2013 Topps Update

I decided to just restrict myself this year to retail purchase. I bought a blaster from Target (to get the Target Red cards), a Mega Box at Target (because there were two packs of Topps Update Chrome in the box) and 2 rack packs at WalMart (to get the WalMart Blue cards). I got a good selection of cards and inserts, in fact all the inserts except the low serial numbered ones and relics. Apparently, Topps Update Chrome is only available in the Mega Boxes so I'm glad I bought some.

I was surprised by the price differential among the 3 packages. The blaster cost $0.27/card, the rack packs were $0.15/card and the Mega Box was $0.37/card. 

You know and love (at least I do) the design so I'll only show a couple and then get into the inserts.

As usual, there are All-Star game cards, there is also a also Home-Run Derby subset.

After a couple of disappointing years, Drew had a decent year with the Red Sox and went to the World Series.

When I first saw this card I thought they had a black and white parallel set.

In Series 1 and 2 Topps had 1972 Mini cards. In Update they have 1971 Mini cards. Who knows why.

There are 10 cards in the Franchise Forerunners insert set. I pulled 4 of them.

I pulled 3 from this 20-card set.

The blaster box had this nice manufactured patch card as an extra.

Here's a Home Run Derby subset card from the Chrome Update

Note that the card number has an MB- prefix.  The only insert I got in the two packs was this:

2013 Panini Golden Age Box Break - Part 2

Yesterday, I featured the base cards from the set. Today, it's the insert cards. I got at least one of each insert card that wasn't numbered 1 of 1. I'm not going to show you the mini cards. If you've seen Allen and Ginter or Goodwin Champions mini cards you already know what they look like. There are 5 types, featuring cigarette or candy ads on the back.

Panini Golden Age Bread For Energy

What, you may ask, is this supposed to be? Apparently, in the 1950's bread companies began putting celebrities, ball players, cartoon characters, etc. on bread labels. These were adhesive labels that closed off the ends of a paper wrapped loaf of bread.  With a little poking around on the internet I came up with this.

An actual bread label featuring Warren Spahn. This sold on a auction site for $232.  I'd never heard of these before. A little more reading suggested that they are pretty hard to find.

2013 Panini Golden Age Delong Gum

More research. This design comes from a 1933 set issued by DeLong Gum Company. According to my "2008 Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards", this was one of the first sets to be issued with gum. Here is some speculation on my part. Notice on the back it says "Play Ball Gum". In the early 1940's, Gum, Inc. from Philadelphia produced a set called "Play Ball". Gum later became Bowman which was later acquired by Topps. In 2007, Topps issued an insert set called "Flashback Fridays" with this same design.

Panini Golden Age Exhibits

This postcard sized card came as a box-topper. Good luck collecting all 40 of these. This is based on a line of cards sold by the Exhibit Supply Company of Chicago between 1921 and 1966. The cards weren't numbered and looking at them in the catalog it seems like it would be damn hard to figure out what you have. I actually have one of these featuring Gil Hodges which the seller said was from 1950.

This card illustrates another theme from the base set, people associated with the 1919 "Black Sox" scandal. Weaver played 3rd base for the White Sox in that series.

Panini Golden Age Headlines

My least favorite of the inserts.

Panini Golden Age Historic Signatures

An on-card signature, at least. The Bad News Bears theme carried over from the base set. Blunt was in most, it not all, of the movies and not much else. Nothing against Mr. Blunt, but there are 50 cards in this set and I'm guessing any other one would have been more interesting to me.

Panini Golden Age Museum Age Memorabilia

OK, memorabilia from Grace Kelly. The back of the card has a brief bio of Kelly and the simple statement "The enclosed material is guaranteed by Panini America, Inc." I'd have liked a little explanation as to how this little piece of fabric was related to Ms. Kelly.

Panini Golden Age Playing Cards
I had pulled one of these in the single pack I bought. I got 8 more in the box. Still not enough to play a game of poker.  Here's one which continues another theme from the base set.

Panini Golden Age Three Stooges

 A 9-card set celebrating The Three Stooges. Why not?

Panini Golden Age Tip Top Bread Labels

Another bread label brand. Notice the lower left corner. The NFL logo peaks out of the die cut area. I have another of the Bread for Energy cards featuring Miami Dolphin Jim Kiick which has the same thing.  Some mix-up in the design department?

2013 Panini Golden Age - Box Break Part 1

I shared a single pack of this earlier. I decided I liked it enough to buy a box. This set is a lot like Upper Deck Goodwin Champions (and Allen and Ginter for that matter) in that it doesn't just feature baseball players. In a set like this I usually don't pick just one card to put in the reference book but a selection of cards from the set that reflect the variety. If there are clear subsets, I'll go with them.  Here are the base cards I picked for my reference book.  I did pertty well with the box, getting at least one of each insert set, except for the three that are 1 of 1's.

