2020 Topps Gallery

 2020 Topps Gallery:  This is my first in hand look at this year's offering.  I enjoy this brand but the art can be hit and miss.  Still it's fun when it's right.  I wish there were more retired greats in this set as it has a bit of an old school feel to it.  We'll lead off with Nolan Ryan for this pack.  

I like the design this year.  Here you see the wood parallel as well as a base design with the standard white borders.  I think I like the wood parallel better which I think I've said for past sets.  Those names are in foil but scan darker than they really appear.

These are kind of cool but it seems like the apprentice to a pitcher would be another pitcher.  But I get what they are doing pairing a veteran with a younger player.

The backs are pretty straight forward but I like the different take on stats.  Still prefer career stats by year but this isn't too bad.  I like the beard on that Moran card combined with the retro uni - that's a win.  

My green parallel #/99.  This was a fun pack.  I was able to grab a few more which I'll share over time.  Overall the art was good and my pull was decent.

 BREAKDOWN: 

12 – Total Cards

2 – Wood Parallel

1 – Hall of Fame

1 – Rainbow Foil

1 – Retired Great

1 – Green Parallel #/99

1 – Master & Apprentice

2020 NASCAR Champion Chase Elliott

 

Chase Elliott had a excellent year and great run to the 2020 NASCAR Championship.  Elliott had to win the final race before the Phoenix race on Sunday just to get into the Championship Four.  He then beat out Brad Kesolowski, Joey Logano, and Denny Hamlin who finished second through fourth respectively in the final standings.  While the race itself wasn't the most exciting I was rooting for Chase and it was fun to watch him win his first championship at only 24 years of age.  He won five races this year only surpassed by Hamlin and Kevin Harvick.  He's had an amazing career in NASCAR's top series in which he has never finished below 10th in the standings.  He's definitely postured for a long successful career.  Congratulations Chase!

The other drivers I root for are Kyle Busch and Bubba Wallace.  Busch struggled all year but still managed to take 8th place in the standings.  He also kept alive his streak of one win in each of his 16 years.  Bubba had a career best 22nd place finish in the final standings but even more exciting was the news he'll move to the new Michael Jordan race team, 23XI, in 2021.  You never know what will happen for a new team but this is definitely an exciting opportunity for Bubba.  We'll saw NASCAR great Jimmie Johnson and fan favorite Clint Bowyer race for the final time.

This was really a fun year.  NASCAR was the first sport back after Covid put a pause to the sports world as a whole. During that pause we got to watch drivers take a shot at virtual racing which was even entertaining.  NASCAR had to get creative with their schedule to get all their races in but it worked and it was fun.  Hats off to them for making it work with basically no Covid interruption once on track racing started back up.  Can't wait for 2021.

2020 Darrell "Bubba" Wallace Jr. 1:24 Chevrolet Camaro "Warthog"

 Bubba Wallace is one of my favorite drivers in NASCAR and the Air Force holds a special place for me so this is an annual purchase.  This is pretty much the same Air Force paint scheme from last year.  I think they could have done some minor changes to make this more different from last year.  Still I like the look and I'm happy with this car.

As always the detail on these is really good which is a big part of the appeal.  When I looked this one up this week it was on sale for $32.99 and they normally sell for $54.99.  Might be due to his changing teams this off season.

Bubba Wallace had the best season of his three year career and is currently 22nd in the standings going into today's final race.

Bubba will be moving to Michael Jordan's new NASCAR team next year.  There he'll drive the number 23 car for 23XI Racing.  The team will be co-owned by current NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin.  

Today four drivers will compete for 2020 Championship - Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, and Brad Kesolowski.  I'll be rooting for Elliott but would be happy for any drivers to take the crown but Elliott and Hamlin haven't won one yet so it would be pretty special for them.

I also picked up the 1:64 version of this one which is just as cool.  I'll call my pop today and watch the end of the race with him via phone.  Something I try to do every week and it's definitely something I miss when the season ends.  It's that thing we have together even though we don't live close.  Just wanted to share this beauty.  Hope some of you enjoy the race today as well.

