My 2008 Topps Set Blog

# ARI11 - Stephen Drew - Team Set

2012-02-16T14:22:00.000-08:00

Last year the autograph tickets for Stephen Drew were sold out by the time it was my turn to purchase some. This year he was still available when I got to the front of the ticket line. It's a good thing because I had several nice cards for him to sign. First up is this card from the D-Backs 14 card team set.

# ARI11 - Stephen Drew - Team Set

# HOU12 - Geoff Blum - Team Set

2012-02-16T07:53:00.000-08:00

Geoff Blum signed his 2008 Topps base cards for us at last year's Diamondbacks Fan Fest. This year I had to come up with something new. Luckily I bought a few of those 14 card team sets last month.

Geoff Blum had a nice card in the Astros one. It's basically the same picture as his Padres card from Series One but it's cropped a little closer and is air brushed to show Geoff wearing Houston gear.

# HOU12 - Geoff Blum - Team Set

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2011 Topps Tier One Crowd Pleasers Certified Auto

2012-02-15T12:37:00.000-08:00

I hate to interrupt my Diamondbacks Fan Fests posts but I got something awesome in the mail yesterday. Topps finally sent me the Luis Aparicio autograph from the redemption card I bought off eBay last November.

I didn't know exactly what I would be getting but man is this card nice. It's numbered to 50 and has a great on card signature. This definitely has to be one of my favorite Lil Luis autographs in our collection.

2012 Topps - Ian Kennedy Pie in the Face SP

2012-02-14T15:13:00.000-08:00

One day last week I bought two more packs of 2012 Topps at my local Walmart. I got lucky and pulled the Ian Kennedy Pie in the Face SP. Of course I brought it with me to Fan Fest. Ian hadn't seen it before so it's pretty cool to know that at least for a few minutes, I had the only signed version in existence.

2012 DBacks Fan Fest - Daniel Hudson

2012-02-14T07:12:00.000-08:00

With my wife's help, we were able to score three signed cards for our Daniel Hudson collection at this year's fan fest. The Allen & Ginter and 2011 Topps are nice but I think the Bowman Chrome Refractor is my favorite.

2012 Diamondbacks Fan Fest Review

2012-02-13T19:18:00.000-08:00

This past Saturday was the annual Diamondbacks Fan Fest. For the first time my wife and son went with me. We had a good time but the crowd was pretty crazy. I read somewhere that there were 25,000 people in attendance this year compared to 10,000 last year.

Despite the massive amount of people and me dragging around a three year old all day, I still managed to go home with a nice stack of autographs. No new base cards for our 2008 Topps set this time but we did get a few Opening Day, Chrome, and even a gold border parallel.

Autograph tickets for Justin Upton, Kirk Gibson, and Luis Gonzalez were sold out by the time we got there but we did manage to get just about everyone else I wanted.

I thought the freebie photos they had to giveaway were pretty nice this year, better than the boring head shots they sometime have. Over the next few days I'll post some of the other stuff we got signed before we get into the 08 Topps stuff.

2010 Bowman Chrome - Daniel Hudson Certified Auto

2012-02-06T10:47:00.000-08:00

I'm still looking to pick up some more Daniel Hudson autographs when the price is right. I got this 2010 Bowman Chrome auto for less than five bucks shipped off eBay. I had been watching this one for awhile and was waiting to grab one for cheap.

# 246 - Jason Isringhausen

2012-02-05T10:26:00.000-08:00

I finally watched Moneyball last weekend. I didn't like it. Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill were good but overall the movie was kind of boring. Maybe it's because I knew how it ended.

In it they did talk about Jason Isringhausen and his departure from Oakland a lot. We recently picked up a signed 08 Topps card from a friend on SportsGraphing.com.

# 246 - Jason Isringhausen

Progress: 474/990

2001 Upper Deck - Jason Giambi Home Run Derby Relic

2012-02-03T12:51:00.000-08:00

It's Free Shipping Friday!

Here's another card I threw in a low bid on not expecting to win. When all was said and done, my $1.10 bid was the highest. I'm happy. That's a pretty good price for an older jersey card of a former MVP. I really like the design on this one and I'm glad it features Jason on the A's. I liked him better before he joined the Evil Empire.

# 331 - Dave Roberts

2012-02-02T13:42:00.000-08:00

Another good TTM return. Former Giants outfielder, Dave Roberts signed a card for our set. Dave is currently a coach for the San Diego Padres. We sent him a request early last season and just got it back.

# 331 - Dave Roberts

Progress: 473/990

# 4 - Stephen Drew - Chrome

2012-02-01T09:40:00.000-08:00

Finally a good TTM success to report. Stephen Drew signed his card from the 2008 Topps Chrome set for us. I'm hoping to see Stephen at the D-Backs Fan Fest. I've got the Bronze Refractor version of this card that I would like to get signed too.

# 4 - Stephen Drew - Chrome

Blaster Break - 2012 Topps

2012-01-30T20:17:00.000-08:00

I spent the weekend constantly checking Twitter and eBay to see if 2012 Topps hit retail stores a little early. There wasn't much on Saturday or Sunday but today it became obvious that many Walmart's already had the cards in stock.

After work, I set out to buy some cards. There are a few Walmarts between my job and my house. The first one I went to had nothing but the second one was fully stocked.

Here's some of what I got in the first blaster. I really like the Gold Futures and 1987 minis. The sparkly, gold parallels aren't bad either.

