2010 Topps Update Jumbo Box Break Recap

Hey guys, Drew back here. One of my bigger Christmas gifts was a box of 2010 Topps Update Jumbo Baseball. The reason I asked to get this box was simple, to finish off the complete 990 card Topps base set. I also would love to collect the inserts like I did in Series 1, but that would be very difficult especially considering the small amount of time I do have in the hobby right now. So for now the base set was the main focus, and if time comes around maybe in the future I'll try the inserts more, specifically Vintage Legends and Turkey Reds. So, lets see how I did, but first the product information!

PRODUCT CONTENT
- 10 Packs Per Box
- 50 Cards Per Pack
- 500 Cards Per Box
- 1 Rookie Chrome Refractor Box Topper Pack Box
- 1 Million Card Giveaway Redemption Per Pack
- 1 Gold Parallel Card Numbered to 2010 Per Pack
- 1 Tales of the Game Insert per Pack
- 1 Vintage Legends Insert per Pack
- 1 Topps Attax Insert per Pack
- 1 Cards Your Mom Threw Out Insert per Pack
- 1 Cards Your Mom Threw Out Original Back Insert per Box
- 1 All Star Game Used Card Per Jumbo Box
- 1 Autographed Card per Jumbo Box
- 1 Manufactured Bat Barrel Card Numbered to 99 or less Per Jumbo Box

Well, there's an awful lot of stuff to see, so we better get started. Here we go!

MY BOX BREAK REVIEW:

Base Set: 203/330

Well, I did awful. 203 cards out of 330, which means I'm missing 127 cards! What the heck? So the cards look nice as they did in the past 2 series, and the All Star cards are fairly nice too. There are a lot of nice photos in this set, especially seen on the Matsui, Halladay, and Carlos Santana cards in the scans above.

Doubles: 202

WHAT!?! I got one less double than base card, and that is absolutely ridiculous! When you buy a box for a high price that gives you enough cards to complete the base set, then you should complete the base set and not have to sift through countless doubles! Wow am I disappointed.

Stephen Strasburg: 9

- 1 Base RC
- 3 Rookie Debuts
- 2 Merry Strasmas' (really?)
- 1 Turkey Red
- 1 Peak Performance
- 1 Topps Attax (not pictured)

Ok Topps, Operation Strasburg Overload is OVER. This guy was a big hit in the hobby, and all his cards were valuable, up until the injury. 9 out of 10 collectors knew that, if we gave it a little time, Topps was gonna ruin all of the fun, and guess what, they did. I really like his base rookie and Turkey Red, but when you go out of your way to make a "Merry Strasmas" card then you are most certainly over doing it.

Gold Parallel: 10/330

- Scott Hairston
- Ian Kennedy
- Austin Jackson (Rookie Debut)
- Conor Jackson
- Brad Penny
- Jon Garland
- Brian Wilson (All Star)
- Corey Hart (All Star)
- Brian Stokes (not pictured)
- Don Kelly (not pictured)

Yawn, these are starting to get really boring, all of them are for trade.

Topps Attax Inserts: 10/50 (20%)

Again, really, they had to extend this series again? ToppsTown and Topps Attax are getting really annoying, and they have no value or use in this hobby other than attracting kids. I like the idea of attracting a young audience to the hobby, but can you leave that in their own respective products? Nobody else wants these.

Legendary Lineage: 8/30 (26%)

These inserts have been one of my favorites throughout the series, and this time, a lot of the cards feature rookies compared to legends of the past. Of course the stat comparison really throws you off but I think they did a fairly good job at matching the players this time around. Unfortunately, this screwed up box produced 2 doubles out of these 10 cards, meanwhile, 22 other cards were out there still. Wow. At least I got the Cano/Carew card!

More Tales of the Game: 8/15 (53%)

Ugh, even Topps sounded disappointed with the return of this set. MORE Tales of the Game, oh man, could they just come up with new ideas? Out of these cards, the only one I cared about was the Ruth, but thats not even all that exciting. This was a great set in Series 1, but please, Topps, GIVE IT UP! Oh, and guess what, 2 more doubles!

