My 2009 Mystery Cut Redemption is.....

Whoopee. A brown envelope, right?

Well, yes, but not exactly. you see, inside of this envelope that I scanned just moments ago, is the culmination of a eight-month wait for my SP Legendary Cuts Mystery Cut Redemption. Seems like a long time to wait, but some people have waited over 15-months for their card.

So I am writing this before I open up the package because I don't want the results (I expect to be disappointed) to skew my excitement, because I definitely AM really excited to see what is inside.

A few weeks ago Upper Deck released a video showing some of the amazing cuts up for grabs. These were clearly the best of the best, and Upper Deck clearly did not show what a vast majority of us lottery ticket holders will ACTUALLY receive.

I have been following a chat board for several months and have heard just about every complaint possible towards Upper Deck, followed by elation that the cards were finally coming, followed by very vocal discontent at what was received. I am not kidding here, this is the equivelant of a Simpson's lynch mob, folks.

So, I am just going to keep everything in perspective, be happy with whatever I receive, and hope for some serious mojo...

...so here we go...my 2009 Mystery Cut Redemption is....

Here is one for you football historians. The Legendary (guess that is the name of the product right?) Paul Brown, founder of the Cleveland Browns (obviously) and the Cincinnati Bengals, (Paul Brown Stadium).

I have heard of some other pulls and overall am pretty thrilled with this pull. My only wish is that is had some sort of cool paper or date or stamp on it (check out the Harry Blackstone magician auto), but all-in-all this is a pretty dang cool addition to the collection.

Have a great weekend. Go crack a code or something!

Famous Showdowns

Coke Vs. Pepsi

Big Ern Vs. The Rubber Man

Rocky Vs. Drago

Man Vs. Wild

Lincecum Vs Halladay!

Tonight, we will once again be treated to round two of a title bout between Big Time Timmy Jim and Doc Halladay. While the opening round did not top the preliminary series results for either pitcher, it nevertheless resulted in a stellar atmosphere and great television.

Now with an elimination game on the line, the crowds should be pumped and the drama and nerves should be high. Must-see TV.

Oh....did I forget to mention that #1 Oregon plays tonight also?

Got code? STILL not too late to join the fun.

Keep to the Code!

Marooned?



If ye has yet attempt JD's Wild Code, it is never too late join. If ye is already on board and the code has led your judgment askew, show no fear, as CEO and swashbuckler Cap'n Jacoby has granted Parley.



The captain will answer but three questions pertaining to the code to help you chart your course. Please submit a comment below and await response.



Arg.

No Pricing Due to Scarcity

These five words have become some of the the most dreaded words to me in the collection world. The baseball card hobby prides itself in makes variations upon variations of unique cards that keep us running back for more, finding a gem, throwing on a top-loader, and then scurrying to the nearest Beckett (you know you look) to see what the beauty is "worth".

And then you hit those words "No pricing due to scarcity"...and the balloon deflates. You stare at your card like it was some four-eyed alien and shrug your shoulders as you case it up and throw it into a box somewhere to vanish into obscurity until you find it and write a post like this.

Of course you could always toss it up on eBay to see what the card is worth. Of course you could also be severely underwhelmed as the card goes for WAY less than your "book value" and you are left feeling empty AND without a nice card.

Here are a few examples of some fortuitous pulls over the last year that qualify under the WTF pricing dilemma.

Topps Chicle Pablo Sandoval. Okay, one of the nicer auto's of the Chicle set...mmm....maybe $20 bones give or take a world series championship this season? But then...

BAM! Black umbrella back, numbered 12/25. One of two or three variations, this being tier two. Go to pricing guide..."No pricing due to scarity" DOH!

Ah, Evan Longoria Auto Relic from Topps unique. My first auto-relic. Go to the guide....BAM "no pricing due to scarcity". Seriously? Apparently there were only so many relic autos even produced that the dreaded words must apply.

