To me, the last thing in the world I’d purchase a baseball card for is to make an investment. While prospectors use knowledge to find those diamonds in the rough, I’ve never really had much luck. After all, I thought Tony Clark, Gabe Kapler, and Jose Cruz Jr. would all be nearing 500 career home [...]

I received a surprising phone call this afternoon from none other than Scott Prusha of Panini America. After a longer than expected conversation, somehow we came to terms with a sponsorship deal just two weeks before the two-year anniversary of Wax Heaven.One of the topics of discussion was my 2008 coverage of Panini, then Donruss. [...]

If you were driving along and the brake light came on, you’d probably stop, get your breaks checked and have the problem fixed.Unless you were the Mets. Then you’d keep going along your merry way, figuring that there was just a short in the sensor and there was nothing to really worry about. Later, [...]

Rian Fike has always had the talent to create art. Being a lifelong hockey fan living in South Florida during the Panthers’ best years, Rian loved Upper Deck’s challenge of drawing your own card for an upcoming hockey release.When Rian submitted his artwork to Upper Deck, he’d never imagined being selected among the winners. As [...]

To a Jose Canseco collector, there is no greater year in sports cards than 1989. Card companies began producing their product to reflect the 1988 season and that year there was no bigger name in baseball and perhaps all of sports than Jose’s.In the 1988 season, a young, Cuban slugger predicted to the media during [...]

As a guy who lives and dies boxing, I am extremely jealous of Topps’ UFC product. I reviewed the first ever release earlier this year and despite some grainy photography, it was the biggest surprise hit of 2009.This year, Topps took every step to make sure their UFC release would please everyone. Along with an [...]

Once again, Mr. Scott of The Wax Report has come through for readers of Wax Heaven. This time around he put down some serious money for two Hobby boxes of 2009 Upper Deck Ballpark Collection. You can see his results in the gallery below.Question: How did he do after spending over $300 dollars?.2009 Ballpark Collection [...]

There is a section in California where you can find celebrities all around you, shopping, eating, even whoring themselves out to the paparazzi for a few minutes in the spotlight. In this area, it’s common for homeless beggars to ask celebrities for money in front of cameras.Here is what happens when you ask Tito Ortiz [...]

There was once a time when Kimbo Slice was the most feared man on the planet, according to YouTube. His street fights became the stuff of legends and garnered millions of views a piece. Today, Kimbo is just another exposed fighter who proved to be nothing more than hype.After suffering his first loss at the [...]

Back in 2006 I was lucky enough to pull an Exquisite redemption from a single pack of ‘06 UD SPx baseball. ??After holding the unscratched redemption for a few days trying to decide what I wanted to do with it, I finally redeemed it online. ??I didn’t want to sell the redemption and then find [...]

I just wanted to show off to my fellow Braves, Marlins, Mets, and Nationals fans my new purchase I made this morning I’m really glad Charlie Manuel called in Brad Lidge last night to get the final out. ??I really wanted the Phillies to win their Division after being in first place for most [...]

The Yankees had a chance to set a record for most home wins at a new ballpark since the 1912 Boston Red Sox in their final 2009 regular season home game, but they blew it.One-time Yankee phenom Joba Chamberlain struggled and showed once again that maybe the “Joba Rules” method of developing young pitching isn’t [...]

One box of 2009 Bowman Chrome (supplied by Topps)
18 packs per box, four cards per pack

The Video



The Pulls

Base Set: 28 of 220 (12.73%)

Parallels

4 Refractors (1:4) The World's Fattest Vegetarian, M. Aviles, J. Mauer, N. Swisher
1 X-Fractor (1:10, numbered to 250) K. Matsui
1 Blue Refractor (1:17, numbered to 150) J. Posada
1 Gold Refractor (1:50, numbered to 50) C. Davis
1 Prospect Refractor (1:15, numbered to 500) J. Beresford
1 Prospect X-Fractor (1:10, numbered to 250) R. Perez

Inserts
Prospects: 23 of 70 (32.86%)
World Baseball Classic: 11 of 60 (18.33%)

Autogamers
1 Autographed Prospect (24 cards, 1:34) R. Singh

The Review

Sorry, I but I still don't get Bowman Chrome. It's a set you can't collect, and frankly, I really don't think Topps cares if you actually do. How else can you explain the fact that the "Autographed Prospects" in Bowman Chrome are numbered from #BCP91-114, while the "Autographed Bowman Chrome Prospects" from 2009 Bowman are numbered from #BCP111-127?