Cards Your Mom Threw Out: 10/58 (17%)

You don't know how SICK of this set I am now! I'm sure I'm speaking for a lot of you at this point. First of all, reprints are lame. Second of all, we don't need 3 reprints for EVERY TOPPS SET PRODUCED! Do I really need 3 2009 Topps reprints? In Series 1, I built this set because 1) I'm insane, and 2) I liked the idea of having a card for each Topps year in order in binder pages, that way I could get to learn the sets better. But this set should've ended after Series 1. Unfortunately, next year, we have to see 60 more reprints on Topps' 60th anniversary, and that won't be fun either.

Cards Your Mom Threw Out Original Back: 1 (Derek Jeter)

I actually have never seen this card before! Call me crazy, but I've never really gotten a whole lot of mid-90's Topps cards, and I never knew this card existed. Wow, I feel embarrassed now. None the less, its still a stupid reprint but at least it taught me something.

Vintage Legends: 6/25 (24%)

I actually kinda like this insert set. Maybe it's because it's somewhat fresh since it started in Series 2, or maybe because it's actually a pretty nice set. Of course, Topps has done this idea countless amounts of times, but this looks pretty nice I must say. I really like the Honus Wagner and Campanella cards out of this group, and I wouldn't mind trying to get both Series 2 and this set.

Peak Performance: 4/25 (16%)

The Strasburg card is under his own respective category, but any ways, only 4? Wow, something seems wrong there. This set has gotten extremely boring, and honestly, I'm kind of glad I only got 4 in the box. I like the Stanton and Strasburg cards though.

Turkey Red: 8/50 (16%)

Ah, finally, my favorite insert set, and remarkably, still my favorite insert set. You would think after all this Topps Mumbo Jumbo they've been doing this year, I'd be sick of this set. But of course not, it's Turkey Red! Again, the Strasburg card is above, and it's my favorite one I pulled, over Walter Johnson and Duke Snider by just a little. I also received 2 more doubles (Stanton, W. Johnson). If I had the time, I would love to build this set, and I'll try to pick some singles up eventually, and maybe that could be a possibility.

Million Card Giveaway: 10

Well, I redeemed all of these, but they got lost in my collection of 33 cards online, so I forget which ones I unlocked from this box. All I remember is that the newest card of the 10 was a 1983 Lou Piniella Yankees card, and a lot of the cards were late 70's. I did really well though!

Chrome Rookie Refractor: 1 (Felix Doubrant)

First off, never heard of the guy, and he's a Red Sox, so it's for trade. Second of all, I opened the pack and took out the card, and it was covered in dust! Has anyone else had this problem yet? It was really weird.

Legend Shortprint: 1 (Reggie Jackson)

Now we're talking! This card was one of my favorite cards in the box, Yankee uniform or not, I collect him! These SP's are done really well and I've always liked them, it's like a bunch of Vintage Legends cards based off the 2010 design. It has his full career stats on the back and it looks very nice in person! Sweet!

All Star Relic Card: 1 (Jonathan Broxton)

Not too bad, but certainly could've done better. I had Broxton on my fantasy team for all of last year, and while he struggled towards the end, he is a pretty solid closer. But, come on Topps, a workout jersey? What the heck?

Peak Performance Autograph: 1 (Johnny Venters)

WHO?!?!?!? For trade.

Manufactured Bat Barrel: 1 (Yadier Molina Black Bat /25)

Before I upset myself more, I wanna say that this card is absolutely amazing looking. Sure it's manufactured, but it looks sweet! But.. it's Yadier Molina. Sure, he's not awful, but I mean there are so many big names in the checklist and I get him? Oh man, it was one of those boxes.

I'm just gonna do a quick little overall grading, because this post is really dragging on now haha.

