Repack Bang or Bust Part 5

The last one of these I did was about a 250-card Fairfield box. Well, this is sort of part two since when I bought that box I actually bought two. I rated that last box a Bang! and this one also gets a bang. I needed 115 of the 250 cards. Not too bad.

These boxes advertise that every other box (on average) has either a relic or an auto. The other box had nothing but this one had an auto.

2011 Bowman Autographed Prospects

Havens was the Mets #1 pick in 2008 but never made it to the majors.

1980 Topps #575

This was the oldest card in the box. The Phillies won the World Series in 1980, which was before I started collecting. I'm on a slow motion quest to complete the 1980 Topps set so I'm always happy to get one. 

My last post featured the weird airbrushed 1987 Topps Mike Laga card. That card came to my attention because this card was in the box.

1986 Donruss #578

Nothing really special about this card except it's part of a trend I noticed about this box. There were a lot of cards in it which were near duplicates of cards in the earlier box. For example, this is card #578. The earlier box had card #587 from the same set. These were the only 1986 Donruss cards in either box.

1986 Fleer #380

I collect Lee Smith so was happy to get this even though it's a terrible looking card. The photo is out of focus and the dark blue borders do it no favors. What was with both Fleer and Donruss using dark blue borders in 1986?

1988 Topps Traded #30

This set had a few of these Team USA cards. Pat Combs was the Phillies #1 draft pick in 1988, so of course, I have to consider this as a Phillies card. From this card I realized that there were several Phillies cards in this set I was unaware of. I managed to find the whole 1988 Topps Traded set on eBay for much less than $10, so I bought it.

1990 Donruss #147

Say what you like about 1990 Donruss, but I like it and have about 2/3 of the set. I collect Gary Carter but was missing this one.

1990 Topps #784

This card raises the question "Why do so many baseball cards have light poles in the background?".

1990 Broder Rookies Superstars

I have another card of Ben McDonald with the exact same back, but numbered #1 of 12. It also has a different photo. basebalcarddb.com lists the 12-card set but not the 7-card set. The other box had the Todd Zeile card from the 7-card set.

1990 Star #97

Another of the weird duplicates. This is a set I'd only had two cards from and both were Phillies cards I'd gotten in a trade. So I'd never seen one of these cards in a repack before I pulled #98 from the other box. Now I've also have #97.

1992 Triple Play

Zosky was the Blue Jays #1 pick in 1989 who never really made it. I didn't have a single one of his cards before opening this box. Now I have two. This one and his 1992 Ultra (#156) card.

1993 Donruss #276

The other box had card #277. Also featuring, I believe, the early season dead ivy at Wrigley Field.

1993 Topps Gold #319

These are a relatively rare finding in a repack. The other box had #318.

1997 Select Certified #40

Card #30 from this set (Paul Molitor) was in the other box. The only two cards from this set I've ever seen. I collect both players so I'm happy to have them.

2000 Upper Deck Ultimate Victory #54

I have a handful from this set, all of which I've gotten from repacks. It is a parallel to 2000 Upper Deck Victory but with a soft, thick coating on the front.

2001 Upper Deck Victory #590

This is another set which I've only seen in repacks. I don't know who this guy was but I didn't have this subset so it goes right into the reference books.

2002 Topps 206 #55

I like this set but bought very little of it when it was new. I pulled card #45 (Bud Smith) from the other box.

And finally, 2015 Topps Team Sets #PHP-8

The Phillies team sets don't seem to be available where I live in the Houston area. I'm lucky I can find the Astros set. The other box had the Phillies Maikel Franco card from the set.

That Big Bowman Sun

Another full bleed set from Bowman this year. Really, the cards don't look much different from last year. For the base cards they mostly just moved the player name from a horizontal position on the side to the bottom.

They did some funny stuff around the team logo, similar to what they did on 2017 Topps Stickers. The backs are similar to last year, with a block of text and a line of stats. I kind of like the background more this year. The slanted parallel lines of last year were a bit disconcerting.

Is it my imagination or are these prospects gleaming in the light of the big Bowman sun.

I'm trying to come up with some Icarus reference for this last card but nothing is coming to me.

I did manage to pull one hit from the blaster, a Prospects Autographs Green parallel, serial numbered to 99.

Stephens was the Reds 18th round draft pick in 2012 and just made it to Triple A this season. So he's probably not going to be the next Cy Young, but still, an auto is an auto, even if it's a sticker auto.