That's right. The Beamer Weems Orange Refractor I pulled on the grave of Jefferson Burdick (#BCP111) back in May HAS THE SAME CARD NUMBER as Tim Federowicz's Autographed Prospect card in BowChro!

Product Rating: 1 Gumstick (out of 5)

...and another thing.

If you need another reason why Topps should move Bowman Baseball from May to September and merge it with Bowman Chrome, here are three.

In 2009 Bowman Baseball, card #59 is of Tigers pitcher Armando Galarraga, #128 is of Nationals second baseman Ronnie Belliard, and #203 is the Rays' John Jaso . However in BowChro, Galarraga, Belliard, and Jaso were replaced by green-bordered rookies of Phillies pitcher Sergio Escalona, Orioles outfielder Nolan Reimold, and Oakland pitcher (and 2009 AL All-Star) Andrew Bailey, respectively.

This....
plus this...
equals this...

Without a doubt, the biggest story in The Hobby today was the first look at Topps’ flagship design. Not one to be outdone, Upper Deck released a teaser image of one of what is going to be many surprises for the 2010 season.Every 2010 Upper Deck release will feature Exquisite inserts. So for you die-hard [...]

When I think of brands from the 90’s that I could live without, Upper Deck’s Collector’s Choice comes to mind. I was in my mid-teens when I busted my first pack and even though I was young and naive, I knew this was a poor man’s trading card set.While I was not a big fan, [...]

Peace continues in the US while Topps goes to war against Bowman.

Even though its not due out for another few days, Press Pass sent over a box of their new 2009 Wheels Main Event for me to break and review. ??I’ll probably bust it on Friday and hold a contest this weekend for some of the stuff inside. ??Each hobby box contains (1) autograph and (2) [...]

I’m not terribly organized at the moment, but I believe this David Wright card was the last one I needed to finish the 2008 Topps Silk Mets team set.Even though these are limited to 50 copies per card, I did better collecting them than when I was trying to collect the First Day Production cards [...]

I’m going to guess that this post will not interest many of my regular readers, so please feel free to skip over it. You won’t hurt my feelings. I spent Friday and some of Saturday at this year’s New York Anime Festival. This was my third year attending the con, and it’s sort of [...]

One box of 2009 Upper Deck Allen & Ginter Goodwin Champions
20 packs per box, five cards per pack (paid $68)

The Video



The Pulls

Base Set: 57 of 210 (27.14%)

short set: 47 of 150 (31.33%)
short-prints: 8 of 40 (20.00%)
super short prints: 2 of 20 (10.00%)

Parallels
14 Minis
6 Exclusive Minis*
4 Black-Bordered Gypsy Queens
1 Black-Bordered Gypsy Queen Exclusive*
1 Foil Mini

* The "Exclusive Minis" are numbered as part of the base set (#211-252), but do not have a corresponding full-sized base card.

Inserts
10 20th Anniversary
1 Citizen of the Day (15 cards) P.T. Barnum
1 Animal Series (ten cards) Bengal Tiger

Autogamers
2 Memorabilia Series (98 cards): J. Papelbon, P. Konerko
1 Autograph Series (93 cards): K. Griffey, Sr.

The Review

Between the press releases and Facebook postings, Upper Deck has been hyping the you-know-what out of Goodwin Champions for months, and I finally have a box in my hands. Yes, let me state the obvious. Goodwin Champions is an Allen & Ginter rip-off -- not that that's a bad thing, of course. And yes, Upper Deck did a pretty good job keeping the look of the cards faithful to their 19th Century originals. But after this one box, I have to say that I'm disappointed.

The base set is 210 cards with the last 60 short-printed -- the last 20 of them tougher to find than the other 40. I don't want to go off on a rant here, but why are there this many SPs in a set this size? I could see having 60 SPs in a set twice this size, but in a set that's only 210 cards? Why?

Like A&G, there are the usual mix of baseball players, past and present, with a sprinkling of athletes from other sports mixed in. One thing I found curious was that, while the basketball and hockey players are shown in their NBA and NHL uniforms, respectively, the football players are depicted in their college unis. Strange, considering that I pulled a 20th Anniversary insert of Brett Favre wearing a Packer shirt.

Speaking of strange, let's get to the one-per-pack mini inserts. (Make that, one-in-most-packs, but two-in-others.) Each of the 210 base cards are paralleled in a tobacco-sized format. But then, UD added 42 extra cards that are available in the mini-sized format only.

WTF?!?!?!?!?

