It Appears that Joemama Stole from a Pirates Ship!

Hey guys, Drew back here! Last week, my Dad was at it again, and came home with some awesome cards from a local corner store that recently restocked in cards! I didn't see any of it coming, so it made for a great surprise! Take a look at what he gave me:

First off; this card was thrown in along with the others. It's a 1999 Flair Showcase David Cone parallel of some sort numbered 97/99. I'd never seen any of these cards before, so I don't know how rare they are, but it sounds like this particular card was quite rare for the time period. It's definitely one of the neater 1990's inserts I've seen so far!

Props to Topps Finest. All these years, Topps has executed wonderfully on the Finest product line, with a few years of exceptions. This 2002 Finest Don Larsen on card autograph is gorgeous; easily one of my favorite autographs in my Yankee collection. I have many different autographs of his (ball, bat, 8x10, several cards), but this one may be one of my favorites. 

I've acquired a ton of Yankees relics and autographs over the past few years, so I find it amazing that Dad rarely ever gets a card I already had. I was pumped when he pulled this 2001 Upper Deck Yankees Dynasty dual relic of Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera; my two all time favorite Yankee pitchers! I just rewatched the video I took of Mariano Rivera entering the first game I saw him pitch in, and boy was I pumped. "Enter Sandman" still gives me chills all these years later!

I feel bad asking for what he paid on the cards, but I'm always curious. This time, well, let's just say Dad won the battle of negotiation (if there even was any to begin with)! 

Indeed, that is a 2006 Bowman Chrome X-Fractor rookie autograph of Mr. Jose Bautista; one of today's most feared sluggers. Want to guess how much he paid? Here, use these links to help you out. Okay, if you guessed $10, then you are correct! My dad paid approximately 10% price on a card that sells for $100+!

I would jump to sell this, but I'm not sure how well my heart will feel about it. I like the Pirates quite a bit, and Bautista is one of my favorite players in the game, but this could fetch a pretty penny if I played my cards right. I may consider getting it graded, because I don't see a single issue with the card! I've never gotten anything graded before so my eye may not be keen enough to make that sort of judgment, but I think it could at least receive a 8.5-9 on a bad day.

It's just another scenario where my Dad flat out dominated the store, something he's gotten pretty good at over the years. I mean, heck, he landed us in Beckett Sports Card Monthly! Thank you so much Dad for always trying to help my collection grow. You've been a huge factor in making my hobby a home run!

Do you guys recommend grading the card? How much does it normally cost anyway? Thanks!

See Ya!