Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Series 1 Help From 30YOC

Okay- time to stop basking in the glow of STTM1's first return....

Let's recap a recent, generous and much appreciated offering from Brian over at 30YOC! Brian sent some 2012 Topps Series 1 from my NEEDS list. Of course, "some" in his vocabulary means THREE team bags worth!

Even THESE will be 30 Years Old one day...
Here's the highlights:


The Yanks!

Why do I think of Full Metal Jacket when I look at this?

As my daughter would be saying, "MINE! MINE! MINE!"

The 2012 NEEDS/FOR TRADE lists have been updated - let me know if you're interested in swapping!

Thank you, Brian! And congratulations to 30YOC on recently celebrating its 6,000th post.

Yes......SIX THOUSAND! Hear, hear!

Friday, February 24, 2012

First Return for the 1st Annual Spring TTM Experiment

I knew it.

I just had a feeling that there would be one of those glorious little SASE's waiting for me on the counter when I got home from work today.   An inkling, perhaps?.....(cheesy pun TOTALLY intended)

And there it was...

Don't worry - I was the animal that caused THAT tear!
Who could it be?   Probably one of the lesser-known players, right?   Somebody who might have had a little more time, maybe a bit more patience or excitement about receiving TTM requests in the first few days of their first or second time at camp.

I let the cards inside gently slide out into my hands.

"My God..."  I whispered to no one in particular.   Here's what dropped out:



500 Saves is SO 100 Saves Ago
My Kind of Art

                



















Thank you, Mr. Rivera!

That's right - the most successful closer of all time spent a few moments to sign my cards.   This wasn't supposed to happen.   I focused most of my efforts on preparing requests for the more 'probable' responders off of the Bombers' and others' spring rosters.   I had sent to Rivera before, during the off season in late 2007.   I had mailed off a Game Program from Yankee Stadium that I had held on to since my first and still ONLY visit to the Bronx in 2000-ish.   Mo was on the cover - it was going to look AWESOME.

It never came back.

That's okay.   I knew Rivera was a 'big name' and that the volumes of mail he probably received would be working against me.   So it was that I finished his letter a few weeks ago, with that "...might as well, because you never know" eternal optimism that I seem to be cursed/blessed with.   The cards I chose were kind of random, as you can see.   My choices were slim as I hadn't been back in the hobby long enough to amass too many Mo's for the collection.   But I liked the layout, background and balance of the Peak Performance card from 2010.   It marked a pretty solid milestone and it would look pretty cool with a signature across the front.

Same thing for the Gypsy Queen green-border parallel.   I am normally indifferent to parallels but I was enamored with almost all aspects of the GQ release last year, these greenies included.   This Rivera was beautiful to me as an artsy rendition of his classic delivery with a border and background color scheme that just worked.   It too would look fairly solid with some ink across the middle......if I ever even saw these cards again, that is.

But here they are, and I think they turned out beautifully!   These are my first autographs of Mariano Rivera.

This might very well be Mo's last season in the game he has dominated so effortlessly.  Ironically, he might be handing the reigns of Yankee Closer to my latest favorite player and PC quest - David Robertson - or somebody else, at the end of this year.   So this might have been the last shot before years of potential chance run-ins at shows or auctions.   How poetic!

Thank you, Mr. Rivera.   Thank you for your contributions to the team I live and die with every season.   Thank you for your contributions to the game of baseball and all of those epic moments in your career that are memories for me.   Let's make a few more!

Okay....I'm done with my drama  :)

The first return for STTM1 is in the books, ladies and gentlemen!   Who will be next?

Stay tuned and thanks for reading!    


Plugs, Samples & Ink-less Kiosks

Let's start with the good stuff - it IS Friday, after all.

There's a great contest going on over at Cards Beyond Oceans.   Different perspectives are always a good thing and CBO's contributors, Martyn and Tony Mc, seamlessly deliver interesting tidbits on their hobby adventures from across the pond.   Go check 'em out!

Now, on to story #2, which had me doing one of these when the 'news' broke yesterday:


That's right - the Ryan Braun debacle.   The whole series of events was bizarre from the get-go, with the story of Braun's failed test being leaked prior to any outcome (a violation of the process).   That wasn't fair to Braun and shows a lack of integrity in the MLB drug-testing process.

But it didn't stop there.

