April 2013 Affordable Group Break - 1998 Pacific Paramount

12 more packs left in the Paramount box before the fat lady sings.  Still looking for the die-cut Special Delivery insert and I believe there should be a serially numbered parallel of some kind.  Let's go a huntin'.

Pack 25:
#150 Pedro Astacio - Copper (Rockies)
#118 Brian Anderson (Dbacks)
#113 Carlos Delgado (Jays)
#201 Carlos Baerga (Mets)
#042 Omar Vizquel (Indians)
#242 Barry Bonds (Giants)

Pack 26:
#098 Quinton McCracken - Copper (Rays)
#036 Travis Fryman (Indians)
#139 Lance Johnson (Cubs)
#224 Tony Womack (Pirates)
#002 Gary DiSarcina (Angels)
#151 Dante Bichette (Rockies)

Pack 27:
#036 Travis Fryman - Copper (Indians)
#098 Quintin McCracken (Rays)
#172 Chris Holt (Astros)
#183 Jeromy Burnitz (Brewers)
#026 James Baldwin (White Sox)
#003 Jim Edmonds (Angels)

Pack 28:
#091 David Segui - Copper (Mariners)
#016 Chipper Jones - Team Checklist (Braves)
#240 Greg Vaughn (Padres)
#117 Shannon Stewart (Jays)
#195 Vladimir Guerrero (Expos)
#232 Mark McGwire (Cardinals)

Chippppppaaaa!

Pack 29:
#057 Dean Palmer - Copper (Royals)
#152 Ellis Burks - Holographic Silver #'d 89/99 (Rockies)
#190 Jose Valentin (Brewers)
#007 Todd Greene (Angels)
#073 Andy Pettitte (Yankees)
#084 Jay Buhner (Mariners)

Nice low serially numbered parallel for hiflew and his Rockies!

Pack 30:
#093 Wilson Alvarez - Copper (Rays)
#124 Devon White (Dbacks)
#144 Bret Boone (Reds)
#250 J.T. Snow (Giants)
#038 Kenny Lofton (Indians)
#165 Gary Sheffield (Tigers)

Pack 31:
#127 Andres Galarraga - Copper (Braves)
#064 Otis Nixon (Twins)
#199 Rondell White (Expos)
#045 Frank Catalanotto (Tigers)
#244 Shawn Estes (Giants)
#079 Ben Grieve (A's)
#226 Alan Benes (Cardinals)
#010 Roberto Alomar (Orioles)

Pack 32:
#166 Moises Alou - Copper (Astros)
#035 Geronimo Berroa (Indians)
#203 Bernard Gilkey (Mets)
#054 Jermaine Dye (Royals)

I thought this pack felt odd when I picked it up...only 4 cards inside?

Pack 33:
#126 Bob Wolcott - Copper (Dbacks)
#234 Kevin Brown (Padres)
#189 Dave Nilsson (Brewers)
#031 Magglio Ordonez (White Sox)
#173 Shane Reynolds (Astros)
#071 Tino Martinez (Yankees)

Pack 34:
#120 Andy Benes - Copper (Dbacks)
#057 Dean Palmer (Royals)
#086 Jeff Fassero (Mariners)
#243 Jacob Cruz (Giants)
#053 Johnny Damon (Royals)
#178 Raul Mondesi (Dodgers)

Pack 35:
#123 Travis Lee - Copper (Dbacks)
#099 Fred McGriff (Rays)
#105 Rusty Greer (Rangers)
#187 John Jaha (Brewers)
#047 Bobby Higginson (Tigers)
#104 Juan Gonzalez (Rangers)

Pack 36:
#186 Marquis Grissom - Copper (Brewers)
#016 Tony Gwynn - Special Delivery (Padres)
#241 Quilvio Veras (Padres)
#161 Charles Johnson (Marlins)
#024 John Valentin (Red Sox)
#020 Nomar Garciaparra (Red Sox)

These Special Delivery inserts are pretty cool looking.  The back looks like a post card while the front looks like a postage stamp with the die-cut deckle edge.

That wraps up 2 of 3 boxes in the break.  I hope everyone enjoyed the 2 Pacific offerings.  If I can find more Pacific releases I'll grab 'em up.  I'd love to find a box of Pacific Vantage at some point.  6 more packs of Gold Label left and it's coming up next!

April 2013 Affordable Group Break - 1998 Pacific Paramount

I think I listed the Paramount box had 24 packs when it actually has 36!  I'll rip another 12 packs in this sitting so let's see what we get this time around.