Overall: Well, I'm pretty upset about this box, not because of the poor hits as much as the insert doubles and pulling as many doubles as base cards. Topps really needs to control that, because I may have decided to buy more of this product to collect the inserts had they not jipped me in this box. I really wanna call and complain but I'm sure that won't get me anywhere. Well, I've gotten some more cards from this set, and once I knock them off my checklist, hopefully I'll be closer to freedom! 2010 Topps is a hit or miss product, it's got a nice design, and some very nice cards are in the set, but the dragging on of certain subsets, and damaged cards, does not provide for the top product of the year. Good job Topps, I guess, but certainly not good enough. Overall Grade: C+

2010 Topps Series 2 Jumbo Box Break Recap I

Hey guys, Drew back here. Today, I wanted to share the results of my 2010 Topps Series 2 Box Break, so let's get started. I wanted to try a jumbo this time, because I haven't before and the hat patches look nice.

PRODUCT CONTENT
10 Packs per Box
50 Cards per Pack
500 Cards per Box
1 of each Insert per Pack
10 of each Insert Per Box
1 Hat Logo Patch Per Box
1-2 Relics per Box
Possibly 1 Auto per Box
Possibly 1 Legend SP per Box

I've seen some breaks where people don't get autos, but most do have one. Of course as you know there are 330 cards in the base set, which adds on to the first series. Let's see what I got!

MY BOX BREAK REVIEW

Base Set: 320/330

Here are most of the Yankees I pulled. I like the pics especially on the Joba and Gardner, and what Yankee fan doesn't love the World Series card?

In other teams, I got 2 Heywards, an Austin Jackson, and a Mike Leake rookie. The Reyes card has a really cool picture, possibly card of the year? A lot of great photos were used in this set, looks great!

Doubles: A lot (no idea how many haha)

Topps Attax Code Cards: 9/25, 1 double (Lance Berkman)

- Lance Berkman (x 2)
- Alexei Ramirez
- Stephen Drew
- Joey Votto
- Torii Hunter
- Grady Sizemore
- Josh Johnson
- Tim Lincecum
- Felix Hernandez

Meh. Very boring, enjoy the codes :). BTW, most of these had at least one dinged corner, any of you have the same problem with the jumbos? All for trade

Peak Performance: 10/50 (20%)

- Luis Aparicio (PP-51)
- Mike Schmidt (PP-60)
- Hunter Pence (PP-61)
- Josh Hamilton (PP-64)
- Joe Morgan (PP-70)
- Monte Irvin (PP-76)
- Matt Kemp (PP-79)
- B.J. Upton (PP-89)
- Justin Verlander (PP-86)
- Matt Cain (PP-91)

Getting kinda bored of these, still gonna try to get them all though.

History of the World Series: 10/25 (40%)

- Rogers Hornsby (HWS4)
- Babe Ruth (HWS5)
- Bob Feller (HWS9)
- Whitey Ford (HWS10)
- Yogi Berra (HWS13)
- Jim Palmer (HWS14)
- Dennis Eckersley (HWS17)
- Paul Molitor (HWS18)
- Jason Varitek (HWS19)
- Alex Gonzalez (HWS22)

Kinda boring design here, still deciding if I'll try for the set or not. It's small, so I know I can get it done pretty fast though.

Legendary Lineage: 10/30 (33%)

- Carlton Fisk/Victor Martinez (LL-33)
- Jackie Robinson/Ichiro (LL-37)
- Phil Rizzuto/Derek Jeter (LL-39)
- Harmon Killebrew/Justin Morneau (LL-40)
- Jimmie Foxx/Prince Fielder (LL-41)
- Stan Musial/Matt Holliday (LL-48)
- Juan Marichal/Tim Lincecum (LL-51)
- Rickey Henderson/B.J. Upton (LL-55)
- Honus Wagner/Andrew McCutchen (LL-58)
- Ryne Sandberg/Chase Utley (LL-60)

Still not bored of this set, they look great all together, so I'm getting these 30!!!

Vintage Legends: 1 double, 9/25 (36%)

- Tris Speaker (VLC4)
- Jackie Robinson (VLC12)
- Eddie Murray (VLC13)
- Jimmie Foxx (VLC15)
- Johnny Bench (VLC18)
- Ty Cobb (VLC20 x 2)
- Roy Campanella (VLC22)
- Cy Young (VLC23)
- Pee Wee Reese (VLC24)

I really enjoyed these cards, I'm definitely going for the set!

