I Told You It Was Coming

Sports Card Info is the Magic 8-Ball of the card industry.  On May 18th I wrote a piece called Is 2020 Bowman Sapphire Edition Baseball On The Way? after some Lency Delgado 2020 Bowman Chrome Atomic Orange Refractor Autographs popped-up on Instagram.  Well… it looks like my prediction has come true.

Available next week as an online-exclusive, 2020 Bowman Sapphire Edition Baseball will contain (1) prospect autograph per box.  Expect them to go fast.  I can already hear people complaining that they weren’t able to get a box, the secondary market prices are too expensive, only certain people were able to buy them, etc…  GET OVER IT!

You Know What’s Cool? Little League Pins That Look Like Packs Of 1954 Bowman Baseball Cards

With the cancellation of the 2020 Little League World Series, I’ve been looking around for some alternative sources to obtain new pins this year.  eBay has always been an option, but the Little League Pin Traders Club group on Facebook can be an equal or even better source.

Everyday collectors are posting pictures of their pins looking to trade.  Upon joining, I came to realize how many pins I didn’t know existed.  That’s the thing about Little League pins.  You can go many years without knowing that certain pins exist.  There is no official release date and/or checklist.  In addition to that, the quantities are all different.

Did you know there are some Little League pins that look just like packs of old baseball cards?  Organizing a trade using one of my Sports Card Info pins, I was able to obtain (2) pins that look like packs of 1954 Bowman Baseball.  One of them is green, and the other is red.

These pins aren’t small either.  They’re made of metal, and are about the size of a normal pack of cards.  High-quality and very heavy.  I had no clue they existed until I joined this group.  Other baseball card pack pins I’ve seen include 1952 Bowman Baseball and 1963 Topps Baseball.

Its interesting when the sports card hobby collides with the pin collecting world.

Tombstone Pizza’s 1995 Super-Pro Series Could’ve Landed You An Autograph

Happy National Pizza Day!

Food manufacturers have included sports cards with their products for decades.  It still happens today, but not quite as often.  At one time sports cards were offered with potato chips to dog food.

The folks at Tombstone Pizza created a few different sets throughout the 90s.  In 1995, I remember pulling a Frank Thomas card from one of their specially-marked frozen pizza boxes.  The 1995 Tombstone Super-Pro Series Baseball set consists of (30) cards.  (15) players from the National League, and (15) players from the American League.  Inside each Tombstone Pizza box you would find (1) card.  Randomly inserted autographs could also be pulled.  Some lucky pizza lovers opened their box and found an autograph card of George Brett, Johnny Bench, or Bob Gibson.  Tombstone included 6,000 total autographs.  That’s 2,000 autographs a piece.  In order to get the certificate of authenticity you needed to send away for it.  You could also send away for a complete set with (5) proofs-of-purchase.

Did You “Know” This About 1984 Fleer Update Baseball Cards?

The 1980s are notorious for issuing some of the most overproduced sets.  Despite that, there are a few gems to keep an eye out for.  One that still holds quite a bit of value today is the 1984 Fleer Update set.  This is Fleer’s very first update set, and it contains (132) cards.  It has a short print run, and was only available through dealers.  The set grew in popularity, and prices went up dramatically.  Today a complete set is worth well over $200.  That’s a lot considering most sets from the 80s can’t be given away.  Key XRCs from this set include Roger Clemens, John Franco, Dwight Gooden, Jimmy Key, Mark Langston, Bret Saberhagen, Ron Darling, and Kirby Puckett.  Roger Clemens and Kirby Puckett are the big money cards.  Even though its far from a rookie, the Pete Rose card is popular with collectors too.

• The print dot pattern is different when compared to an authentic card.
• Perfect centering – counterfeit cards usually have great centering.  Authentic cards are known for having terrible centering.
• One of the biggest signs that your 1984 Fleer Update card is a counterfeit is finding a capital “K” in the word “Know” on the back.

Counterfeit

Authentic

Q&A – What Can You Tell Me About This Danny DeVito Autograph?

Question:  I know this isn’t a sports card, but what can you tell me about this Danny DeVito autograph?

Answer:  Cool card!  In 1992, Danny DeVito portrayed the Penguin in Tim Burton’s Batman Returns.  As a child, this was one of the movies I watched all the time.  For a film that was marketed towards kids, its quite dark.  That scene near the end where Penguin slowly walks out of the water bleeding to death sparked the attention of many parents.  I thought it was awesome.  Things like that are one of the reasons why the studio decided to go in a different direction for the next two films.  Batman Forever and Batman & Robin were fun to watch as a kid, but I can’t watch them today.  In my opinion, Batman and Batman Returns still hold up for me now.

Topps created a few different sets to go along with Batman Returns.  One of them being a Stadium Club set.  The unsigned version of this card originated from the Stadium Club set, but not the card containing Danny DeVito’s signature.

In 1993, Topps issued two sets based on Batman: The Animated Series.  They were split up between Series 1 and Series 2.  Despite not having anything to do with the cartoon, Topps randomly inserted these Danny DeVito autographs into Series 2 packs.  2,000 copies of his Batman Returns base card were signed.