A Little Diamondbacks Insanity

2012-01-30T12:48:00.000-08:00

Our new friend, Robert, sent us a few D-Backs cards. You may know Robert from such blogs as Serial Number Insanity or $30 a Week Habit.

We sent Robert a few serial numbered cards for his insanity project. In return he sent us these super cool D-Backs cards. My favorite is the Stephen Drew refractor. Thanks, Robert!

Nine 14 Card 2008 Topps Team Sets

2012-01-29T10:34:00.000-08:00

I found a seller on eBay who had a bunch of 2008 Topps Team Sets listed for just under $3 each. A few of them I already had but I scored 9 new ones. I opened these up yesterday. There's already a few cards I know I should be able to get signed during Spring Training.

# 302 - Horacio Ramirez

2012-01-24T12:49:00.000-08:00

Horacio Ramirez put together a few nice seasons for the Atlanta Braves and the Mariners looked to him to be a big part of their rotation in 2007. That didn't happen. He won 8 games and had an era over 7. Since then Horacio bounced around to a few different teams. Most recently he spent some time in Los Angeles with the Angels.

We recently picked up this signed 08 Topps card for our set. It features a nice Spring Training pic of Horacio over at the Peoria Sports Complex.

# 302 - Horacio Ramirez

Progress: 472/990

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2011 Topps Leather Nameplates

2012-01-23T13:11:00.000-08:00

By now I'm sure you've seen the Leather Nameplates that Topps inserted into it's 2011 set. They put out two versions featuring Luis Aparicio. One has features him on the White Sox and the other on the Orioles. We got them both. Oh and the White Sox one is the rarer black version and is numbered 86/99. Two nice pickups for our Lil Luis collection.

# 308 - Felipe Lopez

2012-01-22T11:19:00.000-08:00

We haven't had too many of these this month but it's time for another signed 08 Topps card. 2005 National League All-Star, Felipe Lopez signed a card for our set. In his ten year career, Felipe has played for nine different teams including the Diamondbacks. Around the end of his time here in Arizona, I remember hearing a lot about his bad attitude in the clubhouse and lack of hustle on the field. I'll be curious to see where he lands in 2012.

# 308 - Felipe Lopez

Progress: 471/990

Pack Break - 2011 Topps Value Box

2012-01-21T09:40:00.000-08:00

While reading various blogs the past few days, I've seen a bunch of breaks on the 2011 Topps Value Boxes. You guys motivated me to go out and get one for myself. I mean it's hard to turn down a sale on baseball cards, right?

If you haven't heard, Wal-Mart is closing these out. For just over ten bucks you get five packs of 2011 Topps Update, one pack of 2011 Bowman Chrome, an exclusive Bryce Harper rookie card, and a Diamond Giveaway code.

This is our first Bryce Harper card. Too bad it's probably his least desirable one to date. Nothing too exciting in the packs either. We did get a refractor out of of the Bowman Chrome. It's of Phillies prospect, Brody Colvin. This dude's on the top 100 prospect list so we might have something hear in a few years.

Everything except the Harper, Colvin, Eppley, and Venters are available if you need them.

2011 Allen & Ginter - Xavier Nady Relic

2012-01-20T08:22:00.000-08:00

It's Free Shipping Friday!

The eBay app on my phone is great. I've been trying to clear out some non-baseball card collectibles and it's helped me keep up-to-date with what's going on every second of everyday. It also has given me the ability to search for cards 24x7 too.

Anytime I have some downtime, it seems like I'll pull out my phone and do a quick search. I've won cards while waiting at the car wash, the Taco Bell drive thru, red lights (while my wife's driving), etc.

When I'm searching, I'll occasionally throw in a low bid on things I don't think I'll win. This Xavier Nady jersey card is one of those items. I put in a bid of $2.05 and I didn't think I'd win. A few days later and this card was mine. A nice pickup for our D-Backs collection. Not bad for just over two bucks and free shipping.

2011 Topps Marquee - Daniel Hudson Dual Jersey Certified Autos

2012-01-19T10:36:00.000-08:00

We've been busy grabbing a few more Daniel Hudson autographs recently. In fact, we've got three new ones to post. All are from the 2011 Topps Marquee set. While they look similar, they all have different jersey color combinations. They're all great and each numbered to 400. My favorite is the grey/grey.

D-Backs from My Sports Obsession

2012-01-18T10:08:00.000-08:00

Jeff over at My Sports Obsession sent us an awesome package full of Diamondbacks! He sent a stack of about 100 random D-Backs, two autographs, and a jersey card. The random D-Backs included everything from legends like Curt Schilling and Randy Johnson and current favorites like Miguel Montero and Ian Kennedy.

My favorite part were the two autographs ( one of Chad Tracy from 2005 Donruss Signature Series and one of Tony Pena from 2005 UD SPX ) and the jersey card ( 2005 Topps Finest Mark Grace ). The Grace jersey card is super shiny and super cool.

If you haven't been to Jeff's blog, check it out. He has a nice collection of Chicago White Sox and is working on a few vintage sets. Thanks for all of the great cards, Jeff!

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2011 Topps Tier One

2012-01-17T17:33:00.000-08:00

2011 brought us quite a few nice Luis Aparicio cards. The last one came from the Tier One set. Kind of a drab and boring card overall but it is numbered. I think it would have looked better if Topps let the photo run all the way to the edges with no white halo border. But I guess if they did that they wouldn't have been able to do all of the parallels.

