2020 Favorites

 I’m sure as 2020 is nearing a close that a ton of these posts will start coming out, but I figured I would get mine out of the way since I don’t really figure to get any more cards before 2021. I would love to see some of your answers to these catergories or perhaps if you feel like posting, we can make this a Blog Bat Around. 

I’m basically going to go with a few different catergories, like pack pulled, purchased on the internet, and purchased at a card show/card shop. Each catergory will have different types of cards, with some not applicable to each catergory. 

First off will be pack pulled cards. These will be cards opened from any pack in 2020, no matter the year of the pack.

Card of 2020- 2020 Topps Stadium Club Randy Arozarena

Got this one from a blaster that my wife purchased me a month or so before he went on a tear in the playoffs. 

Favorite memorabilia card- 2020 Topps Update Lance McCullers, Jr.

This card was pulled recently from a blaster. I love jersey cards, and I love the ones with the All-Star game workout jerseys. The only issue I have from this one is that it says it was from 2017. Shouldn’t this card have been in ‘17 Topps Update? Did Topps have leftover all-star jerseys pieces of McCullers that they just had in a warehouse waiting for a season where the game was cancelled so they could put it in the Update Series?

Favorite autographed card- 2020 Topps Big League Sandy Alomar

It is one of only 2 autographed cards I pulled this year from a pack, but even if not, this one would rank pretty high. Sandy has always had a nice autograph, and I remember him being very fan friendly during his career. Glad I was able to pull a sig of his this year. 

Card from a Favorite Team-2020 Topps Advanced Stat Niko Goodrum

This card was pulled from my first packs of 2020, and it was just a surprise because I have never pulled an advanced stat card like this ever, and it was so cool to pull one from one of my 2 favorite teams. 

Favorite card of a favorite player- 1994 Stadium Club Rafael Bournigal 

While technically not in a 2020 pack, since I did the majority of them from 2020 product, I figured I’d let this one slide. I purchased a box of ‘94 Stadium Club that I was imagining opening with my 4 year old son and adding the cards to my collection after we were done. My wife thought we were opening the cards and they were going in my sons collection. It didn’t matter because eventually, my cards are probably going to go to him anyways. A few packs in, my kid pulls a Rafael Bournigal. I met Raffy in person, and he is one of my favorite players ever. My wife told me that any doubles from the box were fair game, and sure enough, about 10 packs later, my son pulled a Raffy for me. 

Next are cards from online purchases. These won't have any pictures, but you will see them once my COMC order gets here sometime in March of next year.

Favorite card- this could change at any moment, but I guess I’ll go with a 2001 Topps Prospects Josh Hamilton. I have just about every other version of this card, but the regular Topps one. It was the one card keeping me from finishing the 2001 Topps Rays set, and once COMC delivers it in March, it will be mine. 

Favorite Memorabilia card- 2020 UD Goodwin Champions Casey Mize

I’ve been wanting an autograph of jersey of Mize since he was with Auburn and got drafted #1. After a few years, I finally got one. 

Autographed card- 2018 Bowman’s Best Best of 2018 autographs Logan Gilbert

One of the guys who led Stetson University’s ‘17-‘18 team to the College World Series, I have been collecting him since then. Not a big name, but a cool looking card, and he does have upside

Card from a favorite team- 2005 Donruss Champions Materials Bobby Higginson bat. Higginson was a nice guy during his tenure with Detroit. Always signed autographs even when he was a big name. I had a bat card of him since 2003 or so, he signed it during spring training one year, but I ended up selling with with my autographed cards. I don’t have another autograph of him, but I got the bat card back. 

Card of a favorite player- 2013 Leaf Trinity Patch Autograph Kohl Stewart 

Kohl is a Type 1 diabetic and one of my newest favorite players. This patch/autograph combo was pretty cheap, and a great addition to my collection of him, which is only 3 cards deep including this one. 

Next are cards from card shops/shows. I didn't go to any shows this year, so these are just purchases from my LCS in 2020.

Favorite card- 2020 Topps Chrome X-Fractor Randy Arozarena. 

It’s a refractor, a card of a hot rookie, it only cost me 2 quarters, and the only way it could’ve been better is if it pictured him as a Ray. 

Favorite memorabilia card- 2002 SP Legendary Bat Don Baylor

The Kaz Sasaki Jersey card I pulled from one of the 4 dollar foil packs was nice, but I don’t care for cards that open like books, so Don Baylor (an excellent player, manager, and hitting coach) gets the nod

Autographed card- 2020 Donruss Signature Series Adbert Alzolay

The other autographed card I pulled from a pack this year, it is still a cool card, and who knows how he will do in the future. 

Card from a favorite team- 2020 Donruss Optic Lime Green Randy Arozarena

This card has everything except for a logo, but a card of Randy A. that is a parallel, pictures him as a Ray (or in Rays colors), and one that I basically stole from my LCS at 50 cents is a runaway winner for me. 

Card of a Favorite Player-1991 Line Drive Basilio Cabrera

I found a few cards of favorite players at my LCS, but Cabrera only has minor league cards, so finding one of his at my LCS that is only a year and a half old with limited selection was like finding a needle in a haystack. 

That about covers all of my favorite cards from 2020. Hopefully 2021 will offer us all some great cards, the ability to get cards from retail stores without the cards being double-printed. 

Thanks for checking out my latest post.

-Jeremy