Gint-a-cuffs II: The department of redundancy department

I bought a blaster of 2010 Allen & Ginter Sunday. If you remember, the point in which a set ceases to be "new" is when I find a blaster of the stuff in my neighborhood.

So that means all we're showing on Gint-a-Cuffs now are cards everyone has seen a zillion times before: "Oh, geez, there's that guy surrounded by flames again. When is someone going to show something interesting?"

I hear ya. But I'm in the middle of a contest here. It's a contest I won't win, but that never stopped the Cubs from finishing a season did it?

So I am continuing on, but first I'll show you the highlights of the blaster. It wasn't too bad for the first blaster, even if I pulled a few short-print doubles, which annoys me to no end.

There was one of those World's Biggest minis, which apparently are retail only. I like this one. You can't get much bigger than a mountain or Mount Everest. So I think I've got the King of Big here. Awesome.

I'm no X Games fan or a follower of skateboarding, but cool is cool and a black bordered card of Tony Hawk is cool. I'd display a hand gesture that meant "awesome" or "rock on," but I have no idea what that is anymore.

Yay! A relic in my first A&G blaster of the year! After hitting blaster relics fairly regularly in 2008, I pulled an oh-for in 2009 and was royally agitated. Glad to be back.

A&G White Sox relics come my way quite frequently. In fact, I'm building a decent stack of cards for Steve at White Sox Cards that I'll have to send as a care package for the White Sox blowing that game against the Twins on Sunday, which was very similar to the way the Dodgers blew their game against the Cardinals. ... OK, I don't want to talk about that anymore.

On to Packs 19-21 in the Ginter-Stakes. Set your phasers on "meh."

PACK 19

1. #73 - Avery Jenkins (0 points). Disc golf champ. I learned a whole mess about disc golf from the Kiddie page in the newspaper last week. Really. I did.
2. #63 - Matt Carson (0 points). He's an Athletic, for clarification.
3. #200 - Lance Berkman (0 points)
4. #198 - A.J. Pierzynski (minus 1 point because we're biased against the Polish? I don't know. This one confuses me).

5. #AGA - JCL - Jeff Clement autograph relic (15 points).

Yes, that is correct. I just received an autograph card of Pittsburgh Pirate who is hitting .189 in 45 games this year.

I RULE!!!!!!

I think that might be the worst autograph pull in the whole set.

(*reviews checklist*)

OK, let me revise that a little. Among baseball players on the auto checklist, this is definitely a bottom-five pull. There are probably several non-ballplayers that I'd be more disgusted with than Mr. Clement here, only because I don't recognize half the names I am reading (never a good sign).

Besides, Clement has a speaking part in the most aired commercial of the entire baseball season:

He's the guy who says: "How about a pizza party for all of Pittsburgh?" Or at least we're led to believe he says that.

OK. I'm keeping the relic now. It will get an honored spot right next to my A&G Fred Lewis bat relic from last year.

6. #27 - Brad Hawpe mini (0 points). The rare regular-back base mini. I think this is just the 4th or 5th one of the box.

7. #TDH68 - Brian McCann, This Date in History (1 point). The man who sparked the National League's 25-year All-Star winning streak.

Pack 19 total: 15 points
Total so far: 143.6 points

PACK 20

1. #232 - Hubertus "Master of Hellfire" Wawra (0 points). No, I'm not showing it. You've seen it a hundred times. Guy with red eyes surrounded by hot orange misery.
2. #219 - Adam Wainwright (0 points)
3. #248 - Jason Marquis (0 points)
4. #127 - Albert Pujols (0 points). I said this last year: how the hell is he not anyone's favorite player?
5. #298 - Jorge Cantu (0 points)

6. #344 - Derek Holland (2 points, SP)

7. #TDH45 - Miguel Cabrera, This Date in History (1 point)

And that's it!

I'VE BEEN SHORTED A MINI!!!!! BASTARDS!! I TAKE BACK EVERYTHING I SAID NICE ABOUT TOPPS AND THIS BOX! WHAT KIND OF EVIL SCHEME ARE YOU PEOPLE RUNNING HERE?????

Pack 20 (minus one card that is rightfully mine): 3 points
Total so far: 146.6 points

Displeased.

PACK 21

1. #140 - Brandon Allen (0 points)
2. #99 - Anthony Gatto (0 points). Juggler. Viva Las Vegas.
3. #269 - A.J. Burnett (minus 1 point). Tattoo pie boy hurt his hands in a temper-tantrum because he gave up a home run. Either that or his diaper was soiled.
4. #224 - Ian Stewart (0 points)
5. #120 - Nick Swisher (minus 1 point). Another favorite. Somebody please knock off the Yankees.
6. #282 - Tyson Ross (0 points). He's an Athletic, for clarification, again.

7. #LO10 - Gaea (3 points, Lords of Olympus insert). The back says Gaea is "something of a mythological Mother Nature." OK, but I don't think Mother Nature is real either. But I know what they're saying.

8. #TD32 - Adrian Gonzalez, This Date in History (1 point for TDIH +2 for favorite player list. 3 points)

Pack 21 total: 4 points
Total so far: 150.6 points

Bleah.

Excuse me while I mope about the missing mini for the next 18 hours.