Tag Archives: Albert Pujols

Leaf_Albert_Pujols_Patch_Auto_3-25

Leaf Metal Baseball to Hit Hobby Store Shelves Soon

Posted on by

With the current boredom in the baseball card market, niche products normally fill the void in the market and give collectors as well as sports card sites like this something to talk about.

Leaf Metal Baseball will release soon and it should make for a pretty good intro to the new draft and prospect class.  Much like the inclusion of Ichiro Suzuki last year, they will rely on Albert Pujols and Pete Rose to add value to the set.  The Pete isn’t a big deal given the abundance of his autographs that Leaf has produced this year, but some of these Albert Pujols items should be highly sought after.

To celebrate the release, Leaf has given us a half case of this product to give away group break style in the FCB U stream room.  This break will be run by Leaf President Brian Gray live and he will ship your card directly to you.

To enter, stay tuned to this thread as people will post in it for a shot at one of the draft slots.

ESPN’s Top 10 from a Cardboard Perspective

Posted on by

The season is under way, and ESPN recently came out with their list of the top 500 players in baseball. Zeroing in on the Top 10, one can debate the merits of the selection and order. Undoubtedly though, the list includes ten of the best players in baseball, and due to their popularity, these players offer many collecting options. Here I’ll discuss a bit about their rookie cards in general and, specifically, their most popular rookie autograph releases:

1. Albert Pujols: Pujols broke into the Majors in 2001 and was the rare player who did not have a rookie card before he reached the “bigs.” This (along with Ichiro’s RC season) made for some pretty exciting times in the hobby, and the card companies capitalized releasing a huge variety of rookie, rookie autograph, and insert cards of the slugger. It was also the first time I recall a company put a redemption into a product without saying what it was for. (Five redemptions cards for RC’s were inserted in Fleer Premium for unnamed rookie cards, one of which was later revealed to be Pujols.) The “Holy Grail” of all Pujols rookie cards (and the “Holy Grail” for many modern collectors) is the 2001 Bowman Chrome Albert Pujols RC Autograph /500. Cost of Chrome RC Auto: recent BGS 9s have sold in the $4000–$5000 range.

2. Roy Halladay: Halladay’s rookie cards stem from 1997, and offerings include Bowman, Bowman Chrome, and Bowman’s Best. His Bowman Chrome RC card is a popular one amongst collectors; though his most highly regarded first-year cards are likely his Bowman Autographs. While they are inserts, they’ve been accepted by collectors much like any other rookie autograph and command serious prices. The card comes in three versions: blue ink, black ink (which sometimes looks red if it is faded), and gold ink. Estimates of the gold ink version are as low as 50–100 copies. They are also extremely condition sensitive with black-back borders, and in decent condition they command a nice premium. Price of a Bowman Auto: $175–$225 while a BGS 9 got $700. (Note that the price on raw copies is way down from where it has been over the last year or two.)

3. Miguel Cabrera: Cabrera is another guy with very few options. His rookie cards are from 2000 and are limited to Topps Traded and Topps Chrome Traded—both boxed sets. Thankfully for rookie autograph collectors, Topps Traded offered an autographed option—a card that has been extremely popular since Cabrera captured the attention of the hobby during the 2003 playoffs as a 20 year old. The Topps Traded autograph is also condition sensitive as the boxed sets led to many dinged corners. The card was also one that was commonly trimmed, so buying graded is recommended. 8.5s often net a premium over raw. Price on 2000 Topps Traded Auto: $400+ for raw; $600+ for BGS 9, though a recent copy went for $844 indicating that his hot start and pairing with Prince Fielder may lead to increased hobby interest.

4. Justin Verlander: Verlander, like Pujols, has a wide array of rookie cards and autographs, and like Pujols his most popular is his Bowman Chrome Autograph. Unlike Pujols though, his card is not limited to 500 copies. By 2005 Bowman Chrome had all sorts of parallels, so collectors who are looking for Chrome can shoot for the parallel that best fits their collection or budget. Because Verlander has so many rookie autographs, there is one that fits most price ranges. Even after his MVP season rookie autographs can be found for $30–$40. Price for a Bowman Chrome RC Auto: $100-$120.

