Ripping Two 2020 Topps Chrome Hobby Packs

Today I swung by the LCS to pick up some toploaders and penny sleeves.  I rarely go to the LCS for much else these days because their hobby boxes are marked up 50% from online prices, and individual hobby pack prices are through the roof.

Despite that and against my better judgement, I grabbed two packs of 2020 Topps Chrome. 

Topps Chrome is my favorite baseball product of the year, and I have opened hobby box every year since 2013. I did get two hobby boxes this year, but I have yet to open them. I've started to hoard unopened products. It seems that they appreciate somewhat quickly over time, and I've made some extra cash by selling off some of my unopened products from past years. I think I'll hold these for a bit too. The only problem with this strategy is that it doesn't help me "scratch the itch" as we like to say.

So I spent $24 on two packs, which have four cards each. A nice bonus was a pack of cards from National Baseball card day.

Just for coming in to the store, one of the LCS employees handed me a clear cello pack with five cards in it. That pack contained all five cards above with the exception of the Yordan Alvarez. That card was handed to me after I made my purchased of $10 or more. I wasn't expecting any of it, so I'll gladly take the bonus.

Pack one:

Nothing really to see here. The photography on the Haniger card is great - I like the on-deck circle shot. I'm sure you could tell but Urena is a refractor. At least I got one Bucco.

Nothing too special with these three, but there was one more card in the pack...

Pretty sweet! Man, this really saved the day. Otherwise this was the equivalent of lighting 24 one dollar bills on fire. This is a prism refractor, which 1:6 hobby packs - twice as rare as standard refractors which fall 1:3. There's no better name to pull out of a pack right now. It's not a rookie, but the gold rookie cup is a great consolation prize. 

This card is fetching $15 on the secondary market, give or take. It's crazy to me that this guy is the hottest hitter in baseball and the most exciting young player at the moment - and if I chose to sell it, I would recoup just over half of what I spent. I don't buy cards to try and make immediate profit off of them - I'd have better luck scratching lotto tickets - but man, $24 is a steep price for 8 baseball cards. I have no regrets, but I wonder how much longer prices can continue to rise before things start to plateau and eventually decline. 

In a world of absurd sports card prices, I'm grateful for this really cool card, and I'm happy to stash it away as a great addition to my collection. 

He Was a Pirate? Part 6

*The Pirates, like all MLB teams, experience a multitude of transactions throughout the year. And, you know, since it's the Pirates... no one really knows or cares about those moves. As a Pirates fan growing up in New York it was rare that I would come across anyone who shared my love for the black and gold. My Yankee-supporting counterparts were never aware of the frequent changes occurring a few hundred miles west in Pittsburgh. Oftentimes during friendly baseball-themed conversation, the question “He was a Pirate?” would arise. I’ve decided to honor this ever-occuring inquiry on my blog...*

Today's edition of "He Was A Pirate?" features a Texas boy who made a name for himself in Beantown:

Brock holt was drafted by the Pirates in 2009 out of Rice and made his major league debut with the Pirates as a September call-up in 2012. He's made a living off of defensive versatility (he's played every position except pitcher and catcher) and his ability to get on base (career .340 OBP).

Holt's time with Buccos was short lived. He played in just 24 games and had 65 AB's but hit a very respectable .292. 

In December 2012, Holt was traded along with Joel Hanrahan to the Red Sox in exchange for Mark Melancon and three other players who are now irrelevant. It turned out to be an an excellent move for the Pirates. Hanrahan would pitch in his last career game in May of 2013. Melancon went on to be a three time All-Star and a huge part of the Pirates bullpen. He's bounced around a bit since 2016 but he's currently closing out games for the Braves at age 35. 

So looking back eight years later, the trade works out to be a one-for-one swap that benefited both teams.

2013 Topps Update Rookie

Holt's career numbers are pretty unspectacular, but he's managed to find his way into the record books. He's a two-time World Series Champ and made his only All-Star team in 2015. He's also hit for the cycle twice in his career. One of those cycles was in the postseason - making him the only player EVER to hit for the cycle in the playoffs.

2013 Topps Gypsy Queen Auto

I never collected Holt after he left the Pirates so I have just two Brock Holt cards to show, but they're both pretty cool. Topps re-used the image from flagship in Gypsy Queen which will come as a tremendous surprise. Still, it's a great photo. For a guy that built a reputation on hustle and grit, it's fitting that he already has dirt on his jersey. 

