Making the Grade (Nov.): Yamamoto, The Mick, Judge, Bichette, Big Dumper, Tiffy Time, vintage NFL, Shotzi & plenty more

Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading ... so here's this month's grading diary.

MY LONE AUTO ...
The Card: Aaron Judge 2015 Bowman Inception Prospect Autographs Gold (/50)
The Reason Graded: Back when I could open a lot of boxes, I'd actually also do some group breaks as well -- as long as they were sure things where an affordable spot would guarantee a hit or had a volume of actual hits inside (auto or mem cards) the case that was high enough to make the odds close to that. This is my lone Aaron Judge auto left from back in those days. I landed it in a spot somewhere around just $60 -- and I actually got two other Yankees autos in the break to make my cost for this particular card even lower. I only ever pulled one other Judge auto and I think I let it go in a trade long, long ago so this last one standing for me was always a candidate for grading -- and it finally made the cut with his monster year.
The Grade: CGC 8.5 (10 auto)

Reality Check: The thick stock here made this one feel like a safe pick and it is -- the front is perfect -- but the back corners also count and some light fuzzing there is likely what dropped this one down. Otherwise, it definitely presents as a crisp card and a perfect card on the front. I was aiming for a nine, so this mark was a slight bummer -- but it's still a big card. Mine is the only Gold graded by CGC and among the 12 graded in all colors nothing checks in higher than a nine.

Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.

A BIG, FLASHY BIG DUMPER
The Card: Cal Raleigh 2022 Topps Chrome Refractor -- RC parallel
The Reason Graded: I only pulled a few Big Dumper Rookie Cards and inserts from 2022 boxes -- and there's one I still have not found among my stashed stuff -- but this surfaced from a box of inserts when I started digging not long ago. After a closer look, I decided it needed to be graded -- especially after his 60 homers in the regular season and five more in the postseason. That total is more than anybody in American League history. MVP or not, Raleigh's year goes down as historic ... so this and a couple other cards of mine got slabbed this year to reflect that. Why? Collecting.
The Grade: CGC 10

Reality Check: I definitely thought this would be a contender for a top mark and it checked in at the top spot with only a perfect card -- that hasn't surfaced yet -- potentially topping it. Recent-year Chromes are not a gimme when it comes to grading and the split here shows that to a degree, though that total is a relatively lower number. Across all colors, CGC has graded 107 Dumpers from this set with only four checking in with a perfect grade. His base Chrome has been graded 49 times -- with none perfect.

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ONE OF TWO ...
The Card: Jalen Milroe 2024 Leaf Pro Set Metal Black Pulsar (/2)
The Reason Graded: This former Alabama Crimson Tide QB has a lot of NIL cardboard to choose from -- like a lot of guys these days -- so those who like school colors can find a lot of stuff without breaking the bank. In the case of this Seattle Seahawks draft pick, I'm playing the waiting game to track down more for my stash ... but this near 1/1 was priced well though to grab raw (under $15 worked for me) and I rolled the dice on grading with no obvious issues.
The Grade: CGC 10

Reality Check: Top copy slabbed and only one other out there that could potentially top it. Works for me.

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BARGAIN BUY
The Card: Yoshinobu Yamamoto 2024 Topps Heritage High Number -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: I picked this up well before the Dodgers' World Series run and I did it because the price was too good to pass up for a higher-grade Heritage RC for a notable name. I landed this already graded for half the suggested retail price of a blaster -- and that's shipped.
The Grade: CGC 9.5

Reality Check: Heritage stock is not grading friendly in recent years if you ask me, so a 9.5 or higher should be worth a look if it's a name you like -- there won't be as much graded and higher marks aren't going to happen all the time like some other brands. (So if you pass, you might not see another one unless it's some often-graded guy.) The spread here is a bit top-heavy on those stats ... but there are just as many in this mark and the lower grades so not everything is checking in at a top spot.

