Procrastination is a hell of a thing. No matter how much time I have to do something, I often find myself doing it at the last minute. It’s currently 1:45 am on Thursday night, and all I have done for this list is research. I even found myself making up something to do “oh honey, I have to go to the store tonight to shampoo the floors”. While it’s true that I did go do that, it clearly could have waited and this list is more important.
Number one on the hot list is obviously this Donavan McNabb item that you now need to pay me $5 for sending you the link to. If you missed that thread, then you missed a screwball thread that is up there with many other bird brain threads immortalized in the FCB Hall of Shame. What isn’t shameful is the cards on this weeks hot list.
#1. Jorge Soler Leaf Metal Autos
When a Leaf Metal base prismatic autograph debuts at $100 it belongs on any sports card hot list known to man. This card has become the new bar for the unlicensed Leaf trading card company that you hear so much about on FCB.
The card will decline some when a bowman chrome autograph is released but for now these cards going for a bill is absolutely insane. We have seen international signings come out with all sorts of hype. But we haven’t seen a $100 unlicensed card of a kid who hasn’t taken a professional swing. Miguel Sano has proven plenty and his chrome autograph isn’t any where near this high.
That’s the funny thing about supply and demand in this hobby. Short supply can sometimes create demand that might not have been there in the first place. Hats off to Jorge for defecting and getting to America to play baseball. He has to be the envy of his peers that are still seeking to do the same.
#2 Trent Richardson Finest Autos
I see that I have one more week to homer Trent Richardson. Fine by me, as he means a lot to me as a player because of what he did in college at the University of Alabama.
If you are a defensive coordinator and you are playing the Browns this week what do you hope to shut down? The rich multi level passing game of Brandon Weeden? The obvious answer is the ground game and specifically Trent. He hasn’t gotten a full load of carries yet but the results are already outstanding as he leads all rookies in rushing. If he steps his performance up just a little bit you just might see him in the pro bowl. He’s also proven to be very capable in the screen game. That is something that not many people saw coming out of Alabama as all they really had to do most of the time was line up and run the football at you.
This Topps Finest parallel version has reflected his good overall play as it moved from a previous sale of $110 to $250.
#3 JJ Watt Contenders Autographs
Anyone watching Texans games this year knows that Watt has been absolutely dominating. He isn’t the slow and clunky defensive lineman from Wisconsin that many lesser informed football fans thought he was coming out of last years NFL draft. He has become one of the best defensive players in football and his cards are starting to reflect that. This card in particular doubled from $20 to $40. Other Watt rookie cards are also doing quite well as his stuff has seen a large spike across the board.
Anyone doubting his athletecisim won’t after watching this video. Have questions about his strength? Then this video is for you. Any way you slice it, this guy is going to be a dominant force in the NFL for as long as he is healthy.
#4 2012 Leaf Metal Draft Baseball Redemption Cards
This is new. A card is on the list not because of the player but because it is a redemption card. Collectors hate redemption cards right? Well in this case they are going after some of the subjects in Leaf Metal draft because they want to try their hands at getting the extra stuff that come along with redeeming the cards.
Redemption cards in this product can be good for up to 5 copies of the card. I don’t think any other company has done this, but could you imagine the frenzy if they did? Here is to hoping this catches on.
#5 Alex Green Rookie Autographs
Every year you see a few blind stabs taken by card companies on offensive skill position players. Sometimes they pay off big, and other times it’s just a card in a product that people don’t want to pull. Alex Green was one of those guys you didn’t want to pull in 2011.
Those that did pull him did one of two things. They put the card away because they thought hey, he’s at least a Packer running back and the way they are set up he could explode James Starks style any minute now. Or they tossed it up on ebay for the $1.25 his chrome autographs were selling for at the time.
If you held back, this week might have been the week to break them out he finally saw some playing time and was named the new “starter” by Mike McCarthy. I put starter in quotes because it means he will get the first carry, and does not necessarily mean he will get the bulk of them. Coach McCarthy said it himself ““I have no time for competition. We’re going to take the hot hand”. Last week was still a welcome sight to those holding his rookie cards as chrome autographs went from $1 to $10. It’s probably the biggest percentage climb on this list.
#6 Buster Posey Autographs and Other Stuff
The playoffs in baseball have a mystical effect on people. When big players step up and do big things on that stage crazy things can happen in the sports memorabilia world.
After his grand slam in the decisive game 5 of the NL Wild Card series pretty much turned the lights out on The Red’s world series hopes and turned the lights back on what has been a rough year for his collectibles.
Buy it nows started flying after this game left and right with some pretty high numbers. He’s already one of the brightest young stars in the game. That grand slam just added another item to his resume.
#7 Matt Schaub Low End 2004 Autographs
If your NFL team is winning it’s obviously the quarterback doing something right… right? That’s not necessarily true, as the Broncos showed last year winning in spite of Tim Tebow.
But the Texans are one of the hottest teams in the NFL and their Quarterback is playing well. Statistically he’s had two great weeks and three average ones. Still a win for a quarterback is the most important statistic they get and Matt has as many 2012 wins as anyone in football.
All he really has to do is hand the ball to Arian Foster or Ben Tate to control the clock and let his defense do the talking. Sounds like a pretty easy job to me.
As far as cards go, there really hasn’t been much in terms of a price spike in the expensive stuff. Collectors are peeking in slowly buying the Bowman Signs of the Future or the SP Reflections autograph while admiring the SP Authentic patch autograph from a distance. I used the SP in the preview image because it’s pretty.
Talent is talent, and this guy has it. Not only is he a talented artist, he is creative enough to use mediums that you wouldn’t expect. His website says that he has transitioned from “see the picture, paint the picture” to using material unique to the subject matter he is portraying.
Baseball card portraits seem to be his specialty. He has done some other great work with wood splinters and even band-aids on a Frank Thomas portrait.
Tim also frequently sells his paintings off for charity. His Namath item entitled “Broadway” was auctioned off with the proceeds going to buy necessity items for victims of the 2011 Mississippi tornadoes.
