Breakdown of contest winnings and Christmas pack 19

As can be seen with this blog, I am mostly a Cleveland Browns collector, but I do like baseball and every now and then find cool baseball cards that I want to keep.

Before Christmas, Gavin at Baseball Card Breakdown held his Beermas contest and it featured a prize that caught my eye so I entered. As it turned out, I lost the contest but Gavin was tricky and actually had two identical prize packs and had a second chance draw. I was lucky enough to win the second draw.

Here is the card that caught my eye to make me enter the contest.

 

What a cool card!

Like most people, I knew about him from his perfect game in the 1956 World Series. I didn't know a lot about his career though.

Although I remember being told that he had lost 20 games in a season with the Orioles (21 in 1954), I wasn't aware that he made his debut with the St. Louis Browns the season before their move to Baltimore. They aren't the Browns that I collect, but it is a neat Browns link!

I also wasn't aware that he pitched 15 years in the majors, ending his career with the Cubs in 1967.

Coincidentally, there was a Browns link with one of the baseball cards that Gavin included.

Regular readers of Gavin's blog will know about that he collects his Guys from Granite, so I'm sure he has been sent multiples of many of them. I thought it was a pretty cool card when I looked at it, but then I turned it over to read the back.

Brian Giles shared the high school backfield with "Touchdown Tommy", the Cleveland Browns first round pick (9th overall) in the 1992 NFL Draft. Pretty neat! 

The prizes also included a couple of cards of a favorite of a bunch of friends of mine. No Browns tie in with him. He's a Viking.

I'm sure some of you caught his tv appearance, but most of you might recognize him more in his work uniform.

There were also a couple of early cards from the World Series champions.

And other prospect cards.

As a Mets fan, I appreciate the Reynolds card.  As a baseball fan, I appreciate the Rhys Hoskins card. As a Mets fan, I do not appreciate Rhys Hoskins doing so well.

There was also a note included with my package.

It wasn't just any old note, however. Being in a package from Gavin, it was on the back of one of his customs, a mini Dude. And the Dude came with friends.

Gavin, you do an amazing job with your cards!

Even if the package had ended there, it would have been great, but Gavin also included some cards for my collection.

There was a Met for my Opening Day binder.

I originally had Wayne Garrett's 1971 Topps card sitting in the page for the 1970 starters. It is nice to put the 1970 card in its proper place.

He also sent me some Browns.

Top (l-r): 2010 Panini Epix #23; 2011 Topps Platinum - Green #148 (#/499)

Bottom (l-r): 2011 Panini Totally Certified #196 (#/299); 2013 Panini Prizm - Blue #16

I must say that I really like both colored parallel cards here. It also helps that they are so easily identifiable.

Top (l-r): 2014 Panini Elite - Turn of the Century #127 (#/199); 2015 Topps Field Access - Autographs #64

Bottom (l-r): 2016 Panini Prizm - Prizm #128; 2016 Panini Plates & Patches - Blue #24 (#/50)

Everybody remembers Johnny Manziel as a Browns first-round pick from 2014, but he was their second pick in the draft after Justin Gilbert. Gilbert may have even been the bigger disappointment.

The Plates & Patches card is pretty sweet. I just picked up my first card, a base card, from that set on my last trip to Arizona. I was thrilled to see this one in the package.

Gavin, thanks for the great prize package and the extra cards that you added for my collection. They are greatly appreciated.

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On to the next Christmas baseball pack.

1991 Conlon Collection from The Sporting News.

I love this set. I own factory sets of this series and the fourth series. I really need to remember to look for the missing second, third and fifth series.

Great names in here, and amazing photos. What a set! How can anybody hate these cards?