More 2013 Topps - a couple of manufactured relics and a random Daniel Descalso base card

I wasn't going to be caught up in the new release hype of Topps' flagship brand but after browsing through eBay - the manufactured patch card set featuring Topps first cards / rookie cards of various star players caught my eye.

I ended up picking up two blaster boxes in addition to the 72-card hanger box I purchased at Walmart and pulled a Ryne Sandberg 1983 commemorative rookie patch relic in my first box - I've never pulled a Topps framed silk insert and while reprint cards have been sort of redundant, it's kind of neat to see various Topps first cards / rookie cards this way, from Willie Mays' first Topps card in 1952 to Yu Darvish's 2012 Topps rookie card.

Topps is definitely preying on collectors' nostalgia once again by using cards from previous years' Topps releases to come up with this 25-card insert set - however, the novelty of such inserts however is appealing, so I'll probably be caught up looking to pick up one or two more Topps Series I blasters than I already have.

In my second blaster box, I pulled a commemorative patch relic of Stephen Strasburg - not all blaster boxes will contain a rookie patch relic and while I'd rather have a rookie patch relic, this card features a nice, manufactured patch of the Washington Nationals' logo alongside a mugshot of the franchise's ace pitcher.

This Topps card [#190] is my early favorite of 2013 - it looks like Descalso's about to dunk [or in reality, caught in the air for a moment as he's trying to throw someone out of at first base].