2020 Topps Chrome Black Hobby Box Break AND REVIEW!

It's been a while since I've written a product review, so let's throw it back and give it a shot.

Topps Chrome is my favorite baseball release each year. When I heard about Topps Chrome Black, I was interested to take a look. Initially I was a little disappointed to see that each box would only contain four cards - one encased autograph, one refractor, and two base cards.

Despite my disappointment, plainly stated, I am sucker. Especially for new products. I set a calendar reminder in my phone for the product release, and logged on Topps website when the boxes went live. I went in with pretty low expectations. For those of you that have tried to buy products direct from Topps, you'll know that it can be a dreadful process. When I was able to add a box to my cart, I started to get my hopes up. A few more clicks on the screen and my payment processed. My confirmation email hit my inbox. My box was on it's way. 

A few days later, it arrived. At this point my disappointment in the checklist had dissolved and I was just thankful to have gotten my hands on a box at MSRP.

Fancy packaging! Topps has clearly invested some effort into making this product appear to be high end.

To my surprise, the encased autograph was not wrapped. It just sits under the pack of three cards. That's not a problem, I guess it's just not what I was expecting. Naturally I moved the pack aside and checked out the encased autograph. I found myself to be the lucky recipient of an on-card auto from one Domingo Leyba. 

I'll be honest, I had never heard of the guy. I had to look him up, and all I learned is that he's played in less than 25 big league games, and that he was suspended for the entire 2020 season due to PED use. Sweet!

I'm not crazy about the autograph card design. The good ol' "make a big white space where the autograph goes" design is just garbage. Since the cards are, ya know... black... there's no other option. The white diagonal gash across the card just isn't cute. 

*It's worth noting that the autograph checklist is pretty solid.* There are tons of great vets and Hall of Famers. Ichiro, Vlad Guerrero, A-Rod, Derek Jeter, Mike Trout, and so on. I think I may have pulled the single least desirable autograph on the checklist... such is life.

Now for the contents of the three card pack:

Going from left to right, we've got a Jake Fraley Green Refractor #/99, a Brendan McKay base rookie, and Mauricio Dubon base rookie. 

So... yeah, this could have gone better. Not exactly the names that you're hoping for. I'll look for some silver linings here: One, it's nice to pick up a rookie of Brendan McKay. He's an exciting prospect, as a pitcher with the potential to also DH. Two, the design on the refractor is sweet. Do I wish it were numbered lower than 99? Probably. Do I wish it were someone not named Jake Fraley? Perhaps. 

But I will say, the green-metallic background looks incredible. I'm not sure exactly how to describe it, as the print material is not something I've really seen on a baseball card. Here's another look. I tried to catch it at an angle under the light:

The contrast with the matte black really makes it pop. It's not the usual refractor "foil" paper. It almost looks like the whole card is metal, even though it's not. 

REVIEW:

Overall Design: The base cards are fine, the refractors are absolutely awesome, and the autographs suck.

The Hits: Only 1 guaranteed autograph is tough for the price ($150 MSRP). The autograph checklist is very solid, but the card design is poor.

Positives: Refractors are gorgeous, autos are on card, autograph checklist has a great mix of stars.

Negatives: Only one autograph, autograph card design, only four cards per pack, price point.

Rating: 6 out of 10. Overall, pretty underwhelming. If I hit an Ichiro or Trout autograph, I'd probably be singing a slightly different tune, but my feelings about this product are pretty strong. The refractors are sexy, the base cards are meh, and it's overpriced. I had fun ripping the box but I'm not itching to get another one. Frankly this feels like another unnecessary release by Topps. If you rip a box, pray for a good autograph. Otherwise the buyer's remorse could set in quickly. 

Thanks for reading!

Hot Corner Sends a Killer Cole

Way back in September, I formed a nice trading relationship with Pat from Hot Corner Cards. Pat's a huge Tigers fan, and is definitely my go-to guy with my extra Tigers cardboard. I sent him a nice Justin Verlander Relic a few months ago as well as some set needs, if my memory serves me correctly. 

