I feel a bit like a troll breaking my Card Shop Tour purchases into two posts, but truth be told, the singles themselves are worthy of their own showcase.

As noted in Part One, I went through binders upon binders of discounted relics and autos, and scoured through a showcase of discounted “better” autos and relics.

In the end I walked out with six singles on top of the packs I discussed in the initial post.

The first card was a 2009 Topps American Heritage autograph of firefighter/writer Dennis Smith:

A high-dollar card?  Not really.  But it stood out to me among the dozens of autographs featuring failed baseball prospects.  Smith was a firefighter for the New York City Fire Department and is an accomplished author.  Here some background.  Cost: $5

There’s something neat about buying an autographed card of a player who has since passed away.  Even neater when the card is a hard-signed copy, like this 2005 Topps Johnny Podres:

Podres passed away in January 2008, yet his autographs are still being released today.  Why?  Because Podres signed a slew of stickers for Topps. Podres auto appeared in the 2010 Topps 206 set as part of the framed mini set.  His signatures are not rare.  But it’s always nice to know that the subject handled the card on which they placed their pen. Cost: $7.50 (Marked $15, with a 50 & off sticker)

I don’t do a whole lot of football. But this year I am catching the NFL bug with both of my local teams playing well and the recent death of Al Davis.  And when I saw this 2005 Leaf Certified Fabrics of the Game Cliff Branch patch card, it made me think of … “the greatness of the Raiders.”

That is a black jersey with a silver patch, and appears to be from one of the numbers. The card is mint and is serial numbered 20 of 25.  I did a bit of internet research before I bought this and there are almost no Branch jersey cards “available” on the market.  They exist, they just are not being offered for sale.  This one seemed like a no-brainer. Cost: $12 (Marked $24 with 50% off sticker)

Patches are a bit of a theme for the day.  Here is another no-brainer: 2004 Ultimate Collection Game Patch of Jim Catfish Hunter /75.

The card is a bit quirky … it’s Jim Hunter without a beard and sporting his 70s Oakland A’s jersey, yet the swatch and patch are from a New York Yankee jersey.  The back of the card even states this as such.  Either way, this card hailed from a product that I believe was some where in the neighborhood of $100 a pack.  Cost: $7.50 (Marked $15 with a 50% off sticker)

Bonds. Love him, hate him, he is the All-Time Home Run Champion.

Check out that sweet patch.  Yes, it is legit.  This is not an eBay special — concocted by some a-hole with nothing better to do than defraud unknowing buyers.  This is a prime swatch card featuring a black jersey with a black and orange patch, and the gold border of another patch.  Cost: $20 (Marked $40 with a 50 % off sticker)

Umpires.  Nobody wants a card of an umpire, especially one that was signed by one.  Um, I do.  I always thought the 2004 Bowman Heritage Autographs featuring umpires were some of the coolest and inexpensive cards made. On Monday I got THE card from the set that I always wanted, Steve Palermo.

Some of you younger baseball fans — those born after Upper Deck made its debut in 1989 — might not even know who this guy is. Palermo was a Major League umpire until July 7, 1991 when he was shot during a robbery at a restaurant after a Texas Rangers game.  Palermo had come to the aid of two restaurant waitresses who were being mugged in the parking lot.  During the struggle, Palermo was shot and the bullet severed his spinal cord, instantly leaving him paralyzed and effectively ending his career.

Palermo has recovered to some extent and is now a speaker.

With all that said, what the hell was this card doing in the bargain bin?  Instantly one of my favorite cards. Cost: $5

This entry was posted on October 17, 2011 at 4:11 pm and is filed under Semiannual Card Shop Tour with tags autographs, Barry Bonds, baseball, baseball cards, Dennis Smith, game-used, Johnny Podres, Steve Palermo, Yankees. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.