2012 Topps Opening Day blaster

Purchasing an opening day blaster after the season has long gone has become a regular feature of my collecting habits. Released way, way back in March, I should have tried a little harder to get a hold of one as there is a possibility of obtaining 6 different  Jacoby Ellsbury cards. 7-10,  if you include the printing plates. This includes;

#4 Jacoby Ellsbury base

#4 Jacoby Ellsbury base blue border -#2012

(#4 Jacoby Ellsbury base printing plate- 4 if you want to be technical)

# SC-11 Jacoby Ellsbury Superstar Celebrations

#ODS-11 Jacoby Ellsbury Opening Day Stars

#FS-24 Jacoby Ellsbury Fantasy Squad

#'ES-22 Jacoby Ellsbury Elite Skills
of which I have been only able to able two.

 

There are also a number of base Red Sox available to collect in Opening Day :

#4 Jacoby Ellsbury
#18 David Ortiz
#37 Josh Beckett
#45 Mark Melancon
#73 Kevin Youkilis
#86 Jon Lester
#149 Adrian Gonzalez
#172 Dustin Pedroia
#198 Carl Crawford
#218 Clay Buchholz

The blaster contained 11 packs, each containing 7 cards.

Pack 1:

#40 Domonic Brown Phillies
#61 C.J.Wilson Angels
#112 Dee Gordon Dodgers
#138 Russell Martin Yankees
#185 Jeff Niemann Bay Rays
#198 Carl Crawford Red Sox
#M-13 Dinger Rockies

 

Pack 2:

#27 Chase Utley Phillies

#90 Derek Jeter Yankees

#111 Carlos Santana Indians

#121 Mark Teixeira Yankees

#151 Johnny Gueto Reds

#180 Ted Lilly Dodgers

#SC-18 Brett Lawrie Blue Jays

 

Pack 3:

#8 Jordan Zimmermann Nationals

#29 Mike Napoli Rangers

#93 Tim Hudson Braves

#103 Mike Leake Reds

#160 Carlos Ruiz Phillies

#186 Martin Prado Braves

#SC-19 Mark Trumbo Angels

 

Pack 4:

#36 Dexter Fowler Rockies

#55 Miguel Cabrera Tigers

#59 Allcides Escobar Royals

#105 Curtis Granderson Yankees

#190 Stephen Starsburg Nationals

#200 Albert Pujols Angels

#FS-30 Tim Lincecum Giants

 

Pack 5:

#11 Michael Morse Nationals

#Mat Latos Reds

#33 Nick Markakis Orioles

#45 Mark Melancon Red Sox

#88 John Axford Brewers

#142 Tommy Hanson Braves

#M-11 Billy Marlins



 

Pack 6:

#9 Chris Young D-backs

35 Brennan Boesch Tigers

#41 J.J. Hardy Orioles

#96 Chris Carpenter Cardinals

#143 Craig Kimbrel Braves

#202 Stralin Castro Cubs

#SC-17 Adam Jones Orioles

 

Pack 7:

#22 Aroldis Chapman Reds

#51 Prince Fielder Brewers

#140 Erick Aybar Angels

#177 Jhonny Peralta Tigers

#188 Paul Goldschmidt D-backs

# FS-29 Roy Halladay Phillies

#ODS-3 Miguel Cabrera Tigers

 

Pack 8:

#3 Nelson Cruz Rangers

#34 James McDonald Pirates

#56 Vance Worlet Phillies

#156 Joey Votto Reds

#187 David Wright Mets

#208 James Loney Dodgers

#ES-14 Troy Tulowitzki Rockies

 

Pack 9:

#28 Michael Young Rangers

#63 Pablo Sandoval Giants

#108 Roy Oswalt Phillies

#132 Kurt Suzuki Athletics

#149 Adrian Gonzalez Red Sox

#162 Ricky Romero Blue Jays

#FS-28 Justin Verlander Tigers

 

Pack 10:

#17 Pedro Alvarez Pirates

#81 Brendan Beachy Braves

#92 Mike Stanton Marlins

#102 Jesus Montero Yankees

#155 Juan Nicasio Rockies

#206 David Freese Cardinals

#ES-13 David Wright Mets

 

Pack 11:

#42 Mark Reynolds Orioles

#58 Justin Masterson Indians

#83 Carlos Gonzalez Rockies

#152 Neil Walker Pirates blue border 1627/2012

#182 Seth Smith Rockies

#194 Alex Gordon Royals

#M-12 Paws Tigers

 

3 Red Sox form 77 cards...( not a single Jacoby) 

The inserts in Opening Day are pretty impressive particularly the Opening Day Stars which had the 3D vibe going.

