2016 Topps Heritage High Number Box Break

I anticipated that I would have a lot of free time today due to Hurricane Matthew passing over us.  I was right, so I picked up a box of 2016 Topps Heritage High Number from my LCS and wasn't disappointed.  There were a bunch of Orioles in the box, including Nolan Reimold, which was nice to see.  I also pulled this purple chrome parallel Hyun-Soo Kim rookie card.  The purples were one per pack and are not numbered.

Something else cool about the set is that Matt Wieters makes an appearance, a first for any Topps product that isn't an online exclusive.  Even though his time with the Orioles may be over, it is nice to finally be able to add some of his cards to the collection that are under the Topps brand.  I know Panini and some of the other companies are nice and all, but baseball cards just aren't right without the Topps logo.

My box also had one hit, which was an Albert Pujols relic card.  I am sending that along to my good buddy, Andrew, who PCs Pujols.  I also ended up with a Marcus Stroman action SP, a couple high number SPs and a Tim Lincecum as an Angel card (which went to Chris).

Thoughts on 2015 Topps Update

I busted a jumbo box of 2015 Topps Update when it first came out.  The contents of the box weren't really much to be excited about, but the set is pretty nice.  I don't believe I will be putting the set together.  Also, the Orioles in the series are only OK.  I mean, there are All Star cards, and all, but the only Oriole I was really excited to see in the set was Tyler Wilson.  I did pull his base card, so that was nice.  The Darren O'Day card was a good one, too.  I might pick up some of the different versions of it.

As always, there are some really good photographic shots in this set, as seen in the Joey Gallo rookie debut card above.  I think these Gatorade shower cards are really cool.

I was pretty happy with my Update box.  I got the Nolan Ryan manufactured coin card, which is in a pending trade.  I got an auto of Jason Rogers (never heard of him), but it is sold to my friend, Bryce.  I also got a Paul Goldschmidt All Star relic card that I plan on hanging onto for the time being.  I did get a SP card, the sabermetric stats Gerrit Cole.  Not bad.

Thoughts on 2015 Bowman

I picked up a jumbo box of 2015 Bowman a few weeks ago from my LCS and busted it, hoping I could get some nice pulls and some cool parallels.  I didn't really do all that well in the "pull" department, but I got a few nice color parallels.  In all, this year's design is nice.  I had a hard time picking out the silver parallels initially, but I figured it out.

There are quite a few Orioles in the set, like Mike Yastrzemski (above).  As you may know, Yastrzemski is the grandson of Hall of Famer, Carl Yastrzemski, and had a really good year in the Orioles' system last year.  Some other Orioles in the set are Tim Berry, Hunter Harvey and Dariel Alvarez.  Not bad.

One of the mini shimmer parallels I pulled was this purple Dariel Alvarez, numbered 22/250.  This is a sharp-looking card.  I also have the orange Alvarez, which is equally as sharp, and matches his uniform.

In all, I enjoyed this year's offering of Bowman.  I didn't have an epic pull, like last year, but that didn't take away from the product.

My Thought On 2015 Topps Museum Collection

When it first came out, I picked up a box of 2015 Topps Museum Collection.  It was pretty expensive, and I know I could have just gone and bought what I wanted off of Ebay.  I got the box because I do dream of getting that one huge hit, you know, a 1/1 bat nameplate or something.

I didn't pull anything like that, but I did do ok, I guess.  I had a couple PC hits like the above Jimmie Foxx base card.  Man, it would be awesome to pull a Foxx relic.  Regardless, this is a great card of The Beast, so I was glad to pull it.

Speaking of pulling cards for the PC, you all know how I love to pull cards of Cal that I don't already have.  This is a nice Cal, and will be assimilated into the PC, buried among the hundreds of other Cal cards that I have, and that'g a good thing.

I got a really low numbered Jumbo relic card of Eric Hosmer.  This card already has some miles on it.  I had agreed to a trade with a new kid on Instagram for a Sonny Gray relic, but the kid failed epically to scam me.

