2021 Topps Series 1 Blaster Box Break

Baseball season is around the corner, and that means Topps Series 1 is beginning to hit (and hopefully stay on) the shelves.

Last week I randomly logged on to Twitter at about 8:30 AM for absolutely no good reason. I saw two posts announcing that Target had 2021 Series 1 Blasters on their website, and I was lucky to grab a few. I think they were live for about 20-30 minutes before selling out. Considering the state of the card market that's basically an eternity. I don't make a habit out of getting on Twitter early in the morning so I feel lucky to have seen the deal. I've noticed some other collectors have had luck finding some on shelves, so hopefully this is not a product that retail flippers will target. I don't know why they would. 

The package arrived to me yesterday and I busted open a blaster.

Here's the base design. The tiny nameplate is catching a ton of heat and rightfully so. I don't love the diagonal name, and I really don't like the blue graphic coming from the left side of the card. I have no problem with the logo and accompanying banner in the bottom right, but the addition of the nonsense on the left side is totally unnecessary. 

On the plus side, I really like the white border. I'm a BIG border guy. I also like the Topps silver 70th anniversary stamp. 

To conclude my thoughts on this year's design: It's more of the same from Topps. Some good, some bad. 

A quick look at the backs.

Now on to the packs. 7 Packs, 14 cards in each: 

Pack One

The first card I pulled in 2021 is a Pirate! Maybe it's a World Series omen. Highlights in this pack are the Luis Robert Rookie Cup and the Buster Posey 1952 Insert. Based on this box, you're going to find two inserts per pack. 

Pack Two

This pack opened up with yet another Bucco, so this is an undeniable sign that the Pirates will in the World Series this year. Jokes aside, this was a great start to a team set. This was a great pack. The Mattingly 1986 design is a beautiful card. I love the black and white theme. Joey Bart is a bigger-name Rookie, and the Deivi Garcia rookie is a great pull too. 

The Bucco streak ends, but this packed yielded another three rookies, as well as an Acuna Home Run Challenge card. I've never actually submitted one. Maybe this will be the year.

Pack Four

The (former) Buccos return with both a Josh Bell base card and a 1952 insert. I'm sad to see Josh leave Pittsburgh, but I am fully onboard with the rebuild. His best years could have been wasted in Pittsburgh. I will continue to collect him, even in Nats gear.

The other insert is part of the "70 Years of Topps" set. This pack also had a Joey Bart base rookie. 

Pack Five

Pack five contains my favorite insert that I've seen in Topps flagship in quite some time: Chrome 1952 Topps Redux. In terms of blogger-collectors, I think I'm in the minority here - but I love retro designs redone in chrome. Turkey Red Chrome, Allen and Ginter Chrome, give me all of the chrome.

I pulled one 1952 Chrome, and it's Max Scherzer. I don't think my picture does it justice. It's pretty. It has the refractor-shine, but it isn't overdone. 

Pack Six

Another Pirate, Colin Moran makes an appearance. Another 1986 insert with Christian Yelich, and a 1952 insert of Javy Baez. 

Pack Seven

One last (former) Pirate, Chris Archer. I was excited to pull a Rainbow parallel of Rookie Jesus Sanchez. I don't know a ton about him, but I do know that he has been in the Marlins top prospect rankings for a few years. I didn't realize he had debuted in the majors. It looks like he had only 25 ABs last year. Maybe he'll be a bigger part of the Marlins outfield this year. I'll definitely be holding this one in hopes he takes off soon.

Commemorative 70th Anniversary Patch Pack

Each blaster guarantees one of these. There are only 25 in the set. The whole set consists of Hall of Famers and a few soon-to-be HOFers (Kershaw, Trout, Miggy, etc.). I loathe manufactured patch cards for several reasons - the main reason being that they're a pain to store. I don't have any toploaders that fit them naturally and you can't squeeze them into a penny sleeve. I usually just list my patch cards on eBay right after getting them and consider it a $5 rebate on the box. It's always great to see Ken Griffey Jr., but his fate will likely be the same as his predecessors. 

I'll be cataloguing these into TCDB today, and aside from the rookies everything here is for trade. 

