What year is it?

 

Oh, Topps, you know me. You know us. So knocked sideways by everything that's been going on in the world the last couple of years, we're not even sure what year it is half the time.

So now is the perfect time to put out a card set made one year ago -- heck, the year of production is right on the box! -- and hope we don't even notice.

I was certainly in that state yesterday. I attended calling hours for my former co-worker who passed last weekend (funeral was earlier today), and I had already made sure I wouldn't be at the office much that day. It was the perfect opportunity to head to the opposite side of town for some retail therapy.

The card shelf was full again. I had my picks. Flagship. Heritage. Opening Day. But the Big League jumped out at me. I saw the "2021." I knew half the players wouldn't be with the teams depicted. I still bought it.

 

I can't help but wonder what casual collectors think, those who don't know that Big League was pushed back an entire year after repeated broken release date promises, when they see cards on the shelf with a 2021 date next to other cards that read 2022.

Will this stuff even sell to anyone but hobby diehards like me? Will people buy it and then come back to the return desk saying, "this is old," like they bought stale donuts from the bakery?

So, anyway, I'm here for you with a blaster of 2021 Big League. I'm not going to show every card, mostly because a lot of these will probably be included in the ongoing giveaway. I'll show a couple each pack. Plus I'm going to document how many cards show players who aren't with the team shown.

Join me as we go back in time.

PACK 1

Favorite card: (tie): Mookie Betts and Gavin Lux

 

 

Most notable card: Tyler Stephenson rookie, blue parallel

The blue parallels are 5 per blaster box. The cool thing about them is they're thrown in as extras in the packs and don't count in the 10-pack total.

 

Cards featuring players no longer with those teams: 2.

PACK 2

Favorite card: Clayton Kershaw

 

Most notable card: J.T. Realmuto, Defensive Wizards insert

I think the look of these "Defensive Wizards" are a step up over the similar-themed Big League insert from the last set.

Cards featuring players no longer with those teams: 2.

PACK 3

Favorite card: Byron Buxton, Wanted poster insert

I always enjoy a good wanted poster design. I even had one created for a feature we did on a high school player probably 25 years ago now. I guess it's a played-out design but I still like it.

 

Most notable card: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Souvenirs insert

Fairly lame insert idea and look. Unless Topps is going to put a special spin on the idea, I'm done with home run-themed inserts.

Cards featuring players no longer with those teams: 3.

PACK 4

Favorite card: Ronald Acuna Jr.

This automatically heads to the night card binder.

Most notable card: It's an Orange Ohtani!

Cards featuring players no longer with those teams: 1.

PACK 5

Favoritte card: Big League celebrating the 2020 World Series MVP in 2022. I'm down with it.

Most notable card: Mike Yastrzemski, Art of the Game insert

A three-cards-per-blaster is much too plentiful for each to scream "congratulations" on the back.

Cards featuring players no longer with those teams: 2 (throw in a few guys now toiling in the minors and one who retired and that total is now 6).

 

PACK 6

 

 Favorite cards: Cody Bellinger, Defensive Wizard insert

This also serves as the most notable card in the pack. Otherwise not very exciting.

Cards featuring players no longer with those teams: 4.

PACK 7

Favorite card: Walker Buehler, orange parallel

 

Most notable card: I guess, if you're still clinging to the notion that Tatis is going to save baseball for us all.

 

Cards featuring players no longer with those teams: 2.

 

PACK 8

Favorite card: Cody Bellinger, Wanted Poster insert

I'm cleaning up with the Bellinger inserts in this box. Notice that both of them are related to his fielding ... not his hitting.

Most notable card: I'll give it up for Ian Anderson, the Upstate New York boy, although I'm not very happy about the Braves part.

Cards featuring players no longer with those teams: 2.

 

 

PACK 9

 

Favorite card: Jonah Heim. I had no idea that Heim was from Buffalo until my sister-in-law, who lives there, pointed it out to me.

There is no notable card unless you count TWO colored parallels leaders cards with Marcell Ozuna on both of them. Ick.

Cards featuring players no longer with those teams: 3.

 

PACK 10

Most notable card: Victor Robles, black-and-white parallel

A nice reminder that Topps is still inserting low-numbered parallels of players on teams that almost no one collects.

Cards featuring players no longer with those teams: 3.

 

That ends the blaster report.

 

I did pretty well with Dodgers. I also did well with Dodgers in the Big League box breaks over at Nachos Grande. I guess it's time to put up a want list!

 

Outside of that, not much more to say about the long-delayed Big League. The design is OK, nothing all that interesting to me. The backs still have the same Big League interesting factoids ("Last Halloween, Tony [Gonsolin] dressed as Lieutenant Dan - Gary Siniese's character from Forrest Gump.").

 

 

There are still the cards you can cut off the back of the box, although I forgot about that and didn't look to see if there was anyone that fit my collection better than Harper (doubtful, if I'm guessing the others are Ohtani, Trout and Tatis).

I doubt I'll buy more of this though.

Topps can only prey on my weaknesses so many times.