Auction Buzz is a monthly look at some of the variety found out there on the auction block ... check 'em out.

It's going to be a busy end of the year for Dallas-based Heritage Auctions with a number of regularly scheduled events as well as some showcase auctions with high-profile stuff all on the calendar. This time, we look at a few things from a few active sales this month.

--

ANOTHER BIG JORDAN
The Item: Michael Jordan Oct. 26, 1984 (NBA Debut) Chicago Bulls season-ticket stub (PSA 4)
The Price: $65,000 after 25 bids (ends Sept. 27)
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: Last month, a Michael Jordan (and Kobe Bryant) card sale via auction re-wrote some hobby history and, while we're confident this one won't fetch $12.9 million, this one is in some rare air. It has already hit its estimated price from the auction house and while its grade is low there are only three higher. "The most important athletic debut of the post-war era?" asked Heritage in its listing. "A strong argument could be made. Perhaps only Wayne Gretzky could challenge Michael Jordan in balloting seeking to identify the most dominant figure of his respective major sport, but once you step outside the sports arena and into the wider popular culture, M.J. leaves The Great One in his dust. He remains one of the most recognizable humans on the planet two decades after his retirement from the NBA." Jordan scored a modest 16 points in a 109-93 win over the Washington Bullets on this night and only 14 of these have been grade overall.

Keep reading for more interesting pieces up for grabs right now.

Continue reading →

Sometimes, you just have to know where to look.

A long-time Detroit-area collector's treasures -- a mix of in-person autographs and pick-ups from the 1980s and early 1990s that were part of a private "sports museum" -- are all up for grabs right now in the Block Auction House "Autographed Sports Memorabilia Auction: Icons of Baseball, Football, Basketball & More."

The selection of 450 lots from the Ferndale, Mich.-based company is live for the next six days. It includes a number of autographs from the Score Board days and many other signing sessions in the years before Upper Deck Authenticated and other companies arrived with stickered/databased sigs. Some top items do have BAS Signature Review and some have UDA stickering, though the collection as a whole might make for some bargain shopping/flipping if buyers later get pieces full third-party authentication. (A number of these lots are simply Score Board pieces where the certificate is no longer a companion to the item.)

Keep reading for a gallery of a few pieces that are live now.

Continue reading →

Update: The card sold for $12,932,000 -- an all-time record for any sports card -- at 1:45 a.m. Sunday morning.

--

It's already topped the $7-million mark with time to go before the auction ends tomorrow night, but there's no telling the heights this card might reach.

There's a realistic chance that the Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant 2007-08 Upper Deck Exquisite Collection Dual Logoman Autographs card will become the priciest sports card of all time -- not just priciest basketball card ever -- when the dust settles at ends Heritage Auctions on Saturday and it's really only got two rivals.

Right now, with its buyer's premium attached, this card sits at $7,015,000 after 46 bids (click to view) and that already gives it the title of the biggest basketball card of all time. The previous NBA high was for a similar modern card, a 2009-10 Panini National Treasures Steph Curry Logoman auto, that sold privately for $5.9 million to an investment fund July 2021.

And there aren't too many past auctions that top that.

Continue reading →

What's Buzzing: Bubba Chandler arrives, eTopps' finale isn't going well, fake cards, learning the ropes and more.

-

1 -- eTopps' finale is not going well 

2 -- Learning the MLB Authentication ropes ...

3 -- Bubba Chandler arrives 

4 -- A money statement

5 -- Buyer beware ... an eBay account full of counterfeit cards

6 -- Checking in on the Roman Anthony thread

--

Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

Follow BlowoutBuzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz.

Auction Buzz is a monthly look at some of the variety found out there on the auction block ... check 'em out.

It's going to be a busy second half of the year for Dallas-based Heritage Auctions with a number of regularly scheduled events as well as some showcase auctions with high-profile stuff all on the calendar. This time, we look at a few things from a few active sales this month.

