2023 Topps Big League Baseball

2023 Big League Baseball:  I thought I'd grabbed some of this before but I had not so I was happy to come across some at Target.  Mike Trout is having a good year but not a Mike Trout year.  I hope he can pick it up over the course of the season.  He is on pace for almost 40 home runs but his numbers overall are down.

I've liked past designs more but I do like this one.  Some color in the border could help but overall I'm good here.

Nice photo on this horizontal offering of Juan Soto.

Not a lot of rookies in this pack. Masataka Yoshida has had a great rookie season so far hitting .314.  That Stanton is an Uncommon Foil parallel.

The backs are fine with plenty of stats which is always a win.

The 8-Bit Ballers is a big goofy looking nostalgic card but I like it.  The Hank Aaron is a Topps Big Leaguers insert.  I don't care for it.  Maybe the colors but the design isn't a winner overall.  Mascots are always fun.

This is a Roll Call insert.  I go back and forth on how much I like it but overall I'm fine with it.

Good photos overall.  I like dugout photos when you get one like Spencer Strider's where in your mind you can see him coming off the field after a hard fought game on the mound.

Another Uncommon Foil parallel.  Ozzie has bounced back after a slow start and the Braves need him as a key cog in their offense.

We end it with some pitchers and the biggest free agent to be in Shohei Ohtani.  Dude will deserve every penny he gets.  Amazing what he can do both on offense and on the mound.  Fun pack of cards.  I'll pick up more given the opportunity.

BREAKDOWN:
36 – Total Cards
3 – Uncommon Foil
2 – RC
2 – Retired Great
1 - Mascot
1 – Roll Call
1 – 8 Bit Batters
1 – Topps Big Leaguers

Random Wax: 2021-2022 Hoops

21-22 Hoops:  This is a pack I picked up early last year.  With game four tonight, basketball seemed like the obvious choice today.  Joel Embiid and Sixers will have a busy offseason.  They already have a new coach in Nick Nurse.  It'll be interesting to see how James Harden's impending free agency plays out.  I like Nurse as the coach but we'll see if it is enough.

All three of these guys struggled this year.  Middleton and Lowry with injuries and on the court play while Ja Morant has had a ton of off the court problems.  This set is one I enjoy the design of.

None of this group has proven himself in the league yet as a long term performer.

Always happy when I pull my favorite player in the sport in Kawhi Leonard.  That photo is a capsule of the pandemic games.  And the photo seems too bright.

Still shaking my head at the Pure Players inserts.  That Cedi Osman is a Teal Explosion parallel.

Decent pack of cards.  I'll end it with this nice photo of Jarrett Allen.  Between the picture itself and his hair it is a win.  Enjoy the game tonight.

 BREAKDOWN:
30 – Total Cards
6 – RC
1 – Pure Player
1 – Class of 2021
1 – Teal Explosion
1 – Lights Camera Action

Random Wax: 2020-2021 Contenders Basketball

20-21 Contenders Basketball:  Jimmy Butler and the Heat play game three against the Nuggets tonight trying to keep their dream post season run going.  Love Jimmy Butler and this has been another showcase of just how good he is.

Donovan Mitchell is now starring in Cleveland and taken his game to another level.  Tatum and the Celtics almost made a historic comeback in the Eastern Conference Finals.  As a reminder the ticket numbers are:  Sec=weight  Row=height  Seat-jersey number  Game=age

McDaniels had his best season as a pro this last season averaging 12 points per game shooting 39% from long range.  Nice looking Trae Young card but he and my Hawks are still trying to find their way after a disappointing season.

I do like Contenders and have many more packs of this to show off in the future.  Enjoy the Finals!  

BREAKDOWN:

22 – Total Cards

1 – Game Night

1 – Red Parallel

1 – 2020 Draft Class

1 – Bronze Game Ticket Parallel

Heat-Nuggets Tied 1-1

In Game 2 Jimmy Butler and the Heat reminded us why we don't count them out.  Great game with Miami coming back after the Denver Nuggets took the lead throughout the game.  This time the supporting players for the Heat came to play while Nuggets not named Jokic didn't rise to the occasion.  I have no idea which way this series goes but I'm enjoying it.  Can't wait to see what we get in game three.