5. Felix Hernandez: King Felix took the Majors by storm as a 19 year old in 2005, but collectors had already been picking his cards up since 2004. He had a variety of cards produced all by Topps and two rookie autographs: Bowman Chrome and Bowman’s Best. His Chrome card has been extremely popular for years. As the final release before Chrome introduced 1/1s and began upping the number of parallels, his best may very well be his gold refractor autograph, a tough card, but one that can be found with some patience (and an open wallet.) Price for a Bowman Chrome Auto: $75–$100.

6. Ryan Braun: The 2011 MVP does not have a huge number of rookie cards to choose from, but he has some very low-end releases as well as a whole bunch of nice rookie autographs. His most popular rookie autograph is his Bowman Chrome Autograph (anyone sensing a trend), but he also has a Bowman Sterling option and a Bowman Heritage Auto. (The red auto parallel /51 is in my opinion one of the underrated cards available. It is basically as rare as a gold refractor and, when found, costs a small fraction of the price.) Price of a Bowman Chrome Auto: $110–$130.

7. Clayton Kershaw: Another one whose Chrome Rookie autograph dominates the discussion, last year’s Cy Young Award winner has never posted an ERA above 3. Kershaw is also the first (and only one) on the list that has actually two Bowman Chrome autographs. While his 2006 version is the most popular, his 2008 version is a nice looking on-card autograph at a pretty reasonable price point. His 2006 BC Auto can be had in the $65–$80 range. (Interestingly his Xfractors have tended to be very cheap relative to other parallels.)

8. Troy Tulowitzki: A rare star over the last few years that does not have a Bowman Chrome RC Autograph, his only rookie autograph stems from the fairly obscure Topps Rookie Cup. (Tulowitzki’s Bowman Chrome cards are still very popular and collectible.) While the Rookie Cup cards are sticker autos, they do have a nice large picture of Troy and a bevy of parallels to satisfy rainbow collectors and those looking for more high-end options. The base version of the Topps Rookie Cup Auto can be had in the $55–$70 range.

9. Tim Lincecum: Owner of tw0 Cy Young Awards and featured on a ton of cards in 2007 (a search for Lincecum (2007, 07) nets over 600 results), his most popular offering (like so many others on the list) is his Bowman Chrome Autograph and parallels. Rare Lincecum Chrome parallels sell for as most as almost anyone who has ever had a Chrome release; though he has many other rookie autographs available—including a great looking Exquisite RC Auto /199. Chrome RC Autos sell for around $150, while the Exquisite card can be had for a little less than that.

10. Robinson Cano: While Cano had a wide variety of rookie cards produced in 2003, the rarer stuff sells really well. A Bowman Chrome Refractor BGS 10 recently sold for over $500! Raw copies of his refractor and Xfractor can run you $150 or so, so it’s not just the BGS graded ones. A relatively young star playing under the biggest spotlight in baseball can do that to a player. Cano also has just a single rookie year autograph: an insert in Bowman Heritage. It’s a condition sensitive card, and the print does not appear to be all that high as there are rarely more than a few copies on eBay at a time.

FCB Weekly Hot List December 9th 2011 Edition

Posted on by

So, for better or worse, I kind of enjoyed the introduction element to the Hot List last week.  If you ever read Matthew Berry’s (a.k.a the Talented Mr. Roto) Love/Hate for that week of NFL football, you’ll recall that he writes these long winded introductions that begin with something seemingly disconnected from the world of fantasy football and eventually he weaves it back in.  I’m not as long winded a writer, talented a story teller, or strange a mind as Matthew Berry but I certainly liked the introduction.

In what should seemingly be a bit of a slow period for sports – with the college football season over outside of bowl games, college basketball in the non-conference portion of the season, baseball in the offseason, the NBA, uh not playing and the NFL in full swing, there was a TON going on this week.  At this point you are going to stop and say but Phil, this is a list about what’s going on in cards, not what is going on in the sports world – particularly with your rambling commentary.  Right you would be but if you remember the words “regression analysis” from your last statistics class let me assure that these sports world actions have about a 95% R^2 value as it relates to card fluctuations.