Thanks for stopping by for this edition of "He Was a Pirate?"

First Contest Winner Announced!

Big thanks to everyone who entered the contest predicting the sixteen 2020 MLB Postseason teams. I probably couldn't have picked a worse time to center a contest around MLB games... hopefully MLB can get it together and we'll be able to complete the baseball season, and the contest, as planned. 

In total, 16 different contestants entered. Adding in new subscribers and blog pimps, there were a total of 28 entries. I popped those 28 entires into random.org and randomized the list 21 times!

Without further ado...

And there we have it! Congratulations to John at John's Big League Baseball Blog for being randomly selected to win one jumbo pack of 2020 Topps Series 2! John, please get in touch so I can get your address!

Thanks again to all of those who entered. Remember, this is only phase one of the contest. Phase two will be announced in early October when the regular season concludes. Whoever wins that aspect of the contest will be taking home a fat pack of 2020 Bowman baseball!

If for some reason the baseball season gets shut down, I'll randomize the list 21 times again to raffle off the Bowman pack. 

Let's hope it doesn't come to that!

LAST CALL For the Contest - Win Some 2020 Bowman and Series 2!

Happy Saturday everyone! Hope everyone is enjoying some nice weather and some baseball on TV.

Entries for the contest that I'm hosting will close tomorrow at 11:59 PM EST. So if you haven't entered yet, DO IT! There are some cool prizes on the line:

Thanks to those that have entered, and thanks for your patience while resubmitting your predictions after MLB switched up the format. 

To see the original contest post, click HERE. I posted the contest a few days before MLB made the announcement of the 16-team playoff - so I had to amend the rules. To read the revised rules and submit your picks - USE THIS LINK. 

If you're curious, here's what we have for entries:

Thanks all! Good luck!

CALLING ALL CONTEST ENTRANTS: Win Some 2020 Bowman or 2020 Series 2!

Good evening everyone. As most of you have already heard, MLB has announced that the 2020 Postseason will include 16 teams rather than the traditional 10. Personally, I'm pretty pumped for the new format, and I'm hoping it goes well and could spur some playoff reform for future seasons.

However, this has thrown quite the wrench into my contest, which I'm excited to say has been very well received! Because of the new format, I need all bloggers to resubmit their predictions with the 16 team format. For a refresher on the contest - here is the original post.

So, in the comments on this post, please resubmit your new predictions using the format below. All other contest rules stay the same. The contest is open until 11:59 on Sunday, 7/26, so new entrants are still welcome and encouraged!

Explanation of New Postseason Format:

All division winners are in. This gives us 6 teams.

All second-place teams in the six divisions qualify - for the sake of this contest, we'll call title those "Runner Up." This gives us 6 more teams, totaling 12.

Finally, the 7th and 8th teams in each division, the wild card teams, will be chosen by best record among other teams remaining teams. This gives us 4 more teams, totaling 16.

Format to use to submit your predictions (drop as a comment on this post):

AL East Champion:
AL East Runner Up:
AL Central Champion:
AL Central Runner Up:
AL West Campion:
AL West Runner Up:
AL Wild Card #1:
AL Wild Card #2:

NL East Champion:
NL East Runner Up:
NL Central Champion:
NL Central Runner Up:
NL West Campion:
NL West Runner Up:
NL Wild Card #1:
NL Wild Card #2:


Thanks everyone! 

CONTEST! Win Some 2020 Bowman or 2020 Series 2!

**THE CONTEST HAS BEEN EDITED TO REFLECT THE NEW 16-TEAM PLAYOFF FORMAT**

PLEASE VISIT THIS LINK to see the amendments to the contest and resubmit your new predictions!

Original Post:

Welcome back baseball! We've missed you!

I've read a lot about the scarcity of 2020 Topps Series 2 and 2020 Bowman in the wild.  I too was having trouble finding any until I finally caught some luck on my most recent Target run. I grabbed some of each, and I'd like to share my luck with the blog world. If you haven't found any, this is your chance to grab some at no cost! 

I'm excited for the start of baseball season. Plus, this blog is long overdue for a contest, so let's get this going! There will be two separate components to this. One involves *some* skill and lots of luck, and one simply asks for participation. BOTH win prizes!

