Featured autograph - Mike Stanton

I got this card by Florida Marlins outfielder Mike Stanton when the Marlins came and played the San Diego Padres in San Diego - this is one of the three cards I got signed [two by Marlins backup catcher Brett Hayes] during batting practice before security on the field told me not to throw my clipboard over the dugout.

The trading card set of choice for me to get autographed are cards from the 2006-present Topps Allen and Ginter's sets - sometimes, I do like getting retro cards like Topps Heritage signed, though it is on a 'card-by-card' basis instead of an 'all-out' effort.

I didn't have time to throw a Sharpie to Stanton - so he signed my card with the blue ballpoint pen he had signed a couple of baseballs with.

2010 Topps I blaster recap

2010 Topps I blaster box [$19.99 each at Target] - I don't usually pay attention to Topps blaster boxes once they've been out on the retail shelves and see them as decaying stock.

However, I picked up a blaster box when I spotted one or two last weekend among the two Targets I usually go to - I've read in a forum thread that these blasters with the two Target exclusive Topps retro variation packs might not really be easy to find since they've been out on shelves since February of 2010. Whoever is going snatch all these up has already done so, long ago.

I was really hoping to pull a Topps retro variation Buster Posey RC - though it seems like pulling any particular card out of only two Topps retro packs is really a tough deal.

Topps also made it a little more frustrating when two out of the eight cards in each pack - are the typical inserts you'd pull out of the regular packs .

Historical Commemorative Patch Card
#MCP-23 Frank Robinson - I still don't like the plain, cardboard background and the small unreadable writing on the patches of many of these cards; sadly this probably my best pull.

Pack one
#149 Jose Guillen
#270 Michael Brantley
#300 Chase Utley
#302 Beantown Backhand
#HOTG 9 Lou Gehrig - History of the Game
#TMC-10 Topps Million - I dreaded picking up a 2010 Topps blaster knowing The Million Card Giveaway was already over and now I'm just waiting for the cards I claimed to be shipped to me.
#TTT 23 C.C. Sabathia - ToppsTown
#11 Ty Wigginton

Pack nine - Throwback pack #1
#35 Rick Porcello
#128 Garrett Mock
#277 Jarrod Washburn
#237 Brew Crew Knockout
#306 Milton Bradley
#LL-4 Lou Gehrig / Mark Teixeira - Legendary Lineage
#TTT-12 Miguel Tejada - ToppsTown
#218 Fernando Martinez

Pack 10 - Throwback pack #2
#81 Ryan Theriot
#176 Yovani Gallardo
#267 Cito Gaston
#196 Ian Desmond
#268 Juan Pierre
#TR-14 Kevin Youkilis - Turkey Red
#TTT5 Evan Longoria - ToppsTown
#165 Brandon Phillips

2009 Topps T-206 pack break with A Polar Bear

2009 Topps T-206 retail [$2.99 each / one pack at Target] - I was able to find a sealed box on the shelf and had to go through the pomp and circumstance of having it opened up [to grab just a lone, lonely pack because it was all I could afford to pick up], so it wouldn't seem like I was doing something shady.

Pack #1
106 Jeff Francis - great start, a card of a guy who hasn't played in about a year or more.
179 Roy Oswalt - had an off-year, but typically regarded as an 'ace.'
235 Yovani Gallardo Polar Bear mini base card parallel - according to the listing on the pack, Polar Bear parallels are found one in every 10 packs.
74 Greg Golson thick gold filler card- not pictured.
171 David Wright - this card is sort of ugly, it looks like Wright is grimacing with his eyes closed as he is following through.
130 Honus Wagner - probably the main reason the legacy of the T-206 lives on through the 21st century, never mind he is probably considered the best shortstop in the history of the game.

2009 Upper Deck O-Pee-Chee baseball rips

I finally got my hands on some O-Pee-Chee packs [$1.59] - off a gravity feed at the Tarjay 10 minutes from my house.

There is some grumbling that since 2009 O-Pee-Chee is a 'set-collector' product - there are not enough base cards per pack and six 'measly' cards is just not going to cut it for the price point.

However a 600 card product with a packs going for $2 or less - isn't bad if you are a casual baseball card collector looking for something other than base brand Topps or Upper Deck to bust.

One gripe is there are too many studio shots and mug shots - need more action shots or cheesy posed on-the-field shots with the stadium's features visible in the background.

The wrinkles Upper Deck have thrown into this product [black bordered parallels, non-shortprint SPs, inserts] make opening packs a little fun for the younger collectors -I'm totally obvious, are there anymore of those or are they all into gaming cards?

The old-school card stock was a junky, but retro feel to it - which I suppose is the point.

Let me grab maybe 10-15 more packs [maybe a blaster] to see if this is a product I like - I'm thinking this is the type of product that can be $25 at the end of the year, maybe less because each box isn't guaranteed any token hits.

Pack #1
#264 Mike Adams

#65 Alexei Ramirez

#HM 3 Melvin Mora - 2008 Highlights and Milestones insert

#390 C.C. Sabathia - black parallel
#529 Los Angeles Angels team card - sorta mojo
#433 Adam Lind

Pack #2
#274 Scott Feldman

#75 Chase Utley

#MM2 Hank Blalock - Midsummer Memories insert

#68 Phil Hughes - black parallel

#548 Adrian Gonzalez - Moments subset
#286 Carlos Ruiz

Pack #3
#344 Mike Napoli
#9 John Grabow

#536 NL RBI Leaders featuring Ryan Howard, David Wright and Adrian Gonzalez - black parallel
#540 NL Wins Leaders featuring Brandon Webb, Tim Lincecum and Ryan Dempster
#447 Kelly Shoppach
#248 Willy Taveras

Pack #4
#100 Albert Pujols
#297 Luis Castillo
#202 Brett Gardner

#FF4 Roy Halladay - Face of the Franchise insert
#339 Garret Anderson - black parallel
#565 Josh Geer

2009 Topps Heritage six pack break

So I picked up six packs of 2009 Topps Heritage at the local Target [$2.99 x6] - I heard the rumblings these are already out, so as much I'd thought about staying away, I was swayed by my curiosity.