Not only did Pat send me some awesome cards, he also packaged them in the most clever way I've never seen. Pat cut out one horizontal row of a binder page and loaded each of the three slots with three cards. He wrapped the plastic in one piece of blank paper and slipped it in a PWE. It was a perfect fit. 

This a secure way to send cards, and it's also affordable- two stamps will cover it. I'm definitely stealing this method! 

Now for the cardboard:

The Wilson brothers! Not literally brothers, but it seemed like they could have been as they were both fixtures in the Pirates line-up for a five year period. Neither achieved any overwhelming success, aside from Jack who had a career year in 2004. That year, he hit .308 and had over 200 hits, earning him All-Star recognition and a Silver Slugger award. Craig, a supposed power guy, was more a less a bust. He only broke the 20 HR mark once in his short 6 year career.

Here's a nice reminder that Aramis Ramirez was in fact a Pirate at one time. He held down the left side of the infield with Jack Wilson in the early 2000's, having one of the best years of his career in 2001. He and Jose Bautista form a short list of 3B's that the Buccos wish they could have held onto. Pedro Alvarez will likely join that list soon to a large contract with a larger market team.

Next up are nice retail-only black parallels from this year's Heritage, which we're all familiar with at this point. I've written before about how much I love black Pirates parallels. These are no exception. And neither is this....

As the title alludes to, I personally feel that this Gerrit Cole card is killer. Not only do I love black borders, but I also love refractors. Mix in the fact that this card is short printed /65 and you've got the recipe for a perfect card. This is a (literal) shining example of what beautiful cardboard looks like!

Pat, thanks so much for the cards. They've found the perfect home!

2014 Topps Gypsy Queen TRADE BAIT!

Good evening friends. I've finally gotten around to sorting all of my GQ from this year, and I was able to amass a Pirates team set from Judson's group break. 

Speaking of that group break, it gave me a TON of dupes and extra trade bait. I had the Pirates and Red Sox, so you'll see a theme here. I also ripped a few hobby packs from my LCS. I've set aside all the cards I want. Here's what I don't:

The mini's. Mostly Sox. There's a nice Ted Williams variation in there.

Judson actually pulled two Jeff Locke auto's, and I only need one. That Shields card looks sick with the blue border, /499.

Some inserts above. And more...

And lastly, the numbered mini's...

Nothing too crazy here, although I imagine that the Bogaerts RC holds some nice value.

So, let me know if you see anything you like! I also have TONS of base cards from Red Sox and Pirates (probably a few full teams sets). You can reach me, as always, at nsbell440@gmail.com.

Thanks for reading!

PC Additions

Today's post will be a quick one, highlighting three cards that I'm excited to add to my personal collections:

This card is from 2013 Update, one of the retail only chrome refractors. Back in November, I posted about how much I love black Pirates parallels. Frankie didn't have a card in the 2013 Chrome set, so it's great to be able to add this chrome parallel, #'ed out of 99.  I'm still looking for the same card of Pedro Alvarez. The only one on eBay is a bit too pricey.

This beauty was sent to me by the wonderful Judson Meeks over at My Cardboard Habit. Judson has been sending me some awesome Pirates cards for a few months now, and gets more generous by the day. This card is also from Chrome Update, retail only. The gold border looks great, and so does the /250 stamp on the flipside.

 Thanks, Judson!

My final addition is terribly random. I'm not necessarily a superfan of Drew Brees, and I don't have a Drew Brees PC. But several Sundays ago, I was watching Brees shred Carolina's defense for over 300 yds and 4 TD's. As the broadcasters were raving about the future hall-of-famer, I thought, "It would be great to own a tangible piece of this guy's career." So I did what any compulsive collector would do... hopped on eBay and grabbed a jersey card! It's numbered to 249, so it carries a bit of rarity which I always appreciate. Less than $5 shipped- can't beat!