Thanks for reading.

 

Retail Review: 2013-14 Panini Titanium Box

When I heard about this product, I must admit that it intrigued me. I love to collect basketball cards, but I rarely buy retail. My retail budget is usually allotted for baseball. However, the guarantee of two rookie relics is a very compelling sell. When I stumbled across this box at Target over the weekend, I couldn't resist.

One problem that I have with this product is the lack of cards. If I'm paying 20 bucks, I'd like some base cards- Even if it gets me two relics. Above is the wimpy 5-card pack. On to the cards:

Here are the first two base cards. I like the design, particularly the fact the player's name dominates the text-portion of the card. Panini has a habit of enlarging their own logos and diminishing the players name....

As such. I really dislike when Panini does this. Next card:

I know very little about this man. The back of the card says he's 7'0 and went to Kansas, which can be said for what seems like a dozen NBA players. He was a second rounder, so I've got to assume he's over in Lithuania or some other Euro league by now. This card happens to be numbered 001/149, which means its AN EBAY 1/1!!!! This should fetch me millions!

I was excited to see some orange and blue in the pack, knowing it probably THJ. As a New Yorker, I'm subjected to constant coverage and meaningless banter regarding the Knickerbockers. Couple that with the fact that Knicks fans are terribly obnoxious, and you've got a recipe for maximum annoyance. 

So yeah, I'm not a huge Knicks fan. With that said, Tim Hardaway Jr. is one of the very few Knicks I can tolerate. If there's a young player that can ignite some hustle and head the Knicks in a direction where it's not just all about Melo, it might be this guy. I wish him the best. I'll be stashing this away with my PC cards.

Lastly, my second memorabilia card. I remember when Antetokounmpo was drafted, and the Bucks took some serious criticism for the pick. The "Greek Freak" as he is sometimes called was considered to be incredibly raw but equally athletic.

He's beginning to quiet the critics. Giannis had a very impressive rookie year, putting up solid numbers for the NBA's worst team. He's young, talented, and from what I've heard, a fan favorite. For these reasons, his cards have become pretty desirable among NBA collectors. It's numbered to only 85 which gives it a very limited print run, so there's a good chance I'll try to use it to refund my purchase. 

My Review? I'd say that this a a fun product. You're only getting 5 cards which is a bummer, but at least two of them are relics. The relics are all numbered, which is a huge plus for me. It was also great to pull a base card that was numbered. 

The guarantee of two memorabilia cards is an exciting concept. especially for only $20. There is also a hobby version of Titanum, which I know stirred some controversy from collectors who fear that this type of retail product undermines LCS's and hobbyists. I can't argue with that.

Basketball card fans: If you've got an extra $20, there are worse ways to spend it.

Thanks for reading.

New Bucco's, What Else?

You know how this goes, just me showing off some more PC additions. Nothing too extravagant here, but I'm very happy with these purchases!

First up is Ike Davis. I'll admit, I wasn't initially excited about my Buccos signing Ike. As a New Yorker with tons of Mets fans for friends, I'm very familiar with his career. I remember when he first came up to the bigs, there was a real buzz surrounding his power. He's certainly showed some of that power, although his batting average has suffered. He's a lifetime .241 hitter, which is the last thing the Pirates need (think: Pedro Alvarez). Ike's struggles have mostly come against lefties, and the Pirates signed him with the intention of throwing in platoon situation with Gaby Sanchez facing the lefties. After Ike's grand slam last week, I'm a little more optimistic. If he stays above .250 and drives in consistent runs, I'll be satisfied.

With all of that said, I definitely wanted to acquire an auto from Ike. He's got plenty of autos out there, and the prices were very affordable. So affordable, in fact, that a rookie auto wasn't out of the question. I snagged this 2010 Topps Chrome for $8 shipped. The cost was little much for such mediocre player, but I decided to shell out a few extra bucks for that "RC" stamp.

Here's a nice auto from 2014 GQ from Jeff Locke. Locke, a 2013 All-Star, has completely disappeared. After having a fantastic first half last season, he completely collapsed and eventually landed on the DL. He's still battling injuries and trying to get himself straightened out in triple A. As of now, he's not an option for the Pirates rotation. Nonetheless, I'm excited to add another Locke auto to my collection. 

