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.

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.

Early Present to Myself, Some Retail

During today's last minute holdiay shopping run, I had that itch to grab some repacks. I was browsing the card isle in Target, but just couldn't find anything that my head and wallet could agree on. I remembered a recent blog post that I read which highlighted some discounted repacks bought from K-Mart. I can't remember who's blog it was, but whoever you are, thank you for the inspiration!

There was K-Mart on my way home, so I stopped in for a peek. I was happy with what I saw:

Discounts indeed! It seems that baseball cards are generally one of those things that are very inflexible with their prices. It's rare to find sales or discounts on good cards, so these big red stickers instantly caught my eye. 

Small note about K-Mart's normal pricing: They're actually higher across the board, with  slight, consistent inflation. Single repacks were $2.29 rather than $2, jumbo packs were $5.79 rather than $5, blasters $21.49 rather than $20, etc etc. It seems K-Mart is the place to go for discount, but not much else.

Here's what I pulled from 2010 Topps S1 Jumbo:

Three inserts, all unique. I love the Bo Jackson reprint. I love all things Bo Jackson, really. What a freakish athlete. I also enjoyed the humor in A-Rod appearing on a "Peak Performance" insert. The phrase "peak performance" almost sounds like a steroid joke.

I was fortunate enough to pull the one card I really wanted, the Cutch RC. Next to him is a Kyle Phillips gold parallel /2010. Phillips is lifetime minor leaguer. To the right is Johnny Bench appearing on a nice turkey red insert.

On to the bonus box of 2008 Topps S1:

The box promises three gold bordered cards in a bonus pack, exclusive to K-Mart. While I haven't heard anything about  any of these guys in a while, these are still nice cards. I'm reallllyyy not a fan of the design of 2008 Topps, but the gold borders somewhat save it. All three cards are rookies, so no complaints here.

To the left is a mediocre looking Fausto Carmona insert. Carmona, now named Roberto Hernandez, signed a 1-year, 4.5 million dollar deal with the Phils last week. Honestly I had no idea this guy is still in the league until I looked him up. Once a 19 game winner, his lifetime record sits at a paltry 59-82.

Next to Mr. CarmonaHernandez is politician John Edwards... pre-sex tape. I literally laughed out loud when I saw this guy's face in a pack of baseball cards. Just look at that creepy "I just had sex" grin...

Rounding out the fun is two Buccos, of course. This Clint Hurdle base card actually marks the first of any sort of memorabilia I own of his. Although I'm not a fan of 2008 Topps, I've got to hand it to them for including the managers in the set, as these guys often go unappreciated.

So overall, nothing too crazy in these breaks. The jumbo pack was more rewarding than the more expensive box, interestingly. Some good PC additions for sure though, and for 9 bucks, certainlu can't complain!

Thanks for reading.

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.

2013 Topps Gypsy Queen Hobby Box Break and Review

BASEBALL FANS! I have finally purchased a baseball hobby box! Since I've recently began to blog about my hobby, I've been reviewing only basketball cards. I've connected with many collectors, almost all of whom are baseball guys. Hopefully this will be refreshing. This was a sensational break for many reasons. I hope you enjoy!

 Here are the base cards, with two of my main men. These are really sharp cards. I was fortunate enough to pull almost all of the Pirates base cards in one box. I missed Burnett and Stargell. 

Manny Machado made a double appearance. On the left is his mini variation card, bearing that "RC" which we all love to see. On the right is his base card.

Moving on to the inserts! On top is an example of the Collisions at the Plate cards which highlight one of my favorite parts elements of the game. The lower card is part of the Sliding Stars set, with none other than my man Cutch! Gorgeous card.

To the left is the Dealing Aces insert, picturing Fantasy Baseball stud Matt Moore. To the right is the No Hitters insert.

 (L) Glove Stories insert, and also the highlight of Travis Snider's career. That wraps up the inserts.

