Buzz Buys: Tony Gwynn's basketball jersey, Lea Thompson's autograph, Nick Chubb, Star Wars, Semi-Pro, vintage & more

Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention. Would they capture yours? I'd be interested to know -- sometimes they might, sometimes they won't and that's fine. It's a buyer's market out there with plenty of options and bargains as well as high-end gems to chase.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... and this time around it's the biggest roundup ever (in volume, not price).

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A UNIQUE SURPRISE 
The Card: Tony Gwynn 2015 Panini Immaculate Collection Collegiate Memorabilia (/99)
The Price: $16.25
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: It took me a while to find one of these (only casually looking), but this card of the Baseball Hall of Famer is one of a few that show him in his other sport, basketball, which he played at San Diego State. His estate auctioned off a number of game-used pieces and other memorabilia in 2015, generating more than $217,000 partly going to the Tony and Alicia Gwynn Foundation to help kids in need. His first Aztecs basketball uniform went for $11,858 in that SCP Auctions sale and the buyer was Panini America. These cards aren't all that plentiful in this release -- and they certainly aren't the only place the swatches went as there are just 99 standard cards and a second one limited to five copies with a much larger prime swatch. The follow-up release to this one had a few more, including prime cards, and he also had posthumous autographed cards (stickers) showing him in his basketball uniform in a National Treasures release. Spoiler alert: you'll see one more of these here at some point.
Grab a box right here: 2015 Panini Immaculate Collection Collegiate (when available)

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SAMPLING SAPPHIRE
The Card: Mookie Betts & Andrew Benintendi 2019 Topps Chrome Sapphire Edition
The Price: $1.55
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This brand has become a biggie, especially for Rookie Cards, the last few years, but I really haven't bit beyond picking up a few copies of my now-retired favorite player's card from the first release. This year's version vanished fast when it was offered with a less-expensive box price, but I just picked up this single to see what their feel is this year -- I opted for this one with a pair of stars for the World Series champs instead of a basic common. The crystal feel here is familiar but I wish these were, you know ... blue. 
Grab a box right here: 2019 Topps Chrome Sapphire Edition

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OLDER & RARER ... ON THE CHEAP
The Card: Shaun Alexander 2007 Playoff NFL Playoffs Gold Materials (/25)
The Price: $2.50
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: One of my fall collecting go-to players is Alexander (I'm more of a seasonal fan than a year-round one) and I grabbed this simple card since it's a relatively rare parallel and it was cheap. The swatch here is no-frills, but I'm fine with that -- I have plenty of patch cards for this former Seahawks star and even more memorabilia cards ... but I didn't have this one.
Grab a box right here: 2007 Playoff NFL Playoffs

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A SIZABLE SURPRISE
The Photo: Lea Thompson signed 11-by-14 Back To The Future photo (via OfficialPix signing)
The Price: $35
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: Have you ever bought an item on sale at one place on Black Friday and then see it at a second place far, far (like half the price) cheaper ... and decide to order it again? (Just because? No? Just me?) That's what happened here but I ended up with a surprise. I was generally worried about autograph quality (you never know) and pondering a potential return (if possible) if the ink was iffy on my first pick-up, which wasn't from OfficialPix but instead a show promoter I hadn't bought from before. Meanwhile, this OfficialPix photo was the only copy available in that company's Cyber Monday sale, so I grabbed it on the cheap. I was mightily surprised when it arrived because it was an 11-by-14 instead of the 8-by-10 that I was expecting. The Back To The Future franchise is a favorite of many and she has appeared on a few Pop Century auto cards in the past (so they're not cheap), but I believe all were sticker autos. For the price I went this route as I had been considering it and other signed photos for a while. (I also ended up keeping the other photo, too, since this one was different.)
Grab a box right here: None for this one ...click here for non-sports

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CHEAP & RARE
The Card: Nick Chubb 2018 Panini Rookies & Stars Year One Prime Relics (/25)
The Price: $3.75
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This one checks in on the rarer side of things despite the fact that it's a parallel, though the visual differences between the standard cards and the parallel are so slim that they might not be obvious. (It's just foil color.) This one was perhaps cheaper than a standard card would cost for this RB who has had some highlight moments this season. He's rushed for 1,408 yards so far -- leading the league --- and has eight TDs in just his second year as a pro. He's the only guy averaging 100 yards a game right now, too.
Grab a box right here: 2018 Panini Rookies & Stars

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A MEMORABLE MOMENT
The Card: "Reaching out to Luke" -- 2019 Topps Star Wars Chrome Legacy Blue Refractor (/99)
The Price: $2.50
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This pick-up was made with an eye for possible grading since there's plenty of Star Wars chatter right now ... but it didn't make my cut just yet for submission where I'd be chasing a 9.5 or 10 here. I chose this because it might be the most-iconic image of the first two films and I think Blue parallels, which aren't super-plentiful (or super-rare), have the best look -- plus it seems Chrome cards can grade more easily than standard paper these days.
Grab a box right here: 2019 Topps Star Wars Chrome Legacy