This came to me courtesy of a half case break conducted by the wonderful Judson over at My Cardboard Habit. I actually got two of these in the break, so I've got an extra if anyone's interested. Won't take much.

Lastly is a simple little Charlie Morton auto from 2011 Topps Lineage. I never dabbled with the set, but I really like this card. For a sticker, it's certainly not bad. This is the only certified autograph card that I've seen consistently on the market from Charlie. I was able to pick this up for $4 shipped.

Charlie's having a pretty rough year this year, as are most Pirates pitchers... and batters... and so on. They were able to pick up a nice 6-1 win over St. Louis this afternoon. Hopefully they can steal one from Adam Wainwright tomorrow and gain some momentum before heading to Baltimore to begin interleague play.

Thanks for reading!

2014 Topps Series 1 Three Hobby Pack Break

Two regular hobby packs, and one jumbo pack to be exact. My LCS had reasonable prices on hobby packs, so I felt that my money was best spent there rather than on more retail. Here are the highlights from the three packs:

This card was right near the top of the stack, and it was a huge surprise to me. In all honesty, I had no idea that the Great Lambino (like it?) had made the checklist. 

Why? Because he only has 30 major league at-bats. I'm not complaining, merely surpirsed. There's a lot of hope in Pittsburgh that Lambo will be able to adequately fill the gaping holes at both first base and in right field. In 2013 between AA and AAA, he amassed 31 dingers, which was tops in Pirates farm system by far. Because of the hype, I picked up a sick auto of him way back in September.

Above is the rest of the inserts and parallels. Nothing to write home about. For a minute, I thought the gold parallel was Kevin MILLAR, which got me really excited that he had made ANOTHER comeback. He did play for the Jays in 2010, so there was a ton of foolery here. Wikipedia even agrees with me!

Moving on:

Lastly is possibly the most interesting pull I've ever had. This came from one of the regular hobby packs, not the jumbo. What I believe we have here is an original Dave Ricketts card from 1970 Topps. The card itself looks old, feels old, and is terribly beat up- there's a complete fold running diagonally through the left side. The stamp on the top left corner is clearly modern, but the back of the card has no indication of it being a reprint. 

Also, I can't see a situation where Topps would make a reprint and then take the time to physically damage the card. Doesn't make sense.

This was really cool to see, mostly because it's a Pirate. Ricketts was a lifetime back-up, amassing a gargantuan ONE career homerun. 

My question to you is, have you seen vintage cards inserted into 2014 S1? Which ones? Is this some type of promotion? I'd love to hear what's out there.

Thanks for reading.

2 Jumbo Packs of 2010 Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects

Today's stop on WallyWorld meant the inevitable trip down the card isle. I wasn't too impressed with what I saw, however I was able to find some discounted packs. My favorite. 

Those glorious, glorious red stickers. I simply can't get enough. 

I was really happy to see some familiar faces in these packs... you never know with Draft Picks and Prospects. I really like the design of these cards. Simple and crisp.

I had the luck of pulling a jersey card out of one of the packs, and this guy actually isn't a total no name. He's ranked as the 19th prospect in the Indians system. He's a lefty, and he's only 19. Could be worth hanging onto. It's also numbered out of 949. A nice little hit, but not my favorite card that I pulled...

This is. I laughed out loud at this one, for one reason only: That 'stache. Not only does this guy have an electric arm, he seems to have the personality to match it. Only a goofball would rock that type of facial hair in this era. If you didn't catch this 4-minute clip of Mr. Harvey back during the All-Star break, give it a watch, you'll appreciate it.

2012-13 Panini Timeless Treasures Hobby Box Break and Review

Merry Christmas eve! I decided to treat myself to a small hobby purchase this Christmas. The decision was made primarily because dacardworld was nice enough to send me a coupon for $10 off a purchase of $50 or more. There was also free shipping for all orders over $50, so I was able to get this nice little tin for around $40 shipped. A steal, if you ask me.

Here's the box, which is actually a tin. Panini has switched away from the tin for the 2013-14 set, which has disappointed many collectors. It is a nice bonus.

