Stocking Packs!

My wife stuffed a stocking for me and included were five packs.  She gave me two Dollar Tree packs of 2010 Update, two retail packs of 2008 Upper Deck X, and one retail pack of 2010 Topps Football. 














I hadn't opened any Update yet, and I'm trying to finish the 2008 Upper Deck X trifecta of Base, Die Cut, and Die Cut Gold, so the baseball packs were perfect.  The football pack was great, too, because I opened maybe one rack pack of Topps Football this year and wanted more.

Topps Update (Dollar Tree packs contain 5 base cards):

1: Ty Wigginton AS, Jeff Keppinger, Jake Arrieta RC, Bobby Wilson, Vladimir Guerrero/Miguel Cabrera AS  
>>> Not much to talk about in this pack, especially the extremely boring Vlad/Cabrera card.

2: Felipe Paulino, Gaby Sanchez, Mike Redmond, Josh Bell RC, Bobby Crosby.
>>> Still not much to talk about.

Upper Deck X:

1: Justin Verlander, Chien-Ming Wang, Jim Thome, Chase Utley Die Cut, Mariano Rivera Xponential, Carlos Quentin Die Cut Gold
>>> I have already completed the base set, but this pack was awesome since I needed the Utley and Quentin.

2: Alex Rios, Jonathan Papelbon, Josh Beckett, Whitey Ford Yankee Stadium Legacy, Russell Martin Xponential, Josh Hamilton Die Cut
>>>Not as lucky here as I already had the Hamilton.  I'm still debating as to whether I want to go after all the Xponentials as well. Does anyone collect the Yankee Stadium Legacy cards? I've got like 100 or so sitting around gathering dust.

Topps Football:

1: Brian Cushing, Jared Allen, Aqib Talib, Deon Butler, Michael Jenkins, Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins,  Anthony Davis RC, Toby Gerhart RC, Terrence Cody RC, Ben Tate 75th Draft Anniversary, DeSean Jackson Attax
>>> The insert weren't great here, and neither were the base cards.  Aqib Talib helped Kansas beat VT in the '08 Orange Bowl, so I could live without seeing any more of his cards.  I like Gerhart, so I guess this pack wasn't too bad.

I'm ecstatic that I knocked off another die cut and die cut gold off the list, so these cards were greatly appreciated.  I've only just begun on my Christmas loot, I've still got 7 packs and two hobby boxes to go, so be on the lookout.  A lot of good trade bait is on the way.

2010 Best of Chrome Value Box: Bowman Platinum Hobby

This is last pack from the first box of cards from my Christmas loot.  Before Christmas, my wife and I were out doing some last minute browsing, and I bought myself a Topps 2010 Best of Chrome Value Box from Target with some early Christmas money her grandfather sent us.













 Naturally, I have to break it down into 5 separate posts: Topps Chrome, Bowman Chrome, Million Card Giveaway, Special Refractors, and Bowman Platinum Hobby.  This is the last post for this box, and is what I expected to be the highlight: 2010 Bowman Platinum Hobby

PP23: JD Martinez Prospect
>>> Who?

PP42: Brad Miller
>>> Center for the Houston Rockets...no?...ummmm...Congressman from North Carolina...no, again? I give up...

45: Pablo Sandoval
>>> Hey, I actually recognize that guy.

32: Vladimir Guerrero
>>> I've seen a fair amount af Vlad here lately. 

15: Joey Votto
>>> Finishing out the pack with an MVP...I can live with that.
The scans suck:

I don't really see the need for this set and I don't find it particularly appealing, though I do also have a retail pack and a retail value rack pack to post later.  I don't plan on buying more Bowman Platinum, mainly because I'm broke, but also because I would prefer almost any other product.  All in all, I'd say this box was ok.  I didn't get anything too special, but it was a nice variety I guess.  I've got a ton more Christmas stuff to come...

2010 Best of Chrome Value Box: Special Refractors

This is another group of cards from my Christmas loot.  Before Christmas, my wife and I were out doing some last minute browsing, and I bought myself a Topps 2010 Best of Chrome Value Box from Target with some early Christmas money her grandfather sent us.