No, upon further review, the sample had been taken over a weekend and the sample collector couldn't figure out a way to pass the tubes on to the next person in the chain of custody.   So, he/she did what I guess seemed to be the next logical thing - they kept Braun's "Career In a Bottle" cool  and secure by sticking it behind the pan of lasagna left-overs in their home's refrigerator.

Oh yes......and you know what?   I think THAT move deserves one of these:


So there you go.   And with his career, reputation, good name and OODLES of potential future money on the line, Team Braun focused on this alleged breach of proper custody when making their appeal.   It worked.   Braun made history off the field by being the FIRST player to win his appeal of a failed drug test.

My two cents?   This is an unfortunate situation because nobody comes out completely clean.   Braun's appeal effort did not clearly dispute the positive results of his sample.  Instead, it zeroed in on the violation of the process for sample chain of custody directed by the Drug Testing Program's guidelines.   I believe in the rule of law, so I can't fault their strategy and I can see where the arbitrator's logic is based - reasonable doubt.   But the fact that we still have a positive test that wasn't directly rebuked is troubling.   We may never know for sure and that just stinks.

Plus, we now have baseball's problem with PEDs back in somewhat of a limelight.   Their process for handling these tests appears to be a bit too grey in some areas (the sample-collector thought they were doing the right thing) so it will have to be re-evaluated and revised.   Is it Selig's fault?   Well, the responsibility lies with the Captain of the ship but we all know that MLB pays good money for some top firm out there to develop this program and, perhaps, implement it.   And then you have the strong language in MLB's official reaction to the decision.   The words "vehemently disagrees" was used.   How often do you and I use "vehemently"?   I guess not often enough but it shows an indisputable level of passion in the League's disagreement with the outcome.   Fighting in the family.......never good, but it can lead to some solid "lessons learned" and improvements for moving forward.

I'm glad it's done.   I am hopeful the process will change accordingly so that this type of goof-up doesn't happen again.   I am happy for Braun and for baseball but at the same time I can't look at either the same way.   Not for a little while at least.   Time usually heals all wounds but what would some players say who have been placed under suspicion of PEDs in the past with much less physical evidence?

Okay, I'm done - thanks for enduring!

One more bit of frustration - the kiosk at my local US Post Office told me it was OUT OF INK this morning.   Grrrrr!   This is the same kiosk that absolutely had no power a couple of weeks ago.   What the heck?   Should I expect a "PC LOADLETTER" error message next time?


"I celebrate the guy's entire collection!"

That being said, I have four trade packaged all sealed up and ready to go whenever they dump some more ink into that machine.   I'll have packages headed out to the following zip codes:

  • 17349
  • 92688
  • 08551
  • 75201
Sorry for the delay, fellas!   I have a few trade updates coming soon as well.

Thanks for reading and have a great weekend!

Monday, February 20, 2012

Some 'Mo Citron In Chilled Pettini Glasses

Darren from "Potch Wheeler and the Cardboard Heroes" was one of the first bloggers I conducted a trade with as Reader Ryan last year and, whether he knows it or not, has played a big role in my jumping into the baseball card blogosphere pool.

Thank you, Darren.

He now also has the title of being my first completed trade partner as Blogger Ryan.   I had lucked into a Gypsy Queen relic that he needed and that matched up nicely with some NEEDS from set lists and, well - you guys know how it goes.   Here's what he sent:

Night Owl-Approved
Wait a second.....


"I love technology..."

Best.   Card.   Ever?   Yes.   Consider my '81 NEEDS list a little shorter and a lot less cooler now.   On to the '82's!


Ready to Launch
Mr. 478 Saves' RC






















Angry Johnny?
Love, love, love these cards.   Hall of Famers and All-Stars, some not even shown here, were all over this assortment of '82s that were in GREAT shape.   Thank you, Darren!   But he wasn't done helping me out:

Pinstripe Smile Heritage Highlights
You will be mine SOON, Lineage!
In my best Canuck, "CHIPPAH!"






















My Heritage, 2011 Lineage and 2012 Series 1 ALL received a little bit of help from Indiana Land.   But there was one more surprise, Citron Mo!

Job Well Done.
Stay thirsty, my friends!   Trade #1 for Ryan's Pitch is in the books.

Thank you for your generous help, Darren.   I feel like I got the better end of our deal but rest assured - I'll have my Pettini Goggles on as I scour the card-scape for the next Potch Batch.