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PICKED UP BEFORE HE PICKED UP
The Card: Derrick Henry 2017 Panini Playoff City Limits 1st Down Prime (/25)
The Price: $1.99
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This guy has been dominating this season and he's among the league leaders in both rushing TDs and rushing yards. His autographs have picked up steam but memorabilia cards are still easily found on the cheaper side, though this one was grabbed just before he really starting tearing it up this year. Playoff's insert themes are a little simplistic, but at least they have a feel vs. just generic framework. Either way, I like the feel of a patch card for less than $2.
Grab a box right here: 2017 Panini Playoff

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CHEAP VINTAGE SLABS? (YES, PLEASE)
The Card: Ralph Houk 1968 O-Pee-Chee (PSA 6)
The Price: $3.50
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: I'm pretty sure this is the first time I've ever seen 1968 O-Pee-Chee in person to realize that the backs look like this and not the bright mustard yellow that the Topps set uses. I occasionally look for vintage slabs in decent shape to pick off just for the heck of it and the price was quite right here. It also looks very good for a PSA 6 -- so much so I don't even remember what obvious flaws there are beyond centering without having to pick it out of a box to have a look. From the photos there does look like some back corner funk on an otherwise clean card.
Grab a box right here: None for this ... but MLB boxes are here

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A PACK PICK-UP
The Cards: Jackie Moon, Ed Monix & Clarence "Coffee Black" Withers 2008 Upper Deck Semi-Pro (set)
The Price: $3
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This set was released in a three-card pack with a piece of wrapped gum between a couple of the cards so minty fresh examples aren't a given even if you can find sets. These were promotional packs made for the release of this classic basketball film, a comedy starring Will Ferrell and two other notables you can see above. I picked up one of these sets back when they first arrived and grabbed a couple more with an eye for slabbing more recently since they can sell for more than this price as singles. They are high-gloss cards and there are centering and print spot issues all over them, but I just want to have some slabs of these. They'll make Making The Grade in 2020.
Grab a box right here: None for this ... but NBA boxes are here 

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WAIT, WHAT?
The Card: Randall Cunningham 1994 Action Packed CoaStars 
The Price: Under $1
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: Did you know Action Packed once made coasters? I didn't remember this one, so I picked up a sample of one of my favorite players from that time. Appearently there were three sets for this concept -- a huge NHL release and then smaller sets for NASCAR and the NFL. The football one included five six-coaster sheets released with just shrink-wrap around them and it appears those unopened sheet sets might be a little more valuable than singles here. Nothing special, just something different that I didn't remember.
Grab a box right here: None for this ... but NFL boxes are here 

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CHEAP GRABS
The Cards: T.J. Yeldon 2015 Panini Contenders Rookie Ticket Autographs (six)
The Price: $1.25 apiece 
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This guy is just a basic cheap pick-up due to some school ties, but they were easy to pick up at the price as this one is a key brand RC with an on-card auto. This former second-round pick is in his fourth season and first with the Buffalo Bills where things have not been highlight-worthy this year ... hence the price here.
Grab a box right here: 2015 Panini Contenders NFL

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HIGH-FLYER ON-CARD INK
The Card: Kairi Sane 2019 Topps WWE Undisputed Autographs (/199)
The Price: $10.99
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: She's one half of the WWE women's tag team championship team right now and I've picked off a number of her rarer cards and autos on the cheaper side of things since there seems to be a good amount of everything available. I didn't have this on-card auto so I figured why not as the prices are typically a tad higher than this where I typically do my looking. She's been in the news the last week or so after it appeared she suffered a concussion in the main event match of a recent pay-per-view and has been out of action since -- that's a bummer as the  team turned heel and has been more entertaining than in the past.
Grab a box right here: 2019 Topps WWE Undisputed

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ONE BIG SKETCH
The Card: Slapstick 2017 Upper Deck Marvel Premier Quad-panel Sketch Card -- artist Joe Inga (1/1)
The Price: $40
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This item isn't the easiest to display or present here, but it was a pick-up of a pretty cool type of card I had to add to my stash. This is a double-sided sketch card that's the size of four cards and it has scoring for the card to be folded into a book but it doesn't appear that these ever were closed up. (I think they were used as a box-topper item in the high-end line ... but it's not one I ever opened.) This character, Slapstick, is one that I'm not all that familiar with but the visual appeal of both sketches was one that was serious head and shoulders above others available when I was looking in my price range -- and premium examples of this type of card can easily command some big cash depending on the quality of the art and the subject matter. Slapstick has had some ties with Deadpool, so that's a good thing for what looks like a novelty bit character, but I'll just let you read up on everything here if you're inclined. (I just liked the art on this one.)
Grab a box right here: 2017 Upper Deck Marvel Premier