--

AS BIG AS IT GETS
The Item: Michael Jordan & Kobe Bryant 2007-08 Upper Deck Exquisite Collection Dual Logoman Autographs (1/1) -- PSA 6
The Price: $4,150,000 after 32 bids (ends Aug. 23)
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This one has plenty of time remaining but as you can tell it's already one of the biggest monsters to ever hit the auction block -- and that's with the grade that, well, would be a bummer on any other card from the modern era. But, with game-used NBA logos from two of the game's all-time greats and their ink? Well, it's all about the card, not that dinged corner. "Do you hear that rumbling? It's the sound of the standing world record price for a basketball card getting ready to fall," Heritage said in its listing. "For five years, the 2009-10 National Treasures Steph Curry logoman autograph card has enjoyed the view from the top of the heap, the $5.9 million private sale to an investment fund in July 2021 demonstrating the virtually unlimited elasticity of the market's upper edge. ... We're proud and privileged here at Heritage for the opportunity to take the title back for the auction world," Heritage continued, "providing the manner of competition and high drama that private transactions lack, and which serves as a far more fitting tribute to the iconic subjects this remarkable trading card celebrates." ... This one is estimated by Heritage to top the $6-million mark when it's sold.

Keep reading for more interesting pieces up for grabs right now.

Continue reading →

Ichiro Suzuki’s 2001 MLB arrival didn’t just change the game on the field — he helped feed growing international demand for baseball cards via plenty of new premium brands that helped pave the way for the ultra-deluxe stuff of today.

-

A legendary career and baseball journey on two continents makes its final stop this month in Cooperstown, N.Y., and the Hall of Fame and there’s a lot that can be said about that in several directions. 

Ichiro Suzuki changed the game with his arrival in MLB, eschewing the longball in favor of speed and hits — lots and lots of hits. But, “hits” are also the story of all those years when it comes to baseball cards with the prized rarities found in packs with autographs on them — or pieces of memorabilia in them — being an unstoppable force in those years. 

Of course, hits didn’t start with the Japanese star’s arrival, but many of his cards in sets alongside another now-legendary 2001 rookie, Albert Pujols, helped change the cardboard world even faster. Demand for their stuff prompted several new brands from several companies making MLB cards back then to try new things, capitalizing on their new stars who could move packs and boxes of cards -- just like they could move players around the bases and move butts into seats to watch games. One could argue that 2001 was in part a big piece in the evolution of what we see in today’s sports card landscape -- a focus on rarities with small print runs and with premium prices that weren’t like the wax paper-wrapped pocket-change treasures of not that many years before. 

Now, what’s to come here is absolutely not a definitive list of top cards — and it’s not one purely based on volatile values or one limited solely to Rookie Cards. Why? There’s a lot to choose from for Suzuki on all fronts — there could be several ways to take on this challenge. He has more than 50 different Rookie Cards between his 1993 Nippon Professional Baseball and 2001 Major League Baseball debuts (depending on how you want to argue about RC definitions) and he had roughly 500 cards in 2001 alone. Many of them are rarer cards where it is impossible to own them all thanks to small print runs and rare serial-numbered versions. 

In all, he appears on more than 19,000 different cards made over the years between NPB and MLB -- and even though his playing career ended in 2019 his cardboard career has not. He’s got a place in the game in seemingly every new baseball card set on the way and that figures to be the story for the rest of cardboard eternity. He’s not just a Hall of Famer … he’s an international icon.

Here’s a small sampling of 25 Ichiro Suzuki cards that are both fun and notable.

Continue reading →

What: 2025 Leaf Pearl Multi-sport cards
Arrives: August
Box basics: 11 premium cards per box (two boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Leaf's high-end celebration of sport in seemingly every direction arrives for a new edition with some monster 16-auto booklets, a rare cut auto in every box and some of the biggest names in all the games found together right here.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

Continue reading →

What's Buzzing: Chasing the Dodgers' big names, March Madness, The Living Set, new pulls and a Kobe question.

-

1 -- Talkin' baseball ... 

2 -- Shohei Ohtani is still on their minds ... Roki Sasaki is, too

3 -- March Madness

4 -- A Kobe question

5  -- So ... The Living Set missed a day?

6 -- New pulls are popping here

--

Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

Follow BlowoutBuzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz.