Cards Your Mom Threw Out: 10/58 (17%)

- Willie McCovey (CMT67)
- Harmon Killebrew (CMT70)
- Nolan Ryan (CMT76)
- Johnny Bench (CMT77)
- Paul Molitor (CMT86)
- Steve Carlton (CMT89)
- Ken Griffey Jr. (CMT98)
- Bo Jackson (CMT101)
- Alex Rodriguez (CMT106)
- Ichiro/Albert Pujols (CMT111)

Original Back: Jim Bunning (FT)

Turkey Red: 10/50 (20%)

- Adam Dunn (TR52)
- Felix Hernandez (TR61)
- Jackie Robinson (TR70)
- Tom Seaver (TR74)
- Chris Coghlan (TR76)
- Raul Ibanez (TR79)
- Lou Gehrig (TR85)
- Billy Butler (TR86)
- Ubaldo Jimenez (TR89)
- Kurt Suzuki (TR94)

Lovin Turkey Reds always, the best insert set in the product by far!!

Topps 2020: 10/20 (50%)

- Andre Ethier (T3)
- Justin Upton (T5)
- Buster Posey (T8)
- Madison Bumgarner (T9)
- Joe Mauer (T11)
- Andrew McCutchen (T13)
- Ubaldo Jimenez (T14)
- Tommy Hanson (T17)
- Clayton Kershaw (T18)
- Matt Kemp (T20)

Great looking set, just some damage on the backs, but still going for it since it's small.

Gold Parallel: 10/330 (3%) All /2010!

- Aramis Ramirez (359)
- Philadelphia Phillies (372)
- Derek Lowe (383)
- Josh Fields (387)
- Emilio Bonifacio (439)
- Jeremy Guthrie (447)
- Delmon Young (468)
- Chris Carpenter (479)
- Steve Pearce (530)
- Bird Watching Checklist (543)

Boring golds, all for trade!

Million Card Giveaway: 10, unlocked

- 1959 Frank Lary
- 1968 Hank Allen
- 1972 Sonny Siebert
- 1973 Ron Reed
- 1975 Sonny Siebert
- 1981 Jerry Remy
- 1981 Byron McLaughlin
- 1990 Rick Leach
- 1999 Paul Sorrento
- 2004 Steve Sparks

All for trade except the 1959 (unless you offer a Yankee from that set for it)

You Sketch It Card: 1

Red Hot Rookie Redemption: #3

Will it be Strasburg??? If so, it's for sale

Vintage Legend SP: Nolan Ryan (#615b)

Nothing like a nice looking Nolan Ryan card to improve the break! Now on to the main 3 hits...

Autograph: #PPA-DM Daniel Murphy

Eh.... it's for trade

Game Used: #PPR-NS Nick Swisher

Eh.... it's in the PC! I never got a hit of a player I collect before until now, and the card is really nice. It says it's just plain memorabilia, it's gray with a cool texture, I'm thinking batting gloves possibly?

Hat Patch: #MHR-301 Zack Greinke

Very nice card to finish it out, numbered out of 99, of a premier pitcher in baseball today. Too bad he plays for the Royals. It's for trade, but only for a Yankee like this of similar value.

What do you think? My review is coming up next. See Ya!

Trip to the Card Shop

Hey everyone, Drew back here. Last week I stopped at my card store to pick up some supplies, which is by now the simplest excuse for wasting money at your store! So, I got a binder, some toploaders, penny sleeves, and 1 pack of 2010 Bowman, 2 packs of 2010 National Chicle, and 1 jumbo pack of Topps Series 2 2010. I also bought one card, which you see at the bottom of the post. In my packs... this is what I got...

