The Budget eBay Collector - March results

1. 2009 Bowman Chrome Refractor #47 Mike Jacobs

Well, last time I started with a 1979 card of potential HOF pitcher in Jack Morris.  This time I start with a journeyman first baseman who was a non-roster spring training invitee (with the Rockies) at age 30.  Um, it's a little bit of a drop off, but it's still a cool card and who doesn't love refractors.  This card should already be in the possession of Eric from Manupatches and Chrome Scratches.  I got this one for 28 cents shipped (I may have overpaid, but I had just lost 27 auctions in a row).  $4.72 remaining.

2. 1964 Topps #64 Ted Abernathy

Not a great condition, but not a bad card either that became the newest "oldest card I have" and is one of Jaybee's five Topps 300 and then some for 1964 (Could someone explain why please).  I didn't know anything about Abernathy before this purchase, but it seems he was one of the first closers along with Hoyt Wilhelm and others.  This card is significant because it is the first year Abernathy became a reliever after 4 years struggling as a starter with the Senators.  He finished his career with 148 saves (quite a high total for back then).  He compares to Steve Bedrosian, Mike Jackson, and Roger McDowell to give you an idea of him.  I picked it up for 45 cents shipped.  $4.27 remaining.

3. 2004 Donruss Throwback Threads Gold Century Proof #179 Jim Edmonds #'d 11/100

Now we're talking.  A #'d to 100 card of great player that never played for the Rockies, but I always liked him mainly for his fantastic catches.  Edmonds retired after a 17 year career this spring and I feel even older now because I was in high school when he was a rookie.  I don't think he was quite a Hall of Famer, but he should get some love from the voters.  Could he be a future member of The Cubicle of the Unique?  Probably not, I think he will get around 10-15 votes for his defense alone.  I got this one for 85 cents shipped.  $3.42 remaining.

4. 1969 Topps #294 Jim Lemon

Well I have my first manager card from the 1960s.  Jim Lemon was a very good player in the late 50s / early 60s, finishing in the top 10 in MVP voting in 1959 with the original Senators franchise that became the Twins.  Here he is pictured in his only season as manager of the expansion Senators franchise that became the Texas Rangers.  But my god, what was Topps thinking with the back of this card?  The man lost his job and they aged him about 15 years and put a cartoon on there, wow.  The Senators finished last in the AL in 1968.  It was his only year as a major league manager.  He deserved more than a one year and out career.  Mr. Lemon passed away in 2006 at the age of 78.  I got this card for 40 cents shipped.  $3.02 remaining.

5. 1969 Topps #138 John Bateman

It seems like March is quickly becoming vintage month on the The Budget eBay Collector.  John Bateman was a journeyman big league catcher for 10 years with three different teams.  Neat fact alert, he was part of two of those franchise's special firsts, having caught the first no hitter in team history for both the Colt 45s and the Expos.  Mr. Bateman passed away in 1996 at the young age of 56.  I picked up his card for 40 cents shipped. (Same seller, different auction).  $2.62 remaining.

6. 2008 Topps Co Signers Silver/Red Pedro Martinez #'d 320/400

From my searches on eBay, I have noticed that there are a LOT of cards from both Pedro and Nomar listed at one penny with free shipping starting price.  I guess they come from a retiring Red Sox collector or something, even though this card pictures him from his Mets days.  Anyway,  this is the most common parallel of the approximately 395 parallel versions of this card (22 actually).  I spent 50 cents on this card.  $2.12 remaining.

7. 2008 Topps Co Signers Silver/Blue Pedro Martinez #'d 211/250

Another of my same seller, different auction purchases.  That me feel better about picking up these cards for usually less than postage and fees, but I don't really feel THAT bad anyway.  The sellers have the first option on price and know the chance they are taking by starting at one penny with free shipping in order to increase viewership.  Anyway, this is another parallel from the same set, except for some reason Oliver Perez is on this one.  I got this cheaper than the more common parallel.  I guess Oliver Perez does suck that much.  I got it for 41 cents shipped. $1.71 remaining (this challenge is in the bag)

8. 2006 Flair Showcase #182 Brandon Webb #'d 113/150

This revelation may surprise some of my readers, but as much as I dislike the D-Bags (oops, sorry D-Backs fans but they had to know that would happen when they named them) I have always liked Brandon Webb.  Why you ask, because he pitched for the University of Kentucky and he is a Kentucky boy.  I really hope he can make a comeback, because he went from one of the best in the league to forgotten very quickly.  That being said I always loved it when the Rockies beat him and I don't really collect him.  I seem to remember that there is a Brandon Webb collector out there, but I don't know who it is.  Never mind, I found him and this card is hopefully in his hands as of now.  I got this card for 41 cents shipped.  $1.30 remaining.

9. 2001 Fleer Legacy Ultimate #36 Manny Ramirez #'d 101/250

This is nice card of Manny before he became a complete dill-hole, but he is with Boston so he is was rapidly approaching that status at this point.  Aside from my personal bias, I really like this card even though it is a tad plain.  Sometimes simple is the best way to go with designs.  The only thing that would make this card better would be the placement of the team name and player position.  It looks awkward running up the card.  I picked this one up for 36 cents shipped.  $0.94 remaining (I think there might be a bonus card or two this month).

10. 1994 Pinnacle Artist's Proof #220 Armando Reynoso

This is the first Rockie of this month.  The Artist's Proof was Pinnacle main parallel throughout all of their sets in the mid 90s.  This parallel was basically just the Gold Stamp on the front, but some in other sets that I have seen these parallels look pretty good.  Onto Reynoso, he was the first Rockie "ace" in the expansion year.  He was plucked from the Braves in the expansion draft and traded to the Mets in 1996 for Jerry DiPoto.  I picked up this card for 17 cents shipped.  $0.77 remaining for bonus card(s).

Bonus 1. 1997 SP Marquee Matchups #MM2 Andres Galarraga

Well this is an insert, so it doesn't technically fall under the rules of the game, but since it is a bonus card (and a Rockie, of course) I consider it fair play.  Andres was the first star of the Rox with his run at .400 during the expansion year after several good years in Montreal and one bad year with the Cardinals (who I assume still hate him).  This is m first 1997 SP card and I like the look of this insert.  Shipping was the big issue with this card, I paid on 3-16 and it didn't get to my mailbox until 4-7.  I still consider this fair game, because it should have arrived well before March ended.  I got this beauty for 31 cents shipped.  $0.46 remaining.

Bonus 2. 2005 Upper Deck Reflections purple parallel Joel Peralta #'d 38/99

A pretty nice card of one of the worst Rockies pitchers ever.  Of course, he is an Angel in this card and was a Royal after that, but came to Colorado in 2009.  He is pitching for Washington and doing a pretty good job.  This fact makes his 2009 stint with the Rockies even more annoying.  Anyway I bought this card for 31 cents shipped.  $0.15 remaining and with that I will call it a month, since I went 11 cents over budget in January.

FINAL THOUGHTS ON MARCH

That brings an end to the March Budget eBay Collector.  Here are my January results for comparison.  Which month was better?  Personally I think I did much better in March, but had more fun with it in January.  Not that it wasn't fun in March, but the sequel is often less fun than the original.  I think the biggest problem was that I won the first 9 cards by the 3rd of the month and couldn't get card #10 until the 16th.  I lost 81 auctions in a row before the Reynoso.  I was going for the home run with 94 cents remaining, but finally decided 3 singles would get the same run across the plate.