> This one is the biggest mystery because neither of these guys really ring the bell for me, yet Beckett cannot even muster up a guess. While the auto subjects are not fantastic, I will say that the on-card TTM look to it, along with the horizontal scheme, really makes this a great card. I believe this subset is only 10 subjects (2 per card) and 25 cards each, so basically 125 total cards exist...sounds like it should be worth something, right? "No pricing due to scarcity".

It's not that I really want to sell or trade any of these. I guess my main argument is that a lot of us by a lot of product seeking unique treasures (yeah there are some base-hunters out there too, but I personally could not maintain the beast that became Mt St. Cardboard).

I just think that part of the fun of collecting is finding a great card and being able to thumb though a pricing guide, see a massive number, and feel like you beat the odds. "No pricing due to scarcity" really ruins that for me. I just think it's kind of lazy. Beckett feels they can throw a dart and put a price on more common cards, why can't they just do something like say it is worth a "gazillion" dollars or something...ANYTHING. Yeah sure, eBay market will dictate the price, but only at the cost of having to give up your card.

I just think in a hobby that is already rife with poor quality check standards, overpriced wax, and loads of worthless hits and autos, that somewhere and somehow you should have a rewarding feeling for pulling something great instead of question marks, a shrug of the shoulder, and tossing the card into a box.

Am I alone on this? What are some of your "no pricing due to scarcity" gems?

Corrections to Trivia Quiz

Hi folks,

I noticed a couple small blunders in the trivia questions portion of the code. Please read them again and note the highlighted changes to a couple questions. I fired that editor too.

If you have made it this far, you know what to do next...

...and if you have no idea what to do next, consider visiting here to get in the know.

NEW PRIZE ADDED! The winner of the contest will now also receive a specially signed TTM of Chicle Artist Dave Hobrecht! The winner will be able to choose from either

1) David Wright
2) Jayson Werth
3) Alex Rodriguez



Good luck!



1. This player is the only player to have his number retired in every ballpark. What is his jersey number, and how many career homeruns did he hit?

2. Stay Fair. This object was named after a famed Portland, Oregon native. In which section does it sit?

3. This self-professed “ringleader” of the Chicago Blacksox scandal had how many RBI’s during the regular season of “the fix”

4. On the evening that the Iron Man broke LG’s 2130, he also hit a home run. Multiply the inning he hit the homerun times his jersey number

5. In the 2004 ALCS Game 6, Curt Schilling underwent an experimental procedure in order to secure his recently injured ankle tendon. How many sutures were inserted into the ankle? There seems to be some variation depending on where you look...refer to "pitching in stitches" for the answer

6. He hit the “shot heard round the world” in 1951. Multiply his jersey number by the number of runs his team scored in that game.

7. After many years of day games only, Wrigley Field finally hosted its first official night game. What was the combined win total of the two competing teams for that season?

8. The “Earthquake Series” showed the winning team’s dominant performance amid the dramatic real-life events that unfolded. Multiply both teams combined homeruns by the World Series losing team’s total runs scored. Editor note: I misread the stat line and accidentally included two Sac flys, thus throwing off the math. Please use card #182.

9. Smoke and El Toro both tossed no-hitters on the same day. What was the day of the month ,and how many hits did each give up that year? Editors note: of the two cards, use the lower number first...


10. He was Lynn's last strikeout victim, but how many career HRs did he have?

11. Take Cy Young’s career wins total, minus his career losses total, and add his number of career shutouts.

12. Bobby Cox will be retiring at the end of this season, ending a remarkable managerial career. Despite his impressive record on the field, Cox as has an amazing stat for getting thrown OFF the field. How many ejections (as of 9/17/10) has Cox received?

13. Last player to strikeout four batters in one inning? His jersey number. Oh and can you believe how many times Chuck Finley did this? How many?

14. His latest walk-off homerun has him tied with some exclusive company, Jimmie Foxx, Mickey Mantle, Stan Musial, Frank Robinson and Babe Ruth.

But how many career stolen bases does the big man have?