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MEMORABLE MOMENTS
The Card: Muhammad Ali 2000 Upper Deck Muhammad Ali Master Collection (/250)
The Price: $1.45
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This card comes from a premium release for the social icon and boxing legend that included a 30 standard cards and five autograph or memorabilia cards all in a wooden box long before super-premium products were the norm. This card notes the Ali vs. Liston fight that produced one of the greatest images in sports photography history and this image is from just around that moment but not that iconic moment. (I had a previous card in this Buzz Buys series that is one of the few that use that image ... or something close to it ... so poke around.) Just 250 base sets were made so these are find-able and can be pretty cheap -- the hits are not.
Grab a box right here: None for this one ... click here for other sports boxes

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REMEMBER THIS RELEASE? (I BARELY DO.)
The Card: "Tom Hacks" -- 2007 Topps Hollywood Zombies
The Price: $1.25
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: There's a lot going on in this card from a set that's a more recent take on parody much like the long-running Garbage Pail Kids or Wacky Packages releases. However, this set was a one and done ... I'd imagine because the appeal of seeing Hollywood notables as zombies is a tad limited. Tom Hanks is seen as Forrest Gump here with a nod to Cast Away, too.  I picked it off since, well, I dunno ... I never bothered to open a pack back then? Others who were in this set include Michael Jackson, Tom Cruise, Oprah Winfrey, Howard Stern, Jessica Simpson, Martha Stewart, Jamie Foxx, Matthew McConaughey, Drew Barrymore and plenty more. It was a 72-card release that had some inserts and parallels, too.
Grab a box right here: None for this one ... click here for non-sports 

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SUPER SQUATCHEE
The Card: Alex Len 2013-14 Panini Immaculate Collection Player Caps (/73)
The Price: $3.33
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This is another example of a cool memorabilia card at a low price -- a mem card with the squatchee (button) off of the baseball cap worn by the player on the card. I didn't pick this one up for the player, though, but this former top-five pick is in his seventh season and coming off a career-best year. Given the swatch sizes and volume of cards made here, I'm sure there's more than one card that looks like this ... but I still like it.
Grab a box right here: Panini Immaculate Collection (all releases)

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SUPER-CHEAP GEMS
The Card: Drax 2017 Upper Deck Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 Precious Metal Gems Purple 
The Price: $1.55
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: PMGs can be big money in some cases as their etched-foil, color-rich look strike a chord with a lot of collectors but these are more affordable than rare, though they are not super-easy pulls, either. They are one in 24 packs per the E-Pack info for this one (that's one in three boxes), but the good news is that there are just six names in the set to chase -- Star-Lord, Gamora, Groot, Yondu, Rocket and Drax. This was a cheaper pick-up back when I grabbed it. (Why? He's the only Guardian I ever met ... autograph signing.) They can all be had for between $6 and $19 apiece based on a recent search with the high being for Groot.
Grab a box right here: 2017 Upper Deck Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (when available)

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REMEMBER THIS ONE?
The Card: Mariah Carey & Nick Cannon 2010 Upper Deck Celebrity Predictors
The Price: Under $1
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This was an oddball inclusion in the 2010 UD baseball set and it showed caricatures for 10 couples at the time who would be separated via the perforation on these cards if needed. I went on an artwork/caricature card kick awhile back and picked off a few of these cheap, figuring they might make for interesting (or at least goofy) graded cards. However, the glossed paper stock and that dark edge make for some challenges here. There were a number of oddball inclusions in baseball sets like this one around that time and they could offer some unusual and lighter touches in releases these days -- though I'd wonder how/if this might even be possible in a league-licensed release. (Probably not.)
Grab a box right here: 2010 Upper Deck (when available)

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EPIC PHOTOGRAPH REVISITED
The Card: Babe Ruth 1992 Megacards The Babe Ruth Collection
The Price: $1.25
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This card is here since I talked about this classic photo in a past piece in this series or in Making The Grade. It turns out that there aren't a ton of cards showing this Pulitzer Prize-winning image taken by Nat Fein showing Ruth bowing out of the public eye at Yankee Stadium in 1948. It's not easy to find legendary photos like this on cardboard -- licensing fees come into play for big images like this one -- but they are out there.
Grab a box right here: None for this ... but MLB boxes are here

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FINISHING WITH A LEGEND
The Card: Al Simmons 2018 Panini National Treasures Century Materials Trios (/25)
The Price: $15.25
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This Hall of Famer was a two-time World Series winer, a two-time batting champ and a guy who finished his 20-year career with a .334 average -- and he also hit .380 or better in a season four times. But the fact that his career ended in 1944 puts a dent on his cardboard and his memorabilia-card totals, too. He's got fewer than 400 different cards and just over 100 of those are memorabilia cards. His earliest cards were made in 2001 but he didn't have any after that until 2014. Almost 60 percent of his memorabilia cards have been found in National Treasures with that brand having a distant lead over Flawless and Pantheon -- so if you want a mem card of him, NT is where to look first.
Grab a box right here: 2018 Panini National Treasures

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Follow Buzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz or send email to BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com. 

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