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2011 Topps Lineage 1975 Mini

2012-01-16T10:12:00.000-08:00

We finally grabbed the 2011 Topps Lineage Luis Aparicio 1975 mini card. When Lineage first came out there were several of these on eBay but all went for more than we wanted to pay. Our patience paid off and we found one for a good price. It's nice to be able to cross this one off our want list.

# 368 - Michael Bourn

2012-01-15T11:53:00.000-08:00

Picked up a signed 08 Topps card of 2010 All-Star and current Atlanta Braves outfielder, Michael Bourn for our set. This one came to us from a friend on SportsGraphing.com.

# 368 - Michael Bourn

Progress: 470/990

2011 Topps American Pie - Susan Lucci Relic & Auto

2012-01-14T06:53:00.000-08:00

I don't think my wife ever missed an episode of All My Children since I met her. Well at least until ABC cancelled it back in October. That's six years and probably over 1500 episodes.

It's rare that I find a trading card that my wife would enjoy. Thanks to the new Topps American Pie set, I found two! I picked her up the Susan Lucci relic and autograph. She was happy. Well... she at least pretended to be happy for a few minutes and then put them away in a drawer in our kitchen probably never to be touched again. I think I was more excited than she was. I mean I must have watched at least a third of those episodes with her so I know all about Erica Kane and Pine Valley.

# TR-GA - Garrett Atkins - Relic Card

2012-01-13T13:02:00.000-08:00

Another 08 Topps card for Free Shipping Friday! We picked up this Garrett Atkins jersey card for $1.25 with free shipping. Now I know there's not a whole lot of demand out there for Atkins cards but I love the price and the nice purple swatch.

# TR-GA - Garrett Atkins

2011 Topps Update All-Star Jersey - Troy Tulowitzki

2012-01-12T16:46:00.000-08:00

Totally scored a diamond anniversary parallel Troy Tulowitzki jersey card to go with our collection of 2011 Topps Update All-Star jersey cards. Got this one for less than five bucks. It's numbered 12/60 on the lower right corner.

2011 Topps Update All-Star Stitches Jersey Cards - Part Two

2012-01-12T06:12:00.000-08:00

You may remember our post last October where we had picked up 28 different All-Star jersey cards from the 2011 Topps Update set. Well I picked up three more recently including the Justin Upton that I had been wanting from the start.

D-Backs cards from Cards from the Quarry

2012-01-11T19:36:00.000-08:00

I sent a few Colorado Rockies cards to Johnny over at Cards from the Quarry. In return he sent me a rad Chris Burke jersey card and a bunch of Diamondbacks. Good stuff. I didn't have any of these.

Also, I've created a "Diamondbacks Collection" label so you can quickly view all of our favorite D-Backs cards. I guess now I'm officially a D-Backs collector. So keep us in mind if you've got any extras you don't want from our favorite team, we'll be glad to give them a good home.

2008 Topps Chrome Gold Refractor - Mario Williams

2012-01-06T12:12:00.000-08:00

Today's kicks off the newest feature here at My 2008 Topps Set Blog. It's Free Shipping Friday!

What does that mean? I'm a sucker for eBay auctions with free shipping. On Fridays I'll be posting cards I bought for cheap that had free shipping. In a lot of cases the seller lost money to send us these. Man, I love it when that happens.

Expect to see some cards for our growing D-Backs collection on Free Shipping Fridays as well as various 2008 Topps stuff and random autographs and relic cards that were just so cheap, I couldn't pass them up.

First up is a card that I threw in a really low bid for and ended up winning. We got this Mario Williams Gold Refractor for 11 cents. It's numbered 304/425 on the back. I haven't done much with the 2008 Topps football set but I was glad to grab this one for our collection.

# RR-LG - Luis Gonzalez - Gold Relic Card

2012-01-05T13:02:00.000-08:00

I've spent a decent amount of time searching eBay for good deals on 2008 Topps cards the past three years so I've seen pretty much everything that's out there. This is the only gold parallel relic card I've seen. Lucky for me, it's of one of my favorite former Diamondbacks, Luis Gonzalez.

This one looks even better in person and is numbered to 99 on the back.

# RR-LG - Luis Gonzalez - Gold Relic Card ( 06/99 )

2011 Topps American Pie - Wilmer Valderrama Relic Card

2012-01-04T09:12:00.000-08:00

I jumped on the 2011 Topps American Pie bandwagon and picked up this relic card of Wilmer Valderrama. It's got a nice colorful swatch from a mystery article of clothing worn by Handy Manny himself. I don't hate this set. It has a decent checklist and the design for the relics & autos look pretty nice.

2011 Topps Tier One - Daniel Hudson Gold Certified Auto

2012-01-03T11:06:00.000-08:00

Last November we posted Daniel Hudson's regular certified autograph from the 2011 Topps Tier One set. If you thought that card was nice, I've got good news. We scored the gold version too! It's a little hard to see but this one's numbered 1/25.

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2011 Topps Manufactured Throwback Patch Card

2012-01-02T10:11:00.000-08:00

This manufactured patch card came to us from Daniel over at It's Like Having My Own Card Shop. He pulled it out of a blaster and thought we would like it. He was right! This card's pretty awesome. I really like the vintage Sox logo.

Thanks, Daniel!

Blaster Break - 2011 Topps Update

2012-01-01T14:37:00.000-08:00

My wife got me a blaster from 2011 Topps Update for Christmas. She got it at Wal-Mart so it came with two packs of blue parallel cards. Nothing too exciting. I did get a few D-Backs and a Pat Neshek in the blues and a nice Gaylord Perry throwback manufactured patch card. Everything else is available if you need it.