All this is good if you are a guy that writes a Hot List based on the movement of cards (harken back to last week’s “hey these cards are selling well list”).  It means you have lots of fodder for writing, so lets strap on the feedbag shall we and get to the fodder, I mean, the list.

1. Ron Santo Autographs

Santo

Comments: Ok, cut me some slack on this one, (I can never say cut me some slack without hearing in my head the words of one of my college roomates to whom English was a second language, “Phil, cut me some slacks!!!”  No problem Tao, I’ll get right on that).  As a guy who spent his formative years in Illinois listening to Cubs baseball on the radio, Ron Santo was more than just a 3rd basemen who played baseball prior to my birth.  He was the guy in the booth who was not a radio guy, not a good color guy and really not a great fit for the job other than he was a HUGE Cubs homer that yelled unintelligible words when both good things and bad things happened for the Cubs.  Listening to him when things went well made you all that much more excited and I’m not really sure there is a purer way to experience baseball (aside from the park itself) than driving home on a summer evening listening to the home team radio broadcast. /nostalgia.  As we’ve talked about many times before on the Hot List there are typically two things that cause retired players cards to change value rapidly.  Death and the Hall of Fame – surely a stark contrast.  Unfortunately both of these events are recent for Mr. Santo – the most recent being a postmortem selection to the HOF which I shall refrain from commenting on and simply mention that it cause tons of BINs and Best Offers to get hit on his autos, often for double what they had previously sold for.

2. Adrian Houser 2011 Bowman Chrome Draft Golds & Up

Houser

Comments: A few weeks back I commented on the death, or at least downgraded of non-auto’d cards in Bowman Draft.  When I mention Adrian Houser you probably understand that a little more fully because your first thought is “Whose Adrian”, or, “Yo! Adrian!” if you’ve watched every Rocky movie 10 times or more like I have.  Adrian is actually a promising 18 year old prospect for the Houston Astros who was previously selling for next to nothing even Orange Refractors which sold for under $20 or less.  Prospectors rooted out this fact and his cards promptly bumped up, Oranges are now selling for $40 and Golds $25.  Remember 2006 Bowman Draft?  Billy Rowell Non-Auto Blue Refractors sold for near $80, as Mr. Dylan would say “The Times They are a Changin’.”

3. Albert Pujols 2001 Rookie Cards

Pujols

Comments: Would you give a 31 year old guy who has had a couple of his worst statistical years during the last two years a contract that represents $25 million a year for 10 years?  Yeah, I wouldn’t either.  Would you leave a place where you had a chance to become an icon on the level of Stan Musial or more?  Me neither.  Would you leave a place where you just won a World Series and had a good possibility for more wins?  Nope, me either.  However, I am not, you are not the owners of the Angels, nor are we Albert Pujols and if he wants to go get paid somewhere other than St. Louis he’s more than welcome too and that’s that.  As a Cubs fan I rejoice of his departure from the NL Central, now we shall get rid of Prince and the Cubs shall race to the division win, NOT.  Any time there is this kind of news you can bet a whole new slew of fans, Angels fans that is are going to want a Pujols card of their own.  As a result 2001 Topps Traded cards jumped from $35 to around the $50 mark.  Maybe they can re-write Angels in the Outfield to Angel in the Infield.

4. Chris Paul 2005-06 Rookie Autos

Paul

Comments: We know one thing that David Stern isn’t and that’s in the business of making friends.  He has the entire Laker nation as well as a few card collectors fairly upset with him at this juncture.  Chris Paul’s Rookie Autos like the SPx one popped up to $150 from $100 this afternoon on the expectation that Paul was going to be traded in a 3-way deal for Gasol and Lamar Odom.  However, what they weren’t bargaining for is that the owner of the New Orleans Hornets is THE NBA and David Stern lived up to his last name rejecting the trade that would put Chris Paul on a whole new stage and for now Chris is a Hornet.

