Tuesday, February 17, 2009

2009 Topps: At Last.

Jarrod Saltalamacchia by you.
Believe it or not, I had to go clear across the country to get my first few packs of 2009 cards! It's true. Last week it was mid-February, and it had been at least a week since the official release of Topps and Upper Deck. Here in Maryland, I went to my local Wal-Mart: nothing. Target: nothing. Wal-Mart in particular had a pathetic slate of offerings. A feeder box of Timeline and a few blister packs of Stadium Club. The rest was football and basketball, including blasters of 2007-2008 Topps basketball. W. T. F. So I visited some friends in San Diego over the holiday weekend, and Saturday night they took me out to get my first In-N-Out Burger (delicious, by the way. Burger and fries were both top-notch.), and we stopped at Wal-Mart on the way back to the house. FINALLY. They had a feeder box of 2009 Topps, with A-Rod's chemically-enhanced visage plastered all over it. I picked up four packs, and got no Orioles. But the first card of the first pack I opened was a Padre - Chris Young, to be exact. Neat coincidence. So here's the fourth pack of the four.

52 Marco Scutaro - Did you know he was from Venezuela?

316 Brian Stokes - Not to be confused with Brian Stokes Mitchell, though this Mets righty does have a heavenly singing voice.

68 Kyle Lohse - Seriously dude, Kyle Lohse won 15 games last year. He hadn't racked up double-digit wins in a season since 2003.

124 Reed Johnson - Had the rare honor of being heckled mercilessly by yours truly when he played right field for the Jays as a rookie in 2003. The joke was on me, as he delivered a crucial hit in Toronto's win over the Orioles. But I did get the t-shirt giveaway, so it's not all bad.
Reed Johnson by you.

65 Mike Pelfrey - Big Pelf had a solid '08, going 13-11 with a 3.72 ERA.

61 Classic Combos: Lance Berkman & Carlos Lee - "Bash-stros". That's cute. I see they're using the combo cards as checklists this year. That's a pretty good idea, I'd say.

LG19 Bob Gibson Legends of the Game - I assume this is the Wal-Mart exclusive version of the insert. Great action photo, which you don't get to see often from old-timers.
Bob Gibson by you.

TTT22 Tim Lincecum ToppsTown - Does anyone actually use these cards? Is it worth your while?

317 Jarrod Saltalamacchia - Great photo showing Salty's back, so you can see all 14 letters crammed onto his jersey.

220 Jay Bruce - Rookie Cup! Do you know why I love Six Degrees of Mantle? Because it's your only chance to see Manny Trillo's name on a 2009 baseball card.

48 Mike Napoli - I just read that his shoulder might make it necessary for him to DH at the beginning of the season. Just what the Halos need...another DH.

42 Jeff Francoeur - "...many believe he's still far from reaching his potential." That's sugar-coating it, huh?

I love the minimal design, the extra stats on the back, and the improved photography. As long as Topps doesn't get obnoxious with the "error cards" again, I might be set-building.

5 comments:

PunkRockPaint said...

Did you get the Double Double @ In-n-Out? I hope they suggested ordering your burger "Animal Style".

Next time you are in San Diego, feel free to stop by the offices of PunkRockPaint, Inc.

Travis

Greg said...

Let me know if you decide to build the set, I've got a couple hundred duplicates.

Sooz said...

When I went to LA last yeat for five days, I had In-N-Out Burger three times.

Kevin said...

PRP - Just the regular cheeseburger. Had to leave room for Rice Krispies Treats. :)

dayf said...

That Gibson is the regular version of the Legends cards. The Target and Wal-Mart exclusives have wither G for gold or P for Platinum in the number. I'm still waiting for a blaster to see the new box toppers.