2024 Fairfield Repack New Years and Mega Blaster Whatever!

The other day, Laura had me drop by the Walgreens to pick up a few prescriptions. Walking back to the pharmacy, I saw three Fairfield Repack boxes behind the photo counter. Been a while since I've ripped through some of those. Might be fun...

Whatever...

After her pills and my three Fairfield Repack card boxes, there was another unfortunate purchase I'd planned on making today.

The last three months have been tough on me. A bullshit fender-bender at Wood Fired Asshole Pizza, while on vacation, in October. Then my nearby LCS closed down in November. Quickly followed by the suicide of one of my closest friends of the last 30 years. Then it was the stress of X-Mess, tucked inside a brutal two week sinus infection. While recovering from that, my coughing led to pulling a muscle under my rib cage. A week and a half after the sinus infection was gone, another small innocent cough while sleeping, tore ligaments between my ribs and I was instantly in excruciating pain. Laura brought me to the hospital for x-rays, and confirmation of the painful injury. I couldn't even lay down to sleep for two days.

Yeah, the stress has really gotten to me...

I started smoking again...

After 16 months of quittedness.

Guess I need a New Year's resolution now...

So, I also bought Walgreen's flavored Nicotine Patches! That's right, time to re-train my body and mind all over again! The nicotine isn't the deal, so much as the psychological dependency. To this day, there's nothing better to clear your mind and move on to the next task, than removing yourself from the setting and taking a quick vacation in Flavor Country.

I miss that break multiple times, every day.

Can't say that I ever wont miss it. Which is why I'll likely always be prone to going back to smoking. When times get extremely tough, that comfort and anxiety relief is always just a trip to the convenience store away. 

Addictions are tough to shake.

Much like collecting baseball cards!

What a brilliant transition!

On Saturday, December 30, 2023, I sat down to sort the new retail card additions, coming in from October to December. Both what I'd bought, and the rejects from Blasters that my mom had bought since last Summer. Pulling out the different PC players and teams, plus rookies and stars for sleeving/Top Loadering, etc. The standard card sorting routine we all go through. This came after Walgreens, and my Fairfield Repack story idea. Knowing I wouldn't have a great deal of cards for a Whatever, I decided to scan a bunch of the new stuff, then blend in a "retail recap" along with the Fairfield Whatever!

Kind of a way to make cards feel a little more fun again.

Guess we'll start with the seriously underwhelming…

2023 Topps Update

Far too much "Rookie Debut" redundancy in Topps bloated Update set. With restrictive rules imposed from MLB to keep them from being as potentially good as they could be. I bought a few retail hanger boxes and struck out on all three. The color on the base cards were all faded and muddy looking, and did nothing to improve my very low opinion on the entire 2023 Topps flagship run.

2023 Topps Update - Luis Arraez & Pablo Lopez

Although I did like this! Kudos to Topps for recognizing a surprising headliner trade, between two non-headlining teams, and putting it on a card. Cant imagine too many collectors caring about this card, But as a Twins fan, and since I like/pity the Marlins, this is a card that Topps deserves a salute for including.

2023 Topps Update - Dylan Floro

Without moving too far off the whole Marlins/Twins connection, we have Floro. He wasn't pitching well this season, and was flipped to Minnesota for Jorge Lopez. Another pitcher who wasn't doing anything to help the ballclub. Change of scenery trade, you hope it works out. If not, what did you lose? Floro pitched slightly less crappy in Minnesota, but Lopez was an even bigger mess for the Fish. Miami actually released Lopez in September.

One other note about this otherwise uninteresting card, I do like that the Marlins have brought back their original 1993 (skull crushing) teal uniforms, tying in with their 30th anniversary. The Junk Wax fan in me enjoyed seeing these appear on cards again, in 2023.

2023 Topps Update - Chad Green - Independence Day

Serial numbered to 76. A parallel of a Blue Jays middle reliever that no one is interested in, Also, why would you make an American holiday themed card for a Canadian team?

2023 Topps Update - Xander Bogaerts - Major League Material

My biggest hit out of 2023 Topps Update. Since the Padres don't wear white uniforms, Topps must have had some extra Red Sox jersey circles laying around the warehouse. And I'm still waiting for someone to explain to me what the San Diego Padres were thinking when they signed Bogaerts to a ridiculous contract, when they didn't have a position for him to play.

The Padres are an expensive mess.

2023 Topps Update is a boring mess.

And I'm running out of patience with the current baseball card scene.

Whatever...

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Speaking of!

Flipping through the three Fairfield Boxes, I found a decent amount of older cards that no one else wanted, but that I felt like writing about today. 

So without further delay, it's time for the...

Top 40 Cards (without Casey Kasem) Pulled From Three Fairfield Re-Pack Boxes From Walgreen's!

Starting off at number 40...

#40 - 2023 Topps - Trevor Story

Just extending my dislike for 2023 Topps right on into the Whatever...

Topps really needs to understand that for a large 900 plus card set, as far as the borders go, LESS is MORE! Stop taking up large amounts of the photo area with needless and poorly sized and designed geometric shapes. What exactly is the point of the large team logo/colors area? Doesn't need to take up that much space. The problem with Topps designs of the last 3-4 years is after looking at them for more than a pack or two at a time, I just don't want to see them anymore. 

Has Topps released previews of the 2024 set yet?

Hoping I don't hate them too much...

#39 - 2009 TriStar Prospects Plus - Devin Mesoraco

Okay, now take what I wrote about the pointlessness of 2023 Topps "large team logo/colors area" and multiply that by about 400%. Even giving them credit for being a Minor League set, this is awful. Guess it would make sense for whatever autographed versions were made available. Because if this had Mesoraco's signature across the large red rectangle, that would look pretty good. But without, it looks terrible. Print a full card photo for the un-autographed cards, if you want to do that sort of thing.

#38 - 1988 Topps Traded - Bret Barberie

Soft spot for the 1988 Topps Traded. It was highly anticipated upon release in late 1988, due to the inclusion of Team USA cards (and Tom Herr's hilarious cereal bowl batting helmet and cartoon jersey buttons). One of which was Montreal Expos draft pick, Bret Barberie. He did okay as an Expos infielder over a couple of seasons. He was left available in the 1993 Expansion Draft, and became one of the inaugural Florida Marlins.

#37 - 2007 Topps 52 - Adam Lind

Failed Topps idea, circa 2007. Combine the old early 1990's Major League Debut sets with Topps Heritage, and you get Topps '52! A bloated set full of fringe major leaguers and never were's, then you mix in a very small number of actual stars, and paste it on the much overused 1952 Topps design. Which is nearly as tired as 1987 Topps. I remember buying packs of this stuff, cheap, at the old Englewood K-mart. Did pull a Franklin Guttierrez on card autograph, and a Vladimir Guerrero Expos Chrome card. So these packs were at least good to me.