For the first part, all you to need to do is correctly predict as many of the 10 playoff teams that you can for the 2020 MLB Postseason. It's that simple. Whoever has the most correct predictions will win. If a tie breaker is needed, I will look to see which participant has the most teams in their correct playoff spot. With this in play, there is value to correctly picking who will win the division and who will get the first and second wildcard spots. If, for some reason we need another tie breaker, I'll randomize it. 

In order to enter, just submit your predictions on the comments section in the format below:

AL East Champion:

AL Central Champion:

AL West Campion:

AL Wild Card #1:

AL Wild Card #2:

NL East Champion:

NL Central Champion:

NL West Campion:

NL Wild Card #1:

NL Wild Card #2:

The last day of regular season games is September 28th, and I'll announce the winner shortly thereafter. Make sure to fill in your blog name with your submission so I know how to find you!

The person with the most correct answers will win themselves a factory sealed fat pack of 2020 Bowman baseball!

Now for those of you who suck at predicting the future, like me, don't worry. I'll also be entering ALL participants into a drawing to win one 2020 Topps Series 2 Jumbo pack!

As long as you submit your predictions in the comments before the end of the day on Sunday 7/26, you've earned yourself (1) entry into the drawing. 

There are two ways you can earn additional entries:

1. "Pimp" the contest on your blog - in order to qualify for this, please drop a comment on this post letting me know that you did so. 
2. Subscribe to the blog! This one is for newcomers only. If you've already subscribed, sorry! I'd really like to add some new followers. If you don't currently follow me, please do so! 

So, everyone has the opportunity to get up to two submissions, and new subscribers can get three.

The contest will close on Sunday, Sunday, July 26th at 11:59 PM EST. I will use random.org and randomize the list of entrants 21 times. The winner will be announced on 7/27.

Thanks for checking it out. I hope this adds some fun to the start of the 2020 season and hooks some great people up with some great cards. 

This is Blog is Now a Bryan Reyolds Fanpage

For someone who has never considered himself a collector of one specific player, I'm definitely starting to look like a Bryan Reynolds superfan. As I was preparing this post, I realized that four of the seven cards that I'm planning to show are from one player.

It got me curious to check some stats on my Reynolds collection. According to TCDB, which I update religiously, I have 23 unique Bryan Reynolds cards. I also learned that my collection ranks as the fourth largest quantity on the site. There are two other collectors with 24, and the largest collection sits at 31. As I continue to seek Reynolds cards through trade and the occasional purchase, I might be gunning for that #1 spot. 

Here are some pickups from the week, starting with TCDB trades:

Bryan Reynolds - 2016 Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects

This came in from California, where a SF Giants send me this card in return for two Giants cards. This is actually the first copy the "1st Bowman" I've gotten my hands on in the "paper" version. Topps used the same image on his autograph card in the set, which I have a few of. 

(L) Mitch Keller - 2019 Topps Gallery

(R) Bryan Reynolds - 2019 Topps Gallery

For someone who buys a decent amount of retail cards, I'm a little surprised that I've never picked up any Topps Gallery. These are the first Galley cards in my collection. The artwork truly is impressive and they look great in-hand. I swapped these two cards with a Braves collector in Georgia.

Chris Archer - 2020 Topps Rainbow Foil

Stephen Strasburg - 2020 Topps Gold Parallel #/2020

These two cards have a cool story behind them. A collector in Pittsburgh contacted me on TCDB and offered the Archer rainbow foil in exchange for a handful of random basketball and baseball cards. It turns out that he's working on a project where he's putting together packs of cards of athletes from Pennsylvania. He then donates the packs to his local Ronald McDonald House, where they are added to a prize locker for teenagers. Inside the pack you'll find the cards and you'll be encouraged to log onto a website associated with the cards where you can learn about your home-state legends. 

Once I learned about the project, I offered up several more cards of PA-born athletes - names like Neil Walker and Marvin Harrison. The trader was gracious enough allow me to add in the Strasburg parallel. I feel like this card encapsulates the 2019 World Series very well. 

(L) Bryan Reynolds - 2019 Topps Gallery Autograph

(R) Bryan Reynolds - 2019 Topps Now Rookie Cup

We'll wrap up with my two eBay purchases on the week. The Topps Gallery auto is... the base card with an autographed sticker on it. Very on-brand for Topps!

The Topps Now card is the first I've ever purchased. I've never been too interested in the set although I think it's a cool idea. This particular card drew me in for a few reasons - it has print run of just 376 and it has both the RC stamp and the gold cup. Lots to love. 

Thanks for stopping by.