Here's this month's roundup of items that have recently caught my eye as a buyer ...

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BOOK IT, BARRYMORE!
The Card: Drew Barrymore 2024 Leaf History Book Pop Culture Edition Chapter 1 A-List Magazine Purple Autographs (/10)
The Price: A lot less than some others have paid for her booklets
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: I'm not a big fan of how her abbreviated autograph looks on a sticker -- but since she has a long name I understand why she signs that way -- but I do casually collect some of her stuff, mostly 1990s-on (like in this photo), when it presents itself. Why? Just for something different ... so that's why we're here. Until Leaf's recent signing sessions with her, she's never had a certified autograph despite a lifetime on film and on cardboard since the early 1980s starting with Topps' E.T. set. Rather than obsess about her ink, I waited out a good price on this booklet and crossed it off the list. It's an unusual design -- not the typical kind of book -- but prices on her signed stuff have been steep with a lot of them being lower-volume cards. Many of her autos -- even solo ones -- can sell for $100 and up and combo booklets can be even steeper. I found this for less than that ... so it was a win for me.
Grab a box right here: Non-sports cards are here.

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary ... a super-sized edition with 20 cards to open 2020.

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SO CLOSE TO PERFECTION ...
The Card: Ronald Acuña Jr. 2018 Topps Chrome #193 -- Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: This one looked very clean to my eye and I figured getting some of my past Acuña pulls slabbed was a good move considering his almost-40/40 showing last year. Some of his cards are heavily graded to the point where they can be had for not much more than a typical cost to slab if not in top grades. Meanwhile, others aren't as plentiful and some can typically grade very well. I went with this one since it's not as heavily graded and it does tend to grade well. Plus, I just liked the photo here compared to others -- and those I already own slabbed.
The Grade: BGS 10

Reality Check: This one surprised me a bit -- just one half-subgrade away from a BGS Black. Only 14 cards have gotten the perfect mark and this one is among an also-small population. Most cards here check in at 9.5s -- a solid mark and a perfect card to bat lead-off for this first MTG of the year. I expect big things from Acuña this year and I'll be slabbing him often.

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ...

The Card: 2018 Topps Home Run Challenge Silver #HRCAJ Aaron Judge (/59)
The Reason Graded: Aaron Judge recently returned from injury for the first time since April and that prompted me to lead things off with this rare card I recently got slabbed. I only have this card because I managed to predict one of his homers not long after he returned from injury last year after missing more than a month and a half. Injuries have mounted for his popular slugger the last two years, but I figured this card, given its scarcity, was one worth a slab.
The Grade: BGS 10

Reality Check: The pop report is a little iffy on this one -- there could be others not slabbed* -- since the checklist isn't complete on their site for this set this is merely a guess. (Pop report and checklists typically sync up.) I have gotten very few 10s in the last few years, but I thought this would be a contender and it was. Other Judge cards from this set -- there are at least three before this one -- are a lot rarer. Meanwhile, this appears to be the only Judge (of any color) from this set that's been slabbed.

Keep reading for the rest of this month's new grades and additions.

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ... a super-sized edition this time around that's heavy on MLB and NBA but with a few surprises.

The Cards: 1991-92 SkyBox #544-546 Team USA puzzle
The Reason Graded: I picked up a box of this one for roughly $16 late last year (a bargain price) and pulled two sets of these puzzles, which was good. Why? Because grading these and the other notables from the iconic Hall of Famer-loaded Dream Team is pretty heavy and this one has been on my to-do list. I landed most of the notables more than once but just one Jordan that was noticeably off-centered. These glossed cards on the puzzle could have issues that the standard cards don't have simply because of their surfaces, but mine were clean. I will revisit my second set to see if anything stands out. I may go the PSA route on the other set for variety's sake if I see anything that would make me wonder about potential grades.
The Grades: BGS 9.5

Reality Check: This one was a stressful one as I had hoped for matching grades. Thankfully, that's what I got and that's where most cards land for all three pieces of the puzzle. This is a textbook example of the kind of cardboard that can make you some money with grading, too, as they're no more than $10 total raw, while BGS 9.5s together should top $100 in some cases and asking prices for the middle (Jordan) card alone can be steep. It's memorable cardboard from the past with nothing but iconic players involved, so there's still good demand -- and that's another reason why I slabbed. Wax boxes aren't all that plentiful, either, compared to other boxes around that time.

Keep reading for the rest of this month's new grades and additions.

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ...

The Card: 2018 Donruss Optic Red & Yellow #153 Baker Mayfield (RC parallel)
The Reason Graded: I found this one in a Mega Box and it was by far the best highlight of the bunch there so that's why you see it here. Mayfield has shown himself to be a spark plug among a good rookie crop since back when I pulled it, so that's another reason. A third? This brand is one that I like more than others. The color scheme of this card, a retail-exclusive, also looked good, so I figured I'd slab it up and see how it looked when it came back. These were very pricey when they first started arriving on eBay but I'm sure they have settled down by now -- still an impressive card to me either way and I'll be tucking this one away in my stash alongside my Bowman Chrome Tom Brady RC for the simple long-term appreciation. (Mine, not financial.)
The Grade: BGS 9.5

Reality Check: At the point I submitted this one, there was at most one graded and I'm still surprised that there are so few slabbed. I also was surprised with the grade figuring I'd check in at a likely BGS 9 but I'll take it. I think high-grade copies of retail-only parallels found in certain formats could be tougher future finds than people might think.

Keep reading for the rest of this month's new grades and additions.

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