Gwynn and other goodies from COMC

As most of you are aware, I hit up the COMC website on occasion and earn a few free cards through their COMC Challenges. I do them a favor by helping inventory their cards, and they repay my efforts by rewarding me with $1 towards cards for every 1,000 points I accumulate.  

 

While it's been a while since I've ordered cards from them, I've earned enough points/dollars that I was able to find 15 that I just felt I had to have for my personal collection.

 

Being the die-hard San Diego Padres fan that I am (this is "Bleedin' Brown and Gold" after all), I'll start out with the 10 Friars cards I picked up.

 

While rumors abound that Andrew Cashner is quite possibly on the Padres trading block, I thought he did a heck of job with San Diego. So, I picked up his 2013 Topps Tier One On the Rise Autographs S/N 340/399 and 2014 Bowman Blue S/N 14/500. I also found a card featuring the best mascot in MLB, San Diego's Swinging Friar, ala his 2007 Topps Opening Day Gold S/N 1761/2007.

 

At the September Urbandale American Legion card show, I had a dealer give me a great deal on Topps' 1974 "Washington Nat'l League" Padres cards. That year Topps included 15 cards with the yellow San Diego padres uniforms and caps, but with "Washington," in the top left corner and "Nat'l Lea." in the bottom right since it appeared that San Diego was going to be sold and moved. They also released those same cards with the regular San Diego title.

 

I was able to add the Fred Kendall and Dave Hilton Washington cards, as well as a Vicente Romo San Diego card.

 

Of course, any Padres baseball card collection is just a pile of cardboard, without the inclusion of "Mr. Padre," the late Tony Gwynn. Here's his 1994 Fleer All-Stars, 2013 Upper Deck National Convention and a 1999 Upper Deck PowerDeck Auxiliary. I thought it was rather nice (albeit belated) that MLB recognized Gwynn during the 2014 World Series.

 

My last Padres purchase was this 2008 Topps Heritage Black Back Trevor Hoffman. While I don't normally collect football, I've been a Packers fan since I was a wee lad and only pick up cards for players from the Lombardi era, so getting this 2001 Topps Gallery Bart Starr was a no-brainer.

 

Hockey is my only other card collecting vice. And yes, I am a hockey geek - we have season tickets for the Iowa Wild, help out as goal judge or statistician at Iowa State Club hockey games and I still occasionally play roller hockey. The first card, the 1993 Classic Pro Hockey Prospects Autograph Dmitri Kvartalnov S/N 3387/4000 combines my love for San Diego with my passion for hockey. We used to watch the Mariners play in the old World Hockey Association (WHA) at the San Diego Sports Arena, but have yet to catch a Gulls game. Once a semi-pro team, the Gulls are now a junior hockey team playing at the Ice Plex in Escondido.

 

My other hockey cards include a 2011-12 Panini Contenders Jonathan Toews, 2010-11 Zenith Crease is the Word Corey Crawford, and a 1996 Zenith Champion Salute Joe Sakic. I started collecting the Zenith cards about six months ago and already have half the set, including the hard-to-find Mario Lemieux card.