Random Wax: 2024 Topps Update

2024 Topps Update:   Freddie Freeman is having another good season as a top 5 hitter in the league.  I've always been a fan of the former Braves' first baseman.  He's 36 this season and has 2500+ hits in his career.  Maybe he doesn't get to 3,000 but I won't rule it out.  I'm rooting for him and I'm assuming he'll be a Hall of Famer once he retires.  Just nobody hitting nowadays like he has in his career.  And I like these All-Star cards.

Update can be a mixed bag focusing on youngster and players in new unis. I do like the 2024 design.

Jackson Holliday has taken a step a back this season but I'm hoping he can bounce back.

Nice looking Rookie Combo card.  And who doesn't like a Skenes pull?

Stars of MLB.  Not my favorite design but it's in line with previous ones.

Great checklist card.

We have a Royal Blue Parallel and Purple Holo Foilboard #/799.

Veteran Combo card.

Elly De La Cruz is having another good season. I enjoy seeing players with speed doing well even if his stolen bases are down this season.

BREAKDOWN:
36 – Total Cards
11 – RC
2 – Stars of MLB
2 – Veteran Combos
1 - Checklist
1 – All-Star Game
1 – Rookie Combos
1 – Royal Blue Parallel
1 - Purple Holo Foilboard #/799

The Madison

The Madison:  While my pop picked this one as our next watch, we both really enjoyed it.  Excellent writing and acting.  Kurt Russell and Michelle Pfeiffer headline this cast and it's just a good watch.  While written by Taylor Sheridan, who heads the Yellowstone family of shows and others, this series is just the opposite.  While the language is similar at times, it's not action centric.  And right or wrong I've likened it to a "chick flick".  Just a good story.  It's not a long season with only six episodes.  Season 2 has already been shot and season 3 has been picked up, so we have those to look forward to.

Random Wax: 2024 Topps Stadium Club

2024 Stadium Club:  Max Fried looks great on this Pink Holo Parallel mostly due to being a Braves uni. Sadly, he took his talents to New York.  Though battling some injuries this season, Fried is still having a good season with the Yanks.

Braves hot pack!  If you remember, 2024 Stadium Club was big on team hot packs.  Chris Sale is having another great season as the Braves' ace.

Yamamoto is enjoying another really good season for LA.  The Dodgers picked up Tarik Skubal at the trade deadline to help bolster their pitching staff. Boooooo

My Green Refractor Chrome, the nice backs and my Power Packed insert.

We love the photography and they again do well.  We also get retired greats like Lou Gehrig.  2X MVP, Triple Crown, 7X All-Star, 7X World Series winner, and he won a batting title.  He ended his career with a crazy .340 batting average.  Love looking at the video game stats during his career.

BREAKDOWN:
15 – Total Cards
5 – RC
3 – Pink Holo Parallel
2 - Chrome
1 – Retired Great
1 – Power Packed
1 – Red Holo Parallel
1 – Green Refractor Chrome

Ford v Ferrari (2019)

Ford v Ferrari:  The BLUF is Ford wants to take down Ferrari in the prestigious race, the 24 Hours of Le Mans.  With NASCAR taking a break last weekend, pop and I watched this one.  I'd seen probably 75% of the movie in bits and pieces and figured we'd both like it.  And we did.  Really good story.  Matt Damon and Christian Bale do a great job.  Hard not to enjoy this movie.  You don't have to be a racing guy or even a car guy.  I think most will find it easy to enjoy.  

Random Wax: 2024 Blaster

2024 Topps:   Ronald Acuna Jr. recently returned to the Braves' lineup after recovering from injury.  Felt like he was getting his swing back before the injury and the lineup needs his bat.  Hoping for good things in the second half of the season.

Nolan Arenado is a 10X Gold Glove winner and recently reached 2,000 hits for his career.  He's currently playing for the D-Backs.

Speaking of...  A nice photo on this horizontal card.

Gabriel Moreno has hit at or above .300 most of this season.  Nice bat to have in your lineup especially as a catcher.  While he's helped my fantasy team, in truth there is no helping my fantasy team this season.

2023 Greatest Hits, Home Run Challenge and Grand Gamers.  The latter gives a chance to see all-time greats like Ichiro who truly is one of the greatest hitters we've seen.  Maybe someone breaks his streak of 10 consecutive 200 hit seasons but it feels like it will be near impossible to beat.

Checklist, Holiday Parallel (Easter), and Blue Parallel.

The backs on the '89 Topps inserts are solid and seeing Jose Ramirez stats are always fun.  Such a good hitter.

Really good collection of hitters including two 1989 Topps inserts.

Team card.

Stars of MLB are okay but getting a bit stale by 2024.  No complaints with my pull though.

2024 Topps backs are good.  Love seeing all those stats.

More stars of the game and what a fun box.  Mike Trout is having a really good year.  Average is still down but he's hitting with power and getting on base.

BREAKDOWN:

84 – Total Cards

17 – RC

7 – Stars of MLB

4 – Future Stars

4 – Holiday Parallel (Easter)

1 – Checklist

1 – Team Card

1 – Grand Gamers

1 – Blue Parallel

1 – 1989 Topps Baseball

1 – Home Run Challenge

1 – Topps All-Star Rookie

Random Wax: 1992 Upper Deck Football

1992 UD:  Joe Montana was just amazing.  Four Super Bowl wins never throwing an interception in those games.  MVP in 3 of those games and you can tack on 2 regular season MVPs for good measure amongst all the accolades he's gotten in his career.  Just crazy great and would have been so much fun to watch in today's game.

Kosar and Lathon went to 1X Pro Bowl while Ken O'Brien went to 2.

Greatness.  He was MVP in '89 and '90.

Subsets/inserts included Rookie Force, FaniMation and NFL Scrapbook.  All are good and a nice pull in each.  That's animated Deion by the way. Maybe that should be more obvious.

Just a big fan of this design.  Upper Deck killed it with their early football designs.

Not sure why Joe Montanta got scanned twice but dang it, he deserves it.

BREAKDOWN:
15 – Total Cards
1 - Fanimation
1 – Rookie Force
1 – NFL Scrapbook

Spider-Man: Brand New Day (NO SPOILERS)

 My son, grandsons and I saw Spider-Man: Brand New Day on Thursday and we enjoyed.  It is probably not the Spider-Man movie we're used to.  It feels more grounded and story driven.  The youngest son said it needed more action and for a 9-year-old I get it.  There is action though.  Again, how it plays into the story might make it different from what we've seen before.  Good movie and one of our favorites in the Tom Holland era.