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2023 Topps Archives Blaster

Topps Archives is always a fun brand to open. You don't find a lot of blow away cards, but I enjoy seeing the old card designs on a new release. (In most cases...) This year I picked up a couple Blasters, and didn't get anything great. But here's a few I liked…

2023 Topps Archives - Roy Campanella & Nolan Ryan

Great old photos. Love the Campanella for the clean Ebbets Field backdrop. Classic Nolan Ryan Angels photo as well. Maybe from one of his No-Hitters? I don't remember.

Something I'd really like to see Topps do with these sets is go back even further than the early 1900's, and include some of the legendary players of the late 1800's. As I write this, the First Inning of Ken Burns 1994 Baseball documentary is on MLB Network. Half paying attention to this, I'm picturing a Cap Anson Philadelphia Athletics card, done in the style of 2003 Topps. Perhaps getting decent photographs to use would be difficult, but I would buy more Archives if there were 10-15 players included in the base set from the late 19th century.

I buy new Jackie Robinson cards every year, but I'd love to have a brand new Moses Fleetwood Walker card!

2023 Topps Archives - Ty Cobb

Don't like the person (from what I've read and watched), but he was a great hitter and this is a cool looking card. The bat Cobb is swinging also looks ridiculously long... Makes it easier to beat up unsuspecting fans, opponents and teammates!

2023 Topps Archives - Charlie Blackmon

Blackmon looks to spend his entire career with the Rockies, with his latest contract extension. He was always one of my favorites, which goes back to his 2012 rookie season. Watching nearly every Rockies game and seeing his career develop from a fringe Major Leaguer to one of Colorado's best players in team history. Sad that he didn't get to enjoy more postseason success over his career. His number should be retired just for suffering through all the bad teams that Rockies management put on the field around him.

2023 Topps Archives - Ken Griffey Jr. 1969 Foil

Wasn't a fan of these. And I liked them even less after finding the ridiculously shrunken facsimile autograph, sitting on Griffey's shoulder. What is the point of that? Make it larger or leave it off.

2023 Topps Archives - Kirby Puckett & Sonny Gray

Pretty sure that Puckett photo was used on the front cover of Athlon's Baseball 1992. Still have a copy of that somewhere.

Sonny Gray is now a St. Louis Cardinal. I would have liked to see him re-sign with the Twins, but only to a point. Despite having two really good seasons in Minnesota, I wouldn't have gone more than 2 years / $40 million for his services. Gray is likely to decline and was kind of a head case at times. The Cardinals offered 3 years / $75 million and more power to them. Hope it works out.

2023 Topps Archives - Harmon Killebrew

I've never seen this Killebrew photo before, and still haven't figured out if it's from Metropolitan Stadium or Tinker Field in Orlando. Still, it's my favorite card I've seen from Archives.

Whatever...

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#36 - 1998 Score - Jim Leyritz

I forgot Leyritz played for the Texas Rangers. 

Who are now stuck with Tyler Mahle. Another exodus from the Minnesota Twins 2023 pitching staff. Mahle caught a case of Tommy John Surgery in May of this year, after shrugging off a poor pitching performance and an alarming decline in velocity. 

Great job on that trade Cincinnati... You got us good...

#35 - 1992 Classic Best - Keith Garagozzo

Former Yankees prospect, picked up by the Twins in the December 1993 Rule 5 Draft. He appeared in a few April games for the overly disappointing 1994 Twins, before going back to the Yankees when it became apparent that Garagozzo wasn't ready for a bullpen role. (Jeff Innis would have been a MUCH better choice for the 1994 Twins bullpen... Still a sore spot with me...) Garagozzo never made it back to the Major Leagues.

#34 - 1991 Upper Deck Final Edition - Ozzie Smith

Back in 1991, Upper Deck released a small 100 card boxed set called the "Final Edition". This included several traded players not included in the late summer High Number series release, top minor league prospects and the starting lineups of the 1991 All Star Game in Toronto. I was a big fan of this set, which put a bow on what was now a 900 card 1991 Upper Deck set. 

#33 - 1994 Ultra Phillies Finest - John Kruk

Capitalizing on the 1993 Philadelphia Phillies surprisingly successful season, Fleer produced a 10 card set honoring catcher, Darren Daulton, and first baseman, John Kruk. Wasn't wild about the card design, and wondered why Fleer didn't notice the Phillies lost to the Blue Jays in the 1993 World Series. So why wasn't this set honoring Joe Carter and Roberto Alomar?

Oh well, I like John Kruk more than either of those Blue Jays...

After all, Chris Farley never dressed up as a Toronto first baseman...

Whatever...

******

Keeping an eye out at the WalMarts and Targets last summer, seemed to only turn up Blasters of 2023 Panini Prizm. No other baseball Blasters or packs ever showed up amongst the endless supply of Panini Basketball and Football draft picks, that NO ONE was buying... In order to scratch that itch, I picked up more of this than I normally would have.

2023 Panini Prizm Blaster

This year, the Fanatics/MLB Players Union agreement disallowed Panini from using current Major Leaguers (except Bobby Witt Jr. for some unknown reason) from appearing in the set. In order to keep producing cards, Panini opted for a mix of retired legends and top Minor League prospects. A mixture that really appealed to me. Still logo-less, but a fun rip.

2023 Panini Prizm - Babe Ruth

There's something cool about old black and white photos, combined with current Chrome-style printing on card stock. Doesn't even matter to me that Ruth's jersey is generic, instead of reading New York. I really liked this card.

2023 Panini Prizm - Kirby Puckett

Awfully similar to the photo from 2023 Topps Archives...

2023 Panini Prizm Three Hole - Vladimir Guerrero

Thanks for the token Expos card!

2023 Panini Prizm - Larry Walker Prizm

Of course with Prizm, the highlights are the Prizm parallels, the equivalent of Topps Refractors. I was thrilled to get one of former Expos and Rockies Hall of Famer, Larry Walker. I was present for most of Walker's 9 year run in Colorado, where he was a key piece in tying the Rockies offense together. 

Too bad they never had anywhere near the pitching to do anything resembling a winning brand of baseball.

There's also all of the different colored Ice parallels included in 2023 Panini Prizm. Like this Randy Johnson Green Ice, Ken Griffey Jr. Blue Ice and Evan Carter Red Ice. Scans don't really do these justice, they are really nice cards. And how will Even Carter follow up on his brief 2023 rookie cameo, where he played a key role in the Rangers winning the 2023 World Series. Many are saying he will be the 2024 American League Rookie of the Year.

Something tells me Jackson Holliday will have something to say about that...

Whatever...

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#32 - 2011 Bowman Draft - Elih Villanueva

Never heard of him... 

A quick look at Baseball Reference reveals Villanueva only playing in one Major League game. A three inning start against the Phillies in Philadelphia. He gave up 8 runs in his 3 innings and took the loss. That was it for his Major League career. A 27th Round Draft Pick by the Marlins in 2008, Villanueva played organized baseball through the 2023 season. Starting 13 games (with poor results) for the Spire City Ghost Hounds (Frederick, MD) of the Independent Atlantic League.

