Fast forward five years and the Rookies App is still only available on the iPhone.

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I succumbed to the iPhone in July 2014, and the Rookies App was one of my first downloads. The Rookies App features 20 templates, many of which are classic baseball card designs, to create custom trading cards.

Creating my own baseball cards had always fascinated me. Photoshop and I have an ugly history, so designing and printing my own cards was not an option.

Once you slap a photo in a pre-designed template, you can add text on the front and back, submit payment, and about a week later a 20-pack of cards arrives in your mailbox. The cards literally come in an unopened wax pack.

Following the recent Cubs Convention, I decided to create a pack of custom cards from the past few conventions using the 1981 Fleer design. This is by far my favorite Fleer design of its run.

There’s Kris Bryant from Woody’s Winter Warmup.

Ryne Sandberg holding a napkin wishing my friend, Robin, a happy birthday.

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Jordan Howard of the Chicago Bears.

David Ross at Woody’s Winter Warmup.

Anthony Rizzo from Woody’s Winter Warmup.

Meeting Kerry Wood near the end of his fundraiser at Harry Caray’s.

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John Cusack and Bonnie Hunt showing off their bartending skills.

Pete LaCock, a 1970’s Chicago Cubs player, in the hotel bar.

Bill Buckner appeared at Club 400 for a convention kickoff party.

Steve Trout bought myself and a couple new friends pizza on Saturday night at the convention.

Jason Heyward took a selfie at last year’s Woody’s Winter Warmup at Navy Pier.

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So did Addison Russell.

And David Ross.

I ran into Sandberg in the hallway at the 2017 Woody’s Winter Warmup and was gracious enough to stop for a photo.

Dorothy, the 90-something Jaeger-loving Cubs season ticket holder, saved me a seat to tell me about her World Series suite that Jaegermeister provided for her following her national television interview.

Scott Sanderson spent a couple minutes to talk.

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Trevor Cahill introduced Kyle Schwarber at the 2016 Woody’s Winter Warmup.

Cahill was an outstanding bartender, and the crowd even began a “MVP” chant for Cahill. He in turn signed a baseball for me with that inscription.

Miguel Montero was another outstanding bartnender in 2016.

The 2015 Woody’s Winter Warmup was my first. Travis Wood pours a good rum.

And here’s Wood himself. This photo was taken a few minutes after he saved my phone. It was charging on the bar top when someone next to me spilled a glass of red wine on the bar.

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If you want to cherish some of your own memories on cardboard, Rookies App is the way to go.

2018 Topps Checklist Released, Chicago Cubs Images Inside

Topps announced its 2018 checklist this week. As expected, many Chicago Cubs cards are among those in the series 1 checklist. The flagship series 1 product is due to release on January 31.

Exciting for Cubs collectors is a retail exclusive Kris Bryant subset. The 30-card highlights set will only be included in the Wal-Mart release. Derek Jeter will be found in the Target exclusive release.

A numerical checklist has not been posted. Here are the Chicago Cubs in the base set:

Anthony Rizzo
Ian Happ

Javier Baez
John Lackey
Jon Lester
Jose Quintana
Koji Uehara
Kyle Schwarber
Willson Contreras

Independence Day Parallel

Topps Salute
Anthony Rizzo
Javier Baeez

Andre Dawson
Kris Bryant
Ian Happ

Superstar Sensations
Addison Russell
Kris Bryant
Anthony Rizzo

MLB Awards
Anthony Rizzo
Jason Heyward

1983 Topps Baseball
Ryne Sandberg
Ian Happ
Jake Arrieta
Ian Happ
Anthony Rizzo
Kyle Schwarber
Javier Baez
Addison Russell

Kris Bryant Highlights (30 cards – Retail Exclusive – Wal-Mart Only)

Legends In The Making (Retail Exclusive)
Anthony Rizzo
Kris Bryant

MLB Opening Day (Retail Exclusive)
Kris Bryant

The Cubs are also represented with patch cards, relics, autographs, and cut signatures.

One Great Trade Nets Autographs, Refractors, and Topps Now Cubs Cards

Preserve the Hobby has outdone himself. After an initial 100-Card trade, we upped our swap to include 250 cards. I traded 250 Mets and Pirates for 250 Cubs.

Our initial trade left me feeling that I didn’t send enough, so I upped my ante in our second deal. So did he!

The cards came packed 25 cards per team bag, so it was like opening packs of all Cubs. I like it. From the outside it appears as though it’s another basic trade. And then I opened the “packs.”

First off, there were three loose cards in top loaders. Cool! Topps Now cards of Addison Russell, Jason Heyward, and Wade Davis. These are my first Topps Now cards in the collection.

Then there was a base Sammy Sosa. Sosa brought me back to baseball. The Cubs having a successful 1998 season also helped. But in all honesty, the 1998 Home Run Chase was the catalyst that made me love baseball again after I completely gave up on the game during the 1994 strike season.

