98-cent Experiment Update

(Note: Photos represent cards actually listed, but did not necessarily get purchased)


Just a quick post to update you all on the "Great 98-cent Experiment." I listed approximately 360 cards during the experiment. Of those, 221 went unsold in any form or fashion. To recap, here is what I did: I listed the cards at $.98 total starting bid (free shipping). Most of the cards that did not sell at the $.98 starting bid were then relisted with a starting bid of $.05 with a shipping matrix (basically $2.00 for the first card and $.25 for each card after that). Only ONE card (A 2007 A&G Mini Lance Berkman) sold at the $.05 matrix.

What does this mean?

1. First of all, unless you have great inserts/game-used/vintage, you are probably not going to retire selling cards on eBay. LOL, not that I was trying to accomplish that, but hey, if it works....
2. Second, my experiment was not without its flaws. The main is that to be truly accurate, I would need to sell the SAME cards at the $.98 and at the $.05 in order to have true card-based representation.
3. Third, It seems the appeal of free shipping attracts more buyers and more POTENTIAL buyers. What brings me to this conclusion? I had many more "watchers" for the $.98 items than the $.05 items. Again, this is flawed because the same cards were not used throughout both types of sales.
4. And, finally (for the purposes of this experiment anyway), I thought way too long and hard about all this. :-)

The highest-priced item during the experiment was a Serially-numbered Topps Gold Rookie of Albert Pujols. Many items went for the starting bid of $.98, and as I mentioned before, many items did not sell at all, which leaves me with about 11800+ cards still to go before completely selling off the huge "Dealer Store Closed" lot I bought... Well, that's not exactly right. After all, I *DID* pull out the Indians cards, and some Braves cards going to dayf in another "riddle-type" offering (more on that in a later posting).

All in all, the experiment was fun and put some change in my pocket for my trouble. Not too shabby, I'd say.

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Waiting for the ball to drop

No, I'm not talking about the New Year's Ball, nor am I referring back to Doug Jones' ball. I am referring to the Mitchell Report. I have not posted in a few days, I know. Part of that is due to my new part-time full-time job of selling (or trying to sell, anyway) cards on eBay. Another reason for the lack of posting is because I wanted to wait until the Mitchell Report came out to see what Tribers were (or were not) on it.

In honor (dishonor?) of the current and former Tribers who made the list of "enhancers," I offer the following:


Paul may be using (or have used), but at least he has a medical reason, right!?

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Steve Woodard... His name doesn't even ring a bell for me... Lots of good the suspected 'roid use did him, huh?

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Tim is the only other "current" Triber accused (for lack of a better word) of using, supplying, whatever you (Mitchell) would like to call it...

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Rocker? Frankly, I am not surprised to see his name on the list... He can just this to his resume'...

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Man, I was bummed to Juan Gonzalez listed... Well, I think he's a great Triber, regardless (and if memory serves, he did not use AS a Triber...)

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Kent Mercker was an Indian for so long and made such an impact that a photo of him in a Tribe uniform is considered ultra-rare... Uh, yeah, just keep telling yourself that... Frankly, Mercker was another one I had no idea he had been an Indian...

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Bummed to hear Carreon was/is on the list... I don't really remember much about him, other than he made the "1997 Score Indians" set... For what that's worth...

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Another disappointing name to See on the list. Like many MLB players, Williams launched his career after being farmed out by the Tribe...

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As you can see, I could not find Mr. Allen in an Indians uniform. Honestly, I have never heard of the guy. His appearance on the list has no effect on me whatsoever... Really... None... Sorry, dayf, guess the Braves will have claim him...

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Dang it, David Justice got himself on the list after all. I was always a fan of Dave Justice, despite his antics. Seeing him on the list doesn't change my opinion of him during his Tribe days. He was great.

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I don't recall David Segui being a superstar or anything. Maybe I haven't followed the game as closely as I should have, or maybe the suspected use of "enhancers" did nothing for his game either....

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Glenallen played during the time I had taken a break from collecting, watching, or anything else related to baseball. Someone else will have to chime in on how they think 'roids affect his play (if at all, and if he actually used).

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Jason Grimsley... Nope, no bells ringing with this one either, though I understand he was something of a "Rocker-esque" personality, though a quick search revealed he crawled through an air duct to steal a bat that was under investigation for corking... Our own little John McClane, I guess.... :-)

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I've sen the list of suspected users, and I have to say, there are some pretty big names on the list. But, there are also players that most people may have never heard of. This suggest to me that even with "enhancers," a player must be GOOD at playing ball. Period. I don't care how hopped I was, I would never even come close to smacking a 90+ miles-an-hour pitch ANYWHERE, let alone screaming for the fences. Talent will never be replaced by drugs.....

