Tag Archives: Gerrit cole

Sports Card Hotlist for March 18th 2013

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Cgilmo: The Las Vegas Industry Summit is on the way, and I am at home sick following along like all of you are.  Twitter has been a really effective tool in tracking this event as news hits there before anywhere else.  Thanks to Sooz, Sports Card Radio and company for keeping the tweets up.

Big news from the event has come from UD in the form of a MLBPA license.  While I think that it cuts out a lot of leg work for them in that they don’t have to sign individual contracts anymore I don’t think it does much else that they couldn’t already do.  I see products like last years SP Signature and I’m confused why they didn’t use images of athletes at all.  That led to a highly anticipated product being one of the weakest sets in recent years.

What is certain is that there will be a 2013 Fleer Retro baseball in the works as they has a side show about it during the industry summit.  The football and basketball versions have been among the strongest products of this past card season.  Strong enough to secure yet another #1 slot in Corry Gross’s hot list.

Russell Wilson2012 Fleer Retro Precious Metal Gems Football

Fleer is starting to party like it’s 1997 with its Retro Precious Metal Gems release. They brought back the set with parallels of red (/100), blue (/50) and green (/10) that are selling for big money. Out of the 100 cards in the set, 60 of them are rookies, and they are selling for premium prices, especially if they are of RG3, Doug Martin or Russell Wilson.

RG3′s red gems are selling for $125 and Wilson’s are up to $93. Pretty premium stuff considering that these are not even autographed. Maybe nostalgia is kicking in and people are really kicking it back old school.

Javier Baez2011 Javier Baez Bowman Sterling Autographs

Baez, the Cubs’ top prospect has held his own in Spring Training, especially in the late innings. He has come up clutch recently by hitting walk-off home runs and hitting multiple in a couple games. He has hit 4 home runs in only 14 games and has shown the raw power that he has that the scouts see in him. He may strike out a lot, but he was also hit many home runs.

With Baez showing his power, his cards have shown promise. His Bowman Sterling autographs are up to $36 this week after selling for only $15-$17 last week. His power trip has given prospectors the chance to unload their Baez stash.

Jackie BradleyJackie Bradley Jr. Autographs

Many people are excited to see what JBJ can do with the Red Sox, but they may have to wait a bit longer. Although he has impressed this spring by batting .457, he may have to wait until Jacoby Ellsbury is out the door. The South Carolina product has succeeded at every level and continues to impress.

Bradley Jr.’s cards have been on the rise this whole month. His autographs first came out in 2010 with Team USA, and they were a hot sell then, but have risen based on his prospect status. Even his 2011 Panini Prime Cuts autographs are up to the $25 mark and his low-end 2011 Leaf Metal Draft autographs are up to $15. 2012 Bowman Chrome autographs are also $60 plus. His autographs will continue to climb as he progresses towards the big leagues.

gerritt coleGerrit Cole Autographs

Another USA Baseball product, Gerrit Cole has been on a Spring Training hot streak. Many scouts seem impressed by his maturity and say that he could start the season with the Pirates, but he will most likely start in Triple-A. Once a number one pick in the 2011 MLB Draft, Cole consistently hits high 90s on the radar gun, and even touches 100 at times.

Cole’s autographs are selling for pretty decent prices even though he is a Pirates prospect. A 2012 Bowman Chrome Blue Refractor autograph BGS 9.5/10 sold for a hefty $200. Base autographs sell for between $35 and $50. Non-autographed parallels are also selling. A blue refractor sold for $20. Even his over-produced USA autographs sell for a solid $15.

Julio TeheranJulio Teheran Chrome Autographs

We’ve seen this before. Julio Teheran puts up great Minor League and Spring Training numbers, but it hasn’t translated in the big leagues. He is off to a great start again, posting a 1.29 ERA through four starts. Teheran seems to be a streaky player either doing really hot or really cold.

Because of his hot streak, his cards have heated up. His 2010 Bowman Chrome autographed refractors are up to $55 when they were around the $35 mark the last couple of weeks. His base ITG autos are up to $10, which is considered the low, low end. Hopefully his success can translate in the Braves’ rotation.

 

Lamar MillerLamar Miller Autographs

Since Reggie Bush was shipped out of Miami, there seems to be a new hot name in town. Lamar Miller played at the University of Miami and was drafted in the 4th round last year. Miller looks to be the frontrunner in taking over for Bush. Miller is expected to share the majority of the carries with Daniel Thomas.

Miller’s Topps Chome autographs were selling for $10 or less last week, but with Reggie Bush’s departure made more evident, they jumped to around the $20 mark. His refractor autographs /178 are up to the $40 mark. This still could be considered a bargain if he has a breakout season this year.

Jurickson Profar2011 Leaf Valiant Jurickson Profar Autographs

Profar has gotten a lot of attention recently being the top prospect in Major League Baseball. Not only that, but he was on the World Baseball Classic Kingdom of the Netherlands team, then off again, and now back on again. We will see if he can lead the team to victory. Another question looming is can he can make the Rangers team out of Spring Training? He has all the tools, but Andrus and Kinsler are blocking him in the middle infield.

