1992 Pro Set Racing NASCAR (4 Packs)

1992 Pro Set:  This set gives us one of Jeff Gordon's earliest cards.  He does have earlier cards as far back as 1987.  Gordon is a NASCAR legend.  He won four championships, he finished top five in the standings 11 times, and won a total of 93 races.

These cards are a pretty simple but I'm good with the design.  The name sits in what could be thought of as part of a race track and the Pro Set logo includes a checkered flat.  No borders can be tricky but these look good.  The photos are fairly varied as well.  Allison, Schrader and Martin finished 3rd, 9th and 6th respectively in the 1991 NASCAR standings.

We get Rig or hauler cards which are always fun.  I really like these.  This is Davey Allison's.

There are also Legends cards which include legends like Marilyn Green who was the first Miss Winston as well as drivers like NASCAR greats Junior Johnson and Cotton Owens. 

Team cards are nice as well.  

Crew cards highlight team personnel like crew chiefs, the pit crew, and engineers.

A good on track photo of the cars on these Card cards.  I picked up these four packs on eBay.  The price was great, and the seller took a while a to ship.  I was wondering if they were having second thoughts.  I'm very happy I grabbed these.  Fun cards and plenty of great drivers.

A Miss Winston Card. Renee White held the title from 1996-2001.  

I really like seeing the haulers.  Something about them is fun.

Some drivers get a horizontal card. I like this one.  It looks like Michael Waltrip's photo is on the side of a hauler or promotional banner.

Dale Jarrett would go on to win a NASCAR Championship in 1999.

The backs are great.  Nice write-up, photo and stats and player/team info.  Alan Kulwicki would go on to win the 1992 NASCAR Championship.  He is the last driver/owner to win a championship.  Sadly, he would die in a plane crash the next April.

BREAKDOWN:

48 – Total Cards

11 – Crew

8 – Legend

7 – Rig

3 – Car

2 - Team

1 – MRN Radio

1 – Miss Winston

2024 Upper Deck Marvel Studios Series 2: Cinematic Blaster

Studios Cinematic 2024: Chris Hemsworth does a great Thor.  I've always been a fan of his character though I do believe his character went too far with the over-the-top humor.  Still, Hemsworth does a great job.

I really like this shot with all the chaos in the background.  Thor: Love and Thunder is not a movie I care for.  I thought it had a lot going for it, but it went with too much comedy which overshadowed what good it did have.

The base set here continues numbering from Series 1.  Like Series 1, the designs are the same which are fine.  I like the middle design here the most.  The other is design is okay and reminds me of a Fleer Ultra look.

These are pretty simple, but I really like the card and concept.  As a kid I had a Marvel lunch box so this takes me back.  I like the Lunch Box Legends cards.

Here are two UD Debut inserts.  The one on the right is an Outburst Parallel.  I like the UD inserts. 

UD Canvas are nice cards and something we see across Upper Deck sets.

This is the Jumbo Parallel I pulled.  They are okay but I have no idea what to do with oversized cards.

The backs are fine.  I like how the set's focus on the actors as well as the characters from the movies.  I like the appearances listing as well for some reason.

Specifically, this set showcases cards from the Marvel movies Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Eternals, Doctor Strange in The Multiverse of Madness, Thor: Love and Thunder, and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.  

These inserts aren't bad.  We have UD Portraits, Dazzlers Green and 1995 Collectors Choice SE Retros.  The Collector's Choice is my favorite though I wish they had gone with white borders.

I always liked the Lady Sif character and thought they could have done more with her and the Warriors Three.  I like this set but I'm more excited about Series 1 and the television shows covered there.  

Fun box of cards.  I'll pick off singles, but I won't be doing full blasters.  We'll end it with Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff/Scarlett Johansson who is always fun and a favorite of mine.

BREAKDOWN:

35 – Total Cards

3 – UD Debut

1 – Jumbo

1 – UD Canvas

1 – Dazzlers Green

1 – Outburst Parallel

1 – UD Portraits Gold

1 – Lunch Box Legends

1 – 1995 Collectors Choice SE Retros

2022 Topps Red Sox Team Set (Blister)

Xander Bogaerts was a 4X All-Star and 5X Silver Slugger award winner, including 2021, during his time with the Red Sox.  He also won two championships in Boston.