(R) Paul Goldschmidt Blue Border Parallel, #ed to 499

(L) Josh Rutledge Green Mini Parallel. /99

(Middle) Russel Martin Sepia-Tone Parallel /50. This box was VERY generous with the Buccos!

(R) Ian Desmond Black Parallel /199

Here are my two relic pulls, two nice cards! Evan Longoria mini, and an awesome Paul Konerko jumbo, numbered to 25. I'm a bit burnt out on relic cards- they don't too much for me any more. The Konerko card, however, is a different story. This is a really neat card. On to the autos...

 (L) Anthony Rizzo Base auto. I love Rizzo's potential, and his signature is very attractive. Blue ink looks great.

(R) Wilin Rosario base auto. Not bad!

 

 A little bonus. Actually, a big bonus! I have never had the privilege of pulling a printing plate, and I couldn't ask for a better name for my first. It's interesting to think that I was booing this guy at PNC park just a few weeks ago for initially failing to select Pedro Alvarez for Home Run Derby. Now he's reason I have an awesome card. Thank you Mr. Wright!

REVIEW

Overall Design:  The photography is excellent- specifically the contrast. Topps did a superb job of blurring the backgrounds and making the players jump off the cards. Some of the poses are incredible.

Box contents: The base set is made up of 350 cards, and I've heard it's an awesome set to chase. A hobby box will bring you a total of 240 cards, so it's a great place to start. The inserts could also be fun to chase. As I mentioned earlier, I love the Collisions inserts. The Sliding Stars set is an interesting choice, because... all baseball players slide... but I guess there's only so much you can do! The mini cards also add an awesome element for collectors.

The Hits: The base auto set contains several mediocre players, and in my mind is nothing special. There are several other autograph sets however, and there's some huge names there. Lots of Trout, Justin Upton, Freese, Trumbo, etc. The mini relic cards are average, but there are other types as well, such as jumbos and triple swatches. The availability of serial numbered cards, parallels, and variation cards (or any combination of the three) make a box break very exciting.

Positives: Card design, availability of serial numbers, variety of hits, retired players mixed in, variety in checklist

Negatives: Some teams are underrepresented in base set. A tad bit pricey, but certainly not a ripoff. 

Design is very similar to past designs. I dearly hope they change it up for 2014.

Rating: 9 out of 10. Granted that I was pretty lucky in this box, this product is great nonetheless. It's a staple for Topps, and hopefully will be for years to come.

My Favorite All-Star

In honor of tonight's All-Star game, I will share with you a card I received last week of my favorite All-Star:

Actually, that's a lie. To determine my favorite All-Star, you'd have to flip a 4-sided coin with Cutch, Pedro Alavarez, Jason Grilli, and Mark Melancon on each side. Sorry, Jeff Locke.

Isn't this card a beauty?! I grabbed it as single last week off of eBay. For the sake of my dignity, I will not tell you the price because I'm sure I overpaid. I imagine the seller was able to jack up the price on that whole 50/50 = 1/1 scam, which is total bogus. Nonetheless, this is a card that I needed to have, and it's serial numbered, which is a must for me.

I'm hoping my boy Cutch as well as the other Buccos can represent our team and city well tonight.

Thanks for reading, enjoy the game everyone!

2013 Topps Basball Series 2 Jumbo Pack Break

Yesterday's routine stop at Target meant I had to grab a retail pack. I went wit a jumbo pack of 2013 Topps Series Two:

Since the pack was bought from Target, it guarantees 3 Red-Border parallel cards. A nice throw in. The highlights:

I pulled a total of five inserts. Above is three Chasing History inserts, which are sexy cards. As a Buccos fan, the Clemente card nearly made me faint. That's dramatic. But it's no every day I see him in a modern pack. The Strasburg Making Their Mark Insert is solid..

 Top left is another nice insert, Anthony Rizzo WBC. I had no idea he was from Italy, and it turns out he was born in Florida. His parents are from Sicily so I guess that qualified him. 

Those are the the three red parallels. No big names, but still, nice cards!