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

NINES ARE FINE
The Card: Aaron Judge 2017 Topps Archives -- Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: The unique 1960 Topps design always stands out to me. Why? Because one of my first clean vintage cards as a kid was a Gus Bell form the set, which I got since I knew he was a big-leaguer's dad. (Yay, trivia!) So that's perhaps one reason I held this Judge RC instead of letting it go. (Plus, I didn't rip as much of this brand ... so it was the only copy I pulled.) Judge's dominating 2025 season should make you stop and wonder about slabbing any RCs or early/rare stuff you have now ... just because. He and Shohei Ohtani are all-timers playing right in front of our faces now and are as safe as it gets when it comes to grab and slab or buy and hold -- even with plenty of their cards being graded.
The Grade: CGC 9

Reality Check: I knew this wouldn't be a 10 contender with the finicky stock here and the centering being a smidge off by my typical standards for a slab, but, like I said, it was my only copy. Most check in at this grade, so the nine makes sense, too, and the volume below it also shows this card isn't the easiest to grade.

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

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A run of Topps Heritage near master sets -- in this case every single card in the product -- for the first decade of the popular brand as well as a pair of autograph proof sheets featuring cards that were never produced have hit the auction block via Robert Edward Auctions. 

The run begins with the first Heritage set from 2001 -- a product among a few celebrating the company's 50th anniversary that year, and one that offered us a re-do of the iconic 1952 Topps set but with today's stars and nods to the past -- and runs to 2011 when Heritage hit the memorable wood-bordered 1962 Topps design.

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Jimmy Grant
Also known as: Jim2Cat5 on Blowout
Email: jmgrant025@gmail.com
Location: Tennessee
Work away from cards: Systems Engineer
Collecting since: 1995

Main focuses: Topps Heritage master sets and Topps Heritage Chrome sets

Favorite players/teams: Mike Trout, Bryce Harper, Kris Bryant, Carlos Correa

Current collecting projects: 1 -- Completing 2016 Topps Heritage master set -- only errors and color swaps remain.
2 -- Finding errors and variations from 2008-2011 Topps Heritage. 3 -- Grading my collection.

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