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PERFECTLY SIMPLE
The Card: Bo Bichette 2020 Panini Diamond Kings -- Rookie Card (SP)
The Reason Bought: I picked off this card already graded as that perfect mark grabbed me and, slowly but surely, I want to amass slabbed RCs across the board for this star who I casually collect. (His stuff is cheap thanks to plenty made and a lot slabbed in 2020.)
The Grade: CGC 10 (pristine)

Reality Check: I didn't check the pop report but this being the lone perfect copy makes this an even better card in my book. I just liked the price and appeal here. Atop that, I really do like the tight batting stance photos used on a lot of his cards.

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TIFFY TIME!
The Card: Tiffany Stratton 2024 Panini Select WWE Select Throwback
The Reason Bought: When Select arrived with mega boxes for the first time (and the last time) they were boxes that guaranteed some kind of hit every time ... but at a premium price I figured I'd play the waiting game. Well, the prices never really dropped. Why? There are some good inclusions there and some big-money rookies essentially only found in this release or on higher-end brands. This isn't one of the rarities, but it is from an insert set that uses an earlier Select design (2013) once again with a simple look that basically showcases a studio portrait. They're not that rare but they have sold really well at times.
The Grade: BGS 9.5

Reality Check: Rather than grab and slab -- only after I picked off a couple copies of this card raw but didn't like their slabbing potential -- I simply waited and picked off this one already graded for a decent price for a decent grade. As a bonus, it's the only one.

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SEEING GREEN
The Card: Shotzi Blackheart 2021 Topps Chrome WWE Image Variations Green Refractor parallel (/99)
The Reason Bought: This comes from a past release where I got my fill of its pseudo comic book style and have a number of her base cards and the barely different image variation (it's basically a different crop/zoom and a different card number). So, in other words, I didn't have any need for those ... but, when I spotted this card already graded, in this key color and with a top mark for only $20? A no-brainer buy.
The Grade: SGC 10

Reality Check: I don't do a lot of SGC these days -- I did sub some non-sports cards a couple times before CGC started doing those -- but this was a win with it having no serious issues.

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NINES ARE FINE ... BUT EVEN BETTER FOR MEMORABILIA CARDS
The Card: Jose Canseco 2001 UD Sweet Spot Game-used Jersey
The Reason Bought: People often mistakenly see nines as big misses -- they could be for some mundane basic cards if you're only in it for the cash and especially if everybody is grading the same thing -- but for a memorbilia card anything 8.5 and up can be a good card if you ask me (unless it's from a brand where they are always clean). This one felt like a steal for about $12 as a nine is fine and I couldn't have grabbed it fast enough.
The Grade: PSA 9

Reality Check: The pop report here reflects the challenge -- nothing has checked in higher and almost half of them have checked in lower. A nine isn't impossible ... but a 10 might be with the design touches used here (embossing) and softer stock. Something can always go wrong.

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MY KINDA MICK
The Card: Mickey Mantle 2006 Topps '52 Black background variation
The Reason Graded: I'll never own a '52 and ultimately don't aspire to -- cost isn't worth it to me even if I could -- but this card from a Topps set of the past that used the 1952 design did include an homage to The Mick and tricked it up for the modern age with variation colors in the background. He has six versions -- base (blue) and then Green, Orange, Red, Black and Yellow -- and they are seeded along with the variations (15 total) that are one in five packs in both hobby and retail. Do the math and these aren't impossible ... but also not super easy to find, especially coming up on 20 years later.
The Grade: CGC 9

Reality Check: This one looked remarkably clean to me, so I slabbed it. Many can have corner issues that are typical for Heritage-style stock around this time and the surface can be funky, too. One bottom corner here has a very minor spot on it but is way cleaner than a lot of my cards -- so a nine was a nice surprise. The Chrome version will always be the one that checks in with highest demand -- it's limited to 1,952 copies -- along with its Refractor, but I think all of these have things to like. I need to go back through my past boxes and see if my other color (I think I have one) is relatively clean. Across all colors, CGC has graded 15 copies here and a third of them have checked in at a 10. Five have checked in like this one with one a slot higher and one a slot lower.

