2007 Fleer Ultra Baseball

2007 Fleer Ultra. We're not talking regular Fleer here guys, this stuff is U L T R A. I spare no expense for you folks.

I kid. I actually miss Fleer baseball products a whole heck of a lot. How would you rather spend $.99? On a pack of Topps Attax? Or Upper Deck First Edition? Or how about a pack Fleer? You'd rather have the pack of Fleer. Yes, you would.

However, I digress.

This pack was the last in a value priced blaster I found a Toys "R" Us in Langhorne, PA.


Junior graces the wrapper. He looks happy enough to be there. Let us tear in.



#30 Alfonso Soriano. Fair enough. He hits the ball hard. However, his defense is mediocre at best and that ridiculous hop he executes while fielding routine fly balls drives me up the wall.


#42 Aaron Harang. Went 16-6 in '07. Went 6-17 in '08. An accurate assessment of his ability probably rests somewhere in between.


#191 B.J. Ryan. I've never really thought about B.J. before. I'm not about to start now.


#129 Jason Kendall. Really impressive career BA for a catcher. Combined with his talent behind the plate, he is probably one of the key underrated players of his generation.


SK-MC Miguel Cabrera. He is a Swing King. This would be a good spot for a Benny Goodman or Dire Straits joke.

BONUS!!!

This card wasn't in the pack chronicled in this break, but was found earlier in the same blaster.

Behold...

Oooohh...Aaahhhh...

Thus concludes my first review for this ambitious site. The name is Matt (in contrast to our noble leader, Matt F.) I love the Phillies, live in New Jersey, and like baseball cards.

2009 Upper Deck Goudey

I went to a little card show at a mall in Topeka today...it was said that there would be 40 tables but I would say there was closer to ten actually there. I'm not really sure if that means anything in relation to the current state of hobby or if everyone was just enjoying the spring weather.

I am personally on Team Dayf when it comes to this year's Goudey. I prefer the one color background rather than the stadium background as in previous years.

I think Dayf would really enjoy this one:

#13 Chipper Jones

#101 Rafael Furcal

#61 Grady Sizemore

#115 Denard Span

#837 Tom Glavine '95 World Series MVP

#229 Mike Schmidt Sport Royalty

Goudey Decoy

#32 Daisuke Matsuzaka

#35-43 4-in 1 Goudey Ramirez/Uggla/Utley/Rollins

2005 Topps Total

This one was part of a box of Topps Total I bought myself for my birthday...it was $9.99 at Shopko...

#178 La Troy Hawkins

#414 Jose Vizcaino

#546 Jose Cruz Jr.

#334 Reggie Sanders [Grey Border]

#475 Jake Peavy

#458 Hideo Nomo

The fact that Nomo's auto and rookie cards are still so popular is one of the things that makes me smile about his hobby.

#294 Carl Pavano

TP-AS Alfonso Soriano Total Production

#623 Kevin Gryboski/Roman Colon

#355 Larry Walker

2003 Bowman Heritage

Today I have a pack of 2003 Bowman Heritage for your viewing pleasure. This set was based off of the designs for 1956 Bowman, a set that didn't exist then since Topps had bought Bowman before they could make a 1956 set, but after they designed it. At least I think that's how I remember hearing this in 2003.

And now, the cards...

#74, Mark Teixeira (this is the "veteran" design)

#82, Zach Day (a former Indian! And he looks so young here)

#119, Kazuhisa Ishii (anybody else remember the hype he had in 2002?)

#172, Phil Rizzuto (this is the design used for all of the prospects, but I'm not sure why such a legend is part of this design)

#236, Travis Ishikawa

#276, Jordan Pratt

#140, Curt Schilling (the one-per-pack "signature" parallel...this is also thicker)(and my favorite memory of Schilling is him co-winning the 2001 World Series MVP with one of my favorite players, Randy Johnson)

#182, Felix Pie (the one-per-pack "rainbow" parallel, and yes, you did get two parallels a pack) (and as the back of the card will remind you, it's "pronounced p-ay")

So a great mix of cool veterans and people that are either has-beens or that I've never heard of. Still a fun pack and a great product!

2009 Upper Deck Artifacts/Pieces of History

I'm not really 100% certain what this product is called...Artifacts or Pieces of History. The pack says "Artifacts" but the cards read "Pieces of History."

After pulling this card, the rest of the pack can drop dead as far as I'm concerned. It is so weird to hear the world "First Place Kansas City Royals" on sports radio...


And the rest [if you care...]

2008 Upper Deck Masterpieces

This one is a Wal-Mart clearance special...it was .50 more than a pack of First Edition...not a bad deal...

#88 Frank Thomas

#60 Whitey Ford

#71 Ryan Howard

#86 Carl Crawford

With only four cards a pack, these packs have proven to be a real hit or miss for me. I think I have only pulled one of these cards before [the Whitey Ford] and I especially like the Ryan Howard.

2007 Upper Deck Artifacts

My next pack will be 2007 Upper Deck Artifacts. Received this pack in one of those "3 packs for $5.99" repacks at the grocery store. I'm not expecting much. Here goes:



#61 Freddy Sanchez
He won the National League batting title in 2006? Really?



#82 Jeff Baker



#22 Alex Rodriguez



#66 Albert Pujols
"He is the only ML player to hit 30-plus HRs in each of his first six years." I wonder if he'll wind up being the greatest first baseman of all time?



#84 Jeff Salazar

Bleh. I've got to say, these are some ugly cards. If anyone is interested in them, just email me.

2008 Bowman Chrome

For my first post I'll be opening a pack of 2008 Bowman Chrome. Here goes:



#170 Jim Thome
I've always respected Jim. Everything I've heard indicates that he's one of the good guys.



#BCP219 Pedro Baez
"Hit three-run homer off Pedro Martinez while the pitching great was on rehab assignment in Florida."



#136 Jim Edmonds
It was weird seeing Edmonds in a Cubs uniform last year. I quickly found out why he was so loved in St. Louis, though... he's a great baseball player.

That's it. Three cards to a pack. You either hit it big or you don't, there's not much drama involved. All of these cards are available for trade, just email me if you need them.