Look ahead: 2012

2012-01-01T09:12:00.000-08:00

It's New Year's Day and I guess it's time for my annual look ahead post. Only one goal for this year:

Keep My Blog Alive - Pretty simple, right? We need to keep blogging. We came just shy of 300 posts in 2010 & 2011, I'd like to exceed that number in 2012. I have plenty of ideas and plenty of cards so this should be easy as long as I can find the time.

Wondering what to expect from My 2008 Topps Set Blog in 2012?

We'll be getting as many 2008 Topps cards signed that we can. Base, Chrome, parallels, Opening Day, if it's 08 Topps then we want to get it signed for our collection.

Expect a lot more posts for our Luis Aparicio collection too and maybe a Daniel Hudson certified autograph or two.

This Friday we'll be launching a new feature called "Free Shipping Friday!" Should be fun.

Thanks to everyone who reads our blog. 2012's going to be a good year.

Look back: 2011

2011-12-31T18:22:00.000-08:00

Another year has come to an end. I wanted to take a moment today to look back at the goals I posted last January in my "Look ahead: 2011" post. I'm proud to be able to say we completed all but one.

Progress: 495/990 - Only missed this one by a few. Our current total for our signed 08 Topps set sits at 469/990. Not bad.

2008 Topps Gold Border Parallel - COMPLETED! We easily surpassed a dozen and currently have 18 signed 2008 Topps Gold Border Parallel cards.

Player Collection - COMPLETED! This one was easy. We officially launched our Luis Aparicio player collection last April and have had 32 Lil Luis-related posts.

Have a Contest - COMPLETED! Remember when we gave away that box of 2010 Bowman Chrome? Seems like a long time ago now.

Keep My Blog Alive - COMPLETED! There were at least three times the past few months when we went for more than two weeks without posting but My 2008 Topps Set Blog is still around.

2011 was another good collecting year. A lot of the stuff I buy doesn't make it's way to the blog. I've been posting a lot of non-2008 Topps stuff lately and I expect that to continue into 2012.

# HA-JS - Jeff Salazar - Certified Auto

2011-12-29T16:22:00.000-08:00

I've actually had my eye on this card for awhile. It always seemed to go for a little more than I was willing to spend. I like Jeff Salazar and he did some good things for the Diamondbacks in 2008 but I knew if I waited long enough I'd get one for a buck or two shipped. My patience paid off and now this autograph is part of our 2008 Topps collection.

# HA-JS - Jeff Salazar - Certified Auto

# HA-SS - Seth Smith - Certified Auto

2011-12-28T12:20:00.000-08:00

Hey we just posted the card Seth Smith signed for our base set earlier this month. Now we have his certified auto. Isn't that great?

# HA-SS - Seth Smith - Certified Auto

# HA-MB - Mike Bacsik - Certified Auto

2011-12-27T13:17:00.000-08:00

Here's a good example of what Topps can do with the shiny stickers they have had players sign. I'm sure Mike Bacsik never would have guessed his sticker would end up on a card commemorating a home run that he gave up. I'm sure it's a memorable moment but probably not one of his career highlights.

# HA-MB - Mike Bacsik - Certified Auto

# HA-EV - Edinson Volquez - Certified Auto

2011-12-26T11:13:00.000-08:00

Next up in our stack of 08 Topps certified autos is Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher, Edinson Volquez. Not too long ago it looked like this guy might be a star. He was even an All-Star in 2008. That was before the suspension for performance-enhancing drugs in 2010. He hasn't been quite as good since.

Last week, he was traded to the San Diego Padres. Maybe I'll see him during Spring Training. I hope so because I still have his All-Star card from the Updates & Highlights set that I need to get signed.

# HA-EV - Edinson Volquez - Certified Auto

# HA-RM - Russ Martin - Certified Auto

2011-12-25T20:21:00.000-08:00

Every year when my wife asks me what I want for Christmas, she always brings up the fact that she would buy me baseball cards but doesn't know what to get. Completely understandable. Fortunately I have no problem with picking up a few things for myself. This year part of my Christmas present was a small stack of certified autographs from the 2008 Topps set. I'll be doing a post on each of them over the next few days.

First up is former Los Angeles Dodgers catcher, Russell Martin. Russ has a pretty impressive resume. He is a three-time All-Star and has won both a gold glove and silver slugger award. I'm pretty sure this is the first autograph of his of any kind we have.

# HA-RM - Russ Martin - Certified Auto

# 35 - Mike Cameron - Bronze Refractor

2011-12-25T08:37:00.000-08:00

I've met Mike Cameron a few times during Spring Training when he was with the Seattle Mariners and the San Diego Padres. He has to be one of the nicest, fan-friendly players that I've ever seen.

Mike came through for us again. This time he signed his Bronze Refractor from the 2008 Topps Chrome set. This one looks great signed in black Sharpie. It's numbered 137/599 on the back.

Merry Christmas everybody! Santa brought me a few cards I'll be posting over the next few days.

# 35 - Mike Cameron - Bronze Refractor

# 35 - Mike Cameron - Chrome XFractor

2011-12-24T07:11:00.000-08:00

Got a nice return from former Milwaukee Brewers outfielder, Mike Cameron. Mike signed his XFractor from the 2008 Topps Chrome set for us. If you're keeping track at home, this is only our second signed XFractor.

# 35 - Mike Cameron - XFractor

# 422 - Erick Aybar

2011-12-23T09:22:00.000-08:00

Part of Mike Scioscia's super team out in Los Angeles consists of this guy who won his first Gold Glove at shortstop in 2011. Yup, Erick Aybar might not have the biggest bat but his defense is superb.

