Cleve's Auction Night: 1985 Topps Set

It was a beautiful sunny day, the summer of 1987.  My friend Joey and I were wrapping up a fun afternoon at a card show in Amarillo, Texas and were getting ready to head home.  As we were leaving the show, Joey decided to live on the wild side and bought a pack of 1985 Topps for some ridiculous (at the time) price I don't remember what.  But he was convinced he would pull something great from that pack.  He couldn't wait to get home to rip the pack and opened it right there in his truck in the parking lot.   Lightning struck, and struck big:  he pulled an Eric Davis rookie card.  At the time the Davis rookie booked for some ridiculous amount, like $80 or something if I remember correctly.  We both went berserk,  bouncing and screaming in our seats,  because we were both broke high school kids and this was like winning a small lottery for us.  Plus, well, we were dorks.   But we didn't care what anyone who saw us might have thought and we celebrated vigorously.

For years and years, I coveted that Davis card, plus many of the cards from 1985 Topps.  It was a set I desired for many years but never could afford.

Years later, my day of glory and destiny arrived last week when I won a complete, mint and bound 1985 Topps set at Cleve's Tuesday auction for a measly $15 on a write in bid.   Fifteen bucks.  I mean, fifteen bucks for an almost 30 year old set that has already been placed in 9 pocket pages.  I picked it up Saturday at Cleve's, and the first card I looked for was the glorious Eric Davis rookie:

Listen, do not harsh my buzz and remind me that I could get this card for a quarter on sportlots.com now.  It's still a bad ass card.  In fact, I get that the whole reason I could get this set for next to nothing these days is because the "hot" cards that drove this set years ago are no longer that desirable.  But they're still big deals in my little mind.  Let's stroll down memory lane:

There are several cards that I imagine people first think of when they think of 1985 Topps.  The Mark McGwire rookie surely is one of them.   Yes, I know this star has faded, but I'm still glad to have it.  Speaking of faded stars, here are a couple of pitchers that surely should be Hall of Famers had they not done themselves in for various reasons:

But there is no shortage of HOFers in this set.  One of which is Kirby Puckett's rookie below, a fine looking card.

At worst, 1985 Topps is worth having because it's a great looking set.  It's simple, colorful, and has lots of great names.  I'm thinking of calling Joey and telling him about it.

Grade:

1985 Topps Set $15  A+:  It's a set I've always wanted, the cards are mint, AND someone already went to the trouble to put all 792 cards in pages.  That alone is worth what I paid for it!

Sampler Album Week: 1993 Topps

Whoever is ready for Sampler Album week to be over, raise your hand!  Whatever, I've been at the beach all week and was oblivious to any yawns and/or complaints.

The 1990's section of my Sampler Album is pretty week.  Meaning, I don't have several of the years complete.  1993 was done pretty easily though, and it's a pretty nice page.

The Jr. Griffey card is really sharp, and I've got a good handful of HOFers here.  The 1993 design is pretty basic and understated, but I like that.

Checklist Chipaway: 2001 Topps HD Image Mark McGwire

I have had a lot of trouble getting this card, at least for a price I'm comfortable with.  The last couple that I've watched on eBay have sold for double digits and I just couldn't bring myself to pay that much for it.  This one slipped through the cracks and I got it for about $5 shipped.  I now only need A-Rod and Griffey to complete this set, and my HD Master set will be that much closer to completion.