Sunday, December 31, 2023

Unboxing Day 3: Bowman Mega Box

In a Bowman Mega Box you get 4 regular packs and 2 special packs
I am featuring two regular cards and the two Chrome cards from each regular pack and four of the five cards from the special packs.
Not a bad way to start with the newest Dodger and a Red star.  I have never heard of either of the other chrome players.
I think I got Night Owl's box with the number of Dodgers I got.  I wonder about the crowd behind Martinez, some Topps magic.
Another Dodger, another one that the Padres missed out on and only the second Padre in three boxes.  Montesino played in 2021 in the Dominician League, missed 2022 due to injury and played last year in the Arizona Complex League.  He is just 19 years old.
There was another regular pack but I seem to have lost the scan. I am learning to use my camera as a scanner and these cards from the special backs are a little hard to see. I have't heard of any of these guys.  
I have heard of all of these guys.  Oswald Peraza is a parallel numbered out of 175.  

Up Next 2023 Topps Chrome Box 1 in which I get a good card.














 

Saturday, December 30, 2023

Topps Heritage High Number Padres team set

We interrupt the unboxings to bring you this recently acquired Topps Heritage High Number Padres team set and complain about the choices made by Topps.   

Seth Lugo and Xander Bogaerts made contributions throughout the season.  Lugo is signed with the Royals now and X is still with the Padres.  Brett Sullivan made his major league debut after 8 years in the minors, when too many catchers got injured, playing in 33 games for the Padres.  Matt Carpenter appeared in 76 games hitting .176, he along with Ray Kerr was traded to the Braves on December 15 and the Braves released him on December 18.  

Tom Cosgrove made his major league debut last year appearing in 54 games for the Padres.  Luis Campusano missed two months of the season due to surgery on his hand.
These three guys played in 63 games for San Diego in 2023.  David Dahl played in 4 games and was granted free agency by the Padres on June 9.  Odor played in 59 games and was released by the Padres on July 23.  Jose Urena was never even signed by the Padres, I checked several reference sources and could not find any evidence he was even in the Padres system at all.  
The lone short print in the Padres team set played in exactly ZERO games for San Diego.  He was in the minor league system from July 7 to August 21.
I think I could have made better choices about whom to include in this team set than Topps did.
I am looking forward to Heritage paying tribute to Night Owl's favorite set next year.  
Topps please make better choices.






Thursday, December 28, 2023

Unboxing day 2

Yes, I am a wrestling fan and yes I know it's scripted, but I find it very athletic.  Years ago we lived next door to a midget wrestler and once in a while I would drive to Eugene with him when he was on the card there.  Got to know all kinds of people and all kinds of things before the death of kayfabe.

I got three of the Green Pulsar Prizms in my box.  I got a total of 24 cards in the box, but I only knew who 14 of them were, those are the cards I am going to share.  I don't collect wrestling cards, I accumulate them to use as bookmarks in my library books, I just leave them in the books when I turn them around.

These are my three green prizm cards.  I have no idea who Wendy Choo is, Matt Riddle is gone from the WWE and Asuka is part of a mostly Japanese faction in the WWE.  The Asuka card is also a refractor and is numbered 20/25.

The Miz on the far left is a refractor and you can tell because it says Prizm on the back.  The A Lister has come a long way from MTV's Road Rules.  AJ Styles just returned from an injury and is really jacked.
There were even some horizontal shots in the box.  Cedric Alexander hasn't been seen on TV in awhile.  Shotzi looks much different now. Her hair looks a germ as seen in an electron microscope.  Bron Breaker is still in NXT, but will probably make it to the main roster this year.  He is the son of wrestling veteran Scott Steiner.

Bruno Sammartino is a certified wrestling legend.  Big E is recuperating from a broken neck in 2022, it is not clear whether he will ever wrestle again.  Brock Lesnar, only shows up on big dates or pay per views, it is always a big deal when he does.

I know of Roderick Strong, but nothing about him.  Sonya Deville has been absent from TV for awhile and Mandy Rose was released due to the content she was sharing on Fan Time.  Deville and Rose were at one time a tag team known as Fire and Desire.  Bobby Lashley is currently a champion and wrestles weekly on TV.



 

Wednesday, December 27, 2023

Unboxing Days begin

 One of my Christmas presents was 19 blasters of baseball and 2 of the WWE.  I will be presenting one per day for a couple of weeks.

The first one I opened was a Happy Little Box of Bob Ross Baseball.
You get 13 cards per box in two packs, sort of.  The one exclusive Easel Parallel is package separately in a clear cellophane wrapper.
I got my one parallel/SP card.
Yaz is hitting in the dark of night, Miggy is getting ready to catch a salmon and if Big Papi hits in the woods is there a sound.

Jazz is about to get drenched in the surf, Gabriel is at least in the right desert state.

Ryan Mountcastle is the Easel parallel, Manny is mired in a swamp (much like the Padres were last season) and Jordan Walker is fleeing from a bear.

Vlad is angrily shaking his finger at a bird that just missed him, Carlos Rodon is gigantic and Jose Altuve is watching something happening in the distance.
I managed to get a second Jordan Walker RC and my parallel SP was Esteury Ruiz of the A's exiting a lake.  It is numbered 97/99.  I don't think the combination of Bob Ross and baseball does much for me.  



Monday, December 25, 2023

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to all.
I'm still here.
The last six months have been interesting.
My wife had bone spurs on a hip and was in a great deal of pain so I was taking care of her and then in October she had hip replacement surgery.  So there was more care involved.  I now work at a toy, games and puzzle store at a local mall so we have been busy. 
I plan on getting back to blogging in the new year.  I have some things in mind.  I know what one of presents is so some of you will be receiving some things after the new years.  
Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.