1999 Topps Super Chrome

Greetings...

Hope everyone is doing well.  If it weren't for everyone's favorite Buddha, ol' Jafronius would have been the sole poster for the first quarter of 2021.  That's a lot of posts of just me.  

This could be another effect of The Virus...all the current product was purchased by the flippers, so the APTBNL staff dug into their collections or old LCS inventory and posted what they could find.  Now, the old stuff has already been posted and the new stuff is not as hard to find, but you still gotta be lucky. No idea.

Anyway, here's something I came across the last couple of times I was in my L(ish)CS:

I usually dive into the big green tub of cheap old packs there, but I still wander about the store to see all the cards and packs I won't be able to buy.  The last two times I've been there they had an open box of these Super Chrome packs.  4 bucks for 3 cards was the asking price.  

According to Baseballcardpedia.com, Super Chrome was a 2 year effort, with 1999 being the final year.  Each set consisted of 36 cards and the design mirrored that year's Topps flagship set.  1998 had 36 players but 1999 only had 30, with 6 highlight cards.  Here's a link to the checklist if anyone's curious.

The only parallels were refractors, which came 1 in 12 packs.  There were 12 packs in a box.

Here's the first pack:

#5 - Kerry Wood (Refractor) 

Look at that, I lucked out and pulled the Refractor.  The card measures 4 1/8" X 5 3/4", so this is super chromey and super big!

Here's the back of Kid K.  You see the Refractor label at the top left and the Super Chrome logo at the top right.

#22 - Barry Bonds

I'm too lazy to look up 1999 cards online but I'm assuming Super Chrome is using the same image as flagship...I don't think Topps was into SP's and SSP's and SSSP's back then.

#21 - Moises Alou

That was the first pack.  I was quite pleased, so I picked up another pack the last time I was there.

#1 - Roger Clemens

#36 - Scott Brosius (World Series Highlights)

Here's one of the 6 Highlight cards in the 1999 set.  It's too bad 6 players had to be cut for the Highlights, but I guess this is the only way "Ferocious" could get into the Super Chrome set (Is that his nickname?  Probably not...I just like how it rhymes).

#35 - Sammy Sosa (HR Parade #66)

This is nice in hand though.  Yes, McGwire's 70th homer has a card in the set too.  That would be a Super Big Mac!

Here's the back of the card.  Not as Chromey but still Super!

Again, these cards are 4 1/8" X 5 3/4" so storing them would be difficult but not impossible.  For those like me who aren't good with fractions, here's Super Chromey Sosa next to regular Stadium Club Sosa:

If ol' Jafronius had used a Sosa rookie here instead, this part would be full of steroid puns.

Anyway, that's the pack.  For the record, these were enjoyable rips.

More eventually.  Have a good weekend, and thanks for reading!

2021 Topps Opening Day

 I ended up picking up three packs of Topps Opening Day on my recent trip to one of my LCSs, Don's Sportcards, here in Anchorage, Alaska.  While nothing to write home about this was my best pack of the bunch

My insert was this Clemens Legends of Baseball

My other two inserts from the other packs was this Rosie Red mascot.

And this Opening Day Indians card

2021 Donruss Baseball Hobby Pack

 Ended up getting to take a nice leisurely trip to one of my LCSs, Don's Sportcards, this afternoon and picked up a few packs of the newest releases, mainly to share on here.  First up is a nice hobby pack of Donruss.

This year's Donruss base design looks really close to flagship Topps, but the names are easier to read.

This was a pretty good pack all around for variety and while I'd love to have this set with logos, Donruss is still a fun rip.

Here is this year's Diamond Kings design

The Retro 1987 design

Here are the rest of the base in the pack.

Did get one of the nickname variations of Altuve

Also got a Holo Blue parallel.  I think these are 1:2 packs.

But also hit a Career Stat Line Parallel of Ryu #/500.

While there were no inserts in the pack there was a lot of variety.

2020 Topps Update Series Blaster Box Player Coin Card

Greetings...

Hope everyone is doing well.  We made it though the first weekend of March Madness (normalcy!) with only one game cancellation due to The Virus (reality!).  My bracket's busted (normalcy and reality!) so here's a quickie post:

Before word got to me that 2020 Topps Update wasn't so great, I grabbed 2 blaster boxes from the Target near work.  I haven't bought blaster boxes in recent years; like many of you, I was turned off by the bonus card.  I wanted memorabilia, not a manu-patch.  But the age of The Virus means desperate measures and when I saw new product available, I pounced. 

Here's the side of the blaster which shows the Player Coin checklist.  I assume TBC means Topps Baseball Coin.  

