Which Ichiro 2011 Leaf Metal Draft Patch Will Be Yours?

Are you one of the lucky collectors to bust a box of 2011 Leaf Metal Draft Baseball and pull a redemption for an Ichiro autographed patch?  If so, check out the patches that Leaf got back from the printer earlier today.  Once these get signed next week they will be ready to go.

As you can see, there really isn’t a bad patch.  They all look great.  I’m glad that Brian Gray decided to release this image.  Knowing what the patches look like will help fight counterfeiters.

So, which patch will you be getting?

Click the above image for a closer look.  WARNING: It is a very large picture.

Mighty Fine Tiger Woods Patches

Tiger Woods had a terrible 2010.  Hopefully this year things will pick back up for him.  Below are some of the best golf patch cards ever created.  I’ve truly never have seen anything quite like it before when it comes to golf cards.  Woods has just returned these autographs to Upper Deck.  Only 10 of them exist, and they come from 2009-2010 UD NHL The Cup Hockey.  You can read all about it over on the Upper Deck Blog.  This is one redemption worth waiting for.  I don’t think they need the word “Rookie” across the top, but who cares, these things are nuts!!!

’10/’11 Certified Hockey Freshman Fabric Redemptions Revealed

Certified Hockey this year has been pretty popular.  Within the product, collectors can find (6) Freshman Fabric redemptions and today Panini announced who those cards are for:

• 191. Cam Fowler, Anaheim Ducks
• 194. Alexander Burmistrov, Atlanta Thrashers
• 195. Mattias Tedenby, New Jersey Devils
• 196. Kevin Shattenkirk, Colorado Avalanche
• 197. Derek Stepan, New York Rangers
• 200. Nino Niederreiter, New York Islanders

Just a quick note on these redemptions.  I like how they’re not just labels slapped on a plain white filler.  Panini added a few graphics to make them harder to counterfeit.  I hope to see this throughout their other products.

“Shoeless” Joe Jackson Cut Signatures Coming Soon

“Shoeless” Joe Jackson is one of the most popular players in baseball history.  If it weren’t for that little scandal, he would be in the Hall of Fame.  His cards are in high demand, and command some serious prices.  Thanks to Upper Deck and Donruss/Playoff (Panini), collectors have been able to obtain cards containing bat relics once used by Jackson.

Now Leaf is turning up the heat by making “Shoeless” Joe’s first cut signature ever inserted into a product.  Yes, Sportkings make a Jackson cut signature before, but it was signed by his wife and it clearly stated this on the back.  After contacting Mr. Gray of Leaf, he has confirmed that these (4) cut signatures were signed by Jackson himself.  Three of them will be inserted as redemptions, and the fourth will be awarded to the collector who has put together the most complete set of 2010 Leaf Sports Icons Update.  Collectors who attempt at putting this set together will have to present it to Leaf during the 2011 National Sports Collectors Convention.

(8) Million Card Giveaway Redemptions

I just redeemed all (8) Million Card Giveaway redemptions I pulled at the Rip Party last night and here is what I received.  I’ll start with the oldest.

1954 Topps #147

1972 Topps #23

1972 Topps #307

1978 Topps #227

1979 Topps #72

1999 Topps #109

2002 Topps #210

2007 Topps #632

’09 UD Draft Football Redemption Status Update

A few weeks ago I busted a box of 2009 UD Draft Football and pulled two redemptions.  One was for a Rudy Carpenter auto and the other for a Jamayel Smith auto.  Today I received a package from Upper Deck with the Carpenter autograph.  After redeeming that card, Upper Deck stated that it would be serial numbered to only 10 copies.  The card I received wasn’t serial numbered at all.  When logging into UD’s website I saw the following message:

RUDY CARPENTER

2009 NFL UPPER DECK DRAFT EDITION SILVER AUTO PARALLEL FORM 1// #ED TO 10 CD # 77. Error on redemption, card is not numbered.

Thats the first time I’ve ever had that happen.  Perhaps UD needs some better quality control.  I’m also not going to be receiving the Smith auto and should be getting a replacement soon.  Looks like UD is moving the redemptions faster, but you may not get what you expected.

Discarding Used/Expired Redemptions

One of the best things about online redemptions is the fact that you can keep both the redemption card and the card is was suppose to be redeemed for.  This is especially good for redemptions that are for prospect and/or rookie cards.  In the past a collector would need to mail-in the redemption in exchange for the card that they were due to receive, leaving the collector with one card.  With the online redemptions, collectors get to have both.  Usually and expired/used redemption isn’t worth a thing but thats not always the case.  The Albert Pujols 2001 Bowman Chrome autographed rookie is one of the most influential modern day baseball cards.  When 2001 Bowman Chrome was released, that card was available only through a redemption.  That card has been expired for almost 6 years but collectors still purchase them when they show up for sale.  Most of the time they end up selling into the hundreds.  This is why I plan on keeping all my used redemption cards for prospects/rookies.  Player collectors will want everything and anything that pertains to a certain player, even and expired/used redemption.  Will the expired/used redemption ever be worth as much as the real card?  Probably not, but its better than having nothing at all.  The only two things that bother me about redemptions is the waiting period and the fact that some manufacturers forget to cover up the code.  So the next time you redeem that autographed rookie, don’t discard that used redemption when it arrives.