MrMopar's New Dodgers Autograph Thread (and other interesting items on a slow mailday)

[mrmopar]

Another larger mail day, at least for items I am showing here.

Garvey Archives /15. Won't be getting all of these this year. Too many nuts driving up prices on /99 cards into the /25 & /10 range for some weird reason.



Already had this, but it was a decent price and although he was not Vin Scully, he had a heck of a long career with the Dodgers. Jaime Jarrin.



I also got another Peter O'Malley, on his fathers HOF plaque card. Again, not as good as landing his father Walter (would still like to find one of his sister Terry), but still a cool executive auto for the Dodgers.



Last item was a score in my mind. I think I paid around $6. This may be my first Red Sox Buckner auto too. These 2004 Timeless Teams cards are pretty popular and have a wide array of signers. A great way to get some somewhat obscure certified autos, along with the normal stars. There is no shortage of Buckner autographs thankfully, but this particular one is cool. Would love to have the gold, as those look incredible with all the foil on this particular design.

 

[mrmopar]

Forgot to log on and report yesterday. This is the McKinstry that I got for $under $12 delivered. Here is to hoping I can finally land one of the 86T retro cards eventually, maybe for even less than $10!!

 

[mrmopar]

Got this one in yesterday and was so unimpressed that I forgot to post it earlier with the ZM. It's /12. Another overpriced archives card. I think I am done with that set unless something very special pops up. The uninformed have driven the prices of new Garvey autographs into the range that will go badly for all, even when he dies! Who (and why) are people buying up Garvery autos all of the sudden at prices I wouldn't even pay for cards I don't have!? He hasn't done anything in decades and will likely never get inducted into the HOF. Weird...

 

[Pinbreaker]

I finally received my Topps Now World Series 2020 Auto's..

Cody Bellinger /25
Max Muncey /99

 

[mrmopar]

I finally received my Topps Now World Series 2020 Auto's..

Cody Bellinger /25
Max Muncey /99

Nice. Never bought any Topps Now stuff.

Here is what I picked up this last several days.

Zach Reks - This was an actual new signature, as he made his debut in 2021. I am currently needing 6 (3 new debuts and 3 vets that came via trade that will be more expensive than I want to pay for any of them, Betts, Scherzer and Trea Turner!). Lately many of the debuts have been guys with no autos out there. I have picked up several new Dodger addition autos though, but can't showcase them as they are locked away at COMC (5 total new additions in 2021 from other teams). I will share those when my final COMC order arrives.

The other new addition is what I believe is my first Al Downing certified card, as a good one at that. Love the 2008 UD Timeless Teams set.

 

[mrmopar]

Got a nice mix of goodies today, lots of Dodger/Garvey stuff that was mostly unsigned, but the Dodger auto related pick-ups are as follows:

Choi Bowman. Tried and tried to win one for under $10 over the last couple of months and finally succeeded. I already had an off brand/set card, but wanted to try to get one of these. With my luck, it'll probably be a $1 card soon enough.

A nice Dave Stewart Fleer RC. This was only $4.


This one was a major surprise, but I guess it goes to show what people value too. Maybe it was just a deal (sometimes they happen). Didn't expect to even win this card /5, but when I did, I expected to have to pay my full snipe bid. Further shocked to find I got it for $32! There is a nasty corner ding, mainly seen from the side or back, but hardly at all from the front. It's a sticker auto too, but for $32 and numbered to /5, I'll take it!! Greg Maddux.




The last item is pretty damn cool. I am not one to put a lot of premium into items for their significance. I am a collector for fun and like my money to go as far as I can make it go. Good stuff=$$$ and thus, less fun stuff. When I saw this letter, a couple things caught my eye. The first was that it is an early player signature. The 2nd was the hotel stationary. The Davenport is a well known and (at least now) high end hotel in Spokane. Maybe at that time, not so much, since a minor leaguer was potentially staying there? What really grabbed me though was the letter content, describing what this player was doing for the Indians at the time, in 32 games he was hitting .315 with 5 HR & 40 RBIs. That is not a bad line at all, even though it was minor league level. The letter is not dated, so I can't pinpoint exactly when it was written, but I am going to guess either May-June or August of 1970, with June being the most likely candidate. I say this because he was with the Dodgers most of April, from opening day April 7 to the 27th. Then he was back up July 6-22. Finally, a late season call up from September 10 until the final season game on October 1st. in between those stints, I presume he was playing in Spokane otherwise. The stat line could have been a season combined total at the time he wrote the letter or from a longer stretch where he was tracking just the latest games played between trips to the majors, as he played a total of 95 games in Spokane in 1970. I would love to find a site that shows box scores of games played by Spokane in 1970 and see if it would be possible to pinpoint exactly, or at least within a few days, of when this letter was written. I didn't see anything on baseball-reference, but i can only skim the surface of what that site has to offer.