He was 2023 teammates with for Chicago Cub and New York Yankee, Starlin Catsro. 

There's a name I wasn't expecting to see on the Ghost Hounds roster...

#31 - 1988 Fleer - Don Sutton

I like 1988 Fleer a lot. It was one of the first sets I tried to collect when I first got into cards. Every time I buy a Fairfield Re-Pack, I hold my breath when I see the red and blue striped borders in the stack. I'm still missing 1 card to complete the 660 card set, that I started building off ebay wax boxes, back in 1999. I cannot buy that card. It MUST be pulled from a pack in order to complete the set. In recent years, I amended that requirement to include Fairfield Re-Packs, but ideally it would come from a 1988 Fleer wax pack. Still have yet to unearth Bruce Ruffin, but Don Sutton is a Hall of Famer, and a cool card on its own merit.

#30 - 1982 Fleer - Renie Martin

Blurry 1982 Fleer cards are still cool, in how uncool they really are.

#29 - 1988 Score - Jim Eisenreich

Back to back Kansas City Royals, on predominantly yellow designs!

Nice still photo of Eisenreich hitting what looks to be a Baltimore Chop. Eisenreich was a great story after overcoming Tourette's Syndrome, early in his career with the Minnesota Twins. Playing in parts of 3 seasons with the Twins from 1982-1984, then sitting out the 1985 and 1986 seasons, Eisenreich learned how to control his Tourette's and played another 12 years with the Royals, Phillies, Marlins and Dodgers. He played a key pinch hitting role with the 1997 World Series winning Florida Marlins.

#28 - 2022 Topps - Ryan McMahon

Of the last 5 years of Topps flagship releases, 2022 was the set design I hated the least. (None worse than 2021, with that horrible choice of fonts.) This photo of McMahon flying through the air at a 45 degree angle, was one of the highlights in a set with relatively few of them.

Whatever...

******

A recent supply run to the local WalMarts allowed me my first look at 2023 Topps Heritage High Numbers. A set I've traditionally been pretty high on, since you tend to see new cards for players that don't see the presses in sets like Archives, Stadium Club, Allen & Ginter and all of the other late season, low level releases.

2023 Topps Heritage High Numbers Mega Box

Instead of Blasters on the shelf, I opted to pay $20 for the Mega Box. Mainly because I really like the Blue Diamond parallels. Also think you get a few more cards here than a Blaster, if you follow the per card price breakdown. For sets like this, I'm far more interested in the commons than I am aiming for high dollar inserts. (Though I'd love to get something similar to the Adley Rutchsman Black Chrome Refractor, that I pulled from a 2023 Topps Heritage Low Numbers Mega Box, last Spring.)

2023 Topps Heritage High Numbers - Yonathan Daza

Nike made the Rockies dress in those awful dark green City Whatever uniforms last year, making it look like Colorado was fielding a team of Air Fresheners. This year, the team tended to ditch the solid green pants in favor of the traditional home whites. Hate to admit it, but I almost like the Nike alternate jersey combined with white pants. This look isn't quite so bad.

I still dread seeing what Nike is going to force upon the Minnesota Twins in 2024, since their turn is up on the City Whatever nonsense... Especially since they ditched the really attractive Twins uniforms of 2015-2022, in favor of those cheap looking screen printed softball uniforms in 2023...

2023 Topps Heritage High Numbers - Christian Vazquez

Which aren't so bad when covered up by catching gear...

2023 Topps Heritage High Numbers - Luis Arraez & Pablo Lopez

Nice Heritage High Numbers look at one of the Twins best trades of the last 20 years.

2023 Topps Heritage High Numbers Chrome - Joey Wiemer

The Mega Box had a Chrome parallel of a decent rookie card. While not one of the biggest names in the set, Wiemer at least has the potential to be an every day starter.

2023 Topps Heritage High Numbers Chrome Blue Diamonds - Luis Garcia

My three Chrome Blue Diamonds cards were nothing special. One Red Sock, one Brave and Luis Garcia. So I guess this was the best one I got... 

Should have grabbed one of the other 5 Mega Boxes and the WalMarts shelf.

Whatever...

******

#27 - 2004 Topps Traded - Dave Wallace

No relation.

#26 - 2006 Topps - Bobby Cox

Looking up Cox's career managerial line, I hadn't realized until now that he finished with an overall record of 2,504 - 2,001. Thats over 500 more wins than losses. Which is rather impressive and hardly shocking that he ended up in the Hall of Fame. 

But it doesn't make me like the Braves one bit...

#25 - 1985 Fleer - Julio Cruz

One of the original 1977 Seattle Mariners, the 52nd pick of the November 1976 Expansion Draft, from the California Angels organization. Cruz was a solid performer for Seattle until a mid 1983 trade to the White Sox. And that’s all you need for the 25th spot on this Whatever!

Another note about 1985 Fleer. Are there any of the cards from this set, anywhere in the world, in decent condition? Every time I've seen 1985 Fleer out in the wild, the corners are atrocious. Was 1985 Fleer made from an entirely different card stock than 1984 and 1986 Fleer? How fragile are these cards?

Speaking of 1985...

1985 Topps WWF - Brutus Beefcake - Hulk Hogan - Roddy Piper

In order to cash in on the booming phenomenon of Hulkamania, the WWF had Topps rush out a set of WWF trading cards. These three were picked up at the St. Francis Armory card show, at $30 for the threesome. Obviously Hogan being the big name, was priced at $25. Rowdy Roddy Piper was $10. I really wish that photo was in focus. That is some classic Piper, doing whatever it is that he's doing in the photo. I'd love to see it clearer. Brutus (not yet) "the Fucking Barber" Beefcake was priced at $2. It became a throw in after I expressed interest in the Hogan and Piper.

Topps put out a much cleaner WWF set in 1987, to commemorate Wrestlemania 3. I used to have a few of those back in the day. I'd like to have them again, given the re-emergence of pro wrestling cards over the last 5 years.

******

More retail huh?!

2023 - Panini Select Blaster

I've always liked Panini's take on the Select brand, but I've never been a fan of the price. A $25-$30 Blaster only netting you 12 cards isn't a good value. The cards are nice, but you should be getting twice that, for the money. Like Prizm, Select is all retired players and top prospects, just more colorful than Prizm. 

The gimmick for Select being that the 300 card set is printed in varying quantities. 1-100 are common, 101-200 and uncommon and 201-300 are rare. That's not the terms Panini uses, each tier is cleverly named after stadium seating tiers.

2023 - Panini Select - Luis Aparicio

Poor quality scan aside, this is a really cool photo. You've got some classic 1950's era Comiskey Park as a backdrop, mostly covered up by the intrusive Select borders. Imagine this photo on a Topps Stadium Club card. Not only would it have all the White Sox logos, but it would feature the full photo, that I'd really like to see. If it matters (and it doesn't to me), Aparicio is numbered in the low 200's, making it one of the rarer base cards.