Thanks for reading!                                      

Friday, February 17, 2012

Gary Carter, Never The Last Out

Way too early.

That is the sentiment that I've heard repeatedly as the baseball world, and the world beyond, comes to grips with the passing of Hall of Fame catcher, Gary Carter.

And I couldn't agree more.

What did Gary mean to me? As a kid, collector, baseball fan and little leaguer in the late 80's - you knew who Gary Carter was. You knew he was a good guy. How could he not be? The man was ALWAYS smiling. He was an outstanding catcher and clearly deserved his own pages in my "Star" binders. Sure, he wasn't my favorite player. I didn't seek him out or work up trades with friends to build my Gary Carter collection. But he was a great ball player. When I ripped open packs of cards as a youth, Gary Carter's cards would definitely be placed in the GOOD players pile as I sorted and tucked away.   For a kid collector, this was obviously a notable tip-of-the-hat!


SI thought he deserved a tip-of-the-hat, too!

I knew Gary as a Mets player back then. If you recall, I began collecting in the 1986-1987 time frame, so Gary and his "Miracle Mets" teammates were coming off of their historic come-from-behind victory over the Boston Red Sox in the '86 Series.

As a Yankees fan - sure, I enjoyed that. Still do!

Game 6 of the 1986 World Series will forever be remembered as Bill Buckner's worst moment. The moment when the "Curse of the Bambino" received a shock to the heart with two outs in the bottom of the (10th?) inning. The Mets were down by two runs. It must have felt pretty hopeless. Even the officials at Shea Stadium had felt such a premonition of finality that they briefly flashed a congratulatory message to the Red Sox on the stadium's jumbo tron.

SERIOUSLY?!

If I had been a Mets fan, I would have been furious, unwilling to acquiesce until the final out.   And that's exactly how Gary Carter felt.   He later recalled that he was determined to NOT be the final out of that World Series.   Apparently, he is a good listener when it comes to inner monologues.   Gary lofted a beautiful single into left field and ignited what would become one of the greatest come-backs in baseball history.

Mr. Carter was a tremendous contributor to the game of baseball.   There are copious amounts of memorial posts and articles being churned out right now in the wake of his passing.   Each one contains something new that I hadn't previously known about the man:
  • he had a chance to play football at UCLA

  • when he was drafted by the Expos, he prepared by taking the time to learn French (no provided interpreters back then!)

  • as a rookie, he hit his first career HR off of Steve Carlton and proceeded to hit 10 more off of Lefty over the years, more than any other individual pitcher Gary punished with his 324 career home runs 

These factoids are just the tip of the iceberg and I can't wait to learn more.   The game we love is simply BETTER because a player like Gary Carter graced the field with his presence.   I hope we have more players like Gary in the future.   Actually, I hope the world has more people like the Kid.   It would certainly be an improvement.

When I got back into the hobby last year, I was fortunate to stumble upon a FANTASTIC little shop on the other side of town.   I believe it's simply called, "The Stamp Shop" - specializing mostly in stamps and currency collectibles.   The man who runs the store is a charming old fellow who doesn't mind a meandering conversation about...well, just about anything.   He is only open Friday through Monday becaue, well, that's when he wants to work.   I stumbled upon his shop during my Father's Day "afternoon off" last year and asked if he had any baseball cards.

Cards weren't his focus, but yes, he did.   OH, did he.

He had boxes and boxes, organized neatly by either year, team or price ($1 box, $5 box, etc.).   It was great and I had a lot of fun going through some amazing cards at reasonable prices.   It just so happened that I came across two Gary Carter cards in the  "$5 and under" binder.   Here's the first one:


Love that old-school gear, Kid!
Edmund...see?  Learned something else.


There's that smile!   Gary's rookie card.   For less than $5?   Yes, please.   Sure - it's well loved.   The corners are fuzzy but the colorful zeal of the '75 design still pops.   There's a solid crease in the upper-righthand corner but it doesn't come through on the back and disrupt any of the write-ups.   Gary is listed as a Catcher on this rookie parade of C's and OF's.   Ironically, Carter played most of that first full season witht he Expos in right field.   It didn't affect his performance at all - he made the All-Star team and even saw action when he relieved some guy named Pete Rose in left field.   I love this card and, so far, it's my best card from 1975.  

