You Cool Summer, Yu!

Okay, not so cool.   Maybe even a little "Cruel" on some days..... 

.....but I sincerely hope that each and every one of you are having a great one.   The baseball season is now in full swing as we approach the mid-summer classic in Kansas City.   The divisions are shaking out.....somewhat.   Some close divisional races this year, actually, if you can call them races already in June.   Gotta love it!   A bunch of web gems on display, some good pop also as the dingers start to fly in the warm air.

A knuckle-baller who has penned a book and climbed Kilimanjaro is the best pitcher in baseball!!!   How sweet is that????

We are in the thick of things in the hobby as well.   Series 2 has been out for a wee bit and I'm chasing it along with completion of Series 1.   Please check out my lists to see if we can help each other (along with Gypsy Queen, Heritage and all of the others, too!).   There's a lot of high-dollar action on E-Bay, YouTube, the Blogosphere and Twitter regarding Topps' Tier One release and the 1/1 "Bat Knob" relics for some of the game's greatest legends.   They're definitely SWEET - and while I will probably never own one myself, it's been a lot of fun to watch others enjoy these amazing 'pulls'.   If you haven't spent some time on YouTube to check 'em out, I recommend spending a few moments to do so!

I have a few trades pending with a a few of you out there - I am sorry that I have been so slow to follow up and dig through my collection to update lists & those set-aside stacks for each of you.   I am also going on a family vacation next week, so I'll be on the Collector's DL for a little bit longer - thanks for your patience, guys.  And THANKS to those of you who have passed along some great trade packages (or just good will packages) in the past month or so.   I am truly thankful and can't wait to have some time to 'hit you back'.

And speaking of hits, I've decided to declare that I have, indeed, ended my "hit-less" drought for 2012!   No, I still haven't cornered an autograph or some game-used relics....this was one of those much loved and much hated short prints from Series 2 - the Yu Darvish SP, #660.   I would never have known it but I strategically pulled the STANDARD Yu two packs before this one popped out.

Again, not the greatest card out there but I was pretty pumped to enjoy some success and claim my first two Yu Darvish cards!   I will probably sell the SP on the Bay of E in order to fund other ventures but it's cool to enjoy for now - Without further ado, here Yu for you:

 

Stay cool, be safe and have some fun, everybody - we'll see you back here after a short break.

Thanks for reading!