Now, before you mention that Allen & Ginter has, and has always had, "exclusive minis," there's one HUGE difference between the A&G and UDGC exclusives. The A&G exclusives have always (ALWAYS) been embedded inside a Rip Card, and have always (ALWAYS) featured players who were already in the regular base set. For example, in '09 A&G Albert Pujols is on Mini Exclusive card #361; but he also appears in the base set as card #71 and as mini card #71. In UDGC the 42 players tacked onto the mini set DO NOT appear in the base set. In other words, the mini card of Mariano Rivera I pulled in this box (card #222) does not have a corresponding full-sized base card.

As for the inserts, there are three: Citizens of the Day (19th Century celebrities), Citizens of the Century (current notables), and ten cards of wild animals. Of course, it wouldn't be a 2009 Upper Deck Baseball product without those wonderful 20th Anniversary cards everyone loves.

You get three hits in a box, and while all the ink has gone towards the horse hair and live bugs, you're more than likely to get two game jerseys and an on-card autograph.

The Bottom Line

Upper Deck just doesn't have it in them. They gave a good try with Goodwin, but they've yet to make a decent retro-themed product. I'll give them credit: The base cards do look great. But between the excessive number of short-prints, the mini-exclusive B.S., and the hopelessly out-of-place 20th Anniversary inserts, Goodwin just doesn't get it done.

For the record, I got about a-third of the base set and a-sixth of the SPs. I got two inserts, two rather indistinguishable jerseys, and an on-card autograph of Ken Griffey, Sr. that I'm actually happy with.

Product Rating: 2 1/2 Gumsticks (out of five)

... and another thing.

I'd thought I'd never say this, but Upper Deck 20th Anniversary may soon overtake the 2007 Topps A-Rod Road to 500 (a.k.a. The A-Rod Bullshit Waste of Space) for the title of "Worst Insert Set," ever.

OK, I take that back. They're not that bad. But in the same way the A-RBSWoS's didn't belong in 2007 Topps Heritage, UD20A's sure-as-hell don't belong in a set like Goodwin. If the A-Rod Bullshit Waste of Space were Kyle's cousin, then the 20th Anniversary cards are Towelie.

I know the big news of the day is that Kobe Bryant signed an exclusive deal with Panini. ??I think its great that it happened. ??For years he was with Upper Deck and for him to switch sides really stirs the pot of competition between the major manufacturers. ??Hopefully the competition will lead to newer [...]

Somehow I found myself at the Yankee game last night, and wouldn’t you know it? It was raining again.It would have been a perfect opportunity to explore the ballpark, except for the 40,000 other people jamming a too-narrow concourse.I did manage to meet up with my friend and in a bizarre coincidence, we ran into [...]

Its no secret that manufactured patches get pushed to the side like a piece of trash in The Hobby today. ??Most collectors don’t enjoy them because some companies classify them as “hits”, but in my opinion some of them are cool to own. ??Believe it or not but manufactured patches surfaced a long time before [...]

The Newark Bears’ 2009 season came to an end last night as the team lost an 8-3 decision to the Somerset Patriots.I was hoping that the Bears would carry some momentum from Saturday’s come-from-behind win into the game, but I think the nearly three-hour rain delay might have put a damper on things in more [...]

In all my years of collecting, it never occured to me why Press Pass didn’t produce baseball cards. ??I guess I’ve always thought of them for making college football, basketball and NASCAR stuff. ??I’m sure by now you’ve heard that in November they plan to release a new Multi-Sport product called Fusion. ??It will cover [...]

One box of Goodwin Champions: $68
62 $1 inserts: $62
Admission: $6
Tolls: $9
Grand Total: $145

Dennis Leonard was a dominating pitcher in the 1970s and early 1980s for the Kansas City Royals. He broke in with the Royals in 1974, two years before I was born. He pitched his last game for KC in 1986, when I was finally beginning to follow baseball enough to pay attention to who some [...]

Monty Sheldon is one of the better known sports artists in today’s hobby. ??After graduating from the Joe Kubert School of Cartooning and Graphic Art in Dover, New Jersey, he went on to become one of the early employees at Dark Horse Comics. ??After leaving Dark Horse Comics in 1998 he went on to pursue [...]

