2022 Hobby Goals!

[nevermore]

Did a lot of buying, going to focus on selling more the last third of the year. Have always funded hobby purchases through sales, and at the two-thirds mark, I am sitting in the red for the year.

a. Collection Goals

• Yankees Modern Topps/Heritage -- add 100 cards, need nearly all Topps & Heritage base and SP from past 3 years, shouldn't be too difficult -- Have not pursued any ultra-modern cards/commons, but added 4-5 SSPs.
• Yankees Vintage Topps -- add 50 cards (including upgrades), through purchases buy but also trade my higher-end autographs and rookies for these vintage needs. Become more selective with lower end cards. -- Added just about 50 cards between the NSCC and a few trades.
• Paul O'Neill -- add 25 cards, will be harder than the other goals - On pace, at the 18-20 mark.
• Autographs -- add 5 cards - mid to high end Yankees, Knicks, Rangers, Giants, HOFers -- Exceeded my goal of 5 cards.

b. Organization Goals

• Set up my office and card room (currently being painted!) -- At a stand still, waiting to refinish the floor and trim.
• Perform regular searches for vintage, until now my focus online has been on modern. I've typically reserved vintage additions for shows, but that has been at a standstill since 2018. Now the same cards I need are 2-3x the price. -- Better, added few high number cards to my searches. Down to about 45 vintage cards making this more manageable.
• Combine my website/spreadsheet. Currently I use Google Sites and Excel and have to edit/enter everything twice. Haven't been able to find a system where it publishes directly as a webpage without opening Google Sheets within a window. -- No progress here.

c. Hobby Goals

• Attend the National Show in Atlantic City -- Yes, made it to two days.
• Attend 2-3 local shows -- Has not happened.
• Explore other avenues for trading/sales -- Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Auction Houses -- Added the auction houses to my regular searches, but haven't utilized social media.

 

[Topnotchsy]

Life changed a lot for me in 2022. Towards the end of 2021, I met an incredible woman and got married this year. It was definitely a slower hobby year, though it was the best year of my life Thank-God, so no complaints at all.

For the most part my goals have not changed much of the past few years. 2022 looks similar to previous years, although looking ahead, some changes in my personal life may limit some of the financial flexibility. Time will tell.

1) Jackie Robinson signed baseball from his time in the ***** Leagues. There was a team ball from the team that went to Venezuela in 1945 that sold at Christie's a few year back. Would love to find where that one or similar. This remains my #1

No closer on this

2) ) I collect integration pieces in general and love finding contracts, but there is one other specific item I would love to pick up, and that's a ticket from Jackie Robinson's 1st Minor League game. They are rare and super expensive, though not as expensive as his Debut with the Dodgers so it may be possible.

No closer on this, and the price has spliked dramatically, so no longer really see this as a possibility (at this point in life at least).

3) Looking to find at least one contract from someone associated with Integration. Last year I was able to acquire Don Newcombe's 1946 Nashua Dodgers contract. I'd love to find his 1946 Danville Dodgers contract if such a thing even exists. (He and Campanella signed with Danville, who reported that they were not ready to integrate, and they re-signed to play in Nashua.) Another item I've been trying to find for years is Dan Bankhead's 1947 Dodgers contract.

No progress here. Bankhead's 1947 contract sold at Lelands a few weeks ago, but it was beyond my budget

4) Find at least 1 significant lineup card collection (happy to pay a finder's fee for anyone who connects me to someone and a deal is made). Still love all the research involved there.

No luck here, though I did find some nice individual lineup cards throughout the course of the year. The most significant were Ripken's 1st career HR. Ripken's record tying and breaking game, and Barry Bonds 400th career HR

5) Looking for a WWII-related Larry Doby item among other WWII-baseball items.

No luck here. I was able to acquire the Tuskegee Airman patch of former ***** Leaguer John "Mule" Miles, which is enormously significant for both WWII and ***** League history.

6) Would love to pick up some more barnstorming programs and other barnstorming-related items. Barnstorming games were maybe the first place that fans could see African American players playing against MLB players. So many big names toured including Ruth and Gehrig in their time, Jackie Robinson, Musial and so many others. Incredible and fascinating history tied to the tours.

No success on these

7) Hoping to find the remaining tickets from 9/11 I don't have, at least 1 ticket from a game that Jackie Robinson played football at UCLA (1939 and 1940), a Dec 7 1941 ticket (Pearl Harbor)

Just 1 9/11 ticket - Mariners/Angels. Found one program from Dec 7, 1941 between the Redskins and Eagles and was able to acquire a few Jackie Robinson UCLA tickets

 

[MrMet2.0]

Congrats on getting married, hopefully your best pick up ever


Sent from my iPhone using Freedom Card Board mobile app

 

[banjar]

Good one

And yes, congratulations on getting hitched.