Profar’s Leaf Valiant autos have seen a jump recently, moving from $32 to $45 in a short week. These will continue to rise if he can show the promise that the scouts see.

wheeler

FCB Prospect Hot List, Issue #1

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Greetings, fellow prospectors.

Every other week, I will be releasing my list of baseball prospects who are either receiving a significant amount of hype, have had excellent performances recently, or both.

Recently, I created a “prototype” version of a Hot List, which you can find here. Afterwards, FCB owner Chris Gilmore asked if I could make this a bi-weekly column to supplement the FCB weekly Hot List. Unlike that list, this will cover baseball prospects exclusively.

It’s already a busy time of year where prospects are concerned, and Spring Training hasn’t even started yet.

Bottom line – the anticipation and hype are what’s fueling prices right now. In addition, the college baseball season began this past weekend, for those who prospect amateur players. And finally, there’s Baseball America’s annual Top 100 prospects list, which fans the flame even higher where prospect card values are concerned.

As a bonus, I will also include a “sleeper” on each list, i.e., a prospect whose card values have yet to reach their potential, but have the possibility to do so.

1) Oscar Taveras. There really is no serious competition right now for the top spot. The Cards’ GM compared Taveras’ hitting skills to that of Albert Pujols recently, and people are pouncing all over his cards. His base autographed Bowman Chromes are now fetching as much as $147 each, and his Refractor autos are getting up to $275.

2) Dylan Bundy. If Taveras is the top hitting prospect where card values are concerned, Bundy is the top pitcher. People are speculating as to whether or not this ace-in-waiting could break camp with the O’s, and his cards are steadily increasing. A base Chrome auto just sold for triple digits.

3) Xander Bogaerts. Being a great hitting prospect is a good thing. Being a power hitter helps his stock even more. And playing for the Red Sox’s organization just blows up his cards even further. A base Chrome just brought in $100, and a Blue Refractor auto brought over $250 recently, up from $175.

4) Jurickson Profar. While it’s looking increasingly likely he’ll start the year in AAA, the fact he topped Keith Law’s, Jonathan Mayo’s and Baseball America’s Top 100 prospects lists means his cards won’t be slowing down anytime soon. A Refractor auto sold for $190 recently.

5) Zack Wheeler. The top pitching prospect in the Mets’ system by far, like Bundy his cards are also steadily increasing, as a base Chrome auto sold for $70.

6) Christian Yelich. Another product of the recently released Top 100 lists, his hitting ability is finally being recognized where values are concerned. A lot of two of his base Chrome autos sold for $85 recently.

7) Gerrit Cole. He has arguably the top velocity in the minors, and isn’t far from Pittsburgh. People are already anticipating him becoming the ace they’ve sorely needed, as a Blue Refractor auto sold for $150 recently, up from the $105-125 range.

8) Austin Meadows. It’s never too early to speculate on potential 5-tool prospects, and he fits the bill. Many still don’t realize his base Chrome USA autos are in shorter supply than his Refractor autos, which are numbered to 199. One just sold for $90, and if the hype continues, they won’t be under $100 for long. In addition, a Purple Refractor auto sold for over $730.

My Weekly Sleeper – Shelby Miller. No, he’s obviously not a sleeper as a prospect, but the fact that Chris Carpenter won’t be pitching again anytime soon opens the door for him to win a rotation spot. You can still find his base Chrome autos in the $20-$25 range (as of now). Get ‘em while you can.

Topps Piling On The Goods with 2012 Bowman Wrapper Redemption

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I don’t think that anyone is going to have a problem selling 2012 Bowman Baseball.  And that was BEFORE this news about a wrapper redemption was announced.  Topps will add “blue wave” refractor parallel5 card packs to the pot as a wrapper redemption, thus making people want this product to come out even more.  Here is the release from the Topps Company:

COUNTING DOWN TO 2012 BOWMAN BASEBALL…Buy it, Rip it and Send it to Receive a FREE Pack of Exclusive BLUE WAVE Parallels

Announcement #2 – Topps Teams with MLB Players Association for 2012 Bowman Baseball Wrapper Redemption Program!

2012 Bowman Baseball streets May 9th, so be sure to get to your local hobby shop and get ripping!   Why?  Because the first collectors to send in 24 hobby or 7 HTA wrappers will  receive a FREE 5-card pack of exclusive Blue Wave Refractor Parallel cards!  And that is not all!  Bonus autographed cards featuring hot prospects such as Josh Bell, Dante Bichette, Jr., Gerrit Cole, Matt Purke and many more have been randomly inserted into these packs making them even better!

There are only 10,000 of these exclusive packs so pick up 2012 Bowman Baseball on May 9th, rip it and send it right away to make sure you do not  miss out!  Once we receive wrappers for 10,000 packs we will no longer fulfill.  For real time updates, follow us on facebook and twitter @toppscards, because these will go QUICKLY!

Check back for more information as Topps releases it.