One box of 1995 Leaf Limited Series One
20 packs per box, five cards per pack

The Video

(fast forward to 7:50)



The Pulls

Base Set: 79 of 96 (82.29%)

Parallels
20 Gold (24 cards, one-per-pack)

Inserts
1 Lumberjack (eight cards, 1:23, numbered to 5000) A. Belle

Autogamers: NONE

The Review

1995 Leaf Limited. Ahh yes, I remember it well. In the era before autographs, game used cards, and obscenely scarce parallels, Leaf Limited was the ultimate. It was Donruss' answer to the new wave of "super-premium" products like Topps Finest, Flair, and SP, and it more than held its own weight.

14 years later and time has not been kind to '95 Leaf Limited. The first series was one of the first to feature a "true" rookie card of Hideo Nomo. Back then, collectors went bonkers trying to find a Nomo. But Nomo never really developed into the Hall of Fame pitcher everyone in 1995 was convinced he'd be. And while only 45,000 serial-numbered waxboxes of each series were produced, today you can get three boxes Leaf Limited for about the price of what one box went for in '95.

The base set consists of 96 cards, and are all done in what Donruss called "Spectra Tech" foil -- the rest of us just called it holographic foil. Most of the usual suspects are featured, although such players as Mark McGwire, Ken Griffey, Jr., and Greg Maddux were saved for the second series. Each pack had one of 24 Gold cards, a pseudo-parallel set that featured a different photo than the player's base card. The Spectra Tech foil makes the Golds a little more difficult to distinguish from the base cards, however the backs have a gold background, compared to a silver background in the base cards.

The big insert was the 16-card (eight in each series) Lumberjacks. Each card was serial-numbered to 5000 copies -- which in '95 was still considered scarce -- and printed on a wood veneer that gave it the look and feel of a baseball bat. In the era before game used cards, such "material" cards were a Donruss staple.

The Bottom Line

This box yielded about five-sixths of a base set, and five-sixths of the Gold insert. I also pulled an Albert Belle Lumberjack insert, which in 1995 would have been a $30-$40 card.

Product Rating: 3 Gumsticks (out of five)

If you've got $30 burning a hole in your pocket, and want something to bust, pick up a box of 1995 Leaf Limited.

I’ve been waiting for one of these to show up. ??This is the first 2009 TRISTAR Obak Cut Signature to hit eBay. ??Its of Chuck Connors and is serial numbered 1/1. ??I didn’t realize that these were inserted as redemptions. ??I guess they did that to protect the autograph. ??Right now it can be yours [...]

There are a ton of low-end grading companies within the industry. ??Rarely do they ever give a card less than a 10 grade. ??This evening I came across this seller who has a bunch of these Gem Mint 10 rookie cards up for sale. ??At first glance I thought they were graded by PSA, but [...]

Herb Score broke onto the baseball scene in 1955 destined for the Hall of Fame.

My entry into The Cardboard Junkie's 2009 Pirate Card Factory Set.



Too obvious, I know.

One box of 2008 Bowman Baseball (paid $73.44)
24 packs per box, 10 cards per pack

The Pulls

Base Set: 119 of 230 (51.74%)

short set: 119 of 220 (54.09%)
Autographed Rookies*: 0 of 10

Inserts
48 Bowman Prospects (110 cards, two-per-pack)

Parallels
24 Golds (one-per-pack)
1 Blue (1:14, numbered to 500) G. Sizemore
1 Orange (1:26, numbered to 250) D. Uggla
45 Bowman Chrome Prospects (110 cards, two-per-pack)
1 Bowman Chrome Prospects Refractor (1:34, numbered to 599) A. Liddi
1 Bowman Chrome Prospects Blue Refractor (1:126, numbered to 150) E. Beltre

Big Mojo Hits
1 Bowman Chrome Autographed Prospects X-Fractor (20 cards, 1:226*, numbered to 250) M. Bumgarner

* The odds of finding any autograph are one-per-box.

The Review

I have to be honest with you. I paid way, way, too much for this box of last year's Bowman. I'm still looking for a halfway decent cardshop in the D.C. area and I came across one on Route 7 in Sterling that had this box for $69.95 ($73.44 if you include the tax). Yes, I could have found this box for a lot less. But I needed something to bust for my BlogTV show. That, and I never got around to busting a box of this stuff last year.

As for 2008 Bowman, it's basically the same set Topps has issued for the last few years. I'm tempted to cut-and-paste my reviews of '07 and '06 Bowman, and list it here because that's all '08 is. There are no "rookies" in "The Home of the Rookie Card" anymore, and most of the Prospects are, at best, marginal.

