Potomac Nationals baseball card set can only be completed with visit to BlowoutCards-The Fantastic Store

The 40-year history of the Potomac Nationals includes some of the biggest names in the history of baseball — and the team has the baseball cards coming to prove it as part of a stadium giveaway.

Bryce Harper, Barry Bonds, Albert Pujols, Jorge Posada and Andy Pettitte are just some of the players who have suited up for the franchise that is now the Class-A Advanced affiliate of the Washington Nationals. All of those stars and more will be found in the 2017 Potomac Nationals’ 40th Anniversary Team card set honoring them all to be given away at a game later this month.

And it’s only at BlowoutCards-The Fantastic Store where that set can be completed.

Buzz 12 in 12: Busting a 1970 Fleer MLB Iron-ons wax pack (Hour 3)

Do you like Buzz Breaks? Today’s your day then as we launch 12 in 12 — a series of a dozen breaks of past wax boxes and wax packs in a dozen hours. We’ll post one every hour on the hour all day long today … this is Hour 3.

The pack: 1970 Fleer MLB Iron-ons
The cost now: $4
The cost then: 5 cents

What’s inside this pack? Keep reading …

Gallery: 2017 MLB spring training & batting practice caps from New Era

A new baseball season is nearly here with the first spring training games set to air later this month and that’s when we’ll see the newest players on their new teams.

And many of them will be wearing new uniforms — well, at least new caps.

Harry Caray’s Restaurant gives fans chance to collect namesake

If you know a Chicago Cubs fan and haven’t finished your holiday shopping, this is your post.

If you’re a fan of Major League Baseball and collecting its legends, this is your post.

A nice piece of mail — something Buzz found online and ordered this weekend — arrived on Wednesday with a surprise inside. What you see here is an oversized pair of plastic glasses — an apparent jovial bonus this holiday season with any purchase of $49 or more from 33 West Kinzie Street in Chicago.

Not familiar with the location? That’s the home of Harry Caray’s Restaurant. And, while it’s funny, this simple gift to me can’t touch what I bought.

One of Albert Pujols’ earliest Cardinals jerseys hits auction block

What is believed to be one of the earliest St. Louis Cardinals jerseys worn by future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols is on the auction block via Goldin Auctions.

Issued with a letter from the St. Louis Cardinals Cardinals Care Community Fund, this No. 68 jersey was used in his spring training with the team in 2001, though it’s tagged as a 2000 jersey. It’s signed on the back with that autograph further authenticated by JSA.

Game-used dirt watches? Why not …

It seems dirt is everywhere you look if you’re a baseball collector shopping the game-used sections of websites and MLB Auctions.

You can buy game-used baseballs that were a pitch in the dirt. You can buy dirt holiday ornaments and dirt keychains. You can buy simple vials of dirt with labels noting the stadium. You can buy dirt coasters. You can buy framed game-used displays that include a dirt capsule along with other pieces. You can buy simpler (and cheaper) no-frills items that showcase dirt. The best pieces, of course, are dirt-covered game-used uniforms.

But that’s not all — at least if you’re a fan of two teams. It’s time for something really different there.

Jeremy Hazelbaker is a hidden treasure on baseball cards — because he barely has any

He’s one of this season’s biggest surprises and on cardboard he’s one of the best-kept secrets.

He’s Jeremy Hazelbaker, an outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals, and he’s a secret because he’s not had many baseball cards of note — not a single certified autograph — in years.

Making the Grade IV: Joe Namath, Ichiro, WWE stars & legendary ink

Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it’s to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it’s to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here’s the fourth Grading Diary here on The Buzz …

Baseball world loses legendary voice Joe Garagiola

For nine years, Joe Garagiola was a big-league catcher, but for decades after that he was a voice of baseball and a personality on network television.

He worked NBC‘s Game of the Week and World Series coverage and was a host of Today and a fill-in host on The Tonight Show, too. He died on Wednesday at age 90.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of this amazing man who was not just beloved by those of us in his family, but to generations of baseball fans who he impacted during his eight decades in the game,” said a statement from his family. “Joe loved the game and passed that love onto family, his friends, his teammates, his listeners and everyone he came across as a player and broadcaster. His impact on the game, both on and off the field, will forever be felt.”

It’s a dirty job, but MLB will do it …

It’s a dirty job, but MLB‘s got to do it.

Fans of World Series teams and All-Star Game hosts in recent years can remember their big events with game-used dirt jars that can be found via buy-it-now listings MLB Auctions.

Sure, they are novelty items — but for casual collectors these small items will stand out as something both unique and affordable.