2016 LEGO Minifigures Series 16

Greetings!

Hope everyone is doing well.  I missed out on posting on my blogging anniversary, but in keeping with tradition, I had to post a non-sports pack.  Thing is, I had no non-sports pack at the ready to scan and post.  To the Scan folder!

As you can tell, this is gonna be a quick post.  

The Lego Minifigures line has been around since 2010 and they're currently on Series 23, with several themed sets, like The Lego Batman Movie and The Muppets, released along the way.

The concept's simple...Lego guys and gals!  Random dudes and dudettes to hang out with your Marvel heroes or chill in Hogwarts!  You get the picture. 

Besides the figure, a checklist is included in the pack.  Sorry for the bad picture; if you want a checklist (and see the other characters from the releases), here you go.

So, who was in the pack?

It's the Desert Warrior!  I don't believe there's any desert-themed Lego sets out there, so he's welcome to pop up anywhere.

I had to have run into a pack somewhere since I have pictures, but I don't have the Desert Warrior hanging out with my Transformers.  After trying to remember where I came across this pack, the background clued me in.  While editing the picture down, I remembered this was an open pack I came across while cleaning the Target toy aisles.  I guess the would-be thief opened the pack and was disappointed in the Desert Warrior.  In keeping with policy, I turned the opened package in at the end of my shift, but I was able to sneak some pictures before I did.

Anyway, that's the pack.  Enjoy your week, and thanks for reading!

2022 Topps Archives Baseball (Hobby)

I picked up a couple packs of 2022 Topps Archives Baseball (Hobby) at the LCS today.

Topps Archives has been a favorite of mine for many years, and I tend to break a couple hobby boxes every year. The "Fan Favorites" autograph subset, featuring 2 retired player on-card autos per box, had always been a draw for me.

2021 marked a bit of a shift, with fewer retired player autographs and more current stars, and 2022 has shown an even less diverse retired player auto checklist, so I decided not to spring for a whole box.

That said, those are just my preferences, and I'm sure the newer autograph subsets appeal to plenty of card buyers... and it's not all about the autographs!

This year we are focusing on the aesthetic of 1963, 1978, and 1987 Topps cards.

Starting things off are rookie cards of Jake Meyers and Lucius Fox in the 1978 Topps format. Fans of 1978 Topps may be happy to know that the "Play Ball" game on the back of the base set is present on the back of these cards as well:

Next we have rookie cards of Rodolfo Castro and Roansy Contreras in the 1987 and 1963 Topps formats, respectively. Two RC RC's. 

In the 1955 Topps "Scoop" format, we have a Chris Taylor card highlighting his 3 HR game.

Two base cards of Andrew Vaughn (1963 format) and Ketel Marte (1987 format).

Finishing things off we have Johnny Bench in a 1987 Topps format.

2022 Historic Autographs Retrograph 2 Baseball

Stopped at my fave card shop (Finnigan's in Albany, NY) and picked up a pack of 2022 Historic Autographs Retrograph 2 Baseball.

This is pretty much a product designed for collectors exactly like me who chase buyback and retired player autos. Each pack ($40ish) contains 8 Autographed Cards from 1957 to 2015. Signatures come with an authenticity guarantee, and each card has a hologram on the back to signify said guarantee.

Chase cards include Tony Gwynn, Kirby Puckett, Ted Williams, Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, and others. Each box should have 1 Baseball Hall-of-Famer. So I had a 1 in 5 shot (5 packs per box) at getting one of those cards. 

Here we go:

Starting things off we have a Bob Dernier autograph on his 1982 Topps "Future Stars" Card also featuring Mark Davis and Ozzie Virgil. You can see the authenticity hologram on the back in this scan. Dernier won a Gold Glove in 1984.

Next up is Tucker Ashford on his 1984 Topps Card. This is a rather rough looking autograph, seemingly done hastily with a ball-point pen. That's par for the course with these sorts of buyback products, though. Ashford bounced around between 1976 and 1984 in MLB.

Next we have Mike Hartley on his 1991 Fleer Card. Hartley played in MLB and Japan between 1989 and 1995 and coached in Italy beginning in 2012. 

Next up is Joe Lawrence on his 1997 Bowman Card. He played a total of 55 games in MLB for the Blue Jays in 2002.

Next is Eric Soderholm on his 1980 Topps Card. 1980 would be Soderholm's final season, albeit for the Yankees, as cumulative knee injuries forced him to retire. For the past 25 years, Soderholm has run a holistic wellness center called Soderworld.

Next we have Todd Walker on his 1997 Topps Card, one of my favorite Topps sets of the 1990's. Walker was a career .289 hitter between 1996 and 2007 and has served as an analyst for NESN. 