He was clearly winning the trade anyway, but I liked the Sonny Gray he was sending, so I agreed to it and we were to send at the same time.  He got the card, and I got a PRE (that's right a plain RED envelope), with one stamp and what did not feel like a thick relic card inside.  Sure enough, out falls a 2013 Topps base card of Mike Napoli and a note thanking me for my business.  When prompted about whether or not this was a joke, the kid tells me "Oh, I'm sorry, I must have sent you the wrong card by accident..." and sends me a tag of the person the Napoli card was intended for... the kid's PERSONAL Instagram account.  His response to that was "Oops, I sent the wrong link..."  Yeah, ok.  So, I called the kid out on Instagram, and also reminded him that I still had his address and screenshots of our trade discussions that I would be more than happy to send his parents.  Needless to say, I got the card returned to me in only a few days.  Again in a PRE...  With one lonely stamp.  Subsequently, the kid closed his Instagram account, as word had spread that he had scammed a few other folks.  So, yeah, I still have this 5/10 Hosmer relic card and I do intend to trade or sell it.

Finally, I pulled this Matt Kemp patch card that is numbered 62/75.  If you look closely at the northeast relic, there is a tiny little piece of blue patch there as well.  I didn't actually catch that until I scanned the card.  Pretty cool, right?  This card is also possibly going to be available, if my friend Michael decides that he doesn't want it.

I had also pulled a Dalton Pompey auto and a Yordano Ventura dual relic/auto.  The Ventura was sold to my buddy, Noah, and the Pompey was traded for the damaged Hunter Harvey manufactured logo and auto that I showed a few weeks ago.

In all, I liked busting the box of Museum Collection, even though I didn't really get my money's worth out of it.  The Kemp and Hosmer cards are solid, but I won't make up for what I spent.  It would have been a lot better if I pulled some hotter players, like Trout or Harper, but that's the name of the game.

Breaking Boxes With Weston

I recently entered a box break that my buddy, Weston, held over at his blog "Fantastic Catch."  He busted boxes of 2008 Tristar Projections, 2008 Tristar Prospects Plus, 2011 Donruss Elite Extra Edition and 2012 Donruss Elite Extra Edition.  Naturally, I picked up the Orioles and I also grabbed up the Cubs and Brewers to use as trade bait for a couple friends of mine (and also to help Weston fill the break).

I feel like I did pretty well on the break, as I ended up with a sweet 4-piece jersey card of (then Cub) Oriole utility player, Ryan Flaherty.  This is a really cool card, actually.  I'm glad I ended up with it.  "Flash" has had a decent career with the O's, especially since he was a Rule V pick that managed to stick with the club all season in 2012.  He has filled in admirably for the O's when Manny Machado and J. J. Hardy have gone down to injury.

I got this nice auto of former Cubs prospect Barret Loux.  He was a first round draft pick (6th pick overall) by the Diamondbacks in 2010.  A check on baseball-reference shows that Loux hasn't played since 2013.  I wonder what happened to him?

One of the former Oriole prospect autos that I got was this Kyle Hudson which is numbered 6/25.  His last entry on baseball-reference says that he was released by the Angels on July 1, 2014.

Another auto that I got was this Josh Vitters from 2008 Tristar Projections.  Vitters was a first round pick (3rd overall) in the 2007 draft and was picked up by the Rockies this past February.

I got this nice 12/25 card of Orioles former first round pick, Brian Matusz.  Matusz is a really nice guy, but I wouldn't trust him with the game on the line in the playoffs.  He is likely to be traded before Spring Training ends, which will bring an end to a somewhat disappointing run in Baltimore.  I really had hoped that he would make it as a top of the rotation starter, but it just hasn't worked out.

One of the Cubs cards I was able to pick up was this Albert Almora from 2012 Elite Extra Edition.  Almora is almost forgotten with the emergence of Kris Bryant.  At least, I haven't heard much about him with all of the Bryant drama going on.

