Reggie, Reggie!!!

I am finally home from 2 consecutive weeks of work travel.  The suitcase is put away, the laundry is finished and I have spent some quality time with wife and kids.  I have opened up a few packages and have lots of scanning and writing to do.  I realize I am perhaps the only blogger who hasn't chimed in on 2014 Topps - I have bought my Jumbo box, built my set and am actively working on my insert sets - but have decided to postpone that post for a little while.

Tonight I decided to finally talk a little about my Reggie Jackson collection and share 4 recent pick ups.  As I look back on my collecting timeline, I believe Reggie was the 4th baseball player I started player collecting.  In order here are the players I decided to collect:

1. Willie McCovey
1a. Rickey Henderson (started these two at the same time)
3. Dave Winfield
4. Reggie Jackson
5. Jim Rice (since abandoned)
6. Vida Blue
7. Ben Petrick
8. Dave Parker

I grew up in the 70s and 80s and Reggie was the straw that stirred the drink.  I vaguely remember his exploits in the 1977-78 World Series with the Yankees but was too young to remember his A's days - however as a toddler I did attend a World Series game in 1973 or 1974 according to my dad.  I still favor cards in his A's uniform, that era of A's unis are classic.  I did read a lot about him and his personality and story led me to start collecting his cards.

I have 390 cards in my Reggie collection with the prize of the collection being his 1969 Topps rookie card.  Most of my collection (almost 300 cards) consists of cards from the mid-90s and earlier.  I haven't placed much focus on my Reggie collection since the turn of the century, just setting aside cards I pulled of him in newer products or picking up cards on the cheap on Sportlots or the LCS.  I have been tempted a couple of times recently to fill up a virtual shopping cart on Sportlots or Beckett.com but haven't pulled the trigger.  My want list is too long to post but if you have some Reggie's for trade drop me a note and I will reference my list.

Here are so of my recent pick ups:

Manupatches don't typically excite me but they don't completely turn me off either.  This one from one of those A's trio of consecutive World Series victories seemed like a good addition to my Reggie collection.

I picked up this Reggie bat card on the cheap and didn't realize it was damaged surrounding the bat relic piece until well after I left positive feedback.  I still think it is a pretty solid looking card and I am glad to have it in my collection.

This card just arrived today and I think it looks great!  The design is cool with the stadium scene muted in the background.  The photo selection of Mr. October is great, a very interesting angle and nicely showcases his signature glasses.  Flair Greats has always been a set I really enjoyed and this is a great card to get me excited about rekindling my Reggie collection.

The last card is only my second Reggie Autographed card. It is from 2013 Panini America's Pastime.  It isn't the cleanest Reggie signature I have seen but it is on card which is great.  I like the design even with the lack of logos.  A great addition to my Reggie binder and a pick up that really gets me excited about building on my collection - I wonder if 500 different cards is within reach during 2014.