I have no idea how to create pages but I'll figure it out eventually godammit

Friday, June 19, 2009

2009 Topps Series One Target Retro Blaster - Box summary and patch

The video break is still in production, but I want to start showing off my Target retro blaster box. I'm going to just spoil the whole thing at the outset and let you know exactly what I got in the box:

65 base cards
1 SP variation
9 Topps Town code cards
1 Gold Topps Town code card
2 Turkey Red
1 Legends of the Game
1 Gold Parallel
1 Patch card

Not a bad break at all, SPs are about 1:12 boxes so I was really fortunate on that. There are usually about 4 inserts per box so that was right on the money as well. One thing you should know: blasters are absolutely not the best way to build the set. You're basically paying for the patch card and getting a few base and insert card in on the bargain. For the same twenty bucks you can get about 10 hobby packs with 100 cards in them, two jumbo packs (if you can find them) with about 100 cards and a good shot at a hit, 10 packs of retail with 120 cards, 2 cereal boxes with 110 cards or 4 jumbo packs with 144 cards. A blaster gives you 81, but you have the patch. Since that's really the focus of the whole thing, here's the patch I got:

Ernie Banks with a Yankee patch from the 1960 All-Star Game. Ernie was the starting shortstop and had a hit in the second of two All-Star games in 1960. This card (and the Tom Seaver I pulled a long time ago) is up for grabs to anyone who has a Chipper Jones patch from a Series two blaster. And I mean anyone, I'll gladly trade this to a Cardinals fan who only wants it to taunt Cubbie fans in exchange for a Chipper.

Here's the first pack in the box:

205 Miguel Tejada
106 Marlon Byrd
257 George Kottaras RC
65 Mike Pelfrey
TTT18 Miguel Cabrera Topps Town
273 Brian Roberts
182 Daniel Murphy
49 Kazuo Matsui

Not great, but not terrible. The thing that really struck me about these cards is the numbers:
Easy
Difficult
Hard
Impossible
How the hell are you supposed to read these numbers??? I'm goin' blind here people. BIGGER NUMBERS - MORE CONTRAST. Don't make me drive up to Duryea to smack you people.

Here's pack two:

161 Brendan Harris
285 Justin Duchscherer
216 Emmanuel Burriss
147 League Leaders NL RBI
TTT10 Jake Peavy
137 Angel Salome RC
287 Greg Maddux
325 Dustin McGowan

Ah, I love that old curved T logo, even if it is foil stamping. The thing I really like is this:

Why couldn't Topps have done white numbers for the whole set?? Ok, maybe not for the ordange and yellow bordered cards, but all the dark blue, red and brown ones need white numbers. I'm bummed that the only cards I'll be able to sort without squinting are the league leader cards.

7 comments:

McCann Can Triple said...

I bought two retail packs. I got a Smoltz Gold Parallel. Haven't opened the other pack.

One card is ruined. Thank god it was a junk card (one of those student: work gard get cards... card.) They have that white tab like thing stuck on it. I tried taking it of and it ripped the front of the card off.

I wish I could get the Hobby packs.

I do plan on trying for a blaster pack soon. I want that Chipper patch as well. The odds of pulling it are slim to none, but one can hope.

McCann Can Triple said...

...I bought series 2 actually.

I need to pay better attention.

JD's Daddy said...

Man, I thought I was the only one having trouble seeing the numbering. As I was putting together my set in the late evening hours, I thought my contacts were going to fall out trying to read the blue and red cards. This in NOT just limited to the throwbacks.

dayf said...

McCann: The David Wright card is considered a filler so that's the one that the retail outlets stick the security device on. Trust me, if you want an unruined David Wright filler card collectors can send you a pile of 'em.

Daddy: They are bad in every series, but particularly awful on these. the brown borders are nearly impossible.

McCann Can Triple said...

I have quite a number myself. I just never noticed or paid attention I gusse to the device being on them.

And ugh, those numbers are giving me a headache as I try and sort them.

madding said...

For some reason the hardest card numbers for me to read have been the black-on-blue regular backs... not that the retro ones are much better.

GCA said...

And is it just me or does there seem to be three times more of the black-on-dark-blue numbers than the high contrast gold, grey or white-on-dark ones?