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IT'S ALWAYS TUA TIME HERE ... PART II
The Card: Tua Tagovailoa 2020 Score -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: I picked off two of these recently ... so here's what I said last time. A lot of newer collectors weren't around for the good ol' days where some NFL releases included college photos for notable newcomers thanks to timing of releases and the NFLPA Rookie Premiere not yet existing (it arrived in 1995). Score is a throwback where it often has used NCAA photos and in the case of this year Panini updated some of them in Chronicles with NFL photos on Optichrome stock. I'm not sure if I ever previously added any parallels slabbed, but the price was right to pick one up.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: Like other cards here this time, the spread here for grading is interesting ... that spread between nine and 10 shows a top mark isn't easy and the perfect score really isn't, either.

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PART THREE OF FOUR
The Book: X-Men No. 1 (1991) -- Jean Grey/Professor X/Storm/Archangel/Beast version (newsstand edition)
The Reason Graded: Part 3 in my grading saga of this one has me back on a newsstand copy for this iconic issue and this was another win as I only wanted to have top-grade copies. Why? These are iconic but readily available issues. (Want more thoughts? Check out my past months here.) I'll wrap up my run of these covers next month and will have some new comics in the mix at some point next year as I have a sub in CGC's hands now.
The Grade: CGC 9.8 (Universal)

Reality Check: As you can see on the numbers even 9.8s aren't rare ... but I bet the newsstand 9.8s might be.

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TIFFANY TIME!
The Card: Bo Jackson 1987 Topps Tiffany -- Rookie Card parallel
The Reason Graded: Years ago, I found a sealed Tiffany set for a steal of a price -- if I remember correctly it was just $75 -- and that was worth the rip though sets are perhaps safest left sealed. (Forget Schrödinger's cat ... Schrödinger's cardboard means it's all minty fresh unless you open the box.) This year is among some of the more-plentiful Tiffany sets (approximately 30,000 sets were made from an era where the regular cards have many, many more copies made) but this set has a number of strong cards that make this a fun one. Plus, it's also the first set I ever heavily opened and was my first factory set. When I opened this Tiffany set, I was a little bummed with the left-right centering -- most are off like this one -- but now that I know it can check in at a nine I may go back to my them and slab more. Why this card? This is my favorite of Jackson's MLB rookies and this photo looked so much better on this glossed bright-white stock.
The Grade: CGC 9

Reality Check: The volume here is impressively low -- the basic Topps card has been slabbed more than 1,000 times by CGC -- but no perfect copies exist. Only 58 regular cards have checked in at a 10 and on the regular card the highest marks are 9 and 8.5 depending on the day. For Tiffany, nine is the clear most-found mark. All in all, I'm happy with this one.

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THUNDER ... THUNDER!
The Cards: Thunder Rosa 2022 Skybox Metal Universe AEW 1997-98 Retro Precious Metal Gems Red (/100) & Purple Spectrum (/199)
The Reason Graded: This colorful and high-energy performer is a former AEW women's champ and I tracked down a few of her cards from this release, which is definitely not an easy grade for these parallels. Of roughly 20 Retro cards across all names here, only two have checked in at a 10 and my Purple is one of them. Nearly everything checks in at a nine and I suspect it's either a bottom corner like my Red or a spot on the top edge as UD packaging has shown me that those are problem spots in recent years. (Based on my rips -- and I did a lot of these for cheap thrills with blasters.)
The Grade: CGC 9 & CGC 10

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Reality Check: Rosa has three cards here -- a base card, a high-number variation and the Retro -- that are all found as Reds, Purples and in other rarer versions. I have not completed both of these colors for all three cards, but you'll see more of her here in the future. Why? I'm a collector and a fan of the thunder.

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HOOPS IS HERE ...
The Card: Collin Sexton 2018-19 Panini Status (Level 2) -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: I'm pretty much retired from NBA card collecting -- I'm not sure I even qualify as a dabbler at this point -- and that's one part SRPs vs. typical return at retail but also because I just have other interests or wants from wax if I'm ripping (can't collect it all). In this case, though, school ties will still get me to check basketball stuff at times and this former Alabama standout was an easy cheap slab grab. His stats are still pretty strong and he's still playing ... but for a new team this year.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: The foilboard used here might make for harder grading -- perhaps issues on back edges -- but this copy is one of a minority of cards here that checked in at a 10.