2010 Bowman
- Ubaldo Jimenez
- Ian Kinsler
- Miguel Tejada
- Grady Sizemore 1993 Bowman
- Ryan Howard/Domonic Brown Bowman Expectations
- Yen-Wen Kuo Chrome
- C.J. Retherford Chrome
- Daniel Nava Prospect
- Gustavo Nunez Prospect
- Max Scherzer Gold

2010 National Chicle (2 Packs Combined)
- Brandon Inge
- Jonathan Sanchez
- Tobi Stoner RC
- Chris Carpenter
- Nate McLouth
- Mark Buehrle
- Zach Greinke
- Pee Wee Reese
- Stan Musial
- Alex Rios
- Mel Ott (non short print version)
- Ryne Sandberg
- Carlton Fisk
- Tim Wakefield
- Mariano Rivera National Chicle Back (PC)
- Yadier Molina Bazooka Back

2010 Topps Series 2 Jumbo
- Ton of Base

- Chris Johnson RC Gold /2010
- Justin Verlander Topps Attax (have the code if you want)
- Jason Varitek World Series History (mini throw up)
- Frank Robinson/Ryan Braun Legendary Lineage
- Cal Ripken Card Yo Mama Threw Out
- Ubaldo Jimenez 2020 Topps
- Lou Gehrig Turkey Red (PC)
- Curtis Granderson Peak Performance (PC)
- Lou Gehrig Vintage Legends (PC)
- Gary Carter Million Card Giveaway Redemption

So, overall, not too bad, but not great. The Bowman was pretty brutal, the Chicle was decent because of the Rivera National Chicle back (which are pointless oh by the way), and the Topps was pretty good. The Pujols was thrown in for free by the dude working at the shop, and it's for trade if anyone wants it. Anyone can use the Verlander code, and the gold is also for trade. Topps should seriously consider getting rid of the printed serial numbers, it's really cheap and stupid looking. Lastly, I like Topps 2020, except the Ubaldo has some seriously bad damage on it!

The Million Card Giveaway code unlocked this:

I'll take it! And I bought this at the store:

I could've met Orlando Cepeda if I wanted to back in August for $30, but I didn't really know him, and I still kind of don't. I like 2008 Legendary Cuts, and this is numbered out of 75. I also really like old school relics as do many other people, and here is a good example!

See Ya!

White Plains Card Show Recap Part I

Hey guys, Drew back here. Here is part 1 of the review, and let's get started!

PART 1:
2010 Topps Wantlist ATTACK!

Well, it was a beautiful day on May 15th, 2010, and after the ride down to White Plains, we were ready to attack the card show. I forgot to hit any other set wantlists, but I certainly took hold of 2010 Topps. I picked up a ton of singles at one vendor, all inserts I needed.

Here are 8 of 12 Cards My Mom Threw Out that I bought, which leads me to now only need 5 more, 1 incoming. The 4 I need are #'s 3, 4, 6, & 8. These cards will be useful when I complete it to recognize the designs of the Topps sets, since I'm very bad with years.

I bought 2 Tales of the Game, Jimmy Piersall and Manny Ramirez, which completes that set. I really like the Tales of the Game overall, it looks nice all together. I also got 7 Peak Performances, not showing the Pedroia, the Mantle and Lincecums are awesome! With some coming in soon, I now only need cards #1, 31, and 40 to complete the first 50 cards in this set. I couldn't find the Johnny Bench History of the Game so I need that to finish that set too.

Lastly, I bought 8 Turkey Reds, the hardest set to complete so far since some are a few bucks each. The Greinke and Hamels are my favorites out of these. Now I need 13 more of these, #'s 1, 12, 15, 21, 22, 23, 25, 29, 34, 37, 40, 45, and 46.

Lastly, we split a box of 2010 Topps retail, and I gave my friend all the base since I had them all. I got 3 Cards My Mom Threw Out, a nice Lincecum Toppstown, and 2 awesome Turkey Reds! The Mantle is probably my favorite Mantle card of all time! And lastly, the Verlander was the last card I needed for the When They Were Young set.

I unlocked 2 Million Card Giveaway cards, nothing special, but Rudi was pretty good so that's not bad trade bait. My friend actually got very lucky and unlocked a 1956 Topps Sherm Lollar! He also got a 1978 Tito Fuentes, so I must say he did much better than me!

So I really did damage to this set yesterday, now only needing about 20 cards to finish the master set and I want them soon! If you have any, contact me at yanks1996wsc@gmail.com

I didn't show the little bonus pack this time since there was nothing special, just a Barry Sanders insert and a few other decent ones.