Several chews and about a couple of minutes later - the taste lifespan of one piece of pink gum is spent.

Pack #1
#406 Dustin McGowan
#164 Cincinnati Reds team card - checklist
#381 Atlanta Braves team card - checklist; an apparent problem I have with 2009 Topps Heritage is there are ink 'speckles' on some of the cards. Is this a desired effect to mimic the originals or just careless print defects? I'll go with the latter.
#275 Skip Schumaker - annoying ink speckles again
#168 Felipe Lopez
#89 Garrett Olson
#350 Javier Vazquez
#326 Ichiro

Pack #2
#187 Bronson Arroyo
#263 Dioner Navarro - annoying ink speckles again
#198 Chris Dickerson
#69 Ray Durham - annoying ink speckles again
#203 Chris Iannetta
#119 Wilkin Castillo
#213 Manny Acta - the manager cards have taken on a life on its own and it seems like Topps has made a way to find cards like this palatable. The banner with the team logo infront is unique and the back isn't stats and facts, but a cartoon.
#171 Matt Joyce

Pack #3
#283 Matt Clement
#261 Scott Kazmir - annoying ink speckles again
#223 Lou Piniella
#41 Dave Bush - annoying ink speckles again
#4 Edinson Volquez
#426 Scott Rolen - gray back; apparently an SP.
#87 Jarrod Washburn
#134 Phil Coke

Pack #4
#260 Power Plus subset - featuring Manny 'El Maniaco' Ramirez and Andre Ethier
#228 Jeff Suppan - from the times I've seen him sign autographs in-person, he seems like a down-to-earth and reasonably easy to talk to guy, considering he is a professional athlete.
#62 Greg Maddux - annoying ink speckles again
#NAP 6 Tim Lincecum - I want to jump on the guy's bandwagon, but nah. I do like Lincecum's MLB 2k9 video game commercial with his digital doppledanger being dressed down for his choice in music [Wang Chung: Dance Hall Days] and also by Randy Johnson in the locker room ["He should put a towel on"].
#83 Derek Jeter
#59 John Maine
#300 Ryan Howard
#414 Miguel Cabrera

Pack #5
#218 Ozzie Guillen
#159 Shin-Soo Choo
#225 Joe Torre - annoying ink speckles again
#NF-3 Weather Satellite Tiros-1 News Flashback insert - love how they put an old-school illustration of the first weather satellite.
#TME-HR Hanley Ramirez - Mayo insert; one reason I wanted to bust these packs is I saw scans of Mayo inserts from this blog: A Cardboard Problem.
#342 Asdrubal Cabrera
#331 Troy Glaus - it seems like a long time ago, since he starred with the Angels [HR title in 2000, WS MVP in 2002].
#358 Yuniesky Betancourt - a reasonably competent Major League player, statheads don't like him because without getting a hit, he doesn't get on-base more and is more of a contact-first guy who doesn't really hit for adequate power. Also there seems to be grumbling about his defensive value and how he maybe on the downside of his career at his listed age of 27.

Pack #6
#46 Brandon Backe - annoying ink speckles again
#13 Garret Anderson - annoying ink speckles
#308 Zack Greinke - annoying ink speckles; I think the ink from the back of one card rubs onto the front of the card following it.
#351 Ben Sheets - annoying ink speckles
#456 Boston Red Sox coaches - annoying ink speckle; gray back
#273 Alex Rios
#214 Bruce Bochty
#409 Kurt Suzuki

Random thoughts about 2009 Topps Heritage
1.) It seems like the Heritage series have come in 'full bloom' with all sorts of colors - unlike in recent years, when Heritage meant the coolness of a retro product baseball card product symbolized by dour, subdued and boring cards.
2.) The quality control with the ink speckles makes me wary of purchasing more packs and a box - it seems like you want to embrace a baseball card product, but then find warts dulling your enthusiasm.
3.) I'm really tempted to build a set of these cards, but I'm not a set builder in a sense I'm going to devote my time looking to complete a set of baseball cards over the course of the year - I'm sure I'll fish out my share of the regular [non-SP] cards here-and-there, especially when looking for specific players' cards to get signed in-person/through the mail.
4.) I never thought any manager/coaches' cards would be worth my time - however, Topps did a pretty good job in making them appealing in this Heritage product. Naturally, I do like the managers' cards more than the floating heads coaches' cards.
5.) Topps did a good job in capturing some of the off-season moves, picturing some old and young faces in new places - albeit through the magic of Photoshop.
6.) The card backs retain a retro-quality, while still being easy to read - the cartoon images are always a nice touch and you get a short list of season highlights. The fact the backs feature only particular player's stats from last season and his career totals underscores the idea [ironically, in a retro product] we are in the age of the Internet, with Baseball - reference just a click away.

Featured Card - 2008 Topps Heritage David Wright New Age Performers insert #NAP5

This insert card stood out among the other cards I flipped through in a three pack break of 2008 Topps Heritage. It pictures a modern player and the design is something cooked up 2008, not 1959. On the other hand, just for the second, you see the font, the bright, almost garish colors and imagine it maybe something you can conceivably pull out of a pack of 1959 Topps cards.