5. Yu Darvish 2009 Bowman Chrome & Sterling Parallels

Yu

Comments: Hey Yu, out there in the cold.  Can you hear me?  Although my first couple of sentences there reference a wonderful Pink Floyd song, I can assure you, there are major league teams feeling that way.  Yu is a major international talent on the level of Dice-K (who’s that you say?  yeah, that guy) and his signing with a big league team could be big money both for the team that signs him and for his cards.  As speculation rises and falls on who Yu will sign with you can expect his card values to do the same.  This week a gold refractor from 2009 Bowman Chrome sold for $160 which is roughly the same as an Orange Refractor sold for last week – so yes, that’s a nice move up.

6. Demaryius Thomas 2010 Playoff Contenders RCs

Thomas

Comments: As some point I think we all knew Tebow was going to have to do at least a little more throwing to make the whole thing work and last week he found Demaryius Thomas 4 times for 144 yards.  Demaryius has been plagued with injuries his first couple years in the league (a slightly smaller plague than that of his first name which always reminds me of a unit of currency used in Roman times) but when he’s healthy man the guy has skills.  Wide receivers from Georgia Tech tend to be big strong and fast and I can assure you that Broncos fans would love to see a little more of Mr. Thomas.  I think most collectors are taking a bit of a wait and see type approach but Demaryius’ Contenders Autos did move from $4 to $8 this week

7. Victor Cruz 2010 Playoff Contenders Autos

Cruz

Comments: Throughout the NFL season there are players making appearances on this list only to drop off into oblivion the next week and for all the remaining weeks.  Many of these are wide receivers that may have a huge game and then disappear.  I’ll be the first to admit that I thought Victor Cruz could be a guy in that category.  He had an immense game and made an appearance on the list when Mario Manningham was out and I figured that when Super Mario return Victor would get warped straight into King Bowser’s castle where catching passes isn’t easy.  However, this hasn’t been the case and Victor’s production has kept up and so have his card prices – Contenders moved from $30 into the $40s this week and the card pictured above sold for nearly a kilabuck.
8. T.J Yates 2011 Auto Rookies

Yates

Comments: Someone forgot to tell T.J. that he was a third string rookie quarterback from North Carolina of whom little was expected.  Well, let me tell you this – playing quarterback is easy when you can hand the ball of to Arian Foster over 30 times in a game, its also easier when you can throw the ball in the general vicinity of Andre Johnson and have it caught but at the end of the day – its still playing QB in the NFL.  T.J. just did that and guided the playoff bound Texans to a victory on Sunday

9. Tim Tebow High End Autograph Rookies

Tebow

Comments: Speaking of guiding teams to wins, the Tebow story really is pretty incredible.  Act #1 – fans want Tebow, unhappy with Kyle “neckbeard” Orton and boo him at all opportunites.  Act #2 – neckbeard does not perform up to standards, Broncos suck generally and fans boo at every opportunity, they boo even when there aren’t opportunities  Act #3 – finally Tebow gets an opportunity to come in an play against the San Diego Chargers and very nearly guides them to a comeback victory, one of the few times of the year the Chargers don’t blow it (don’t worry they tried)  Act #4 – against what nearly every expert predicted Tebow guides the Broncos on a five game winning streak and back into the race in the awful AFC West  Act #5 – well, we’ll have to wait and see.  Tim’s a divisive figure on a number of topics but suffice it to say, he has his fans and as a result his high-end rookie cards are really rolling on eBay – Exquisites like the one pictured above are close to $600 now

10. Charles Woodson 2011 Autographs

Woodson

Comments: The Packers have had this stock sale thing going on, it’s kind of odd but I’m thinking of doing the same thing, odd timing right?  Pretty much – you give me $50, in return you get a slip of paper with a Phil embossed logo on it and pretty much nothing else.  If you’re looking to have input on decisions I might make regarding those $50 you gave me, forget it.  Looking to get them back?  Forget that too.  Looking to sell them to someone else?  Well you better hope the paper’s worth something.  Get the point?  It’s truly just a donation to Packers and people are making them in droves.  However, speaking of making things in droves it is absolutely not what Panini did with one of the Packers’ favorites Charles Woodson autos – his Panini autos continue to leak out very slowly, often numbered to 10 or less and often selling for $300 or more.