2008 Topps Series One

This series has now probably been done to death now. However a friend went to the 'States'. I say friend it was a relative of the neighbours. If I hear of a person visiting the US I ask them ever so politely, to look out for baseball cards, preferably packs. I usually come up short but hit a little jackpot of sorts for this US visit. Packs, 4 of, 2008 Topps. Not bad really. The pedigree of these packs? Wally World? Target? A card show? No. These packs came from a 7-Eleven store in Florida, apparently they went for a Slurpee.
The last time I opened some 2008 Topps sent by James this happened. Lets see if history repeats itself.

Pack 1:

#4 Rick Ankiel Cardinals

#8 Stephen Drew D-backs

#64 Mike Lowell Red Sox

#94 Bud Black Padres

#104 Kevin Youkilis Red Sox

#119 Jeremy Hermida Marlins

#131 Norris Hopper Reds

#148 Gerald Laird Rangers

#169 Adam Lind Blue Jays

#308 Felipe Lopez Nationals

Pack 2:

#3 Jeff Suppan Brewers Gold 0432/2008

##41 Rich Aurilia Giants

#119 Jeremy Hermida Marlins

#131 Norris Hopper Reds

#140 Brandon Webb D-backs

#180 Jose Valverde D-backs

#201 Matt Capps Pirates

#220 Roy Oswalt Astros

#234 Red Sox World Series

#319 Joey Vitto Reds

Pack 3:

#6 Felix Pie Cubs

#28 Kyle Kendrick Phillies

#80 Alex Rios Blue Jays

#88 Jack Cust Athletics

#90 Vladimir Guerrero Angels

#182 Billy Buckner Royals

#231 Casey Blake Indians

#256 Alex Rodriguez Yankees

#321 J.R.Towles Astros

#MMS50 Mickey Mantle

checklist 1/3

Pack 4:

#23 Chin-Lung Hu Dodgers

#77 Angel Guzman Cubs

#98 Classic Combos Howard&Utley Phillies

#115 Johan Santana Twins

#154 David Ross Reds

#210 Mark Teahen Royals

#214 C.J.Wilson Rangers

#225 Hunter Pence Astros

#250 Jonathan Papelbon Red Sox

#CO8-JB Joseph Biden Democrat

Well, pulled the Red Sox World Series card again, but the common variety. I somehow get the feeling that these packs know beforehand that there are no cards I need.
Red Sox count - 4 cards from 4 packs.

2009 Upper Deck First Pitch baseball

I purchased the blaster of Upper Deck First Edition before I had arranged a trade with Charles from Blue Jays Cards. He sent me the entire set of Red Sox, bar one card. So there was only SQ-7, the Dice-K Star Quest I needed.

There are 300 cards in the set.

There are 25 Star Quest cards.

That is it. No jersey, auto or short prints. A simple set and if you bought a box of 36 packets you could (theoretically) get the whole set. This would include the Star Quest, as there is one per pack. This was, I presume UD's answer to Topps Attax.

There are 10 cards per pack, 1 being a Star Quest foil. There are 10 packs in the blaster box.

Pack 1:

#6 Mark Reynolds D-backs

#10 Max Scherzer D-backs

#13 Jair Jurrjens Braves

#38 Daisuke Matsuzaka Red Sox

#71 Paul Konerko White Sox

#189 Carlos Delgardo Mets

#234 Nate McLouth Pirates

#247 Barry Zito Giants

#250 Brain Wilson Giants

#SQ-10 Grady Sizemore Indians

Pack 2:

#24 James Parr Braves

#50 Kevin Youkilis Red Sox

#60 Geovany Soto Cubs

#67 Alexei Ramirez White Sox

#73 Jim Thome White Sox

#89 Cliff Lee Indians

#234 Nate McLouth Pirates

#241 Trevor Hoffman Padres

#282 Roco Baldelli Bay Rays

#SQ-10 Grady Sizemore Indians

Pack 3:

