Diamonds in the Quarter Box
In the last two years I have found myself spending a lot of time in front a stack of monster boxes with rows and rows of cards for 25 cents.
Reading some blogs, other collectors swear by the dime boxes and the quarter boxes. Until recently I thought it was a waste of time, but I was also impatient. Many vendors have boxes filled with all types of cards, and if I see a row of red (1990 Donruss) or yellow (1991 Fleer), I'm moving on.
But...if you give those boxes a chance, you just might find some needles in a haystack. At the Chicago Sports Spectacular last year, I found a couple booths with fantastic deals, so that's exactly where I went a few weeks ago at the same show held in Rosemont, Illinois.
One table I spent between three and four hours with a chair and piled card after card on an empty spot at the table. The pile grew, and grew, and grew. There were a bunch of cards that probably were not worth a quarter (Cubs, of course), but I pulled out a bunch of cards for trade bait.
I pulled out a relic of Joba Chamberlain, and it's something I had never seen before, nor even knew existed. It's a ticket relic. What a neat idea. It was a cool card, and to be honest using it as trade bait didn't even enter my mind. I just thought it was a pretty cool card, and if I found a Cubs relic, I likely would have put the Chamberlain back in the box.
After returning home, I began posting pictures of some of my "hits" on Twitter. I couldn't believe the response this Chamberlain card received, and had at minimum three people wanting to trade. Paul in Michigan offered up an awesome package and much more than I was expecting. The trade package was highlighted by this 2019 Topps Yu Darvish blue parallel numbered 9/50.
AND...a Jorge Soler 2016 Gypsy Queen jersey relic.
Wait...there's more. A 2019 Topps Gallery National Baseball Card Day of Kris Bryant.
Holy Cow! I told Paul I would add some extra Detroit Tigers in his trade package, because this was too good for the relic card I picked out for a quarter because it looked cool. Paul also sent some extras, including a 2013 Chicago Cubs pocket schedule. I'm a sucker for pocket schedules.
What a trade. From now on, I'll have to be more cognizant of potential trade bait hits in these boxes. Kelly in Washington sent a package with some Cubs hits. Like thisn 2013 Bowman Chrome Rock Shoulders blue refractor numbered 170/250. Rock Shoulders. Such a great name.
And, I had to show off this hoss. Rod Beck, may he rest in peace. He was a great Cubs pitcher.
One Million Cubs Project Stats Monday's (12/2/2019) Cards: 98
Monday's (12/2/2019) Packages: 2
January's Cubs Count: 9,343
February's Cubs Count: 8,980
March's Cubs Count: 15,704
April's Cubs Count: 11,651
May's Cubs Count: 7,273
June's Cubs Count: 7,690
July's Cubs Count: 10,803
August's Cubs Count: 11,929
September's Cubs Count: 9,127
October's Cubs Count: 15,675
November's Cubs Count: 26,705
December's Cubs Count: 98
Total Trades/Donations: 312
Trade States of Origin: Arizona (6) Alabama (5)
Arkansas California (22)
Colorado (6) Connecticut (17)
Delaware (2)
Florida (11)
Georgia (3)
Idaho (3) Illinois (29) Indiana (8)
Iowa (2)
Kansas
Kentucky (2)
Louisiana Maryland (12) Massachusetts (11)
Michigan (3) Minnesota (4)
Mississippi
Missouri (5)
Nebraska (3)
Nevada (2)
New Hampshire (2) New Jersey (15)
New Mexico (4) New York (29) North Carolina (6)
North Dakota Ohio (18)
Oregon (3) Pennsylvania (9)
Rhode Island (2)
South Carolina (2)
South Dakota Tennessee (8) Texas (10)
Utah
Vermont (5)
Virginia (2) Washington (7)
Washington, DC
West Virginia (7) Wisconsin (12)
Countries of Origin
Canada (1)
Korea (2)