One thing that Topps did change for 2008 (and they repeated for '09) is something they've been doing to the Bowman Draft Picks & Prospects set for years now. All the autographed Prospect cards are exclusive to Chrome. In other words, the Madison Bumgarner Autographed X-Fractor I pulled from this box is only available as an Autographed Chrome card, and not as either an unautographed Chrome, or a base Prospect.

Which is a shame since the only cards in '08 Bowman that seem to be worth a damn are the 20 Autographed Chrome Prospects. But unless you happen to get lucky like I did, if you buy a box of 2008 Bowman, you'll probably not get a card (any card) of David Price.

The Bottom Line

In addition to the aforementioned Bumgarner X-Fractor, I did pull a Blue Refractor of one of the few Chrome Prospects that is worth "something" -- a rarity for this product: Rangers farmhand Engel Beltre. Beltre had a decent 2008 season a Single-A Clinton, but struggled a bit a A+ Bakersfield.

I only got about have the base set, and less than half the Prospects. Not exactly a great deal for $70.

Product Rating: 2 Gumsticks (out of 5)

... and another thing.

For the last few years, there have been three Bowman-branded baseball products: Bowman, Bowman Chrome, and Bowman Draft Picks & Prospects. Bowman has been first (usually going live around April or May) and has the handicap of only being allowed to include "true" rookies of those players who made their Major League debut after the September 1st call-up. BowChro and BDP&P go live later in the year (September and December, respectively), thereby giving Topps the chance to issue actual, real, Rookie cards.

All of which begs the question: Do we really need three Bowman-branded card sets? Is it necessary to really have a Bowman baseball set in May? Why not fold Bowman and BowChro into one August/September release? Or, how about getting rid of Bowman and BowChro altogether and only issuing BDP&P?

For the video, go watch it on BlogTV.

One box of 2009 Topps Football -- provided for free by Topps
36 packs per box, 10 cards per pack

Base Set: 291 of 440
no doubles

Parallels
12 Gold (1:3, numbered to 2009) H. Baskett, C. Johnson, T. Thigpen, K. Smith, L. Fitzgerald, M. Ryan, Reed/Lewis, B. Orakpo, C. Greene, S. McKillop, J. Freeman
1 Black (1:42, numbered to 54) E. Graham

Inserts
25 Topps Town (25 cards, one-per-pack)
4 Gold Topps Town: McNabb, A. Rodgers, T. Romo, K. Collins
6 AFL 50th Year Flashback (15 cards, 1:6) A. Haynes, J. Marshall, D. Maynard, G. Blanda, B. Cannon, B. Groman
6 Chicle (100 cards, 1:6) J. Cutler, A. Curry, T. Jones, D. Mason, C. Wells, A. Gonzalez
4 Cheerleaders (15 cards, 1:9)
1 Ring of Honor (one card, 1:36) S. Holmes

Autogamers
1 Career Best Relic: C. Matthews

Product Rating: 3 Gumsticks (out of 5)

NOTE: I posted this on the fifth anniversary of 9/11. I will continue to post this each September 11th.


Here's a story that, outside of immediate friends and family, I've never shared with anyone before. Indulge me for a moment, as it is, somewhat, card related.

After weeks and weeks of endless "phone tag," a date and time had been set. At 1:30 PM that afternoon, Lloyd Pawlak (the guy whose facsimile signature is on the reverse side on all of your Fleer autogamers) and Jim Stefano would be interviewing me for a potential opening with Fleer Trading Cards.

This was the opportunity I've been waiting for my whole life. I mean, me, the ultimate card geek, was about to interview for a card geek's ultimate "dream job." Not only that, but their headquarters were only a short twenty minute ride up I-295!

As the days slowly ticked away, I planned out everything I would do that day right down to the millisecond. First, I was going to get up bright-and-early (well, 6:30 AM anyway), and call my boss with some BS "I'm sick" excuse. Next, I was going to hit the Wawa for my daily cup of joe and a doughnut. Finally, I would pick up my "interview suit" from the dry cleaners.

I was so amped with excitement, that I was able to accomplish all of these items by 8:15 AM. Still, I had five hours to kill until the interview. What to do?

At around 8:30 AM, on a total whim, I decided to "preemptively celebrate" my all-but-assured future sports collectibles career, by treating myself to breakfast. But not just any breakfast, but breakfast at the greatest greasy-spoon in the whole world: the Waffle House in Elkton, Maryland. (Yes, we have Waffle Houses up North now, and from time-to-time, when I need my fix; I make the pilgrimage down I-95 to Elkton.)

