2016 Topps Gypsy Queen Discounted Blaster

While out looking for 2017 Topps I came across a discounted blaster of 2016 Topps Gypsy Queen. I'm not in love with this set and only bought a few packs last year but the blaster was only $11.98 and promised "1 Exclusive Short-Printed Mini Base Card Parallel Inside!"

It turns out that I'd pulled one of purple minis these from one of the 3 packs I bought last summer but this still goes in the reference books since it's the retired players subset.

I also pulled this from the box, a foil-backed mini I didn't know existed. Apparently these are only available in blasters. It's a 50-card set, numbered 301-350. As usual with this kind of card, I'm happy I have it but who was asking for foil-backed Gypsy Queen minis?

I'm always happy to pull a relic card from a blaster.

And another card for the reference book is this insert I didn't have.

Many baseball cards have a few sentences on the back highlighting something about the player. I guess these little paragraphs are probably difficult to write, not because it's hard to think of something to say about a player but because there is so much that could be said. Sometimes these read like they were plucked from a bucket of random stats for each player but a few of these Gypsy Queen backs stood out for me.

So Familia was pitching a save while his wife was giving birth. His bad luck, I guess, that he couldn't be there with her. But what is that opening line "His wife Bianca didn't need labor induced" supposed to mean? His Wikipedia page wasn't much help beyond saying she was his fiancée at the time and that he was arrested last October on domestic violence charges. 

Here's another one.

Why exactly is it strange that Turner hit .323, .322 and .322 in his first three professional seasons? And where is the twist? There were no clues on his Wikipedia page.

2016 Panini Diamond Kings - the extras

I featured the base cards of 2016 Panini Diamond Kings yesterday. Today I'm going to cover the inserts and parallels.

Before I start, let me note, that there are over 100 different parallel, inserts, and parallel to inserts, relics and auto cards in this set. Good luck.

There was a different insert or parallel in each of the seven packs from the blaster I bought. Here's a red framed parallel.

The early 2000's Diamond King sets were known for these, and I think those were among the first cards to use frames. I've always liked the concept. According to baseballcardpedia.com, these red framed cards are supposed to be numbered to 99. Mine isn't numbered at all.

I'm getting a bit tired of mini cards but the design of the front is outstanding. I would absolutely love this set if the full-sized base cards looked like this.

Of the ton of inserts, there are only five which do not involve some sort of relic, auto, or serial number. I got one of each. The base set does not have any foil but all of these do, but it's pretty low key.

Aficionado was a weird one-off set that Pinnacle (now owned by Panini) produced in the mid-1990s. This card has nothing in common with that set except the name. I like the front and, in fact, I'd have liked this to have been the design for the base cards. The backs are nearly the same as the base with a rectangular frame instead of an oval one.

 This is a pretty unattractive card with more microscopic text on the back.

Perez attempts to put out a stadium fire with a Gatorade bucket. Is this card supposed to be in the style of expressionism? I'm not an art critic and the Wikipedia article, while interesting, didn't help. Maybe it's just meant to display the player's expressions? It is certainly colorful.

 Another not very attractive card.

Another insert that I'd rather have been the base set.

Did you notice that I got card number 12 from each of these inserts?

2013 Panini Golden Age - First Peak

I bought one pack of this product at a card show last Sunday, not having any idea what it was. It's Panini's attempt to cash in on the popularity of Topps Allen and Ginter and Upper Deck's Goodwin Champions. My opinion - I love these cards! Enough that I bought a box on eBay. So this is just a first peek, a more detailed post to follow when I get my box.

I also bought a box of 2013 Goodwin Champions, so I'm kind of ODing on vintage style cards. I hope you like these as much as I do.

It didn't hurt my enjoyment of this set by having this being the first card I saw.

You can reel me in with a Richie Ashburn card every time.  Of the 4 base cards in the pack, 3 were baseball players and one was an actor in his role as a baseball player.

No logos of course. At least they give the city so with a player like Fisk you can tell what team he's depicted with. Although I guess with Fisk it wouldn't have been that difficult to figure out.

Freehan was a big time player from 1961 to 1975. Somehow this is the first card of his I've ever gotten.

OK, it's a Little League player but his character played baseball.

Of course, there is a selection of mini parallel cards. I got one, the Carolina Brights Green Back version.

And there was one other insert, Panini Golden Age Playing Cards.  There are 53 of these (one joker).

Random Cards From My Collection #12

Card #2106
2004 Upper Deck #127 Derek Jeter

It doesn't matter who does it, silver foil on a dark background is a bad idea. What percentage of cards do you think feature the glove hand of a catcher?

Card #29147
2009 Upper Deck Goodwin Champions Mini #127 Francisco Liriano

Ah, the good old days when Goodwin Champions was mostly a baseball card set and Upper Deck still had a license. This was my favorite set of 2009.

Card #18837
2007 Topps Turkey Red #60 Mariano Rivera

I think everyone liked the Topps Turkey Red cards.

Card #21348
1989 Topps #499 Don Heinkel

You're excused if Don Heinkel isn't in your memory banks. He made his debut in April 1988 and was gone by May 1989 having appeared in 28 games and going 1-1 with 1 save.

Card #6596
1990 Donruss #370 Bob Walk

Bob Walk will always hold a special place in my baseball heart. Not only do we share a surname but he won the first game of the 1980 World Series for the Phillies, the first World Series game they ever won.

Card #6837
1988 Topps #312 Joey Meyer

Future star? Nope.

Card #18039
2002 Upper Deck #469 Ivan Rodriguez

Just one of the many sets, inserts and subsets celebrating the international origins of baseball players. This was not an insert but a subset of the 2002 Upper Deck set.

Card #4204
1996 Pinnacle Aficionado #199 Greg Maddux

Pinnacle Aficionado was a weird but attractive set put out in the declining years of Pinnacle when they were just blasting out set after set hoping something would be a hit. The cards featured a chromatic foil close-up on one side. It's strangest feature however was the card's smell. Apparently they tried to make the cards smell like bubblegum. It wasn't an unpleasant or strong odor but it never reminded me of gum.

Card #3485
1992 Donruss Bonus #4 Jeff Bagwell

One of my all-time favorite players.

Card #27443
2011 Bowman Chrome Prospects #39 Aaron Baker

I always wonder what reasoning Topps uses for a player like this. Baker was a 37th round draft pick by the Twins in 2006 then redrafted by the Pirates in the 11th round in 2009. How much of a prospect can this guy be? Considering how long the odds are of making it big in the majors, I wish this guy well.