Jacoby's Treasure Chest

Happy Friday to all, and here is to a nice, slow weekend burn and some wild card playoffs!


I watched the BCS National Championship game last night, and it had to be one of the most wildly unbalanced games that I have ever seen. When Colt McCoy went down early, and wide-eyed and quaking true freshman Garrett Gilbert stepped into the game, you knew that Texas was in trouble. On third and goal, the coach finally called a pass play, and Gilbert rewarded the call with a pass high and out of the end zone. Yup, BIG trouble. After two interceptions, the second of which was a pitch pass that was picked by a 300 lb lineman, Gilbert looked like he just wanted to vomit. I just remember him seeing him mouth the words "I'm trying" to his teammates.


After what seemed like an eternally long halftime show, Texas took the field again, and displayed an inspired defense for the next 27 minutes. Gilbert Grape found a quasi-rhythm that allowed him to connect with WR Jordan Shipley for a couple of touchdowns that set up the drama for the final drive with three minutes left...only to have Gilbert crunched from his blind side and fumble for a Alabama recovery and TD. Ballgame.


I guess my impressions were that the game would have pretty much sucked if not for the impulse to root for the underdog, to cheer on Gilbert and hope for him to succeed, which he didn't, then did, then didn't again. Also, does Colt McCoy really LOOK like a future NFL QB to you? I just keep seeing this tiny little dude with a baby face with enormous headphones standing on the sideline. Hard to imagine him leading a NFL Squad down the field. But the game kept me watching, what is what sponsors are hoping for, as I have now decided that I need a Ford truck and also need to take a trip to Norway and Sweden and book it on my Citi card.


But enough of the oblong ball. This blog is all about the hardball. Being Friday, it is time to dip my hand back into Jacoby's treasure chest and pick out three random cards to share with you. In case you missed last week, I will go over the rules one more time. My goal is collecting is to complete some sets, but also stuff a shoebox full of toploaders that my son and blog CEO (JD) can have to enjoy down the road some day. I try to eliminate my own personal biases in gathering a wide spectrum of autographs and rare cards, but obviously since JD is more interested in pushing siren buttons on his firetruck and eating graham crackers, I am calling most of the shots at this time!


Here are today's random three:



2008 Topps Chrome Refractor Rookie Auto - Being a phenom junkie, I jumped on the Johnny Cueto bandwagon. It was hard not too after his stellar debut against the Diamondbacks where he struck out 10 hitters on an efficient 92 pitch outing. Unfortunately JC was a bit wild on the control side, and those who owned him during fantasy season had quite the ride. Much the same for 2009 where he finished with an 11-11 record and only 132 K's to his record. I still hold out hope that Cueto's best days are still ahead, but at the moment he is mediocre on my watch list at best. Of interest in this auto is the bizarre signature of "J.Cuito" that is unlike any of his other autos. Its almost as if he was signing two stickers at once and I got the left-handed model. Though maybe, just like his pitching, he has lack of penmanship control from time to time.

Jackie Robinson SP from Topps 2009 Series 1 - Of the several SP's that I now have from Topps Flagship and Updates and Highlights, this one is my favorite. This is just a beautiful image with a perfect color scheme and an even more perfect slide from one of the game's most historical icons. It is a privilege to keep this card safe and sound and well protect. Timeless.

And finally a 2005 Updates and Highlights Jacoby Ellsbury draft picks rookie card. I am told that this is Jacoby's "true" rookie card, though these days it is hard to tell with all of the variations and bowman "first year" cards. Either way, it is no secret that this is a Jacoby kind of family, so I had no problem shelling out the 12 bucks and top-loading this baby. I can't afford a Jacoby autograph, but I can afford one of these!

Until next week, Jacoby's Treasure Chest is closed.