Here's the other Gary Carter card I picked up and didn't put down that day:
 
                                                
                                                         Always been a fan of the position icons!
 
Apparently, J-Lo was a 1964 Oriole?




You can't go wrong with the All-Star Rookie cup!   There's Gary again - okay, maybe the smile is more of a grunting smirk as he works to perfect his swing......but you can see the focus in his eyes as he prepares for the season.   Does anybody know the stadium pictured in the background?   I am fairly certain that it is not Jackie Robinson Ballpark in Daytona Beach, the home of the Expos' spring training from '73 - '80.   I always love the old Topps cards with fresh spring training images in the background.   It makes me th ink of sun, breeze, beer and....well, you know the rest.

This card was in much better shape than the '75 and since it was only his second year card (gosh, ONLY - ha!) it went for even less.   The corners are good with no creases and my blogging lamp clearly shows off that "original gloss".   The centering ain't too bad either - beautiful card.   Topps did a great job with the design that year.   You know, I think I like this one slightly more than his '75.   It's certainly a welcome addition to my collection.   I have a few other '76 cards and I can't wait to add more (do you hear me, Eck?!).   Carter had added a whole 5 pounds since his '75 stats.....I'm guessing he enjoyed a few more good meals after his successful rookie campaign.   You deserved it, Kid!

Finally, I also have a Gary Carter card with a piece of memorabilia.   The card explains this terrifically Metropolitan's-Orange swatch as being from a "game-worn jacket".   It's a clean layout and I enjoy its simplicity.   I think the clear shot of Carter's follow-through remains the focus, working well with the nearby square of jacket-y goodness:

Consider this "Call to the Hall" answered!

I picked it up as a whim, probably as an after-thought add-on to lower shipping expenses per card.

And I'm so glad I did.

Thank you for the memories, Mr. Carter and rest in peace.   Your contributions to baseball will live on forever, so don't worry - you'll NEVER be the last out.

Thanks for reading.

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Rest in Peace, Kid.

Just heard that Gary Carter has passed away after a courageous battle with cancer.

Very sad.

Rest in peace, Gary. You did it right and you are missed.

STTM1 Update...

I was up way too late last night and grew very, very weary of writing my own address.   That can mean only one thing!   Okay, probably two things.   First off, I didn't make it to the gym before work today.  

Drats.  

More importantly, the first salvo of the 1st Annual Spring Through the Mail umm, adventure (or something?), has been fired!

Hope Springs Eternal - Pun Totally Intended

Godspeed, my little friends.


Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Do You Smell That?

It's almost here.

That time of the year when we all receive some fresh hope, some warmer temps and maybe get the hankerin' for some sunflower seeds as we maneuver our way through the peculiarities of Flagship Series 1.

Spring Training!

I know that the Marlins kicked off early - but if my memory serves me right, I believe pitchers and catchers for most clubs are set to report in about 6 days or so......

So what does that mean?

Time for Ryan's 1st Annual Spring Through The Mail (STTM1).

Better make 'em "forever" stamps - just in case!


I've always been a huge fan of TTM autograph seeking.   I discovered this joy in 2007 and have been going at it from time to time ever since.   I've had some amazing returns and crushing non-responses.   $450, Willie?   Really?   I can't wait to share some of those stories here.

But it's always a good time for a new crop.   As my beautiful wife always says, "MORE baseballs and autographs?"

Yes, babe.   MORE.

What exactly is STTM1?   I'm not quite sure yet.   But it's going to be epic, of course.   Success or failure?   THAT is the question.  

More details to follow but I'm starting to get ready around here.   It's time to get writing and time to get stamping.

And the occasional, early offering to Jobu for a little luck never hurts.

Add caption

Here goes nothing.   Thanks for reading!

Monday, February 13, 2012

Ask and You Shall Receive - 1991 Fleer

Wow.   Just WOW.

I'm not sure how long it will take for me to get used to the generosity of my fellow collectors.   Hopefully I never will, as it is a terrific reminder of what this hobby is all about.   In my last post, I shot a signal flare into the night as a call for my quest to complete the '91 Fleer set.

No......not FLAIR.   But pizza shooters DO sound good!


And that call was answered.

To all who have offered their help - The Lost Collector, Foul Bunt, Captain Canuck, Condition Sensitive - a heartfelt THANK YOU.   You know I'm serious with the use of all CAPS, too.

