Gwynn Wynn

Man, eBay and PayPal just make it really difficult for a card addict like me to stay in control.   It's too easy to say "yes" to an auction.   My lovely wife may disagree, but I think most of the time I am relatively disciplined on buying cards.  I don’t typically buy expensive items or boxes, and I usually don’t pull the trigger on something that I know is a steal unless it falls under my collecting solar system.  I also don’t buy general “lots” of cards that don’t list specifically what those cards are.

Last week I made a couple of exceptions to my rules.  I bought one rather expensive jersey card and will post about when it arrives.  I also bought this:

A lot of 200 Tony Gwynn cards.  I stared and stared at this auction as the time to bid ticked away.  I don’t need 200 Tony Gwynn cards.    I want 200 Tony Gwynn cards, but I don’t need them.  The item description didn’t list the cards either, other than listing some of the brands in the lot,  so I knew it was likely a bunch of junk wax.  But no one had bid, and if I could win with the lowest bid, the cost would wind up being pennies per card.  Not a bad way to build the binder of one of my favorite all time players.  I put in my bid and watched the auction come to a close, alternating from hoping I would win to hoping someone would outbid me.  I wound up winning.

The box arrived yesterday and with a slight sense of dread, I dug in to see what I got, mostly expecting a bunch of this:

Some junk wax, but cards of Tony Gwynn are cards of Tony Gwynn, so no problem.  So that was part of the box, but I was pleasantly surprised by the overall contents.  There were a lot of shiny cards:

A few Topps Finest, as well as the Super Cool Plastic EX cards, one which I already had (1999), and one which I didn't (1998).  Maybe I should try to build the 98 set once 99 is done. 



And there were several of hologram/sportflics type cards that I dig:

I love those SPX hologram cards.  And these are my first UC3 cards.  The little pinwheels in the background of the Cyclone Squad card spin around when you move the card.  I'm sure I looked like an imbecile watching them spin 'round and 'round as I drooled over this card last night. 

I’m glad to say that I didn’t already have at least 50% of what was in the box.  My Tony Gwynn collection is now my largest single player collection, surpassing Darryl Strawberry.