What: 2025 TruMystery Bracket Busters Basketball Edition
Arrives: March 26
Box basics: One slabbed buyback card per box  (four boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: TruCreator's blind-box buyback line focuses on superstars of the basketball court -- today and yesterday for the NBA as well as stars from the college and women's game.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

Continue reading →

What: 2025 TRISTAR Hidden Treasures Autographed Basketballs
Arrives: April 23
Box basics: One autographed basketball per box (four boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: TRISTAR's Hidden Treasures brand hits the hardwood once again with some legendary ink to be found, a Grand Treasure ball of a legend and a second chase that's showcasing three NBA greats ... but not on basketballs.

Continue reading →

What's Buzzing: Allegedly fake Michael Jordan buyback autos, Zion Williamson, Kobe Bryant Rookie Card thoughts, NFL chatter and more.

Continue reading →

What: 2024-25 TRISTAR Hidden Treasures Autographed Basketball Jerseys Season Edition
Arrives: Nov. 6
Box basics: One autographed basketball jersey per box (five boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: TRISTAR's Hidden Treasures line hits the hardwood for a new season with some of the biggest stars in the history of the game involved as either standard jerseys or as the big chase and the biggest new name in the NBA is in there, too.

Continue reading →

What: 2024 Super Break Signed Jersey Edition
Arrives: Oct. 16
Box basics: One signed jersey per display hanger box (five boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Super Break turns the mystery box into a mystery display with full jerseys from around the sports world placed into display cases that are ready-to-hang items once the packaging is opened.

Continue reading →

What: 2024 TruMystery Signed Figurine Edition
Arrives: Aug. 26
Box basics: One signed figure -- or sometimes a jumbo 5-by-7 auto/mem card display -- per box (eight boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: TruCreator's blind-box memorabilia line expands for the fans of autographs on figures such as Funko Pop!, action figures, McFarlane toys, bobbleheads, porcelain statues and more all in one spot.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

Continue reading →

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.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... 

--

DOGPOOL'S DEBUT
The Book: Prelude To Deadpool Corps No. 3 -- first Dogpool appearance
The Price: Under $8
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This was an impulse/curiosity buy once I saw Dogpool -- a character that I'm admittedly not that familiar with -- on this cover of Empire in advance of the Deadpool & Wolverine movie to come as well as in a preview trailer. Why? Well, one reason I grabbed this was that the lone graded copy of this book on eBay at that time had an asking price of $400-plus. While I know that's high, you never know what people might grab if the that pup steals the show or at least picks up some headlines alongside Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds when this one hits. (Weird thing have happened with Baby Yoda and Star Wars' Porgs in recent years.) This comic cover isn't exactly the same as what we're getting on the big screen dog-wise, but with the movie figuring to generate a lot of buzz and perhaps include a lot of cameos I've been looking at stuff here and there ... and I really need to go find that magazine, too. It's actually got higher asking prices on eBay than this book and has sold for more than $20. (It's a UK mag ... so it's perhaps not as easily found just yet.) The comic has had CGC 9.8 sales of $85 and $299 in recent months, too, so there's definitely some speculating ... and there should be. This movie will be huge.
Grab a box right here: BlowoutCards.com for non-sports cards

Keep reading for more interesting items ...

Continue reading →

What: 2024 Keepsake Sports Edition trading cards
Arrives: July 17
Box basics: One encased Keepsake Relic card and one other Relic card per box (five boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: The newest Keepsake release is nothing but the hits with autographs, memorabilia, cuts and more in play in every box with an array of stars from around the sports world as well as some surprise from others adjacent to the realm.

Keep reading for more info and a selection of images.

Continue reading →

What: 2024 TruMystery Lucky Envelope Asia Edition
Arrives: April 23
Box basics: One autograph per box (eight boxes per case)
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: TruCreator  focuses its attention on Asian athletes and stars throughout pop culture in a release that's all about autographed items -- and premium items also will be in play here via redemptions.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

Continue reading →

What: 2024 TRISTAR Hidden Treasures Autographed Basketballs
Arrives: April 19
Box basics: One autographed basketball per box (four boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: TRISTAR's Hidden Treasures brand hits the hardwood once again with some legendary ink to be found and plenty of other chases beyond just current superstars.

