August 2012 Affordable Group Break - 10 TOTAL BOXES!

I've been preparing for this break for quite some time now and I couldn't have pulled it off without the help of my two sponsors:

I actually got my inspiration to do this themed break from Community Gum.  I had kicked around the idea of some of this product before, but never to this magnitude.  I shot off an e-mail to the guys @ CG and they generously offered to help sponsor the break by donating two boxes of 1993 cards.  I didn't want to settle w/ just 2 boxes so I hit up Steve from the Baseball Card Exchange and got a great deal on 8 more boxes!  If you're adept at math that makes a total of 10 boxes!!

I know I may be crazy and biting off more than I can chew, but I'm ready.  I personally think this will be a lot of fun.  Yes, it'll be a lot of work for me, but in the end I hope everyone will get something that will make them happy.

I mentioned this is a themed break.  What's the theme?  (Don't cheat and scroll down yet)  STADIUM CLUB!  I have always been a fan of the TSC sets and this ought to give us a nice sample size as we tour the TSC years of 1993-1996.  OK, now you can scroll down to see the boxes chosen.

1993 Topps Stadium Club Series 2

- 24 packs, 14 cards per pack

Inserts:

- First Day Production (1:24)

 - Master Photo Redemptions (expired) (1:24)

- Stadium Club Inserts (1:24)

1993 Topps Stadium Club Series 3

- 24 packs, 14 cards per pack

Inserts:

- First Day Production (1:24)

- Master Photo Redemptions (expired) (1:24)

- Stadium Club Inserts (1:24)

1994 Topps Stadium Club Series 1

- 24 packs, 10 cards per pack

Inserts:

- Dugout Dirt (1:6)

- First Day Issue parallels #d to 2000 (1:24)

- Golden Rainbow parallels (1:1)

- Super Teams (1:24)

1994 Topps Stadium Club Series 2

- 24 packs, 10 cards per pack

Inserts:

- 1994 Bowman Previews (1:24) 

- Dugout Dirt (1:6)

- First Day Issue parallels #d to 2000 (1:24) 

- Golden Rainbow parallels (1:1)

1994 Topps Stadium Club Series 3

- 24 packs, 10 cards per pack

Inserts:

 - Dugout Dirt (1:6)

- First Day Issue parallels #d to 2000 (1:24) 

- Golden Rainbow parallels (1:1)

- Stadium Club Finest (1:6) 

1995 Topps Stadium Club Series 1 (Hobby)

- 24 packs, 14 cards per pack

Inserts:

- Clear Cut Finest (1:24)

- Phone cards (1:24)

- Ring Leaders (1:24)

- Super Skills (hobby exclusive, 1:24)

- Virtual Reality parallels (1:1)

1995 Topps Stadium Club Series 2 (Hobby)

- 24 packs, 14 cards per pack

 Inserts:

 - Clear Cut Finest (1:24) 

- Phone cards (1:24)

- Ring Leaders (1:24) 

- Super Skills (hobby exclusive, 1:24)

- Virtual Reality parallels (1:1)

1995 Topps Stadium Club High Number Series (Hobby)

- 24 packs, 14 cards per pack

- Possible Hideo Nomo RC!

Inserts: 

 - Crystal Ball (1:24)

- Power Zone (1:24)

1996 Topps Stadium Club Series 1 (Hobby)

- 24 packs, 8 cards per pack  

- 1 Team TSC card per pack

Inserts:

- Megaheroes (1:48)

- Mickey Mantle Retrospective (1:24)

- Midsummer Matchups (1:48)

- Power Streak (1:24)

- Prime Cuts (1:36)

1996 Topps Stadium Club Series 2 (Hobby)

- 24 packs, 10 cards per pack  

- 1 Team TSC card per pack 

Inserts:

- Bash and Burn (1:48) 

- Metalists (1:48)

- Mickey Mantle Retrospective (1:12)

- Power Packed (1:24)

- TSC Awards (1:48)

I personally am excited about the 1995 boxes.  The inserts that year were especially nice (Power Zone & Ring Leaders) and there are (expired) Phone cards to chase!  Remember when those were all the rage?  If you're looking for autos and relics then you won't find much here for your tastes.  However if you're looking for a lot of cards w/ great photography and a slew of parallels and inserts then this break will be right up your ally.  And since you now this is one of my Affordable Group Breaks then you'll know it won't break the bank.

Because I've never attempted this many boxes before in one single break I'm opening it up to all 28 teams.  The Braves will be claimed by myself.  The rest of the teams will be up for grabs.  In order to make this a reality I'm looking for at least 20 teams to be claimed.  I didn't want to make it where all the remaining teams needed to be claimed in order to make this work.

