2008 Upper Deck Series 2 rack pack

A great deal was said at the time of its unveiling in 2008 but the photography was a big plus on this set. It outweighed Topps big time for effort however it still didn't stop the demise of Upper Deck a short while later. The photography is certainly crisp and clear, all cards appear to be action shots and, the entire front of the card is taken up with photo. I think they refer to it as full bleed. Great work from Upper Deck. This set was definitely better than some of the others Upper Deck offered in the same year, X, Heroes, Documentary or Timeline and cannot be compared to Goudey or Masterpieces as they were aimed at different sort of collector.

There was a whopping 799 cards in this set, of which 32 are the Red Sox. They are:
221 Tim Wakefield
222 Daisuke Matsuzaka

223 Julian Tavarez

224 Hideki Okajima

225 Manny Delcarmen

226 Doug Mirabelli

227 Dustin Pedroia

228 Mike Lowell

229 Manny Ramirez

230 Coco Crisp

309 Clay Buchholz RC

373 David Ortiz CL

384 Clay Buchholz HL

429 Josh Beckett

430 Jon Lester

431 Curt Schilling

432 Jonathan Papelbon

433 Jason Varitek

434 David Ortiz

435 Jacoby Ellsbury

436 Julio Lugo

437 Sean Casey

438 Kevin Youkilis

439 J.D. Drew

440 Alex Cora

736 Dustin Pedroia SH

744 Josh Beckett SH

745 Kevin Youkilis SH

747 Mike Lowell SH

773 Josh Beckett CL

786 David Ortiz SH

795 Josh Beckett SH

The rack pack Big B sent my way contains 36 cards, which includes 2 Diamond Collection exclusives.
The pack:
#405 Justin Upton D-backs (x2)
#424 Braian Roberts Orioles
#432 Jonathan Papelbon Red Sox
#448 Ronny Cedeno Cubs (x2)
#462 Carlos Quentin White Sox
#495 Ivan Rodriguez Tigers
#505 Mark Hendrickson Marlins
#508 Cody Ross Marlins
#517 Geoff Blum Astros
#527 Alex Gordon Royals
#535 John Lackey Angels
#547 Jonathan Broxton Dodgers
#555 Eric Gagne Brewers
#567 Craig Monroe Twins
#584 Ramon Castro Mets
#586 Mariano Rivera Yankees
#592 Shelley Duncan Yankees
#615 Matt Morris Pirates
#628 Khalil Greene Padres
#632 Micael Barrett Padres
#638 Randy Winn Giants
#648 Mike Morse Mariners
#707 Johnny Cueto Reds
#709 Scott Kazmir Bay Rays SH
#728 Wesley Wright Astros
#735 Derrek Lee Cubs SH
#748 Ryan Braun Brewers SH
#763 Indians checklist
#769 Padres checklist
#777 Tigers checklist
#789 Jimmy Rollins Phillies SH
#4456 Reggie Jackson YSL
#DC-10 James Shileds Bay Rays
#DC-11 Jarrod Saltalamacchia Rangers
A solo Red SoxThanks for those two packs Big B. I was beginning to forget how good it feels to open packs.

1989 Topps Big baseball cards 1st series

The Topps BIG baseball set is based very loosely on the 1956 Topps set. They are the same size and orientated landscape as were the '56 set. So could this be considered as a retro set?

Just like its 1988 counterpart it was released in 3 separate series. The 1988 released in 3 sets of 88 cards, however the 1989 set was much bigger and released in 3 sets of 110 cards. Series 1 being cards #1-110, series 2 cards #111-220 and the series 3 cards #221-330.

The packs contained 7 cards and were wrapped in cellophane.   

The Red Sox available from this set were:

Series 1

#18 Jim Rice

#42 Roger Clemens

#72 Rich Gedman

#97 Jody Reed

Series 2

#119 Rick Cerone

#142 Carlos Quintana

#169 Dennis Lamp

#193 Dwight Evans

#211 Mike Greenwell

Series 3

#222 Mike Smithson

#241 Wade Boggs

#259 Ellis Burks

#278 Marty Barrett

#296 Mike Boddicker

#316 Nick Esasky

This particular pack came from Big B at Waxaholic and contained:

#24 Carlton Fisk White Sox

#42 Roger Clemens Red Sox

#84 Fred Manrique White Sox

#90 Les Starker Twins

#93 Tino Martinez Mariners

#97 Jody Reed Red Sox

#106 Sid Bream Pirates

Wow 2 out of the possible 4 Red Sox in series 1, that is great odds.