#4 Dan Harden D-backs

#22 Tim Hudson Braves

#39 Josh Beckett Red Sox

#45 Jonathan Papelbon Red Sox

#51 Jason Bay Red Sox

#60 Geovany Soto Cubs

#92 Fausto Carmona Indians

#238 Will Venable Padres

#282 Rocco Baldelli Bay Rays

#SQ-22 Prince Fielder Brewers

Pack 4:

#16 John Smoltz Braves

#20 Brian McCann Braves

#27 Jeremy Guthrie Orioles

#49 Tim Wakefield Red Sox

#67 Alexei Ramirez White Sox

#77 Bobby Jenks White Sox

#171 Bill Hall Brewers

#224 Greg Golson Phillies

#293 Alex Rios Blue Jays

#SQ-22 Prince Fielder Brewers

Pack 5:

#9 Chris Young D-backs

#35 Jacoby Ellsbury Red Sox

#66 Rich Harden Cubs

#76 Mark Buehrle White Sox

#79 Brandon Phillips Reds

#143 Howie Kendrick Angels

#157 Andre Ethier Dodgers

#237 Matt Antonelli Padres

#248 Tim Lincecum Giants

#SQ-5 Chase Utley Phillies

Pack 6:

#3 Brandon Webb D-backs

#28 Adam Jones Orioles

#33 Melvin Mora Orioles

#47 Hideki Okajima Red Sox

#59 Kosuke Fukudome Cubs

#80 Aaron Harang Reds

#93 Troy Tulowitzki Rockies

#146 Joe Sanders Angels

#212 Mariano Rivera Yankees

#SQ-9 David Wright Mets

Pack 7:

#7 Eric Byrnes D-backs

#12 David Eckstein D-backs

#31 Daniel Carbera Orioles

#32 George Sherrill Orioles

#64 Mark DeRosa Cubs

#69 Carlos Quentin White Sox

#84 Joey Votto Reds

#120 Roy Oswalt Astros

#238 Will Venable Padres

#SQ-5 Chase Utley Phillies

Pack 8:

#12 David Eckstein D-backs

#19 Kely Johnson Braves

#21 Jeff Francoeur Braves

#42 Dustin Pedroia Red Sox

#65 Ryan Dempster Cubs

#71 Paul Konerko White Sox

#228 Jimmy Rollins Phillies

#240 Chris Young Padres

#SQ-4 Chipper Jones Braves

#300 Pittsburgh Penguins ?

Pack 9:

#30 Aubrey Huff Orioles

#30 Aubrey Huff Orioles

#46 Jason Varitek Red Sox

#56 Aramis Ramirez Cubs

#79 Brandon Phillips Reds

#81 Edinson Volquez Reds

#109 Dontrelle Willis Tigers

#131 Jose Guillen Royals

#235 Ian Snell Pirates

#SQ-8 David Ortiz Red Sox

Pack 10:

#1 Randy Johnson D-backs

#15 Tom Glavine Braves

#36 Coco Crisp Red Sox

#52 Justin Masterson Red Sox

#53 Jeff Samardzija Cubs

#57 Kerry Wood Cubs

#102 Dexter Fowler Rockies

#249 Matt Cain Giants

#285 Josh Hamilton Rangers

#SQ-15 Jose Reyes Mets

Bonus Pack:

SQ-4 Chipper Jones Braves

SQ-11 Hanley Ramirez Marlins

SQ-18 Lance Berkman Astros

SQ-23 Ryan Braun Brewers

Unbelievable....13 Red Sox from 10 packs, over 1 per pack. That is staggering and a little sad considering that I only needed 1 card from the entire Red Sox run. It is also what we call 'Sod's Law' in the UK.

There was a surprise, a hockey card from the UD 20th anniversary set.

1995 Score Series 2 Baseball

Another couple of pack purchases that seemed like a good idea at the time.

The base set contains 605 cards.This was broken into series 1 and series 2.
There are inserts in Series 2: 18 Airmail, 12 Double gold champs, 110 Hall of Gold and 12 Rookie Dream Team.
There is a parallel set: Gold Rush.
There are 12 cards per pack.

