Christmas Goodies 3: The (Beautiful) Autographs

I put a lot of sweet autos on my wish list this year, expecting to get few of them since they generally cost more than my other wants (Of course more is relative - an "expensive" auto on my want list costs like $10 at the most since I collect weird guys). I ended up getting a bunch of fantastic cards from those wants, and I have to say - they all look far better in person. They also really reflect a shift in my collecting - I used to like autos regardless of their card-ness, but 4 out of these 5 are on card. It really does look so much nicer in almost every case, so I'm sure I'll continue to prefer on card autos over their sticker brethren.

First example? This gorgeous Kevin Faulk Auto from Fleer Autographics:
Just...wow...so nice. A great auto of a great guy, as Kevin Faulk has been a fan favorite for over a decade to New England fans. He's an odd player - never had more than 638 yards rushing in a season, and never had more than 486 receiving yards either. But every time he touches the ball he seems to pick up a bunch of yards and get first downs. Unfortunately he's out for the year this year, but hopefully next year he'll return and keep making those clutch plays the way he always has.


Of course, one cannot celebrate Faulk without remembering the running back who's injury opened the door for him, Mr. Robert Edwards. So I wished for a nice looking auto of his too, and ended up with one:
Another fantastic auto in the sweet spot, complete with his number. Bowman definitely used to make some straight up gorgeous cards. I'm now one Edwards relic card away from a trifecta, but he only has one and it's $32 plus shipping on Beckett. So that probably won't happen, but that's fine - this auto alone is nice enough for me!


About a month ago I completed my Shaun King trifecta with an autographed card. Lo and behold, I ended up getting another on card auto of his at Christmas, which is possibly ever nicer:
While the card design is less interesting given its parallel status, the auto looks crisper, and King threw his number in there for good measure. I'd vote this King Auto my favorite personally.


I even picked up a PC Auto at Christmas, one of Mr. Tyronn Lue!
This one is too cool - fat lettering right over the ball on a very shiny card. It's also interesting to note my Lue progress, as I'm slowly making my way through his hits. I count 7 of 18 autographs and 3 of 12 relic cards, which is definitely the most progress I've made with a player collection in terms of hits. I guess he's easier than McGriff, Staley, and Seneca Wallace since he has fewer big cards, but hey, progress is progress, no? And I never get sick of the awesome way that he signs his name - so crisp, so weird with the lack of n's, so consistent - Lue has one of my favorite autos for sure.


Last but not least, the sticker auto. I really shouldn't bash stickers too much though, because this one is very nice (and numbered 21/75):
I mentioned Mike James on here a few weeks back after picking up a base card of his, and it was nice to get an auto of his too. His name is written nice and he throws the number in there too, which is very cool. It's also interesting to have a card of his in a Minnesota uniform, as that's the only season of his career that he has ever played the full 82 games. It was also his only year in Minnesota, one of nine teams he's played for in nine years in the league. Oddly enough he's been able to keep the #13 in most of those stops, allowing him to sign this autograph consistently throughout his career. It'd probably stink to have to adjust your autograph with the change of a jersey number!

So there you have it - all the best cards I got for Christmas! Don't worry though, there are still plenty more cards to show off from this holiday season, as I brought a ton of stuff back and made some nice trades in the meantime. So you'll see more of that over these next few weeks - hope you enjoy it!