The item was listed at $19.99 with BO. I figured I'd try and offered $30. Of course, almost always I regret making offers on unique items and worried about someone else making a better offer (at least there was no BIN option). I decided to let this one go though. It was not long before my offer was declined. No counter, so I went back and bid the opening price, eliminating the BO feature. I was hoping for a steal, but expecting the worst. It's always nice to win an auction for less than your offer, although I doubted this would happen here. When the final hammer fell, I was winner at $48. In the end, my offer was not insultingly low for the end price, but then again the final price was not exceptionally higher than the offer either. Seller made about twice the opening bid price instead of 1.5x the opening bid. I would have loved to pay less, but I am fine with what I did have to pay for such a cool piece.

Steve Garvey letter from 1970, sent while he was in the minor leagues playing with the Spokane Indians and likely between stints with the Dodgers. Rookie era signature on Davenport Hotel letterhead. If only this were dated and/or came with the original envelope it was sent it, how cool would that have been?

 

[Therion]

I love letters!

 

[MrMet]

Got this one in yesterday and was so unimpressed that I forgot to post it earlier with the ZM. It's /12. Another overpriced archives card. I think I am done with that set unless something very special pops up. The uninformed have driven the prices of new Garvey autographs into the range that will go badly for all, even when he dies! Who (and why) are people buying up Garvery autos all of the sudden at prices I wouldn't even pay for cards I don't have!? He hasn't done anything in decades and will likely never get inducted into the HOF. Weird...

View attachment 309654

I wanna know what he’s sitting on, lol


Sent from my iPhone using Freedom Card Board mobile app

 

[mrmopar]

Another letter in, but this one was just for a nice signature. The content is nothing, but nice Padres letterhead. I think this is Bavasi's signature. You never know when secretaries write letters for executives though, sometimes they signed them too.

Buzzie Bavasi, then Padres President, but previously a Dodgers executive for many years.



Another low print Garvey archives. I keep managing to squeak wins in on these, but all a little higher than I really want to pay, but clearly not high enough for me to lose out. This one is the Boardwalk and Baseball set and is /15. Too bad it isn't the "No Slash" variant to make it interesting. That would probably be a 1/1, if one existed.


Not autos, but these are cool. I love 60s-80s Dodgers material of any kind. These are basically ticket brochures in the form of 6-7 page booklets. 1973-75. I have them as old as 1971 and as new as around 1983 or so.



These oddball tidbits have also arrived in the last week or so, that I didn't show then, but figure why not now. A couple souvenir catalogs that Danny Goodman would send out. One from 1961 and I believe the other is from around 1967. I have a couple dozen of these from various years. Always welcome more, especially those I don't already have.



These catalogs that I have never seen or heard of. Looks like it was maybe a collector/dealer who put out an annual? catalog. I grabbed it because of the Garvey ad on the back of one, but I also love old card catalogs too. Seeing the prices of stuff back when everything was cheap is a trip! TCMA, Renata Galasso & Pacific Trading Cards are my three favorites, because I got them and used them as a kid. Others are welcome too, but I don't like to spend a ton on them unless there is a Garvey tie in. Some I have that I got via the mail and saved include Kit Young, Fritsch Cards, Mike Wheat, Wayne Varner's Shoe Box Cards and a few other sellers.

Lastly, a cool countertop display for the RBI Club, something the Padres did that Garvey was associated with. Love that this still has all the forms attached, but not loving the tear (which I didn't notice when I bought it). Still, how many of these survived, so beggars can't be choosy.

 

[mrmopar]

...

 

[mrmopar]

A couple Garvey items, one magazine "poster" signed and a Topps card that is a dupe, /50, which all of the sudden is rare?!



I didn't need his auto, but wanted a Bowman card. I lost many of these over the last couple years, then I end up winning 3 in one day from the same seller. I honestly didn't expect to win any of them as my bids were low, so maybe the bottom finally fell out? Willie Calhoun, who is no longer with the Dodgers and never got into a MLB game with them. Showed some power in 2019 with Texas, hitting 21 HR. That was his best season to date. The Dodgers essentially gave him up to borrow Yu Darvish for a season!



The exciting pick up of the day is Trea Turner. Looking at his prices, I figured it might take some time to land an affordable card, but was able to get this one for a decent price, I guess. More that I should have probably paid, but he is having a breakout kind of year and if he can hold strong, maybe takes home a batting title. This crosses one off the Dodger wantlist. Excluding the guys I have at COMC, I still need 6. If I don't count those until I have them in hand, I still need 12! 2021 has been a tough year to keep up with new roster additions.

 

[mrmopar]

OK, more mail woes. Am I the only one who had to beat on the door every couple of months to get everything being shipped to me? This has gotten stupid. Not going to raise the BP thinking about it, but because THIS came today, it reminded me another version showed delivered yesterday or maybe Saturday and it was NOT! Now I have to call the PO, sit on hold for an hour and file a claim, just to have the card show up (hopefully, hasn't failed me yet) in a day or two later. It's just weird. Can they find lost mail once we report it all of the sudden? Someone isn't that stupid to steal tracked mail and hope nobody asks??? WFT???

Andruw Jones Archives /25



This is another one that will get a story shortly, but for now. Pete Reiser Cuts /73. OK, it's basically a 3x5 card, but I (and millions others) are fooled into paying many times more because they framed it nicely. Sucker item, but I still like them.

