1999 SkyBox Thunder

Here's another blast from the past. It looks like that 2020 Topps post is going to have to wait.

We start things off with a couple of weird things. First, here's this contest entry form.

And here's one of those thin, frequently discarded checklist cards. These are often unnumbered.

252 - Rafael Palmeiro - We finally dig into the meat of the pack with the meaty Palmeiro. Well, that's probably not all he was made of.

165 - Scott Elarton - I can honestly say that these fonts set my skin on fire. You also get a glimpse of the nearly as hideous '90s Astros logo here.

161 - David Justice - Another big name of the '90s.

183 - Brian Jordan RANT - The pack odds mention a 1:2 chance of pulling a "RANT" parallel, which is exactly what we got here. The foil is a different color, and on the back it's actually stamped RANT... with no other clear explanation. This one heads to my collection, since it depicts a Cardinal even though he's off to another club.

20 - Edgardo Alfonzo - Alfonzo wears lucky 13, my favorite number. This is something I didn't know until just now.

104 - Craig Biggio - Here's a HOFer apparently practicing pop-ups in SkyBox Studios or something.

38 - Neifi Perez - This actually isn't a tiny set, like some of the stuff Fleer used to put out, so it's surprising that I actually know all of the guys in the pack.

25 - Chuck Knoblauch - It's hard for me to think of this guy without recalling Chris Berman calling him "New Kids on the Knoblauch!" for more than a decade, just beating and beating and beating it to death in that way of his.