I think it was around the time I was on the down slope of the Delaware Memorial Bridge, approaching the $3 toll, when Ba-Ba-Booey interrupted Howard with news that an airplane had just flown into the World Trade Center.

It was all an accident. No big deal, right?

I think it was around the time I was finishing off my waffle and about to tear into a ham-and-cheese omelet plate, that the Waffle House's manager informed his staff, and the half-dozen-or-so customers, that the other WTC tower and The Pentagon had been flown into as well.

It was at that moment it all started to sink in. These were no accidents, or isolated incidents. These weren't just merely acts of "terrorism," whatever that word meant on September 10th. This was an act of war against the United States of America. For the first time in my life, after hearing twenty-seven years worth of stories about Pearl Harbor, I now knew exactly what my grandparents felt on December 7th, 1941.

While I continued to sip on my half-full and quickly becoming half-empty coffee mug, contemplating what was happening a hundred or so miles to the immediate Northeast and Southwest of Elkton, it occurred to me. How the hell was I going to get home? I still had to cross over that bridge. If those bastards -- keep in mind we still didn't know al-Qaida was responsible, or if there were any other "flying bombs" still left in the sky -- targeted the Twin Towers and The Pentagon; then the Delaware Memorial Bridge, the keystone of the Washington-to-New York transportation corridor, might be the next logical target! What was I to do?

After a few moments of contemplation and reflection, I slammed down my coffee mug, left a $20 bill underneath my half-eaten omelet platter, and high-tailed it back to South Jersey as fast as my '91 Mercury Capri could take me. I had to get home before they closed that bridge. Or worse.

I think it was around the time I arrived back home and turned on Channel 6, came the news that a fourth plane had crashed in some place in Pennsylvania none of us had ever heard of before. And then the first of the Twin Towers collapsed. And then the other. The look on Marc Howard's face after seeing the WTC towers vanish in front of all our eyes, is an image that will be burned in my memory forever.

My mother, as well as the rest of the Eastern Time Zone's labor force, was let out of work early, arriving home at around Noon. I immediately gave her the biggest hug a son could possibly have given to his mother. Her immediate concern was that the Air Force might recall me back to active duty and send her oldest son off to war. (I left in '99, but the USAF had until October of '02 to recall me. I never got the call, but if Uncle Sam needed me, He knew where to find me.) I had never seen my mother acting this way before. I can't think of the right word to say it. I wouldn't call it hysterical, but not quite despondent either. But as we embraced, I just kept whispering to her, "It's going to be all right. We're Americans. They're never going to get us here. It's all going to be all right."

At around 1:15 PM -- minutes before I was scheduled to have my dream job interview -- I called Jim Stefano to cancel. I got his voice mail, which leads me to believe that Fleer closed shop early as well. A few days later, I attempted to go to what was being called "Ground Zero" to pay my respects, but got no farther than Jersey City as the Holland and Lincoln tunnels were closed. I rescheduled my Fleer interview for the next week, and wound up not getting my "dream job" after all. But that story is for another time.

Hard to believe that it's been eight years, eh? I invite you to share your 9/11 stories in the comments section.

One Hobby Box (supplied to me for free by Topps) of 2009 Topps Chrome Baseball
24 packs per box, four cards per pack

Part One

Part Two


The Pulls

Base Set: 76 of 243 (31.28%)

short set: 76 of 220 (34.55%)
Autographed "Rookie" Cards (1:20 packs): 0 of 23

Parallels:
8 Refractors (1:3) S. Drew, D. Wright, C. Lee, J. Santana, B. Zito, Y. Gallardo, J. Bay, That J.D. Guy
2 Autographed "Rookie" Refractors (23 cards, 1:47, numbered to 499) R. Romero, G. Kottaras
2 Blue Refractors (1:13, numbered to 199) Pat the Bat, J. Mauer
1 Gold Refractor (1:50, numbered to 50) H. Matsui

Inserts
6 World Baseball Classic Stars (100 cards, 1:4) Chipper, some Dutch guy, some Italian guy, some Italian guy, and a couple of guys from Chinese Taipei
1 World Baseball Classic Stars Refractor (100 cards, 1:16, numbered to 500) some Dutch guy

I'm sorry, but still don't get the concept behind Chrome. I already bought these cards before, why do I need them again?

The 23 gimmicked rookies are not true Rookies, as all 23 appear in the 220-card short set. For example, I pulled an Autographed Refractor of Blue Jays pitcher Ricky Romero, which is card #234 in the set. However, card #193 in the base set is also of Ricky Romero. It's the same exact card as #234, only without the autograph; therefore, making this card (#193) the true RC. Epic Fail.