I recently created a Twitter account to coincide this blog, as well as my collecting in general. Give me a follow - @big44cards

Thanks for reading! 

Parallel Perfection

Parallels have become a fixture in card collecting. Every collector has an opinion on them. In general, I'm a big fan of parallels, although they have gotten out of hand over the past few years in terms of abundance. Here's an example of parallels creating some gorgeous cards:

After I heard that 2013 Topps Chrome included black parallels numbered to 100, I could only imagine how awesome the Pirates cards would look, and I had to put a team set together. They did not disappoint. I was able to snag each of these off of eBay for decent prices. They're rare enough to have some value, but not so rare that they're unobtainable. 

Sometimes parallels can look very odd. When the border colors match the team colors, it just looks amazing.

2013 Topps Gypsy Queen Hobby Box Break and Review

BASEBALL FANS! I have finally purchased a baseball hobby box! Since I've recently began to blog about my hobby, I've been reviewing only basketball cards. I've connected with many collectors, almost all of whom are baseball guys. Hopefully this will be refreshing. This was a sensational break for many reasons. I hope you enjoy!

 Here are the base cards, with two of my main men. These are really sharp cards. I was fortunate enough to pull almost all of the Pirates base cards in one box. I missed Burnett and Stargell. 

Manny Machado made a double appearance. On the left is his mini variation card, bearing that "RC" which we all love to see. On the right is his base card.

Moving on to the inserts! On top is an example of the Collisions at the Plate cards which highlight one of my favorite parts elements of the game. The lower card is part of the Sliding Stars set, with none other than my man Cutch! Gorgeous card.

To the left is the Dealing Aces insert, picturing Fantasy Baseball stud Matt Moore. To the right is the No Hitters insert.

 (L) Glove Stories insert, and also the highlight of Travis Snider's career. That wraps up the inserts.

(R) Paul Goldschmidt Blue Border Parallel, #ed to 499

(L) Josh Rutledge Green Mini Parallel. /99

(Middle) Russel Martin Sepia-Tone Parallel /50. This box was VERY generous with the Buccos!

(R) Ian Desmond Black Parallel /199

Here are my two relic pulls, two nice cards! Evan Longoria mini, and an awesome Paul Konerko jumbo, numbered to 25. I'm a bit burnt out on relic cards- they don't too much for me any more. The Konerko card, however, is a different story. This is a really neat card. On to the autos...

 (L) Anthony Rizzo Base auto. I love Rizzo's potential, and his signature is very attractive. Blue ink looks great.

(R) Wilin Rosario base auto. Not bad!

 

 A little bonus. Actually, a big bonus! I have never had the privilege of pulling a printing plate, and I couldn't ask for a better name for my first. It's interesting to think that I was booing this guy at PNC park just a few weeks ago for initially failing to select Pedro Alvarez for Home Run Derby. Now he's reason I have an awesome card. Thank you Mr. Wright!

REVIEW

Overall Design:  The photography is excellent- specifically the contrast. Topps did a superb job of blurring the backgrounds and making the players jump off the cards. Some of the poses are incredible.

Box contents: The base set is made up of 350 cards, and I've heard it's an awesome set to chase. A hobby box will bring you a total of 240 cards, so it's a great place to start. The inserts could also be fun to chase. As I mentioned earlier, I love the Collisions inserts. The Sliding Stars set is an interesting choice, because... all baseball players slide... but I guess there's only so much you can do! The mini cards also add an awesome element for collectors.

The Hits: The base auto set contains several mediocre players, and in my mind is nothing special. There are several other autograph sets however, and there's some huge names there. Lots of Trout, Justin Upton, Freese, Trumbo, etc. The mini relic cards are average, but there are other types as well, such as jumbos and triple swatches. The availability of serial numbered cards, parallels, and variation cards (or any combination of the three) make a box break very exciting.

