A Winner Is Crowned - And A Gypsy Queen Group Break Update

Hey everyone, I have looked over all the entries and I really wish I could get a shirt made for each and every one of them... even Napkin Doon's delve into foul-mouthery. I laughed my @$$ off on that one Mr. Doon.  But alas, only one can win. I decided that there was one selection that best fit my blog, and that captured what I wanted to say on my shirt...

So... the winner is Jeffrey with "Got Astros?"

Let me explain... 1) It plays off the "Got Milk?" slogan, so people will "get it". 2) I hunt down Astros cards near and far in trades, sales, and any other method. I want Astros cards. I don't want cards of guys who were once Astros but now play for the Cardinals. (With all due apologies to Nolan Ryan, I will always his cards regardless of team, one exception to the rule is allowed, right?) 3) It's a true statement from day one of the blog and will be true until this blog is defunct. I want Astros cards!!!!!

Alright, so congrats Jeffrey, once I get your shirt size, I'll get the order placed! Thanks everyone who participated, I wish I had the moo-la to buy everyone a shirt for participating!!!!



As for the 2013 Topps Gypsy Queen Group Case Break... we are about to enter the last full month before product release. I now have just 6 slots remaining. Starting right now, all slots will be discounted $5 for anyone. All my current participants had a shot at $5 off, so now I give everyone a chance. That means the Rockies, A's, Marlins, Twins, and Rays will be $20 each. The Reds will be $30.

On March 15, these prices will all drop another $5... and finally, the last week of the break, they'll drop another $5.

So, here's your chance to get in cheap on this break! Click the link above, read the break rules, and then claim the team of your choice in the comments section!

Thanks everyone!

Blogger Contest - I need a Slogan!

I have been contacted by the fine folks over at DressUnited.Com, they are a sister company of Build-A-Sign.com and are offering me a bit of a promo: a free designed t-shirt for a review of their product. I have the color scheme and the logo of course, the problem is that I'm not creative enough to come up with a catchy slogan, something funny or on point to put on the back of the t-shirt. So I figured I would poll my audience and see what you have to say.

What should The Daily Dimwit slogan be? Should it be hilarious and irreverant, or topical and descriptive of things I do on this blog (mainly group breaks and showing off the ridiculous number of Astros cards I end up with)? You decide... leave a comment on this post with whatever you feel is the most appropriate slogan for my humble blog. The wife and I will look over all the entries and decide which one we can put on the back of a t-shirt without causing a riot.

So, I bet you're saying, "this is a contest Mr. Dimwit, what the heck is the prize for the winner?!?!?" Well, the first thing I'll do is pull some cards for you from whatever team you collect. Also, when I order my free t-shirt, I'll order another one and give it away to the winner. So, cards and a t-shirt! I know you all are chomping at the proverbial bit to think of something witty to say. Please don't let it be, "The Daily Dimwit: Where crappy contest prizes abound!"

Alright, contest opens today and ends whenever I feel like ending it. Most likely in 2-3 days as I figure anyone who is really interested will get their entries in today...

Have a great day everyone!

UPDATE: Multiple entries are not only ALLOWED, but encouraged!!!!!

Some Great Teams Still Available In My 2013 Gypsy Queen Group Break

There are still 8 teams left in my Case Break of 2013 Gypsy Queen... this is going to be a lot of fun! At least 40 hits!!!

Where are my fans of Colorado, Miami, Milwaukee, Minnesota, Oakland, Tampa, Cincinnati and the New York METS?!?!? You know you want in on this...

I Caught A Wicked Case of Spring Fever

Ok, so I went to the LCS today... upon driving 3/4 of the way to work this morning, I got a call that the storm in the area knocked out power to our trailer completely, so no work... I grabbed my Spring Fever redemption cards, 7 in total. I ended up with 25 cards towards the complete set... no auto's... so I decided to scan in the duplicates in hopes of stirring up the trade waters if anyone else was collecting the set...