You better run...

2023 - Panini Select - Frank Viola

Rather obscure Twins legend to include in the set. But thank you for including it!

2023 - Panini Select Orange Flash - Bill Terry - Angel Martinez 

Of the whopping 12 cards per Blaster, three of them are "Orange Flash" parallels. That Bill Terry card is great. A Hall of Fame first baseman/manager from the New York Giants, who played between 1923 and 1936, and managed the Giants from 1932 to 1941.

Angel Martinez is kind of blah middle infield prospect. Not a likely superstar, he may play a decent utility role for Cleveland over the next few seasons. But I wouldn't expect a high average or much power.

2023 - Panini Select Orange Flash - David Ortiz

Not like the power output from Big Papi (post Minnesota Twins seasons). Another Hall of Famer, but this one's a Boston Red Sox card. And you know how I feel about them... Good thing it looks cool.

Whatever...

******

#24 - 2003 Topps - Todd Helton

Bland duplicate of Mr. Colorado Rockie. I have several of these already, so this will get sleeved and thrown in the Rockies duplicate box. More importantly, we are just a couple weeks away from finding out if Helton will join Larry Walker as the second Colorado Rockies plaque in the Hall of Fame. I hope so. Injuries robbed Helton of what could have been a massive career, but he still deserves a spot in Cooperstown. Especially since he's been dogged for playing his home games in the launching pad known as Coors Field.

Just in case, I think I have more scanning to do...

#23 - 2000 Bowman - Carlos Pena

Back in 2000, I bought BOXES of 2000 Bowman Chrome, but less than 5 packs worth of 2000 Bowman. I didn't like the design, washed out colors and drab grey borders. 

#22 - 1982 Fleer - Dan Ford

Blurry photo of "Disco" Dan Ford, who debut for the 1975 Minnesota Twins. After 4 seasons in Minnesota, Ford was traded to the Angels for three seasons, before moving onto the Baltimore Orioles for 4 injury plagued seasons. Ford's Twins days was before my time, but he had quit a reputation as an adventure in the outfield. But it's not like the mid-1970's Twins were any good, so you may as well have someone that is entertaining, even if he is a butcher in the field.

Who is that really tall guy in the background? He's huge!

#21 - 2015 Bowman Chrome - Chase Utley

It's newer, shiny and probably would have bored/disappointed me had I pulled it from an expensive 2015 Bowman Chrome pack. Nothing against Utley, who deserves some legitimate Hall of Fame consideration.

******

Speaking of Bowman...

2023 Bowman Platinum Mega Box

Late in the season, the somewhat ironically named Bowman Platinum set is released. Platinum being a high end metal, it's strange to name a card line after that when it's considered one of the lowest end releases, and only available at WalMarts. But as a fan of prospecting, I'm not going to argue. Typically, Bowman Platinum has some of the more attractive looking cheap cards you will find.

2023 Bowman Platinum - Nolan Jones & Lazaro Montes

Yup, these are really nice looking...

Still not sure why Cleveland, a team always running short on cheap offense, dumped Nolan Jones on the Rockies for next to nothing. After a brief 28 game audition in 2022, the Guardians decided their 2nd Round Pick in the 2016 Draft wasn't going to pan out, and shipped him to the Rockies for middle infield prospect Juan Brito. (Who has potential, but this is absolutely not a trade I'd make if I made the decisions for the Cleveland organization.) For Colorado, Jones batted nearly .300 (.297), with 20 home runs, 20 stolen bases, and posted a .931 OPS in 106 games. Which was good for a notable 4.3 Wins Above Replacement, if that stat is something you buy into. That would have fit in really well with Cleveland's listless 2023 offense.

Montes is a big time hitting prospect out of Cuba. The 19 year old has accumulated a 1.003 OPS over parts of 2 seasons. He projects to a .300 hitter with 30+ home run potential as he grows his game.

2023 Bowman Platinum - Ronald Acuna Jr. & Shohei Ohtani

The 2023 National League and American League MVP's are represented. If you look closely, Twins prospect Bryan Acuna's older brother is an Ice parallel. Probably can't tell because it really doesn't come off in the scan. 

Much as every has predicted for years, Ohtani is now a Los Angeles Dodger. For which he will be paid handsomely. And ridiculously. While I have a decent understanding how the terms of his 10 year, $700 million contract equate to just a $2 million dollar salary and only $46 million against the MLB Luxury Tax. Such circumventing should be against the rules, but apparently they are not. So Ohtani will be paid only $20 million of his contract over the 10 years it spans, then a jaw dropping $680 million deferred to 2034. I'm sure there will be plenty of commercial endorsements to see that Ohtani isn't forced to eat Raman and cheap hot dogs every day until the deferred money kicks in.

The only way this doesn't work out for him is if the planet is completely destroyed before his playing days are over. And with the way things are going, I wouldn't bet against that.

Definitely a new way of looking at baseball money...

2023 Bowman Platinum New Money - Brooks Lee

Not New Money like this...

Kind of a tacky looking insert card, but it's a Brooks Lee card I didn't have, so all is good.

2023 Bowman Platinum - Ivan Herrera Platinum Bar Foil

Another one that is some sort of parallel, that didn't scan all that much differently than the Ice parallel. This is allegedly a Platinum Bar Foil parallel, but I don't know what makes it that. If you look very closely, it's serial numbered 2/75. That counts for something.

2023 Bowman Platinum - Ceddanne Rafaela - Autograph

Bowman Platinum is pretty generous with the prospect autographs, giving you 2 per Mega Box. Granted the Mega Boxes go for around $100, but that's not a bad deal. Rafaela was the biggest name I found inside the 2 Mega Boxes I opened, and the only one that has appeared in the Major Leagues to this point. 

******

Whatever...

#20 - 1992 Donruss The Rookies - Kent Bottenfield

Bottenfield was the Montreal Expos 4th Round Draft Pick in 1986, and made his Major League Debut in 1992. Traded to the Colorado Rockies in 1993, for Butch Henry (who had a good few seasons run in Montreal through 1996), where he was absolutely terrible. The Rockies shipped him off to the San Fancisco Giants in 1994, and Bottenfield continued to bounce around Major League Baseball through 2001. Tossing pitches for the Cubs, Cardinals, Angels, Phillies and Astros. He did pitch to an 18-7 record for St. Louis in 1999, but didn't find much success otherwise.

#19 - 2002 Bowman - Clint Nageotte

A textbook example of a failed pitching prospect. Auditions in 2004, 2005 and 2006, did not prove productive, and he never made it back to the Majors. Seattle was a mess of a team after both Griffey and A-Rod left in 2000. They had Ichiro Suzuki, but nothing else they tried worked out, and they didn't make the payoffs from 2002-2021. Nageotte was just one of hundreds of pitching prospects that didn't help Seattle.