 

[mrmopar]

Billy Buck on the right team from the Timeless Teams set. 1974 edition. I was so focused on Garvey at the time these came out that I missed a lot of cool stuff (gold's /5, bronze /50, various autos, etc. My recently more relaxed stance on collecting Garvey has opened my eyes to other stuff more so now than ever.

 

[WizardofOz1982]

OK, more mail woes. Am I the only one who had to beat on the door every couple of months to get everything being shipped to me? This has gotten stupid. Not going to raise the BP thinking about it, but because THIS came today, it reminded me another version showed delivered yesterday or maybe Saturday and it was NOT! Now I have to call the PO, sit on hold for an hour and file a claim, just to have the card show up (hopefully, hasn't failed me yet) in a day or two later. It's just weird. Can they find lost mail once we report it all of the sudden? Someone isn't that stupid to steal tracked mail and hope nobody asks??? WFT???

Andruw Jones Archives /25

View attachment 311461

This is another one that will get a story shortly, but for now. Pete Reiser Cuts /73. OK, it's basically a 3x5 card, but I (and millions others) are fooled into paying many times more because they framed it nicely. Sucker item, but I still like them.

View attachment 311462

3x5 cut or not that Reiser is one nice looking card.

 

[mrmopar]

Today was a nice mail day for Dodgers autos.

This is a dupe, but never expected to win the first, let alone the 2nd. Another Reiser cut!



Another old timer, may be the only (besides cuts) certified Reese.



A new Garvey /25. The item is too small for a good signature.

This is the other Archives Jones i bought, except this is not the one that is currently showing delivered, but lost in the USPS system. In the time that I discovered this card was shown as delivered, but I did not receive, I found another, won it at auction and it delivered today. The other copy is still "pending", if the USPS can even admit they F$%ked up! Even if they do, I doubt their do anything about it. I guess there is still a sliver of a chance it will turn up. Strange things happening with USPS these days. This one is /16. Amazed I could find another, let alone win it within a few weeks of winning the first. Deja Vu, like the Reiser!



From a quality standpoint, this last item is the worst of the batch. however, it fill s a need cardmakers have not. This is a fairly crude custom. It's too bad whoever made these didn't have more skill, like a Tanner. I understand Marichal is still a fairly responsive signer, but with a $5 off code, I paid just a little more than what I hear he charges ($15), plus I don't have to deal with the what if's of a TTM, the part I can't stand, thus why I don't do very many. The card has a full back too, so that is nice. I would still love to see some sort of certified Marichal with the Dodgers, but with only 2 games pitched and a HOF career with the rival Giants, I doubt it will happen. This will do for now...

 

[mrmopar]

Time to eat some crow. My lost Andruw Jones card was actually my fault! Today I drove into work and when i was leaving, I opened the passenger door to load up some files and my computer and saw something between the seat and the door. Turns out it was a bubble mailer. As soon as I picked it up, I knew what it was.

I am embarrassed by this, but happy to have it safe in hand. I will add that I do still have an item that is still "lost" in the USPS system, this being the 12th day it is showing at a recovery center about 50 miles to my south. No response from the PO yet on that one, but the great news is this was an ACEO print card and the artist will make me a new one if it goes lost.



So two exact card dupes this week. i have never minded dupes and certainly not nice autographed cards for sure, so all is good.

 

[mrmopar]

just one in after a fabulous mail day, so can't complain.

Another Garvey Archives, this one /76

 

[mrmopar]

One in to mention, another Archives Marichal. I have this one, but /17 and the unique Red Sox card made dupes easy to go for, at the right price. I have added A LOT of Marichal autos in the last year or so. I just can't seem to stop, even though he was mostly a Giant.

 

[mrmopar]

Man,

I guess I missed some good stuff on the 94 UDCC print error thread that is now closed and all OP responses deleted! I miss all the good stuff. Maybe he'll come and try to mock me in my own unrelated thread like that one guy did when he didn't like my harmless comment about one of his cards.

Back to the thread, in progress...

Another 74 Juan Marichal, this one is a non-certified copy. I can't pass on this card.

Then a guy yet to see action with the Dodgers. Knack.

Lastly, a couple Dukes. Scioscia ia on a magazine sized sheet, I believe some sort of promotional item that was likely given away at games, an appearance or perhaps the car dealer who sponsored it, maybe all 3? They don't come around much and I try to grab any when I see them, signed or not. Then there is an early Dave Stewart on a 1980 TCMA card.

Not a great deal of money spent and a nice array of items. This is why I like to collect cards, for this kind of stuff. Fun, not "what'll this be worth in 20 years?" stuff.

 

[Dilferules]

Man,

I guess I missed some good stuff on the 94 UDCC print error thread that is now closed and all OP responses deleted! I miss all the good stuff. Maybe he'll come and try to mock me in my own unrelated thread like that one guy did when he didn't like my harmless comment about one of his cards.

Don't worry, you'll get another chance when he comes back after he lists the cards on eBay for a bargain BIN of $10,000 each.