 

2003 Donruss Team Heroes packs

This is an amazingly confusing set to come anywhere near completing. There are so many variations and exclusives the mind goes a bit numb.
Firstly the 548 set was released in two separate series. The first contained cards 1- 540, then the final 8 cards were issued as part of the Rookie and Traded series.
There were a number of inserts available in packs bought at  Hawaii, Atlantic City and Chicago conferences.
There were two parallel sets available; Glossy and Stat Line. Stat Line was issued in different quantities depending on the stat.
There are also some autographs to collect too.
The base Red Sox available were:

#67 Bobby Doerr

#68 Pedro Martinez

#69 Roger Clemens

#70 Nomar Garciaparra

#71 Trot Nixon

#72 Dennis Eckersley

#73 John Burkett

#74 Tim Wakefield

#75 Wade Boggs

#76 Cliff Floyd

#77 Casey Fossum

#78 Johnny Damon

#79 Fred Lynn

#80 Rickey Henderson

#81 Juan Diaz

#82 Manny Ramirez

#83 Carlton Fisk

#84 Jorge De La Rosa

#85 Shea Hillenbrand

#86 Derek Lowe

#87 Jason Varitek

#88 Carlos Baerga

#89 Freddy Sanchez

#90 Ugueth Urbina

#91 Rey Sanchez

#92 Josh Hancock

#93 Tony Clark

#94 Dustin Hermanson

 

There are 10 cards per pack and I have two packs.

Pack 1:

#43 John Ennis Braves

#74 Tim Wakefield Red Sox

#142 Corky Miller Reds

#221 Lance Berkman Astros

#273 Marquis Grissom Dodgers

#382 Pat Burrell Phillies

#400 Steve Carlton Phillies

#440 Robb Nen Giants

#447 Allan Simpson Mariners

#459 Ken Griffey Jr. Mariners

 

Pack 2:

#13 Troy Percival Angels

#69 Roger Clemens Red Sox

#100 Jon Lieber Cubs

#172 Brian Tallet Indians

#211 Jeff Bagwell Astros

#270 Jacie Robinson Dodgers

#280 Richie Sexson Brewers

#339 Robin Ventura Yankees

#439 J.T.Snow Giants

 #448 Antonio Perez Mariners

Finally some more Red Sox.

I couldn't really go wrong with these considering there is over 25 Red Sox in the base set.

Still 2 is pretty good.

2003 Upper Deck MVP retail pack

In 2003 MVP was one of a large number of sets produced by Upper Deck. The MVP set consisted of 330 base cards, actually 329 cards as card number 248 didn't exist. The first 220 cards were issued in hobby and retail packs, the next 110 as part of a factory or update set.
There were three parallel versions available; black, gold and silver.
There were three inserts; 90 Sports Nut, 15 Express Delivery and 90 Celebrations, also available in a silver parallel set.
There were also the ridiculous number of relic, auto, game used cards.
The base set Red Sox available were:

#29 Nomar Garciaparra

#30 Pedro Martinez

#31 Manny Ramirez

#32 Shea Hillenbrand

#33 Johnny Damon

#34 Jason Varitek

# 35 Derek Lowe

#36 Trot Nixon

Red Sox available in the factory set were;

#236 Byung-Hyun Kim

#237 Freddy Sanchez

# 238 Jason Shiell RC

#239 Ryan Cameron RC

 

There are 8 cards per pack. . I have two packs,which are marked as retail.

 

Pack 1:

#22 Tony Batista Orioles

#61 Brandon Phillips Indians

#62 Karim Garcia Indians

#85 Brad Penny Marlins

#155 Marlon Anderson Bay Rays

#161 Aramis Ramirez Pirates

#163 Josh Fogg Pirates

#173 Trevor Hoffman Padres

a big lump of UD cardboard

 

Pack 2:

#1 Troy Glaus Angels

#51 Ken Griffey Jnr Reds

#92 Lance Berkman Astros

#107 Richie Sexson Brewers

#143 David Wells Yankees

#185 Freddy Garcia Mariners

#192 Scott Rolen Cardinals

#201 Aubrey Huff Bay Rays

a big piece of UD cardboard

 

A Huff, a Fogg, a Penny, two Garcia's and two pieces of useless cardboard but not one Red Sox.