I really like the cards, they are nice looking and fun. I've got the Carlos Pena Astros card on the way from Crackin' Wax (thanks a lot Topps for putting loser Carlos Pena in the set... TOPPS you suck, I mean that in the meanest possible way it could be taken, I'm tired of the Astros being treated like crap and used as a sticker dump in TWO SETS for a guy who has played exactly zero games for us and who isn't guaranteed a spot on the roster coming out of Spring Training... ok, rant over).

Or is it... I got into a brief exchange on Twitter with @ToppsCards after I said that it was apparent the Astros weren't important to Topps, and they said me saying that was unfair. Is it??? Is it really Topps? For years now we haven't been able to get a Biggio or Bagwell relic even though there are numerous retired Yankees, Red Sox and Mets (and plenty other "major market teams") getting all kinds of cards made, and some of these with resumes dramatically less than either of the Astros legends. Biggio gets teased in Series One for autos and relics yet since it's been out I've seen exactly ONE redemption card pulled or put on eBay for any Biggio relic or auto (and it was #'ed /10) Congrats to you lucky 10 who end up with one, because I certainly won't have the luck to pull it. Ridiculous Topps, stop the travi-sham-ockary and just rename your company NYTopps or something.

But for real, if you want to trade off any Spring Fever cards please let me know, I'd love to complete this set...

The Dimwit Is Back

Well folks, I'm back... the trip to Houston wasn't under the most pleasant circumstances, but it was a good 5 1/2 days with the family. Anyways, I thought I'd show off some cards that were waiting for me in the mail upon my return...

First up, Watt and Sandoval were a couple of eBay pick up. One for my growing Texans hit stash and the other for my now (approximately, since there is no definitive checklist) 50% complete Gypsy Queen autograph checklist! By my count there are somewhere near 48-50 OFFICIAL GQ autographs and Sandoval makes 24 in-hand. There are some big names I'll likely never get, but oh well.

Next up, a trade with Colbey over at Cardboard Collections. This one got held up by USPS over some ransom postage, but eventually made it's way here... thanks Colbey!

Finally some loot from a group break over at Capt. Kirk's Trading Card Blog. I ended up with the Astros, Tigers, White Sox and Indians... and I have a BUNCH of White Sox, Tigers and Indians cards that'll go to lucky collectors with their next trade packages! Haha!

Thanks for the support everyone, your kind words meant a lot. Glad to be back!

Brief Hiatus

Hey guys... going silent for a few days. My grandma passed away on Sunday and I have headed to Houston until this coming Sunday so I wont be posting much. Have a good week everyone.

Another Nice Mailday...

Well after doing my taxes this morning, I will warn you now that at some point this summer my wife and I will be sipping tropical beverages on a hot beach somewhere... or maybe drinking wine in Italy, we'll see where the wheel-o-vacation lands. Needless to say we were pretty happy with our Turbo Tax results...

I did pick up a couple cards in the mail today, a nice trade with a Facebook acquaintance that ended up a lot better than my first Facebook trade experience. I got this Texans beauty:

Wow! A laundry tag and a nice patch! Andre is the man... Mario, well I think we all see what he is now that he went to Buffalo and stunk it up there as well: Over-rated.

Next up, another auto in my seemingly never ending 2011 GQ Auto Chase:

Jose has a nice auto. I wish more players took the time to make it legible. I sign my name about 20-40 times a day on official work stuff, I could make it this nice if I wanted to but I will admit, most of mine end up looking like scribble. Good thing those docs aren't important! We're only building a multi-billion dollar refinery...

Hope you all had a great weekend! And go sign up for the last 8 slots in the 2013 GQ BREAK!!! DO IT NOW!!!!

GROUP BREAK UPDATE - 2013 Topps Gypsy Queen CASE BREAK

For those in, and for those interested in, the 2013 Gypsy Queen Case Break, I have updated the main sign in page.

After a lot of research and talking to some people in the know, it seems we may not see a finalized checklist until a week or two in advance of release, and that's just too long to wait.