2020 Chronicles Racing Hobby Box (3 Autos)

2020 Chronicles Racing:  I like the Chronicles brand and I've really enjoyed NASCAR this year so I jumped on this Chronicles box which is my second NASCAR hobby box of the year.  I opened this 2020 Donruss NASCAR hobby box in August.  That was a really fun box.  These Chronicles hobby boxes have a ton of variety, three autographs, and plenty of serial numbered parallels.  There were only 48 cards in this box as opposed to the 192 found in my Donruss NASCAR hobby box.  Martin Truex Jr. is a former champion who was just eliminated from the playoffs last week.  I like him and his championship was for a small team which is always fun to see.

I'm a big Bubba Wallace fan so this was a great pull for me.  Those Spectra cards aren't blue but scan that way.  They are also very thick cards like a relic.  

Chase Elliott had to win last week's race to get into the championship this weekend (four drivers are competing to be the champ).  I'll be rooting for Chase.  He's still young at only 24 but is very popular just like his pop Bill Elliott was.  Elliott had a good year winning four races.

Hailee Deegan made her Truck series debut and is the big chase in NASCAR cards right now.  Ladies in the sport are still very small in numbers but very popular. 

Denny Hamline and Brad Keselowski are both in the race for the championship this weekend.  They won seven and four races respectively.  I'd enjoy seeing Denny win his first championship.  He's had a great career and that would really top it off.  Keselowski is a former champion.

Kyle Busch is my favorite driver and the reigning champion.  He had a tough year but did win two weeks ago to extend his streak of one win in 16 straight years dating back to his rookie season.  Only two drivers in history have longer streaks.

The Crusade cards, a green parallel here, are nice looking cards.  I really like the Illusions cards as well.  Clint Bowyer is a favorite of mine who is retiring this year and will join the Fox broadcasting booth starting next year.

My other two autos.  Both youngsters in the lower levels of the sport.  Tanner Gray is from Artesia, NM which is close to where I grew up so a nice hometown connection of sorts there.  

Jimmie Johnson is a NASCAR great with seven championships winning five of them in a row during one stretch.  Kevin Harvick was surprisingly eliminated from the playoffs this week.  In this box there were ten serial numbered parallels out of 48 cards and that doesn't count the autos which were each numbered cards as well.

More young drivers which Chronicles really is a showcase for.  Zane Smith is someone I've started rooting for in a random way.  I'm a big fan of the Zane Smith who pitched in the majors including a stint with the Braves.

This was a fun box.  Plenty of variety, good designs and my pull.  Still I'd probably go the blaster route if I had to do it all over again.  I could get 100 cards for the price of this hobby box.  That being said, if I'd pulled a Hailee Deegan auto or rarer parallel I probably don't think that way.  But that's what hobby boxes are all about.  Rolling the dice and seeing if you can score big.  I did fine and I did enjoy this box.  Here's to hoping Chase Elliott or Denny Hamlin come away with their first championship tomorrow.

BREAKDOWN:

48 – Total Cards

7 – Chronicles Base

5 – Titan

5 – Limited

5 – Pedal to the Metal

4 – Crusade

3 – Score

3 – Status

3 – Illusions

3 – Asension

3 – Retired Greats

2 – Phoenix

2 – Spectra

2 – Score Autographs #/99

1 – Select

1 – Unparalled

1 – Holo Crusade

1 – Red Titan #/99

1 – Red Status #/99

1 – Red Limited #/99

1 – Blue Titan #/199

1 – Blue Limited #/199

1 – Blue Crusade #/199

1 – Blue Illusions #/199

1 – Blue Chronicles #/199

1 – Blue Pedal to the Metal #/199

1 – Phoenix Autograph #/19

1 – Gold Reserve Materials #/49

Prize from Cards That Never Were

 Cards That Never Were held a contest recently and I was one of the lucky winners.  I won this 1982 Fleer inspired prospects card with Wade Boggs and Ryne Sandberg.  Cards like this are great because when you look back this is definitely a card we'd want to see.  And boom...here it is.  The card is great. The card stock is very sturdy and similar to a regular card.  The back of the card also gets a nice treatment which is the topping on the cake.  He has also started selling customs on eBay.  The link to his seller profile is here.  He's on Twitter at @CardsThatNever  Wanted to show off this really cool card and say thanks to Cards That Never Were. 