Finally, I got this awesome Josh Donaldson prospect card.  I liked him when he was on the A's, but I can see him becoming a real thorn in my side now that he plays for the Jays.

Thanks for the break, Weston!  I'm glad I could be a part of it, and I hope you do another one soon!

My Results From Andrew's Box Break

I got my package from Andrew today, which were my spoils from his 2013 Topps Update box break.  In it, I got the Orioles and my random team was the Braves.  I ended up with an Emerald Chris Davis, which I needed.  I'm glad I didn't buy one.  I still need most of his others but this one is a good start.

The biggest highlight of the box break was my being able to get this Manny Machado relic.  It is only fitting, since I pulled an Adam Wainwright in my box and Andrew got the Machado.  I guess I need to trade him the Wainwright to make things even.

Finally, I added a couple new Cal Ripkens to my collection, one of which is the above Ripken/Machado card.  Pretty awesome card with two excellent players.

I feel like I made out pretty well in Andrew's box break.  I kind of think that I need to do one myself pretty soon.  I have these dreams that my first box break will be this epic undertaking, but maybe I just need to get something more contemporary and let er rip.  We'll see.

Now, as for the Braves cards I got, I wonder what I'll be doing with them...?

Thoughts on 2013 Topps Update

It has been a couple weeks, but 2013 Topps Update is out.  Tell me if you already heard that.  I bought a box from my LCS and during my purchase, Wendell, the shop owner, had the above Chris Davis relic waiting for me.  I paid him $20 to take it off of his hands (I overpaid a bit, but since the money went to my LCS, I'm cool with that).  In my box, I ended up with some good inserts, autos and relics.  Mostly Cardinals, for some reason.  So, I have some money down between Andrew and Weston scrapping for the cards; winner take all...

I am really happy with Update, though, because one of my favorite Orioles was a part of the Home Run Derby (to which he has a card) and also, 5 Orioles were All Stars (each has a card for that).  Among other Orioles in the set are Zach Britton (yawn), Wilson Betemit (Zzz Zzz), Henry Urrutia RC (cool) and Darren O'Day (Woo Hoo!).

Also, are RCs of Yasiel Puig (something like 4 or 5 of them) and Michael Wacha (I'll be holding onto that one, I think).

I posted before, but the Blue Sapphire parallels (numbered to 25) are really cool-looking and the one I pulled was an AL pitching leaders card.

I took part in Andrew's jumbo box break, which, for me, was nicely successful.  If I had a little more cash, I'd probably buy one more box, but since I have a Pearl Jam concert coming up, and a trip to Columbia, SC to see my brother, I need to save some money.

Anyway, I really enjoyed Update this year and don't be surprised if you see me busting another jumbo box sooner, rather than later.  Oh yeah, there's also the inevitable rainbow chase of Davis cards in this set as well.  2 cards for him, whatever shall I do?

Hanging With Drew

I'm trying something new by doing a post with my phone.  Good luck to me.

I'm visiting my very close friend, Drew from Drewscards and we are currently riding to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Last night, Drew took me to his local card shop.  We bought a box of 2011 Topps Lineage so we could play pack wars.  I won handily.  Drew still made out ok because we did a bunch of trading afterward.  I'll post some of the cards when I get access to a scanner but I will leave you with a few pictures from the break itself.

I'm really enjoying my time with Drew. He is one of the first people I traded with back in 2009 through this blog.  We have become best of friends and I am really excited to be able to experience the Hall of Fame him.

Visit From Scott - Gypsy Queen Box Break

Yesterday was a really good day.  I was able to spend the day with my very good friend, Scott and his Dad since Scott and I both mistakenly thought the Raleigh card show was this weekend.  We had planned to meet up at the show, hang out as long as possible and then grab dinner afterward.  Since we realized that we had the wrong weekend for the show, and since both of us would be unable to attend next weekend, we decided to meet up here at my house.