Pack 13:
#234 Kevin Brown - Copper (Padres)
#050 Bip Roberts (Tigers)
#176 Paul Konerko (Dodgers)
#193 Steve Falteisek (Expos)
#221 Jose Guillen (Pirates)
#147 Barry Larkin (Reds)

Pack 14:
#145 Dave Burba - Copper (Reds)
#249 Robb Nen (Giants)
#049 Todd Jones (Tigers)
#192 Orlando Cabrera (Expos)
#046 Tony Clark (Tigers)
#107 Ivan Rodriguez (Rangers)

Pack 15:
#106 Roberto Kelly - Copper (Rangers)
#116 Ed Sprague (Jays)
#211 Bobby Estalella (Phillies)
#146 Lenny Harris (Reds)
#006 Chuck Finley (Angels)
#138 Mark Grace (Cubs)

Pack 16:
#099 Fred McGriff - Copper (Rays)
#123 Travis Lee (Dbacks)
#152 Ellis Burks (Rockies)
#140 Mickey Morandini (Cubs)
#092 Dan Wilson (Mariners)
#235 Ken Caminiti (Padres)
#016 Rafael Palmeiro (Orioles)

Pack 17:
#159 Todd Dunwoody - Copper (Marlins)
#022 Pedro Martinez (Red Sox)
#222 Al Martin (Pirates)
#180 Chan Ho Park (Dodgers)
#033 Robin Ventura (White Sox)
#069 Derek Jeter (Yankees)

Pack 18:
#100 Paul Sorrento - Copper (Rays)
#127 Andres Galarraga (Braves)
#247 Brian Johnson (Giants)
#109 John Wetteland (Rangers)
#039 Charles Nagy (Indians)
#217 Curt Schilling (Phillies)

Pack 19:
#118 Brian Anderson - Copper (Dbacks)
#014 Ozzie Guillen (Orioles)
#102 John Burkett (Rangers)
#204 Todd Hundley (Mets)
#055 Jeff King (Royals)
#132 Javy Lopez (Braves)

Pack 20:
#125 Matt Williams - Copper (Dbacks)
#012 Joe Carter (Orioles)
#137 Jeff Blauser (Cubs)
#153 Vinny Castilla (Rockies)
#021 Reggie Jefferson (Phillies)
#032 Frank Thomas (White Sox)

Pack 21:
#094 Wade Boggs - Copper (Rays)
#095 Miguel Cairo - Copper (Rays)
#166 Moises Alou (Astros)
#205 Butch Huskey (Mets)
#081 Jason McDonald (A's)
#072 Paul O'Neill (Yankees)
#027 Albert Belle (White Sox)

Woohoo! An extra Copper parallel...but why does it have to be another Rays player?!

Pack 22:
#143 Aaron Boone - Copper (Reds)
#077 Tom Candiotti (A's)
#052 Kevin Appier (Royals)
#177 Ramon Martinez (Dodgers)
#044 Raul Casanova (Tigers)
#157 Larry Walker (Rockies)

Pack 23:
#077 Tom Candiotti - Copper (A's)
#082 Aaron Small (A's)
#213 Gregg Jefferies (Phillies)
#134 Denny Neagle (Braves)
#013 Eric Davis (Orioles)
#128 Tom Glavine (Braves)

Pack 24:
#249 Robb Nen - Copper (Giants)
#123 Travis Lee (Dbacks)
#209 Rey Ordonez (Mets)
#066 Terry Steinbach (Twins)
#065 Brad Radke (Twins)
#112 Jose Cruz, Jr. (Jays)

Well that wasn't the best stretch of 12 packs.  Perhaps the last 12 will contain the other Team Checklist die-cut and the Special Delivery die-cut.

April 2013 Affordable Group Break - 1998 Pacific Paramount

Changing gears, let's rip a few packs of the inaugural issue of Pacific Paramount.  This time around we have one copper hobby exclusive parallel per pack and a chance at several different die-cut inserts (Team Checklist 2:37, Special Delivery 1:37, Fielder's Choice 1:73) as well as more parallels and inserts (Platinum Blue 1:73, Holographic Silver #'d to 99, Pacific Proofs #'d to 20, Cooperstown Bound 1:361).  Let's see how we do.

Due to formatting errors, all scanned cards will appear at the bottom of the post.

Pack 1:
#022 Pedro Martinez - Copper (Red Sox)
#120 Andy Benes (Dbacks)
#231 Ray Lankford (Cardinals)
#074 Mariano Rivera (Yankees)
#076 Mark Bellhorn (Pirates)
#169 Craig Biggio (Astros)
#075 Bernie Williams (Yankees)

Pack 2:
#035 Geronimo Berroa - Copper (Indians)
#101 Kevin Stocker - Copper (Rays)
#143 Aaron Boone (Reds)
#182 Ismael Valdes (Dodgers)
#230 Brian Jordan (Cardinals)
#028 Ray Durham (White Sox)
#131 Ryan Klesko (Braves)

Bonus copper parallel in that pack!