My personal thoughts on the Sosa/Cubs riff? He should be welcomed back. The organization hired Manny Ramirez. The Cubs ownership needs to let it go and welcome one of the greatest players to wear a Cubs jersey back into the fold. Sosa (steroids or not) made the Chicago national league baseball club A LOT of money.

From the early days of Sosa came this Rick Wilkins Diamond Kings card from 1993. This card design was ahead of its time and I don’t recall ever seeing this card.

Some new cards from Ian Happ. These are from a recent release: 2017 Topps Chrome Update.

Another new release from 2017 Topps Bunt. This Kyle Hendricks is an Insert from the Programs set. Bunt is a set release that I never buy, and have very few cards from.

Javier Baez was represented here with four cards. Two of these cards are new to the collection. One I had never heard of: it’s a 2017 Topps with “Limited Edition” stamped on the front. The other new addition is the 2012 Topps Throwback Thursday.

Another Throwback Thursday card here that never had I seen before. It’s Anthony Rizzo pictured inside a “L.” This card is from 2017.

Addison Russell checks in with this 2017 Topps Chrome pink Refractor.

Some really nice hits were hidden in the middle of a pack. Autographs! These are in-person or through the mail (TTM) autos. Andy Parks! Wow! And a signed 1964 Topps Larry Jackson. Ron Cey and Gary Scott a nice touch.

And we get to this trade’s “Ryno Count.” A total of nine Ryne Sandberg cards are included here. None of them are new to the collection, though I do have limited (maybe only one) 1992 Donruss Diamond Kings.

Thanks for another great trade, @preservehobby.

Oddball Cubs Cards and 32 More Ryne Sandberg's

Another box of Cubs came Friday. This package from Ed out in Baltimore. Our trade was consummated on Facebook group Keep It Real and involved a swap of Orioles for 432 Cubs.

This was a completely blind trade, which can be fun. When conducting these blind bulk team-for-team trades I set my expectations low. If I plan on receiving hundreds of junk era Cubs, it’s a pleasant surprise when newer cards, stars, and oddballs arrive.

The latter was the case in this trade. While mostly junk era, it was filled with oddballs and new additions. One surprise was a 1971 Topps Cubs team card.

Among newer releases was a pile of 2003 SP Legendary Cuts. I do have the Fergie Jenkins and Ernie Banks, but Joe Tinker, Billy Williams, Gabby Hartnett, and Kiki Cuyler grace my collection for the first time. These are really nice cards on thick card stock and the colors used on the borders match up well with the black and white photos.

Back to the junk era was a Mark Grace 1988 Fleer rookie card. Grace is pictured with Darrin Jackson here. Jackson still leaves a bad taste in my mouth from his days broadcasting White Sox games with the unlistenable Hawk Harrelson.

It’s not often I come across needs from the junk era. This time a couple playing card trading cards are scratched off the list with these 1992 Major League Baseball Rookies from Bicycle.

Another rookie oddball came from the 1990 Fleer Award Winners Jerome Walton.

And a 1988 Drake’s Big Hitters Andre Dawson.

What’s wrong with this 2002 Topps Chrome Jason Bere?

Bere is pictured batting. He was a pitcher.

Now for the “Ryno Count.” Not only did this box contain 32 Ryne Sandberg cards, it featured six new cards to the Ryno collection.

Thanks, Ed. Another successful trade.

Why A Jersey Boy Rooted For Scott Sanderson

Heathcliff Slocumb, Amaury Telemaco, Scott Sanderson. What do these three former Chicago Cubs have in common? They were all favorites of mine growing up as a Cubs fan.

For Slocumb and Telemaco it was easy. Those were great names. Why Scott Sanderson? He had a long career in Major League Baseball and was a top pitcher for the 1984 Cubs. While other 8-year olds were devoting fandom to Ryne Sandberg and Mark Grace, I pledged allegiance to Scott Sanderson.

That was my fan quirk. Rarely did I root for the superstars. I liked the underdogs. In fact, in junior high I earned the nickname “jersey boy,” for my affinity for wearing basketball and football jerseys to school on a daily basis. The names on the back were not Barry Sanders, Emmitt Smith, Michael Jordan, or Scottie Pippen like everyone else. They were Rashaan Salaam, Eddie Kennison, and Yinka Dare. Yes, Yinka Dare.

Back to Sanderson. Enter my adult life and annual trips to the Cubs Convention. At the 2017 Woody’s Winter Warmup I happened to look over my shoulder at the bar at Harry Caray’s. It was Scott Sanderson. Withholding my inner fanboy I introduced myself and had a quick conversation and photo opp. To me, meeting Scott Sanderson and having a quick chat trumped by interactions with Jason Heyward, Albert Almora, and Addison Russell.