I wish this card had some type of notation, foil stamp, or serial number printed on it.  Even though Danny DeVito has a complex signature, an unsigned base card and silver pen are all a scammer would need to attempt at making a counterfeit.  I think they’re a hard sell because of that fact.  An asking price for an example deemed authentic can be up to $250.  Its a great example of an early buyback autograph.

Oswald Cobblepot!

Will You Find All The 2014 National Beckett Cover Cards?

National attendees this year can keep their eyes open for these exclusive Beckett Cover cards.  These covers range from all different years and feature a lot of great athletes.

There are 16 cards in all.  How do you obtain these cards?  Last night I mentioned where you can find the Roberto Clemente cover.  The Mickey Mantle July 1986 cover can be obtained at the Historic Autographs booth.  Johnny Manziel is available at Blowout Cards.  I also hear you’ll get one at the show’s entrance.  The 16th card is still a mystery, and you’ll need to stop by the Beckett booth to see how you can get that one.  As for the rest, that’s a good question.  I’d check around with some of the other dealers.

A “Whiz Kids” Thank You

April 9, 2013

Dear Mr. Chrisman,

It has come to my attention that “we the collective mind” at the blog: ENOUGH ALREADY seem to have won quite a few of your contests.  We are very thankful for what we have won in the past and present and it has come to be that we wanted to present to you a little “thank you” for the blog and the contests.

Being that you are a Phillies fan we found it to be only fitting that we would like to present to you an autograph of one of the infamous Philly “Whiz Kids” Andrew Seminick.  It was recently pulled from a History of Baseball Leaf Cut Signatures.  The autograph is absolutely beautiful and I hope you enjoy it!

Thanks again!

Tim Hertzog

http://annoyanceatitsfinest.blogspot.com

This afternoon I received the above letter and card as a thank you for all the contests and content I’ve been posting here on Sports Card Info over the last 5+ years.  Thank you very much!  This card will stay in my personal collection forever.

Where Will You Be Shopping Black Friday? $10.00 Discount From Atlanta Sports Cards

The holiday shopping season is upon us.  It seems to start sooner each year.  Black Friday is a great time for collectors to get some deals and exclusive promos.  If you plan to do some online shopping for that special collector this year, one place you need to check out is Atlanta Sports Cards.  Why?  Because if you spend $150.00 or more you can get $10.00 off your purchase when using the official Sports Card Info coupon code at checkout.  Simply enter SportsCardInfoCoup in the promo code box while checking out.  Its as easy as that.  Also be on the lookout for their 2012 Leaf Holiday Bonus Packs.  Each pack includes (1) card which is either an autograph, a quality memorabilia card or printing plate.

Other great places to shop include:

Have You Seen Strata Football?

One of the biggest innovations the hobby has seen over the last few years is the Shadow Box card.  It was introduced to us by Upper Deck back in 2009.  These eye appealing inserts have a layered 3D effect that just looks down right cool.  After the market gladly welcomed them, I’m surprised that we haven’t seen a product entirely based on Shadow Box cards.  That’s usually how it goes.  Find something collectors love, and then flood the market.  With Shadow Box cards, that sure isn’t the case.

Until now, nobody really challenged Upper Deck’s Shadow Box cards.  Now it looks as if Topps has answered that challenge with Strata Football.  Having a jumbo swatch in the background with layered images and autographs is a major improvement to the standard Shadow Box cards we’ve seen from Upper Deck.  The overlaying autographs on the signed booklet relics are nice looking as well.  I can’t help but think about those plastic overlays we saw in 2008 Topps Letterman.  Collectors really didn’t like them, but I think that was a major response to all the manufactured patches.

This is exactly what the hobby needs to see.  Innovation versus the same old stuff we’re use to seeing.  When one company releases something collectors enjoy, answer back with something bigger and better.  I’d love to see some baseball cards like this.

Panini Brings The HOF To You With 2012 Cooperstown Baseball

The National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum is one of the coolest places to go if your a baseball fan.  They have artifacts on display from the early days of the game all the way up to the current time.  I’ve been there three times and its really fun.

Back in February, Panini announced they came to an agreement with the Hall of Fame to produce cards featuring its Hall of Famers and their artifacts.  Its good to see more cards with Hall of Famers on them, but lets face it, its been done many times before and with MLB logos.  What I’m interested to see are the cards about the artifacts.  There are a lot of baseball fans that can’t make it to the Hall of Fame to see these items in person.  Producing cards of the artifacts really brings the Hall of Fame to collectors in a way.  A real nostalgic factor can play in here too.  Pulling a card picturing an item you remember seeing on a trip to Cooperstown with your father could bring back a lot of memories.  The hobby is currently filled with resurrected designs and the same old stuff we see over and over again.  I think this is an interesting way to go.  There is an insert set called “Voices of Summer”.  I asked Panini if Phillies broadcaster Harry Kalas was going to be included within it, and they stated they were trying to get him in.

Collectors can look for 2012 Cooperstown Baseball in July.  Each box will contain (1) autograph, (2) commemorative Class Patches, (3) Bronze History cards, (3) Crystal Collection parallels, (2) Voices of Summer inserts, (2) Induction inserts, and (2) Credentials inserts.  The base set will contain 200 cards that includes 20 SP Color Tint cards.  Of coarse cut signatures will be thrown in there too.