 

Denver up 1-0 in the NBA Finals

 The NBA Finals have started and game two is tonight.  As the playoffs played out this is the matchup I wanted.  Denver hasn't won a championship and have one of the greatest players in the sport today.  Miami has Jimmy Butler who has willed his team to the Finals.  I love it.  Denver is the better team on paper and I think that is pretty much agreed upon.  Miami though has proven us doubters wrong series after series. I love watching Jokic and Butler play.  They are amazing in their own ways.  I've been able to see The Joker more over the last two seasons and am firmly in the camp that says he's the best player after Kevin Durant (when healthy) in the league today.  And I just love Butler and have since he was with the Bulls.  To the series.  The Nuggets showed us who we thought they were in game one but like Mike Malone stated, they haven't done anything yet.  I always thought Denver wins this series but it's hard to count out Miami.  Still the Nuggets have so much talent in that starting lineup to throw at them.  Would be happy with either team winning though I lean towards the Nuggets whose fans and players deserve that first championship.

Random Wax: 1994 Ted Williams Roger Staubach's NFL (3 Packs)

 94 Ted Williams Roger Staubach: Three more packs of this fun set.  We'll kick it off with this fan favorite.  Archie Manning's stat's won't wow you nor will his win-loss record but fan love him.  That has only grown as his son's both had success in the league.

We'll kick this one off with some love with the guys in the trenches.  All three of these are all-time greats which this set is good for.

Golden Arms inserts.  Love Dan Fouts.  He was so fun to watch in that offense.  As a kid it was great to see the passing game go wide open.  It has of course gone off the rails today with throwing in the NFL but it was so much fun at the time.  If only we knew then.

Plenty of greats here to include some you wouldn't expect and will never see included as Retired Greats in current sets.  Definitely something I enjoy about this set.

All-time great coaches get to shine as well.  Neil O'Donnell and Brett Favre are highlighted in the Dawning of a Legacy insert set.

Pogs are a fun inclusion.  Love Terry Bradshaw in his cowboy hat.

These are so much fun.  Again, you get to see players from across every NFL generation.  This makes for lots of enjoyment and so many memories.

BREAKDOWN:

30 – Cards

3 – Pogs

3 – Golden Arms

2 - Checklists

2 – Dawning of a Legacy

2 – Chalkboard Legends

Random Wax: 2022-2023 Hoops Blaster

22-23 Hoops: The NBA Finals start tonight.  I'll be rooting for the Nuggets and this beast of a center.  Denver has never been to the Finals, much less won a championship, so it would be great to see them add that banner to the rafters.  And Nikola Jokic is a great player and a fun watch, and for him to win one also seems right.

Great pull in this blaster.  This is a set I really like and will definitely be grabbing more.  Dame looks way too laid back on that shot.  Maybe from the shootaround?

Ogbaji is the top rookie amongst these three averaging almost eight points per game this season.

Here we have more young players including the Rookie of the Year in Paolo Banchero of the Orlando Magic.

They could have done more with the background on these Rookie Greetings inserts.

What does Harden do this off season?  I hear rumors of Houston but man that doesn't make sense to me.

These are the Hoops Tribute inserts which include retired greats as well as current players.  Personally I'd like to see this be all retired greats as you can never get enough of those.

More great players to show off as well as Purple and Blue parallels.  

I'm not a fan of Pure Players but I do like the Frequent Flyers and Skyview inserts.  Really nice picture of LeBron even if it feels we see that face a lot.

And some more greats of the game.  This blaster felt loaded.  No complaints from me and a great way to start the Finals.  Enjoy.

BREAKDOWN:

90 – Total Cards

13 – RC

5 – Hoops Tribute

2 – Skyview

3 – Blue Parallel

3 – Purple Parallel

2 – Pure Players

1 - Retired Great

1 – Arriving Now

1 – Frequent Flyers

1 – RiseNShine Relic

1 – Rookie Greetings