Although the box states that you get a total of five cards, I received seven including a redemption. Three of the cards are hits- auto or memorabilia. Above are the four base cards. Nothing too special to see here. I was annoyed to see J.R. Smith here, because he shot 17 three's the other night. In one game. He missed the vast majority of them, of course. He's a big reason that the Knicks are so dismal this year.

Here's my first hit, a Nikola Vucevic Rookie Glass Auto, numbered to 499. I really like the look of these cards. I think the glass works well in this set. Nikola has developed into a dependable big man this year, although he plays for an awful team. Very happy with this pull.

Next hit was also an auto, a Jeff Teague "Validating Marks" numbered to 199. This card isn't bad looking, but it's certainly bot attractive as the previous. Like Vucevic, Teague is having the best year of his career right now and developing well. Another solid pull.

My final hit was a third auto, albeit a redemption. This Tony Wroten card will be the same exact as the Vucevic card. So overall, all three of hits were autos, all numbered, and no memorabilia cards. I'm more than okay with that! Wroten has broken out Philly over the past few weeks, here's to hoping he breaks out! 

REVIEW

Overall design: The base cards are above average in design, although no one cares about them. And why would they? This is clearly a hit-based product. The base set consist of 150 cards, but I don't see many collectors chasing it. The glass rookie autos work well. Flashy, but not overdone.

Box contents: Again, this a hit based product. There are three hits per box, two of which will be autos, and one of those autos will be a rookie glass card. You'll get 3 or 4 base cards as well.

The Hits: This product seems to come through with the hits, at least in my case. I was VERY happy that all three of my autos are from guys that are still in the NBA. Not only that, but they're all young guys that are really producing. I feel very lucky in that respect. The auto and memorabilia checklists are pretty solid, and they feature a good mix of vets and rookies. This set is affected by the double rookie class, which really waters down the talent pool, in my opinion. In other words, it just creates more cards of guys who are/will be in the D-league or Europe.

Positives: Rookie Glass autos, on card autos, availability of rookies, serial numbered autos, mix of vets/rookies.

Negatives: Lack of base cards, double rookie class

Rating: 7.5 out of 10. Very happy with this product. It's nothing outstanding, but definitely worth a shot at a discounted price.

Some Very Awesome Tradebait

Hello fellow bloggers! If you're a fan of Bowman Chrome, please listen up! 

Not too long ago, I ordered a case of 2013 Bowman Chrome baseball. To make an extremely long story extremely short, I still have a handful of factory sealed, unopened hobby boxes. 

Why do I mention this? TRADE BAIT! I've busted plenty of boxes lately, and I'd really like to dump these boxes off to people who want them. In return, I'd like to get some nice cards, of course. I'm looking mostly for auto's and low numbered cards. If you didn't know, I'm a Pirates and Steelers fan... However, I collect all different types of baseball, basketball, and football cards. If you think you can match the value of one of these hobby boxes, please don't hesitate to contact me. Drop a comment or shoot me an email at nsbell440@gmail.com

Thanks for reading!

A Quick PSA for an Awesome Group Break Opporunity

Just a quick announcement!

Judson over at the awesome blog "My Cardboard Habit" is hosting a Bowman Chrome group break. He's planning on cracking two boxes- maybe three if he can get enough people.

He's still in desperate need of participants! SIGN UP HERE!! He's an awesome guy, and he's dying to host this break! Help him (and yourself) out and sign up! Each spot is only $18 bucks for your team and a random team. TONS of teams are still available! Again - SIGN UP HERE!!

Thanks guys! This is sure to be a fun one.

2013 Bowman Chrome Hobby Box Break and Review

With the release of Topps Chrome and Bowman Chrome in the same week, it made sense to grab a box of each at the same time to save on shipping. It also made for a very eventful day of box breaking! Here's the box:

Wil Myers graces the cover here. I wonder if he'll live up to the hype. 

Here's a look at a base card of Jose Fernandez. The regular base card is pictured on the left. On the right is the refractor version. Both look great.

Above is an example of the "Risin' Thru the Ranks" inserts. As a Pirates fan, this was an exciting pull. I'm a huge Alen Hanson fan, and I'm really looking forward to seeing him in the big leagues soon.