Each one team slot will cost $12 shipped.  I'm estimating packaging materials and shipping to come in around $5 per team just to let you know.  Because of the number of cards each team should be getting there will be no multiple team discounts...sorry.

If my math is correct there should be a grand total of 2,832 cards in these boxes!  There should be plenty of cards to go around for everyone.

The faster everyone pays the sooner I can place the order and get to ripping packs.  If for some reason we can't get at least 20 people to join in on the fun then I'll refund everyone's money.

To claim a slot(s) please:

• 1) Leave a comment letting me know your team of choice (or teams if claiming multiple slots)

• 2) PayPal your payment via gift to:  cardboardcollections at yahoo.com

• 3) E-mail me (same address as payment) your screen name, full name, address and the team(s) claimed

01) Atlanta Braves (Cardboard Collections) (PAID)
02) New York Yankees (The Dutch Card Guy) (PAID)

03) Seattle Mariners (Kyle4KC) (PAID)

04) Cleveland Indians (Jason) (PAID)

05) New York Mets (BA Benny) (PAID)

06) Los Angeles Dodgers (Spiegel83) (PAID)

07) Cincinnati Reds (FanOfReds) (PAID)

08) San Francisco Giants (arpsmith) (PAID)

09) Texas Rangers (Play at the Plate) (PAID)

10) Kansas City Royals (Josh D.) (PAID)

11) Philadelphia Phillies (arfmax) (PAID)

12) Montreal Expos (Farrell Quinlan) (PAID)

13) Chicago White Sox (Farrell Quinlan) (PAID)

14) Milwaukee Brewers (cynicalbuddha) (PAID)

15) St. Louis Cardinals (madding) (PAID)

16) Angels (Tom) (PAID)

17) Toronto Blue Jays (Robert) (PAID)

18) Houston Astros (Carlos Salgado) (PAID)

19) Pittsburg Pirates (Carlos Salgado) (PAID)

20) San Diego Padres (All the Way to the Backstop) (PAID)

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Sunday Verse

Hebrews 12:1

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us

It's been a long, tough and very tiring week for me so I'm looking forward to some rest and relaxation and time spent w/ my girls.  Have a great Sunday everyone.

...and on the baseball card front I promised the BIG Affordable Group Break announcement would be made today...and it will.  After you grab a bite to eat come on back, ya hear?

Potpourri

This post covers a little bit of everything.  Trade, new trade bait and new acquisitions.

We'll start off the new acquisition portion w/ some new Jeff Francoeur cards.

2012 Upper Deck SP Signature Edition

Since UD lost their license I really hadn't been following what they were doing so I had no idea this new SP set existed.  Scored this auto for a song.  I know it's a sticker auto and lacks any pictures, but it's still a decent design and better yet another auto to add to my Frenchy collection.

  

2012 Topps Gypsy Queen Glove Stories

Nice card, nice mini.

Moving on to Tim Hudson and a trio of Tier One.

#299/399

#50/50

#23/25

Other than to get collector's like me to buy the same card 3 times I really don't see the purpose of these tiered relic cards.

A few new Atlanta Braves added as well...

Dan Uggla #344/399

2005 Donruss Prime Patches Javy Lopez Past & Present #14/56

Picked this nice card of Javy up on Yardsellr for $3 shipped.  Too bad the Braves jersey swatch wasn't red as the Orioles orange really stands out more.

2003 Topps Traded Brian McCann RC

Love this $.99 RC of baby face McCann!

I've been fairly busy working on some trades lately.  After pulling a Yankees Fan Favorites auto from 2012 Archives I waited for a Yankees fan to contact me with a trade offer.  It didn't take long before BA Benny hit me up.  I told him I'd love to trade for the Sid Bream auto from the set and he just happened to have pulled that very card from his box.  What were the odds?!

One of the things I love about this Sid Bream auto is that he included a Bible verse on the card.  In fact he did that on every auto in the set!  Glad Topps didn't try to censor him and his beliefs.  The verse is taken from Galatians chapter 2, verse 20:

²⁰ I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

BA Benny also tossed in this hand signed 1988 Topps card of Randy St. Claire that was also inscribed with a verse.  Thanks buddy!

And the last of my recent additions is a new Jon Beason Carolina Panthers jersey card from the new '12 Panini Prestige.  Man I can't wait for the NFL season to start!


2011 Topps Lineage Pablo Sandoval auto

I picked up this auto of the "Kung Fu Panda" in hopes of swapping it for a Braves auto or relic.