Continue reading →

What: 2023 TRISTAR Hidden Treasures Autographed Basketball Jerseys Series 2
Arrives: Nov. 10
Box basics: One autographed basketball jersey per box (five boxes per case)
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: TRISTAR's Hidden Treasures line hits the hardwood for another run this year with some of the biggest stars in the history of the game involved as either standard jerseys or as the big chase and the biggest new name in the NBA is in there, too.

Continue reading →

They're not the biggest boxes when it comes to their price -- but they're definitely packing a lot more than a Happy Meal.

In fact, with some luck when it comes to the 2022 Topps Chrome McDonald's All-American basketball boxes, you can feast with some of the first cardboard for a number of newly drafted NBA players, some likely future picks and even potential WNBA talent a little further down the line. (They have different draft rules so players can't be picked out of high school.)

A dozen players in this release were NBA Draft picks this year -- seven of those among the Top 20 -- and others who weren't are still active in the college ranks, transferred or are waiting on the draft due to injury. While it appears that only three players on the men's squad that year are not on cards in this release, there's still plenty to be found and a lot of it with big-dollar potential thanks to it being Chrome, and, of course, there being plenty of parallels to chase as well as autographs.

Brandon Miller, for example, was taken by the Charlotte Hornets with the No. 2 pick in this year's draft after a dominating season at Alabama and he appears on more than 70 cards in this release with a dozen certified autograph cards. Gameday Autographs in this one are traditional-stock on-card autos signed by players at the prep All-Star event, while the rest of the cards are Chromes and all parallels are numbered to 99 copies or less. Atop ink, there's a 100-card base set (some players are on the checklist more than once) and then photo variations for 10 notables, four insert sets packed with top names and then the ink. A lot of those versions of both base Chrome and autographs are found in both hobby boxes (a sure thing for ink) and then in blasters, too, with the ink flowing a little less easily -- but still in there .

While Bronny James' cardboard debut in the 2023 set to come soon undoubtedly will be a monster, this one is packed with a lot of break-out potential beyond just one headling-making big name. Heck, this one might have been passed over by many when James wasn't in there (he shouldn't have been, but it arrived around this year's event) -- but the roster is there for this marquee event. It's one that has seen legends such as Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant suit up in the past (but without cards in their era) and then cards in limited volumes in the early 2000s for stars such as Kevin Durant, James Harden and Chris Paul. (WNBA stars have been in there, too, but few on cards.) The combination of talent here without a monster price tag at the moment -- plus it being Chrome -- makes this one with relatively fertile potential in both the short-term -- and longer -- without breaking the bank like high-end NBA releases might.

Keep reading for more on who else is in this one as well as a rundown of where they are now.

Continue reading →

What: 2022 Leaf Ultimate Soccer cards
Arrives: Sept. 29, 2023
Box basics: At least five autographs per six-card box (10 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Leaf brings Ultimate to soccer fans with a mix of hits being the only cards found inside its boxes with some of the biggest stars in the world, too.

Keep reading for more info and a gallery of images.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: NFL Draft chatter, even more NFL & MLB talk, 2023 Bowman, Kobe Bryant autos and more.

Continue reading →

 From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2023 SportKings Volume 4 sports cards (blaster)
First Buzz preview: Click here
Where to buy: Click here

Continue reading →

What: 2023 TRISTAR Hidden Treasures Autographed Basketballs
Arrives: May 24
Box basics: One autographed basketball per box (four boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: TRISTAR's Hidden Treasures brand hits the hardwood once again with some legendary ink to be found and plenty of other chases beyond just current superstars.

Continue reading →

What: 2023 2023 President's Choice Solitaire 2.0 Update sports cards
Arrives: May 31
Box basics: Three 1/1 cards per box (10 boxes per case)
Checklist: Click here
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: President's Choice is back with a new Solitaire release that includes nothing but 1/1 creations showcasing past greats from all around the sports world.

Keep reading for more information and a gallery of images.

Continue reading →