Product Rating: 2 1/2 Gumsticks (out of 5)

From last Sunday's Stale Gum LIVE! show, a box of the new Bowman '48 basketball.

And please don't ask about the sombrero.

One box (supplied by Topps) of 2009-10 Bowman '48 Basketball
24 packs per box, eight cards per pack

Part One:

Bowman '48 part 1 - Broadcast your self LIVE

Part Two:

Bowman '48 Box Break pt 2 - Broadcast your self LIVE

Part Three:

Bowman '48 basketball 3 - Broadcast your self LIVE


The Pulls

Base Set: 104 of 121

short set: 100 of 100
2009 Rookies: 3 of 14 (Numbered to 2009) B. Jennings, J. Holiday, T. Williams
Favorite Plays of the Professionals: 1 of 7 (Numbered to 1948)

62 doubles
2 triples

Parallels
20 Blue (numbered to 1948)
1 Black (numbered to 48): T. Parker

Inserts: NONE

Autogamers:

3 '48 Autographs: A. Jamison, T.J. Ford, K. Hinrich

In case you missed my first BlogTV LIVE! show, here's a little but of what you missed.

One box (supplied to me by Topps for free) of 2009 Topps American Heritage American Heroes Edition)
24 packs per box, eight cards per pack

Part One:


Part one American Heritag - Broadcast your self LIVE

Part Two:


Topps American Heritage p - Broadcast your self LIVE

Part Three:


Topps American Heritage 3 - Broadcast your self LIVE

The Pulls

Base Set: 131 of 150 (87.33%)

short set: 125 of 125
Lincoln/Obama subset: 6 of 25 (1:4)

19 doubles

Parallels
8 Chrome (1:4, numbered to 1776) M. Pitcher, S. Gompers, E. Crocker, J. Petrosino (X2), M. E. Walker, J. Monroe, N. Bly

Inserts
6 Heroes of Sport (25 cards, 1:4) M. Mantle, F. Robinson, R. Hornsby, H. Wagner, W. Johnson, G. Sisler
4 Heroes of Spaceflight (28 cards, 1:6) Aurora 7, Gemini VIII, Gemini IX-A, Apollo 12
12 Medal of Honor (50 cards, 1:2) E.A. Carr, T. Custer, O. P. Howe, J. Chamberlain, M. E. Walker, W. F. Cody, B. J. D. Irwin, J. E. V. Gaujot, G. R. Roberts, F. Bennett, W. Halford, O. B. Willcox
6 Presidential Medal of Freedom (25 cards, 1:4) J. Jackson, D. Ellington, H. Lee, J. Stewart, R. Petty, C. Powell
3 A Hero's Journey (15 cards, 1:8)

Autogamers
1 American Heroes Relics (14 cards) J. Moran
1 American Heroes Autographs (12 cards) F. Serpico

Baseball Boss, the virtual baseball card game, is reviewed one year later.

It can't be. Where's the tractor? And where's the ghost of Tommy Kramer peering over Favre's shoulder?

(h/t Beckett Blog)

Or at least it says so on page 18 of the new Beckett Baseball.

Don't believe me, see for yourself.

"Upper Deck announced in July that it has been granted a new trading card license from Major League Baseball."

Beckett: The Hobby's most reliable and relied upon source.

Topps sent me this box over a month ago. Shortly after I ripped this box, my laptop was out of commission for a few weeks, and I completely forgot about this break. All apologies.

Part One:



Part Two:

Back from the dead…. or at least that’s how it seems. ??We here at Sacbunt have been slacking BIG TIME on the blog entries. ??It’s been about a decade since my last entry on here…. or a week and a half. ??Either way, it’s been too long and this entry was long overdue. I guess [...]

Another question made its way into the mailbag yesterday and it’s one that I am sure is on several minds….including my own.Question:?? So do you think Heyward grabs a starting role in the Majors straight out of camp next year? He???s certainly dominating AA.Answer: Heyward’s jump to AA has exceeded expectations as he is hitting [...]

Yesterday’s scoreboard was limited almost exclusively to the Eastern League so today’s breakdown may be a little thin.?? Carlos Santana came a homerun away from hitting for the cycle, driving in his 83rd and 84th runs of the season.?? Santana has hit full stride this season after a July that saw him hit .311 with [...]

Allen Craig really likes to hit in the thin air of Colorado Springs as he belted three HR’s during a double header to raise his tally to 21 on the season.?? Craig has been as hot as any hitter in the minor leagues since the All Star break, hitting .446 with 13 HR 30 RBI [...]

