2011 Upper Deck Football

I believe the total damage here was a blaster and a handful of loose packs.  All discounted, all from Target. 

There are some great shots in this set.  The picture-in-picture design with identical pictures isn't helping UD's case, but the cards aren't bad.

 

 

 

Ugh, Herman Moore in those ugly jerseys.  The Rice is pretty cool, but the Keith Jackson is amazing.  It's almost hard to tell what's happening at first because he stands out from the background so well. 

 

 

Hogan went to my co-worker for his WVU collection.  The colors on the Smith card look great.

 

 

 

I'm not a huge fan of these cards, mainly because there's not a connection between the players.  I get the "dream" part, but there should be some connection.

 

 

 

This is a little better, though the insert title is tough to read.  I would have preferred if they showed head-to-head player stats instead of overall team records.  For the record, AJ Green and Julio Jones faced each other once, when they were both freshman.  Green caught 6 passes for 88 yards and a touchdown.  Jones caught 5 passes for 94 yards and a touchdown.

 

 

These are like a mashup of a diploma and a $1 bill.  Not a big fan.

 

 

Lastly, we get to the retro rookie cards.  I really like these, and Kaep is a good one to get.  It's crazy how thin he was at Nevada.





2013 Topps Series 2

More cleaning out of the "old scans" folder.

Lombardozzi is the Gunther Gebel-Williams of Gatorade.

That Cabrera Die Cut deserves better than being lumped in with these other cards.  Oh well, he'll live.

Sweet Justin Upton for my collection. 

I guess I can't lie and say I overpaid for these at Toys'R'Us, huh?

Something just feels right about a gold Goldschmidt.

That's all.

2013 Topps Pro Debut

I grabbed a pair of Pro Debut packs hoping for a shot at a Puig when the craze hit.  I didn't get a Puig, but I did pretty well.

The design is the same as 2013 Topps flagship, of course, but with MiLB logos.  I didn't get any inserts, but I did manage two of the box's 4 hits.

Fu-Lin Kuo might not have panned out as a prospect, but his signature is pretty unique. 

This is Homer the Dragon of the Charlotte Knights.  It's also the gold parallel #28/50.  I really like the mascot cards, even if they are a blatant ripoff of Upper Deck.  I'm sure Colbey will be interested in this card.

I didn't get a Puig, but I certainly wasn't disappointed.  It's not every day that you buy two packs from a 24-pack box and end up with 2 of the 4 hits.

Fantastic Value: Part 3

  1x 2012 Topps OD Rack
  1x 2012 Topps Archives
  1x 2012 Bowman
  1x 2012 Gypsy Queen
  1x 2012 A&G

I figured I'd list the last five packs up front so I don't have to break my stride.

Ok.

Not bad.

Wonderful.

Very nice, though it's pretty sad that an Opening Day rack pack is looking like the class of this box.

Not a fan of the awkward photoshop duo.  Yogi is pretty cool though.

Bowman is bowman.  Glad to snag that Verlander.

 

Standard GQ fare.

 SP...didn't need it.

The mini is the last card out of the box, and the nail in the coffin for my hopes of getting fantastic value. 

I did get to enjoy opening 15 packs and got some cards for my collections, so I'm not complaining.

I didn't spend my money on it to make my money back.  I spent money on it to have a little bit of fun.  In that regard, I certainly made a profit.

Fantastic Value: Part 2

Let's start with two packs of 2011 Topps Series 2:

Remember when Topps had an online thing where you had a realistic chance at getting a real card?

Meh.

A reprint of a 1989 Topps card. Isn't that special.

Not bad here, though.  The sparkly anniversary cards are pretty nice.  This one has a great picture, too.

Next up, 2008 Upper Deck Series 1 Rack Pack

Cool shots.

Ok, so maybe they're lukewarm commodities.

Now there's some value. 

Ok, moving on.  2009 UD Series 2 rack pack

I think those were both common.  Not much value there.

Since we're not exactly tearing it up, I'll go with 2008 UD First Edition.  It's not really possible to have value in that.

Maybe I'll sell this after he retires.  Probably not, though. 

I like Thome, but I think I have a handful of these already.


Don't worry guys, we'll get through this.  Just one more day to go.

Fantastic Value: Part 1

We've all seen them.  Sitting, lonely on the shelf at Wal-Mart.  Fantastic Value! it says.  Interesting choice of word.  Only in a fantasy world would this box provide a load of value.  However, I am a hopeless pack ripper, so perhaps that's where the value lies.

  4x 2012 Topps S2
  2x 2011 Topps S2
  1x 2012 Topps OD Rack
  1x Leaf Pete Rose
  1x 2012 Topps Archives
  1x 2012 Bowman
  1x 2008 UD First Edition
  1x 2012 Gypsy Queen
  1x 2012 A&G
  1x 2008 UD S1 Rack Pack
  1x 2009 UD S2 Rack Pack

15 packs for me to rip.  I'll do 5 per post to force you to watch this thing unfold for 3 days.

I'll start with the 4 2012 Topps Series 2 packs.

Good start, Fantastic Value Box...but I'm on to you.  You can't butter me up with base Topps.

No...no I haven't wondered that.  I also don't know if you are a card or filler.

Willie Mays die cut...not bad...especially since it's not an image you see every day.

These card designs still suck.

Ok, now we're getting to something with some value. 

And now we're not.  A Wal-Mart parallel.  Seriously say that.  Don't say "blue exclusive".  It's a Wal-Mart parallel.  It's a Wal-Mart parallel.  It's a Wal-Mart freakin' parallel.  It's a freakin' Wal-Mart freakin' parallel.  You can put squirrels in the set, or presidents, or sunglasses, or pies-in-the-face and I don't care.  None of those are as dumb as Wal-Mart parallels.

Lastly, I'll finish with a Leaf Pete Rose pack:

Sorry Leaf, mine were better.