A Cornerstone of My Collection

We all have parts of our collection that we deem to be untouchable; cornerstones of our collection. My Topps Cubs team sets would certainly be one, if not the most important. Today, I've got #2.

Yesterday I featured the Cubs from 2006 Greats of the Game. In addition to the base cards, there were also gold and pewter parallels.

But there was one more parallel--autographs. I really wanted them, but I also knew that it wasn't going to be easy...or cheap. Just the fact that there were six Hall of Famers on the checklist meant that these weren't going to bargain cards. Add in the recently departed fan favorite Ron Santo, and you've got a daunting task ahead.

But ahead I went. Before I committed to getting all ten, I already had a head start, as I had bought a lot of ten autograph cards and three of the GOTG autos were included. But the only HOFer of that group was Bruce Sutter. Still, it was a start.

After that, it was just a matter of checking ebay daily and waiting for deals. There were many auctions lost when the price got crazy. But I was patient, and eventually I had nine of the ten. Ron Santo was the last piece of the puzzle. There weren't many of his available, and when they were, the price was way too high. But eventually one made its way onto ebay, and it was a Buy it Now at a price lower than most auctions were going for. I pounced on it, and all ten were mine!





















They're stickers instead of on-card autos, but other than that, I am very happy with what I've got. Among two binder pages I've got the autograph of five of my favorite '69 Cubs, one of my favorites from the '70s, two stars of the '84 team, and the star of the '90s. Put all that together, and you've got a cornerstone!