Pack 1:

#332 Ryan Klesko Braves

#380 Al Martin Pirates

#404 Alex Cole Twins

#413 Royce Clayton Giants

#445 Manny Ramirez Indians

#458 Roger Salkeld Mariners

#480 Allen Watson Cardinals GOLD RUSH

#503 Norberto Martin White Sox

#544 Kirk McCaskill White Sox

#581 Duane Singleton Brewers

#572 Moises Alou Expos

#586 Nate Minchey Red Sox

Pack 2:

#336 Kevin Mitchell Reds

#408 Dennis Eckersley A's

#417 Pat Listach Brewers

#438 Jay Bell Pirates

#445 Manny Ramirez Indians !

#458 Roger Salked Mariners !

#466 Willie McGee Giants GOLD RUSH

#503 Norberto Martin White Sox !

#544 Kirk McCaskill White Sox !

#572 Moises Alou Expos !

#586 Nate Minchey Red Sox!

#592 Aaron Small Blue Jays !

Pack 3:

#336 Kevin Mitchell Reds !

#341 Travis Fryman Tigers

#374 Rene Arocha Cardinals

#377 Mark McGwire A's GOLD RUSH

#408 Dennis Eckersley A's !

#474 Juan Guzman Blue Jays

#479 Milt Thompson Phillies

#498 Ken Ryan Red Sox

#529 Duane Ward Blue Jays

#578 Robert Perez Blue Jays

#578 Robert Perez Blue Jays !

#603 Checklist

Pack 4:

#362 Jim Eisenreich Phillies

#387 Darrin Fletcher Expos

#420 Tim Salmon Angels

#439 Juan Gonzalez Rangers

#448 Gary DiSarcina Angels GOLD RUSH

#467 Doug Jones Phillies

#505 Howard Jones Rockies

#515 Billy Hatcher Phillies

#546 Sterling Hitchcock Yankees

#562 Barry Bonds Giants

#576 Ernie Young A's

#584 Dave Staton Padres

Pack 5:

#359 Lenny Harris Reds

#385 Chris Sabo Orioles

#423 Craig Biggio Astros GOLD RUSH

#425 Kenny Rogers Rangers

#435 Walt Weiss Rockies

#441 Rickey Henderson A's

#462 Luis Polonia Yankees

#482 Bernard Gilkey Cardinals

#487 Cory Snyder Dodgers

#492 Pat Rapp Marlins

#493 Brian McRae Royals

#519 Sandy Alomar Jr Indians

#535 Jeff Branson Reds

#592 Aaron Small Blue Jays

#595 Steve Dunn Twins

#563 Mo Vaughn Red Sox

Wow this was a real weird one. Firstly a poor selection of Red Sox 4 cards(inc 1 double). Secondly a pack full of doubles and thirdly, count the number of cards in the last pack ...16! That's right 16. I kid you not.

2006 Fleer Tradition Baseball

I picked up some Fleer Tradition in trades and thought that this would be a decent set to collect. Recently I was able to get a blaster box from e-bayUS containing 11 packs.

There are 200 cards in the base set.
There are inserts: 100 Goudey Greats, 25 Blue Chip Prospects, 25 Diamond Tributes, 25 Grass Roots, 15 Triple Crown Contenders, a number of autographs and threads.
There are parallels: A Black+White set and a Sepia set.
There are 10 cards per pack

Pack 1:

#37 B.J. Ryan Blue Jays

#38 Bengie Molina Blue Jays

#79 Travis Hafner Indians

#80 Victor Martinez Indians

#114 Miguel Tejada Orioles

#119 Jay Gibbons Orioles

#156 Felipe Lopez Reds

#161 Garrett Atkins Rockies

#162 Matt Holliday Rockies

#173 Justin Verlander Tigers

Pack 2:

#16 Chone Foggins Angels

#24 Brad Lidge Astros

#58 Greg Maddux Cubs

#94 Dontrelle Willis Marlins

#105 Carlos Delgardo Mets

#128 Bobby Abreu Phillies

#136 Matt Capps Pirates

#146 Ian Kinsler Rangers

#176 Jeremy Bonderman Tigers

#GR1 Ken Griffey Jr. Reds Grass Roots

Pack 3:

#14 Vladimir Guerrero Angels

#49 Jim Edmonds Cardinals

#62 Jorge Cantu Bay Rays

#91 Jeff Harris Mariners

#129 Chase Utley Phillies

#140 Mark Teixeira Rangers

#152 Coco Crisp Red Sox

#191 A.J.Pierzynski White Sox

#194 Hideki Matsui Yankees

#DT-6 David Ortiz Red Sox Diamond Tribute

Pack 4:

#18 Francisco Rodriguez Angels

#88 Adrian Beltre Mariners

#96 Mike Jacobs Marlins

#112 Brandon Watson Nationals

#124 Trevor Hoffman Padres

#135 Oliver Perez Pirates

#166 Josh Wilson Rockies

#177 Magglio Ordonez Tigers

#183 Joe Mauer Twins

#TC-4 David Ortiz Red Sox Triple Crown

Pack 5:

#30 Huston Street A's

#40 Prince Fielder Brewers

#65 Julio Lugo Bay Rays Sepia

#66 Jeff Kent Dodgers

#100 Dan Uggla Marlins

#111 Matt Kemp Dodgers

#153 Jonathan Papelbon Red Sox

#170 Mark Grudzielanek Royals

#178 Carlos Guillen Tigers

#189 Scott Podsednik White Sox

Pack 6:

#10 Brandon Webb D-Backs

#50 Scott Rolen Cardinals

#52 David Eckstein Cardinals

#92 Taylor Buchholz Astros

#117 Melvin Mora Orioles

#134 Jason Bay Pirates

#147 David Ortiz Red Sox

#159 Chris Denorfia Reds

#165 Ryan Shealy Rockies

#188 Paul Konerko White Sox

Pack 7:

#13 Shawn Green D-Backs

#26 Roy Owalt Astros

#67 Nomar Garciaparra Dodgers

#68 Rafael Furcal Dodgers

#113 Ryan Zimmerman Nationals

#116 Brian Roberts Orioles

#155 Adam Dunn Reds

#158 Ryan Freel Reds

#164 Kendry Morales Angels

#197 Gary Sheffield Yankees

Pack 8:

#7 Chipper Jones Braves

#19 Casey Kotchman Angels

#25 Jered Weaver Angels

#44 Carlos Lee Brewers

#61 Scott Kazmir Bay Rays

#86 Ichiro Mariners

#122 Brian Giles Padres

#125 Josh Barfield Padres

#167 Reggie Sanders Royals

#198 Randy Johnson Yankees

Pack 9:

#1 Andruw Jones Braves

#8 Conor Jackson D-Backs

#43 Ben Sheets Brewers

#56 Aramis Ramirez Cubs

#85 Jeremy Sowers Indians

#98 Hanley Ramirez Marlins

#104 Carlos Beltran Mets

#123 Khalil Greene Padres

#171 Jeremy Affeldt Royals

#182 Joe Nathan Twins

Pack 10:

#7 Alay Soler Mets

#20 Lance Berkman Astros

#32 Nick Swisher A's

#55 Mark Prior Cubs

#74 Randy Winn Giants

#97 Josh Johnson Marlins

#107 Lastings Milledge Mets

#110 Livan Hernadez Nationals

#149 Jason Varitek Red Sox

#200 Derek Jeter Yankees

Pack 11:

#4 Tim Hudson Braves

#12 Orlando Hudson D-Backs

#46 Albert Pujols Cardinals

#54 Jon Lester Red Sox

#72 J.D.Drew Dodgers

#82 C.C.Sabathia Indians

#130 Pat Burrell Phillies

#141 Michael Young Rangers

#172 Steve Stemle Royals

#195 Wil Nieves Yankees

Wow this has to be the best for Red Sox pulls I have had so far. 7 Red Sox including the 2 Ortiz inserts. However there is something a little disappointing. On the bottom of the wrapper it says:

"..themed card, a Sepia Tone or Black and White in every
pack!"