Here are the two numbered parallels that I pulled. The Zimmerman blue is numbered to 250, the Ryan Howard pink is numbered to 35. Both of these guys are great players, but I feel like neither has been able to reach their full potential- specifically Howard, who has been riddled with injuries. Nonetheless, I'm always happy to pull a low numbered card.

Here are my two autos. Yes, two! Bowman promises an additional autographed prospect card in every third box, and I was lucky enough to beat the odds. Both of these guys are great young prospects with lots of potential. The Hak-Ju Lee card is refractor, numbered to 500.

REVIEW

Overall Design: These cards look good. Printing is sharp and clean.

Box contents: This product is less diverse than Topps Chrome, but it does dive into the minor leagues. A huge chunk of the set is unproven prospects, so you'll have to be patient when determining value.

The Hits: Only 1 guaranteed autograph is tough for the price ($60-$70). As with Topps Chrome, I appreciate the diminishing use of memorabilia cards. There is the potential to pull some low numbered parallels, course.

Positives: Design, autos on card, abundance of young stars.

Negatives: The obvious con here is the price. Bowman Chrome is a collector favorite- Topps knows it, and charges accordingly.

Rating: 8 out of 10. Bowman Chrome will continue to be a staple within the cardboard world. These are fun boxes with some decent potential. If you're looking for more instant value, I highly recommend Topps Chrome, which I feel is the better product overall. To each his own!

Thanks for reading, as always!

2013 Topps Chrome Hobby Box Break and Review

Topps Chrome is hands down my favorite baseball card. I'm a big fan of 2013 Topps, and the chrome versions are just beautiful cards. I pre-ordered a box back in August, along with a box of Bowman Chrome which I'll review next. I've been waiting for this moment for a while, so this was an exciting break for me. Without further ado:

 The box

I'll start off with the base cards as usual, with Yu Darvish as an example. On the right is the normal base card, on the left is the refractor version of the same card. Both cards look great. I had a total of 4 refractors in this box.

Some more base card comparison here. On the right is Robinson Cano's base card, at left is the X-factor version. these look fantastic as well. I also had 4 of these in the box.

Here are the die-cuts, which I am not a fan of. I'm not huge on die-cuts in general, aside from 2013 Topps Cut to the Chase, which I'm building set of. These die-cuts are a little too much for me, they just have too many edges.

A nice Machado die-cut refractor. These ones aren't so bad. Not awesome, but a cool pull.

1972 Topps Chrome refractors. A nice addition. 

 This one's a beauty. Chris Sale blue parallel /199. I love parallels, and I really love when they're numbered. Chris Sale is always a great pull with his Cy Young potential.

 On to the auto's!

Two rookies, and two nice names! Both of these autos look great, due to the blue ink and because they're on-card. The Hoes card is just a regular base auto. The Brantly card is a refractor numbered /499. Unfortunately neither one of these cards carries much value, probably due to their commonality.

Here's the real gem! Adrian Beltre camo parallel numbered /15. A fantastic pull. Nothing is more exciting than pulling a low numbered card, and there are few players that I'd rather see. This was an awesome surprise.

REVIEW

Overall Design: These cards look superb. I'm a huge fan of chrome, specifically Topps. The look of these cards simply does not disappoint. The players really pop off the card. 

Box contents: These boxes have of a ton of potential. A guaranteed two autographs is a good number for the price. There's also great variety in these boxes. There are parallels of all colors. Add refractors, X-fractors, memorabilia cards, and a bevy of inserts, and you've got a very diverse hobby box.

The Hits: 2 autographs for 70 bucks is pretty decent. I also appreciate that Topps has stayed away from memorabilia cards for the most part. In my mind, there are few things worse than "Guaranteed 2 autos/memorabilia cards."

Positives: Design, value, price, variety, autos on card.

Negatives: The only downside to Topps chrome is the card's tendency to warp. For whatever reason, these cards always seem to bend if they're not in top loaders. 

Rating: 9.5 out of 10. These cards are just awesome. So much so that I've already ordered another box! Stay tuned.