 

 



2012 Topps Series 2 Jumbo pack



These jumbo packs must be easily accessible in places like Walmart. This is the third jumbo pack of series 2 that has been bought for me by someone visiting the US for holidays. Not that I am showing ambivalence to gift horses. I just wish that jumbos of Archives or Gypsy Queen or even Heritage made themselves more attractive to those unfamiliar with buying cards.

The Red Sox available from Series 2 are;
#368 Carl Crawford
#441 Mike Aviles
#506 David Ortiz
#539 Andrew Bailey
#540 Dustin Pedroia (in SP variation)
#586 Daisuke Matsuzaka
#610 Cody Ross
#631 Ryan Kalish
#648 Josh Beckett
#651 Ryan Sweeney

Jumbo packs contain 36 cards. This jumbo contained;

#335 Josh Satin Mets

 #338 Jose Constanza Braves

#345 Jonathan Papelbon Phillies

#353 John Mayberry Phillies Golden Moments

#355 Mark Buehrle Marlins

#359 Danny Espinosa Nationals

#369 Huston Street Padres

#390 Taylor Green Brewers

#404 Jonathan Sanchez Royals

#409 Greg Holland Royals

#432 Wei-Yin Chen Orioles

#435 Jeff Baker Cubs

#442 Johnny Giavotella Royals

#449 Shane Victorino Phillies

#463 Francisco Cordero Blue Jays

#468 Nick Markakis Orioles

#475 Chris Dickerson Yankees

#481 Matt Harrison Rangers

#482 Chris Capuano Dodgers

#496 Jorge DeLa Rosa Rockies

#508 Brandon Phillips Reds

#510 Randall Delgardo Braves

#525 Paul Maholm Cubs

#535 Joe Mauer Twins

#536 Kendrys Morales Angels

#559 Brandon Dickson Cardinals

#563 Alex White Rockies

#578 Wade Davis Bay Rays

#592 Carlos Lee Astros

#604 Juan Abreu Astros

#618 Eric Chavez Yankees

#619 Tyler Greene Cardinals

#650 Prince Fielder Tigers

#CD-21 Matt Kemp Dodgers

#GGC-16 Johnny Bench Reds

#TM-72 Hunter Pence Phillies

 

Enough said.

 

2003 Upper Deck Series 1

The 2003 Upper Deck baseball card set includes 540 cards, series 1 is numbered 1 to 270 . This includes Star Rookies numbered 1-30 and Checklists numbered 261-270.


Red Sox in Series 1 are;
#89 Pedro Martinez
#90 Shea Hillenbrand
#91 Derek Lowe
#92 Jason Varitek
#93 Tony Clark
#94 John Burkett
#96 Nomar Garciaparra
#97 Rickey Henderson
#262 Derek Lowe SH CL

There are 8 cards per pack. I have two packs marked 'Retail'.

 

Pack 1:

#4 Bobby Hill Cubs Star Rookie

#45 Billy Koch Athletics

#79 Geronimo Gil Orioles

#129 Raul Mondesi Yankees

#131 Rondell White Yankees

#188 Cesar Izturis Dodgers

#173 Moises Alou Cubs

#239 Pokey Reese Pirates

a big lump of cardboard.

 

Pack 2:

#2 Alex Cintron D-backs Star Rookie

#53 Steve Cox Bay Rays

#99 Carlos Febles Royals

#169 Fred McGriff Cubs

#179 Mark Grace D-backs

#208 Mike Lowell Marlins

#215 A.J.Burnett Marlins

a big lump of cardboard

 

Yikes! Terrible, unless you are a Cubs fan.

 

 

2011 Topps Lineage Blaster

I purchased this blaster with the slightly misguided perception of pulling some 1964 Topps Stand-ups , which were inserted into 2011 Lineage packs. That is until I realised that there are only 2 per hobby box and the wrapper explained that the ratio is 1in 12. Oh well. The 3D cards are pretty cool perhaps they are easier to pull... same ratio, 1in 12. So maybe just the Red Sox then.

The base Red Sox available from this set include;

#32 Jon Lester

#48 Carlton Fisk

#79 Carl Crawford

#87 David Ortiz

#90 Tris Speaker 

#92 Clay Buchholz

#114 Dustin Pedroia

#145 Adrian Gonzalez

#149 Kevin Youkilis

plus a number of interesting inserts

#TV19 Adrian Gonzalez Topps Venezuelan

#TS13 Kevin Youkilis Topps Stand-ups

#T3D9 Adrian Gonzalez Topps 3D

 

There are 7 packs plus a game used relic in each blster. There are 8 cards per pack.