Brandon Erbe has had a roller coaster of a professional career since the Orioles selected him in the first round back in 2005.?? After last year’s bounce back that saw him win 10 games and pitch 150 innings, Erbe got off to a solid start at Bowie with a 0.90 ERA in his first four [...]

Here is the box break/review that I hyped up a few days ago, 1997 SP! 1997 was the last year that the brand wasn’t dubbed ‘SP Authentic’ as it is today. Despite this, there are still quite a few authentic autographs and other great cards to be found. Let’s see what this box yielded…Box Details: [...]

What will the deal between Topps and MLB mean for baseball cards in the future?

Juan Francisco cranked out two more homeruns last night, raising his total to 22, and drove in four runs as part of a three hit night.?? Since I wrote about Francisco yesterday, I will seek out some new AA prospects to tout today.??Drew Locke became the first 100 RBI guy??in the minor leagues this season [...]

Eric Young Jr. couldn’t stay off of the bases as he rapped two hits and drew three walks yesterday, scoring three times.?? Oddly, he didn’t add to??his PCL-leading total of 54 stolen bases but his three runs scored yesterday brings his season total to an MiLB high of 99 for the season.?? Young’s name was [...]

It has been awhile since I have last posted on the blog so this was long overdue. ??I figured it was time to post a list of the cards I still need and the cards I have duplicates of for the 2009 Allen & Ginter set to hopefully make some trades towards helping complete the [...]

And no, this has nothing to do with baseball cards.

While its pretty much a given that my box will not be in the same ballpark as either of Beardy’s boxes (347 points is ridiculous!), I am still hoping to have a respectable finish so lets get to it…Pack 21#200 Carlos Quentin#70 Rick Ankiel#23 Kristin Armstrong#246 General Custer#26 Charles Goodyear#348 Justin Masterson SP (5 points)#HHB2 [...]

Sharing my first box of 2009 Topps Allen and Ginter is long over overdue.?? Let’s get right to it!N43 – Evan Longoria (+10 pts)Pack 1Jake Peavy #281Jeremy Bonderman #32Mark Buehrle #42Wyatt Earp #234Jason Wong #338 (+5 pts)Ichiro #AGHS14 (+3 pts)B.J. Ryan MINI #320 (+7 pts)Yuniesky Betancourt #NP44Pack 2Matt Garza #163Raul Ibanez #198Erik Bedaed #164CC Sabathia [...]

After an 8-0 blazing start to the season, American Legion Vienna Post 180 Baseball finished the Virginia District 17 regular season at 14-9; talk about a tale of two seasons. Finishing with nine losses is foreign territory for Vienna as the past two years we???ve either won the regular season title or come in 2nd [...]

Bobby Bonds is best known for his speed and power, as well as for being the father of Barry Bonds.

Eddie Mathews helped to power the Milwaukee Braves to two World Series in the 1950s

The Baseball Card Quiz poses questions about baseball and baseball cards from the Golden Age.

By Michael Shapiro, this book is more than baseball. It's politics, history and culture.

Harry Dorish - A Steal of Home

Richie Ashburn - The Throw That Won the Pennant

David Copperfield has given us an idea about how to increase the value of baseball cards.

The influence of baseball cards on education in the past and the role they can play now.

How did kids find out about baseball history in the 1950s?

Will this new online game create a new kind of baseball card collector?

The Vintage Baseball Card Blog discusses baseball card collecting today as compared to the golden age of the 1950s and 1960s.

The Vintage Baseball Card Blog discusses rookie baseball cards and their value now versus thier value at issue time.

The Vintage Baseball Card Blog discusses the Topps baseball Card Series' from 1956 and 1957, two of the best collections of baseball cards.

The Vintage Baseball Card Blog discusses specialty baseball cards, comparing the traditional baseball card to cards with special characteristics, such as embedded bat chips and uniforms.

The Vintage Baseball Card Blog discusses team managers and a little known incident involving an interview with Leo Durocher.

The Vintage Baseball Card Blog discusses the difference between old baseball cards and vintage baseball cards.

When was the Golden Age of Baseball and how does it compare to the Golden Age of Baseball Cards? An analysis of Hall of Fame Baseball players gives some insight into the age old question.

Did baseball cards save the game of baseball itself? Back in the 1950s the game wasn't really doing very well. Attendance was down throughout the league. Would television destroy the game? The baseball owners thought so.