Some Giveaway Bounty from Dime Boxes

 

Leafing through blogs these past 13 years, you learn to look for your equals. 

When I started reading blogs in late 2008, I was just looking to see how other people collected. There were team collectors [Night Owl, Dinged Corners], there were player collectors [Sooz from a Cardboard Problem, Mario from Wax Heaven], and there were people who just collected any odd shit they came across [dayf, sweet dayf]. And as I was establishing myself as a Yanks and Phils guy, I wanted to make it clear that I collected differently than a lot of bloggers. Like...to this day, I collect such oddball favorites as Pat Neshek, Juan Pierre, Kenny Lofton and, yes, Bartolo Colon. And I think what was so tricky at the beginning, aside from being a 15 or so year old writing about baseball cards, was making it clear how different my collecting habits were.

And then a few years into the blog, I discovered a blog run by someone else who collected like I did. Appropriately titled after the one thing I'd always look for at card shows, Dime Boxes. And then it felt alright. Y'know. Here's this guy talking about cards of people holding trophies, or player collections of guys from his hometown. Now I don't feel so bad collecting Orel Hershiser cause he went to my high school. 

So, a little while back, Nick from Dime Boxes started a whole multi-week project of doing giveaways, like the sort of 'free card friday' sort of thing a lot of bloggers will do that I don't jump at often, as usually the things I value are taken by the time I get there. But...again, Nick collects how I collect. So I figured there was gonna be cool stuff that I might like that not everyone else would go for. So, I thumbed through and selected the most Jordan-core stuff, and then the other day, the results landed on my front step. 

First of all...beginning this post with a card of Bartolo Colon preparing to hit should say everything you need to know about what I was after. 

First of all, the requisite Yankees and Phillies that would be available. You should expect some Cutch, Cole and Chut content. But there was also some cooler stuff, like that 2001 Topps Noteworthy insert of Michael Jack, and what I believe is my first base card from a Topps Inception set of Le Kraken. 

I used these giveaway posts as I would a dime box at a card show, in looking for the stuff that catches my eye anyway. Modern Topps throwback design inserts? Sure, let's go! Gypsy Queen base cards of HOFers! Yeah! I had to look up this Bench card because the back of it had a Red Sox logo, but that was an error on all of them. 

Also, actual cool inserts I don't see often! I will snap up those Spring Fevers whenever I see them, as I didn't get a ton when they were coming out. 

HOF-er based sets, ironically all of Twins. I don't get enough Killebrew in Washington cards, I love finding 2003 Retired Signature, and, hey, now I can put Tony Oliva in my HOF binders! 

More stuff that catches my eye, like a modern Topps insert of a rare Fergie Jenkins Rangers sighting, and an Edgar Martinez SC card that I don't think I had.

Nick collects Hideo Nomo as well, so it was kinda cool that there was a few he could throw on here. Both of these are awesome. Also, barely related, 2002 ULTRA HAS SUCH GREAT CARD BACKS. Why does no one talk about how cool these backs are? 

A good selection of Hall of Famers, but there were a lot of ones in these posts that were new to me. That Ultra insert is awesome. The 93 UD Dawson I'd seen on the blogs before but never had. And hey, any new Dawson Marlins card is a good thing.

SPEAKING OF CARDS I'D SEEN ON OTHER BLOGS...yeah, these two cried out to me. The Ozz is a wonderful sunset card, and the Lofton is not only another great 97 UD photo, but a reminder of the last time the Phillies hosted the All-Star Game.

...shit, why hasn't that Gwynn become a blog favorite as well? IT'S TONY GWYNN CATCHING A FISH? That should be on EVERY BLOG. 

Also, I don't think I had that 84 Traded card of Cobra on the Reds, so that was a must, as I'm beginning to collect him more recently.

There were occasional bits of mojo, the occasional numbered card or relic or whatnot, and a lot of them would be gone by the time I'd turn up to these posts, but I did manage to snag a gold #'d to 2015 card of Phillies disappointment-turned-secret-weapon Marlon Byrd. It's like Giambi, because of the HGH thing I don't prioritize collecting him, but I can't pass something like this up.

Nick also threw in some non-giveaway-related things, including...

Yes, folks. My first taste of 2022 Topps came from this trade. I have had HORRIBLE retail luck, I haven't found 2022 Topps at any retail store by me, and I had planned to find some at a card show this past weekend [more on that, like, tomorrow], but before I could do that, these four Yankees came my way. Really, only Gio is a true perennial star, as Heaney was a disappointment, Frazier's probably a lost cause and Rougie is starting for Baltimore this year, but it was an opportunity to finally admit that this year's set is pretty cool, honestly. This design reminds me of the cool ones from 2013 to 2015. Not a ton of complaints. 

These were all needs for my burgeoning 2020 Archives set that I'm still working on. Some of these were pretty helpful, as guys like Cole and Rickey don't always come cheap...

And nor does Shohei Ohtani now that he's an absolutely huge player and sell. So this was really appreciated. 

Some beloved retired guys that were all new to me. I kinda love that A&G can leave room for people like Whitey Ford along with the obvious guys in their insert sets.

Current Yankee favorites, Gary and Gerrit. That Stars one is my first 2022 Topps insert, which is cool, and we also have my first taste of 2021 Topps Fire, which...I kinda like the Lichtenstenian feel of this design. It's bonkers as usual for Fire, but striking.

I was wondering why Nick had sent me two copies of this Cole, because I'd claimed one in the giveaways, and then I flipped one of them over preparing to scan, and...

...I didn't know that Fire foil parallels were a thing. So yes, a Gerrit Cole card numbered to 299 is definitely something I'm alright with.

Didi I can never get enough of. I always forget he's a Nederlander. Such a great ambassador for baseball, glad he's still local. 

Florial I'm thinking will eventually blossom for the Yanks, but if we do not, in fact, re-sign Gardner, the guy could actually get some room to play. This was a retail exclusive 88 Big Foil insert. 

The piece de resistance here, at least for me, was this one. There's a lot of uncertainty about Gary Sanchez, his rough spells, his lack of proper defense, but...when he's on, he's deadly, and he's been fun to watch on several occasions as a Yankee. I used to look for minor league cards of Sanchez before he came up, knowing he was a big time prospect. What I could never find was his 2010 Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects Chrome rookie card, as I just sort of figured 'there's no way it'll be affordable.' And yet here it is. At the end of the day, it's a true rookie of a great Yankee player, so even if he does bottom out, it'll at least have a nice spot in my collection, next to the Don Mattingly 91UD auto and the random Aaron Judge coin I got from a recent group break. 

This was a heck of a return, giveaway and all, from Nick, and I appreciated that he appealed to my more outlandish collecting patterns as well as knowing that most Yankees are gonna work for me anyway. 

Now...to scan through some of the ones I got from actual dime boxes yesterday...