 Naturally, I have to break it down into 5 separate posts: Topps Chrome, Bowman Chrome, Million Card Giveaway, Special Refractors, and Bowman Platinum Hobby.  Here are the 5 Special Refractors:

BC-1: Stephen Strasburg
>>> About time Topps put out a Strasburg card...

BC-2: Starlin Castro
>>> No offense to Castro, but this should have been Buster Posey.

BC-3: Jason Heyward
>>> No offense to Heyward, but this should have been Neftali Feliz.

BC-4: Mickey Mantle
>>> Seriously, who comes up with these miniset ideas.  Who had the gigantic brass balls to say, "We'll have Strasburg as #1, then a couple of other rookie card-sellers that weren't ROYs, and then we'll have Mantle."

BC-5: Jackie Robinson
>>> See above, and replace "Mantle" with "Robinson".

 

I dig the special refractors but haven't ruled out having them as part of a contest or putting them on ebay.  I'd prefer to keep them together, but we'll see.  Stay tuned for more Best of Chrome.

2010 Best of Chrome Value Box: Million Card Giveaway

This is more of my Christmas loot.  Before Christmas, my wife and I were out doing some last minute browsing, and I bought myself a Topps 2010 Best of Chrome Value Box from Target with some early Christmas money her grandfather sent us.













 Naturally, I have to break it down into 5 separate posts: Topps Chrome, Bowman Chrome, Million Card Giveaway, Special Refractors, and Bowman Platinum Hobby.  Here are the results of the 2 Million Card Giveaway Code Cards included in the box:

I love that they put great cards on the code cards to get your hopes up.  Maybe I'll finally grab that darned elusive '52 Mantle.  My money is on '87 Topps. 









Olmec says:

and

That's the second oldest card I've gotten in the Topps MCG Hidden Temple of Beat-to-Hell cards.  Well, that was fun.  Do I at least get points for a Legends of the Hidden Temple reference?

Stay tuned for more Best of Chrome.

2010 Best of Chrome Value Box: Bowman Chrome

This is second set of packs of my Christmas loot.  Before Christmas, my wife and I were out doing some last minute browsing, and I bought myself a Topps 2010 Best of Chrome Value Box from Target with some early Christmas money her grandfather sent us.













 Naturally, I have to break it down into 5 separate posts: Topps Chrome, Bowman Chrome, Million Card Giveaway, Special Refractors, and Bowman Platinum Hobby.  Here are the results of the 5 packs of Bowman Chrome:

1: Brady Shoemaker (Prospect), Phillip Pfeifer III (USA), Aaron Hill
>>> Yeah, I guess getting a USA card is good, right?

2: Noel Arguelles (Prospect), Clay Buchholz, Bobby Abreu
>>> Um...

3: Simon Castro (Prospect), Vladimir Guerrero Refractor, Trevor Cahill
>>> A nice refractor, good, I needed something to break the ice.

4: Chris Schwinden (Prospect), Ryan Howard, Jacoby Ellsbury
>>> Nothing special, but at least the players are decent

5: Adeinis Hechavarria (Prospect), Carlos Santana Refractor, Shin-Soo Choo

>>> Good finish with a rookie refractor of a legendary guitarist...oh wait.  (Sorry, I know you've heard that joke a thousand times this year, but now you've heard it from me...1,001.)

Well, that was a little lackluster compared to the Topps Chrome. I would have liked to have pulled at least one player I collect, but I'm always satisfied to open packs regardless.  As always, if you see something you like, let me know.  Stay tuned for more Best of Chrome.

2010 Best of Chrome Value Box: Topps Chrome

This is the first few packs of my Christmas loot.  Before Christmas, my wife and I were out doing some last minute browsing, and I bought myself a Topps 2010 Best of Chrome Value Box from Target with some early Christmas money her grandfather sent us.













 Naturally, I have to break it down into 5 separate posts: Topps Chrome, Bowman Chrome, Million Card Giveaway, Special Refractors, and Bowman Platinum Hobby.  Here are the results of the 5 packs of Topps Chrome:

1: Carlos Gonzalez, Jon Lester, Joe Mauer, Mickey Mantle
>>> Starting off with a plain jane pack with nothing special. Even the Mick doesn't have the same excitement when you already have a few of that card.

