Not hot

Oh, Fairfield, you got me again.

I knew you would get me. I knew it before I even bought the box. I knew it as soon as I saw a series of "Hot Corner Boxes" hanging neatly from a peg from the card supply in the back of Target.

These were new. And so tidy. The boxes are simple, small and to the point. One hobby pack. Two hits. Four total packs. What's not to like?

OK, so there was no sign of a price anywhere. That's not to like. Nothing on the box. No tags on the hooks like with the other display items. "Take a gamble," the box was saying. All of the other packs on the wall were saying the same thing, but this one was screaming to me. "I'm new! I'm simple! I'm Fairfield!"

So I took one. Knowing Fairfield had gotten me.

I walked to the checkout and scanned my items. I scanned the Hot Corner Box. It rang up $14.95.

Yikes. I should take this back right now.

But I didn't. Two hits, you know. And a hobby pack.

I arrived home and opened the box. The two hits fell out of the box unprotected, along with the four packs.

OK, basically what I expect of "hits" from a Fairfield product. The Adam Dunn card is not bad.

Meanwhile, the Robbie Beckett card is not bad in the most wonderfully awful way possible. Beckett has that very 1990s story of a No. 1 draft pick (by the Padres) who could throw 100 mph but couldn't figure out where it was going. He toiled in the minors for awhile before the Marlins took a chance on him (that's where we find him with this card). Then he went to the Rockies, where he made his MLB debut. He pitched in just seven games total PROBABLY BECAUSE HE HAD TO SIGN EIGHT THOUSAND SIX HUNDRED AND FIFTY SIGNATURE ROOKIES CARDS.

I know that certainly would kill my interest in a major league career.

All right, let's see the packs. That's the reason why I actually bought the thing (I have to have a reason, don't I?)

This is not too bad, although the fact that the hobby pack is 2008 Bowman Chrome is quite disappointing. I can't even make back my money if I pull a Joba Chamberlain card.

I opened them in order of interest.

2017 Topps Series 2 was first. The cards of most interest to me:

And the most unfortunate card of the pack:

This really underlines the terribleness of the 2017 design. You can't see one-third of the play.

2018 Topps Series 2 came next.

Just two interesting cards. T'was a dull pack all around.

The most unfortunate card is of Travis Wood because I can tell he's photoshopped into a Tigers uniform, which isn't even really that difficult a task since he's wearing a Padres uniform and those two teams practically wear the same colors.

Let's go with the 2018 Stadium Club pack next. All 5 cards of it.

Mike Trout is the most interesting card just because people seem to find him most interesting. I'm not one of those people. Also, this was probably the dullest Stadium Club pack I've ever opened. Matt Chapman. Jimmie Sherfy. This guy?:

Some Yankee fan is probably thinking this is a most charming card and it's not because it's Brett Gardner, and, oh, I need to burn all my Brett Gardner cards immediately.

I ended this pack-opening session with the Bowman pack against my best instincts. But since I threw all my instincts out the window when I bough the box I figured I'd continue the theme. There were no instincts left.

Most interesting card.

Most unfortunate card. For all the Brett Gardner reasons plus many more. There were FOUR CARDS in this pack and one has to be this guy?

The two "first Bowman cards" weren't any better.

Dodger fans, remember Carlos Monasterios?

Yeah, you don't need to tell me I shouldn't have bought this. I knew that before I even bought it. It's probably not a waste of money though as I like the Peter Gammons card a lot and I know I can trade that Adam Dunn card somewhere. And it will prevent me from buying anything Fairfield for a number of months.

Not hot.