Next is Eddie Whitson on his 1982 Topps Traded Card. Whitson was a 1980 All-Star for the Giants. He was traded in 1979 to the Giants from the Pittsburgh Pirates. As part of the deal, the Giants sent Pittsburgh...

Bill Madlock, pictured here on his 1984 Nestle (Topps) Card, who was part of the 1979 Pirates World Championship team. Madlock has 4 batting titles to his credit, 3 ASG appearances, and 2,008 hits, and I am quite happy to add this card to my collection.

I would buy a box of this product. Perhaps I will.

1995 Authentix Beetle Bailey

A non-sport pack featuring one of longest running newspaper comic strip Beetle Bailey. I have no info on the Authentix card company. Let get through the six cards.

41 - Beetle Bailey comic posted on the front and back. On this one Sergeant Snorkel in one of his angry moods with appearance of Vo. On the back Beetle about to play darts using Snorkel's behind

50 - The checklist. Only 50 base cards and 5 silver and gold insert.

4 - It's all you can buffet and Sarge loves food. Back on the card feature Chef Cookie with a splatter on his face.

7 - It's Halftrack and he's getting on Beetle for being lazy. On the back its Sarge and his love of food on display.

5 - Same strip as 4 minus Sarge. On the back and hey looks its Beetle doing something. He cleans to floor while Sarge slips on a bar of soap. Sarge wouldn't be happy after this.

14 - Beetle about to hit Zero with something out of a makeshift slingshot. On the back its the many faces of Halftrack.

2013 Panini Elite Football

Greetings!

Hope everyone is doing well.  Today is our 21st wedding anniversary...my union is an adult!  Anyway, I should put a post up to mark the occasion, but I didn't have time to get a pack to scan.  Time to see what's in the scan folder!

According to the file name, pictures of this pack were taken at the beginning of the Pandemic, before the Card Bros scooped everything up.  I'm pretty sure my kid convinced The Wifey to pick up one of those Walgreens repacks.  Who remembers EJ Manuel?  I don't...let's see who we remember!

#79 - Sam Bradford

#36 - Mikel Leshoure

We all should recognize Bradford, who last played for the Cardinals in 2018.  Leshoure is a former Illini (woo!) who was in the league from 2011 to 2013.

There's 200 cards in the set, 100 veterans and 100 rookies.  The rookies are serial numbered and harder to find.  You want to see the checklist?  Here you go.

#93 - Vincent Jackson

#56 - Greg Jennings

A couple of good Wide Receivers here.  Vincent Jackson last played for the Bucs in 2016, and Jennings retired in 2016 after spending 2015 with the Dolphins.

#14 - Steve Johnson

Johnson left the Bills after the 2013 season, and spent a year each with the 49ers and Chargers.  He hasn't played since the 2015 season.  And there's the standard Panini card back for your perusal.

Anyway, that's the pack.  Apologies on the substandard pictures taken here; retakes are not possible since the cards have since disappeared and may be somewhere in the kid's room.

Happy anniversary to my Beloved, and thanks for reading!

2022 Donruss Baseball

Donruss baseball was one of the earliest releases in the 2022 calendar, but I'm just getting around to posting a pack of it now as we are on the eve of the playoffs. This is a blaster pack with an old-school card count of 15.

232 - Brady Singer - First up is the "Retro '88" design, which represents the last 50 cards of the 280 card checklist.

183 - Casey Mize - Here is the base design, with a lot of 3D shapes going on.

276 - Ivan Rodriguez - Some of the '88 cards feature retired players like Pudge here.

227 - Alek Manoah - The backs continue the design theme of the front along with a smaller portion of the same picture from the front.

18 - Pete Alonso - This year's Diamond Kings design is pretty busy looking. They've long since abandoned the art style of these cards for actual photos that get touched up to look artsy or whatever.

44 - Luis Gil - Ah, the classic Rated Rookie logo. The design is similar to the regular base cards, but there are different shapes in different spots.

13 - Matt Olson - This pack yielded two DKs, including this former Oakland A's star.

39 - Cal Raleigh - Raleigh hit the big walk-off HR that got Seattle into the playoffs.

105 - Austin Hays - The Orioles may not have made the playoffs this season, but they did have a remarkable turnaround from their historically awful 2021 season.

162 - Matt Chapman - Here's the other former Oakland star who is now playoff-bound with Toronto.

119 - Pedro Martinez - The Hall of Famer appears on the base design instead of the throwback one.

176 - Chris Flexen

257 - Tyler Glasnow Holo Purple - There are a variety of color parallels as this is a Panini product. This purple variant accentuates the '88 design (although the blue holos look better.)

72 - Camilo Doval Holo Purple - The second parallel of the pack features another Rated Rookie.

D-12 - Ketel Marte Dominators Rapture - Many of the insert cards in hobby boxes are numbered, but the retail versions are not, but come in many parallel flavors. This is the one they call "Rapture", if I'm not mistaken.