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Come to me

 
I put the two Target gift cards I received for my birthday to good use. It's always fun to try out some new card content once in awhile. I'll never go cold turkey on that stuff.

I ordered these online, which was a pain (Target tried to withdraw from my bank account despite clearly accepting my gift cards), and I blame that mostly on the card hoarders. People try to say that "things are back to normal" in the card world with cards "back on the shelf." But those are still nonexistent at the Walmarts near me and extremely hit-and-miss at the Targets. Hoarders and Topps' inability to distribute cards at multiple locations, which it did for the entirety of my collecting from 1975-94, are to blame for this continued bullshit.
 
But the card boxes happily arrived on a Sunday, of all days, and it was fun to open them. Both are items I would never buy with my hard-earned cash, but they're fun to look through with someone else's!
 
I'm going to show the 2021 Chrome Platinum this time around. Maybe I'll show the Series 2 box another time, we'll see.
 
 
I've been intrigued by this delayed product ever since I saw singles from it pop up on ebay. I didn't even know it existed until that point. I'm also fascinated by the fact that this set should annoy me, but it doesn't. Despite it being absolutely enormous (700 cards), packed with an obnoxious number of rookies I've never heard of, and every card printed on the beyond-tired 1952 design, I think the cards are quite sharp. I don't know if I can even explain why I like it.
 
Let's see if you agree:

Pack 1


#340 - Danny Mendick, White Sox
#517 - Jeff Bagwell, Astros
#331 - Brandon Crawford, Giants
#81 - Ryan Weathers, Padres (prism gold)

I don't buy current blasters much anymore but anytime I do, all the annoying things about them come rushing back. Pulling Giants. Pulling White Sox and Padres. Both this box and the Series 2 box were teaming with White Sox and Padres, which do me absolutely no good. But again, not my money.
 
 
Pack 2
 

#100 - Seth Romero, Nationals
#414 - Ender Inciarte, Braves
#116 - Michael Kopech, White Sox
#56 - Taylor Jones, Astros, prism refractor

Probably the low point of the break. Eight cards to this point and absolutely nothing I am interested in. But it'll pick up a little.
 
A pack like this is a good time to show the card back.
 

That's the familiar '52 back (red back, not black back) with a limited year-by-year list of stats, which Topps didn't have to do because all Topps listed in 1952 was the previous year and lifetime stats. Also, these cards swap out the bio writing from '52 with a couple of bullet-point highlights.


Pack 3


#323 - Randy Arozarena, Rays
#336 - Rougned Odor, Rangers
#227 - Nelson Cruz, Twins
#376 - Chance Sisco, Orioles, blue prism refractor

The blue prisms would look nice with Dodgers, I suspect. (probably for Mets, Cubs, Jays and Royals, too).


Pack 4


#459 - Carlos Martinez, Cardinals
#617 - Ernie Banks, Cubs
#471 - Luis Urias, Brewers
#PA-TM - Triston McKenzie, Indians, on-card auto
 
The base autos in this product are snazzy and they're not too difficult to pull at one per 57 packs. Probably explains why these are $50 per 36 cards.


Pack 5


#200 - Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays
#692 - Andres Galarraga, Rockies
#605 - Tony Gwynn, Padres
#500 - Derek Lee, Cubs, prism refractor

Here we go. The first thing that caught my eye with this product were the players from the '80s and prior. I love 'em. The '90s guys don't do much for me, but 😍😍😍 that Gwynn and anyone around that time or before.


Pack 6


#499 - Reggie Jackson, Yankees
#510 - Tom Glavine, Braves
#106 - Jimmy Lambert, White Sox
#464 - Brendan McKay, Rays

See how the packs perk up with guys like Reggie and Glavine? OK, the second two really bring things back to earth, but I could stare at that Jackson for awhile. I just hope the background is actually real.


Pack 7


#436 - Dinelson Lamet, Padres
#10 - Clarke Schmidt, Yankees
#297 - Jake Arrieta, Cubs
#530 - Edgar Martinez, Mariners, red atomic refractor 88/100

Martinez came out of the pack staring squarely at me. I get the feeling this was the rarest card in the box. I shouldn't complain about a Hall of Famer, but it could've been 100 other guys and I'd have been happier.