Due to this, I have decided to go with my initial inklings for the pricing levels for each team. Each slot that has been claimed has been updated with the final "what you owe" or the "available for" dollar amounts. Please shoot me an e-mail when you think you'll be able to pay if there's going to be a significant delay. I'd like to go ahead and get the pre-order in ASAP so that we can lock in the very generous rate that Atlanta Sports Cards has offered. If there turns out to be a huge swing in the overall checklist (say, for instance, the Yankees end up with only 1-2 possible hits, yea right, then I'll do some refunds and cover the drastic change in expectations myself). I don't want to see anyone get hosed in this process.

http://www.thedailydimwit.com/p/2013-topps-gypsy-queen-test-page.html

There are still 8 slots left and 6 of them are at the lowest level of entry $25. The Mets and Reds are the only two teams left at a premium.

Anyone who is already in the break can take one of the 8 remaining teams at a $5 discount. Thanks everyone. If you're wanting to claim one of the 8 remaining teams, please do so via comment in the linked Group Break page.

Please e-mail me if you have any concerns.

Trade o' Plenty!

I had one heck of a mail day today! Let's get started...

First up, Roy from plain gray swatch... we made a Series one swap and I ended up with a stack of Astros and then these beauts:

I really like the mini inserts, and luckily they are plentiful! And I drool over the die cuts! Yes, for those wondering, I do have a want list... there are three insert sets I'm going after, these two and "The Greats". I have not published a want list yet, but if you want to make a deal then e-mail me and we can swap info.

Next up, David aka Rhubarb Runner... he's had some vagabond Astros hits in his "For Trade" list for a while, and I had some Twins relics that weren't gaining a lot of attention, so a deal was struck!

None of these guys are still with the organization, shocking I know, but the only one I'd still like to have is Buck. He was jettisoned to the Royals in the Carlos Beltran deal. Thanks David!

Next up is Daniel from It's Like Having My Own Card Shop, a rare breed: The Diamondbacks fan. Not a lot of bloggers out there trading, wheeling and dealing D-Backs, so when he inquired about the Brandon Webb manu-relic I pulled in one of my boxes of Series 1, I jumped on the chance to make a deal:

I got a nice stack of Astros again, and this awesome Bagwell relic! Thanks Dan!

Speaking of fans of lesser-followed teams, I want to say thanks to Zac from The Underdog Card Collector. Zac is returning to the hobby after some time off (familiar story around here) and he sent me a nice stack of Astros, Rangers and Nolan Ryan cards the other day, I forgot to scan them before I put them away, but thanks Zac, and all of you take a minute to add Zac to your blogroll, google reader or whatever bookmark you use to follow all your blogs.

Finally, a package from good friend Dennis of Too Many Verlanders/Grandersons/MichiganWolverines/YouGetThePoint We've exchanged cards many times over the past few years and he thought he'd surprise me on my end of the latest deal... here's the loot:

Ok, so Dennis sent along a big stack of Astros and Texans cards as well. Two more silks! I'm getting closer and closer! A funny thing on the Quintero, there was an eBay seller who had (2) of these, and I noticed his count of available Quintero's go from 2 to 1, and freaked out, buying the remaining one with a lowball offer. Then, this shows up today... and it's the same serial number as the one in the eBay post... DOH! Dennis bought the first one for me, then I picked up the second one... any Quintero fans out there????? Hahaha! I really like the Bourn A&G auto and the Saarloos auto/relic is nice too! Thanks Dennis for another great deal!


For my 2013 Gypsy Queen Group Breakers ----- I will have an update in the next day or two on pricing. Things aren't coming together exactly as I had planned as far as the checklist being released, but I've found a reasonable solution and we'll get things moving along soon enough. I don't want this to drag out for weeks until the product finally releases, I want to secure everything and then patiently wait for the boxes to get here....

