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!

Lucky Pull of the Opening Day Ace!

Hey guys, Drew back here! Things are starting to get a little bit busier in my life, which is obviously welcomed. I haven't had a whole lot to do lately with a relatively laid back Spring semester, but I just got a job and am starting to look into summer internship possibilities and even studying abroad in the future. I'm really excited for all of the future opportunities that could be coming my way, and although this may affect my time on this blog I'll do my best to stick around.

Along with the Walking Dead packs I displayed here on Sunday (excellent finale, may I add), I bought one pack of 2015 Topps Heritage to check out the new design. Heritage is still one of my favorite products despite the repetitive gimmicks, and the cards are fantastic for holding autographs. I figured with my pack I could add a card or two to send out through the mail during the season, and although that didn't work out too well in terms of consistent signers, I did much better!

In my only pack, I managed to pull the chrome refractor of our Opening Day ace Masahiro Tanaka! This is numbered to 566, and the shine is fantastic! It is easily my nicest Tanaka card to date and I was astounded that I managed to get perhaps the best non-hit Yankee card from the set!

The rest of the pack was relatively nice, but nothing came close to topping Mr. Tanaka for me. I guess I won't be needing to buy any more of this now, so I can go out on top with one of my favorite all around releases of the year! I know Topps had some problems with the Tribute product that are pretty inexcusable, but outside of that they have been improving just about everything else.

Now if only I could get my replacement cards for my 2011 Tier One set...

See Ya!

Walking Dead Season 5 Finale TONIGHT!

Hey everyone, Drew back here! As you can see from the post title, I am taking a day off from talking/thinking/writing about baseball to focus on the conclusion of what I believe has been an excellent 5th season of my favorite show, The Walking Dead. I've been thoroughly enjoying this season, and I think it's safe to say that it, along with Game of Thrones, are the biggest shows on TV. I have yet to get into Thrones, as I am currently discovering Lost, but it is next on my TV show agenda!

About a week ago, I picked up my first two packs of the Cryptozoic Walking Dead card set at Target! I have seen these here and there online but never saw them in stores, especially by individual packs. I didn't expect to pull any big autos or relics, but just wanted to get a taste for the product. 

*SPOILER WARNING: If you have not seen up to the end of Season 3 of The Walking Dead, and don't wish to have the show spoiled, do not continue reading*

Pack 1

There is nothing overly special to this card set, as it draws similarities to just about any other pop culture card set. However, as a fan of the show, it is cool to get to relive some of its earlier moments, especially through one of my favorite outlets; trading cards. I love the card of Daryl (Norman Reedus) and Rick (Andrew Lincoln) hunting in the woods together. Season 3 may be the most disputed season among fans, but I personally really loved the Governor's story arch and couldn't get enough of it. I also really loved how Merle emerged at the end of his life, and seeing Daryl have to put his brother out of his misery was an absolutely heart-wrenching moment. If there's one bright spot to the show, it's Glenn and Maggie's relationship, which I pray does not end tonight. Glenn is the most underrated character on the show, and I would hate to see him succumb to the walker masses that are about to strike Alexandria.

Pack 2

I thought the T-Dog death card looked so cool, and I wasn't particularly crazy about the character either so it didn't exactly bring me to tears. T-Dog's role in the group was minimal, and while he was likeable and funny at points, I don't miss him all that much. My favorite card between the two packs was definitely the first standoff scene card of Rick and the Governor. I remember feeling the suspense in that moment, and begging Rick to just kill the man and put an end to it. But Rick is a better man than I, or maybe it was simply because he didn't realize how dangerous the man with the eye patch was.

There isn't anything special to report about the product, but I think they look cool personally since I love watching the show for its characters. Some of the story archs (Beth in the hospital) haven't been overly entertaining, but the connection you gain to the survivors is what makes the show brilliant. Some have said that "it's the best show about nothing", and I get that since it moves at a relatively slow pace. It may dissolve in mainstream interest over the years, but that would simply be because some viewers don't take the time to understand the importance of every single scene (because even filler episodes contain important plot elements you may not catch right away). Last season, a lot of people complained about the back half of the season, especially the episode in which Daryl and Beth find an abandoned cabin in the middle of the woods and hang out. It wasn't all that fun to watch then, but some of what Beth said in that episode tied together in this season.

*SPOILERS: If you haven't caught up to the Walking Dead and wish to, do not continue to read*

As for tonight's episode, I have been so nervous to see how things play out. I'm looking forward to hopefully seeing Morgan make his long awaited return to Rick and the Survivors, and hopefully it will come about in dramatic fashion. Rick very well may be exiled from Alexandria, but that won't be close to the end of his time there. He knows the Alexandrian people are weak, and that he can take over if it came to that. Understanding what's going on in Rick's mind almost makes you want to like Shane and the Governor more, who knew what it took to survive before Rick found out for himself. If Rick never got into a coma, chances are he could've and would've been quicker to fire his weapon and take charge then he was earlier in the show. His character transformation has been amazing to see, because we can see so much of other characters in him now and that he's too far gone from ever being able to remain civilized for a prolonged period of time.

If I had to predict who could die tonight; I think Pete is a shoo in. He's not going to be happy about what took place between he and Rick last episode, and well, no matter what he does, he's not going to win this battle. As crazy as Rick sounded last episode, it all made sense. We all hoped with Rick in prior years that doing the moral thing would result in being able to overcome the Apocalypse, but we now all see that in order to live, you need to be willing to do whatever it takes. Whoever is a threat needs to be taken care of, especially for Rick, who is ultimately trying to protect his son and daughter. Even strong survivors such as Tyreese couldn't survive because he wasn't willing to make that life adjustment.

I also think we're going to see a huge character death, and I have a bad feeling that it will be one of our 5 original characters. Rick and Carl are safe in my eyes, as there is plenty more of a story behind their characters. I think the show will last between 8 and 10 seasons, and it wouldn't make sense for them to die halfway through. It will be one of my 3 favorite current characters; Daryl, Carol, or Glenn. All three could be in danger tonight at some point, and I'm particularly worried about that Nicholas douchebag who we now know is wielding Rick's gun.

Tonight is going to be crazy, and I can't wait to see what takes place. The episode is 90 minutes long, which is a nice treat and will almost feel like a movie! To say I'm excited is an understatement!

I hope this post reached some Walking Dead fans out there in this blogging community, and if not, oh well. I write on this blog mostly for my personal enjoyment of writing, but being to able to share my thoughts and opinions with you all is a blast too.

With all that in mind, any of you have any death predictions? Enjoy the show tonight!

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!

Trip to Target on Saturday, and Sleepover Party Favors!