Scott and his dad rolled in about a quarter to 11 in the morning, just in time to grab some lunch in downtown Greenville.  After lunch, Scott, his dad, Chris and I all did a tour of the two card shops in the area.  At the first card shop, in Kinston, Scott and I decided to go halves on a box so we would have something to bust when we got back to the house.

When we got back home, we split the box evenly and started ripping packs.  Both of us made out with our packs as each got a relic and auto and several short prints.  It wasn't until later that Scott texted me and told me that the Yu Darvish SP I got was, in fact, a super short print photo variation.  Not bad.  I think the odds of pulling one of those is 1:461 packs.  Really not bad.

I also pulled this sweet Matt Adams on-card auto.  I know two Cardinals fans who are going to be fighting each other to get this card.  The first one to email me and pony up some cash, will be the victor!

In all, I had a really great day hanging out with a fellow blogger/collector along with his dad, who was awesome enough to bring along some of his own collection (which isn't baseball cards) for us to look at.  It was really cool being able to sit around on the couch and talk about collecting, collecting regrets, auction sites, shows, etc.  I think we all decided that this would become a regular thing, so I'm hoping we all can hang out really soon.  Scott and his dad are awesome folks and I am so glad we got the date wrong on the card show.  This was so much more fun!  Go take a look at Scott's blog and give him some follows.  he's a hell of a guy and deserves more attention for his blog!

2013 Topps Series 2 - Let The Sorting Begin!

Did I forget to mention that I got my 3 Jumbo Boxes in the mail yesterday from Crane's Cards out of Winston-Salem?  Oops.  I was pretty excited.  I did the box busting over Skype with my good buddy, Andrew from Andrew's Cards.  I think this is the third time I have shared my box break with him.  I just have to say that Series 2 has a ton of awesome photos and LOTS of Orioles in the base set and in a lot of the inserts.  Two of my favorite Orioles, Brian Roberts and Nolan Reimold are featured in Series 2, so I will have some rainbows to pursue.

Here is a look at the sorted results of the break, by type of card.  I ended up with two 'case' hits that I will discuss later.  I also got one short print that will be featured in an upcoming blog entry.  For now, I will take my leave so I can begin sorting the base cards and putting my set together.  Just to let you all know, I am taking requests for trades.  Andrew has requested most of the Cardinals, followed by Weston asking for other Cardinals and any extra RCs that I may have.  Drew gets most of the Yankees.  I am still looking for Emeralds from Series One and am definitely going after the set for Series 2.  Shoot me an email!  I'll have more details of pulls and what all is available soon.

Results From Andrew's Box Break

I took part in Andrew's box break recently when he broke a box of 2013 Topps Gypsy Queen.  I bought 2 slots in the break for $12 each and picked the Orioles and Tigers.  I was awarded the Rockies and Marlins as my random teams.  I liked the stuff I got, even though I didn't get any hits.  The above Dealing Aces Dylan Bundy is a really cool card.

The minis didn't scan all that well, sliding a little crooked on my scanner.  I got this really cool Rick Ferrell with the St. Louis Browns.  Since the Browns became the Orioles, I was awarded this card.  Awesome!

Finally, I got this Ty Cobb that came in the 10-card mini box.  I'm going to keep some of the Tigers and all of the Orioles.  The Rockies and Marlins I got are definitely up for trade.  I really enjoyed the box break with Andrew, so I hope he did as well and has some more in the future.

My 2013 Topps Jumbo Boxes Have Arrived

That's right.  My 2013 Topps Jumbo Boxes have come in.  I got them and opened them with Andrew and Scott watching via webcam.  I am really excited to show some of the stuff I got, but since I'm not feeling all that great tonight, I will have to wait until tomorrow to scan and post what I pulled.  I did get 3 of the Silver Slugger Award cards, one desert camo parallel, lots of emerald green parallels, a couple blacks, lots of gold, one Out of Bounds SP (maybe another, I have to look and see), 3 relics, 3 autos and tons of Orioles.

So, please stay tuned to see what I got!  A lot of it will be up for trade, so keep me in mind when you pull Orioles greens/pinks/camos/golds/relics/silks/etc etc etc!