2013 Topps Turkey Red

Collectors kind of got blitzed with the release of 2013 Topps Turkey Red. We knew it was coming but the details weren't all there, and then all of the sudden it drops. I can't say I'm surprised at Topps' marketing campaign on this one: Here's something new, shiny and an "on-line exclusive"... now buy a crap-ton of it. Here's my thoughts on the set:

1) 100-card base set: sorry but it's just too small. Surprisingly enough, there are 2 Astros in the set, someone at Topps must have been drunk. But in a 30 team league, certainly there are enough players on each team to give them 3 cards a set and make it 150 cards AT LEAST.
2) 11 cards per pack, one of which is an auto, for $20... well it's $20 if you were one of the lucky people to get a pack online during their window of sales, now it's going to set you back anywhere from $35-40 depending on which price gouger seller you go through. At least you're guaranteed an auto...
3) Which brings up my third point... have you seen the autograph checklist? There's guys on there that only their mothers would recognize. And for the Astros, we have the one and only Carlos Pena!!!! Who we just signed!!! Who may very well be in a Tampa Uniform on this card, who knows...

To me, this is just another of Topps' mistakes, where they throw a set out there knowing people will fumble over each other to get their 10 packs and rake in the dough. It's a money grab. Well, if I want any of the cards, I'm sure I will find them cheap on eBay...

eBay Mail Day

First of all, a big thanks to all who have already signed up for the 2013 Gypsy Queen Case Break! There are only 12 teams left as of this post: Colorado, Miami, Milwaukee, Minnesota, Oakland, Tampa, Cincinnati, Kansas City, NY Mets, Atlanta, L.A. Dodgers, and Washington. I'm very surprised with Atlanta, NY Mets and Dodgers, those are usually some of the fastest teams to fly off the shelf. I'm assuming some of you may be waiting for the checklist to be finalized and I understand completely.

I will say this though, I have a certain amount of money that I'll be personally investing in this case break if I need to pick up the last few teams. With the number of teams already claimed, THIS CASE BREAK IS GOING TO HAPPEN. We are fully funded, so if you want it you can join in with confidence that this case break is 100% going to happen.

Alright, with that done, I need to show off my eBay purchase that arrived today!

That's right! A 1/1 printing plate of starting pitcher Lucas Harrell of my Astros. I watched an auction of a Jose Altuve magenta plate today skyrocket to nearly $50, so I was pretty happy to have snagged that at a bargain discount in comparison.

Hope everyone else had a great Monday. And Jeroen, I got your envelope today, thanks for the Spring Fever cards, much appreciated!

2013 Gypsy Queen CASE Sign-Ups

Sign-Ups Are Live! Go to my webpage and click the link on the top info bar for sign-ups.

Or follow this link:
http://www.thedailydimwit.com/p/2013-topps-gypsy-queen-test-page.html

Another COMC Haul and MAIL!!!

Hey everyone, lately any cards I sell on eBay the money goes straight into my COMC account. So I hit the shipping button on another haul last week. I really love COMC's new shipping policy, the cards get here faster and it's only $3.00. Nice... so here's the first set of cards:

Four nice Bagwell relics! And an on-card Nolan Fontana autograph from 2012 Bowman Chrome! Nice! I really like the Berkman All-Star game jersey as well. As for the last card of Berkman, that's just the front... here's the back of the card:

SWEET! A Bagwell relic on the back, and the whole thing numbered /125!

Next up, a couple of Nolan Ryan pick-ups!

Always like the retro Astros uniforms and logo. There is a nice little stitch mark across the top there. I really like this design!

Finally, a nice pick-up even if it's a Mets-centric card:

That is a SICK pin-striped relic from Nolan's Mets days. I could cut the right and left sides off for all I care, but I'll keep it in tact... ;) I love it, it's a keeper in my Nolan collection!

Next up, reader Jeffrey sent me a couple of vintage Nolan's:

What they lack in condition (there are some creases you can't see in the scan) is totally made up for in the fact that I don't have these already in my collection! I've got to put together a little package of something to send back Jeffrey's way.

