Redemption

    A couple years ago I gave this up in a trade; the green Holiday Bowman Luis Robert numbered 14/99. I tried for a long time to get it back from John (GTT), and succeeded to do so on my birthday this year.

    This is Luis alongside the guy I traded him away for (2016 Topps #447 Ben Zobrist). Let's just say I didn't yet appreciate, or understand, the value of serial numbering. Neither did I know what a parallel was. I didn't have to give up a ton to get the card back, and John was pretty cool with the deal. THANK YOU!

    My birthday was ages ago. I just never posted on my 'gifts' from my friend John, though I've been planning on doing it for a long time. Better late than never I guess. 

    Besides trading me back my Luis Robert for a pretty cheap return, he made some other trades with me, and sold me a bunch of cards for a nickel apiece.

    I shall start with the oldest card traded/sold to me that day. 1959 Topps is an interesting set. Honestly, I kinda like the design. I like the bordering for the pictures. I'm not a huge fan of facsimilie autographs though (and yet one of my favorite sets is 2007 Topps). Wally Post had a solid 15-year career with the Reds/Redlegs, Phillies, Indians, and Twins. He played 1,204 games and hit .266/.323/.485 with 210 home runs. He finished 12th in MVP voting in 1955 when he hit .309 with 40 home runs while playing a league-leading 154 games. 

    I also acquired a handfull of 1961 Topps. They may not be in the best condition (especially you Joe Pignatano), but I will never complain about cards over 60 years old, and John is my main source of these.

    Next we have some 1966 Topps. The most notable player here is Lee Maye, who had a solid 13-year career.

    Moving ahead a few years to 1980. I do really like this design, as well as all three of these cards. Frank Tanana is one of my favorites, and I could muse over Ozzie Smith for a long while. 

    We enter the 21st century with some Cal Berkely alumni. Of course, I had to get my hands on Marcus Semien, who cost me only a nickel, and then I added Tyson Ross to make sure Marcus doesn't get lonely. Ross played from 2010-2019. He didn't have the flashiest record in the world at 44-70, but he was an all-star in 2014. I also have the Mark Cahna card from this set, but forgot to take a pic :)

    Tulo is a PC guy for me, and I will not complain about his roommate, Bringer of Rain. The 2016 Topps Back to Back cards have a most interesting and unique design. I like it. The backwards letters are cool, and I like the effect starting on the top and going down the middle of the card where it looks all broken up. 

    I also got these. I like to gather the old contest cards and checklists, which makes it super easy to trade cheaply with every person I do face-to-face trades with.

    I wasn't entirely sure what to make of this card when I got it from John. It's cool to get a card of a senator/actor that has at least something to do with baseball. After reading the back I appreciate the card more.

    Also got the Ketel Marte rookie card. I didn't know who he was until I added him to my fantasy team in 2019. It's funny to think that I knew almost nothing about the baseball players until 2019.

    And I will finish with these two packs of 1994 Upper Deck Denny's Holograms. After seeing on the internet what these bad boys look like, I may open up these single-card packs soon, because they're awesome! It's only a 28-card set; once I open these, I will probably try for the whole package, assuming they're easy enough to find and the prices are acceptable.

    I got plenty more cards from John, but these were the 'highlights' of the day, so to speak. So, months later, I thank you again John for the cool cards. I'm looking forward to when we can trade again.

    I'm afraid I've reached the time when the post ends and I have to sign off. Until next time, thank y'all for reading, have a great rest of the week, and happy collecting!