Deleted

[Kawika]

The Pirate cards were indeed sold by the Mastro crew at a live auction concurrent with the 2008 National. The event was held at the ESPN Zone, a bigtime sports bar in downtown Chicago. What a grand evening that was. We rode in from Rosemont on a chartered bus. I shared a seat with dear old Jim Blumenthal. We checked out each other's collections on our iPhones like a couple of 12 year old kids; the last card in his electronic deck was a T206 Wagner. God rest ya, Jim. Sat with Blumie, Sarno and Prize-ner, wimped out on the one item I really, really wanted (a 1912 Pach Bros team picture of the NYG), and watched in stupid awe as Richard M sat back in his chair and lifted his index finger a quarter-inch or so to indicate another increment toward the stratosphere. He was the picture of assuredness, the Cool Hand Luke of the hobby on that night. Not everyone can spend seven figures on baseball cards. I was impressed.

Some of you who have been around N54 for a while might remember the blog I posted of my week in Chicago. It's buried somewhere in the archives along with the Bruces. Here is a link to my photos at ImageEvent for those who are interested. Might put you in the mood for the upcoming event in Cleveland.

http://imageevent.com/kawika_o_ka_pa...hicagonational pw = crazy08
ETA: I'll probably take off the guest password in a week or so. Don't want the whole world knowing I collect baseball cards. Some folks will see me holding a T206 Wagner and think I own one and I'll need a bodyguard.

I was bummed bigly to flame out on the Pach Bros team portrait but wouldn't you know it, the same photo came up in a Goodwin auction a year or so later. I won it for a quarter of what it fetched in Chicago and I'm still loving it.

Good luck to the OP. Hope the reminiscences of a geriatric collector aren't taken as a derailment of your BST endeavour. That's a damn fine looking exemplar of a super-rare card. If I were doing a back run I'd be all over it.