Cashing in on Crawford!

Hey guys, Drew back here! It sure has been nice to have some eBay money to use for the first time in so long. On the same day I found that Scherzer autograph I posted recently, I found this card for dirt cheap of an emerging young star on my favorite National League team! 

Ah, yes. Gypsy Queen found a way to grow on me. I've loved each year's Gypsy Queen product thus far, but this year I really wasn't impressed at first. But, the more I've seen, the more I'm beginning to love this year's unique design. Some cards tend to work into the template more than others, but this card in particular is a thing of beauty.

Brandon Crawford is the double play partner of my current favorite player in the game, Joe Panik. Both Panik and Crawford have had spectacular 2015 campaigns, and both are currently worthy of being named to this year's All Star team. Crawford is batting .288 with 8 home runs, 38 RBI, and he is known to make dazzling highlight plays at shortstop. There is a lot to like about this kid's future, and all signs indicate that his current statistical output is no mirage. I payed a higher amount for the shipping alone on this card than for the card itself, and I think down the road I'll be happy I took the chance on it!

See Ya!

Seven Nation Army of Cards in My Mailbox!

Hey everyone, Drew back here! About a week ago, my best buddy William surprised me with an excellent package of Yankees cards, new and old. I was not aware of this coming in, and needless to say it easily made my day. Let's take a look at what came my way:

We begin with some 2014 and 2015 Bowman; the one set I never seem to buy any of no matter how nice they may be. I must admit, this year's product is the best I've seen in years, and I'm not sure what it is that I love about it. The photo choices are atypical of the average Bowman product, and I particularly like the Michael Pineda card (although this copy is missing the foil "Mi" in Michael). Foil isn't always a plus, but Topps did a good job of making it work with this year's design.

My favorite of the Bowman cards happened to be of recently celebrated center fielder Bernie Williams. Bowman celebrated a 25th anniversary of the 1990 rookie class, which included Williams, Frank Thomas, Moises Alou, among others. There are regular variations, and also autographed versions, which our fellow blogger The Snorting Bull has already fully assembled (Beautiful set, by the way)!

I missed Bernie's best years in pinstripes, but have always had a high level of respect for his career(s). He was one of the more under-appreciated stars of the Steroid Era, and while it may seem off to retire his number with the Yankees, he deserves it thanks in part to others who have also had their numbers retired. It was a nice ceremony, and if you haven't heard his emotional speech, check it out.

2015 Topps Heritage hasn't done too much for me, although I have generally been a fan of the product over the years. I think a lot of it has to do with never being a fan of the 1966 Topps set, especially considering it followed up perhaps the most beautiful years of baseball card history, 1965. I do enjoy manager cards, as you saw recently with my TTM successes from this set of Buck Showalter and Ned Yost. 

I know I recently bashed Gypsy Queen for the random loopy thing on the front of each card, but the more I see of the set, the more it's growing on me. It almost reminds me of a keyhole, which as far as I know hasn't been done yet. As always, Gypsy Queen honors the legends they use, and boy, those Gossage, Parker, Cone, and DiMaggio cards are gorgeous.

... but nothing beats this one. Forever my all time favorite player. I miss you Derek.

There was quite a mixed variety of stuff in this package, as there usually seems to be. I don't know how William ends up with all these Yankees cards, but I'll always be glad to take them off your hands. I know it's hard for Panini to do without logos, but the Thurman Munson Diamond Kings card is flawless. I really hope they get an MLB license within the next few years, because I think a lot of what took me out of buying packs and boxes had to do with Topps receiving exclusive rights; crumpling Upper Deck in the process. A little competition is never a bad thing.

I've been waiting for this card for a loooooong time. The second I knew Jack White was getting a card in this year's Series 1, I wanted it in my collection. The former White Stripes lead singer and guitarist, as well a member of the talented Raconteurs, Dead Weather, and a fantastic soloist; has become one of my all time favorite musicians in a very quick timespan. I saw him perform live this past January at Madison Square Garden, and it was perhaps the greatest performance I've ever seen. White has been seen at many baseball stadiums in the last year, and a meme was even created for his dull expression at a Cubs game. I was even at a Yankee game last year that he (and Kate Upton) were at; and in retrospect I really wished I stalked him down and got a chance to shake his hand. Oh well. At least I finally have one of these beautiful cards, honoring his First Pitch at Comerica Park last summer!

Thank you so much again William! Please go check out foul bunt, but who am I kidding; who hasn't? See Ya!