I count only 4 packs out of 11 that contained an insert of any kind. I'm not complaining as it means more base cards, but doesn't this seem like a mistake? Or bad quality control ? These are retail packs so there must be a different ratio, but why put it on the packs -every pack!

1995 Pinnacle Zenith Edition Baseball

Despite my searches for some information on this set of cards, in particular the Zenith Edition, I have come up with very little. As can be seen from the wrapper there are chase cards. They consist of: 18 Z-team, 18 Rookie Roll Call and 18 All-Star Salute.
There are 6 cards per pack and a checklist for the chase cards.

Pack 1:

#7 Bernard Gilkey Cardinals

#27 Dennis Eckersley A's

#47 Jeff Bagwell Astros

#54 John Valetin Red Sox

#114 Gabe White Expos RC

#134 Derek Jeter Yankees RC(?)

Pack 2:

#31 Eric Karros Dodgers

#61 Ken Griffey Jr Mariners

#81 Paul Molitor Blue Jays

#109 Wil Cordero Expos

#129 Juan Acevedo Mets RC

#149 Nideo Nomo Dodgers RC

Pack 3:

#3 Andy Benes Mariners

#13 Carlos Baerga Indians

#53 Joe Carter Blue Jays

#96 Rusty Greer Rangers

#146 Alex Rodriguez Mariners RC

#17/18 Frank Thomas White Sox All-Star Salute

Pack 4:

#33 Frank Thomas White Sox

#63 Kevin Appier Royals

#76 Mike Piazza Dodgers

#83 Randy Johnson Mariners

#106 Vinny Castilla Rockies

#126 Joe Vitiello Royals RC

Pack 5:

#40 Kenny Rogers Rangers

#70 Mark Grace Cubs

#90 Robin Ventura White Sox

#122 Mark Grudzielanek Expos RC

#142 Antonio Osuna Dodgers RC

#48 Hideo Nomo Dodgers Japanese Card

What the? What is this Hideo Nomo card? Not to get side tracked, there was 1 Red Sox in the 5 packs, which is a poor showing. Greg will be pleased my Dodgers magnet was at full strength again. Also have a look at the numbers on the cards in each pack, there appears to be a distinct pattern.

1995 Topps Embossed

There is something that shows was was wrong about the baseball card companies attempts to try 'something new'. That was the 1995 Topps Embossed set. Even the inclusion of a GOLD fail (sorry foil) card in each pack didn't ignite the collecting world. I was looking for cards that I had never opened and purchased 5 packs of these cards.
There are 140 cards in the base set.
There are gold and silver variations of the base cards.
There are a parallel set called Golden Idols, gold naturally.

Pack 1:

#40 Andy Benes Padres

#41 Dean Palmer Rangers Gold Idol

#64 Mike Greenwell Red Sox

#88 Mark Whitten Cardinals

#108 Tim Salmon Angels Silver

#116 Ozzie Guillen White Sox Silver

Pack 2:

#9 Jeff Kent Mets

#14 Ruben Sierra A's

#61 Darren Daulton Phillies

#95 David Cone Royals Silver

#101 David Justice Braves Gold

#122 Mark Langston Angels

Pack 3:

#43 Kevin Appier Royals

#44 Brady Anderson Orioles

#49 Wade Boggs Yankees Gold Idol

#56 Tom Pagnozzi Cardinals

#90 Andres Galarraga Rockies

#107 Mark McGwire A's Silver

Pack 4:

#13 Ryan Thompson Mets

#24 Moises Alou Expos

#48 Chuck Finley Angels

#68 Devon White Blue Jays Gold idol

#81 Kevin Tapani Twins

#93 Mike Mussina Orioles

Pack 5:

#5 Pat Hentgen Blue Jays

#7 Jose Valentin Brewers

#19 Paul Molitor Blue Jays

#34 Ivan Rodriguez Rangers

#59 Rev Sanchez Cubs Gold idol

#75 Ozzie Smith Cardinals

1 Red sox from an ugly baseball card set.