Evoldi led the starters in WAR (4.3) and ERA (3.57).  JD Martinez led the league with 42 doubles.  I purchased this blister pack team set in July of 2022.

I thought I was going to get a Braves - Red Sox World Series but Houston eliminated Boston in the 2021 ALCS.

Vazquez and Dalbec were 2021 starters though I'm not convinced their combined on base percentage was above .300.

Devers delivered 38 home runs and 113 runs batted in in his fifth season.

Christian had some fun highlight moments in 2021 and his photo feels appropriate.  These blister packs were found at Wal-Mart and each had 17 cards.

Great photo and 2021 was probably Enrique's (Kiki's) best season of his career.

This team really had a good mix of young talent with a few veterans sprinkled in.  Feels like they needed just a bit more pitching and health to have gotten by Houston.

I like the 2022 design.  Kind of feels more like Bowman but it works.  But no matter, this fun team and some nice photos make it a good set to own for a Red Sox fan.

2022 Topps Braves Team Set (Blister)

Topps 2022:  Jorge Soler is only a 1X All-Star but he'll be forever known to Braves fans as one of the keys to Atlanta's run to the Championship in 2021.  He capped it off with a great World Series and the World Series MVP award.

The Braves run to the 2021 World Series title was so much fun and unexpected.  So many great stories and great years for players.

Freddie Freeman needs no introduction and led the league in runs while batting .300.

Max Fried and Charlie Morton led the Braves with 14 wins each in 2021.  Fried won game 6 of the World Series to clinch the title.  These blister packs were on Wal-Mart shelves at the time, and I couldn't resist.  I picked up the Angels, Braves and Red Sox who I'll show off tomorrow.

Pederson, Duvall and Rosario were part of the patch work outfield after Ronald Acuna went down and wow, did they deliver time and time again in the regular season and in the playoffs.

Smyly and Ynoa were key contributors to the starting lineup during the regular season.  There are 17 total cards in these blister team sets.

Ian Anderson won 9 games during the regular season and game three of the 2021 World Series.

Dansby Swanson and Austin Riley were huge parts of the offense.  What a year and it's so fun to relive some of those memories.  And a perfect time to look back as we start the 2025 season today in ernest.  Enjoy Opening Day!

Random Wax: 2023-2024 Contenders Basketball (2 Packs)

23-24 Contenders:  Shai Gilgeous- Alexander is a stud.  He may well be the MVP this season though The Joker will have a lot to say about that.  He's leading the league in scoring, is only 26 years-old and a great watch on the court.

Really good pull.  This set is 160 cards so you should see some pretty good star power in packs.  Joel Embiid is shut down for the season.  Shouldn't be a surprise considering all the injuries he's dealt with but man if there's one player you just want to see healthy, it might be him.

Rookie offerings.  I want Scoot Henderson to be good but he's still on the bench and I don't feel like Portland has a good plan for developing him.  I'm not saying he's worth of the #3 pick that he was, but I'd like to see him get an extended look in the starting lineup to get a real look at him as a player.  I like these Stallions cards.  That smokey look with the horses in the back is kinda cool.  

These cards are from two of the fat packs from a fat pack box I purchased last year.    

Big fan of these Historic Draft Class Contenders inserts.  Retired greats and fun photos are a win.

Here we have a Green Game Ticket Parallel, Game Night Ticket card, and a Bronze Game Ticket parallel.

Three of my favorites in the league today and a Wemby sighting.  I've got more of these to show off over time.  I had a good pull this time and lots of fun.

BREAKDOWN:
44 – Total Cards
6 – RC
2 – Draft Class
2 – Rookie Stallions
1 – Retired Great
1 – Game Night Ticket
1 – Historic Draft Class
1 – Green Game Day Ticket Parallel
1 – Bronze Game Day Ticket Parallel