Taste of Gypsy Queen + Why Matt Carpenter is the Worst

Hey guys, Drew back here! It may or may not be a good thing that my new job is located at my local mall, along with my closest Target. I've been tempted for over a week to check out the new Gypsy Queen product, and I finally got around to giving it a try; purchasing a hanger pack with 3 retail packs and a 3 card pack of Target exclusive parallels. I could not resist Ozzie Smith being on the pack covers, and I've always liked what Topps has done with the set year after year.

Pack 1:

- Matt Carpenter

- Ty Cobb

- Mookie Betts Mini

- Yan Gomes

- Starling Marte

- C.J. Wilson

Matt Carpenter and I are foes all thanks to fantasy baseball. I really want to like the guy, he's a great run scoring leadoff hitter on a team I have always found respect for. However, in September of 2013 I was playing in my main fantasy baseball league championship against the kid comparable to Ruxin from "The League"; who had won two consecutive seasons and was seeking a three-peat. On the last day of the season, I was barely ahead, until the Cardinals played that Sunday night. My opponent played Matt Adams and Carpenter while I had Yadier Molina as my final player of the season. I was winning the batting average category by percentage points, and Molina's 1 for 3 performance that night put me up just enough where I thought I could hold on. I also was winning by 1 home run, and was worried that Matt Adams could be the guy to hit the tying bomb, since he is more of a power hitter and was on a tear at the moment.

Adams stunk it up on Sunday Night Baseball, striking out 3 times in an 0-5 performance. However, Matt Carpenter did just enough to crush my spirits. In his first at bat, he barely knocked the ball over the fence to tie the home run category at 12 each. At this point, I had the score at 5-3-2 (our league plays Head to Head based on categories), and after Molina's hit I thought I would still be able to hang on. But Carpenter wasn't done, and in one of his later at bats he knocked a base hit barely above a leaping Scooter Gennett at second base that gave him a batting average lead of .3121 to .3117, which he was able to hold on to to tie the overall score, 4-4-2. Yeah. A tie. In the championship. And since his team had a better overall regular season record than me, he won the tiebreaker, and the championship.

But that's not all. After having to hear him brag about Matt Carpenter winning him the cheapest championship in fantasy sports history, I decided to give him a shot the next season. If anyone else reading had Carpenter on their team last year expecting what he did in 2013, you can see why I still couldn't change my mind about him. This year, he's back on the dark side, and of course, he's performing whenever my arch rival wants him to. So, long story short, Matt Carpenter, you're the worst.

Pack 2:

- Cal Ripken Jr.

- Matt Adams

- Johnny Cueto Mini

- Mike Moustakas Glove Stories

- Daniel Murphy

- Jake Odorizzi

Sorry for the rant before, I just can't help but get frustrated whenever I see Matt Carpenter dominating. As for the Gypsy Queen set itself, I'm a fan of the base cards with the exception of that distracting loop on the upper left side of each card. It bothers me, especially when they don't make use of it to include more of the photo in it. The Carpenter and Marte cards in Pack 1 look better to me than what Topps did with Daniel Murphy and Cal Ripken's cards, because the space is unnecessary and takes away from the overall design. I think they wanted to make a substantial change this year because the product was beginning to lose its appeal, and I really have to be honest, I'm not sure if it worked well at all.

Pack 3:

- Howie Kendrick

- Allen Craig

- Matt Garza Mini

- Alex Gordon Walk-Off Winners

- Jean Segura

- Anthony Rendon

I'm also starting to get a bit sick of mini cards. I have never known what to do to store minis properly, and I've had stacks of different years of minis laying around in my basement for a while now. I always have to put them separately in card boxes because if I try to put a player's cards in order, the minis always seem to fall out and it becomes a process. If anyone wants a significant amount of my mini cards, feel free to comment on this post. 

One thing I can say Topps does a good job with in Gypsy Queen is how they can photoshop players in new uniforms. Obviously, there is no perfect way to do this, but I think the Howie Kendrick card looks presentable without a doubt, and it was my favorite card of the pack. A lot of this has to do with the artistic approach to contrast and shadows that has been Gypsy Queen's draw for years now.

Retail Exclusive Parallels:

- Mookie Wilson
- Yu Darvish
- Satchel Paige

Call me hypocritical, but the weird loop in the design looks fantastic on these parallels. The pictures are set into the cards and these are on thick card stock, and I think the shining gray foil used displays the pictures really well. The Satchel Paige is a beautiful card, and the other two don't look that bad either.

Something did feel a bit off with Gypsy Queen this year, and I can say of the three products I've checked out in 2015, it has been my least favorite. I'm looking forward to Series 2 of the flagship set!

What do you think about this year's Gypsy Queen? And, do you have any players you can't like no matter how hard you try?

See Ya!