2007 Plain Dealer Medallion Series Coins

These quarter-sized coins are housed in a clear plastic holder and feature player pictures on the front. The fronts also show "Cleveland Indians" with the player's position to the left of the photo, the player's jersey number on the right of the photo, and the player's name at the bottom. The back also says "Cleveland Indians" along the top with the "I" script logo on each side. The center of the back features the "Wahoo" logo with "2007 Collection" underneath.

From what I have been able to put together, these were special items available at games with a coupon from the Plain Dealer newspaper. They were $2.99 (plus tax) with the coupon, and I would guess they sold plenty without the coupon (I mean, really, who is checking for the coupon here?). According to the cardboard stock, there are 22 of these coins in the set. I have three individual players: Fausto Carmona, Victor Martinez, Grady Sizemore (x2). I'll be scoping out eBay and Beckett and where ever else I can find these to complete my set.

There is some kind of album that collector's are supposed to put the coins in, but I would rather keep them in their packaging and put the whole card stock in a 9-pocket sleeve. Naturally, since I have two Sizemore's, I will be opening one for closer inspection! :-)

I really don't know how I ended up being such an oddball collector... Heh-heh, I guess you can put the emphasis on "oddball" in whatever way you see fit!

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The great "98-cent Experiment" on eBay is going is little slower than I had expected (98-cent opening bid with free shipping). But, for control measures (for lack of a better term), anything that does not sell will be relisted under some "regular" guidelines - that is, starting bid of $.05 with $1.00 shipping. I'll let you know how that goes, too. Of course, there are still about four hours left (at the time of this writing) for the first batch of listings (I ended up doing three batches of about 30 cards each), and I know a lot of people are sniping, so I may be surprised at the final results of the 98-cent experiment.

There are several game-used items, but I think one of the coolest (non-GU) items is a 2001 Topps Gold Traded Albert Pujols (0739/2001). I don't know why, but I like it. LOL... Hope the winner does too! :-)

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Yet another ID-10-T day...

Yesterday, I posted about having gone through the 6000+ (which is actually about 12000+) cards I bought on 'theBay' not long ago. Well, in my haste to start selling the cards, I managed to skip an entire 3000-count box during my solo sorting time! See? This is why you WANT your kids to join in the process! Oh well, it has been fun looking through the cards to find Indians, inserts, etc.

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I was sorry that dayf did not win the Hank Aaron card.. :-( I was pullin for ya! I have been finding Braves cards, though, so I'll cull a group together and shoot off your way Monday... I am VERY glad to hear you enjoyed the "surprise pack" I pulled together for ya! (Readers, see comments in the previous post for an upcoming response from dayf) :-)

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A sweet surprise!

DAYF and I have been swapping cards back and forth lately (which, by the way, I have some more Braves headed your way). When I saw his return address on an envelope, I peeled the package open to see what surprises were in store. You see, he had informed me that I had not claimed my UD Masterpiece yet from his box-breaking marathon. I freely admit, it had slipped my mind. Inside the envelope, I discovered a Mini Sabathia, "Play Ball" style retro Topps, and my UD Masterpiece - Howie Kendrick! It was like an early Christmas present! :-)

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Yes, it really is 2:45 in the morning as I write this. Why? Well, I decided to start posting some of the cards I got in my gazillion card purchase. I started with a handful (okay, like 45) basketball cards before getting tired of entering the info (I use Turbo Lister, for now anyway). I realize that is not a lot to many folks, and it doesn't even begin to make any resemblance of a dent in the rows and rows of cards I have, but it is a start. Turbo Lister also ticked me off. It calculated my fees incorrectly, so I modified the starting bid prices, then once they were posted, eBay had the correct fees assessed. UGH. Oh well, I am offering any of the cards I put up for sale at NO SHIPPING. We'll see if that leads to more or fewer sales. Would you rather pay $.98 for a card with no shipping or $.05 for a card with $1.50 shipping? Seems like a no-brainer, but you never know the psyche of potential buyers... Here is my current listing: (Here - new window or tab). The purchase has about the same number of football and baseball cards, with a ton of basketball thrown in. There are also some hockey cards and other sets, like "American Pie" and "Olympic Heroes." I was a HUGE Mary Lou Retton fan in '84 (she is about a year or two older than I am and lived not far from where I grew up). One of the Olympic Stars cards is of her. Not sure if I'll keep that or not..

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I was asked if I had videotaped the sorting session with my daughter. I wish I had, but it was one of those things that came together quickly and recording the event for posterity never entered my mind - dang it!