Positives: Card design, availability of serial numbers, variety of hits, retired players mixed in, variety in checklist

Negatives: Some teams are underrepresented in base set. A tad bit pricey, but certainly not a ripoff. 

Design is very similar to past designs. I dearly hope they change it up for 2014.

Rating: 9 out of 10. Granted that I was pretty lucky in this box, this product is great nonetheless. It's a staple for Topps, and hopefully will be for years to come.

2012-13 Panini Crusade Hobby Box Break and Review

With my latest box purchase, I decided to keep my streak of buying 2012-13 Panini Basketball products. I promise, I'll review something else soon. This is one those "high(er) end" products, so you're basically just buying a box of hits. 

6 packs, 5 cards per pack. 3 Autos, 3 Memorabilia Cards, at hit per pack.

The box:

Shinnnyyyyyyy. 

The shininess can seen by the reflection of my hands/phone. I'm a card collector, not a photographer.

The base cards. Very nice cards. Panini makes it very clear that this is a CRUSADE card. Not sure how I feel about that huge banner. I do like the gold font.

Knight Court Insert. These come one per box. Very similar to the base. They seem to have little value on the secondary market.

Here are the first three Prizms that I pulled. These are the regular Prizms, and are really gorgeous cards. That Andrew Bynum on the left, whom I managed to decapitate with my lamp. He's accompanied by Nick Young and Marcin Gortat.

These are my other three Prizms, rounding out the total of six per box. These come in variety of Parallels: Red & Gold /99, Purple & Gold /49, Green & Gold /25, Gold /10 and Black 1/1.

 At the far right is Jared Sullinger, he fits in with his buddies above. In the middle is Draymond Green, Red & Gold /99. To the far left is Rasheed Wallace, Gold /10.

I'm not high on Green. I loved him in college but he lacks NBA size. The 'Sheed Gold card is a great pull. Very rare and very attractive card.

Here are the jersey cards, all appearing on inserts. The Paul Pierce card is awesome, I love the green swatch. Thomas Robinson has the skills to be a beast, but his character issues seem to outweigh his abilities. I'm not too familiar with Rick Mahorn but another nice jersey.

The three autos. At left, Festus Ezeli. Center, Buck Williams, Right, Quincy Acy. Nothing too impressive here. I love Ezeli's story, but not his NBA potential. Quincy Acy is in the D-League, I'm assuming he'll be overseas soon. Buck Williams was a fun player to watch, I'd say he's the highlight here.

REVIEW

Overall Design: The base cards are nice. The picture is sharp as ever with exceptional contrast. As I've said with previous 2012-13 Panini Products, I'm not a fan of how they throw a huge "PANINI" on the front of the card. It's over-branding. Beyond the base set, the other cards are excellent, especially the Prizms. Some of the nicest cards I've ever seen.

Box contents: There's only 30 cards per pack, so it would take some hunting to complete the base set. It's only 100 cards though, so do-able. The fact that each pack contains a hit is exciting. The Prizms are definitely the highlight of this set. The Prizm checklist is massive 300 cards, with all sorts of names mixed in- past, current, and future.

The Hits: It's definitely possible to hit the jackpot with this product. The Prizm cards are a hot ticket right now. The variety of parallel colors generates excitement, especially the Gold cards and Black cards. If you search the Gold Parallels on eBay, many sellers are asking over $100 for guys that aren't even big names. The black cards are obviously the big prize. The J.J. Redick Black 1/1 is listed for over $400 dollars on eBay, to put it in perspective. Yes, J.J. Redick.

Positives: Design, prominence of short prints, Prizm technology, players from various generations, number of hits guaranteed hits (6), chance for 1/1

Negatives: Autos are stickers, small number of total cards

Rating: 8 out of 10. This is a fun product. It has the high-end feel, but for right around 100 bucks, it's affordable high-end. Also a great way to get your hands on Prizm cards without actually buying a box of Panini Prizm.

As always, thanks for reading and please feel free to comment!