Card show swag: the new stuff

Yikes. Maybe the Dodgers should have started Chad Billingsley tonight. This is awful. And I'm soooo glad I talked up Kuroda. That worked well, didn't it? I hope someone hands him his plate during the postgame spread, because he'll never find it otherwise.

While I'm waiting for the Dodgers to mount a monumental comeback in Game 3 (game is now officially on in the background, because I can't stomach watching the Dodgers batters flail away at Cliff Lee), I thought I'd post Part 1 of my card show goodies.

The show worked out pretty well. I didn't have quite as much cash to spend, but I came home with just as much stuff. My new habit of looking for deals, possibly combined with dealers looking to move some product, produced a healthy stack of cards for the collection. I don't think I paid more than 10 bucks for any card, which could be the first time I've done that in three years.

I'll show the 2009 cards on this post, because there aren't a lot of them. I stayed almost exclusively with vintage. All of these '09 cards came from the same dealer. I like him, but he never gets a lot of my money, because I usually seek out the vintage first, and I don't have a lot left for him. Poor guy. Still, he smiles and always give me a deal.

Also, all of these cards, as you probably suspected, are Dodgers. So to all you Dodger haters, first, get your head checked, and second ... oh, there is no second. Just get your head checked.

The Goudey card up top was the last Dodger I needed from the base set. I'm mercifully done with what could be my least favorite set of 2009. It did feel weird completing the team set with a guy who hasn't worn a Dodger uniform all year. But I still like Sammy.

The best part of the new stuff, for me, was spying the '09 Updates and Highlights binder. I went through and pulled every Dodger I could find. I'm not sure if I completed the U&H team set. I think I might've, but I haven't tracked down a checklist (I haven't been to a store in 2 weeks to see if there is any U&H, and I'm having trouble finding an updated checklist online -- Topps, YOU SUCK in this area).

But the best part of getting the Dodgers is I don't think I'll be trying to complete the U&H set. Even though I like the '09 Topps flagship design a lot, trying to complete a set in October/November/December, when I should be saving cash for people who put up with my habit all year long, just doesn't seem right. So, I think I'm done now that I have these Dodgers:

#UH9 - Jonathan Broxton. How is it that he was not in the main set?

#UH25 - Orlando Hudson. Another photo from that spring training series against the White Sox.

#UH45 - Brad Ausmus. Or "Future Manager Brad Ausmus." F.M. Ausmus, for short.

#UH61 - Jamie Hoffman. I'm shocked he made the U&H set. I even said on an earlier post that I didn't think he'd be in it. No, I will not link it. Finding it will be your own reward.

#UH97 - Juan Castro. A former awesome night card subject. This could be a night card, too, but it's hard to tell.

#UH115 - Jeff Weaver. Mr. Mound Sourpuss has done a pretty decent job for L.A. this year. I like the "Vegas" arrow in the background.

#UH239 - George Sherrill. This is a definite night shot. Sherrill was traded to L.A. at the end of July, so Topps worked fast.

#UH159 - Chad Billingsley, All-Star. OK, Billingsley isn't doing so well now in this game. What's Eric Stults up to? ... I like the All-Star card design this year. Much better than past years.

#UH277 - Orlando Hudson, All-Star. Not the last you'll see of O-Dog.

#UH109 - Orlando Hudson, Season Highlight (Hudson hits for cycle). Three cards of Hudson! Did Topps mix him up with Evan Longoria? Wow. I'll admit it's good to see a Dodger get a little publicity. Even if he's a back-up now.

I also wrapped up the Goodwin Champions Dodger set this weekend, with the exception of a super shortprint, which I think is coming my way, and two mini exclusives (Loney and Martin), which I'm not going to bother pursuing. Here's Billingsley again, looking for his first-half vibe in a grassy field somewhere.

And here's Manny, standing in front of a volcanic eruption or something.

This is a short-print, reliever Cory Wade. And with that, I'm done. I didn't like this set as much as a lot of people, so it's good to get the Dodgers out of the way so I don't have to blow money on it anymore. Not a bad set, but not all that inspiring.

I did buy some fairly cheap relics for a small handful of bloggers. If you get one from me in the mail in the next couple of weeks, you'll know where they originated.

But that does it for the new stuff. The next card show post will be all vintage and all of it completely awesome. It will be especially filled with cards from a certain year. You want a hint? OK: Jeremiah was a bullfrog.