Phillies Opening Day Right Fielders

According to the April 4th edition of the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Phillies have had 8 different fielders start the season in right field in the past 8 years. That can't be good.

2017 - Michael Saunders

Saunders is such a new Phillie that I haven't seen him on a Phillies card as yet. Saunders was an All-Star last year with a season BA of .253 with 24 home runs, a season high for him. The Phillies signed him as a free agent for $11M.

2016 - Peter Bourjos

Bourjos was only a Phillie for one year and I don't actually own any cards of him as a Phillie. He hit .251 for the Phillies in 2016 with 5 home runs. From a power standpoint, Saunders should be an improvement. The Phillies got Bourjos off waivers from the Cardinals and paid him $2M last year.

2015 - Grady Sizemore

Sizemore was in his second season with the Phillies. He was picked up by the Phillies in June 2014 after having been released by the Red Sox. He was released by the Phillies in June 2015.

2014 - Marlon Byrd

This was Byrd's second stint with the Phillies. He was their 10th round draft pick in 1999 and played for the Phillies from 2002-2005. He was a free agent signing for $8M. He hit .264 with 35 homer for the 2014 Phillies. He was traded to the Reds after the season.

2013 - John Mayberry Jr.

Mayberry was the Phillies #1 pick in 2005. He was a guy long on promise but short on delivery.  He hit .227 with 11 home runs in 2013. He was a great fielder but just couldn't hit well enough. 

2012 - Hunter Pence

Of all the right fielders in this list, Pence is the genuine article. He'd been the Astros 2nd round draft pick in 2004 and played for the Astros from 2007-2010. He was enjoyable to watch. I was sorry to see him leave Houston but happy to see him with the Phillies. The Phillies traded 4 players for Pence in 2011 and then traded him to the Giants for 3 players in 2015. In 155 games for the Phillies he hit .258 with 28 home runs.

2011 - Ben Francisco

Another good fielding, light hitting outfielder. He was a hold over from the 2009 Phillies World Series losing team.

2010 - Jayson Werth

Along with Pence, the biggest star of this group. Werth was an integral part of the 2008 World Champion 2008 Phillies team. In 2010 he hit .296 with 27 home runs. After the 2010 season he signed a $122M, 7-year contract with the Nationals. 

Random Cards From My Collection #83

Card #55,489 - 2016 Topps #1 Mike Trout

Can Mike Trout jump really high is is this a short fence?

Card #16,799 - 2006 Fleer Tradition #31 Bubba Crosby

The first (and only) Upper Deck produced Fleer Tradition set. At the time, I actually thought it was the best Fleer Tradition set in years. I still like it.

Card #32,549 - 2012 Topps Gypsy Queen #217 Eric Thames

The second year for Gypsy Queen, and already wearing out its welcome.

Card #2,731 - 1974 Topps traded #139 Aurelio Monteagudo

If it weren't for this card, I'd have never heard of this guy. The Phillies got him from the Angels in an off-season trade after the 1973 season and then released him before the start of the 1974 season. 

Card #48,052 - 1991 Topps Micro #618 Sil Campusano

Topps issued these 'micro' cards in 1991 and 1992. I have the entire 1992 set which I just happened to see for sale in a Toys R Us in 1992. $10 for the entire boxed set. The cards are about the size of a postage stamp, and, as I'm sure I mentioned before, are a pain in the butt to own.

Card #38,851 - 2009 O-Pee-Chee #85 Joba Chamberlain

In its final death throws, Upper Deck managed to produce this fairly decent retro set.

Card #44,437 - 2007 Fleer #145 Torri Hunter

2007 was the last year for Upper Deck Fleer branded cards. The only decent set, in my opinion was the 2006 Fleer Tradition shown above.

Card #24,380 - 2008 Upper Deck First Edition #16 Carlos Lee

The ole' random number generator just keeps popping up cards from the latter days of Upper Deck. If you like Topps Opening Day, then you'll love Upper Deck First Edition. Or at least that must be what UD was thinking.

Card #27,027 - 2011 Bowman #101 Aramis Ramirez

If you're a Cubs fan, does that Citi logo bother you? I'm not a Cubs fan and it bothers me.

Card #46,833 - 1992 Topps #414 Jeff Ware

All of the 1992 Topps Draft Pick subset featured the players in street clothes. Jeff Ware is currently the pitching coach for the Lansing Lugnuts, one of my favorite minor league team names.