I also got another package in from eBay! The one silk card of an Astro this year:

AWESOME! Anyone else wonder why these show up yellow'ed instead of white? The original ones looked EXACTLY like the base cards, but the past couple years, they've been yellowed like this one. Odd. But still, I love it. Topps previewed this one before release and it sparked my "Get all Astros Silks" quest.

Finally, I had entered a few case breaks for my Astros, hoping beyond reasonable hope that I'd get lucky and get one of the ultra-rare Craig Biggio autographs or relics. Of which, I now have had confirmation of just 1 being pulled in all of the world. Thanks Topps... I have Astros base sets out the wahzoo... plus these:

I apologize to anyone else out there who thinks differently, but I am already convinced that the Altuve base card is the best card of 2013 Topps. The colors, the action shot, the uniform Jose is wearing, all make for one epically awesome card! I love the green parallel too. Awesome.

For those who are curious, yes, the 2013 Gypsy Queen CASE group break is going to happen. I'm working out a few more details and then I'll be getting something posted soon. It will involve a non-refundable deposit at this point (same amount for all teams) and then once the checklist is released and I'm able to evaluate things a little closer, the additional money will be added to each team for the full value. I will be able to say at this point that no team will cost more than $65 and with 12 teams overall that will cost the minimum slot value ($25). Anyways, sign-ups will be posted soon... 

Gauging Interest - 2013 Gypsy Queen Group Break

Hey everyone - I am itching to bust a case. Yes, a CASE. And 2013 Topps Gypsy Queen's release is right around the corner. So I want to gauge interest in a case break here on the blog.

Slots would be for 1 team. And would be weighted based on the overall seeding of cards per team within the set. Mainly within the "value" categories of hits but also with consideration for base cards and inserts. The average cost per team would be somewhere in the $40 range, including shipping.

Here's another twist, considering there are 10 boxes with 24 packs, with 8 base cards (plus one mini and an insert or SP), that's 1920 base cards. Every slot would get at LEAST one set of base cards for a team set and we would pool the remaining duplicates into complete 300 card (non-SP) base sets with full sets of inserts. These base sets would be randomized amongst ALL participants. I'm thinking at least 2 of not 3 complete sets should be pulled from a case. So there would be that added bonus.

Of course each slot would get all their mini cards, hits and inserts. Most importantly, there would be a total of AT LEAST 40 hits in this case. The Gypsy King & Queen cards would be randomized.

I think this would be a really fun case to break. There are no checklists officially released as of yet, but if we are going to do this in April, I'm thinking I need to start the wheels turning on this.

So what do I need to know from you? I need to know if this adventure would interest you? Would the cost of 2 blasters be too much for your team? For you guys like the Yankees, Dodgers, Red Sox, Giants, Nationals and Rangers... would $75 be too much for your team? 

Let me know A) What team you'd be interested in? and B) Does the format above appeal to you?

Quick Trade Post

Hey guys, got a couple trades in today...

First up, Dennis from Pictures of Men... I sent a couple of Jays his way and I ended up with a couple great cards that fit in my chase set needs:

I've flirted with picking up the Dominic Brown on eBay a few times, only to find it over-valued. Glad I waited and picked it up in a trade! Next, a silk of Angel Sanchez. Inching closer and closer to that goal!

Next up, a trade with Facebook acquaintance Richie. He wanted some Rays autos in my trade bait, and I was happy to oblige since I rarely find a Rays trader. He didn't have any Astros to send back, so I decided to pick up some quality trade bait:

 Not sure what Billingsley and Glavine have in common but a nice looking card none-the-less... I'll let those Dodgers and Braves fans battle it out to the death for this one...

 And whomever loses can have this consolation prize...

 Next up, a nice Fisk and a pretty low number. Pretty sure I'm not going to have a problem trading this one.

 Or this one, sorry Red Sox fans, had to get this one as a counter point to the Fisk... Bucky Bleepin' Dent. Nice.

Finally, the greatest card from this trade:

It's PEE WEE!!! With a nice swatch of jersey in the C. Again for the many Dodgers fans I deal with...