The Player Coin is wrapped individually, so it counts as a pack!  I got 2 Coins so here they are:

#TBC-FT - Fernando Tatis Jr.

Not too bad to get a coin of one of the young studs.

When I opened the second pack, I was sarcastically complaining that the Coin isn't in the card straight:

#TBC-FF - Freddie Freeman (Black parallel #193/199)

I did a double take when I saw the serial number on the bottom left.  There are Coin parallels?  Of course there are!  It took a moment before I noticed the darker edges around the Coin on the front.

Anyway, those are the packs.  They're nice and all, and they'll fit in my collection nicely, sure, but I still rather have a relic card as the bonus.

Enjoy the rest of the week, and thanks for reading!

2021 Topps Series 1 Retail

Greetings...

Hope everyone is doing well.  Today is the one year anniversary of The Virus being declared a global pandemic.  Let that sink in...a full year of this crap.  

We've been in the low '60s for the last couple of days in suburban Chicago, so spring is definitely on our minds.  Spring training is in full gear, and since my current cable subscription does not include MLB Network, I traditionally get my hype by buying packs, but you all know how it's been.

I try to stop into the Target closest to my work once a week, usually Thursday night.  I've basically given up trying at the Target where I work at part time, because I've seen the build-up to the vendor visit there and it depresses me.  Anyway, the close-to-work Target has a sign up limiting the guest to one pack of cards per purchase.  I don't know if it's enforced during the day, but the one night I was there it wasn't, because I was able to grab 2 packs of Series 1 from a lowly, 25% full display box.

Do I feel guilty for double dipping?  A little bit.  Then again, we all know to whom those signs are directed to, and I'm not one of them.  Maybe if they had blasters or hanger boxes I would have grabbed just one, but common, you can only buy one $3 pack?

So there it is, 3 bucks for 16 cards.  Not even the Target exclusive with an insert set of some player (if they even did that this year).  Let's see what I got:

#88 - Albert Abreu (RC)

#92 - Tarik Skubal (RC)

Two rookies start the pack.  Are they "hottt rookiez"???   No idea.  

#68 - Charlie Blackmon

#176 - Jake Bauers

Nothing really needs to be added to the blogosphere consensus on the 2021 Topps design.  Yes the slashes are distracting and make it seem Donruss has a MLB license again.  Yes, we're back to many cropped images.  Yes, at least we got borders again.  Heck yes, the nameplate is too small.

#284 - Eloy Jimenez

#74 - Byron Buxton

Here's the checklist for those who are interested.  The Parallels section says there are Blue parallels for Wal-Mart and Purple parallels for Meijer.  So...no Target Red or Walgreens Yellow?

#301 - Buster Posey

#113 - Nate Pearson (RC)

#224 - Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

You almost miss that RC logo at the bottom corner.  

I didn't scan the back of the Posey card.  For inquiring minds, for 2020, Topps listed "Did Not Play - Opted Out".   100 years from now some new collector will look up Buster's stats and wonder why would he opt out of baseball.

#86B-71 - Gleyber Torres (1986 35th Anniversary)

#T52-29 - Rafael Devers (1952 Topps Redux)

The 1986 insert comes 1 in 4 packs, while every pack comes with a 1952 Redux.  I've seen some posts where the pack only had the '52.  You've been warned.

#228 - Blake Taylor (RC)

#258 - Walk-Off Apart (Checklist)

The blogosphere is pretty even when it comes to masked players.  I prefer to see it (and the cardboard fans too).  Cards are supposed to remember the year that was, and masks and cardboard fans were a part of it.

#130 - Josh Bell

#17 - Sean Doolittle

#222 - Tampa Bay Rays

The back of the Rays team card lists the 2020 team stats, team leaders, and a brief write-up.

Here are the backs because I was able to find packs:

Full stats are there so that's cool.  What's not cool?  See those 2 little black slashes between the write-up and the stats?  I thought those were dust or something at least half a dozen times.

Anyway, that's the pack.  Will I get more, considering most of us aren't fans of the release?  Of course I will if I get the opportunity.  When that will be, though, remains to be seen.

Stay safe, and thanks for reading!

P.S. (March 12 8 A.M. Central Time)  I stopped at the Target on the way to work as scheduled.  Nothing in the card aisle, but success in the toy aisle!  There was a side cap display 90% full of Series 1 hanger boxes.  I got 3.  Yes, still felt kinda guilty, but technically there was no signs limiting guests on the side cap display...and I'm still not a flipper.  So kids, take a hint from ol' Jafronius:  check the toy section too!