All Star Stitches

Relics don't really have the same appeal they once did to me. There have been so many controversies in regards to where the "game used material" comes from to the point where I'm generally driven away from buying them. I'm even at the point where I'd rather add a colorful parallel of a player I collect over having a piece of their bathroom towel or socks or whatever Topps and Panini are using.

One of the best relic sets every year to me is the All Star cards in Topps' annual Update Series. I like some diversity in my player collections, and typically most of the jersey swatches placed on their cards look pretty similar. But the All Star ones can be bright and on the complete opposite end of the color spectrum from what they typically don throughout the course of the regular season. I recently added two cards of this nature, the first on Check Out My Collectibles and the second from eBay.

2013 Topps Update Prince Fielder All Star Stitches

I've had a few of these cards on my want list ever since they came out in 2013. I was lucky enough to attend that year's Home Run Derby and watch my favorite sluggers duke it out in Citi Field. Prince Fielder was a favorite to win, and was one of my favorite players at the time (still very much up there). He didn't make it as far into the competition as we hoped, but the power display Yoenis Cespedes provided Queens that night was enough to make up for it. It's pretty cool in retrospect to think that just two years later Cespedes helped lead the Mets to the World Series.

I highly doubt this was the jersey Fielder wore during the Derby, but it's close as it's going to get for me. That was one of the best days of my life, and I'm glad I have another token to remember it by. This cost me maybe $2.

2015 Topps Update Joe Panik All Star Stitches

It's hard to believe that a player can make such a quiet splash into the league. Joe Panik helped lead the Giants to an unforgettable World Series victory in his rookie year, and followed up by making the All Star team the next season. I hope this is the first of many for Joe, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was. I talk him up a great deal because we rarely get major league quality talent in my neck of the woods, but he really is evolving into one of the best second basemen in the National League. If he can put together a full, healthy season, I feel like he can bring in some hardware.

Most fans don't get much out of the All Star Game, and I understand why. The game means too much for the World Series but usually isn't as thrilling as the stakes would entail. On top of it all, interleague play is so common that it's not as exciting to see these players face off. I still enjoy seeing the players I've admired for years honored annually, and I hope that feeling stays with me for a while. 

Belated Birthday Mail from Andrew!

Hey everyone, Drew back here! I arrived home from school earlier this week to find a long awaited package from my great friend Andrew (Everyday Holliday). He had sent me a birthday gift in the mail during the summer that wound up getting lost in the mail unfortunately, especially since he drew me a picture of Derek Jeter along with the gift. I was disappointed by the news, but later he messaged me again saying he got me another gift to make up for it.

Sure enough, he wasn't lying, and I opened up the bubble mailer to find not one, but two autographs I needed of one of my main personal collections:

I have slowed down with my Joe Panik collection in light of my recent Luis Severino surge, but he is still one of my primary focuses at the moment. The great thing about this hobby is that you can really allot your time and effort to different collections, especially with the help of generous friends like Andrew. The card on the left is out of this year's flagship set, while the opposite card is from 2015 Topps Tier One and is serial numbered 84/399. He was in many of the Topps issues in 2015, so I have a lot of catching up to do when I do turn my focus back to the young star.

Panik had a solid 2015, although it didn't end as well as it began. He faced a lingering back injury that limited him to just 100 games with the Giants, but he performed well while healthy. I would consider the year an overwhelming success because he landed a place on the National League All Star team for the first of hopefully many times to come. Even if his career doesn't pan out from this point forward, he can still say he is a World Series Champion and former All Star. Not bad.

Thank you so much Andrew for going so far out of your way to make my birthday even more special. The cards mean a lot, but the generosity is what I really appreciated over anything else.

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!

We Won't Stop! Mail from William

Hey guys, Drew back here! There was a bit of confusion recently between Frankie, William, and I which resulted in me receiving both William and Frankie's cards in the same box! I accidentally posted the mini Mariano Rivera figure with Frankie's cards, but that actually was from William. Anyway, everything is now worked out, so let's see what William had to offer!

We begin with a whole lot of 2015 Topps Yankees goodness! I did wind up buying 2015 Topps cards at Target surprisingly, but I only pulled a few of the Yankees cards. Luckily for me, William opens quite a bit more than me, and is one of the most generous people in Internet history. I kicked off with the two amazing Jeter cards, both of which have become two of my all time favorite cards. The second it was revealed that Jeter's classic celebration would be the first card in the set I knew this was going to be a special year for baseball cards. I really like the gold parallel of David Phelps too; I'm going to miss him next year when the rotation is on the DL. 