#18 - 1991 Upper Deck Final Edition - Rickey Henderson

The three Fairfield Re-Pack boxes had a whole lot of 1991 Upper Deck Final Edition cards inside them. I pictured someone cracking a case of boxed sets, pulling out the Pedro Martinez, Ivan Rodriguez and Jim Thome rookie cards for grading, then dumping the rest off at the fair fields of Fairfield.

#17 - 1999 Upper Deck - Dave Martinez

Never bought much Upper Deck baseball between 1999 and 2005. This was a combination of the sets not appealing to me visually, not being able to find them at retail stores and lack of extra money. Now I wish I had bought more when I could, because I'd like to have some of them now.

If/when they get a new stadium in Tampa, can we go back to callings them the Tampa Bay Devil Rays? That name just rolls off the tongue better than Tampa Bay Rays. That weird purple, blue, green, yellow gradient logo was so much more interesting than the solid blue "Rays". Even the current Washington Nationals manager looks good in the "cool colors" end of the spectrum...

#16 - 1982 Donruss - Bill Madlock

Pittsburgh had some interesting uniform combinations back in the day. Who would've thought that yellow pinstripes should be outlined? Or that pillbox style caps would replace standard baseball caps. Or that Willie Stargell would be responsible for passing out stars to attach to those pillbox caps, when you did something to help the team. Players like Madlock, Dave Parker and Kent Tekulve would have stars lining the circumference of the caps. But every once in a while you'll find a player that only has one or two stars, floating lonely on a sea of black.

#15 - 1991 Upper Deck Final Edition - Ken Griffey Jr. & Ryne Sandberg

I still think the 1991 season was the year I saw the most games and followed baseball closest. I remember the 1991 All Star Game, with Griffey and Sandberg being the top two fan vote recipients. Nice of Upper Deck to include this photo, in the Final Edition set that was padding these Fairfield Re-Pack boxes.

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Each of those boxes would contain around 50 loose cards (used to be 100) and one factory sealed pack. Usually it's 1990 Fleer or Donruss, or occasionally 2021 Topps Opening Day, but this time around, all three Re-Pack boxes had...

2022 Panini Chronicles Packs

For unlicensed Panini products, Chronicles is my favorite yearly release. Not only do you not know what players each pack will yield, now there's the added twist of not knowing which BRAND each pack will contain. Making them some of the more fun cards on the market. Plus the hobby versions are loaded with cheap prospect autographs. Retail packs are always a lottery ticket, except your odds are better than with Topps products.

2022 Panini Chronicles Revolution - Clayton Kershaw & Josh Donaldson

Might be next to worthless, but they sure are colorful!

2022 Panini Chronicles - Seiya Suzuki (Optic Contenders) & Spencer Torkelson (Zenith)

Some of the included brands are names that go back some 25 years or more. I remember Zenith (then made by Pinnacle) in 1995, and them being particularly nice cards. This keeps that general feel of Zenith, as if it never went away, nearly 25 years ago now.

2022 Panini Chronicles - Crusade & Clear Vision - Oneil Cruz

Sad that Cruz's 2023 season was cut short by injuries after only 9 games. He's a hell of a talent and I was looking forward to seeing what 140-150 games would bring. Cruz still has too many strikeouts in his game, but if they can be cut down, Cruz will be a superstar.

2022 Panini Chronicles Spectra Hyper - Yadier Molina

These three Chronicles packs yielded a total of 12 cards. My biggest hit would be this Yadi Molina Spectra parallel, serial numbered to 75. This is a beautiful card. The photo chosen for it does not need any team logos, so it's one of the better looking cards Panini could even make. No doubt Molina will be going into the Hall of Fame in 5 years, and I'll never turn down a low serial numbered card of any Hall of Famer. 

As far as I'm concerned, this card alone made the Fairfield purchase worthwhile.

******

Given the new prospects and legends only configuration to 2023 Panini products, I was anxious to see what 2023 Panini Chronicles would look like. If there was going to be a 2023 Chronicles release...

2023 Panini Chronicles Mega Box

Which I found on the shelves of a WalMarts in November. I picked up a Blaster and Mega Box, but I was kind of disappointed in the 2023 release. That has nothing to do with player selection. Absolutely fine with that. The problem was the cards overall were kind of dull compared to years past. 

2023 Panini Chronicles Pinnacle - Cool Papa Bell

Reminiscent of 1992 Pinnacle, with the elements adjusted from that set. Guessing there aren't too many photos of Cool Papa Bell out there, so it's really nice to have a card at all.

2023 Panini Chronicles Luminence - Ethan Salas

Not a rip off of 1995 Upper Deck AT ALL!!

Salas is a very intriguing prospect, a 17 year old catcher that has already advanced to AA. After 9 games, he injured his knee. Always a tricky situation for a catcher. While it wasn't a torn meniscus or anything severe, you have flashbacks to what happened to Twins catcher Joe Mauer, just a few games into his Major League career...

2023 Panini Chronicles Obsidian - Pete Rose

Since they're not under the stern eye of Major League Baseball, Panini can print cards of lifetime suspendee, Pete Rose.  And I really liked this early photo combined with Panini's Obsidian brand. 

2023 Panini Chronicles - Chase Petty (Vanguard) & Cooper Hjerpe (Certified)

Petty was the Minnesota Twins First Round Draft pick in 2021. After a promising start to his career, the Twins traded him to Cincinnati for current St. Louis Cardinal, Sonny Gray. So far Petty is progressing nicely, and hasn't caught Tommy John surgery (yet). 

Cootie Herpes was drafted by those same St. Louis Cardinals, in the First Round of the 2022 Draft. He pitched well, but is already having elbow issues popping up. What that means for his future is anyone's guess at this point.

2023 Panini Chronicles Vanguard - Harmon Killebrew

Always happy to get another Killebrew...

2023 Panini Chronicles - Edouard Julien (Classics) & Justin Morneau (Limited)

One current and one former Minnesota Twin.

Both Canadians.

Julien debut with the Twins early in the 2023 season, and was a steady player at second base, with Jorge Polanco out with an injury. He hit well enough to soften the blow of the Luis Arraez trade. For most of the Summer, his OPS was very similar to what Arraez was posting in Miami.

Morneau was a first baseman for the Twins, Colorado Rockies, as well as brief runs with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago White Sox. Currently a television analyst for Twins games, he became a favorite of Laura's from watching the games. (We may not know where 2024 Twins games will be broadcast, but with Bremer's retirement, at least they'll be Dick-free!). She's been buying his cards off ebay most of the Winter. It's pretty cool watching her cards arrive in the mail every few days. She's even bought a few that I don't have.