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A PERFECT THROWBACK
The Card: Nolan Ryan 1980 Topps
The Reason Bought: I picked this off at an OK price -- not super cheap, not super pricey -- because it looked good. Sure, it has issues, but you'll find plenty of rattier looking copies here for sure as 1980 Topps production can be rough sledding on centering and more when it comes to grading. Simple as that. Don't believe me? Check out the numbers ...
The Grade: CGC 7.5

Reality Check: My grade doesn't look so bad now, does it? Slabs dip as low as CGC 3 here and most cards check in at a seven. I have always liked this card -- it's among his best Angels cards and also among his best ever -- so landing one slabbed that looks better than it grades without overpaying works for me. (Centering and then the bottom-right corner probably are why it didn't check in higher.)

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AUSTIN POWERS' KRYPTONITE
The Card: Felicity Shagwell (aka Heather Graham) 1999 Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me CCG
The Reason Graded: This gaming set is one packed with variety and surprises -- even cards for Jerry Springer and Willie Nelson cameos -- and they are also right there in the oldschool gaming realm with super-skinny, unglossed stock and black borders like many other releases. While there are a lot -- a lot -- of cards for the various main characters for this franchise, I opted to send in only this one as a first sub as I was confident this was a perfect-10 contender ... and that clearly didn't happen.
The Grade: CGC 9

Reality Check: These booster pack boxes and a smaller starter deck (with different cards there but those decks being the same every time) aren't super-easily found given their age. Meanwhile, they're also not that pricey ... so I opened one to find this and others I might slab. I didn't like the surprise grade here -- I need to go back and check the back edges and corners with a loupe to figure out why it came back a nine -- so I'll probably be cautious about grading too many more. A 10 isn't impossible here but most cards have checked in with grades of 9 or 8.5. Centering is definitely a common issue here -- this one was clean -- and the collation was wacky, too, so opening a box probably won't guarantee any you one particular card.

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TIFFY TIMES TWO
The Cards: Tiffany Stratton 2025 Topps Now WWE (announced /5,584)
The Reason Bought: This is another Now card that has been slabbed in high volume in at least a couple of submissions -- long runs of consecutive serial numbers -- and they have recently also popped up on a Fanatics-adjacent site's eBay page. So, knowing that WWE Shop and related places are perhaps likely to have slabbed copies at some point, I'm probably slowing to a halt on my own raw-lot buying for Now cards. (I had been sticking to a name or two, but copies I received in a recent batch were not clean enough for my taste -- see it in the Buzz Buys archives.) In this case, I picked off this already-graded pair at an average price of about $20 apiece, which I was fine with for 10s -- though prices got really, really, really soft here for all marks from the initial eBay seller.
The Grades: BGS 10

Reality Check: I went this direction for the sure things rather than pick from my 10-pack of singles. I collect Stratton and this photo is a perfect one for the entrance to her first Wrestlemania match -- and it was a classic. If I see cheap copies pop up I still might grab a few more -- this is a truly nice card.

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FEELING BLUE
The Card: Shotzi Blackheart 2023 Panini Chronicles WWE Donruss Optic Signature Series (/49)
The Reason Graded: Her WWE run came to an end (just like Panini's) this year, but there's still plenty of colorful and unique cardboard to find without breaking the bank for her and many names thanks to a variety of releases and brands like this one -- a catch-all -- in those three years for Panini WWE. This comes from her short run with short hair instead of her trademark green locks (cutting off her hair was worked into storyline as a nod to her sister going through cancer treatments) and I felt like the Blue parallel here was the natural choice for the color seen in the photo. I'm aiming to collect from all throughout her career, so I have plenty of the typical tank-era stuff too -- and you'll still see more coming here -- but this one was an easy sub since it's so different.
The Grade: CGC 10 (10 auto)

Reality Check: Lone copy graded and only one potential slot can top it. I dig it.