# 422 - Erick Aybar

Progress: 469/990

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2005 UD Past Time Pennants Certified Auto

2011-12-22T06:58:00.000-08:00

Any early Christmas present for myself? Why not!

I picked up this Luis Aparicio autograph a few days ago. It's from the 2005 Upper Deck Past Time Pennants set. The base cards from this one are nice but the on-card certified autos are great! This one features a nice black and white photo of Lil Luis which makes the blue signature really pop.

# 423 - Mike Scioscia

2011-12-21T13:04:00.000-08:00

Man, this guy's going to have some fun next year. In addition to former All-Stars like Torii Hunter and Jered Weaver, Mike Scioscia will now get to manage Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson. I still like the Rangers but it's hard to not say that the Angels are the team to beat in the AL West.

# 423 - Mike Scioscia

Progress: 468/990

# UH 174 - D.J. Carrasco

2011-12-20T12:20:00.000-08:00

This signed card of former Chicago White Sox reliever, D.J. Carrasco came to us from our friend Raiderdan on SweetSpotGraphs.com. Another nice one. Thanks, Dan!

I hadn't been to SSG in awhile and it looks like it may have been shut down. Anyone know?

# UH 174 - D.J. Carrasco

Progress: 467/990

# 185 - Yunel Escobar

2011-12-19T10:15:00.000-08:00

I've liked Yunel Escobar since I saw him play in the Arizona Fall League a quite a few years back. The Toronto Blue Jays locked him up with a long term deal last summer so it looks like he'll be a fixture in their infield for quite some time.

All of these signed 08 Topps cards we've been posting this week came to us via trade with a friend on SportsGraphing.com

# 185 - Yunel Escobar

Progress: 466/990

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2008 UD Premier Stitchings Patch

2011-12-18T15:23:00.000-08:00

We picked up our first manufactured patch card for our Luis Aparicio collection. This one is from the 2008 Upper Deck Premier set and commemorates his Rookie of the Year award. Nice looking card and it's numbered 67/75.

# 56 - Seth Smith

2011-12-18T13:11:00.000-08:00

After another long span of no blog posts, we're going to do our best to finish strong. I need to catch up on some scanning but we've got plenty of great stuff to do posts on.

Here's another signed 08 Topps card for our collection. This one is of Colorado Rockies outfielder, Seth Smith.

# 56 - Seth Smith

Progress: 465/990

# UH 315 - Sean Rodriguez

2011-12-17T18:06:00.000-08:00

Sean Rodriguez is one of those super utility players. He's started a game at every position except catcher and pitcher. Pretty cool. We recently picked up this signed card from the 08 Topps set.

# UH 315 - Sean Rodriguez

Progress: 464/990

Ron Santo - HOF 2012

2011-12-05T20:17:00.001-08:00

I know I'm a little behind on this but I just heard the news ( Thanks, Brian ). One of my dad's all-time favorite players has finally been elected to the Hall of Fame. As much as I wish that Ron was around to enjoy it, I also wish my dad was here to share this too. He passed away over the summer and I'd really, really like to call him to talk about this but I can't. Instead, I'm sitting in front of his laptop and typing this post with tears in my eyes.

My dad and I were able to meet Mr. Santo quite a few times and we have several of his autographs in our collection. I think I'll save those for July. For today, let's enjoy his 1963 Topps card. Go Cubbies!

# 52 - Matt Leinart - Printing Plate

2011-11-27T08:07:00.000-08:00

I remember being super excited when the Arizona Cardinals drafted Matt Leinart. His time here in AZ turned out to be kind of disappointing but he has a fresh start today. Matt should be the starting quarterback for the Houston Texans when they take the field later this morning. I wish him the best of luck.

I grabbed this printing plate a few months ago. I know our 08 Topps collection primarily focuses on baseball but I couldn't pass this up for $5.

# 54 - Matt Leinart - Printing Plate

2011 Topps - Justin Upton Black Border Parallel

2011-11-25T00:13:00.000-08:00

Here at My 2008 Topps Set Blog we're celebrating Black Friday with Black Border Parallel cards! Since this is the second year we've done this, I think it's safe to say it's officially a tradition.

Getting things started early this year so you'll have some reading material while you're waiting in line at Wal-Mart to pay for your cart full of $4 toddler pajamas and two buck DVDs.

We picked this Justin Upton card up for our D-Backs / 2010 All-Star Game collection. It's numbered 33/60 on the back.

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2003 eTopps Fan Fest Promo

2011-11-23T12:11:00.000-08:00

I don't know much about this card. It appears to be some type of promo card that was given away at the 2003 All-Star Game Fan Fest. The All-Star Game was in Chicago that year so I guess Topps made a special card of Luis Aparicio to promote their eTopps website. The back has a $5 off coupon code. I'd share it but expired a long time ago.

I really like this one. It's shiney and has a cool design and picture.

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2011 Topps Tier One Redemption Card

2011-11-22T16:39:00.000-08:00

I haven't seen a whole lot of posts around the blogosphere for 2011 Topps Tier One so I figured I'd share the four cards I've picked up.

Yah I know redemption cards aren't very exciting but I'm hoping that this one's really cool once Topps gets around to sending it to me. I've heard that they're numbered to 99 but who really knows.

2011 Topps Tier One - Daniel Hudson Certified Auto

2011-11-22T13:39:00.000-08:00

I haven't seen a whole lot of posts around the blogosphere for 2011 Topps Tier One so I figured I'd share the four cards I've picked up.