Congrats on getting married, hopefully your best pick up ever


Sent from my iPhone using Freedom Card Board mobile app

 

[Topnotchsy]

Congrats on getting married, hopefully your best pick up ever


Sent from my iPhone using Freedom Card Board mobile app

No doubt about it. Thanks!

Good one

And yes, congratulations on getting hitched.

Thank you!

 

[banjar]

I was looking through this thread to see what I'd written at the beginning of the year, only to find I didn't write anything.

Well anyway, here's how I did on those goals I never told anyone about...

1) Land one white whale. Done! The 1999 Fleer Premium Star Rubies /50

2) Continue the progress I made last year on NOT buying new issues. Done! Even though Robbie got his ass banned from MLB, he still ended up with 197 unique issues for 2022 and counting. Of those, I have purchased exactly two. With two more on the way.

3) Finish scanning my collection and make a website. Done! See here:

firnquake.wix.com/alomar


Happy holidays everyone!

 

[smapdi]

This year went according to plan somewhat.

1) Continue chipping away at my 2021 Heritage Superset. I have over 1000 different cards from the product, but my target range just going by total count is around 1725. Some hard to find and expensive cards in the 700. Collecting Heritage was just different from years past with the odds on things being sooooo long, and people didn't seem to open it in the volume they used to because the value wasn't there.
- I did this, and still am. I was able to complete the Real Ones auto set, which made me happy as the checklist is pretty good. I knocked out a lot of the variations on the base set like the Errors and Nicknames, and only need 2 Throwbacks (Alternates). I am over 75% of the 1500+ cards I am primarily targeting, and at almost 60% of my stretch goal.

This set started out frustrating due to A) the doubling of the print run leading to B) good hits being that much harder to pull and C) the rookie class has yet to catch on, all of which makes people want to not open it anymore, which dictates D) good hits being very expensive relative to past years on release and E) continuing to dry up in the 21 months since release without dropping much in price so far. I still have a sealed case in my closet but only in my most feverish dreams do I think there's anything in there worth it. I just know I'll sell it someday and find out it has the Ohtani superfractor or something in there.

3) Finish 1941 Play Ball set. I only need 6, but they are Joe D, Dom D, Teddy Ballgame, Pee Wee, Greenberg, and Dickey.
-Did not pick up any of these. Makes me wonder if I really want to finish it.

4) Get a really nice vintage piece. The ship has sailed on PSA 4 1951 Bowman Mantles at affordable prices, but 1952 Bowmans are still gettable. Or a T206 Ty Cobb of some color. Cornerstone card.
-This is still at the top of my general hobby goals, but will require patience. As the market has comedown, the high end still kept going up, although slower. But I think I still will be able to get a 1951 Mantle at some point.

5) Same with a Ja Morant card. I've decided he's good, and I'd like to get a nice RC of his.
-Didn't buy a Ja card, or a Luka. There was a window during the summer where there were some bargains (relative to winter-spring pricing) to be had, but they seem to be gone now.

7) Continue to capitalize on the last waves of whatever the hell happened to the hobby in the last 2 years and sell more stuff profitably.
-I did this. Not as much as I wanted to or should have, but I definitely gave myself some liquidity.

 

[dano7]

1. Add 4 Hassan T202 cards - done last year....add 4 more this year
.....actually added about double that this year, including Shoeless Joe Jackson
2. Continue to look for a Frank Chance B-18 Blanket with yellow pennants - haven't found, so still a goal
....haven't seen one for sell
3. Continue to look for T209 Contentnea Roanoke players - nothing showed up last year....continues
....one showed but at a high price for a pretty beat up card, will continue to look
4. Make it to 1300 Yankee autographs - hit 1300, now on to 1350!
.....up to 1663
5. Work on getting 1957 Topps cards signed.
...... did these, plus other years! No longer a goal
6. 1960 Leaf Yankees....can't believe I overlooked adding these!!!!!
......Completed, no longer a goal.
7. Add another 1961 MVP autographed card.
....Added Don Newcombe

 

[michaelstepper]

It was brought up that a 2022 Goals thread hadn't been started and January is almost over!
I'll start. Feel free to share your Goals for the year hobby or otherwise

GOAL #1: I have 35 needs on my sweet spot signatures list (does not include 2005 GU subset) I would like to take 3-5 off that list realistically
 With the help of Nevermore I hit #5 for the year on this. So goal accomplished! I am however starting to move some of the lesser sets and names. 09 classic signatures, contemplating 02 or 03 classic at the moment.

GOAL #2: Pick up more Trout Gold and Griffey refractors. Be more choosy in my general pickups
Kept this going well. Picked up Trout 2022 bowman gold and topps logofractor gold as well as a handful of Griffey golds from various years.