Random Wax: 2019 Donruss NASCAR Blaster

 

2019 Donruss NASCAR:  Joey Logano, Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski, and Denny Hamlin will race for the 2020 NASCAR Championship this weekend in Phoenix.  The only way Elliott could make the final four in Phoenix was to win Sunday and he did just that in exciting fashion.  He's a fan favorite and a favorite of mine.  He won't be driving his Hooters paint scheme this weekend.  It's a shame because I really like it but he'll still look good in his NAPA scheme.  

Bubba is right there as a favorite of mine and played a big part in NASCAR's social justice movement this year.  He's the only black driver at NASCAR's highest level and did a great job handling all the attention that came his way.  Rusty Wallace is an all-time great and my favorite drive of all-time.  He is a NASCAR Hall of Fame member and I enjoy seeing legends included in the set.  

Each pack comes with Optic parallels.

The car photos work for me.  This is what we see on the track for 3-4 hours each week and is synonymous with the drivers.

I like that classics design.  I like the more traditional framed Race Kings designs as opposed to this full body take.  Bill Elliott is Chase Elliott's father and was voted as the most popular driver 16 years in his career.  Oh and he won the Championship in 1988.

Clint Bowyer is retiring this year and will move to the booth next year.  I really like him and he showed he has the chops for TV during the weeks NASCAR did virtual races and we were able to get more familiar with the drivers.  Richard Petty - The King, the iconic  hat and winner of 200 races, #1 all-time.

Probably the look Kevin Harvick will have all week after barely being eliminated from the playoffs on Sunday.  Plenty of variety and inserts to be found in these boxes.

This was a fun blaster I found at a random Wal-Mart.  I can't say no to these.  Each year I become a bigger fan and it's a way for me and my pop to connect.  He's 84 and been a fan forever.  I call him near the end of each race so we can experience it together. Can't wait for this weekend and to see who'll be crowned #1.

BREAKDOWN: 

51 – Total Cards

16 – Retired Greats

14 – Retro ‘86

5 – Silver Parallels

4 – Cars

4 – Optic

4 – Legends

4 – Nickname Variations

2 – Optic Illusion

2 – Race Kings

2 - Contenders

2 – Retro Rated Rookies

2 – Optic Red Wave Parallels

1 – Top Tier

1 – Classics Set

1 – Next In Line

1 – Action Packed

1 – ’86 Retro Relic

1 – Gold Parallel #/299

 

2020 Absolute Blaster with Tua Relic

 2020 Absolute Football:  Managed to find this blaster and some packs locally.  I'll show off my blaster today and the packs over time.  This has similarities to the basketball design which I liked and I like it here as well.  I think I've pulled more Bradys than I feel I have but I'll kick this off with Tom Terrific anyway.  

I like the look of these and the football laces on the borders is a cool look in my opinion.  I will say the names were tough to read and I had to hold the cards at an angle.  I like the backs as well.  The front photo is covered in a team color and it looks pretty cool at times as with this OBJ card.  The backs are another win.

Absolute is about the rookies.  Over half of this blaster was devoted to the youngsters.  The RC cards are pretty nice and I had a really nice pull even without pulling a Joe Burrow.  

Because everyone needs some maize and blue in their day. 

My relic from this box was a great pull.  He'll get his first NFL start this week and I know folks are excited to see what he can do.

Hard to see but that AJ Green is a green parallel.  Not a ton of inserts found in these so if that is your thing just know going in.  Those darker colors did not scan well on that Julio Jones insert.

A nice retired great appearance.  I like that Russell Wilson photo on his Red Zone insert.  This was a fun box.  A design I like and a good pull makes for a nice box.  That being said the packs I opened weren't that kind.  I'll post those packs over time but I opened three packs (20 cards) and they were all a bit disappointing.  Not to scare anyone off but wanted to share my experience.

BREAKDOWN: 

64 – Total Cards

34 – RC

3 – Green Parallel

1 – Red Zone

1 – Star Gazing

1 – Retired Great

1 – Introductions

1 – Unsung Heroes

1 – Mystery Parallel

1 – Fantasy Flashback