Here's an updated list of my '91 Fleer NEEDS after compiling some "these are on the way" responses:

    #0-100:  14, 30, 86, 88
  101-200:  117, 122, 161, 165, 186, 192 
  201-300:  207, 210
  301-400:  343. 381
  401-500:  402, 440, 450, 481,
  501-600:  502,  529, 561, 592, 593,
  601-700:  644, 649, 681, 683, 687, 689, 690, 691, 693, 694, 696,
  701-720:  704, 705, 707, 711, 712

 See what I mean?!   You rascals........

If only the cable company were this responsive.

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Would you accept this challenge?


AH..........set building.

If you subjected yourself to the previous post, you know that I recently dug through a brick of '91 Fleer cards - contents unknown.   I recalled that I may have picked up a wax box of these cards.   This would have been when I was 12, so I am not 100% certain.   I was hoping that I might be decently close to completing the set.   Sorted and recorded, here was the breakdown:


  • NEED 280/720 cards (therefore, 62% COMPLETE)
  • 110 duplicates

Hmmm.......what to do?   The good news is that I still need to retrieve one "Stars" binder from my folks' home.   It will certainly contain a few more cards that are currently missing (specifically, players with last names starting with "A" up through Gregg Olson) because I would have pulled the cards for the PC's in my binders.

So, it will get better, but it's still not as far along as I would have preferred.   You know what, though?   This is where my introduction to the blogosphere has been so wonderful.   Networking, support and generous, genuine interest from other collectors in my pursuits since returning to the hobby last year give me some hope.   I've already had several offers to help (Thanks to Foul BuntLost Collector and Condition Sensitive!) and wouldn't this be the ultimate victory over some unfinished 'junk wax' business?   Yeah......you know what?

I also feel this way before I eat chicken wings.
 And off we go!   I've added this set to my lists, so feel free to look and see if you can unload some yellow kindling.   I promise it is going to a good home.   If anybody stumbles across another collector out there who managed to keep a bunch of '91 Fleers around, please let me know.

Thanks for reading and I will leave you with some of my favorite peculiar finds from this intoxicating (or toxic?) stack of wax goodness from 1991:

Please get well, Kid!
Great swing by the HOFer

Just doesn't look right
Should be in '12 Topps "Walk-Offs" Subset!




Where do the years go, Joe?   It's like looking at my old passport photo....



Sammy left in the dryer too long...

Greatness

It's l ate and I'm too tired to rotate - please forgive me!

Friday, February 10, 2012

The Excavation Begins!

Irony.   The circle of life.   I love it.

Tonight I've gone in search throughout the collection for some long lost Rangers for Play at the Plate.   I think it was the fact that Raiders of the Lost Ark was on TV.   The perfect motivation for my own junk wax archaeological dig!

I popped open one of my boxes and decided to pull out a block of cards....

Cardboard inside Cardboard.
They had been resting in that spot for more than twenty years.   Ladies and gentlemen, may I present to you - the set we all love to hate, 1991 Fleer!

The Solyndra of baseball cards?
Man, these things are a beautiful disaster (as my girl Kelly Clarkson would say).   Here's the great part - they were all out of order.   I simply don't know what I have here (other than a boat load of '91 Fleer's, of course).   I am sure I picked up a cheap wax box of these cards at Sam's Club one day, ripped them with glee and fastidiously set aside the Griffey's.   The rest?   Relegated to the archives.   Silly young me!

But now I shall set them free.   The set-builder gene has kicked in and I must answer the call!   As you can see in the pic, the sorting and collation has already begun.   I hope I am close to a complete set.   If there's too much left to do......well, we'll see.   But for now - we must sort.

Thankfully, I have a cold one nearby and an encore of Indiana Jones has just started.   It's like a time machine to my youth.   Indy, hand me that torch!


Monday, February 6, 2012

Piling On!

This is at LEAST the 2012th post about 2012 Topps Series 1.......so, at the risk of making my one reader (thanks, Dad!) look like this:

Is this dude: (a) reading this post, (b) watching American Idol or (c) a Tebow fan?

Of course I'll double down!   Here we go, my take on 2012 Topps.  

I seriously debated picking up any of this release.   I am a set builder by nature and last year was my first year back in the hobby after about 20 years.   Part of my annual goals will be to collect at least one set for my son.   This sounded easy enough, but I floundered for a few months with all of the various releases.   I eventually began to tread water when I decided what I liked.   The winners for me?   I was really impressed by and am still having a lot of fun putting together the Gypsy Queen and Heritage sets.   You can check out my progress on those sets on my NEEDS page.   I am definitely looking forward to those same releases this year....