I'm going to hope and pray if Sabathia and Tanaka get injured next season that they don't look sign this lefty bullpen specialist. Curtis James Jackson III, aka 50 Cent, threw perhaps the worst pitch of all time to kick off a Mets game last season. Seriously. (Vlad could still hit it though)

Well, it really doesn't get much nicer than this 2014 Topps Chrome insert of Jacoby Ellsbury! I've always kind of liked the 1989 Topps design, and I think they did a great job with it in this case. I don't have much of Ellsbury in my collection, and I have a good feeling about him in 2015. So I think I've got to do something about that.

I mentioned earlier how the new Derek Jeter 2015 cards are among my favorites of all time. This one has got to be up there now too. From everything I've seen, 2014 Stadium Club looks amazing, although it's not much of a surprise. I may have to try and get some for myself, but I could just be content with this sweet Core Four tribute. It's so weird thinking that this era of Yankee excellence has come to a close. 

He also tossed in some older cards of a couple of my personal favorites. I love that Tino Martinez Donruss rookie; even if I may have it already I'll never get enough of it.

Capping it all off was this rally towel from the Orioles playoff run last year. He seemed to have gotten about a million of these from FanFest this year, and it is a welcomed addition to my collection. If it was a Red Sox logo, I could use this in all sorts of different ways, but I can tolerate his Orioles enough to leave this unharmed. 

I'll never be able to fully repay you for all of this stuff, William. It means a lot to you that you think to send me all sorts of nice things on occasion; it's living proof that you're one of the best people I've ever come across (although you certainly don't need to send anything to prove that). Thank you so much!

See Ya!

My First Taste of 2015 Topps!

Hey guys, Drew back here! Last week, I gave myself a little love and picked up a few 2015 Topps hanger boxes and a retail jumbo pack at Target! I've been seeing the new set all over the Internet and although I wasn't a fan at first glance, my opinions took a complete 360 turn in just about no time. So, Mr. Puig and I had a nice date in the Target parking lot during my break between classes in the midst of a snow storm (nothing new there).

My first card of 2015 was of Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford. The Giants are my second favorite team now after visiting San Francisco last summer, and I like this kid a lot. I'm more than content to start the year in this fashion.

Jumbo Pack:

It may not be a classy design, but its the way Topps has had to go with their flagship product for years now. In this age of advanced technology, it was only right that the product should be designed with color and flair to depict the time we live in. The photography is excellent as it has been for a few years now, and I absolutely love how there the border colors match the team colors! Hopefully this means we're slowly working towards less pointless parallels. My first Yankee card is of now ex-Yankee Martin Prado. I was bummed to lose him this offseason, but I'm excited to see how Eovaldi will fare in the Bronx next season.

My one gripe with the new product is something that has been a consistent Topps downfall of mine in recent memory: too many inserts. I like the concepts of some of them; particularly the Robbed in Left, Free Agent 40, and First Pitches, but the rest do absolutely nothing for me. The Archetypes cards look cool but have no meaning whatsoever in my opinion. And god- whoever decided to put Austin Mahone in a card set needs to reexamine their life choices (I'll definitely take the Jack White card though).

Hanger Box 1:

Boy oh boy do I love that Jeter card. Not only was it so appropriate to give him card #1 this year, but the picture to top it off just astounds me. I wouldn't be surprised if that is still one of my all time favorite cards years down the road. Another small complaint though is with the "Future Stars" cards, and I think a lot of you have vouched for this earlier. The foil does not look good at all. I'm so glad Topps went without foil for most of the base cards this year, but that was really unnecessary. All or nothing, guys.

I didn't pull anything spectacular in this box, but it was fun to go through. The Jackie Robinson inserts are neat, but I feel like the days of having a full insert set all given to one player should be coming to an end soon. The parallel I pulled of Sal Perez is beautiful looking, and has me excited for Topps Chrome!

Hanger Box 2:

I ran into some serious collation problems between the jumbo pack and this box in particular. Of the 157 total base cards I added that day, there were over 30 doubles including a few triples. With a set 350 cards deep, I shouldn't have come home with that many doubles, but what can you do. Those Hunter Pence and Cole Hamels shots are really sweet though; again, excellent photography.

We conclude with another relatively underwhelming collection of inserts. The dual past/present cards have passed their prime, but this year's Inspired Play is certainly the nicest design they've used for that template yet. The gold cards stand out this year more than in year's passed, and the history cards are interesting too.

Topps is never going to please everyone; and while I'm torn on some things with this product, I do really like it as a whole. I doubt I'll be buying much more due to financial constraints, but I'm happy with what I came home with. Over anything else, I wanted some cards to send out TTM, and I wanted to see the base cards for myself.

Very well done Topps, you're heading in the right path without a doubt! See Ya!