Pack 3:
#178 Raul Mondesi - Copper (Dodgers)
#155 Darryl Kile (Rockies)
#135 John Smoltz (Braves)
#207 Brian McRae (Royals)
#090 Alex Rodriguez (Mariners)
#237 Tony Gwynn (Padres)

Pack 4:
#012 Joe Carter - Copper (Orioles)
#145 Dave Burba (Reds)
#202 John Franco (Mets)
#108 Fernando Tatis (Ranger)
#059 Larry Sutton (Royals)
#009 Tim Salmon (Angels)

Pack 5:
#082 Aaron Small - Copper (A's)
#159 Todd Dunwoody (Marlins)
#238 Wally Joyner (Padres)
#141 Kevin Orie (Cubs)
#015 Mike Mussina (Orioles)
#040 Manny Ramirez (Indians)

Pack 6:
#009 Tim Salmon - Copper (Angels)
#163 Darrek Lee (Marlins)
#188 Doug Jones (Astros)
#078 Jason Giambi (A's)
#061 Marty Cordova (Twins)
#115 Pat Hentgen (Jays)

Pack 7:
#158 Bobby Bonilla - Copper (Marlins)
#119 Jay Bell (Dbacks)
#206 Bobby Jones (Mets)
#223 Abraham Nunez (Pirates)
#034 Sandy Alomar, Jr. (Indians)
#167 Jeff Bagwell (Astros)

Pack 8:
#124 Devon White - Copper (Dbacks)
#022 Mike Piazza - Team Checklist (Dodgers)
#210 Ricky Bottalico (Phillies)
#162 Mark Kotsay (Marlins)
#023 Tim Naehring (Red Sox)
#103 Will Clark (Rangers)

Are first die-cut insert, Team Checklist goes to gcrl and the Dodgers!  One more should be lurking somewhere inside the box.

Pack 9:
#050 Bip Roberts - Copper (Tigers)
#124 Devon White (Dbacks)
#200 Edgardo Alfonso (Mets)
#060 Rick Aguilera (Twins)
#083 Miguel Tejada (A's)
#041 Jim Thome (Indians)

Pack 10:
#154 Todd Helton - Copper (Rockies)
#091 David Segui (Mariners)
#197 F.P. Santangelo (Expos)
#218 Adrian Brown (Pirates)
#018 B.J. Surhoff (Orioles)
#133 Greg Maddux (Braves)

Pack 11:
#014 Ozzie Guillen - Copper (Orioles)
#164 Edgar Renteria (Marlins)
#048 Brian Hunter (Tigers)
#085 Joey Cora (Mariners)
#246 Stan Javier (Giants)
#014 Tony Gwynn - Fielder's Choice (Padres)

Boom!  I was hoping we'd hit one of these laser cut Fielder's Choice cards. 1:73, not bad.

Pack 12:
#163 Derrek Lee - Copper (Marlins)
#125 Matt Williams (Dbacks)
#248 Jeff Kent (Giants)
#185 Todd Dunn (Brewers)
#030 Jaime Navarro (White Sox)
#179 Hideo Nomo (Dodgers)

Plenty more Paramount packs to rip, but I'm feeling the desire to bust into some Gold Label next!

April 2013 Affordable Group Break Redux - ALL NEW Boxes selected!

Earlier this week I posted sign-ups for one of my Affordable Group Breaks, but it appears I may have struck out when it came to the product selection.  That said I went back to the drawing board and selected 3 new boxes.  Hopefully this time the boxes will be a little more attractive and more than 4 people will sign up.

Speaking of the 4 people that did sign up and pay for the old break - you have first dibs at your team selected.  If you choose not to go ahead with the new selections your money will be promptly refunded and your team will be released.

The break will once again be sponsored by the great guys at the Baseball Card Exchange!

1998 Pacific Online

- 24 packs, 9 cards per pack

- 750 card set

- 2 different versions of the top 20 players (alt. photo)

INSERTS

- Team Checklist (1:3)

- Gold Team Checklist (1:24)

- Web Cards (1:1)

1998 Pacific Paramount (Hobby)

- 36 packs, 6 cards per pack

Possible RCs include Jimmy Rollins, Troy Glaus, Carlos Lee & Kevin Millar

INSERTS

- Copper parallel (hobby exclusive) (1:1)

- Platinum Blue parallel (1:73)

- Cooperstown Bound (1:361)

- Fielder's Choice Laser Cut (1:73)

- Team Checklist die-cuts (1:37)

2000 Topps Gold Label (Hobby)

- 24 packs, 5 cards per pack

INSERTS
- Gold #'d 100 (1:68)

- Bullion (1:32)

- End of the Rainbow (1:7)

- Prospector's Dream (1:16)

- The Treasury (1:13)

After crunching the numbers it comes out to $10.50 per slot.  14 slots available.  Because the USPS jacked international rates nearly 400%, I'm asking those outside the U.S. to add an extra $5 for shipping ($15.50 total).  Additional slots can be purchased for a discount of $2.  Pick a team and the 2nd team will be randomized.  The faster you pay the sooner I can place the order and get to ripping packs.  If for some reason we can't get 14 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) Braves (Cardboard Collections) (PAID)
02) Dodgers (grcl) (PAID)
03) Yankees (Dutch Card Guy) (PAID)
04) Astros (That Astros Guy / @SWVLguy) (PAID)
05) Pirates (NY Hitman 23) (PAID)
06) Orioles (Ryan H) (PAID)
07) Cubs (Spiegel83) (PAID)
08) Giants (arpsmith) (PAID)
09) Rockies (hiflew) (PAID)
10) Royals (Josh D.) (PAID)
11) Cardinals (madding) (PAID)
12) Mets (Carlos Salgado) (PAID)
13) Brewers (cynicalbuddha) (PAID)
14)
15)