2008 TriStar Projections

I will be very honest and say I know very little about Minor League baseball, except to say it appears very organised structure with teams affiliated to a Major League outfit. So when I purchased these packs from e-bay (quite a while ago now) I need to conduct some research, as every good author should before proceeding with my review. I have four packs to analyse to see whether, in the three years since these cards came out, if any of these players made the show and secondly, as the name of the blog suggests, whether any of the minor league players are part of the Red Sox affiliation.  

My first observation is that there are some brilliant Minor League club names. I know people have chuckled at English Football team names and nicknames, they are nothing in comparison to Minor League monikers. My favourite from this pack being the High Desert Mavericks. Top Gun and Shane connotations aside, these guys are not just any old mavericks. Not low desert but high desert mavericks. I would love to collect a particular club on the merits of the name alone.

 

#2 Kelvin DeLeon  DSL Yankees 

At this point in his career he was palying for the Dominican Summer League and given a $1.1 million signing bonus. He must be some player. Currently he is playing for the A team (A league?, A divison?) Charleston River Dogs, in the Yankees organisation. The RiverDogs are advertising a Festival of Beer. You have go to love these Minor League clubs. 

# 190 Max Sapp Lexington Legends Houston Astros A

Unfortunately Max contracted meningitis in 2008. He has not played since then and was released by the Astros just this year.

 #181 Chris Tillman High Desert Mavericks Seattle Mariners Adv.A

Chris was traded to the Orioles in 2008 and made his MLB debut  for the Orioles on the 29th July 2009 vs Kansas City Royals.

 #24 Tommy Hanson Rome Braves Atlanta Braves A

Finally a name I recognise. Made his MLB debut for the Braves on the 7th June 2009 vs Milwaukee Brewers.

 #162 Justin Jackson GCL Blue Jays Rookie Blue Jays

Justin is currently playing for Dunedin Blue Jays A+.

#142 Hector Correa Jameston Jammers Florida Marlins SS 

Acquired by San Francisco Giants from Florida in exchange for Ronny Paulino on March 27, 2009. Currently playing for the AA Richmond Flying Squirrels. I wonder if Bullwinkle is a mascot? 

# 109 Danny Rams GCL Twins Rookie Minnesota Twins

Still with the Twins affiliation and currently playing with A+ Fort Myers Miracle

 

#189 John Mayberry Jr. Frisco Roughriders AA Texas Rangers.

Another fantastic club name 'roughriders'. John Jr.was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies in Nov 2008 for Greg Goulson and made his MLB debut on the 23rd May 2009 vs Yankees. His father John Mayberry Snr. was a first basebman for the Astros, Royals, Blue Jays and Yankees between 1968 and 1982.

So out of a pack of 8 prospects, 3 have advanced to a MLB debut, 4 are still playing Minor league ball and 1 has left baseball altogether because of ill health. That sounds like a pretty good ratio, however I don't know the percentage of Minor League players that advance further than AAA.

2011 Topps Baseball Series 1

Three more packs of 2011 Topps Series One from Play at the Plate.

I only need 1 Red Sox from Series One:

#218 Victor Martinez.

Plus there is a stupid idea of collecting all the Kimball Champion inserts as well.

Pack 1:

#15 David Wright Mets

#64 Yorvit Torrealba Padres

#90 Yadier Molina Cardinals

#103 Cliff Lee Rangers

#171 Garrett Jones Pirates

#234 Miguel Montero D-backs

#273 Derrek Lee Braves

#296 John Buck Blue Jays

#328 David Price Bay Rays

#60YOTLC-5 Stan Musial Cardinals

#KC12 Torii Hunter Angels

#TT-9 Adam Jones Orioles

 Pack 2:

#30 Gio Gonzalez Athletics

#31 Erick Aybar Angels

#51 David Eckstein Padres

#68 Cleveland Indians  diamond sparkle ballroom dancing

#97 Carlos Gomez Brewers

#132 Brian Buensing Twins

#228 Scott Rolen Reds

#244 Mike Aviles Royals

#302 Adrian Beltre Red Sox

#330 Derek Jeter Yankees

#CMGR-6 Christy Mathewson 1911 T205

TT-34 Felix Hernandez Mariners

Pack 3:

#31 Erick Aybar Angels

#58 Edgar Renteria Giants

#66 R.A.Dickey Mets

#88 Brian Bogusevic Astros

#106 Felix Pie Orioles

#109 League Leaders

#256 Tyler Colvin Cubs

#302 Adrian Beltre Red Sox

#330 Derek Jeter Yankees

#T60-6 Robinson Cano Yankees

#TDG-10 Tim Lincecum Giants

#TT-39 Adrian Gonzalez Padres

So two Red Sox but the same card Adrian Beltre (two Jeter's and two Aybar's). But at least another Kimball.

2008 Upper Deck Masterpieces

Here is another solitary pack. This time from Waxaholic. It doesn't seem like 4 years since this original 2007 Masterpieces hit the shelves. I loved the 2007 set so much that I decided to collect the entire base set. Its design was classy, the autographs were right there on the actual card and there was the quirkiness of cards like Curt's bloody sock, Ty Cobbs karate kick and Ozzie Smith's backflip. I had resigned myself to collecting 2008 as well, but by the time it arrived the magic had left. It was too similar. Yes I understand that may be too picky, what else could it be? Masterpieces was meant to look like it was painted on canvas hence the name. Even Jonathan Papelbon's victory roar couldn't save it. Maybe it was the inclusion of Yankee Stadium Legacy cards that tainted this and other Upper Deck sets.

The pack:

#24 Adam Dunn Reds

#38 Lance Berkman Astros

#48 Ryan Braun Brewers

 #69 Chase Utley Phillies

#YSL1288 Joe DiMaggio

See tainted. No Red Sox and a YSL. 

Just imagine if there wasn't 4 Masterpieces card but 3 and the 4th card was a YSL. Luckily it is included as an extra.

1989 Topps baseball

This pack was included amongst some cards that I purchased from e-bay recently. I have a sneaking suspicion that you rarely find these wax packs unopened.
The 1989 Topps set was full of rookies, the one notable being Randy Johnson, but in a time where the market was flooded with cards most collectors have either: collected all the 1989 Topps they wish to own or have no interest in collecting all the 1989 Topps.
There are also some error cards which draw some attention but besides that it is not one of Topps stellar sets.
I need no more of the 33 Red Sox from this set, although still need the 5 Topps traded Red Sox.

T26 John Dopson,
T29 Nick Esasky,
T64 Randy Kutcher,
T86 Rob Murphy,
T105 Ed Romero

The pack:
#12 Dale Sveum Brewers
#124 Jim Traber Orioles
#256 Benny Santiago Padres
#310 Rafael Palmeiro Cubs
#315 Greg Swindell Indians
#388 NL Leaders RBI
#393 NL Leaders game winning RBI
#400 AL Leaders batting avg
#412 Barry Lyons Mets
#414 Jim Fregosi White Sox
#428 Craig Reynolds Astros
#588 Luis Alicea Cardinals
#606 Rick Dempsey Dodgers
#704 Carlos Quintana Red Sox
#760 Lee Smith Red Sox

Would you believe it, two Red Sox!

2011 Topps Attax Baseball

The big child in me likes Topps Attax. I have never attempted to play the game in any of the multiple variations available -Football, Star Wars, Ice Hockey, Soccer, Heroes, Wrestling. However the baseball variation looks the most complicated. Is it that complicated? The soccer version has only attack and defence numbers, there appears to many different possibilties on the baseball version. There are 258 cards in the base set which includes 25 mascots and 27 stadiums( which begs the question which mascot is missing?)
Anyway. I was sent a lonely pack of the 2011 Baseball version recently. It was purchased from 'The Dollar Store'. Without a shadow of a doubt, I am sure the Dollar Store would become my favourite place. Ever.
No Red Sox so far from this set, so any would be nice...please.

The pack

#41 Carlos Pena Cubs

#84 Francisco Liriano Twins

#124 Josh Hamilton Rangers

#139 Logan Morrion Marlins

#197 Troy Tulowitzki Rockies

#236 Citi Field

 Did you know- Citi Field is the only MLB ballpark with foul poles that
are not yellow...instead they are painted orange.

It appears that the cards have a diamond rating with stars. Meaning common, rare, ultra rare? I am guessing, so you may need the starter set to work this one out.