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GOING OLDSCHOOL
The Card: AFC Receiving Leaders (Fred Bilitnikoff, Otis Taylor, Randy Vataha) 1972 Topps
The Reason Bought: I happened upon some vintage NFL slabs with good prices and since it's the season I bit. How good were the prices? Less than $6 here -- and it's not like a vintage seven is a bad mark. It's not. Atop that, this one has a Hall of Famer in the showcase spot and a Chiefs legend among the other two. The third guy? He's a rookie here and he played seven seasons in the league.
The Grade: CSG 7

Reality Check: This checks in as the second-highest grade with eight being the highest ... a solid little card for the era and price. At the same time, while I like multi-player cards since as you can find stars on the cheap.

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MINA BEFORE AMERICA
The Card: Mina Shirakawa 2022 Bushiroad ReBirth For You X Stardom
The Reason Graded: This Japanese wrestling veteran recently arrived in AEW and Ring of Honor for some high-profile TV time on a full-time basis and that has gotten me to bite on a select few of her earlier cards as the American cardboard is still slowly but surely on the way. This one comes from an oddball gaming-style brand -- it's one that showcases all kinds of properties, not just this wrestling company -- and it's a line where the cards are remarkably clean. I'd be shocked to not land a 10 on these cards a majority of the time.
The Grade: CGC 10

Reality Check: Eight of the 11 cards for any name from this release have checked in at a 10 with two of those being perfect. Mine is the only one and that's not all that surprising as she has earlier cards from BBM and these aren't rare -- they can be found rather easily as the chase parallels and other cards are more sought after.

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BEFORE BEING TIMELESS ... PART II
The Card: Toni Storm 2019 Topps WWE Women's Division -- "Rookie Card" (has previous Stardom cards in Japan)
The Reason Bought: I think four of the six cards in the stats below are mine -- three regular and one a mislabeled parallel -- and I'm good with that as she's clearly in the midst of a Hall of Fame caliber career as The Timeless One in AEW. (Poke around in the archives for more -- or start here as this is merely a two-hour history starter reel of highlights.) This is her first card from WWE -- a Rookie Card -- though she had quite a few cards in Stardom sets from Japan that came before these. (Reconcile the international RC debate for yourself ... I'm leaning toward this.) The price was very right here (just like another I grabbed already slabbed) and mentioned here in the past.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: The nine is the lowest mark here ... but I'm good with any/all of them.

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DYNAMIC DUO
The Card: Savage Gentleman Victor Benjamin & Lady Frost as Skeletor & Evil Lyn -- 2024 Fantasy Super Cosplay Wrestling Series 4
The Reason Graded: I picked up a few copies of this oddball set to land cards of Frost as she was a known (teased) card in this promotion's set -- and if you don't know, it's a company where wrestlers take on other personas to bring comic con (and related) characters to life in the ring as part of convention weekend events. Atop of Frost (who doesn't have a ton of card appearances), I was really surprised to find AEW's Maxwell Jacob Friedman in there as a character from the Borderlands 2 video game.
The Grade: CGC 9

Reality Check: There can be some minor edge spotting on the top or bottom of cards here likely due to the packaging, but I picked my best of this and and MJF for grading. (His is in the archives.) The centering can slightly off in some cases, but this one was a win.

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GOING OLDSCHOOL II
The Card: Merlin Olsen 1975 Topps
The Reason Bought: This member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame was a college Hall of Famer, too, at Utah State back in the day and all of that came before he was on a pair of NBC TV shows as an actor, Little House On The Prairie and Father Murphy, as well as other projects and broadcasting. The TV stuff might be remembered more by some, but as a member of the Rams' Fearsome Foursome he did things as a pro that few could touch in his time. He was a 14-time Pro Bowl player -- topped only by That Tom Brady Guy -- and despite all that much, if not all, of his cardboard can be found on the cheap. Like my 1972 card, this was found in a vintage lot for the same price.
The Grade: CSG 6

Reality Check: This is the lowest-graded copy -- it happens -- but it still looks quite clean and what dipped it down is a bit of a mystery to me at a glance. (My photo is a tad out of focus but there's still not much looking rough there.) That's vintage for you.

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