Have a great day!

Mail Day! eBay and a Group Break

Got a bunch of cards in the mail lately!

First, a silk from eBay:

Next up, another eBay pick up... another lonely card on my slow journey to completing the 2011 Gypsy Queen Autograph Set...

Really guys, if anyone has an autograph from the 2011 Gypsy Queen set, I'd LOVE the opportunity to trade for it.

Finally, I got my group break look from Colbey over at Cardboard Collections. I picked up the Texans in his first ever Football Group Break for $7... figuring I might get a nice Foster or Schaub... never in all my life did I think I'd hit mega-paydirt... FREAKIN' SWEEEEEEET... DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR!!!!! J!!! J!!!! WAAAAATTTTT!!!!!

And what's even better... look at what it's numbered to:

2 out of 10?!?!?! Are you kidding me?!!?!?! AWESOME!!! I got other cards, but honestly I'm a bit too excited about this one to really look at the others right now!!!! Thanks Colbey for a fun break!

Trade Night - February 2013

I went to trade night the other night at my LCS... it was a great month since Series 1 just came out. Lots of pack wars. I won a pack war and a trivia contest. Nothing special from the trivia contest, but I did win this from the pack war:

No COA, but still a cool mini helmet for sure! By the way, any Packers or Favre fan can gladly make me a trade offer...

Well, I made the mistake of scanning everything I bought in two scans... so here it is:

 From 2.5 Jumbo Boxes and 3 regular packs, I got the above and below cards... The Mercilus was a gift from my buddy Bobby as he knows I'm a big Texans fan, after he pulled what will be a $1,000 card (/25 autograph relic of RG3). Nothing too exciting from Topps other than that redemption! Apparently it thought I wanted Rockies relics and pitchers' autos. Can't complain about the Rizzo either.

News hit today that Webb is retiring, talk about your flashes in the pan... I know injuries played a major part, wish he'd have had a longer career. I love the Silver Slugger cards. I was not too happy with the Belle. I don't know why Topps/public hasn't vilified Belle as much as others in the "era" but I have never considered Belle one of the "clean ones" where I have no doubt.

Alright, that was my trade night! Any and all are for trade...

COMC Pickups

I got a package in on Saturday with my latest round of pick-ups from COMC.com... love the site and I keep throwing more money at it to pick up some great cards!

Just missing the blasted "E"!!!! They look pretty awesome in a row like that, don't they? Can't wait to snipe the "E" some time!

A couple more silks to my growing collection! Plus a sweet Pettitte relic from A&G. But my favorite of the bunch is in the top right, that Maddux/Bagwell combo is sweet! A match up I watched a LOT...

A couple of awesome Berkmans, with a patch on the left one, numbered /99! The Oswalt/Clemens is nice too! Now that last one on the right, that looks like the back of the card with an Alou/Lane relic, let's see what's on the other side:

WHAT?!?!!? AWESOME!!!! Bagwell and Biggio! Any card with 4 relics is awesome to me! 

Finally, the big awesome super great fantastic amazing card:

Whoa!!! Numbered 02/40!!!! SWEEEEEEET!!!!! I got this for a VERY fair price and I LOVE the piece of hat relic in there that is obviously part of the star and part of the H!!!! Love this one!!!!

Well, I've already got another package from COMC on the way, including another Nolan Ryan that I can't wait to get in hand!

February Group Break - Box #3 - Topps Jumbo 2013!!!

I figured I'd get this up well in advance of the Super Bowl...

Scans after the page break...

February Group Break - Box #2 - Limited

Here's the video:

And as always, a page break before the scans:

February Group Break - Box #1 - 2005 U&H Topps Chrome

Here's the video:

And as always, scans after the break:

2013 Topps Tribute Want List

Base Cards Needed:
NONE

Duplicate Base Cards for Trade:
TONS - Send me a Want List!

Parallels for Trade:
Stanton - Blue - 57/99
Marichal - Green - 71/75