GOAL #3: keep listing cards on eBay and Twitter. Want to move everything not sweet spot or select GU/autos. Put that money into savings and see where I'm at by the end of the year.
sold a group back in March to the tune of 4k and started selling again 3 weeks ago. So far making good sales. Not saving it as I've paid off my place, went on a two week trip around Utah, Arizona, Nevada and California and contemplating buying a truck now

GOAL #4: Decide what I'm doing with my HOF RC and GU collections, either Add to it or move 90% of it
HOF RC collection I decided to keep for the time being. Sold some of my GU. Still some to sell while I'm keeping a handful for the time being.

That's all I have for this year. Small and manageable
All in all it's been a positive year collection wise. I'm realizing its ok to let things go. Less is more and my kids could give 2 ***** about sportscards. So I may as well deal with it. I still love cards and will continue to collect but I can see myself moving more and more to the very little "necessities" I need to be happy

 

[thelesquad]

Knock off 10 of these.
View attachment 330054

I was only able to knock off 5, but some of them were big ones.

 

[Dilferules]

Okay how did I do in 2022:

- Get 25 of the 35 Trent Dilfer cards in 2021 Mosaic. 30 seems too tough since 3 of the 35 are 1/1 and who knows how many others are "SSP." These have been showing up kind of slowly.
YES. I actually blew past my "too tough" goal and got 33 of what turned out to be 36 different cards (there was an unannounced parallel).

- Get my 1988 Topps autographed set needs down to 20. I'm at 29 now so it seems reasonable but it's down to the real tough and/or expensive ones.
NOPE. Only got it down to 23 needed. I didn't search as much as I should have, and the remaining cards are either super tough to find or really expensive.

- Get my 1988-present Oakland A's player autograph needs into the single digits. At 31 now after just starting this project last year so it seems very doable, but I'll also have to keep up with all the new 2022 players.
YES. I managed to get my needs down to 9 despite the A's trotting out forty new players in 2022. And I only need 3 of the 31 guys I entered the year looking for.

- Cut my T205 & T206 A's needs to 5 cards. At 9 now, but commons are getting expensive. It wasn't that long ago that I could grab many that had eye appeal to me for $20 shipped, but I haven't been able to find any below $40 lately.
YES. I actually completed T206 and got my T205 needs down to a single card, the Eddie Collins "mouth open" variation.

- Finish several A's parallel team sets I'm within 1-3 cards of completing: 1991 Topps Desert Shield, 1994 Pinnacle Artist's Proofs, 1994 Pinnacle Museum Collection, 1995 UD Electric Gold, 1996 Collector's Choice Gold Signature, 1996 Stadium Club Extreme Players Gold, 1997 Circa Rave, 1997 Leaf Fractal Matrix Die Cuts, 1997 New Pinnacle Museum Collection, 1997 Score Showcase Series, 1998 Circa Thunder Rave, 1998 Donruss Gold Press Proofs, 1998 Flair Showcase Legacy, 1998 Leaf Fractal Matrix Die Cuts, 1998 Topps Chrome Refractors, 1999 Bowman Gold, 1999 SkyBox Thunder Rave, 2000 Bowman Gold, 2000 Bowman Chrome Refractors, 2000 Stadium Club First Day, 2000 Gold Label Gold/100, 2001 Bowman Chrome Gold Refractors, 2001 UD Exclusives Silver/100, 2003 Leaf Certified Mirror Gold, 2003 Topps Chrome Black Refractors, 2004 Bowman Chrome Gold Refractors, 2005 Reflections Turquoise/50, 2006 UD Gold/299, 2006 UD Special FX Green/50, 2009 Topps Black, 2012 Topps Black, 2013 Topps Black, 2014 Topps Black. Okay maybe a little optimistic but these are my top wants.
I completed 11 of these sets, so that's pretty solid. Sets completed were: 1991 Topps Desert Shield, 1994 Pinnacle Artist's Proofs, 1995 UD Electric Gold, 1997 Score Showcase Series, 1998 Donruss Gold Press Proofs, 1998 Flair Showcase Legacy, 1998 Leaf Fractal Matrix Die Cuts, 2001 Bowman Chrome Gold Refractors, 2003 Topps Chrome Black Refractors, 2009 Topps Black, and 2014 Topps Black.

- Finish scanning the nicer cards in my collection through the 2012-2016 teams. Had the same goal last year and made it like half or 2/3 of the way through before I went insane from all the cropping and editing. Hope I can at least get this finished this year so next year I can start working on the more current players.
YES. Though I think I will take a break from scanning any new players in 2023 and just keep up with my pickups.

- Finally, don't go overboard buying crap I don't really care about. I can't have everything so I need to be better about focusing my money on the cards that bring me the most joy.
Mostly. I picked up some junk here and there but usually stuck with sets I was trying to complete and cards I really liked rather than just buying whatever looked like a good deal and caught my eye.