Pack 8


#315 - Wil Myers, Padres
#456 - Nick Senzel, Reds
#526 - Juan Marichal, Giants
#658- Jack Morris, Tigers, prism refractor

That Marichal is fairly phenomenal. Put that next to some of the rookie cards in that set and those cards should, by all rights, melt. I'll never get over seeing titans like Marichal in the same product with some rookie who will be lucky to post a 5.00 ERA over 17 starts in the majors.


Pack 9


#599 - Garret Anderson, Angels
#610 - Jackie Robinson, Dodgers
#453 - Ian Kennedy, Rangers
#76 - Rafael Marchan, Phillies

Wooo! A Dodger in the final pack! Finally! And a good one!

It's been a long time since I've been attracted to a chrome product like I am with this one. There's no way I'll even think about attempting to complete it. Too large, too many rookies and I have a feeling collation is crap.

But for zero dollars, hell, it's quite a buy.

It feels good to do a modern box break on the blog again. Maybe when Allen & Ginter shows up, I'll do one again.

That's one set that has a chance on the shelves when it comes to the hoarders.

Comments

CrazieJoe said…
With the design, the on card auto base cards do look really really nice. Definitely helps when buying new product these days, to use "other people's money" as it takes a bit of the sting out of it.
Thanks for posting these. I find them all extremely fake looking. Perhaps that's intentional, but there's nothing seemingly nice or remarkable about these cards.
Dennis said…
Hi Greg,

I'm glad to see a break of these too. Will you please let me know if the Jack Morris is available? I've got a few things from your Dodger wants I'll be sending your way either way. Thanks!

Dennis
Nick said…
I didn't even know this set was available via retail. Can't see spending any money out of my own pocket on it (kinda burnt out on the '52 design), but seems like a gift card well spent! Really like that Tony Gwynn in particular.
night owl said…
Hi, Dennis. Yup, I'll set the Morris aside for you, no problem.
Nachos Grande said…
First set I've seen this year that is intriguing to me. I'll probably not buy any (price point seems too high and as a set collector, well, there's no way I could ever build the whole thing). Still, nice cards. Thanks for sharing!
Jeremya1um said…
I’m kind of surprised that you picked a set like that, but I can see how it appeals to you with the retired guys.
Glad you pulled the Jackie Robinson. Didn’t you do a post on how many different versions of the ‘52 Robinson you have? Would this one count as another one even though the photo is different?
bryan was here said…
Derrek Lee? Garret Anderson? Boy, Topps is really reaching for some of these guys. Wouldn't be surprised if they tried to sneak JD Drew or Mark Whiten in future sets...

I will definitely agree that the Marichal looks amazing. That Triston McKenzie looks great too. Forgot for a second these were '21 cards, therefore still technically the Indians.
madding said…
I don't like anything about this set.
Old Cards said…
I prefer your posts about vintage cards, but I can see why you post about modern cards. Your readers respond with comments. Gotta love madding's honesty.
Fuji said…
Building a 700 card set from 4 card packs (36 card boxes) would be a beast of a build. I've watched a few box breaks and I like the look of some of the photos used. I think the cheesy posed portraits (Lamet) and action (Cruz) actually work with the 1952 design. Congratulations on pulling Jackie in the final pack... and that awesome Gwynn.
Grant said…
I'm slowly building this base set. I'll probably never pull the Mantle SSP, but, maybe! Nice parallel pulls.
defgav said…
I was a sucker who paid for a slot in a pair of group breaks of this stuff split by player. Three friggin cases of the stuff and I didn't even pull one base card of my guy (Dick Allen), much less one of the many shiny parallels available. Oof! Big checklist and few cards per box.. guess I should have known better.
Anyways, I'd be happy to find something you need if you're looking for a home for the Padres you pulled.. that Gwynn and the gold Weathers are pretty nice!
Anonymous said…
Yeah, it's funny how guys like Reggie, Marichal,& Robinson will be considered commons compared to a rookie.
John I. said…
Hey, I kind of like this set. Weird. Great that you got it for free!

GTT
Dennis said…
Sorry you got skunked, Gavin, that sucks! This definitely feels like a product you let the group breakers have at and then buy your singles later. Like Fuji said it would take forever and a ton of money to put it together via packs.

Greg, thanks for setting the Jack Morris aside. I just got a PWE out to you this afternoon and I hope it makes it there safely. Nothing too crazy but they should all be needs for you.
I like the set too. The Braves have 35 cards and I need 4 more.
Jafronius said…
That Gwynn looks so different from the others I thought it was a variation. I'm more used to chrome for cards where there could be action, but thanks for posting the packs!