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Once I get on a roll on COMC, it can be hard to stop - the 50 under .50 was such a big win! I went back again once those cards arrived and made a much smaller order of a small handful of cards I had been looking to add for various reasons.

 So 90s! This one was on my Arbitrary List. I originally put random cards on that list, but generous and well meaning collectors would send me those random cards in the mail, so I had to switch it up - now it's always a random sampling of cards that I don't own but would like to.

 This card is so cool. The Crystal Ball had no idea what was in store for LaTroy, who retired following the  2015 season.

 Kennys! This insert has a Superfractor look and feel to it, but it was much much cheaper than a 1/1. Vargas ended being included in Series 2 for the Topps flagship set this year, I was not expecting him to be included but I am hopeful that he will get another shot at the big leagues soon.

 My first Byung-ho Park card! He's been able to provide plenty of big homers, but the league seems to have found some weaknesses in the strike zone, and he struggles a little with big league heat. It's his turn to adjust, or Kennys will be taking his place until he figures things out!

TONY O! This is a hand cut card from a 1971 Milk Duds carton. It's seen better days, but a little love just made it cheaper for me!

ok,  I got a little lazy with the scanning on this one - Museum Collection is printed on a fairly thick cardstock, I think that may have confused my scanner a bit.

So there you go, 50 under .50 and here's 5 under $5. A little something for everyone!

7 Arbitrary Favorites of 2015

These are -of course- not in any order or ranking. I leave that to you to decide.

 Topps Archives has been a great source for those deep cut fan favorites in recent years. Can't beat Teke.

 The first card in the first pack of 2015 Topps Stadium Club was this masterpiece.

I read recently that Kennys was drawing the attention of teams in Korea. I think Vargas has such great potential, I hope the Twins keep him around for at least another season and give him the opportunity to prove how much he can do.

 SNOWCONE!

 Just a gorgeous shot of Target Field in Minneapolis - it's my list, ok? It's gonna have a lot of Twins.

I get a kick out of this pose every time I see this card. Is LaTroy talking to the baseball, or listening to it?

They can't all be Topps! I will say that 99.99% of my non Topps Cards from 2015 feature Kennys Vargas, so this is what I have to share. Diamond Kings had some really nice cards this year, but it was an uphill climb to win over collectors with no MLB License.

Sunday Spotlight: LaTroy Hawkins

 Little baseball, let me tell you the story of LaTroy . . .

"Top Dawg"

Drafted in 1991(!) LaTroy was a promising starting pitching prospect for the Minnesota Twins. He spent the next three years in the minors, and after being held back in Single A for a season, contemplated hanging up his spikes. His grandfather convinced him to stay in the game by asking "Where are you going to live? I don't allow quitters in this house."

 In 1993, LaTroy led his league in the three major categories; Wins, Strikeouts, and ERA. He was on the fast track to the big leagues by again leading his league in Wins in 1994.

By 1995, he had made his major league debut with the Twins. He spent the off-season in the Arizona fall league, and returned to the Twins rotation in 1996.

Hawkins would struggle in the starter role over the next several years. The Twins converted him to be the team's closer in 2000, and he went a perfect 14/14 in save opportunities.

Fast forward 15 years later, and LaTroy is still getting batters out in the playoffs, pitching for the Toronto Blue Jays, his 11th team in the big leagues. He is currently the oldest active major leaguer, and has recorded a save against all 30 major league teams (his save against the Twins came just this year after being traded to Toronto.).

I just realized that LaTroy is not on my PC list, so let's fix that right now!