So what about the flagship?   It would be very easy (and WAY more financially efficient) to just pick up a factory set of Series 1 & 2 at the end of the year for the price of a couple of blasters.   Who needs inserts anyways?

Meh.   What fun is that?

A blaster and a hanger box literally tackled me at Wally Mart.   It was my first exciting "Release Day" experience that also coincided with the writing of this blog's first (and now, no longer ONLY!) post.   I couldn't NOT pick up some, right?   Would I taste defeat and suffer with regret?   For a good day of wax, I always hope for some of my Yanks, some of my Braves and a minimal stack of duplicates.    Here goes nothing!

Add caption
4 base Yankees.   Not too bad!   I am hoping that Nova can carry over his success from last year and that Big Mo can put together another season of magic while mentoring Mr. Robertson.   Teixeira had some pop but needs more consistent production and Burnett......well, we'll see which A.J. reports in FL.


Some Yankee inserts.   AH, the Captain!   Not only that but a card of Jeter commemorating the first shared baseball memory for my son and me.   He'll have to hear about that moment for the rest of my life.   I think we both teared up a little but I swear the weird smell was coming from him!

I've never been so excited to pull a Mariner since the Kid!

The NEW guy!   Sure wish Cashman had been a bit quicker so these cards had a shot at some good 'ol fashioned Topps Airbrushing.....but that's okay.   You were traded for Jesus, Michael.   No pressure!   Good luck, kid.

A nice haul of some Bombers.   I shall spare you the various League Leader cards I pulled.   Blah - not a fan.   On to the Bravos....

I look just like Craig after I hoist the family Christmas tree into position!

Oh how sweet!   I was rooting for Kimbrel every time he took the mound last year.   I went back and forth between him and David Robertson for the title of Ryan's favorite hurler.   Rookie of the Year and the rookie season saves record - top notch.   Plus, you can't look any cooler as you stare down the hitter looking like THAT.   Good job, Topps.   I hear that Atlanta hitting coaches have worked with Jason for a couple of months.   His injuries caused him to change his swing and this required a total deconstruction so that they could build him back up.   Did it work?   And finally - Smoltzy and Kimbrel together.   This design has run its course but these are two great players (and commentator and golfer).

Here's some gold goodness:

Better GOLD than last year's?
I'm pretty happy at this point.   A good spread amongst my favorites.   I am also impressed by the photography this year.   Here are some of my favorite shots:

R.A. Baracus says: "I PITY THE FOOL!"
  Yeah, R.A. is probably going to catch some ribbing for this one.   But check out the fancy yard art left behind the mound by the grounds keeping crew at Shea Stadium  Citi Field!   The Blanks card is hauntingly biblical - clear proof that baseball is a favorite up in the clouds, yeah?   I am sure Dan Brown is on the case.   A couple more:

Beautiful follow-through
I tried to recreate this pose myself.   I failed.
I neared the end of my packs and saw this emerge:

Is dinner served for Uncle Eddie?
No, of course it's not THE card.  No short-print squirrel (a good name for a band?).   Just 'ol Skip!

Rodent-Free
But, wait...one more card...could it be?   YES!
Goofy, awkward, short print-y awesomness
Great way to end it - Fabulous High Fivin' Freddie Freeman!   Freddie had a rough beginning in 2011 but eventually found his groove and produced a quality rookie campaign that had him close behind his teammate, Mr. Kimbrel, on the NL ROY ballot.   I am hopeful that Freeman picks up where he left off and can contribute to the Braves' avenging of last year's SEPTEMBER implosion.   

If you're still reading - here's my overall take:

I like the set but the design is average and blends in quickly with those of the previous couple of years.   The photography saves the day - well done, Topps.   The inserts are hit or miss.   As many have already pointed out, several of them are too reverse-engineered for the potential relic/auto varieties (none of which I managed to pull).   

I will be chasing the base card set and collecting the Gold Standard, '87 Mini's (homage to the year I started collecting!) and Golden Moments insert subsets.   Feel free to check my 2012 Topps NEEDS/FOR TRADE lists to see if there's anything you'd like to swap! 

Thanks for reading!