2023 Panini Chronicles - Elite & XR - Brooks Lee

Very interested to see what Brooks Lee does in Minnesota. The Twins First Round Pick in 2022 (8th overall) has played well at every level, and projects as a high floor everyday Major Leaguer, at any of the infield positions. I'm expecting his recall from the St. Paul Saints to come no later than June 1, 2024. Injuries could of course bring him up earlier. Currently, the Twins have an abundance of infielders, and we're all waiting for a trade to shake that up a bit. Lee is all but untouchable in a trade, according to what I've read.

But I didn't expect them to trade Chase Petty 2 years ago either...

Whatever...

******

How about another one from the old 1991 Upper Deck Final Edition box?

#14 - 1991 Upper Deck Final Edition - Rondell White

White never became the superstar I wanted him to be, when the Montreal Expos made him their First Round Draft pick in 1990. Although he played 15 seasons in the Major Leagues, and there wasn't a whole lot of other players in his draft class to have a more successful career. 

I was a big enough fan where I displayed an autographed Rondell White Twins jersey on the fireplace mantle of my last apartment in Englewood, Colorado. For over a decade it stood proud amongst several Negativland albums, R.O.B. the video game playing robot, a 1982 Arby's Pac-Man glass, a skinned fox face, boxed Megatron, autographed baseballs of several Hall of Famers and an autographed Ken Griffey Jr. 400th Home Run Bat. Sadly, the Rondell White jersey moved back to Minnesota with me, but had been left at my parent's house until the point where their house nearly burned down. I still have the jersey, but it now has irreparable smoke damage from that tragic fire, in May 2000.

Sometimes I miss that crappy apartment...

Whatever...

(Staying in Colorado for #13...)

#13 - 2011 Bowman Draft - Alex White

Former top prospect of the Cleveland Indians, White was traded to the Rockies in July 2011, for Ubaldo Jimenez. He pitched to poor results in 2011 and 2012, for Colorado, then moved onto the minor leagues of Houston and Atlanta. He never made it back to the Major Leagues after 2012.

#12 - 2003 Topps - Boof Bonser

Boof was the throw-in on possibly one of the most successful trades the Twins have ever made. Bonser was packaged along with starting pitcher Francisco Liriano and relief pitcher Joe Nathan, for Twins catcher A.J. Pierzynski, in December of 2003. Pierzynski didn't fit in San Francisco at all, and moved on to the Chicago White Sox a year later, where he helped them win the 2005 World Series. Liriano and Nathan would play key roles in Minnesota for multiple fruitless winning seasons. Bonser pitched in the rotation and bullpen for Minnesota between 2006 and 2008, before a 2009 trade to Boston. Boof bounced around several minor league systems through 2013, but last played in the majors in 2010, with Oakland. 

#11 - 1989 Fleer Baseball's Hottest Stars - Jack McDowell

Always liked McDowell during his White Sox run, which lasted 1987-1994. He was easily one of the best pitchers in baseball during that stretch. After he left Chicago, his career faltered. A year with the 1995 Yankees was pretty on-par with the White Sox run, but he didn't get along well with Yankee fans. The clip of him giving a circling middle finger to a booing Yankee Stadium always tickled me. He signed with Cleveland for 2 years (96-97), but was on the downside as injuries were mounting. After 2 more injury plagued seasons with the Angels in 1998 and 1999, he called it quits on his pitching career.

#10 - 2006 Topps - Toronto Blue Jays

Team photos absolutely NEED to come back to baseball cards. 

Even in 2006, Topps was putting too many unnecessary design elements on the cards, covering up too much of the photo. Do the upper left left and right corners really need to be hidden by obtrusive black shapes? Can/t the gold foil "Blue Jays" be the same size, on a smaller odd shaped black thing covering up the scoreboard? What is the point of the black bar at the bottom, cutting off people's toes?

Do better Topps... You charge too much money for consistently sub-par product.

#9 - 1993 Upper Deck - Montreal Expos

After years of painting Donruss's Diamond Kings portraits, artist Vernon Wells moved to the Upper Deck, to paint the team checklists. Which especially stood out in the all around awesome 1993 Upper Deck set. Possibly my favorite set Upper Deck ever produced. (Favorite, not including the significance of the landmark 1989 set, which changed baseball cards forever.) 

Whatever...

******

Between my friend's suicide, the long sinus infection battle and now torn muscles under my rib cage, I had zero X-Mess spirit this year. Which is not really a change from the usual levels of X-Mess spirit I have. But this year would rate in the negative numbers if it were placed on a scale. 

Since I'm always negative, that shouldn't surprise anyone.

As I'd mentioned earlier, Laura had been buying single cards off ebay this year. Every day the mail would see new arrivals for herself, her nephew or me. The next two cards arrived after X-Mess, but they're just so X-Messy, I had to include them as gifts.

2023 Topps Holiday - Joe Ryan

Topps Holiday is another of Topps never ending stream of gimmicks that has really started to wear on me. For $50 (or so), you could buy a special box of Topps packs that would have cards all Photoshopped up to look like winter. I guess this is supposed to mean that Joe Ryan is pitching in a snowstorm. But all of the snow is behind him? 

How does that work?

Am I supposed to believe that he's throwing so fast, he's somehow outpaced the mini blizzard?

Happy X-Mess Byron!

2023 Topps Holliday Ornament - Byron Buxton

Laura ordered a bunch of these. I got one, her nephew and brother-in-law got one each, and she kept two. I don't know if she plans on picking up more of them, but if you want one, you better hurry before she single-handedly make it rare.

Each 2023 Topps Holiday box comes with an oversized Ornament card. It's cool, but stuff like this is a nightmare to store. One of the Top Loader makers needs to start making ones wide and/or tall enough to best fit all the oversized Hobby and Retail box premiums, that have come out in the past few years.

1975 Minnesota Twins Program & Scorecard

One of Laura's X-Mess gifts provided immediate entertainment. I have have the 1975 Minnesota Twins Yearbook, so this is a great companion piece. Loved seeing the wide selection of long gone local businesses and the ad campaigns they ran. Cigars and cigarettes are getting a much smaller push, than in the 1969 Minnesota Twins Yearbook.

There was an added bonus inside!

Whomever originally owned this program filled out the scorecard!

Bare minimum detective work (thanks BeaseballReference.com!) led me to conclude this was June 17, 1975. The Twins were playing a Tuesday Twi-Night Double Header against the Oakland A's. Making up for a late April game, cancelled because of "wet field conditions". Guess Metropolitan Stadium didn't have a state of the art drainage system, like Target Field... This was the scoring for game 1, which the Twins lost 4-2 (They would also lose the second game, 8-7). 

Say Rob, how do you feel about the 1975 Oakland A's sweeping the 1975 Minnesota Twins in a Double Header?

Yeah well, Disco Dan Ford hit a home run!

How's that for a call back!

