Want List Pickups; Big and Small

Given that my Baseball card want list is roughly 6 pages long, it often appears unlikely that I'll ever complete certain base or insert sets that I've been piecing together for years now, like 1976 Topps, for instance.

Besides my player collections, the want list exemplifies virtually everything else that I collect, from the 1959 Fleer Ted Williams set to the last 3 (almost 4) sets of Topps Heritage, and everything else in between. 

The problem is; with multiple different sets to focus on, it takes longer to complete the products on the want list. It's somewhat frustrating for somebody as impatient as myself, but the wait is most definitely worth it when I place that final card of the set into its respective sheet.

On the occasions when I can't find everything that I'm looking for at the Baseball card show or for a fair price online, trading with other bloggers has become my go-to option for checking cards off the want list. 

All it takes is leaving the list on my blog and initiating some trades with fellow bloggers as well as viewers. If not for the generosity of my trading partners, I'd be much further away from completing the sets on my want list.

Recently, I completed a trade with Greg of Night Owl Cards in an effort to acquire more cards from various sets on the want list. 

The package arrived in the mail earlier this week, a few weeks after we finalized up the trade, but honestly, that wasn't the end of the world. Thanks to Greg's generosity, I've made progress towards completing certain sets.

For example, the 2015 Topps set which has maintained the title of my favorite Topps base set of the decade in light of the somewhat recent release of 2019 Topps Series 1. To me, 2015 Topps is a much-improved version of the 1990 Flagship set.

My decision to start collecting this set was based on the fact that I had already accumulated a couple hundred of the cards, mainly through Fairfield 20-pack repack boxes. Now, I'm only 121 cards away from completing the greatest Flagship set of the century. To put this into perspective, I'm roughly 83% of the way there.

The color-centric borders are paired with equally impressive photography to create a set that remains quite difficult to beat. The attention to detail is evident, leaving many of the cards, like Jose Quintana's, looking as if they belong in Topps Stadium Club. 

Even though the cards are fairly common pickups, it'll still be very rewarding to complete this product after almost 3 years of piecing it together.

Much like the standard frankenset posts that I post roughly once a week, I'm also in the process of creating an Allen & Ginter mini frankenset that I'll likely create a series for once it's finished. I have 350 spots in the checklist, meaning I'm encompassing base cards and SPs, and I've already filled somewhere around 1/3 of the spots. 

When I initially began this project, I debated on adding Gypsy Queen minis and thus having an Allen & Ginter and Gypsy Queen mini frankenset, allowing me to complete the set faster. However, Greg has sent me minis for the frankenset on multiple different occasions, and because of the cards that he's sent me, I'm determined to keep this frankenset exclusive to A&G mini cards.

This Stephen Piscotty mini was likely my favorite of a group that encompassed both Baseball players and non-sport individuals as well. A&G minis aren't typically something that dealers sell individually at Baseball card shows, and they don't turn up too often in the dime bins, so it seems likely that I'll be counting trading and COMC to get this frankenset completed.

The older Topps sets are where I begin to run into trouble when it comes to completing sets, though my completing of 1972 and 1975 Topps last year has made me more confident in my ability to complete 2 other 70s products, those being 1976 and 1979 Topps.

The main issue with completing 1979 Topps lies with how many cards I need to track down, not necessarily many major name rookies or high-number veterans. The checklist consists of around 720 total cards, and I've managed to complete roughly 1/3 of the set over the last couple years. 

Like A&G minis, I don't see too much of this set at the card show, but that doesn't mean I won't be looking when I (hopefully) head to the Mansfield show tomorrow.

The 1976 Topps set is a similar story, though the 660-card checklist is definitely less daunting. Even though it's not as widely-loved as some of the other 70s sets, '76 Topps ranks in the top 10 of my favorite Topps sets of all-time without a doubt. 

Despite my best efforts, I understand that it's going to take a while before sets like '76, '79, and 2015 Topps are completed, but if I've learned anything, it's that completing a set of cards is an incredible goal to accomplish, no matter what the product is. 

As long as I keep trading and buying a reasonable number of cards from the sets that I'm piecing together, I should be able to complete at least 1 major set of cards from my want list this year. 