2012 Gypsy Queen Box Break

I'm starting to feel better, so hopefully, this illness is moving behind me.  I meant to post the results of my Gypsy Queen box break the other day, but I wasn't really feeling up to it, so here it is today.

I got a couple Orioles, including the above Brooks Robinson and the below Nick Markakis.

I got two different Tim Lincecum cards, so one has to be the SP variation.  Not bad, considering they will be assumed into my son's Lincecum collection.  I'm glad I got his variations as opposed to someone else's.

I was supposed to get 2 relics and 2 autos, but I got 3 autos and 1 relic.  I got autos (on card) of J. P. Arencebia, Nelson Cruz and Kyle Seagar and a relic of Brian McCann.

Finally, I got some nice minis as well.  I got basic minis of Bob Feller and Babe Ruth, a Green mini of Mickey Mantle, black minis of Nick Markakis and Sandy Koufax and an exclusive mini of Adam Jones.

I think I did pretty well with the box break.  I'll be able to sell off a good bit of it at the upcoming card show and make my money back.  It would have been nice to pull the Koufax auto, but oh well, I can keep dreaming.

Box Busting - 1994 Topps Series 2

Chris and I were bored this weekend (I think Saturday night) and decided to bust a box of cards that I had stashed away in the closet.  I have a couple boxes of 90s 'junk wax' sitting around so we chose 1994 Topps as the product that we were going to bust.

I had forgotten how sharp 1994 Topps looked.  Card collecting took a major hit following the 1994 season, when baseball went on strike.  The year before, Topps released the 1993 set, a behemoth of 825 cards, but slimmed back down to the 80s-90s standard of 792 cards.

There are some good action shots in the set.  I think my favorite that made me stop and look was the above Roberto Alomar card, turning a double play on his brother Sandy.  I just like the concept of the photo.

This is a great shot of Jim Thome possibly blasting a homer.  Who would have thought back in 1994 that Thome would have over 600 homers to his name?

 We got some pretty decent inserts.  In 1994, Topps Finest was an insert set, inserted one into every 36 packs.  The cool thing was that we pulled an Oriole.  It would have been nice if it was Cal, but I will take a Chris Hoiles.

We were also lucky enough to pull a Black Gold Tom Glavine (which is up for trade).  These were one for every 81 packs (or so, I have already thrown out my wrappers).

In all, we did pretty well with our box.  Lots of good photos and a couple decent inserts.  Chris had a good time with it, so that really is all that matters.  I think I'm going to be on the lookout for some more cheap 'junk wax' boxes that he and I can bust together.

Historic Autographs Ball of Fame Break #2

Here is the second of my two Ball of Fame breaks.



I already had Irvin as well; I got him TTM last year with a donation to a local college that he supports.  However, that ball may not be available, since I may be working out a trade with Dustin over at No Relics Pulled.  We'll see.

Box Break - Historic Autographs Ball of Fame National Edition #1

I saw that Blowout had lowered the price of the Historic Autographs Ball of Fame National Edition boxes from $119 to $85 last week, so I decided to pick up two of them.  The difference between the 'National Edition' and the regular edition I opened (and got Wade Boggs) is that the National Edition baseballs are graded no lower than 9.5.  I figured getting a high grade HOF auto on a ball for that price would be worth the gamble.  I videoed both breaks, so here is break number 1:



I had already gotten Harvey TTM, but this version is already PSA authenticated, on an official MLB ball and graded at a 10.  So, that being said, my Harvey ball I got TTM will be going with me to the card show or can be put up for trade.  I'd prefer another ball for it, but I'm not going to be too picky.


Yes, that is Drew on Skype watching the box break.  Hi Drew!!!