As soon as I saw this card, I knew I had to have it. I even grabbed up the first one I saw with a reasonable buy it now. Yep, it's another Daniel Hudson for our unofficial Daniel Hudson collection.

2011 Topps Tier One - Mike Minor Certified Auto

2011-11-22T10:39:00.000-08:00

I haven't seen a whole lot of posts around the blogosphere for 2011 Topps Tier One so I figured I'd share the four cards I've picked up.

The next card we bought was of Atlanta Braves starter, Mike Minor. Mike was the 7th overall draft pick in 2009. I'm thinking there's a good chance he'll be a star soon too.

2011 Topps Tier One - Fernando Martinez Certified Auto

2011-11-22T07:39:00.000-08:00

I haven't seen a whole lot of posts around the blogosphere for 2011 Topps Tier One so I figured I'd share the four cards I've picked up.

The first is of New York Mets prospect, Fernando Martinez. It seems like this guy has been around forever but he's still only 22. As the back of the card points out, there's still plenty of time for him to become a star. Let's hope they're right.

# 148 - Gerald Laird

2011-11-21T12:03:00.000-08:00

I'm sure Tigers fans are glad to have this guy back in Detroit. I'm glad to have his 2008 Topps cards signed. Who am I talking about? Gerald Laird, of course.

# 148 - Gerald Laird

Progress: 463/990

# UH 143 - Chipper Jones

2011-11-20T10:06:00.000-08:00

We got Chipper Jones's autograph. No big deal. Okay it's kind of a big deal.

# UH 143 - Chipper Jones

Progress: 462/990

# 53 - Bobby Doerr - Team Gift Set

2011-11-19T09:37:00.000-08:00

Hall of Famer, Bobby Doerr came through for us again. This time he signed the Red Sox celebration card from the 2008 Topps Boston Red Sox 55 card team gift set for us. You may remember that he signed the regular base version of this card for us too. That was back in April 2009. It was the 51st signed card for our 08 Topps set.

Thanks, Bobby!

# 53 - Boston Red Sox - Team Gift Set

2011 Topps Lineage - Justin Upton Jersey Card

2011-11-18T13:05:00.000-08:00

We picked this one up off eBay for $2 shipped. I actually really like these 1975 mini jersey cards. They're pretty cool. Last week I mentioned trying to build up our collection of D-Backs cards. Well this is our first Justin Upton relic so we're making progress.

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2004 UD Ultimate Collection

2011-11-17T08:11:00.000-08:00

I don't remember this set but I was glad to pick up this card for less than $2 shipped. I liked it because it was numbered ( 454/675 ) and because it features a nice picture of Luis Aparicio that I haven't seen before.

# UH 291 - Jonathan Herrera

2011-11-16T10:36:00.000-08:00

Jonathan Herrera spent most of 2011 on the big league roster with the Colorado Rockies. He played in 104 games and but didn't put up that good of numbers. Maybe 2012 will be a breakout year for him.

# UH 291 - Jonathan Herrera

Progress: 461/990

# UH 279 - Alex Hinshaw

2011-11-15T11:09:00.000-08:00

We've been doing a lot of non-2008 Topps posts lately but that doesn't mean we're non still working hard on the set. I'm finding that posting cards from our Luis Aparicio player collection or of other things I like keep blogging more entertaining for me.

That being said, next up is another signed 2008 Topps card. This one is of San Francisco Giants reliever, Alex Hinshaw.

# UH 279 - Alex Hinshaw

Progress: 460/990

2007 Topps Allen & Ginter - Stephen Drew Jersey Card

2011-11-14T11:35:00.000-08:00

We made a trade with TheBrooklynMet from Clear Cut Cards. We sent him the Ike Davis jersey card we pulled out of our Topps Lineage Hot Pack. He sent us this nice Stephen Drew jersey card from the 2007 Allen & Ginter set. I'm slowly trying to build up my D-Backs collection. This one's a pretty sweet addition.

Luis Aparicio Collection - 1993 Action Packed

2011-11-13T12:50:00.000-08:00

I remember Action Packed being kind of a big deal in the early 90s. I remember them more for their football sets but they did come out with a few sets of baseball Hall of Famers too.

This card is from their 1993 set. I like it because the photo is almost identical to the cover on the April 30, 1962 Sports Illustrated cover.

# 29 - Ryan Church - Team Gift Set

2011-11-12T10:39:00.000-08:00

Ryan Church also signed his card from the 2008 Topps Mets Team Gift Set for us too. This one's an entirely different picture from his regular issue.

# 29 - Ryan Church - Team Gift Set

Someone Reads My Blog!

2011-11-11T18:18:00.001-08:00

John from Donruss 1982 is compiling a list of the 20 Greatest Sports Card Blogs of All-Time. In case you missed it, My 2008 Topps Set Blog came in at # 18. With over 300 blogs currently on the Sports Card Blog Roll, I'm very honored to be part of his list.

You can check out his post on our blog here.

And please enjoy this 1982 Donruss card. It's of one of my favorite Hall of Famers, Andre Dawson.

# NYM-13 - Ryan Church - Team Set

2011-11-11T14:37:00.000-08:00

Got a nice TTM return recently from former New York Mets outfielder, Ryan Church. Ryan signed his card from the 2008 Mets 14 card team set for us. This one's different from his regular issue that had him on the Washington Nationals.

