(I've experienced a lot of low points in my 50 years as a Dodgers fan but last night's game might have topped them all. I think I finally see what lots of other Dodgers fans have seen for years. Time for Dave Roberts to go. Also time for Cardboard Appreciation! This is the 356th in a series):
You are viewing my 537th buyback from the 1975 Topps set. Yup, I'm still on this thing. In fact this year happens to be 10 full years since I first decided to collect the buybacks in the '75 set in an effort to get one of every card.
I knew then that it would be an impossible task. I still know that. But I also had no idea that I would get this far in the quest. I've passed 80 percent of the set in buyback form (81.3% to be exact). Didn't even know way back then that there were that many to chase.
Even with the boost from 2024 Heritage the quest is getting more and more tricky -- prices have rocketed on some of the ones I still need and I'm all too aware that some collectors have ones I need without any intention of giving them up. And now here's another thing -- the post office is getting in my way.
The Joe Rudi card arrived after my ordered Manny Sanguillen buyback was lost in the mail. It was the second time I lost out on the Sanguillen card. One was purchased out from underneath my cart a few months ago.
So I was happy to spot the Rudi for sale, another noteworthy name from that set. I placed my order back in mid-August and waited. And waited. And waited.
It was originally estimated to arrive on Aug. 28. Then it decided to vacation for a week in Nashville. I hope it had a good time because I was missing it fierce. And I was starting to think that maybe this buyback chase wasn't worth it anymore. What does the post office have against buybacks? Maybe someone high up there is offended by defacing 1975 Topps cards -- at least that I could understand.
I was ready to chalk it up and ask for another refund, when all of a sudden I saw that the package had traveled to Virginia. Progress! It still hung around there a day too long but finally ...
I had my 537th buyback. And it arrived the day before Rudi's 79th birthday! So maybe that's all it was waiting for.
There is another '75 buyback that I need that is my cart right now. I'm a little scared to order it.
Comments
Would trade Boone for Roberts in a heartbeat.
Case in point: the recently departed Davey Johnson has always had this albatross across his neck: why didn’t he pinch hit for Doc Gooden and then go to his bullpen in the 1988 NLDS? I’m sure you remember this well, Mr. Owl. And this was before the internet.