This game was one year too late to see Twins future Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew, who played his last season in Minnesota, in 1974. Killebrew wasn't going to be re-signed by Calvin Griffith, despite wanting to continue playing in 1975. He found a one year deal with the Kansas City Royals, who were looking for some veteran leadership to guide a young team on the rise. The 1975 Royals finished in second place in the American League West for 1975, but would go onto a very strong 10 year run. Culminating in a World Series victory in 1985.

Mentioned because MLB Network's George Brett documentary was really good!

I was watching it while working on this story.

Getting back on task, another X-Mess gift from Laura was...

1984 SDP - Harmon Killebrew - Autograph

Sports Design Products issued these cards to commemorate Harmon Killebrew's 1984 induction into the Hall of Fame. I'd never seen one of them before. Let alone an autographed copy. Very cool.

Woooooooiiiinnnnngggggs!!!

(Never mind)

The Harmon Killebrew Autograph is certified JSA (James Spence Authentication). A sticker on the back of the card has the matching Certification Number. Guess I'll take their word for it. I wasn't really doubting them.

One final ebay envelope arrived a few days after X-Mess...

Containing this Montreal Expos Mini-Pennant!

Which will now fly proudly over the Expos card shelf!

Whatever...

******

#8 - 1996 Pinnacle Denny's - Gary Sheffield

I like these, but I don't go out of my way to collect them. Pretty sure 1996 was the first year of Pinnacle sponsoring the Denny's Grand Slam Breakfast Hologram promotion, after taking it over from Upper Deck. Unfortunately, Pinnacle's Hologram technology paled in comparison to the sharp ones Upper Deck had produced for years. Pinnacle's offerings are rather blurry...

And I'd rather have the Super Bird. With Hash Browns instead of fries.

Too bad the Denny's a few blocks north of here closed last Summer...

(Indirectly leading me to quit facebook. But that's a different story for a different time.)

#7 - 2004 Topps - Eddie Guardado

Watching Guardado pitching as a completely overmatched starter, during the Summer of 1994 would have never led me to think that 10 years later, he'd still be with the team. Only now as a pretty decent closer for a string of division winning teams. Although he was replaced in 2004 by Joe Nathan, who came over in the Boof Bonser trade.

Plus I liked seeing photos taken inside the crappy old Metrodome, appearing on cards.

Which didn't happen very often.

#6 - 1985 Fleer - Jody Davis

Sometimes you just have to rank a 1980's catcher at number 6...

#5 - 1993 Leaf Gold Rookies - Tim Wakefield

Shocked to hear Wakefield passed away earlier this year. (Curt Schilling is an insensitive dick.) One of the last great Knuckleball pitchers, pre-dating R.A. Dickey 5 year run. But Wakefield was consistent for a much longer period of time. He was unbelievable in 1992 when he debut, struggled in 1993 and 1994, but found himself with the Boston Red Sox in 1995. Staying there and winning multiple World Series through 2011. Too bad it was for the Red Sox. 

Wonder how a Knuckleball pitcher would work out pitching a full season in Coors Field?

******

Each year I don't tend to go too nuts buying Allen & Ginter. They're a fun rip, but I tire of them quickly. Unlike some people, I don't mind getting cards of wacky stuff mixed in with my baseball. But some of the wackier things tend to be less interesting than they could be. I don't care about cards a college basketball broadcaster, but I love a card of Area 51. 

2023 Topps Allen & Ginter Blaster

Some years I'll buy a full hobby box, this year I was down to just 2 Blasters. I was happy to get the selection of players I did get, but the wacky stuff wasn't nearly wacky enough to really hook me.

2023 Topps Allen & Ginter - Randy Johnson - Matt Holliday - Torii Hunter

Nice to see some variety in the token retired stars from teams I collect. Too many years this trio would be Vladimir Guerrero, Todd Helton and Paul Molitor. Matt Holliday is rarely recognized for his Rockies days. Colorado would have never made it to the 2007 World Series without him. Randy Johnson only appeared in 13 games for the 1988-89 Montreal Expos, so I'll always want to see Expos card of his. And Torii Hunter was underrated for most of his career. After he retired, I expected him to move into broadcasting, given his engaging personality seemingly made for television, but he's chosen to keep a lower key job with the Twins upper management.

2023 Topps Allen & Ginter - Aaron Judge - Tim Raines - Barry Zito - Mini's

The one per pack Mini cards are always cool, even if they're not the easiest to store. Although tobacco card sized sleeves and top loaders are becoming more and more common. I did well with the parallels, for the limited packs I bought. A Gold Judge, another semi-surprising Expos Hall of Famer, in Tim Raines, and a black parallel of Barry Zito. Was a huge Zito fan when he was with the Oakland A's, in the early 2000's. His San Francisco Giants days, not so much.

2023 Topps Allen & Ginter - Timmy Trumpet - Piano

Yup, Timmy Trumpet and a Piano...

That's some wackiness...

2023 Topps Allen & Ginter Fun In The Sun - Pina Colada

Now Fun in the Sun to me, is getting my ass back indoors quickly.

Preferably down in to a basement, with Air Conditioning. 

Did Topps make a card of that? If so, I must own!

2023 Topps Allen & Ginter Only In... Minnesota

Cool, now I don't have to look for this, since it came in a pack! There's one card for each of the 30 teams, focusing on a distinct element of the ballpark. For Minnesota, that would be the giant logo in center field. Fair enough. 

I also got the Allen & Ginter Only In... Oakland card, saluting the "largest amount of foul territory in baseball". At least Topps didn't go with "Most empty seats" for the Oakland-Alameda County Stadium.

That mini card was scanned and I was planning on including it in this story. But as I was writing about it, the Oakland card up and moved to another story.

(Sorry Rob...)

2023 Topps Allen & Ginter - Nick Pratto - Bat

Getting a bat chunk out of a Blaster doesn't happen too often. So that's cool.

Maybe Pratto will turn into a whole new George Brett, and MLB Network will make a documentary about him. I'll be dead by the time that happens, so I'll never know for sure.

2023 Topps Allen & Ginter - Luis Arraez - Foil Filigree

This one puzzled me when I pulled it from a Targets Blaster. I really liked the silver foil virus attacking the border, and had never seen a card like this in the set. Online research told me it was a Foil Filigree parallel. They come one per Hobby box. Okay, but this was from a retail Blaster... So who knows...

At least it was of a player I collect!

Whatever...

******

We've reached the Top 4 of a countdown that interests no one other than me!

May as well dip back into the 1991 Upper Deck Final Edition box to see what else it has to offer the Whatever...

#4 - 1991 Upper Deck Final Edition - Cal Ripken Jr.

Of all the everything baseball I followed closely in 1991, the player that most represented 1991 to me (after maybe Chuck Knoblauch), was Cal Ripken Jr. The year before, media speculation was that Ripken's Iron Man Streak was hurting his game, as 1990 had been a rather down year for him and the. Critics were calling on him to rest more as it would help the Orioles win. Or something... Ripken would go on to have a career year in 1991, putting that talk to rest. The Orioles team itself wasn't accomplishing much, but you'd couldn't blame Ripken with the monster season he had that year.