2011 Topps Series 1 By The Numbers

I've been meaning to post the breakdown of the 2011 Topps Series 1 box bust for a while now, so here goes. I opened 3 jumbo boxes and 2 retail packs, here are the results:

• 3 complete sets made
• 229 duplicates
• 3 original back 60 greatest Topps cards
• 1 original back Topps the Lost Cards (Stan Musial 1957 Topps)
• 30 60 years of Topps cards
• 30 Diamond Duos
• 30 Topps 60 inserts
• 15 Topps Gold Parallel
• 30 Topps Diamond Parallel
• 2 Topps Black Parallel (Josh Hamilton and Peter Bourjos)
• 30 Minis
• 30 Diamond Giveaway redemptions
• 2 Legends SPs (Berra and Banks)
• 3 Manufactured Leather Nameplates (Lincecum, Pujols and Kershaw). The Pujols is the serial numbered black version
• 3 Jersey Relics (Sabathia, Daniel McCutcheon and Justin Upton)
• 3 Autographs (Adam Jones, Chris Getz and Matt Harrison)
• 8 History of Topps
• 16 CMGR vintage reprints
• 30 Toppstown
• 15 Topps 60 'The Lost Cards'

So, there you have it. Not a bad haul. I doubt I'll put together any of the insert sets. I love the Diamond parallels, that's for sure. I'm excited to see when I get from the redemptions.

Thoughts on 2011 Topps

I had intended on having the results of my 3 jumbo boxes of 2011 Topps posted earlier (like, Friday), but because of my craptastic connection here at the apartment, I have only now been able to get the pictures loaded. So, here are my thoughts on 2011 Topps. I will post my 'by the numbers' breakdown later on (the way my connection has been going, it looks like it may be posted just in time for 2012 Series 1).

First off, I like the design. I'd be happy if Topps strayed from the plain white border once in a while, but the cards do look great. I pulled 2 of the Legends Short Print variations out of my 3 boxes, one being the above Yogi Berra.

My second Legends SP variation is Mr. Cub, Ernie Banks. Both of the legends cards look great. Some people are tired of these variations, but I enjoy them. I'd be happier if they were Brooks Robinson cards, but with Berra and Banks, I sure won't complain.

Speaking of Orioles, I got my first Adam Jones auto. I wouldn't have known it was his auto without the card telling me so... His signature just looks like a bunch of loops.

One of my favorite Orioles Prospects - Brandon Snyder. He looks to spend the season at AAA Norfolk due to the signing of Derrek Lee, but that may be a good thing for him. I think he could use more seasoning in the minors. I've met him in person several times and he is a really nice guy. I hope he puts up some good numbers and becomes the O's first baseman of the future.

Hey, look, someone tied all of the O's outfielders together. This is a really cool picture of all the O's outfielders. Most of the pictures in this set are amazing. There are a few that are suspect, but for the most part the photos are great.

Speaking of great shots, here is one of Russell Martin. I really like all the action in the shot and also the depth that is shown. I wish Topps put in this kind of effort with all of their products.

I got a couple decent relics, the best of which was this CC Sabathia jersey. I also got Daniel McCutcheon and Justin Upton relics.

Here is one of the not-so-amazing shots. Again, here is CC Sabathia, and CC's belly. It appears that his stomach takes up 25% of the card. Yeesh. Maybe if he was wearing pinstripes, they'd have a slimming effect?

Now we have the leather nameplate cards. I definitely don't like these as much as I liked the Hat Logo patches from last year, but these aren't as hideous as I've heard. I was excited that I pulled Lincecum. I like him, of course, but he has quickly become my son's favorite player as well ('cause he throws nasty, Daddy'). So, this card is definitely spoken for.

I got Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw. My best friend is a Dodger fan. Card spoken for? Yep, you got that right.

Finally, I got the Pujols black variation. This is pretty cool, I guess. May try to sell it at the next card show. We'll have to see. I imagine that this will be a decently popular card. I'm hoping so at least.
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Anyway, there you have it, my 2011 Topps jumbo results. What do you guys think? Overall, I was satisfied, mainly because the photos are great. I wish I didn't have to wait for a new Roberts card until Series 2, but oh well. Patience is a virtue, or something like that.