At some point, a baseball card was most likely the source of my Sanderson fandom. Possibly the 1988 Score. It was my introduction to baseball cards and the large action stocks on bright cards drew me in. The Sanderson Score card is a great action photo.

Sanderson was also a part of the 1989 Topps set. I still remember waiting six to eight weeks for the Cubs team set to arrive in the mail. My mom had sent in several UPC codes from some manufacturer sponsoring the Topps team set giveaways.

As I receive more and more Cubs cards (hundreds by the day), I may start pulling all Sanderson’s, in addition to Ryne Sandberg, Javier Baez, Kris Bryant, and Rick Reuschel.

And speaking of incoming cards, if anyone has 1984 Jewel Cubs cards I am in need. Here’s the Scott Sanderson from that set.

Steve Trout Pizza Party and a Stack of Scott Sanderson

As I catch up on trade reviews, tonight’s review came via a Twitter trade more than a week ago. This one was brokered by Tony Burbs (@rosterjenga) as he tweeted at me that @mjpmke was looking to unload about 800 Cubs cards.

Matthew and I began exchanging direct messages and a trade was set. I sent over a box full of Topps needs for his 1978, 1979, 1982, 1983, 1984, and 1985 set builds.

In return I received 813 Cubs cards with a few new additions. First, he shipped the package in an original 1989 Topps set box. This was the set that propelled me from casual kid collector to obsessed kid collector that never let it go.

Kerry Wood checked in with a few copies of this 1996 All Sport Plus. This is a new addition to the collection.

Another new rookie oddball addition was a 2000 Royal Rookies Julio Zuleta.

This 1988 Fleer looks like an assuming common from the junk wax era. Well, it is. Kind of. It’s actually a 1988 Fleer Glossy Paul Noce.

While it may not be new to my collection, I was unfamiliar with this 2008 Topps Gerald Perry. I had largely left the hobby by 2008 and didn’t realize hitting coaches were given cards.

Some gold here in the form of Miguel Montero. This 2015 Topps Update Gold is numbered 300/2015.

One of my favorite Cubs baseball cards of all time is next. Sharon Dunston was a childhood favorite and this 1985 Topps #1 Draft Pick was always sought after. This is just a beautiful card all around.

Scott Sanderson was one of my favorites in the 1980’s. Unfortunately, I missed Scott this year at the Cubs Convention, but did get to meet him and talk with him for a few minutes at last year’s Woody’s Winter Warmup. There are 22 Sanderson cards in this box.

Speaking of Cubs Convention. A select group of about three were lucky enough to receive a personal pizza party with Steve Trout near the hotel bar this year.

Friends that I had met over the weekend happened to be at the right place at the right time when “Rainbow” offered to buy pizza. With me tagging along, the four of us enjoyed Aurelio’s Pizza.

And I landed a Trout here. 1987 Donruss #201.

Finally, here’s today’s Ryno Count: 16

Nothing new here, but more volume for my Sandberg collection.

Bonnie Hunt and Lou Brock and 494 More Chicago Cubs Cards

Tonight’s trade review comes courtesy of Brannon via Facebook group Keep It Real. Brannon and I also did a swap in 2014. We exchanged 496 Atlanta Braves cards for Chicago Cubs.

In this box came five Javier Baez cards.

And how about the “Ryno Count?” There are 17 Ryne Sandberg cards here.

Much to my surprise were another 17 cards. These of Kris Bryant. A few are new to the collection including the Gypsy Queen Fortune Teller and the Stickers.

Speaking of Stickers, Bryant wasn’t the only Sticker new to the collection. There was a stack of 2016 Topps stickers including Addison Russell, Kyle Schwarber, Jason Heyward and more.

More Topps First Pitch cards appeared in this package including Bonnie Hunt.

Bonnie served me a couple Bud Lights at Kerry Wood’s fundraiser last week (here shown with John Cusack).

Speaking of last weekend, I spent about an hour with Bob Dernier and his wife in the hotel bar. Here’s a 1985 Topps Dernier, one part of the Cubs “Daily Double.”

And Bobby D even let me try on his 1983 Philadelphia Phillies World Series ring with the Chicago Cubs World Series ring he earned from the team.

Several rookies appeared throughout this box, including 2017 Topps Heritage High Number Ian Happ.

And a 2016 Studio Kyle Schwarber. The Studio releases were a great addition in the early 1990’s.

New additions also included some Topps Bunt cards of Andre Dawson and Jason Heyward.

Finally, here’s a new Lou Brock for the collection.

No, it’s not a 1962 Topps Rookie card. It’s a 2016 Topps Berger’s Best. I dislike these reprint cards that are difficult to decipher from the front picture alone.

Another great trade complete. Please reach out if you are looking to send me your Cubs.