Random Wax: 2019 Topps Baseball

2019 Topps Baseball:  We have more American League Championship Series action tonight thanks to the rain out Wednesday so now is as good as any to look at some 2019 Topps baseball.  Khris Davis is an easy pick to lead this off with.  He is a PC guy for me and this is a good photo of him. It's also my first time pulling him this year though I do think I have his Opening Day card.  Davis struggled this year and had to deal with injuries but the true tragedy of his season is that he had a shot at hitting .247 for the fifth season in a row but was unable to do so.  You heard it right - he hit .247 in the four seasons prior to this year.

   Some more Davis love in the form of his League Leaders card for leading the league with 48 homeruns.

The back of the Kenesaw Mountain Landis Revolution of the Game card.  Dude not only had a great name but also oversaw some major times in MLB history.

A couple greats in Arenado and Betts go horizontal on these cards.  I needed both of these as well.

 I liked this year's design and the Topps baseball flagship is always fun to pick up.

Ronald Acuna Jr. and the Braves fell short against the Cardinals but we know this team is young and talented and with some real pitching it could be even better in years to come.

BREAKDOWN:

34 – Total Cards
3 – RC
2 – Checklist
1 – Revolution of the Game
1 – 150th Anniversary
1 – League Leaders
1 – Ronald Acuna Jr. Highlight

Random Wax: 2019 Topps Baseball

A random pack of 2019 Topps Baseball on tap for today led off by Christian Yelich.  This guy is having another monster year.  The Brewers aren't quite as good as last year but we'll see what they can do at the trading deadline.  Rumors have it they are looking at starting pitching...as is every other contender.

  A few youngsters and how can you not like the Lourdes Gurriel Jr. photo?  The Cal Ripken is an Iconic Card Reprint.  I do like those.

Well if I have to pull Yankees players at least they weren't common players.  Michael Brantley is an All-Star this year for the Astros which is looking like a great offseason signing.

A couple nice photos though finding a photo of Nicholas Castellanos playing good defense must have been tough.  Sorry to my Detroit Tiger fan buddies.

These ballpark cards are so simple but love the photos and nice looks they give us of the different stadiums.

BREAKDOWN:

16 – Total Cards
1 – RC
1 – Ballpark
1 – Stars of the Game
1 – Future Stars
1 – Topps Now
1 – Iconic Card Reprints

Random Wax: 2019 Topps Baseball

This is my first pack of the 2019 Topps baseball flagship since I opened a hobby box in February.  Again I enjoy this design and like what I've seen from the inserts.  This pack was a fun one highlighted by two Ronald Acuna cards.  

Topps does photos well and these two are no exception.  While we don't know for sure, in my mined this was the end of a great play by Javier Baez.  I also like when they get the ball in the frame on pitcher's cards.  

I like when they catch lighthearted moments from the games like this one.  Who knows the context but it is something I enjoy.

Some nice emotion from Blake Parker.  Another Brave in Tyler Flowers and you have to like Miles Mikolas' hair but Topps didn't a do a good job showcasing it in this photo.

Another good photo - just wish I knew the story behind it.  Still fun though.  I'm sure this won't be my last of this set so expect more throughout the season.

BREAKDOWN:

34 – Total Cards
1 – RC
1 – Greatest Moments
1 – Future Stars
1 – Stadiums
1 – Home Run Challenge
1 – Checklist

2019 Topps Baseball Hobby Box Post #2 w/Silver Pack

I'm back with more of the 2019 Topps Baseball from the hobby box I broke.  The Marcus Semien card, outside of being a nice photo, is one of the 150th Anniversary cards as seen by the stamp.  The Albert Pujols and Mookie Betts cards is one of the checklist cards.  I like that they've made the checklist unique with photos that aren't the norm.  

There were four chrome promo cards in my 1984 Silver Pack.  I didn't pull any parallels but was very happy with my pull that included Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson in a great pose, future Hall of Famer Derek Jeter and the reigning National League MVP Christian Yelich.  I'm not a big chrome guy but I do like these cards.

A couple of the big stars from the league in Clayton Kershaw and Aaron Judge.  I pulled them both in one of my last packs from the box.  The Home Run Challenge card has a scratch off on the back and it is part of a game in which you can win prizes picking when a player will hit a home run during the season.

Just showing off now.  Sean Doolittle has that unique stance while on the mound that is kind of cool.

A couple of great photos here.  David Price is so intense and I like how the ball is shown in the foreground.  George Springer is laid out and it looks like this might be a bang bang play at home.  I like this photo.  