 

Pack 1:

#44 Jay Bruce Reds

#55 Nolan Ryan Rangers

#72 Rickie Weeks Brewers

#104 Miguel Montero D-backs

#123 Andre Ethier Dodgers

#154 Fergie Jenkins Cubs

#168 Delmon Young Twins

#99 David Price Bay Rays 1975 mini

 

Pack 2:

#22 Johan Santana Mets

#29 Chris Sale White Sox

#39 Ricky Romero Blue Jays

#108 Hammerin' Hank Braves

#154 Brandon Beachy Braves

#177 Phil Hughes Yankees

#181 Frank Thomas White Sox

#TCS39 Joe Mauer Twins cloth sticker

 

Pack 3:

#51 Hunter Pence Astros

#80 Troy Tulowitzki Rockies

#86 carlos Gonzalez Rockies

#114 Dustin Pedroia Red Sox

#120 Ichiro Mariners

#166 Yovani Gallardo Brewers

#189 Jaime Garcia Cardinals

#3 Jimmie Foxx Athletics 1975 mini

 

Pack 4:

#11 Ryan Zimmerman Nationals

#17 Billy Butler Royals

#63 Ubaldo Jimenez Rockies

#77 David Wright Mets

#108 Hank Aaron Braves Diamond Anniversary

#138 Prince Fielder Brewers

#167 Corey Hart Brewers

#176 Albert Pujols Cardinals

3/4 checklist

 

Pack 5:

#64 Joe Morgan Reds

#76 Roberto Alomar Blue Jays

#88 David Price Bay Rays

#109 Mat Latos Padres

#117 Torii Hunter Angles

#125 Mark Teixeira Yankees

#131 Carlos Lee Astros 

#T3D14 Chase Utley Phillies



Pack 6:

#6 Carlos Beltran Mets

#14 Kendrys Morales Angels

#23 Carlos Zambrano Cubs

#36 Michael Young Rangers

#120 Ichiro Mariners Platinum Diamond

#141 Ozzie Smith Cardinals

#197 Andre Dawson Expos RC

#TR9 Mike Minor Braves

 

Pack 7:

#1 Sandy Koufax Dodgers

#20 Justin Morneau Twins

#32 Jon Lester Red Sox

#65 Josh Johnson Marlins

#75 Alex Rodriguez Yankees Platinum Diamond

#179 Jake McGee Bay Rays

#182 Frank Robinson Orioles

#187 Justin Verlander Tigers



 

Game Used Relic

#75R-EL Evan Longoria Bay Rays

 

 

So a mildly impressive blaster, a nice mixture of inserts. Loving the 3D cards still. Lets not forget 2 Red Sox as well unfortunately no '64 Stand ups.

 

2003 Upper Deck First Pitch

There are 270 cards in the base set of 2003 Upper Deck First Pitch plus cards #271 - #300 are short prints.
There are 5 autographs to collect are 6 'stars', Ichiro, Gambi, Garciaparra, Sosa, Griffey Jnr and Griffey Snr.
Obviously Upper Deck were trying to boost this, almost pointless product, with the inclusion of auto's. There is no evidence to suggest it was successful. First Pitch always lagged behind Topps Opening Day, who were always one step ahead.

The Red Sox available are:
#89 Pedro Martinez
#90 Shea Hillenbrand
#91 Derek Lowe
#92 Jason Varitek
#93 Tony Clark
#94 John Burkett
#95 Frank Castillo
#96 Nomar Garciaparra
#97 Rickey Henderson
#262 Derek Lowe
#288 Jeremy Giambi

I have 4 packs and there are 5 cards per pack.

Pack 1:

#15 Shawn Sedlacek Royals

#79 Geronimo Gill Orioles

#84 Mike Young Rangers

#122 Jose Valentin White Sox

#136 Morgan Ensberg Astros

 

Pack 2:

#28 Mike Crudale Cardinals

#32 Troy Glaus Angels

#193 Vladimir Guerrero Expos

#203 Benito Santiago Giants

#290 Tom Glavine Mets SP

 

Pack 3:

#27 Eric Cyr Padres

#113 Doug Mientkiewicz Twins

#133 Mike Mussina Yankees

#192 Adrian Beltre Dodgers

#205 Jason Schmidt Giants

 

Pack 4:

#127 Derek Jeter Yankees

#167 Sammy Sosa Cubs

#198 Brad Wilkerson Expos

#267 Jason Giambi Yankees

#281 Delvis Lantigua Yankees

 

 

 

 

 

Dear Oh dear...