# NYM-13 - Ryan Church - Team Set

2010 Topps Finest - Daniel Hudson Patch Certified Auto

2011-11-10T12:44:00.000-08:00

On our final day of "5 Days of Daniel Hudson" we bring to you a nice manufactured patch certified autograph. This one's from the 2010 Topps Finest set. This is the first manufactured patch auto I've ever bought. I must say these are nicer in person than I thought they would be. Maybe it's because the signature on this one isn't bad. I've seen worse.

In case you were wondering, this one's numbered 78/217 on the back.

I hope you enjoyed "5 Days of Daniel Hudson." Go D-Backs!

2010 Bowman Sterling - Daniel Hudson Certified Auto Refractor

2011-11-09T13:36:00.000-08:00

Day four of our "Five Days of Daniel Hudson" brings us a card that looks very similar to the one we posted yesterday. The only difference is that this one's a refractor and is numbered to 199. I'm a sucker for a nice refractor so I threw down a few extra bucks and picked up this one too.

2010 Bowman Sterling - Daniel Hudson Certified Auto

2011-11-08T10:40:00.000-08:00

Our "5 Days of Daniel Hudson" continues with a 2010 release from the Bowman Sterling set. This one's a nice simple, shiney card with a sticker auto. I do like the small D-Backs logo in the lower right corner. Also, Daniel's wearing the D-Backs grey away jersey which happens to be my favorite D-Backs jersey.

Does anyone besides me follow Daniel Hudson ( @DHuddy41 ) on Twitter? Actually more importantly, are you following me ( @unclemoe ) on Twitter? If you're not, you should follow us both.

2011 Topps Update - Daniel Hudson Certified Auto

2011-11-07T12:23:00.000-08:00

Alot of people have been asking if we're starting a Daniel Hudson player collection. The answer is no. He's a rising star on our favorite team and his certs are going for just a few bucks right now. So not really a player collection, just a collection of cards of a player we really like.

Day two of the "Five Days of Daniel Hudson" brings us a nice auto from the 2011 Topps Update set. This one is from their Next 60 insert set. Nice follow-up to their Topps 60 set from Series 1 and 2. I like the way the red border compliments Daniel's D-Backs jersey.

2011 Topps Gypsy Queen - Daniel Hudson Certified Auto

2011-11-06T13:14:00.000-08:00

We've picked up a few certified autographs from Arizona Diamondbacks starter, Daniel Hudson recently. I thought I'd do a post for each of them over the next few days. Let's call it "5 Days of Daniel Hudson."

Day one starts us off with a nice on-card signature from the 2011 Topps Gypsy Queen set. Gypsy Queen hit the blogosphere pretty hard a few months ago. It was everywhere. I even did a pack break. It's still a great set with a great autograph checklist.

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2003 Topps Fan Favorites Refractor

2011-11-05T20:09:00.000-07:00

I love refractors. I didn't even remember that the 2003 Topps Fan Favorites set had refractors as inserts. This card is extremely nice and is numbered to 299. I'm glad to have it as part of our collection.

# UH 243 - Joe Mather

2011-10-30T12:52:00.000-07:00

We picked up a signed card of former St. Louis Cardinal, Joe Mather. Joe spent time in 2011 with the Braves and Rockies organizations.

# UH 243 - Joe Mather

Progress: 459/990

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2011 Topps Kimball Champions II

2011-10-29T08:45:00.000-07:00

Much to my surprise Luis Aparicio was included in the 2011 Topps Update Kimball Champions set. This is his second mini card this year. The first featured him on the White Sox and this one remembers his days with the Orioles.

2011 Topps Kimball Champions - Ryne Sandberg

2011-10-28T07:46:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's pack break reminded me I had this card to post on. Growing up, Ryne Sandberg was my favorite player. I guess you could say he was my first player collection. Unfortunately his autographs and game used cards go for a little too much so I haven't been to active in picking up his stuff in my adult years. I have grabbed a few of his low-end cards recently including this Kimball Champions mini.

Pack Break - 2011 Topps Lineage Hot Pack

2011-10-27T19:29:00.000-07:00

I'm sure I'm not the only one who occasionally throws in a low bid on one of those "Hot Pack" eBay auctions. This time I won. For $4 and free shipping I scored a 2011 Topps Lineage value pack.

My hit was an Ike Davis mini-jersey card. Not bad.

Everything except the Ryne Sandberg and Daniel Hudson would be available for trade if you're interested.

# 15 - Alan Trammell - Team Gift Set

2011-10-26T08:11:00.000-07:00

I haven't gotten much mail back lately but a few good ones have come back. The best is probably this one of former Chicago Cubs bench coach and Detroit Tigers legend, Alan Trammell.

# 15 - Alan Trammell - Team Gift Set

2011 Topps Update All-Star Stitches Jersey Cards

2011-10-25T11:07:00.000-07:00

You may remember that thanks to my Dad, I was able to go to the 2011 All-Star Game here in Phoenix. Soon after we got the tickets, I realized that Topps would probably have All-Star jersey cards in their Update set. I was right.

I've been busy trying to pick up as many of these as I can. Right now I have 28 different players, not including the duplicates with a different jersey color. I've already gotten most of the ones I want but I'm still on the lookout for a few ( Justin Upton, Gio Gonzalez, C.J. Wilson come to mind ).

Some of the pics Topps chose for these are a little boring but overall I like them. Kind of a cool souvenir from the most awesome baseball game I've ever been to.

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2006 UD SP Legendary Cuts

2011-10-24T07:49:00.000-07:00

There was one more card that Brian from 30 Year Old Cardboard sent us in that package I mentioned yesterday. This one's extra cool so I thought it deserved it's own blog post.