1991 was the year his 1982 Topps Traded rookie card shot up into the $250 range, according to the Becketts. In 1988, I'd bought the full box set for $40 from The Dugout card store in Downtown Center, Andover, MN. Pre-dating Pal's by over 20 years. Around this time, the 1982 Topps Traded listing was the first page I'd flip to in a new Becketts.

#3 - 1995 Finest Refractor - Ken Caminiti

Flipping through the Fairfield Re-Pack, the back of this card was facing up. Being a 1995 Finest, I was hoping for a good name, since I like that set. Then I saw it was a Refractor, and you don't see those in these boxes too often. It was even a (roided-up) semistar, but off-centered to the point where it's almost miscut. Can see why the original owner parted with it, but It'll still fit nicely in the Padres album.

#2 - 2019 Topps Chrome - Nick Burdi - Autograph

Fairfield Re-Pack "hits" come 1 in 8 boxes. A few years ago, when I was more consistently entertained by these, you'd get 100 cards and 1 pack for $4.99. Hits then were 1 in 4 boxes. So it's now twice as hard to get an autographed failed prospect card. (Often entertaining in their own right.) In this case, I got Nick Burdi. Originally a Minnesota Twins Draft Pick, he never made it to the Majors until he moved on to the Pirates. Relief pitcher, lotsa strikeouts, lotsa walks, lotsa injuries. He played briefly with the Pirates between 2018-2020, then surfaced with the Cubs for 3 games in 2023. He did sign a minor league contract with the New York Yankees for the 2024 season, so he hasn't completely washed out of the game yet.. 

This is actually the second 2019 Topps Chrome Nick Burdi Autograph in my collection. The first came from a 2019 Topps Chrome Blaster purchased at the Targets a few blocks from my house. Still a scribble (with Bible verse) but it's more of a scribble than most players give these days.

Completely unrelated, but a few months back I was reading nonsense on Twitter and saw someone misspell the word "Bible". This fountain of hypocritical knowledge wrote "Bibble", in his defense of hating gay people or poor people... Or Women... I don't remember. However, the pronunciation of that spelling, in reference to the book he was following, made me laugh.

"It says it right there in the BIBBLE!!"

Whatever...

******

Before I get to the Top Card Pulled From Three Fairfield Re-Pack Boxes From Walgreen's, I have to tip my cap to the final flavor of retail Blaster that was very nice to me this X-Mess...

2023 Topps Chrome Update Blaster

1 of the 5 I bought, but the important one was a gift!

But it wasn't this one...

2023 Topps Chrome - Grayson Rodriguez - Aqua Wave Auto

Only after I started writing this did I realize this card actually came out of the non-Update flavor of Chrome. Which also came from a WalMarts Blaster, back in September. Since I'd already scanned it, and since it's a really nice rookie card, I figured I'd show it off anyways!

I like these Aqua Wave Refractors...

I should get more of them...

2023 Topps Chrome Update - Brenton Doyle - Refractor

Doyle got a good deal of playing time in Denver last year. He was brilliant in the outfield, winning a Gold Glove in his rookie season. Unfortunately, he did not hit much at all, posting a well below average .203/.250/.593 line. 10 home runs and 22 stolen bases are encouraging. Hopefully he can take a step forward at the plate in 2024, and get the poor offense to not cancel out his excellent defense.

2023 Topps Chrome Update - Luis Arraez

Both the base and All Star Game insert.

I've had no trouble pulling Luis Arraez cards this year, which is cool. I'll probably always collect his cards. 

Still a smart trade for Minnesota.

2023 Topps Chrome Update - Mike Trout - All Star Game

Not an Angels fan at all. I think they're a very poorly run organization, with a meddling owner who can't get out of his own way. How do you mess up the Ohtani/Trout tandem? Missing the playoffs every single year? 

Ask Arte Moreno...

But I wont complain about pulling Trout cards like this at any time. They will have a place in my collection.

2023 Topps Chrome Update - Edouard Julien - Joey Wiemer

Topps really wanted to make sure I had an Edouard Julien Pink Refractor. They gave me three of them in 6 Blasters.

Since I got an Aqua Wiemer Refractor, to go along with my Topps Heritage Chrome, out of the High Numbers Mega Box, that means I should start collecting his cards. I don’t have a favorite Milwaukee Brewer and I probably won’t name one soon, but baseball card suggestions seem strongest in the Wiemer… Plus, it’s serial numbered out of 199. 

And his name lends itself to bad jokes, puns and innuendo!

2023 Topps Chrome Update - Adley Rutschman & Gunnar Henderson - 1988 35th Anniversary

Baltimore has got some scary good young talent coming up. If ownership doesn’t screw it up, they could become an American League East powerhouse that will leave the Yankees and Red Sox behind. Possibly a Houston Astros like run? Hopefully without the cheating.

For X-Mess this year, my mom got me a few random Blasters. One of which being 2023 Topps Chrome Update, which was hinted at earlier. Everything inside it was ho-hum, until…

2023 Topps Chrome Update - Corbin Carroll - Aqua Wave Autograph

Well this changed the complexion of the box! 

When you open a pack, the borders slightly fan out, and you see 1/16 of an inch of sparkly teal goodness. First thought is “I hope this is at least a common from a team I like.” Because you don’t want to get your hopes up, this far likelier to be a crappy middle relief pitcher for the Red Sox. You never predict an autograph, or you will always feel let down. Before I saw the actual card, my best case scenario was a Luis Arraez Marlins card. That teal would look so good with the Marlins uniforms.

I finally flip it over and am suitably shocked. You don’t open a retail Blaster with any realistic hopes of a serial numbered autograph, from one of the top rookies in the set. One who performed at a high level in the Playoffs and World Series, and has unlimited potential for stardom. 

This is a keeper. Not a D-Bags fan, but this card will have a warm and happy home amongst the D-Bags cards I hold above others. Like that 2022 Topps ProDebut Jordan Lawler autographed Red Refractor, or the fistful of 2008 Max Scherzer’s I re-found last summer.

Whatever...

******

And now it’s time for the Top Card Pulled From Three Fairfield Re-Pack Boxes From Walgreen’s!

There’s no way it can compete with Corbin Carrol, but it was something I was very pleased to find inside a Fairfield Re-Pack…

#1 - 1984 Nestle - Brad Havens

Until today, I did not own ONE 1984 (Topps) Nestle card. After opening the box, I had TWO!

Both of them are Brad Havens. Both of them were placed back to back in the box.

So yeah...

An absolute let down in comparison to a 2023 Topps Chrome Update Corbin Carroll Aqua Wave Autograph. But it’s a rarity for the PC. And when you boil it all down, isn’t a rarity for your PC the absolute best outcome from ripping a Fairfield Re-Pack?

I’m not complaining!

******

Now get back to work!