Ryan Kalil: Carolina Panthers will win Super Bowl XLVII

People in the Charlotte area woke up this morning to a full page ad in the local newspaper, the Charlotte Observer with the headline:

 CAROLINA PANTHERS WILL WIN SUPER BOWL XLVII

Like with any professional sports city this has set off a whole lot of talking in the local media and in some cases in the national media.  ESPN.com already has the story up.  Some fans love the move while others hate the move.

Let's face it.  The Panthers defense and secondary last year were horrible.  I believe the team ranked 28th overall in defense.  The Panthers didn't do much in this year's draft to address the defense either.  There is reason to believe the Panthers won't be one of the top 5 teams this season.  Winning 6 games last year (4 games more than in 2010) it's really hard to figure out what to expect from the team.

Professional sports are all about hope however.  Every team leading into training camp should have reasonable hope that their team can make the playoffs.  Some teams that hope may be thin (Cleveland), but trying walk that fine line between being optimistic and delusional is tough.

As a Panthers fan I'm not sure I'm on the Kalil's bandwagon...yet.  I believe the team has all the making of being a Super Bowl caliber team, but we're not there yet.  Things are looking up for the team though.  Carolina arguably has one of the best backfields in the game w/ DeAngelo Williams, Jonathan Stewart and new addition Mike Tolbert.  The team made a few moves (trades & via the draft) and acquired two more big, young WRs to add to veteran Steve Smith.  And let's not forget the fact that we've got one of the most dangerous weapons in the league - QB Cam Newton.  

That's not to say our offense will be lights out.  Kicker Olindo Mare missed several game tying/winning field goals last year so he has to improve.  Special Teams must also shore up their game.  Rookie WR Joe Adams will be in the backfield returning kick offs and punts...a position that the Panthers have been awful  for a very long time!

Of course the defense is the main question mark of this team...especially the secondary.  The defensive line has a lot of question marks.  Will Jon Beason bounce back from his injury?  Will Thomas Davis ever be the same after 3 knee surgeries?  Can the cornerbacks get up in the face of opposing WRs?  What about the safety?  Can they prevent those down the field passes or catch tackle the man in the open field to prevent a touchdown? 

I believe IF the guys hurt last year can come back and play near their potential I'll feel better about our chances.  Coach Ron Rivera is working w/ the defense this season.  And let's keep in mind the team has had a good offseason w/ OTAs and mini-camp...something they didn't have the luxury of having last year due to the lock out.

I'm not going to make a statement like Ryan Kalil.  The team still has several things to improve upon before I think we can win it all.  I'm not ruling out a run to the Playoffs this year though...if things go right.  I won't criticize the guy though for his move.  He spent his own money on the ad which largely thanked the fans.  I love his attitude and positive outlook.  Shouldn't all fans want a player from their favorite team to have this zest and excitement about the upcoming season?

Below is the newspaper add published this morning, 07/25/12 in the Charlotte Observer.

Check here Sunday for the BIG news!

If you participated in this month's Affordable Group Break then you know I've teased about next month's BIG break.  The details and pricing have been finalized and everything will be revealed this Sunday, 07/28/12.  Check back this weekend for some Biblical encouragement (a Sunday staple here) and for the reveal.  That is all.

Pack Break - 2009 Topps WWE

In celebration of the 1,000th episode of WWE Monday Night RAW later this evening I bring the last of 3 packs of Topps WWE cards I recently found in the discount box at my local Target.



I believe this was the first year that Topps started using that year's baseball design for their WWE cards.  I know a lot of collector's hate the reusing of the design.  I fall in the middle.  I do agree that coming up with an original design shouldn't be that hard, but I'm not going to boycott the product because of the borrowed design.



#86 John Cena - Fitting how the first card out of the pack is the poster boy of the WWE.



#67 Jillian - One Diva I wasn't sad to see go.  I couldn't stand when they put that stupid "growth" on the side of her face...though it was mildly entertaining w/ the Boogeyman "ate" it off!



#80 Santina Marella - Not quite a Diva.  I like Santino, but this Ms. Wrestlemania angle was beyond lame.



#34 Kelly Kelly - Not the best photo, but I'll take it.



#40 Santino Marella - Possibly one of the more entertaining current wrestlers today.  His persona is so over the top and at times borderlines stupid, but post of the time pretty funny.



#07 Iron Sheik - Legends of the Ring - Most known for his heated feud w/ Sgt. Slaughter in the 80's.