This is the first "When it was a Game" insert I've ever seen. It's from the 2006 Upper Deck SP Legendary Cuts set and is numbered to 550.

# WG-LA - Luis Aparicio - 2006 UD SP Legendary Cuts ( #541/550 )

Luis Aparicio Collection - Eight New Cards

2011-10-23T08:38:00.000-07:00

Our friend Brian from our favorite baseball card blog 30 Year Old Cardboard sent us a package with a few Luis Aparicio cards for our player collection. Thanks, Brian! These are awesome!

# 27 - Bob Melvin

2011-10-22T09:47:00.000-07:00

Former Arizona Diamondbacks manager, Bob Melvin signed a card for our set. Bob's back in the big leagues and is currently leading the Oakland A's.

# 27 - Bob Melvin

Progress: 458/990

# UH 69 - Chad Moeller

2011-10-21T09:44:00.000-07:00

Former Diamondbacks catcher, Chad Moeller signed a card for our set. Since his days in Arizona, Chad has spent most of his time in the minor leagues with an occasional cup of coffee.

# UH 69 - Chad Moeller

Progress: 457/990

# UH 62 - Matt Albers

2011-10-20T09:41:00.000-07:00

Former Baltimore Orioles reliever, Matt Albers signed a card for our set. Matt spent the 2011 season with the Boston Red Sox.

# UH 62 - Matt Albers

Progress: 456/990

# UH 22 - Brian Moeller

2011-10-19T21:38:00.001-07:00

Wow. It's October 19th and this is my first blog post of the month. I've had alot going on the past few weeks but I have good news for those of you that were concerned. My 2008 Topps Set Blog isn't dead!

Here's a signed 08 Topps card to get us back on track.

# UH 22 - Brian Moeller

Progress: 455/990

# 234 - Rudolph Giuliani

2011-09-19T12:01:00.000-07:00

There's nothing new I can say about this card that hasn't already been said. We won it off eBay for a buck ( free shipping! ). I'm guessing that Mr. Giuliani probably doesn't sign this card so I guess we'll just have to hold onto it as it is. Now I guess I have to hunt down the elusive red version.

# 234 - Rudolph Giuliani - Boston Red Sox

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2005 Playoff Prime Cuts MLB Icons

2011-09-18T09:10:00.000-07:00

Since we added the Luis Aparicio Player Collection to the blog, I've become more interested in non-autographed cards of Lil Luis too. I've never seen this insert set before. It seems like Donruss/Playoff made a ton of sets during the middle part of the last decade so I'm not too surprised I wasn't familiar with it. A nice card with a pic of Luis in a Red Sox uniform that I think I've seen before. Oh yah... it was here and here.

# MLB-28 - Luis Aparicio - MLB Icons ( # 65/100 )

2011 Topps 60 Years of Topps - Ryan Braun

2011-09-17T13:46:00.000-07:00

Here at My 2008 Topps Set Blog we enjoy all things 2008 Topps. Even though I find it a little odd that Topps has already started reprinting cards from just a few years ago, I'm glad to have "new" 2008 Topps cards to add to our collection. Plus I like Ryan Braun so this card is definitely a keeper. Maybe one day if I'm able to get all of Ryan's regular 2008 Topps cards signed ( I think he has at least 4 ) I'll think about going for this one too.

# 60YOT-116 - Ryan Braun - 2008 Topps

2011 Topps Lineage - David DeJesus Certified Auto

2011-09-16T09:33:00.000-07:00

After the ugly autograph I got from David DeJesus during Spring Training, I figured I'd pick up one of these certified autographs from the 2011 Topps Lineage set. This one set me back two George Washingtons.

2011 Topps Lineage - Daniel Hudson Certified Auto

2011-09-15T13:09:00.000-07:00

Here's another autograph I picked up for a few bucks from the 2011 Topps Lineage set. This one is of Diamondbacks starter, Daniel Hudson. Daniel's putting together a pretty good season out here in Arizona. The only thing that would make this card any better would be if he was in a D-Backs uniform.

Luis Aparicio Collection - 2004 Topps Retired

2011-09-14T12:05:00.000-07:00

Topps hit a home run with their Topps Retired set in 2003. They brought it back the following two years but it has been extinct since 2005. Recently it's kind of been replaced with Topps Lineage or the SP versions of old timers they insert into their base set.

I really like this card. It features the classic 2004 Topps design with a unique picture of Lil Luis and a retro White Sox logo. Pretty awesome.

# 514 - Tony Pena

2011-09-13T13:03:00.000-07:00

Here's another card that our friend Raiderdan sent us. This one is of Tony Pena Jr. Thanks, Dan!

# 514 - Tony Pena

Progress: 454/990

# UH 170 - Greg Smith

2011-09-12T08:09:00.000-07:00

There was a time when I thought former Diamondbacks prospect, Greg Smith was going to be a big deal. He put up some okay numbers with the A's in 2008 but has pretty much disappeared since.

# UH 170 - Greg Smith

Progress: 452/990

# 131 - Norris Hopper

2011-09-11T13:06:00.000-07:00

Yah we got Norris Hopper's autograph. Anyone actually remember this guy? I don't.

# 131 - Norris Hopper

Progress: 451/990

# 644 - Reggie Willits

2011-09-10T19:51:00.000-07:00

Here's another one for the set. Los Angeles Angels outfielder, Reggie Willits signed his card from Series 2 of the 2008 Topps set.

# 644 - Reggie Willits

Progress: 450/990