2: Brandon Phillips, Curtis Granderson, AJ Burnett Purplefractor #065/599, Alex Rios
>>> Ok, now we're getting somewhere, nothing wrong with a numbered/colored/refractored card

3: Chris Coghlan, John Lackey, Ryan Dempster Xfractor, David Wright
>>> An Xfractor (Topps Chrome base should be Xfractors...that would be sweet)  and a David Wright that I needed, that's what I'm talking about.

4: Felix Hernandez, Mark Teixeira, Robinson Cano Refractor, David Wright
>>> David Wright hot box!!! Ok, two cards does not a hot box make, but I'll take it.  The Cano Refractor is a nice action shot.

5: Michael Cuddyer, Michael Young, Russell Martin Xfractor, Ubaldo Jimenez

>>> A nice Cuddyer for the collection and a Russell Martin Xfractor.  Most people think of defying the odds as pulling an auto or something like that.  I think it would actually be more appropriate to define "defying the odds" as not getting a Russell Martin card when opening a pack.  Seriously, he's everywhere.

Nothing spectacular in there, but a pretty solid start to the box.  As always, if you see something you like, let me know.  Stay tuned for more Best of Chrome.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!...and what to expect from My Cardboard Mistress in 2011

I wonder how many blogs set posts to be made at midnight like I did...anyway, we'll call this a State of the Blog post of sorts as I want to cover everything you can expect from me in 2011.  I plan to diversify and add some regularity to the blog with a few regularly occuring post concepts, so I wil cover some of those here.  In honor of '11, here are 11 things - resolutions, if you will - to expect in 2011 from My Cardboard Mistress:

1. Cardmas - First things first, I will be posting all of my various Cardmas presents from my wonderful family.  Some great stuff in there.

2. Trade bait - I will be sporadically posting cards as trade bait before moving them to Ebay or COMC.  I prioritize trading over selling, but hope to sell enough early in the year to pay for a hobby box of Allen and Ginter.

3. Banner update - Brett Favre and Tony Parker have been working hard on their images, so I should show them the same effort, right?

4. Space Shots pack break - I owe this one to Collective Troll and feel bad I haven't gotten to it yet.  He specifically sought me out to get me some space cards, so I need to get these up.  I hope to foray into video breaking for this one.

5. Random sports related item posts - could be anything from autographed items to medals I won in high school.  Oh, and I also have middle school and high school yearbooks that contain the likes of Scott Sizemore, Justin Upton, BJ Upton and David Wright.

6. Antique tools - I plan to mix it up every now and then by spotlighting some of the great stuff that my wife's Grandfather has given me.  He has been downsizing the amount of stuff he owns and he wanted to give me his antique tools, which I was honored to accept.  Seriously some awesome stuff. 

7. Tons of random packs - You may have noticed a poll on the sidebar asking you to vote which packs you are most interested in.  I have busted and scanned all of those, so I need your help in determining what order to post them.  I'm not sure how I will interpret the results (most poular first...or last...or most popular, then least, then next to most...you get the idea) but I am very interested to see what everyone prefers. 














8. Contests - I can guarantee I will have a few contests this year, of various formats and difficulties. Some possibilities: Febraury to commemorate my 1 year wedding anniversary, July when I reach one year of blogging, October for my birthday...and maybe a couple others for any other random events that might pop up.

9. New want lists - I'm going to put some new want lists up at some point when I get around to organizing some of the sets I want to complete.  I also plan to add a list of the few cards that I want really bad at the moment.

10*. Eating better, exercising, saving money - and all that other crap I fail to do every year.

11. Listening to the audience - Tell me what you want to see...did 1-10 spark any ideas/comment/criticisms/etc?  Share them with me, I want to know.  I try to include a lot of visuals with my posts because I like shiny pictures and I read slowly, so the pictures help me.  Do you want more pictures? fewer pictures? some amount?...yes, yes I know it's ironic that this is a post with only one picture...deal with it.

*When I started this list, I thought I had 11 things to bring to the table...alas, I had to fudge #10 to get there.