The Benefits of Twitter

Up until a couple of weeks ago, I never really saw the benefits of having my own Twitter account.

In terms of the baseball card collecting community, I simply saw Twitter as a place for the high-rollers and case breakers to post their highlights from their breaks as well as the occasional blogger to post about what's going on in their card collecting world at the moment.

Point is, I was on Twitter using my account @cardboardgreats simply to stay up to date with other bloggers' updates that they couldn't post on the blog and not really for much else. That is until I began to take notice of sales happening right there in front of me.

Towards the middle of last month, I saw other bloggers post highlights from Twitter sales that they had completed. At first, I was skeptical since Twitter isn't as secure of a selling site as, say Sportlots, COMC, or eBay. However, I quickly learned that there were tons of dependable sellers out there who were just looking to unload their cards for a good price.

Eventually, I came across a Twitter user named @StadiumLites who had announced the start of a sale in which I decided to take part in, making this my very first experience of buying cards on Twitter. 

In addition to the usual suspects, that being player collection cards, I was also able to find a couple cards that I need for my 2018 Topps Chrome set, all delivered to me for less than the price of a blaster box.

Whether it was Donruss or Fleer cards from the 80's or more oddball cards from the 90's, I definitely appreciated the variety of player collection cards available, all for very fair prices. For many of the PC cards claimed, they seemed to typically be dime cards ranging to quarter cards. Either way, the range of different cards available is greater or at least equal to what I usually see in the dime bins at the show, like the 10 cent Joe Carter or 25 cent Cecil Fielder card shown above.

I never really thought I'd get super into these "virtual dime or quarter boxes" but I must say I was definitely wrong. In fact, I can definitely see myself coming back for more sometime soon.

In addition to having cards to choose from available in 10 or 25 cents per card lots, there was also a fair share of multi-card lots you could buy for a fixed price, giving this mega sale even more variety and choices. I didn't spring for too many of them, but one of them that I couldn't resist was this 6-card Astros lot for $2. Given how well Houston played all year and against the Indians recently, this lot is a pretty great deal when you consider the only player in this lot that I don't (yet) collect is Yuli Gurriel.

More so than nearly any other set, this seller had a surplus of 2018 Topps Fire, a set I have not even looked for at Target yet. Don't get me wrong, I think they have a good idea with the base card designs, but it's not something I would purchase retail.

However, just like I did last year, I am fully on board with picking up a few of these cards for my player collections if I see them for the right price. Most of the guys I grabbed were retired players and all the Topps Fire cards I picked up were 3 for $1, a price I definitely believe seems fair. Especially when you realize that this is my 100th Ernie Banks card, the newest member of the 100 card club.

As far as card design goes, my favorite cards of the entire group would have to be these Fired Up insert cards that I picked up for $1.25 each. With 2 players I collect, Manny Machado and Clayton Kershaw available, I was more than happy to go for it and buy these cards, because I knew I wouldn't have much of a chance at them in the future, and I am a huge fan of this extremely colorful insert card design, especially the orange jersey on the Machado card.

Like I said, I didn't want to stick to just player collection cards, especially if I saw any set needs available for the right price. Low and behold, I was able to bring home a couple of needs from my 2018 Topps Chrome set that I've been unable to pull in packs thus far. 

The addition of the Corey Seager Superstar Sensations inserts gets me 1 card closer towards completing that insert set. However, the biggest addition is definitely the Ozzie Albies Freshman Flash which checks a major name off the insert set filled with big name rookies whose cards I need to chase down in order to complete my 2018 Topps Chrome master set.

But it was this card, an image variation Buster Posey from 2018 Topps Chrome, that was easily the best deal of the entire purchase at a mere $3.

One of my highest prioritized current player collections, Posey was hovering around 75 cards last time I checked, including another variation card similar to this. That card is a capless variation from 2018 Topps Gypsy Queen that I bought in the dime bin earlier this year. As for the chrome card, it's the 2nd one I have in my collection with the first being Robinson Cano. I was very much surprised to see this card for such a good deal and needless to say, I didn't waste any time in claiming it.

Although I didn't know if it would be for me, I'm very glad I discovered buying cards on Twitter. Now, in case I didn't already have enough options, I have another way to purchase cards if I'm getting that baseball card fever.