Of the 103 base cards, 36 featured baseball players.  As in other sets, Panini has chosen to use the Photoshop option and remove logos.

 11 cards featured either football players of coaches.

I don't know what kind of license Panini has with the NFL, but the football players all had scrubbed uniforms and no team name mentions. They did, however, sport the NFL logo on the back.

7 cards featured horse racing, either jockeys or horses.

 

 18 cards featured actors, actresses or entertainers. There were a few child actors, especially kids from the "Our Gang" series and the "Bad News Bears" movies. But I'm going with:

The "Bad News Bears" is an actual subset.

I'd pulled one of these in the single pack as well.

There were also enough American Presidents to include in the reference book.

I have more than half of the US presidents on some kind of card now.

And finally, boxers:

There are two full-sized parallel sets, Black (1 of 1) and White. I pulled one of the White;

The rest of the cards are a hodgepodge of golfers, artists, famous objects (the Edmund Fitzgerald, Apollo 11), gamblers, wild west lawmen, etc.

And it would be this kind of set without mini tobacco cards.  There was one in each pack.

I'll feature the insert sets later. Some of the themes I've shown here, carry into the inserts.

Oh, and I got the Mike Schmidt card.

Random Cards from my Collection #52

Card #42868
2013 Topps Chrome #216 Pablo Sandoval

Comments on the card: I literally just scanned this card last night. The usual Chrome goodness in a less curly form this year.
When acquired: October 2013
How acquired: Paid $0.68/card for a rack pack at Target
Player's season: Last year's World Series MVP and a little sub-par year hitting .278 with 14 home runs. No playoffs this year for Kung Fu Panda.

Card #21439
1995 Finest #232 Mike Mimbs

Comments on the card: The 3rd year for Topps Finest and one of my favorite designs from the set. Shown here with it's protective film removed.
When acquired: October 2010
How acquired: Paid $0.70/card for the 10-card Phillies set on eBay
Player's season: The first and best of Mike's 3-year career, he was 9-7 with an ERA of 4.15 ERA. He also had one save.

Card #3717
1980 Topps #380 Garry Maddox

Comments on the card: From the days when real baseball players had hair that made a statement.
When acquired: Don't know
How acquired: Don't know
Player's season: The Secretary of Defense only hit .259 with 11 home runs for the World Series winning Phillies in 1980. But they weren't paying him for his bat.

Card #35798
2012 Upper Deck Goodwin Champions #80 Randy Couture

Comments on the card: I don't care what any says, I like Goodwin Champions and buy some every year.
When acquired: August 2012
How acquired: Paid $0.45/card for a 48-card blaster box
Player's season: All I know about this guy is what his Wikipedia page says. He's a retired mixed martial artist (artist? really?)

Card #7210
2000 Topps Opening Day #105 Mark McGwire

Comments on the card: In the early days of Topps Opening Day they put a big foil shield on the front. I miss that.
When acquired: April 2000
How acquired: Paid $0.15/card for a hobby box
Player's season: McGwire only played 89 games in 2000, but he still managed to hit 32 home runs

Card #23125
2008 Upper Deck First Edition #163 Chase Utley

Comments on the card: Pretty good action shot. The ball is almost in Utley's glove and the runner is barely in the picture.
When acquired: April 2008
How acquired: Paid $0.18/card for a blaster
Player's season: Utley hit 33 home runs for the 2008 World Series winning Phillies

Card #5114
1990 Score #405 Rafael Palmeiro

Comments on the card: 1990 Score was pretty good. Nice photography, bright border colors, large head shot on the back
When acquired: 1990
How acquired: I bought a boxed set when new. Don't remember what I paid for it.
Player's season: Palmeiro lead the American League with 191 hits

Card #41421
2007 Upper Deck First Edition #221 Willy Taveras

Comments on the card: The First Edition version of 2007 Upper Deck was even worse than the regular version. They changed the stupid side borders from gray to brown.
When acquired: Don't know but probably in 2007
How acquired: Don't know
Player's season: Willie only appeared in 98 games for the Rockies but he hit a career high .320. And he went to the World Series

Card #35656
2012 Topps Update #117 Chris Resop

Comments on the card: My liking of the 2012 'surf board' design goes down a little every time I see it.
When acquired: October 2012
How acquired: Paid $0.14/card for a rack-box at Target
Player's season: As a middle reliever, Resop appeared in 61 games, racking up a 1-4 record. He was traded to the A's after the season for a minor league player.

Card #39155
2009 Topps Allen & Ginter #113 Rafael Furcal

Comments on the card: For 2009, Topps added borders to Allen & Ginter. They kinda went berserk with the color wash but I still liked the set.
When acquired: August 2009
How acquired: Paid $0.42/card for a hobby box on eBay
Player's season: Furcal struggled in the first year of his new 3-year contract, hitting only .269 for the Dodgers in 2009.