#TT3 Chris Jericho - ToppsTown - Even this hated "insert" set made an appearance here.  Blah.

At some point I oughta track down a box of this stuff as it should be a fun set to rip and build.  Now if you'll excuse me I have a historic 3 hour episode of RAW to watch!

Pack Break - 2008 Topps WWE Heritage III Chrome

In celebration of the 1,000th episode of WWE Monday Night RAW later this evening I bring 3 packs of Topps WWE cards I recently found in the discount box at my local Target.

 

I've probably found more of these packs in the discount box than any other Topps WWE product...and that's not a bad thing.  Chrome cards + wrestlers make for a fun set.

 

#09 Umaga - Younger brother of Rikishi.  This guy was a destructive force for many years in the mid to late 2000's.



#18 Zack Ryder - Woo woo woo!  I laughed just a little when I pulled this card.  I only know Ryder for his current in ring persona.  I had no idea he was even in the WWE in 2006.



#65 Maria - A picture really is worth a 1000 words!



#52 John Morrison - A crowd pleaser w/ the ladies, John was still a fun wrestler to watch in ring.  More acrobatic than most would have thought.  I'm not sure what happened between him and the WWE last year that lead to his departure, but his presence is missed.



#37 Snitsky - I only remember this guy by his messed up mouth of teeth.  Too much of a common "big guy" to stand out in the crowd.

Pack Break - 2006 Topps WWE Heritage II

In celebration of the 1,000th episode of WWE Monday Night RAW later this evening I bring 3 packs of Topps WWE cards I recently found in the discount box at my local Target.



This is the first pack I've opened of 2006 Heritage II...and I love it.  I'm not all that fond of the 1963 baseball design, but I like it when it features wrestlers.  Who knew?!

 

#36 Goldust - Son of WWE Hall of Famer the "American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, Dustin Runnels doesn't appear on television much anymore.  Talk about a flamboyant wrestling persona.  I never cared for the character, but I did like watching Dustin.  He had big shoes to fill and never quite lived up to his dad's legacy.



#43 Super Crazy - I remember this Mexican luchador more from his WCW days than I do his WWE tenure.  High flying wrestler who was fun to watch.  I liked the fact that he was small like Rey Mysterio or Sin Cara and actually had some heft.  Made his acrobatics that much more awesome.



#22 Kid Kash - Who?  Before the Monday Night wars got heated I watched more WCW.  I have heard this name, but don't know anything about him.  I believe he is currently signed with TNA.



#07 Edge - Magnet insert - How come Topps never used die-cut magnets in their baseball products?!  I love these!  I miss watching Edge in the ring too as he was a great performer who had to retire far too early.



#75 Bushwackers - Perhaps this is my favorite card of the pack.  I loved this goofy, yet scrappy pair of guys.

Pack Break - 2012 Panini Prestige Football

As much as I love baseball and I've enjoyed this season, I can't wait for football.  Perhaps because where I live doesn't have a MLB team and has an NFL team (Carolina Panthers), but I'm ready to throw myself down on the couch after church on Sundays and watch some pigskin action!

I haven't been a fan of the Prestige sets in recent years, but I'm a sucker for a least trying one pack of a new product so I grabbed one a few weeks back and was pleasantly surprised.



It appears that the Colts rookie QB Andrew Luck will be plastered all over Panini's products this season.  I typically don't follow college football so I've only heard the stories and hype.  Of course he was going to come out last season and my team had the first pick...then he withdrew and stayed in college one more year.  That's OK...I'm happy w/ Cam Newton!


#117 Marques Colston (Saints)
#165 Malcom Floyd (Chargers)
#123 Brandon Jacobs (49ers)
#170 Aldon Smith (49ers)
 

#012 Alshon Jeffrey (Bears)

#257 Terrance Ganaway RC (Jets)
#071 Jordy Nelson (Packers)

#028 Greg Olsen (Panthers)
#085 Pierre Garcon (Redskins)

#043 Colt McCoy

Design wise I like it.  I like vertical designs.  I'm glad Panini chose to use a translucent colored bar since it allows the background to come through a bit.  This to me doesn't make the card look as "crowed" as it if were opaque.  I also how they give the year each team was established.  I really love the blue on the Greg Olsen Panthers card.  I must track down a team set of this quick!

The card back isn't as spectacular.  Honestly it looks very undistinguished from previous Panini releases.  Overall though very nice.  At $3.00 a pop (retail) I should've waited for the stores to put out the 40 card jumbo packs for $4.99.  As football season gets closer I may find myself picking up another pack.  Outside of the Olsen card, the rest are available if anyone wants them.