I must have really liked this Semien card as I scanned it a second time.  I do know I'm a fan of those all green unis so I'm not surprised that I'm drawn to the card.  All three are nice action photos.  I'll grab more of the Topps flagship set throughout the year for sure.  I like this set and there are plenty more cards to grab.  I'll also be picking up an Opening Day hobby box if all goes well.  Check back in March to find out for sure.

Nice bonus, and props to Topps, are the stats for the player's entire career.  <golf clap>

BREAKDOWN:

336 – Total Cards

30 – RC

14 - Stadium

10 – Future Stars

8 - Checklist

7 – Retired Greats

7 – Topps All-Star Rookie

6 – 1984 Topps

5 - Gold

5 – World Series Highlights

4 – 150^th Anniversary

3 – Rainbow Foil

3 - 150 Years of Professional Baseball

2 – Variations (SP)

2 – RC/Topps All-Star Rookie1

1 – Topps Now

1 – Equipment Evolution

1 – Iconic Card Reprints

1 – Vintage Stock #/99

1 – Homerun Challenge

1 – Topps Greatness Returns

1 – Silver Pack (4 Cards)

1 – Artist Sketch (1/1)

1 – Revolution of the Game Autograph (#/99)    

2019 Topps Baseball Hobby Box w/Auto and 1/1 Sketch Card

This 2019 Topps baseball hobby box is my first hobby box of the flagship baseball set since I jumped back into collecting in 2011.  This was a very fun box.  I pulled a Tony LaRussa Revolution of the Game autograph and a 1/1 artist sketch of Masahiro Tanaka by Brett Farr (both below).  The LaRussa card is earmarked for a buddy and I'm trying to sell the sketch card.   I'll break this into a couple of posts because I have so many scans.  This post will consist of a few basic cards and I'll show off most of the subsets and inserts I pulled.  I received a Silver Pack as well and will show those of in my next post.  Always nice when a card from one your team's players stands out to you as this Dansby Swanson does to me.

I really like the design here.  It harkens back to the '82 Topps baseball but updated in a way I like.  The photos are very good as always though it seems some of the sets of years past were a tad better.

  I was getting a little bummed about my pull until I was down to four packs and I seemed to hit it big in those four packs as the stars kept on coming.  One pack had both the standard base Mike Trout and the SP variation Mike Trout in it.  Both of those were cards I really wanted to pull.  Now that's a great pack.  I also pulled a Trout Topps Now card from a separate pack.

As always Topps pays homage to the young players from the league with the Topps All-Star Rookie, Future Stars and RC cards.  I pulled Ronald Acuna Jr. in one of my first packs giving me one of the handful of cards I really wanted.  I like the Gurriel Jr. photo and Poncedeleon is a really cool name! 

In this World Series Highlight card is World Series MVP Steve Pearce pointing to the Yankees and reminding them who didn't go to the World Series and win it all?  <big smile>  The photo of Pearce is a great example of when the photo goes over the border in a nice touch.

This Greatest Season Mark McGwire card was another favorite.  Here we get the skinny Mark McGwire.  That Vlad Guerrero is one of the 1984 card inserts.  Nice throwbacks to cards of my teen years.

The Yaz Iconic Card Reprint was another card I was looking forward to pulling.

The stadium cards from each team are nice cards.  This pairing of Ty Cobb and Bryce Harper is curious to me but I'll just roll with it.

This is the 1/1 Tanaka sketch card.  I do like it but since I'm neither a Yankees nor Tanaka fan I'll try finding it a better home.  At the moment that effort involves eBay. 

 This is a great card and by far the best baseball autograph I've ever pulled.  It's a great looking card though the auto isn't an on card autograph.  I have a buddy who was a fan of A's back during this era and is also a Cardinals fan so this card will go to him.  

BREAKDOWN:

336 – Total Cards
30 – RC
14 - Stadium
10 – Future Stars
8 - Checklist
7 – Topps All-Star Rookie
7 - Retired Greats
6 – 1984 Topps
5 - Gold
5 – World Series Highlights
4 – 150th Anniversary
3 – Rainbow Foil
3 - 150 Years of Professional Baseball
2 – Variations (SP)
2 – RC/Topps All-Star Rookie1
1 – Topps Now
1 – Equipment Evolution
1 – Iconic Card Reprints
1 – Vintage Stock #/99
1 – Homerun Challenge
1 – Topps Greatness Returns
1 – Silver Pack (4 Cards)
1 – Artist Sketch (1/1)
1 – Revolution of the Game Autograph (#/99)